The four of them moved through the jungle slowly after the battle with the two-headed serpent. The canopy above blocked most of the sunlight, leaving the forest floor in dim green shadows. The air was thick with humidity and the constant noise of insects. Soren followed a few steps behind the three men at first, watching how they moved. They were careful, deliberate, always scanning the trees and the ground ahead
It did not take long before another monster appeared
A creature shaped like a large reptilian boar burst from a cluster of ferns, its back covered in jagged plates and its tusks curved outward like blades. Soren reacted first, stepping forward with his sword raised, but Draven moved faster. A burst of flame shot from his palm and exploded against the creature's side, staggering it. Korr immediately followed, lightning snapping from his fingers and striking the monster's legs, locking its muscles long enough for Soren to close the distance
Soren slashed across its neck while Thalen calmly stepped forward behind them and released a thin cloud of green mist. The monster inhaled it as it struggled to rise and within seconds its movements slowed, its breathing turning ragged before it finally collapsed
Soren stood there for a moment catching his breath
Draven crouched beside the corpse almost immediately. "Don't just leave it like that," he said casually. "There's money sitting here"
Soren frowned slightly. "Money?"
Draven tapped one of the tusks with the side of his knife. "These. Plates on the back too. The guild buys materials. Teeth, venom sacs, hide
Korr knelt down beside him and began slicing carefully along the creature's neck with a small curved blade. "You cut along the joints first. Makes it easier to remove things cleanly"
Soren watched closely as they worked
Thalen pointed to a small pouch near the creature's throat. "Venom gland. Worth a decent amount if it's intact. Ruin it and it's worthless"
Soren nodded slowly, committing every movement to memory. He helped them after a moment, awkward at first but improving as they showed him where to cut and what to avoid damaging. When they were done, several pieces had been wrapped carefully in cloth and placed into packs
As they continued through the jungle the lessons didn't stop
Korr pointed out claw marks on trees and explained which monsters made them. Draven spoke about which creatures hunted during the day and which preferred the night. Thalen occasionally stopped and studied the ground, identifying tracks that Soren would have walked past without noticing
"If you want information," Draven said at one point while they moved through a narrow clearing, "Guild libraries are your best friend. Every large guild keeps records. Monsters, habitats, behaviour. Saves you from learning everything the hard way"
Soren gave a quiet nod
The day passed like that. Small fights broke out several times. Nothing as dangerous as the gorilla or the serpent, but still enough to keep them alert. By evening Soren's body was sore but his movements had started to feel more natural alongside them
Eventually they found a small cave hidden behind thick vines at the base of a rocky hill
It was barely large enough for the four of them, but it provided shelter and only one narrow entrance. Draven lit a small controlled flame between a few stones while Korr gathered dry branches from nearby trees. Thalen prepared strips of meat they had taken from one of the monsters earlier, skewering them over the fire
The smell slowly filled the cave
For the first time since entering the jungle, Soren allowed himself to sit and rest properly. His sword rested beside him as he leaned against the stone wall
Thalen passed around small cups filled with water he had prepared using his magic. The liquid had a faint green tint at first before clearing completely
"It's safe," Thalen said calmly when he noticed Soren watching it. "Neutralizes most jungle toxins"
Soren drank
The cool water felt good against his throat
The four of them ate quietly for a while, the fire crackling softly as night settled outside. For a brief moment the constant tension that had followed Soren for days seemed to loosen. Even though something still felt strange about the three men, especially the fact that he couldn't sense their intent at all he found himself relaxing anyway
It had been a long time since he had simply sat beside other people like this
A long time since things felt… normal
Soren stared quietly into the fire as the jungle outside hummed with distant life, allowing himself, just for tonight, to enjoy the small comfort of human company
The fire burned low in the centre of the cave, casting slow moving shadows across the rough stone walls. Outside, the jungle had grown louder as night settled in. Insects buzzed endlessly and distant creatures cried somewhere deep in the forest. The air felt cooler now, but the cave still held the warmth of the small fire
Soren sat with his back against the stone, staring into the flames while the others rested nearby. His body ached from the fights earlier that day. The cuts on his hands had mostly closed, but the dull sting still lingered every time he flexed his fingers
'I'm burning through mana too fast'
The thought kept circling in his head
Every fight so far had gone the same way. Railgun attacks. Blood propulsion. Raw power. It worked, but every time he used it his reserves dropped dangerously fast. If another strong monster appeared after a long fight, he would be in serious trouble
'If that snake had come five minutes earlier… I probably would've died'
He exhaled slowly
Across the fire, Draven was sharpening a knife against a small whetstone while Korr leaned against the cave wall half-asleep. Thalen quietly sorted through a few small vials, the faint smell of herbs and toxins occasionally drifting through the air
Soren hesitated for a moment before finally speaking.
"I need to ask something"
The three men looked up
Soren rubbed the back of his neck slightly, annoyed that he even had to admit this. "The way I fight it burns too much mana. I just wanted to ask some advice from all of you seeming that you all look like experienced adventurers. How do I exactly come up with new spells? My fighting style has to many flaws by coming up with some new methods it'll help me a lot''
Draven stopped sharpening his blade. For a moment he studied Soren carefully before giving a small hum
"That's not a small question"
Korr let out a quiet laugh. "You're asking how spell craft works"
Soren shrugged. "I figured experienced mages might know something"
Draven poked the fire lightly with a stick, sending sparks drifting upward
"Spells aren't just… magic thrown together," he said slowly. "Think of them like machines. Every mana particle is a cog in that machine. Each one has properties, temperature, pressure, direction, flow, stability. When those particles interact in a specific structure, they produce a result"
He drew a rough circle in the dirt with the stick
"That structure is the spell"
Thalen nodded slightly from the side. "The blueprint"
Draven continued, "Most mages never build their own spells. The easiest way to learn magic is simple memorization. You watch a mage who already knows the spell. You memorize the mana flow. The shape. The order of the particles"
He tapped the ground again
"Eventually you can reproduce it"
Soren nodded slowly. That part made sense
"But here's the problem," Draven continued. "Memorizing something doesn't mean you understand it. A lot of mages can cast spells perfectly but couldn't tell you why the spell works"
Korr smirked slightly. "They're basically parrots"
Soren frowned. "And that's bad because…?"
"Because if you don't understand the machine," Draven said calmly, "You can't modify it"
He leaned back against the wall
"Want to make it faster? More efficient? Combine it with another spell? Too bad. You memorized the final product but you don't understand the components"
Soren looked back into the fire, thinking
"So making a completely new spell…" he muttered
Draven chuckled quietly
"Most people never manage it in their entire lives. That's the territory of geniuses"
Thalen spoke this time, his voice calm and measured
"There is… another method, though"
Soren glanced up
Thalen held up one of his small vials between his fingers
"Some mages study the internal structures of different spells. The mana blueprints. If you understand the properties of those components well enough, you can begin cross-referencing them"
Soren tilted his head slightly. "Cross-referencing?"
Korr leaned forward now, clearly more awake
"Mixing pieces together," he said. "Let's say a wind spell uses a certain mana structure to create directional force. A water spell might use a similar structure to control flow"
He made a twisting motion with his fingers
"If you understand both structures, you could theoretically combine elements from each"
Draven shrugged
"Wind magic influencing water movement. Or flame spells borrowing compression patterns from lightning spells. Stuff like that"
Soren's eyes narrowed slightly as he thought about it
"So spells don't have to stay inside one type of magic"
"Exactly," Thalen said
Draven gave a quiet laugh
"Of course, actually doing it is another matter entirely. Understanding a spell well enough to take it apart and rebuild it with parts from another? That's rare"
Korr grinned
"Almost unheard of but you do see it from time to time"
The cave grew quiet again for a moment as the fire crackled softly
Soren stared into the flames, his mind already racing
'Spells are machines. Mana particles are the components. If I understand the pieces… I can rebuild them and thanks to a certain someone half the hard work had already been done for me. Its now only a matter of time before my whole battle system has no flaws'
A faint smile slowly formed on his face as new possibilities began forming in his mind
For the first time since entering the jungle, Soren felt something different
Not just survival
But the beginning of real experimentation