"What's up?" A lazy voice asked through the call. "Did you figure out your ability?"
Victor involuntarily shook his head. Hearing his mentor's casual tone instantly doused his expectation for this call. Remembering that his mentor couldn't see him, Victor quickly adjusted his mentality before speaking. "Not completely. I have to experiment on my own because none of my donors sent me templates about their skills. I did manage to figure out how one of the components works, and I have a sense of how the other one works too."
"Alright, give me your first impressions then."
Despite only meeting once, Victor was under the impression his mentor was much more knowledgeable than his teachers. Truthfully, he didn't know when else he would find someone willing and able to give him advice on his ability, so Victor was very forthright in his explanation and his experiences using it. He tactfully avoided mentioning too many specifics regarding his friends' abilities but hid nothing when it came to his own. Victor wasn't quite sure he could trust this mysterious man, but he was willing to take any help he could get.
His mentor patiently waited for Victor to finish his explanation before responding. "If you know anything about abilities, you would find that usually one component comes from each of the parents. When the components are incompatible, it is possible for a foreign component to be introduced and serve as a bridge to unite and stabilize them. Almost all the classmates you grew up with received this treatment, yet your situation seems luckier than most. It seems your parents' abilities were compatible from the beginning without needing a mediator."
"My parents' abilities?" Victor asked, bewildered.
"The metal shards and symbols. Due to their compatibility, they must have fused to become one component. Unfortunately, I don't know much about either of their abilities, so I can't offer advice beyond the surface level about them."
Victor frowned in frustration. Maybe this mentor of his wasn't as useful as he had anticipated.
"However," the voice continued. "You should be proud. You managed to inherit the best component of my ability. With this, it's not impossible for you to reach my level."
"Huh? Your ability?"
Victor could almost hear the voice smiling as he responded. "Are you surprised? I'm your third donor."
Victor gawked at this new revelation before he thought of something and frowned.
"Wait, then why didn't you send me a template I could reference?" Victor asked, unable to hide his dissatisfaction.
In response, his mentor's voice sounded out, not even bothering to hide the disdain. "Why would I give anyone, much less a random third-rate star nation, a comprehensive breakdown of my abilities? Not even the gods can get me to give up such a secret, let alone some little school in the corner of the cosmos. Let me give you some advice: you should avoid letting people know your abilities and how they work as much as possible, even if they are someone you absolutely trust. The only possible exception would be those who inherit your components. Even then, that's not a guarantee."
Victor frowned. "I get people with unique abilities, but what do people with generic abilities have to lose from anyone knowing how their ability works? If I can shoot lightning from my hands, everyone can tell what my ability is just by looking."
He heard a sigh from the other side of the call before his mentor responded. "Generic is a relative term, you know. Let's use your example of lightning hands. One person might be able to shoot lightning across large distances, but only because they stored a charge in their body. Another might be able to shoot lightning rapidly, but only when standing in a body of water. A third person could have the ability to shoot lightning from their hands, but the targets they strike feel as if they have just consumed a full-course meal. When it comes to natural-born abilities, appearances are often deceitful. You will probably learn that very soon from those transfer students."
"You still didn't answer my question, though." Victor pointed out.
"The simplest reason is just to gain tactical advantage during competition. If your opponents know your capabilities, they can plan around them. If you were faced with the three such people with the same lightning abilities from before, you would know to deplete the first user's charge as much as possible before engaging. For the second case, you would avoid any bodies of water and challenge them on less favorable terrain. And for the last person, you would simply be able to tell that they were bluffing with their lightning and charge them head-on."
Victor nodded in understanding. "What about those with non-combat abilities like me? Does it really matter if people know how my abilities work?"
There was a slight pause before his mentor spoke with a seriousness he had never heard in his life. "Across the galaxy there are people who capture and experiment on talented individuals and those with unique abilities. Some individuals become slaves, compelled to labor for their entire lives. Others are turned into breeding machines in an attempt to engineer a child with a specific ability. I have even heard of instances where some people are sacrificed to create an item with their ability."
Victor's horror grew as he continued to listen to his mentor's words. Yet none of them made him shudder as much as his next words.
"Among almost all ability users, you would be considered a prime candidate. So very weak, yet so very useful. You would do best to become strong and find trustworthy allies."
Abruptly his mentor changed his tone as he switched topics, leaving Victor completely thrown off.
"Given the nature of your ability, it is best that I explain how they work. While this isn't necessarily a secret, most people in 3rd-rate nations or below don't have a clue that components come in two flavors: a source and a focus. The first determines how your ability manifests, while the second determines the effect. In other words, there are two aspects: a form and a function."
Victor unconsciously nodded, forgetting that his mentor couldn't see him. Even so, the voice continued as if it expected Victor's reaction.
"These flavors aren't completely strict. There are instances of some components sharing features of both, but they are wildly uncommon, and each has their share of side effects. While it is possible to have two of either, most people have one of each. In your case, the form component seems to be the shattered debris, while the function component is the black hole."
"At your level it takes exactly 100 white shards to saturate each component. From here you have to be incredibly careful of whatever you absorb into your ability core because all of the random shards you absorb could affect your development."
Victor focused on a particular point as he listened. 'So that strange space is called your ability core...'
"You may have heard that the next step involves collecting attuned shards from individuals whose abilities you prefer. However, this information does not fully explain the entire situation. While it is indeed possible to evolve naturally by gathering shards and then unsuspectingly breaking through to the next stage, the results vary in terms of efficacy and predictability. Ability users can produce multiple types of attuned shards: one for each component in their core. As such, you have to be wary when accepting attuned shards from a person, as you might not receive what you want. This is especially true when living in a backwater nation like yours."
Victor's eye twitched at his mentor's last sentence, but he made sure not to interrupt.
"After, you need to gather 100 more attuned shards, which will fuse to create a false component. Using this, you must fuse each true component with a false component to fully reach the next ability rank. This procedure is the most intentional method of evolving your ability and the one I recommend the most."
Hearing his mentor's words, Victor couldn't help but speak up. "The one you recommend the most? You mean to say there are multiple paths?"
Victor could almost imagine his mentor nodding in response. "Indeed. The universe is vast, and there are many paths to the peak. Some are more ideal than others. Unfortunately, I will save that lecture for another time.
There was a pause before the other end of the call continued speaking. "There is one more thing I will leave you with before I go. Given the compatibility of the component passed down from your parents, this may be another opportunity for you. You should look for attuned shards that are close in attributes to this component. The resulting evolution might bring about a pleasant surprise."
[Mentor link disconnected]
Not even bothering with any goodbyes, his mentor directly hung up the call, leaving Victor with some answers and many more questions.
Victor stared into the air for a moment before he sighed.
"I wasn't expecting a lecture... I forgot to take any notes."