"So I know what happens when I fortify my core and my ranks revert from their skills and attributes. Any idea what happens when I lose an actual grade and my level cap reduces?" I asked, a little worried about that part of what had just happened.

"If we treat it similar to transcending, you likely have a week or so before the actual effects start to hit you. This may be entirely inaccurate, though, as transcendence further strengthens your core. In this case, you apparently cracked it open." Elody's answer did nothing to reassure me of actually having that week.

"Alpha, go find Mel and bring him back here," I said as I released the mallet from my storage. "Hopefully, he knows something. I'm debating whether I should go back to the simulator right now, or wait until I add the socket to Gamma."

"I would think you should go back into the simulator right now and fortify your core again, then see if you can push even more of that fortified core energy into the next attempt. Imagine if you get a triple socket," Karlinovo replied.

"Let's wait for Mel. I don't think it's safe for Dave to fortify again until we examine his core. I'm worried the crack may have remained," Elody cut in, putting a halt to my debate about making a simulation run while we waited for Mel. I'd rather avoid ripping a bigger crack in my core if the original still existed.

"Well, now we get the fun of debating what four mana orbs you want to add to your insane setup at least," Karlinovo said. I had already realized that debate was coming, and when Pryte returned, we needed to discuss the death curse and potential ways to lift it as well.

"Ya did what?!" Mel yelled as he came in through the back door, his color dark red. "Dave, I thought we were passed ya doing near death shit!"

"Really, why?" I asked. Had I given that impression at some point?

"Well, maybe not done, but doing it without any kind of prep work at least!" he replied, his voice more a roar than it was words.

"Oh yeah, I guess. To be fair, this did seem like something I had done pretty safely multiple times before. But to get to the point, any idea what it means to crack your core, or for that matter, if mine is still cracked or not?" I asked, trying to derail his rage. I appreciated how much Mel cared about all of us, but we had issues to figure out at the moment.

"I ain't ever heard of anyone cracking their core in any way that meant anything remotely good. There are some very powerful class builds that use it, but it's basically suicide ta actually do it. It'll give ya a huge quick boost ta yer power, but ya won't survive it," Mel explained, his color shifting as the tone of his voice turned from rage to concern.

"Okay, before we get ahead of ourselves, is my core actually still cracked? Because, as far as I can tell, it sealed itself again once it finished. I got a whole core fortification pop-up, and it just went backward instead," I said, not sure that actually meant it was sealed.

"Hrm, well, yeah, ya don't seem to be leaking core energy, so that's good news. Not sure I like that this means we are back in the experiment with yer core phase of things again though," Mel replied. I was pretty sure we had never stopped being in that phase, but I decided not to stress Mel out anymore than needed.

"Well, I guess that means I'm off for a quick simulator run to see if I can get my core back to D, and then we can see what happens if I drop two core grades at once into Gamma," I said with half a smile. I wasn't thrilled at the idea of more experimentation on myself, but as the problems continuously built, it did seem like getting stronger was one of the best ways to work towards their solution.

"Yer gonna have to run the simulations again immediately after ya dump those core grades. I'm not sure it's safe ta reduce yer level cap like that without a core pearl. How the hell this new skill of yers is gonna play with forming one of those, I have no clue," Mel replied.

"I want to know what a core pearl is, and transcendence for that matter, not right this second. But that conversation is coming as soon as I have some time for it. Now the question is, can I handle three core fortifications in a single day?" I asked, unsure.

With Corey acting as my second core, and an extreme increase to my core mana production alongside the soul mana production, it seemed possible. I quickly maxed out my new luck attribute just in case. I figured I'd need it anyway for my next attempt at an infusion.

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"Yes, but the real question is, can you handle six? Since we don't know how these negative fortifications work. The only way to find out is to try, I suppose." Karlinovo shrugged as he spoke, and I was starting to realize I had somehow found someone less focused on personal safety than even I was.

I heard Elody say something in response, but my focus had shifted too much to catch the words. I had stood up and walked to the desk Pryte had added to the room. It likely needed to be moved to the dining hall, but for now, it housed the interface I needed. So while their conversation continued, trying to guess just what had happened to me, I instead ran a dungeon simulation.

It only took a single run at this point to push myself back up to the level cap needed for my fortification. While the drain on me had been small, I knew from last time that Corey had started to take a lot of it. I triggered the fortification, ran the simulation again to get my levels back where they needed to be before I opened my mouth to check on things.

"You doing alright, Corey? And did you three determine anything?" I asked, standing up from the chair and making my way back to the bench.

"I am fine so far," Corey replied.

"Nothing," Elody answered.

"Well, nothing of fact, but I do agree that this is probably one of the big secret things some of the powerful royals out there use ta keep their kids as powerhouses," Mel answered.

"The only problem I see there is that I have to use a dungeon core to make this possible. How do they do it?" I asked, not that I disagreed with them. It made a lot of sense, but that meant there had to be another way.

"Who knows, could be some super specialized class," Karlinovo answered. No one else seemed to have a better answer, so I let it drop for now.

"Gamma, ready to join Beta?" I asked.

"Very much yes," they replied, lowering their compass form onto the bench in front of me.

Not wasting any time, I immediately went to work, the same as I had on Beta. The only difference was that before I attempted the mana infusion, I put five ranks into Core Investment. I was down to less than two hundred skill ranks available to spend. That was going to make unlocking much of the new mana orbs hard. I knew I'd hit that wall eventually, but I was sad to see it so soon.

This time, when I triggered Mana Tinkering, I had a new option for Core Investment. Selecting it, I was presented with a new screen.

__________

Core Investment

Number of Fortifications to Apply?

__________

I attempted to select two, but was presented with an error message.

__________

The current infusion point is not a high enough grade for that many Core Investments.

__________

Well damn, hadn't expected that problem. I went back back the main crafting menu, and checked for a reinforced option for the compass, hoping I had one as I did the dancing mallet.

__________

~\Crafting Blueprints\Dancing Mallet\Reinforced Compass

Requirements: Dancing Compass, Mana Storage Matrix, Storage Space Linkage Extender

The Reinforced Compass utilizes the new components to create its own mana pool within the linked partner's System storage. This will allow the socketed core to bolster mana-related actions performed from the tool itself.

__________

So while I did have it, it had the same requirements as the other newer tools did. That meant I could only empower Gamma as far as I had Beta. It was a mild disappointment, but I suspected I could find a way to add more core fortified energy later. Moving back into the infusion menu, I applied the single fortification and kicked myself back down to an E grade again.

"Well, the good news is it worked again. The bad news is I need to strengthen the tools before I can invest more than a single reinforced core worth of energy," I yelled, trying to overcome the noise of Gamma's celebration.

They had immediately taken to the air, just as Beta did. Both of them were now flitting about the room, happily cheering each other on. It was somehow the most sane I had ever heard Beta. Their happiness was almost infectious, and it did a lot to lighten my worries about my new developments.

"Still, just adding another four mana orbs to your setup is insane. That puts you at what? Ten?" Karlinovo asked.

"Eleven with Alpha," I replied.

"What are you all doing in here? And why are Beta and Gamma singing?" Pryte asked as he entered the room. He wasn't wrong to question the singing. Where the hell had they even managed to learn We Are the Champions?

"Oh, normal things. Just added even more mana sockets into my mana channels," I replied, and watched Pryte's eye go wide.

Chroniclers are, in theory, a public order, but that theory breaks down once you realize they have no offices, buildings, or even mailing addresses. There is no normal means of communicating with them, and the only real public-facing acts they do are to appear and release a series of short, strange books every so often. Who they are, and what exactly they chronicle, seems to be a mystery. The few names attached to the works have never been matched to known records of people within the Spiral. So are they hiding, or are they just operating as they normally would? I spent significant time trying to track one such member down just to learn that answer.

The woman I found called herself Belle. All she was willing to say on the topic of their group was that all things that exist only do so because they are observed. She vanished shortly after these words, leaving behind a note identifying herself as a Chronicler of the Unseen.

Orders, Both Secret and Public of the Spiral by Qquauqq

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