章 39: Constant Grind with Matsuo's Assistance!

Frank glanced at the Magic Crystals as he tried to focus his mind on them, just as he had done for the Mana Cores of Terra, he thought that they might be capable of helping him on his cultivation through their absorption…

Ding!

"Ah, there it is!" thought Frank.

[Source of materialized energy detected]

[Source: [Magic Crystal (Rank 1)] cannot be absorbed to increase Cultivation Rank]

[Mana Core Cultivation can only be hastened through the absorption of the original's world materialized energy source]

"So I can't… I only can use Mana Cores from Terra… Is there anything else I could do with it though?" wondered Frank as he kept focusing his mind.

Ding!

[User can convert [Magic Crystal (Rank 1)] into 1 App Point]

[Convert?]

[>Yes No]

"Wait…! I can?! I wonder if I can do the same with Mana Cores?" wondered Frank, as he decided to dismiss the System option, for now, he was still in the middle of the Hunting Domain, and there was also Matsuo in front of him.

"This occasion will be nice to discover more of your capabilities because you seem to not even know your own…" said Matsuo with a little chuckle.

"Well, actually… I got this, but it does not help in anything battle-related" said Frank, as he grabbed the three Magic Crystals from the Goblins he killed and opened his Inventory, which showed itself as a tiny rift in space…

Matsuo glanced with disbelief on his often-closed eyes as they opened, seeing as Frank stored the Magic Crystals inside the strange space, which closed itself not much afterward.

"T-That's… Wait, since when…?!" asked Matsuo.

"I discovered it yesterday… It seems to be an inner space where I can store almost anything that is not living, even food, which will remain in some kind of homeostasis. It will not rot, and even warm food will remain warm inside… Convenient, isn't it?" said Frank. He decided to reveal this ability to Matsuo as fast as possible, as he would be using it to store items while hunting inside the Domains within the Clan.

"It reminds me of game inventories, but there are items like those in the black market… You know that only very advanced sorcerers capable of manipulating space can create them, right? But you seem to just… have it as a branched ability. You are probably one of the top ten most talented in the clan already! Storage magic is nothing to laugh at, Frank! You can become a living wagon for us" laughed Matsuo.

"…I am not too fond of that idea. But if I can earn contribution points…" said Frank.

"You actually could, but we aren't forcing you to anything, anyways, any other crazy ability you got below your sleeve? Reveal it everything, chief" said Matsuo.

"Hmmm… Well, I can produce dirt" said Frank with a plain face, as he began to produce a handful of dirt from his hands.

"…Eh? That's it?" asked Matsuo as Frank kept creating tiny amounts of dirt that even after having been generated ten times, didn't even amount to a pile.

"Yep…" said Frank with a dispirited expression on his aquamarine eyes…

"I guess you can't simply be shown with useful abilities… From a useful storage ability to a useless one… I guess you're a mixed bag of Abilities, Frank… Come on, maybe it can awaken in the future and you'll be able to shoot rocks… perhaps," laughed Matsuo.

"Hey, don't make fun of me!" said Frank.

"Haha! Well, let me do it a bit, your storage ability really surprised me…" said Matsuo while patting Frank's back.

"And what do you mean by Awakening?" asked Frank.

"You don't know? Ah, I guess you still need some basic knowledge about Abilities. You see, after having gathered enough mastery into an Ability, an Ability User will sometimes receive some kind of 'enlightenment, be it from an external source or simply by figuring it out yourself… After that, an Ability undergoes an Awakening and becomes stronger and even more useful, it can often become completely different than before… I've undergone one Awakening into my Magic Ability, which made it stronger and let me use a more varied arsenal of spells," said Matsuo.

"So that's what it is… (I wonder if my other Skills can awaken too. It seems that the max level is always ten… so maybe if they reach ten, they can evolve! Perhaps the Dirt Skill will produce a bit more dirt afterward? Or maybe a brick…)" said Frank while thinking about the possibilities of the 'Dirt' Skill awakening. Perhaps it did not seem as useless anymore? It was all up to his efforts.

While Frank and Matsuo explored the forests in search of more Goblins to slay, Frank got a sudden Quest notification, asking him to slay 20 Goblins, which in exchange would generate what the System called 'A Boss Monster Summoning'.

Frank seemed a bit intrigued over it, but could not help but guess that it might bring more riches and experience points! He set off with more energy into the hunt for green-skinned little men with Matsuo, who quickly found a group of three walking around the forest.

Frank distracted the group by firing two Mana Bullets, while Matsuo stopped their tracks with his Light Barriers, the Goblins were raging in fury as they used their wooden weapons to hit the light barriers, but without getting nowhere.

"Just how much Mana you have to maintain the barrier like nothing?" asked Frank.

"Well, I've practiced my Mana usage and regeneration for years, which will naturally make it increase for you in the long run. Mana is like muscles, it needs constant practice to show off results and grow stronger and stronger" said Matsuo, as Frank used the spear this time to impale a shrieking Goblin, while the other two evaded his attack.

"Grryyyarrr…!" The impaled Goblin gave out the last cry as it died quite quickly, Frank felt the small rush of experience points through his body as the Goblin disappeared into black smoke, leaving a tiny Magic Crystal in the ground.

"Where are you two going?" asked Matsuo, creating another Light Barrier blocking the Goblins' path.

Meanwhile, Frank pointed his palm towards the nearest Goblin as he concentrated his Mana into it.

"Mana Bullet is kind of weak… is there a way to make it stronger without wasting much Mana- Oh, I got it!" said Frank as he got a sudden inspiration within his mind, he concentrated the Mana Bullet as he began to make it spiral around itself, generating more power without spending too much Mana into it, and then firing the Spiral Mana Bullet with great speed, reaching the nearest goblin, and exploding into its face!

"Grryyaarr…!"

BOOM!

The Goblin instantly turned into black smoke as Matsuo was left surprised once again!

"What? You just… improved upon the spell-like nothing! And you did not even use that much Mana either…" said Matsuo with a bit of disbelief, this rookie was way too good!

"It's nothing much, I just made the mana that made the spell spiral around, it created more centrifugal force," said Frank.

"Is that so… Perhaps you have another ability? Mana Control is a rare ability, did you just get it as an innate too?" asked Matsuo, hitting the nail into Frank's 'talent' while Frank finished off the other Goblin through another Spiral Mana Bullet.

"I might? I can tell that I can use Mana easily, it is as if it bends to my will partially" said Frank.

"That's actually Mana Control! That explains your talent… Even if you are not using any element into your magic" said Matsuo, deactivating the barriers.

"Those are nice gifts for someone like me that got into the underworld by accident… All of you got plenty of time to get stronger, and most of the people might be able to crush me effortlessly, it is good to receive something that can let me grow faster…" said Frank.

"Hmm, I guess that's a fair enough excuse for your talent…" said Matsuo while rubbing his chin.

"Are you not gathering Magic Crystals?" asked Frank.

"Nah, grab them all with you, I am pretty much supervising you here," said Matsuo.

"Hah, alright sensei" laughed Frank as he saved the three Magic Crystals on his inventory, amounting now to six.

Frank and Matsuo kept exploring the forests and encountering more Goblins. Until they found a large group of over eight, which was a bit overwhelming for Frank, who ended up taking some hits even with Matsuo's support.

Of course, he managed to also use his Gift of Life to heal himself, and although the Goblin's attacks felt strong, they were not nearly as potent as he thought. His skin, bones, and muscles were simply tougher than before, most likely due to his leveling up and the Defense stat.

"So I can get Contribution Points by exchanging the Magic Crystals?" asked Frank.

"Yeah, that's right, kouhai! I do not think you got any use for them at the moment anyway, right? It is not like… you got any Alchemy Ability… right?" asked Matsuo with a bit of skepticism in his voice.

"Don't worry, I am not an absurd person with every Ability…" muttered Frank.

"Haha! Okay, well, you can keep them too if you want to use them for something in the future, although they're just Rank 1 Magic Crystals, so it's not like you can do much with them, bear in mind," said Matsuo.

"I see, I'll keep that in mind, senpai" said Frank with a mild smile as he kept looking for Goblins, he had slain 15 and needed five more for this Boss Monster to show up!

He was now level 6, so he probably would need the Experience Points of a Boss Monster to finally level up. Frank still wondered what could happen if he reached Level 10 in the Farmer Job.