ALL NOVEL Chapter 37: Passives
Contrary to what popular media would have you believe, Skills, in their most basic videogame style, don't actually exist.
Even in a world as mystical and unknown as Genovia, there are no one-size-fits-all "Skill" templates; instead, what exists is a seemingly infinite number of possibilities in the form of what is called Passives.
Now, sure, one could technically call them a skill, but there is way more to them than meets the eye, and as Aoni sat there staring with glazed eyes at Glacia's equivalent of a Traveler's Display, IE the Summon's Display, he felt a lump rising in his throat.
A good portion of his lessons over the years have referenced Passives heavily, and as such, he had a fairly decent grasp on what they are and, to an extent, how they are formed.
Unlike their fictional and illogical counterparts, "Skills," a being doesn't actually ACTIVATE, a Passive, no, as its namesake alludes, they are always on.
For example, Aoni's Cold Resistance isn't Something that can be turned off; instead, his body is easily able to acclimate to varying levels of "Cold."
It's the same with his Pain Resistance, but that is simply the nature of what is considered the Resistance-Series of Passives. Each one of them allows the wielder to tolerate specific conditions.
However, while it could be considered difficult to Earn a Passive, that is only in the literal sense, at least for Travelers. There exist numerous different ways to earn and even train up Passives, but the same cannot be said for Summons.
Summons are notoriously difficult to imprint Passives on due in part to their genetic makeup, along with the shift in classification because of them using the Grade system Instead of Ranks.
Technically Speaking, the Grade and Rank systems, while working in tandem, are extremely different, and without specific measuring artifacts, it is nearly impossible to put a numerical or alpha classification on them.
Basically, comparing them isn't as easy as saying Something that is Outer Fill One star = F-.
There are fundamental gaps in power between them; this is also why Monsters, beasts, creatures, or summons are technically stronger than Travelers.
But that is where intelligence, experience, and equipment come in handy; they allow travelers to fill in those gaps and stand toe-to-toe with strong foes.
This gap in power was also on full display when Glacia launched the basin, Something that even with an F- in Attack, Aoni wasn't entirely sure he could do with as much ease.
'Artic Movement, that has to be what she uses anytime Glacia is out gliding around on the snow…and Tracking, well…now that I think of it, both these passives are self-explanatory.' Tearing his eyes away from Glacia's display, the Lad examined his summon from head to toe as she flexed in a boasting manner.
'My idea may work after all…the only question is how do I go about this. Making a sled isn't necessarily difficult, given you have the right resources, considering they really only consist of three things: a hollowed-out body, skis, and a method of control.' While deep in thought, Aoni bent down, gave his summon a few congratulatory head pats, and walked over to the overturned and empty basin.
'First, I would need a basin twice this size, one that I can comfortably sit in, and given how much time it took me to make the six, I should be able to accomplish that in a few hours and with a bit of training, along with some more vines, I don't doubt I could teach Glacia how to pull it…leaving only a single issue…the skis.'
'Then again, I could probably carve some rudimentary ones; however, they won't last long…' Delving deeper into his thoughtful dilemma, a sudden idea formed in the Lad's mind as he suddenly spun on his heels and walked toward Glacia, scooped the fluff ball up into his arms, and stormed back into the cave.
The budding idea gestating in his mind was reckless, maybe even stupid, but left with few other options, Aoni felt it was going to be his only option if he wanted to make a reusable sled.
"Plus, it's not like I'll be using them permanently as such…once I find a suitable replacement, I will…but for now, it looks like my weapons will revert to their tool form yet again," Aoni mused while retrieving Vestr and Austr from beside the fireplace where he was using the heat of the flames to warm the blades back up after extensive use outside in the cold.
'If I am going to use these as skis, then I need to upgrade Austr's durability to match Vestr…which reminds me, it's been quite some time since I last checked my Progress Points…I hope they stacked up nicely; I have been quite busy after all. Here goes nothing… Open Status…' Taking a moment to center his thoughts and a deep breath, Aoni spoke the mental Command and was given a pleasant surprise, more than one at that.
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Aoni Thurston
Age: 16
Potential: Two Star/F- Rank
Rank: -F
______________________
Attribute Grade: ✫
Attribute: Progression
Progress Points: 88.62
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Statistics
Attack: F-
Defense: F-
Speed: F-
Energia: F-
______________________
Passives
Cold Resistance: F-
Pain Resistance: F-
Swordsmanship: G- (►)
Dual Swordsmanship: G- (►)
______________________
From 8.83 Progress points, Aoni had leaped massively, nearing triple digits, but that wasn't all; two new additions showed up in the Lad's Passive list: Swordsmanship and Dual Swordsmanship!
Blinking once, twice, thrice, it took a second for Aoni's brain to restart as he broke into a wide grin and danced around the cave with Glacia in his arms.
"Gaooooo OoOooOO!" Thoroughly enjoying the attention and dopamine flooding her brain alongside her Lords, Glacia whooped and was just as excited, even if she had ZERO clue as to why.
Then again, why did she need to know the reason behind the attention? The little fluff ball was only along for the ride, after all.
For the next 15 minutes, the Mountaintop cave was filled with laughter and happiness as the pair of Aoni and Glacia bobbed and danced all around the space cheerfully until finally, the excitement calmed down, and the Lad focused on his next task, Upgrading his weapons as much as possible.