Henry sat right under the lip of a reef, camouflaged as a bundle of algae, and recalled the rules under which Identify worked as he watched the scene ahead of him.

  Alright. So for levels, I can Identify things accurately within 20 to 25 levels of me. For questions marks, if it says ‘lvl’ and then question marks, it means I can approximate it. It’s one question mark for creatures up to level 25, two for up to 50, and anything above that is a three question mark. If it’s even beyond that, and I can’t even measure it accurately, it will not show the ‘lvl’ tag and it will be a single question mark. As for ranks, I can detect the next rank over, which explains why I can’t get the rank of the whales, as they must be above E-rank, though they refuse to say which rank.

  The skill only approximated the levels, Deepcaller had said, but it was safe to say that if he couldn’t Identify something’s rank or approximate level, he should get the hell away from it. Which wasn’t the case of the serpent Henry was currently watching. It was the only E-rank he’d seen so far and as impressive and dangerous as it seemed, Henry didn’t think it had a even a chance of holding out for more than a second against the whales.

  The serpent swam away, having had its fill from the few Riptides Henry had prepared for it. It was too soon to target such a creature, but he could start studying it and preparing. Plus, who knew? Maybe it’d find him, and Henry would need to defend himself. He’d have to be ready.

  Still, he couldn’t stop thinking about a way to break through the whale’s skin. Just so he could get their telepathy.

  Riptide Rush and something sharp and durable. Not shark teeth. I feel like shark teeth would break on Deepcaller’s skin. Maybe I could use the serpent’s tooth once I get it? And I’d need another skill slot for Riptide Rush. Because I can’t afford to lose any of my current skills.

  The serpent disappeared into the kelp forest once more, and Henry wondered; what would an adult look like? What could they do? So far, it only scared out the others but it never fought.

  I’ll catch it fighting, eventually. Just gotta be patient, he thought, and pulled up his interface.

  Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 31 achieved!

  …

  Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 35 achieved!

  1x Stat point awarded.

  Hoard Vitality (F): Level 8 -> Level 9

  Mimicking Arms (F): Level 8 -> Level 9

  Bite (F): Level 6 -> Level 8

  I have 18 tokens remaining. Start saving up for skill upgrades, or get more levels?

  So far today, every shark he got he turned to levels. He kept the fights easy, and tried to focus on levelling his other skills. Like Bite. Which made things awkward, because Bite didn’t have the reach of his arms. But even getting a few good bites in was helping with the levels and who knew, maybe its upgrade would allow him to punch through Deepcaller’s insanely tough skin.

  If not, he could maybe save for the second upgrade for Razor Arm, then again, he might have to start downing E-rank creatures. At the rate things were going, he’d need a lot of F-ranks to reach the 10 E-rank tokens required for the skill’s second upgrade, and Henry had a strong suspicious the conversion rate might not be just a one to a hundred, so, for now, levelling up was probably a more efficient way to spend his time.

  Turning his attention to his other skills, he saw that Hoard Vitality was a level away from 10. He hoped that upgrade would net him something useful.

  Next, Henry navigated to the Stat Increase menu. He had a few tokens he could spend and as much as he wanted to more Constitution points or Spirit points, he couldn’t afford them just yet.

  What to increase now… Perception? Dexterity? And I’m gonna assign the free points to Constitution. That is saving my life more than anything else.

  He decided to get a point in Dexterity, then dismissed the menu.

  Things are getting too expensive. And when am I supposed to get traits? I need to ask the whales next time.

  Henry saw a larger Riptide swimming closer.

  I need to start looking for something other than these sharks. Didn’t I see some other shark type near the whales? Oh well… they’ll have to do. And I need to build up more Vitality charges.

  There was a lot to do. Thankfully, Henry had plenty of time on his hand.

  ***

  The surface above darkened and brightened up again. Henry approximated the night to have lasted around four hours or so while he sat and built charges of Hoard Vitality. Occasionally, he’d got out and murder the occasional shark, continuously working on brining his remaining skills to level 10.

  Around dawn, he saw the serpent once again. A while later, three dangerous-looking sharks approached and had a quick meal. They’d been lured closer by Henry’s hunting, and he’d retreated as soon as he saw them approach.

  [Whipcrack Shark (E) - Lvl ? ]

  Henry believed they were the same kind that the whales had chased away a few days ago. They were around 15 to 20 feet each and they reminded Henry of a mix of great white and thresher. He was getting nowhere near them until he knew exactly how they fought, and he already had some ideas on how to find out.

  They ended up heading east again, further down into the reefs and away from the kelp forest. As he watched them swim away and fade into blue murk, Henry wished he could take pictures of these creatures.

  After they’d left, Henry pulled up his notifications, and quickly went over his new levels.

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  Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 36 achieved!

  ...

  Undecided Marine Biologist - Level 39 achieved!

  Hoard Vitality (F): Level 9 -> Level 10

  Bite (F): Level 8 -> Level 9

  Upgrade Hoard Vitality (F): Pick the focus of the Skill upgrade

  Store mana as well as health

  Or

  Increase efficiency

  Henry grimaced, but after a couple seconds, he paused, then smiled internally.

  This confirms that the existence of mana. Interesting. As for the choice…both are good. Damn it.

  Increasing the efficiency of healing would be great, but as he went out and fought, he realized that his mana was often just as important. Health would save his life in a pinch, but being out of mana could be just as dangerous. He couldn’t use his skills to fight back, to escape, or to camouflage if he was out of mana.

  Ah this sucks…

  Henry considered both options for a few more minutes, then decided to go with the mana storing upgrade.

  This just makes more sense… if I’m low enough to need the Vitality charges, I’m going to need some mana as well.

  Hoard Vitality (F) successfully upgraded to Hoard Vitals (E)

  The description now indicated that both health and mana would be stored. Henry sighed and was about to dismiss the interface when another message arrived.

  Class Trait Unlocked: Recuperative Meditation (F)

  Recuperative Meditation (F): While resting and relaxed, mana and health recuperations are accelerated.

  Henry’s eyes widened as he read through the notification.

  Yes! Thank you!

  This new trait was perfect, and as he read it, he wondered if he’d gotten it because of the countless hours he’d been sitting and waiting for Accelerated Regeneration to heal him back. Or was it because he’d just upgraded a heal-base skill?

  I guess I’ll know eventually.

  The new trait went under his class. Not with his Species’ abilities. And to his surprise, it didn’t take a slot from the class. Instead, the limit of trait got pumped to five instead of four.

  Maybe it’s because I unlocked it myself instead of copying it? Still, this is amazing. And perfect timing.

  Over the next few minutes, he triggered his new Hoard Vitals skill and tried to relax… but his recovery didn’t seem that fast to him.

  Maybe I can’t relax while I’m exposed like this… even if I’m camouflaged.

  He then went down to his hidden turtle home and settled down.

  Inner peace…. Inner peace...

  Saying inner peace didn’t work. But when he really calmed down and relaxed a few minutes later, he felt the trait take effect.

  It was subtil at first, but then he felt the trait kick in. It was as if his body was inhaling health and mana through his pores. As if he’d just spent weeks cooped up in his room and he just stepped out in the morning sun, on a perfect day, and experience the fresh clean air.

  He opened his eyes after thirty minutes or so and, he felt both his health and mana were as full as they could ever be.

  I’m going to hoard so much they’ll call me… Uh… whatever.

  Henry bailed on his crappy joke and began burning through his health and mana, creating combined charges of health and mana. Blue glowing circles began popping across his skin, which made him look like a weird offshoot of a blue-ringed octopus, and Henry wondered if there was a limit to how many charges he could carry.

  I guess I’ll find out soon.

  Thankfully, the skill’s use didn’t make him feel sick as much anymore. Maybe it was the upgrade. Or maybe his Constitution. In any case, it didn’t matter. Henry was about to become the next best thing to un-killable.

  ***

  Three hours later, Henry took a break and went outside.

  It was going to take some time to get better with meditation, because sitting there with nothing to keep himself busy allowed some uncomfortable memories and thoughts to bubble up. He didn’t want to think or deal with any of that right now, so he went outside. He’d hunt something real quick, then try this meditation stuff somewhere where he could watch the surrounding ocean and not be stuck in his shell.

  He still managed to get 9 extra charges of Hoard Vitals, though, bringing his total to 13. With the new charges having mana.

  Level 39… I should push for 50. See if anything happens then.

  Henry settled on his usual spot, overlooking the whale territory in the distance and the kelp forest to his left, and waited.

  Soon enough some Riptide sharks came around from behind him. Henry caught and killed a couple then set them ahead for the big players. Hopefully they'd come out, and maybe this time they’d reveal something.

  He wasn’t sure if it would work, but as the minutes ticket by, and as the blood dissolved and was carried by the soft currents, a guest showed up.

  The sea serpent appeared first. It undulated toward the fresh meat and was almost upon it when five Whipcrack sharks showed up from the opposing direction.

  Henry inhaled and braced excitedly.

  I wish I had some popcorn.

  The sea serpent paused in front of its meal and screeched at the sharks. Henry winced at the loud roar–his arms twitched and curled up instinctively–but the sharks didn’t seem to care. They spread out, unperturbed by the serpent’s warning, and got closer.

  The serpent closed its mouth and Henry thought he could almost see it narrowing its eyes. It coiled around itself… and the back of its throat began to glow.

  Henry leaned forward. What is—

  A Whipcrack suddenly rushed the serpent. Its long tail whipped forward, aiming at the serpent’s face, and crack resounded out of the impact. The serpent jerked its head away and coiled harder. It shook its head then turned to the shark rushing it.

  It roared, and a beam of green rippling light shot out of its fanged maw. The shark hit by the light thrashed and twitched a few times, then it turned belly up. Unmoving.

  The four remaining sharks rushed the serpent all at once, and Henry thought that maybe he should back away.

  If one of those rays came his way, it might be the end of him.