The Forgotten Faithful: A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Book 2) by Cajiao, Jez (little red riding hood ebook TXT) 📕

and I was to create a fully functional Rune for it, any with mana could power it. The possibilities of Runecrafting are matched only by your wits and ability.  My manapool is just over four hundred, and I regularly used the entire pool. I say this, not to show off, but so that you understand that I recognize the signs of mana exhaustion in you. You will rest after this is done, yes?”

“What spells do you know? To make them into Runes, I mean, you have to know them as spells, right?” I asked excitedly, nodding to acknowledge her query.

“No,” she said flatly, shaking her head. “I was never taught specific spells; I learned to Runecraft from my grandmother, as she learned from her mother. I have experimented with my own Runes; some worked, some nearly killed me, but I have a greater knowledge of Runes than even my grandmother’s notes speak of,” Ame said proudly.

“Okay, soooo, how many?” I asked, and she faltered slightly.

“Eleven.” She sounded unsure whether it was a great achievement or not.

“I created three of my own; I also managed to make eight of my grandmother’s creations work.”

“Okay. So, these…eleven. What can you do with them?” I asked, trying to keep my face straight. I’d hoped for more, but…

“The Runes are used in groupings, depending on their use, and can form many different spells. I am versed in ‘Add’, ‘Grow’, ‘Heat’, ‘Mana’, ‘Shield’, ‘Shock’, ‘Slow’, ‘Strength’, ‘Track’, ‘Trigger’, and ‘Weaken’. I have created Runes that create shock or heat damage when weapons harm their targets, increase the strength of the wielder of a particular Rune, and many more.”

“Magical symbols, basically, then?” I whispered, recognizing the concept. “What about size? Does it matter?” I asked, my brain roaring ahead.

“Well, of course! It takes more mana, and the Runes need to be the appropriate size for the intended usage, why?” Ame asked.

“But that’s it? What about the Runes themselves; do they need to be made of anything in particular?” I demanded, moving on quickly, and ignoring her question.

“It depends on the use. Different Runes require different reagents, or they use much more mana. Runes can also burn out or fracture.”

“What about healing; would healing damage done to a Rune remove it, or repair it?” I muttered, asking myself more than Ame.

“Healing? You can’t heal a Rune. It’s not alive!” she snorted, then gripped my chin, turning my head to make me face her and pay attention. “You’ve thought of something, haven’t you?”

“Oh, yeah; I’m thinking of a new way to use your Runes and wondering if trying it will kill me.”

“Explain!” she snapped, and I pulled my head free of her hand, shaking it in negation.

“No; at least, not yet. I want to think about this, and we can experiment to see if it works before I let anyone else know about it. You will keep this discussion to yourself, Ame; understand?” I said, glaring at her.

“I…very well. I will keep this between us, but if you want my help to use my life’s work, you’ll explain this to me, and soon!” she said firmly, receiving an affirmative nod in reply.

“I’m fine with that. Runes don’t need a spoken trigger, right? Just mana?” When I got a confused nod in response, I grinned. “Excellent!” I sought Oracle and found her standing a few feet away. She was watching me, still full sized. Gliding over to me, she exchanged parting pleasantries with Ame and put her arm through mine casually, guiding us out to the balcony and leading me to the furthest side from everyone, where we could speak freely. Just as she opened her mouth, she narrowed her eyes and pointed to one side, speaking as I followed her finger.

“Get your ass back inside, Bane. This is private time, understand?” Bane straightened up and strolled away quickly with an apologetic nod of his head. “We need to talk, but you need to sort that out as well. I agree you need a bodyguard, but they need to know when we need privacy.”  I grinned at her, and before I realized it, I’d leaned in and kissed her, feeling her soft lips against mine. There was a second of hesitation before Oracle responded, having been clearly caught off guard.

She wrapped her arms around me, returning my kiss with a fervor that left me breathless when we finally broke away. I grinned as I gazed into her eyes, and then let my vision travel downward, well aware that she didn’t need to breathe, so the hurried rise and fall of her spectacular chest was done for one reason, and one reason alone.

To draw my eyes and show me what she wanted me to look at.

I coughed, looking back up at her eyes after a minute of admiring, a minute in which her top slowly but noticeably shrank in size, her exposed cleavage deepening, until I’d been forced to look away. My brain, as ever, was short circuited by the combination of her beauty, her kiss, and her very willing demeanor, so it took a frantic wracking of my brain to remember where I was and what we were doing.

“Soooo, I take it that wasn’t why you wanted the privacy?” I asked and got a grin in return.

“Well, it wasn’t, but now?” she replied, and I laughed in spite of myself.

“Okay, come on then; what did you want to talk about? I heard some of what you were saying, and I can sense your surface thoughts, Jax…” she said, growing suddenly serious.

“How many of my thoughts?” I asked, thinking back to what had just been in my mind while I enjoyed the view. My question drew a throaty laugh from Oracle, and she patted my cheek.

“Oh, I felt those thoughts, and the mental images…” She looked down first at her cleavage and then at the floor, before eyeing where ‘Mr. Happy’ was barely constrained by my pants. “That I can definitely, and very happily, do… but that’s not why I