Chapter 435 Going To The River With The Family
Chapter 435 Going To The River With The Family
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Because of how worried I was about Phantasmos most likely coming here from Arcadia to destroy me, I could barely get any sleep. However, I still woke up rather refreshed, as I had constantly used my Mana into the [Mana Breathing Technique] that the Great Spirit taught to all three of us before going to sleep.
It is a simple technique that help us make Mana flow around our bodies through a calm and composed breathing rhythm. It passively enhances the physique and all body parts over time, and it is the pillar necessary to master before actually getting ourselves a Physique.
Physiques are like unique powers within the physical body, and they're related with strength, vitality, agility, and dexterity. To obtain them, we first need to create a foundation and make our physical bodies reach "the next stage" or something.
Although with mana alone, our physical strength can also be boosted, and so our regeneration, speed, and defense, with Physiques is when we'll finally reach a more "superhuman" level. Later, the Great Spirit explained we'll need special materials depending in which Physique we want to create, and then imbue these materials into runes, which then will permanently fuse with our bodies.
However, unlike Mark and Rita who are still just humans with magic, I am quite... different. Due to the powers of my Arcadia Avatar having its own body in that world, and my connection with it, I can draw its power and imbue it into my body, giving me a sort of... pseudo physique.
It is the one responsible for allowing me to shapeshift my own body into branches, plants, and turn my blood into healing sap, though it is not as powerful as the Yggdryad's shapeshifting powers, it is pretty darn good.
However, this unnamed physique is still in a "beginner" level, so we need to improve it further. Doing around 8 continuous hours of Mana Breathing helped at stabilizing it and improving it, the rest will be on what we can craft and find.
And today, of course, we decided to go out, I had already promised my daughter and my family, so we were now already in front of the Big River near our home. It was very clean water that flows from the mountains, surrounded by rocks, a bit of sand, and the beauty of nature.
Of course, due to fear against monsters, we crafted some charms for each member of my family. We made them out of the things they never leave behind, their phones. So each of the have a charm imbued into their phones.
I didn't do it personally, the Great Spirit can reach very far on her own, and is pretty much invisible, so she did the job and I just gave her the Mana.
"Ohhh! So this is the Big River everyone was talking about! Woah, such a pretty and refreshing looking water! Today's not cold at all either, how about we take a dip, Elena, Anna?" Elisa was incredible happy of going into the wilderness.
"Sure, I want to take a dip as well!" Anna said. "Oh, was that a fish just now?!"
"Yeah, there are fishes in here." Said Elena while looking around.
"Alright girls, did you wear swimwear below your clothes? If you did then you should just jump straight in. Of course, use sandals. The rocks in the river could be a bit sharp." I said.
"Okaay!" Elisa said, quickly beginning to undress.
"M-Milady you mustn't do this in front of the people!" Her bodyguard tried to stop her.
"Meh, not like anybody cares!" Sighed Elisa, quickly jumping into the water.
SPLAAASH!
"Ahh, the water only reaches my hips, its not really that deep!" She said happily, using a floaty in the shape of a duck to float and swim around.
"I'm joining in then!" Anna quickly entered the water, jumping over it.
SPLAAAAASH!
"Hey you brute!" Elisa got angry.
SPLASH!
But Elena from behind her splashed water on her head.
"E-Elena?!"
"Come on don't be a party pooper."
"Geez, you'll see now! Hyaaaah!"
SPLASH! SPLASH! SPLAAASH!
As the girls started playing around the river, we quickly set up everything else. We came here with dad's car, and we brought a ton of stuff to make grilled food and a small camp.
"Today's awfully sunny!" My father laughed. "We should make some nice grilled meat to go with it."
"Dear aren't we eating a bit too much meat this week?" Sighed my mother.
"Naaah, it's fine! Elayne and everyone else is here, we need to make something tasty for them if possible!" My father seemed cheerful as ever.
As my family were setting everything up, I gave them a hand in anything I could. Once dad started grilling meat we were finally freed from the shackles of helping the family set-up everything.
"Damn, I ever thought the River would be this beautiful." Mark said.
"We used to get water from here too, but now there's potable water in the house." I sighed. "Though I can't say I miss those times I had to come with buckets for water..."
"Wait, you didn't had potable water before? Woah..." Mark seemed rather impacted.
"Hahaha, it's a thing of the past anyways. What? Did you pity me or something?" I wondered.
"Oh, no... I just thought you had a pretty fun childhood." He said with a giggle.
"Geez, well, I would had preferred less farm work when I was a kid but we can't really pick the family we're born into." I sighed.
"Yeah... I guess." Mark sighed. His eyes seemed slightly saddened.
Was there something bothering him? Every time I talk about family he gets like this. Maybe he doesn't have a good relationship with his own...
"Hey Mark, Elayne, how about we catch some fish?" My brother appeared right behind us. "Do you know how to fish?"
"Err, a bit?" Mark said.
"I still remember, so let's try it! There's a lot of river fish here." I said with a smile, grabbing a fishing rod.
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