"What is with the dwarf?" Lucifer finally noted the still-sobbing dwarf.
"I don't know. Something about the beard."
"Oh, damn. Poor guy," Lucifer replied with a voice full of sympathy as he understood immediately. "Wait! I can use mana. No, not mana! The SuperFlux! Damn… That's reserved only for Tier 3 and above Ethereals… Even though it is stronger, I have way less of it. Will have to be careful not to die from overdrain. Hmm, it will be the first time, but I have taught it many times."
Lucifer concentrated a little bit and conjured a single [Mana Bubble] nearby. He held it and read his journal. "Nice!," he merrily exclaimed and connected to mana flowing around. "Hmm… I really can use only refined mana," he imaginary frowned and connected to Stone's veins pulsing with refined mana. A single red vein emerged from Lucifer's ethereal body and connected with Stone's golden ones. The refined mana slowly flowed into him. Soon, his [SuperFlux] was again at the maximum.
"What was that?" Stone detected the fluctuation as a little bit of refined mana left his RM pool.
"Interesting, technique is still the same, but I can only use it on Stone. This will require more experimentation. I wonder if I can later connect to artefacts that use refined mana…" Luci muttered to himself, disregarding Stone's question. Next, he attempts to make a circular mana wall. The wall with feeble purple rays materialized 10 centimetres away from Stone. "And skills are learned too… Now I have a full set to unlock a class. This is incredible. Wait… Will I have a class?"
'Sob, sob, sob' Dafur's crying slowly ceased. He looked at Stone with still teary, red eyes. "Ya're really livin'?"
"…" Stone was still reading and talking to Luci, so he did not answer.
"Thought so… but wher' did ta't refin'd mana cam' from? I guess I truly caug't deep craziness, haaah," he sighed in sadness.
"Stone, the dwarf is asking something," Luci said.
"Yes. I am alive. At least. That was something the voice said," Stone finally answers to Dafur with an annoyed voice.
"Uaaargh!" Dafur screamed as he genuinely didn't expect an answer and jumped out of the broken black casket.
"Loud!"
"Dornus dammit!" Dafur calmed down and looked at the white talc stone again. He saw mana bubbles and basic two-dimensional shapes from the violet flux appearing and disappearing around Stone.
"Luci? What are you doing?"
"Training."
"Oh… What is training?"
"… don't bother me now, I am concentrating," Luci left him on his own and trained his expertise. It was incredible fun for him.
"What in Dornus ass… Am I crazy or naet?"
"You seem to be crazy enough to me," the high-pitched voice echoed in the Dafur's ears.
"… What was your name?" Dafur accepted it; even if he was crazy, at least he had a companion to talk to.
"Stone. And yours?"
"Dafur."
"I'm introducin maeself to a talkin piece of rock… piece of rooock…" Dafur mockingly muttered. "Ehm," Dafur clears his throat and asked, "what happened?"
"I don't know. Check your status,"
"Status…" Dafur wished and could not believe what he saw, "no, please. Not this!" He started to sob again to Stone's dismay.
'Plesk'
A weak mana wall from 1 point of refined mana conjured by Stone landed on Dafur's cheek, effectively silencing him. He blinked a few times with the realization that he was slapped.
"Did you just slap me?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because you were too loud."
"…"
"Now, what happened?" Stone inquired.
Dafur, still in a daze from the slap, answered, "I became blighted druegar… and lost all my levels. At least I'm still runemae'str. Abilities and most of my expertises stayed too," he explained while examining his grey skin.
"Druegar? Oh, those hairless, crazy dwarfs from the Abyss. Partn… Luci told me about them."
"Yes. And lost mae beard too," his tears again started flowing as he touched his clean face. "Luci?" Dafur asked between the sobs.
"Lucifer."
"Oh… And who is that?"
"He was my talent Partner."
"… What?" Dafur thought he heard something wrong.
"Don't!" Luci finally registered what Stone wanted to say and interrupted him, "really. Don't say this to anyone. Never! I already told you that!"
"Oh… Okay!" Stone answered Lucifer in mind and loudly said, "Luci said not to tell you."
"For fuck sake…" Luci capitulated and concentrated again on his training.
"Wait… I remember now somethin'. Ya said ya have a Partner befor!"
A small flux wall fizzled and disappeared into purple motes as Luci's concentration was broken again.
"You told him even before?! You idiot! Dummy! Miserable stone! I even warned you not to tell anyone about me!"
"Loud! Both of you!"
Dafur gaped at that talking piece of stone with reverence.
"Naet only does he have a Partner… he's a living stone! That's crazy!"
"Luci? What now?"
"We should leave, you said there were more dwarfs. Soon, this place will be swarmed by them. We wouldn't want them to step on you. Oh, and ask where we are. Where exactly," Lucifer specified and returned to his training, "this training will take at least a week, then I should be able to evolve. Hopefully."
"Dafur?"
"Yea, mister Stone?"
"Where are we? Exactly?"
"Three days from Arn-Dul, around one kilometer from the white marble small mine and 70 metres undrground. This place seems to be the laboratory of an ancient high-ranked runemae'str. But I am a mere 1st rank runemae'str," Dafur ultimately got ahold of yourself and examined the unpowered runes around. He recognized some of them, but most of them are a complete mystery to him.
"I wonder what master Baelgin woulda say… oh…" He realized he cannot return. Not as a druegar. New tears emerged from his eyes and he was starting to sob again.
"Loud! How many times do I have to repeat I don't like loud?" Stone sharply said and conjured a new blueish wall.
"Sorry," Dafur apologized, broken. He failed his mission to protect miners and investigate. His world completely flipped and he had nowhere to return. Everything was slowly dawning on him; that he was blighted, druegar, and who knows what else. His mind was slowly, but gradually warping. However, he did not perceive this nor would he ever. "I'm sayin' sorry to a piece of talkin' rock… hehe," Dafur slightly grinned.
[Your Ambient Mana Refinement gained level 3 times]
"Luci?"
"Yeah?"
"You are draining me too much…"
"Sorry!"
"Hm… is this training? Repeating one thing again and again?"
"Yes."
"But isn't that insanity?"
"No, that would be expecting to have a different result. I am expecting the same result over and over. How's your regeneration of mana and refinement? Exact numbers."
"Oh… I can now refine 8.5 refined mana per minute and 37.4 of normal mana per second."
"Good. How much is your intelligence?"
"Ten. But I have a limit of fifteen."
"Hmm. The more mana you have, the stronger we both are. And with your insane regeneration… We need to raise your intelligence as soon as possible." Lucifer scrutinized the Stone's insides yet again. This time the mana veins were sharp and a little bit more complicated. As he examined the surroundings, still in Stone, he recognized a spell from the School of Soul engraved in a small circle of celestian language inside Stone's body. "Stone? Did you gain spell from the School of Soul?"
"Yes."