《Mercury - Reborn as a Cat [A Comedy Adventure LitRPG]》 Glossary Currency: There is currency within the system, but also actual currency for trade. The money used for trade exists in multiple coins. There are, in order: Dark - Night - Gloom - Dim - Pale - Glow - Spark - Bolt - Bright - Flash - Radiance They increase by a factor of 10 in value each time. So 1 Dim is 10 Glooms, or 100 Nights, and so on. Think the brighter the better. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Time: The very basic time units are the same in the world, and irl. There are 24 hours within a day. Then shit gets whacky. 10 Days make a Page, 10 Pages a Season, and 4 Seasons a Chapter. Essentially, 1 "Chapter" as an in-world time unit, is a little longer than an irl year. 10 Chapters are called an Act, 100 Chapters a Saga. Think Decade and Century. The general time is split into Books, which are basically the equivalent of an Era. They can end arbitrarily, usually with some sort of cataclysmic event. If anyone has general questions about the world, please post them under this chapter, and I''ll try to update it! This will be moved to appear before Chapter 0. Chapter 0: Introduction Hello. This may be a little jarring, give me a minute... 1, 2, 3, test test. Mike check. Yeah, alright, this seems good. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Hey everybody, this is your narrator. Today- well, actually, perhaps not today. This might take a little while. For today, I have prepared the first, and hopefully not last, chapter of "Mercury". I have decided to dub it this, as it seemed to have a better ring than "Catboi adventure chronicles!" I swear, this author. Well, in any case. Here goes. Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Tutorial Chapter 1: Tutorial Steve¡¯d had a rough go at it today. It was a Friday, and just before lunch came around, the office had been told they were behind and most of them needed to stay for overtime. Then he¡¯d gone to lunch, heading to the cafeteria, which was offering fish sticks and cheese fries. Which he promptly choked on, fell over, hit his head on the floor, and fell unconscious. It was a pretty shitty way to go out, all things considered. Death by fricking fry and fishsticks. Lights out, just like that. Except, next thing he knew, he woke up in a mountain. Everything around him was huge, much bigger than it had any right to be, and the floor was covered in snow. Despite that, he only felt slightly chilly. Blinking the enormous surprise away, Steve looked down at himself, finding¡­ fur. White, long, fluffy fur, with a silvery hue to it, and purple, vine-like patterns trailing over it. Despite all of that, he somehow didn¡¯t feel panicked, yet. His body felt familiar, too, which was strange given that he¡¯d most certainly been a human up until then, and decidedly was no longer human at all. But before he had the time to consider what was going on, and feel some more existential dread about it, the air in front of him shifted, and Steve heard a mechanical ¡®ding¡¯ ring out in his ears. Then, a text box appeared in the air in front of his face. He didn¡¯t even have to read it to know it either, feeling the knowledge already inside his head. [ has been reincarnated as ] [Partake in Tutorial? Y/N] Once again, he blinked a few times in surprise, his eyes trailing over the words again. It felt like his thoughts were moving at a snail¡¯s pace, paralysed by what was going on. How had he ended up here? Was reincarnation real? Then he read over his new species, apparently a mopaaw. Which sounded¡­ silly, a little. He could feel his body after all. He had four legs with paws at the end of each, a long, fluffy tail, a snout out front, and eyes with excellent vision. Steve knew he was a cat. In every sense of the word, it matched up with what he knew a cat to be. Perhaps it was just this world¡¯s equivalent? He was unsure. Shaking the thoughts away, he instead tried to focus on the message again. Yeah, maybe¡­ maybe a tutorial wasn¡¯t too bad an idea right now. He had no idea what was going on, after all. The moment he¡¯d made up his mind and confirmed the intent, the box responded. [The individual has accepted to begin the Tutorial. Tutorial will now commence.] [While ongoing, the individual may not lose any health, may not be subject to outside forces, may not leave the specified area, and may not experience any change to their physical status. The individual¡¯s thoughts will be accelerated to allow for smooth completion of the Tutorial. Entering state.] Immediately, Steve felt his mind race. Only half the thoughts felt like his own, the other half mixed between the body he inhabited, and new information being brought into his mind. He knew he couldn¡¯t eat vegetables or fruit anymore, and also immediately understood that he would feel no disgust at all at eating raw meat. His senses felt slightly sharper, but also duller in some ways. He could tell his human mind was trying to parse the colour information it got, and using context clues, he could still tell most of them apart, just based on his experience with things. So, beneath the snow, the grass could have been green or red, but he knew it was green, and saw it as green. Then, a moment later, something in his head lurched, messing his thought process up, and he saw the grass the same way he used to as a human again. He could very distinctly feel the merging of his human and cat mind, and it felt¡­ a little like taking an uncomfortably fast roller coaster ride. His head felt like it was snapped left, then right, then twisted all around, and a moment later the sensation was gone, and Steve blinked a few more times. He felt¡­ normal. Different, definitely. Disorientated, for sure. Maybe a little bit like he was the chosen one, feeling a distinct sense of arrogance in his mind, originating from the part of him that was cat in nature. Then, after his mind was seemingly adjusted, leaving his thoughts racing, another notification chimed in. [The system operates on commands, both verbal and mental. The individual is encouraged to begin with verbal command in order to become more familiar with the system. Please say ¡°Status¡± in order to access your current primary information sheet.] ¡°Meow?¡± Steve said, somewhat hesitantly, his voice coming out distinctly cat-like. Some part of his mind told him that it was insane, yet another chunk considered it completely normal. Before he could consider it, a bigger box, and much more information, appeared inside his head. Status: |Unnamed| [The individual''s name.] Lv.: 1 [The individual''s level.] Species: Common Mopaaw [The species the individual is currently part of.] Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Titles: None [Titles the individual has earned through various personally important feats, awarding permanent benefits.] Hp: 3/3 [The individual''s remaining and maximum life force.] Mp: 1/1 [The individual''s remaining and maximum magical power.] Sp: 12/12 [The individual''s remaining and maximum stamina.] Strength: 4 Vitality: 2 Dexterity: 7 Agility: 8 Intelligence: 2 Wisdom: 4 Willpower: 2 Luck: 8 Ability points: 0 Oh. Oh wow, he really had a game-like interface there. It felt so surreal, he reached out to touch it, and his paw met resistance for a fraction of a second. Somewhere, for some reason, he knew he could tap it to add points or confirm prompts, but not otherwise interact. Then, his eyes drifted to his Hp. Oh. Oh no. That¡­ wasn¡¯t a very high amount of points there. He took a deep breath to calm his racing heart down, then focused again. Seeing himself just three measly points away from death was¡­ a wake-up call. He felt some part of him panicking, worrying about it, but it was all covered in a thick blanket of¡­ calm. Did being unable to alter his physical state also mean adrenaline was suppressed? Did cats even have adrenaline? Something told him they had an equivalent at least. He focused again. [To view your Skills, say "Skills"] ¡°Meow,¡± he intoned, a little more sure of himself this time. Another window appeared, this one much smaller than his status screen. Skills: Active: Passive: Unique: Okay. Most of those made sense. He was a cat, or cat-equivalent at least, so he had cat-based Skills. Then there was . Maybe because he came from a capitalistic society? Was his entire existence as a human worth just one Skill? [Some individuals have a unique Skill. These can be acquired through extensive training or be innate from birth. The individual was granted one due to their disproportionate life experience compared to their body.] That explained it, somewhat. Did the system truly view him as a regular ¡°mopaaw¡±? That was¡­ good and bad, he supposed. [To use a Skill, simply intend to use it. Passive Skills can also be disabled and enabled by speaking their names or toggling them in the menu. Skills can be levelled up by utilising their effects. This is accurate for both passive and active Skills. Upon reaching a certain level, Skills may evolve into superior forms. Some Skills may have additional conditions. The evolution requirement may be different for different Skills. Some Skills do not have a level cap. Skills may consume resources, such as Mp or Sp. Many Skills consume both.] It aligned with what he expected. He wasn¡¯t huge into video games, but he¡¯d played a few after work sometimes, and this seemed to match up well enough. [New Skills can be acquired through different means, including: the Skill Shop, Skill Evolution, Skill-teaching objects, Skill Fusion, Skill Acquisition. In order to see these principles in action, the individual is encouraged to try and gain more information about these methods by staring at them.] For a moment, Steve hesitated, then followed the directions. He focused on the first one, the Skill Shop. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] [Skill Shop: The Skill Shop is a menu inherent to all individuals with system access. It uses the currency of Skill points, which may be used to purchase Skills.] And what were Skill points? [Skill points: This currency is acquired mainly via levelling up, but may also be granted as a quest reward. It can be utilised to acquire new Skills from the Skill shop, or to evolve existing ones when the opportunity presents itself.] Right, then. Everyone in the world got these points for levelling, and the Skill shop was different from his . That was good to know. Nodding once, Steve mentally moved on to the next bit of information. [By completing various feats in line with the individual¡¯s interest, you will be granted additional ¡°Skills¡±, ¡°Points¡±, ¡°Titles¡±, and ¡°Items¡±. You have acquired the necessary tools to inform yourself further on system functions, and are encouraged to safely explore the world. The individual is recommended to try and stay alive] [The individual has now reached the end of the Tutorial.] [The individual has gained the Title .] Something about the first message up there felt a little loaded, like a light jab at him, but he simply noted it for now. He could earn more rewards by completing things that aligned with his interests. He¡­ didn¡¯t quite feel qualified to tackle that one, his death having happened just 5 minutes ago or so, and instead, used the last remaining bits of calm from the tutorial to focus on the title. ¡°Meow?¡± he said, focusing on [: This is a Title granted to those who complete the Tutorial. Upon acquisition, it grants 5 Ability Points. Additionally, a short grace period will be activated, during which the individual will be awarded slightly increased growth to Skill acquisition and a large, hidden bonus to luck. This is intended to help the young individual survive.] 5 whole points? Without a moment of hesitation, Steve pumped four of them into vitality, investing one in intelligence, to see what it did. Vitality: 2 -> 6 Hp: 3/3 -> 10/10 Intelligence: 2 -> 3 Mp: 1/1 -> 2/2 [Due to the individual¡¯s low ability scores, resource calculation is proceeding variably. Upon reaching 10 points in resource determining abilities, the amount of resource per point will stay constant.] Right. That explained why each of his Vitality increases was worth more than the point in Intelligence. So, once he had Vitality or Intelligence past 10, the increase would be the same each time. That was good to know. Taking a deep breath, Steve felt the cold air in his lungs. He could see a forest down the mountain. It was probably a better idea to head there, then, if he wanted to find food. He found his mouth watering at the thought of mice, which was strange, but also somehow didn¡¯t feel disconcerting. He shook the thought aside, and made a first few tentative steps, when the system chimed in again. [Random Quest: "Escape from the Bullet Eagle!" added. Reward: 50 Exp] What? Chapter 2: Hunt and shelter Chapter 2: Hunt and Shelter The moment the window appeared, Steve heard a small gust of wind behind him. He felt his cat instincts firing only a fraction of a second later, as he launched himself to the side. His claws touched down on the snow again a moment later, but lost grip on the icy surface, and sent him tumbling to the side. He barely saw bird claws rake across the ground where he¡¯d just been before he started tumbling. As he slipped and fell to his side, Steve slid slightly further, reaching the incline, and instead of slowing, he started to build speed, rolling down the slippery slope in a bundle of fur and wild screeching. Every time he smacked into the ground, he felt his Hp take a slight hit as he reached out to try and stop himself, and eventually, after a few hits, his claws found purchase in the ground. Instead of snow, though, he felt wet grass and soft earth under his paws. Somehow, he¡¯d made it into the forest, the canopy of the first few trees hanging protectively over his head. Every bit of his body felt sore, and he meowed a little in protest, but still raised himself up to his legs and made his way a bit further into the shield of branches. He honestly felt a little sour hobbling ahead like that, and like the whole ¡°grace period¡± might have been a bit of a trick, but then again, he could certainly count himself lucky he¡¯d received a quest at all. Quietly grumbling a little, he stepped further into the forest, until he heard another notification. [Random Quest "Escape from the Bullet Eagle!" completed. Reward: 50 Exp.] [Level Up!] Immediately, Steve felt¡­ much better. So much so that it was very clearly not quite natural. He gave his status another quick check, glancing over the numbers. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 1 -> 2 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 8/13 Mp: 4/4 Sp: 11/17 Strength: 4 -> 5 Vitality: 6 -> 7 Dexterity: 7 -> 8 Agility: 8 -> 9 Intelligence: 3 -> 4 Wisdom: 4 -> 5 Willpower: 2 -> 3 Luck: 8 Ability points: 3 His attributes had almost all increased, which was already very good, but then in addition to that, his Hp had refilled. He was sure it¡¯d been below 8 after his fall, though he wasn¡¯t 100% sure what exactly it had been. [Lv.: Short for level, this value shows the player''s growth state. It will increase as experience is gained. Upon levelling up, some Ability scores will automatically increase and 3 Ability points will be granted as a reward. Additionally, half of the individual''s resources will be regenerated. Experience is shared among Parties.] That certainly explained it. Steve felt a small smile creep onto his face. This¡­ he felt some primal part of his brain saying it could work with that. He still felt sore, and a little annoyed at the whole situation, but at the same time, he knew this was a chance to change his life, to become something more. Still, before having any grandiose dreams, he needed to find a place to sleep. He was currently feeling wide awake, and he could tell that night wouldn¡¯t bother him, but he probably only had 16 or so good hours in him, if time ticked similarly to Earth in this place. For now, he decided to head deeper into the forest. At the transition between snow and wood, there was a bit of an open field, which he could tell was beneficial to him. Fields often meant mice, and he could certainly deal with those better than what the forest might offer. Perhaps falling from the mountain had been better than expected! Just as that thought had snuck its way into his head, he felt his sides and shoulders ache again. The rush from the level had driven the pain away for a bit, but it swiftly returned, albeit much more muted. It was something he could fairly easily push through, even if the scrapes hurt when he moved. While heading deeper into the forest, he let his mind wander for a bit. Not too far, though, he didn¡¯t really want to consider the whole implications of reincarnation just yet. It was his first day, and he wanted to think more about what he would be doing in the future. First and foremost: he had an Mp value. Which stood for magic power, or at least had something with it. The key word there was magic. Sure, Steve might have been 36 when he died, but the thought of doing real, actual magic was still, well, magical to him. Maybe something like a summoner or a beastmaster, then he wouldn¡¯t have to get very close to enemies himself. He certainly had little interest in battling the kinds of monsters you¡¯d see in games. What even existed in this place? Vampires? Demons? Eldritch gods? He tried to get his head away from that thought very quickly. Instead, he thought about builds again. With him being a cat, he would most likely be somewhat inconspicuous, so of course being a thief was an option. But he was in a forest right now, so stealing Skills wouldn¡¯t serve him well. He¡¯d always loved the idea of magic craftsmanship, and he really wanted to give it a shot, so he really hoped there was some sort of Skill related to that which didn¡¯t need thumbs. Before he got to spend his points though, he felt his stomach rumbling. Right, food first, magic later, in that case. - - - Very quickly, Steve came to appreciate his new eyesight. It took him a little while to spot a small mouse scurrying along the edge of the forest, but once he¡¯d caught sight of it, tracking it was scarily effortless. The mouse also ran around very carefree, seemingly not worried about anything, which told him there must be few predators of them in this area. Little did it know, it was about to get got. Slowly, Steve snuck towards his prey, his chest low to the ground. The mouse stopped to sniff the air, and he saw his chance. His legs bent to jump, and he leapt- Only to see the mouse scurry away while he sailed through the air. Did it smell him? He grimaced a little. Being bested by a mouse certainly put a damper on his mood, he noted. Fine though. He had a gamelike system, so he better put it to use. Quickly pulling up his status, he invested all three points from his recent level into Agility. Agility: 9 -> 12 The effect was immediate, and Steve could feel himself growing more lithe. His body responded faster to his command, and movement felt more smooth. Alright, yeah, he could get used to that. While searching for another mouse, Steve mostly kept quiet, focusing on his surroundings. He was fairly sure he wasn¡¯t about to get eaten immediately, but ¡°fairly sure¡± wasn¡¯t quite good enough. Additionally, he also kept a bit of an eye out for his stats, seeing if his health or stamina changed. The system was surprisingly malleable, letting him selectively choose what to display with ease. After a little strolling, he noted that his Sp had dropped by one, but he¡¯d also locked onto another mouse, this one a bit fatter than the last. It was also munching on a fallen apple, seemingly distracted by the food. Perfect prey. Steve snuck closer while hiding between the trees, carefully avoiding sticks or leaves on the ground and when he was within jumping distance, he carefully made sure of his landing, when he remembered yet another thing. Dash. Alright, increased Agility and Dash, time to put these two to the test. Use ! In the blink of an eye the kitten jumped forward, its claws extending in the air and quickly digging into the mouse, holding it in place while it struggled to escape. It was finished off with a quick bite to the neck. [Killed a mouse. Get: 5 Exp, 1 Gold] Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. He had done it! He had killed his first prey! This should help with his hunger for now, time to snacc! Surprisingly, the mouse tasted mostly good. Sure, it was no 5-star meal, but it was thoroughly edible. Well, except the fur and innards, which he quickly batted away when he was done. No self-respecting cat would eat those, he knew that much instinctively. Still, he felt much better already with something in his stomach, and he forced down the more squeamish, human bits of him. This was cat-town right now, and that part of him still needed two more things: water, and a place to sleep. The thirst, pun intended, was less important as of now, since the meat from the mouse also had some blood in it. But the sun was setting, and he wanted to find someplace to rest before it rose again. His surroundings didn¡¯t dim as much as he was used to, but some part of him expected that. Not the human part, he was very surprised when rather than dark, the world just became slightly dim. He saw especially well right where his eyes were pointed, almost like he had two little flashlights attached to his pupils. While walking, he could only really monitor a few things about himself, like stamina and health. Reading through his entire status was too distracting in a forest, and he was very likely to end up tripping over a root. Using the mountaintop to orient himself, he was walking to the left, without going up or down too much. There weren¡¯t very many animals around here, either, only the occasional mouse or rabbit scurrying about, and the innumerable insects buzzing. He was pretty sure he also heard a chirp once, but it was a bit deeper than any bird he was used to. He encountered his first larger animal when he stumbled upon a small pond with a stream flowing into it from the mountain. In front of said pond was a bear. A hugeass black bear. Genuinely adult with muscles bulging underneath protective fat. He froze at the sight, his heart skipping a beat. The notion that he was in some sort of ¡°beginner area¡± fell apart then and there. Immediately, Steve turned around on his heels. Nu-uh. No chance he was doing that. Nope, not this time. Sure, dying to a bear might be better than choking on cafeteria food, but it was still dying, and he wasn¡¯t all about that non-life. Sneaking away though, he heard a small chime in his head. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] He quickly gazed at the notification before it disappeared, freaking out a little innerly. This Skill could not have appeared at any more perfect time! And it was passive, too! Awesome! Leaning a little onto the Skill, he made his daring escape, stepping surely in between twigs and dry leaves. Once he¡¯d made it far enough out to be confidently out of earshot, he let out a long sigh, which left his mouth as a stretched ¡°Meooooooooowwww¡­¡± This was too stressful for him. His human mind was yearning for home, to just lay down in bed or on the couch and return to potato. To think he was undone by the very thing that inspired him. Couldn¡¯t he have just reincarnated as a max level dragon or something? He could have had an army and reign over stuff or something like that! Instead, he was scrounging around a forest in search of shelter. Ah, frick, right. Focus, Steve. Shel. Ter. He took a deep breath, not letting himself zone out anymore. After pulling himself back together, the young mopaaw walked through the forest again, now a little more wary of where he was going, and luckily soon found a suitable spot. It was an old, hollow log, lying flat on the ground, hard to spot with all the grass around it. The place wasn¡¯t exactly luxurious, but at the very least it would ward off rain, and keep him hidden from anything larger than him while he slept. Which meant it was good enough, for now. There was a source of water decently nearby, too, though he would prefer to go there when it was distinctly lower in bear population. He¡¯d have to scout the area around the log and the lake in the future, but right now, he simply wanted to check out his status again. Hp: 9/13 Mp: 4/4 Sp: 13/17 He¡¯d recovered some Sp from eating, and his Hp had increased by another point as well. He still tired himself out a little by walking so much, and occasionally jogging, enjoying the feeling of . But he¡¯d also levelled up today. Which meant he must have had some amount of Skill points. ¡°Meow?¡± he asked, attempting to open up the Skill shop. As soon as he thought of it, a new window popped open, this one a little different from the ones before. It had a search bar and multiple categories that seemed¡­ kind of tailored to what he knew? In addition to that, he could also scroll down. The window held a seemingly endless amount of Skills, each stacked on top of each other. At the very bottom corner of the window, he saw one other tidbit though. [Skill points: 100] He had exactly 100 points. Luckily, most Skills seemed to cost some multiple of 100. Unluckily, he could afford very few of them right now, and most of the ones he could afford seemed to need him to get really close to enemies. He would¡­ like to avoid that for now. His cat brain seemed fine with smacking things up close and biting them, but his human part disagreed vehemently. It was a fairly simple thought process, really. Pain bad. Essentially, he only considered a few types of Skills. Something for buffing, ranged combat, or escaping. Maybe summoning, but after a quick price check, that category was out for now. Over 1 000 points. Oof. Instead, he found two fairly suitable-ish Skills. for combat or when it came to crafting. He couldn''t exactly spec into blacksmithing or alchemy without thumbs, and even beginner-level necromancy was currently far too expensive. And even if he could afford it, he wouldn''t get it for now. The reason was simple. To get units for his army he had to beat them. Mice weren''t exactly his perfect image of soldiers. No, what he needed was something far different from that, what he needed was security. So, he chose . He didn¡¯t know exactly what the Skill would give him, but he could infer from the title. While didn¡¯t work on things still in the Skill shop, he was fairly sure that runecarving would let him use his mana to improve the properties of something that already existed. And it was carving, specifically, which he could tell was possible with his claws. Why he could tell he didn¡¯t know, but given that the system could read his thoughts, calm him down, and merge his mind with a cat¡¯s? It wasn¡¯t very surprising. [Acquired the Skill from the Skill Shop.] Now, ! [: This Skill allows the individual to carve runes which they know into objects of their choosing. The more advanced the rune, the higher the probability of failure. You can learn new runes by studying ones you see on objects or by learning them from another runecarver.] Alright. So, uh, what were runes, exactly? ? [Runes: Letters of a magical language. When carved into objects and filled with magic, they can enhance the object''s properties. Runes are categorised using grades and levels. The higher the grade and level, the better the rune. Grades range from 1-10 while levels range from low-high. Example: A low 3rd grade rune. The individual currently knows the runes: , ] Reading that last part felt strange. When he thought about them, Steve noticed that he indeed knew the runes. As though he always had known them, too, which obviously made no sense. Did they come packaged with the Skill? Probably, then. At any rate, this definitely seemed like a very suitable Skill for him. Being able to attempt higher levels was good, but for now, just low level runes were fine. He was itching to try it out, actually, and thus decided on his first object to improve: the log he now called home. There didn¡¯t seem to be any way to check the exact probabilities of success, but that didn¡¯t matter. For a start, the lowest level seemed fine. He took some time to brush away a little moss, then carefully placed his claw against the inside of the bark, and began to trace the pattern in his mind. The rune was simple enough for now and the Skill automatically activated when he started carving. After a few minutes of slow and careful movement, making sure that each and every line was passable and connected up properly, another notification appeared, and along with it, he could feel his energy being sucked up by the rune. For just a moment, it gave off a gentle light, before returning to being nothing but a carving. [Successfully carved low 1st grade Reinforce rune. Get: 10 Exp.] His eyes widened a bit as he looked at the exp notification. This was unexpected. He¡¯d thought that he would most likely have to level exclusively by killing things, but not so, apparently. Knowing that it would help him level, Steve wanted to carve another rune immediately, but remembering the drain, he checked his resources first. Mp: 0/4 Ah. Well. That sucked, then. It¡¯d also cost him one Sp from the focus and keeping his paw up for so long. It was a little annoying, and the feeling of emptiness from having his mana drained left him slightly irritable, but it was tolerable. Just uncomfortable, but he was going to have to get used to that, he grumbled in his thoughts. To prepare the base, he¡¯d need more Mp. To hunt, he needed more Strength, Agility, and even Vitality if he wanted to be safe. His Sp was low too, and if he had better mental stats, maybe he¡¯d be less grumpy about this. Essentially, Steve found himself lacking in every way. It kind of ruined his excitement over the rune, but whatever. , how would he regain mana? [Mp: Short for mana points, this value shows the amount of magical energy in your body, which you can utilize to cast spells, or use other magical abilities. It regenerates passively by absorbing mana from the air. The maximum capacity is based on Intelligence. The rate of regeneration is based on Wisdom.] The notification distinctly didn¡¯t tell him his regeneration rate. At least he knew it would return over time. Fine, then he¡¯d at least try to spend that time productively, and check out his unique Skill. ¡°Meow,¡± he said. Immediately a new window was opened. This one appeared to be fairly similar to the Skill Shop, with multiple tabs and a search bar at the top as well as a scroll bar to the right and his currency at the bottom. Currently he held an incredible, jaw-dropping, gobsmacking and utterly shocking amount of 1 Gold. There was one difference though, being a shopping cart to the right. Ah, so it must be drag and drop then. He immediately gave it a try and moved a random item over the cart icon, after which he was asked how many he would like to buy. So he could choose as many items as he wanted and then pay for them at checkout. This was convenient, at the very least, and it seemed to also respond to mental commands. Now, what were the tabs? Consumables, Ingredients, Armor, Weapons, Tools and Miscellaneous. It was a fairly large assortment, really. The Skill was looking very, very decent right now, so he took the time to check out the items. They were sorted alphabetically, though he could change the order it seemed. Well then, what did the first one cost? 100 000 Gold. Every single item on the first page was above 100k. He blinked in confusion at that, then shook his head, having the shop reorder itself to show cheap items first. ¡­ Steve felt a little peeved, maybe a smidge angry, when the cheapest item in the entire store was a minor health potion for 100 Gold. It healed 5 Hp. Which amounted to a few scratches, essentially, for which he¡¯d have to kill 100 Mice. He tried clicking his tongue in frustration, which didn¡¯t quite work out, but it got the point across to himself. Grumbling and tired, he smacked his paw against a wall. A decision he regretted almost instantly, when it took his precious Hp down another point. He took a deep breath at that to calm himself down, only innerly annoyed that it felt very unforgiving. At the very least, he felt better after venting his anger. It was pointless to get frustrated anyways, he would have to live with the fact that might not be useful in the very near future for now. For now, he didn¡¯t have anything much to do, and it was still nowhere close to sleeping time, so he instead curled up until he was comfortable and decided to experiment somewhat. Time for a little system research! Chapter 3: Questing Chapter 3: Questing There were a few major revelations Steve figured out in his digging. The first one was simple and seemed to be nothing more than some quality of life from the system. It was the ability to somewhat customize his windows, deciding how his Skills were sorted or what his Status displayed, for example. For now, he didn''t really care about Skill sorting since he had so few of them, though he did add Skill Points and Gold to the bottom of his Status sheet. Now, the second thing he figured out was a whole different beast though. He could apparently gain Stats from physically or mentally training those Stats. The exact methods for each ability score weren''t spelled out, but he got somewhat of an idea of it. Raw muscle mass for Strength, general fitness for Vitality, stamina for Dexterity and simple speed or flexibility for Agility. Now, the mental Stats were harder to figure out. He thought it might just be studying for Intelligence, thinking philosophically or some such for Wisdom, and pushing himself forwards even when his Stamina ran out for Willpower. Meditating might also help with one or two of them, so he would try that out in a bit. But there was still a problem with training. Physical training required movement and exercise. Those required Stamina, and that was something he didn''t exactly have enough of right now, so it was mostly off the table. As for mental training, he would have to wait and see. He didn''t have any resources, so he couldn''t exactly study from books, making meditation basically his only option. Though, moving on with his findings for now, he also discovered that there was an inventory. It would allow him to store things in it, but his excitement cooled a little once he saw the amount of slots it had. One. He had one singular inventory slot. Unlocking more came at a cost he could choose himself, and pay in most exhaustible resources the system offered. , for example, allowed him to buy another slot for 1 000 Gold, which was already very good, but there was also the option of spending 500 Skill points, or 30 Ability points on one. As of right now, those goals seemed very far off, and the points could be put to far better use, so he decided to try and save up his Gold for it. Other than that, there wasn¡¯t much extra info, even after using on practically everything for an hour. By the end of it, his Sp had also recovered a little more. With his stomach full, he didn''t exactly feel like hunting, so he had to figure out what to do with the remainder of his waking time. It really didn''t take very long to make that decision. Appraise the remainder of his skills, then try to improve intelligence for more mana, of course! ! [: A skill which reduces the noise the user makes. The higher its level the quieter the user.] [: A skill to explosively increase the user''s speed. Consumes a percentile of total Sp rather than a set amount.] Both of those were definitely very useful skills. With this it would be possible to hunt by himself and escape from predators if necessary. Okay, that was good news. Now, onto the next step. He had to rest to regain Hp, Sp and Mp, though as soon as his Mp were back he would spend them on further reinforcing his little log. So, what could he still do to hopefully increase his Stats? Meditate. He had no real resources here except for a little bit of space, so reading was out of the question, and coming up with moral dilemmas to improve wisdom seemed a little stupid, so he settled on meditation instead. Unfortunately, he had never meditated before, so he would kinda have to figure everything out step by step. Hopefully his time at work turning his mind off while staring at screens would prove to be of some help here. So, first to get into a position suited for it. As a kitten he couldn''t exactly sit with his legs crossed, so for now he''d have to make do with lying down as comfortably as he could. Then, regulating his breathing. Deep breaths in through the nose and out through the mouth. In and out. And then, he should try to feel the world around him more clearly¡­ [Absorbing mana from the surroundings.] [Get 1 Exp] A message quietly rang inside his head, though he could barely hear it right now. This sensation was too different from anything he had felt back in his own life. It was like a gentle wind on his skin, wrapping around him and slowly passing through his outer shell, into his body, before settling down, condensing and falling into a puddle there, adding another small droplet to it. [Get 1 Exp] Again, the notification rang, this one even quieter than the last. This sensation was incredible, far, far more incredible than any amount of physical strength could ever be. He could feel the mana around him, feel it wrapping him in a blanket that was cool and warm at the same time. He could feel how alive it was, how it brimmed with energy, how it turned stable and settled within his body. Yet, somehow, even then it was still crackling with energy, ready to be used. Every hair on his skin stood up from that electrifying feeling and he opened up his eyes. [Get 1 Exp] [Max Mp has increased by 1.] Whoa. That was¡­ awesome. Holy shit. Wow, just¡­ wow. Damn. That feeling had been more real than any adrenaline rush. It was more exhilarating than a rollercoaster and more fulfilling than cake. Status? Mp: 2/5 His max Mp really had increased by one. This was yet another interesting feeling. He hadn¡¯t played many RPGs, but seeing those numbers go up when they actually described him instead of a character? Crazy. According to the messages, he had also gained Exp from meditating, right? That was definitely useful. It wasn''t exactly a lot of experience, probably around one per minute, but it was Exp nonetheless. If he did this for a while longer, he might even be able to level-up before going to sleep. Steve nodded to himself and tried to focus again, calming down. [Absorbing mana from the surroundings.] [Get 1 Exp] [Get 1 Exp] [Get 2 Exp] [Get 1 Exp] [Max Mp has increased by 1.] [Mp full. Unable to absorb more mana.] [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] So he ended up with 6 Max Mp and a new skill. Perhaps the whole grace period thing had allowed him to earn it more easily. Or maybe his cat side had contributed, it certainly felt like laying down helped him reach absolute zen. At any rate, if he compared his current mana with his starting mana, he¡¯d increased his cap by about half. It honestly felt a little bonkers, but he was certainly not going to complain. Now, what about this new skill? [: This skill increases Mp regeneration rate. When used actively it increases regeneration rate further and gains more mastery.] Mastery? A new term, then? [Mastery: Gained when utilizing a certain Skill. It serves to increase that Skill''s level.] So Skill Exp, essentially. Interesting. was definitely a very useful Skill, so he probably should try to level it up, though he would have to try that out later. Luckily, he already knew how he would spend his Mp. Time to carve another rune! This time, Steve started carving the wood on the opposite side of the previous rune, slowly and meticulously scratching every line into it. He still decided to use a low level rune, as high ones were just too likely to fail. With this one, there wasn''t nearly as much of a risk, maybe around 20% chance of failure, though that was only a guess. Well, half guess, half the feeling he got from the Skill. And sure enough, after a while he finished and the usual notification rang out. [Successfully carved low 1st grade Reinforce rune. Get: 10 Exp.] [Level Up!] Huh? Another level-up? That was good damn news! Hell yeah! Status! Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 2 -> 3 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 13/13 Mp: 6/12 Sp: 20/20 Strength: 5 Vitality: 7 Dexterity: 8 -> 9 Agility: 12 Intelligence: 4 -> 6 A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Wisdom: 5 -> 6 Willpower: 3 Luck: 8 Ability points: 3 Skill points: 100 Gold: 1 And what a level-up it was. It may not have netted as good of an overall upgrade, but his intelligence increased twice just from the level itself. He still had his three Ability points and another 100 Skill points to spend. In addition to that, he was finally fully regenerated. His situation was improving! For now though, he decided to save his Ability and Skill points in case he desperately needed any one stat later, and instead chose to use the combo of meditating and carving runes to reinforce his base. Now that he was seeing his Stats improve, he was slowly getting into it. This log would be the start of it all, the very beginning point of his empire! The cat part of him certainly thought it deserved to be his empire! And such, a small kitten meowed maniacally while scratching up the inside of an old, dead tree. Truly menacing. With the newfound combo of and he was able to get a few more runes done until his eyelids started getting heavy. It seemed that might regenerate Mp faster than doing it manually, in exchange it didn''t expand his maximum though. This was a bit of a problem, but quickly resolved in his head. For now he would use the Skill to create a safe place for him to rest as soon as possible, while once he had established that, he would manually expand his mana pool and use that mana for additional runes or other Skills he had by then. Soon after completing the third rune, he laid down to meditate again, but when he was about to use the Skill his eyes fell shut and he drifted off into the land of dreams. It was late in the day when he opened his eyes again, the sun already having covered about two thirds of the sky. Though he couldn''t tell that from inside the log, of course. No, his attention was occupied by the message right in front of his face. [Main Quest: "Survive the first day!" completed. You have received: 2 Ability points, 50 Skill points, 50 Exp.] [Main Quest: "Conquer the forest!" added. Reward: 10 Ability points, 300 Skill points, 500 Exp, 1000 Gold.] [Sub Quest: "Reach Level 5!" added. Reward: 100 Skill points, 100 Gold.] He had apparently completed and gained new Quests. He already knew there were random ones, but having them pop up like this? Maybe he should have expected it, but if he was honest, he thought they¡¯d need to be accepted from some other person. Having them free-standing like this added a whole new layer of complexity, really. By completing Quests he could earn extra points and Gold. Apparently the Main Quest even had smaller Quests aimed at achieving the final goal. Given that he¡¯d now seen a ¡°main¡± Quest and a ¡°random¡± Quest, he was curious what other types there were, yet even told him nothing of value towards that. [Quests: These are tasks which will reward the individual after completion. Some can be refused while others have to be completed.] That''s all it said. They were tasks, which was fairly basic information. It was almost as basic as when he appraised stuff like his runes or some trees. It had the absolutely amazing capability of spitting out information like: [Tree: a Tree.] or [Rune: A reinforce rune.] Truly incredible stuff right there. Appraising was basically useless when it came to matters outside of the interface, and now there was stuff that it explained unreliably even within the system. He gave a small sigh. While that was unfortunate, he couldn''t exactly change it. In addition to that, his stomach growled. Well, he couldn''t exactly eat the log, so it was time to step outside. The afternoon sunlight felt quite nice on Steve''s fur, actually. Nicer than it had any right to. For a moment, he closed his eyes and stretched to his fullest ability, before opening them and gazing into the forest. Something about it was a little different today. It seemed just a bit more¡­ vibrant. The grass looked a little brighter and the air was filled with the buzzing of insects. Even now, he could see a butterfly sitting on a tree only a few steps away from him. When he looked around on the floor, he could see an ant colony not too far from here, carrying some leaves and needles from the trees. Then, looking a little further, he could even see a deer, though that might not be something he''d wanna hunt. No, he needed prey that was actually possible for him to catch, so mice, in the best case, though he would also take moles or something. It only took a small bit of strolling until he found a mouse scurrying along the forest floor, and even less time to jump on it using after he¡¯d found it. [Killed a mouse. Get: 5 Exp, 1 Gold.] After the first one, Steve decided to hunt down a second mouse, so he had food for the day. Hopefully. If it was enough, he would be able to focus on carving runes all day instead, making his current home a little sturdier. The second mouse took a little longer, and a few attempts as well, but he managed after a little while. [Killed a mouse. Get: 5 Exp, 1 Gold.] [Level up!] What? A level-up? The experience from the Quest had probably put him pretty close to one, then. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 3 -> 4 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 13/13 Mp: 15/15 Sp: 16/25 Strength: 5 -> 6 Vitality: 7 Dexterity: 9 -> 10 Agility: 12 -> 14 Intelligence: 6 -> 7 Wisdom: 6 Willpower: 3 Luck: 8 Ability points: 8 Skill points: 250 Gold: 3 Once again, levelling felt satisfying. With his physical stats receiving boosts, he could almost feel himself growing. In general, growing his stats was nice. He should probably take some time today to work on them in general, rather than relying on the levels. Having decided on that, he put the mouse in his single inventory slot and started heading to the small pond he had found. Since the bear drank from it, he should be okay doing so as well, just from a standpoint of the water being drinkable. He was almost halfway there already, anyway. Luckily for him, the bear wasn''t around this time, nor were any other big animals, so he quickly ran to the lake, drank until he was no longer thirsty and then headed back to the log. It was the first time since reincarnating that he was actually looking forward to something. Without him even realizing it, carving runes had become kinda fun. He enjoyed knowing that he had created something solid and tangible, that he had improved on something else. It was the joy of making a bit of an impact on the world, for him at the very least. So, when he arrived at home, he got to it again and carved two beginner runes. It was actually the first time he failed at one of them, marking 7 successes and 1 failure. Oh well, it wasn''t too bad, it wasn''t like it would kill him to retry the rune, though unfortunately he only got half the Exp from it. Whatever, just meditate for now. [ has levelled up!] At some point, when he was already almost done, his mana gathering speed seemed to increase just a little. He understood why once he opened his eyes again after refilling his Mp. It didn''t have a huge effect, but levelling up was still great. ¡®More mana, more runes¡¯, as his uncle never used to say. After meditating he carved two more runes, both successful, when another notification appeared. [Successfully carved low 1st grade reinforce rune. Get: 10 Exp] [ has levelled up!] Awesome! Increasing the success rate of his runes was one of his top priorities, so this was quite perfect for him, having a safe home was the most basic basis for survival after all. With his Mp depleted, Steve went right back to meditating. And at the end of the night, after repeating the process a few times over, he had drawn six more runes onto his walls. By now, they should be quite sturdy, huh. Well, he''d see when it rained, anyways. For now, he thought he could simply call it a night when he heard a thud outside his small home, and a Quest popped up. [Random Quest: "Kill the giant spider!" added. Reward: 20 Exp, 50 Gold. Accept?] Interestingly, the first Quest he could deny. Though, in this case, the choice was more of an illusion. If he fought, why not accept? And if he didn¡¯t fight, he''d have to give up his log to this eight-legged asshole. Absolutely out of the question. But to take down a spider roughly the size of him, he needed the element of surprise, so he took a few deep breaths. While Steve was busy decreasing his heart rate, the spider started moving its hairy legs around just in front of the log''s opening. It hadn''t noticed Steve yet, and if everything went his way, there was still some time until it would. Now, his thought process was fairly simple. A spider has eight eyes in the front and eight legs. It also had its webbing. But none of that could really reach him on its back, right? So, all he needed to do was drop on the spider from above and kill the shit out of it. Luckily, it was big. If it had been tiny, he''d be much more afraid. Never knew where those little guys were hiding! With a plan in mind, Steve exited the log on the other end, walking backwards without making even the slightest sound, then jumped on top of the log. From the ground, even the lowest tree branches were absolutely impossible for him to reach. After some sneaking, and making sure that mister I-have-twice-your-legs was looking the other way, he pounced. Using , he jumped, landing right on the back of the spider, and digging his claws deep into it. He got two long gashes in before the spider started shaking himself, trying to throw him off. He kept his grip for a moment, but soon lost his hold, his claws leaving gashes on the spider¡¯s back as he slid off. Steve landed on the forest floor with an audible thud, but quickly regained his posture. His ribs were less than excited about having just hit the floor, but he bore with it. When all eight of the spider''s eyes then fixed on him, he knew he stood no chance in a simple strength based matchup, so instead, he took the path truly meant for people like him: running away. He turned around and dashed away at full speed before the spider could even think about using its webbing on him. He might not be stronger, but he was definitely faster, and with it being injured, it might bleed out after a while. Now, Steve may have been an idiot, but he wasn''t stupid. After running away he snuck closer again to check the spider''s location. Sure enough, it hadn''t moved too far. It was a little further up the hill, at a spot with very few trees around so it couldn''t be ambushed. There was ichor leaking from the wounds on its back, but it didn¡¯t seem like it would die very soon. Steve thought about it. He had to avoid the spider''s silk and fangs at any cost. If he got tied down or bitten, he''d die, which would not be very cool at all. Having said that, what were his weapons? With his paws he couldn''t throw anything at it, so his only option was close combat. If he approached it from the side, it would simply turn, if he came from behind, he had to deal with the webbing but would be hidden, from the front he would have to deal with its fangs. So his only options were above and behind, both of which were limited. Currently, he was standing slightly below the spider. Luckily, it was facing the mountain with its back, mostly, so he could probably get another sneak attack in. Very slowly, he circled it, relying on his instinct and to know what to do, until he¡¯d reached the back of the spider. It didn¡¯t seem like it could follow him with its eyes very well. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] Steve used the Skill immediately, having his steps grow even quieter yet. He would take the time to it later, for now, he focused on getting closer to the spider, then leapt onto its back. This time, he jumped even further, digging his claws into the spider¡¯s eyes for stability. Luckily for him, while the spider was now quickly scurrying along the forest floor, it wasn''t shaking him off. He was able to hang on, now that it was blind, and dug in his claws until it went limp. [Killed a giant spider. Get: 100 Exp, 50 Gold, spider''s venom (consumable).] [Random Quest "Kill the giant spider." completed! You have received: 20 Exp, 50 Gold.] [Level Up!] While still breathing heavily, Steve received the level-up message and immediately felt much more refreshed than before. [Sub Quest "Reach Level 5!" completed. You have received: 100 Skill points, 100 Gold.] [Sub Quest "Establish a small territory!" added. Reward: 100 Exp, 50 Gold.] Alright, going strong! Time to get back home and check out the rewards, then. He swapped the mouse corpse in his inventory for the vial, choosing to drag the much less dangerous item instead. Then, with it in his mouth, he made his way back to the log. The sun was beginning to rise in the sky now, and Steve felt beat. Sure, the fight hadn¡¯t been hard, but he felt his human part revolt in his mind, as he shoved the disgust down. Instead, he simply plopped down on the ground in the log, as his eyes fell shut. Chapter 4: Steve, use ! Chapter 4: Steve, use ! Finally, the evening came again. Steve slowly regained consciousness, blinking and stretching his way out of the land of dreams. His sleep had been surprisingly deep, actually. He was just about ready to have breakfast and head to wo- Oh. He was still a kitten. So that wasn''t a dream, huh? Whelp. Fuck him I guess. Still beats not waking up at all. That was a subtle metaphor for death, in case anyone didn''t pick up on it. Now, time to check his status. While his chest did still hurt a bit, it was definitely manageable by now. Maybe they had actually cracked before¡­ hopefully there weren''t any lasting effects for that. Status? Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 4 -> 5 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 14/17 Mp: 15/15 Sp: 16/25 Strength: 6 -> 8 Vitality: 7 -> 8 Dexterity: 10 Agility: 14 Intelligence: 7 Wisdom: 6 Willpower: 3 -> 5 Luck: 8 Ability points: 11 Skill points: 450 Gold: 203 Once again, he was very happy with his newest level. Seeing his saved up points increase was a very good sign. If he ever found himself in trouble, it just gave him that extra layer of security. Unlike his Skill points, which he certainly wanted to spend some of, now! As soon as he thought of it, the Skill shop popped open, a long list of Skills and their prices neatly arranged atop each other. Though as of now, he was really only interested in two abilities: ranged combat abilities or offensive traps he could place. That was all. Something like telekinesis or spider thread. Those did, in fact, both exist, and unfortunately, they also cost 3 000 Skill points each. Well, shit. The only ranged ability he could find that he could afford and probably somewhat use was . 300 Skill points for the ability to throw something. It wasn¡¯t very cheap, but then again, throwing things was a very powerful ability¡­ But of course, before buying it from the shop, he tried to earn it. For a full. Fucking. Hour. Unfortunately, apparently him scooping up rocks and tossing them with his paws did not qualify as throwing things, not even with the grace period. At the end, he relented, deciding to just buy it with his points. After all, throwing was still what made humans the dominant species back on Earth, being versatile and powerful. [Acquired the skill from the Skill shop.] Well. It was still better than nothing. At the very least he would be able to deal some damage from a distance. Now to check it specifically. ! [Throw: A Skill allowing the user to throw objects they are in physical contact with. Object velocity and maximum weight depend on Skill level and Strength stat of the user. Consumes Sp depending on weight of the object. A throwing motion is advised, but not required. Objects may be launched through simple physical contact. Initial upward and forward momentum will be supplied by additional Sp expense.] Huh. That was interesting. Was the Skill altered just for him, or was it like this for everyone? And how exactly would it work, now? Taking some time for a large yawn and a long stretch in the evening sun, he stepped out from his log, ignoring the dull ache in his ribs. Tentatively, he tapped his paw against a chip of bark on the floor, reaching out to the strange sensation he knew related to his Skills. ! For half a moment, nothing happened, until the piece of bark made its way out from under his paw, levitated into the air at the height of his face, and then launched forward. Each burst of motion was accompanied by a slight feeling of drain on him, almost as though he was doing the lifting. It felt strange, like he was a battery except for something he was actually doing. Given that he¡¯d just thrown a piece of bark, rocks would probably fly a bit slower. But the way the Skill worked? He could make use of that, very good use of that, even. It was nearly perfect as a starting Skill, before things escalated. If he needed to mimic a Skill¡¯s effects in order to acquire the Skill, then it also made a lot of sense why he didn¡¯t get it from trying to throw things by himself. He hadn¡¯t exactly done what the Skill does after all. With the Skill bought, he supposed it might be time to gather some ammo, namely rocks, but then his stomach intervened. He quickly finished snacking on the mouse he¡¯d put aside yesterday, and took the venom out from his inventory, carefully depositing it on the ground. He¡¯d need the slot for rocks, this time. Using itself, he transported the rocks to his base, where he stacked them. After a while he had finally produced a fairly big hill of rocks - from a cat''s perspective of course. And so, for the first step he would have to check his Status. Hp: 15/17 Mp: 15/15 Sp: 11/25 It seems that in the time he had spent collecting rocks his Hp had regenerated a little further, though his Sp had actually decreased. Well, then again, he did use to transport his armada of rocks, so it really only made sense. Whelp, with this pile of pebbles here, there was really only one thing left to do, so he placed his paw on one of them about a meter from the log itself and issued his command. Immediately, the rock was slung towards the tree trunk. It was flying faster than he¡¯d expected, and smacked against the wood with a thump, bouncing off a little. But the reinforcements held. There was only a small dent from the impact. Steve grinned at that. His work was paying off. With a smile, he turned back to his pile of rocks. If his home was holding up well enough, he could probably wait a little while with reinforcing it further. Instead, he would be doing some target practice against the regular trees around his little base. With some effort, he shifted the pile in between two thick trees, so he could throw them back and forth. He also carved a target into each of them. After thinking on it a little, he also wanted to reinforce the trees, so that he didn¡¯t accidentally fell one after a while. Some of the rocks were fairly sharp. He traced the first rune without relying on the Skill very much. He¡¯d memorized the rune by now, and could carve it himself, with the Skill only really necessary for the magic infusion. After carving two of them, one into each tree, he decided to check his Status to see his Sp. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Sp 12/25 He¡¯d only regenerated a single point, but it was to be expected, given that he¡¯d moved all the rocks and carved some runes it was actually better than expected. For now, Steve set about throwing rocks until he couldn¡¯t anymore, then meditating and carving runes until he had some stamina back. He repeated this process for a few hours. By the end of it, he had carved six more runes, three in each tree and gotten , as well as to Level 3. By now he could actually throw the rocks quite well, he guessed about eight meters or so. And even though he was panting at the end of the day, he had stuck to his regime and kept throwing rocks. In his old life, he was sure he¡¯d paint a surreal picture, a little cat levitating and launching rocks. But he shook off the thought quickly, feeling himself highly motivated by his growling stomach. Thinking about that, he hadn¡¯t yet tested how effective rocks were against mice. He could only think of one way to find out¡­ So, with a rock in his inventory, he searched for one. Luckily, their number seemed to increase every day, and it was only a few minutes before he saw one scurrying along the ground. He waited until it sniffed the air before he threw his rock at it. And, according to the dead mouse he then ate, rock didn''t just beat scissors. Just like that Steve went to bed in his log. With a full stomach and a rock in his inventory. When he woke up the next night, the weather had changed for the first time. Outside of his comfortably dry log, the grass was more than moist, with a silver sheet of mist floating in the air, growing thicker the further he looked. When he listened closely, he could faintly hear a handful of tiny raindrops falling. He tried checking the sky, but with the dense fog he couldn''t make a guess on how the rain would develop at all. Inwardly, Steve sighed. Sure, he enjoyed rain occasionally, but he wasn''t a fan of getting soaked, especially when every bit of his cat-part screamed at him to run the hell away from the evil liquid coming from above. In shorter words, he really, really didn''t want to go hunting that day. Sadly, his stomach didn''t exactly leave him much of a choice, as it immediately grumbled when Steve considered not going out. He sighed once more, far longer this time. He decided to, in fact, go hunting after all. Yet, his plans were foiled as he stepped out his log. Through the quiet pattering of the rain, he could hear heavy footsteps and someone panting. But the steps didn¡¯t seem to be from any animal he¡¯d seen yet, with how they were falling. No double taps or anything, instead, they seemed very bipedal. Focusing more, Steve stared into the fog, trying to see if it was a human or something else. He couldn¡¯t know what species this world had, after all. The sounds were quiet, forcing him to poke out even further from the log, ignoring the bits of water that splashed on his head. Just as he did so, a deafening roar shook the forest, marking the end of his short scouting mission as he retreated back into his log. Something was out there, and it was both bigger than him, and very displeased. After the roar he could also discern a second set of footsteps, these ones actually louder and far heavier than the first one. They also came from something with four legs. Well, the roar he had heard also wasn''t exactly humanoid. A few more seconds later, he suddenly heard something hit against his log, followed by a human yell and a wet splash. Looks like someone just fell over his house. Didn''t they know kicking someone else''s house was rude? Jeez. For a moment there, Steve was pouting, but he soon lost his chances to continue doing so, when he heard another roar and something big, breathing heavily, somewhere close. Okay. Seems like some dumb fucking idiot decided to piss off a bear and was chased here. They then fell over and landed square on the ground and were now being approached by it. Great job, dearest human. 10/10 work. Incredible. Congrats, really. That must have been an impressively dumb series of decisions. Another sigh from Steve followed when he heard the slow footsteps and the growling of the bear. This was a dilemma now. He really didn''t wanna go outside, since it was raining and the human probably deserved to fall on its face a little, but he also couldn''t just let them lie there¡­ would he be able to outrun the bear? Maybe he could climb on a tree? No, weren¡¯t bears excellent climbers? Ah, fuck! At a moment''s notice Steve stepped outside, the rain now pattering onto his fur. For a second he looked at the carefully approaching bear, the view of the human blocked by its massive figure. It was just as he thought, that was the same black bear he saw drinking at the pond. Was it really worth it to make enemies of that thing for someone he didn''t even know? Ugh, he already had a migraine. If he thought any longer his head might burst, so he simply ran over to his pile of rocks and activated on about ten of them as quickly as he could, all of them shooting forward and hitting the bear''s sides and ass. The black giant stopped for a moment. It paused, then slowly turned its head towards the disturbance while gnashing its teeth and growling. And just then, another rock smacked it square in the teeth, chipping one of its fangs. The bear didn''t take even a second to roar out in anger at the kitten who dared throw those things at him, and immediately and stupidly charged at it. Steve himself simply dodged behind a tree, leading to the musclebrain bashing its head against it. That would have worked usually, but this time it was unlucky. The tree shook, but didn¡¯t break. Perhaps it usually should have shattered against the bear¡¯s weight, but there was a deciding factor. Runes. After shaking its head the bear roared out again, this time even louder and angrier as its eyes darted around again and looked for the kitten. It found Steve a little in the distance, seeing him dart away as soon as it set its eyes on him. Of course, it chased after him without hesitation. Steve, on the other hand, was scared shitless. He never thought the bastard would be strong enough to break a tree. He literally got lucky to have picked the right one, or it might have fallen on him. Then he got lucky again with it confusing the bear. He wasn''t gonna take any more chances, so he went far enough away as to where he could barely see the thing and waited for it to notice him before he started running. He immediately darted off at full speed. There was no fucking way that thing was slower than him, absolutely no chance at all. That thing needed to take one step for every five of his. He didn''t have the luxury to even think about stopping for a damn second. Even if his Agility was higher, his total speed might be slower. There wasn¡¯t even time to look behind himself as he darted between the trees, taking the most difficult curves he could manage, and not even thinking about stopping. He was already panting heavily when he heard the menacing roar behind him again. It wasn''t far. Not far at all. A few steps maybe. Had their distance¡­ shrunk? He¡¯d already activated too! Steve''s eyes widened in fear as he yelled out for his Status. He thought very, very desperately about allocating 10 points to Agility. Many times over, until he finally heard a ding and was greeted by a small box. Agility 14 -> 24 In a moment, his speed increased explosively, so much so that he almost lost balance from his brain not keeping up. For just a moment, he staggered, then stumbled. He saw the ground rushing closer to his face when time slowed down to a crawl. If he fell here, he would die immediately. End of story, just like that. He¡­ he didn''t want that. He didn''t like that thought at all. And with that moment''s resolution, Steve kicked the ground as hard as he could, flinging himself into the air and forward. And when he landed, he had regained his balance. He dashed forward then, nearly twice the speed of before, rushing ahead so quickly he kicked up more than enough mud behind him. With the first step he could practically feel the bear behind him being stunned. With the second, his anxiety fell a little. By the third step he knew he was faster than the bear and from the fourth onward, their distance rapidly increased. The black giant could only watch as that small thing it thought was insignificant outran it and disappeared into the fog. Steve didn''t stop running then. His blood was rushing in his ears, his heart pumping louder than it ever had before as he squeezed out every ounce of strength he had. Even when he had left the bear behind him, his anxiety didn''t disappear. He thought he could still hear the steps behind him, thought he was still on the verge of death, thought there was no way he could escape- Until his Sp ran out just a little further ahead and his run forcefully came to a stop, ending in the ground coming closer to his face once more. This time, there was no more kicking off, and his face really kissed the earth for a short moment, before he toppled over, sliding and rolling his way a few more steps forward. His panicked breathing didn''t stop. He painfully pushed himself up again, but his bruised legs gave in as he crumpled to the floor again. Was this it? He squeezed his eyes shut then and tensed up every muscle he had in full anticipation of the pain of death. But then, it didn''t come. As he waited on, seconds turned into minutes. His breathing slowed a little as the panic subsided. It was slowly sinking in. He¡¯d escaped. He¡¯d managed to shake off that huge, scary thing that made him shiver even now. Then, the pain finally set in and Steve winced. He had taken a hard fall, and the wet dirt specked with splinters and rocks had not been gentle on him. His fur had been torn out in some places and he had more scratches and bruises than he cared to count. In addition, he now felt his legs shake terribly from overusing them. Shit, and all of this for someone he didn''t even know and probably wouldn''t see again. Ugh, damn. He really was too nice a person for his own good. He even felt his cat half screaming at him. He would do it again in a heartbeat though. When he thought about that, it sunk in. He had a shot to lead a better life. Even if it was a bit miserable, he¡¯d bear with it, as long as he could be proud of himself, then. But not long after, Steve found him shaken from his reverie as another wave of pain shook his body. Right, for now he needed to know how bad things were. Status. Hp: 5/17 Mp: 15/15 Sp: 0/25 Damn it, with his Hp this low it would definitely take more than a day to heal. Fuck. He needed to get to a safe spot to rest, he couldn''t just fall asleep in the middle of the forest. He had to patiently endure until he had at least one singular Sp and could walk back to his log. At least he thought so when slow steps gently approached him. Then, when a pair of distinctly human, and very dirty hands reached out to him, his sight blurred and his consciousness faded away. Chapter 5: An encounter and stats Chapter 5: An encounter and stats When he woke up, Steve was in a warm and dry place, wrapped in something soft. For a few seconds then he considered going back to sleep, until his memories came flooding back. The feeling of being chased and having passed out on the forest floor. Of the cold slowly creeping in. Of the wet dirt below him and the pain all over his body. His eyes shot open then. He was inside for sure since there was a wooden roof and walls around him. He was also neatly tucked into a blanket on a small basket. Slowly while looking around he could feel his body again, his legs and back covered in dull, throbbing pain. In addition they were covered in¡­ bandages? Status? Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 5 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 8/17 Mp: 15/15 Sp: 20/20 Strength: 8 Vitality: 8 Dexterity: 10 Agility: 24 Intelligence: 7 Wisdom: 6 Willpower: 5 Luck: 8 Ability points: 1 Skill points: 150 Gold: 204 His Hp seemed to have regenerated a little, which was good. Then, what was that? H-huh? His maximum Sp was reduced? What was that bullshit? Fuck that! Well, at the very least they were full, he could check why they were reduced when he had made sure of his situation. Steve then stirred in bed, trying to see what kind of room he was in. A wooden cottage it seems. The space itself wasn''t that small, maybe about 25 square meters or so. He seemed to be in a basket on a table. There were also a total of two beds on the left wall from his view and an oven on the right. One of those old, stone ones with a fireplace inside and a sheet of metal on top to cook food on. There were also some chairs around the table, a few cupboards next to the bed and oven for storage as well as some sort of trapdoor in the floor. The short version would have been to say it was cozy. The windows let in streaks of midday sunlight, dust dancing in the rays. Steve stretched for a bit, ignoring the slight tugging of pain he felt in his legs. After that, he felt a little more refreshed as he finished wriggling his way out of the blankets and took two small hops onto a chair and then the floor. Now, Steve wasn''t stupid enough to think that this environment was dangerous, but at the same time, he didn''t want to be at the mercy of anyone else and he really, especially didn''t want to be treated like a house cat. Even just thinking about being called "Sir Flufferbutts" sent shivers down his spine. So, he started concocting an escape plan, when the door flew open and a grumpy looking middle aged man stomped in. His hair was brown but had started to gray, his beard was scruffy and fairly unkempt. He was also wearing a green vest over a brown shirt along with pants and boots of the same colour. When he saw the cat on the floor his frown deepened and he shook his head as he bowed down to grab it while murmuring to himself in a language Steve couldn''t understand. He didn''t really care though, for now there was something far more pressing than listening to some grumpy dude looking like he came from a medieval ranger convention. He used without even a moment''s hesitation and blitzed out through the door before the old man had a chance to blink. Steve didn''t stop to admire the woodworking on the porch. He gave his surroundings a quick lookover, checking where he was and found himself square in the middle of the forest. For him, this was actually a godsend. He knew that he was only asleep for half a day or so from his Hp, so he also knew that he couldn''t have been carried too far, which meant he was still on the same mountain. This, in turn, meant that he could find a way back to his log if he searched near the top of the forest, making his plan surprisingly simple: up the mountain until he found grassland, then back down to around the height his log was in. Then, travelling to the left and/or right for a few hours at a fairly quick pace. He had a 50/50 shot to find his log again, and if he didn''t, it was sure to be in the other direction. A flawless plan befitting of a true mastermind like him. Steve did start to slow down after a while, turning his full sprint into a jog when he was further away from the cottage. It was for two simple reasons, to conserve his Sp and not reopen his wounds. He wasn''t too keen on impeding the healing process, though he had probably already done so. Oh well, what can you do. His dignity was worth a little bit of pain. Seriously, even a chance of being named something stupid had to be fully avoided. Then again, he didn''t even know the language the man spoke. Maybe there was a skill for that? He would have to take a look at that in the Skill shop as well. What a pain. Fortunately, Steve didn''t run into any trouble on his way back. In addition to that, he also picked the right direction to get to his log on the first try. Combining those two factors, he finished his trip at dusk, when the familiar sight of his log finally came into sight. He let out a sigh of relief right on the spot before immediately reoccupying his home and lying down in between the familiar jagged lines on the wall. Right, this was his home now. It would probably be smart to mark the area around it so he would know if he was in the vicinity. Well, that could wait until tomorrow. While he wasn''t short on breath he also didn''t feel like doing labour, so instead he carved runes again. The combo of doing that and meditating had become more relaxing than most other things by now. But then, when he was just about to start carving, his stomach loudly announced itself. Right, he was just about to go hunting when someone decided they needed to be rescued. Steve sighed again. Hunting at dusk wasn''t gonna be nearly as easy as it was at night. The visibility was better after all. Damn. Though he did have to make it at least a little easier. Oh who was he kidding, when it came to taking down mice that ability was absolutely busted. That way, three mice were soon eaten at the beginning of the night. Then, when he returned to his log, he started his carving. After two runes he meditated for a while, two more runes, meditating and after another low 1st grade reinforce rune he saw a pop-up. [Level Up!] So it happened. His level had increased once more. This one had taken a little longer than his last few level-ups, so it had better be worth it. Time to check on the fruits of his labour. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 5 -> 6 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 9/17 Mp: 19/19 Sp: 28/28 Strength: 8 Vitality: 8 Dexterity: 10 -> 12 Agility: 24 -> 25 Intelligence: 7 -> 8 Wisdom: 6 Willpower: 5 -> 6 Luck: 8 Ability points: 4 Skill points: 250 Gold: 207 Damn, his Sp value had really risen by quite a bit now. Well, he was curious if his maximum was still reduced like it was previously, though there was nothing he could do about that yet. He''d see how his stats develop with time. For now he should just be happy about having reached an acceptable level of Sp, since he could now probably focus on Mp instead. The ability to carve more than two runes at a time shouldn''t be too far off, especially with his Intelligence steadily increasing. So, Steve kept carving runes until the world brightened again, and in those hours before sunrise, his eyes finally fell shut. After the final two of the six runes he had carved he didn''t even meditate anymore and instead just shut his eyes and drifted off into sleep. The next day he''d go about marking the surroundings for sure. When Steve woke back up his wounds already felt better. The pain had faded even further away, so he heartily stretched before looking outside. Dusk hadn''t fully settled in quite yet, it looked more like it was late in the afternoon than the evening. Before heading out to hunt and shit he checked up on his Status again, just to see how his Hp was doing. Hp: 12/17 Sp: 30/30 Turns out his maximum Sp had increased as well. That quickly led to Steve figuring out that his Sp had reduced because he was wounded. Before, he had only injured his back and body, his legs had never really been hurt before. It was only sensible that injuries prevented him from acting at full capability would reduce his stats. Seems like this system was actually somewhat realistic, the bullshit parts aside, that is. After stretching for another second, Steve headed out to mark the trees. For now he didn''t stray too far from his base. He couldn''t just mark the trees with his claws as those marks would have been hard to discern, so instead he used runes on them, scratching their jagged lines into the tree bark. This way he could only mark two trees before meditating though and he still preferred to do so inside his log shelter as it was by far the safest place for him as of then. After regenerating he went back out and marked two more trees. When he was done he had marked a space of around 20 by 20 meters. It wasn''t huge at all but it would still make finding home quite a bit easier if he ever got lost. It even took him the entire night to do so, given that he had carved 16 runes by the end of it and also hunted down three mice as food for the day. By now he was able to carve the low 1st grade reinforce runes a lot quicker than before. He might even be able to get the mid-level ones down with an okay chance, but he wanted to wait for at least one more level to do so. Yeah, one more level was all he needed. By the end of the night he returned to his log again, only to find someone sitting on it. Steve immediately had alarms going off in his head. It was a human for sure, but not the grumpy old man from the cottage. This one had long, slick, brown hair flowing down her back. Her face had far fewer folds and her blue eyes were far less piercing than his. With her having the same hair colour as he was struggling to maintain and being dressed in the same clothes as the old man, he could easily tell that they were somehow related, though the girl seemed a lot younger. Maybe a daughter or something. Steve didn''t approach for a few minutes and hid behind a tree, barely glancing out from behind it to check if she did anything. The girl didn''t move from her spot. All she did was occasionally lift her head up to scan the surroundings, which is when he would withdraw his head, before letting her eyes droop to the floor again. She was waiting for someone, definitely. Had he unknowingly made her rendezvous spot his home? Ah, damn it. If he was already getting closer to her - which he had to, he was not giving up his log - he wanted to understand her at the very least. Luckily for him, was only 50 Skill points and thus added to his arsenal. He felt knowledge quickly filling his head, though it wasn''t as much as he would have liked. He knew quite a few words, but not nearly enough to understand a full sentence. Well, maybe he would be able to understand some of what she would say at least. If he even learned the right language¡­ This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. He would have to try to find out. Before walking up to her, Steve also prepared the rock from his inventory. He had stopped walking around without it as it proved an invaluable hunting tool, capable of taking out a mouse in a single hit. He was ready to grab the rock and full force yeet it into her face at any point. While approaching, Steve quietly hissed at the girl and bared his fangs. He really didn''t want her there. As soon as she heard him she jumped up though, which bettered his mood a little. That''s right, his home wasn''t a damn chair. He hoped she would keep that in mind. This small gesture caused him to stop hissing at the very least, though he kept himself close to the ground and ready to jump at her any second, even when she fully fixed her eyes on him and her expression softened. There was a moment of silence between the two then, as the woman seemed to be contemplating something. She must have noticed it was him by the bandages that were still wrapped around his limbs and chest since he saw no reason to remove them. Then, after a second the woman bowed deeply, gathering her hands in front of her chest as her hair surged forward and very nearly touched the ground. At the same time she hurriedly blurted out a sentence, of which Steve caught three words: "Thanks - something - save - something - bear." Okay, yeah, he didn''t think the old man would have been chased by a bear. He looked far too professional. It did make more sense for this girl of¡­ what, maybe 20 years, to be careless. "Meow," Steve answered. It came out as the high pitched meow of a tiny kitten, too. Great. He sounded really damn pathetic there. 10/10 job steve. He actually tried to tell her to be more careful, but attempting to speak hadn''t been his most¡­ thought out choice yet. No one''s perfect anyways, but the girl shrugged it off with a smile as she straightened her back and nodded quickly. Was she saying she understood him? No way, no way, no fucking way! She then took a single step towards him. Now, Steve usually wasn''t the type to push others away from himself. Most of the time he didn''t exactly care, but this time he was also a cat so the situation was a little different. He was scared of a few options that existed. She could capture him with a net or cage of some sort. She could pick him up and hold him with her hands to take him back home. She could even try to tame him or something the like. This was a risk he was unwilling to take, he deeply cared for his freedom and independence after all, so with her step forward he also moved one step back. Well, one human step was about three steps for him though. In that moment, the face of the woman froze up and her smile faded a little. She didn''t seem to be angry or anything, instead the corners of her mouth simply drooped down. She was sad about something, apparently, but after a moment she shook her head and her smile was back. Then, she placed something on the ground and stepped back from it, about as far back as the distance he had maintained to her before. He wasn''t stupid and was willing to humor her for a little bit, as he was confident in outrunning her at the very least. So, he checked up on the mystery object. Turns out it was meat. A small package of meat, actually, as he could see after pushing the leaf packaging aside. For a moment he shot the girl a glance but she didn''t seem to be moving from her spot. Was this her attempt at taming him? She might have rescued him that day, but he was still opposed to being someone''s cat with his whole being. He was reincarnated as a cat, yes, but he wasn''t a domesticated cat, or at the very least he didn''t want to be. If he was a domesticated one wouldn''t he get poisoned from raw meat anyways? No, he was determined to stay feral, so he took a step back from the package and slowly shook his head. This made the girl''s expression drop again. He couldn''t really help it though, the risk was simply not worth it. If it was just meat he could get it from mice for now. Later on he might even try to hunt down a rabbit or something. It wasn''t worth it to eat whatever she presented to him, as good as the smell may be. If she wanted to thank him he wanted there to be no strings attached. For another moment the girl hesitated, then she nodded and made her way over to the package step by step, allowing Steve to move backwards as well. She got the distance part at the very least. When she was back at the package she picked it up and pocketed it again. Then, she thought for a moment and sat down on the log again, which was followed by an immediate hiss from Steve as he placed his hands on the rock in his inventory. He was not about to let this girl disrespect his house. Not fucking cool. As she should, the girl quickly got up and bowed again, offering him another apology. She seemed to understand that he wasn''t a normal, stupid cat at least. Well, if she sat down on the log once more he would still throw a rock at her face though, no doubt about it. The girl on the other hand seemed understanding and continued to think on her legs. She wanted to somehow offer a reward to Steve. Then, she seemed to have an idea. She quickly tapped the air a few times when a notification popped up in front of Steve''s face. [Cherry Silvers has offered to trade. Accept?] He did. It was a trade, after all, so it shouldn''t cause him too much of a headache. Soon after, another window popped up, showing him what he could trade and Steve''s face got a little more white. He could trade items from his inventory of course, but when he took a closer look he could also offer up Skill- or Ability points. After just a few seconds, the girl has confirmed her side of the trade and the other side of the negotiation window displayed what she was offering in large letters. [3 Ability points, 100 Skill points] it said. This girl was seriously offering a full set of level-up rewards to him. Well, from her perspective he did save her life. But Steve wasn''t a scumbag. He had the option to confirm his side to finalize the deal after giving both of them another confirmation prompt, or to outright decline her deal. He chose the second. This was way too much. Way, way too much. He would feel like a scammer that way and Steve disliked scammers about as much as stupid names. Now that he thought about it the girl did have a pretty cool name by the way. That same girl, Cherry Silvers, was now furrowing her brows and actually upping her offer. What? Was she stupid? 5 Ability points and 200 Skill points? Seriously? No way. Nah, not a chance. Steve declined again then and walked to the side of his log, a few steps closer to her. He started scratching something into it then. It was a single line. The girl was watching him with attentive eyes as he went about his work, staring at the line to figure out its meaning. One line. One. He didn''t want more Ability points, he wanted fewer. The girl smirked then and sighed as she changed her offer once more. [1 Ability point, 50 Skill points]. Well, she wasn''t giving up on the Skill points, but at the very least she got his message. She wasn''t stupid then. In the same breath Steve nodded and confirmed the offer before the two of them finalized the trade. The girl then had a happy smile on her face, though it was different from when they first met. Her eyes were a little different. The blue hadn''t gotten harsher or softer, but the look she gave him changed. It went from looking at a cute pet to being impressed with him. She wasn''t looking at him with those pet-owner eyes that seemed to degrade him to being a house cat anymore. If this was the case then he might be able to trust her not to try and tame him in the future. And seeing the bright smile of the girl as she bowed down and said her thanks once more before running off, it seemed he might have made a friend. With another nod at confirming his rewards he headed back inside his home, before walking in a small circle once and lying down. Just when he had closed his eyes he was assaulted by multiple notification sounds. Steve only forced his eyes back open with a deep sigh. [Sub Quest: "Establish a small territory!" completed. You have received: 100 Exp, 50 Gold.] [Level Up!] [Sub Quest: "Defeat the great Stag!" added. Reward: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] [Sub Quest: "Defeat the Mother of spiders!" added. Reward: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] [Sub Quest: "Defeat the royal Wolf!" added. Reward: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] [Sub Quest: "Defeat the black Bear!" added. Reward: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] [Sub Quest: "Defeat the Forest Lord and take over!" added. Reward: 5 Ability points, 200 Skill points, 500 Exp, 1000 Gold.] Oh shit. Those were some important notifications, damn. Those markings counted as creating a territory then? And those next few quests¡­ wouldn''t they signify the start of his reign over the forest? Shit. This was a bit sudden, wasn''t it? Not to get anything wrong, he wanted to be king, but this was moving a little quick. Also, what the fuck was that supposed to mean, the black Bear and the Forest Lord? Huh? There were multiple things like that bear walking around? And there was something even stronger too? He had just reached level 7, what the fuck was this even supposed to mean? Well, he would get benefits in between fights, but there was no guarantee he wouldn''t have to fight multiple opponents at once. The only one that seemed even remotely possible was the great Stag. Maybe he stood a miniscule chance when going up against that thing. The bear could tear him apart in one swipe, the wolf was probably a pack leader and the spider was called Mother, so she must have an army. There was, quite simply, not even a hint of a way for him to combat them. Nothing, he was out of ideas. He didn''t even know where they were. Ugh, if only he had a map. Well, time to at least check his level before going to sleep. Status. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 6 -> 7 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 13/17 Mp: 32/32 Sp: 32/32 Strength: 8 Vitality: 8 Dexterity: 12 Agility: 25 Intelligence: 8 -> 11 Wisdom: 6 -> 8 Willpower: 6 Luck: 8 Ability points: 8 Skill points: 350 Gold: 260 WHAT?! What had just happened to his mana? His points had been allocated how exactly? How did that make any sense? What was this BS again? He couldn''t even use his runes offensively and he was unable to use a single offensive Spell. It was completely stupid for him to be receiving increases in those Stats right now! He needed Strength! Vitality! Those stats, not intelligence! UGH! He could absolutely not accept this. If he tackled the Main Quest as he was currently, he would die for sure. No two ways about it, he had to increase his stats before this battle. The real question was how. He could try to level up but that would take ages if he just hunted for mice. Now, he''d have to manually raise his stats, which meant¡­ training. He shuddered at the thought. He would have to multitask too, while working on his Dexterity he might also throw rocks to work on that skill, same while working on strength. Vitality would hopefully go up in the meantime. The only stat that didn''t worry Steve too much was Agility, it was the only thing he currently held any confidence in. Well, those were the worries of tomorrow''s Steve. He could simply shut his eyes and end the day for now. The next day was¡­ harsh. More than harsh, really. He finally had to train, with no more excuses to be made about it. He needed strength, vitality and dexterity and a lot of them at that. So, he ran. It would definitely increase his stamina and maybe even his vitality if he was lucky. As for strength, it wasn''t as important, as it could be supplemented if he levelled up, so he simply kept activating it every second or third step he took. This way, his Sp were emptied out rather quickly, but his Dexterity still showed absolutely no improvement. He had to go further than simply emptying out his Sp then, it would seem. Steve didn''t want to die. It was a simple concept, he just wanted to live his life, really. Sadly, the place he was in was a hostile environment. It wasn''t as if he hated the forest, but he also couldn''t feel quite safe in it. It was for a simple reason too: He could run into that bear anytime. And he was fairly sure it still had a grudge. Now, maybe he would be able to run away. He might escape it, yeah, but what would the point be? It could smash his home and keep going after him. If it did, he might even end up in the territory of another big shot. Then he might have multiple of them at his throat. There was even a good chance one of them might be faster than him. In the end, he didn''t exactly have a choice. He had to be stronger in order to survive, that was the full story. If he raised his stats, he wouldn''t need to fear for his life. It would allow him to be comfortable, which was all he really needed as of now. Ah, not being afraid, what a great thought¡­ And while absorbed, Steve kept running forward, setting one foot in front of the other, even though his Sp were depleted and his breathing was rough. His body was craving a break by now, but Steve still showed no signs of yielding and pushed himself on further. His speed was reduced a little of course, but he was still running at a light jog, which was more than enough to exhaust him further. Only when his legs started to quake and almost give in under him he was knocked back into his body and immediately collapsed onto the ground. This wasn''t the result he had hoped for, but at the very least it was a start. So, not giving up after one round, Steve kept running. First one run became two. Then three and four. And finally, when he was about to give up after a while of training, just when the sun appeared over the horizon, a notification appeared in front of Steve. Dexterity 12 -> 13 It had taken a full day, but finally his Dexterity had increased. Only when his stomach growled Steve realized that he had missed his breaks for food. He had spent all day running and resting, nothing else. Damn, he would need a better training schedule at the very least. The next day''s breakfast consisted of three mice which he quickly wolfed down before resuming his exercise while also periodically activating , which levelled up soon at the very least. While he could throw decently fast and far by now it was still lacking if he wanted to take down that bear. No, he needed more Strength and a higher level of . He simply didn''t have a clue on how to train his Strength. He didn''t exactly have any weights around, so he didn''t know how he was supposed to train his physical power. Well, until now that is. Running turned out to be a wonderful time for Steve to clear his thoughts, so he did. If Strength increased the physical Strength of just his attacks and "punches", then he simply had to make those more powerful, right? Running, in that case, wasn''t quite the perfect option, as usually one would run out of breath before truly wearing ones legs down. He needed something that would wear his legs down more quickly. Which is when he settled on climbing. Of course, that was just enough to make it a hypothesis. He definitely had to test it. As to be expected, he failed miserably. He had never climbed a tree like this before, so him losing grip and plummeting down was only natural, but Steve couldn''t afford to give up so quickly. He dug his claws into the tree and tried to pull himself up over and over again, only getting more stubborn with each fall. He would show this shitty tree who was boss! But even countless attempts later and covered in bruises he had yet to reach the lowest branch. He had failed. He had lost. A crushing defeat really, but Steve''s eyes didn''t touch the ground. He glared at the tree and the fire within his pupils burned so bright that he thought he even saw a bead of sweat sticking to the trunk. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] And just like that, the fire in Steve was extinguished. He-... This-... Steve simply let out a sigh great enough to knock over a dragon before trotting away defeatedly. He quickly let his anger out on two more mice and ate them up. Having a rock in his inventory was truly handy. The next day started just about the same, with stretches and a dead mouse. By now Steve no longer skipped on his morning exercise though, running smoothly through the woods until he was out of stamina. Then, once more he faced the tree¡­ Chapter 6: A cats name Chapter 6: A cat''s name Steve hadn''t put this much effort into anything ever since he studied for his college finals. One more time he grit his teeth as he slowly walked back, crouching down before leaping towards the tree at full speed. He immediately hooked his claws into the bark and used his momentum to carry himself upwards, jumping off when it was out and reaching for the lowest branch. Then, when his claws were only millimeters from touching it, gravity called for Steve and he hit the ground soon after. Vitality 8 -> 9 A pop-up called out to him and announced his increase in Vitality. This could only mean that vitality actually was a mix between general fitness and the body''s ability to take a hit. He had actually increased his defense from falling so often then. And, as he failed at climbing once more, another pop-up appeared as if on cue. [ has levelled up!] This was¡­ infuriating. Actually, it made him absolutely livid. He had gained more resistances to damage than Strength, the stat he had been seeking to improve. He couldn''t even be that mad given the upgrades he had gotten, but he still needed Strength. And so, he kept glaring at the tree all throughout his breaks, almost piercing it with his eyes. Who did it think it was, making him fail so often? It was a tree, nothing more and nothing less. Simply a tree. How dare it stop his progress?! And when he came back, Steve was always a little more motivated than the last time. But even that couldn''t defeat his drowsiness that day. The next morning, Steve furiously racked his brain while running. He tried to come up with solutions, but couldn''t figure any out. Even if his climbing technique was wrong, that hardly mattered. He wanted to conquer the tree with pure physical prowess, not something like Skill. What he needed was more power, and quickly at that. In the end, he couldn''t figure out a solution. He could only steel himself and try again with renewed stamina. And thus, Steve slowed his steps in front of the tree once again. By now its bark was already full of scratch marks from his countless attempts at pulling himself up, but they all stopped once he looked higher up in the tree. A small amount of sap had seeped out and crystallized to fill the holes, the overflowing beads glistening orange in the morning sun. Steve looked at the tree for a while, viewing it no longer as a piece of wood but instead as a milestone he had to surpass. This thing would mark the beginning of his growth, the start of his path to conquer the forest bigshots. And then, Steve took a few steps back and bent his knees to lower himself to the floor. He glared at the tree, waiting for a few seconds until his eyes shot open wide and he leapt off the ground with all his power. After his short run-up he reached the tree and hooked his paws into it before leaving the floor with his second pair of paws as well. Without missing a beat he again put power into his legs to carry his momentum further up the tree, leaping up its side three more times before almost reaching the lower end of the first branch. But he refused to give up. Even with his momentum killed he pushed himself off and hooked his front paws into the bark further up. He paused, then contracted his stomach muscles to pull up his lower body while also pulling it up with his front legs. Then, he did the same thing again, his muscles already pulsating in pain. Steve didn''t blink. He simply repeated the motion one more time, forcing himself just a little further up the tree. Then, when he did it one more time, his claws grabbed onto something before he had touched the bark. Steve had reached the branch he was so desperately aiming towards. He grit his teeth for a moment, flames burning in his eyes as he pulled upwards two more times, and during the protest of his muscles, Steve placed himself on top of the branch and let out a victorious roar. Or rather a screech, given his stature. He had done it. He had fucking done it. He had reached his goal with a stellar performance and won against this bastard of a tree. And there was something that made his victory even sweeter. Strength 8 -> 9 Willpower 6 -> 7 He had increased not just one but two stats. He couldn''t have gotten any better news. His training was effective. Now the only remaining question was how effective it was. For the remainder of the day, Steve kept moving up and down the tree. He did manage to reach the branch a few times, actually, but his amount of failures was still far higher. After a while he also figured out that running up the tree might be good to gain height, but actually hardly increased his strength, so instead he opted to fully climb up the tree without a running start, continuously pulling himself higher. This led to him not seeing a single success that day anymore, but he didn''t mind. After all, he got to see the pop-up once more, which was way more satisfying in its own way. Strength 9 -> 10 He had reached another increase in Strength. It was understandably going faster than increasing his Dexterity, since the running simply took longer to exhaust him, but without any way to make it harder he couldn''t really make it increase more quickly. In other words, the point at which his strength would start to plateau was also further away. And thus, after hunting down two mice for dinner, Steve went to bed again. When he woke up again his muscles still ached from the day before, but after stretching a little he still went for his morning run. Of course, he was still training, so after his morning snack of another mouse he went straight back to the tree. Just like yesterday, he started climbing up from the bottom without running towards it and failed. Then he failed again. And again. And again. When midday rolled around he got himself another mouse and continued attempting to climb his tree, which he failed at. But at the end of the day, there was yet another pop-up. Strength 10 -> 11 He was growing stronger, bit by bit and step by step. So he continued with his training day after day, slowly becoming stronger. And after a week, he had gotten quite a few pop-ups. Strength 11 -> 12 Dexterity 13 -> 14 Strength 12 -> 13 Strength 13 -> 14 Willpower 7 -> 8 Vitality 9 -> 10 Strength 14 -> 15 This was where he reached a plateau. His Strength took three or more days to actually increase by now, so it simply wasn''t highly feasible to keep increasing it. Same went for his Dexterity. He wasn''t focusing on it too much, of course, but it had still only increased once during an entire week, meaning that it was more than just hard to increase. Luckily, those stat increases weren''t everything he wanted to upgrade, there was still left and it had plenty of room to grow. And thus, after a day of throwing rocks at trees and carving runes into them, had reached level 5 and he had made ten more runes. On the next day he only focused on Throw, not really needing to rest as the Skill hardly consumed Sp. But it didn''t level-up. The reason was simple, throwing the small rocks he had collected before was no longer exhausting. Then again, from a human point of view he threw stones more akin to pebbles than rocks. Now he could probably throw stones a little smaller than a human fist, though finding ones perfectly suited to his current level might be a little hard. Well, at the very least he would like to find one before tackling any of his targets. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Speaking of said targets already, he would really like to actually fight one of them soon, at least after regenerating the muscle he damaged during his Strength training. He definitely needed to heal that up if he wanted to do anything, so for now a few days of rest would be in order. For once, Steve actually stuck to what he said, but he actually only took two days to regenerate. After a week and a half of nothing, two things happened. The first was simple. [Level Up!] He had gotten stronger again. This also shortened the time needed for his recovery to be non-existent. It came at the perfect time. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 7 -> 8 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 30/30 Mp: 32/32 Sp: 50/50 Strength: 15 -> 17 Vitality: 10 -> 11 Dexterity: 14 -> 15 Agility: 25 Intelligence: 11 Wisdom: 8 Willpower: 8 -> 9 Luck: 8 Ability points: 11 Skill points: 450 Gold: 294 It was a good level-up at that. He got good stats and both the Ability and Skill points could come in very handy. This already had him excited. The second occurrence was an even rarer one actually. On the day after he received his level-up Cherry was waiting outside his log when he got up. She immediately jumped up and smiled when he stepped outside, taking a few steps back to give him his space. Now, while Steve had been sceptical of her before, this tipped the scales. She was respecting the boundaries he had set as if she was interacting with another human instead of a cat. It was clearly showing that she didn''t think of him as someone she could simply tame and take home, but as someone she respected almost. This was good. Very good, actually. She could now technically be seen as his first companion. After looking at him for a moment Cherry signed Steve to wait while she rummaged through her backpack. After a moment, a bright smile spread across her face and she pulled out a small, blue gemstone, cut into the shape of a rhombus. She gently placed it down on the floor and took a step back, prompting Steve to get closer to this mysterious new object. For a moment he hesitated, but remembering her consideration towards him he deemed the stone as probably harmless. After another moment, he tapped it with a claw of his. [Activated skillstone: . Use?] A skillstone? That was more than new. Appraisal? Please? [Skillstone: This is a magically treated gem storing information related to a Skill. By using it, the Skill can immediately be obtained. Level of the Skill is dependent on the creator''s Skill level and the creator''s Skill level in gem cutting.] So it would simply allow him to learn again? He already had the Skill though. Well, at the very least it would be interesting. Use, please. [Acquired the Skill from a skillstone. Skill already acquired. Fusing Skills.] [ has levelled up thrice!] As soon as he selected to use the stone, it suddenly dissolved into blue light and smoke, which quickly wrapped around him and seeped into his body. Every bit of smoke carried information in it and as the seconds ticked by he could feel his head being filled with more and more words from various languages, so much so that he was still milling over them when the smoke had already disappeared. He only snapped out of his daze when he could hear a soft voice ringing out in the forest. "Can you understand me?" Cherry asked. Steve nodded without hesitation. He could, thanks to her, so there was no need to lie. Just like that, a smile spread out on the girl''s face. "So it worked! That crystal was sooooooo worth it. Now we just gotta find out a way for you to talk!" Cherry''s smile widened and turned into a beaming grin so bright it threatened to melt Steve''s face off, but he endured. This was the first time they were able to really talk after all. "Oh, where are my manners," Cherry interrupted herself, "My name is Cherry Silvers, the girl you saved from a bear a bit over a week ago. I live here with gramps and he''s teaching me hunting. My tracking is fairly good by now but my stealth needs a lot more practice. Nice to meet you!" For a moment, she actually reached out to Steve as if to shake his hand, before realizing again that he was, in fact, a kitten. After hurriedly pulling her hand back and putting on a crooked smile, Cherry plopped down on the floor. After a moment she tilted her head to the side a little and spoke again. "What should I call you, mister mop- oh right, you can''t speak. Well, that makes things a little harder for sure¡­" No shit Sherlock. Wait, she probably didn''t know Sherlock, damn it. Did it matter though? He couldn''t talk anyways, so telling her about it proved rather difficult. Oh well, unlucky. "Hm, I have an idea! How about I start listing names and you nod when you like one?" The girl kept chatting on and leaned forwards a little, seemingly excited about the idea. Steve didn''t really mind it so he nodded somewhat absent-mindedly, prompting the girl to rattle off names. "Mister Flufferbutts!" It was her first suggestion. Maybe he could have taken it had it come a bit later, but she just had to make it the first. Steve snapped out of his daze then and his head slowly turned towards her. After a moment he started shivering and got goosebumps. What did she just suggest? Steve''s eyes started to twitch as he stared at the girl. What fucking name did she just say? He even subconsciously activated . This girl. Was she fucking serious? The first goddamn name she came up with was Mister Flufferbutts? His suspicions were correct! Humans could not be trusted! She needed to be punished for this grave offense! Cherry actually flinched back when Steve glared at her with scornful eyes. Something about him sent shivers down her spine. Combined with the quiet snarl he let out she had a strong feeling that he disliked the name. "Uh¡­ how about Captain Pawlister?" The shivers down her spine got even worse as a shadow seemed to lay itself over Steve''s eyes. The girl hurriedly corrected herself and blurted out the first thing that came to mind when her life flashed before her eyes. "Forest!" she yelled in desperation, "Forest Silvers!" In a moment, the ominous feeling she got stopped and she realized she had leaned as far backwards as she could. For once, the mopaaw in front of her seemed to actually consider the name. Then, he gently shook his head. It wasn''t that the name was bad, he just disliked the thought of being named after where he was. I mean, what sensible person would name their child something like that? Village Smith? City Johnson? Desert Turner? The concept was weird so he had to decline, but at the very least they were on a better track now. While Cherry was sitting up again he tilted his head lightly and gave her a curious ''meow'' as if he was asking her to go on. And after a moment of hesitation a smile formed her face before she continued on. After a while she seemed to get closer to a good outcome after understanding the kind of names the mopaaw liked. It immediately refused anything that even remotely mentioned his fluffiness and shook his head at things that were related to terrain features, while gems or metals he considered at the least. "Ruby?" He shook his head. "Opal?" Another failure. "Quicksilver?" He paused, but denied it. "Soulsteel?" He cocked his head to the side but shook it. "Uh¡­ how about Mercury?" This name he stopped at. He didn''t pause to consider but actually stopped. It was a good name. It sounded cool, first of all and didn''t hold just one meaning. It could be the metal meaning he was flexible and malleable though dangerous. It could mean the roman god, showing he was fast and mischievous. It could mean the planet, too, showing that he was a force to be reckoned with. It was a big name that he would first have to grow into, but he liked it. He nodded. Cherry''s face immediately lit up as she jerked her elbow down and yelled out: "YES!! Mercury Silvers then, right?" Mercury shook his head and immediately Cherry''s enthusiasm disappeared. "Argh whyyyyyy?? Okay, okay stay calm Cherry. Just one more name. Just come up with one more name and it''ll be good. How about¡­ Flufferbutts?" She said it jokingly, but after Mercury stared her down again she relented. "Okay, jeez, it was just a joke. How about Rainfall? Or Starlight?" The girl impatiently suggested two names at once, holding her hands in front of her face in hopes of shaking off Mercury''s menacing stare, but after not seeing his reply she paused. The fear she felt disappeared. When she slowly turned her head to the little ball of fur in front of her, she saw it in deep contemplation. Starlight or Rainfall? He actually liked both of them, which is why he was being indecisive. The girl looked at him for a while until she understood and her jaw dropped open. She stuttered when she spoke again: "Y-y-you like b-both the names I came up with?!" She was absolutely surprised when the cat nodded and still weighed his options. This was his rebranding after all, he wouldn''t get this chance all the time so he had to make a good choice, but he just didn''t know. Both of them sounded really cool and he didn''t want to give up either of them, so he simply decided to use them both. Now he had to decide the order. After nodding to the girl twice, agreeing to both the names, she spoke up once more. "So Mercury Starlight Rainfall? No, that sounds weird. Mercury Rainfall Starlight. Way better. You agree?" And the man who was once Steve nodded once more. Mercury Rainfall Starlight. Back on Earth he would have laughed at someone with such a name, but now he himself was called so. Well, it sounded good enough and with the girl in front of him named Cherry Silvers it felt a lot less weird. Yeah, this was his name. And just when he decided so¡­ [Your status has been updated!] [Name changed from "|Unnamed|" to "Mercury Rainfall Starlight". Confirm?] [Name has been confirmed. This can be changed later by expending a vast amount of Mp.] Mercury smiled happily at this. Naming himself felt quite a bit more fulfilling than he had expected. This was quite fun. Though now he had to fulfill the expectations his name put on him. He was Mercury Rainfall Starlight and he would not rest until he was the king of this forest! Chapter 7: Battle of Attrition
After reaching a plateau and increasing his stats, Steve stopped. He wouldn''t be able to level up from mice and carving runes would also take a while. In addition, there was no guarantee he would get good stats. Instead, what he needed was a good plan. He needed to determine the enemy best suited for his abilities and take them down in hopes of gaining a good reward. Now, the choice of enemy was fairly doable. The bear could knock down trees probably, so that was not an option. The Mother of spiders'' mobility was too great and since speed was his best asset he couldn''t afford to be outmaneuvered. The royal Wolf could probably corner him and possibly outspeed him in a one-on-one and he didn''t even need to mention the forest Lord. His only sensible opponent was the great Stag, and even then he would need a solid plan. So, he started thinking. He had just gained the ability to climb on trees, which is how he could outmaneuver the Stag. From the top of the tree he could keep throwing down pieces of wood, but that wouldn''t do a whole lot of damage. Still, every single point of health was important. Now, his other advantage was in an item he had, the Spider Venom. It could either be administered orally or through wounds, so it would definitely work if he dipped sharp stones or chips of wood in it. If he needed to get close, he could also dip his claws in it. The only issue was his single inventory slot. He needed to carry the poison in it, meaning he needed to carry the rocks in his mouth, which harshly limited the size. He also first had to find the great Stag, which might also pose a challenge. Troublesome, troublesome. Well, he did scout some of the area around his territory during his morning runs, so he knew it wasn''t anywhere in the close proximity, unlike the black Bear, who wasn''t far away at all. If only he had a map. Without a second of delay, the shop popped open in front of Steve, offering him a map of the forest for the meager price of 10.000 Gold. How kind and affordable. Asshole. This ability was about as useful as a broken flashlight in a haunted house. Meaning not useful. At all. Whatever, he could just scout for the stag and remember where it was once he found it. And thus, Mercury started his journey through the depths of the forest, placing one tiny paw in front of the other. He had already scouted the area around his base of operations, so to find the great Stag he would obviously have to search further. He also was fairly convinced that these bigshots wouldn''t exactly live close to each other, so with the bear periodically visiting the pond Mercury used to drink, he decided to search for antlers-bro in the opposite direction. And thus, Steve walked and walked and walked, until the sky brightened and he had to get home. It''s not that he didn''t find anything interesting though. He found a hugeass dead tree which was hollowed out but still standing, he found a few rabbit dens hidden in the ground, which he most certainly didn''t accidentally fall into, he saw a few deer and a lot of squirrels and he even found a giant ass boulder, big enough to fit 20 adults on it. What he didn''t find was a bigass stag. Now, he did find stags in general. Tiny young ones, that is. Not a single one of them qualified to be called anything other than a fawn, so he went home. His only solace was the fact that there were no spiders or wolves around, which seemed to hint at it not being their territory, meaning the direction was probably correct. Now he only had to run a little to get a bit further tomorrow. With those thoughts, Steve went to bed. And the next day he kept going, running a lot further than last time. And he wasn''t wrong. Aside from a few trees that were split in half by lightning and a clearing which just had a huge mushroom with a lot of tiny ones around it, he also found loads and loads more deer, as well as another clearing with a mossy rock overlooking it. And, as per usual, the leader laid atop the rock, sleeping. It was a stag. A huge stag. Even without its antlers it would easily reach two meters in height, the giant maze of spikes on its head added another one on top of that. Every muscle on its body seemed thick and flexible, every bit of skin leathery enough to shake off arrows. And he immediately found the flaw in his plan. He had assumed he would be able to penetrate its skin and administer the poison that way, but he already saw that wouldn''t be an option. The only way he''d do any damage to it was by using his claws, teeth and heavy, blunt rocks. There was also a slight chance he''d be able to administer the poison while it was asleep. Though he didn''t have the poison with him right now, so he''d have to try it the next time. Well, it was time to come up with a new plan. Luckily, Steve had enough time to think while he was on his way back to his trusty log. His solution wasn''t flawless, but it was the best he could do at his current level (and with the time needed to get another one, he had no interest in that). He would turn it into a war of attrition. He was fully prepared to have this whole shebang last for well over a day. His plan would require some setting up, but that hardly mattered if it was effective. If everything went like he wanted it to, he would first spend a few days carrying over supplies. He would need to find fitting rocks and bring those over, carry over the poison as well as stockpile enough food for two days at the very least. He also needed to get enough rest before he executed his plan and needed to find a hiding spot somewhere near the clearing. Afterwards, his plan was fairly simple and consisted of only a few elements. He would wake up a little earlier than usual and watch the stag. As soon as it went to sleep he''d poison it, making it wake up. Then, he would wait until it settled down to sleep again and throw a rock at its face. He would continue with that strategy until the stag gave up on sleeping, hopefully near daybreak, when he himself would go to sleep. Then, he would do the same thing the next night. After the second night without sleep it might try to nap during the day, which would start the harder part of the plan. Steve would have to observe it during the day and forcefully keep it awake even then. From this point on, neither of them would be able to sleep, but Steve would definitely have the advantage. He would have gotten one night''s rest more than the stag after all and he wouldn''t be poisoned or barraged with rocks. Eventually, the Stag would hopefully drop, dying of exhaustion from lack of sleep and being pelted with stones. That would mark the end of Mercury''s plan. But of course, setup came before execution, and Mercury went to work. First he had to find and transport the rocks. Pebbles wouldn''t do at all, so he had to transport them using and his single inventory slot. At least the search went fairly well, since large, flat stones were fairly frequent around the forest. Unluckily, these were fairly brittle and fell apart quickly, so he could get two or three throws out of them at best. After a bit of searching he also found more solid chunks of rock though, specifically around the giant boulder, which held up very well and would definitely be heavy enough to deal some damage to mister antlers. And thus, after three days of searching, carrying, throwing and labour, he had a large enough pile of rocks assembled next to the clearing, having hidden the vial of poison between them. In addition to that, had levelled up once more, meaning he would be able to do just a bit more damage to the stag. Then, after two more days of searching, he found a rabbit den close by, which he swiftly cleared out as soon as the rabbits came home. [Killed a rabbit. Get: 15 Exp, 3 Gold.] [Killed a rabbit. Get: 15 Exp, 3 Gold.] [Killed a baby rabbit. Get: 7 Exp, 2 Gold.] ¡­ The hunting efficiency of bigger rocks was truly amazing. And thus he had assembled both shelter and food in the form of two adult- and five baby rabbits. Next he scouted the nearby trees. His plan was to throw a rock from one of them and then hide in it before swapping over to another tree and throwing the next rock from there. It would make him a lot harder to find and stop, and might annoy the stag as well, making it perfect for what Mercury wanted to do. And so, after a good day''s rest, he took the poison in his inventory and watched the Stag from the ground, crouched down as low as he could. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Just as he expected, it laid down soon after, closing its eyes and using the soft moss as its bed. Only when Mercury saw its chest rising and sinking periodically did he get closer using . After a while, he arrived, only to see it breathing through its nose, with its mouth tightly shut. Well, it''s not like he didn''t expect this, he just hoped it wouldn''t be the case. There was no way in hell he would be able to get the thing to open its mouth either, so he had to find other options. He decided on two places: nose and eyes. Thus, Mercury popped the cork out of the vial and took it into his mouth sideways, making sure not to spill it on himself. Then he took another step towards the deer and poured as much of the vial as possible into its nose, before quickly splashing the last bit onto its eyes and face. In total it took maybe two seconds, but when Steve just turned back and started his sprint, he was almost knocked off his feet by the deer''s scream. Seems like the poison both worked and hurt a lot. It did get all over its face and maybe even into its lungs a little, which should most certainly be quite painful. When Mercury arrived back at the rabbit den and only poked his head out, he could still see the stag kicking the air and jumping all over the place in hopes of lessening the pain. Well, it wouldn''t be of use anyways. Didn''t spider venom, like, melt your insides? It was bound to hurt. And so Steve just watched the stag writhing in pain, fully forcing every muscle of its body into action. Needless to say, it couldn''t lie down anymore. All it did was pace around the clearing, flinching and groaning every now and then. But Mercury couldn''t let this chance go. He had started already, so he couldn''t back down anymore. He was determined to kill it when he came here, so he would do it. Then, in the stag''s moments of pain, a rock flew at it, crashing right into its forehead. Of course, the animal looked around in a panic, but Mercury had already gone to another spot by then and loaded up another rock. As soon as the deer set into motion, he launched it, smashing into one ankle of the thing. While it yowled in pain once more, Mercury had already gone back to his stack of ammo and reloaded. He knew he wouldn''t be able to damage the chest or organs of the stag with his rocks but he could definitely smash bones at places where there wasn''t as much muscle in the way. Thus, Steve kept throwing a rock every minute or so from the undergrowth and tree canopies, always aiming for the spots where the skin was thinnest. Sometimes he missed, of course, but over time it didn''t matter as much anymore. The shots from above only had to hit the stag''s spine every so often to do enough damage and those from below hit its ankles very frequently, every hit followed by another groan from the stag. But the true heavy-hitter was the poison. It had immediately set the thing into a state of panic and restlessness, making it slower and more stupid. This way, Mercury''s shots were far more accurate, and after only the first night the stag had trouble walking. Its ankles were very tough, but after being hit again and again for hours on end they slowly started to give in. This was very good for Mercury. He was also tired by then, but he could easily keep going through a chunk of the day since he had slept the day before, unlike the stag. And when it finally fell to the ground he didn''t even have to worry about his ammunition anymore, since he could easily collect the rocks and throw them again. And when the sun was setting again, the deer was already lying on the ground bleary-eyed. It had been awake for 36 hours straight, but the clock kept ticking. As soon as it closed its eyes a rock would come flying at its face, securely hitting its mark now. The poison was now weaker but still gently coursed through its veins, refusing to let go just yet. And like that 12 more hours passed. [ has levelled up!] After two days, drowsiness set in for Mercury, but he didn''t let up quite yet. He stopped wasting his energy by climbing on trees though and instead focused on throwing rocks. He still had no intention of getting close to the thing, instead he kept his distance and shot at it over and over again, the rocks colliding with the stag''s sturdy bones. Throughout the entire day it got hit in the face again and again, but its eyes wouldn''t fully become lifeless. Luckily, Mercury wasn''t done. After the night passed, the stag had been awake for 60 hours straight, well and truly exhausting it. So, Mercury finally let it sleep. Or so it seemed, until he climbed onto its head, placed his paws onto its eyes and dug his claws into them, before quickly slashing them entirely and jumping off. Once again, the stag cried out in pain, panting heavily and trying to push itself up with its battered legs before collapsing on the ground again. But it didn''t die. This thing had more Vitality than all its other stats combined, it seemed. But that hardly mattered. Eventually it would fall. And like that, the final day passed. Because when nightfall came, Mercury threw one last stone when he heard a notification ring. [Killed the great Stag! Get: 300 Exp, 100 Gold, great Stag''s antlers (ingredient), great Stag''s hide (ingredient), great Stag''s heart (consumable).] [Sub Quest: "Defeat the great Stag!" completed. You have received: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] [Level Up!] Steve''s heart thumped with excitement when he saw the rewards, but there was something even more urgent than that. He wanted sleep. He craved sleep. He neeeeeeeded sleep. So, after quickly dragging the heart and hide into the rabbit''s den and placing the antlers in his inventory, Mercury fell asleep on the hide. And when he woke up again, it was already a little past midday. Even before eating breakfast, he decided to check out the spoils of war, so to speak. He didn''t get harmed during the battle at all, but he also hadn''t gotten away unscathed. The simple duration of the fight was already extraordinary, but doing so without sleeping was even worse. It was a hard-fought win, no matter which way he looked at it. So he hoped that what he got would be good at least. First to check his level-up. Status! Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 8 -> 9 Species: Common Mopaaw Titles: Hp: 40/40 Mp: 32/32 Sp: 55/55 Strength: 17 -> 18 Vitality: 11 -> 13 Dexterity: 15 -> 16 Agility: 25 Intelligence: 11 Wisdom: 8 Willpower: 9 -> 10 Luck: 8 Ability points: 16 Skill points: 650 Gold: 423 It was a solid level-up. It gave him a good amount of physical stats to make him more durable and his Willpower increased as well. That was probably what he was relying on to keep him awake, so it was no wonder it increased. He also got a more than fair amount of Ability- and Skill points. But he still wasn''t done looking yet, after all there were still the items. , would you care to? [Great Stag''s hide: The hide of the great Stag, toughened by hardships over the years it is stronger than any easily available leather. It can be used to craft armor. Grade: unique E] [Great Stag''s antlers: The antlers of the great Stag. These antlers are multiple times larger and stronger than a regular stag''s antler. They can be used to craft alchemy items. Grade: unique E] [Great Stag''s heart: The heart of the great Stag. Still filled with vitality and life even outside its body this item will slightly enhance the user''s body upon being consumed. Grade: unique C] Well, the first two items weren''t very useful to him right now but the heart sure was. There was no way for him to know whether the enhancement was permanent or not, so he simply had to try it out, right? So, Mercury ate the heart for breakfast, since he didn''t have anything else to do anyways. Then, another notification rang out. [The vitality of the great Stag''s heart courses through you. Strength increased by 1. Vitality increased by 2. Dexterity increased by 1.] Holy shit! He basically just got a buff similar to a level up! Of course he didn''t get extra Ability- or Skill points, but even just increasing a few stats was incredibly valuable. This was probably the best item he had gotten yet! Well, it was a unique C-grade item. Wait, grade? The fuck''s that? [Grade: an item''s grade signifies both its rarity and power.] And what''s with that half-assed explanation? Jeez, sometimes this system was really frigging frustrating. Okay, fine. Since the heart was good, C was probably better than E. Also, they didn''t show when just picking up an item but did show up in the short description in the inventory. Well, he still had quite a way to go according to that description, given that the named monsters he was fighting were E-rank currently. Seems that while his starting area was bad, this forest wasn''t the worst case. He probably could have also spawned in the demon king''s castle. That would have been highly unfortunate. Well, for now he was in the forest, so he would have to keep contending with its enemies. It was also time to decide which enemy to tackle next. The black Bear might be troublesome but not impossible. The royal Wolf would most likely lead a pack of elite wolves, which could prove highly troublesome while the Mother of spiders would lead a large army. Honestly, the wolf really seemed the most troublesome. He might not even be able to run away if things got rough and he could get surrounded by foes just one step below a pack leader. In short, he''d die. The bear at least operated alone, but it''s brutal strength would make hiding hard, and it also had fewer weak spots than the stag. Even the Mother would prove troublesome, throwing lots of spiders at him and limiting his movement. All in all, the wolf threatened him with certain death while the others at least left him with a chance. Now, with the bear the chance was very small, as for the Mother¡­ he might have a good chance if he started decimating her army ahead of time. In the end she was his best shot, though she''d also require quite some work to get ready. Hopefully he''d at least get another level-up at the end of it.. Ugh, how troublesome. At the very least he''d take a bit of time to get used to his new stats first. Thus, Mercury stored the antlers in his inventory and carried the hide and a few of the rocks back with . It proved a little more troublesome than he had thought, but at around midnight, he finally arrived home. And for the first time in a while, he carved runes again, four of them, before falling asleep. The combination of runes and meditation proved just as effective in calming down now as before. Chapter 8: Abilities and Nostalgia Chapter 8: Abilities and Nostalgia The next evening Cherry was already waiting for him when he walked out of his log. As soon as he came out of there she smiled widely at him. "Morning Mercury! Where''ve you been?" The cat himself had a slight smile on his face seeing the girl again. He still felt he owed her somewhat for giving him an Ability point and a name, so he had an idea. After looking at her for a while, he disappeared inside the log, throwing the great Stag''s hide into her face when coming out again. "Hey!" she yelled out while laughing, "What do you think you''re doing?" Mercury simply waited for a bit, seeing as she didn''t realize the item yet. But when Cherry pulled it off her face while laughing, her smile disappeared into an expression of surprise. "Is¡­ is this what I think it is?" she asked while stunned. "No way. No way, no way, no way." After a moment she peeled her eyes off the hide and glued them onto Mercury. "Are you serious? You- did you actually fight that thing? And win? How¡­" In her shock the hide almost slipped out of her hands before she gripped it even more tightly. She kept staring at Mercury with wide open eyes while the man himself had a satisfied smile on his face. This was just about as great as beating the stag itself. After a while, Cherry shook her head and calmed her expression a little. "I''ll be damned¡­" she whispered while pushing the pelt back towards Mercury, but he only shook his head and stepped back. He was telling her to keep it. Once more Cherry''s eyes widened in astonishment. "Seriously? Seriously seriously? Honest? Pinky promise?" She didn''t exactly let up on her questions, so Mercury simply nodded his head again and again. He even held out his paw to her so she could make somewhat of a pinky promise. Jeez woman, calm down. But after a long time of confirming, Cherry gave him maybe the biggest smile he had ever seen, stretching from one ear to another. "Thank you so much, Mercury," she said happily. "You wouldn''t believe how much this means to me." At this he turned his head to the side. Why wouldn''t he believe it? What did it mean? And so, after letting out a quiet sigh, Cherry spoke. "It''s a Quest of mine, you see," she said, "to get the great Stag''s hide. It''s actually the only Sub Quest that''s left before I can continue my Main Quest. What I''m saying is that this takes me a step closer to my personal goal, you know? Completing a Main Quest doesn''t just give you good rewards, it''s a symbol of your growth as a person and shows your personal dream. If you achieve your Main Quest, be it with or without help, it means you took another step forward. And with you giving me this, a unique item no less, I''m able to move another step towards my future." "Essentially, I was standing in front of a large wall on my way forward, because the stag is pretty wary of humans, and you just put a ladder in front of the wall, allowing me to easily climb over it. This is an incredible gift, Mercury. Thanks a thousand times!" Cherry ended her speech with the brightest smile resurfacing on her lips as she reached out to touch Mercury. For the first time, he actually didn''t flinch back at all and instead let her touch him. It was a simple reason. She talked to him like a friend instead of a pet. There was no reason to shy away from her, not even a small one, and so, he let her pet his head a few times. It wasn''t as though he found it incredible or bone-shakingly amazing, but it was nice. It was a gentle, comforting feeling that he couldn''t quite get enough of, like warm summer rain. Pets were apparently pretty sick, who''d''ve thought. And just like that, Cherry carried the hide home after a short encounter. Mercury, on the other hand, had just started his night. While he did plan on resting for a while now, he also wanted to see where the Mother of Spiders'' territory was so he could start lightly hunting down her underlings. He also still needed to exercise and, with him now having quite some free time, he might even experiment with his mana again since the first time he tried meditating worked so well. He could also level-up his runecarving or try to increase his physical stats. In general, there were a lot of things he still had left to do. Well, given the nature of this world, there was probably a lot more stuff that he had yet to explore and he also still hadn''t created an army, so that was also something he would still have to act on. If he judged himself right now he wouldn''t even be deserving of the ''M'' in Mercury. No, he wasn''t even close to what he wanted yet. He would turn this game into an RTS whether it wanted to or not. Almost like the church, which was forcefully dragged into the 21st century while fighting against it with all its (dwindling) power. Good times! Anyways, back on track Mercury. Breakfast first, as any good day starts with a good meal! [Killed a squirrel. Get: 15 Exp, 5 Gold.] After eating a bit he already felt like an entirely new person. It was even better than the mice he usually ate, though that might have more to do with the lingering taste of victory in his mouth. He was basically like cat Caesar. He came, saw and conquered the fuck outta that stag. His references were spot on today, too. Seems like the sun of luck shone onto him for the first time. Well, after breakfast it was time for scouting. Luckily, this could easily be combined with his exercise. [ has levelled up!] Ooooh, shiny! With now on a higher level he could see his surroundings quite a bit more easily. This even made some colour return to the world that was usually dyed in shades of gray. He couldn''t quite count the number though. Whatever. Moving on. He scanned the surroundings while lightly jogging through the undergrowth. Since the bear was to his left from the mountaintop''s perspective and the stag on his right there were only two possible locations for the spiders. Either they were further down the mountain or they were on the other side, right? Since he had already seen one at his base it would be more likely for them to simply be further down, deeper in the forest, because otherwise they''d have to cross through the territory of either mister bear or mister stag, which would probably be a little difficult. So that''s where Mercury started looking, and sure enough, he wasn''t far off. The further down he walked the more spiderwebs he could see spanning in between the trees. He also heard less and less insects buzzing through the air, instead he saw bundles of eyes darting through the undergrowth a little further from him. Yeah, no. Thanks, but no thanks, He wasn''t dealing with that yet. Big nono. Scary. Not vibing. And thus, Mercury yeeted himself right the hell outta there, making sure to run full speed so he couldn''t be followed. Only when the eerie silence disappeared and was replaced with the howling of the wind and the buzzing of insects did he feel at ease again. He never thought he''d actually be glad to hear that slight humming in the air since he really absolutely hated insects more than anything. Just fuck bugs and flies and wasps and especially mosquitos. Fuck fucking mosquitos. Those assholes. Those bastards. Those fiends. Those evil hellspawns. Oh how he hated them. That day, Mercury Rainfall Starlight took a vow. He would exterminate them, every last one of those sons of bitches. He would wipe the species of those blood sucking, soul stealing, disease carrying assholes right off the world. Because then and only then would he be able to sleep in peace. Back on track. When Mercury arrived back home he started going about his usual business. Well, maybe that wasn''t quite right to say. His usual business would have been regular office work as a clerk. It would have been sitting in a chair from 9 to 5, sometimes an hour or two longer, and typing away endlessly, forever trapped in the monotony of reports and documents, a never ending stream of words and letters that seemed to flow his way until his mind numbed and he was swallowed into the depths of the same work, day in and day out, collapsing when he came home before waking up the next day, at the same time again, and overdosing on coffee, just so he could stay awake on the drive to work, before the cycle could repeat and repeat, over and over again. He wasn''t a clerk, he was an office slave. But something about that stuck out. Right, he was an office slave. He was someone who was replaceable and could be swapped out at a moment''s notice. But he wasn''t that anymore. Now, he was a cat. One with levels and skills. With freedom, too. He wouldn''t be forced to slave away for hours on end anymore, instead, he''d be able to do what he wanted. Because he wasn''t the same anymore. He wasn''t Steve the slave, wasting away until he had some free time, before spending that free time on almost nothing but sleep and the occasional game, leaving him near unable to pursue personal relationships. No, he wasn''t that anymore. He was now Mercury. Mercury Rainfall Starlight, to be exact. An existence destined to become king, destined to lead. Well, okay, maybe not destined, but definitely on the way to doing so! Like that, Mercury shook off his distracting thoughts and went about his new daily routine. He started with a run and some hunting to fill his stomach. Then, he went to physical training, both running and tree-climbing, followed by some more hunting, then mana training. To him that was the most exciting part of the day, as nothing else could even hope to match the hot, prickling rush that mana gave him, but he still rigorously stuck to a physical exercise routine since he knew he needed to keep those stats up as well. What was the saying? "A healthy body holds a healthy mind" or something? Whatever, in any case, he currently couldn''t use mana offensively so he quite simply had to rely on his physical stats for that. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. Anyhow, back to mana training. Steve didn''t have any skills that would allow him to feel his mana, so he somehow had to figure it out on his own. He started off simply, by sitting on the ground in his log, closing his eyes and focusing, thinking back to what he felt the first time he tried it. He didn''t use because it simply showed the effect without a process, and he wanted to adjust the process to achieve a different result. Simply put, he was aiming towards a new Skill, though he had yet to figure out what that Skill was. But after a while, he felt the same thing again. He felt something of a puddle inside his own body, how best to describe it¡­ Mercury imagined it as a picture, though this time it was different from before. It felt like there was a large space in his body, one where Mana could collect at the top and drop down into the puddle. It looked something like a cave, water dropping down from a single stalactite. His Mana was about as much as the puddle below him, not nearly filling the whole cave. But the cave was only the first limiter, there was a second one too. There was only a certain amount of water in the cave. If all of the water in the air had condensed and dropped down into the puddle, it obviously couldn''t grow anymore. This factor was far more limiting than the overall cave size. Essentially, he was far from hitting the limit of mana his body could store, but he had already seen the limit of the mana currently in his body. This limit could be surpassed by absorbing mana from the outside, as he had done before, or by increasing Intelligence, which allowed more of the mana to become liquid. Intelligence was essentially a shortcut to greater mana. Wisdom increased the speed of mana condensation. Willpower... actually didn''t interact with Mercury''s mana, so he put it aside for now. The most important factors were Intelligence and Wisdom, the two that controlled his total mana and its regeneration. Regeneration was hard to increase, since he didn''t exactly know how his mana was condensed and recycled to be useable again, though did help with that. His total mana could be increased on the other hand, but that wasn''t what he was here to try. He was here to figure out what he could do with it. With that in mind, Mercury started to try and interact with his mana. Of course, he couldn''t exactly manifest in there and start splashing it around with his hands. Instead he tried to give it mental commands like "move" and "splash". It was interesting to see, since it seemed to somewhat do what he wanted, but the motions it went through were rather minor. He could feel something moving ever so slightly in his body, and he could visualize the puddle beginning to go through the motions he wanted it to, but other than that there was no reaction. Shouldn''t a teacher come in at this point? Jeez. Whatever, he still had to focus. This was only the very first time he tried to handle mana, of course he wouldn''t be perfect at it immediately. Luckily, that wasn''t much of an issue since he had ample time to train in the forest. He would even be able to field test it while cutting down the spider army. So, Mercury kept handling his mana, making it tilt slightly to one side, throw ripples on the puddle''s surface and sometimes having some of it splash up a little, but after just about half an hour he had to stop. It actually wasn''t because he was distracted, but because of his body. On one hand, his breathing had gotten heavy and rigid, on the other he had an absolutely splitting headache, and on the metaphorical third hand, every bit of his body felt sore to no end. So, Mercury forced his now heavy eyes open, which he soon sped up when he could see a notification in front of his face. [Acquired the Ability !] What? A new Skill? And a badass one too! Question is what it does. [: An Ability that allows you to move your mana within your core.] Core? Another fancy word, what''s that? [Core: The core, in this context, refers to the inner mana reservoir of a living being. The size of the core is determined by their physical power and their size, while the mana inside the core is determined by their Intelligence and magical prowess.] So that cave he was imagining was called a core then. Interesting for sure. That aside, with him having gotten a new Skill he finally decided to call up the overview once more to get a picture of how his Skills were shaping up. Skills: Active: , , , , , Passive: , , , Both: Abilities: Unique: Stop. Wait a minute. What was that? "Abilities"? Was that something new? , I think I might need your help again! [Abilities: Abilities share a lot of similarities with Skills, however they carry some fundamental differences. They cannot be bought from the Skill shop and have to be acquired through training or revelations. Some of them cannot be levelled up through simple repetition and may require certain conditions to be met. They usually have a far lower level cap than Skills and remain stuck at said cap until they evolve. Unlike Skills, Abilities also need to be manually evolved, however, some Abilities can be evolved into different directions based on the person. It is possible to acquire other evolutions even if one has already been found, this may evoke synergistic benefits. Abilities need to be "manually" activated, their appearance in the Skill window is only to inform the individual of their progress compared to other individuals with the same or similar Abilities.] After carefully reading through the description Mercury did so a second time. This Ability stuff was a little convoluted, but essentially they were a somewhat rare type of Skill in his mind. For now evolution seemed to still be a little further ahead, so there wasn''t much need to mind that. He simply had to be able to better move his mana and the Ability would increase in level, no? So that would be his goal for now, though right then he stopped with mana training, since his head still hurt and he was still sore. Instead, he focused on his Skills again, relentlessly trying to increase his proficiency with . In the end, when dawn came around, Mercury went to sleep without having made an incredible amount of progress. Well, it was just the first day, so the battle was really just about to begin¡­ When Mercury opened his eyes again the next night it was foggy out again. Well, foggy was actually putting it nicely this time. It wasn''t just foggy or misty, it was straight up white outside. The kind of fog that''s thick enough to make you think that three-dimensional space was bullshit because everything is straight up white. Needless to say, running and scouting were off the table, since hitting a tree didn''t quite fit his fancy. Instead he could try to improve both and which he did, at least until the former gave him a migraine and the latter left him panting exhaustedly. By then half the night had passed, but unfortunately there was not a single sign of the fog letting up, leaving Mercury stuck again. In simple terms: he was bored. For the first time since he entered this world, he had absolutely fuck all to do. There wasn''t anything he could do outside, he couldn''t focus on anything inside and he was fully out of Sp. So, with nothing better to do, Steve started tabbing through menus. He read through his Status again, did another double take on his Skills, checked out the Shop to see what incredible new upgrades he could afford (he found a potion that restored 20 Hp for 300 Gold and a 250 Exp pill he would soon be able to afford for 500 Gold) and finally opened up the Skill shop again, slowly reading through every Skill there was. This was actually the most interesting part. First off, he found a new detail about , which was fairly frustrating. The Skill was only one part of what he expected it to be. He could only figure that out after seeing the other Skills, those being , , , and . Yeah, it wasn''t just one simple Skill, though he could get all of them neatly packaged within the Skill, for the low, low price of uh¡­ 1 500 Skill points. Yup. That would make the animal-control skills more expensive than necromancy, actually, which would be weird, right? So the same restrictions applied to it, of course, making the full necromancer package cost a whopping 6 000 Skill points. Luckily he wasn''t drinking any tea, since it would''ve been spit out for sure. Mercury let out a deep sigh instead. First, his Shop was bullshit, and now the Skill shop was as well. Damn it. When he later on found Mercury would have spit his tea out again. It cost 500 points but he bought it without hesitation. It would be worth it for sure, right? Right? [: This Skill will automatically produce Skill points for its user. The rate of production increases with Skill level. Current production: 1 point per "month".] Eh? Mercury tilted its head to the side as his eyes went blank, all life having been sucked out of them. Ah. This was it again. Once more the system had tempted and played him. It felt just about as frustrating as getting rickrolled, but with all the funny parts removed. Then and there, one could see Mercury''s soul leave his body as the realization that he had just wasted five level''s worth of points hit him. Just doing the maths, it would take over 41 years to get all the points back. He was a cat. His lifespan probably wasn''t even long enough for that. Well, after that slap in the face browsing the Skill shop was far less fun. Of course there were amazing Skills that would allow for incredible effects, especially magic-related ones were appealing, but after blasting most of his points just now they were all far out of his reach. Thus, the Skill shop was closed again under great frustration and an hour of cursing it began. After venting his frustration with the shitty system for a while, complaining about the stupidly expensive Skills and items in both shops, the stupid single-slotted inventory and the dumb quests asking him, a level 9 kitten, to take down wolves and bears. If this were a game, it sure would be frustrating as fuck. Jeez. If only he could like¡­ do something to distract himself, I dunno, maybe take a shower or watch some videos online. Scrolling through some memes would be a 10/10 occupation right now. Or cute animal pictures. Those were always amazing, without fail. Heck, he''d even take a newspaper or a novel right now. But unfortunately, there was nothing like that. He was stuck being bored. For the first time he really started missing his home. He wanted to be able to lay down on the couch, occasionally text back to Jeff or Dave or Julia. He wanted to laze around and comfortably do nothing. Hey, wait just one second. ''Comfortably do nothing''. Didn''t he have the perfect opportunity now? He did, huh. He wasn''t even forced to think about anything in particular, though of course there were things on his mind. He could start coming up with strategies for wolfey and mister bear and he could- Just like that, Mercury zoned out, letting his thoughts drift with his eyes closed until he was far removed from reality. Then, unbeknownst to him, a small pop-up appeared. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] Chapter 9: Evolution Chapter 9: Evolution When the next night started, Mercury woke up again. That time, the air was still heavy from rain, but the clouds had stopped crying at least. Some mist still hung above the floor, but it was barely enough to be mentioned. So, Mercury started the night off with some light exercise alongside shooting a squirrel off a tree using a rock. Which he then snacked on. Yummy squirrel. Anyways, he went for a jog, making his way back towards the edge of the spider''s territory. The drastic increase in cobwebs made it fairly easy to spot when looking out for it. From there on out, it only took a few more steps for the eerie silence to set in. In short, the whole zone was lifeless. So he threw a rock at it, just using the first one he saw and throwing it straight ahead into the darkness. After it made its landing he could hear the scurrying and clacking of chitin-plated legs hitting the grassy ground. They sure didn''t like that. They sure were about to hunt him. They sure were about to go face to face with a rock. Or so he thought, until threads came shooting out from the undergrowth and he had to use to even be able to avoid them. Well, shit. The bastards were hiding. This wasn''t outside of Mercury''s calculations, but it sure was bothersome. In the end, he decided to quickly climb up a tree and throw down some sticks, which seemed effective to some degree when he caught glimpses of a few legs suddenly leaving the ground. Wait. They were leaving the ground. That meant they were- OH SHIT! Mercury was able to jump off just in time to avoid the volley of sticky strings shot at him, but essentially he was also back to square one. Well, except for that fact that he could now see his targets, three of them, actually, straight up chillin'' in the air. They were apparently holding onto thick threads of silk, maintaining their position as all 24 of their beady eyes were staring straight at him. Luckily, they were quickly reduced when two pebbles took two eyes out, both of them on the same spider of course. Then, with one of them silently screeching, they decided it would be an amazing idea to attack him frontally, making all three of them drop down. Alright then, time to try this out, ! It only lasted for a moment, but all three of the spiders flinched. Luckily, this moment was all Mercury needed to throw the big rock in his inventory at one of the healthy spiders and another pebble at the already injured one, taking down a third eye. The spider tried to dodge the rock at the last second, but only managed to shift to the side a little. It still got 3 of its legs crushed by it. He was almost sad to destroy the beautiful symmetry of equal eyes and legs, when he activated on everything in his reach, making every pebble, twig and piece of bark fly full force into mister 5 eyes. Well, that nickname was rather unfitting now, since, well, ya know, it kinda just... His explanation was cut short by the last healthy spider jumping at him. It seemed that these spiders relied more on hunting to catch prey, rather than just waiting in their nets. They were most likely a little big to sustain themselves off insects only. But jeez, can you believe these guys? Not even letting him finish. Didn''t they realize it was rude? Ugh. After jumping back, Mercury again used on everything his paws touched, which ended in lumps of dirt and some pebbles striking the last healthy spider, while faceless and 5-legs were still struggling to get their shit together. And thus, three spiders were defeated by a cat throwing pebbles at high speeds. [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 11 Gold.] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 11 Gold.] Well, weren''t these guys worth good Exp! He didn''t notice it the first time around, but with the need to get close being eliminated, it was quite doable to take them down. This way, he wouldn''t just be able to cut down on the Mother''s army, but also possibly increase his own level as well, which would definitely be handy in the fight. It would be a lot harder to hunt them if the spiders had half a brain or appeared in greater numbers though, so he needed to be ready to run away at any point. Just like that, Mercury''s hunt began. He never stepped very deep into the spiders'' territory, he simply ran along its edge and assassinated every spider he found. At the beginning it actually proved to be quite troublesome, since the spiders kept ambushing him instead of it being the other way around, but nonetheless, Mercury kept trying, always utilizing and . He also got better at spotting the spiders with time, catching glimpses of their feet or eyes in the darkness and quickly launching something at them, but in the end, he only succeeded in surprising a single spider in the very middle of the night, after which the growling of his stomach made him hunt for a mouse again. But the notifications seemed to stay in his head. [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [ has levelled up!] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 11 Gold.] [ has levelled up!] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 11 Gold.] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [ has levelled up!] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] Seven more spiders. He ended up killing that many in the end. He only succeeded in surprising the last one but he still managed to kill the others. He was also happy that they never showed up in bigger packs, only moving in groups of two at the most. This time, it wasn''t a war of attrition but a guerilla war. He was going to slowly chip away at the spider forces and run away at the sight of danger. Now to go back home and hope the next night would turn out just as well. When Mercury arrived back at his log, he immediately went inside and started to focus on his mana, having it splash this way and that. For now he was limited to moving it only left, right, forwards and backwards. Sending even a drop upwards with just his mental power seemed to really frigging hurt his head. When that same pain came kicking in after a while anyways, he stopped with his mana training and dedicated the last bit of time before sunrise to practicing some more. The next night started off fairly similar to the ones before, simple physical exercise combined with hunting. He made sure to always get squirrels or mice, since eating the poisonous spiders sounded like an absolutely terrible idea. After his morning routine, Mercury started another excursion to the spiders'' territory, which was just as lifeless and gloomy as he had left it. The silence weighed down on him like a heavy, thick blanket. Knowing that there were also dangerous, poisonous killing machines in the area made it even less comfortable, almost like adding nails to the bottom of the blanket. Nail blanket. What a terrible day to think. But back on track, spiders. Everyone''s least favourite, eight legged companion, the creepy-crawlies no one wanted to see at night. Except Mercury, because he was nocturnal and armed with rocks. Also, the spiders were extraordinarily stupid. Like, seriously fucking dumb. They gave up the biggest advantage of spiders, stealth, in exchange for size and power, which was less useful since they are easy to find. They were quite fast, but Agility was the stat Mercury was most confident in. So, since their stealth was garbage and he could outrun them, dodging their fangs was fairly doable. They might have stood a chance if he were to walk into their nets, but those were largely in the canopies instead of on the ground. Now, if it were a contest of strength, the spiders would definitely overpower him. But it wasn''t. Since he had a faster and more hard-hitting ranged attack, he simply kept throwing rocks at them. At his current level, they were completely unable to dodge those, and if there weren''t any rocks on the ground, clumps of dirt also did the trick. And so, Mercury hunted spiders. If there were more than two, he ran away. If they were off on their own, he sneak attacked them to inflict good damage before the fight even started. And with the area being as densely populated as it was, he would easily find another spider within minutes. The only limiting factor was in his Sp. They ran out if he fought consecutively. The fact that he needed to be constantly on alert was also putting some strain on him, as staying focused for an extended time was harder than he expected. Last time he had gotten carried away after his victory over three spiders, but this time he wouldn''t risk that much. Three spiders would mean his death if they cooperated, he had simply gotten lucky before. No, his maximum was two spiders per fight and, with some time to regenerate his Sp in between fights, about one and a half hours of hunting time. With that strategy, he felled four more spiders, getting a total of 200 Exp and 41 Gold (leaving behind poison drops as carrying them would have made him too slow), when another pop-up appeared. [Level Up!] [You have reached level 10. You are now eligible for Evolution. Please choose one of the following: Fangling: A species of mopaaw known for their razor-sharp teeth. They are extremely feral and have a hierarchy solely based on power when moving in packs. They boast great speed and take down enemies quickly and efficiently by attacking them with their fangs and claws. Strong specimens may evolve further to saberlings or similar beings. Zetraspa: A species of mopaaw who are known for their intelligence. They hunt in packs using simple strategies, like surrounding their prey and only having the members in blind spots actually attack. They make decisions based on the well-being of their packs before anything else, and have been known to commit to both establishing something akin to towns or a nomadic lifestyle. Greater Mopaaw: This species is a derivative of the common Mopaaw. They boast a larger physique and greater intelligence. They hunt in small groups and carry their prey back to a base before consuming it. Their base often moves if they find less prey in an area. These creatures usually have little concern for the lives of their newborns and only keep them around if they are able to keep up with the pack, leaving them behind otherwise.] Evolution? Was he a frigging monster now or something? Well, technically he was, I guess. What the heck, man. But this actually seemed like a good thing. How many stats would he get from this? Had the other denizens of the forest done this yet? What would his choice lead to? Luckily, he had already decided what to evolve in. The fangling was the equivalent of a physical warrior, strong and fast but bad with other stats. The greater mopaaw had a crappy attitude when it came to relationships with other people. Surrounding himself with either of those sounded like he wouldn''t have a fun time, constantly needing to prove himself and shit. No, his choice would be the zetraspa. Having more of a communal society was a total must for him. Their higher intelligence and their way of life seemed to fit his ideal of becoming a king much more, plus they also seemed far better suited to becoming wizards, and they kept each other out of danger. This was good. It seemed far less stressful and dangerous than the other two options, so zetraspa it was. As soon as he tapped the button, another pop-up rang out along with a white light gently wrapping around his body. [The individual is now evolving.] The light seemed to lightly push and pull on his body, molding it as it saw fit, slowly changing his physique. He felt his legs grow slightly longer and a bit more slim and his fangs poking out a little further as his face became sharper. His fur also seemed to grow a tad, and he could feel his skin under it get more leathery. In total he was a little taller, more slender and had some more floof. [Acquired the Skill through evolution.] [Evolution complete. The individual is encouraged to check their status window.] Well, fair enough. His Status was still the most important detail after all. Status? Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 1 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 62/62 Sp: 75/75 Strength: 19 -> 21 Vitality: 15 -> 16 Dexterity: 17 -> 20 Agility: 25 -> 27 Intelligence: 11 -> 17 Wisdom: 8 -> 13 Willpower: 10 -> 12 Luck: 8 -> 14 Ability points: 21 Skill points: 450 Gold: 588 Oh. Oh wow. Oh damn. Well shit, this sure was amazing. Every bit of his being had improved. The increase in his Intelligence, Wisdom and Luck was incredible, and everything else had made quite some gains as well. His mana had almost doubled, goddamn. How many total points even was that? He counted 27. Plus he had gotten 5 Ability points and 300 Skill points. This evolution shit was fucking crazy dude. I mean damn. This was basically four level''s worth of points. Damn, damn, damn. This sure was amazing. But okay. Back on track. He could fawn over it once he was not in mortal danger anymore, so time to absolutely yeet himself outta the spider''s territory. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. When Mercury arrived back at his trusty log he simply laid down and let his jaw drop open. This was absolutely incredible. His stats had gotten a boost that was completely incomparable to the ones before. This was way too powerful. This was broken. Was this his reward for hunting down shit that no cat would usually attempt to kill? He was already excited as all hell for Cherry''s reaction. Would she be happy for him? Maybe she''d freak out. That would be funny. But goddamn, these stats were just too good to be true. To calm himself down Mercury began his mana training, only to be stunned once more. When he started to feel for his mana, the puddle he was looking at before had grown. To be clear, it hadn''t just "grown" it was in an entirely different realm. Now, it wasn''t as if it was no longer a puddle - compared to the size of his core it had actually decreased - but while the ceiling had grown higher, the mana now thinly covered the entire floor. It had grown to be a thin sheet of dense energy, covering the bottom of his core, but that wasn''t all yet. The air in there was different. It was brimming with energy, full of potential he could use. He felt confident that if he tried to, he could create wind in there. Then again, that would be useless, but still, it would be pretty cool, so he actually tried to. He did the same thing as he would when trying to move the puddle, imagining it and then slowly having it actually change shape. The more accurately he envisioned it the more the mana would move, but this time it was useless. It didn''t budge, not even an inch, no matter how much he tried to envision the air moving. It wasn''t even close, it was more as if he was pushing all his body weight up against a giant stone block. No, not even a block, a fucking mountain. And, in case it wasn''t obvious, mountains don''t budge, no matter how hard you push. Also, after attempting it for only a few seconds, a huge headache started building, incomparable to the usual ones. This wasn''t even on the same scale as before. It was¡­ insane. An absolutely insane task. Completely impossible, so to speak. Great, with this much of a pounding head he couldn''t even focus on anything anymore. While he was still utterly gobsmacked at the jump his mana had made he was also now pissed at the fact that he had a headache. Migraines suuuuuck man. And while Mercury was both astonished and upset, the remainder of the night passed. The next night started off slow. Mercury had slept poorly and could hardly force his eyes open even after dusk had passed. He tried to get up to hunt, but since he didn''t really feel hungry and the simple idea of movement left him heavily listless, he gave up on it. Instead, he decided to lay down. He felt too tired to actually focus on anything, so instead of doing something like mana training he simply let his mind wander, having the same kinds of thoughts one may have at around 4 a.m., when all intellect disappears and the brain becomes mush. The kind of truly important knowledge, for example that fireflies are the opposite of waterfalls, or that you don''t leave fingerprints if you use icicles as your murder weapon. Oh, who am I kidding. Intellect doesn''t disappear, it''s simply reversed and twisted in the worst way possible by the mushiest of brains. After going through the phases of half asleep, deep in thought, funny thoughts, existential dread, depression and finally dissatisfaction, Mercury managed to pry his eyes open to the outside world. This was also the first time since evolving he wasn''t busy focusing or staring at his status window and something about the world seemed¡­ different. It wasn''t more vibrant or colourful, it wasn''t especially loud or quiet, there also wasn''t any special weather. But something was off. The air tasted a bit more distinct, a little wetter, more earthy. In addition, he could notice other things about it. From different directions there were also more smells, wrapping around the forest and the trees like puffs of smoke. They all smelled a little different, too, some were darker, some more metallic and others watery. Once he focused on them some more they became just a little clearer, though picking each individual smell out was still more than a challenge. In addition, he also had absolutely no clue which smell meant what, rendering it fairly useless about now. And that''s when he realized why the world was different. He had gotten a Skill from evolving, what was it again? Appraisal? [ (passive): This is a Skill which allows its user to better notice and locate smells. The higher the level the more smells can be differentiated and the easier it is to tell them apart from each other. The smells will also be visualized to some degree to make detection easier. At lower levels this might require a high degree of focus and sometimes smells may become overwhelming, so the user is recommended to turn it off if the information is putting a heavy burden on their system.] Well damn. This Skill would most certainly do him good, only problem was that he had absolutely no clue which smell belonged to what. There was also not really any way about that except for simply finding it out and noting it. If he smelled something he was fairly sure he wouldn''t forget that smell anymore. At least he hoped so. But until he had some amount of knowledge on the different smells and what they mean or what animal they belong to it would simply stay on passive duty. After being kicked awake by his new ability and finally leaving his log a few hours into the night, Mercury licked his fangs. He was excited for once. With the world looking a little more alive, it would definitely be far more fun to hunt down something like mice or squirrels. In short, getting food today would be enjoyable. Maybe even a bit of a challenge. How quickly could he memorize what a mouse smelled like and then track it down? How long would it take him until he could smell things like adrenaline or bloodlust? Well, finding the answer was rather straightforward, no? And those same thoughts coursed around in Mercury''s head as he took off with his trusty rock prepared in his inventory. He found the answer to the first question rather quickly. It was harder than he expected. Way harder, actually. He first searched for a mouse until he found one, which was fairly doable, but when he tried to pinpoint its smell he struggled to figure out which one was the mouse''s and which ones came from other sources. So, he decided to take it down and then take his time to fully figure the smell out, but after having hit it with the rock the smell of blood fully overwhelmed the other smells around, making it pretty much impossible to gain any intel from that mouse. After making it into a meal he decided to try again, and he failed once more. Third try''s the charm? Nope. After failing for the fifth time, he abandoned the idea for now. It was definitely possible, but smelling something as small as a mouse proved far harder than he anticipated. It would probably be smarter to start with the smells of larger animals, if he was lucky he could even pick ones with a strong smell, like a bear. Oh god no, a bear. Fuck that. Fuck every bit of that. He did not want to risk his life to figure out a smell. Going up to the bear to smell it was the worst idea he ever had. This was gonna go so wrong. He would definitely die if he tried. Mercury kept thinking those thoughts while he quietly approached the pond where he usually saw the bear drinking. Luckily, it was there this time again, but Mercury wasn''t fully stupid. He wasn''t about to straight up sniff the fucker''s legs, that would go even more wrong than approaching it. No, for now he would try to smell it from his current location in the bushes a few meters away. What could go wrong, right? Turns out, everything. When he was still approaching there was a faint smell that differentiated itself from those around, but when he focused on it, it disappeared. He couldn''t pinpoint it again. As soon as he started focusing on the smells around him there were so many that keeping them apart was near impossible. After just a few seconds, a slight pounding in his head also started. No, he wasn''t about to repeat yesterday''s migraine from being overexcited about his newfound powers. But if he didn''t wanna get a migraine again, what were his options? Well¡­ getting closer. That was simultaneously the best choice and the worst possible idea. So, of course, Mercury did so. This made him realize that the points he put into Intelligence didn''t even get close to the necessary number. He would need to go about things a lot smarter than this, he thought as he snuck closer to the bear, taking one tiny step after another. He would most certainly never do something like this ever again, he told himself. He would definitely never, ever make a decision this fucking bad again, he thought and flinched as the bear raised its head. Not right now, please, not right fucking now. In truth, Mercury was only a few steps away from the bear at that point. The distance between them might have been described as "the length of a small family car" by some news articles because those would absolutely never use actual measurements. In fact, if the bear had been on alert, he would have smelled Mercury. If he was less sleepy, he would have detected him. If he had thought there was even a miniscule amount of danger, he would have turned around and bitten our favourite cat''s head off. If Mercury had gone into this with the intent of attacking the bear, he would be dead. He would be in a straight up fight with a surprise attack on him, against an opponent that was more than several times his size, without a plan. But he wasn''t. The bear lowered its head again and continued to drink as Mercury''s heartbeat felt like it was louder than roaring thunder. Only now did his held breath quietly escape and his frozen muscles give in. He had just shown death a solid middle finger and the only reason it didn''t bite him in the ass was luck. Now, he really felt obligated to make use of it, so he smelled the air one more time while slowly walking backwards. This time, he experienced the first success. The air was heavy with a certain scent. It was a little different from the forest air. It smelled like forest, but a little cleaner, like it was washed recently, mixed with wet or drying fur, sweat and a slight hint of blood. This was the only thing Mercury picked up as he scurried away from the bear, hurriedly disappearing into the bushes and then making a quick sprint back to his log. Never doing that shit again. Near death experiences were so not his fucking things. Jesus effing Christ man, why was that asshole of a bear so scary. Only when he had time to actually collect his thoughts and calm down did his heartbeat slow a little. Curiosity really did just almost kill the cat. But then, he realized that the smell of the bear was surprising. It wasn''t nearly as bad as he had expected. It also wasn''t quite as strong as he had thought. Seems like the smell of bears being oh so terrible was a bit of an exaggeration used in fiction to make them more menacing, huh. But to him, this was far worse. See, he could maybe detect a bad-smelling bear from a distance, but one whose smell is hardly different from that of the forest? That was scary. The bear wasn''t exactly sneaky, but if there was a sneaky bear, then detecting them by their smell would actually be inefficient. He was somewhat confident he could find a bear from a few meters away if he focused on it, but passively detecting one nearby? No fucking chance, not with a smell like that. Knowing this was good and important info for him, but the fact in and of itself remained scary. Extremely, extremely scary. That fucking thing could technically sneak up on him. Ever thought of a bear ninja? The thought was goddamn terrifying! In awe about his newfound fascination and horror about a bear''s smell, Mercury spent quite some time in his log. He, once again, had let his thoughts drift and spiral, first leaving him in horror, then later on they quietly veered from the bear and went to other things, like how his 3rd grade maths teacher was a real prick. Fuck you, Ms. Allister. No, he couldn''t calculate with numbers in the millions in his head, you dumb bitch, why would you ask a question like that? Teachers that actively tried to fail students were assholes. And, thinking about that, he both lost some time and his train of important thought and missed the alarm for levelling up. When Mercury finally snapped out of it and popped back into reality, he saw the sun already approaching, slowly fighting back against the cold night sky, but he wasn''t actually tired yet. He had slept for long whiles the last few days and basically wasn''t at all in the mood for rest. Since his head still hurt he thought it was probably a bad idea to practice again and felt too hard to level up by now, so he settled on trying to improve his runecarving again. Combining it with , he spent a few hours carving more reinforce runes into his log. Well, he thought he would have to combine it with , but carving a low 1st grade reinforce rune only required ten Mp. He could carve six of them before his mana was depleted and by now he didn''t take long to carve them anymore either. Each time he finished one, he could feel some of his mana moving out from his core and flowing into the rune he had just carved, filling the channels in the wood with his magic before the feeling dissipated and the rune stopped its glow, only doing what it was supposed to. After it had happened for the fifth time, Mercury had an idea. He was still carving low 1st grade runes, but what would happen if he channeled more magic into them? Was there a limit to how much mana a rune could take? Creating a mid 1st grade rune would require a slightly altered carving, so he knew it wouldn''t evolve into one, but what would happen instead? To find out, he first had to actually replenish his mana, since he had just spent 50 of it on the runes and he wanted to overcharge it at least a bit, so two Mp wouldn''t do. Thus, he used to regain some Mana, feeling the air in his core move ever so slightly as droplets of mana condensed on the roof of the cave, before dropping down into the puddle. After a few droplets fell down, he felt a slight change in the air, as it seemed to move a little faster. Even if it was just a tiny bit, must have levelled up. He kept his eyes on the cave a little longer, watching as the mana condensed and fell back into its liquid state. He could roughly estimate his amount of Mp by looking at the size after meditating for quite a few times and stopped when he was at around 40 Mp or so. This would definitely do for his test. So, Mercury opened his eyes again and approached the wall of the log while having the message about levelling up disappear. Then he carved another low 1st grade reinforce rune, taking his time to make sure each and every line was placed correctly. He finished the rune after a while, and when he felt the familiar stream of mana flowing from his core, he commanded the mana of his puddle to move towards it. It took a few seconds, but just when the magic infusion was about to end, his mana reached the last bits of the stream and widened it a little. This way, the mana from his core started gliding down the established path and left his body to strengthen the rune until the path closed. It hadn''t drained all his Mana, though he probably could have added more mana if he were better at actually moving it. While he was still contemplating his decisions, multiple notifications rang out. [Carved a low 1st grade reinforce rune. Get: 10 Exp, 3 additional mastery.] [ has levelled up!] [ has levelled up!] After reading the messages Mercury smiled to himself. This worked better than he had expected. First of all, he had gotten additional mastery for his Skill. Then, it had actually made it hit a new level. In addition, it also got a new level, probably because it was the first time he had made his mana go outside his core. Then again, he had no clue on how he could do so without a pre-established bridge so there was that. Then, Mercury directed his attention back to the rune, as the actual effect the extra mana had on it was unclear. Of course, it was great for him, but the impact it made when it came to the rune was unclear. When he focused on it, he noticed something ever so slightly different from the other runes. First of all, the initial glow was brighter and also of a slightly different colour. Usually the runes let off a faint blue glow before going back to being very unassuming, but in this case it had a bit of a silvery hue. Then, when the glow subsided it didn''t seem much different from the other runes, except when he looked closely. There seemed to still be some leftover energy coursing through the channels he had made in the wood, slowly circling around in the rune as small, silvery streaks. Now, there was a new question Mercury asked himself. Mana was usually portrayed as blue, so why the heck was it silver in this case? It had also been blue when he was condensing it in his core, so what was different about it this time? Also, how much mana had he actually used? Status? Appraisal? Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 1 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 3/62 Sp: 75/75 Strength: 21 Vitality: 16 Dexterity: 20 Agility: 27 Intelligence: 17 Wisdom: 13 Willpower: 12 Luck: 14 Ability points: 21 Skill points: 450 Gold: 593 [Mana: The colour of one''s mana is determined by the owner''s preference. It can be changed at will through some effort or might take on the owner''s preferred colour over time. This change is purely cosmetic and does not have any influence on the power of the mana. The colours do not necessarily reflect the owner''s personality or traits, as it is a change that can be controlled. The colour of one''s mana may influence the colour of spells or magic one invokes.] Again, Mercury spent some time reading. The first shock was that the overcharging of the rune had consumed a whopping 40 Mp. This was probably nearing the limit of what a low 1st grade reinforce rune could take. The next question would be if he actually stood an okay chance at carving mid 1st grade runes now. Next, he was surprised about this revelation about mana. Essentially, its colour could be controlled at will to make things look cooler. Well, he really didn''t want to change the colour of his anymore, as he was perfectly happy with it being silver. Since mana, in its most useable form, was liquid, his name fit it perfectly. After all, Mercury was a liquid metal that looked like Silver. It also fit with Starlight, as his runes would now glow in the colour of most stars in the sky. Even though there were obviously many more parts and aspects of his name he wanted to fulfill, this colour change was most certainly a start, and Mercury was more than excited about it. Third, he noticed that he was tired. Bone tired, actually. The kind of tired that made your eyelids feel like lead and every part of your body like an immovable lump of metal. So, with a smile on his face Mercury folded his legs under himself and fell asleep. Chapter 10: Spider Strategies Chapter 10: Spider Strategies Mercury slept well that day, waking up right around dusk, where he could watch as the world grew darker with every ticking second. After getting his first meal of the day settled by throwing rocky the rock at a mouse, he mentally prepared himself again. He had taken a break for a day, but he couldn''t afford any more delay. It was time to continue his miniature war against spider-bitch. Like seriously, how many spiders did she need to produce, jeez. Did the lady not know about resting? Ugh, whatever, time to cut those numbers down to size. Any newborns would definitely take time to grow, especially given their size, so by taking down adult spiders he was fairly sure he could decrease their numbers. Thus, he went on his journey towards the spiders'' territory, where he could still see many of the eight legged freaks roaming around. They were also still quite a bit bigger than him, which made them all the scarier. He hadn''t missed their legs or eyes at all in that time he spent at home, not even the slightest bit. Anyways, he hunted them. He still made sure to avoid parties of more than two spiders, only ambushing ones that were almost alone. He also made sure to maintain almost the entire time while avoiding stepping on twigs or dry leaves as well. Stealth was his biggest advantage, after all. That, and his ability to throw objects, which the spiders fully lacked. And hopefully also the ability to cast magic sometime soon. However, since he didn''t know any spells yet, he had to rely on his masterful rock-throwing abilities. Or throwing abilities in general, rather. With only one inventory slot, he could only carry a single rock, making it hard to take down multiple spiders with it. Instead, he threw everything he stood on as well, using all four of his paws to activate on the ground, yeeting clumps of dirt as well as twigs and pebbles at the spiders. This was surprisingly effective, as it did a small bit of damage and also threw the spiders off for a moment, which usually allowed him to go grab his rock. Luckily for him, the spiders were amazingly stupid. They were actually able to throw out sizeable amounts of spider silk, but they only ever tried throwing it directly at him, which made it fairly easy to dodge. They never used it to set up traps or anything the like, which was more than good for him. Seems like they only understood how to make nets and even simple barriers or blockades were above them. Spontaneous thinking really wasn''t their thing, luckily. This way, Mercury was able to take down one spider after the other. He still only stayed on the outer edges of their territory though, since he really couldn''t afford to move further in and risk being ambushed from behind. He wasn''t confident he could run if he got hit by a sneaky bit of silk, so he simply had to avoid situations in which the spiders could call for backup. He also made sure to do a basic scouting of the area before approaching any spider at all to avoid unexpected obstacles or intrusion. This made hunting a lot slower but at the same time, it made it a lot safer. And if Mercury loved one thing it was not being in danger of dying. Death was scary. No fries for him. Still, one after another notifications rang out. [You have killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [You have killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold, 1 spider''s venom (consumable).] [You have killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [You have killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 11 Gold.] [You have killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 11 Gold.] [You have killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] [You have killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] When midnight was approaching he had taken down seven spiders, which was enough to call it a day. His Sp depleted only slowly since the breaks between fights were long, but they took longer to regenerate when he was tired or hungry, and by now the latter was true. So, instead of risking anything, he decided to leave it at that. When he arrived back at his old trusty log, he soon took out a curious squirrel, scouring the ground for nuts or something. This made for a good midnight meal before he went on with mana training, where he was able to confirm what he had read yesterday. His mana had really changed colour, taking on a slightly silvery hue. It was still largely blue, but its colour seemed to be shifting into a more fitting one slowly. This was nice. It wasn''t incredible by any means, but it still made Mercury smile a little. It was like his mana was becoming his just a little more. This feeling was strengthened when he tried to move it around. The mana still resisted his thoughts and didn''t move a whole lot, but unlike before his commands felt a little more efficient. Before, moving his mana had felt like he was trying to run while being stuck knee deep in heavy mud, like most of his energy was fully wasted, but this time it felt like he was moving it just a little more easily. It wasn''t like he could do it without trying, or very easily, but he felt more like he was trying to run in very thick syrup rather than mud. It was relieving, simply put, to feel that his efforts were slowly paying off, and that his experimentation was actually rewarded by this system. With how unfair it had been before he had almost expected it to make the rune explode, but it actually rewarded him, unlike with his inventory, which didn''t even allow him to pocket the spider''s venom when he wanted to, since he needed to keep the slot ready for his rock. Fortunately enough, he didn''t need the venom that badly, since he didn''t think the queen would be very susceptible to her own poison, but he could have definitely used it later. No point in worrying about that though, since he simply couldn''t take it with him until he unlocked a second inventory slot. Then again, with it costing 1000 Gold he was actually approaching that threshold, right? Status! Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 1 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 62/62 Sp: 63/75 Strength: 21 Vitality: 16 Dexterity: 20 Agility: 27 Intelligence: 17 Wisdom: 13 Willpower: 12 Luck: 14 Ability points: 21 Skill points: 450 Gold: 670 Whelp. No, he wasn''t. He was ? there. He had probably gotten quite a bit of that money recently from killing spiders, but a large amount of it also came from the great Stag and the high amount of food he took down. He also did other quests which gave him Gold. In short, he had yet to benefit from his . Though he definitely would get something from it eventually, right? For sure, no two ways about it. Eventually. After all, these unique Skill were supposed to be pretty cool n shit, no? Whatever, right then he should probably focus back on his training. Then, he spent the remainder of the night moving his Mana, only stopping when he felt his headache get worse around morning. Then he also realised just how tired he was and fell asleep soon after. The next day went fairly similarly. Training when he woke up at dusk, then hunting some spiders. In this case however, he actually levelled up after taking down just two creepy crawlies. [Level Up!] As per usual, the system rang out as soon as it happened. This time, Mercury made a mini retreat before checking his status. Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 1 -> 2 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 67/67 Sp: 85/85 Strength: 21 -> 22 Vitality: 16 Dexterity: 20 -> 22 Agility: 27 Intelligence: 17 -> 18 Wisdom: 13 ->14 Willpower: 12 Luck: 14 Ability points: 24 Skill points: 550 Gold: 670 It was a good level. Nothing incredibly fancy or groundbreaking, but it was good enough. It would make hunting a little easier for sure, at the very least. But wouldn''t the efficiency of levels decrease over time? Like, right now three points may be a lot for him, but what about the future? Would he still get three points per level when he was level 100 or would he get more points? Or maybe a single point was worth more at level 100? Right now a point in strength might let him lift a kilo or so more, but maybe one point at level 100 meant an increase of 1 000 kilos? Well, in the end such questions were pretty pointless, right? They were only hypothetical. He had no way of knowing, so all he could really do was to get back to completing quests and raising his level. That was how he would find out his answers too. Those who were strong could find out secrets, after all. If he was a king who would dare to keep secrets from him? Yes, this was most certainly the optimal goal for him to have in this world. To become someone great. This was what he was working towards, the goal of growing a kingdom, starting right from this forest right here. And his current obstacle was Ms. many legs, eggs, and eyes. Right, back to taking out spiders then. The first night went very well, in addition to the two from the start he managed to take down another six spiders since he encountered multiple pairs. The second night didn''t go too poorly either, ending with six spiders dead. He encountered a few groups of three, making it a little harder to hunt them down. On the third night he got another level after taking down three spiders before taking down an additional four. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. The fourth night went a little worse as he encountered a few groups of three. He only managed to take down a total of five spiders. On the fifth night he killed three. There were a lot of larger groups, even some numbering four or five spiders. Then, during the sixth night, he pulled back without taking down a spider. There were fewer groups of them now, but all of them were of three or more spiders. They had figured out that something was hunting down the spiders and increased the size of the groups patrolling while decreasing the density of the patrol. This was terrible for Mercury, actually. He didn''t care much about the density, since this only meant it would be doable for him to sneak into the spiders'' territory, which he didn''t wanna do anyways. He was absolutely not going to do something this stupid. No chance at all, not this damn time. After that stunt with the bear he felt he had stretched his luck enough. Instead, he now needed a different strategy. The spiders were adapting quicker than he had hoped they would, meaning he needed to add something new to his arsenal as well. He could do that or focus on finding a better strategy, but nothing really came to mind. He didn''t exactly have a Skill he could use to split the spiders'' forces, nor did he have a way to bait only a few of them. Unluckily, he didn''t have a whole lot of Skill points currently. They were also still all around his level physically, which wasn''t too amazing. His only leftover advantage were his saved up Ability points. Maybe he could consider one, but he was already heavily relying on it, making it more of a balancing factor that was already in play. He also didn''t have any plot armor to rely on either, making this next step quite a bit harder. So, Mercury thought about it. What stats would be of use if he was going to beat the spiders? What Skills could help him most efficiently in this predicament? What preparations could he take? He ran into a few issues with every question. The stats were limited by his points, making it hard to get a high enough all-round boost to compete with the spiders. His Skills were limited by his Skill points. His preparations were highly limited due to his lack of inventory space. Even looking at his current arsenal of weapons left a bad taste in his mouth. He had rocks to throw, but what else did he have? The only other item he had was the great Stag''s antlers. Wait. Antlers. He just now realized something about these. They were pretty heavy, long and most certainly pointy. Couldn''t they like fucking stab the spiders? Well, it definitely increased the power of , but it still wasn''t enough for him to feel safe while tackling three or more spiders. So, what else could he get? With his latest level-up he had 650 Skill points, which could definitely get him¡­ something. But what? He also only needed to take down one more spider to get his second inventory slot ready. He could probably also unlock it with the Gold from a squirrel or two. This would increase his weaponry further. But now, time to check the Skill shop for something valuable. Mercury was lost in thought a little as he browsed through the shop. He could definitely get basic attacks like or or something, but he could most likely also acquire those without spending points on them. The problem laid with him absolutely not wanting to get close to any of the spiders at all. They were still quite a bit bigger than him and definitely, definitely not something he''d have to dodge up close. So, onto his next choice. Advanced Skills like and were still far out of his reach. His mana had yet to become useful in face to face combat. It was genuinely hard to find applications for his current Skills since the only ones really suited for fighting were , and . He needed something he could manipulate the battlefield with, some way to split the spiders from each other, but finding something that fit those descriptions was incredibly hard. But still, he had to find Skills that fit the bill, so he searched for them. And eventually, he put his finger down on two options that were currently affordable for him. There was for 200 Skill points and for 300. Yeah, the simple act of digging was more expensive than taming something. That was because only stopped an animal from being hostile towards you. Digging on the other hand was fairly difficult to pull off with soft cat paws, especially when it comes to harder soil. Now, both of these had drawbacks. First of all, he couldn''t be sure of the effects of . He didn''t know how long it would take or if it would work at all. He couldn''t be sure if the animal would stay tamed if its former comrades were attacked and he didn''t know if he could do it from a distance. He didn''t know if it was loud or quiet and he didn''t know if it was bright or flashy or something the like. But it was both cheap and future proofing, since he most certainly wanted the Skill at some point. came with its own set of drawbacks. It was more expensive and most likely to be slow. He couldn''t be sure if he would be able to even dig a hole at level 1. In addition, it would most certainly be fairly noisy and easy to see if he started digging a hole and its effectiveness was questionable at best. In the end he settled on the choice that was more chance based, . This was for a simple reason, actually. It was a wildcard, while was highly likely to not do a good job. In addition to that, he also liked the idea of already levelling it up for when he would need it in the future. So, he bought the Skill. [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] There. Now, time to appraise this bitch. [: This Skill will allow the user to attempt to convince a beast of their harmlessness. Upon success, the beast will no longer perceive the user as a threat. If combined with other Skills, they may recognize the user as an ally or their master. If they do so, the taming will not wear off as long as their stance towards the user isn''t shaken significantly. Its success chance is based on the user''s Willpower, though each beast also requires Mp to tame. In order for taming to occur, the user has to place one of their appendages on the beast and activate the Skill. Once activated, the Mana of the user will shortly present itself with a flash and the taming will have succeeded or failed. Regardless of the outcome, the taming chance will stay the same. The user''s mana will also be consumed either way.] [ has levelled up!] After a bit of reading Mercury nodded to himself, not yet noticing the second message. This was definitely a good Skill. The casting time was apparently low and while it did come with a flash of light, there was no sound it seemed. Now, the only question was if he could actually tame the spiders or not. Then, when Mercury saw the second message, his eyes shot open again. Appraisal was already very useful, so he was excited to see how it would do after levelling up. He didn''t feel any immediate effect, or rather, nothing he could put into words very well. The most accurate way to say it might be something like that he now... knew himself better? It felt like he had more of a connection, or more information on his own abilities without immediately checking them... But for now this was second rate information. He had to shake it off. It was time to try out , and then to determine if he maybe should already get some more of the Skills, namely , since he guessed that was the one he needed to control his minions. So, in order to figure his next steps out, Mercury started his search for one of his most typical targets: a mouse. It only took him a few minutes of careful scouting to find one scurrying on the floor and searching for food. Mercury immediately activated in response, since doing anything else was completely stupid. Then, he slowly moved in closer, taking one careful step at a time. Now, for a human this may have seemed all cute and shit, but for him this was serious business, okay?! When he was within range, Mercury closed the distance with a single jump and closely held the mouse between his paws, immediately activating when he was sure it wouldn''t be able to flee. Then, there was a flash of silver light. Well, a flash might not be accurate. It was more like a sheet of silvery water enveloped the mouse for a second before dissipating into the air as mist. [Taming successful! Get: 2 Exp.] It worked! Frick yeah! He even got Exp from it! Mercury then let the mouse go to make sure it wouldn''t run away, and it simply continued its search for food around him. No fleeing in sight. This was proof that things went without a hitch. Now, in this case the taming wasn''t so hard since it was a mouse. He doubted he currently stood any chance if he tried to use it on a wolf or the bear, but since the spiders were higher in number in exchange for far lower strength he might have good odds against those. Currently he needed to be careful though. The time he maintained friendliness with a creature was limited, so if he wanted to apply it in combat he would need to either be quick or use it multiple times. Though with how the system has been he really had to question if he could even use it multiple times. Do you have anything to say for yourself, ? [: Current beast familiars: 1/1.] Well wasn''t this something he just had to add to his status if he ever decided to make an army? How could he actually increase this number? ? [Familiars: Familiars are creatures that you have made your own. Their maximum number depends on the level of the Skill used, the user''s Willpower and the user''s Intelligence. Each Skill has its own count. These counts can be exceeded if the user convinces the familiar to let them use the Skill on them.] So essentially upgrading his magic and practicing the Skill would allow him to get more familiars, made sense. The fact he was allowed to go above his maximum if he got them to join of their own free will on the other hand? Wholly different story. Amazing news. 10/10. Love it. Fuck yeah, that''s the shit we like to see here. Now there was only one question left. How would he get mastery? [Familiar Skill mastery: In case of Skills relating to familiars, mastery is gained in multiple ways. The user of the Skill will gain mastery for any attempt at taming, binding or whatever else the Skill entails. They will receive additional mastery if they succeed in acquiring the familiar. They will also passively receive mastery depending on the number of familiars owned and the strength of those familiars.] So familiars were also categorized depending on their strength. He had guessed so when he saw and but this confirmed it. His familiars could level up even while bound to him. Now he was curious how Exp sharing worked, but as soon as he asked his access was denied as this would require him knowing the information of Skills he didn''t have yet. This did give him some info though, namely that Exp was subject to some rules and also that it was incorporated with other Skills. After confirming all the things he had wanted to know, Mercury added his familiar count to his status and then opened it up. By now it was also getting a little long, but oh well. Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 2 -> 3 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 67/67 Sp: 90/90 Strength: 22 -> 23 Vitality: 16 Dexterity: 22 -> 23 Agility: 27 -> 28 Intelligence: 18 Wisdom: 14 -> 15 Willpower: 12 Luck: 14 Ability points: 27 Skill points: 450 Gold: 993 Beast familiars: 0/1 Heck yeah! Honestly, these customization options were seriously the best part of living in this world. He could change the colour of his mana, he could change the layout of his status screen, he would later on most likely be able to edit his inventory and Skills screen. This was the damn best! But okay. Back on track, Merc, we don''t have all day to spend with your menu, even though it most certainly is amazing. Right. It still showed the stat increases from his last level, which was a little weird, but not too bothersome. After all, this was not that big of a deal, especially since they stopped showing up the next time he opened his status. So, he chose to ignore it. While he was still editing the status screen, the system also notified him that the time limit for taming had run out, so his familiar slot was open again for testing (no animal testing was done for the sake of this novel.) This time mice wouldn''t do though. He needed to put this flashy new ability to a field test, so it was time to head out and kick some silky butt. He also made sure to remind himself to get another inventory slot as soon as his Gold hit 1 000. This was vitally important if he wanted to actually carry around useful items with him, and even more so if he was planning on taking them home with himself. And thus, our hero began his perilous journey towards the territory of the spiders. Many an obstacle thought it could place itself in his wake, but the cat did not pay any heed to those fiends trying to obstruct him. He stepped forward, one foot in front of the other, again and again, crossing what felt like mountains and endless hills of grass, making his way through swamps and bogs and icy tundras and deserts and- JEFFREY! Get out of my office right fucking now!! Jeez. I''m gone for five minutes and he seriously has to start narrating my work? Ass. Alright, where was I? Ah, right. Spiders. Mercury did indeed make his way back to that dead part of the forest, though the only obstacles in his way were pebbles and leaves. It also wasn''t really that far, so it only took a dozen or so minutes of running until he arrived. By now he was very well aware of its location, making it easy to slow down before reaching the border and starting his hiding. This was the same song and dance as usual, use , scout the area, stay quiet, yadda yadda. The true test was about to commence when he found a group of three spiders. First try at that. So, when he found the spiders, Mercury prepared. He scouted the area, checked for landmarks or other spiders, then hid and snuck ever closer to the group of crawlies. His little fluffy feetsies were almost silent on the soil as he slowly made his way closer. After crawling the last bit of distance through the undergrowth, Mercury was within jumping distance. This was pretty much exactly where he wanted to be. So, without much ado, our hero jumped. Our medieval narrator friend Jeff would have called it a mighty leap, but it was quite average, really. He kicked off the ground and flew through the air for a fraction of a second before landing half on and half next to a spider. Then, Mercury used without missing a beat and a silver sheet of light enveloped the spider he had jumped on at the same moment that the other two turned to face him. Sadly there was no chance in hell he was going to read a message on whether he had succeeded now. Instead, the two antlers magically appeared in the air in front of him and he immediately tapped them both, having them launch forward very quickly and surprisingly stable. Seems like actually threw things differently depending on their center of gravity. This was the good news. The bad news laid within the fact that, while he had successfully taken out one spider, the other one sidestepped his attack by reflex, landing it a spot that was fairly safe from other throws given Merc''s lack of ammunition. This was pretty fucking terrible. Since he also had no clue if his taming had succeeded, Mercury simply decided to, well, book it. So, he used and immediately disappeared, leaving the antlers and spiders behind. Only when he had put about five minutes of running between him and the spiders did he stop. Then, he checked his notifications. [Taming successful! Get: 25 Exp.] [Killed a giant spider. Get: 50 Exp, 10 Gold.] It worked. It actually. Fucking. Worked. His plan went surprisingly well, given the fact that he had absolutely 0 idea what the stats of those spiders were. But now that he knew that it worked, he had to actually put it into practice and go hunting. So, he returned to the spot where he had left the antlers, only to find them surrounded by seven spiders. Seven. Whelp, this quickly ended his hunting tour for the day as he returned back home to gather his thoughts. There, he lamented running for a few seconds before deciding it was probably a good choice. Then, he spent his Gold for once. 1 000 Gold were spent on a second inventory slot. Good news! The next one cost 2 000 Gold. Twice as much as his current one. Just absolutely fricking great. Chapter 11: Conversation Chapter 11: Conversation Before getting even more upset about how stupid and unfair this whole thing was, Mercury decided to focus on something else. Going back into spider territory today seemed like a poor idea, so instead he filled his inventory with two rocks and decided to move onto mana training. So, he meditated until he could see his core again and started slowly stirring his mana, having it do tiny motions. By now, these tiny movements were fairly easy to do, making it possible for him to keep them going for a bit until his emotions started to settle down. Then, he started giving his mana larger tasks. They weren''t unimaginable yet, nor were they anything incredible, but they were bigger than those before. Instead of having it create small swirls or having it flow ever-so-slightly to one side he thought it would be fun to have it spin, like a whirlpool. So, he did so. He started off slow, to test his limits, making only a few drops of mana swirl around, slowly circling in his core. Then, he continued to move these as they themselves started to somewhat move the mana around them. When the drops had already made some of it move along them, he added some more energy. Continuing this trend, he slowly but surely managed to get a fair amount of his mana to spin. This was because he didn''t have to initiate a new motion each time, but instead he was able to simply influence a little bit more mana every time and slowly have the spinning spread out. This was still by no means an easy task, and as he was getting closer to the end he started unconsciously panting as his headache started to grow a little more intense. But this time he wouldn''t give up yet, because this was really fucking fun. In the end, he managed to make almost all the mana in his core circle around its edges. It was by no means fast enough to be called a whirlpool, but there was enough movement for the mana to creep ever so slightly closer to the sides of his core. It wasn''t enough to show him the bottom of his core, nor was it enough to put pressure on its sides, but it most certainly was enough to give him a feeling of success. He had definitely spun his mana, even if it was only a tiny bit. Now, currently he was unaware of this, but what he had done then was the second step to using mana. Using mana was actually a common practice for every person who had any renown to their name, even warriors or archers, but in this case it was a little different. Humans usually learn mana control from masters, allowing them to make quick strides of improvement, but also limiting them in the sense that they never need to experiment or figure things out. Comparatively, Mercury''s path was like an overgrown road, full of sinkholes and bumps and even thorny vines. Later on someone might even throw down nails and spikes or build a wall, just to fuck him over. But his road meant far greater freedom if he kept moving forward. He wasn''t taking the path of a wizard. He wasn''t walking any path. He was exploring uncharted, untouched wilderness, turning it into a playground for him. He would have to weed weeds, break down rocks, cut down thorns and maybe bash walls in, but it was possible. And since it was possible, his growth like this seemed unlimited. ... but then again, considering he was a cat that future was far, far away. Instead, currently his feeling of success was being suppressed by his pounding headache. It got ten times worse as soon as he stopped focusing on his mana, since he simply had nothing left to give. He was mentally and physically exhausted and now, while he already laid on the floor panting, his head started to feel like it was under a hydraulic press. Yeah, great fucking idea Merc, just sPiN yOuR MaNa iT''Ll bE fInE. Fucking hell, was he stupid or some shit? Ah, damn it, he already knew the answer to that. Shut up, head. God damn it, fucking migraines, seriously. Why did he have to overexert himself. No, wait. Why did his head not scream at him to shut the fuck up? Jesus, man, this shit hurt like hell. And, while continuously swearing, dear Mercury fell asleep a little early. The next day he actually woke up before dusk. It was probably more along the lines of mid-afternoon instead of his usual evening, but there was no way he could keep napping, since his head still hurt and he was both thirsty and hungry. So, he got up, thoroughly stretched, and exited his log, where he yawned and then was quickly kicked by Cherry, who was walking in endless circles. After jumping up, Mercury could hear her startled yelp and decided to hold in the hiss he had been preparing. Instead, he let out a defeated sigh. Right, she hadn''t tried to attack him. It wasn''t fair to judge her on an accident. She also didn''t hurt him that badly, so it should be okay. When he focused on what was going on around him instead of his thoughts again, Mercury immediately could hear Cherry, who had sat down in front of him. "I''m so sorry, I''m sorry, I''m sorry! Sorry, please forgive me, I''m so sorry!" she pleaded. Yeah, uh, she seemed like she might be feeling bad, though it was most certainly hard to tell. So, feeling bad for her now as well, Mercury placed his paw on her knee, prompting her to pay attention to him and interrupt her apologies for a moment. Then, he nodded to her and gave her his best cat smile and her face immediately brightened. "You''re not angry?" she asked. "Promise? Pinky promise?" Again, everyone''s favourite cat nodded, only to be scooped up and pressed against someone''s cheek soon after. "Yayyyyyyyyy!" Cherry screamed as she rubbed him against her. "Thank you so, so much Mercury! You''re the best!" Well, of course he was, what did she think? But that was besides the point. Hey. Wasn''t it time to let him down? He really didn''t like being held up like this. Cherry, please? His thoughts started getting a lot more rapid when she moved him towards her lips. Wait, Cherry, what the fuck are you doing, hey stop that, Cherry no leT ME GO I NEVER AGREED TO THIS!!! Nonetheless, the thankful girl smooched him on the forehead before placing him back on the ground. She then put both her hands together and smiled happily while tilting her head to the side. "Thank you so much!" she repeated. Meanwhile, Mercury was busy mulling over his thoughts. He now knew that he hated being treated like a cat and, more importantly, that he would never be picked up again. While still frozen in thought, he dropped to the side like a fucking rock, his legs still outstretched and his eyes unmoving. This was the end of him. He was going to die right there, next to his log in the grass. Then, Cherry proceeded to shake him. "Mercury? Are- Are you okay? Hey, please get up? Mercury? Please?" Damn it, if she was that worried he couldn''t even die in peace. Wait, if he was dead he couldn''t become king. Wait, if he couldn''t become king then he wouldn''t be a king! That was unacceptable! No, this was something he had to accomplish. So, with newfound determination based on Cherry''s pleading and the goal he wanted to achieve, Mercury reversed his previous motion. Still unmoving he seemed to defy gravity, as his body slowly started to lift itself up and tilt back into its previous position. After completing this feat that entirely defied logic, life returned into Mercury''s eyes and he blinked multiple times. Immediately upon having his spirit return to his body, Cherry moved her hands towards Mercury again, snatching him up and hugging him. "Oh thank the gods!" she yelped. "You''re back!" This ended in Mercury using his cat-like deflation ability to somehow slither out of her embrace. He himself had no clue how it happened but a moment later the two were standing opposite from each other again. For a moment there was an awkward silence between the two, then, Mercury proceeded to sit down on the grass and look curiously towards Cherry. After all the fooling around, wasn''t it time for her to reveal why she was visiting? When he turned his head to the side Cherry immediately jolted upright and nodded profusely. "Ah right! Why I''m here, right, yeah. Important stuff yes. Okay." She then took another moment to collect her thoughts and reach into the pocket of her green jacket. "I got something else for you," she said. This was most certainly intriguing. When it came to gifts, Cherry was currently unmatched. She had given him an Ability point, Skill points and a skillstone for . This was most certainly going to be good. Seeing Mercury''s eyes glint with interest, Cherry smiled to herself. Then, she presented a small, amber crystal to him. It was cut into a cuboid shape, but its edges were rounded down. Seeing his confusion, Cherry placed the crystal in front of Mercury and smiled. "It''s another skillstone. Go on, try it!" she said cheerily. A skillstone? Well, wasn''t this just a treat. Thank you, oh giving angel who you are so gracious. Skills were actually just what he needed. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. So, Mercury placed his paw on the cubic gem and saw a pop up. [Activated skillstone: . Use?] OH HELL FUCKING YES!!! [Acquired the Skill from a skillstone. This Skill can be fused with to create . Would you like to fuse them?] Well if that wasn''t another hell yes he didn''t know what was. [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] Now, what does this fucker do? [: This Skill allows you to speak and understand any language. Since most species have their own language, this Skill is very popular among intelligent creatures. It will instantly translate anything you say or hear to your preferred language. The default is what you speak natively. If you accidentally change your settings this will mess up the settings of the entire system for you. In such a case the skill configuration will still accept commands in any language, so simply saying "Reset language" will make it regain the current settings. Its level is representative of how many languages are incorporated. You can currently speak: Common, Elvish, Dwarvish. The language you speak will automatically be translated into the preferred language of the one you are speaking to if they speak any of these languages. In addition you can now both read and write in these languages if you choose to do so.] "Well, that''s pretty nifty," Mercury thought aloud. Immediately, Cherry''s eyes almost jumped out of their sockets. She was expecting him to be able to speak, but not this fluently. What the heck kind of animal was this?! It was already incredible he was even able to use the crystals, not to mention utilize Skills! He was even able to trade with her, but being able to immediately speak after gaining the Skill when he had never said a word before? This was incredible! She couldn''t help but stutter when she spoke again. "Y- you''re speaking now," she said, gobsmacked. "Sure am," Mercury retorted. "Thanks for that by the way. I was already starting to question how I''d go about communicating once I got out of this forest." "You''re speaking. A- a mopaaw is speaking. T- This is just i-incredible!" "Yeah, I''m speaking. Look, you literally gave me the ability to do so, is it really that amazing?" "You''re really speaking!!" Cherry said and rubbed her eyes before looking at him again. "You really, really are!" Her smile was big and bright enough to have illuminated an entire town. "Yeah, we''ve been over that. Can you like¡­ try to calm down now?" Mercury was a little worried when he saw how excited his friend was getting. He really didn''t want her to have like, a heart attack or something. For sure it wasn''t healthy to be this excited, right? Right? Regardless of that, Cherry couldn''t contain her excitement and leaned forward to hug Mercury once more, but by now he was a little tired of it and stepped back, leading to her getting to intimately know the floor. Cherry quickly laughed it off and sat back upright. "Sorry," she said with a bright smile, "I might have gotten a little excited there. It''s actually the first time I''ve heard an animal speak, you know?" "Same here to be honest, but Skills make it possible," Mercury said and gave his best smile back. "I really owe you for this one. I actually couldn''t find that Skill in the shop." After hearing him, Cherry''s jaw dropped once more. "YOU CAN USE THE SHOP!?!!?!" she yelled, but after thinking it over for a few seconds she calmed down a little. "Well, I suppose it makes sense if you had some sort of Skill involving speaking." "I actually didn''t," Mercury said honestly. "I could always read things since I appeared here." This actually left Cherry in even bigger shock. It just made no sense. Not even humans could read any of the system messages without speaking a single language. So, Cherry asked another question, "Are you sure you didn''t speak any language when you were able to read the notifications? Commonly it''s impossible for anyone who doesn''t understand a single language to read anything concerning the system, since it is purely written text." For a moment Steve thought about it. His Skill also didn''t list him as speaking english. Actually, when he had just come to this world wasn''t his Intelligence like¡­ 3? Then it made no sense for him to be able to have complicated thoughts, actually, right? So how could he continue with his human thinking and reading as if it was only natural? There were no Skills or Abilities related to this phenomenon, nor did he currently see anything linking to it. This meant that it was either something he didn''t have any insight on yet or it was something outside of the system. Given that this might not be good for Cherry''s heart currently, he decided to go with an answer that might worry her a little less. "Actually, I''m unsure. I could read the prompts ever since I came here without issue. Maybe it''s some sort of hidden Skill?" Sadly, it had quite the opposite effect. "You''re saying you might have a unique Skill?!" Cherry yelled out. Her eyes were yet again wide open as she stared at the cat in front of her. Seeing her this shocked, Mercury decided to simply be honest, as any heart condition that might happen probably couldn''t be avoided anymore, and he really didn''t want to lie to her. "Yes, I do have a unique Skill, however it has nothing to do with me being able to read the messages. It''s a Skill called and it allows me to access another menu where I can buy items using Gold which I get by killing things. The menu, to me, appears in a language called "English". It''s the language I spoke before becoming a cat." "So you were transformed into a cat?" Cherry quietly asked. Seems like this information was a little overwhelming for her, so Mercury simply nodded. "That''s quite a powerful spell. Did it also fully reset your stats?" "I suppose so. I did start at level 1." "But you maintained your previous knowledge and personality?" "Seems like it. Though when I was transformed I didn''t have a lot of stats or Skills, so it wasn''t that big of a change. The biggest one was going from human to c-... mopahw...?" "Mopaaw." "Yes, that. The spell seems to have let me retain my sense of self though, separating it from the stats somewhat, though I don''t know if my intelligence will increase once my points in the stat exceed what I had previously." After this, Cherry took a long moment to think. For her this was completely surprising. She hadn''t been befriending a cat, but instead a fully fledged human. This was both incredibly amazing and incredibly embarrassing, since kissing him on the forehead seemed quite a bit weirder now. While Cherry''s cheeks were busy flooding red, Mercury thought things over. His explanation wasn''t very far off the truth at all. He didn''t have any Skills or stats where he came from and his ego was, in fact, removed from the stats. The question whether his Intelligence would influence him later on was also interesting and he did indeed still speak english from before, even though it wasn''t listed in the explanation of . Then another realization hit him. If most animals were unable to read and speak or have thoughts that could be easily transcribed into words, did that mean they couldn''t use the Skill shop? Wait, didn''t that mean they also couldn''t allocate Ability points? That actually made quite a bit of sense, it was a good explanation as to why he was able to overpower animals that were probably further evolved than him. It also explained how they didn''t grow to higher intelligence usually. Combining this with his¡­ extraordinary choice of prey he could definitely find an explanation for his speed of growth. Usually cats wouldn''t be able to take down things like deer or something. This was not good news though. Up until now he had an advantage on animals and shit. But this now meant that when it came to humans he was equally matched with them. He had absolutely no extreme advantage like his actual intelligence being largely removed from the stats. If it didn''t grow in the later stages of his magic this might actually prove a disadvantage in the future, since it would mean his growth in that aspect was heavily limited. Okay, okay. Deep breaths Mercury. Things would never work out that terribly, right? Not with how nice this system was, right? Oh. Oh no. Really? Seriously? He had to depend on the kindness of this system? Oh no. No, no, no. Nonononononono. This seriously couldn''t be right. Oh fuck, please, please let him actually be able to grow! Come on, wasn''t the Main Quest supposed to fulfill one''s personal goal? Right. For sure. This meant he would never ever be unable to grow, right? Wasn''t the ability to grow the main point of stat systems like this? Of course he would be able to improve. Right, push those worries away! We''re rooting for you Mercy-boy! After calming both their thoughts for a while, Mercury and Cherry looked at each other again and couldn''t help but laugh. Mercury had to laugh at the girl whose head seemed to explode with surprise, admiration and quite a bit of confusion. Cherry simply found the image of a mopaaw being so deeply in thought and worried absolutely hilarious. This luckily proved to be a relief for both of them, as laughing somewhat helped with distracting them from their troubles. Right. This mopaaw was still the same as before for Cherry. For Mercury, the future might be a little uncertain, but it always was and it would be future Mercury''s problem. Anyways, if he couldn''t cross a small hurdle like stats, then was he really worthy of the name Mercury Rainfall Starlight? Of course he was gonna do it! He was to become a king after all! Fuck yeah! Like that, the two of them calmed each other down before they started speaking again. "So, what are your plans now?" Cherry asked "Currently I''m working on taking down the Mother of Spiders," Mercury said with a smile. "Might seem a little outrageous but I think I can do it. I''m currently working on lowering the size of her army." Cherry simply smiled at him. "I think you got this," she said. "After all, you already took down the great Stag. I don''t think some eight-legged creepy crawly could take you down!" Cherry grinned at Mercury after saying that and she received a happy cat''s smile in return. "Of course I got this!" Mercury said proudly. "If I fail here, how would I face my future?" "Exactly!" Cherry agreed excitedly before looking at the sky a little. "It''s getting late now though. I should probably head home or gramps might get worried. After that bear attack he''s watching over me like a hawk, jeez!" The two of them laughed for another second before Cherry pushed herself up from the ground, gave her goodbyes, and started walking away. When her silhouette disappeared down the hill Mercury started to focus on his task again. Right, he might be able to speak now, but this didn''t exactly change the fact that he still wanted to take down the spider queen. While this would be helpful in the future, it was nothing more than something that was nice to have currently. He couldn''t get any direct use from it, though that was only so at the current moment. In the future it might help him with all manner of diplomacy and shit. Yeah, for sure, this was gonna be amazing, but the future was still the future. His adventure had barely started. He had to take it one step at a time, and at the current moment, the next step had eight legs and a lot of children. Yeah. Back to taking the antlers back and the Mother down. Let''s go, Mercury Rainfall Starlight was about to come in and fucking wreck her day! Chapter 12: Trial Chapter 12: Trial Mercury set off to do what he wanted to. Which was taking down spiders. Now, since he wasn''t suicidal, he stuck to groups with three spiders, sneaking up on them and throwing his first rock while taming a spider. This strategy worked fairly well, though it was slow. It took a while to find any spiders, since they guarded the entire territory and were always on the move. Then, he also had to be lucky enough for it to be a group of three spiders. Then he had to scout the area and so on. But even though it was slow, it was very safe. This way he didn''t have to put himself in danger, which made taking down the spiders much easier. In addition, he actually gained more experience this way, since he got some for taming and then some more for killing the spiders. The killing included the tamed ones of course. He wasn''t stupid enough to just let those return. These were easy kills though, since he could simply throw both his rocks before they even had a chance to react, making them easy prey. In addition, they gave a little more experience, since they still gave full experience if he killed them after taming them. Since it was his first day and he was especially motivated, he actually continued hunting for a long while, up until the point when the sky started to brighten. Only then did Mercury realize how tired he was. But his haul for the day was incredible. Just looking at all the notifications got him excited. He had taken down 12 Spiders and tamed four (though once the taming failed and he had to run away). This netted him a total of 700 Exp, but there was especially interesting notification fairly close to the start. [Level Up!] It said. Well, damn. This still got Mercury excited every single time. Levels were just too cool. But, seeing it as a reward for when he got back home, he made the trip to his trusty log before opening his status. Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 3 -> 4 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 72/72 Sp: 17/95 Strength: 23 -> 24 Vitality: 16 Dexterity: 23 -> 24 Agility: 28 Intelligence: 18 -> 19 Wisdom: 15 Willpower: 12 -> 14 Luck: 14 Ability points: 30 Gold: 127 Skill points: 550 Beast familiars: 0/1 Well Dang, those certainly were some sick upgrades. It was also a good balance between physical and magical stats, though later on he''d hopefully be able to increase his magic stats a lot more. For now, he needed rest. His Sp were also still exhausted from constantly being used and he was only able to keep going for so long because of the level up. Yeah, it was most certainly time to go to sleep. Just like that, Mercury shut his eyelids and practically passed out. The next night came a little too soon for his own personal taste, he had slept poorly and was still feeling tired from yesterday, but by now he was too deep to stop. He had to continue taking down spiders now, without taking too long of a break, or they might start increasing again. And so he did. He stuck to his guns and headed out to the webbed territory after snacking on a rabbit. The day started off well, with him soon finding a group of three and taking them down. Surprisingly, this luck actually held. By midnight he had already taken down three groups of spiders total, though this netted him suitable exhaustion and he called it a day. Sleeping poorly sure was a buzzkill, his limbs already felt terribly heavy when he walked home, so his thoughts were occupied with how horrible mana practice would go. To say he wasn''t excited would have been a terrible understatement. He was almost scared of the magnitude of a headache he might net himself today. Still, by the time he had arrived back at his log and finished eating the rabbit he still sat down and meditated. He was still going to go through with practice, even if he didn''t want to. And, as to be expected, moving his mana with his tired thoughts first felt like he was trying to push back a landslide by himself. It was almost as if he was just dragging himself through mud for no reason other than self-torment. Well, at least it started like that. Mercury hated losing, so the fog in his mind started to clear when he failed. He was focusing. More so than he had before. He blew the fog in his mind away himself rather than relying on outside influence and sharpened his will without help. This is all a fancy way of saying that he was fucking pissed. He was losing to this shitty ass mana again and again, ending in him having a headache and pulling his tail in like a fucking wuss. He was angry because he was tired, and exhausted, and he felt he had a long fucking day and this shitty ass non-sentient liquid thought it was gonna fuck him over? Fuck that and fuck you, mana! This was *his* mana and it would goddamn listen to him! So, he got angrier and his exhaustion blew away. Then he got furious and his focus heightened. He wasn''t gonna just move this shitty mana, he was about to call a fucking storm down. Move. Move! MOVE YOU LIQUIDY PIECE OF SHIT! Surprisingly enough, the mana did move. It was non-sentient after all, so it listened to commands, and stronger commands obviously had a bigger effect. Actually, to say it moved would be an understatement. His mana reacted as though he had just unleashed an explosion in its middle. First, drops of it flew all around his core. Then, after getting a reaction, Mercury got angrier. What was with this violent shitty movement?! Mana was supposed to be a whirlpool and move in unison, not splash around violently! This shitty fucking thing, you''re supposed to spin! Do the woosh! Make a motherfucking whirlpool you mongrel! And once more, his mana listened. It collected itself at the center of its core for a second, before spinning faster and faster, creating as much of a whirlpool as was possible at his current level. Fucking finally! Was it that hard? Jeez. In the same breath, Mercury stopped his focus and left his core, leaving his mana to calm down on its own. Then, the pain set in. He had overexerted himself, quite frankly. By more than a bit, too. He had forced his mana to move more than he should be able to and had simply ignored and shot past his limits. Of course, that meant there was a price to pay. Just like that, someone shot his head with a sniper rifle, and the bullet caused the insane amounts of C4 in it to go off. Needless to say, Mercury fell to the floor and rolled around while screaming. This pain was on a whole other level. It was entirely incomparable to anything that had happened before. He had literally broken a steel wall through sheer willpower, refusing to use any tools and insisting he smash it with his head. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Unluckily, this wasn''t a headache that subsided after a while, either. After a quarter of an hour, Mercury''s throat felt hoarse. After half an hour, he stopped screaming. An hour later, his rolling had stopped as he gave in to the time. Four hours later, the sun was rising and there was still no chance of sleep. 8 hours later his stomach started growling loudly, but after his legs refused to move even an inch, Mercury couldn''t do anything. He went a full 32 hours without sleep, food or water. He couldn''t move. He couldn''t think. All that existed was pain. After those 32 hours, he was able to barely stand again. His legs shook heavily, his breathing was rough and his sight was blurry, but he moved. He took one shaky step and ground his teeth at the pain. But it wasn''t unbearable anymore. Mercury pushed through with sheer willpower again. He absolutely hated losing, be it to mana or pain. What kind of king would he be if he couldn''t even command himself? What a fucking joke. No, he was going to get water for himself. And finally, some luck kicked in. There was no-one else at the pond. He was able to easily drink and stumble his way back to the log before he finally was able to fall asleep, more from exhaustion than from tiredness. The next time he woke up it was still around midday, he had slept for just around an hour, barely enough to be called a nap. But with his head being a cacophony of explosions, well, sleep wasn''t exactly something that came easily. So, Mercury dragged his tired self up and forced it to leave the log. He still needed food, so he went to hunt, even if every step he took was as hard as lifting up blocks of granite. Even if his consciousness threatened to faint with every meter of progress. It didn''t go very well. When he attempted to activate the burning pain forced him onto his knees and darkness crept into the corners of his vision. Instead of getting anything done, he dragged himself back to the log and forced his eyes shut. Mercury didn''t quite know what else he could do. He had failed at hunting but hopefully he could keep going for just a few more days. Well, actually no. He would keep going, no matter what. Okay, as a narrator I would like to take a break here. Jeez, this author is darn cruel. Damn jerk, really. In contrast to that, I would like to take a minute to admire Mercury''s madladness. And remember to stay hydrated kids. Hydrate, don''t diedrate! But now, back to the story. The headache was finally subsiding. It had now been four days since it started. He only drank something on the second and didn''t manage to find any food at all. In short, he was a mess. A very angry mess. A very angry and very, very hungry mess. And he was just about to hunt the living shit out of every single thing in this forest. Another hour later, Mercury had eaten the food and drunk the water and the headache had receded to being nothing more than a heavy pounding. It now was only distracting, not pain that made him unable to act. At the very least, he had some capacity to think again, so he decided to at least check if this had netted him any progress. This one line he read when he checked out his progress seemed to make it all somewhat worthwhile. Now, somewhat does not at all mean worthwhile. In fact, if Mercury had been equipped with his current set of knowledge back then, he probably wouldn''t have done anything even remotely similar to that. But his exploration of his gains wasn''t quite over then, as he now was finally capable of focussing enough to read the pop-ups. [Willpower increased by 1.] [Willpower increased by 2.] [Willpower increased by 1.] [Willpower increased by 1.] His Willpower had risen by 5 points. This was essentially as if he had just pumped a full level into it, though the other benefits were obviously missing. See, this was on an entirely different scale already, but then he saw yet another pop-up. [By braving extraordinary circumstances and pain the individual has received additional rewards. Get: 1 Ability point, 10 Skill points, 3 Willpower, 1 Wisdom.] This seemed to boost the rewards to a wholly different level. This gave him an additional 5 points. It was now better than a full-scale level-up. Knowing this, Mercury realized something. He realized a simple truth. This system was cruel. It was more than unfair and unbelievably shitty sometimes. It kept throwing him into demanding and stupid circumstances and asked impossible things from him. But he also realized one more thing. When it came to rewards, it was fairly fair sometimes. It was rare, but if you manage to get past an obstacle you will be rewarded for it. This of course did in no way, shape or form excuse the bullshit it pulled, but to Mercury it seemed like something of a promise. He felt that if he kept giving it his all, he could move past all obstacles. He could do what he wanted to and become a king. This system promised him that if he kept going on through all the bullshit that was thrown at him, he could become a king. And so, instead of rejecting the pain that was handed to him he decided to accept it. Both as a promise and a trial. He pressed on through and was rewarded. And he was no longer scared of future trials. [Personal Quest: "Complete the Trials." added. Reward: 2 levels, 10 Ability points, 1000 Skill points, Title.] [For more information open the journal] What. What what? Fucking what now? 2 full-scale levels? This many points? And a title? What kind of fucking overpowered quest was this? Dude, fuck yeah! Sign him up man. This was an incredible opportunity! But what was this journal thingy? As soon as he thought about it another window popped up. This one had a list on the left with the names of all his quests there, completed ones being greyed out and sorted at the bottom, with ongoing ones at the top, both of them sorted alphabetically. Of course, Mercury tapped one of them out of sheer curiosity. Immediately the name lit up and additional information was displayed in the large window to the right of the quest names. [Defeat the Mother of spiders: The individual has been requested to take down the unique E-grade Monster named the "Mother of Spiders". Defeating her can involve every method designed to make another individual submit or admit defeat. The quest will be completed the moment her spirit to oppose the individual has been broken or she is dead. Completed: 0/1. Reward: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] Well shit, wasn''t this handy. It offered a full on description of the quest, detailing how to fulfill the requirements, along with repeating the rewards. It also showed quest progress and shit. This was pretty great. He now also knew that killing wasn''t the only way to "defeat" something. But that aside, time to check this new quest. [Complete the Trials: In order to complete this quest, the individual is required to fulfill the requirements for and receive the rewards of multiple randomly designated trials. The trials are regular, randomly activated trials that can be activated by a number of circumstances and anything that is recognized as a trial will add to the completion of this quest. Completed: 1/5. Reward: 2 levels, 10 Ability points, 1000 Skill points, Title.] Well damn, 5 trials like the one he just went through? That sure sounded less than pleasant, but then again, two levels definitely were an amazing reward. Essentially, this reward kinda scaled with his power, which is already a pretty amazing thing to have. There was also downside though, specifically the fact that he couldn''t choose when he would undertake a trial. They would randomly appear and he didn''t yet have a clue when they would do so. Maybe when he pushed himself extremely hard? If so he absolutely needed to prepare medicine for when the next trial came because goddamn did he not want to go through that headache again. Though maybe that was the trial. Ugh, he simply didn''t know, so he stopped all the guesswork. He''d figure it out when the next trial came. Whatever. Time to enjoy his break for one more night and when his headache was back to a mild one, he would whoop miss-many-legs'' ass. So, the next night he stuck to his guns. His headache was mild, so he took down a rabbit and munched on it. After stocking his stomach up on water as well, he headed back to the spiders'' territory. He could tell his work was bearing fruit. The patrols were now largely 4-spider ones and a few 3-spider groups, but they were fewer. They were spread out among the border of the territory by now, which was a more than obvious sign that the amount of spiders was being reduced. Now, while this was amazing and all, it also meant he only encountered two groups of spiders he could hunt that night and even failed once, so he was only able to take down three spiders. This wasn''t amazing, but it was manageable. The Mother obviously couldn''t keep up with his rate of killing spiders. This, of course, was pretty great news, so being able to kill a few less spiders hardly bothered him. After eating some more of the rabbit when he was back home, Mercury decided to skip out on mana practice for one more day and instead, he carved some runes. He felt like he could somewhat tell how successful he would be at carving higher-tier runes. Of course, these chances should be revealed. By now he could carve low 1st grade runes with a near 100% chance. Mid 1st grade ones seemed also doable, if harder, and overcharged mid 1st grade ones seemed rather unlikely to succeed. He guessed that this was because his mana control wasn''t amazing, and because he probably lacked quite a bit of mana if he wanted to fully overcharge a mid-level rune, since even a low-level one took 40 mana. So, instead of being a dumb fuck, he decided to carve mid-level runes. These took a little longer than the low-level ones though, since the lines needed to be deeper, more straight and more confidently done, so every edge was more pronounced and every curve was smoother. [Failed to carve mid 1st grade Reinforce rune. Get: 3 Exp.] [Failed to carve mid 1st grade Reinforce rune. Get: 3 Exp.] [Failed to carve mid 1st grade Reinforce rune. Get: 3 Exp.] Well, this sure was pathetic. First of all, he actually had to use after every second Rune, since they drained half his mana each. Then he also failed three times in a row. This was most certainly stupid. He shouldn''t fail this often, ugh. Stupid system. Stupid headache. Okay, one more try! [Successfully carved mid 1st grade Reinforce rune. Get: 30 Exp.] Finally! This was good news, getting a Rune laid down was absolutely slick and most certainly pretty satisfying after carving four of them. Seems like his darn chances were lower than he thought, unluckily. Whatever, he got one rune down. He managed to squeeze one more carving session. This time he was lucky and got both runes down without issue before going to sleep. Chapter 13: Stone age Chapter 13: Stone age His progress was flying, to say the least. He fellback into a routine with extended hunting times the next day. Over the week he kept hunting down spiders and eventually, they couldn''t afford to move in larger groups than three anymore. This meant that he had essentially cleaned up the border by the end of the week. Of course, he kept count. Everything else would be boring, after all. He took down 27 spiders, taming nine. He rose one level. He got three more vials of venom, all of which he carried home. and both levelled up once, did so twice. It was a good haul, making him actually feel prepared for facing the Mother. She would be on another level entirely, of course, but hey, he had this for sure. So, after more than enough time of decimating the spiders'' numbers, he decided to venture out to destroy them. With hardly any patrols around it was easy for Mercury to infiltrate into the spiders'' territory. There were lots of nets around in the canopies, but fewer ones near the ground, significantly reducing the number of his obstacles again. It was a relatively uneventful journey. There were some singular spiders crawling around, but those he simply snuck by and soon, he was nearing the centerpoint of their domain. The queen was easy to pick out. If the fact of being surrounded by eggs didn''t give it away, her size sure did. If her size didn''t do the job, her red stripes sure did. If the stripes didn''t do it, well, at that point it really wasn''t her fault anymore. She was twice as big as the other arachnids and had red stripes, what more do you want? Jeez. Luckily, she was alone. Well, there were quite a few newly hatched crawlies on the floor, but other than that, he was free to beat the shit out of her. So, Mercury did. Well, kind of. He was lucky. There was a river nearby. Coming from the mountain. Carrying all sorts of rocks, small and big ones alike. So he took the biggest one he could take and basically stuffed it into his inventory. It was almost thrice his size, but since the Inventory just slurped up things he wanted it to, he could stuff it into the slot for now. Then, he climbed onto a tree, from where he snuck above the Mother. Then, he dropped a giant rock on her, no throwing, nothing. It squashed her. End of story. [Killed the Mother of spiders. Get: 250 Exp, 100 Gold, Mother''s venom (consumable), Mother''s fangs (ingredient).] [Sub Quest "Defeat the Mother of spiders!" completed. You have received: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] [Level Up!] After a job well done, Mercury headed home. Look, okay. It wasn''t an exciting fight. He dropped a rock on an oversized spider. It was simple and incredibly effective. It killed her, boom, dead. Spider blood everywhere and the bitch was squashed. I can''t do any better than that. Here, have his newfound data instead, we all love that shit, right? Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 6 -> 7 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 77/77 Sp: 100/100 Strength: 25 Vitality: 16 Dexterity: 25 Agility: 28 -> 29 Intelligence: 20 Wisdom: 17 -> 19 Willpower: 23 -> 24 Luck: 14 -> 15 Ability points: 39 Gold: 629 Skill points: 860 Beast familiars: 0/1 This was, in fact, a very good amount of points. His Ability- and Skill points were fairly high now and his stats were okay. But at the same time his quests would now rapidly increase in difficulty. The Mother and the Stag were doable through strategy, but when it came to the Bear and mister Woofers, he was stumped. The wolves probably raided as a pack of Elites, while mister McNightmarebear was a walking one-man-army. Essentially, he had absolutely no idea as for how he would be able to bring them down. His rocks wouldn''t harm Bearboy, and Woofles was probably too smart to be hit by them. That being said, he had to take one of them down first. After a while, he settled on Grumpyface, the bear, for two major reasons. He had already managed to hurt him once and he knew he could escape from him. If one of the wolves had more than 60 Agility, he wouldn''t even be able to run away at all, basically dishing out a death sentence. Now, in order to do this, he had to use some items. Namely, one of the drops from miss Many-Children. [Mother''s venom: Poison used by the Mother of spiders. Will dissolve innards of the prey when applied. Extremely painful. Grade: unique E.] Oh yeah, he was about to poison someone again. This was easily the best way to go about things, especially since he didn''t know how much damage any one rock would do to Bear McBearface. In conclusion, he might be going overboard with his resources a little, but there wasn''t really any room for error. Then, he actually had another idea. Now, that one might actually require some work on his part, but it sure would be effective. He wanted to starve the bear. Essentially, he wanted to watch the guy hunt. When he got something, Merc would throw stones at him until the bear got suuuuuuper angry. Then he''d run away, do a loopedy-loop and snatch the food up into his inventory before the bear could return. It was smart, but he questioned efficiency. First of all, it needed him being up during the day, then it required him to anger the bear, which was dangerous and in addition to that he didn''t know how much fat the bear had stored. So his strategy went flat and it was back to the drawing board. And it hit him. The bear was resistant to stone, probably, but what about other stuff? Sharp things, like arrows or spears. Oh yeah. A stick and some runecarving could make for a very good makeshift javelin. He was about to start making weapons. It took a bit of time until he had found suitable sticks. Actually, he didn''t "find" any at all. Instead, he cut some off a tree himself, since searching was getting tiresome. It took a few minutes, but being a bit stronger than a normal cat, he was eventually able to sever some branches. He then started carving them, first removing the bark using his claws. He smoothed out the surface and made sure the stick was as straight as he could get it before sharpening one end to a tip. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] [Successfully carved a crude javelin. Get: 3 Exp.] When he got the Skill, Mercury smiled to himself. He was always happy to gain new powers, after all they would help him in his quest to become worthy of his name. In this case however, he had no idea what this Skill would become in the future. It would become one of the abilities he would be most well known for, after all. Whelp, not gonna spoil it for you guys. In any case, Mercury wasn''t quite finished after carving a sharp stick. It needed to be a very good sharp stick, actually. So, he continued his work. This meant more carving, albeit a different kind. It was actually time to utilize his runecarving abilities, so essentially time for his hard work to pay off. He decided that carving the stick with mid-level runes would be smarter, since they would give a greater effect if he succeeded and there wasn''t a penalty if he failed, except for them taking up some space. After deciding on it, Mercury got to work. He could carve two runes before meditating, since they sapped half his mana each. Each rune also took about half an hour to carve. This might seem excessive at first glance, but Mercury was a little bit of a perfectionist apparently, which, in this case, was by no means bad. Runecarvers actually needed to be perfectionists, since a slight misalignment of two lines could cause you to fail. In addition, it required constant focus, making it very mentally taxing, so he also needed to take some breaks for each rune. Combining these factors, carving them took a while, but he also seemed to have some luck, since... [ has levelled up!] Yeah, that. Mercury was very happy to see this, and a big smile spread across his face. This was exactly what he needed right then, since rejuvenating his mana more quickly meant cutting down on working time. So, with the regeneration of his mana now taking a little less time, he was ready to get back to carving soon and actually nailed two more runes before meditating again. Surprisingly, he actually went about this a little strategically. Instinctually, he placed runes near the tip of the javelin and runes on its shaft. This was smart, to say the least. He could reinforce the tip to break less easily, yes, but he actually just needed it to do its job well, so was far more effective. Now, while reinforcing the tip may have some merit, sharpening the shaft would be quite idiotic. Like, imagine you get hit by an arrow. Is the shaft gonna be cutting you? No? Well, there''s a reason for that. It''s a circle, meaning it had zero, or, mathematically seen, infinite, edges. Sharpening a circle using runes was (literally) pointless. It''s like wanting to sharpen a club. If you wanted sharp edges, use a sword. In this case, Mercury was doing well. After meditating and refreshing his mana once again, morning was approaching. And after carving two more runes, the second of which he actually failed, Mercury went to sleep. The next evening was more than refreshing. His headache was gone, there was no more spider hunting to be done, he could carve runes all day long which he greatly enjoyed, and he was also preparing for his next quest by doing so. This made the hare he had for breakfast taste all the better, too. But Mercury wasn''t quite satisfied with his efficiency. He disliked only being able to carve two runes at the time and was mildly annoyed at the rate of his mana recovery. So, he finally decided to use some of his points. Not all of them, that would be stupid, but he wanted to be able to do a little better than before, so he spend some. Intelligence: 20 -> 30 Wisdom: 19 -> 28 He spent 19 of his 39 Ability points, keeping the other 20 in case he had to dial 911. It was an emergency joke. Mercury laughed at it. He realized it wasn''t that funny, then laughed at himself before finally getting a move on and carving some more runes. Now, turns out he got lucky. After he finished investing his points, he carved some more runes and they consumed 40 Mp each. For every point he invested into Intelligence, his max Mp were increased by 5, leaving him with a total of 127 Mp now. This meant he could carve three runes at a time. This was, in fact, lucky, since he had absolutely no clue how much mana the runes would consume at their maximum. They adjusted to his maximum mana, never taking more than half of it at once, after all. But this wasn''t enough to our friend, the king. After carving all three runes successfully, he meditated. Without using the Skill. Doing this had two main reasons. First of all, he wasn''t in a hurry. He could take his time for as long as he wanted to. He decided to use this opportunity to brush up his actual mana absorption abilities, instead of relying on the Skill. This also felt much better and more refreshing. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Secondly, this method would net him a higher total gain. The Skill might save some time in the short term, but did it have the potential to permanently increase the amount of mana within his core? No, it didn''t. Maybe it would in the future, but how was he supposed to know now? This was a future proof way of refilling his mana. Albeit slow, it was most certainly effective in other ways. And thus, while absorbing mana, Mercury watched the pop-ups roll in. [Absorbing mana from the surroundings.] [Get: 1 Exp.] [Get: 1 Exp.] [Get: 1 Exp.] [Max Mp have increased by 1.] ¡­ Mercury enjoyed reading, so he literally went through every single pop-up and kept count. It sure was thrilling. I swear, the original has like¡­ 2 pages of just Exp. I''m not gonna make you go through this, especially given the fact that Merc kept count. He might be a little obsessed with those numbers, but at the very least that meant transparency. At the end of around three hours of meditation, which was quite a bit longer than the half hour it usually took using , he had gained 278 Exp and 5 max Mp. It was more than fucking worth it. This was an absolutely amazing haul, equal to taking down 5 spiders and taming one. Well, except for the Gold, but in exchange he also got the reward of a full point of Intelligence! This was simply amazing! And at the end of it he got yet another packet of good news. [Mp has reached their limit, no longer absorbing mana.] [ has levelled up!] He still got mastery from this whole shtick! He was still improving the Skill even though he wasn''t even using it! This was, simply put, fucking amazing, no two ways about it. Mercury was stoked about this, essentially jumping all around his log with a huge grin on his face. After a few more minutes of bottomless excitement it was eventually exhausted. So actually, it wasn''t really bottomless... anyway, not the point. The point was that he went back to carving runes, smashing another three on there. One of them actually failed. Also, as for their size, all of them were a little bigger than Mercury''s pawprint. They had to conform to the curvature of the stick, of course. After these three runes, Mercury was slowly running out of space on the stick, but there was still easily enough for him to fit a few more carvings, so he meditated again. Heck, even if he couldn''t fit any more runes on this stick, one of them wouldn''t take down Grumpy. Yes, that was the bear''s nickname now. You could attempt to sue Merc over it, but I don''t think you can convince a court to prosecute a cat. Back to his meditation. This one took a little longer, actually, a whole two hours and ten minutes, but by the end of it a smile bloomed on his face again. 283 Experience and 5 max Mp. And after successfully adding two more runes to his makeshift javelin, it was completely filled with runes, all of them occasionally pulsing with slight, almost inconceivable silver light. So, it was time for the most fun part. Testing. Mercury was looking forward to this. It was incredibly important to see the power of a weapon, after all. He also liked throwing sharp things. A lot. Though first he had to pick a target. He decided on a tree, actually. Of course, this might sound a little risky since it was wood up against bigger wood, but that was the perfect chance for his runes to show off their power, right? They were mid-level runes, so they shouldn''t break that easily. In order to test that, Mercury removed a circle of bark on his target tree. He made sure to pick a perfectly normal tree, one that he hadn''t marked as his territory, making sure to pick one that didn''t have a rune. Then, he prepared himself, carried over the javelin, placed it at the perfect distance from himself, and stared at the tree. He didn''t wanna make this a simple test. Instead, this would be about as valuable as a field test. Why? Simply because Mercury was maximizing everything he could. He was about to throw a stick at a tree with the full intent to massacre the fucker. He took aim as sharply as he could and when using after mentally preparing for over a minute, he put in as much physical power as he possibly could. The javelin soared through the sky, cutting the air with a whistling sound before hitting the tree with a satisfying thunk. It was a good throw, with a slight arch, the javelin''s shaft pointing ever-so-slightly upwards as it stuck in the tree. Now, Mercury had to check how deep it was buried. Since he didn''t exactly have the capacity to grab the javelin with his paws, he tried to pull it out with his teeth and fully failed. It was absolutely not budging to that. Instead, he decided to use on it again in the opposite direction. Sounds stupid, right? Well, it worked. Perfectly. So screw all you haters! The cat said that, not me. Anyways, after removing the javelin, Mercury checked the depth of the hole. He couldn''t exactly shove his paw in it, since the javelin was too thin for that, it was still made from a branch after all, but he could eyeball it. From the looks of it, his newly made weapon had sunk about 5 centimeters deep into the tree. This was actually great. He threw it at wood, after all. Straight up the same material as it was made from. It''s like throwing a knife at a sheet of steel, it''s not gonna penetrate that deeply. Meaning that the depth was possible thanks to the runes. This made him quite a bit more confident. Now, Mercury was a bit of a perfectionist, as we already covered. He also was alright at coming up with strategy and liked preparing for fights. In addition, he hated being afraid. So, in order to kill Grumpy he didn''t stop at one javelin. He also didn''t stop at two, or three, or five, or seven. He started off by collecting some more sticks and carved a total of ten full javelins. He got a notification after carving three and eight respectively. [ has levelled up!] [ has levelled up!] The quality of his javelins seemed to improve slightly with each level and the amount he needed to carve to get another level was fairly low, so Mercury decided to practice this Skill a little more in the future. Weapons are important after all! (This is a message in a fantasy/video game world context. This is not to be taken literally in real life. The author does not advocate for unlicensed use and/or ownership of weapons and does not advocate for violence.) After carving his fancy sticks, Mercury moved on to making sure they packed a punch. He carved runes, then meditated, then carved runes and meditated once again. For a while. A fairly long while, actually, especially since with every time he meditated, his max Mp increased and the next time it would take a little longer until his mana was filled up. He would still level , but sadly the levels he had in the Skill didn''t exactly influence the speed he could absorb mana at. However, this also bore good news. Absorbing mana this way gave him max Mp, mastery for and Exp all at once. In addition, he was also carving runes the entire time, giving him additional Exp and mastery towards another Skill. Now, luckily our favourite cat also had an affinity for counting, meaning I don''t have to read all of the pages full of numbers to you and can simply sum it up! He could fit 14 runes per javelin and carved 9 more after the initial one, so the runes to be summed up here were 126. He failed a total of 15. This seems very little, but that''s actually because his runecarving levelled up. A lot. [ has levelled up five times!] He got it to level 9 by the end of it, which actually buffed up his chance of carving mid-level 1st grade runes to nearly 100%, which was pretty great. But of course, there were more levels to speak of. [ has levelled up seven times!] Meditate was soaring upwards, since each time he meditated it took longer, which just about balanced out the increase in mastery needed for the levels. So, he ended up with . Now, those were the levels he got when it came to Skills, but he didn''t just level those, right? Riiight. He got a total of 10206 Exp and 73 max Mp. Also, some notifications were so beautiful that you need to see them. [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] He got 5 levels from it. 5 fully fledged level-ups, with stats and Skill points and all of that. This, however, also wasn''t very surprising and it actually didn''t beat his previous levelling speed. The whole process of preparing the weapons took a long, long while. A little over three weeks, actually. In exchange for those three weeks he also got a suitable amount of rewards though. Especially within his stats. Status? Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 7 -> 12 Species: Zetraspa Titles: Hp: 55/55 Mp: 250/250 Sp: 105/105 Strength: 25 Vitality: 16 Dexterity: 25 -> 26 Agility: 29 Intelligence: 30 -> 38 Wisdom: 28 -> 34 Willpower: 24 -> 33 Luck: 15 -> 16 Ability points: 35 Gold: 697 Skill points: 1360 Beast familiars: 0/1 Needless to say, this was a huge improvement, especially in the mana department. It was almost as though he was actually making progress. Of course he didn''t only get higher stats. He also grew a lot closer with Cherry, who visited once a week. They usually just chatted about what they were up to and shared a few stories. Mercury told her about his preparations and showed her his newest runes, while Cherry told him about how her practice was going. He especially enjoyed the stories about her stealth fails. She also was making progress with her hunting skills, improving her archery and her tracking as well and, according to gramps, she was actually progressing very well towards becoming a fully fledged hunter. He even promised he might let her go out on her own more often if she kept up the good work! That story was also the one after which Mercury and Cherry both hopped around in excitement. They then made some more plans, promising that at some point they''d go hunting together. It was a true bro moment, and Mercury even consented to have her pick him up and hug him. Brings tears to a grown man''s eyes. But of course, eventually Cherry left and Mercury was done with his new arsenal of pointy things. And thus, he started his watch near the pond, having his javelins hidden with him in the brush. Of course, water is important, stay hydrated kids, and the bear showed up after an hour or so. Mercury was a patient man. Cat. Male cat... mat. A very patient mat. There we go. So, he kept watching the big, bad, bitey boy until he put his head down to drink. Then, the first javelin flew at him. It hit and sunk into the bear''s side, like a pointy stick into raw meat. A very fitting analogy if I do say so myself. Of course, this was met with an earth-shaking roar, since our newfound furry friend was very unenthusiastic about getting speared. And, after roaring, the bear looked around, a fire intensely burning in his eye as he checked for where the attack came from. Mercury, on the other hand, had no interest in being detected by this absolute chad and circled around the edge of the clearing, before launching another stick at top speed into the bear''s other flank. This was met with yet another roar and a rapid escape from the bear, which started running as fast as it could. This would be very annoying to deal with for Mercury, so he decided to avoid the bear escaping. He threw the javelin he kept in his second slot and nailed the bear''s foot with it. It actually worked better than expected, running its lower leg through and sinking a fair bit into the ground next to it. Then, Mercury made a quick visit to his stash of throwing spears and restocked on another two. Well, you may wonder why he threw one and then had to restock at the start? This was because he was carrying the poison in his inventory. And this time he picked it back up. He threw another spear first, aimed at the left hind leg of the bear, which he then also nailed to the ground. Then, when it roared again, Mercury threw the poison at it''s maw. Unluckily, the bear wasn''t stupid. It immediately stopped roaring and ducked with a closed mouth. The vial flew over its head and hit the nearby trees. Mercury had whiffed. In addition, the bear had now found him. It was staring straight at our grey hero with the corner of its maw pulled up. It was grinning. Then, Grumpy tore his legs free. One of the javelins was still stuck in the ground and only pulled out of his thigh with a wet, gliding sound, while the other one was snapped in half with little resistance, making the reinforce runes entirely pointless. In case it wasn''t clear, this was fucking terrible. The blood actually drained out of Mercury''s face at this point. He was scared shitless. He only had six javelins left and his biggest weapon had just missed. In addition, this giant monster with a head thrice his size was charging at him full force. It was at this moment that he knew, he fucked up. Mercury ran. He turned around, left behind all javelins other than the two in his inventory and sprinted away. He hadn''t given up, actually, but fighting was currently very low on his list of priorities. He did stick true to his principle of distraction though, flinging dirt and pebbles at the bear''s face with every step and after a while, the footsteps grew quieter. He turned around and the bear was only visible in the distance. The chase had only lasted a few minutes, so he could probably make it back to the pond if he tried, but about half of his Sp was gone. Still, he couldn''t give up this chance. The bear had two spears stuck in him and two holes in his legs. He was bleeding heavily and those injuries would only get worse over the duration of combat. Mercury was just exhausted, but Grumpy was in rough shape because of the sneak attack. So, Mercury decided to go after him. He turned around and walked back towards the pond and after a few steps, he found Grumpy having laid down after chasing him, now licking his wounds. That wasn''t happening tho. Mercury took out both of his leftover javelins, put them on the floor and simultaneously launched them at the bear''s face, trying to hit his eyes. [ has levelled up!] After the first one, he got a level. This put them out of sync, meaning that one hit the eye of the bear, sinking quite deep into its skull, while the other ended up smashing some of his teeth and pierced the back of his mouth. This made the roar of the bear quickly turn into a wet gurgling of blood, which then flowed out from its mouth as it snapped the javelin in half using its teeth. With two spears in its sides, two holes in its legs, a javelin in its eye and half of one stuck in its mouth, the beast came charging at Mercury again, absolutely furious this time, when the cat quickly ascended a tree. The bear smashed into it at full speed, shaking the crown before making it rapidly lower to the floor, but at this point, Mercury was already on another tree. With the bear following him, he hopped his way back to the stash of javelins, where he then dropped and waited a bit for the charging monster. He let it come into his sight and waited until there were no obstacles. He was panting heavily and knew that his stamina was just about to run out, but he kept his paws firmly placed where they were, on four smooth sticks. And then, he used . Four javelins suddenly started levitating before flying forwards towards the bear. They struck, each one penetrating its skin, three sinking into its skull and one into the base of its neck. The bear staggered, then dropped to the floor, sliding forwards with its residual momentum until it hit a tree. The trunk shook, throwing leaves onto the ground, then slowly stopped and things were silent except for a mopaaw''s panting. [Killed the black Bear. Get: 400 Exp, 200 Gold, black Bear''s tooth (ingredient), black Bear''s hide (ingredient).] [Sub Quest: "Defeat the black Bear!" completed. You have received: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] HE FUCKING DID IT! He beat the bear! Mercury dropped to the floor in front of the bear''s corpse. He was at his mental limit. Seeing something many times his own size charge at him with maximum force was fucking horrifying, and he still killed it! Holy shit. What the fuck, man. He had finally acquired the title of an absolute madlad in everyone''s hearts. If only someone had seen him, he thought. But in his heart, he knew we were with him. Sadly, he didn''t have any time to rest, so he got back up after a while and started on cleanup. He carried the drops and his six intact javelin back to his trusty log. The one that had hit the bear in the neck broke during the slide. Unlike him, however, we actually have time for a break. Get yourself a glass of water for a second, staying hydrated is important. Afterwards, you can continue reading. Or don''t, who am I to tell you, I''m just a disembodied voice or something. Well, whatever, still cooler than that medieval narrator bastard. I MEAN YOU, JEFF!!! I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME! Oh, ah, hrm-hrm, I may have gone on a tangent there, please excuse my behaviour and simply continue on to the next chapter. Chapter 14: Wolves Chapter 14: Wolves When Mercury came home, he took some time to recuperate. He got himself another rabbit to eat and had a bit of a rest in the log. Then, he drank some stuff and got a good night''s rest in. Exhaustion is one of the best helpers for falling asleep after all. But the next day, Mercury was already back on track. After finishing what was left of the rabbit for breakfast, he started strategizing. He had to figure out a way to beat the royal Wolf. It was actually paramount for him, since that was his current main quest. Essentially, there were no two ways about beating him, but at his current level he simply stood no chance. Now, Mercury was guesstimating the levels of the enemy as per usual, but he presumed the stats of an average wolf to be around 50 in the physical categories and maybe around 25 in the magical ones. To compare it to the bear, he set that one''s stats to be about 100 Strength, 15 Agility and maybe 20 in Intelligence. He would have also had far higher Vitality though. To sum it up, the bear was stronger, but the wolves were smarter. And they were probably in a pack. In addition, there was hardly any way to separate them, since they could call for help by howling. And to add some more to that, he would have to treat each and every single wolf almost like a boss. He also really doubted he would be able to charm them. This put him in a predicament, and Mercury spent multiple hours thinking about how he would combat the wolves until he arrived at a solution. His only advantage was height. No, he wasn''t taller than them, but he thought that wolves probably couldn''t climb a tree, so that was the only way he could hide. They would also be susceptible to rocks again, so he would be able to throw those. It was a simple strategy. Take down a few wolves and run away. But before he could put it into practice, he would have to actually find the wolves'' territory. He started scouting that very night, going towards and then past the pond, moving further along the side of the mountain instead of moving up or down. He didn''t find anything. He slept on a tree and continued fruitlessly searching for another day, since he now also had to scout the entire area and try to memorize it as much as possible. After not finding anything for a third day, he decided to head home. Well, at least he began his trek home then. It took him another day to get back. There, he was met by a nasty fucking surprise. There was a wolf next to his log, sleeping in the grass. It was light gray, with white legs and a white strip of fur along its spine, as well as white markings around its eyes. This scared Mercury shitless. He immediately activated and made his way closer as slowly as he could. How the fuck did the wolves find him first? And why the fuck were they here? Like, why would there be a single wolf instead of an entire pack waiting for him? Now, these questions were actually secondary. The most pressing matter was how the fuck he was going to get his log back. He only had two rocks and nothing more in his inventory. He was completely and utterly unprepared and outmatched, but more than that, he was absolutely unwilling to give up his home. Right, he had earned this log fair and square and he wouldn''t give it up! So, like a brave fighter, he scurried up a tree and threw a rock at the curled up wolf. Or at least he threw a rock where he remembered it to be. When he looked down towards the base of the tree he saw two black pupils staring at him from yellow eyes. But, when Mercury flinched back in shock, the wolf lowered its eyes to the ground. Then, it took a step back. It didn''t growl or bark or howl. It silently pressed its head against the ground and whimpered. Mercury was stunned. This beast with teeth like knives that was more than five times his height was bowing to him. But even as Mercury hesitated, the wolf didn''t move an inch. It still waited when he climbed down from the tree and walked up next to it. Then, it raised its head again, blinked at him a few times and brought its head closer. This made Mercury jump back slightly, but the wolf didn''t relent. Instead, it came closer again, albeit a little more slowly and sniffed Mercury. It then sniffed a few more times, before beckoning in a direction, looking back at Mercury and then walking off, checking if he was following every few steps. Given that he wasn''t left much choice, Mercury followed. The wolf didn''t seem exactly hostile, given that it hadn''t tried to attack him even a single time, and with the way it behaved it felt more like a guide than a scout. He felt that was quite accurate. The wolf was sent here alone to bring him back to the other wolves. Now, this might be a really shit idea on Mercury''s part actually. He could currently be following right into an ambush. He could even just be killed on the way, but Mercury didn''t even think of that. It wasn''t because he was exceptionally stupid or anything, but because of a simple feeling. Well, that and a message. He was trusting his gut feeling for one simple reason. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] In this world, intuition was a fully fledged skill that could be trained. One''s intuition could be summed up in numbers, which made it actually trustworthy. It thus went beyond a "gut feeling" and continued right on its way to "very general, fairly reliable information" in Mercury''s book. So, he ended up following the wolf for a few days. His decision was proving to be right more and more when his guide also brought him food every day. He didn''t even need to go hunting anymore, though this way he also no longer gained any experience. They actually went in the opposite direction of where Mercury was going and headed past the great Stag''s territory, when the air changed a little. It wasn''t that the sound stopped like in the territory of the spiders. It also didn''t really taste any different, it was still earthy and fresh forest air. But the foundation was different. There was a distinct smell of wet dog in the air. So he knew he was in the wolves'' territory. Then, after another half day, they arrived at a clearing and the grey wolf left his side. There he saw a total of three wolves actually, including his guide. They were seated on a podium, a rock that formed a slight overhang a little higher up on the mountain than him. From his perspective, his guide had the seat to the right, her light gray fur melding with the night sky. To the left he saw another wolf, this one larger and fiercer than his guide, with black fur and many scars where little hair grew. In the middle, there was a final wolf, a little smaller in frame but lean and with clearly defined muscles. Its fur was a blueish grey, with white, almost flame-like pattern across its legs and face. Its spot on the podium was a little higher than those of the other two wolves, but a moment later that didn''t matter anymore. The three of them jumped down from the rock and slowly advanced towards Mercury. They weren''t sneaking or preparing for battle. It was more of an elegant walk, with the blue wolf standing the tallest and the black one closest to the ground and the most wary. He apparently didn''t trust our silvery cat-friend very much. Then, the three stopped before him. First, the one who was his guide gave a nod. Then, the black one warily moved forward and sniffed him twice before stepping back again, probably giving his approval. Then, the blue wolf stepped forward. It leaned towards Mercury and he could see the glint in its black pupils, shining like holes in its light face. It also sniffed him once. Then again and then a third time. And then, all at the same time, the three of them bowed down, pressing their heads onto the ground like his guide did the first time he met it. [Main Quest: "Defeat the royal Wolf!" completed. You have received: 2 Ability points, 100 Skill points, 250 Exp.] [Level Up!] ¡­ what? Huh? What what? Ex-fucking-scuse him?! WHAT?! He just "defeated" the royal Wolf. Just like that. How. What the actual fuck. This was insane!! Wait, maybe they sniffed him for the smells of the other bosses and decided that yup, he took all of them down, so acknowledging defeat might be smarter? Holy shit! That was more than impressive! Lucky! With the three of them cowering before him, Mercury instinctually felt a pull on his heartstrings. He wanted to make these his familiars. But currently only made animals friendly to him, so there was little point. Was it time to acquire the Skill? Yes. Yes it was. [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [ and can be fused into . Fuse Skills?] Yes please. [Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [Added: The ability to command your familiars.] Then, he used his new Skill on the grey wolf who was his guide first. He gently touched her head with his paw and a silver mist gently enveloped her, before flashing with a sliver light and dissipating. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! [Taming successful! Get: 125 Exp.] Beast familiars: 1/1 But at the same time he realized something. He could see the light in her eyes fade. No, that wasn''t quite right. It didn''t slowly fade out like drops of blood from a small wound, but was instantly extinguished. He took over her mind before he even realized it was happening. Then, Mercury felt disgusted with himself. What the hell was this Skill? How fucking gross was this? This was like... slavery. What the fuck. No, he didn''t want anything to do with this. Get out. Without even hesitating for a split second, he bought the Skill. [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [ and can be fused into . Fuse Skills?] Pretty fucking please!! [Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [Added: The ability to interact with your familiars'' status. The ability for your familiars to think independently of you. The ability for your familiars to share Exp gain with you and each other (amount shared dependent on loyalty).] In an instant, the wolf''s eyes cleared up and it blinked a few times before nodding happily. She seemingly was satisfied with knowing that their future leader wants them to be more than mindless beings. After seeing the lean, grey wolf raise its head and nod, the black one stepped forward a little. But Mercury took just a second more to buy the remainder of the Skills, adding them one by one to understand what they did. [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [ and can be fused into . Fuse Skills?] [Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [Added: Familiar grades. Ability for familiars to increase in level and grade by acquiring Exp for themselves.] [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [ and can be fused into . Fuse Skills?] [Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [Added: Ability for familiars to level-up their Skills and acquire new ones.] [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [ and can be fused into . Fuse Skills?] [Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [Renamed Skill to due to individual''s preferences.] [Added: The ability to store creatures in a subspace that can be customized to fit their habitat. The ability for creatures to leave said habitat at will near the individual''s location. In order to store the creatures, the user must physically touch them.] It cost him a solid 1400 Skill points but it was worth it. He was now able to transport familiars with him to any place at any time and level them up alongside him. In addition to that, he would also gain Exp when they gained some, which was totally awesome. But back on track for our silvery friend. He placed his paw on the head of the black wolf, its fur surprisingly soft, and it was also enveloped in the silver mist. After a flash of light the taming had completed. [Taming successful! Get: 125 Exp.] The black wolf was still just the same as before, the wind brushing its fur and a glint in its eyes. This was what Mercury wanted. He wanted them to think and act by themselves while simply being loyal to him so they could mutually benefit from each other. He wanted to be a king, to be followed, not obeyed. To be beloved, not feared. In any case, the black wolf raised its head and looked satisfied with what had happened. So, the blue wolf stepped forward. Once more Mercury moved. He placed his hand on the blue wolf''s head, just as he had done with the two previous candidates. And, just as before, a silver mist laid itself around the wolf and, after a flash of light, a message popped up. [Taming successful! Get: 175 Exp.] It all worked out perfectly. All three of them were tamed. He could now view their statuses and command them as his followers, but before he got a chance to do it, another notification popped up. [You have gone above your maximum familiar count! This will limit the growth of your familiars as they are not intended to form your entire army or kingdom. In order to limit exploiting the familiar system a total-level cap will be instated in cases such as this one! This limit is dependent upon your level, Skill level and stats. While you can still make people who volunteer into your familiars, they will be unable to level-up until the cap increases. They can continue to get experience. Experience settings themselves are adjustable. The current total-level cap is 150. It will be displayed in brackets next to your familiar count by default.] This was a bit of a bummer but it also made sense. Imagining a scenario where many powerful people just become each others'' familiars to exploit the sharing of experience seemed highly unfair, especially when it came to them absolutely curb stomping newbies. So, in some ways, having this cap on other people actually helped him out. It was also fairly high right now, meaning he didn''t have to worry too much about it. Instead, he had time to view their statuses. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 11 Species: Royal Wolf Titles: Nicknames: Mister Woofers, Woofles Hp: 155/155 Mp: 105/105 Sp: 205/205 Strength: 45 Vitality: 36 Dexterity: 46 Agility: 48 Intelligence: 26 Wisdom: 29 Willpower: 38 Luck: 11 Ability points: 135 Loyalty: 5/100 Skill points: 4855 Grade: Unique E The first profile he looked at was the one of the royal Wolf, of course. That one was the goal of his quest after all, so it was only logical for him to wanna see his stats. And, well, it wasn''t exactly disappointing. Holy shit. Just straight up wow. 135 Ability Points. That was absolutely motherfucking insane, actually. Mercury always prided himself on using his points smartly, making sure to have some when he needed to invest them. But this was just on a wholly different level. Now, this wasn''t because of any conscious choice of course, but simply stemmed from the fact that, well, wolves couldn''t exactly use the system without knowing a language and being able to read. In essence, the system applied to everything that was sentient, but it could only be utilized by things that were sapient as well. So, in order for them to be able to use the system on their own and actually have them utilize their potential, he would probably need to fulfill two requirements. The first one would have to be getting their intelligence high enough and the second one would be getting skillstones that would allow them to actually speak. The second one could prove a bit of a challenge, but at least the first one was easy to execute, with how many Ability points they had accumulated. The status pages of his guide and Scar over there weren''t much different. ... hey wait a minute! This man is just ignoring the nicknames!! Turns out, the system also displays nicknames that are frequently used for someone. Mercury''s probably only showed up, because he was the only one to ever use them. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 11 Species: Whisperstep Wolf Titles: Hp: 115/115 Mp: 120/120 Sp: 205/205 Strength: 37 Vitality: 28 Dexterity: 46 Agility: 53 Intelligence: 29 Wisdom: 30 Willpower: 31 Luck: 13 Ability points: 135 Loyalty: 5/100 Skill points: 4780 Grade: Unique E First he looked at that of his guide and he could immediately discern that she was probably more stealthy given her species. Also, she was faster and a little smarter, but weaker and less headstrong. Overall the differences were slight but distinct. Status: |Unnamed| Lv.: 11 Species: Direwolf Titles: Hp: 190/190 Mp: 100/100 Sp: 205/205 Strength: 54 Vitality: 43 Dexterity: 46 Agility: 41 Intelligence: 25 Wisdom: 29 Willpower: 33 Luck: 10 Ability points: 135 Loyalty: 4/100 Skill points: 4910 Grade: Unique E Then the scarred wolf, which seemed all the more appropriate given his title. All three of theirs were actually pretty unique, especially compared to his own, making him want to check it out. Still, he read the status through before checking it out. It was clear that this one was moving more into the direction of a warrior and, given his lower loyalty, probably didn''t trust in Mercury''s strength as much as the other two. And simply put, he wasn''t wrong. All three of them outranked Mercury on their own, not to mention as a group. They could easily take him down one-on-one and if they were to attack him together right now, they would tear him limb from limb. Luckily, they decided not to do that, because that would have proven more than troublesome. Being torn apart isn''t exactly beneficial for your health, you know? Anyways, he had their directions figured out. One was moving into a leadership role, one into a stealthy direction and the third one was aiming to become a warrior. Now, what did their titles mean? [: This title has been awarded to the individual after they formed their own pack, making the other members acknowledge them as the leader and thus achieving a personal goal. It increases the stats of the individual by 10% if they are hunting with others or defending their title as the leader. In addition, they give off a sophisticated aura.] So it was stronger when it came to make use or defending its leadership and the hidden stat for swag was reduced in exchange for seeming "royal". Pretty cool. [: This title has been awarded to the individual after they spent an entire week breathing and stepping soundlessly, not losing focus for a moment even during sleep, thus achieving a personal goal. It allows all Skills revolving around stealth to gain mastery at a 15% increased rate.] Yo, this title was awesome. Wasn''t this one awarded at the end of a trial or something the like? The wolf put itself through peril and was rewarded, so basically it was a trial. But damn was the reward worth it. An increase in mastery gain for all stealth Skill was absolutely stellar. Though it did also raise a question: How was potential handled in the game? Like, did some people just gain mastery or stats quicker than others? Or was it the same for everyone to establish an equal playing field? This was really intriguing to Mercury, so he reminded himself to ask Cherry about that next time. He also made mental notes to ask for the skillstones and the average Intelligence stat of humans. Then, he moved on to the last title. [: This title has been awarded to the individual after they survived 100 deep wounds, thus achieving a personal goal. It increases their stats proportional to health lost, increasing them by a maximum of 33% (rounded down).] A third awesome title! Increasing stats the weaker one gets was very beneficial for basically any combat, but even more so when facing equal or even superior opponents, since it would make you stronger over time. The big downside was that if you healed, the stat boosts would disappear, so it was also very risky to attempt to utilize this title. Mercury then also realized another thing in addition to the awesomeness of the titles and it wasn''t that they were, like, five times as cool as his own. It was the fact that all of them had to do with a personal achievement rather than a reward for a tutorial. So theirs were more like the title he was currently working on rather than his already earned title. That also made him wonder what happened to the tutorial if the person was unable to actually read or speak. Did it just¡­ not appear? In what language would it appear if the target doesn''t know one? And then he realized something else. There was a certain amount of potential that maybe someone else also reincarnated. This would then, in turn, result in them also being able to do the tutorial. This made basically a mark for reincarnated people. If there were any besides him, of course. So many questions and so very few answers. Seems like every time he actually got an answer more questions popped up as well. Truly unfortunate. So, instead of spending his time on things he currently had no way of finding the answer for, Mercury let his rationale drag him back into the present. Because he had something to do. He had names to give. Chapter 15: Moving forward Chapter 15: Moving forward Just kidding, he wasn''t naming them yet. Like, seriously, with the nightmares he had with getting himself a name you should have expected him to wait until they''re able to consent to what he wants to call them. So no, no wolf names yet. Instead, he took them back to his trusty log. That was, after all, his territory. He felt much more comfortable there than in a new, unexplored area. So, he brought friends home. The trek back took another three days, but Merc didn''t specifically mind. After all, there were many new things for him to figure out now. The first and easiest one to witness was the exp sharing. When the wolves hunted, he gained some part of their Exp, and knowing the fact that it was proportional to their loyalty, he soon figured out that the loyalty was equal to the percentage of Exp shared. But soon, he also found the sharing settings. Essentially, right now, if the wolves killed something, Mercury would steal some of the exp they''d get. The percentage he stole was as much as they were loyal. For every 10 loyalty, they were granted 1% bonus exp. So if a wolf with 100 loyalty killed a monster, they would receive 110% of that monster''s exp, but have to split it with Mercury. The amount that Mercury stole could also be tweaked to be lower than the loyalty level, but for now, Mercury left it be. He instead wanted to see about where the exp went. He made it so, that the exp he would gain from the wolves'' kills, would instead go into a pool of exp that he could access and distribute as he saw fit. He could also tweak these settings for each of the wolves individually, but didn''t. Fairness above all. After deciding on that, he could now see a pool of Exp slowly collecting over the three days. Now, in total he collected 5 Exp in there. Yeah, uh, it''s not a lot. This came down to some simple maths. They took down a single deer, which gave them 5 Exp. They sustained themselves off the deer for a day and a half, with Mercury impressing the wolves through carrying it around in his inventory. This also boosted Scarface''s loyalty to 5. But for the remainder of the time, the wolves took down a few rabbits and a squirrel. The Exp those gave was below twenty and the system operated on an "round down" basis. In other terms, he didn''t get any Exp, since 5% of 15 was below 1. However, this also granted Mercury some insight into the levelling of wild animals. In total, they collected 235 Exp over three days. That was about 80 each. Meaning they made, on average, around 26 Exp per day. That''s 780 Exp per month as an adult wolf. They probably made quite a bit less as cubs when they were still being raised. This was really just another bit of proof that the system was only really powerful for beings with the capacity to read. But back to the action, when Mercury arrived at his trusty old log in the evening, he could find a very familiar face there. Cherry was sitting on it. There''s a lot of emphasis on the "was" part, given that the wolf that used to be his guide very quickly tackled her down from it and pressed her onto the ground while growling. This only left Cherry with the time to let out a startled yelp before her mouth was shut from the impact and Mercury got a chance to speak. And this was also the first time that Cherry witnessed a speaking kitten yell "GET THE FUCK BACK HERE!!" at a fully grown wolf... which obliged with a whimper. This was the Skill in action. It made the concept of simple commands graspable to the familiars, even if they didn''t speak the language of their master. Essentially, it allows for a small amount of communication between the two. Cherry was then very quickly stunned again when she saw the wolf place its head on the floor in front of Mercury. He then pointed at Cherry and spoke simply. "Friend," he said and confirmed that all three of the wolves nodded, before approaching the girl, who was staring at him with an open mouth. "Are you alright?" he carefully asked while tilting his head to the side, only to receive a stare at the three larger animals behind him. After another moment of stunned silence, Cherry proceeded to also point at the wolves and then and only then did she actually slowly turn her eyes towards Mercury. "Did- Did you¡­" she stammered and was cut off. "Yes I did," Mercury said, a hint of pride in his vouce. "I tamed the royal Wolf and his pack. I killed spider-bitch and Grumpy the grumpy bear. They figured out it was me, the silver one guided me to them and they voluntarily let me tame them." "Well, wow. I mean, shit. I mean, uh, no, like, damn. Uh, big impress? Me big impress!" Cherry stammered out a few words, only to have her shock relieved by a laugh from Mercury. "Still the same old Mercury though," he said with a smile. Right, yes. Same old Mercy. With the shock slowly dissipating, Cherry started to feel a little more comfortable in her own skin. "That also explains where you were," she added with a smirk. "Well, yeah. Sorry it took so long. But actually, you picked the perfect time to come here. I need to know so many things." "Sure, hit me," Cherry answered and leaned back a bit, holding herself up with her arms. "Okay, so like, it''s actually only two things, but I really need to know the average Intelligence stat of a human. Also, I''d like to know if you could get me three more of those skillstones." "Around 50 to 60. The skillstones are doable, but you''ll owe me for this one, they aren''t exactly cheap," Cherry grinned. "Why do you need them though? Are you planning on making the wolves talk?" "Well, aaaaaactually¡­ yeah, that''s exactly what I''m gonna do," Mercury replied with an even brighter grin. "See, since they''re my familiars I can kinda control their menus. Meaning, I can allocate Ability points for them. This gives me hope that I''ll also be able to make them use skillstones. They also just so happen to have more than 100 saved up Ability points each. It''s pretty awesome to be honest." "Well damn, that sounds really cool!! I can pay for the skillstones using my savings, but again, you''ll owe me big time for this. I might even need you to help me out with a main quest," Cherry said with a wink. Since Mercury didn''t actually have much of an option, he simply agreed and then watched Cherry skip away into the forest. Something had her strangely excited, but since he didn''t really mind his friends being happy, Mercury instead decided to focus on what he could do. Since he didn''t exactly need to provide food for himself anymore given the familiars he had, he decided to not grind for Exp for a week and instead resume something he hadn''t done in a while: pure mana training. It had now been almost a week since his last time doing it, but back when he was preparing to fight the bear, he was actually rigorously exercising every time he meditated, since the condensation of his mana required only part of his focus. Of course, this also meant he failed hard at the beginning, since he was better at focusing a lot on one thing than multitasking, but after some time he got the hang of it and managed to create some swirls with his mana while still absorbing more from the outside. So, he continued to practice, watching as more and more mana filled his core. It was still nowhere near full, he was actually still barely filling up the bottom of it, but progress was progress. So, he decided to change the name of his puddle and promote it to a "large mana-puddle". A truly incredible promotion all of us should strive to achieve. And now he had the time to resume his practice. He had far more time than in those weeks actually, since he didn''t need to meditate nor did he need to prepare anything else. Heck, with his new familiars he didn''t even need to hunt for any food. He only had to eat and drink and could dedicate the entire remainder of time to controlling his mana. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. And so he did. The very second Cherry left, Mercury laid down, closed his eyes and focused, slowly creating the image of his core and seeing its landscape. He saw his large mana puddle at the bottom, and the cave walls towering up into the sky, closing up far, far above. He saw the stalactites and stalagmites, all the bumps and imperfections in the walls. He saw all of them far more clearly than the last time he had meditated. Something felt different from the last time he meditated. It wasn''t anything big, he didn''t have a sudden revelation on how one could control their mana more easily. It wasn''t like everything was different and he had become a god. It was more of a minor change. Maybe it was due to him solely focusing on it again, without needing to also absorb mana from everywhere around him. He didn''t quite know, because there really were no hints. But in any case, something was a little different about his core. But since Mercury couldn''t quite put his paws on it, he decided to explore it while practicing his control. He made his mana swirl in a circular motion again, creating a whirlpool. This came relatively easily to him. He first focused on moving single drops of mana and maintaining their momentum as they moved more of it. Then, when more mana was moving, he helped it maintain its speed. And then he continued that until he had a whirlpool, sliding against the edges of his core and slowly changing them. With his entire focus on his stamina had increased by far. He managed to maintain the whirlpool for almost an hour until a slight headache set in. He then continued as long as he could, until the headache became more distracting and he decided to take a break. He then ate and made a short trip to the pond, allowing the wolves to scout out the area while he sustained himself. Then, when his headache had subsided a bit, he returned and focused some more as he kept exercising the control he had over his mana. He continued this routine for three days until something changed. He was swirling his mana around as usual, spreading his control out in more and more of it until he was grasping every single bit of mana in his body, when he felt a drop of it leak out. He stopped immediately, halting every bit of movement his mana had started in its tracks. A drop of it had just leaked outside his core. That drop was lost. Entirely. Mercury had luckily expanded his field of control and was grasping all of his mana at once, so he could feel where the hole in his core was. It was incredibly slight, a tiny connection to the outside, where the walls of his core had been broken through by his swirling mana, like a stream of water slowly grinding down on stone. But while mercury was shook first, he soon realized something. He could watch as the hole closed back up with a sheet of stone, plugging up the path his mana had used to escape. This, to him, was actually not entirely comforting. The plug was actually made a little further outside than the hole was. Essentially, there was now a slight recess in the wall of his core. Sadly, he couldn''t really do anything about it. Instead, Mercury continued to practice rigorously, swirling his mana again, when he could feel yet another breach, in multiple places this time, including the one from before. And soon after, the walls regenerated a little further outside, deeping the recesses that were already there. This was when Mercury started thinking. He went about it in a very mathematical way, first coming up with a few plausible hypotheses and then trying to test them as best as he could. The first hypothesis Mercury came up with was a simple one. Maybe he had overworked his core and now his mana was leaking out, which could cripple his future as a magician. This seemed quite plausible at first glance, but then he thought about it again and discarded this one. If the walls of his core were able to regenerate quickly enough to close the holes within minutes, his mana control was nowhere near strong enough to cause actual damage to its walls. Next, he considered that maybe, his core was becoming fragile due to external influences. Maybe taming the wolves had strained him to some degree, but this was also unlikely. He didn''t feel drained or weakened like he usually would when his mana got low. Additionally, he was confident in detecting major anomalies with his core at his current level of control. So, he scrapped this hypothesis as well. Then, he considered that maybe, the slight cracks actually weren''t a detriment to his growth but the next step. The level of his was maxed out, so these exercises were now really just helping his mental fortitude rather than his actual skill. But then, if it were beneficial, what could these holes do? He then came up with another idea, taken from popular fiction. In fantasy books, characters often had to channel their mana around their body. This was currently impossible for him, since it was all collected in his core. Maybe the walls breaking was happening in order to allow him to pump his mana through his body? He couldn''t exactly say that this was right or wrong from previous experiences, so all he could do was to test it pretty much. So, he brought his mana up to one of the breaches and made it press against the wall of his core. It didn''t take very long until it broke through there and spilled outside. This time, Mercury had made sure to channel multiple drops, maybe a solid 20 Mp, and was trying his hardest to maintain control over them. Well, safe to say he failed miserably. As soon as the mana left the walls of his core, it started to burn up with a white flame, scorching his insides. This was really fucking painful and immediately Mercury ripped his eyes open and let out a groan through clenched teeth. Ouch. Okay, terrible fucking idea, that was for sure. Hypothesis debunked. But the mystery wasn''t quite solved yet, so he had to continue thinking. It took him a while but he came up with another idea. Channeling the mana through his body seemed like an absolutely horrible idea given the results he had gotten just now. Still, every time the mana broke the walls of his core they expanded a little, forming somewhat of a tube shape. This gave him an idea. Instead of moving the mana through his body, couldn''t he create a net of those tubes to move it through his body and get it to the places where it can do something? But then, forming the tubes by breaking their walls again and again seemed tedious, so he tried something else. His core was also part of him, right? So instead of trying to grow the conduits using his mana, he tried to control his core with . And surprisingly enough, it actually worked. As he envisioned it, the recess in the wall grew deeper, slowly spreading. Now, this, of course, was a change to his body, but it didn''t actually interfere with his insides. It felt a little like a second skeleton in another dimension or something. Well, what exactly it was, he could figure out later. For now, what mattered was that it didn''t interfere with him and it felt like progress. So, for the entire remainder of the day he continued to grow out this single channel, slowly spreading it through his body. He continued doing so the very next day. Then the day after as well and the day after that one, too. In total, he grew this channel to become a loop, exiting his core, then circling around below it and re-entering it on the other side. This took him three days. Then, on the next day he tried it out. He carefully roused his mana and moved it into the channel, then made it flow through it and re-enter his core on the other side. It felt motherfucking awesome. It was like a shiver running through his body, like a slight electrical current that made every hair and muscle of his stand at attention. He felt ready for anything and everything, prepared to burst out every ounce of energy he had at a moment''s notice. It was a sensation both chilling and burning hot inside of him, making him feel supercharged and powerful. Then, the pop-up appeared. [Ability has evolved into !] Yup, he was right. It was the next step in his journey of magic it seemed. He managed to evolve . But all the Adrenaline that was released because of this achievement was entirely incomparable to the sensation of Mana rushing through him. This was different from his normal life and boring job. This felt right. This was what he was meant to do. Mercury wanted to be a mage, in other words. A mage and a king, though the order of that might be interchangeable. Being a king was his goal, being a mage was what he felt he needed to be. I''d love to use the word "destiny" for it, but sadly, I hate that word and the author does as well, so I feel like I can''t exactly put it here. It wasn''t his destiny, it simply gave him an overwhelming feeling of satisfaction when he did anything remotely similar to magic, so I suppose defining it as his calling would make sense. Yes, we shall go with that. Being a king was his goal. Being a mage was his calling. Now, he was working on developing both of those currently and it was going very well. In fact, the day after he had made this leap in progress on his journey towards magic, he made a step towards being a king. In other words, Cherry was back. And she had skillstones, three of them to be precise. "Thanks," Merc said as he took the stones off Cherry who was busy squatting down when he delivered them to his wolf buddies. "Yes biggie, actually," she then said with a grin. "You owe me." "Yeah, yeah. Just tell me what you need when you need it. Now, let''s try this out then." Mercury approached the wolves again then and opened up their status windows, investing points until their Intelligence stat reached 50 for all of them. In an instant their eyes all lit up with a glint of sapience that wasn''t there before. Seems like increasing Intelligence with stats to make someone smarter definitely worked up until a certain point. But of course, Mercury wasn''t done yet. The very next instant, he put a skillstone with carved into it in front of each of them. Turns out he could, in fact, use them in the wolves'' stead and quickly did so. [Acquired the Skill from a Skillstone!] He saw the same notification for each of them. And then, the wolves were surprised. It seems they had seen the pop-ups before, but now that they could actually understand them, they were stunned. And then they bowed again, pressing their head onto the ground in front of Mercury. Then, all three of them lowered their gaze and spoke. "Master." They were surprised at the words coming out of their mouths, but Mercury only had a giant grin on his face. "Well then," he said. "The name''s Mercury. Let''s arrange that for you all as well, shall we"? Chapter 16: Journeys beginning Chapter 16: Journey''s beginning The three of them looked up to him, seemingly stunned that they could understand him. Seems like comprehending the fact that they could speak now was still a little much, so Mercury decided to explain a bit of stuff to them. Essentially, he gave them a tutorial, just a quick rundown, explaining all the stats, the concept of Skills and the Skill shop, as well as skillstones. And, after taking an hour or so to go over everything a little more, they all seemed to understand the situation. Well, that was an understatement actually. It seems that rather than understanding a little now, this seemed to answer a lot of questions they had been asking themselves for a long while. In a sense, Mercury just opened their eyes to the world and the great power slumbering within themselves. He basically changed their lives. This also was reflected in their loyalty, which went up to 40 for all of them. In essence, he had just given them a chance to live new lives, so how couldn''t they be thankful? And when all their questions were answered, Mercury decided to now ask them something. "So, now to the core of the matter. I got two big questions for y''all. First of all, I would like you to pick a name you would like to call me and then we''re gonna figure out what to call you guys. But just give me one more sec, because I think large scale introductions are in order, now that you''ve collected your thoughts." "That over there is Cherry, a friend of mine who was so kind as to provide the skillstones you needed to learn . Now me, I''m Mercury Rainfall Starlight, someone with a long way to go. See, I want to be a king. Well, that''s the goal for now, we''ll see where the winds take me once I become just that. And the very first step I''m taking would be to conquer this forest. Now, what would you call me, who do you want to be and what will your names be?" It took the wolves quite some time to respond, but the first one to speak up was the scarred direwolf, his voice rough and deep, like coarse sandpaper grinding against wood. He was straightforward and honest with every question he asked, not finding any fun in beating around the bush. And just as when he was asking, he declared things simply and proudly as he stepped forward to make his declaration. "If you are a king, then that''s what I''d call you. As for me, I like fighting. The hunt. Preferably one on one, so Gladiator should be fitting enough. Has a good ring to it." Mercury nodded at him with a smile. "Good, then that''s your name now. Gladiator Fireborn, do you agree to fight for me?" He had added a surname that he found fitting and was hoping for the wolf''s approval. He was a bit nervous to be sure. Gladiator grinned, flashing rows of sharp teeth. "I can''t think of a better way to repay the debt I owe you, king," he said, nodding contently at the surname. "So be it. I hope we can work together well. Is there someone who wants to go next?" Quickly, the royal wolf stepped up. His voice was deep, but soft, like waves hitting a sandy shore. He was proud and carried himself tall, but he wasn''t stupid. He asked all the things he wanted to know in an efficient manner, like a razor sharp blade cutting straight to the truth. "Thank you, Mercury," he started slowly, "in the name of all of us. You have shown us the truth of this world like we didn''t know it before. You have given us the gift of speech and opened up a new path forward. For that, I will call you as my master, for even if the world sinks to the bottom of the ocean, I shall stand by your side. As for my name, I would like it to be Second, as it has many meanings to me. A second chance at life. To second you, and stand by you. And to make every second count." Mercury nodded again, taking the time to think of a surname. "Philosophical, I like it. How about Storm for your surname? You know, Rainfall, Storm, kind of a connection there, yes?" Second strongly nodded back at Mercury, his eyes flushed with ecstasy as he managed to squeeze out a somewhat royal tone. "Very well. So it shall be." This man seriously spoke a little old-fashioned. And when he nodded once again, the wolf who guided him spoke up last. "To me, you are my liege. Not any liege, but my very own. I want to repay my debt to you, first and foremost, and if I could see more of this world in it, that would be wonderful. In that spirit, I would like to be your eyes and ears, if I may. I would like my name to be Juno, because it is what I came up with, and I would like my surname to link me to you. I wouldn''t copy yours immediately, but a part of it I would like. Perhaps Starfall?" Juno spoke calmly but with resolve. Her voice was softer than Gladiator''s or Second''s and a little higher pitch. After she finished, Mercury smiled. "Juno Starfall, then? Glad to make your acquaintance." And with that, Juno flashed him a smile. Finally, he had finished assembling his newfound wolf-squad. "So, next step of the plan. We are taking down the Lord of the Forest." "The Forest Lord?" Cherry interrupted. "Yeah, that guy. Now, have any of you seen him before? Like, can you tell me anything about what he looks like or what he can do? Because that''s actually the last step in me taking over this place." After a moment of silence, Juno spoke up. "As I have worked to gather information on him before, I think I may be the most suited to help you out here, my liege. The Forest Lord is what you would refer to as a Dragon. Well, that sounds a lot more threatening than it is. He is as much of a dragon as you are a mopaaw, my liege, meaning his subspecies is different. He is a drakeling, to be precise, the lowest form of dragon there is. They are incapable of language and complex thought, such as we were before, however they have some instinctive mastery over the elements." "From watching him, he largely controls earth and wind, while he has trouble with any other elements, so those are the things we need to watch out for. If we manage to avoid those, the fight should go fairly well, given that we are now able to allocate our Ability points. His territory is located on the other side of the mountain, so travelling from here, it might take around 5 days to get there." "Thanks Juno. Alright, that tells us all we need to know. If he is feral - can you confirm that, Cherry?" "Sure can. Drakelings are absolutely incapable of language." Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. "Thank you. Since we know he''s feral I think it should be easy to crush him using your guys'' overwhelming force, since there''s three of you and you are all able to allocate your points. I''d recommend picking a specialty each so you can cover for each other. Any ideas?" "Strength all the way. Some Agility," Gladiator said immediately. Classical Berserker, all brawn. "I, personally, would like to learn a little magic to allow myself a greater degree of versatility, both in and out of combat. Is that acceptable?" "Fine by me, Second." "Agility, Dexterity, Wisdom and Intelligence. I want to be fast and good at gathering intel." ¡­ and Juno took up the role of a spy. This was a fine party in Mercury''s opinion. He could allocate roles to all of them fairly easily and was happy with their strategy. It was perfectly suited for stomping someone with lower stats, but there was one detail that Mercury was missing if he wanted to take on another party. They didn''t have a healer. If they lost Hp, it was gone for good. If they ever got stuck in a battle of attrition, they were royally screwed. Luckily, this would hopefully turn out short. The wolves all allocated their points, boosting their stats to new levels. Gladiator Fireborn Strength: 54 -> 134 Agility: 41 -> 71 Second Storm Strength: 45 -> 65 Vitality: 36 -> 50 Intelligence: 50 -> 60 Wisdom: 29 -> 60 Willpower: 38 -> 60 Luck: 11 -> 25 Juno Starfall Strength: 37 -> 50 Vitality: 28 -> 40 Dexterity: 46 -> 80 Agility: 53 -> 60 Intelligence: 50 -> 54 Wisdom: 30 -> 55 Willpower: 31 -> 50 And with that, all their points were gone. Well, almost. They then also spent most of their Skill points, getting things like and (which they had to get for 2 000 points, since the "staring" method didn''t work for them), as well as some specific Skills they liked. And then, when they were finally done, they used the last few hours after dawn to start their journey towards the Forest Lord. It was¡­ uneventful. The journey went by easily and without trouble and, as much as it saddens me as a narrator, the same goes for the fight. The Lord was absolutely and positively outmatched by the wolves. They hardly needed to employ a battle plan. Gladiator easily kept him in check and blocked the brunt of the attacks with a toothy grin on his face, while Second dashed around and attacked his flanks. Juno stayed vigilant and exploited every opportunity she got to sneak-attack the Lord, targeting all his vital areas. It was an absolute slaughter. The drakeling didn''t even get a swing in against anyone but Gladiator, and Mercury himself was able to simply watch the fight play out without having to interfere. And then he got his notification. [Your familiar "Gladiator" killed the Forest Lord. Get: 700 Exp (pool), Dracoleather Cloak (equipment).] Apparently the Exp from killing unique mobs was always added to the pool. Good to know. But before he even had the chance to check the Dracoleather Cloak, more notifications rolled in. [Sub Quest: "Defeat the Forest Lord and take over!" completed. You have received: 5 Ability points, 200 Skill points, 500 Exp, 1000 Gold.] [Main Quest: "Conquer the forest!" completed. You have received: 10 Ability points, 300 Skill points, 500 Exp, 1000 Gold.] [You have been awarded the Title !] [Main Quest: "Leave the forest and start a village!" added. Reward: 10 Ability points, 200 Skill points, 3000 Exp, 1500 Gold.] Mercury waited for a second after all the notifications rang out and then took a moment to compliment the wolves on their good work. After equally distributing the exp among them, he sent them out to secure the area while he checked his new stuff out. First was his new title. [: This title was awarded to the individual upon defeating the prior Forest Lord and thus claiming said position as their own. This title gives its bearer a +5 to all stats as long as they are within the forest it was awarded in. It also opens up 3 additional slots in the bearer''s inventory and 1 additional slot in their familiar storage. It may have interactions with some Skills. These will be displayed if they are unlocked.] Okay, this was awesome. Gaining this title was both unexpected and absolutely amazing, since expanding his inventory would have been quite a pain otherwise. This way it was far, far easier to carry things around. Mercury was more than pleased with getting this as a free bonus that he wasn''t even expecting. But since he was now itching to leave this place, he quickly checked out his other reward: the Dracoleather Cloak. [Dracoleather Cloak: A cloak made from the leather of a young lesser dragon. It channels leftover magic from the dragon to slightly increase the wearer''s Agility and Dexterity (+1) and protects them from bad weather. In addition, it is "growing" equipment, meaning that it will grow alongside its wearer and become more powerful as it is imbued with stronger Magic. Proficiency: 0/1000. Grade: Unique D.] [Proficiency: This value reflects the individual''s capability of using a certain piece of gear as well as the gear''s stage of development. Increasing its value will make growing pieces of gear level-up and strengthen their properties.] Well, this was certainly new. A piece of gear that grew alongside him, he could probably use that. Except, wait, he was a cat. Could cats wear cloaks? Turns out they can! Well, he could, in any case. The Dracoleather cloak automatically changed to fit his stature and was thus tied around his neck and draped over his back, shining in a brown-greenish colour. Not gonna lie, it was stylish as fuck. And thus, a cat and its three wolven companions made their way back to a certain trusty log. Mercury was waiting for someone. It was the only thing left for him to do in this forest, he only had to settle his debt with Cherry. So he waited for her at the log and, as he had thought, she came to visit after a few days. "Hey Merc, how''s it go-" but she stopped herself when she saw his cloak and her eyes opened wide. "D-did you seriously take down the Forest Lord?" "Sure did." The wolves nodded alongside him. "So, my next quest is actually to leave this forest and start establishing the beginning of my kingdom, so unfortunately, I might be leaving. Now, if I remember correctly, I still owe you a big debt, so I would like to settle that now, if that''s alright with you?" He smiled as he spoke, knowing that he would probably miss her after he went. But he had the luxury of choosing when to visit, which Cherry then wouldn''t have anymore. "Take me with you." Ah yes, it would be funny surprising her. Up until now she had always gotten to- FUCKING WHAT NOW??! "Huh?" "Take. Me. With. You." Cherry said with a beaming smile. Mercury shook his head to clear it for a second and then looked her up and down multiple times. Then he asked once again. "Are you serious right now?" "Absolutely." She grinned. "Positive?" "Yup." "Sure?" "Yup." "Confident?" "Yup." "Well, shit, fuck it, come along then." Mercury spoke with a sigh. "I knew you''d refuse, but remember that big faaavo- WHAT?!" This time it was Mercury''s turn to grin. In fact, he was expecting something way worse out of all this, like Cherry asking him to stay for a few more months. In fact, this was really just beneficial for him. Cherry was a pretty competent, if a little clumsy, hunter. She could also take over a lot of the communication between them and humans, and serve as something of a guide out there. In essence, this was a near purely advantageous situation for him. "I said you can come along," he repeated with a smile. "I need a good guide after all. Besides, what human would take a talking cat seriously. And you''re just great company in general. So, Cherry Silvers, will you join me in my quest to conquer this world and become a great king? Heh. It''s a little embarrassing saying it out loud like that." After pushing his embarrassment back down, Mercury gave a wide grin. Even the wolves behind him couldn''t keep themselves from smiling when Cherry teared up a little. "Y-Yeah," she stammered. "Yeah, I will!" And with that, the two of them took their first steps outside of the forest they had spent all their lives in. This made Cherry an absolutely terrible guide, but that was a problem for another day. Or so they thought, but before they even stepped a foot outside the forest, gramps made sure to stop them in their tracks. And so, they took another week until they were actually able to leave, outfitted with supplies and a large leather backpack. And what did Mercury carry in his inventory? A souvenir from the start of his journey. A large piece of hollow wood, filled with runes on the inside. That''s right. He put his log in his fucking pocket and carried it around with him. And thus the quintet began their journey of establishing the future great kingdom of Logston. Yes, that is literally Log''s town but without the "w". Mercury wasn''t always good with names. Chapter 17: A whole new world Chapter 17: A whole new world While leaving the forest, Cherry could still serve as a guide, since she had been to the town on the outside multiple times already, mostly to buy supplies and the like. That''s also where she got the Skillstones from! Turns out there''s an old-ish gemcutter in the town who specialized in stones. Handy. The city was a little ways away from the foot of the mountain, so the journey took them quite a while, which was long enough for Cherry to get acquainted with the wolves a little more, and they probably developed some mutual respect or something. In any case, there was no longer any bad blood. The journey in and of itself was exciting for all of them, since none of them had ever really moved this far out. They hadn''t exactly been sheltered, but really finding out about the whole wide world had it''s appeal. It took Mercury everything he had to not start singing during the travelling montage. Well, he did actually sing a little though, but at least he didn''t break out into a full-scale musical number. The plants were silent that day. That would''ve been kinda hard to translate via this medium, huh. Well, I suppose now you''ll have to imagine it. Then, they finally arrived at the city... or rather, its remains. All five of them stopped as it came into view. It had been razed to the ground entirely. Buildings were nothing but charred frames, with ash and coals covering the floor. The church, that had been made with large bricks of stone, had been reduced to a pile of rubble. They saw bodies upon bodies littering the streets, and dried blood everywhere they looked, splashed on what was left of any walls. Every last one of the villagers was dead. People were killed. Regardless of age, or sex, or gender, or personality. None of it mattered. Not their hobbies, or their jobs, or their hopes and dreams, everything that made them up was crushed in a single night. There was not a spark of life left in the city. Only smoldering embers and ash. It was a rude introduction to the outside. Mercury''s face scrunched up and Cherry pressed her hands on her mouth, letting out a gasp. Cherry was confused at the sight, seemingly unable to fully grasp it. Who could have done this? And why? What... what even happened exactly? The wolves were shocked, frankly. This grade of destruction was beyond anything they had ever witnessed. It was incomparable to anything they had seen before, so all they were left with were questions. Mercury was only slightly different. He was shook by this, but he had seen similar things before on the internet. He had seen cities wrecked by tsunamis or even nuclear weaponry. He had seen images of slums in poorer countries and of devastating wildfires. This was, as cruel as it sounds, another catastrophe to add to the pile. What he felt the most was¡­ removed. No, perhaps not removed. He was... angry. He had reincarnated into another world, one with magic and many, many races, where animals can learn to speak, a world with dragons and probably unicorns. And yet, this was what it looked like? A city, razed to the ground by petty conflict? Maybe it was a war, or a personal agenda. Maybe it was for vengeance, maybe to keep a disease from spreading, but what did it matter? It was senseless. A charred husk of society. Perhaps one of hundreds, and yet a place that was special to some. This felt so endlessly far away that he couldn''t seem to wrap his mind around it. It was like he was looking at it through a window, seeing himself stare at this cruel display of power while simply sipping some tea in a safe little hut. And it made him furious. Then, a pop-up. [You have witnessed an event of great effect that was created by the individual , alias: "The Incinerator", "Inferno", "Crimson Queen". Would you like to spend your World points to increase her fame/infamy?] [New functions unlocked: Leaderboard, World points.] And he slowly activated appraisal. [World points: A currency granted to you for causing great changes within the world. These can be used to increase the fame or infamy of another individual of your choosing. They cannot be used on members of your party.] [Leaderboard: The leaderboard ranks individuals based on their fame/infamy points. There are separate leaderboards for each, and different leaderboards in each region. The system will automatically adjust fame/infamy based on the people''s opinion. Any individual can use their World points to adjust these measures as well.] Next, Mercury took a deep breath as he was thrown out of his safe little hut right back into his body, seeing the destruction in front of him. Then, he took another deep breath to organize his thoughts, turning his mind from a jumbled mess back into a single thread, which he began to spin further. Finally, he spoke. "I don''t believe this was fair," he said slowly, with rage seething out from between his teeth, taking on the shape of white fog as the night''s cold crept in. "I think... we have hunting to do." Thus, he stepped forward again and after only a moment of hesitation, his party of four followed. Not for the sake of those people down there, not for the sake of revenge, and not for the sake of their own desires. They followed, because there was someone moving forward, and sometimes that is all one can do. And that very thing was what Mercury Starlight Rainfall was more than ready to do. - - - - - - It took them an even longer journey before they encountered the next city, following only the paths that had been created by decades of usage. Some of them were simple pathways through a forest, while at other places wooden stairs had been made to help with ascending or descending narrow passages. At times, there were even stones laid into the ground to ease travelling. After around another two weeks, they finally saw a change on the horizon. They exited a forest, and entered a grassy field. On the horizon, they could see a tower with a large bell inside of it. They had found a city, finally. On the journey they did gain a bit of Exp from the food that the wolves acquired, and a total of 405 was added to the pool, with each wolf acquiring 300 themselves. In addition, Mercury was also improving his , slowly spreading more and more channels through his body. After another day''s worth of travel, they arrived at the city walls. This one seemed to be a little larger than the last town they had seen, given that said walls were now made from stone, with the occasional watchtower in between. One of the sides of the city was actually covered from attacks by a river, too, which also made that side a convenient location for a gate and farms. In addition, the city has been built on a hill and continuously extended, so there were multiple layers of walls going further down, three in total. It was fairly secure, to say the least. Sadly, some of the feeling of sturdiness was lost as they drew closer, when they saw the wagons collecting bodies from the side of the road, as well as the patches of burnt grass and the remains of what might have been siege machines. It wasn''t a pretty sight, but at the very least, the city still stood. Finally, when our small group of friends was approaching the city gate, they saw the stones. There weren''t many of them, all places far apart and they were full of names from top to bottom. Mass graves. It was another punch to the gut for Mercury, but by now he had assessed the situation. There was most likely a war going on. It was fairly easy to deduct, given that most people with high fame also had high infamy on the leaderboard, such as the man in 7. place for infamy, "Divine General" Jacques Bordeaux, who also ranked 6. when it came to fame. This trend continued up and down the ranks, with only very few exceptions. Sadly, the board said nothing about power, but he also found a familiar name high up on both sides. 11. and 9. for fame and infamy respectively, "Crimson Queen" Scarlet Inagra. Well, knowing there was a war going on at least prepared them for these sights, I suppose, though Cherry still seemed a little shaken by it. But back to the present. As they approached the city gate, they were stopped by two guards in heavy plate armor, their faces covered by helmets only leaving thin slits for their eyes. "State your name and purpose, tamer!", one of them half-yelled at Cherry, who quickly flinched. Tamer? Was that like a nickname for people who use animalistic companions. Wait. That meant¡­ the guards were fully disregarding him¡­? Ah shit, right, he was just a cat. He definitely had to speak up while Cherry was still frozen, huh. "Actually, I''m kind of the leader. Down here. Yeah, the c-" "IT''S A TALKING MOPAAW?!?!?! Everyone, attack positions!!!" And with that, the guard blew into a horn and immediately bows were pointed at them from every single location on the wall. "Well, that sure was unexpected. Nice to meet you too, I''m Mercury Starlight Rainfall, leader of this little ragtag group. We''re kinda here to help with the war." While the guard was still stunned, Mercury quickly blurted out his name and intentions, as he had been asked to, before weapons were pointed at him. He also seemed confident actually, but let''s be honest, you know just as well as I do that he was sweating bullets by now. Still, he was in this situation, and no amount of internal screaming would help him with it. Instead, he decided to rely on [DIPLOMACY], one thing that he certainly took away from his job. And with that thought¡­ [Acquired the Ability through a certain action.] ¡­ he got an upgrade. Well, fortune among misfortune maybe? But with a wave of the guard''s hands, the bows were pointed back downwards, though the heads of probably more than 3 guards were still visible on the wall. To be precise, Mercury guessed there were probably around 50-60 of them. "Help, you say? And how do you intend to do that, Kitty?" The guard actually leaned down to Mercury, who could see a smug grin through his helmet. Kitty, huh. He was a "Kitty", then? Oh. Oh so that how it fucking was?! I''ll fucking give you kitty you dumb, ugly, son of a bi- "I''m sorry my liege, but please try to maintain composure." Ah fuck, right, Diplomacy. Thanks, Juno. Mercury made a mental note to thank her later. With a cough, he turned to the guard again, who was still staring at him while the other one kept all the soldiers from raising their bows at the talking wolf. What idiots. "Sir, I simply think we could prove to be valuable assets to your army. May we prove our mettle in a trial of combat? A harmless mock-fight, of course." He even put on his best british accent. If the guard didn''t accept this, all hope was lost. It was the perfect offer after all. For a bit the guard paused and then spoke again. "Alright, a mock-fight then. Arendor, get over here!" With a yell from the guard, Mercury could quickly witness the gate opening just far enough to let a single man wearing fancier guard''s armour and no helmet strut through the opening. He had long, flowing black hair and was clean shaven, his hazelnut eyes containing the sparkle of someone who lived to fight. Or at least that''s what he looked like in that sparkling steel armor. "Arendor, reporting for duty," he said with a seemingly cocky smile. "Test them. Little Mister Flufferbutts wants to join us in our war efforts." With that, Mercury heard a chuckle coming from all soldiers but the one who had just stepped out. He was already busy eyeing his opponent up and down. "I should fight¡­ the mopaaw?" "Yes, the mopaaw." "But sir, it''s a-" "Did I stutter?" When Arendor turned back to Mercury, he actually flinched. He had fought a hundred battles and beat a hundred soldiers, but something about this mopaaw struck him as off. Maybe it was the murderous gleam in its eyes or the foam that was frothing from its mouth, but Arendor was¡­ unnerved. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Still, he drew his longsword and held it with both hands. "Let us begin then, shall we?" And with that invitation, Mercury waited for him to come closer with his inventory open and an item selected. After a few moments, Arendor did take a step towards him, only to promptly have a large log strike his foot and disappear again, prompting a chuckle from Mercury''s companions and a scream from Arendor. "Mister motherfucking Flufferbutts...?" Mercury furiously stared down the knight who was now holding his foot while swearing. With that, Mercury started using his , circling his boiling magical power through his body at a speed that was unmatched to what he had done before. The friction heated it up some more, leading his mana to go from boiling to roaring as it coursed through him, evaporating at a rapid pace. But Mercury didn''t need to conserve his magical power. He could focus every single drop of mana he had on this one fight, about to just straight up smash Adrenor. See, what he was doing was something he figured out while travelling. was essentially physical enhancement magic. It was part of the foundation of superhuman combat and the absolute signature Ability that magic-fighter hybrids relied on. It was an Ability so incredible that having it was the foundation for a whole type of "build", and now, Mercury was using it with all of his magical power, which was far above the average for his level, all at once simply to smash this guard. He was going motherfucking show them Mister fucking Flufferbutts!!! As his mana was rushing through his body and filling his limbs with power, Mercury leapt off the ground and tackled Adrenor straight into his chest with force similar to that of a sledgehammer. It was a one-off attack, naturally, but it was also everything he needed to win the fight. As the sound of something hard striking metal rang out, Adrenor couldn''t even yell as the air left his lungs. Then he fell, and his head struck the floor, making him fall unconscious for just a second as Mercury managed to land gracefully for the first time ever. It was an overwhelming victory as he turned back to the guard who had first issued the challenge. "Never call me that again," he said as he walked through the opening city gates. Only when he had already entered did he allow himself to begin breathing heavily and moaning in pain. He could, to a minor degree, use by now, but it was still level 1. This had a few restrictions placed on it, namely that he needed to use a lot of mana to produce even the slightest effect. In addition, he could only control the amount of mana that was actually used up by the Skill by changing its temperature, which he wasn''t able to do effortlessly. The third and last hurdle was how many mana channels he had actually created. Currently he only had ones to his main extremities, making a full-body power up barely possible. However, there was still one more drawback. Even with superhuman power, his skin wasn''t hard enough to fully beat metal, so while he knocked over the guard, his entire side was positively pulsating with pain. All this came together in forming restrictions on the ability. There were restrictions on the time he could use the power for, the amount of power he could get at any one point, and how often he could use it. Basically, he could use it to get a singular attack per day, that was strong enough to harm a soldier in full metal armor. Maybe he could squeeze two into a day if he used one in the morning and one in the evening, with plenty of meditating in between. And that still wasn''t all! Now that he had used it, his breathing was rough and his muscles were hurt, because using mana on his body was essentially overcharging it. Which meant that in case he failed at properly using the singular attack allowed him to pull off, he couldn''t fight at full capacity for multiple hours. But in this case that didn''t matter. None of it mattered. Not his breathing, or his limits, or the fact that tomorrow his legs would hurt quite a bit. Because right now he had put someone in their fucking place. He had started his absolute eradication of the name "Mister Flufferbutts" from history, nay, from language itself! No longer shall cats be oppressed by such infantile treatment! No more will they be tormented! Be free, my furry brethren! And while Mercury was experiencing a micro-aggression, Cherry was busy carrying him in her arms, as he had simply stopped and delved into his own fantasy. Needless to say, none of the five noticed that had levelled up yet again. In any case, while everyone''s favourite king, mage and hero was busy exploring the terrible exploitation of cats through cutesy names, the remainder of his posse was busy exploring the city to find a place to stay. Of course, there was something that had to be done first, or so Cherry read in her books, which was to get themselves registered as godseekers. Yup. That''s a thing. And it absolutely wasn''t nearly as cool as it sounded. It was essentially this world''s version of what''s commonly called "adventurers" or "hunters" in other contemporary literature. In the end, those were fancy names for all-purpose mercenaries. Hireable hands, so to speak. Or, phrasing it less charmingly, day labourers. They weren''t hired to "seek gods", as the name may imply. Who the heck would dare challenge beings such as the "Demon Lords" or the "Walking Disasters"? Maybe at the rank of hero one would see such things, but as a normal person? Commissions ranged from hunting a few boars to cleaning windows and such. Most people who actually had a place to live looked down on low-tier godseekers, whose name was more to mock them. Heck, even higher ranked ones were often disliked, since their allegiances didn''t lie with any cities or any side of this war, but instead, they helped out whoever paid more. It was a job that was widespread and oftentimes frowned upon, and it was also the only way for godseekers to actually make a genuine living if they rose high enough. So, Cherry went to register, knowing absolutely none of this. All she knew was that they completed commissions for whoever paid. She quickly headed into the large building, its sign that of a golden spyglass crossed with a grey sword. "Welcome to the Alywick gloryhall, how may I help you?" The building was empty except for a young lady of maybe 20 years at a counter. She had dark brown hair in a ponytail, hazel eyes and wore a buttoned shirt under a green, woolen jacket. She also wore glasses. Yup, glasses. Black frame, big and round. She looked like a straight up modern-day librarian, Mercury thought. Except for her, the room was only filled by a few things. The counter she was standing behind spread across nearly the entire room, with saloon doors at either side to let the staff go into the common area or something probably. There were also a few wooden chairs arranged around tables at the right wall and the entire left wall was a giant notice board, plastered with notes upon notes. Seeing a pair of glasses seemed to bring Mercury back from his dream of fire and plague, as he hopped off of Cherry''s head and onto the counter, eyeing the girl again. But while he did so, she was casually reaching out to pet him. "Awwwe, what a cute ki-" "Hey, what the fuck do you think you''re doing?" And that''s the story of how our furry protagonist made a receptionist woman scream out loud before even introducing himself. While the girl was still pressing herself up against the wall and holding what looked like a ring of multiple intertwined metals towards him, Mercury sighed and began with the introductions. "Sorry if I scared you, my name''s Mercury Rainfall Starlight. Yes, I''m a talking c- mopaaw, and no, I don''t consume the souls of the innocent." "Y-you don''t?" "I don''t, I promise. Pinky promise. Actually, toebean promise. I know it''s a little weird to deal with a new kind of customer, but I''m really not here to hurt you. Or anyone, actually. I''m just here to- wait, why am I here?" Mercury turned around to the others as he asked and found the answer in Cherry''s big grin. "To register as godseekers. We could take on commissions in most cities and could enter practically all of them by showing our licenses, Merc. It''s pretty handy." And with that, Mercury turned back around. "You heard the lady. Just here to get ourselves registered as godseekers. I suppose you need our names?" When the receptionist heard Cherry''s explanation and saw Mercury smile a little at her, her heart rate finally decreased a little again. After taking another deep breath and pushing up her glasses, she found the power in herself to speak to the group of newbies once more. "Yes, but please give me a second to fetch the required forms. How many registrations would that be? One tamer and some pets or¡­.?" Mercury tilted his head a little at the receptionist''s answer. But he didn''t exactly have anything to do but to ask. "Sorry, I''m really new to this whole ''outside world'' thing, so could you maybe explain a little?" "Oh, yes, of course, sir. As the young lady behind you already explained, as godseekers you will be able to complete commissions for money. In addition, you will be allowed into most cities with a license, so long as the guard doesn''t find any commissions that would require you to actually harm someone in said city. That being said, some towns do handle matters differently and reserve the right to keep anyone they want to from entering. As such, we cannot fully promise that you will be freely received in every town, however it should be fine for nearly all major cities." As she spoke, the receptionist seemed to fall into a little bit of a routine, giving her just enough confidence to actually smile at them. "As godseekers, you will be allocated ranks and occupations. The former is decided solely by the guild. You can apply for an evaluation to increase your rank after completing a certain amount of commissions of your level. This is to first have the godseeker establish that they are capable of executing tasks precisely, and establish some trust in them, before checking to see if their combat prowess might allow them to be of a higher rank. This evaluation can be skipped in certain cases though, namely if the godseeker''s level has reached a certain standard or they have achieved some great merit outside of usual commissions." "As for occupation, these are not solely determined by the guild. To explain, occupations exist largely to allow commissioners to see if the adventurers that are attempting to clear their commissions actually have the skill set required to do so. If one needs fields tended to, a fire mage may be unsuited for the job due to lacking stamina, for example." "However, while the guild offers some preset occupations, such as "fighter", "wizard", "hunter" or the like, there is no limit to what an occupation may be. Some godseekers are "farmers" or "carpenters", others are "necromancers" and others again have very specific specializations, such as "rabbit breeder with a talent for shuffling cards". Please don''t ask about the last one. It still gives me nightmares!" The receptionist ended her whole speech with a bright smile wholly unsuited to her words, making Mercury a little confused, but whatever. "Alright, then I would like five registration forms please." "That would be five Pales, sir." "Hm?" Well, shit. Turns out this whole shtick cost something, and he didn''t exactly have any money. Well, turns out Cherry did! And with that, the deal was sealed. Wait. What exactly were Pales? He would have to ask Cherry about that a little later. After paying, the receptionist disappeared for a second in a door behind the counter, before reappearing with a few sheets of paper in her hand. Actual, genuine paper. What was this weird fantasy world that had paper and glasses and normal clothes with medieval architecture and city walls? Weird shit. After handing out the sheets, the receptionist introduced herself as being named "Kintra Dresque", a godseeker with the occupation of "receptionist". This girl was bonkers for sure. But with that, and some writing help from Cherry, all of them were soon registered as godseekers. Mercury was a "tamer", Cherry a "hunter", Gladiator a "fighter", Juno a "spy" and Second absolutely insisted on being an "underling of his royal majesty, Mercury Rainfall Starlight the Great". Well, it was an occupation for sure. Seems like the ranks were also borrowed from the system. There were all ranks from E to S and an additional F-rank, which was for godseekers who refused to take on jobs involving danger. That one was wholly voluntary though, so our heroes started off at E-rank. The ranks also lined up with the monsters they would hunt. A single D-rank godseeker should thus be on par with a single D-rank monster. Didn''t this mean that practically each of the wolves Mercury had with him already were D-rank? Well, whatever. Everyone started at E, and Mercury wasn''t about to beg for favours, so he simply took his license. The form of the license came as quite a bit of a surprise to him though. It wasn''t the usual plastic card he had gotten used to but rather a small, rhombical, purple gemstone. When he tapped it a simple window popped up, saying: {Mercury Rainfall Starlight Tamer E-Rank} That''s it. How¡­ simple. It was quite a bit shorter than he had expected, actually. But apparently, this small thing here would allow them to enter most cities unhindered. Nifty. With that, they said their goodbyes to the receptionist, heading out to explore the vast new city that they now had time to explore. But wait. How much money did they still have left? They kinda needed to sleep at some point, given that the sun would soon set. "Hey Cherry?" "Ya?" "How much money is a room at an inn?" "About a Dim a night. Why?" "How much money do we still have?" "Uhm¡­ I have like, 6 Pales and 3 Dims, why?" "Cherry, I have absolutely no fucking idea what that means." With that all of them stopped on the street. Cherry''s head audibly creaked as she turned it towards Mercury. The realization had just hit her. This mopaaw came from far away. It didn''t have a concept of what money was. The wolves just gained sentience. And she would have to explain it to him. When she was terrible at maths. "Well Merc, why don''t we sit down at an inn and discuss that in there?" "Sounds great," Gladiator chimed in, "we can start a bar fight!" "No bar fights please. Wait, actually, no fights in general. Only defend yourselves." "Okay, but I can wait for carnage only so long!" "Meathead," Second quietly added. "Hmpf." Finding an inn luckily didn''t take long, as there were quite a few of them around. The group entered just as the sky went a little darker and dusk settled in. An old man greeted them from behind the dark, wooden counter, having a bald top with a ring of hair around it and a somewhat large belly, he was polishing glasses in a shirt that maybe was white at some point. After allowing Cherry to order water for who the innkeep referred to as "her beasts", and juice for herself, Mercury was experiencing a micro-aggression but decided to let it slide for the sake of not scaring anyone. After finishing, Cherry quickly rented out a single room for them, decked out with a bed, nightstand, table and oil lamp. Then, she began her lesson on money. "Alright, so. Money is all arranged in tens. The smallest instance of money would be a Dark. That one is almost never used except for pocket change, since it is barely enough to afford something like a single vegetable. It''s oftentimes used to buy water or some other readily available resource in inns." As she explained, Cherry put a single blackish coin on the desk in front of her. It was probably about three centimeters in diameter and half a centimeter thick. It also had a few small engravings on it, clouds or something the like. Then, Cherry pulled out a coin that was slightly lighter in colour. "This," she explained, "is a Night. It''s worth ten Darks. It''s used for simple meals, like half a loaf of bread. Next up", she said and put a coin on the table that was more of a dark blue by now, "are Glooms. These guys are worth ten Nights and can be used to pay for average meals, like some vegetable soup with a side of bread. They''re paid with fairly commonly." Then, she placed another coin on the table, that one of a steely grey colour. "This is what we call a Dim. It''s worth 10 Glooms and can be used for simple services, like short carriage rides or spending a night at an inn. Also a commonly used coin. But now we''re swapping over to fairly expensive stuff and the next coin is also the last one I can show you." Having said that, she pulled out a blueish white coin and placed it down next to all the others. "It''s a Pale, worth 10 Dims. I''ve saved up for a long time and accumulated around 11 of these. They''re valuable and usually you get them for more expensive goods, like intact bear pelts and such stuff. They can be used to cover the cost of most things. But if you want genuinely magical equipment, you need to move higher up the ladder. "From now on I can''t show you the coins, but you can use ten Pales to get a Glow. Ten Glows for a Spark. Ten Sparks for a Bolt. Ten Bolts for a Bright. Ten Brights for a Flash and that''s practically the limit. Well, technically there''s the Radiance, which would be worth a thousand Flashes, but I think that one might be a little hard to get. Now, that might be a lot of info, but you''ll get used to it." "Okay, not gonna lie, those coins have some pretty cool names. Where I''m from it was all "Dollar" and "Cent", which is totally less cool than naming a coin fucking Radiance. I support this. On the topic, can you also quickly cover your calendar with me?" "Sure can. A single day is separated into day and night, which then are separated yet again into hours, minutes and seconds." Seems like that much aligned with his world, nice. "Ten days make a page, ten pages a season. Sadly, this trend doesn''t continue much further, as only 4 seasons happen in any one year. The trend of tens is weak in the calendar. A shame. The seasons go as follows: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter. Each day in a page and each page in a season have unique names, but let''s leave those for when we need it, alright? A full four seasons make a chapter." Well, it was¡­ similar at least. They had pages of ten days instead of weeks and making every season have ten pages kinda eliminated months. Maybe their names were actually different though and they were only translated to their equivalents in English, the only difference being "pages", which were similar to weeks but not the same. That would actually make quite the amount of sense. Language really was quite damn handy. If only there weren''t so fucking much he had to learn about this damn world! Chapter 18: The Arena Chapter 18: The Arena With that first day in a city, Mercury''s journey had truly begun. It was the first step towards creating his own kingdom, but before he could do so, there were more things he needed to know, namely how one actually went about starting a kingdom. Yeah, he kinda missed that point, but he was sure of one thing: To start a kingdom he would need to have a lot of money. Now, how could he get a lot of money as quickly as possible? Maybe as a farmer? No. As a merchant? It would be hard to put his companions to work there. No, his best bet, from his perspective, was to work as a godseeker, taking on commissions for monster-hunts, escorts and maybe attacks on other cities. With that in mind, Cherry thanked the innkeeper, who responded with a simple nod while serving another guest, a young man with short, blonde hair in a high-collared, blue robe and moments after, Mercury was back in the Alywick gloryhall, where the same receptionist as yesterday greeted them. After a quick hello, the group turned their attention to the wall of commissions to the left, whose difficulty seemed to increase the further up one went. Naturally, Mercury read them from on top of Cherry''s shoulder. It was just as Kintra had said yesterday, there were all kinds of tasks, from cleaning toilets to taking down entire cities and even a dragon. Well, on the other hand Mercury wasn''t exactly suicidal, so he decided to pick one of the lower-end ones. Then again, even some of those were challenging enough. The lowest ones were easy, of course, but going a little higher, the next tier was made up of population control missions. All of it was stuff like "Kill goblins" or "Kill striped boars", so most of it involved quite the amount of fighting. Of course, those weren''t quite Mercury''s style, and also didn''t really pay that well, so he decided to search for one more suited. In the end, Gladiator actually found a good one. He sucked in a breath of air, and Mercury could see the sparkle in his eyes as he whispered, "King? Come look at this." It was a commission that was labelled as "entertainment", but the details were a little more intriguing. It was about fighting in something of a colosseum. It was actually not illegal at all, and with many of the people fighting in it being slaves trying to earn their freedom, it fit into a pretty common trope. You also weren''t required to kill your enemy. It wasn''t particularly frowned upon, but most people simply refrained from doing so, since there was no point in robbing someone of their future, at least not without extra pay. Thus, the group made their way over to the arena with the directions provided on the commission sheet, leading them to a huge, circular building with two entrances, one with a stairway leading up , the other with a stairway leading down. Both of them had a booth in front of them and were labelled "viewers" and "entertainers". Mercury approached the entertainer-booth with Cherry, who quickly placed down the commission sheet in front of the black-clothed man. They had settled on something before, too. "Cherry Silvers. I would like to register as an entertainer with my beasts." "You are a tamer then?", the man replied with a sly smile. "Almost. Hunter, who dabbles in animal-friendship." It wasn''t really a lie, given that she had befriended Mercury, and it actually allowed the five of them to work as a team. In order to split the Exp they got, they had also formed a party beforehand, which meant that the Exp from any kill was split up equally among them, though Mercury would still get his small amount of bonus Exp if one of the wolves dealt the finishing blow. "Alright, can I see that godseeker license of yours? E-Rank, huh. You sure about this?" The man glanced up at Cherry from the stone and saw her nod, causing him to shrug. "Alright, go right in. You''ll find a sleeping facility, a cafeteria, a training facility and a board with any fights that still need an opponent. Just grab and rip the paper, that''ll get you registered for it. As long as you are registered to participate in a fight, lodgings and food will be provided. Good luck." And with that, they went on down the stairs, finding things exactly as the man had told them. At the end of the staircase, there was a notice board on the left wall, right before the hallway opened up into a larger room. There were additional exits on the main hall. Cafeteria to the left, dormitory to the right, and the training room, as well as the staircases to the arena proper, were straight ahead. All of these rooms were chock-full of people. Mercury didn''t have a lot of problems figuring out the hierarchy either. Stronger people were allowed to pick on weaker ones, cutting in line and generally gaining benefits over them. Fights happening down here appeared to be a regular occurrence, given that he saw multiple machos duking it out. Some were even armwrestling to decide who got to go first. He could practically smell the testosterone. What surprised him was the amount of different kinds of people. There were humans of all colours, sure, but there were both men and women of other races, too. He could quickly identify dwarves and what called beastkin, and, after a few seconds of searching, he found elves as well. Heck, there was even a woman with white, feathery wings whom the system appraised to be a "celestial human". As soon as they arrived, one of the burly men who wore practically only underwear and a sword approached them, bending down to be able to look Cherry in the face. "Well," he said with a rough and condescending voice, "if it isn''t a bit of new meat. What are ya, lass? A tamer? Too wimpy to fight on your own?" As he talked Cherry scrunched up her face from his terrible breath, which was even more repulsive to Mercury. When the brute started to move a little closer, he could even feel Cherry flinch back a little. Mercury wasn''t brave. He considered himself a fairly ordinary guy, with a goal that was far beyond his reach, but he wanted to give it a shot just for the fun of it. He wasn''t particularly interested in gaining power for the sake of gaining power, he wanted to gain power because he thought it might be fun to be admired a little. He wasn''t someone so special, heck, his most unique trait was maybe that he had a Shop in the system, and that he could talk. But there was one thing he couldn''t stand for, regardless of whether he had power or not. He would never ever let anyone make fun of his friends. It didn''t matter if they spit on him. He couldn''t care less about being made fun of (except if it was something horrid like Mister Flufferbutts), and he didn''t particularly care about the opinion of people he didn''t care for. He could be insulted and talked down to, made fun off and ridiculed, but never would he ever let anyone dare to threaten his friends if he could do something about it. It wasn''t because he particularly wanted to protect their honour. It wasn''t born from a sense of needing to protect those close to him. This came from a purely selfish decision. He hated seeing his friends hurt. He hated seeing his friends insulted. He absolutely despised people who dared to make fun of those he valued highly. Cherry was one of those people. To Mercury the few sentences the brute in front of him had just said were worse than if that same guy had killed someone he didn''t know. Because now he wasn''t just a psychopath or a terrible person. Now it was personal. "Gladiator?", he asked through gritted teeth. "Yes, my king?" "Let''s fuck him up." And the wolf replied with a big smile on his face as he saw his master not give any ground to the man in front of him. "Gladly!" And after a few blood-curdling screeches in a pathetic display of inferiority, Cherry "Bloodfang" Silvers scored her first victory in the arena without even lifting a finger, leaving behind a brute that had many more scars to boot. It was the first chapter in a long series of victories she scored with her pack, and the first step to rising to the top of this underground establishment as the performance drew more than just a few glances. - - - - - - "Is lady Zeris prepared?", a man asked as he pulled his white gloves onto his hands in another location. Somewhere far from that, a priestess was just getting up from having knelt on the floor and was finally letting a ring made from three interwoven strands of metal, one copper, one aluminum, one iron, slip out of her hands. And in yet another location, a man looked at the sky as he licked his lips after a hearty meal, sitting on the corpse of what he had just devoured. It was a vast world with many problems, but with a war now raging, many were seeing their chance to move. The three people known as "Walking Disasters" were springing into action. - - - - - - After having beaten the shit out of a fighter, people were showing Cherry a little more respect. Mercury was a little annoyed that he wasn''t recognized as the leader of the group, but while it bothered him, it also had its advantages. With him being just another pet, people wouldn''t pay much attention to him, which he would be able to exploit for surprise attacks. Additionally, cats sleep a lot. Using that, he could gather mana and mask it as "sleeping". Lastly, the man in the booth probably wouldn''t have allowed Mercury to register as a single fighter with some pets if Cherry had been one of those, while this way around it wasn''t a big deal. Overall, this was a little bothersome, but necessary. In any case, while Mercury and Gladiator beat the shit outta the guy who approached them, Juno had picked out a few fights they could choose. One was against a single mounted knight, one against some dude with a trident and the last one against a set of twins, a brother and a sister who focused on defense and attack respectively. Seems like she had ignored the fights against monsters on purpose or something. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Well, whatever. First they had to choose their booth anyways. Luckily, there was a separate place for pets to spend the night, so that they wouldn''t attack anyone. This meant that Mercury didn''t need to go through the awkwardness of a dormitory. Before going to sleep there was a quick team building session on what fight to pick though; Juno and Mercury voted for the knight, Gladiator for trident-man, and Cherry and Second wanted to fight the twins. In the end, they settled on the mounted knight, since it should make it possible for Cherry to make effective use of her bow, and he would be near defenseless when his horse went down. The fact that the fight was happening the very next day instead of a little later may have helped sway Gladiator. Mercury stretched thoroughly when he woke up the next day. He quickly undid the latch on his cage before repeating the same on those of Juno, Gladiator and Second. It wasn''t a big deal for someone with human intelligence, though the other arena animals seemed very surprised by this, at least the ones who were already up. Mercury specifically went to sleep early in order to be able to do some warming up before the fight. That meant some physical stretches, such as running on the hamster wheel that was the appropriate size for him (there were actually even ones designed for things as large and heavy as elephants or something), stretching all his muscles out, doing some of the easier obstacle courses that had been prepared for pets and, of course, meditating to improve his control over his mana. In short, it was a full-scale physical and mental preparation phase. His companions also went through similar routines, putting in maybe even more effort than Mercury, though all with a different kind. Gladiator seemed to be ferociously sprinting through obstacle courses, his fur swaying in the wind as he kept improving his time. Juno was taking a more reserved approach, focusing on each obstacle and repeating it with sharp motions after analyzing it for a while in addition to some "image training" or something. That''s what Mercury thought when he saw her sitting with her eyes closed, at the very least. Second was also doing things his own way, focusing on simple routines of running and training to use different attacks on the target dummies with a cold determination about him. In a way, all of them were doing their best, which Mercury was more than happy to see. Sadly, their warm-ups were cut short after about an hour or so, when Cherry came into the room to get them. The door to the chambers for animals was usually closed and locked, so as to prevent any of the beasts to leave and harm the contestants, with only tamers being given the keys. There were actually multiple doors made of thick steel, just to be exceedingly safe. "You all set?" she asked. "Sure am," Mercury said. "Let''s go." After a short confirmation of the plan, the five of them walked up the stairs to the arena, waiting in front of the massive iron gate blocking their way into the sandy grounds. It was probably about two hours or so past sunrise, which was a little bit of an unusual time for Mercury to be up, given that mopaaws were usually nocturnal, but he didn''t much mind after having beaten his fatigue down with the warm-ups. After just a few seconds of waiting, they heard the loud voice of the announcer, probably amplified by a spell or item of some sort, as he yelled out the contestants. "Laaaaaaaadies and Gentlemen, slaves, workers and children, our dear spectators!! Today we are happy to welcome you to another spectacle of violence! It is time again for his royal self, the crowd favourite, sir Benks of castle Stern to make another appearance!! Today, he is approached by new challengers to the arena, a young tamer by the name of Cherry Silvers!! Will our fresh-blooded beauty be able to show off just how quick she is on her feet, or will she simply be trampled over by the sword-wielding Veteran?!! Now is your last time to place your your money where your mouth is, when the first blow hits, all bets are closed!!" With all the explanation out of the way, the gates finally rose. As Mercury stepped out into the field he was first blinded by the sun in the sky, but his eyes soon adjusted and he could see the figure of a knight in full plate armour across the arena. The horse was also clad in quite a bit of iron, making its charge probably more similar in strength to that of a bull. The knight on its back was carrying a large cavalry sword in one hand, probably prepared to mow his enemies down while passing them, and a shield in the other. The crimson feather on his helmet fluttered in the wind as he put his visor down and twirled the blade once. For just a second the audience seemed to hold their breath and the entire pit was woven with silence, before, with a loud shout the knight spurred his horse into a gallop while the group of animals around Cherry split up. Gladiator and Second went to the right, while Mercury was quickly moving to the left on Juno''s back - leaving Cherry the only one to face the knight''s charge directly, with her bowstring drawn as far back as it would go. The plan was simple. Cherry would act as bait for the knight, seeming like an easy, slow target. When the knight was focused on her, Gladiator would tackle the horse with all of his strength and bring it to the ground if he could, and stagger it if he couldn''t. Second would use the chance to leap onto the knight and throw him down, or, at the very least, distract him. Depending on the result, Juno would either try to pounce on the knight if he was on the ground or give Mercury a hand in getting to his face if he wasn''t. In the second case, she would go for the horse''s legs, trying to bring it down and stagger the knight. In their opinion, Cherry actually had the hardest role. She needed to act as bait and pick a good moment to make her escape to the side, too early and the knight would be able to change direction, too late and she might get trampled. In addition, the plan pretty muched hinged on her being targeted, so she also had to act as though she was slower than she actually was to throw the knight off. Luckily, their enemy was used to more normal combat. Seeing as familiars were usually bestial in nature, he wasn''t expecting them to show precise movements, and honestly, the largest one of them charging straight at him only confirmed this notion. Seeing that, he decided to increase the speed of his horse further to break through and attack the tamer, which would immediately end the combat and have the animals restrained. It was a plan aiming at a clean and fast finish. It was also a plan that helped Mercury out tremendously. As the knight sped up, a smile spread across Gladiator''s face. This was it - the excitement of battle that he loved so much. Surprisingly, it wasn''t dampened at all by the plan that they had set up; instead, Gladiator seemed to enjoy it a little more this way. Cheap shots, group tactics and outmaneuvering one''s enemy were also parts of combat to be mastered after all. So, when he saw the horse speed up, he changed his trajectory a little further to the right, gauging the distance he would still run before turning. The increased speed of the horse was actually handy for him, because this way it was galloping with all it had. There was no more room left to speed up in order to avoid him. And thus, after a few more seconds of running, Gladiator leapt. He sprung into the air and turned around at the peak of his jump, bending his legs as he landed to absorb the shock, and jumping off the ground back into a sprint, aiming straight at the point where his trajectory and that of the horse would meet. And then, when time slowed down after a few seconds of running, he put strength into his legs one more time, leaping off the ground as hard as he could and crashing into the horse''s armor with seemingly enough force to snap a small tree in half. He took the horse off its legs, cleanly even, with more strength than most bears, before landing on top of it. That very second, he could see Second fly over his head. His fur glistened in the sun, doing his title of "royal wolf" more than enough justice, but Gladiator cursed in his mind. The knight had reacted quickly and jumped up on the horse when it was taken down, so he wasn''t trapped under it. In fact, he was more agile than he looked, landing with a roll to slow his momentum and already swinging his sword when he saw Second coming at his face. Additionally, the horse was skidding across the ground, putting Gladiator out of range for now and forcing Cherry to sidestep if she didn''t want her feet swept away, throwing off her aim. Second barely managed to pull his leg out of the sword''s way, but this still netted him a gash across the ribs, the dripping blood staining the sand red. It also fucked up his landing, and with the sand sticking to his wound the pain got quite a bit worse. This also gave the knight the moment he needed to get back on his feet, which was unfortunate, but without a horse, his sword and shield were rather unwieldy. This slowed him down just enough for Juno and Mercury to sneak up behind him, with the former targeting the back of his knees with her claws and the latter using for just long enough to get some good damage in on the knight''s sword-arm. With their combined attacks, the knight was thrown off balance and face-first into the ground before being able to do serious damage to Second, and by the time this had happened, Gladiator was also back on top of the knight and Cherry had her shortsword at his neck. "And the winner issssssss¡­ CHERRY!! SILVEEEEEEERRRRSSSS!!!!" the announcer broadcasted, as the audience broke out largely into applause, with some of them grumbling due to lost bets. With smiles and sighs of relief, everyone sheathed their weapons and claws, Cherry helping the knight back to his feet. His knees had been injured, but Juno was more focused on throwing him off balance than incapacitating him, so his tendons were unharmed and he was able to stand with a little support, though he might have been grimacing under that visor of his. It was a solid victory for the newbies. They came up with a good plan and executed it. It wasn''t anything fancy, but the crowd was able to appreciate the insight and prep they had done for this fight. Also, they clearly weren''t the favourites, making the cheers even louder and their earnings higher, since the arena made more profit with this match. It netted them a Pale. It was quite a bit, given that their match wasn''t very high profile. Also, their lodgings and food was taken care of, so this was pure profit to use in their spare time, which was quite handy. But sadly, Mercury was a little dissatisfied, so after the cheers died down and the team was back in the main hall downstairs, they sat together in the not-so-petting zoo to have a little discussion. "Alright guys, we won our first match, which is good news, but let''s still have a quick check-up. Second, you feeling okay?" "I''m fine, Master. This is nothing but a scratch," the wolf said while looking at his now bandaged wound. The cut was shallow but fairly long, so it might deepen if he moved too much, meaning that he probably had to sit the next fight out. "Good. Take care to rest enough to recover thoroughly before throwing yourself in the way of danger again. Remember, jumping makes you predictable, keep your feet on the floor and stay nimble." After a quick nod from Second, he continued going on about things he only guessed about. Though he did think that his analysis was decent enough for an amateur. "Personally, I think I could have done more. I just kinda didn''t really help out much. Of course, the plan, sure, but in the fight itself, I think I need some more offense. Cherry?" "Maybe you do, but honestly, I could have easily avoided the horse," she said with a sigh. "I saw it coming at me, but it was sliding on the ground, so it''s not like it''s path was unpredictable. I panicked and jumped to the side, taking my eyes off the target. I could have easily just sidestepped and kept my aim sharp, that way I could have used a blunt arrow to prevent Second from being hit." Cherry was right in a way. She had little real combat experience, hunting was usually stealth based, after all, so she got hit by stage fright. In the future, she would probably have to focus some more on keeping a cool head, but at least she was taking steps in the right direction. Gladiator, on the other hand, might have had good battle sense, but he let his adrenaline get the better of him. "I think I was too hot-headed," he said slowly while gathering his thoughts, "I ran at the horse too fast and tackled it with too much force, sending the knight flying. Less force and he would have been thrown off balance instead of launched, and he would have landed in a worse spot. It also screwed up my landing, so I couldn''t bite him as much as I wanted to." He really was a meat head. Nothing about how it put him in danger, only about how he didn''t get to bite. A true fighter at heart. Second, on the other hand, hung his head in shame at his grave mistake. "Had I stayed on the floor I could have easily avoided the blow," he said, his voice laden with regret. "I could have tackled him, or bit his shoulder, knocking the him off his feet instead of wasting a precious opportunity. I would have also made for better bait that way. I apologize sincerely for my failure as a guard, Master." Second bowed his head after pointing out his flaws, showing humility and elegance at the same time. It was clear that he had given this topic some thought before, which was only logical with him being on the receiving end of an attack. "No, I must apologize, my liege," Juno said while also bowing her head. "If only I had been faster-" "Juno, we''re not doing that," Mercury interrupted with a soft voice. "You should strive to improve yourself, but simply saying that you were too slow won''t do any good. You didn''t make a mistake, because your role was to pounce when the enemy was on the ground. You''d have had more room for error had the horse not fallen, but with how things went, you did perfectly fine. Your speed is something to work on, not to lament." "Yes, my liege," Juno said, lowering her head a little further. "You can lift your head up by the way," Mercury said hastily before addressing the group again. "I''m really happy with how this went, honestly. I didn''t expect all of you to put this much thought into how to improve. This is a very welcome surprise. Well, our next match is coming up in three days, let''s be ready when the time comes!" And with that, the group split apart again, walking off in their own separate directions, unaware of the single curious glance being thrown at them from one of the other contestants. Chapter 19: Approaching magic Chapter 19: Approaching magic Overall, the arena fights went well. Mercury made quite a bit of progress trying out different roles on the battlefield, working even harder to fill the gap left by Second and keeping that same pace up when he was back. There was a simple reason for this. Mercury wanted to be a king who didn''t get his subjects hurt. He didn''t feel like being a figurehead with no power, nor did he want to be a king who only has money. He didn''t want to focus on bureaucracy or anything the like. He wanted to make a nation that was safe for those he wanted to protect, and he wanted to be able to protect those people. He wanted power to be a king, not be a king to get power. And in this world, that was possible. Stats made superhuman feats achievable, cutting down trees with single strikes wasn''t much of a challenge to powerful individuals. Heck, there were probably dragons and heroes who could split mountains somewhere out there. This came with a hefty downside too, though. If he wanted to protect everyone then he needed to also be able to beat those dragons and heroes, no matter what it took. This meant he needed to become stronger and thus, he spared no effort to become king. He partook in the fights and analyzed every step of his, seeing where he could optimize his movement. He had Cherry attach weights to him when he wanted to run and he kept them on almost permanently. He meditated until he fell asleep and then woke up early for the fight the next day, slowly growing out the veins of Mana in his body. And steadily, he was making progress. [You have acquired the , , , and Skills through specific actions!] [Your Skills and Abilities have levelled up: 15>, 3>, 2>, 2>, 3>!] Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 13 Species: Zetraspa Titles: , Hp: 90/90 Mp: 271/271 Sp: 160/160 Strength: 25 -> 29 Vitality: 16 -> 23 Dexterity: 29 ->37 (+1) Agility: 30 (+1) Intelligence: 40 -> 45 Wisdom: 34 -> 36 Willpower: 34 -> 51 Luck: 16 -> 17 Ability points: 57 World points: 5 Skill points: 760 Gold: 2914 Beast familiars: 3/2 (123/150) He also ended up increasing his mana by meditating, and even got bonuses to intelligence. Also, he got some Exp for pretty much everything he did to improve himself, be it working out or training his mana. He had made quite a bit of progress after a full month and was looking at his stats while eating. Mercury was quite proud of how far he had gotten, but he still felt like his progress was slow. It simply couldn''t compare to gaining Exp from killing monsters, which might explain why people who do so more often are stronger than average soldiers, who also have to take care of guard duty and such. Actually though, Mercury was still expanding the pathways for mana in his body as he was thinking and eating, putting his Skill to heavy use so soon after acquiring it. Unfortunately, he was also distracted from that fairly soon as the person in charge of feeding him today walked up to his cage after completing her round. It was dim in the room, but with he was still able to easily see the woman''s face, her golden eyes and hair, flowing down to her shoulder blades, and the sword she kept at her waist at all times. Then, he also noticed that she was wearing what looked like plate armour that was specifically tailored for her, unlike the armour the colsseum handed out. In short, he deduced that she had enough money to fund her own equipment, meaning she was probably some sort of big shot, so he appraised her. [A celestial human.] She was the very same person that stood out to Mercury in the very beginning as the only one of her race. Come to think of it, he had also never seen her fight in the arena¡­ "I know you can talk, little one." "Meow?" Mercury wasn''t entirely unfazed by what she said, but he wasn''t just about to reveal how they did their fights, so he feigned ignorance. His composure was definitely thrown off right then and there, given that they had always sought out corners or hidden places to speak with each other. It wasn''t entirely impossible for someone to have noticed, but in that case, why would they go to him instead of asking Cherry to teach them about taming methods? "I also know that you are trying to study magic," the woman calmly continued with a smile. "What I am offering you is mentorship, little one. I can show you how to channel mana like a mage, unlike those party tricks wizards study by heart. I believe that, with my help, you will be able to learn how to channel the energy gained from evaporating mana into-" "Alright, charade''s over. I''m listening, what do you want in exchange?" Mercury answered. It was clear that this girl wasn''t about to stop, and honestly, he wasn''t exactly in a position to turn down help if he didn''t want the building of his kingdom to take many more years. The girl replied with a slight smile. "Well then," she said while opening his cage door, "what happens to be your name?" "Mercury Rainfall Starlight. Yours?" "You may call me Teacher," she said, still maintaining her bright smile. "No." "Hm?" "I said no. I''m not calling you ''teacher''," Mercury said while hopping from his cage onto the floor and looking up at the girl. "Miss celestial. I''m grateful for you offering to teach me, really. Honestly, I also think I could greatly benefit from receiving some guidance. However, I absolutely and unavoidably refuse to call you ''teacher'', ''master'' or anything similar to that. " "This has a simple reason, really. I don''t want to be on a lower step from you in a hierarchy if I don''t know you. I don''t want to be put in a situation where it would be easy for you to take advantage of me, simply because you''re on a higher step. Been there and done that. I didn''t enjoy it, so I have to insist on you telling me your name." When Mercury was done, the girl shook her head a little. "Alright then, Mercury Rainfall Starlight. You may-" "Not ''may''. I also have a problem with that. Giving me permission to call you by a certain name again means that apparently you''re oh-so-much more important than me. Just tell me your name without ''graciously'' giving me permission to speak it." The woman froze for a second when Mercury interrupted her again and for the first time her bright, condescending smile changed into a somewhat more sinister one. "Alright then, Mercury. My name is Yvette Lumineux. I''m looking forward to working with you." Her slight bow genuinely sent shivers down Mercury''s back, but that wasn''t enough for him to step down. Not because he was brave, but because his words had been honest. So, instead, he nodded and gave her a small bow as well. "Don''t be too harsh on me." And with that, a slightly uneasy relationship was formed between Mercury and someone he''d have very mixed feelings towards in the future. From then on, the days in the colosseum seemed too short for him. There was a simple reason for that - Yvette''s expectations. She wasn''t okay with Mercury improving his magic level by 24 hours every single day. If he only brought forward the result of a simple 24 hours, she would get angry. This wasn''t of much physical consequence - she had tried taking Mercury''s food away, but he simply got it from Cherry or another tamer, and then told her to knock it off if she didn''t want him to leave. He knew she had some form of attachment to him, otherwise she wouldn''t teach him. After her first idea of punishment failed, Yvette tried other things. First she attempted yelling, then name calling, then expressing her disappointment, but nothing seemed to work. Mercury simply stared at her with a weird expression she couldn''t quite read before shaking his head and getting right back to practicing instead of taking new lessons. It wasn''t even that he was producing terrible results - he improved as much as if he did regular practice for quite some time even on his worst days, and he only had about 6 hours for magic. But Yvette didn''t allow herself to be softer on him, or be impressed by this. She saw his arrogance and wanted to knock him down a peg, even more so after seeing that look in his eyes that got clearer every time she resorted to anger. And eventually, she got angry for no reason anymore. She demanded more results from him when he was producing ones that went far above what she had wanted. After a month he sometimes managed to squeeze almost a day''s worth of practice into his few hours. His arrogance was justified, and so Yvette got even more furious with him. That look he gave her - it was inacceptable. It was degrading to be looked down upon by this inferior creature she''d decided to "help out" from the goodness of her heart. It was thankless, it was ruthless, it was condescending, it was-! Pity. Mercury looked at Yvette with nothing more than that. Every time she raged at him he sighed inside, knowing that her anger was futile. He knew it was because he wished to be treated like an equal when she so clearly felt superior, so he tried even harder to prove her wrong. He only slept for four hours every day, practicing his fine control by making walls in his core, splitting his mana into different puddles and then controlling those separately using . At the same time, he was spreading his mana veins further every waking second. While walking, while speaking, while fighting in the arena and while training he was pushing against the walls of his core and his veins, making new tunnels that spread to every inch of his body. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. But of course, this wasn''t enough for Yvette. So he also set aside part of his mana which he used not to practice his control or expand his mana vein. He evaporated it, gathered the energy created by it and used it in its simplest form: heat. He simply made his mana unstable and evaporate, creating energy that was released by the change in its form, and then he took that energy and converted it into heat. After having heated his body up this way for a while, Yvette came up with a new task for him, wanting him to take this heat and return it back into magical energy in order to cool something down. Of course, Mercury had to take a lot of time with this. He had barely learned to control his mana a handful of months ago and now he had to grasp not only it''s liquid state, but also its gaseous form and control the energy created by transforming it. When he first tried it, Mercury actually ended up leaking some of his mana. He brought it to the edge of his veins, had it evaporate and then focused on controlling the energy from there, not maintaining his mana, which resulted in some of the gas leaking out of tiny holes in his mana veins. So he had to add yet another task to the growing list of things to do simultaneously. The third page was the hardest out of all of them, from Mercury''s perspective. It wasn''t any harder or more grueling than the second, but there were problems he was encountering. First of all, his fatigue was accumulating and he got headaches faster every day. Secondly, Yvette''s screaming was starting to gnaw away at his nerves. He didn''t care about its contents, but hearing her screeching voice was not exactly pleasant. Third, his body was aching all over because of the mistakes he had made, and fourth, he couldn''t even sleep thoroughly anymore, since his dreams were also all about magic, and so he ended up unconsciously reviewing what he learned, even in those. It was enough for him to question his own movement forward multiple times. The medium pain, the fatigue, the yelling and the always-distant rest, it was simply weighing down on him. But then, on the seventh day of the third page, when he was just about to stop, he talked to Yvette again. "What in the seven hells is this?!", she screamed once more. "You call this ''precise''? ''Skillful''? Did you drink during practice?!" He was getting the feeling she only wanted to train someone to get her power fix, and now that he was neither allowing her to do so nor doing anything about her curiosity towards his past, she was getting more and more agitated with him. It was simply getting tiresome. "Seriously, this sorry excuse that you try to sell off as magic will never be enough. You want to be king? Jeez, honestly, if I were you I would give up on it already." Until she struck a nerve that is. [You are suffering through exceptional circumstances. You have been given the opportunity to accept a trial. Completion condition: Go through the training and come back stronger. Failure condition: Give up. Reward: 4 levels, 5 Ability points, Skill, Title. Penalty: Loss of 2 levels, 3 Ability points, regression of and . Accept?] Well, he''d be fucking damned. This wasn''t nearly as painful as his last trial of the exceptional headache, but it definitely was more tiresome on a mental level. But honestly, there was absolutely no chance he was going to turn this down. Accept, please! [You have accepted the trial. Good luck.] There, now he simply had no choice but to do it. A truly flawless stratagem indeed. And so, Mercury had found a new motivation to add to his list. First of all, there was gaining power to become a king, then power to protect, and power because magic was fun. Now there was also growth out of pettiness, and growth out of spite. And this was the point at which Mercury also started dreaming about his training-regime. When his head hit the pillow he''d pass out from mental fatigue, but after just a few moments of quiet darkness, his field of vision would change. He''d be looking at a vast green field, stretching endlessly towards the horizon, a castle of glass with spires piercing the heavens to the west. To the east he saw a sinister mountain range, with a large door built as an entrance, red-black mist always obscuring the area. To the north there was a citadel of fire, dying the everblue sky with a calming orange and to the south he could see nothing but a small fountain, his eyes drawn to it even over the distance. It was a surreal scene, but the weirdest part was his body. He didn''t have to envision his core in order to see it or focus on his mana. In this space, every fibre of his being was constructed from mana. He wasn''t tied down by muscles, skin or even a brain; instead, every single bit of his body was crafted from pathways of mana, making for a weird creature crafted from stone tubes in a vaguely cat-shaped form. The first time this was bizarre for Mercury, but since he was fully aware that he was dreaming, he decided to shake it off and instead use this opportunity and use it well. He did the same thing he always did, sat down, closed his eyes and blocked out any external stimuli, using to help him reach the state. He focused on checking out his body first, exploring every single tube that shaped him with droplets of mana to get a feel for their shape, and soon he found out that this weird new body of his was in the exact shape of his mana veins. So he figured that this was probably not fully a dream but had some grounding in reality, from which he then concluded that he could most certainly use it not only for relaxing, but also for training. And after that conclusion, Mercury went to work. He checked the condition of his core and saw that his mana was still split into several vats, each of them filled with the slightly translucent, silvery liquid, looking like a sheet of moonlight. Then, he started moving them, all separately of course, making them spin clockwise, counterclockwise or even creating a vertical current sometimes. Then, while doing that, he diverted part of his focus and mana to the expansion of his veins. He still knew the shape of his physical body very well and was also aware of where his limbs were in space, so creating mana veins that covered his normal, catlike body in this space wasn''t too big of a problem. Thus, he broke down part of the walls of his veins and made them regrow a little more quickly than they would on their own, by boiling some of his mana and using the magical energy for regeneration, while making sure not to let any of the gas leak out. While he was doing this at multiple places and keeping other parts of his mana moving using , he decided to also start with analyzing his surroundings and drawing mana from them. So, he focused on the air around him, if he could call it that, given that he was unsure if there was even air in this dream. He sensed the mana in it, before drawing some tiny droplets and particles towards him. And then, he found his limit. He couldn''t add any more tasks at this point, because he was already overexerting his mental strength. He was even unsure how he was thinking at this very moment, given that his brain was still asleep and probably incapable of thought processes as coherent as this. In any case, it was impossible for him to draw out any more thinking power in this scenario, so instead of trying to add additional tasks, he simply devoted all of his attention to what he was already doing. After only a little while, a light headache set in and his veins felt like they were heating up. After half an hour, the headache was stronger and his body felt sore, while the heat was getting stronger and he was feeling a little feverish. Then, when he kept going, he felt like the muscles all over his body had been overexerted, resulting in him feeling muscle pains all over and after an hour and a half in total, his headache and fever had progressed to a point where they were more than mildly distracting. But Mercury was motivated by pettiness and spite. Some growing pains weren''t going to stop him. He kept going, even with the headache growing ever stronger. Two hours after he started, his headache was overwhelming and he only managed to push it to the back of his consciousness by using , and thus adding another task to his ever growing list of things to keep track of. This resulted in his fever progressing even faster and his muscle pains becoming stronger as well. After two and a half hours he was panting heavily and his control over his mana was getting more than just shaky. He had to focus more on keeping the movement in control, rather than increasing his speed. By then he had to stop growing his mana veins because it just wasn''t quite feasible anymore, so he had retracted all his mana back to his core. This was a slight bit of relief, reducing the amount of tasks he was doing, but he was still more than overexerting himself, so his headache got even worse. After a little longer, he also stopped gathering mana from the air and focused only on maintaining the movement of the currents he had started in his core. Finally, after three hours, he decided to slow these down until they stopped, and even when his mana came to a halt, he could still feel it boiling inside of him because of just how hot his veins had gotten from the fever. Then, when he finally gave a sigh of relief, he forgot about holding the headache back for a second. And he was knocked out cold. Only half an hour later he woke up, feeling none of the strain that he had experienced in his dream but all of the benefits. Heck, the world even looked a little bit more colourful to him. [You have acquired the , , and Skills through specific actions!] [Your Skills and Abilities have levelled up: 3>, 16>, 5>, 3>, 3>] [Your max Mp have increased by 5] It was quite worth doing so. He was excited for Yvette''s reaction that day, especially since he still had quite some time left over. But first, there was something to do. They had a fight scheduled today, against a well known contestant who fought in what Mercury could only see as the clothing of a typical gladiator back in the roman empire. He wore metal protection on his sword arm, covering it all the way up to his shoulder, while leaving his other hand free so he could move his shield more easily. His head was covered by a metal helmet with large, red feathers and a full-face visor, his eyes protected by metal lattice. He had a leather chestplate covering a large part of his torso as well as leather shin guards. He carried a shortsword in his right hand and a rectangular shield in his left. This style of armor made it possible to defend against many kinds of attacks, the shield being useful for blocking arrows, swords, and spears while still leaving him with enough mobility to dodge heavy hammers or axes. The shortsword was perfect for stabbing from behind protection, making it especially useful against lunging beasts, and would also do a good job at hacking and cutting if he needed it to. In short: their opponent was an all-rounder who had trained against the arena''s beasts for a long while, and used equipment suitable to dealing with them. It was a tricky fight, for sure, and while they could probably get away with pack tactics, they didn''t want to risk that. However, the strategy was decided when someone intervened in the middle of the discussion. "I want to fight him," Gladiator said. "Not with anyone''s help either. I want to use this fight as an opportunity to learn how to deal with human opponents. The ones that came into the forest were usually hunters so I hardly got the chance to go up against anyone using a sword, especially someone who''s well versed against beasts. I want to fight him. One on one, nothing else." Mercury thought for a bit about this. It was a bit dangerous, and definitely borne from Gladiator''s love towards danger, but not an outlandish idea. It also made sense to let Gladiator, or rather the wolves in general, get some experience against opponents that had animals figured out. Though he''d have to come up with countermeasures in case something went wrong¡­ "I agree with Gladiator," Juno interjected before Mercury got to say anything. "It makes sense for us to get used to fighting against humans and-" "Guys, it''s fine. I agree with y''all. If you have ideas, just bring them up. Me thinking doesn''t mean no," Mercury said while shaking his head a little. "You can fight him, one by one. If you''re about to get hurt badly, everyone else will step in. After a full rotation you can challenge him again if you want to, at the very least as long as he still has stamina left. Sounds good?" After confirming everyone''s opinion, the group split up again, everyone going about their own practice routines. Cherry was now also training harder with every passing day, having moved on from archery practice on targets to sparring matches between herself and other arena challengers. She was focusing on close-combat using just her body, as she didn''t want to lose too much time from drawing a weapon. First, she had simply practiced on the dummys and punching bags in the gym-area, but soon after, some guys trying to show off had approached her and after some thinking, she gleefully accepted the challenge - before promptly having her ass handed to her. The first match ended with her sitting on the floor with tons upon tons of bruises. She had managed to avoid being hit for a while, but she never managed to get a good hit on the guy she was fighting. However, the next day she went up to the same clique again and asked for a rematch, only to be handed more bruises along with laughter. The next day, they laughed a little less. Not because Cherry had improved a lot, her movements were really just getting worse from the bruising, but because they were just confused as to why she kept challenging them, especially always demanding to fight against the same guy. After a week, one of them decided to ask. It was a lean, dark-skinned man, wearing leather armor with chainmail joints and a small chainmail shirt to protect his torso and neck. He had short, curly hair, blue eyes, thick lips, and a deep and mellow voice. He simply asked why she kept going, but Cherry couldn''t help but smile. "It''s crazy, isn''t it?" she asked. "I stand no chance but I keep coming back every day. I get bruises and add some more on top of those before even having healed up, heh. I might seem crazy to you guys, and quite frankly, I can''t fully deny the possibility. But I want to keep up with my friends, that''s all. They''re all training hard, so I have to make sure I don''t fall behind, so could you maybe give me another match?" And when Cherry started getting up from the floor again, the black man spoke with a smile. "Let me teach ya a thing or two, kid." A handful of hours later, the group joined forces again, this time at the foot of the stairs leading up into the arena. With quick nods, they made their way up, waiting in the small chamber for the gate to open and then stepping out into the bright afternoon sun, accompanied by the roaring cheers they had gotten so accustomed to. On the other side of the arena, their opponent stepped into the light, The iron and bronze parts of his armor glistening as he silently raised his sword into the sky, before pointing it at his opponents. In the bright light his oiled skin looked like hammered copper and his smile was beaming out, even from under the helmet. And then, they heard the announcer again. "Ladies, Gentlemen and everyone in between! We are happy to welcome you yet again to this sacred battleground for one of our most highly discussed rounds yet! Today, I present to you the battle between two contestants whose names I need not even mention, for everyone knows them by now!!! It''s the rookie who took this place by storm, the tamer and hunter commonly known for never getting hit, "Bloodfang" Cherry Silvers!!! But her opponent this round is not a simple one. A fighter who has braved the storms of the arena many times and returned sometimes bruised, sometimes scathed, but more often unharmed. A man who fights against beasts, humans and anything else he deems worthy of a look, the one we here know to be the "All-slayer", Cerno!! " "Today, only one of these will leave the arena with glory in their grasp, but who will it be?! I believe it''s time to place your bets folks, strike quickly, while the iron is still hot, because now, the battle¡­ BEGINS!!!" And then, with a huge roar from the crowd, two parties stormed at each other in a blaze of sand. Chapter 20: One hell of a finale Chapter 20: One hell of a finale The first one to rush in was, as usual, Gladiator. He snarled at the charging fighter for a moment, then looked at Mercury and began his run as soon as he received a nod. It only took a few seconds until he and Cerno met each other on the field of sand, but when Gladiator expected a collision, he saw his enemy place his feet down firmly and stop his momentum by stabbing the shield into the sand, before hiding all his exposed body parts behind it. But for Gladiator, the image of a man hiding behind a shield vanished in an instant. All he could see was himself charging towards a wall that would grow spikes as soon as he made it a step closer. Luckily, he had been training with obstacle courses, so instead of being trapped in his straightforward charge towards a guillotine, he harshly kicked the ground with his hind legs and turned his momentum to the right. Then, when he was on the side of Cerno, he started running towards that shield again, abruptly turning around when he got close, and kicking sand towards him. It was an attempt at blinding him, but unfortunately it failed, as Cerno simply ducked behind the shield again. Gladiator was trying to make use of his superior Agility in this fight, since his opponent was still a human, giving him the advantage with his four legs. However, after having recognized he''d only be forced to face one foe, Cerno had quickly entered a defensive position that made it hard to approach him. If Gladiator jumped at the man, his belly would be stabbed. If he charged, he''d be blocked by the shield, unable to even damage the man''s arm since the ground would absorb a large amount of the shock. If he tried to enter close combat, he''d be kept at an arm''s length and have to deal with stabbing and slashing attacks. No matter how he thought about this, Gladiator disliked the situation. He couldn''t make any fancy move or find a good angle of attack, since his enemy was using tactics to bait him while remaining patient. It was annoying, but this was what he wanted to experience. If it was an enemy well versed in dealing with beasts, he''d simply have to surpass his expectations. Right now he was being treated as a medium sized foe that could be kept away with a solid stance. Gladiator wanted to use this to his advantage. He moved closer to the enemy while keeping his head low to the ground and snarling, making sure to look as feral as possible. In addition, Gladiator made sure to steadily step towards Cerno''s blind spot. This forced the veteran to turn with Gladiator, slowly using more of the shield to cover himself as the wolf grew closer. Gladiator wasn''t actually trying to attack his blind spot though. He wasn''t trying to get behind his back either. He was trying to make him wary and even more defensive, and when he succeeded, he pounced. Not on Cerno himself, but on the shield. The shield was made largely from metal and slightly curved along the sides in order to deflect blows. This was done so that it wouldn''t have to be made especially thick or heavy, but in order to protect against piercing attacks, there was another layer of wood behind the curved sheet of iron. This shield was Gladiator''s target. He wouldn''t be able to shred through it, especially because of the curve, but he might be able to dent, and eventually break it if he just smashed against it with his skin. And so, Gladiator waited until Cerno ducked, before swinging one of his paws at it with as much force as he could muster, only to be surprised and knocked off balance. Cerno didn''t take the hit. He ducked to the side and then took two more steps, placing himself on Gladiator''s left in the blink of an eye, before smashing the shield into him, sending the wolf tumbling. He could do so because the slits in his helmet were made to hinder the enemy from seeing where he was looking. He had baited Gladiator, start to finish, and now it was time for the killing blow. His sword sliced through the air. The only thing stopping him was the hissing of an arrow making its way towards his chest rapidly, forcing him to block it and take a step back from Gladiator, and within a moment, the wolf he had been fighting was gone. The one replacing it was a little smaller, with grey fur, slowly and careful prancing around him in a circle. The larger, black one had retreated to Cherry''s side, right next to the mopaaw she kept carrying along. The wolf he now saw in front of him seemed quite a bit faster and more elegant, even though there was a hint of curiosity and mischief in its step. He could tell this one wasn''t a simple beast at first glance. It was most likely smart enough to find any gaps in his defense and would ruthlessly exploit them. He needed to treat this one more carefully, since baiting her probably wouldn''t work. So, to solve this, Cerno took a more offensive approach. The defensive stance wouldn''t work if the wolf jumped over him or ran past him faster than he could turn. He needed to get the first hit in. The moment Cerno''s legs began moving, Juno smiled inside. This was the very moment she had been waiting for. Exploiting his defense would have been possible, but risky, while this way she would most likely be able to play him somehow. She might be able to counter him once he swung his sword or- swoosh While Juno was still thinking, Cerno managed to swing his sword after having hidden it behind the shield, leaving Juno with only a split second to dodge the attack. She first ducked downward and then rolled to her left in order to avoid Cerno, but by the time she was back on her feet she could only see the steel blade hissing towards her face again, only stopping when Cerno was forced to dodge Mercury flying in from his right. Juno immediately used the chance to back off by a few steps, and only then released the breath she had been holding in. Cerno had fooled her by making her believe he was slow and then suddenly accelerating, while also hiding half of his attack behind the shield. She was, quite clearly, outmatched, but she could also see the confusion in his stance. His head was turned towards Mercury and not focused on her. Juno pounced without a moment of hesitation, crossing the distance in the blink of an eye, before biting down on Cerno''s left leg as hard as she could. For a split second the hardened leather of his boots resisted her teeth, but it soon gave in and she was able to dig her teeth into his flesh. Unfortunately, he didn''t make the mistake of trying to shake her off. He stood still and kicked the bitten leg into the sky before she could start shaking her head in order to shred it, immediately lifting her off the ground and forcing Juno to let go when he stabbed towards her. She barely managed to escape the attack unscathed, but if it had hit, she would have most likely lost her eye. After taking a look at Mercury, who then shook his head, Juno withdrew from the battle, having scored only a minor victory. Finally, it was Second''s turn. The battle hadn''t lasted very long until now, two minutes at best, even considering the short breaks where not much happened, so Cerno wasn''t even out of breath yet. He was panting, of course, but nowhere near exhausted, and when he saw a new opponent, he welcomed it with a smile. Second, on the other hand, didn''t quite know how to face this new enemy. He couldn''t outspeed him, nor overpower him. He was inferior in technique as well, and he had only a moderate amount of practice against humans. After seeing Gladiator and Juno fail, he also didn''t quite have high hopes for his trump card, but at the very least the enemy was now injured. He had no choice but to use this injury to his advantage. As unfair as it was, Second didn''t really have another option, especially since he didn''t have the means to make the fight drawn out. A single hit could mean defeat on either side. He wasn''t strong enough to survive a blow from a sword and his enemy couldn''t survive a wolf biting his neck. So, Second knew what he had to do. Make the enemy comfortable in their own skin, then suddenly overwhelm them. After sorting out his thoughts for a moment, Second focused back on the field, where only a few meters from him, he saw Cerno, the sand under his feet dyed red. And then, after the moment the two of them held their breath, they ran towards each other. For a moment, Cerno hesitated when he felt the pulsating pain in his leg, but it didn''t matter now. This was only the start of the battle, and he knew he wanted to win this. No, he had to win this. If he lost, that would mean his reputation was gone. He would have been nothing more than a stepping stone for a rookie, a shame that would make him a laughing stock among the other contestants. So, he pushed forward, looking at the wolf''s legs and eyes to predict where it would strike. First, he blocked a bite aimed at his arm, which he countered with a quick knee to the wolf''s belly that was exposed during the upwards-facing attack. Then, he struck down with the pommel of the sword, aiming for the beast''s skull, only to be avoided narrowly. Another bite came flying towards his neck when the wolf lunged, but Cerno easily brushed this one aside by simply bashing the thing''s nose with his shield, leaving it to let out a pained howl. Then, he countered another attack towards his legs, by stepping back and smashing his shield downwards onto the beast''s neck, pinning it to the ground. This was it. The moment he had been waiting for had finally come. He had one of them trapped in a chokehold with nowhere to go, only letting out groans. This was the moment he stabbed down his sword and pierced the wolf''s chest. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. But he had miscalculated. When he raised his arm to stab downwards with the sword, he had to uncomfortably turn his sword arm, to avoid having to use reverse-grip, which slowed the attack down a little. Second used this small window and let out a feral roar as he began boiling and moving his mana through the crude tunnels that led through his body. It was just a short moment that filled him with power, but a moment was all he needed. He shook off the shield and tackled Cerno to the ground, before biting the man''s right forearm and wrestling it to the ground, making him unable to swing his sword. Then, the very next moment, when Cerno''s eyes lit up with fear and he moved his left to strike at Second with his shield, There was a human leg on his other arm. "You lost," said a voice high above him, the figure''s head looking almost as though it reached the clouds and only its pink eyes visible clearly against the bright light of the sun. And with those additional pairs of eyes watching his every move, Cerno stopped his struggle. "I surrender," he said in a gruff, shaky voice. "I surrender!" And after a short breath of silence, the crowd erupted into cheers. - - - - - - Immediately after the battle, a review followed. And all of our favourite wolves got a good scolding on unnecessary risks. And almost killing themselves. Well, it was to be expected, really. They did fuck up, quite a lot too. Then, Second was praised for acquiring . It may only be a weak form and have taken him the better part of the season, but he had still done it. That being said, as soon as she found out what Second did, Juno also wanted to learn how to do it, and so Mercury spent the remainder of the time walking her through the steps. Meanwhile, Cherry was returning to her sparring, and Gladiator to his workouts. Unbeknownst to them, their time was just about to be cut short. It happened during one of Yvette''s screaming fits. [By braving extraordinary circumstances the individual has received additional rewards. Get: 4 levels, 5 Ability points, Skill, Title.] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] Huh? Had he done something special? Was his training over because he was more skillful than Yvette? Naaaaaaaah, that was a joke. She was like, number 3 on the local fame leaderboard. Apparently those were always tied to areas. Well, in this city she was number 3 at the very least. crack From one moment to another, a cloud of dust raised up from the wall as a crack spread across the stone bricks and the ceiling shook. Yvette paused then. For the first time since she started teaching Mercury, she stopped during a rage and stared at him. Her lips moved then, but the sound was overshadowed by the ringing of the church''s bell. Then, her face shook as her eyes grew clear. "RUN FOR YOUR FUCKING LIFE!!!!!" She screamed after three rings, as another crack in the wall shook the very floor. "IT''S A BLOOD ECLIPSE!!" And as wings of radiant, gold-white light rose from Yvette''s back, Mercury took off, not even taking the time to breathe. It wasn''t just Yvette''s warning either. His sudden levelling meant that the training was over, and his was screaming at every single one of his muscles to book it. So, Mercury did just that, his thoughts buzzing like a swarm of bees. In the confusion, he tried calling out to Cherry and the wolves, but as he raised his voice, he was almost trampled by a pair of leather boots. Then, when he dodged one, he saw many pairs near him, running towards the narrow exit in the hundreds. Mercury started panting as he ran away from the stampede of muscle-brains that made their way to the exit. He had seen it, and there was no way out anymore, only a wall of flesh. While Mercury was still thinking, the walls kept shaking and dropping down tiny pieces of debris, making breathing more painful every second as dust filled the air. Simply put, Mercury''s time was running out, so he dashed towards the only other place leading to the surface: The stairs leading up into the cage that was the arena. It was a desperate escape attempt, but he didn''t quite have another choice. This path also had a few stragglers on it, but it was easy enough to make his way through them and enter the field of red-brown sand, stained by the blood from hundreds of fights. But the walls were high and smooth. If the beasts that fought here would escape, it would end up with a lot of spectator deaths, so they were made to be unclimbable. But then, when Mercury was looking up at the obstacle he was now facing, he saw the sky. It should have been midday then, but the sun was nowhere to be seen. The sky, which should have been blue, was dyed crimson, filled with black clouds. The sun itself had been wiped away and replaced by a blood-red circle, dyeing the world scarlet. Everything around him was a sea of red, growing darker bit by bit as the light was being swallowed by a sea of black blood. Then, the singing started. It was a crystal clear voice among the chaos. A woman, slowly speaking line after line with the voice of an angel promising salvation. "This little sea of scarlet~ Lets me tear the world apart, yet~ When it''s done I will still stand~ On top a barren, beaten land~" For a moment everything seemed to halt. A strange silence befell the world as the walls stopped cracking and every voice grew still. It was like everyone had been bewitched for just a moment. And after that moment, the screams began. There wasn''t any build up. Within one moment, rifts tore open in the air. Jagged, scarlet doorways, filled with black mist, that the abominations crawled out of. Things with wounds all over their bodies, whose joints bent all the wrong ways and whose faces had no features other than large mouths lined with sharp teeth and two holes above those. For a moment, they scurried from the portals onto the floor, bringing their heads to the red sand and sniffing it, before all of their heads locked onto different people. Then, they let out long, infernal screeches, and some people fell. The unlucky ones were immediately pounced upon, while the luckier ones followed suit soon. The monstrosities wasted no time crawling over the floor with all four limbs, their heads turning at unnatural angles and their nails acting more like claws. And when they got close to the survivors, they screamed again before jumping at their faces and latching onto the people with a surprising strength. And in the chaos the voice started singing again. "And these little eyes of mine, they see a little fate of thine. They see death, and they see carnage~, a river of blood, yet to be tarnished~ carrying your life within, and dragging it, into the pit." And as the end of the song distorted, changing in tone from a little girl''s voice to that of a monster, the screams started dying out, leaving behind nothing but bodies. There were no heroes here. There were cowards, or corpses. Mercury was part of the first group. He belonged to the minority that resisted the charm from the singing. If it gave him a window of movement, he would exploit it, so in the moment of silence, he coursed mana through his legs and leapt up the wall with all his strength. And then, he ran. When the rifts tore open in the air, he kept running. When the screams sounded, he kept running. The air he breathed was thick with the smell of iron. It fogged up his mind and clouded his thoughts, but his instinct kept his feet moving. He didn''t remember what happened then. Not how he got out from the viewers'' stands, not how he had made it through the city, not how he made it past the¡­ things. The next thing Mercury knew was the sight of the city from outside the gates. It was an opaque bubble of crimson and void, encasing the entire thing and blotting out the sun. and outside of it, only a few people remained. Were they especially skillful? Partially. Yvette had escaped and Cerno made it out as well, if both covered in black blood. Maybe Kintra, the guild receptionist, was also strong, but given her panting, crying, and broken pair of glasses, Mercury couldn''t tell. Mercury couldn''t see Cherry or the wolves among the escapees, but given the size of the bubble, they might have been on the other side. Though when Mercury tried to move, he re-discovered the singing pain in his legs. For a moment his vision went blurry, as tears filled his eyes. All he wanted to do was rest, but he couldn''t allow himself to. Yet, after another attempt at movement, a blunt blow struck his side. It wasn''t strong, but it hurt like hell. His body had been ravaged by his own mana, and he might have suffered cuts and bruises from running as well. Even a light slap would have been enough to knock him off his feet by now, and a small tap was enough to have him spiral into agony. "Give it up," he heard a voice say. It was female, gentle and golden. Yvette. "You''re lucky you even survived." But of course, pain wasn''t something that stopped Mercury easily. He clenched his teeth and gathered the last bits of his mana, boiling it just so his legs could even move. His head was assaulted with a pounding headache, but Mercury didn''t even care. Instead of even flinching, he remained cool-headed as his muscles started screeching. He made sure to do this as efficiently as possible, directing his mana to all the injured parts of his body and only boosting those in order to allow them to perform normally. At the same time, he was racking his brain on what to do. Storming in was off the table, so were screaming for help, giving up and clinging to false hope. So what were his options to help them escape? ¡­ ... He couldn''t come up with anything. If they were in that thing, there was nothing he could do to help. Sure, if they got out he might have been able to give them water or food, but he didn''t even know if they were alive. The situation was, well, hopeless. And within a moment of that realization, Mercury''s focus evaporated. His mana, which he''d been using to barely keep his muscles operating, dispersed. It was an event that many wouldn''t care about. The inability to help might cause others to feel sadness or frustration, maybe annoyance, and maybe anger, but even then they''d be happy to have lived. Mercury had none of those thoughts. He wasn''t angry or frustrated, not even sad. But with a silent crack, his world crumbled. He was never omnipotent, but every challenge up until now had been doable in this world. This was a world of opportunity. One of trial, but one of opportunity. Ah, so that must be the reason. He knew it, as he fell to his knees with his mouth open. There had been no trial about the blood eclipse for a stupid reason. There was no trial, because there was no chance of success. This wasn''t a test or a challenge. It wasn''t judgement, but a simple, crushing stroke of bad luck. And within a moment, Mercury''s world crumbled and his will cracked. "You finally get it, asshole?" Yvette asked with a grim look on her face. "It''s the end of the fucking road for them. Give it up." "S-she isn''t wrong," Kintra said after a moment. It seemed that she had collected her thoughts, as she now wore a dreary expression instead of a confused one. "Y-you really shouldn''t go back in there. Just¡­ leave it be, as much as it may hurt." Even Cerno nodded without a sound, knowing that even he had relied more on luck than his skill in this situation. The only person that didn''t make it out just barely was Yvette; a testimony to how far above them she was. Mercury didn''t have enough energy left to move a muscle in his face, but if he did have it, he''d most likely have frowned. And then it ended. The crimson faded, the orb of dark disappeared, the sky regained its colour all the way through and the sun shone on ruins of blood. The voice hadn''t been kidding. This was a sea of dead and blood, only partially metaphorically. Mercury didn''t know where all of it even came from, as it looked like there were more bodies than there should have been people in the city. But it didn''t matter. Whatever the reason was, it didn''t matter. Even if the sky had cleared, the ground was tainted. Tainted red. Skin, and bone, stick and stone, all of it had been tainted, leaving behind a remedy more gruesome than just ashes. It was a blood eclipse, a phenomenon that occurred temporarily. But in the end, the scar it left was near eternal. A bloody stain on the world. A stain left by someone Mercury was now determined to meet. Chapter 21: Heart(ache) Chapter 21: Heart(ache) Seeing Mercury after the eclipse might have been crushing for Gladiator, Juno, Second or Cherry. He was in a sorry state, to say the least. After having their home destroyed, the survivors of the eclipse didn''t have much of a choice on what to do. Their fields and family were gone, the city destroyed, and the soil tarnished with bodies. Rebuilding was nigh impossible, and with the memories still clinging to this place, they instead opted to move to the next city. On this journey, Kintra carried Mercury in her backpack. She felt a little responsible, since she had given him his license crystal, but that wasn''t her only reason. She found him interesting to study, and also quite cute. Yvette, on the other hand, decided to take on the lead, since the knights'' captain and the duke were nowhere to be found. It seemed she had already abandoned Mercury in her mind, as her eyes were focused only forwards. Mercury himself did as he was told, really. He ate when asked and walked when asked, though he still seemed to prefer taking the journey in the backpack. He didn''t resist when Kintra pet his head either. All in all, he was simply listless. He didn''t speak a word for the entire journey. And by the time they had arrived at the next city, he hadn''t changed much physically or mentally. Kintra got new glasses and a post at the godseeker guild there. Yvette simply moved on, and Cerno decided to pursue a career as a trainer. The name of the city they had moved to was Treyno. It was further to the southhwest than the last one, putting it at a fairly safe distance from the war in the north. As such, it was relied on for production of soldiers and supplies though, which made it a hard, peaceful life - except for Mercury. His listlessness didn''t come from just survivor''s guilt; every day and every night he was haunted by nightmares. He saw the rifts opening in front of him, saw those things crawl out of them and scream. In his dreams he died countless times every night, unable to wake up. But in the end, it didn''t change that they were dead. His friends were dead, so what was the point of being afraid of death? Making and losing more of them? Living for their sakes? What a joke. The dead were just dead. They no longer had any will. They didn''t watch. They couldn''t. Death was absolute. It was a border so clearly cut, Mercury couldn''t dream of chasing after his friends. But he thought that he also couldn''t allow himself to die, since maybe, in life, he would be able to repent. And thus, his nightmares grew longer every day. The nights stretched from hours to days. His willpower was strong enough to conjure eldritch nightmares, but he couldn''t be bothered to continue forward. It was- "Pathetic," one of the kids passing by on the streets said once. No movement. He didn''t move when the kid made fun of him and didn''t move when her brother said that she was being mean. He didn''t move when he pet his head and didn''t care when he waved and left. He didn''t move when they started throwing rocks at him and he didn''t move when Kintra bandaged his wounds. She really tried, too. Kintra had always maintained a smile while near Mercury, partially for his sanity, and partially for her own. She had taken care of him as well as she could, seeing him as a comrade. She was kind. Loving, even. She bandaged his wounds while telling him to take care each time. She gave him food and even fed it to him on the many days he didn''t care to do so himself. She talked to him about her new life every day, too. Everything interesting was told to him, be it a godseeker who managed a good hunt, a newbie who just registered, or the arrival of a somewhat famous seeker in town. And at night, when she heard his breathing quicken, she would get up and pet his head gently, until he slowly calmed down again. Every morning she''d prepare sweetened milk for him, taking care to wake up before he did and prepare it early enough. But through all of it, Mercury remained listless, almost as if he was spitting in the face of her efforts. It wasn''t his intention, though. He just didn''t care. Couldn''t care. But even if his will was shattered, his heart was still his own. Not that of a failure, not that of a tyrant, and not even that of a king. It was his own, that of someone who chose their own path. The heart of Mercury. It wasn''t on purpose. It was a normal day, really. The girl who was the ringleader stopped in front of the guild as usually, the sun in her back. She wore a red, buttoned shirt, brown, leather pants and a cap of the same colour. She had brought other kids this time, and they started mocking him, as usual. Mercury was still neatly bandaged and clean, but he had definitely been through the wringer. He was thin and fragile looking, even with the meticulous care Kintra put into making sure he was clean and fed. Still, at this point, it didn''t matter. His mind was in his nightmares anyways, until the moment when the girl picked up a rock. Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. She lightly threw it at Mercury almost like it meant nothing, but this time, her little brother stepped in front of the rock. He had closed his eyes and shut his lips tightly, expecting it would hurt even with how weakly it had been thrown. But the hit never came. Instead, in front of him he saw a white cat with pinkish stripes. It was just as wounded as it had been before, but this time there was no new bruise. "Hey," Mercury croaked with a hoarse voice. "What we-" "What were you thinking?!" the girl interrupted Mercury. "You could''ve gotten hurt, Mei! Why did you step in to protect that filthy thing?!" And the boy, Mei, didn''t answer. He only started bawling and sobbing. Mercury had yet again made someone sad, but this time he was frustrated. He was able to ignore Kintra''s guilt. She was taking care of him, sure, but that was also her way of coping. It wasn''t a freely given favour, at least that''s what he told himself. But this kid had done him a favour freely. Unprovoked. Hell, the boy didn''t even know he was anything but an ordinary cat. Because of that, he had paid that debt back immediately. Owing someone wasn''t great, being owed, on the other hand, was awesome. If he learned anything from capitalism, it would have to be that. So, since his debt was settled, he laid back down on the mat Kintra had put out from him, but he couldn''t even enjoy the sunlight, since the girl in red stepped in front of him again. "Disgusting," she said, looking down at Mercury. It didn''t bother him much, but when she spoke again, it sure did. "You almost made me hurt my brother, mopaaw. I won''t forgive that." How was this his fault? How fucking self-centered was this brat? He was already having a depression from just losing everything he had built in the last few months, and now this kid thought she had the moral high ground after throwing rocks at him? Mercury wasn''t frustrated with the girl anymore by then, instead, he was now angry. He was being accused of something he never did, by someone who had no right to even judge him. But with a sigh, he resigned himself again. The girl was just a kid, he couldn''t really expect her to treat what she might view as "just an animal" like an equal. So he decided to ignore her, when he felt the tip of her boots tap his side. "I''m talking to you, mopaaw. What do you think you''re doing making my brother cry, huh? You think you can do what you like? Dirty stray. I''ll show you." As the girl continued, her tapping got harder bit by bit and by the time she reached the end of her sentence, she raised her foot to kick him. This was the end of the line for Mercury. He viewed all the rocks and hits he had gotten up until now as punishment for how he abandoned his friends. For how he didn''t help them, how he wasn''t good enough, how he had failed. He saw them as just and fair, because there was something he had to atone for. But this time there wasn''t. This brat was about to kick him for something he never did. For thoughts he never had. It was entirely unjustified and unfair, without any rhyme or reason to it. And thus, he refused to be hit. He knew the girl was probably around level 1. She was a kid, so she didn''t have much time to raise it, and she wouldn''t have gained much exp from combat. Maybe she had killed a few insects and spiders, heck, even a mouse or two. But it couldn''t compare to the amount and intensity of the training and fighting Mercury had done. Still, his Strength wasn''t very high for his given level and his Hp was low, so he couldn''t take the hit lightly at all. So, in the split second it took to raise her foot, Mercury decided to allocate 20 of his saved points to Strength. Strength: 25 -> 45 And then, when the girl kicked, Mercury braced his legs and raised a paw to meet her foot. And he stopped it. The girl was thrown off balance and stumbled back two steps, only to give him a confused look alongside all of the other kids. Even Mei had stopped crying and was just looking at Mercury now. And then, he laid back down, closed his eyes and enjoyed the few seconds of sunlight he got, before being lifted off the ground by another kick. The girl couldn''t believe she had failed, and so she kicked Mercury again, right in the stomach, making him spit out some saliva when he was sent into the air. Unfortunately, his landing also wasn''t very graceful and since the kick was hard and unexpected, he thought there were probably some cracks in his ribs. This made Mercury''s vision blur a little bit when the girl came in for another kick. Mei was still too stunned to react, but Mercury had been attentive this time, listening to as well. So when the kick came, Mercury was back on his feet and raised a paw to stop it again. Feeling the pressure go through his body hurt a lot more, now that he had a fresh injury, but he grit his teeth again and stopped the kick, even if it led to him sliding back a few feet. With a stunned look on her face, the girl paused for a moment, but then she scrunched up her eyebrows and went in to hurt Mercury again. His defense seemed to make her even more angry, sending her into a childish rage as her superiority was challenged. In any case, Mercury was reaching the end of his patience, so he decided to put in a little effort. He coursed his mana, boiling a small part it and condensing the magic power in his legs so he wouldn''t be pushed back. He also reinforced his torso and chest specifically, so that his ribs and muscles would be strengthened, in order to absorb and survive the shock. And when the running kick came in, Mercury raised one of his front paws, pumped it chock full of mana and magical power and stopped the kid in her tracks. It was a good kick, too, she hit him just when she started extending her leg and arching it upwards. It might have sent him flying again if he had been lying down, but he wasn''t. He didn''t move an inch, staring right at the kid as the look of confusion on her face slowly turned into fear. Instinctively, she tried pulling her foot back, but Mercury extended his claws, holding on to her shoe. While she should have been easily able to pull him, since he was lighter than her, his usage of mana prevented that from happening. For a moment, the girl lost more of her balance and almost fell, before catching herself and tugging on her leg again. Then she tried again and then a few more times, slowly she seemed more scared and almost panicked at the thought of what would happen next. But Mercury decided to stop there. He simply retracted his claws, turned around, and walked back as the girl fell onto her ass from her leg suddenly being freed. And for a moment, he enjoyed the peace and quiet. It was a good feeling, having shown a kid the consequences an action can have without actually hurting them. And it was absolutely worth the points, too. At that very moment, his heart formulated a desire by itself, without Mercury even noticing. It wasn''t a grandiose one, like ruling over hundreds of peers or being the strongest in the world. Heck, he didn''t even necessarily want to fight in the war. His desire was entirely different from that. It culminated into a single message of the system. [You have accepted the trial. Completion conditions: Beat your slump and move forward. Failure conditions: Fall back into depression. Reward: Skill. Penalty: .] Well. It would seem that this time he wasn''t given much of a choice, but did that really matter when he already decided? Mercury smirked a little to himself. Right, this was okay. It was time anyways. Time for Mercury Starlight Rainfall to take the steps back up on stage. Chapter 22: Steady Heart, Calm Soul Chapter 22: Steady Heart, Calm Soul Unfortunately for Mercury, he didn''t quite know where to start. I mean, what was there for him to do? He couldn''t really stop all evil in the world. He couldn''t stop the war. He couldn''t start a country. There was a simple reason for that: His weakness. He had no money, no connections and little to no strength of his own. In the end, all he had was the effort he was willing to put in. There was really only training to do. Mental exercises he could repeat eternally in order to improve his multitasking ability. He also had a few things that might help him with that, namely and . Appraisal, please! [: A Skill which provides very subtle buffs. It allows the owner to comprehend things more quickly and improve their mental capacities faster. This allows for slightly faster learning of Abilities. This Skill is rare due to the difficulty of acquiring it and its inability to be trained through usage. The only way to level it up is by receiving said levels as rewards for completing quests or trials.] [: A Title given to those who overcome challenges many times through effort and quick thinking. It improves rewards gained from trials by a small amount. In addition, it increases the frequency that the Skill will appear as a reward. It also provides slight bonuses to some mental Skills, such as , , and . This is a non-exhaustive list.] Okay, this he could work with. The ability to improve his abilities more quickly if he put in effort was exactly what he needed. Combining these two with might be quite handy for quick improvement. Now all he needed to maximize results was a goal. What was he working towards? He didn''t need fame right now. He would gather that when he was building a kingdom, and founding a town was still his main quest. No, instead of that he needed another goal. It couldn''t simply be power, since that was useless without a place to direct it. So, what was his direction? Mercury thought about it for a while as he laid in the sun, before he decided with a nod to himself. For now, he would seek a way to bring back the dead. The method didn''t really matter that much to be fair. He might be able to do it by exactly recreating their brains. Their DNA and every single cell and neuron they ever had, but then again, he had no way of knowing whether or not human bodies were structured the same way in this world as back on Earth. He could also see if maybe something like souls existed in this world, and he just needed to create a vessel for them. Otherwise he might be able to research something like artificial souls, even if that was only an esoteric and stupid concept on earth. There was also magic in this world, after all. If even that didn''t work, he''d simply have to set out and look for them. If there was no way to revive the dead, all that was left was to look for them and find them, and heck, if even that didn''t work, maybe he''d try ascending to godhood... or something. Yvette did have angelic looking wings, so being able to attain godhood might not even be that unlikely. And since gods could do pretty much everything, that would maybe allow him to resurrect them. He could also try selling his own soul to a demon or such to resurrect them if he needed to, but that would require a powerful soul. So in essence he was seeking power with a specific focus on souls, the underworld, if it existed, and powerful beings such as gods and demons. Alright, that would do. It was a far off goal, yeah, but that didn''t matter much. He had made friends. They had acknowledged him as their king and if there was one thing a king did, it was protecting his citizens. Right. If what he needed to do was ascend to godhood or sell his soul, that was simply another step he needed to take. Another obstacle in his way. And he was absolutely determined to crush anything that stood in his path with every single bit of his effort and focus. [ has levelled up! 5>] Yeah, alright, now he had a goal. It was just about goddamn time to actually get working on it. So, for the first time in a while, Mercury closed his eyes and envisioned his core, sending his mind along all the pathways he had crafted for his mana and renewing the mental picture he had of them. They had rusted a little in the time he hadn''t used them, but flushing out the remainder of said "rust" was easily done by flushing them with his mana. Then, once he had reattained focus over all his muscles, he started working his mana. He renewed the walls separating the different parts of his core. He created multiple basins for it and led some of it down his veins in order to expand them. He also immediately evaporated some of it and used the magical power to warm the injured parts of his body. There was no longer a need to hold back with his mind. He had found a goal and focused his mind, sharpening it to a point thinner than any knife. This was about efficiency, and trialing himself was the quickest way to improve, so all he had to do was exert himself to the point where he was about to crumble, then grit his teeth and keep going. The most efficient way of doing this was by using multitasking to pay attention to as many tasks as possible, so he also added on absorbing mana from his surroundings in addition to simply feeling the magic around him and trying to get a view of his surroundings that way. It was just a common trope he remembered from media, but he decided to give it a go, since sensing his environment through the mana in it seemed like a good idea. Sadly, he entirely failed at finding out anything about the physical world. Instead, he found that some of the mana had a different feel to it. Some of it felt clear, like drops of liquid glass while others felt thick and dirty, like he was handling mud. It wasn''t anything like an elemental affinity, mana was its own kind of energy after all, so it naturally having an affinity would be weird, at least that''s what Yvette said. No, instead it was like¡­ different kinds of water. In some places, water had more iron in it from rust in the pipes, while somewhere else, water may have more chalk dissolved in it. In even other places it may carry harmful bacteria and such. That''s what it felt like. Some of the mana felt like it would taste better. And since Mercury was already improvising, and this was a hard task, he decided that he would from now on scan his environment and only absorb the best mana he could find. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. This was¡­ incredibly hard, since he pretty much had to scan each triz of mana by itself. Triz was the smallest unit that mana had, or so Yvette told him at least. And since the surrounding triz only had a minor influence on each other, especially in the form they naturally appeared in, he pretty much had to touch every single one with his mind and then confirm whether or not he could absorb it. This, of course, was a monumental task, far above anything he should even attempt at his level. Heck, given that one absorbed more mana the more mana one already had, doing this might be a Sisyphean task, no matter how powerful one was. Absolutely perfect. This was enough to mentally exhaust Mercury after only minutes of doing it, placing a huge burden on his mind and alike, since he could use that to check multiple triz at once. And thus, after only five minutes of practicing, Mercury was mentally fatigued enough to fall over and pass out. But he didn''t let himself. The headache hadn''t started yet, since this caused fatigue and exhaustion moreso than pain. So, he kept going, fighting off the drowsiness with a growing excitement towards the monumental task he was undertaking. This was exactly it! This was what he needed! It wasn''t pain or a punishment, but it was hard and rewarding. This was absolutely perfectly and exactly what he needed in order to be able to take the next step. To gain the power of saving his friends! That growing excitement seemed to overpower any and all fatigue. This challenge Mercury had placed in front of himself was far too great to take a break on. He was determined to conquer it before he went to sleep the next time. He failed. Miserably. Turns out there was a reason as for why Yvette didn''t tell him about this, in that it''s practically impossible to keep it up for prolonged lengths of time. Five minutes felt like hours with the amount of thinking he had to do. And while he first just felt fatigue, he started being feverish shortly after. Then, the soreness set in. This time it wasn''t just a simple headache like it had been before, the pain was far less targeted and instead affected his entire body. Every limb of his felt sore and extremely heavy, being pulled to the floor like blocks of lead. By then, even breathing had gotten hard and Mercury only noticed he had stopped when he saw spots of colour flickering behind his eyelids. He had gotten so caught up in his practice that even his body had forgotten to breathe. Maybe eventually, his heartbeat would have stopped. After a moment of shock, Mercury tried to breathe in, and failed. Then, he attempted it again, trying to draw in air through his nose like he usually did, but his chest didn''t move. For a moment he felt his heartbeat quicken and fear rising in his throat, but he fought against the panic as best he could. Instead, he focused all of his attention on his physical body, pushing against the barrier that stopped his chest from moving with all his mind. First, it felt like he was pushing up against a stone wall, and his vision was getting more blurry around the edges, but Mercury kept up his efforts. He tried forcing his chest to move as hard as he could, and after just a few more moments, when his sight started to go black, he felt himself spasm, as his muscles wildly regained their function. He drew in a shaky breath at first, since his chest still wasn''t doing entirely what he had wanted it to, but breathing was breathing. After a few seconds the spasms calmed down and Mercury took multiple deep breaths, even though his muscles hurt like hell now. This short reawakening had been like a full-body cramp for a moment, and while before he felt sore and heavy, now he felt in pain more so than anything else. The usual stinging headache also set in now. It probably had just been built up and the dam had just been released, as the wave of pain made Mercury lose his balance and sense of orientation again. But Mercury simply let it wash over him, still focused on his breathing. He had panicked a little bit when his breath stopped, but now he was more in awe at the sheer size of his task. Then, he flashed a small, toothy smile. He didn''t quite know yet what he was even getting himself into, but he could tell there were many different possibilities. Maybe what he was practicing was some sort of fine mana control. Maybe he was practicing some sort of scanning or surveillance with this. Heck, it might even be that he was just learning to differentiate types of mana, but whatever it was, it was goddamn hard. Hard enough for Yvette not to mention, in fact. And given her ruthless training, that meant that she either considered it too dangerous, which, admittedly, it seemed to be, or that she didn''t know about it, which was unlikely. Mercury thus concluded that this was an exercise many had failed at before and that thought alone excited him. See, Mercury didn''t need to be the greatest in the world at something. He didn''t even need to be in the top three, in his opinion, as long as he himself thought he was really good at something. He only needed to be good enough to be better than anyone among his immediate contacts. If he was able to surpass all of them, he''d have the bragging rights, which really was the most important thing. This task would also be just as hard if he was better at magic, so it was an opportunity to learn something that even great wizards might not manage to do because of its sheer difficulty. And, while easily ignoring the pain with his pleasant thoughts Mercury licked his lips. He had found exactly what he wanted. A task he could spend all his time on without worry, since he wouldn''t be making too much progress at any one time. But it wasn''t like he could really spend all of his time on it. Especially now, when his mind was fatigued and his thoughts were slow and incoherent at best, he needed something else. So, he decided to do the first thing that came to mind. He wanted to run. Not because of any special reason, either. He simply thought it would be fun to also exercise his muscles, even if they still hurt a little from the cramps and his breathing was laboured. And so, with a smile on his face, Mercury got up from his lying position, the sun glistening on his fur. He looked out into the alley in front of him and took a slow step. Soon, he took another, and then one more. And before he knew it, Mercury was running. Flying along the alleyways of the street, some large, some small, some bustling and some empty, some with walls at their ends or ladders to the roofs. And Mercury ran along all of them. He ran, with heavy breathing and a bright look as he chased down the sun, scaling walls and roofs, weaving in between the legs of humans as he kept moving and moving. There was no longer a need to stop and no longer a need to hold back. If his path was one never walked, he would walk it until he reached its end. And if he reached the end and didn''t get the result he wanted, he would start down another one. If anything, he had time on his side. And so, when he was standing on a rooftop, staring at the sun rising ever higher in the sky, Mercury smiled. [By braving extraordinary circumstances and pain the individual has received additional rewards. Get: Skill.] [ is fusing with one of your existing Skills.] [ has fused with .] [Acquired the Skill !] [: A Skill that can be used passively and actively in order to clear the user''s mind. It can help them calm down in tense situations, keep their head clear in emotional situations and allow for more accurate self-reflection by removing preconceived notions of oneself. In addition it can be used to focus one''s mind more sharply, like the Skill. Furthermore, it also gives bonuses to perception based Skills, such as , as the calming effect allows the user to assess things more accurately. It''s a rare Skill, as it is hard to attain, given that it requires the user to experience extensive doubt in one''s own abilities and then overcome said doubt.] And then, after reading Mercury smiled and kept running. He ran around the city like he was attempting to get lost, but this time it didn''t matter. He knew what the guild smelled like, so he was confident in tracking his way back. And after a while of running, he did just that. And then, he sat down and focused on his mana again. Afterwards, he went for another long run, going until his legs hurt and then some more. Before he knew it, he wasn''t just running but also carving runes in his breaks or when passing over the same spots. And just a few days later, he was also doing muscle practice the best way he knew to, by climbing and doing push-ups, or at least trying to. Mercury was preparing to come back. And if there was one thing he knew well, it was how to make a good entrance. Chapter 23: Setback, Step back, Grow Chapter 23: Setback, Step back, Grow After a while, Mercury felt visible improvement, both when it came to his training as well as in his relationship to Kintra. She was scared when he disappeared first, and even more scared when she saw him come back covered in dirt and heavily panting. But while she was scared, the moment that her heart skipped a beat was when she saw Mercury smile. He hadn''t done so in a long while, so Kintra decided to ask what he had done, and the answer surprised her even more. He had gone out for a run? Practiced his magic again? For a moment she was worried he had eaten something bad, but when she asked if he was feeling sick, he said he wasn''t. And then he asked her about her day, too. Kintra was over the moon about this. If Mercury finally showed some more interest in his surroundings again, she had to support it. So, she told him about everything even remotely interesting or funny, especially all the little things. She told him how she hit her head on the doorframe, tripped and bumped into some sort of hulkish abomination of an adventurer, who then carefully stood her back up and told her to, "Be a little more careful, little madam," with a smile. She told him about how she impressed everyone with her ease of filling out and sorting documents, and she might have bragged a little bit about how most adventurers preferred her to the other receptionists because of that. She even told him about how she was finally getting to know some of the regulars. She got along especially well with a party of three, a ranger, a fighter and a doctor, called Steyn, Caraya and Besdo respectively. Apparently, they had hunted down a bear today and came back all bandaged up and in need for many new medical supplies, like clean bandages, some catalysts for making salves, and so on. All in all, they were good stories, and Mercury listened until she was done talking. Then he smiled and nodded. "I''m glad you had a nice day," he said. It wasn''t breathtaking or worldshaking, but it was nice, and in the end, that''s all that mattered. And after a moment of silence, Kintra smiled back. "Yeah," she said. "I did have a nice day." That night, Mercury''s sleep was quiet. When he found himself in the world of his dreams, there were no screams. It was dark everywhere around him, and the distant fog seemed to move, slithering and crawling, but Mercury didn''t mind. His thoughts, right now, were calm, so he didn''t mind the fog. It was just his imagination thinking it was punishing himself anyways, so he simply calmed it down with his will. But he kept things the way they were, largely. As long as it was quiet and dark and didn''t distract him, this was fine. So, he sat down, in the middle of a foggy field under a starless sky. And then, he began to focus. In this place, things worked differently. He couldn''t train his physical body here, since this was just a dream. Instead, it was a lot easier to train his mind. So, he focused again, sharpening his will as hard as he could. Then, he began his practice again. He abandoned all other things he had been working on. He forgot about controlling his mana, he ignored expanding his veins, he spared no mental power on completing this task he had set for himself. Mercury was about to break through this obstacle that he had set for himself. If thinking about two things wasn''t enough, he''d scan three places at once If three wouldn''t do, he would check four. If that wasn''t even enough, he''d have to accurately analyse five spaces. And so, Mercury challenged himself. When he didn''t hit the limit on how much mana he could absorb at once, he started searching for even more viable triz with his mind. But it wasn''t even close to enough. If he focused on just absorbing mana, he could probably absorb hundreds of triz every second, since even a single Mp was made from hundreds, if not thousands of them, almost like a drop of water consisted of many billion H2O molecules. But Mercury didn''t mind that. If he could absorb hundreds, he''d check hundreds every second. If it was thousands, he''d do it, and he was determined to keep up, even if the number was in the millions or billions. All it would take was time, and he was sure he had that at the very least. So, he focused on absorbing mana in his dream until he couldn''t anymore. He didn''t need to worry about breathing in this case, since he wasn''t even in his real body. Thinking was also a lot easier here, so he met more success than on the outside world, but in the end, his capacity still had a cap. 11. That''s all he managed. Outside of his dreams it was more like 7, maybe 8 on a good day. It was far away from what he needed, but he had time. So, he attempted to scan more triz at once. Just one more, he thought. Just one more. And after attempting and having his concentration fail multiple times, leading to his entire meditation breaking down and him having to entirely restart absorbing mana only after getting his own back under control, he managed. He managed scanning 12 triz at once. And after practicing for hours, he managed to stabilize it. Expanding it by just one took him almost a day while his thoughts were sped up. Realizing this, Mercury smiled. It was indeed a flawless challenge. And when he trained day in and day out, he didn''t waver for a moment. He didn''t rest when he slept, and when he was awake he did physical training as well. He ran, and jumped, and climbed for weeks upon weeks while still absorbing mana in the meantime. Then, when he finally went to sleep after an exhausting day, he looked forward to being able to exhaust himself all over again. It was fun. This was a challenge that was repetitive to the point of nonsensicality, and Mercury loved every second of it. It was like a boss fight. He could try again every single day and make small steps forward. He wouldn''t run out of attempts anytime soon, so if he could slowly improve, that was all he needed. Every time he wanted to scan more he took many attempts. Sometimes he''d try for hours and hours on end before being able to add another process of scanning. Sometimes it would only take him minutes until he figured out how to become better at it and add another process. But that didn''t bother him. He advanced, slow and steady, step by step, and inch by inch. He fought for every millimeter of progress and he did so with a wide smile on his face. Mercury Rainfall Starlight had found an adversary that offered to make him stronger. And if he failed at beating it, he''d try again. And when he succeeded, he''d go even further, until he was at the point where "overkill" wouldn''t describe it anymore. "Succeeding" wasn''t enough. "Winning" didn''t fucking cut it anymore. He advanced steadily towards his destination. The destination of utterly crushing the challenge in front of him. And then, time passed. Hours turned into days and days into pages. Even if he had more than 48 hours in every day because of his dreamworld, it didn''t matter. It wasn''t enough. So, when time ticked forward, Mercury tried to halt it inside his dream. He couldn''t stretch it a lot. He only increased the time he had by about a minute a day, if even that. But time was time. And as the pages turned and faded, Mercury kept practicing. He didn''t rest while eating, nor while talking to Kintra, nor while running. He even had Kintra attach weights to him when he wanted to run, just to make sure it was as exhausting as possible. Mercury felt his limits every day and pushed himself past them, simply because he thought it might be fun to see his friends again. It was power out of will, will out of necessity and necessity out of emotion. But with every step his reasons blurred. A millimeter mattered less once a meter had been crossed. A meter wasn''t much anymore when compared to a kilometer. But when his steps seemed more unimportant and his reasons blurred, Mercury was left with one thing: His determination. And with determination, pages turned into seasons. - - - Yet, it wasn''t enough. - - - At the end of his second season he had trained enough to make it a year. It was winter, yet he was running in the snow, because time was just a concept and progress was what he needed. With every step, the journey grew more arduous. Once he reached 32 triz in his mind, it was hard to increase it. When his weights grew heavier, his stats started raising more slowly. His limits were simply harder to break. And then there was the wall. The incredible, unsurmountable, and ever-growing wall he now saw at the end of his path. In his training his mana pool had increased. Not by much, since this way of absorbing more mana was still incredibly slow, but it had increased. And even with a small increase, the maximum amount of triz he could absorb had grown. It had grown more than the amount of triz he could check at once. And eventually, when his progress was halted for three full pages, Mercury clenched his teeth. If his progress was halted, he needed more of a challenge. So, he decided to dedicate his 32 ystirs to something else, that being a word magicians used for parallel trains of thought, or so Kintra had been told. He dedicated 10 to exercising his control, splitting his mana pool into 5 identical pieces and having them perform complex maneuvers around each other, just to train the complexity his ystirs could process. Then, he dedicated 14 more to expanding his mana veins. He started connecting his main tunnels via smaller branches and making them reach every cell in his body. He created them so thinly and precisely that they may as well be invisible. And then, he dedicated 8 ystirs to scanning and absorbing the triz in the air. Only that he didn''t let them scan just 8 triz at any one point. He tried scanning more than one triz with every ystir and when one crumbled or got tangled up, he restarted it. So while using all his ystirs, he was still keeping them in check and rebuilding them when they failed. And then, he was also overexerting them all, as well as trying to constantly create new ones. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. He may not have known it, but Mercury was already going overkill. That morning was the first that he coughed up blood. And when he looked at it, Mercury smiled brightly. There it was, after all. A sign of exhaustion. Of progress. Of growth. And so, the next morning, he coughed up some more. Then some more, and then more again. He never let Kintra see, so as to not have her worry, but he was overexerting himself more every day. After all, this was his one card. This was what he had to bet every single thing on. This was the one chance he had to move forward in a way that others may not even have considered. There wasn''t even any point. What was the point in maintaining that many ystirs? Sure, it might help with mana control and expansion of mana veins, but those lose importance once they reach all parts of the body. Mana could also be controlled with one ystir. It would simply have to be connected in one mass, but that one mass could be as complex as it wanted to, so why bother with so many? The truth was that Mercury didn''t know. But when his reasons blurred, his heart remained steady, eyes set on progress. This was the one card he could bet everything on. It was the one card he HAD bet everything on so why? Why?! WHY WASN''T IT WORKING?! [The individual is imposing a trial on themselves. "Succeed." Reward: . Penalty: Everything.] He stood to gain nothing but lose everything. But he knew one thing. An individual with everything to lose is scary. So, he had made it so he had everything to lose. There was no time limit. The only way he could lose was if he ever gave up or stopped trying his best. So all he had to do was keep winning. And winning. And winning. And winning. And winning. - - - Repetition. It was something he knew well. Something he learned in the office and something he learned now. It was everything. Deeply ingrained in his being. He needed no reason, all he needed was repetition. With his determination blurred, all that was left was So he kept going. And going and going and going. Because there was a goal to head towards and a step was a step. And so he continued. Continued training and continued pointlessly coughing up blood with barely any progress anymore because the task was too monumental. And then he broke the cycle. Take this as a lesson, kids. When you''re trapped in a cycle, no one can necessarily help you out. Of course, you can receive help from people. Mercury had Kintra, too, and she was trying her hardest. But that alone wouldn''t help. You gotta have the will to change yourself. Seek professional help and then do as they tell you. Try to improve. Sleep enough. Eat enough. Drink enough. Take care of yourself. Not necessarily by doing nothing, but by doing things that recharge your batteries and make you feel better, even if you don''t necessarily want to. Mercury still had , even if it was now part of . He realized it. He knew what he was doing was only harming himself. And he fought a battle with himself. He wanted to improve and wanted to beat this challenge, but where he was heading right now was simply failure. So what should he change? If he was hurt, he wouldn''t be able to progress, so he decided to- "Take a break," Kintra said, "... please." "I will." Mercury couldn''t smile at her, but only nod. He could only rest until he came up with new ideas. He just needed¡­ rest. And that was his first dreamless night. But there was one thing he didn''t notice immediately. The trial was still ongoing. A break was not failure. He had already gained tons from this direction, all that was left was to find more directions of growth. And Mercury was just about to find many a way to improve himself. But first, Mercury rested. He took a long night''s rest and even overslept. His deep, dreamless sleep had him wake up still tired and groggy, but the smell of food soon woke him. When he looked up at Kintra, he was greeted by a soft smile and a piece of salami. Outside, the sun was already shining a warm light onto the sparkling road. Mercury laid down in his basket lined with blankets, took a deep breath of the cold air and let out a sigh he had been holding onto for far too long. It was a sigh heavy enough to move mountains and part oceans, and he released it in the middle of the street! Who knows what devastating effects it could ha- The food cart owner across the street gave him a wave, holding out some skewered meat for our tired cat, which Mercury gratefully accepted. After eating to recharge a bit, he started thinking. He liked days off, but he couldn''t just laze around all day. So, he decided that he would go jogging, just to sort out his thoughts. It wasn''t the same intense running he had been doing before, but a casual jog. It was enough to get him to pant, but not enough to actually cause exhaustion, albeit his lungs stung a bit from just how overworked they were. It was kind of like stretching after an extreme workout. In any case, Mercury was still thinking about what he could do with his ystirs. He had 32 of them, but what use were they? They couldn''t really be used as their own individual brains, since they were just trains of thought, so all he could do with them was to comprehend. Ystirs, in short, weren''t creative. They were like co-processors, but in the end they were still processors that needed to be fed info. They could prepare a spell or control mana if used properly, but they couldn''t come up with new ideas. So instead, Mercury opted to use them as processors. He fed himself ideas and used his ystirs to think about different outcomes. Like, what if he focused on mana control? Or mana veins? Or physical training? But none of that ended with him as high as he wanted to. These were things that could lead to individual power, sure, but were they enough to allow him to resurrect his friends? Not quite. In the end, what he needed was something different. Going a conventional way wouldn''t quite do it, so he had to figure out something new. That''s when he thought of his astral body skill. Thinking about his Skills, he actually decided to check all of them again, for the first time in a while. Skills: Active: , Novice Runecarving lv. 2>, , , 6>, 9>, , , Passive: , , 13>, , , , Both: , , , 3>, 8>, 2>, , 53>, Abilities: max> Unique: It showed a lot of improvement, sure, but he was expecting that already. What surprised Mercury was the Skill. He hadn''t noticed its existence before, and now he was surprised to see it at level 3. Did he always dream through the pop-ups? That was a bit unfortunate, especially since this skill was pretty goddamn rad. Well, it was boring on its own, but he wasn''t left with it. He had and , which meant daydream was really just a short step away from being something like . If he could dream up something and take it from there to the real world with his astral body, he would be able to create literally whatever he pleased. But for now, that wasn''t something feasible. He''d have to level up before he could even attempt something like that. Which was when Mercury found out that dreaming on command was rather hard. Dreaming, especially daydreaming, usually requires a state of relaxation and ease of thought. You daydream once your thoughts go off on their own, not when you want to think about a certain topic. This quality already made it hard to dream on command, since the daydream would change depending on subconscious whims. But in addition to that, Mercury was nowhere near a state in which he could let his thoughts drift off easily. The more he tried to force it, the more of a barrier there was, so Mercury decided to focus on something else. He gave up searching for something only he could do, because it was simply too early. He barely knew the basics of magic, so it was no wonder that just trying to gain more and more ystirs was too much. Instead, he decided to focus on something Yvette had taught him. He decided to focus on the transmutation of energy. See, when mana evaporates it creates a reaction, like in chemistry. It doesn''t happen unprovoked, if compared with chemistry again, it needs a catalyst. A starting point. It needs to be brought to a boil by the catalyst of "thought", or "will". Once that catalyst is added, a reaction starts. Exothermic reactions release heat, but this wasn''t an exothermic reaction. It was exomagical in a way, releasing magical energy. It was hard to quantify, but in essence, this energy was movement. Particle movement is felt as heat. On a much, much larger scale, particle movement could be defined as kinetic energy, and when only electrons moved, in some sort of constellation that allows them to interact with each other, it was defined as electric energy. Magical energy was energy similar to that, it bashed against things and could move them, but it could also be gained from moving things. However, mana can''t be condensed again by adding magical energy. In essence, magical energy was a transitional state, highly impermanent at that. It could heat things up and move things, or it could be generated from heat and moving objects. That was what Yvette had explained, though Mercury added the comparisons to chemistry and other sources of energy himself. But magical energy was special, in the way that it allowed for all forms of energy to be controlled by the mind. It was similar to moving muscles, but this also allowed one to generate thermal energy, as Mercury had learned. This seemed to be part of the laws of physics of this world, as different from Earth as they may be. But what he had yet to learn was the creation of kinetic energy. And so, he needed to figure it out himself. Converting it to heat was fairly doable, you simply allowed some of the magical energy to flow into all parts of what you were trying to warm up. But that could only be used on solid objects. Gasses would immediately move, so in order to create something like plasma, one would need to create kinetic energy to keep the air in place. A barrier of some sort, at least if he wanted to heat it up slowly. If the heat was created faster than it dispersed, that would work as well. Also, one could be more or less efficient with their magical energy. Yvette could make a flame with a few drops of mana, while Mercury struggled to even warm himself in the slightest with a handful of it. So, he knew he had a lot to learn. Mercury started experimenting with magical energy then. He had so many ystirs to experiment with, after all, so he dedicated his mana into 32 chambers. He then slowly began evaporating it, all separately, and immediately ended up with a singular mass of magical energy. He channelled it into the ground to get rid of it as he stopped. Okay, so he needed to take one step before he began. He needed the ability to separate masses of magical energy. Little did he know, this was the basic concept for multicasting, but to Mercury it was simply a necessary step to speed up his training and efficiently use all of the ystirs he had worked hard to attain. So, he dedicated himself to it. He started with two chambers of mana and evaporated both of them at once, trying his best to keep the masses of magical energy separate. He failed. Then he tried again, with two more chambers, and failed. The magical energy felt almost gaseous, no, more like a property of the "air" in his core, rather than something of its own. Just like heat was inseparable from particles, it was hard differentiating magical energy from its surroundings. It seemed to dissipate immediately and there wasn''t much he could do about it. Well, wait. What were its surroundings? Mercury realised he didn''t actually know. He was able to keep single masses of magical energy separate from anything and kept them from immediately reacting to his body, sure, so why couldn''t he do so with multiple? What made them immediately combine? In order to test this, Mercury created a solid barrier in his core, all the way along it, splitting it in two. It felt extremely uncomfortable, to say the least, but he had to do it. Then, he also sealed off his mana veins, so there was no path for the magical energy to take if it wanted to combine. Then, he evaporated mana on both sides. Immediately, the magical energy rushed towards the wall Mercury had built and pushed against it, trying to combine. It was, in other words, creating physical pressure. This meant that it could be made into shapes and retain them. Maybe they were attracted to each other by some sort of law, like gravity. Of course, the cause of gravity was being researched heavily, and he did remember some papers speculating about the existence of gravitons, and he knew there were particles causing other fundamental forces, but that was advanced magical science he didn''t quite want to venture in yet. He knew now, that magical energy was attracted to one another. He also knew that once combined it was easy to control. He knew that he could control it and move it as he willed and even make it react to or keep it from reacting to something. In essence, he realised that his mind, his will, could move this. And, since it was attracted to itself, keeping it separate would be a good exercise. Mercury smiled. He didn''t know how challenging this would be, heck, maybe it would only take him a few tries. But he had found something that was very comparable to the science he was used to. This gave him an advantage, due to his slightly nerdy childhood and his still present interest in science as an adult, though he didn''t much like scientific maths. He already had a bit of that in his office job, tracking company earnings and spendings when he kept records, so he preferred to spend his free time without too much of it. Maybe that also made him avoid RPGs a bit, since they were all stats, but now, with the pressure from his job gone, keeping track of numbers had gotten a little fun. So, he set about his training, reopening his mana veins and bringing down the wall in his core, immediately allowing him to breathe more easily. It was a freeing feeling. But then, he focused his mind on the task at hand again. Right. He had a challenge ahead of him, so he decided to evaporate mana and then try to make the magical energy form two different shapes. He decided to, for now, just make them into two balls, since that seemed like the simplest thing to do. So he tried. And failed. And failed. And failed, and failed, and failed. But he did it with a smile. He took breaks and rested. He sometimes did other things he considered beneficial or fun. He made sure to sleep enough and take breaks, even in his dreams. Because a step forward had to be taken on the right path. Not a path that led to only pain and suffering, but a path to progress. Sometimes these seem awfully similar, since both can be rocky, hard and painful, and sometimes one swaps without knowing. But it''s important to think. To take a step back and look closely. To understand and realise when one is going wrong, when it''s time to turn around, when it''s time to- Change. Mistakes are fine, as long as one can solve them. No one is perfect, but that''s alright, as long as one works to better themselves. It''s okay to rely on others when you need help, as long as you offer them the same afterwards. And it''s okay to fuck up if you learn from it. As long as one is able to come back, that''s alright. Because once one focuses their eyes on a good path, it becomes clear that a step was a step. Sometimes we move backwards. Sometimes we stumble and fall. Sometimes we swap paths, and sometimes that''s good, and sometimes that''s bad. Some people walk multiple paths at once and some choose only one. All of that is alright. Because a step was a step. And a step taken after taking a step back to consider, is a step that will most likely not need to be undone. And a step that didn''t need to be undone, that was founded on solid ground, one that was made with confidence after deliberation. That was true growth. Chapter 24: Knowledge is Power, an interlude Chapter 24: Knowledge is Power, an interlude And then, Mercury practiced. He had thought about his next step, no, his next steps. Controlling individual masses of magical energy was only the first one. The second step was learning how to use it in energy conversion, and the third was figuring out how to have it push against something, as it did when he separated two instances of it. For the first bit, he didn''t need to know much about the properties of magical energy, but he decided he wanted to know anyway. Mercury thought that he would become stronger faster if he had more knowledge, so he wanted to figure out the principle behind magical energy. He only knew of things he had learned in school, or read in his free time. But he knew energy was transmitted somehow. Sound and heat were transmitted through particles, since they were properties of those particles. Gravity was omnipresent in space, but speculated to be caused by particles. Electromagnetic force acted between electrically charged particles. Light would interact with substances when it came into contact with them, but would freely travel through a vacuum. In essence, all of them were created by- and/or caused interactions between particles. Be it the force caused by magnetic fields or gravity, be it the vibration of sound and heat that spread through physical contact with other particles, or be it light, which could carry energy over vast distances. But, in essence, they all created interactions between objects, because when a force doesn''t interact, it cannot be perceived. Mercury could perceive magical energy, so it had to have some interaction. It felt like his mind was pushing against something physical, but that made little sense, did it? To figure it out, Mercury had to understand magic more deeply, but he didn''t quite know where to start. Yet, this was an obstacle that kept his mind occupied for an entire day, only to be broken through when he fell asleep. When he fell asleep, he found himself back in the place where he had been before. It was the same endless field, the glass spires to the west, mountain range to the east, the citadel of flames to the north and the small fountain to the south. And then he looked at himself. He looked¡­ different from before. He had no skin, or flesh, or bones, his entire body was made up from tube-shaped objects he recognized. His mana veins, of course. But now that he thought of it, this was weird. This wasn''t how he pictured himself, after all. In fact, it was quite far from the typical shape one would take in a dream. It was also peculiar, in the sense that it always perfectly reflected the position of his actual mana veins. Slowly, Mercury came to a conclusion. Maybe this wasn''t actually a dream. When he thought about it that way, he began to notice many more peculiarities. He noticed he didn''t have any sensory organs, so he wondered about how he perceived things. He wondered about the air, and as he thought about it, he noticed how dense the magical energy was. He thought how some place in his mind could have actual, physical magical energy, that he could use to replenish the mana in his core. Then, he thought about what this meant. If there were physical forces present, this had to be a real place, especially if they stayed consistent with the real world. So this couldn''t be a construct of his mind. Then, what did really mean? Did it not talk about the ability to walk in one''s dreams, but to walk to different places in one''s dream? And how did fit into this? And then, he slowly began building up his theory. It was a complicated one, of course, and heavily relied on speculation. But it was what Mercury thought to be the most likely. The Skill didn''t allow him to control his dreams. It allowed him to "walk", in essence meaning to move his , at the times he was supposed to be dreaming. In other words, it allowed him to move this construct of himself, his core and his mana veins and his "soul", if there was such a thing, to another place. He concluded that there had to be a soul, because otherwise he would have to be in wireless contact with his brain, and that didn''t quite make sense. So, he concluded there had to be another way for him to think, maybe using magical energy instead of electric signals. He decided to dub this organ his "soul" for now, since that was usually what the essence of a being was called. He thought this fitting, since if something would hold his consciousness, what separated that from "him"? He thought, and therefore he was. But then, if he was in a different place, where was he? On another planet? It would be a little strange for his astral body to go to such a place, since that would require high speed flight. So what if it was a different direction from three-dimensional space? What if he could move in another direction instead? He didn''t believe he was moving through time, that would be a stupid twist and everyone reading this knows it, but maybe he was moving in another spacial direction. Maybe his astral body, with no sensory organs, could perceive this fourth spatial direction and move along it. And maybe, the space where he was now was, in some way, in the same 3-dimensional place as the planet he was on and only separated by some 4-dimensional space. He could have just as easily called it a different plane, but he always found that dissatisfactory, so this was the best answer he could come up with. It would also make sense for there to be magic here then, since another spatial direction is just another direction for forces such as gravity to influence. This was the first step Mercury made towards teleportation magic. Sadly, he had absolutely no idea what to do with his theory. This information meant very little. Really, it was only a complicated way of saying that his soul could move independently from his body when he was asleep. It didn''t contribute at all to his understanding of magical energy. But that question was soon answered with the feel of the magic around him. He noticed something. He noticed that magical energy was similar to both light and gravity. With it being more dense, he could feel it weighing against him as physical pressure, and partially dissolving into him, as it slowly seeped through the outer layer of his mana veins. And once the concentration of magical energy inside him matched that outside him, the pressure had adjusted and almost vanished. It was almost like heat, spreading out over time, while still having the ability to be more concentrated in one spot. It was like light, in the way that it could be separate from other matter, not interacting with anything else if not forced to do so. It was like gravity if one only looked at how it influenced other things in its pure form, putting pressure on them. And Mercury knew that, most of all, while he could feel it all as one instance, he also felt singular bits of it. That meant there was a smallest instance of magical energy and that it interacted, somehow, with his thoughts. So, all in all, Mercury concluded that he could control the particles of magical energy with his soul, and that they had unique properties. They were attracted to each other and wanted to be available everywhere in equal quality, spreading out all over space, slowly but surely. And it could be transformed into other energies if one forced it to interact with regular matter. Alright. That was quite some knowledge Mercury had gained, now he only needed to prove that this was all correct and then learn how to apply it! And if that didn''t sound hard enough, well, it was. But this time, instead of tunnel visioning, Mercury was diligent. He wanted to be thorough and understand what he was doing, rather than just force a way forward. He wanted to fully get how this all worked, so he also tested his hypotheses while practicing, and found them to be largely correct. Magical energy was easy to get to interact with normal matter though. It was fairly easy to direct it close to something and let it "flow" into it. It felt more like opening up a hole in a thin membrane, like he was poking a plastic grocery bag with a needle. From then on, the energy just flowed by itself and only had to be regulated. He also began to understand how to create different kinds of energies. Heat was the easiest to create, since it simply required the regular process of creating flow, after which the magical energy would do the work itself. Kinetic energy was a bit harder, since it required a different kind of transformation. Mercury had to imagine the magical energy, which he had always thought of as a cloud or a liquid, more as a wall, and use it to push against things like that. If he had it bump into an object, it would get absorbed and push the object forward. This was immediately noticeable to Mercury as a form of limited telekinesis, since it only supported motion in singular directions and had very limited range while requiring a lot of focus. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡­ Yeah, just pushing things by hand was really more effective in that case. He also managed to create light, though that was even harder. Light wasn''t created by having the magical energy interact directly with something. He needed to visualize the mass as single beams and then give them a direction of motion in order to create beams of light. In essence, this was the purest form of transmuting it he could come up with, especially since he didn''t quite know how to create anything else. He couldn''t really get it to create electricity or gravity, but he was able to create kinetic energy as well as light, which was most certainly progress. This took him about a week, since it was more experimenting than hitting learning barriers. Then again, that week really was just figuring out how to even create different kinds of energy, rather than learning how to do it well. In essence, it was more of a proof of concept. Because afterwards, he spent all his brain power on learning how to control multiple masses of magical energy. He came up with multiple ways of keeping them separate, pretty much. First, he wanted to keep them boxed in, which worked, but applied permanent pressure to the walls and kept him from actually putting the energy to use. Then he tried the brute force method, attempting to simply counteract the attraction using his ystirs. It worked, eventually, with a lot of effort and exhaustion, but then he had to focus on just keeping them apart, unable to actually do anything with the two masses. Increasing the amount didn''t even cross his mind with this method. So, he had to figure something out. He tried encasing the masses of energy in liquid mana, with little result, simply being torn through. Same result with the lower budget gaseous mana. Didn''t stop it for a second. Mercury also had the idea of maybe using a reverse version of the magical energy. Like antimatter is repelled by normal matter, he thought that maybe anti-energy would repel magical energy. But sadly, this wasn''t really something he could test, since he had absolutely no idea how he would be able to create such a thing. And then, Mercury turned back to the basics. His fancy ideas hadn''t worked, or were unachievable, so there was no point in pursuing them. Instead, he decided to go back to the basic concept of visualizing what he wanted to happen, just like he had started off his whole journey into magic by visualizing his core. Instead of just evaporating the mana as he had grown used to, he made only two separate, small puddles. Then, he very clearly focused on each of them. It wasn''t some half-hearted focus based on practice; he was treating it like this was the first time he had ever used his mana. He evaporated it very slowly, keeping them as separate as he could in his mind. He envisioned the two clouds of energy as perfectly unique in his head. He split his mind in two, or tried to do so as much as he could, and attempted to treat the energy as entirely separate. It had nothing in common. One was not the same as the other. He tried to convince himself, but it was hard. Still, he tried treating them as though they were different, slowly attempting to move what he envisioned as two distinctly unique things, apart. To help himself, he dyed them differently. He kept one mass silver, and one mass lavender, similar to the colour of his eyes. And then, he had a breakthrough. He had seen the magical energy and dyed it a colour. With that, he had achieved three monumental feats, the first being perceiving them with one of his usual five senses, not his newfound sense for magic. Technically he didn''t really see it, but in essence, he had linked his sense of sight with his sense of magic. The second was altering its properties. He had only been able to transform it into different forms of energy before, never change it in and of itself. Dyeing it a colour, as insignificant a change as it may be, was a change. And the third was differentiating between the masses. All magical energy was no longer the same, and if it wasn''t the same, why would it strive to be one? This also separated it entirely from the outside and from the other bit of energy, making it way easier to contro- But as soon as he thought that, he viewed all of it as the same thing again, and with a crash, the masses of energy recombined and began leaking to the air around them. And with the same crash, Mercury felt a blow against his head, his vision going black for half a second, before he found himself back in his basket with his trusty blanket over it. There was no one around and he came back from it fairly quickly, though there was still quite a bit of pain pulsing in the back of his skull. It probably wasn''t done by anyone attacking him, then. Which meant that more likely than not, he had experienced yet another form of backlash from fucking up while doing magic. Well, then again, he was used to the headaches he got from overexerting himself, but almost blacking out was quite new. It also completely fucked over his concentration. Yet, Mercury couldn''t help but smile. He had made yet another breakthrough. With this, he would be able to heat and move an object at the same time. It would take far more effort than actually just creating a fire, and the way he had split his mind couldn''t even be compared to ystirs in terms of difficulty, but it was progress. It felt like he was really advancing towards magic step by step. But he also knew he had to rest and digest this new information he had gained, so he decided to take a break for the rest of the day. After all, great progress deserves great reward. But he still couldn''t fully abandon his practice, so he simply set out a handful of ystirs to scan and collect mana. Maybe it wouldn''t be much, but over a whole day, he could probably expect maybe half an Mp if he was lucky. So, he went inside again and greeted Kintra with a smile, laying down on her reception desk and happily waving his tail in the air. The guild office was cozy, structured similarly to an inn. There was a fireplace to the right wall, warming the hall, and simple round tables with chairs strewn in the room. There, godseekers could discuss their quests in peace, as well as form groups. The notice board was to the left of the entrance, in the form of a pinwall. There was a bit of space cleared around it so people could search for the quests they wanted to take. Anything between B- and E-rank was available, fairly typical for a town such as this, Kintra had said. A-rank quests were usually reserved for larger cities, or even custom requests sent to singular, famous godseekers. Not to mention S-rank requests, which were only offered to select godseekers who had proven themselves over and over again, even being visible fairly high up on the global fame leaderboard. As to be expected, one of the most famous ones was nicknamed "Dragonslayer". Sometimes this world was a bit clich¨¦, Mercury thought. The "Dragonslayer" Goradon, huh. It was a borderline legendary figure, because "slayer" wasn''t a title gained from a single kill. This man was on a hunt to absolutely exterminate any dragon in his path. Seriously, it was borderline obsessive. But well, that didn''t matter much to those who supported him. After all, dead dragons had many uses. Not only in the form of the items they dropped, which were already incredible, but afterwards their corpses could still be processed. This was something Mercury had only found out while casually talking to Kintra, but apparently in this world, drops weren''t everything. Of course, the items that dropped from a monster had special magical characteristics, such as increasing stats or Skill levels, but the monster''s corpse was just as useful. Monster corpses were made of raw materials, such as meat, scales, bones and so on. All of these could be used to craft weapons and armor, feed people and sometimes even help them grow stronger, or be used in research to develop new technologies. So, as it turns out, monsters are usually harvested after killing them and collecting the drops. For large monsters, corpses were sometimes dragged back to cities on carts, sometimes cities even established themselves around carcasses of some legendary monsters or arches, the dungeons of this world. If there''s a dead dragon, camps with blacksmiths and restaurants offering delicacies might be established next to schools and libraries performing research. Such places sometimes formed small towns or cities, even when the direct drops had already been collected by godseekers or guards. Talking about guards, they were an interesting topic. Turns out that most godseeker in this city didn''t much like them. The two groups always were in a bit of a rivalry, apparently, since guards viewed themselves as having the moral high ground. After all, they protected the citizens consistently, not wandering around however they please. In essence, they viewed the godseekers as mercenaries, or even worse. Of course, the other side wasn''t too fond of the guards either. Because they thought they held the moral high ground, godseekers were oftentimes punished harder than normal citizens, and sometimes even accused of crimes they didn''t commit when up against a corrupt guard, which only gave them more reason to wander from place to place. Of course, the godseekers weren''t entirely innocent. Many of them thought they didn''t need to fear consequences, since they could simply head for another city''s gloryhall. Oftentimes, cities didn''t share criminal records, so a wanted criminal in Treyno might be a free man in the capital of Stormbraver. Killer city name actually. It was really astounding how much gossip one could pick up in a single day. He also talked to Kintra a bit whenever he needed an explanation, which she provided almost like a lexicon. Sometimes she''d even elaborate on things herself. She told him that Stormbraver was called that because it was a fortress city, surrounded by towering walls, full of ballistas and archers. This was the city that had allowed the people of the Nevarzahri Aristocracy to hold out in the war against the Evlenor Kingdom. Yeah. Turns out he finally found out who was at war! It was two of the larger political factions on the continent. Well, then again, they were still just kingdoms. At least it wasn''t a race war. The shortened story really came down to the fact that the kingdom of Evlenor wanted more land and Nevarzahri was an easy target, since it didn''t have as strong a military force as other lands. Evlenor was established as a kingdom quite some time before Nevarzahri was created, taking the mountains that laid unclaimed in the harsh north as their own territory. They took the few tribes in as their brothers and united them under the banner of the first king Therag. He kept every tribe united through iron rules at first, and slowly started building relationships between them, aiming at a unification project that was still going on today, though it had made major strides. Compared to the harsh climate the warrior people faced, Nevarzahri had it far easier. They were established in a field of good soil as a small village, constructed by farmers. Then, merchants joined and soon, the town had turned into a trade city and established a council. Then, it only continued to grow, buying new land and populating it with cities, all under the jurisdiction of the council. The 7 members were wise people, who had led the country to prosper, each owning territories in different sections of the aristocracy. Of course, these territories weren''t managed by the council members themselves, as they still lived in Stormbraver, but rather by their houses. The city Mercury had been in before was managed by the house of Sylvenne, known for their prominent ability in trading, meanwhile Treyno was under the control of house Loftring, a small house of honorable knights, aiming for universal wellbeing. That might be why the city didn''t have slums, and a rather large amount of orphanages. Talks like that one continued until much later in the day, with Mercury learning quite a bit more about Evlenor and Nevarzahri, but that is a story to be told another time. Because then, Mercury''s head was so full of things he thought of that he actually had a real, normal dream for once, seeing warriors and battles. And then, the next day he woke up rested to more magical practice. Chapter 25: Faraway strangers and a home, left to return. Chapter 25: Faraway strangers and a home, left to return. Mercury continued with a similar routine for quite some time, straining his mind and magic as much as he could without creating major problems for himself. In essence, it was like working out with a plan. If one strained their muscles too much, they might tear and cause long-lasting damage, so it''s important to know one''s limits and where the limit of those limits was. That was what Mercury viewed as the key to improvement. And, unsurprisingly, he did improve. Quickly even, if he compared it to the adventurers around him. Even his stats kept growing. He still improved his physical stats little by little, as he thought those were also very important. Mana could only do so much, after all, but it was still his main focus. And so, every day he split his mind, attempting to control multiple masses of magical energy separately. And as soon as he was able to keep them somewhat stable, he tried doing different things with them, such as transforming one into heat and the other into light. Just like that, he passed multiple pages again, slowly realising that he felt¡­ content. He conversed with Kintra and it felt pleasant. It was welcoming when the adventurers laughed around him. The smell of wood, leather and metal of the gloryhall became familiar, and the food cart across the street would give him treats occasionally. All the while, he was growing. Steadily and quite quickly. After all, Kintra asked about the stuff Mercury was curious about for him, but no other magicians in the city were doing things similarly to the way he was. Most of them simply used spells. Well, that was one way to name it. Turns out that spells were quite like Skills in the system; one would activate them and have their mp consumed in order to cast them. The amount of mp could be adjusted as the user wanted, though the limit was determined by the level that the user was able to cast the spell at. To them, it was combat magic. It was quick to use, took little time to prepare and still had a high Skill ceiling, taking into account mana pool size, regeneration speed and calculation ability to keep track of how many shots one had left. But in terms of complexity and flexibility, Mercury found it quite lacking. Of course there were spells for creating light or heat, but if the spell did all of the work, and all you had on your side was the number of your skills and their levels, was that really magic? Did it really require the same understanding of one''s mana that the path Mercury pursued did? He would have to deny that. To him, it felt like nothing but a cheap imitation of actual magic, like what Yvette had shown him. Their balls of fire, spikes of ice, or bolts of lightning simply didn''t stand to compare to Yvette''s blade. She even claimed she wasn''t casting magic! But Mercury knew. He knew that what she called "swordsmanship" was something he would have to name magic. What she called "aura blade" didn''t look like simply slashing and cutting to him - he could so clearly feel the magic from it, after all. Well, then again, maybe in this world, magic was just a style of swordsmanship. Maybe some swordsmen seeked to cross blades with Yvette without even using mana veins. Maybe some would choose to even use nothing but their hands. And regardless of Mercury''s opinion, spells were still very flexible. There weren''t just combat spells, but also utility ones. And while the system helped with channelling the mana, there was still a possibility of manual enhancement, or even adjusting spells. By mastering them, one could also shape them to their own needs. After all, it seemed like in this world, it was all equal. Every stat was worth the same, simply being able to demonstrate that worth better in different situations. Every direction of growth was equal. Even talent was acquirable through hard work. Of course, people weren''t born equal. Some had higher stats and more Skills at birth. Some could be born cursed and weak. Some would have unique Skills and abilities that no one else could acquire. But people could grow. In this world, the ceiling seemed to be removed. Anyone could pick a direction and grow. Some may have a headstart and others may grow more quickly, but it was possible to catch up and keep up by working hard and smart enough. Mercury had done so by going through trials and then practicing, for example. And now, he was sure of it. His direction of growth was the one he wanted to move along. And thus, he continued practicing. - - - - - - A man sighed as he stripped off his white gloves. They were specially made for him, woven from strings formed by melting the scales of dragons and stretching the liquid far out. In the process of string production, details were carved into the hair-thin strands, only to have been perfectly aligned once the gloves were woven together. Designs so minuscule they were invisible to the naked eye. In short, the gloves were white. In long, they were still white, but also self-cleaning, durable, magical and absolutely priceless. The man tucked them away carefully in a coffer while tussling his fire-red hair with his now bare hands. He was still breathing heavily as he fell backwards into the soft fabrics of his bed. Of course, everything had gone incredibly smoothly. Anything else would be preposterous to assume. But it had been incredibly exhausting nonetheless. He hated politics. Infamous as he may be, he disliked the constant backstabbing that was always an intrinsic part of them. He disliked the little lies and deceptions, the bait and the rumors, he hated the double motives and he despised the way they sought to use him for their intrigues. In his light annoyance, he furrowed his brows, and for a moment, the air around him quivered. But it calmed down again as the man raised his toned upper body up once more. He walked to the bathroom first. It was one outfitted with a sink and a thin sheet of dull grey duraton, a metal that would smooth over and become reflective at a single touch from magic. It wasn''t particularly hard or useful for combat, but it made for incredibly high-quality mirrors if installed correctly. The man pressed his thumb into the indentation intended for it, and with a ripple passing over it, the duraton shone and reflected the man. His smoothly shaven chin, his lips, still crimson from the make-up he applied, his nose thin and long. He saw his brows, cleanly done but with a slight edge to them that always annoyed him and he saw his eyes, the same fiery red they usually were. His hair that has been made to stand up in a spiky quiff only partially fell down, now forming bangs that managed to cover most of his left eye. Then, he nodded a little. This was way better already. Next, he took a stone bowl and filled it with water, before putting his hand under it and bringing the water to a comfortable 40 therms, equal to earth''s degrees celsius. He drenched a light towel in it, wrung it out, and placed it over his face as he laid down again. Then, he dozed off for exactly ten minutes, reviewing the results of the negotiation again, before rising up another time. Once back in the bathroom, he took out the stopper from a bottle of wyvern oil, dripped it on a small, clean sponge, and applied it to his face. Then he wiped it all off with a clean cloth. Finally, he smiled, pulled out a short tube from the dresser under the sink and reapplied his lipstick. When he sat down on the bed, he undid his tie, took off his sacco and slipped out of his shoes, finalizing his casual attire. He reached over to his nightstand while rubbing his eyes, ringing a small, handheld bell, and almost immediately his door popped open. "Could you return my things now maybe?" he asked the young maid in a baritone voice, kinder than his wild appearance would make one assume. "Sir, I apologize, but we are not permitted to-" "Just the weights then, please. Those can''t do a whole lot more damage than anything in this room, right?" "... I will ask again, sir, but I cannot promise you anything." The man smiled and waved it off. "Just tell me once you asked. It''s not your fault, I know, so don''t worry too much. You guys really paint me as much more dangerous than I really am." He followed his last sentence up with a bit of a scoff once the maid had left again. He knew that she was probably thinking something along the like of, "Sir, we are simply taking necessary measures." It really seemed that they thought he''d just tear up the mansion if he ever got bored. It was a bit of a pain that they insisted on seeing any and all of his storage whenever he entered here, especially since his hands were probably enough to turn the thing into a pile of ash. "Sigh. What a pain," he murmured to himself, as the maid entered his room again empty handed. Just as he thought she would give him an excuse, she said something entirely different. "Sir, would you care to go to the ground floor? I do not believe that your current room would be optimal for using the weights you requested." And with another smile he nodded, following the blonde girl through the hallways of the mansion until she led him to the courtyard, where she put her hand to the floor and summoned a single dumbbell there. It''s weights were polished to a shine, but their glimmer wasn''t the usual metal sheen. They had a bit of an orange hue to them. "Thanks," he said as he picked up the weight, "I appreciate it." "I am glad to have been of service," the girl said and bowed, before quickly stepping away. "Ah, one more thing," the man said and stopped her steps. "Check my nightstand. I left something for you there. I like people with courage." He flashed her a toothy grin as she hurriedly stepped away, flashing his almost canine teeth for a moment. "Well then, back to business," he said, focusing on the dumbbell again as he slowly raised it. They had given him the lightest one out of all of them, but oh well. It still showed quite some trust, given that by throwing it he could probably rip a hole through a wall or two. Heh, more like all of them. Or maybe, he thought with a frown on his face, it was a sign of fear. - - - - - - A ring made of three strands of metal, one copper, one tin, and one iron. They were quite cheap and easy to form, so they were used quite often in artifacts for the masses. But no other artifact was as prevalent as the ring, at least not in the Nevarzahri Aristocracy. Three strands of metal were twisted together into a triplehelix, which was then bent into a circular shape and worn as a ring. It was quite pretty to look at and fairly easy to make, as there were even molds for each of the parts readily available and the assembly barely took any time at all. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. The ring was a religious symbol. It stood for the three aspects of the goddesses, law, freedom, and justice. Three aspects which must always be kept in balance. Law was important to keep order, freedom was important to allow for individuality to flourish, and justice was important to keep people from abusing either. None of these could take over. Justice could lead to vigilantes massacring people without remorse, order could lead to absolutism, and freedom to anarchy. Extremes needed to be avoided, and thus, the three needed to be balanced. It was delicate business, but thus was the will of the goddess and her servants. Law, freedom, and justice, those were the three core principles of the church of order. Of course, this symbol didn''t just appear in the form of a ring. It could take the forms of bracelets, and ankle chains, and there was even a single person allowed to wear one on her head. It was called the crown of order, a unique piece, keeping true to the simple design and materials, but simply being enlarged. It was unique because if it was worn by anyone but her, it was considered heresy worthy of execution. Even the production was prohibited, and so, it remained unique. The crown of order was sacred, or, in other words, it protected whoever was wearing it. Because what idiot would dare challenge the entire church, with all their priests and priestesses, their clerics and monks, their bishops, abbots and followers? It was an organisation so widespread it was untouchable within the nation and even beyond. But currently, the high priestess, the greatest religious authority above all others, the so called "Voice of Order", resided in Stormbraver, the capital city of Nevarzahri. She was a tall woman, standing at 1,82 meters. Her platinum-blonde hair reached her waist, and while it usually looked a silvery white in the night, it shone like a hoard of pale gold in the sun. Her eyes were a deep mix of blue and green, unending as the ocean, and her lips were a soft red. Combined with her smooth face, she was the kind of beautiful one might expect to be carved in marble, yet she had colour and moved. She seemed unaging and immovable with the way she carried herself. Her look, her posture, and her gait were full of authority, the kind one would only learn to have when leading. And in essence, that''s what she was. She wasn''t some nameless figurehead, nor was she weak. She knew her nickname among those who weren''t of the church, the nickname that was whispered and hushed over, the nickname none dared to mention to her face. They called her a walking disaster. Ha! A walking disaster. Those preposterous, arrogant, foolish, ignorant nonbelievers called her one of the walking disasters. It was ridiculous to even compare her to those other two. They thought her to be just as bad as those freaks? She''d show them, then. She''d show them just how bad she could be. ¡­ If they disobeyed the teachings that was. She wasn''t one to act unprovoked, and even if the words bothered her, that was no reason to silence a quiet believer. Anyone who follows the principle of the church without saying they were a follower was a quiet believer, after all, the love of order was all encompassing. But so was its wrath, and to those who chose their freedom over that of others, forced their laws on the weak, or chose their own justice as the only right one, the church was a mortal enemy. She had sworn she''d hunt them all down. As she looked over Stormbraver from the top of the temple, the balcony that only she and her attendants could stand on, she clenched the railing hard enough for the stone to crack. She had chosen to hunt down chaos, and as she had chosen to do so, she would uphold her oath. She would serve her goddesses. She would serve her purpose. And she would serve this world in her own way. And with her conviction renewed as she did every day, she lifted up her tri-coloured robe and gracefully stepped down the stairs to the main hall. She spoke her announcement with the voice of a hummingbird, with the tone of a charming chirp: "Let the sermon begin." - - - - - - The three walking disasters were all people of their own right. They had gone down paths that led them to where they were now, and the opinions on them were very split. It wasn''t like with other figures, whom there was agreement on, like the monsters, who were almost feral. No, opinions on the disasters were split. But the opinions on one were especially polarized. It was a man on a mountaintop, a man whose sheer prowess few could compare to. It wasn''t just his physical strength, either. It was his magic, too. Otto was a man who stood alone as many. He didn''t rely on anyone else, all he relied on was his own power. Power gained from eating. Otto ate the flesh and bones of monsters, rending them down to nothing. And then he digested them. Took their flesh as his own. It made him a mutant, his skin scarred and blackened from burns. Parts of him were scaled, again others had fur, and his mouth had grown fangs. He was a half-mutant freak. But he was strong. And once he had enslaved the body of the monsters, made their strength part of his own, he sought to enslave their spirits. They were his spells. He knew nothing of magic, yet his mana had grown to a vast sea in his consumption. And so, he took their spirits with him, and had them cast spells for him under threat of death. They were powerful. The souls of monsters like a dragon, combined with his mana, could create lightning and fire unlike much else, and all of them could act independently from him, too, using their own mana. And then, over time, he''d bind them using an item that required prolonged contact, turning them into his obedient slaves, nothing more than an extension of himself. And so, he mutated his soul. He stood alone, as many, and there were few who could oppose him, but so what? He killed the strong and prideful to grow stronger himself, yet the weak he left alone. In a sense, he was a protector, though no one might think of him like that. Because he was a freak. Disfigured and terrible. His skin charred and scarred, not even human anymore. His fangs that of monsters and his soul that of many. He had golden eyes that shone with malice, a face that he had disfigured himself and a head, shaven so he''d know if he grew horns. What was he, if not a monster? And what were monsters if not wild? This man wasn''t a protector, he was unbound, unchained, unstopped. Someone who only hadn''t harmed humans by coincidence. It was fighting fire with fire. Some thought he would keep the monsters away, others thought he''d burn it all down himself. And no one, ever, thought to ask him themselves. "Otto the Beast", they called him. "The mutant". "The freak". "The monster". They called him "devourer" and "greedy" and "scarred". They called him "terrible" and "feared" and they all thanked the gods under their breath when he wiped out the plague that threatened a village. He was hated and feared by all, some more and some less, and when he did good, most people thanked the gods, not him himself. But no matter what he may be called and how much he may do, he looked scary, and he was scary. Because there wasn''t someone to stop him. Because he was a monster. Because he was unpredictable. And so, Otto was, above all, "the scorned". A man who stood alone, as many. - - - - - - Mercury had learned a lot about magic. So much so, that he didn''t know where to start with progressing further. He knew how to control mana and magical energy, how to use his ystirs, their strengths, weaknesses, and limits, and he could even split his mind in two. It was an impressive array of skills. Multitasking, control over energy and transmuting it, even physical reinforcement. But he lacked a critical ability: casting. He had absolutely no idea on how to actually cast a spell. Sure, he could create heat and light, but not much, and not very easily either. That barely would qualify as magic. He wouldn''t even be able to bend a spoon at his current level. And while Mercury didn''t really mind the thought of a quiet life, there were a few obstacles. First of all, he had made a promise to himself. He would bring back everyone he had lost. He wanted them back. He wanted to hear Gladiator''s proud snarl, wanted to try and pick out Juno''s quiet steps from the background, he wanted to see Second''s loyalty and wanted to joke with Cherry. He wanted to hear their laughs, and he had promised that nothing would ever stop him from that. Secondly, he wanted to build a kingdom here. This wasn''t his previous, ordinary life. Here, his life could be extinguished by anyone''s whim if he wasn''t strong or under the protection of someone strong. But if there was one thing to make him grind his teeth, it was the thought of bowing his head to someone. It wasn''t an option. Being weak wasn''t something he could do. No, he could, but every fibre of his very being trembled with fury at the thought of it. The very lengths he went to just to see some improvement was quite representative of that. And the third reason was exactly that greed. Even though his hopes of greatness were trampled the moment they started, he knew they weren''t wrong. He had been in this world for a mere few pages. Maybe a single year or so. No, not even quite that. And still, he had defeated a human guard by surprising him, as well as a kid that was at least like 8. It was by no means impressive, but given the difference in age, their Skills should have been higher. Unless they put in less effort. He had gone through more than 8 years of human growth in not even a year. Heck, his magic was probably absolutely insane for someone under a year of age. He was far beyond the point of a prodigy if one judged him by that. So obviously, this world provided ample opportunity to outgrow one''s peers, or even people who were stronger. And it even felt equal. A wizard might beat a mage, a warrior might beat a wizard, an archer might beat a warrior. It wasn''t that they necessarily countered one another, either. It was just about who was stronger. Strength was available if one reached for it. And Mercury wanted to reach for it. But there were places that felt like sinkholes and some that felt like ladders. And right now, he was in a bit of an indentation in the ground, when it came to the height of power. So, Mercury had to move. To look for anything, really. Experiences, companions, and opportunities. He needed items and spells that could do revival, after all. But before that, he had to say his goodbyes. First was the food cart owner who always gave him some salami. As he had been kind to him, Mercury decided to pay back the favour and scratched some runes of protection into the cart, just to make it last a little longer. They were mid-1st grade still, but Mercury pumped them so full of mana that they''d still provide some stability. Second was Mei. This goodbye was almost even shorter, since they didn''t talk. Mei simply had shown Mercury some compassion, and so, Mercury sought him out. It wasn''t anything glamorous or special, since Mercury didn''t really own very much yet, but he meowed a goodbye to the kid, just to let Mei know he was still doing okay. And after receiving a smile, he went onto the last person he needed to bid adieu. Kintra, of course, was harder to leave. He felt that just saying "thanks" and heading off would be disrespectful, but without funds, he couldn''t really get her something incredible. So, instead, he came up with an alternative. He took his log out of his inventory once. That log, with it''s rune-covered insides, had been his home for many pages, after all. So it only seemed fair to leave part of that here. But he couldn''t settle on just that. He also wanted something else, which is when he turned to the room they shared. or rather, his catbed in the gloryhall. And made a decision. First, he asked Cerno for help. The gladiator knew he could speak, after all, so getting his assistance wasn''t that problematic. And it needed to be a surprise for Kintra. Then, he cut two rectangles out of his catbed, both around half a centimeter thick, and did the same to his log, leaving him with 4 rectangles. He slowly rounded and smoothed the edges using his claws as well. In essence, he was left with 4 small plates of wood. Which is when he needed Cerno''s help. He asked him for help with making small holes at the top of the plates and then tie them each together with some string, making two keychain-like objects. Each of them had a plate of his catbed and the log. And then, he scratched a phrase into each of them. "Home is where your friends are." Split up, of course. "Home is" was on the log, while "where your friends are." was carved into the one made from the place they shared. Approaching her was harder than Mercury had thought. He tried to gather up his courage and tell her he was leaving multiple times, but it didn''t quite work out as he wanted to. Whenever he tried to tell her, he couldn''t quite find the words. But Mercury wasn''t about to make excuses for himself. He knew he had to go. No, he knew he wanted to go. So, eventually, he decided to simply force himself to tell her what he thought, one for one. "Hey Kintra," he called out to her in a less busy moment. "I¡­ well, I-. Ah fuck. Damn it. Okay. I have to leave here." After a moment of hesitation he pushed past the first line. It was a difficult hurdle, but after this things got a little easier. "You probably knew this was coming. You know me best out of anyone, after all. You took care of me, when there was no reward for you, simply because you''re a good person. No, a great-... family. To me you''re family." It got a bit harder as he went on with it, especially seeing the small tears forming in the corners of Kintra''s eyes. But he had to go on with this. It was something he had to do. "Thank you, Kintra," Mercury continued. "For everything you''ve done for me. For giving me reasons to keep going, for giving me somewhere to stay, for saving my life when I didn''t want it to be saved. You made a home for me. And I decided to also make something for you. I know it''s not enough, it couldn''t be, but at least it''s something." Then he took out both of the keychains and handed Kintra one, while keeping the other in his paw. He gave her a moment to read it, before returning her smile. "I''m going to go on a little journey. You already know why I want to, probably. I simply can''t forgive myself for not saving the people who trusted me. It''s the same reason as for why I''ve been working hard. But even after I leave, I''ll always see you as family. And no matter where we are, a piece of me will always be with you. Because you''re home. You allowed me to make a part of your heart into my home, and I hope that maybe, you see me the same way¡­" After a moment Kintra nodded slightly, clutching the small gift from Mercury in her hand. And after a moment of silence, she looked up from her hands, and met his eyes. "Come back safe," she said, "please." "I will. I promise." And then, Kintra smiled a little again. "So, have you packed yet?" "..." With a snort and a bit of a laugh, Kintra grabbed a normal backpack and filled it with supplies. Rations, largely, but also a full waterskin, an outdoors blanket, which somewhat resembled a tarp, and some coin. Weapons seemed a little¡­ impractical. Paws foiling him once again! After adding everything to the backpack, she placed it atop mercury''s back, which is when she realized it was thrice his size. But just about as she wanted to apologize, the backpack disappeared into the mopaaw''s inventory. "Just as I thought," Kintra said, proudly nodding with her hand on her chin. "Yes, of course," Mercury said with a smile. "I''ll be off, then." And before he could fight it, Kintra had embraced him. "Be safe," she whispered. "... I will." And with that, Kintra watched Mercury go with a sad smile on her face and bitter tears in her eyes. And Mercury left with a heavy heart and eyes full of determination. Because he was a cat who didn''t make false promises. Chapter 26: Double Robbery Chapter 26: Double Robbery Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 13 Species: Zetraspa Titles: , , - - - Hp: 105/105 Mp: 306/306 Sp: 170/170 - - - Strength: 50 Vitality: 26 Dexterity: 39 (+1) Agility: 31 (+1) Intelligence: 51 Wisdom: 49 Willpower: 54 Luck: 17 - - - Ability points: 37 World points: 5 Skill points: 760 Gold: 2914 Beast familiars: 1/2 Huh? Mercury didn''t quite believe his eyes when he checked his status, so he made sure to look again. [Beast familiars: 1/2] ... Okay. Deep breaths Mercury. Calm down. He took a moment to look around, making sure the road was somewhat empty before indulging himself. "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!" pant, pant. "FUCK YEAH!!!" One of his companions was still alive! Alive!! How could he have missed this?! UGH!! Whatever. He knew now. He knew that his direction was absolutely correct, as he went into a light jog further towards Stormbraver. He was already on the way there when he finally decided to check his status. If he wanted to start gathering information, where better to start? There was a magic academy, there were multiple arches nearby, alchemists, runecarvers... It was a hub for people of power, as well as an important political spot. It was a capital, after all. And so, after double-checking his map, Mercury went forward with much more enthusiasm. - - - - - - Applause. Roaring, roaring applause. Applause by a number of hands that was uncountable, cheering from voices unimaginable. A woman stood up and bowed, breathing deeply. She wore a red coat with golden embroidery and shoulder pads and a white shirt underneath. A black leather belt held up her pants of the same colour, which disappeared into the almost knee high black boots. Short, white hair fell just shy of her shoulders in slight curls, framing her sharp face, her dark brown eyes now closed. Wilhelmina Amadeus Mozart. Perhaps the greatest musician of her time, a genius among geniuses, a prodigy, a wunderkind. Well, wunderadult now. The concert was... rather enjoyable. The cheers of the audience. The bright magelights, the cacophony of sounds, yells, shouts. It was so easy to get carried away sometimes. A wonderful escape from reality. One of the few pleasures she sometimes indulged in, other than her books. She had long ago thrown away all notions of the expectations on her back. She had abandoned her exploitative parents, dismissed their poor attempts at covering up their greed for fame with excuses of furthering her talent. Truth is, she did have a certain knack for music. But at the start, she hated it. Her teachers were all stuck-up idiots, old fossils with little connection to uprising movements. Stubborn nobles with their heads so far up each others'' bums that they couldn''t see good music if it was biting their ankles. That wasn''t her life. It never was. The tours her father wanted to get her to go on, even when her health was suffering from it. The rigorous practice her mother put her through, even after she had torn a ligament in her hand. Nobles with their desire for the best when they know not how to enjoy it. In that society she would forever be limited by her "betters" and even her audience. No, she wanted freedom. A journey. To play music not on her own, but with similar minds, people who would revolutionise music alongside her. She started writing her own songs as soon as she left, pawning them to libraries to afford food. Soon, she found an Inn to perform in, using the violin she had stolen. Those early days were rather thrilling, she reminisced while slowly walking off stage. She had done so many things since then. Seen so many places. Heard so many songs. Played for so many people. It was the life for her. As she exited the concert hall she wrinkled her nose a little at the familiar stench of brimstone. This continent had some of the most energetic people she had ever met, but their rules were also quite difficult. The society based on absolute power, the entirety of their political intrigue... it was sometimes difficult to handle. Luckily, when she challenged the demons to duels, most of them readily agreed, thinking that they could easily take her music on. Idiots. Their nobles were easy to tame like that, always insisting on using one of their inborn Skills, . If she won, the pact dictated they would simply be honest and sensible. If she lost, she bet her soul. Bigger winnings than losses made demons accept easily. But Wilhelmina was quite confident. She had already beat quite a handful of their nobles, after all. The small smirk on her lips quickly grew larger when a very familiar voice called out to her with a smack on the back. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. "What a damn show!" It was her guitarist, Oliva. A raccoon beastkin in their thirties, dark brown hair reaching to their chin, surrounding their rather gentle face, almost constantly filled with mirth. They somehow seemed unshakeable, always laughing and smiling. Always confident. She admired that. "Couldn''t agree more," Wilhelmia said. "Those demons do know how to throw a party." "Sometimes I do wish they''d lay off the fisticuffs though," Oliva quickly added. "The concerts get much more rowdy here than they did back on Rozarek..." "Cultural differences, I suppose. They are quite proud, and stubborn, and usually very aggressive, but they also stick to their pacts. They''re ruthless, backstabbing warmongers and unfortunately, I appear to be utterly enamoured by them!", Wilhelmia said with a laugh. Oliva couldn''t do much but sigh helplessly while hiding her smile. Wilhelmia wasn''t the only one who found the rather rough society of demons charming. Their incredible individuality gave them a lot of freedom here in their own right, especially with the protection of the many royals they had acquired. Their biggest backer as of now was Zagan, the transmuter. A demon who was often worshipped by alchemists for her powers in changing the very foundation of objects. She was more mad than she was proud, and even more curious than she was mad, an achievement in and of itself. She also wanted to hear all of the secrets of music from Wilhelmia, quickly accepting her challenge for cooperation, and similarly quickly losing it. Zagan might have been able to make gold from stone, but when it came to music, the creature was almost comically unsuited for it. Wilhelmia calmly put a charr between her scarlet lips, quickly lighting it with a hellstone coated match, striking it against the firebeetle chitin of the box it came in. After inhaling a deep puff of the dark blue smoke, she slowly let it back out. "I guess you aren''t wrong," Oliva said after a while. "People really are different everywhere you go... is there any stop you are particularly excited for?" The beastkin specifically tried to avoid the clouds of smoke leaving Wilhelmia''s mouth. It was a slightly unhealthy and addicting habit, which they had little interest in partaking in. "Hmmm..." Wilhelmia furrowed her brows for a moment. A stop she was particularly excited for? Well... "Not really, I don''t think. I think all places come with their unique challenges. The vampires are stubborn, the werewolves savage, the demons prideful, the dragons... well, they don''t even let us "lesser beings" play. Hah!" She took another deep breath of smoke, burning up almost half the charr in the process. "Most excited... I think the people are what makes places exciting. Everywhere you go, you see so many faces, and you never know which ones will stick with ya. I like seeing the differences in behaviour among peoples, but I usually like it best when I get to do some sightseeing at the start. When people don''t know me. It''s funny talking to people on the street normally sometimes. Seeing who really makes an impact, I suppose." "That''s very like you." "Of course, I said it after all. How would it not be like me?!" "Behehehe, I suppose so. Well, I better get back in and start working on cleaning everything back up. We gotta be ready to head out again in a few days, hm?" For a moment, Wilhelmia froze up, quickly taking another puff of smoke and shaking it off. She took another moment to shake the ash off her charr and then nodded solemnly. "I''ll be right there to help you, next stop is Firefield, right?" "City of eternal flames, you''re dead on. It''ll be one hell of a stage for our Ragnarok to perform on, huh." "It sure will," Wilhelmia said with a smile. "Now head on in, I''ll be coming right after." "Alright, see you soon!" After the door closed behind her, Wilhelmia let out a sigh. "A pun. Seriously. That''s how she had to say goodbye with?" She shook her head a little in disbelief. "Well, at the very least, I can say it''ll be fun." And after inhaling a final breath of smoke, she threw the charr aside, quickly stomping out the residual heat. Maybe pointless, given the sulfur in the air and the fires burning all over the place, but principles were principles after all. And one of those principles was to take care of one''s equipment, like by packing it up properly. - - - - - - "God damn it, I swear I''d kill for thumbs." Currently, Mercury''s equipment was half strewn across the floor, since he was not very good at handling it with his paws oftentimes. His map was a little smudged, but he could tell he was just a few days away from the capital. He had sustained himself largely off the rations Kintra packed for him, so he didn''t have to do much hunting and could instead focus on travelling and growing his mana veins a little further. They reached almost everywhere in his body by now, but he was having a little trouble bringing them into his claws. He was just met with a little more resistance, but it still seemed doable. Other than that, the journey had been relatively quiet. Occasionally he saw some other travelers, driving by on carriages and giving him some weird looks, but most of them let him walk in peace. Some of them stopped to try and pet him, which he promptly refused. He would not let some stranger touch his fur. A small band of mercenaries talked about gutting him for his fur, but he quickly sprinted past them, making sure they left him alone. Mentioning that, most travellers he saw were either mercenaries or they had guards. Apparently there was a group of bandits somewhere down this road, but the sages had to send all soldiers to the frontline, left with very few to patrol the roads. Too few to fight against a group of bandits. Mercury disliked that. He had always minded stealing, especially if it was unnecessary. A starving child could steal some bread in his eyes, sure, but adults threatening and robbing anyone who came by? Seemed a little unfair to him. Think of the devil. As he crossed a small hill, he could see a carriage with a large back, covered in a tarp, being stopped by a group of ruffians. Some men, some women, all covered in bits of different leather armor that largely fit them. Most of them had bastard swords strapped to their hip, though some also carried spears or bows. They were currently tying up an aged looking man, probably somewhere in his forties, and what seemed to be his son, a blonde haired man wiggling in his bounds. As he got closer, Mercury could actually hear him yell. "How dare you do this!! Who do you think you are?! You are going to pay for this!!" Wow, what a temper. How stupid. He quieted down a little when one of the bandits pressed a dagger to this neck and whispered something into his ears, though he was still shaking with rage. Yo, was this dude okay? He seemed like he was about to fricking pop. Someone should get him some sedatives or something. The older man seemed much more calm about the whole thing. No, maybe that wasn''t right, more like resigned. He had his head down, eyes fixed on the floor and was a little hunched over. Man, that sucks. Imagine you''re just travelling and a whole group of people show up armed to rob you. Damn. It also didn''t look like they were extremely wealthy, probably made decent money, but not enough to get guards. As he got closer, Mercury asked himself if he should help them or not. How annoying. Could he really watch people get robbed on the street? Could he really just let this all happen? I mean, obviously he could. Actually, he probably should, Mercury thought. What would he be able to do against a whole group of people, all decked out with weapons? That sounded like a surefire way to go and die, something he would really rather not do. He had a much better idea, actually. Mercury almost smiled to himself as he snuck by the bandits and crawled under the tarp of the cart, hiding between all the goods. He quickly searched for an approximately cat-sized box. It didn''t take him very long to find one, which he quickly flicked open and buried himself below the rolls of paper that were in it. - - - About half an hour or so later, he was flung through the air and had a rough landing. Not exactly a pleasant way of being sat down, but then again, he was disguised as a wooden box. The bandits had quickly opened it up, seen the scrolls and decided they could probably sell them to a fence. They were laughing to themselves the whole way back, talking about how kind they were to make the merchants'' journey lighter. Mercury really didn''t like bandits a whole lot. After hearing footsteps away from him, Mercury decided to poke his nose out, only to find the the box'' latch was now closed. Shit. He remember that it wasn''t a lock, luckily, since the box was supposed to be locked away somewhere itself, but a simple latch was already enough to cause him problems. Ugh. He could barely reach the outside of the box by sticking his claws through the small slit between the lid and the main body of the chest. Unfortunately, that wasn''t enough to open it up, since he remembered he needed to get the handle of the latch-bar to the middle and then pull it to the side. Well. Shit. Time to hope none of the bandits would miss a wooden box. He quickly unsheathed his claws, pulsating mana through the little veins he had in them, and pushed them into the wood. The box was quite sturdy, so he needed to make quite a few scratches to get started, but from then on, he just kept removing material. He first completed a rough circle which he could probably squeeze himself through as a young mopaaw. Then, he shaved off some of the material inside the circle, to make space for his claws to cut deeper. After a good half hour or so, and more splinters than he would have liked, Mercury slammed his shoulder against the circle, punching it out of the box and creating his exit. He quickly gave a look around, finding himself in a rather rough tent, leathers and furs held up by thick branches of wood. And around him were all the other valuables that the bandits had plundered and yet to sell. No coin by itself unfortunately. That was probably split between the bandits so they could buy themselves some stuff when their fences came by. Well. Mercury hesitated for just a moment before tossing that aside. He did briefly think about giving everything here back to its owners, but that was ridiculous. No, he would instead take some stuff for himself. He quickly nabbed a few valuables, some brooches, golden buttons, things like that, and tossed them into his backpack. Then, he picked out a decent sized leather pouch from the small hoard, quickly pouring everything in it out and stuffing it full of things he thought he could need. He packed the scrolls from the wooden box he hid in, every book he could quickly find, and some more valuable tidbits, before shoving it into his third inventory slot. He now had his log in one of them, then the backpack, the pouch, and two emergency rocks. That title he got was really quite handy. Now, the next question he had to ask himself was quite simple. How was he going to get out of here? Chapter 27: Reminiscing Chapter 27: Reminiscing /Arches. A curious thing, those are. Doors or gates, sometimes, and again others are rifts, tears, cracks, or breaks. What are these curious things, to make them so potent? What is it, that allows them to make a small town into a city, or level an entire capital? Well, to keep things short, they are essentially like tunnels, connecting us... somewhere. Where exactly? Well, sadly I cannot say. Neither can anyone else, however, simply because of how unpredictable they are. See, they don''t lead to any concrete space on our world, nor do they lead anywhere sensible. All navigation is pointless in them! There are usually no stars, none that we would know at least, and any compasses malfunction. Some of them have a sun that goes the wrong way, some have multiple suns, some are entirely dark and again others lead underground. Yet, this rabbit hole goes further! In fact, some of them don''t even lead to any place that even seems hospitable, oftentimes one will find themselves in weird areas where space shifts and there aren''t even major landmarks to navigate around. But there are a few things we know. All of them have an end, a wall, so to speak. Many of them will look like northern lights, though others may take the appearance of a sheer cliff, or an endless ocean. In any case, these are never crossable. Furthermore, we have also determined that some of these tunnels are permanent, and some temporary. It''s a simple distinction: any term akin to a door means permanence, any resemblance to something breaking is used to refer to temporary tunnels. In any case, these are usually full of monsters or frenzied beings, and are better left to experienced combatants, but I encourage my fellow researchers to explore them alongside a party of experts. May we uncover the answers those ethereal creations hold together in the future./ An excerpt from "A documentation of Tunneling" by Armeyus the Scholar. - - - - - - Mercury had made his way back out of the bandit camp quite easily. The bandits weren''t that vigilant, not really expecting humans, but rather wild animals. They relied on torches to keep them at bay and were chatting during their patrols. Idiots, if only they knew. Mercury, on the other hand, felt quite good about himself. Scrolls and books to read during his breaks, as well as valuables to sell. Maybe he could afford food with that. Hopefully he wouldn''t need to eat rats. He found them pretty disgusting. And so, our hero''s toil continues, covering the vast swathes of land between Treyno and Stormbraver. It was a great distance, yet he did not despair, for he was one with purpose. He walked for the sake of finding those he cared about. He walked to gain back anyone and everything he had lost. He walked- GOD DAMN IT JEFF!! OUT OF MY OFFICE, RIGHT NOW!! Ahem. Excuse the outburst. I personally dislike it when my colleagues insist on breaking into my workflow. I take pride in what I do, and others, thinking they need to insert their own style in the middle of my novel, are not appreciated. In any case, where were we? Ah, right. Mercury continued on his way towards Stormbraver without major problems. The road was relatively quiet, most traffic going towards the frontline. And with guard patrols slowing down, few people wanted to take the risk of travelling far. In essence, Mercury got his peace and quiet. He had a lot of time to just... think. It was a little annoying to meditate, especially since he had to keep his eyes open, making it harder than it needed to be. He tried to do a little bit of magic practice, but he also just thought about what he would do once he arrived in Stormbraver. He would have to find a tracker, of course. He had no idea which one of his wolves was still kicking, unfortunately, so they also needed to be good. Probably using some sort of fancy magic stuff that worked with just names as well. If that didn''t work out, he could also always just go to a library and read up some more on blood eclipses. Knowing more about them couldn''t hurt. Now that he knew a bit more about tunnels, the holes he saw the monster crawl from during the eclipse was very reminiscent of those. He just didn''t know enough. He didn''t know if his familiar counter reached through rifts, he didn''t know if those could be made by a person, he didn''t know if those... openings were even rifts. He didn''t even know if his familiar counter had a limit to range in general, nor did he know if the monsters dragged people back with them or just ate them. It was... too muddled. Confusing. His memories about it already were a blur, everything was too hectic, and the sheer volume of adrenaline coursing through his body in the moment probably didn''t help either. He sighed when he thought about it. He was getting worked up. It wasn''t good for his blood pressure. He didn''t have any problems with blood pressure, but there wasn''t really any need to increase his risk, was there? Mercury decided he needed to distract himself from those thoughts, so for a little time, he allowed himself to think back to earth. To his three years of college, before he had to drop out, specifically. He had been studying communications first, but after a year, he had had enough. He enjoyed the writing exercises, but his professors sucked. Majorly. Most of what they did was analysing text after text, oftentimes poems, and a lot of it was very one-sided and patriotic. He wanted to be able to write more himself, and maybe also read some speeches by non-American authors. So he swapped over to business. He thought that one might be fun, but a lot of professors were very pushy, maybe to try to get them to speak up. It was honestly a little intimidating. But he liked most of the theory and number-crunching. He failed the finals in his second year. He couldn''t afford college for that much longer. Not with his student loans piling up. He dropped out. He wanted to be able to pay back his loan eventually, and if he had continued with college, he wouldn''t have been able to. It was sad to say goodbye back then. He really got along well with Daniel from economics. They hung out a lot. He was too good to vent to. Kind, patient, empathetic, supportive, a really great guy. Maybe sometimes a little quiet, but that was fine as well. And then there was Mia, too. They met when Mercury, no, Steve, was still studying communications. She was always so bubbly and energetic, wanting to talk about everything with him. Sometimes she was a bit of a gossip, but more often than not, she would rant and rant about the professors. Her impressions were unbeatable, especially when it came to mimicking accents. For some reason, Mr. Loathesgate always had it out for her. Whenever she seemed even a little tired or unprepared he would ask her about specific topics she disliked, under the pretext of furthering her talents. Yeah, right. He only wanted to humiliate her when she was distracted. Maybe he was intimidated. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Steve really liked those two, but unfortunately, he moved to another state for work. His work, huh. Mercury shuddered at the thought. That one godforsaken place that had easily stolen so many years of his life. The place that single-handedly ruined his love for numbers, that had sapped his energy so thoroughly he could barely do anything but sleep and work. It was grueling. Luckily, he wasn''t there anymore. Well, not that he loved how things were right now, but at least he was self-sufficient. In this new world, he was able to make his way up until now. He could read, and write, and eat what he hunted. It wasn''t as luxurious as he would hope for as of right now, but it was still better than being unable to develop himself. Actually, ever since he reincarnated here, he had been getting more in touch with who he was again. He chose his new name and identity, though he felt it was a little rude towards his parents, and he also chose how to present himself. It was freeing. Mercury was no one but himself, unapologetically. He had refused Yvette when she wanted to be in a higher position, simply because he remembered how much he hated that back when he was working for a company with a strict hierarchy. He easily confronted her, even though she was much more powerful. He put the knights that were mocking him into their place, and made friends that accepted and loved him for who he was. They didn''t try to change him too much, though he hadn''t known them for too long. He missed them. He missed them all so much. Those friends he had made when he was being no one but himself, with every word he spoke. It was so rewarding to still be liked, to be wanted. Of course, that didn''t mean he was worthless now. People still cared about him, like Kintra for example. And he knew one of the wolves was alive, meaning that Cherry might have also made it, though he tried not to keep his hopes up. Mercury knew that people still cared about him, and he knew he cared about them back. Which is precisely why he had to save them, no matter where they were, no matter what exactly happened to them. He was their king. They counted on him. - - - With renewed determination, Mercury stepped in front of the gates to Stormbraver. He had approached the city from the southern gate, and there was even a small queue in front of him. Most of the people looked fairly haggard. Farmers who were down on their luck, or maybe poor sods who had bet their all on the success of a frontier village, only to have been surprised by a poorly timed war. It wasn''t a great sight, all of them at their lowest, but it was better than seeing them dead. Most of them had desperation in their eyes, but there definitely were some that looked more angry or determined. They were going to get into this city, no matter what. And get in they did. The city had a refugee quarter close to the wall, and partially outside it. Still, it was largely safe, especially as long as the war didn''t progress this far. Of course, they would still have to work for their food, but at the very least, they would usually be able to find some scraps and have a roof over their heads. It was better than nothing. In any case, with so many people wanting in, it took quite a while until Mercury got to the gate proper. Should I read this out? Yeah, this is pretty funny to be fair. - - - - - - - "Next!" Leynn''s shift was almost over. He had been at the gate since 5 in the morning, making sure the night shift got their sleep, and by now it was late afternoon. He was more than done. "Please, step forward, next!" It was annoying. He had called out and yet there seemed to be a gap in the line. God damn it, people, we don''t have all day. Get a move on. "Sorry, down here." "Hm? Who said that?" Leynn looked down for a moment and his eyes went wide. Same could easily be said for his shift partner, a newbie. Man had barely started on the job a page or so ago. Well, that being said, had that mopaaw just spoken? No way, no way. Must be yesterday''s drinks for sure. He looked ahead again as he let out a sigh, but just when he was about to say something, a small purple crystal flew into his face. "Who the-!" "Sir, that''s my godseeker license." ... what? Leynn couldn''t believe it for a moment, but he stifled his cursing as he picked up the crystal and checked it out. {Mercury Rainfall Starlight Tamer E-Rank} Leynn took a deep breath. He slowly put the license back into the backpack the mopaaw had brought from nowhere, making sure to count to ten in his head. Well, maybe not just counting, he might have hidden some curses in there as well. Then, he sighed again. Fuck it. Talking mopaaw, doesn''t matter. Not his fucking problem. If it has a license, it gets to go in. He was sure his superiors would forgive him if the thing caused problems. Maybe they would also forgive him waiving the toll fee, because he was sure the little furball didn''t carry too much coin with him. "Sir, is there anything wrong?" "Sigh. Nothing, godseeker Starlight. Please, head right on in." "Thank you, sir. I hope the day treats you well. Sorry for the inconvenience." Just a few more hours of being a glorified checkpoint, Leynn. Just a few more hours. - - - - - - That went rather well, Mercury thought. He decided not to be any more rude to the guard than throwing his license, which he had an excuse for. No hands. The man seemed like he was far too tired to deal with anyone''s shit, and honestly, their life was probably tough enough. Letting people in and out was probably rather thankless work. Well, in any case, he had made it to Stormbraver at least. Now to find somewhere to stay. And a library. And a tracker of some kind. He really had some exploring to do, huh. - - - - - - "Wilhelmia''s out drinking again." "Seriously, Oliva? Again? Damn it, why does she never invite me along?" Oliva preferred living in a small but well outfitted room. It was a personal space, so they had to take care to keep it as such. They had paintings they liked hung on the walls, their folding bed in the corner, and their favourite lamp on the nightstand. Well, the floor now. "Maybe because you''re so loud..." "What was that?!" "I said that maybe she doesn''t invite you because of how loud you are, Eric." The man pouted a little as he heard that. Sure, sometimes he yelled more than he talked, but he wasn''t that bad, was he? "It''s not-! I''m-!!" "Yes, yes, we know. It''s not your fault. It''s just who you are. You have tried everything to change it but you don''t want to. We recognize that. But have you considered that maybe locals can find you a little scary?" Oliva glanced from the hulking man back down to their lamp. It had a long crack straight through the magical head. It was going to be bothersome to fix and would probably not be appreciated by anyone but them. Nevertheless, they liked the lamp, and would love to keep it. "To the demons?" "Yes, Eric. To the demons. Look in a mirror." The man nonchalantly took one of the handheld ones from Oliva''s room. They never minded too much as long as he left things intact. Maybe that cracking sound he''d heard was why they were annoyed? He looked himself up and down, but he looked just as usual. Not any more or any less ugly than any other day. Oliva let out a sigh behind him. "Eric, that''s not the point," they said slowly. "You''re not ugly, at least not to other dryads, but you''re basically the opposite of those demons. A spirit of life and growth. At least, that''s how it goes for most of them." Oliva slowly got up from their bed as they looked the man up and down again. His green, partially bark-like skin was rough and coarse most of the time, but soft like grass on his face. He had yellow eyes that seemed to shine in the dark, with pupils that looked like miniature, black suns. All of that was fine and good, but the man was truly terrifying. Standing at 2.20 meters, he dwarfed most other dryads. The bottom of his face was covered in a scraggly beard of bush, unkempt as the wilds he represented. Atop his long hair made from vines rested a crown of thorns and black roses, and the only thing covering his massive torso was a black leather jacket, partially wrapped in purple nightshade. The gap in its middle gave people ample view of his bark covered and muscular abs. His baggy, leather pants were wrapped in leaves and ended in his boots made from shadewood, a substance that was usually said to be virtually unworkable, as well as an ingredient in many potent poisons. Yet, to the dryads, shadewood apparently felt more pleasant than any fur. All in all, Eric was terrifying, and even more than that, terrifyingly careless. He never thought about "the flimsiness of your doors", as he liked to say it, and would regularly unhinge them, or smash them open at the very least. Sometimes he even forgot his height and hit his head on the ceiling. Well, maybe that was inadequate, it was usually more that the ceiling received his head. The man was an embodiment of nature and its wrath, and although dryads were physically not nearly as strong as their wrathful brethren, the leshen, this specific specimen was easily able to smash most things in his way. Funnily enough, he was able to combine that with his sense of rhythm and make for a very good drummer. "Hrmph." "I know Eric. You can''t help any of that. We all still love you, don''t worry. Just ask Wilhelmia if she could take you along next time, you know she will. And the demons will get used to you, just like everyone else. Just be patient." Oliva gave the man a small smile and a light pat on the back as they set about picking up the few pieces of their lamp that split off, but before they could finish it, they heard bellowing laughter right next to her. "WARARARARARA!!! Right as always! Thanks Oliva, always reliable!" And with another strong pat on Oliva''s back, the man smashed the door to the room closed, landing the lamp right back on the ground in front of the guitarist. "Sigh. Whelp, a little more work won''t make a difference now." Chapter 28: A new city Chapter 28: A new city /Order is a magnificent thing. In the end, all things lead back to order. It is the one determining force everything relies on. Without order, there can be no rules. Without rules, there can be no existence. These laws can be as large as whatever attracts us to the floor beneath our feet, or the rules magic follows, or, even grander, the rules of the system. Yet order can be found in the smallest structures. Buildings need to be built orderly or collapse. Families need to have order in them, or conflict will arise. Any of us need to hold order in our heart, for otherwise, we will only breed turmoil and disrupt the order that is greater than ourselves. We find order in the grand scale of all that is, and yet, we also find order in the smallest things. Grains of sand follow order, being eroded into tiny spheres, then stretching out in endless plains, or soft beaches, all incredibly similar to one another, because order determines it so. Every grain of sand has its place. This order must be mirrored in every one of us. In every being, everything in existence. For without order, there is nothing worthwhile, and only with order in your heart can you hope to find true salvation./ The first scroll of the series "The grand Church of Order" by bishop Nemo the faithful. - - - - - - Stormbraver was large. It was a genuine city, much bigger than Treyno, with infrastructure Mercury would have thought impossible. The first thing he noticed was that in the center of the stone roads, there were grooves, perhaps a third of a meter wide. These grooves had grates at regular intervals, leading down into the sewers of the city, as well as blue crystals, that activated every half hour or so, flooding the whole construction with water and washing all the waste away. It was quite impressive, an almost modern sewage system, created using magic instead of electricity. Mercury was a little surprised at this, especially wondering what those gems were made of, since he hadn''t quite seen anything like them yet. Perhaps he''d find out later. In any case, magic tools were much more prevalent here than he had seen them anywhere else. They weren''t abundant at all, but instead, they were available, sometimes for the use of the general populace, but more often than not a luxury good. Some of them were used in infrastructure, like the sewage canals, while others were used to create magical weaponry from scratch. But what intrigued Mercury much more than these creations, that seemed to mimic modern society, were the buildings. The city was a little segmented, right when he came in he could see some street signs, showing directions to temporary shelters or general residence quarters. The temporary shelters were... somewhat dilapidated. Buildings using stones and wood beams, to create buildings that were long rather than wide. Covered in thatch roofs, these buildings were held together by cheap mortar, made to withstand rain and keep in the bare minimum of heat at the lowest cost possible. Meanwhile, the living quarters of the general populace was much more reminiscent of medieval Europe, featuring buildings that expanded as they went upwards, made from wooden beams, and what he guessed was hardened clay. But already, just from the entrance of the city, he could see the noble district. It stuck out like a doorknob from a door, literally. Their mansions and spires towered much higher than any of the other buildings, and while Mercury couldn''t see a whole lot of details, he most certainly knew they were more decorated than they had any right to be. In general, these noble buildings were found to the more northwestern side of Stormbraver, built on the soft slopes of a hill there. To the south, the city featured empty plains, giving good visibility, while a little to the west, there was a forest, where all the city''s wood came from. The north and east were dominated by a nearby lake and the rivers leading there from the mountains far northeast. This was the place where commoners would live, buying their groceries on the lakeside market, where merchants would peddle wares from distant lands, while the farmers from down south and the fisherman from the area would make sure food was well supplied. The city even hosted a granary in case of famine! That and more was what Mercury picked up when he followed around a guide giving a small tour to some visitors of the city. Sometimes being a cat had its advantages, no one suspected you when you were actually spying on them, heh. Well, at the very least he now knew a little more about the city and its origins. Stormbraver hadn''t been named that. It had more than earned its name over the time it was here, being first established as a fortress city. Now, it had enough infrastructure to support travellers, merchants, nobles, and families alike. It was one of the better places to live, so long as one ignored that fact that the nation it was stationed in was currently at war. Well, at the very least, Mercury had gotten a few rough directions for where he could stay in the city, with a few inns being recommended. Unfortunately, those were the recommendations of a tour guide, seeking to leech as much money from him as possible, but he knew quite a bit better. Kintra was a receptionist after all. She knew just about every little detail about the aristocracy she was living in. She had pointed him straight to the Fountain of Luck, a small back-alley inn that her mother had apparently taken her to a few times when she was little. It was affordable, clean, and honest. Mercury nodded to himself, as he walked into the establishment under the saloon doors. It was a little loud in there, like most inns would be, people eating, drinking and laughing all around. Fitting, given the later afternoon. Mercury swiftly made his way through the crowds and hopped onto the counter, choosing the spot in front of an empty seat. He eyed the bartender for a moment, a young man in his late twenties or so. Blonde hair, tied into the tiniest of ponytails, barely enough to even qualify, with warm blue eyes. He had a calm face and a warm smile, making him easy to talk to and even easier to order drinks from. He was decently good looking and wore black pants with suspenders, over a spotless white shirt. The man obviously took quite a bit of care to not get himself stained, and maintain his friendly appearance. This was even more obvious when he didn''t even flinch when Mercury called out to him. "Excuse me, could I rent a room?" "Hm? Sorry sir, could you repeat that?" "Yeah, uhm, I would like to rent a room." The barkeep gave Mercury a small smile and then nodded again. "Of course. How many days are you intending to stay sir? Would you like a normal room or a luxury one?" "Normal, for three pages if possible." Mercury gave a nod at the end, trying his best to hide his surprise at the nonchalant demeanor of the young man. "Of course, that would be two Pales and five Dims, sir." Mercury pulled out some of the coins he had gotten from selling the bandit''s loot. Plenty of pawnshops around. He probably had gotten a rather poor deal, but a poor deal with no questions asked was better than going to prison for a good one. He tipped the barkeep a little, before picking up the keys to his room in his mouths. "Fenks." "Of course, sir. The room is right up the stairs. As long as you stay here, you also get 25% off any meals you purchase, so please consider it. Have a nice stay!" And just like that, Mercury had acquired his own room once again. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. He also still had some money left over, though he most certainly would need to figure out a way to make more. Well, that could wait in any case. He had priorities after all. And his highest priority was finding some books at a library that he could buy. Books about revival or that kinda stuff. At the very least, he was pretty sure necromancy wasn''t outlawed in this world, so he''d hopefully be able to find info on it. Mercury took some time to make himself at home in the inn. He unpacked his log and stole the blanket and pillow from the rudimentary bed. Then he also unpacked all the sleeping things Kintra got for him and quickly added them to his log. He nodded to himself at the absolute mess of pillows in front of him. This was a perfectly suitable bed. He kept wearing his dracoleather cloak, just to see if that alone was enough to make it grow, and also to make him more recognizable than just by his fur colour. Maybe cats in this world commonly looked like him? He definitely wanted to make sure the bartender didn''t let anyone else into his room. That would suck. So, after the absolute ordeal of getting his room locked, he managed to do it by jumping on top of the key and twisting it slowly but surely like that. Pulling the key out was just as hard, but he managed by activating throw on it a bunch. Man, what he would give once more for thumbs. Afterwards, he went down and quickly spoke to the innkeeper, Davis, again. He got directions to the one public library in the city and headed out. It wasn''t that long a walk. The building was recognizable, since it had stone pillars at the bottom to help support the upper floors. It was well constructed, better than most of the surrounding houses, and was a fairly large building. Apparently it was paid for with taxes and entirely funded by the state, and the book sales they could make. After all, there were magical tools to process wood into paper, and most people were entirely required to be able to read because of the system. This made this world once more different from the medieval times Mercury was used to, where paper was expensive and only the church and state could read. He preferred it this way quite a bit, to be honest. Well, in any case, there was a public library, and they sold books. Sometimes. Turns out they did have some sort of printing press, but it was only used for things like monthly newspapers. The presses were not nearly advanced enough to print enough newspapers for the entire city within a day or a week, so monthly it was. As for the books in the library, it was quite frowned upon to have them reproduced via printing, or so Davis told him, since it was seen as disrespect of the author''s work. Okay, a little dramatic to be sure, but whatever. Scribes were apparently quite valued anyways, since they oftentimes could also do some minor enchantments. So essentially, these scribes were the ones that opposed the use of printing in reproduction of books, since it would remove their jobs, and they had enough power to do so, since their capabilities was highly valued for the production of legal documents. In addition, many people used their enchanting services occasionally, giving them a sway over a large part of the city. Sigh. This was all too complicated. Whatever. This made books expensive, in the end, which sucked, but it was still better than being entirely unable to buy books. He would simply have to rely on the library already having copies of the ones he wanted, or place a custom order with the scribes, which could get both pricey and take its time. Again, he would need money. What a bother. Now he needed to pay rent, buy books, pay for food... So instead of going to the library immediately, Mercury decided to head to the gloryhall in Stormbraver. - - - It was loud. Extremely loud, in fact. This was perhaps the biggest building he had been in yet, filled with men and women of varying ages, though none that looked actually old, chatting, laughing, and drinking all around. It reminded him much more of a disco than anything else, though without the loud, droning music and flashing lights. Nevertheless, Mercury was already starting to get a bit of a headache, so he decided to make this as quick as he could. He hopped on top of the counter where multiple receptionists worked, and called out for them. After a few curious looks, a young man with brown hair and hazel eyes came over to him. He wore a uniform a little different from Kintra''s, not just because it was the male version. Instead of a green jacket, his was light blue. It also had the crest of Stormbraver sewn into it. "This is Marcel, how can I help you today?" "Mercury Rainfall Starlight. Here to report my shift of activity into this city." "Ah, yes, of course," the young man said with a smile. "Could I quickly see your license?" Mercury nodded and pushed it across the counter, where Marcel quickly inspected it. "I see. So you have not yet completed any commissions then?" "I have. I fought in an arena, back in..." "Ah, yes, I see. I''m guessing it didn''t count as completed, since you never turned in the signed commission slip?" "Uhm, no, did I have to do that?" Marcel gave a small nod. "Yes, you do. For now, I will manually add it as a completed E-rank commission, but please make sure to hand in the finished commissions in the future." "I will, thank you again for the help." Mercury gave his best cat-smile. He was once again surprised at how helpful these people always were. He couldn''t really imagine ever being a receptionist. After another moment of Marcel holding Mercury''s license, small strands of magic flew from his hand into it, the same purplish colour as the crystal itself. Then, Marcel quickly handed it back to Mercury. "There, all done," he said. "Now that you have completed an E-rank commission, would you like to take the exam to increase your rank to D? Since you completed one mission above your current rank, it''s possible for you to immediately increase it." Well, well, well. Wasn''t this a schemer. Sneakily trying to rank him up. For some reason, Mercury was sure he didn''t do it fully out of charity. He was just guessing, but perhaps receptionists would be given credit, depending on how many godseekers they ranked up? In any case, Mercury nodded quickly again. "I would, yeah. What do I have to do?" "This exam differs from city to city. In Stormbraver it is quite simple. Just head into the forest to the west and bring back a boar''s tusk. On that note, here is the commission for the rank-up mission," Marcel said, as he quickly placed a piece of paper in front of Mercury, repeating the details he had just stated. "Would you also like to register me as your dedicated receptionist while you remain in Stormbraver?" Marcel continued. "Having a dedicated receptionist essentially means that whenever I am present in the gloryhall, you will work directly with me. It simplifies paperwork and keeps you from having to reintroduce yourself every time. It also only applies for this city, and your dedicated receptionist in other cities will not be changed by this." There it was. Seems like receptionists most certainly got part of the credit of whatever the adventurers they were partnered with did. Well, it didn''t bother Mercury in any case. To him, it just simplified things, so he quickly agreed. "Thank you very much. I will add that to your license as well." "Quick question though. How can you read so much from my license when all I can see are my name, occupation, and rank?" "Ah, that." Marcel flashed another quick smile as he answered an obviously frequent question. "Your license holds all information about your work as a godseeker. Additionally to what most guards can read off it, receptionists use a special version of to read the hidden information. This includes completed commissions, dedicated receptionists, documented skills and specialities, as well as feats outside of your normal work, for example." "I see. Can I also choose to hide that?" "Of course, though not everything. We will still need insight into your commissions and coworkers, though you can hide the exact nature of your completed contracts. Other than that, you can hide most details with the editing function of the system. If you prefer to have even more control, we can sell you an skillstone, which are custom made for this purpose." "Ah, alright. Thanks. I''m fine for now. I''ll be off to get you a tusk then." "I hope to see you soon!" Marcel saw Mercury off with a small wave after he ripped the rank-up mission paper. Time to go find himself some food again. - - - - - - Once more, the head priestess was disappointed. Had the Church of Order really fallen so far in this country? Did they seriously need a state verdict to crack down on criminals? It was pathetic. She could only shake her head at them. This petty country thought they could rein in their activities? That stupid council of senile, old men, thought that they had any chance to control her? Did they seriously think she would listen? Hah! She''d show them. She''d show them justice. Lucia got up from her chair. She had been resting her voice after performing a sermon, drinking tea and having her attendants report all important ongoings to her. It was nothing much. No new cracks or gates showing up, no high-rank godseekers entering or leaving the city, no message from any of the bishops. It was a quiet report, until one of her closer aids told her about how the guards stopped a raid on a shop. City guards stopped the Church? To Lucia, it was laughable. They didn''t stop them, they stalled them at best. Mostly, they really just insulted them. They, the Church of Order, could report the shop to the authorities, where the owners would be tried by the free court of Stormbraver. Pfff. Free court. Lucia stifled her laugh in her throat once more, as she worked hard to make her face remain calm. The free court of Stormbraver was nothing but a puppet. Their strings were pulled by heretics, and their decisions influenced only by bribes. No, only their Church was truly independent. Truly objective. Truly fair. The petty laws of local governments could never hold up to the true justice the Church of Order enforced. True Justice. True Law. True Freedom. After some moments of thought, she spoke out. "The recent actions of the Nevarzahri Aristocracy deeply sadden me," she said. "I had thought, or rather, hoped, that we could come to an agreement with the heads, but it would seem they refuse to listen, would you not agree? This behaviour is becoming intolerable to us. It seems they are determined to insult us in any way they can." "They wish to take away our influence? Well then. Let us show them our influence. Let us show them our power! Let us show them our ORDER!!" "By tomorrow morning, I want to have a list compiled of all shops suspected of heresy. The owners will be taken in for trial. All of them need to be in our courtroom by evening. If the guards resist, push your way through. Use violence where it is necessary. Dismissed!!" And within a moment, Lucia was alone again, calmly sipping tea to rest her voice. But no matter if she was resting or not, she would always bear the weight the Crown of Order held with pride. Chapter 29: Dreaming Chapter 29: Dreaming /"Anoth is a fickle mistress. She is the queen of spiders, the webspinner, the veiled one, the lady of lies and the spinner of secrets. The great weaver is many things, but if one had to nail her down to one, she would be a lover of pleasure. The fun she gains from intrigue is her greatest pleasure, and for a trick great enough, she would trade a thousand things." While stories of her may be exaggerated, they still hold some truth. Even in Stillwater''s play, "Midnight Masquerade", Anoth is represented once again, and while he has a hand for hyperbole, Stillwater is still one of our greatest minds. It is a shame that he decided to... let''s say "dedicate" his intellect to plays instead of other literature. Nevertheless, his analysis of the veiled one is largely accurate. Anoth, a patron to all those who seek knowledge and secrets, is a goddess of power, if not of prestige. As her sphere implies, she prefers to stay unknown, only talked about in hushed voices and quiet half-truths. Even Stillwater was unable to fully reveal her essence, for it is evershifting. Yet, what can we then say about the mistress of webs? What events can be said to be her doing? Unfortunately, we cannot pinpoint very much. The webspinner prefers to move in secret, never fully showing her hand, not that mortals such as us would likely ever grasp it. But yet, wherever in history there is intrigue, the spider will pull strings. Everpresent at palaces and in politics just as much as in underground dealings and thievery, this spider has spread her web far and wide, whispering to any who are willing to accept her trickery into their lives, as she chooses a select few champions to represent her power./ An excerpt from "Of Greater Beings" by Matthew Lexicon, the stubborn historian. - - - - - - Mercury was able to venture into the forest quite easily. No guards questioned his exit of the city, since he was still just a cat, and with a well-trodden path leading into the forest, it was more than easy to make his way there. The forest was clearly more travelled than the one Mercury arrived in. There were paths cut into the undergrowth and paved by years of use. There were quite a few trees that had been reduced to stumps near the pathways, and most wild animals decided to stay clear of them. Even Mercury clearly noticed that they smelled much more strongly of human than the rest of the forest. So, since there was no shot of him finding a boar anywhere next to the walkways woodcutters used daily, Mercury veered off them and decided to walk deeper into the forest, where quite soon, the smell of humans was replaced with that of earth. It was almost a little calming, being back in such an environment after his lengthy stays in multiple cities, but he couldn''t just enjoy the atmosphere. After all, he had some work to do. Mercury quickly scaled up a tree, deciding to traverse the forest higher up to avoid large predators. He was still in no shape to fight something like a bear without preparation. Instead, he would keep his eyes sharp and his rocks ready, because he needed to pounce if he saw a boar. It took a while, and he passed by a handful of deer, but eventually he saw a small group of boars bathing in a muddy lake. There were a few adult ones and quite a few more young boars, all very small and cute with their light fur. Yet, while it was a shame, it was absolutely murder time. But once more, being a cat came as an advantage to Mercury. He was small and his feet barely made any noise as he snuck closer. He didn''t want to take the risk of the boar fleeing whenever he attacked it, so he knew he needed to get its legs first. Unfortunately, his throw wasn''t even close to strong enough if he tried to do that with just a stone, so he needed to get up close and personal. After a quick bath in the mud, turning his white fur brown, he focused on using both and to get closer to the pigs. He might need a bath after this, but what was a little mud in exchange for a promotion? When he was almost close enough to attack though, one of the young piglets saw him and started squeaking. Little fucking bastard. Well, now or never. Mercury immediately rushed his mana through his body, making it roar as he boiled it all up. Within one jump, he was close to the boar he targeted, a slightly older looking adult, and with another jump, he crashed straight into its front leg. He felt the impact all over his side, but he was quickly satisfied when he heard a crack and felt the bone he had targeted move. It was almost enough, as the boar quickly started hobbling away on three legs while screeching out warning. All of them were leaving, but Mercury had left a distinct impact on the one he was targeting. It took him a moment to regain his bearings after the impact, and by then, his target had gotten out of the lake and onto solid ground, but that wasn''t enough to get it away from Mercury. He was faster than it. After only a few moments, Mercury had caught up with the boar, and quickly unsheathed his claws to slice at its hind legs, only to receive a splatter of dirt into his face. Okay motherfucker, new idea! Immediately, Mercury spat out the dirt that had gotten in his mouth, unable to completely get rid of the disgusting, earthy taste, and charged after the boar. As soon as he was next to it, he decided to quickly bring the remainder of his mana to a boil and slam into the pig''s side full force. Like a tiny little wrecking ball he slammed into its soft belly, and as it crashed to the ground, the boar let out a small scream. Before it could even think of getting up, Mercury shook off his stupor from the collision and launched himself at its face, clawing out its eyes, before turning into a tiny whirlwind of claws and teeth as he sliced and bit all over its legs. It would almost be scary if he wasn''t a cat. But to the boar, it was easily quite terrifying, since all its colleagues had left it already. So, it was left to die a slow death, bleeding out at Mercury''s hands. [Killed a Wild Boar. Get: 100 Exp, 32 Gold.] No boars were harmed in the making of this novel. Well, as brutal, dirty and exhausting as that was, he had most certainly done it. That was one dead boar. He quickly threw the body into his inventory and shook of the rest of his stupor as he spit out a few more mouthfuls of dirt. Blegh. Afterwards, he took a quick bath in a small stream and somewhat washed the boar in there, trying to get some of the mud off its fur. Yucky. Mercury headed back into the city after. He was almost there now, he only needed to get the tusk out of its damn face, and without thumbs, he sure as hell had no shot at it. So, as sad as it was, he headed to a butcher and, after a short conversation, dropped the whole pig there. "A lil'' dirtey," the butcher said as he rubbed his chin, "bah decent quality. Beat up a lil'' as well, bah I ca'' make it work. Tell ya whot, I''ll give ya the tusk, 6 dims n'' 5 glooms for it. What ya say?" "You have yourself a deal, sir." Mercury felt like this butcher was an honest sort and promised to himself to make this the shop he''d sell to if he ever went hunting again. In any case, after they agreed, the butcher gave him a strong nod and ripped one of the tusks straight out the boar''s mouth, quickly cleaned off the blood on it, and handed it to Mercury alongside a small leather pouch. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. "Deal''s done. Pleasure doin'' business with ya." The black-haired, gruff man quickly gave Mercury a strong pat on the back, before waving the strange customer goodbye and going back to his work. ''Twas a strange city he worked in, bah wah'' was life wi''out the strangeness? Mercury on the other hand was quite happy with this. He had gotten paid for hunting the boar itself, enough money to pay rent for a few days, and he had gotten himself the materials for a promotion at the gloryhall. It was a good day to be a cat. He had quickly snacked on a mouse when he was coming back from the forest, so food also wasn''t a problem for now. Thus, Mercury quickly headed towards Marcel, when he realised the building was closed for the evening. Ah, well, whatever. It could wait until tomorrow. Mercury made his way back to the inn smoothly. It was just starting to turn late, though the sunlight was definitely dimming by now. Well, he had , so it really didn''t bother him that much. It was more that colour was being washed from the world as the time went on. Well, his world was pretty bland already, though it had definitely grown more colourful as time went on. Maybe something to do with his levels, though it mattered little anyways, since we have decided to narrate all the colours most humans can see. It makes more sense to cater to one''s audience rather than only the main character, after all. Excuse the little interruption, back on track. Mercury made his way into his room in the inn, quickly walking by Davis as he made his way back into his room. Unlocking it was just as much of a nightmare as before, but it was still a necessity. Seriously, he didn''t own much, but he couldn''t exactly risk his rent money being stolen. Speaking of that, did this city have... banks? Were those even a thing? They kinda had to be, right? Yeah, definitely. Else, where the hell would people even store their money? Whatever, another thing on the list for tomorrow. For now, Mercury could simply enjoy his time while practicing some magic. He hadn''t gotten any levels from practicing it while he was staying with Kintra, unfortunately, as he was absorbing very low amounts of actual MP from the environment. Though at the very least, he should have gained a few hundred Exp. Levelling sure was a chore. Mercury sighed at the thought. The system had said that almost everything he did would grant a certain amount of Exp, though he guessed none of that was ever shown to him. Maybe it would be after certain milestones? In that case it would also make sense why he hadn''t gained any points from . They might just show up after he got like 100 of them. That would take foreeeeeever. Unlucky. And so, Mercury let his thoughts drift off, as he slowly slipped into sleep. As per the usual, he woke up once more in his dreamscape, as he decided to call it for now. That was some total 4 elements type shit. I mean, come on. Fire to the north, water to the south, earth to the east and air to the west. How stereotypical. In any case, by now his were a near perfect recreation of his body, and one could easily make out the shape of a cat when staring at him. Weirdly enough though, he wasn''t alone in there today. As always, Mercury could see the surroundings like he usually would, doing a quick sweep of the area. It was still a little jarring to wake up in an entirely different place. Today, though, he saw someone else sitting on the grassy planes. It was another construct of weird, crystal-like tubes, but somehow, while he could see the shape with his eyes, it didn''t fall together. Like, he felt he could see all of the of whoever was there, but... in his mind, he couldn''t reconstruct their body at all. It was... jarring, to say the least. Oh well. Whatever. It was something different, to be sure, so Mercury decided to head towards this... whatever it was. The journey took longer than he expected, but he did make it there within probably an hour or so of walking. Not that any of the landmarks around him seemed any closer, heh. That would be too easy. As he got closer, he saw that being still remain completely still, unmoving and unwavering, though there was not much to shake it here. No wind and no sound, after all. For a moment, Mercury paused in front of it. Whatever it was, it was large. Wait, maybe it was a person. Dang, Mercury had been rude in his thoughts. They were large, whoever they were. While Mercury was still thoughtfully staring, the being- no, scratch that. Overused word. The assembly of in front of him, slowly began to move. It- no, they stretched out a little, as though they were still growing while met with extreme resistance, and after a moment they paused. Then, they flinched. Immediately, Mercury''s attention was back on whoever was in front of him, as they now seemed to have noticed him. ''Sup, he thought, but couldn''t quite get out. Wait, what the fuck? Hello. Greetings. Good day. Nice to meet you. Ey, voice. Why aren''t you working? Mercury was struggling a little, as the words he wanted to say didn''t quite come out right. Actually, they didn''t come out at all, which sucked. Nevertheless, the being in front of him seemed to understand, somehow. They... shook a little, almost as though they were chuckling at his poor attempt at communication. For a moment, they stopped, and then, Mercury heard their voice in his own head. No, it wasn''t a voice. He simply seemed to understand what they wanted to say, without actually hearing anything. ''"Hello", "greetings", "''sup", "good day", and "nice to meet you" as well.'' Uhm, what? Were they actually talking to him? ''Indeed this one be.'' Phew. He was lucky he recognized that he shouldn''t be rude early enough. ''Rude? How so?'' Oh, nothing. Nothing at all. Don''t sweat it, don''t worry about it, just let it slide, out of earshot, out of mind. Mercury was a little awkward as he stared at whoever was in front of him. This was... unusual to say the least. He couldn''t quite put his feelings into words, but he was curious, surprised, and even a little scared. The amalgamation of crystalline veins seemed to... nod(?) at this. And Mercury immediately understood. Calm, was the first thing he understood, but as he listened closer he heard so many other things. A hint of interest, slight and receding suspicion, a sense of harmlessness, and as he listened even closer a soft, humming melody of amusement. ''I hear surprise. I see, this must be your first time meeting another, then?'' His first time meeting another? Another what? ''A dream mage. It is a rare occurrence, certainly, but rare enough to be surprised at it is not. Unless I am your first encounter, and thus I guess thee are an apprentice. What school do thee study in?'' School? Dream mage? That was a lot at on- ''No school? Uncertain even of what thy are? Hmmm, thy are a curious one. I shan''t seek thyne name, for it is a gift to be given, yet until I doth giveth thee mine, thee may know me as Dreamweaver.'' ''Dreamweaver. Uh, maybe they could call him Cat, then?'' It was the first thing that came to Mercury''s mind as he slowly got the hang of how this worked. It was... a strange feeling, to be sure, kind of like splitting his thoughts into two layers, one which he kept to himself, and another he shared. It was almost like controlling two types of mana, yet somehow it felt more familiar. Easier. Yeah, this was kind of like his job at work, where his surface thoughts comprehended all the documentation he had to do while his deeper thoughts... wandered. Though in this case his deeper thoughts were his own and his surface thoughts conveyed to someone else. Kinda cool. ''Cat it shall thusly be. This one would say that... "it is nice to meet you, too"?'' The figure seemed unsure, prompting a small chuckle from Mercury, to which he immediately received a smile in return. ''Mineth touch has yet to fail me then. It is nice to meet you, young Cat. May this one ask thee what thine purpose here is?'' ''Purpose? None in particular, I just... end up here when I go to sleep.'' ''Is thine destination constant?'' ''Uhm, I guess so? It''s always in this field. Though I can''t seem to move far from its center.'' ''Hmmm... this one haseth not seen much alike to thine doing yet. Thee come from no school, yet thee doth find thine way here. Oh, but apologies, this one haseth asked so much, yet answered so little. Young Cat, doth thee have many questions?'' Well, they were certainly weird. What the hell should he reply to something like that? Uh, fuck, fuck, fuck, Mercury, think, faaaast!!! ''Uh, yeah, I, uh, yeah. So, Dreamweaver-'' ''Old Dreamweaver, if thee would?'' ''Old Dreamweaver, of course, sorry. What are you? Where are we? Why do I end up here?'' The amalgamation in front of him shook a little again. Humor, understanding, empathy, alongside reminiscence of the past. Dreamweaver had been where Mercury was before. ''This one doth be Dreamweaver,'' they said, unhelpfully. ''And *we* be not in the same place. Close to each other, indeed, us two are, yet this one and Cat are not in the same place.'' ''Uhm, roughly?'' ''Ah, yes, this one understands. Apologies. "Sorry". This one is in a woven dream, as is Cat. This one doth travelled here through a dream. Cat must have done as such, "the same thing".'' ''A woven dream?'' ''Indeed. Ah, young Cat wants answers. Zurrteh. "Sure". This one seeks thee. Seeks Cat. Seeks dream mages. This one doth operate a school. Doth trikko. "Teach".'' As time went on, Dreamweaver''s speech seemed to become a little weirder. Maybe the translation function was adjusting a bit? Or it was Mercury simply understanding more closely. It was... intriguing, in any case, as he started hearing unfamiliar words. ''Old Dreamweaver-'' ''Young Cat?'' ''Thee doth run a school.'' ''Hmm. "Run". Mh.'' Mercury heard... a deep heartbeat of thanks, as well as some amusement. ''Yes. "Run". Rah''un. Operate. Trikko dreamweaving.'' ''"Trikko"? Teach?'' ''Mh,'' they nodded. ''Would thee trikko young Cat?'' Surprise. Astonishment. Thankfulness. Old Dreamweaver seemed like he smiled at this, yet their voice grew quieter. ''Mh. This one doth trikko thee. Aneth''bar. "Thank you". This one seeks to be sought. Yet, old Dreamweaver doth grow wa''hc. "Awake". They will meet young Cat again. "See you".'' And just like that, the amalgamation in front of Mercury was gone and he was left to his own devices again. Chapter 30: Trouble brewing Chapter 30: Trouble brewing /Well, this is a predicament, isn''t it? I can''t really start this by saying "sometimes the system doesn''t put things clearly enough" because, well, I don''t want a raging mob going after me. No, I definitely couldn''t do that. I would never say something so blasphemous, no. Actually, I would say that sometimes, the system is plain wrong! Now, now, down with the pitchforks and torches, this is anonymous after all, so what are you gonna do about it? Let me elaborate first. This is about Skills and Abilities, to be specific. What really makes them different? Well, there''s only a few key differences, but even those vary from case to case. In essence, they max out at different levels. For Skills, this is usually a very even number, such as a multiple of 10, while for Abilities, that cap can be literally anything. 3, 5, 8, 10, 12, 13, whatever. Usually Abilities have a lower level cap, but that isn''t a guarantee. Now, the other, more key differences, lie in the gaining of levels for the Skill. Abilities gain large portions of mastery whenever the user makes a breakthrough in understanding the Ability, while Skills gain a set amount for each usage. This can be a little different case by case, since Abilities still slowly gain mastery just by using them, and Skills can gain large amounts by comprehending how they work, but in the end, this is a core part of it all. And the absolute most important difference is in how they evolve. A Skill evolves once it hits its level cap. The system will then send the user a prompt on whether to evolve it or not, depending on whether it costs Skill points to evolve. If it does, the system will specifically ask the user, while for free evolutions, it will happen automatically. Some Skills also have multiple paths after evolution, which are different depending on the Skill, the user, the synergy with other Skills, etc. Depending on these factors, Skills can have different paths of evolution, and depending on the Skill, the user can retroactively achieve other paths than the first chosen one. For some Skills, however, the chosen direction is permanent and irreversible, so maybe you should think closely on what to choose. With Abilities however, this is different. There are no Skill point requirements to evolve them. Abilities only evolve once the user pushes them past their limits, and the way of doing that is entirely up to the individual. Some Ability evolutions are fairly standard, while others are more unique, though that is a topic for another day. However, evolving an Ability in no way limits your progression path. If you find another path to push that Ability forward, you can gain a second evolution, which will show up as a separate Ability. Evolving an Ability in and of itself is usually much harder than with a Skill though, since there is absolutely no help from the System. That should do for a rudimentary differentiation. For more descriptions on how this very thing so pivotal to, well, fucking everything in existence, works, check out the next issue. Until then, keep your pitchforks close to you, and don''t croak!/ Issue 3 of "This System Sucks!" by an anonymous "heretic and scoundrel". - - - - - - After a somewhat relaxing, and most certainly interesting night, Mercury woke up again and immediately started on his journey to the gloryhall. It must have been around 10 already anyways, he had apparently slept in. Still, that sure wouldn''t stop him from becoming D-rank! He quickly walked up to Marcel at the counter and handed over the tusk when he came close. "Looks good," Marcel nodded. "Congratulations on your promotion then, Mercury! I hope for our continued cooperation in the future!" "Alright, sounds good Marcel. I turn in commissions to you then?" "If they''re offered by the guild, yes. Usually, foreign commissions are filed as complete by the patron, but if they don''t sign it off as done, you can at any time give it to us and we''ll get that fixed as fast as possible. This also applies if someone is refusing to pay. Of course, there are various legal procedures, but we usually take care of those as well, since they could also vary between nations." "I see, thank you in advance then. I suppose I''ll talk to you later?" Mercury asked and slightly tilted his head. "Of course. I''ll let you know if I find any commissions you might be specifically interested in, based on your job. If you''re eligible for another promotion, I will also contact you, though of course that requires you updating your address on your license. Other than that, you can approach me anytime you need something or have a question!" As always, Marcel was to the point and helpful, which Mercury could really appreciate. "Thanks, we''ll talk then," Mercury said as he jumped off the counter, receiving a small wave from his dedicated receptionist. Well, what to do next? He had a little bit of money, but nowhere near enough to buy books, and he had already scanned those in his possession for info on necromancy, coming up empty. In that case, what really was there to do but work? He just had to take a look at those E- and D-rank missions. Hm, what was there? Cattle being hunted down, collecting herbs from the forest, bear fur for... boots? Mercury was lost in his own thoughts as he stared at the notice board, when the door to the gloryhall swung open and the usual muttering inside quieted down for a moment. Mercury could distinctly feel the difference in atmosphere, quickly turning towards the door at the same time as many other eyes did. But after the door opened, it hastily closed again, leaving all inside pausing for a moment, as anyone near the door stepped back a bit. Mercury once again tilted his head then. What was that just now? He thought he could hear a quiet huff outside... SLAM!! The door was kicked open again, almost falling off its hinges as a man stepped in. He wore a large, bright orange shirt and beige pants, which sunk into his high, brown leather boots. The man had dark skin, almost black, a trimmed goatee plastered around a wide smile, his eyes covered by sunglasses, and black dreadlocks falling from his head down to his shoulders, lightly tied together at the back. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. After a short pause, he balled his hands into fists, bent back at his hips, his tight muscles now showing through his shirt as he inhaled deeply. ... "YEAAAAAAAAHHHH!!" Immediately, the entire gloryhall burst into wild howls, as men and women of all ages toasted and yelled to each other, because of just one person. "I''M BAAAAAAAACK!!!" Mercury, on the other hand, was busy folding his ears to his head, simply trying to discern something from everyone in here, as whoever that was slowly made his way to the counter, talking to the receptionists. "It''s Beckham!" "Guild master Beckham is back!" "... Avery Beckham?" "AHHHHHHH!" Ah, yes, of course. Guild master Avery Beckham. The man, the myth, the legend himself. Now, how could Mercury have possibly not known who he was? Stormbraver fame leaderboard''s number 13, with 1059 fame,"Lightfoot" Avery Beckham, the master of the local Godseekers'' Guild. After a moment of reading up on Avery, Mercury noticed that one of the receptionists was pointing towards him, and also that the guild master himself was now walking towards him. Well, shit. Surprisingly though, the Avery stopped in front of Mercury, quickly looked him up and down, then tilted his head and sat down cross legged in front of Mercury. "This sure seems weird. You don''t look a mascot my guy, but I''m sure no one in here would tell me a lie. Interesting." Avery placed his chin on the back his hand, resting his elbow on his knee. "It happens to the best of us, guild master. I''m just a regular godseeker, what can I say?" "Regular? My guy, you seem anything but regular, hm? I mean, ye''re not exactly... our regular customer here. Ya know, no battle scars, no weapons on you, no hands, that kinda stuff." Mercury could feel the man staring at him even through the sunglasses, but there was no malicious intent in there at least. It felt more like genuine curiosity. "Well, I suppose I''m a ca- a mopaaw. Doesn''t change that I got a godseeker''s license, so I hope you can look past that difference. If yes, I''d say I''m looking forward to working with you." Mercury gave his best smiles, exposing his canine''s a little, when Avery slapped the floor and let out a laugh. "KAHAHAHAHA! Man, you got a good smile my guy. Zetraspa it is. Alright, consider us friends then," he said as he hit his chest with his right fist. "Avery," he added and held his hand out. "Mercury," the newbie in front of him answered, before shaking Avery''s extended hand as best as he could. "Whelp Mercury, nice meeting ya my guy. Sadly, I gotta go get my mountain of work done, since I''ve been gone for a little long. See ya some other time!" Avery quickly signed goodbye by putting two fingers to his forehead and flicking them away, before jumping over the counter and disappearing into the door behind it. Slowly but surely, the excitement bubbling in the air faded away, though quite a handful of godseekers now approached the wall of commissions, looking for some work to do, same as Mercury did, placing this bizarre encounter at the back of his mind. Well then, time to earn his keep. - - - - - - It felt good smelling this hall again, that much Avery knew. But to see a talking mopaaw on the day he came back? Kah, he sure didn''t see that one coming! Luckily, Mercury was a chill guy. Didn''t panic at all, even though the dude saw his entrance. Ballsy, he could appreciate that. He quickly checked out some data about the mopaaw, just stuff that was easily accessible via the license. Spent the last year in Treyno, didn''t do any commissions there though. Before that, some time in... Alywick? Ah, fuck. As a guild master, Avery of course knew about Alywick. City was fucked. Survivors only because of Yvette or dumb luck, as usual. Rough fate. Avery sighed to himself. He hated the whole shit of blood eclipses, because honestly, it sucked. Made one feel unsafe, no matter where ya are. Now it also made sense why his new buddy had smelled a little off. After all, something like that was a smell too hard to get rid of. In the gloryhall, a lot of people had unique stories to tell. Everyone, in fact, since no one was the same. But an event like that? Now that''s an unmistakable smell. That stench of blood and guts, of sweat, and fear, and terror. Yeah, that was something that didn''t wash out. After a moment of pondering on it, Avery shook his head and leaned back further on his couch. Nothing he could do about it now. Nothing he could have done about it even if he was there, unfortunately. Instead, he needed to focus on his work right here, after all, there were prestigious guests in the city. Apparently the Church of Order had caused the Merchants'' Guild some trouble. Not that those fatasses deserved much better, but if the Church kept it up, they''d run into some trouble with the council, and that wouldn''t do. As a guild master, he still had to keep the city nice ''n habitable after all. So, it was decided then! He''d have to swing by Lucia later today, once he was done filing his report to the higher-ups. What a chore, what a chore. - - - - - - Lucia smiled to herself. She looked at the three people they had in a cell beneath the church. It was an older man, maybe in his 50s, as well as a similarly aged woman, and their daughter who seemed around 30. They had violated a core principle! They were selling stretched versions of those already vile "charrs"! Not only were those things already harmful by themselves, but they had additionally sold contaminated ones, containing blacksalt to make them cheaper and much more toxic. They had to be tried! THEY HAD TO BE!!! Lucia took a deep breath before she spoke, letting the warmth she had been taught to keep inside her flood into her face as she kneeled down in front of the cells. "Do not worry for your fate, my dears. We are fair above all, and you will have a chance to defend yourselves. You will be served two meals a day in here and we hope to make your stay as short as possible." Then, as she turned away from the cell, the warmth became a smoldering heat in her stomach. She turned to her attendants as she wove that fire deep into her every word. "I want them on trial, tonight. Collect the evidence. Let nothing escape you. Use violence whenever you need, and before tomorrow, I want to see them punished. Have I made myself clear?" And after a quick nod, she was left alone again, walking up to her room with shaking legs, where she quickly downed a bucket full of water to cool the fire inside her down, transforming it back from burning coals into a gentle warmth. After all, she couldn''t allow herself to linger. She had a mass to hold and a trial to judge! - - - - - - [Level Up!] It had been so long! So very, very long! But he had finally done it again! it was Mercury''s first level in a long, long while, which he got from killing another boar today. They were apparently one of the more prominent sources of food for the city, other than the farms surrounding it, so a lot of butchers would regularly put commissions for them out. Mercury was now freely enjoying the spoils of that, as he would be able to earn a little extra money for the commission, while the butcher would also pay him for the meat itself, depending on how intact the body was. Mercury did make sure to work with the same butcher as he had already sold a boar to last time, since he seemed decent enough and there would be no need for another explanation as to why he could talk. Like this, Mercury decided to aim for two boars a day, using his to quickly take them down. He had also taken precautions in case they moved their bathing spot, tracking one of the boars home to their main community. Sometimes being small really did pay off. The commission was for 5 boars, offering 5 Dims extra on completion. So, he handed in two for the day, cashing out a Pale and a Dim, as well as some prime boar meat to feast on himself. He was glad he had at least developed a taste for raw meat now, as cooking all of it without hands would have been impossible. It just spared him a lot of work in general, so that was something at least. Maybe he could actually get used to being a cat. Well, then again, not being able to grip literally anything was kind of annoying. And unfortunately, in a body as small as his, little injuries could already be fatal. He really should add some more points into vitality to make sure he wouldn''t just fall over dead at pretty much anything... Yeah, actually, he''d do that right now. Vitality: 26 -> 46 Oh yeah. Now we''re talking. With his HP now at 205, Mercury felt quite a bit more secure from, well... anything, really. At least he was fairly confident he wouldn''t die immediately from being gently tapped anymore. It was a good feeling. And after a long day and a hearty meal, Mercury threw himself into bed, thinking of maybe browsing for some more Skills tomorrow, completely oblivious to the troubles between the Church, the council, and multiple guilds. ... Okay, to be fair, we have to cut him some slack here. It''s not like he''d be qualified to help with any of them. Like, seriously, right now he isn''t exactly the greatest fighter. He still has quite a ways to go after all. Ah well. Conflict was brewing, whether Mercury was currently part of it or not, and no matter how small, its effects would certainly trickle down to him... Chapter 31: Nightly Business Chapter 31: Nightly Business /You know, some people may say that there are too many guilds to count, but I wouldn''t quite agree with them. The problem with getting an accurate count lies not within the number, but much rather the constant founding and disbanding of new and old guilds. In addition, some guilds prefer to stay hidden, a guild of thieves, for example. Now, there are however a few quite major guilds, one of those being the Merchants'' Guild. Holding major sway in nigh every civilized city, this band of moneymakers has established a solid foothold almost everywhere. Unfortunately, to a lot of people, they are more like parasites, keeping a monopoly on real estate and only ever renting it out. Additionally, they like to give out loans with incredibly high interest, which can often be repaid by selling a large chunk of ones business to them. These situations are obviously hard to prevent in smaller cities, though larger ones that have government controlled banks have less trouble holding out. Next I believe I need to mention the infamous federation of mercenaries that calls themselves the Godseekers'' Guild. A bunch of veterans, newbies, and general hardy travellers collected into a single hall made for celebrating, drinking, and exchanging information. This guild is easy to join, oftentimes tight knit, and has a solid system of mutual reliance with receptionist and seekers. However, they are still mercenaries, and their ease of joining makes it an attractive start for bandits or thieves. Godseekers are oftentimes frowned upon in smaller towns, since these are generally more hostile to outsiders, but especially so in their case, since you really never know what you''re going to get with one of this guild''s members. But one guild that has been very consistent in the quality of its members has been the Mages'' Guild. A slightly misplaced name, since they foster practitioners of all schools of magic, also wizardry, witchcraft, sorcery, and everything else one can imagine. Yet, no matter who you hire from this guild, they are near guaranteed to be good at their jobs. Unfortunately, with that consistency comes a high price in coin and patience, since many of these magical fellas are arrogant enough for a whole gang of drunken idiots. They also tend to look down on newer members and have a structure that sometimes is a little hard to comprehend, though some claim it is purposely made so to attract more brilliant people. In any case, it is complicated. Of course, this doesn''t conclude the guilds at all, which is why this should simply serve as an introduction: all guilds have their goods and bads, so choose carefully which one you want to join. One can also choose multiple of them, of course, though if a conflict appears, you might be expelled from both. Now, this should be enough to conclude the introduction. Chapter 2 will deal with the intricacies of guild creation. If you want a detailed description and history of the major guilds, feel free to skip to chapter 4./ Chapter 1 of "Guild in Detail" by Gilbert Gildfried. - - - - - - The trial went rather swiftly. The family defended themselves, saying they did not know that their charrs were stretched, but that mattered little. They were stretched, and made more toxic, which was already enough for a full conviction. Without a maestro of the law from the Scholars'' Guild, they never stood a chance. The judge''s wooden hammer struck down hard, as with its echoing snap, the whole family was sentenced to the gallows by midnight. But once more, someone had to come ruin Lucia''s time. Right then, shortly before the judge could strike down a second time, his hammer hit leather. The soft leather of a brown boot. "WHAT''S UP!!!" Avery thundered out, easily sounding out above the judge''s verdict as he stopped the hammer. Lucia gripped her seat tightly then, so hard that a spiderweb of small cracks seemed to flow through the wood. She slowly got to her feet with the grace of an empress, but her face was contorted with wrath. "A-" But the man wouldn''t let her speak. "Hey there, high priestess. Long time no see. I would-" "YOU DARE INTERRUPT ME IN MY COURT?!?!!" Lucia busted a vein as she screeched out at the man standing a few meters away from her, gazing down at her from the judge''s seat. Meanwhile, the judge himself, a man of large stature was simply sitting by, maintaining an impassive mask as these proceedings went on. ''Why does it have to be in my court?'' he silently lamented, but there was no taking it back. Most judges already resigned themselves to a fate such as this when Lucia entered the city they worked in. "Kah, ''course. I interrupt whoever deserves it, madam. ''Scuse my rudeness, I''m a mercenary, as you lovingly call us, after all, and we aren''t that good with manners, ya feel me?" Avery made sure to pick his words carefully, treading the line between provocation and respect. He knew this fury disguised as a lady had too much influence to openly insult. Lucia stopped herself for a moment before speaking, the fiery rage within her settling back down into her stomach instead of up her throat. Its time would come soon, but it wasn''t now. It wasn''t here. "First the merchants, and now your godseekers too? How far this country has fallen. This city has proven unable to punish the wicked when it is necessary, thus we have taken it upon ourselves to expand the tasks the Church of Order takes care of. Do you have any complaints?" She forced her voice to stop shaking, forced her face to take an aloof look, one befitting her stature, but Avery saw it. He saw the hate bubbling underneath her eyes, the blood boiling in her veins. Good. "Well, yeah, actually. We do, the merchants do, and the city itself does." Avery paused to give Lucia''s mind some time to mill. Not because he wanted her to think ahead, but instead, because she was so consumed by anger, she would certainly take his sentence as an insult. It was just too big of an insult for her to immediately fire back. "YOU INSOLENT- Ahem. Hmpf. And why, please do tell, should this great institution listen to a meagre city''s complaints?" Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. There it was. Avery nodded to himself as he opened his mouth again, only to pause for a fraction of a second before he let out a short laugh. "Kahaha! Man," he held his belly while wiping a fake tear away, "you almost had me convinced! You sure you wanna risk losing all your glory and stature, all the trust the people have in you over one simple dispute? You should listen to a city because it''s the will of your believers my guy." "The will of the believers?" Lucia said sharply, partially to herself. Had she gotten too carried away again? No, not this time, certainly. "The will of the believers is the will of the church. They believe in our code, and our code fuels our actions." "Well then, if that is so, you most certainly wouldn''t mind a simple investigation into this trial? Us godseekers will be an impartial force, making sure both parties stick to the rules, meanwhile the mercenary and the local courts will investigate and present their evidence against you in court." Silence. The entire hall of justice couldn''t raise their voices at this moment, the wind removed from their sails. They could only wait for the answer of their high priestess, for she was the only one to decide now. She was the leader they could turn to, and as they did, they saw she was biting her lip. Fuck! He had played her! Played her like a fiddle!! Provoked her into arrogance. Made sure she felt so aloof he could rip the floor out from under her. There was nothing she could say against this. Were she to refuse, it would simply be seen as an insult to all other parties involved. If she agreed, the heretics might run free!! Damn it!!! She couldn''t risk the reputation of the Church in an entire nation simply for one family of wicked schemers!! RAAAAAAGH!!! "Fine by me. You shall see for yourself that the church is correct, guild master." Lucia left with an arrogant ''hmpf'' as she retreated out of her own court. She made sure to carry herself proudly, but anyone seeing her face would have to double check at its grimace. Avery meanwhile simply smiled. "We will see, high priestess." And with that, he jumped out of the same window he had come in through, dropping of some coin to fund the repairs. As soon as he hit the floor, he let out a sigh and crossed his arms behind his head, slowly walking back to the office. "Phew. Crazy fucking bitch." Lastly, the spectators from the public, as well as the jury of fanatical believers took their leave, only the judge remaining as he slumped forwards in his seat. "Lucky!" he muttered to himself. "I might not have to sentence people to death for this lunatic of a woman!" Perhaps not all in the Church of Order were as bad? - - - - - - Lucia was fuming as she thought of what had just occurred. She had been right and properly played and humiliated by that arrogant, unsightly, dirty bloodmonger! That filthy swine of a human, worth less than the worst of heretics as a handler of bloodmoney! This gross, misguided sheeplet had-! "M''lady, you requested my assistance?" As always, Iris'' voice was able to smother the fire in her. "Yes, thank you for taking the time, Iris." "But m''lady, it is my job to take the time to serve you," Iris said with a snicker, covering her mouth with her gloved hands. Her voice was like a blanket to Lucia''s heart, sheltering it from the fury and wrath deep inside of her, and instead enveloping it with a gentle warmth. The two of them had always been together, since they were children, and were closer than most sisters. "I still appreciate it, so do allow me to thank you, would you?" "Of course m''lady," Iris said with a smile, tilting her head a little, her black bangs swaying with the movement. "But what is it you called me for?" "Ah, yes!" Lucia was quickly brought back from her musings of the past as she focused her attention on the maid in front of her, staring into her soft, pastel pink eyes. "Would you please prepare me some chilled tea and a bath?" "Of course, m''lady! I shall be done in a moment!" And with that, Iris was gone again, the silence in Lucia''s bedchambers now weighing down much more heavily. She was disappointed with herself. Disappointed she couldn''t serve the justice, the order she wished, and that she had not performed her duties well enough. She was disappointed to have disappointed others. The air weighed heavy on her skin, making her open the large window she had. The cold, nightly breeze gave her some goosebumps, but her robes were thick enough to keep her warm. She stared at the moon for a while, the flames in her heart now chilled, as she waited for Iris to have things ready. What might it be like to live underneath that big circle in the sky? To freely roam this world they called home? To see all of its wonders when one wanted, to do whatever one wanted? She would give much for that, indeed. Much, but not all she had. She wouldn''t give up order for it, so she continued her watch silently, wishing for something she would never grant herself. "The tea is done, m''lady," Iris said, setting it down on the nightstand with a small curtsy. "I hope you enjoy it. The bath will be heated by the time you are done." With that, the attendant turned around and began walking away. "Iris?" "Yes m''lady?" She stopped "Would you perhaps stay with me a while?" The maid spun around, taking her seat on the bed next to Lucia and softly petting her head. "Of course, m''lady." - - - - - - Avery on the other hand walked back to his guild with a victorious glint in his eyes. He would send word to the city council and the merchants'' guild, and officially register himself as the overseer of the whole story. It was troublesome, but it would earn him a couple favours and keep things civil. He smiled to himself, his sunglasses hiding the sharp glint in his eyes. Oh yeah, it was all coming together. He made his way back to the gloryhall in Stormbraver, stopping by a bakery in the red-light district. They were the only shops open at this hour and my man needed himself a loaf of raisin-bread after this encounter. Gotta recharge his batteries, ya know? He chewed down as his thoughts kept churning. He needed to also give the Church of Order some benefits, couldn''t stand them fully ridiculed by everyone. He''d need to keep the merchants back, make sure that those hounds, who were probably about to start frothing at the mouth, were well fed enough to not entirely devour the church. He also needed to make sure the city council didn''t abuse this opportunity to undermine the church, that wouldn''t do for diplomatic relations. Could cause some wars, and this Nevarzahri Aristocracy he enjoyed livin'' in had enough problems ongoing. Yeah, if he did all of that, he would sure curry some favour with all three of the other guilds. Many people were thinking they might profit from this, but Avery knew it when he pushed open the doors to his gloryhall, his sanctum in this city. He knew it when he gazed upon all of the godseekers that were still in there, the receptionists that had today''s night shift (nights were only open every second day because of staff shortage for now). He knew it then, when he pushed the door open and received a cheer for a welcome. The Godseekers'' Guild would be the one to come out with the most profit from this venture. He''d make sure they did. After greeting everyone, chatting people up, hearing some stories and making sure everyone was playing fair with each other, Avery headed back to his office. He filed all the necessary documents, had them shipped to the right places, and made sure that the wheels of bureaucracy would begin their milling, slow as it might be. And then, he went back to all the other stuff he had to do as a guild master. He signed off on promotions, fully solidifying them, making sure there wouldn''t be any challengers. He put his own authority behind them, shielding his receptionists from any questions, as it was now fully on Avery''s trust. He made sure to document any special monster sightings, anything that was too dangerous he marked on his map to scout out over tomorrow. The investigation would start the day after at the earliest, so he had quite enough time to keep the landscape a little more safe. When it came to the paperwork of finances, he quickly opened up the door to the main room and dumped it all onto the receptionists. He couldn''t have them just spend their night shifts chatting in peace, could he now? No, no, those guys would also have to work for his backing. Mutual trust and help, ya know? Then, he got around to inspecting new members, quickly browsing over them, making sure none of them seemed too sinister. Afterwards he signed off on a few plans of the guild to invest money, requested by businesses or suggested by some of the workers here. And after all of that, he finally got around to some more paperwork, involving a report on anything special he had seen while he was out for the time. Phew, finally, all fucking done. Avery hated all this paperwork. These folders and flyers, askers, receivers, payers, and leasers. It was obnoxious, nothing else Avery sighed to himself again as he finally let his night come to a close, slowly sinking into the soft bed that he called his own. "G''night guy. I''ll see y''all tomorrow." And with him, a quiet night fell upon Stormbraver. Chapter 32: Library stroll Chapter 32: Library stroll Mercury woke up after the best night of sleep he had gotten in a while. His log was comfortably filled with blankets, and the night had been silent. He had some amount of money and was slowly making more. Things were progressing. Maybe it was going a little slow, but he couldn''t do much about that. Oh well, for now he had to be patient. After getting a good stretch and a morning jog in, Mercury headed off into the forest, snacking on some boar meat he was keeping. Of course, the meat would spoil very quickly if he stored it in his room, and even in his inventory it would still decay, so he had asked Davis if he could store it. Turns out the inn had made an investment in a special container for meat, one that was inscribed with runes that used the surrounding mana to slowly chill the inside of the box. With this effect being permanent, well, the box was about as cool as a fridge, the temperature being adjusted by adding metals with heat rune carvings into specialized slots. It was quite complicated to make, expensive to buy, inconvenient to move, and somewhat small, but it did a good job at keeping meats fresh, and Davis let Mercury leave some meat in there for two Dims per three pages. Which our favourite cat needed to provide in advance, of course. But for now, the city was quiet, and Mercury was able to use the next day and a half to hunt up the rest of the boars. He now had a little over 3 and a half Pales. That would surely be enough to get him a book or two? It was already late afternoon by the time Mercury was back in the city and done with all of his business, and it was raining softly. It was early spring when he had set out for Stormbraver, but spring''s green grasses and colourful flowers were slowly pushing against its chill. It was warm enough for Mercury, especially with his cloak, and he was thankful for it, simply since it kept him from becoming soaked. Mercury had enjoyed rain when he was still a human. The soft pattering it had on the streets was calming, especially when it wasn''t too stormy. On warm days, he''d even sometimes take down his umbrella, simply soaking in the atmosphere - very literally. Though definitely not in the colder months. He shivered at the thought. But with his newly gained fur, having it all be wet was rather uncomfortable, and he avoided it when he could, though he still most certainly kept clean. Being well kempt was important, since it was one way for him to take care of himself. For just a little longer, Mercury allowed himself to close his eyes and forget about all that was happening around him, thinking back to the time he spent with Cherry and the wolves, and the time he had spent somewhere else entirely before that. It made him a little sad, but that wasn''t much of a problem. Just part of grieving. Oh, he wasn''t giving up on getting his companions back though! At least one of them was still alive, and when it came to the others he hardly knew enough to make any premature judgments. Right, back on track Mercury. You can do this! With that thought in mind, he pushed open the door to the library. It was a rather small building, with a wooden door that didn''t quite close properly, making it easy to swing open, the walls made largely from the same. It wasn''t particularly large, nor particularly bright, with very few windows and candles only burning by the select few reading chairs in the corner, as well as on the counter itself. The librarian was an elderly man, with short, white hair and a bushy beard, his blue eyes framed by crow''s feet and other wrinkles. He sat a little hunched in a chair with many pillows, a square set of glasses on his nose as he gazed down at a book with a warm smile, wearing a simple shirt, striped and buttoned, and a pair of beige pants. Mercury saw just fine in the general gloom of the library, most tables empty and their candles unlit, but the old man had one of them lit next to him, taking care to never hold the book too close. Mercury quietly stepped up, not wanting to disturb the old man, unsure what to do. Then, he simply turned around and walked outside again, taking care to open the door wide as he walked in again, making the librarian glance over. Score! He didn''t scare an old man! Mercury smiled to himself as he approached the counter once more. The man glanced at the cat curiously for a moment, before shaking his head slowly and kneeling a little closer to the floor. "What brings you here, my little friend?" he asked, more himself than anyone else, but before he continued his musings, Mercury quickly spoke up. "Well, I''d like to read a few books if that would be alright?" The librarian raised his fading eyebrows at this, the wrinkles on his forehead growing in size and power. He then shook his head again as he slowly raised himself up. "Well, I suppose that''s what one would come to a library for, isn''t it? I don''t get much business anymore these days, much less from non-humans, please excuse my rudeness. Feel free to browse at your leisure, and don''t hesitate to ask me if you need anything." "Thank you, good sir," Mercury replied, "I''ll take good care not to damage anything. Is there any way I could take the books with me?" "Yes, there is. You can borrow books by paying per day, and you can also buy copies of them if you have the money with you, though in some cases these will take their time. Of course, you can always read in here, though you will have to rely on no one else currently reading what you want to read. Taking books from others is strictly forbidden." Mercury nodded at this and gave the man a short thanks as he headed into the library itself, hearing the librarian sigh as he slowly settled back into his chair. To be honest, Mercury also enjoyed the atmosphere in the building more than he had expected. It was quiet, but not suffocating, with the occasional page being flipped, or tapping of boots as someone went to relieve themselves or seek out another book. The wood was lacquered, but not thickly so, and Mercury could still clearly smell pine and lavender in the whole place. It was also warm, perhaps because of the candles, and the rain pattered nicely on the roof, this one being made from what seemed like sheets of copper to keep the water out. Mercury felt right at home as he went about browsing the shelves, looking at the different sections. History, science, medicine, geography, children''s stories... he enjoyed simply checking the spines of some books, looking at the engraved leather in wonder. Some of them even had very pretty covers to attract the eyes of potential readers. He even found some interesting books on warfare, and quite a bit of poetry, too. But when he got to the section labelled "Phenomena", one of the books stood out to him. "Eclipse - Crimson Sky". Mercury''s blood chilled a little as he carefully pulled it out, with the help of a woman that saw him struggling with a ladder. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. She placed the book on the table she was sitting at, across from herself, as she turned back to her own literature, while Mercury stuck his nose right down into the thing. /When the sky turns scarlet and rivers of blood begin to flow, it has happened yet again. A blood eclipse must have come./ So it was what he thought. A book about blood eclipses. Mercury frowned at the thought, catching himself moments before he would have begun hissing at the book. Instead he simply continued. /This is a name to be uttered only once, so read it closely and read it only once. After such, you may read it again only after you''ve waited for three hundred days and walked three hundred miles. The sanguine emperor, Regalius Crimson./ Mercury felt his fur stand up as he read the name, the air around him seeming to chill as he smelled a huff of iron in the air. But the very next moment, the sensation was gone, and all he saw was a curious gaze from the woman across him, which soon glued itself back to the book in front of her. Regalius Crimson. Mercury played with the name in his mind, his thoughts not confined to the restriction of the book. He thought about what it meant, how it might feel if he spoke it, and he focused on how he felt about it. He focused not just on the name itself, but the boiling hatred he could feel whenever he recalled the events of that day. It now lay behind him with some time, but he still was not over it. He couldn''t be over it, not as long as he clung to the hope of one day seeing his friends again. But as he thought about that name, remembered the chill he had felt in the air for just a moment, as his mind was drawn back to the time when the sky turned red and the city he had been in was torn to ruins, he realized he hated it. Mercury hated that name. He hated the person behind whatever happened, he damned the voice that had sung that day, sung those disgusting words, summoned up those monstrosities as they- Our hero clenched his teeth, biting his tongue a little as he started to get lost in his own mind. He had to stay above the waves, couldn''t fall back into them. Now, he had a name. A trail. A trace to follow. /This person, if one graces him with the term, is a defiler of life. A-/ The page ripped from there on. Mercury hadn''t quite seen it before, but the book he had grabbed was in rough shape, the paper old, worn, and treated poorly. But, with what little was still left, Mercury could scrape together some more intel on whoever was behind this. /The eclipses kill many, just as many as are dragged into the portals the monsters emerge from. No one knows where the portals lead to, and the people behind them are just as lost as those that die. Yet, some survive and tell tales of a song. A melody sung on every blood eclipse, though the voices singing it differ. "This little sea of scarlet Lets me tear the world apart, yet When it''s done I will still stand On top a barren, beaten land." - Verse 1 "And these little eyes of mine, they see a little fate of thine. They see death, and they see carnage, a river of blood, yet to be tarnished, carrying your life within, and dragging it, into the pit." - Verse 2 After the-/ Mercury also remembered the song, though he only had a vague recollection of the memory, not the exact lyrics. The author seems to have pieced it together from multiple witnesses, since Mercury was sure that there might not have been a single witness remembering the whole thing. But it was sung with reportedly different voices as well, so with all the missing pages, it was interesting how the author would have found out the name of the main perpetrator. Oh well, he might as well read on. There was a lot of gibberish that he couldn''t piece into anything coherent, but Mercury continued on, flipping through the pages whose ink was smeared, and the ones that were burnt or wavy and illegible from water. Some even had splotches of dried blood on them. But at the end of the whole thing, he found one last interesting bit. /"Survivors of eclipses are more frequently affected by another. Examples of this are the famed Yvette Lumineux, as well as the, now deceased, master of house Lionheart."/ Well then, wasn''t this something. This Crimson Emperor actively hunted down survivors of the blood eclipses? That seemed unnecessary. And incredibly cruel as well. Mercury honestly felt sorry for Yvette about this. He could now perhaps understand a little better why she had always been so on edge and pushed him to do better. She had sought out more control over her life, and maybe scraped up her last bits of empathy to nurture his potential and hope he could escape what was eventually coming for her. It was... rather sad. He didn''t blame her for the eclipse. She was a victim as much as he was himself. She had likely lost people to it before and might have to lose people to it again, and the same now went for him. Well, then again, this was simply a hurdle to overcome. And quite frankly, given that he now knew a person was behind the blood eclipses things were a whole lot simpler. If he stayed in large cities, they might not happen because of incredibly powerful people in said cities. So, in his eyes, Stormbraver was most likely not too dangerous to stay in, since it was a capital and had many people as strong or even stronger than Avery. Of course, he was still in danger, but at least it wasn''t as urgent as it could be. Well, to be quite fair, his life in this world was always woven with danger. Every step he took forward was met with quite a bit of resistance, but that was just fine. For now, he decided that it was unlikely another blood eclipse would come after him. He was too little of a threat to whoever this Crimson Emperor was, and in too secure a location. So, Mercury nodded to himself and put the book away, with some help from the kind lady. It had helped him shed just a little more light on his fate and it had also given him some hope again. Hope, that maybe, just maybe, this blood eclipse thing wasn''t insurmountable. Ah, but for now, he wanted to look at other books. Maybe something on magic? No, that wouldn''t do. Mercury didn''t simply want a book on magic in general. If he found a book that was simply on mana, he would probably avoid it on purpose, simply because he didn''t want any preconceived notions to get in his way. This was simply what his told him would be better in the long term, though it would most certainly keep his path of advancement thorny. Instead, Mercury set out to find anything dealing with revival or souls, which netted him a handful of children''s stories and nothing more. It was frustrating. He was making very little progress in his research, his funds, his magic... he let out a sigh again, drawing a few glances from the handful of people still reading. It was dark outside by now, but Mercury hardly even noticed. [ has levelled up!] Well, that was a pleasant surprise to be sure. Right, everything was fine for now. He wasn''t in a great rush to find out everything he could, though of course, he didn''t want to become lethargic and slow either. Mercury would simply keep doing what he had been doing. Work on his mana control and transmutation whenever he found the time, while completing commissions and researching books during the day. This was fine for now. He would simply continue to amass experience slowly, though it was already a slightly increased rate compared to most other people because of . He had only been in this world a little over a year by now, so he still had a lot of time left to do everything he wanted. If he found the time, maybe he''d even start a kingdom of his own. It wouldn''t do to revive his friends only to show them his grand plan had made no progress after all this time. Mercury smiled to himself at the thought, but was soon interrupted for a moment as the librarian rung a small bell. "We''re closing for today, so please get home safe. You are all welcome to visit again tomorrow." The man spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, which, admittedly, wasn''t very loud. A few people still came to his counter, probably to borrow or buy some books, which the old man took time for, but Mercury was not among them. He simply decided to head home. It had stopped raining by now, though a bit of fog had laid itself peacefully along the city. Mercury wasn''t bothered by this very much at all, simply enjoying the feeling of a walk home instead of running. He didn''t want to risk banging his head against a wall or something. The streets were largely empty by then, but when he was just a few blocks away from the church, he heard someone approach him. "Awwww, what a little cutie you are!" a girl with black bangs, wearing a maid''s dress said while quickly walking towards him. "I swear if you try to pet me I''ll fucking bite your ass." "AIEE!!" Chapter 33: Politics Chapter 33: Politics /Dear audience, today I have come before you to talk about but one topic. It may be a tall ask, but please weigh the words I say closely in your mind, yes? I have come to talk about the leaderboards today. Those that separate us people into fame and infamy, that show minor and grander villains and heroes. I ask, today, why it is made as such? Why is it, that all our actions need to be presented to the public? That everyone gets a right to judge you? Is it not unfair for someone entirely unrelated to have prejudice based on rumors? Today is the day we fight against this! A local leaderboard for infamy is cruel and unfair! It gives no chances for people to change their reputation and keeps them stuck in place even when they are working hard to better themselves! It is an outdated relic and no longer deserves to exist! Yes, indeed, it should no longer exist! We live in a society in which you are innocent until proven guilty, do we not?! A society, which cannot let the reputation of its inhabitants go to ruin, simply because someone is trying to slander another! We cannot allow world points and fame to dictate our lives! Today, we rise! We rise against this unfairness, against this injustice, against infamy! We shall stand against such stupidity, oppose such oppression! We shall close those leaderboards now and forever, let our world points accumulate and not simply hand them out! We shall fight for freedom and for the people who have suffered under this! From now on, we shall never again utilize such brutish, boorish stupidity! Who''s with me?!/ A transcript of Maximillian Cromwell''s commonly termed "Anti-leaderboard speech", dated book 5, chapter 143, 46th of summer. - - - - - - "Ah, sorry, I didn''t mean to scare you. Are you okay?" Iris was sitting on the floor, Mercury''s reply having launched her into the sky before gravity called her back down. After a short grimace, she pushed herself up and patted the dust off her dress. "I''m alright, my apologies. I was... not prepared for you to speak to me. I''m sorry." The maid gave Mercury a small bow at the end, glancing up a little to keep him within her eyesight. "It''s fine, it''s fine. Happens to everyone, don''t sweat it too much. I just don''t like being touched without permission," Mercury said calmly. By now he was getting used to the outbursts of people when they heard him talk. It was more exhausting than funny. "Oh, I see. Apologies for invading your space, mister..." "Mercury. My name''s Mercury. Yours?" Mercury moved to the side of the street slowly, not wanting to be in the way of the few people that were still around. "Ah, I''m Iris. Iris Belrose. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Again, she gave Mercury a small bow, following him for a moment, before pausing. "Oh, right! I was on my way to get some tea, please excuse me, I must hurry, before the store closes!" And just like that, she was off. What a weird girl. Mercury shook his head at this and simply continued further home. Maybe Davis missed him? Probably not. Oh well, at least he had a room, and a date scheduled with his trusty old log. What was home if not one''s very own log? And for Mercury, that was the end of the day, as he simply laid down and absorbed some more mana from the air around him before coursing his own through his body, making sure all the paths he had carved for it were well maintained. Maybe tomorrow was the day he''d make a breakthrough, he thought. Maybe tomorrow. - - - - - - Avery was once more going around the city. It might be late, but if you worked to quality check a court, sleep would have to wait. Ah, what a pain. At least he had packed enough raisin-bread for the next few days. He wouldn''t have time to stop by his favourite bakery after all. They had made a full batch especially for him. How kind was that? This was the only thing that allowed Avery to keep a smile on his face, chomping down on some bread as he watched some lackey the Merchants'' Guild sent over going through the ledgers of the family Lucia had set her eyes on. It was regular stuff, and he was only one of a handful of trusted people he had sent out. Some receptionists here, some seekers there and he was able to cover the shifts he needed. Maybe some people had to wait longer at the guild to have their shit documented, but oh well, he couldn''t change that very much. He would also rather be back- "Hey, you think I''m blind?" Avery''s voice cut through the silence like a knife, the merchant in front of him flinching. "Sir, I don''t quite-" "Hey, hey, hey. Pal, I''mma be honest with ya here. I''m all for kicking the church''s ass, so I''ll not do anything right now, but I''ll have to make ya take that fake evidence right back. Oh, and try me again I''ll break both your arms, capiche?" "Gulp. Y-yes, sir." "Attaboy. Now, back to work you go!" Avery gave the man a slap on the back as he took another bite from his bread. Man, these merchants were a pest, truly. This was the third time they had tried to put some contraband around. At least the council went about things in a civil manner, uphold their reputation of fairness. Anything else would be stupid, really. Fairness got them to be the council, if they abandoned that, those old sacks would know that his godseekers would be among the very first throwing a rebellion. They were mercenaries, after all, and while they didn''t usually seek gods, they always sought freedom. Avery tried to take another bite from his bread, only to end up with his teeth on his fingers. "Ouch... out again?" He slowly shook his head and pulled another piece of bread from his backpack, biting down on it as he watched the merchant do his work, collecting ledgers and documents. Boooooooorrriiiiinngggg. - - - - - - Lucia was anything but relaxed. She was in dire need of tea, and yet, she had to deal with the council and that fat merchant pig, Foss. Meanwhile, the man in question was leaning back in his chair, enjoying the hospitability of the Church of Order as he kept shoving meats, vegetables and fruits down his throat, only stopping to sip his wine. The many rings on his fingers glinted as much as the sheen of sweat he was enveloped in, a man who had worked his way to the top and was now enjoying life. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. He had most of the city in an iron grip, controlling all the shops, their ins and outs, and probably also the black market, or so Lucia suspected. As much as she wished it, this man wasn''t a fool, or inexperienced. His brown hair was cut short, his nose crooked from a barfight in his youth, and his grey eyes perhaps the only sharp thing about him, seeing as everything else was thoroughly rounded. That in and of itself wasn''t something negative, though Lucia certainly disliked it. Foss was the master of the Merchants'' Guild, and he had made his way up by simply amassing incredible amounts of wealth. He controlled all the fields surrounding Stormbraver, all their sales and thus the city''s supply of food. Additionally, he had his hands deep inside the property market of the city. And now, he had his sights set on the bank, which was currently still in possession of count I''htar. This man was wealthy, powerful, and Lucia despised him. "Well, dear head priestess, how have you been enjoying your stay in Stormbraver? I am sure the city has been to your liking, yes?" He asked her with a full mouth, his baritone voice interrupted by squelching and slurping. You fucking wish, Foss. The man knew very well how much value Lucia put on manners, yet he refused to show any, eating with his fingers and without using a plate even though it was provided. In addition, he knew very well how much trouble his guild had been causing them, constantly sending delegations to the shops the church was investigating. Lucia was certain that Foss was hiding evidence of all manner of things. Tax fraud, illegal imports, harmful substances... she wouldn''t even put slave trade beneath him. But now, with the council and the godseekers being involved, she had to treat him with respect, while the merchant himself seemed intent on eating enough to put a dent in church funds. "It''s been quite enjoyable indeed. The people have been quite welcoming and I greatly enjoy the company of many of the city''s nobles. Much more so than those of many others, to say the least," she said calmly, managing to put on a sweet smile for this idiot in front of her, who kept smacking his lips loudly even while she was speaking. "Schoschoschoscho! That isch good to hear, my dear! I muscht admit, I am scho very glad to be assigned to thisch post. You have been nothing but good company!" Foss gave her a laugh and a nod as he bit down on a drumstick. Lucia, on the other hand, quickly waved her hands under the table, summoning an invisible barrier in front of her face, quickly stopping the advancement of Foss'' spittle towards her. "It is always good to have someone as pleasant as you over, I agree," Lucia said warmly, forcing down her feelings inside as she played the role of someone who had already lost. "I much enjoy our conversations, and the insight you have given me on the city has been most endearing. Say, Foss, I am curious about one thing though." "Hm? Yesch?" "Would you know why guild master Beckham has decided to get involved in this case? I believe he has already paid me for the window he broke on his entrance." "Ah, Avery? Hm, moscht likely to gain more trust from the council, if I had to guess. Perhapsch he schees you as a threat?" Foss almost put down his meal as he spoke, but after seemingly considering a pause in his gluttony, he swiftly resumed drinking and stuffing himself in an impressive display of stomach size. "A threat? Oh, but our church wants nothing but the best for this city, would you not agree, dear Foss?" "Lucia, my dear, I believe I could not agree more," he said, putting down his glass and reaching for the food again. "But perhaps other people dischagree. The council believes your church holds too musch power, and I believe master Beckham wishes to gain their favour. But, of course, you have my personal full support, even if the merchants'' guild is investigating this case. Your church did target our members." "Oh? I did not realize our suspects were members of your esteemed guild, my apologies. Had I been better informed perhaps things wouldn''t have come to this. Please, do excuse my inexperience, you remember that my stay in the city has not yet been expansive enough to learn about all its intricacies." Lucia was slowly falling more into her role, drinking iced water to calm the fire she felt deep inside her. This man might be disgusting and vile, but she was willing to play along with him for now. She only needed to wait until he misstepped and spilled something she could use. "Hm, indeed, I schuppose scho. Well, then! Let us bury the bad blood with today, no matter what comes of the investigation, eh?" Foss asked, raising his cup for a toast. "There is nothing I would wish for more," Lucia said with a wide smile, lightly tapping their glasses together as she took a swig of the wine, watching Foss do the same. "Well then," he said with a glint in his eyes, "onto business I suppose?" Lucia nodded warmly, refilling Foss'' glass to the brim, hoping the ass would drink it up and loosen his tongue around her. She had him on the hook, now she just needed to reel him in a little more. - - - - - - Iris shook her head while watching her lady interact with the merchant. She never liked it when Lucia had to bend herself so. Political machinations never much suited the head priestess, she should leave it up to the bishops and cardinals. The man across the table from her was gross, and Iris already felt uncomfortable just from being in a room with him. Maybe she was making a premature judgment though? Maybe. Still, it was rather bothersome having to deal with him. His lack of table manners especially. She couldn''t understand why the man so vehemently refused to use any cutlery. Was it really only to provoke her lady? In that case, shouldn''t she make sure he behaved himself? No, one glance at Lucia told her that it was not necessary. Unlike usually, her lady was composing herself rather well today. Perhaps it was because of her servant''s presence? Iris liked the thought of helping Lucia. The two of them had grown up together, her parents owing a large debt to Lucia''s family. Yet, even though they owed a debt, the head priestess'' parents were always rather kind to Iris'' family. She had become a maid by her own volition, and was paid a fair salary. Lucia was always polite to her and they still considered each other close friends. It was more or less an excuse to travel together with her childhood friend and always be close to her. The two had been with each other through thick and thin, and Iris was sure that she would absolutely stop anything and anyone trying to separate her from Lucia. Right, that was her duty as a maid after all, was it not? To guarantee the safety and comfort of her lady. That was the only reason she was able to remain so calm and keep bringing Foss whatever he asked. It was all in support of Lucia, the reliable friend who was like a big sister to her. Iris smiled to herself at that thought, looking over the other servants that were running around, taking away empty plates and bringing fresh dishes in. All of them were exquisite, too. There were many meats, many of them specially made. Three-legged golden chicken baked with rosemary and leyfi flowers, giant alligator filet fried in draken oil, garnished with rock salt from the faraway Jofell mountains, even water drake tongue with firelemons from the demonlands... it was a table full of expensive and incredible delicacies. Of course, she couldn''t name all of the things on there, since they were disappearing almost as fast as she''d be saying their names. Oh well, it was what it was. After all, neither she nor Lucia could do much about Foss'' presence, and since they couldn''t shoo him away, they had to make sure he was well entertained and wouldn''t have anything bad to say about their hospitality. And so, they simply kept putting delicacies onto the table, ones that were meant for special celebrations, for cardinals, bishops, and abbots, whenever they came over. Still, it was just food. As long as Foss was happy with that, Iris could tolerate him much more than some other powerful men that came to visit, thinking they could take advantage of Lucia because of their statures. Idiots, all of them. None of them knew her lady like she did. None of them knew how she spoke, how she thought, how she felt better than Iris. And she knew that her lady would never, ever be interested in any of the many men that thought they could use her. Because any man that thought they could use their power to oppress others... were heretics. Dirty, disgusting, worthless, useless, pathetic heretics. Whenever they used their power, when they threatened or complained, when they spoke their lines, asking "Do you even know who I am?!", or "I''ll make sure you regret this!!", all of them were just that, heretics. They deserved no attention, no glory, no pity. They deserved a trial, and in that trial, they deserved to fall. No, her lady would never be swayed by such idiots, not by the rich and not by the powerful, for those things were secondary to one''s heart. The heart was something that lay deep inside someone, that showed if they were virtuous, if they were kind and brave. And if they were, then perhaps, Lucia could see them as equals. No, being good wouldn''t immediately get to the heart of any maiden, especially not her lady. After all, Iris knew that Lucia valued action over words. Maybe that made her a little impulsive and gave her a seemingly fiery temper, but Iris knew. She had always known. Her lady was simply doing her best, trying to uphold order in this world. She became high priestess with only that purpose in mind. She wanted to keep the big from oppressing the small, and she wanted to keep the small from oppressing the tiny. Because that was order, in her eyes. It was fairness, to all. Ah, her lady was truly great. Iris slowly shook her head to herself in disbelief. She always tended to forget what her lady had to go through, what her friend sacrificed to do what she felt truly was right. To Iris, there was no one greater than Lucia. She was her world. Her friend. Her lady. And she would make absolutely certain that no filthy bastards would ever dare do anything to her. She would be the shield when her lady needed safety, the blanket when she needed comfort, and her most trusted ally. Because that''s simply who Iris was. That''s who she aspired to be. Chapter 34: Detective Mercury Chapter 34: Detective Mercury /I love spiders, but by the gods, they terrify me./ Some biologist, probably. - - - - - - Mercury understood some of what was going on in the city from his regular check-ins with Marcel, and admittedly, he was a bit curious about this investigation on some sort of criminal trial. Also, since the notices for some jobs, such as witnesses rather than quality checkers, were rank E, he thought about applying for one. He decided to fully commit to and accept a job to help out, just to stay in touch with current ongoings in the city, before their effects trickled down to him. And so, as he headed out to do the commission, who would he be partnered up with if not Avery Beckham himself? "What''s up, newbie? Ya deciding to help us out here?" he asked with a smile on his face. Mercury could only shake his head a little. "Of course. It''s also good to have something like this on my record, and the pay is decent. So, here I am. What do I do?" "Well, largely you''re gonna follow me around and just make sure everything plays out nice and fair. Now, you do know enough about the laws around here to make that work, right?" "Of course," Mercury lied. "Glad to hear it. Today we''ll be going along with this little troop of merchants," Avery said, nodding at a handful of people in fancy, gilded clothing. "All top officials, so I''m sure they won''t try to fake anything. Isn''t that right?" he asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest. As expected, all of the merchants simply nodded at Avery''s question, and went off to check out the store''s basement warehouse. "Y''see, Mercury, while it might look like we''re working with the merchants, we aren''t really," Avery spoke on the way there, loud enough for the handful of people in front of the two of them to hear as well. "So if you see anyone trying to change some ledgers or forge some documents, you have my full permission to go as far as you see fit. See it as a sign of trust, your voice is gonna have my full authority behind it for today." "I''m glad to hear it, guild master," Mercury said with a smile. This was fun, he felt like a detective. Maybe he was coming closer to being Sherlock Holmes through this, hehe. The four shopkeeps and traders in front of them were whispering among themselves a little as they approached the "crime scene", but not nearly enough to unsettle Avery or his feline companion. There were three men and a single woman, and Mercury committed their appearances at least to his short term memory. Towards the beginning, things went rather well. The group headed underground, the merchants started going through the storage unit and the ledgers. It was rather quiet, only footsteps and occasional chatter breaking out. "Want a bite?" Avery asked, holding some bread to Mercury, before interrupting himself. "Oh wait, right. Sorry." "Yeah, I appreciate the offer though," Mercury quickly waved it off with a smile, before suddenly starting to stare at one of the merchants who was currently going through the storage. "Hey, Avery? Something smells... fishy." "What do you mean?" "No, I mean, not quite fishy. Ugh, what is that smell? That guy up there, short, green jacket, brown hair, chin length. He''s hiding it, but he just pulled something real smelly out." "Give me a second, my guy," Avery said, pocketing his bread as he took a large step towards the merchant Mercury had pointed out. "Hey, Lang! The fuck do you think you''re doing?" "I beg your pardon, master Beckham?" "Don''t "beg your pardon" me, Lang," Avery said, immediately dashing in front of the merchant and grabbing his wrists as he pulled his arms to each side of his body. "Open palms, facing up." Without hesitation, the merchant followed orders, only to reveal himself as empty handed. Avery took a long and hard look at this, staring the Merchant up and down. He couldn''t smell anything, but his was tingling a little... Mercury appeared by Avery''s side as he sniffed the air once again, whatever he noticed before now gone. As he shook his head, the guild master released Lang''s hands again. "Must have made a mistake, sorry for the inconvenience." Lang himself quickly waved it off with a customer service smile, but Avery knew something about this wasn''t quite right. "My guy, can you describe the smell?" "Uh, yeah. It smelled burnt, and salty, and... like lemon? I guess?" "Hm, interesting. Sure you pointed the right way?" "Absolutely, no doubt about it. But something still doesn''t seem to add up. It was extremely sudden and strong. It doesn''t feel like something that could disappear so quickly." "Alright, well, seems like I have the right man for the case. You go figure this one out, my guy." "I will try my best, sir." "No, no, you got- hm? I was expecting a little more resistance, ya know?" Avery cocked his head to the side and crossed his arms. "Well, I mean, you told me what to do, so I''ll give it my best shot, guild master." Mercury flashed a smile as he finished, and began slowly going around the room, searching for a hint of the smell as he turned his sensed up as much as he could. Avery, on the other hand, simply shook his head at this, heading over to another one of the merchants as they were looking through the business ledgers, making sure they weren''t planting any false evidence. It was confusing for our cat friend. He had smelled that thing so clearly, so vividly, and yet, as he opened his nose to the sensory world of scents, he didn''t notice a trace of it. What was it? Not that unit, not that one either... was that fish? Mmmm... No, focus! Mercury kept prancing around uneasily, checking any nook and cranny for anything with a similar smell, but he simply came up empty handed. He checked the tops of shelves and their bottom, not even listening too closely when Avery reprimanded someone behind him. He had dove into his own world, honing in on whatever it was he had noticed before. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. And yet... no trace. How could that be? Did it come from up above? No, he clearly traced it back to that Lang guy. So, then it must have come from a shelf near him, right? Well, again, no dice. It was unsettling, but Mercury''s was still ringing in his mind. This was somehow important to the case, and if it was that, Mercury at least wanted to ensure things went fairly. So, he needed to find the source. It was definitely near Lang. No, wait, maybe it was on him? "Avery? Can you check Lang''s pockets for me?" "Hm? Sure, my pleasure. Lang, you heard the guy, come over here. Thank you, jacket off..." Mercury went through all the pockets alongside Avery, but it seemed like none of them leaked whatever it was Mercury had noticed before. He also couldn''t pick up anything on Lang himself. It was almost like any trace of the smell had entirely vanished... Wait, vanished? Smells didn''t vanish, they faded away over time as they diffused into the air around, or you got used to them. This was... strange. "Avery, can you light a fire?" "A fire? Why?" "Well, it''s a stretch, but it might help me figure this out." Mercury gave his best shrug, but when he looked back up at the guild master, he was met with a wide grin. "Alright, you got it my guy." Avery quickly pulled out a large, cylindrical chitin box, which he popped open and pulled out a hellstone match, striking it against the container before holding it down to Mercury, who sniffed it. "What are you doing...?" Avery gave the mopaaw in front of him a confused look, but quickly got his answer. "Smell the match." "What do you mean? I don''t smell any- Ohh. Ohoho. Kah! You got them, Mercury! Alright, all of you, clear out right now!" Mercury gave a big smile at this. He couldn''t smell anything from the match. Nothing at all. Meaning that whatever it was he had smelled before, it was in this entire room, and he had gotten used to the burnt, salty, lemon smell. Or it blocked those specific receptors in his nose. Whatever the case, they placed something in here. Something that made itself decently undetectable. And it would have worked, since humans apparently couldn''t smell it at all, and simply had their olfactory nerves blocked by it. But Mercury had caught a whiff, even only for a small moment. It was a victory, to be sure. "Well, I''m glad I had you here today. I would''ve missed it, and at the end of the day, this would have sabotaged someone. Usually they only give it small attempts, but it seems you caught their trump card. Must''ve gotten impatient, since this was the last day of the investigation and all, and they couldn''t get any good dirt on the church yet." "Hm? So the shop is actually guilty?" "Yeah, probably. Of minor crimes at least, since they were selling faulty goods. Of course, that could have been an honest mistake, and these merchants here were probably trying to specifically make it so, that it seemed as though they were more innocent. I caught one of them trying to swipe a ledger before, in a poor attempt at hiding some inventory." "Well, are they going to be sentenced to death now?" Mercury felt a little uneasy with this. He didn''t exactly want people to die because of him. "Hm? No, no, of course not. At least that''s my guess. They''ll probably be fined and have some debts to pay off towards the city council. Similarly, the church will be fined, for doing an investigation and trial without permission. And similarly, I''ll get the merchants'' guild fined because they tried to fuck around. The shop might not be allowed to sell charrs anymore and lose some profit because of that, but nothing too bad." "That''s a relief," Mercury sighed with a smile. "Really wouldn''t have wanted someone to die just because I uncovered a small scam. So, what do you think they put into here?" "Well my guy, it''s a little complicated. Given your description, some sort of powder that spreads quickly and leaves no traces. Lang must have kept it somewhere on him, poured the reactant on his hand and grabbed the powder from another pouch. But what would he use?" Avery rubbed his chin a little as he looked around, making sure to keep a watch on the merchants in a corner. He didn''t want them to place anything else, but he also couldn''t send them home, so he simply kept them around, just in case. Avery started looking around the room again, having Mercury with him at all time. The cat could almost visibly see the gears turn in his head. "Ah, I got it. They probably used vilegrass. It reacts strongly with water, releasing a smell that''s very similar to what you described, but only for a moment. It blocks your nose. The water and grass are used up in the reaction, and he could have easily hidden both in his hand." "Makes sense so far, but why?" Mercury asked, gazing up at Avery. "Well, that''s what we''re gonna find out now," the man replied, running his fingers along the storage units. It was definitely interesting, but they did seem to be getting closer to the truth. So what was it? Why did they block their noses? What contraband could they be placing? "Maybe it''s for a bomb?" Mercury suggested, more as a throwaway joke. "Can''t say that''s entirely impossible, but relatively unlikely. No, it would have to be to hide something that incriminates the Church of Order. Would they have tried to burn a business ledger?" "No, that makes little sense, why not just sack it?" "We could see them carry it out, so maybe, but we would also see them burn it, so I don''t think that''s quite it..." Avery pulled out a handful of bread and began eating to clear his mind and focus. What was it? What would they try to take away? "Well, I mean, what do these charrs they were selling usually smell like?" Mercury asked. He knew they were similar to cigarettes, but since they weren''t quite the same, he couldn''t be sure. "Well, burnt, by themselves. Most of them contain dried ashbloom, which has a slight smell of ash. Their smoke can vary, depending on what oils are included in the wrapping. You saying they were planning to burn some of the charrs?" "Maybe?" "Don''t know. They were all already taken in the first day, since they were the product in question. No..." Avery paused a little while as he thought, until Mercury spoke up again. "Well, then, could it be that they were trying to place non-faulty charrs?" "What do you mean?" "Okay, so, they create this reaction so we don''t smell the charrs at all. They place some good ones on some of the shelves, yeah? They go through, take the good ones, say that only part of the charrs were bad, and the shop isn''t at fault, throwing shade on the church," Mercury suggested. Avery raised his eyebrows and tapped his fingers for a moment, before nodding. "Alright. That seems plausible. I think I''ll take these guys to the guard station, have them checked for anything. You stay here, keep an eye out, make sure no one else comes in and tries to pull anything funny. Good?" "Got it, wish you luck." And with a wave, Avery was off with the merchants. He couldn''t quite go through all of their pockets himself, as that would be severely rude of him, especially when one of them was a woman, so taking them to the guard was a much more sensible choice. Here was to hoping that there wouldn''t be any corrupt guards at the station. Mercury, on the other hand, remained in the storeroom, and simply continued looking around, trying to figure out if there was any other reason to block their smells. They didn''t know who was coming to watch them with Avery today, so they couldn''t have anticipated his superior senses. Sometimes being a cat was quite useful. [ has levelled up! 3>] Nice. Mercury actually could feel some more of his senses returning at this point as he smelled... lemon? Hm, interesting. His sense of smell was now apparently good enough to detect subtle differences between the overwhelming hue of lemon that was blocking his nose and whatever was below it. Lemon, lemon, where are you hiding... Mercury followed the trail of smell to a small drawer underneath the ledger one of the merchants had open. It was locked, but that didn''t stop him for long, as he simply tackled the table to crack it open. Of course, he set it back up afterwards, but nonetheless, it had granted him access to the drawer. He still had to use some force to actually pull it out, of course. Inside, he found a broken latch, and a small stack of documents. But... those didn''t exactly smell like lemons. No, no. There was something below that. A false bottom? Mercury quickly pushed his claws between the bottom of the drawer and its side. It took some work, but there was, in fact, a space below there. With a feline grin, Mercury latched onto the fake bottom, and lifted it up. There was the lemon smell. From... some tiny vials with yellow liquid inside? - - - - - - When Avery arrived at the guard''s office, a few people who were on duty had to come in, of course. It just so happened that one of those was Leynn, the gate guard who had let Mercury in. This time though, he was awake, and his tiny hangover had already faded, so he was ready to do a good job. Of course, as Avery brought the merchants in, Leynn''s eyes turned into thin slits. That was Cole, wasn''t it. Cole Jr. Coleson. His little cousin''s ex. Oh yeah, that was a rough breakup, he remembered. "Hey there. I need you all to please check these guys. If they''re carrying any charrs, please confiscate them, and keep them ready. You probably heard about the trial?" Leynn looked at Avery and gave him a solid nod and a salute. "Yessir! We will make sure to be thorough!" With that, he took the merchants over to a private room. He would handle the three men, and a colleague of his would have to handle the woman. Privacy and such. But as Leynn eyed the men in front of him, his eyes narrowed even further. Yeah, he''d be thorough. Veeeeeery thorough. Chapter 35: New Visitor Chapter 35: New Visitor /It has puzzled many people before how the system handles these "stats", hasn''t it? What decides your stats at birth? How are they influenced by your parents? How do they grow as one becomes older? How are they influenced by our actions and training, and how does this influence the stat bonuses we receive upon levelling up? What even is experience granted for? Well, today I will try my best to clear most of these questions up. Not the last one about experience however, as that is another topic for another time. In the respective chapters for each stat I will go into much more detail on what they influence, but for now, only growth will be discussed. So, the stats one has at birth are determined by a myriad of factors, although many of them come back to one''s parents. If one''s parents had high stats, one tends to inherit higher stats. Also, there is a stat minimum for every evolutionary stage, colloquially named tiers. Humans, for example, are tier 3. The third evolutionary stage. Similarly, other tier 3 species would be bears, wolves, etc. These tiers also go into the negative for things such as bugs, but no matter. Human stats are essentially partially dependent on one''s parents. Any living thing is born as the average tier of their parents. If a human has a child with a tier 5 species, the child will be tier 4. If the human has extraordinary stats from being at the very top of their tier however, the child can be borne with higher stats than one would normally assume them to have. However, the stats one has at their birth will still be extremely low compared to what one may reach in the future. For such a thing, there are growth stages, describing maturity. There are more of these the higher in tier one rises. Again, taking humans as examples, some stages are baby, toddler, kid, juvenile, adolescent, and so on. Some species have very few growth stages, such as insects. The higher one''s tier, the more growth stages one has on average. If one evolves, they can even fall back to immaturity, as their lifespan may increase and they might no longer be considered adults. Then again, as one grows past the adult stage, stats can begin to decline as one becomes old. Essentially, while these growth stages are marked out, they are usually rough estimates, and stats can simply change over time. These stat changes depend heavily on species. Humans gain a lot of Intelligence in their toddler stage, and much more dexterity in their kid stage, for example. These increases in stats can be heavily augmented by physical or mental exercises, where supporting the stat growth distribution of one''s stage can lead to much larger increases than usual. However, this growth of individual stats is also highly based on the individual, and the effort they put in. In general, some people simply have different talents, which can influence which stats their growth stages are most likely to increase. However, as the system is truly fair, everyone''s talent is usually perfectly equal, unless somehow children come to be with the rare Skill, though that is a topic for another time. Lastly, we gain stat bonuses through levelling up and evolving by itself. These are, of course, influenced by what stats we use. If one is especially lucky before a level up, one can increase their Luck. If one does a lot of heavy lifting, Strength will naturally receive more bonuses. The general amount of points granted on every level can also vary, albeit only slightly, depending on tier, species, method of experience acquisition, and many other factors. In general, the system will support people''s choices, by providing bonuses to the stats they use the most./ The introduction to "Statistics of life", by Ximena Statica, a pioneer in statistical analysis of the system. - - - - - - Iris was by Lucia''s side as usual, watching as her lady was currently sipping on some tea. Today, the Merchants'' Guild had sent one of their much more pleasant members, a middle aged woman by the name of Nira. She had greying hair, tied together in a bun behind her head, and wore an ash coloured fur coat over the typical gilded uniform. Her eyes were steely, albeit with a hint of blue in them, and her thin lips curved into a soft smile, though she had few laugh lines on her face. Nira was a rather serious woman, with little tolerance for the usual tip-toeing many people enjoyed so much in higher circles, and thus, she simply bided her time as she sipped the chilled tea Lucia had shared with her. It was well made. Green tea, with a hint of peach and just enough sugar to make one crave another sip. She nodded in approval to Iris, who gave a small bow back. "Well, dear high priestess, I cannot much complain about your hospitality up until now, although things have been a little quiet between us. I trust no one of my guild has given you too much trouble?" Nira asked, her voice gravelly yet crisp. "Well, some of them liked to be entertained a little more specifically than you have, but none of them overstepped their boundaries. Then again, they were oftentimes getting quite close enough to them, close enough to irritate me at times. Of course, that is their doing and not yours, so you can trust I do not hold it against you." "Hm, yes, I can imagine," Nira said, shaking her head wearily. "Some of them can be... demanding. Especially when they believe themselves in a superior position. If memory serves, you were also visited by guild master Foss and his lapdog, Gourd, is that correct?" "Indeed. Gourd himself was rather quiet, but I believe you are aware of Foss''... nature." Nira let out a long sigh at this, taking another sip of tea before nodding. "Yes, I am. He is rude on the best of days. Hosting him must have been difficult." "It was a challenge, but we prevailed," Lucia said, giving the old lady a smile. "He didn''t dare step out of line too much, since our voice does still hold sway in Stormbraver." "Indeed it does. Do you believe this investigation of ours will cause some trouble for you? Of course, I imagine you will be able to retain a foothold in the city, but will your influence be reduced?" Lucia grimaced a little at this question, shaking her head at the woman in front of her. She was trustworthy, to some degree, since she also disliked Foss'' politics and held some power in the merchants'' guild. "Well, I believe it depends on what happens during the investigation. If guild master Beckham is to be trusted, then I am sure we will not run into many problems, but I haven''t heard a lot about him yet. Could you give me some insight?" "Ah, master Beckham. Yes, I heard he was taking the duty of an Overseer. He is most certainly reliable, I have to say. Although he is cocky at times, he always keeps his word. If he says the investigation will be fair, then he will do everything in his power to make it so." Nira had to smile at the thought of Avery as an overseer. She had known him since he was much more little, after all, and imagining that rambunctious kid now leading a guild of mercenary goldseekers, pun intended, was rather amusing. But he held their respect, and he always stuck to his words. Nira nodded to herself again. "Avery will make sure the trial goes fairly. He has a good head on his shoulders." The older lady leaned back in her chair a bit and took another long sip of tea, keeping her eyes glued to Lucia. The head priestess on the other hand was silent at this, taking a moment to think it over. "I shall take your word for it, madam Nira. Thank you for the reassurance." Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. "My pleasure. If there is anything else you would like to ask, please, do tell me," the middle aged merchant said with a smile, thinking both of simply being kind and earning a favour from Lucia for the future. - - - - - - "We''ve found bags of charrs on all of them, guild master. Most of them were hidden on pockets inside their shirts and pants, that were also accessible from the outside through tiny holes. We have confiscated all of them, coming to a total of 200," Leynn reported. He had done his job well and goddamn it, he was proud of it too. He had thoroughly checked the three clients that were sent to him, making sure that he noticed anything the guild master would have liked to see. He idolized Beckham, and although he also had a personal grudge, he most certainly didn''t want to disappoint this man either. "Fenks," Avery said, taking a large bite from his raisin bread. He chewed and swallowed before he spoke again. "Sorry, bad habit. Please, make sure to keep half of these. Can you come testify in the investigation trial tomorrow as well? I''d appreciate the help." "Of course, sir!" Leynn snapped out a salute at Avery, receiving a grin in reply. "Alright, see you in court," the guild master said, before heading off again. These merchants were done investigating for the day. They had tried to cheat him, and pretty heavily too. He wouldn''t accept that, especially not since it was with a method that almost succeeded. Luckily, he had brought along his feline companion. On his way back, Avery stopped by the bakery again, restocking enough bread to satisfy his dark urges, while bringing along a treat for Mercury. It was a small cookie in the shape of a mopaaw''s face. Cute, and apparently quite tasty. Some time later, Avery was back at the scene of the crime, his total excursion having taken a little over an hour. As he stepped into the storeroom, he smelled the distinct hue of vilegrass powder for only a moment, before the sensation vanished. Looks like he had guessed correctly at least. Avery had only noticed since he was specifically focusing on his sense of smell, otherwise he probably wouldn''t have even caught a hint of it. What an excellent way to hide their trick. "Yo, Mercury, I''m back," he said, going around the room again. Silence. "Uh, Mercury? You here?" Avery called out a little louder the second time he spoke, but again, there was no answer. Curious. The mopaaw didn''t seem the type to abandon a job before it was done. Just then, alarm bells screeched out in Avery''s head, as he threw himself to the floor, watching as something sharp passed over him and smashed into the wall. "Okay, I see. Alright." the guild master quickly shoved the remainder of the bread he was holding into his mouth. This might be a fight, but he sure as hell wasn''t giving up his snacks until he died. His rang out once more, along with , leading him to quickly turn, watching as another... arrow, he thought, flew by him. "Well, let''s get going I suppose..." And with that, Avery cracked his knuckles and jumped on the spot for just a moment, before he simply vanished. He wasn''t quite warmed up, but oh well, he had to make do. He saw that the arrows had come from a different direction, so he simply ducked behind cover without hesitation, quickly activating a night vision type Skill. There was a bit of dust around. Nothing much, nothing scary, but enough to obscure whoever was shooting at him. Avery wanted to sigh to himself, but he couldn''t give his position away. In the silence, he poked his head out again, ducking back as another arrow passed his smiling face. "Got''cha." Immediately, Avery dug his heels into the ground, the leather of his boots creaking. His entire body coiled up like a spring before he launched forth, stopping himself just as he caught a glimpse of something. He immediately dug his heels into the floor again, trying to follow whatever it was with his eyes as it retreated away. He wasn''t "Lightfoot" for nothing, though. Without even a moment''s pause, Avery became taut like a bowstring, accelerated beyond what should have been humanly possible, and launched forward in a cloud of dust with a feral grin on his face. As he saw the dark silhouette appear through the dust, he stretched out his foot to where its chest should have been. He didn''t want to risk missing a shot at its face, so he went for the safe options, squarely making contact with his heels as he softly landed on the floor in a crouch, steam seeming to come off from his body. Avery jumped on the spot and rolled his shoulders, getting himself more warmed up just in case things were escalating. Of course, he kept close watch of the assailant, ducking under the knife it threw at him while getting up, and immediately launching after it when it tried to escape. He was known for being fast, yet whatever this was tried to run from him. Yet, it was decently proficient in combat and had much better aim than some common soldier. Either this was someone foreign and simply didn''t know about his speed, or it was attempting to lure him into a trap. It wasn''t worth the risk of simply running after the being, so instead, Avery decided to not give it a chance to do either. He crouched down into the position of a sprinter, firmly placing his foot on some large crates. "Really sorry ''bout the merchandise," he ground out as he clenched his teeth, launching off the crate as it shattered into splinters. Immediately, he curled up and spun around in mid air, planting his foot on the wall next to the door, as his other swept out, trying to take whatever was attacking him off its feet. Avery missed. The hooded figure quickly jumped over his low kick, and disappeared out the exit, throwing down a smoke bomb behind it. Damn it! Avery immediately began chasing after whoever it was, quickly looking around and seeing it dash into a side street. He burst into a sprint as he followed, just close enough to see it take another turn, heading towards the north of the city. Of course, Avery gave chase, slowly growing faster as his legs found their rhythm, partially running on walls to avoid losing any momentum. It was becoming harder tracking his target through the growing masses of people, as they began running on more popular streets, but Avery was still able to keep watch of it, and as the people parted in front of him, he began gaining on the attacker. "You''re not getting away from me!" the guild master yelled, as more steam began rising off his body, his muscles becoming more and more warmed up as he asked them to perform to their fullest. He was speeding up, his figure turning into a blur as he began gaining faster and faster. His assailant soon saw and began pushing people towards Avery, as well as knocking over stands and whatever else it saw around. Yet, it was futile. Guild master Avery Beckham had reached his full speed. His muscles rippled under his skin, white vapour oozing off him as he stopped dead in his tracks. He kneeled down low, watching the carnage and obstacles in front of him, as he kept his eyes on the target through a thin gap in between all of it. And then, he curled together more, his muscles pulling taught and compressing to their maximum. He breathed out deeply, releasing a small cloud of smoke. Ever so slowly, he pulled off his sunglasses, keeping his eyes on the target. They shone with a yellow light as he locked on, his pupils a thin, vertical slit. And then, everything was still. Avery took a deep, deep breath as time seemed to slow down. Everything became grey, as he could only see his target. A long moment later, his muscles released. The human sized bullet, guild master Avery Beckham of the godseekers, launched forward as the air rippled in front of him. Within mere moments he was above his target, having sailed over all obstacles in his way, and a moment later, he was falling towards it. But then, it threw something towards him, and his eyes couldn''t focus on his prey anymore. There was a cat, one with white fur that gleamed silvery, and pink, vine-like patterns on it, flying towards him. And behind it, there was an arrow. Without even a second of hesitation, Avery reached out and grabbed Mercury, pulling his friend towards him as he spun in the air, the arrow digging itself deep into his shoulder as he crashed into the ground. He grunted out in pain, but released Mercury, not wanting to expose his friend to his fully warmed up body. Before anyone could watch him, Avery put his sunglasses back on, and poured a healing potion into his friend''s mouth. He was a guild master, after all. He had to take responsibility for anyone in his guild. Unfortunately, that was his only healing potion, so after seeing Mercury''s eyelids flutter open, Avery nodded to himself. He grabbed the arrow in his shoulder, and ripped it out without hesitation. "Kagh!" He still never enjoyed the pain. There was probably some poison on the arrow, knowing that he had been hit by an assassin, and he could already feel his shoulder turn numb. He quickly chewed up some dandylion, spit it into his hand and added icegrain, turning the whole mix a slight cyan. He quickly rubbed it onto the wound. It was a rudimentary antidote, but it would probably stop the poison. It wasn''t too strong, and he was somewhat resistant to it, so this was decent enough. He added a bandage afterwards, and tied it tightly around the wound and its surroundings, hopefully tightly enough to keep most of the poison from spreading. Then, he turned towards Mercury again. "Hey, you awake?" "Avery? Is that you?" Immediately, Avery noticed that Mercury was confused, and there was some blood in the fur at the back of his head. Someone had knocked him unconscious. They probably wanted to eliminate any and all witnesses, but had taken him as a hostage for the exact situation they found themselves in. Well, it was still better than having one of his guild members dead, although whoever it was could strike again, and Avery would wager that not many in the city would be able to escape from or stop them. Once more, he took a deep breath. "Alright, Mercury. It''s all good now. Someone tried to nab you, but I came back just in time to figure it out. You feeling okay?" Mercury wasn''t too good in situations like this, but he had done enough mental exercise recently to somewhat force his mind to turn. He wanted to be efficient with this. He wanted to impress, for once. "Yeah, I''m okay. A little dizzy is all. Someone knocked me unconscious in the storeroom, after I found a drawer with a second bottom." "Alright, I''m glad to hear it. I''ll have to cut you off here for a moment. I gave you a healing potion, so you should be as good as new sometime soon, but for now, let''s head to the gloryhall. We have some beds for injured, and I''m sure that after some food and drink you''ll be in better shape. You can tell me what happened then, fine?" "Got it, guild master. Thank you." "Anytime. Now, let''s go get you some rest, hm?" Chapter 36: Mana uses Chapter 36: Mana uses /Woooooo, Skill shop time! The thing fucking sucks! No, but seriously, hear me out there. The Skill shop is a total piece of shit. So, first of all, for a system that prides itself on fairness and equality, it''s pretty dumb that some species will just be able to get Skills for cheaper, but you know what, FINE. We all start at different levels after all, and since everyone is affected by these requirements, it''s still somewhat fair. My biggest problem with the Skill shop is how clunky it is. There is no filter function, so you''re basically locked into whatever you find while browsing, though it is alphabetically sorted. Also, the Skill shop can at absolutely ANY point in time be filled up with new Skills, whenever you meet conditions to unlock them. But you won''t be told when you do, because why would you? Also, no one knows the conditions. But people have tried to map them! Without success. Because they can vary from person to person. Maybe someone needs to touch a rock to be able to buy something like , meanwhile someone else would need to meditate in the mountains for a thousand years while fasting to do the same! It''s inconsistent and absolutely stupid. But you know my favourite part? You can''t even appraise the Skills before buying them. You need to spend exorbitant amounts of time finding the Skills you think might be necessary for you. Then, you need to buy them, whatever their price may be, because that price is uniquely linked to you. And if you don''t find a Skill, double check, you might just not have unlocked it yet. To top it off, it''s a fucking scam sometimes, too. Some Skills do little to nothing, and you need to spend tons more points to even get them to be usable! It''s bullshit! Alright, I''m calm again. See you in the next issue, motherfuckers. Don''t croak./ Issue 4 of "This System Sucks!" by an anonymous "heretic and scoundrel" - - - - - - Mercury was feeling quite rough after having walked back to the gloryhall. He had a headache, his knees were weak, his vision was blurry, and he felt sick to his stomach. All that kept our cat-hero going really was simply a sense of dignity. There was no way that he would let Avery see him be this shaken by a simple attack. Willpower: 54 -> 55 Well, it was something. He still had little idea of what willpower did though, as unfortunate as it was. Still, for now he simply had to focus on getting back to base. And so, he did it. A little wobbly, but he managed to stay on his feet the entire time, trying his best to not lose any details of what happened after Avery left the scene. Ugh, his fucking head. Why did that piece of shit have to knock him out. Avery looked at Mercury with a hint of concern, but he respected his decision to walk himself. After all, as a guild master, he was supposed to support and protect his members, not try to force them to do anything. If Mercury insisted on hunting down a dragon, Avery would not stop him, though he sure as hell would try to knock some sense into him. But he wasn''t doing that. He simply wanted to walk on his own. As long as Mercury wasn''t about to endanger himself or anyone around, Avery could easily let it slide. Everyone wanted to be respected, after all, and many people were much more prideful than some small act like this. The guild master had always found pride a little strange. It was right there with honor. Both of them were concepts, and rather flimsy ones, too. Pride amounted to a simple feeling of respecting one''s own actions, yet why did that mean one had to be respected by others? Was pride in oneself not enough for some people? Avery didn''t understand, but he could respect it nonetheless. He supposed that if someone had pride in being seen as something like heroic, that was fine. As long as it worked for them. But what he understood even less was honor. Honor was sometimes an obstacle to oneself. It stopped many things in life, and it could place huge restrictions on one''s actions. Why care about honor? Who cares if your dad wants you to marry a noble''s son? Fuck him, run away, marry whoever you want to, or don''t marry at all. Who cares about being nice to everyone? Or even being polite? If people don''t like your rules, they don''t have to play by them, and you don''t have to play by theirs. Honor wasn''t something to be glorified, honor was a chain in Avery''s mind. So was pride, too, but to a lesser degree. Pride forced oneself to push harder than usual, or it could make one arrogant, but it would never truly chain one''s freedom down. But honor did. It chained you to family, to tradition, to the dead. No, that wasn''t freedom. That wasn''t even close to freedom. And still, honor was worse than that in combat. Giving your opponent a chance to speak last words. Introducing your techniques and explaining them, even the little act of giving your own name. Where was the excitement, the thrill, the adrenalin? Where were the ambushes and the tricks, all the foul play and the dirty mindgames? Avery could understand sometimes giving techniques names. It made it easier to link them to muscle memory, and sometimes could even create an entry for them in the system, allowing you to level them up. But Avery had always been a fan of mindgames, so all his jumping kicks were named after punches. He even had a punch he liked to call . Why would you ever give your opponent even the slightest advantage in battle? Still, he couldn''t just name all of his techniques randomly, some of them were absolutely true to their nature. A would target a face. If he handed that one out after an , which actually targeted the shoulders, it always worked so well. So why would anyone ever fight honourably? Avery shook his head to get back to reality, realizing that by now, both he and Mercury had arrived back at the gloryhall of Stormbraver. The guild master smiled to himself. "Alright, Mercury. Let''s get you a bed, eh?" The mopaaw next to him only nodded in reply, as Avery delivered him to sickbay, where one of the nurses made sure to get him back to proper health. They did a quick magical scan on him, to see if all the mana in his body was still tame, then repeated the same for stamina. All healthy. Rudimentary reflex test, and he was looking okay. Pupils and reflexes normal. No brain hemorrhages, no major internal damage, some issues with vision and balance. It should heal over time, and he would probably be ready to get back out there tomorrow. They gave him a small dose of ridroot syrup to help with the pain, and get him well on his way to recovery. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. "Alright," Avery said, after the medical examination was done. "Is your memory intact, Mercury? If you feel dizzy or need some more rest, let me know, we can also deal with this later." "No, it''s alright, I got this," Mercury gave a slight nod, the blanket of the human-sized bed a little heavy to him, but his Strength was high enough to manage comfortably. "Good to hear. So, what happened?" "After you left, I continued searching for any objects of interest, and my smelling Skill levelled up. After it did, I could catch a hint of lemon from one of the drawers in the storage room." "A drawer? What was in there?" "Just documents. I found them after cracking the lock, literally. But the smell wasn''t coming from the documents, but from something under them. So, I tested to see if there was a second compartment, below the bottom of the drawer." Avery leaned forwards as he heard this. False bottoms weren''t uncommon, but you wouldn''t expect to find them in a normal merchants'' store. "What was in there?" he asked. "Well, vials. Tiny ones, about a centimeter high and wide." Luckily, the system translated measurements. It would have been a chore to learn new ones. "They had glass stoppers at the top, so I thought that whatever was in there was probably dangerous. It was a yellow liquid, with the faint lemon smell I had been sensing." "Did you appraise it?" "Of course, it was my first instinct as well. Unfortunately, my is still not very high level, so it only told me, and I quote: ''Small vials filled with yellow mana (liquid).'' Unfortunately, that''s all I got about those. So-" "Liquid mana? You''re sure it said that?" "Uhm, yeah, pretty sure." "Ugh..." Avery clasped his hands together and hung his head for half a second, before focusing on Mercury again. "What a chore. You know how liquid mana is gained?" "I don''t, no," Mercury replied calmly. "Well, liquid mana doesn''t really appear much in nature. Most of the mana outside of living things is gaseous, and very rarely can we find liquid or solid mana in arches. But the major sources of liquid mana, especially places where you''d find enough to fill some vials, even small ones, are cores." "Cores? Like the one inside me?" "Exactly like that. The problem with natural liquid mana is that it is very rarely even remotely pure, and even more rarely does it have an attribute, and mana without an attribute is useless outside a core." "Why is that?" "Well, you can shape your mana with your thoughts, yes?" Avery asked, trying to see how much Mercury knew about it. "Yup, and channel it through my to enhance my physical strength, what about it?" "Well, the mana inside your body is much purer than on the outside, since it is evaporated and condensed again and again. It doesn''t do so when it occurs in nature, so it is contaminated. And it doesn''t bend to anyone''s will when it''s outside of a host body. So natural liquid mana is rarely useful." "So you get liquid mana from cores?" "Exactly. Cores are usually attributed to some degree. The mana inside them is pure, and whoever used the mana probably cast more of a certain type of spell, though it can vary from person to person. Now, to get this liquid mana out, you have to get the core. And you get someone''s core out by killing them and cutting it out of their corpse." Mercury flinched at this. "That sounds... gruesome." "It is," Avery nodded, "but it''s standard work. Any monster with some strength to it, meaning one that isn''t a wild animal, will have a core. These cores slowly change shape after being removed from their hosts. They become less rocky, and change colour, eventually looking like a shiny pearl. They form affinities usually during this ''ripening'' process, depending on their surroundings, or mana channelled into them, though in rare cases you have hosts that already use mana with an affinity." Mercury found this a little gross, but continued to listen. "And then, when they have ripened, the cores are cracked open like an egg and release a small amount of attributed mana, which can be used for potions. Yellow can mean a few things, but usually, when outside a host, it means lightning mana. Mercury, the vials you found are most likely bombs." "BOMBS?!" This wasn''t what he expected with a medieval world, what the fuck?! What did he mean, bombs? Did he just find a casual stack of grenades or something? Huh? "Yeah, bombs," Avery continued, keeping his composure. "Usually these are weak, if not borderline harmless, since most cores drop very little liquid mana, and if it isn''t from an exceptionally powerful individual, the mana is also usually impure and not very useful. Most of the time, the mana would then be further purified, before being mixed with other ingredients to make a variety of potions." "So then why are these ones bombs?" "Well, potions wouldn''t be kept in such tiny vials. They are usually much more diluted. You drink some of them, and depending on the potion, you splash some on yourself. They do a variety of things, strengthening, curing poison, healing, heightening reflexes, whatever you can imagine. But why would you hide those? They are perfectly legal after all." "... tax fraud?" Mercury suggested quietly. "No, I mean, yeah, that too. But potions need to be made by experts and those usually sell them themselves to build credibility of good work. Also, potions don''t have liquid mana as an absolutely necessary ingredient. But your appraisal listed it simply as liquid mana, which leads me to believe it''s undiluted. What level exactly is your ?" "Level 2." "Yeah, just reliable enough for me to guess it. I think that whoever it was that knocked you out wanted these vials of liquid mana. Because it reacts very, very violently with pretty much anything. Mana wants to be kept in one large unit, after all. This means that for the liquid mana to reconnect with the one in the air around, it needs to become gaseous and shed its affinity. It then releases all the energy that keeps it liquid, and its affinity, very rapidly and violently." "So it explodes?" "Exactly. Do you remember how many vials there were?" "Uhm... I think like 8 or 9?" Avery sharply sucked in some air at this. "Alright, that''s a lot. If I imagine an average lightning bomb going off 9 times that would be highly problematic for Stormbraver." "Wait, so this family was illegally selling bombs?!" Mercury realized. Maybe the church had been right with wanting to execute them? "No, I don''t think so. If they sold bombs, they''d need much more equipment to refine mana and so on. Even if they were to just sell them, they''d be much more wealthy, and at least spend some of their wealth, but they lived humble, quiet lives. I think they were used as a station for handing the bombs over to a buyer, kind of as an unknowing middle man." The guild master crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. "What a pain in the ass. Sigh. Alright, Mercury, we might need you to get healthy sooner rather than later, because when the city council shows up for the trial tomorrow, they might wanna hear about this." "I''ll do my best." "Let''s hope it''s enough, because if it isn''t, I might still have to drag you there," Avery said, giving Mercury a crooked smile. "But that''s all for now, I guess. I gotta go set up someone to track whoever it was that decided I''d look better as a porcupine. See you tomorrow, my guy." And with that, Avery was gone. "So this is a grenade, huh?" he murmured to himself, looking at the small vial of yellow liquid he had in his inventory. Avery had been gone for an hour, and while it took Mercury some time to find the drawer and crack open the lock, he still had more than enough time to read through the description of the vials and sack one of them before he was knocked out. When he saw a glowy thing, he would take it, but he wanted to make sure it wasn''t too illegal to have one of these before he told Avery about it. He still decided to keep quiet, not because he didn''t trust the guild master, but because he thought it might be a good idea to have this handy, just in case something nasty ever tried to go after him... Well, he wouldn''t need to use it in a while, at the very least. For now he was safely in a bed at the hospital. Though he didn''t quite know if the people who wanted to have the bomb in his inventory would go after him. Ah, it didn''t matter anyways for now. Not like he could change it. If he gave it to Avery, he''d just put himself in more danger, and this building was probably one of the safest places to be in the city right now. After all, Avery was still in the building, and so were multiple seasoned godseeker veterans. Damn it, he regretted it now. There had to be some way for him to call Avery back, right? "Hello? Anybody there?" Mercury called out at medium volume, but luckily someone still heard him, as a male nurse came in. "Yeah? Anything you need?" "Sorry to bother you again so soon, but could you get Avery back here for a moment, I have something to show him." "Alright, I''ll try my best. One moment." Just like that, the nurse was gone and Mercury was alone in his room again. This was awkward. He didn''t quite know what to do now. Should he do mana practice? No, Avery might come in anytime soon... Booooring. Maybe he should do calculations in his head? No, wait, he still had his backpack full of scrolls in his inventory! This was the optimal time to try and get into some reading! Mercury was barely a few paragraphs into one of the bits of writing he had on him, when he heard footsteps come up the stairs. Good, hopefully Avery wouldn''t be too mad at him. Nah, Mercury thought he probably wouldn''t be, the man was pret- Just as Avery was about to enter the room, there was a huge explosion downstairs, and the entire building shook. Ah, fuck. In a split second, he decided to rush up the last few stairs, simply kicking the already debilitated door off its hinges, as he tried to get to Mercury as fast as possible. Right there, in the window, sat one of them. The exact same guy who had already put an arrow in Avery''s shoulder. And just as he entered, they shot another one, directly towards Avery''s stomach. Mercury barely had time to react, only to scream. "NO!!" Chapter 37: Coming Together Chapter 37: Coming Together /You know, mana gets too much rep for its usefulness. Stamina is at least as important and powerful. Actually, scratch that, any direction of growth should be valued just as much as mana. And in some regions they do, but not if you ask the mages guild. Pah, old idiots. For now, I wanna focus on stamina though, ya know? Usually, we only talk about stamina as endurance, but that''s not quite what I mean. Stamina, like, in the system, those Sp we got. Yeaaaaah... Fuck, back on track. Stamina is pretty sick, you know? It''s quite useful, since it simply represents your inner stamina. Unlike mana, stamina isn''t something you pull from the environment and store inside your body, it''s something you have to build up from yourself, for yourself. But its uses are just as varied. Experts can channel stamina to spread their vitality around, and refresh others. A great example are farmers, who can use their own stamina to promote the growth of plants. They''re essentially stamina-druids, and to be honest, many druids use half-half techniques anyways. Other than that, stamina can, of course, be used to allow any movement you make to manifest outside the body. Yeah, if you infuse a punch with stamina, it will shoot out a phantom fist, or a shockwave. It can be just as spectacular as mana can be, and I don''t hear anyone who disagrees, ya got it? Also, just like mana, ya can use stamina to power moves and techniques, like special fancy sword thingies, that are just as strong as spells. There''s also stamina related abilities, maybe you''ve heard of before? It''s what those monks pursue, ya know, the monastery in the southwest. Super secretive, but I heard ''em talk about it once. So yeah, don''t disrespect stamina man! I bet you I can take on any mage on my level. Those fuckers ''r just too scared to actually challenge me, I swear. Betcha with fancy techniques you could even use stamina to create lightning or something, but that''s a little outta my league, heh. A toast to stamina, woooo!!/ Rant of a drunk sellsword in a bar, transcribed by a nearby member of the scholar''s guild. Undated, dubbed "A Toast to Stamina!" - - - - - - Lucia frowned at the new development. This was rather inconvenient, now. Nira had just alleviated some of her worries about Avery''s integrity, and then this. She gave a long sigh to herself, as she looked the building up and down. "Iris, what does this look like to you?" she asked her maid in a tired voice. "Well, m''lady, I''d have to say it looks like they were attacked..." Iris replied in a quiet voice. For a moment she hesitated, but after a nod from Lucia, she ran her fingers along the charred walls of the building. She rubbed the ash between her fingers for a moment and then seemed to sniff it. "If I had to guess, someone used a lightning mana bomb here... No, two of them. One thrown about a minute or so after the first." "Hm, and who would do this?" "I heard that guild master Beckham had the displeasure of chasing some shady figure in the streets earlier today, m''lady," Iris said, turning away from the damaged building. It still stood, but it would need extensive repairs. "Perhaps whoever it was, they attacked again?" "Could be, I agree. Why do you think they would do so, Iris?" As she spoke, Lucia threw a very hostile glance to Foss, who had to drag himself over here. The man was sweating profusely, but honestly, she couldn''t tell if it was because of anxiety or simply because of his physical constitution being challenged. "It is interesting that they would have access to purified mana, m''lady. Mana bombs tend to be out of fashion nowadays, usually mana is used in potions, and with a war going on, I doubt such resources would be kept in Stormbraver. Foss, do you have any records on such trade?" For a moment, the merchant seemed like he would get upset at the servant for speaking to him in such a manner, but after a sharp glance from the head priestess, his face turned a little more pale instead of red. It was... rather pinkish, now. Lucia smiled at the colour. "Well, I don''t, no. None of this hash come to my knowledge," Foss huffed out. "Hm, well then, Iris, what do you suppose happened here?" The woman in question paused at this for a moment. "Uhm... if I had to guess, a spy from another country managed to find their way to the black market in Stormbraver. Perhaps this would have developed into an attempt to destabilize the city by attacking the nobles'' estates and the council?" Iris wasn''t sure enough to say so for certain, but she was sure enough to at least voice this idea. She had also considered that perhaps the council was trying to eliminate themselves to gather greater successors, for example, but that idea seemed a little too ridiculous. "I believe you might be right," Lucia nodded. "Well then, can you figure out where this supposed attacker went?" "Absolutely, yes. I can track the scent of an absent member of the godseekers'' guild. Surprisingly they smell a lot like..." "Yes, go on?" "I don''t mean to be rude, but like a mopaaw, m''lady." "That is quite rude, but no matter. If you can track them, we shall follow. After all, we both know Foss hasn''t nearly the spine to be involved with this, correct?" Lucia felt the fire in her stomach flash as she spoke, a lick of it escaping through her mouth. She was becoming agitated, but perhaps, this time there would be no need to hold herself back. "I agree m''lady," Iris nodded. "If you would follow?" And just like that, the two women were off, to follow the trail of a cat that had disappeared just a bit prior. Foss, on the other hand, was left behind with a sour taste in his mouth. The gloryhall had been insured with his guild, and they would have to take care of reparations, which was bothersome, and there had also been a jab to his pride. But no matter. He was a merchant, through and through. He would make sure the guild was properly repaired, and that this matter was properly handled. This was no longer about protecting two of his members, this was about the pride of the entire guild, and the only way to salvage their reputation was to take care of matters properly. Foss might be a petty and rude man who held grudges, but he was still the master of the merchants'' guild in Stormbraver. He had coin flowing through his veins, and he wouldn''t lose it all through something like this. After all, he had made his way up the ladder to become guild master by making smart decisions, and not by going down with his subordinates. Immediately, he started rounding up some of his merchants, sending them off to deal with the paperwork of hiring the workers of the Constro family, a major hub for anything to deal with construction in the city. Then, he sent off some more members of his guild, and had them go to the headquarters. He needed to make sure all the bureaucracy of rebuilding was done by the time Avery was back. The merchant sighed as he thought of the "Lightfoot". He was a rather difficult character to deal with. Usually, when he worked with someone, he simply had to pay them reparations, when something broke, but in Avery''s case, that wasn''t quite good enough. The godseeker insisted, that he would not be bothered with any paperwork or construction, and had made a special deal with Foss. Now, he had to make sure to handle all the rebuilding processes. It was a bit of a chore, but Foss had decided he would do it properly. Just to salvage as much of his reputation as possible. - - - - - - "Why would you ever accept a commission like that?!!" This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "It pays well," a voice responded, coarse like gravel, but light as a feather. "This is EXACTLY why everyone hates us! Fuck! Now I''m forced to decide between making sure I don''t get kicked out of my city and protecting one of the members I''m sworn to protect! You absolute asshole!" Avery was absolutely livid as he kept pacing back and forth. He had almost bitten his nails again, but instead quickly retrieved his white bread and chomped down on copious amounts of it. Of course, being the diligent man he was, he also made sure to give Mercury the snack he had purchased. The cat was in decent health, albeit a little banged up, but he wasn''t as annoyed as Avery. After all, Mercury hadn''t sworn to protect other godseekers. Actually, he was sure Avery also hadn''t, but that apparently didn''t stop his guild master from giving everything to do so. But just then, Avery stopped his pacing. He looked up at the cloaked figure in front of him and shook his head. "Look," he slowly said, his voice hardening. "You have to leave. I can''t guarantee your safety in this city. I know you made sure to not hurt anyone too badly, even with the mana bombs, but you should have known better. You know exactly how unpredictable lightning is." Avery paused to take a bite and a deep breath. "I am mad. Very, very mad. You endangered other godseekers-" "I made sure it was saf-" "YOU! DID! NOT!" Both the assailant and Mercury flinched at this. He had not yet seen Avery this mad, and he for sure was happy he was simply on the sidelines. "I don''t even know what to say anymore! The more I think, the more I want to kick your teeth in, Birk. And you know, I''m starting to think I just might do it. The absolute only reason I''m holding back is that you''re also a member of my guild, but you''ve taken it a step too fucking far. I''m giving you this one chance, and I will absolutely not repeat myself." "Guild mas-" "I am NOT your guild master, capiche? Now listen, and listen closely. Interrupt me one more time, and I make sure your mouth stays closed." Avery got very close to Birk as he spoke, a young man with blonde, spiky hair, blue eyes, and a babyface. Silence. "Good. Now, you''re going to leave. You''re going to leave Stormbraver, and get your sorry ass back up north. You''re going to report this commission as failed, and make sure someone sends me a letter you did so. If I don''t get the notice in a month, I''m heading up there myself to kick your ass. Do we understand each other?" "Yes, master Beckham." Birk''s voice was whimsical and pitiable by now. "Good! Now, you''re going to hand me all the pure mana you have and-" "Guild Master, I-!" Avery made sure to keep to his threats. Within the blink of an eye, he launched a high kick at Birk''s face, solidly smacking his mouth, splitting his lips, and Mercury was fairly sure he saw a tooth falling out. "I SAID YOU WON''T INTERRUPT! Fuck! Stupid kid." Birk''s eyes started going wet at this. Avery was right, he was just a kid, but had this really been necessary? This felt unfair! He started reaching for his pocket on his emotions, but Avery stepped onto his hand. There was a moment of silence, as all the tension in the room vanished. Avery was simply stunned. "Were you...? Wow. Okay. You''ve got guts, kid, I''ll give you that. You were actually going to throw a mana bomb at me." The guild master couldn''t hold himself back from smiling. He made sure Birk''s hand was properly pinned to the ground, as he reached into his pocket and pulled out all the glass vials with mana in them. "Master Beck-" "Oh, no, no, don''t get me wrong. If I respect one thing, it''s guts. You acted on instinct, like an animal backed into a corner. Fight or flight, ya know? Take this as a lesson kid, sometimes when you do what''s usually right, you do something that''s wrong. This was one of those, but I don''t fault you. Just... get out of here." Avery slowly lifted his foot off Birk''s hand, making sure that the situation was safe. Mercury, on the other hand, was relieved he could finally breathe easy again. He let out a large sigh. His body wasn''t built for this kind of stress, man. Birk simply nodded at this declaration of Avery, quickly starting to pocket his gear into his backpack. They were currently in the basement of an abandoned fish store, and while the smell was unpleasant, it was a very good hiding spot. Obviously, Birk had some idea of what he was doing, even if he was probably just around 17 or 18. People in this world probably had to grow up faster than where Mercury was from, huh. Just then, the door to the basement swung open. Not the side tunnel Birk had dug out as an emergency escape, but instead the one that was accessible from the fish stall. "What a vile smell," Lucia commented as she descended down the stairs. "I would have to agree m''lady, but I am most certain we are approaching our target- Ah! Guild master Beckham?" Iris was walking ahead of her lady and stopped for just a moment by reflex. "I wish I could say that I see, but I do not, Iris." "Oh, apologies m''lady. One moment." Quickly, the young maid descended the stairs, followed by Lucia. Then, her eyes opened wide, as she clearly recognized the cat in front of her. "Mister... Mercury?" Iris asked curiously. "Yo, ''sup. Been a few days." "You will not speak to my friend this way, filthy beast!" Lucia''s rage was hitting a peak and within moments, a bow of light manifested in her hands, the arrow firmly pointed at... Avery, who had immediately rushed to protect his guildmate. "Woah there, head priestess. I think, ah, I believe it would be possible to de-escalate this situation a little, yes? Let us stop the threats." "Stop?! You ask me to stop, guild master Beckham, after this... this creature dared to talk to my closest aid like such?!!" Lucia pressed the air through her teeth, the fire in her spilling out and almost physically manifesting as the air around her seemed to heat up, and white flames of light began dancing around the arrow. "Ah, m''lady, please excuse mister Mercury. I do not believe he meant any harm." "Apologize, beast!!" Lucia yelled, ignoring Iris. "Uh, sorry? I mean, like, I''m just talking." He shook his head a little. "Fucking psycho," he muttered under his breath, before realizing he had goofed. "YOU DARE?!" Lucia and Iris cried out at one, launching themselves forward like wild furies at, again, Avery, who was knocked to the floor and besieged, as he could poorly defend himself. He still had a bandaged shoulder and midsection now. The arrow of Birk had hit him and left a deep gash on his side, even though he tried to dodge. "Woah, woah, I''m sorry, I''m sorry okay! Just leave Avery alone!" "Command me once more, beast, and I will stuff you and hang you upon my chimney!!" Still, Lucia got up, white flames now flickering and dancing through the air around her, while Iris assumed the position next to her master again, fixing her hair and dress. Something was severely wrong with both of these women, Mercury noted. "Why are you even here?" Avery croaked from the floor, spitting a little bit of blood. His lip had split open as he fell, and honestly, he felt like fucking shit. "I managed to track the smell of mopaaw leading away from the gloryhall. I had assumed it belonged to the attacker, and not to mister Mercury." "Why are YOU here?" Lucia countered to Avery, slowly suppressing her rage again. Then, she swiped her eyes across the room, and finally landed on Birk, when they narrowed to slits and her glimmering bow reappeared. "Stop right there." The kid, already bruised from Avery''s outburst, simply froze, and slowly rose his hands into the air. It just... really wasn''t his day today... In the meantime, Avery had managed to force himself into a sitting position, and Iris had seemingly forgiven Mercury for his insult of her lady. "Okay," the cat slowly spoke again, trying to calm people down. "I do not want to command any of you, but I believe it may be best if all parties cease hostilities, so that involvement can be made clear, and intentions can be communicated, yes?" For a moment, all eyes darted to him, mostly filled with confusion. His one year of communication was apparently paying off a little, since he saw Lucia very slowly lower her bow. "I suggest we should start with introductions, since I believe not everyone here is fully aware. I am Mercury Rainfall Starlight, a Zetraspa with above average intelligence. It is my pleasure to make your acquaintance." He even gave his best version of a bow as he finished, seemingly pacifying the two newcomers. Avery simply had to smile at this display, but to some degree, he had to admit it made sense. "Avery Beckham, guild master of the godseekers. I followed someone who attacked the guild to here." With a flinch, it was Birk''s turn. "B-Birk Whitewood. I uh..." "He''s a member of the godseekers'' guild up in Evlenor''s nomad city." "Y-Yes..." "Hmpf, quite vile I see. I am Lucia, the Voice of Order, head priestess of the Church of Order." "I am Iris Belrose, her attendant. Pleased to make your acquaintance." She flashed a small smile as she finished, and once again silence descended onto the room. These people were horrible at communicating, Mercury realised. He needed to act. "Well, now that introductions have been handled, perhaps we should explain ourselves. I suppose that miss Lucia and miss Belrose have made their way here in pursuit of the attacker on the godseekers'' guild?" "It is as such." "The same applies to master Beckham and myself. Birk, on the other hand, happens to be the assailant." For a moment, Mercury saw Lucia''s eyes tighten, and he quickly continued speaking. "Master Beckham was currently in the process of having him hand over any details on his co-conspirators, when we were interrupted. Afterwards, he would be subjected to a fair trial, yes?" Avery looked at Mercury for a moment, before nodding sternly at him. "It''s as he says. We were getting all the important info. He accepted a commission to cause some trouble in Stormbraver, and was provided with contacts and addresses, where he could get the supplies he needed, such as the mana bombs." Avery quickly flashed open his hand to show off the evidence for their absolutely fake story. He showed them the mana bombs, and glanced at Birk, who quickly pulled out a small leather bound book from the backpack. "My diary," he said. "Has everything written down." "Perfect," Avery nodded again, focusing on the two women. "I suppose you can confirm everything here is in order?" Mercury looked over at Lucia with quite some anxiousness on his face. He was simply praying to god that his bluff had worked. He didn''t wanna die in some fishy basement, quite literal given it being under an abandoned fish store. Lucia stared at Avery for a moment, before curtly nodding. "I can. I trust that you will not give this boy preferential treatment, simply because he is of your guild?" "Would you do so for a priest of your church?" Avery simply asked, and for a moment, Lucia''s face twitched. Then, she frowned and grimaced. "I see what you are saying. Fine, do to the boy as you wish. Your guild, your laws. But I do hope he sees punishment?" "I already kicked his teeth in, head priestess." Lucia flashed a somewhat amused and somewhat sadistic smile at this. "Good. May you bring order upon him. Let us leave, Iris." "Ah, m''lady, may I ask for but one moment?" Iris interjected. "Of course." "Mister Mercury, may I pet your fur?" Mercury sighed. He saw Lucia''s furious gaze, not allowing him to decline, but that didn''t even matter to him right now. Authority and power, whatever. He was simply too tired from putting on this royal act and bluffing his way out, and honestly, these two were being more fair than he had expected at the start. "Fine. Just this once." "Yay!" And for the next few seconds, all that remained were a cat''s meows of embarrassment and agony. Chapter 38: Ihnar Chapter 38: Ihn''ar Hello! It''s been a while, I know, but it''s me, your narrator. Lately I haven''t been giving as much commentary, to preserve the intensity of the scenes, but I am still here! After all, this is my soothing voice you all have been hearing this whole time. I''ve simply decided to take some time, just so I could let you all know that I''m locking my door whenever I go on break now, just so Jeff can''t come in and snoop anymore. Hopefully there will no longer be any more interruptions from him. Other than that, I suppose my life has been going well. I went on holiday with my wife and daughter, we spent a few weeks down south. It''s been a joy, but work waits for no man. I can only read so many chapters ahead of time, so soon I''ll be back to you with a live broadcast. I hope all of you have been enjoying the work nonetheless. I have given it my best to make the more incohesive passages more sensible, and to take out anything that was extraordinarily repetitive... Ah, but I''m getting sidetracked again. I quickly just want to mention that currently, Avery is my favourite character. This has been it from me for now. Most sincerely, your narrator. - - - - - - In the end, Avery gave Birk a long lecture on the importance of integrity, and additionally, that he should keep his nose out of war. No one wins in war, according to him, and to be fair, usually war only produces losers. Birk was a little bummed out. The commission would have paid extraordinarily well, and it gave him a chance to travel the world a little. Sigh, if only it hadn''t included the part where he needed to blow up a city. Additionally, Avery put up local commissions in Stormbraver that asked godseekers to seek out and properly take care of Birk''s bomb suppliers. And of course, as one would expect, everyone''s favourite cat picked one of them up. Not that Mercury was expecting to face someone head on. But he still got to keep 2 lightning mana bombs from helping Avery stop Birk, as well as a stamp for completing a D-Rank commission for it. With a little more work, maybe he would be able to get a promotion soon? For now, though, he needed to be a little more patient. After all, while the investigation itself was done, Mercury still had to testify at the trial, to see what reparations the Church of Order would have to pay. Then again, Avery would definitely make sure that the Merchants'' Guild would also be punished. Who''d be stupid enough to help out a dude trying to destroy the city they lived in? Seriously. Mercury shook his head at them. He couldn''t believe that covering up the smell of the bombs was simply an accident. the charrs had to have been a facade for taking away the bombs, no two ways about it. But seriously, he had to wonder what idiot in the guild would do such a thing? Like, man, if anyone would have wanted him to do something like that, they would''ve had to offer something susbtantial. Oh well. He''d just wait it out. Maybe the commission he''d picked up would get him to the bottom of all this, and maybe it wouldn''t. Time would tell. For now, all he really wanted was to go to bed. It had been far too long a day. He was kidnapped one and a half times, for god''s sake. Then, he had multiple people trying to go for his throat, and he had seen Avery get really angry at someone. Damn, he really was just looking forward to sleep. A warm night, wrapped in blankets in his log, that would be the life... He walked past Davis, giving him a nod, and headed up into his bedroom, where he simply threw himself into his fort of fluff, curling up into a ball, as very soon, his consciousness drifted away into the sweet nothing of sleep. ... Until he started dreaming, like every night. Frick. ''Ah, doth haveth returned, young Cat. "Hello".'' ''Oh, shit, uh, yes, it is as you say, old Dreamweaver.'' ''Mh. This one feels you are... oohn. "Empty". Ah, no, lohre, "drained". Are thee troubled?" Mercury understood old Dreamweaver again, just like before. This was still a surreal experience, but when he simply went with it, it felt... freeing. He could tell, he could read again. He read the warm softness of compassion, the firm touch of empathy, and a deep chasm of understanding. ''This one does. Lohre, drained. It has been a long day.'' ''Mh.'' Old Dreamweaver seemed to nod at Mercury in understanding once again, a weird, indecipherable movement of the many veins making them up, that he would have been unable to understand if he wasn''t reading. But he read, and so he understood. Understood that Dreamweaver was old, ancient even, and Mercury understood a deep realm of thought regarding this one word. Regarding lohre. For just a moment he could glimpse- ''Oh, this one trails off. Cereth''bar. "Apologies". "Sorry". Does young Cat wish for rest?'' He did, he wanted to rest so very much, but he couldn''t. Not now, not yet, not fully. He needed to be ready, to work, while getting enough rest to keep himself fully functioning. ''Hmm. Ah, Dreamweaver sees. Reads. Feels. Ahn. "Understands". Loss, and grief, and want, and... blame? Also shame, and sorry, and guilt.'' Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. For a moment, old Dreamweaver paused, nodding to themselves. They weren''t so much silent as they were processing, laying out words and feelings for Mercury to read. To understand. Ahn. ''Young Cat needs rest. Thee needs pause, to simply think and not try. To ihn''ar. "Meditate"? No, "process"? No, no. It is... hard to find the word. Ihn''ar. It is... to "learn" in a way, but not be taught. Ahn, "to understand", in a way, but not be explained. Mh.'' Dreamweaver found their explanation not quite satisfactory, Mercury could tell. But he still understood, because he read. Ihn''ar. It was... something he would describe with many words. A deep... trance? No, not quite. It was a state within oneself, where one would understand. Ahn all that they had learned, and get closer to its core truths. But that wasn''t all. Ihn''ar wasn''t simply about understanding the truth of one''s studies, it was about reaching truth in general. About oneself, about one''s thoughts, about anything one has seen and experienced and perhaps more. "Cat ahn. Ihn''ar is... "core". "Truth". "Self".'' "Ah! Yes, yes! Young Cat, thee are swift in understanding.'' Mercury could feel a sense of bright pride from old Dreamweaver, a surprising, child-like pride. But that wasn''t all. Behind it, he could feel a deep golden shine of impressedness. ''Oh, you are praising me too much.'' ''No, this one doth not. Thee are portraying wit and attention. This one giveth out praise to encourage. Thee doth earned it.'' ''Aneth..." ''Aneth''bar.'' ''Aneth''bar, old Dreamweaver. "Thank you".'' ''Thee be welcome, but this one still knoweth now. Young Cat needs rest. This one shall giveth what is required to make Cat bloom. This one will trikko ihn''ar before morning breaks.'' For a moment there was silence between the two of them. Mercury understood that this meant a lot, and most of all, it meant that old Dreamweaver truly accepted him as a student. For a moment, it mattered not how ancient Dreamweaver was, because for just a moment, they grew fully awake. Instinctively, Mercury understood. Ancient minds are great, but they are shackled by their might. They grow tired and weary often, lost in thought, in their experiences, and may drift off into tangents. To summon their full might, they need a moment to summon it, and it requires them to fully commit to one state or another. They need to stop themselves from drifting, from breaking off, from sleeping or waking, and for just a moment, all of their power seems to vanish as they need to focus it on bringing themselves fully into existence. And then, after a moment of full stillness, Mercury felt a rumbling. He felt it deep underneath his paws, far down in the earth. But soon after, the air also began to tremble. It quivered and shook, as Mercury knew his fur would be on the rise if he weren''t in his . Then, the earth seemed to crackle, and old Dreamweaver grew. They collected the fragments of their mind, their many selves, their many pieces from everywhere they were, everything they thought about. A pulse began travelling through them, as their form shook and expanded, the thick veins made for transporting mana beginning to grow and intertwine, slowly forming around Mercury. Yet, he knew there was no threat. As he saw old Dreamweaver grow larger and larger, all he could feel was a deep sense of warmth from them. Acceptance, patience, understanding. He was washed over by a wave of deep emotion. Mercury knew that there was nothing to fear from whatever was in front of him. And so, old Dreamweaver summoned more of their mind, as they grew bigger and greater. As they did so, Mercury could feel the depth of their mind instead growing to become height. It was strange. Before, old Dreamweaver felt vast, like an unending ocean, deep and full of wonders, stretching towards the horizon. But now it was... different. Instead of being deep and vast, all of it was in front of him. It was like staring at an infinitely intricate building, towering high up into the sky. He could see every stroke of brush for its art, and every single ridge in the carved stone on it, and yet, the more he looked, the more fascinated he was. It was a sight of wonders, incredible, surprising, and ever growing. ''Breathe, young Cat.'' A voice echoed in his mind, incomparable to before. It was strong, yet Mercury could feel it was but a hushed whisper of a thousand voices, a whole chorus of thoughts wanting to crash into his mind, yet being toned down so he could simply understand it. To breathe. It was natural, of course, so why did he need to focus on it? He was sure he would be- ''Breathe.'' Fine. Only this once. Mercury took a breath, even in his Astral body, and he felt two shocks. The first was his heart. It had simply frozen at the wonder in front of him for but a moment, but now it was beating again, and he even felt revitalized. But the second shock was the air his astral body breathed. He shouldn''t have been able to, yet as he breathed, he felt air rush into him. He was simply a construct of mana veins, yet he was able to breathe. And additionally, when he breathed in, he could feel the air rushing all throughout his veins, crackling with electricity as it seemed to want to find the very edges of him and tear at their seams. It did. When the crackling air hit the end of Mercury''s mana veins, it rang against the walls there and tried to go further. And after a moment of standstill, Mercury''s body held strong, fully staying himself. After all, he understood it. He understood the very basis of breathing, and understood the very foundation of what it meant. He could do it limitlessly. Unstopped. It came so naturally to him, so much so that oftentimes he barely noticed, but with a simple thought and an action, he had been shown the very meaning of breathing. To breathe was to push air all throughout one''s body. It didn''t stop at the lung, or the heart, or the arteries, or even the mitochondria, though the journey for O2 was technically over there. To breathe was to go another step, another heartbeat, another piece of energy in a symphony with changing tempo, yet uninterrupted until death. And for some, even past it. ''Breathing beeth the basis of ihn''ar. It is a gateway into it, a step onto a road that cries out for exploration, for unguided, uninterrupted, true self. Use it, and practice ihn''ar to rest. Now, this one must leaveth thee alone...'' Mercury was sure he could hear old Dreamweaver trail off at the end, the thousands of whispers going into hundreds, then dozens, and finally there was only a single one left echoing in his mind. Yet, Mercury felt awake as he had never before. The air was still thick with... energy, of some indeterminable form, and his head still rung with the words of old Dreamweaver. His spirit felt rejuvenated, to a small degree, and he felt in incredible health. But that wasn''t what had him surprised. Dreamweaver''s expansion, their gathering of parts and strings of consciousness never once peaked. Mercury had felt them grow, and grow, and grow, until eventually, from one moment to the other, it began shrinking again. It was an incredible sight to think about, that something that he had already read and perceived as so large had not even been the fully developed form of whatever he had been talking to. And even after all of that, he was sure of it. They hadn''t bound him to them at all. Mercury was free to leave and never speak with them again, and if he still made advancements on ihn''ar, that would be enough to make Dreamweaver proud. It was not a relationship where they were the master and he the disciple, though of course he had much more to learn than Dreamweaver. This was something much more equal than that, a sharing of thoughts, opinions, and understandings. Perhaps one day, Mercury would find something he could teach old Dreamweaver, he thought. Yet, somewhere deep beneath him, somewhere far away and yet close, in a place that may as well have been anywhere or nowhere, Dreamweaver had already learned much from him. They had learned "Sorry". "Thanks". " ''Sup". Dreamweaver thought that since they only taught to breathe, they still owed Cat a bit. But then, as their thoughts drifted off a little, they were well on their way to recovering the debt. After all, their gift of breathing had opened up a much further path of ihn''ar. What was it Cat had named it? "Core". "Truth". "Self". Mh, Cat had done it. Trikko. Two ways. Exchanging knowledge. ''Aneth''bar, young Cat.'' ''Aneth''bar.'' Chapter 39: The morning of the Trial Chapter 39: The morning of the Trial /Ah, yes. The good old grind for exp. The grind, where exp is only announced after monsters, if that is what people expect. But the thing is, not only killing monsters awards exp. The system hides many things from us, and some of them we may gain insight to later, but so much for the gaining of exp. Now, what does this mysterious thing even stand for? Excommunication practice? Extermination portfolio? Perhaps extra poisonous? Well, the most common denomination is "experience points". Simply because they are gained with, well, experience. Similar to mastery, which increases for each Skill individually, and is often hidden, exp increases almost permanently. Whenever you sleep, whenever you walk, whenever you talk, whenever you somehow interact with the world around you. The bigger the impact, the more exp you gain. It is just a fact, that killing another creature is a very direct and immediate impact. But you also gain exp for exploring and mapping areas, for creating farms to help others, or even by simply cheering someone up. This is reflected in one thing that is very often mentioned whenever someone talks about the system, being equality. Absolute and profound fairness, with no one having an advantage over another. The only common denominators of power are time, effort, efficiency, and quite frankly, a pinch of luck. Or should I say "Luck"? I digress. Exp is awarded equally to any and all actions, based on perceived and actual effect. If someone''s heart truly has them believe that that flower they planted will one day save the world, they will gain more exp for that action. However, they will only get the majority of that exp when that action, the saving the world, actually comes to pass. Improving oneself has a very immediate effect, so training ones stats will reward immediate exp. So will farming, or talking and chatting. Of course, part of that exp will also be mastery, so you can''t fully expect to be perfectly rewarded. But what does this profound equality of professions mean? Some say it is the system''s way of reminding us that all are equal, and none should be treated as lesser. Some say it is to create a balanced society, in which people can thrive, and again others say it is to showcase that even slaves can have worth if trained properly. No one can say what the true reason is, and for all we know, perhaps there is none. Perhaps the system is arbitrarily fair. But the only thing that will remain known for now is that under the system, there are only possibilities. Limitless ones, in every possibly imaginable direction. Because if you can imagine it, and truly put your heart into it, the system will eventually show you a path to reach your goals./ "Limitless and Boundless - The Path", by Lara Lato, the philosophical "Great Follower". Dated book 5, chapter 24, first Lokdan of Summer. - - - - - - Foss looked at Avery with the eyes of a beat puppy. The reparations of the gloryhall were not quite yet complete, and Avery wasn''t pleased with it, but after a long moment of tense silence, the muscular man finally let out a sigh. "Alright Foss," he said, "I''ll admit you did fine work here. I can''t get angry at that. You upheld your contract, as you always do. This has somewhat improved my mood from yesterday. Fenks." By the end of his sentence, Avery bit off some of his bread, as Foss slowly gave a slight smile. "All was done as promised, guild master. As always, the Merchants'' Guild looks forward to our continued collaboration." "Yes, yes, we won''t take up any contracts with the bank, I got it. Calm down already. It''s nothing personal against your entire guild, I just have a problem with some of your methods, and, more specifically, some of your members." Foss'' face froze up slightly, but given that he had quite a few years of experience under his belt, something like this left him unfazed, and he regained his casual smile again within the blink of an eye. "Of course, master Beckham. It is understandable. The trial today should by all means be executed fairly, anything else would be unbecoming of both our guilds, schoschoscho!" Avery nodded sternly at this, crossing his arms and leaning back against the repaired doorframe of the gloryhall. "Good. I think that''s all for now then, see you at the trial. You got some good scholars of law hired?" "Schoscho, the best we could get on such short notice. It will be a fair session, we promise that much." "Good, or you''ll have to replace some of your teeth with golden ones," Avery calmly said, taking another bite of bread. Man, "Bread & Butter''s" raisin bread just couldn''t be beat. If only they were open for longer. Such a shame that he couldn''t get any at night. Maybe he could have some special service set up soon? No, no, he had work to do. Too much work, as always. "Uhm, of course, master Beckham..." Foss knew that the threat was serious, but since it was literally telling him that everything should go fairly, and Avery still was the overseer of this investigation as of now, there was nothing he could do. But Foss also knew that Avery wasn''t unreasonable. The guild master of the godseekers wasn''t hot headed or blooded, he was usually calm and composed, cracking jokes and hanging out with the members of his guild. But unfortunately, there were two things that could get him angry, one of which was the threat of harm to his guildmates. The other... now, that was something one would never dare talk about next to Avery, possibly not even in Stormbraver. It was a crime so grave it could never be forgiven, and with consequences Foss shuddered to even imagine. The crime of... touching his bread without permission. The sly merchant had seen it once before. Someone trying to grab a bite to provoke Avery, and succeeding far more than they would have like. It was so fast Foss could barely see it, but only moments later, Avery''s body was steaming with heat, and the thief''s fingers, elbows, lower and upper arms were broken, and both his shoulders dislocated. It was an incredible noise, multiple crunching sounds overlapping... "Hey, you''re not thinking about my bread, are you?" Avery asked, taking a sharp glance, scanning the merchant up and down, before dismissing the threat as the man started shivering just from his gaze. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ''Fucking better not be thinking about touching my food...'' Avery thought, before sending Foss off and finally returning to review the documents and testimonies he had painstakingly compiled. Well, painstaking for him. It was really only a few hours of work, but it was the exact type of pencil pushing Avery despised. He let out a sigh as he crossed his arms behind his head. "Today will be a long day..." he muttered to himself. - - - - - - Lucia was in her office, impatiently tapping her nails against her knee. She was doing her best to maintain her composure, to not ruin all the work Iris had prepared, but slowly she felt the fire in her grow higher. It was simply bothersome. Abominable. Horrendous. Why did she have to justify her actions to a council of a simple city? It may be the capital of a nation, sure, and that council might even be the leader of the nation, sure. But why did she, the "Voice of Order" have to listen to those old sacks of bricks from a chapter long past? It was unbelievably irritating, it made her skin crawl, it... "M''lady, would you like something to drink?" Iris'' soft voice rang out in the quiet room, only barely louder than the sound of tapping fingers. Immediately, Lucia let out a long sigh. "Chilled tea. Scratch that, frozen tea. Put frozen tea cubes inside a cup of already cold tea. And please, prepare a barrel of it or that flimsy local court building might not see another day..." She was tired, irritated, and exasperated. Her nerves were already grated, and she felt humiliated. Now, all she could do was to keep her faith placed in guild master Beckham, a man seemingly held in fairly high regard by Nira, who she had grown a little closer with. That was also why she had let him decide on that pitiful boy''s punishment. She had seen it in Beckham''s eyes. Seen that roiling fury at the kid, and she knew that if their positions were reversed, she would have been much less polite about asking to be named punisher. Perhaps this was for the best. Perhaps master Beckham was trustworthy, and more loyal to order than he would describe himself. Perhaps. But she didn''t like risking the reputation of the church on a perhaps, even if it was in a somewhat backwater nation like this. It always irked her when things didn''t go her way, and with so many enemies conspiring against her, it was difficult to tell friend from foe. The local bank had also offered her support under the name of I''htar. She had done her research, and come up with no dirt at all. Count I''htar, the golden child of the city, the man of truth. He was spotless, in every way. Many charitable donations to small businesses, orphanages, farms, even offering loans to less credible people and helping them re-establish themselves with his personal help. Lucia hated him. Instantly. She couldn''t bear people who did everything simply to keep up public appearances. Everyone had some dirt on them, no matter who they were. She much preferred people who wore their flaws on their sleeves to people who like to blindfold their opponent while playing Drackjack. No, someone like him, someone like count I''htar? She much preferred even Foss'' rudeness over that. If this man ever tried engaging her again, she would personally make sure her message arrived, maybe nailing his hands to his table or- "M''lady, I''ve prepared some tea for you. It''s only a liter and a half for now, but I shall make sure that the remainder is prepared for when the trial starts." Iris quickly bowed and headed out again, though Lucia was sure she caught a glimpse of the thankful glance she had thrown at the maid. She quickly drank up half of Iris'' present, and a slim smile found its way onto her face. Ah, it was truly always a joy to taste what Iris brought her. She could feel the cold liquid travel down her throat and settle down in her guts, smothering some of the flames that were threatening to devour her. Perhaps she had indulged her thoughts too much. Oh well. Lucia wore her flaws on her sleeves. She tried to, at least. Sometimes she had to keep her anger in check, but when it came to the people she considered truly reliable, she never once held her tongue. She brutally pointed out everything she disliked, and happily praised everything she liked. When it came to these trusted people, she was rarely disappointed. Iris was one of them, of course. And perhaps another was her little brother back home. Ah, but that was of lesser importance now. She had little time left to prepare, and sorting her thoughts came as a priority to letting them stay in the past. For now, it was important to make sure their reputation stayed proper, and their foothold in the city remained the same. She would not be swayed by honeyed words, or sugary suggestions that were really a poison coated blade. All of her money was on the few people she could trust, and some of it thus had to rest on guild master Beckham and that beast he dragged around with him. Ah, she had been harsh in her thoughts again. Iris liked the feline, so she decided to give the mopaaw a chance. But it was truly only one chance, and that was today. - - - - - - As Mercury woke up, he stretched his entire body, curling up his tail as a happy smile surfaced on his mouth. He took a deep, deep breath, feeling a new, somewhat half-familiar energy course through him, as he bathed in the rays of sun from his window. It was a good day. Wait. Rays of sunlight? What time was it? FuckfuckFuckFuckFUCK!! Immediately and without hesitation, Mercury launched himself down the stairs, barely catching his fall as he channelled mana into his feet, quickly rousing his energy and pumping it throughout his body. He really had to hurry this up. If it was any later than 10 he might not make it in time for the trial. Damn it, he had rested so well and now this? He took deep breaths, each of them a little different to the one before. With every breath he could feel himself fall deeper into a certain type of focus, but he pushed this to the side of his mind right now, as he instead used this energy to further boil his mana, straining his legs as he rushed ahead faster than he ever had before. If he hadn''t been in such a hurry, he would have felt the wind in his fur, and the way he used his tail to stabilise himself, and how naturally he ran. It would have been a thrilling experience to get closer to his animalistic and instinctual self, and perhaps, he would have greatly enjoyed it. But given that his head was all over, distracted, tired, and searching for Avery as he powered through the streets, all the wonderful sensations of harmony flew right by him. After a mere few minutes, he arrived at the gloryhall, its walls being patched up as quite a few eyes of construction workers locked onto him. Avery wasn''t around, but there was a smell in the air which he most certainly recognized as that of the guild master. It was that of sweat and grass, mixed with bread and raisins. Maybe the latter part was the more overwhelming one, but nonetheless, Mercury quickly picked it up and began running like he never had before. No matter the cost, he would keep his promises. Mercury had promised he would be at the trial on time. He had given his word. If he broke it, he felt something within him wouldn''t be quite the same any more. Even if this was maybe a very insignificant promise, in this very moment, it meant the world to Mercury. And so, he sprinted down the street, going ever faster and faster as people and faces rushed by him, his eyes only focused on the line of smell he could follow to Avery as it slowly grew stronger. In his state of focus, he narrowly avoided all obstacles. Feet, the occasional child, ball, and even an apple that almost dropped on his head, as he continued rushing faster and faster. And eventually, the smell grew more potent, and Mercury only saw a black boot for a moment, before he came to a painful stop. He yelped out and then whimpered in pain for a moment, before opening his eyes and looking up at a brightly grinning man with sunglasses on his eyes and bread in his mouth. A truly proper guild master if I do say so myself. "Hey there my guy. You made it just in time. One block further''s the courthouse. Ya ready?" With heavy panting and bile in his stomach, Mercury pushed out a handful of words. "I''m... hah, hah... ready... hah... oh my god... hah, hah..." - - - - - - Iris did have to stifle a small chuckle to herself as she saw a disheveled mopaaw panting heavily as it walked to the court with master Beckham. Then again, she probably also looked ridiculous, carrying a literal barrel with her. The maid smirked to herself. Today had started well, and perhaps from now on the proceedings would go smoothly, too? Nira had said she would also make sure to give them a hand in court, and with her vouching for the guild master, things seemed to be proceeding well. Now, of course, her furry friend was a bit of an unpredictable factor, but overall, it did not matter as much. After all, she was not worried about him. The mopaaw had been a little eccentric, but also charming, and she had always liked their furry aesthetic. They weren''t seen much around these parts, but she had always liked them. So, overall, Iris would say she was in a good mood. She hoped that at least some of it would carry over to the stern figure of her lady... Chapter 40: The day of the Trial Chapter 40: The day of the Trial /Cusarius: "What is a noble if not knightly, and what a knight if not noble?" He falls to the floor, pounding it with his fist. Martor: "A fighter the second and a politician the first, dear Cusarius." He steps on the other man''s fingers. "Yet while fighters are clear, politicians be not. The snakes hide in the highest grass, and snap at any who dare come close to discovering them. Their venom goes deep and kills at a touch, and they are ruthless and cruel." Martor grind his heel down on Cusarius. Cusarius: "Then those who are knightly and noble must keep the path clean for those who see naught of the snake!" He attempts to get up. Martor: *laughs* "Oh, but the snake lashes out when angry." He steps on Cusarius'' head, pressing it onto the floor. "And those knightly ones think a sword will do against a snake. Not once do they think to bring proper equip. Who truly believes themselves to be faster than a snake? Once bitten, then dead, and yet some try to get close." He grins sinisterly. Cusarius: "A snake from afar can only be hurt, not killed. If it runs and finds other grass to hide, a job is not done. No, to truly dispatch a snake, you must sever the head from up close and personal, Martor!" Martor: "Oh-hoh! Then striketh at the head, Cusarius!" Cusarius: "Oooooohhh!!" He grabs Martor''s foot and drags him to the floor. Both get to their feet. Neither of them carry weapons, as they brandish their fists. Cusarius strikes at Martor, who nimbly evades. Martor: "Too slow, too slow! Even though you should know my secret, you have willingly brought yourself here! I have already taken care of your allies, it is only you and me now, and the winner will become duke, brother mine!" He strikes at Cusarius, the strike slithering past his defences and smashing into his ribs. Cusarius: "Ugh!" He holds his chest. Martor: "Ha-Ha! My fists truly have always been superior to you. Farewell, brother, for I have decided to be merciless to you lot. The time for your reckoning has come!" Cusarius: Inner monologue: ''No, there is no way I can fail here. My companions, my mother, all of them have bet their lives on me for this. I cannot fall to my brother Martor now! This is my destiny, my fate, my clash!'' Cusarius summons every bit of strength in his body as he punches towards Martor''s outstretched fist. Their hands collide, and for a moment, the air is still, before a crack echoes out. Martor: "Ahhhh! How?! I was supposed to be superior in every way!! I trained far more than you ever have brother! I have always been faster and stronger, so how?! How would you break my hand?!" His fingers are mangled. Cusarius: "It is as you said brother, but to kill a snake, you must have some tricks up your sleeve!" He reveals a pair of brass knuckles on his hand. "Now, brother mine, perish for your sins!" He deals the final strike./ An excerpt from the final act of the play "A strange tale of Swords and Snakes" by William Stillwater. Undated, thought to be over 100 chapters old. Still occasionally played in theatre today, a true, undying classic. - - - - - - With a loud bang, the judge finally opened the trial. Mercury was quite unfamiliar with the workings of court, though in his old life, he had been called to be part of a jury once, and he had also once testified as a witness to a car crash, so he hoped it wouldn''t be too different from those times. For the start, he simply decided to keep his head low until he was called on. "May the defendant step forward!" The judge spoke loudly and clearly, her voice echoing throughout the courtroom. Without hesitation, Lucia stepped forward. "Lucia, head priestess of the Church of Order, here today to represent one and the same." She gave a small bow. "Who will be defending your party today?" "Said task will be taken over by ourselves, your honor." "So it shall be," the judge nodded, quickly moving on. "May the prosecutor step forward?" This time it was a rather corpulent man, who introduced himself as Foss. Wait, this guy was a merchant? Well, Mercury probably shouldn''t judge, his guild would be represented by a scholar of law, educated at the scholarly academy of Voput, some big city somewhere. And then, an old man, at whose entry the crowd became more silent and solemn than before. He had bushy, white eyebrows, thick enough to make his eyes seem invisible, a deeply hunched back, and a mustache that grew multiple decimeters long on either side, carefully bound together to keep it smooth. The man used a cane to walk and wore an ornate blue and gold robe. "Councilman Gorm, from the family of the founder Gorm, at your service to represent the council of Stormbraver and the Nevarzahri Aristocracy as a whole. This council has brought up accusations against the Church of Order. The evidence has been assessed by the Merchants'' Guild, and will, as such, also be presented to the court by them." Mercury didn''t even have to stifle a laugh. Okay, maybe he did. He actually had to try very, very hard when he heard Avery snicker just a tiny bit next to him. Fucking Gorm Gorm, what a stupid name. Imagine being called fucking Short Short. Incredible shit. Luckily, Mercury had managed to hold his laugh in, just barely, and still understand what was going on. This dude was one of the seven top dogs in the country he was in, some old guy with a cane and stupidly thick white eyebrows. It seemed a little weird, but to be entirely fair, Mercury was currently attending a trial as a cat. He wasn''t exactly in a position to judge. "Very well, Gorm Gorm." The judge then turned and looked towards Avery and his, partially feline, companions. "The overseers of today?" "Yup, overseer Avery, that''s me, this guy," Avery said, prodding his own chest with his thumb as he walked up to stand between the two parties. "Guild master Avery Beckham, leader and protector of the godseekers, here today to make sure everything runs smoothly and fairly. Any godseekers who were on the case will be called forward, and all of them will testify as the groups in which they worked. None of these mindgames, these boys will speak nothing but the truth, while everyone else in here will probably attempt to lie." Avery seemed happy with this introduction, nodding to himself while a slight murmur ran through the public viewers. Trials were always held openly, and today there was no shortage of visitors. They coulda sold tickets to this thing and made top money. "Order, please," the judge called, bringing her hammer down. "Master Beckham, I do have to request you keep your words less hostile from now on. Please refrain from making accusations unless you have borne witness to them." Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. "All clear, your honor." Avery gave her a half-hearted greeting as a gesture of understanding, bringing two fingers to the side of his forehead, and then flicking them away. Mercury shook his head at the man. This guy really always had to walk a tightrope, huh. The judge swiftly shot him a glare, but otherwise let him be, turning back to the two men, fat and old as Mercury had named them in his head. "Well then, will the prosecution please lay out the facts?" "Yes, your honor," a woman spoke, hidden between the two men. "Three days ago, on Cluddan night, a trial was held by the church of order, to see if two shop owners and their child would be sentenced to death. This was done without approval of the city council, and without adhering to the proper procedures to have a trial done." "Defence, is this true?" "Yes, your honor." Lucia nodded. "Hm. Would the prosecution please proceed?" "After this, a three day investigation was launched. The city council, represented by esteemed sir Gorm Gorm, has elected the Merchants'' Guild as investigators, and the Godseekers'' Guild as overseers." "All of this is still correct?" the judge asked, more to make sure than anything else. After getting everyone''s confirmation, she waved at the young lawyer lady to continue. "In this investigation, the investigators have indeed found some evidence of faulty product being sold, yet this was not an excuse to sentence someone to death." "Objection, your honor!" Lucia said, perhaps a little louder than intended. "Objection granted." "As they were tried by the Church of Order, they were tried by our laws, in which any transgression''s punishment is left solely to the judge to decide. We have determined that having rules for each specific case will simply split people, and thusly have instead elected to give the full power of judgment to the judge. Therefore, the accusation that we were seeing if the death penalty applies is only partially true, and false product could indeed be punished with any measure the judge finds adequate." "So you plead to not have acted against city law by trying the shopkeepers under your own?" "Yes, your honor." "Where was this trial held?" "In the courtroom of the church." "I suppose this is adequate." "Objection!" Foss himself called out. "Yes, prosecution?" "This does still not excuse the fact that the subjects of your trial were forcefully moved from city premises to church premises, and sold wares that would have been legal in the city. They were abducted and tried for crimes they did not commit on the legislative ground of the prosecution." The young scholar explained her point very clearly, and some of the audience did seem to agree with her. "May I, your honor?" Avery calmly asked. "Yes, overseer Beckham." "While it might be true that the church kidnapped people to have them tried-" "WE DID NOT KIDNAP-" "ORDER!" "-for something that would have been a crime on church ground," Avery calmly continued, "the crime they were tried for would also have been a crime on city grounds. Thus, if the crime was committed, then the family would have needed to be tried. The church was thus merely taking precautions to avoid their fleeing before they could make their official accusation to the city council. Or at least, that would be an option." For a moment, Avery paused. "In the end, it comes down to whether or not the shopkeepers actually committed the crime the church accuses them of. If they did, then they were rightfully detained, and improperly tried, calling for a re-trial in this very hall. If, however, they are innocent, then the Church of Order has kidnapped and unrightfully locked up citizens of Stormbraver, a much more dramatic crime. Perhaps these two routes should be more closely observed?" Avery was holding his hands behind his back, one loosely open, the other gripping the open one''s wrist. It was a pose he had adopted to make sure he had correct posture and seemed presentable and reliable. While Avery might not much like pencil pushing, he didn''t quite mind battles of wits such as trials. For a moment, the court went a little quiet, before some muttering resumed in the audience. "Order, please," the judge called. "Well, master Beckham, this seems well thought out. Do the defence or prosecution have a problem with this?" "No." "We do not." "Then the prosecution may present their evidence for the defendant''s crimes." "With pleasure, your honor," the scholar said. "There were a few records of faulty goods being received at the store, however there were never records of them being sold to customers, nor any complaints of customers about the quality of the product in question. The charrs at the shop had been thoroughly checked before being finally sold, and while some may have slipped though the cracks, there is no decisive evidence that supports the selling of stretched goods." "Objection," Lucia said. "I have documents with me that were seized from the store, which document a very different story." "Objection. We have right to believe this evidence has been fabricated, your honor. Also, we have much more documentation than a singular ledger to bring forth about quality checking procedures. Additionally, we have found faulty charrs, no older than a page as of today, at the location, bearing the fingerprints of church employees." "This evidence has been thoroughly compiled and given to the court for review. It is all authentic, and shows clear tampering with evidence by the church." The law scholar finally finished. Mercury was blinking heavily by this point. All this going around in circles... it was quite boring. All that kept him sane was the small amount of schadenfreude he felt as he looked at Lucia. Her constantly reddening face was quite a sight, and so was the copious amount of liquid she drank. After a moment, the priestess raised her hand to speak an objection, when Avery actually opened his mouth before here. "Your honor, may I intervene?" "Yes, overseer?" "The law scholar is bright, most certainly, yet they picked the false allies in this case. As overseers, our personal judgments matter little, and our grudges hold no value at all. All we have to do is be honest and truthful, correct?" "That is correct, master Beckham," the judge nodded at the tall man. "Whelp, that''s good then. Merchants'' Guild tampered with the evidence." Silence for a moment, but before people could get their bearings, Avery continued, watching the smile slowly creep over Lucia''s lips. "Y''see, as overseers there have been several instances where the Merchants'' Guild has put its own and my guild members in danger. They have attempted to place bags of charrs, incriminating the Church of Order at the shop, and they have tampered with ledgers, adding new procedures that were not in there before." "For the ledgers, simply ask the shopkeepers themselves. They''re far too scared to lie. The bags I''ve already handed in, as well as marked the falsified ledgers. Some tried to smuggle items past me and ended up with broken wrists, please check the infirmary of the Merchants'' Guild for closer proof. However, there was one particularly nasty case of subterfuge. Mercury, would you please come up?" Avery quickly shot him a glance with a wide grin. Oh god, he was doing this on purpose, just to rub it in that he won this case by himself with a somewhat exotic pet. What did he need to prove so badly??? Mercury sighed inside as he put on his softest steps and most royal face. Eventually, he arrived on the platform where Avery stood, next to his guild master''s feet. From there, he leapt up and onto the podium, and after a moment of murmuring, he meowed into the microphone. Yeah, that was cat for ''fuck you, Avery''. Heh. Get rekt. Then, he began to actually talk. "Mercury Starlight Rainfall, E-Rank godseeker. I worked on a team with A- master Beckham as an overseer. On the last day of the investigation, the merchants created a bomb to block one''s nose for specific smells, which I noticed due to my Skill." "Go on, godseeker Starlight Rainfall." The judge managed to keep her composure quite well, all things given. "Yes, thank you, your honor." Mercury was really getting into this whole court speech stuff. He smiled a little at the thought. "After some investigation, master Beckham and I identified that the merchants'' guild were attempting to plant the bags of false evidence at the site of investigation. As we noticed, the guild master took the traders to the guards, where the contraband to incriminate the church was found." Oh''s and Ah''s in the audience. "Furthermore," Mercury continued, "while master Beckham was gone, my Skill levelled up, which allowed me to detect one of the blocked smells. Lemon. It led me to discover a locked drawer, which I broke open. Only files, but it had a false bottom. In the second part of it, there were lightning mana bombs, whose smell would have been blocked by the chemicals used." "I can fully attest to the claims of Mercury over here," Avery added. "When I came back from the guard station, my companion had been knocked unconscious, and his attacker was waiting for me. I chased him, and eventually delivered a few good blows, but in the end, they escaped. I do not know where they are hiding now, but they dropped a list of locations and people they have dealt with." After a few moments of silence, the judge spoke up again. "So through investigation of this case, you have discovered a trading ring for mana bombs in Stormbraver, which may involve the Merchants'' Guild? Foss, what do you say to this?" For a moment, the scholar of law attempted to speak up, but she was immediately silenced by the judge. "Well, Foss?" Lucia spoke up mockingly for a moment. "I- I know none of this!" he yelled, his head flushed red. "Hm. Perhaps not, but that is a topic for another day. With this information about sabotage, which the other overseers can confirm...?" Nodding all around, "Well, with this knowledge, the evidence submitted by the Merchants'' Guild can no longer be considered quite as reliable. However, this means that the defendants in the trial prior to this might have been partially innocent. This has been enough evidence, it is time for the jury to come to a decision!" Chapter 41: Punishment and Coin Chapter 41: Punishment and Coin /Yo, waddup bitches!! It''s your main man, big FFF back in the house, comin'' at you with some straight facts. Today on Homeboy Radio we got a new hot topic in da city of Stormbraver! ''Parently there''s some fuckin'' trial going on. Real beef between da church n the city, ya hear? Honestly, this is some real slight political maneuvering shit tho. Like, man, who actually gives a fuck? Just let people live, if someone fucks up, have ''em tried, don''t threaten ''em with death yo. That shit''s major sucky. But fo'' real tho, everyone here sucks. Man, merchants be planting false evidence, church be convicting some bitches, godseekers causing chaos on a wild chase in the city... hell, even the damn council is being real shady and quiet about this shit. Like, no official statements or anything? Y''all, that seems major criminal to me. Well, still, we got brighter pastures ahead, ''parently. War effort''s going good, cogs turning, weapons churning, and people being slaughtered all-''round. Shit, what the fuck kinda text y''all making me read? That''s not fucking greener pastures, what''s this shit supposed to mean? *mumbling* So fucking what if we''re winning? You can''t make me read that our soldiers are killing theirs and expect me to make it sound rosey! This ain''t no propaganda channel, bitch. Alright, triple F here, no script now. War sucks. Like, real fucking sucks. It never deserves to be glorified, or made sound any better than the bloody reality is. There is no winning battles in war, only losing good people. Fuck. I hate when this shit turns all somber. I lost my old man to this shitty territorial BS, and y''all wanna make me read a paragraph of propaganda? Naw, man. Those battlefields are slaughterhouses, and to anyone who can, keep yo feet off ''em. Don''t ever put your life on the line for something you don''t believe in fully. All countries have flaws, so-/ The newest broadcast of Homeboy Radio, right before the speaker, Frank Faizan Fallon, was cut off and the show shut down. - - - - - - The boy ran. He ran with everything he had, ran faster than he had ever run before. He ran with every single ounce of energy he could summon from his legs. Always another step, no matter how much it took from him. Just one more, and another, and another, faster than he should have been able to, faster than he should have had to. And yet, the boy ran. With his full strength, and determination far above it. Something so common, yet suddenly turned so terrifying. When someone runs, there usually is a reason. For some it is a destination, others run because of a lack of time, and because they are in a hurry. Some run because they want to be able to run better, and some run, because there is a consequence if they do not get somewhere. Some run professionally, for the reward at the goal, and some run to clear their head. Some run because they believe it will make them better, others run because they believe it will help make them less terrible, and again other run for the sake of running itself. But this boy ran because there was no alternative, there was no way out, there was no place for him. He ran, because he was chased. Chased by something far faster, far stronger, and far scarier than he should have ever met. The boy ran with tears in his eyes, ran forward, charging with every bit of might he could summon, and ran while his lungs and legs screamed and screeched in pain. The boy didn''t care, couldn''t care, because every ounce of attention he had was set simply on not stopping. Not stumbling. Not pausing, not even for a short moment. He could feel it behind him, breathing down his neck, taking every step he took, and with every step he took forward, he felt it take three. It came closer, rapidly, stalking and hunting, no matter what he did. Seconds ticked by gruelingly slow, as every moment was a struggle against himself, a struggle he knew he was slowly losing, and yet the words echoed in his mind. "Run, boy." Words that might haunt his mind forever, words that had yet to reveal their edge, words that were currently still buzzing around in his skull, urging his feet forward. Step, by step, by step, by step. Agonizing, cruel, and hard, yet those words were so unbelievably caring. They were the only thing he could hold onto, as the tears streaking down his face seemed to freeze. Behind him, no matter how fast he ran, it was coming closer. A storm was brewing, a storm that he didn''t know if he would survive. But he knew one thing, no matter how close the storm got, he would run. Run until the end of the world, run until his legs could no longer, run until- Until he could run no more. - - - - - - Count I''htar did as he always did. He counted his coins, his money, that he had profited from loans and investments, his golden gold. The sparks and bolts he had worked for so hard. That had taken him and his family multiple lifetimes to gather. They had earned their way to the top, the title of count always only going to the heir with the best head. Making only the best decisions, for the best shops, and driving all competitors out of the market. And he had done just that, once again. Supplying some poor charrs to the storeroom of some of Foss'' footfolk, and the church was clawing at their throat. Of course, the city couldn''t have it, the merchants wanted revenge. He had hoped they would tear each other apart. But the godseekers intervened. Well, it mattered little. In the end, they were still fighting, and even if they only lost a little standing, well, they would still have lost standing, while he was simply sitting here, counting his coins, clinking them through his hand one by one. This city paid. They always paid. He got his money, from all those he lent it to, growing his fortune coin by coin, until he had left everything prosperous under him. Yes, always under him. There was no shot he would allow anyone to stand on a level with him. He would make personally sure this small union of merchants, that guild in his city, would be driven out of power. Soon enough, he thought, soon enough. For now, he was awaiting the outcome of the trial. The amount of money all guilds would have to sink into exterminating the moles he placed to sell mana bombs. It was all coming together beautifully. The city council would think it was a lucky find, when truly, he had placed the commission back up in Evlenor. It was but a single letter among many he sent. Not trackable, and even if they won this pointless war, who would bother to check if he had placed anything up in that shithole of a country? No, this was a solid investment. A letter, a well paying commission, and some mana bombs made by his own attendants. Off the record, obviously. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. And now, the city had to start a witch hunt, paying the godseekers with money they didn''t have. Money he''d lend them, and eventually receive back. With his dues, of course. As always, his banks and investments paid off. The chump change he made from stores didn''t amount to much, it was larger schemes like this, that took a few months to pull off, that really filled his treasury. Perhaps he should soon begin expanding to more cities? Oh but he''d have to find more capable personnel. That wouldn''t quite do. Indeed, until his coffers were fuller, he would simply continue in Stormbraver, and the backwater villages around it. Things were going smoothly, quite smoothly, even. I''htar nodded to himself again, with a calculating smile. All was as it should be. - - - - - - Mercury could see that people outside the courtroom were looking pretty nervous. Avery was pacing, Lucia was tapping her foot, and Foss was wiping the sweat from his brow. Strangely, only Gorm Gorm seemed entirely unfazed by this whole situation. The old man probably had simply been ground down by years upon years of administrative work. Mercury himself could most certainly relate to that... Well, then again, he shouldn''t judge. Perhaps the old man simply had nerves of steel or unwavering confidence in their position. They were the city council after all. If anyone had the last say, it was them. So that was probably enough to make him feel little worry about this. Still, shouldn''t he look a little shaken, with a war going on and all that? Thinking about the war, Mercury actually considered how superhumans were handled in those. Like, seriously, someone like Avery, who could literally dodge arrows and knock people out with single hits, must be a machine on the battlefield. "Hey, Avery, may I ask how you people actually do wars?" "Hm? Us people? What do you mean with that, my guy?" The man cocked his head a little, slightly confused. "Well, like... high-rank people. Someone who can jump meters high into the air, or summon bows of light, like Lucia. How does that even work?" "Ohh, that. Well, for me and her it''s relatively simple, since we''re both B rank. Though, to be fair, she is most certainly closer to the top of it than me." Wait, Avery was B? How the fuck was he B?! Mercury thought he would at least be A, maybe even S?? "How are you in B?!" "Hey, still gotta keep our voices down. Advancing gets exponentially harder the further up you go, my guy. There''s even extra steps added, because otherwise, the power difference would be too big. I''m just B rank, While Lucia is pretty close to B+. Her magic is just a level above my speed, but I don''t lag too far behind," Avery said with a smile. "But when it comes to war," he shook his head, "we would probably be in some special force to take out high-profile targets. Man, just saying that feels gross. I''ve always hated assassinations, you know? Well, still, higher rank individuals rarely fight in wars, and even more rarely are they associated with countries. Most of them come and go as they like." "Seriously?" "What do you mean, seriously? What normal city guard is gonna stop a man who kills dragons for a living? Those people could waltz into a king''s castle and no one would even bat an eye. That''s a little high of a ceiling to aim for right now. Keep your eyes focused on the prey, you mopaaws are good at that, no?" And with those words, Avery turned back to the courtroom door, seemingly ignoring the lightly pleased attitude Lucia was showing. Her chin had raised a little, Mercury noted. Somehow, she had heard parts of their conversation, and appreciated that Avery noted her being a bit better than him. But just then, the door to the courtroom opened again, and everyone was called in. Mercury waited a good bit, until there was no shot of being stepped on anymore, and then headed in, taking his proper place as part of the overseers. He always felt so badass from up there. Maybe to the audience he was just a cute kitty, but he was oblivious to it. Mercury imagined his cloak billowing, even though he was inside, and bore a wide smile at the thought. Yeah, this was a proper place for him. "The jury has come to a verdict." Oh, shit, right, there was still a trial going on. "The Church of Order has made a mistake at imprisoning the shopkeepers, but it was not a kidnapping, as they had found faulty goods. Still, they overstepped their authority, naming themselves judge, jury, and executioner. The merchants they apprehended shall be released immediately. Reparations will be calculated." The crowd was pleased, but Lucia bit her lip. This was clearly annoying to her, but she still had to conduct herself appropriately. The priestess took a long sip of tea before gracefully raising from her seat. "It shall be done as such." The judge nodded at her before continuing, then looked over at Foss who didn''t wear a smile. He had known this was coming. "However, the Merchants'' guild has sabotaged the investigation multiple times, and failed to adhere to proper procedure. As such, the perpetrators will be spending two weeks in the dungeon. This includes the guild master, Foss, as well as any members who attempted to plant false evidence." The man in question gave a wide frown at this, slowly raising himself from his chair. "Your honor, would a paying of reparations not suffice?" "No, it would not. This is supposed to be a punishment, not a slap on the wrist. Reparations would simply be losses, but some time in the dungeon is a much more personal experience. Your malintent was much more clear than that of the Church of Order, and thus, you must be disciplined appropriately." Foss sharply sucked in some air, and then let out a defeated sigh. "It shall be done," he said weakly, plopping himself back down. He had never even given the order to sabotage anything, damn it. Those members of his really needed to be reined in some more. Seriously, who would attempt such poorly timed and executed subterfuge? "The overseers, on the other hand, have properly done their service and shall be rewarded. The promised payment is currently underway. Thank you for your work." "Of course, your honor," Avery said seriously, and alongside him, the godseekers all gave a short bow. "With this, I declare court dismissed." And slowly but surely, people filtered outside. The law scholar the merchants had ordered seemed quite displeased, but she had given it her best shot at the very least. Lucia seemed annoyed, but not too bothered, while Foss looked quite distraught. Was this really quite fair? Mercury imagined that the dungeon would not be anywhere near as pleasant as the prisons in his world, and those were already quite harmful to any form of life in there. Literally scarring. Foss also wasn''t really built for physical work, that much Mercury knew? Did people work in the dungeon, or were they simply locked away? He really had no clue. Well, in any case, it wasn''t him in there, he was just paid for his commissions. With that he could comfortably live for a little while longer in Stormbraver. Eventually, he thought. Eventually he would find a way to bring all of them back. - - - - - - A red haired man was currently sitting at a desk made from fellfirn. He really liked this desk. It was resistant to the elements and very sturdy. If there were chips in it, it slowly regrew them. That''s why it was so expensive, too. Fellfirn was a wood that never really died, it simply would slowly regrow anything chipped away. Of course, that only went for the wood around the core, after all, fellfirn grew by absorbing stamina. You could, of course, cut off some regular pieces of it, but then, those would simply turn into regular, if quite sturdy, wood. But to truly get the regenerative properties, well, you needed to fully extract the stump, since it absorbed stamina, or materials it could convert into that, through its roots. One of those breaks, and the tree leaks everything it absorbs. In other words, the tree would slowly die. But if you extracted everything properly, the fellfirn would start slowly growing outwards. This process would then be accelerated with mana infusions. Usually, that is, not for this desk. He always hated the smell of mana infusions, so instead, he had simply allowed the fellfirn to grow naturally. Eventually, of course, once it was big enough, it was treated. The processing of fellfirn was a very special one, since, if not carried out properly, the wood would simply expand again, nullifying any work done on it. So, to process fellfirn, it was kept in a special vat of sap, made from plants that usually have symbiotic relationships with the firn. That way, it can''t absorb anything from the air, since it''s submerged, and the sap belongs to its allies, so it doesn''t absorb anything from it. That way, the firn can be shaped, the roots slowly changed using druidry. And eventually, the fellfirn might be cut into a proper shape, which it then made to forever hold by working a stamina sink into it. This sink would essentially add a siphon to the fellfirn''s stamina vessel. The extra stamina would go into a slowly amassing pool, used to keep the barrier around the wood active and strong. That way, if it was chipped, it was only the barrier. If anything was strong enough to pierce the table, it would repair itself into the perfect shape, since everywhere else, it was still confined within a barrier. And as soon as it had regrown, the barrier would take the stamina from there again, and regrow itself over the wood. It was an elegant solution that the man really enjoyed, slowly running his gloved hands over the beautiful grain of the wood. Oh, but what was he thinking about? He shouldn''t be so focused on the table, and much more so the person across from him. After all, across the table from him, in a fancy chair, sat a man hated by many. A man so vile, with light pulsing underneath his charred skin, with fangs poking out from his mouth, so large that they seemed to cut into his lower lips. The gloved man across the table simply looked this beastly figure up and down, looking at the patches of fur and scales dotting its skin. "Well, Otto, it has been quite some time. What do you need?" Chapter 42: Dining together, newfound respect Chapter 42: Dining together, newfound respect /Obuk Ba''chak Iknog Arg! Eyldir ah unuga, eh eyldir ah murkska! Olok gnarig kum ustra at eyldir en grunga! Oh! Oh! Eyldir burut ah wallat, dra bokon eh spalat! Lugunga. Un drika ehn chink, ehn wappor! Spika di Eyldir un wallat! SPIKA DI EYLDIR UN WALLAT!! At drika un wappor, wappor at eyldir kum olok. Olok gnarig, iknog ... iknog murkska! Murkska Eyldir! Murkska, murkska, murkska!!! OOOOOHHHHH!!!!/ A transcript of a goblin speech, taken by Jamie Calrend, their name only known from their notes, as nothing else was found of them. - - - - - - After the trial, Mercury decided to treat himself to a nice meal, and went to visit a nearby restaurant, not failing to ask Avery for recommendations. As per the usual, the guild master was more than happy to oblige, and even offered to come with. And then, somehow, so did Iris, and alongside her, Lucia also followed along. To be fair, they did make for a very high profile, albeit rather motley crew. It was certainly not a very usual constellation, but funnily enough, it seemed as though Mercury was the most tense out of all of them. Avery walked with his hands in his pockets, and Lucia seemed to be sightseeing more than focusing on anyone else, both of them perfect pictures of calm. Iris, meanwhile, was focused on Mercury himself, and he could see the gleam in her eyes that only those maniacs who wanted to pet him had. But today he was determined. He would not be touched. It was to be a good evening, and he would not see it ruined by anyone else. Fairly soon, they arrived at the place in question, where a very pretty lady guided them to their seat. She wore a business suit, and Mercury had always found those very stylish, even if they sometimes seemed a little out of place in this world. There were still some things he found hard to get used to. It was so similar to what he had heard about medieval Europe, given the few things he was taught in school, and the few more things he looked up himself or read in books. He had read quite a bit when he was a kid, gotten good grades and called gifted... Ah, now was no time to reminisce. But still. Seeing business suits, glasses, paper, and even something like a radio in somewhat medieval looking buildings was... unusual, for certain. Well, this was an aristocracy. Perhaps in monarchies and dictatorships information would be more restricted. It almost had to be, really, otherwise the people would just rebel. Like in France with their guillotines. Terrifyingly efficient those things... Mercury didn''t quite know how to feel about them. He did, however, know how to feel about the menu, because quite frankly, there were solely delicacies on there. Roasted lamb, grilled steak, stew made from local crustaceans with mushroom toppings, as well as the usual amount of vegetarian meals. Those were quite a bit more common, given that farming was usually a bigger industry and could feed more mouths than hunting. Well, still, even those sounded delicious, though less to his feline instincts. Smoked zucchini with roasted hazelnuts and yoghurt-garlic dip, fried mushrooms with sauce tartare and grated truffels, and even... steamed joiks with leek in spicy salsa? He had no idea what that was, and he certainly could wait to figure it out. Plants in general didn''t seem very appealing to him anymore. He was probably a carnivore now, huh. Funny, he used to try to eat very little meat. But oh well, now he was largely hunting his own food, so he supposed he knew where it came from, and that there was no waste, at the very least. That should still count for something. In any case, back to the menu. Whirlcrab legs and jellyray steak, baked in spicy ghostmary packages, too exotic. Spearfish filet, marinated with homemade sauce and wrapped in thinly sliced bacon, now that sounded much better. Mercury took a bit longer to decide on his meal than the others, but in the end he settled on some breezer filet, after Avery explained that those were ice attributed fish. The meat was prepared to be slightly spicy, while its natural coolness would help neutralize it and bring out more of the meat''s texture and feel. Then, of course, it was served with three dips of choice, as well as some lemon and some more spices that remained hidden. A restaurant truly never gave up all of its secrets, but during the meal, Mercury was fairly certain that one of the sauces was bell pepper base, and another one had some minced cucumber and yoghurt in there. Whatever the case, it was truly delicious, and absolutely worth the stares everyone in the restaurant had given him as he stood on the table and wolfed the meal down. Throughout the entire thing, the table remained largely silent, except for small coughs and nods. Usually Avery seemed the kind of guy to make conversation at the table, but apparently not today. Maybe he was waiting for Lucia to thank him? Or perhaps the food was just too good... Whatever the case, the man kept his mouth shut. Lucia, on the other hand, didn''t do much different from that. She simply ate, making sure to keep proper manners, dabbing her mouth and using cutlery. Mercury would have done so as well, but quite frankly, his lack of thumbs was still limiting him from reaching his true potential. Damn you, toebeans! Still, seeing her try not to scrunch her face up as she watched him eat was more than worth it. Maybe he was being a little spiteful, but at the same time, he was happy she was holding back. After all, to him, Lucia didn''t really seem like a woman with a lot of restraint. Then again, everyone had their flaws. For example, Mercury himself didn''t have thumbs. A truly sad fate. But he was making the best out of it. Really, he was trying very, very hard to make the best out of it. Sure, every now and then he still cried himself to sleep, thinking about Cherry, Gladiator, Second, and Juno. He also missed Kintra a lot, and he still hadn''t quite gotten used to being in life-threatening situations, but he was trying. He was still searching for them. He would never give them up. Not even if he had to make his way to the end of the world to fi- "Would any of you like to have some dessert, dear customers?" their waiter asked, interrupting Mercury''s thoughts. [ has levelled up! 4>] Alright, fair enough, he supposed he should focus more on the here and now. "I would like a dessert menu, if I might?" Lucia asked. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. "4 of ''em," Avery quickly added. "Of course, one moment." The waiter gave them a quick smile and nod, before disappearing to bring them some menus. "You know, this seems like the point in time at which some of us should have really started talking," Mercury said. "Not that I mind daydreaming, but like, this is seriously awkward. Why did you guys come with if you didn''t want to?" For a moment, Mercury thought he could see Lucia''s brow twitch, but surprisingly enough, she didn''t lash out at him. "Well, dearest Mercury, as you have overseen our case, and had plenty of opportunities to allow my faction to be sabotaged, I have decided to repay a small favour, by paying for this meal." "Why didn''t you tell me before? I would have ordered thrice as mu- ow!" Avery''s rambling was quickly shut off as Mercury jabbed him in the side. "We appreciate it very much, thank you," the mopaaw said, giving Avery a short death glare until the waiter came back, handing all of them a menu. "What are you gonna get?" Mercury asked, looking over the menu himself. As promised, language comprehension allowed him to read it, and he could sometimes literally see the letters shift as they formed into an english structure that was understandable for him. Though sometimes, only very rarely, there were small bits and pieces that didn''t quite translate perfectly. Though those were rare enough to be unnoticeable. Instead, he decided to focus on reading, when he got his first answer. "Hmmm, that cake looks pretty good," Iris said, pointing at a picture of a chocolate pie. "I''ll go for some ice cream," Lucia said. "Maybe they have some with flambee? And something to drink, I think these are occasions on which I am supposed to propose a toast." "Some cr¨¨me br?l¨¦e for me, probably. I like cracking it open," Avery said. Wow, all of those were really good picks. Huh. Mercury usually would go for something cold himself, but quite frankly, he didn''t know if he could stomach any of the meals on the menu. Well, then again, nothing ventured nothing gained. "I''ll take some cream tarts for today," he said out loud. He usually wouldn''t go for those, but hey, he felt like something creamy right now. He still had a slight salty aftertaste in his mouth from the fish, and he thought the cream would most likely deal with that. And so, their orders were placed, along with a bottle of "their best liquor" as Lucia put it. Well, she was paying after all, so not like it was gonna be bad for Mercury. He just had to keep in mind not to drink too much. Right, cat body, too much alcohol and he dies. So, only a tiny sip. The bottle was covered in a label, white, and quite glossy, with many fruits Mercury had never seen before on it. It looked... weird, but intriguing. Then, when Lucia popped open the cork, everyone was presented with a glass, though Mercury opted to use a small bowl instead. It looked almost like he was prepared to drink some sake, heh. The liquid inside the bottle was thick, almost syrupy, but still runny enough to qualify as a liquid. It had a slight tint to it that seemed a little different depending on where you looked at it from, a little like an oil spill on the ocean, though usually it appeared slightly blue, with the colour seemingly more visible around the edges. The whole thing smelled very fruity, and also strongly of alcohol, probably because it was, in fact alcohol. And finally, after a whole evening, when the drink was poured and dessert was served, the people around him seemed to relax just the slightest bit. Tension was sailing a little lower than usual, and he was fairly sure he even saw Lucia let loose a slight smile as her ice cream was torched. Maybe he was imagining things. What he surely wasn''t imagining though, was the incredible combo of whatever the fuck that drink was and his cream cake. He was almost certain he had cream in quite a few spots on his face by now, given how he had plunged into it, and how Avery had attempted to make him do the same. Ha-ha, for sure. The good ''ol cake in the face trick, who could have seen it coming. Oh, wait Mercury did and bit the guild master in his fucking finger like he deserved! Sweet, sweet revenge. And even sweeter cake! All in all, after only a few licks from the booze, Mercury was feeling a little tipsy. He knew the feeling, this was how he would feel if he knocked back a cold one faster than he probably should. He had sometimes done so back in the old days, when he had gone out to a bar with Hank, sometimes even Susan, after a long day of work. Maybe that part wasn''t so bad, huh... Still, he was pretty sure he shouldn''t drink too much of that stuff, given that he wasn''t exactly very heavy, nor did he have too much meat on him. And if it already set in enough to make him tipsy this quickly on a full stomach, he definitely didn''t need to find out what happened if he drank more. Instead, Mercury decided to sit back, and simply enjoy the mood. Get swept up in the jokes, and such. Slowly but surely, as the four of them continued eating and drinking at their table, the restaurant cleared out. People were going home for the night, as everyone was getting just a little more cozy. It seemed almost... nice. They weren''t black-out drunk, just enough to not be too aware of their problems with each other. Mercury smiled to himself as he thought about this, as he watched Avery chat about his latest adventure, he laughed when Lucia mocked him for only doing pen-pushing, and he gave wide grins whenever Iris decided to pitch in a small anecdote about herself. It was nice. For sure, he could almost fall asleep like this. He was drowsy, so very drowsy..... And with that, Mercury''s lights gently turned off. - - - - - - Nira sighed and shook her head. She had underestimated just how much work it was to run this guild. When Foss was in his office, he always did it with no complaints, no grievances, and no sighs or mutterings. He simply did what he needed to do. Gave commands, allocated plots and funds, supported or withdrew support from members. Their guild wasn''t as closely-knit, as the godseekers, certainly. She had her own grievances with their leader, thinking him too passive and slow, perhaps too much of a people-pleaser, but Foss still tried to rebel in his own small ways. In sometimes making slightly more risky maneuvers than some members would like to see him make, and always standing by his word once it was given, no matter what anyone else said. The older woman shook her head as she thought this. Perhaps she had been too harsh on that idiot. She now most certainly understood the position he was in, and the pressure he was constantly under. So many request, so many things to do, the work seemed to continuously flood in, faster than she could hope to deal with it. Did that guy never sleep? How did he make sure to answer so many pleas and yet keep his success rate high, when there was also constant input and nagging from so many other members, criticising his every decision? No matter what she did, someone was unhappy, and even though she was used to it, the sheer amount of complaints she had gotten in the half day since Foss was punished had been astonishing. Certainly, once the man was back in his office, she would tell him more often that she appreciated his work, even if he was a little clumsy or brash sometimes. Then, Nira sighed again. Sure, she would be more thankful once he was back, but she had to even last until then. If the members wanted her gone from this position, it would happen, but perhaps they were not as agitated as they seemed after all. She was still in this office and in this chair, wasn''t she? Though she couldn''t get complacent. This mountain of paperwork wouldn''t get itself done, and there was no better time to continue going at it than now. She was sure that three hours of sleep would do for the day. Perhaps this was why Foss had turned to stress-eating? Hm. Request for funding for market study, declined. Funding for startup bakery, declined. Funding for startup smithy, long time apprentice? Granted, for now. A letter from a branch in a smaller city, detailing the goings-on there, and paying the small amount of tax they owed to the main branch, all noted, filed and properly stored away. And then, it came in. The letter she had dreaded for a while now. She had been in the business for a while, and she was very good at reading others. Nira knew better than anyone, perhaps better even than the person in question themselves, she knew that they were going to send this letter. How could he resist, after all? The count was a greedy child, not a golden one. Not all that glitters is gold, and if the man was anything, he was a glistening trap, promising riches and bringing doom. A glistening trap she was prepared to step into. Perhaps to expose the man for his dirty deeds, perhaps to show the city who he truly was, perhaps, perhaps, perhaps. And perhaps it was simply to prove to herself she could make it back out from there? Well, it mattered little. Slowly, but surely, Nira brought her quill onto the paper. She started writing. Writing on how she would love to cooperate with the count. It would surely be a great opportunity for both of them to increase their reach. Certainly there could be an agreement reached between their guild and his banks, and of course, there was nothing she would rather do than shake his slimy, blood covered hands and spit in his face. She hated blood money, hated it with a passion like all people she considered merchants. If one got money from blood, one was a warmonger or a butcher, never a merchant. Money at the cost of human lives was hardly money at all, and much more a stain in one''s purse. She didn''t like it, couldn''t like it. Perhaps now was finally the time to expose the count. Perhaps now that she had all these resources at her fingertips, she wouldn''t fail, couldn''t fail. Certainly, no? Chapter 43: Ragnarok and Runes Chapter 43: Ragnarok and Runes /Music, who''d think to write about that, eh? I reckon this is a little exploited topic, maybe even a niche in the market. Yes, a niche... my niche now! I shall patent this as... Musico Telofio! Ah, a good name indeed. Now, at the beginning I shall make some musing of myself, of course. After all, it is most certainly required for me to at least state who I am and why I would be doing such a thing... oh! Why do I not simply use my thoughts for it? There, all caught up now. What you are reading now is right from my head. A truly magnificent one, I assure you. My name is Kurt! Kurt River, in fact. As of this day, I am 36 chapters old. Almost enough to have an entire book on my back, ha! Graduated from the grand Academia of Music in Lotrigg, the city of sound. Personally, I played the piano there, though I did dabble in many other disciplines. It has been a long journey to get to where I am now, and a long road still ahead of me. This shall be the story of my life, my adventures, and more importantly than anything, the story of my music. I believe that this book will be split in two halves, one which shall be my story, for avid readers to enjoy, to laugh and cry to, and to feel all those days with me once more. The other shall be a far more technical part, where I go into detail on all the instruments I have seen in my travels, and all the ways I have been taught, or figured out myself, one might play them. Indeed, this shall be my greatest work yet. So, please, I ask you for but one thing. To follow me, on this wonderful journey into the wide world out there, the wide world full of life, and nature, and oh so many sounds!/ The introduction to "Musico Telofio - The Journey", written by now deceased Kurt River, a practiced and famous musician. May he forever rest in peace. - - - - - - Magma took a deep breath in her very own room. The smell of sulfur and brimstone had been familiar to her since the day she had been born, and thus, the acidic winds of these lands did little to her. She pitied Eric and his weakness to such things, truly. The creature himself was quite a good person though. Tall, funny, and handsome, for a dryad. They didn''t butt heads very much, at least she butted heads with him far less than with the pianist. A good thing at heart, but never one for fun. Or anything much, really. Pah, at least the inhabitants of this continent knew how to have fun. Drinking, and betting, and a handful of gambling, too. It was quite to her tastes, and their pride never let these demons back down from a challenge. Hah! Truly, creatures of her kind! Really, they were similar in many ways. The fire and brimstone, the pride, the rough play, and the drinking. Ohhhh the drinking. Truly, some incredible things these hellspawn brewed. Most of all their signature and favourite "Deal with the Devil"! Hah! Jokes, indeed. As if demons and devils could ever even see eye to eye, the creatures hadn''t stopped their incessant warring in centuries. Truly, if they could ever make peace, it would be a sight for sore eyes. Well, to get your eyes sore, at the very least, because there would be an incredible amount of conquest and slaughter all over the world. So perhaps it was for the best that their deals were kept in bottles to be chugged, then! A burning liquor, strong enough to make even her flinch the first time she took a swig, but the taste was worth dying for. Magma usually even enjoyed the hot feeling drinks gave her. They were comfortable, and even the hellish temperatures of this one were to her tastes. But none of that came even close to compare to the incredible enjoyment a swig of this drink brought you. Oh, the shock! A wave of fire, washing down your mouth and throat for but a moment, before soft petals of roses laid down to extinguish the flames. Then, a hint of fruit slowly rose up, before crashing down like a tidal wave. An aroma of pineapple and the strange sulfurfigs that grew on the trees in these parts. It was a soft and light, yet intense flavour, flooding one''s mouth, then gently laying down again, until it was replaced by a creep of acidity. A positively bitter undertone that would sneak its way into every future bite you took, always asking if you didn''t want another swig, just one more taste of the deal. Magma loved it, but she was no brute beyond self-control. Well, perhaps sometimes she was, but never would she lose herself in the bottle again. Her pride in herself demanded it, and pride to herself she had ample. She was a lava spirit, named after the roiling heat deep beneath the earth, a close cousin to the more common fire spirits. Perhaps one would best classify her as a lavid, close cousin to ifrits, with a little golem blood. Was it Golem? The rules of her earthen brethren were always too stiff for her. But no matter where she came from, she had pride in her blood, in her family''s, and in her very own. That writhing liquid pumping through her, coursing through every inch of her body with the fury of a wildfire, always aiming to consume her. She had great pride in it, but she had steadfastly sworn to never lose herself, and that oath was one she would hold, no matter the price. Nonetheless, with her blood, she had all the more pride in herself. In her tall stature, standing a little over 1.90 meters, and her toned muscles. As a lavid, her skin looked like liquid, flowing, with parts glowing white, and others looking black, like solid rock. Yet, most of it was a burning red, the fiery colour she adored so much. Her clothes were a masterwork by many metalsmiths, plate mail wreathed with fire, specific pockets of molten cold iron, mixed with flakes of stygian ice, simply to keep her from burning the things around her. As such was the requirement if she wanted to reside anywhere but her homeland. Her entire body was wreathed in the plate, all but her face, for she refused to have it covered. Even with the armor, flames still spilled forth at the joints, such as knees and shoulders, but when it came to her head, she was much too proud to hide it. Magma''s eyes were charcoal black, darker than the feathers of a raven from the underworld, and deeper than the oceans anywhere she had ever been. Her lips were scarlet red, perhaps because she enjoyed it so, and her jawline strong. But what she adored most was her hair. It was a fiery streak of lava, flowing from her head all the way down to her knees, before travelling all the way back up, slowly blending into her neck and forever moving beneath the many plates that hid her. Still, the armor she wore was skilfully made, and it allowed her to touch nigh all things without melting them, although shaking the hands of common humans would still cause them burns. It was so truly well crafted, in fact, that even though her head was uncovered, it created a small pocket of air around it that stopped her heat. One could get close enough to touch her face without getting burnt, though the heat would make many uncomfortable. Still, especially to these demons, her heat was bearable, most certainly bearable enough to challenge her to all manner of duels. Some even attempted to challenge her music, but she had won any and all challenges. After all, she also had great pride in Ragnarok, and no matter who challenged her, if it was to defend her pride she would always win - without fail. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. And perhaps soon, she would be challenged again. Perhaps even minutes after going out there to the demonfolk again. No matter where, or when, or by whom, so long as she was challenged, she would accept, and no matter the challenge, Magma was confident that if it was important, she would be able to win it! - - - - - - Old Dreamweaver rested still. It had been a long time since they had drawn on their many selves to become one, and even longer since they had taught someone ihn''ir. They had spoken the truth, as always. They had spoken of ihn''ir, and young Cat had understood. They had spoken of woven dreams, and young Cat had many questions. Cat had not yet understood weaving, and yet, they were here. Perhaps, their weaving was different. Old Dreamweaver was sure time would tell. Yet, they had also spoken of themselves. Of their seeking, of their search. Ah, to trikko. To lagment. To eyuen. Dreamweaver owed young Cat many things, although they may not yet know. Their weaving had brought them and this one together. Trikko, it was never one sided. How did that one call it, "teach"? Perhaps this one had used a wrong wrongly. Trikko... to teach, to exchange, to interact, perhaps? No, no, to... trade? No, to... parent? It was... difficult. This one had not yet full understood Cat, not fully understood their "english". A strange conglomerate, yet one to nuk''dah on. To "ponder". Ponder? Hm, then what was eyeun? Ah, no matter. Perhaps this one would know by the next time they saw young Cat. Perhaps they would know the next time they were sought, the next time they understood, the next time they would... eyeun. But for now, it was time to wa''hc. To stop weaving. They needed wa''hc to rest, yet before they fell asleep, this one thought of but one thing... when would they eyeun again? - - - - - - The morning after his trip to the restaurant, Mercury woke up a little groggy. Nothing a splash of cold water couldn''t fix, especially now that he was a cat. He seemed to hate water even more than he used to, though he had never been a fan of it for any purpose other than drinking and washing himself. He had always been terrified of the ocean, and found lakes and pools disgusting. At least when water was in smaller droplets it was fine. Rain or mist never bothered him, neither did steam or showering, but he disliked bathing with a passion. Yeah, reminding himself of his fiery hatred of lakes did wonders for his mind. After only a few minutes he found himself more awake, as he dunked his face in a bowl of cold water again. For just today he should stay sharp, after all, he would be hunting down a criminal. He was hoping that it wouldn''t be too far above his paygrade. Of course, it was a D rank commission, so perhaps he should check up on himself before he went. Status? ---- Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 14 Species: Zetraspa Titles: , , Hp: 205/205 Mp: 312/312 Sp: 175/175 Strength: 51 Vitality: 46 Dexterity: 40 (+1) Agility: 32 (+1) Intelligence: 51 Wisdom: 50 Willpower: 55 Luck: 18 Ability points: 20 World points: 5 Skill points: 860 Gold: 3046 Beast familiars: 1/2 ---- Yeah, that was him alright. Damn, had he really saved up that much gold for his shop? Kind of impressive. What could he even get for that? Hm... A small healing potion, some alchemy ingredients, a... goat? No, if he looked at the fine print, that said a shop goat, one that doesn''t drop any exp or gold when killed? Nor any items? What the heck was this Skill of his even good for??? Sigh, fine, he''d keep looking. A medium healing potion that would restore 100 Hp for 1500 gold. He would definitely keep that much money saved up, something like that could come in handy. Now, what else was there? Some gear, spears, swords, axes, sickles, gloves... Gloves? He still had paws though. Dang, sometimes he really felt like that shop of his was making fun of him. It offered equipment for a human, and it would even allow him to buy overpriced food, like a bag of potatoes for 500 gold, but like, did it really not have anything good? An umbrella, a radiator, a standing fan, a pillow, wait, he might actually buy that one. Could he favourite some items in there? Ah, yeah, like that. Turns out he could. Well, other than that, not very much. He took a short look at the hats, but all of them seemed like they were cosmetic, which would be fair, but he would have wished for one that gave him a slight advantage. Still, at the end, he did find something for himself. A small mopaaw''s caretaking and training kit for 800 gold. It was a little embarrasing to get something like that for himself, but it did include some stuff, like some treats, a leash, a blanket to keep him at the optimal warmth, and what he valued most: a claw-sharpening kit. Additionally, there was even a small instructional manual on runecarving in there, signed to belong to someone named "Jurika". That did bring up the question of where the fuck this shop got its items from, but oh well, not like he could return it now. It was pretty thin and small, maybe A6 paper with 30 pages? Just a tiny notebook, but he was sure he could gain something from it. Perhaps tomorrow, he thought. For now, he would have to sharpen his claws and get ready to end some crime. Mercury made sure to get his claws properly done up, dragging them over the somewhat hard but slightly spongy material multiple times. To be quite fair, he had absolutely no idea what that thing was made of, and really, he didn''t think he wanted to know. So for now, simply using it to get ready would do. After making sure his weapons were sharp and ready to go, he also checked in with his mana veins, taking care to flood them at least once, like he did every day, just to make sure they didn''t get rusty. He also checked on their progress into his claws, and it was nearing the end there. He was also pushing them into his teeth bit by bit. Well, bit by bit was relative, he didn''t really feel like he was making too much progress, but that might just be him. In any case, he was fairly sure he could keep himself in good fighting shape for at least a little while now. Well, good shape excluding his mana veins, he could keep those active for like, two minutes at best. Still, certainly that was better than the few seconds he had managed before. Did he just think certainly? Who thought like that? God, Lucia must have rubbed off on him. Hopefully some of his awareness had rubbed off on them, because all of those idiots he drank with had some screws loose. And he meant that in the best way possible. Mercury smiled to himself. He was daydreaming again, he should probably stop that. For now he should focus on where he needed to go, and on getting ready. The address was still the same, and he had memorized it before. Avery had shown it to him on a map, and even in person for just a few moments another evening, so he was sure he would find his way there. But for now, he decided he''d prepare just a little more and see what his mana veins could do. He decided that, since he had mana veins inside his claws now, perhaps he should test if that was enough for him to scratch some stone? Maybe he could make little rock darts and put some sharpness on there? It was a weird thought, using his nails to carve stone. He would never have even entertained the thought as a human, but now... sometimes this world was still a little confusing to him. Actually, much more than a little. At least he was adapting slowly. Right, and to prove he had adapted, he would just cut off some rock with his claws. Yeah, that seemed perfectly doable, no doubts here, none at all, nu-uh. So, Mercury pulled one of his trusty rocks from his inventory, an oval one with a relatively smooth surface. He didn''t really have anything to clamp it down with, so he simply placed one paw on top of it to hold the rock still, before channelling mana through the other one. Now, I want you to imagine a little cat, holding a rock down and about to try and cut into it, with incredible focus on its face. To me personally, it is a funny thought to entertain. And thus, our hero, the great Mercury Rainfall Starlight sliced down, and his paws collided with the rocks, as he missed spectacularly and got his claws stuck in his floor. Maybe on the next swipe, he shouldn''t close his eyes. Alright, one more try, less force this time. He had this. Slowly but surely, he coursed mana through his body, taking it from his core to his claws, slowly heating it on the way to make sure his entire leg was up to the task of cutting rock. And finally, once he had gotten his entire appendage to maximum performance, he scraped against the rock. The grating noise it made was quite horrible, but still, somehow, it seemed he had made progress. It was a tiny, shaky line on the stone, and honestly it was pretty pathetic, but Mercury kept slowly scratching at it, and bit by bit, he managed to erode it away. It only took him a quarter of an hour to flatten one side of the stone, and then, as he got a bit better on it, another ten minutes to flatten the other side. He was kind of imagining throwing knives, so with a bit more time and mana, he managed to slowly carve an edge into the rock. Now, of course, this thing was small, dull, and probably brittle, but Mercury was quite proud of his work. But he was not quite done yet. He hadn''t used many weapons, nor recently, but perhaps, since he was all on his own again, it was time to return back to the old ways. And so, he coursed mana through himself once more, as he beset his claws unto the stone, and scratched away at it. He needed it to be more sturdy, and so, in as small a script as he could manage, he carved in a single rune. A mid 1st grade Reinforce rune. And although he had to interrupt and retrace lines many times, eventually he was done, and had achieved it. [Successfully carved mid 1st grade Reinforce rune. Get: 30 Exp] O-ho-hoooo. Those fucking criminals better be keeping on their tip-toes, because he still had it. He was still just as good as a year ago, when he had been in his runecarving prime, and perhaps this time he would rise to even greater heights. He was really hoping those criminals were sitting down, because Mercury Rainfall Starlight was about to knock them off their feet!! Chapter 44: The Meaning of Breath Chapter 44: The Meaning of Breath /Alright motherfuckers, gather round to hear some more of my venomous wisdom today. Gods, I love the anonymity writing gives me so much. Oh yeah, it''s time for another episode of my ranting about this shithole of a world! Today''s topic? Well, just about anything this time! But to be quite perfectly honest, I wanna talk about how much it sucks that most of the information that would help us advance is hidden away from us. Like, seriously. We don''t always know how much exp actions other than killing monsters gives, we don''t know what kinds of gains we can expect from evolution, there is no concrete amount of power we gain from allocating stat points, or from Skill levels, or anything for that matter. But honestly, if not knowing our actual capabilities wasn''t enough, there is so, so much more hidden. The amount of Skills that exist, conditions needing fulfillment to evolve abilities, the amount of mastery a Skill has, or what the future of each path it could evolve to is. We don''t know the unlock conditions of Skills, and even less so abilities, and the very most nightmarish fact is that any attempt to categorize this kinda shit has failed! Like, fucking seriously? How the hell are we supposed to advance through tiers and grow stronger if this broken-ass thing doesn''t even tell us how to advance, and even has different requirements for different people? Like, to hell with all this "equality" shit, this thing isn''t even a meritocracy! There''s literally races born with Skills that others can only dream of, born into higher tiers and more insane environments. Like, you can''t compare a baby human''s chance to survive to that of a baby dragon, and anybody who still thinks this system is even remotely equal has to have wayyy too many drugs in their system. What, you haven''t gotten a resistance Skill yet? Hm, maybe you would have if you knew how to damn unlock it! Alright, fuckers. That shit really is quite frustrating, but I think I gotta leave it at that for today. Always trust your instinct, never trust the system, and don''t fucking croak. Y''all are my livelihood after all, ha!/ Issue 8 of "This System Sucks!" by an anonymous author. - - - - - - Mercury was preparing himself for a true stealth mission. He had his inventory full with whatever he might need. Three rocks that were sharpened and enhanced with some nice runes, and a backpack full of backup artillery. And, of course, his fifth slot had to be used for the mana bomb, just in case things got too dicey today. And with that, it was time to set off. It took Mercury a few minutes to find the place Avery had shown him before, but quite frankly, once he knew what he was looking for, it was decently easy to find. The strike had been organized beforehand. This was, after all, a detailed supply chain, where not many sales went unnoticed. So, of course they had heard that Birk had lost a shipment, and been hounded down by Avery. Unfortunately for them, the guild master wasn''t stupid. He got Birk to write them a letter, detailing that he would be on the down low for a while after managing to escape from Avery, and that he would stop in for the next shipment in two weeks or so. That letter made its way to his suppliers, and up the command chain, fully completing the official story of Birk simply laying low for a while. And thus, the business of the thugs was still running amok, streaking through the city with its dark appendages, seeking out all those who were lost and dragging them into their spiral of ruin. It was a cruel machine of doom, all-consuming and inescapable, a- Jeff. How did you get in here again? Well, uh, I- I locked the door. Yes, I mean... Jeff, did you pick my lock? No, I mean, not exactly... You have five seconds to get out. Five. Four. Three. Two... Alright, now that that''s settled. Where was I? Ah, right. It was... a cruel machine of doom? All consuming and inescapable? I swear to god... It was a small crime ring with a few drug dealers and maybe some human traffickers. Sure, there were people who got dragged into it and didn''t get back out, but man, this is a little dramatic. This man, I swear. Alright. It was a small crime ring, and nobody involved was aware of the hit that would come today, since their one security leak had apparently escaped. Of course, they were still wary, but since the day Birk had disappeared, quite some time had passed, so most of them thought that the worst would have been over. There were no increased patrols, no guards attacking their hideouts, no major military forces seeking them out... it was quiet. Of course, this was a very temporary peace, purposely arranged to be so by Avery, who kept all of the locations for only himself and the city council to know. After all, this was something that he wanted to absolutely stop, and lulling some criminals into a false sense of security was one way of doing it. He had made sure to include the day of execution to the commissions, and instituted a failure penalty for this specific one. "Any godseekers proven unable to comply with the details in the commission would be required to participate and fully cooperate with the strike teams, formed to hunt down and apprehend any leftover stragglers of any organisation encountered during the set of commissions. Failure to comply with this additional clause is reason for immediate punishment such as guild master Avery Beckham sees fit, which may include but is not limited to: monetary payments to the guild, item confiscation, rank reduction, or expulsion." Oh, well. In any case, Mercury should probably get going. He walked into the alleyway, slid past a door that was open by a crack and quickly nodded at an older woman who was sitting by a quietly crackling fireplace. It was a little too warm inside the building for his tastes, but then again, he was confined by his fur. "What brings you here, little one?" the woman asked. "Wait a minute, that''s not quite right, is it?" "Oh, the words change, but the essence is the same. Come now, little one, what brings you here?" "Look, lady, I''m not someone to have my organs harvested. If you would-" "And I, little beast," the woman interrupted him in a raspy voice, "am not one known to be quite as patient. Now tell me, what brings you here?" "Man, I really wish-" Just then, he could hear something like an explosion going off somewhere else. Funnily enough, Mercury didn''t even have to think about who it was, since Avery had made very sure all godseekers were aware that Lucia had accepted one of the commissions as well. So, Mercury slowly felt his time running out, and the start signal had just been shot. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Chaotic, but oh well. "As I was saying, I really wish- uaugh!" Mercury quickly rolled to the side, when the woman decided to jump up and throw a needle at him. "For fuck''s sake, I was sayiiiiaagah!" Another lunge, clumsily throwing himself to the floor. At least he would be save for just a moment, after the lady had thrown her knitting needles. His smile faded a moment later, when she pulled out throwing knives from a pocket in her dress. "Seriously?" "Very," she said, narrowing her eyes and homing in on the cat. The thing was small and quite quick, she couldn''t afford to lose sight of... where did it go? "Mana veins, bitch!" Mercury yelled out from behind her, before quickly coursing his power all throughout himself and jumping at her like the small cannonball he was always meant to be. Age was kind to no one, it hadn''t been to him in his old life, and it sure wasn''t very nice to this lady. So, when she fell to the floor and he heard a crack, he was fairly sure that the job was done. "You really could have let me finish, lady. I was saying ''Man, you really struck a nerve. I have a problem with authority, you know?'' Fucking rude." And just like that, Mercury poured a jug of water on the fireplace, before prying the hatch beneath it open and jumping down. No shot he was climbing a ladder. After some more walking through a tunnel that would have been small for human heads, but was easily enough for that of a cat, he made his way into a small, underground expanse, holding a handful of ledgers, an open door to a warehouse with some contraband, and oh, that was a man pointing a crossbow at him. Alrighty. "Hands up," the man said, calmly striking a match and lighting a cigar with his free hand. Mercury hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to do. "Oh, shit, right, you don''t have hands, do you?" The man said, giving Mercury a few moments to look at him more closely. Well trimmed beard, stubble for a mustache, hard eyes and strong nose. A little on the thicker side, but by no means fat. Short, black hair, a little longer behind his hat, and a black suit on. This guy looked like the definition of a mafia boss. "Not particularly, no," Mercury replied slowly. "Well, it''s fine. Just stay where you are. Take a seat, go on." Mercury sat down. he hated authorities, and had an instinct within him to immediately rebel simply because someone else had told him to do something, but he supressed it. The spiky bolt securely pointing at him was certainly a good motivator. "Alright, good kitty." He flinched for a moment, but barely restrained his fury. "Oh, you don''t like that, do you? Well, shit, sucks to be a kitty I guess. Thinking you can come in here, take down my old guardian, and kill me just like that?" "That was the plan." "Shit plan, mopaaw." "I realized," Mercury said, trying his best not to hiss too much. "Well, go on then. This is the part where you tell me all about how you got here and found out, or I put this bolt straight through you." Mercury believed the man without hesitation. He could tell by . He had killed before, and he''d do it again. To people like that, life was just another coin to trade in. "Well, it was through Birk, as you might''ve guessed." "Hm, letter was pretty convincing. Had his prints, too. How''d you fake it?" Mercury''s head was churning as he spoke. This was a dangerous situation. If he said too little, he''d be killed. If he said too much, he might be killed because he wasn''t useful anymore. He had to figure out a way before hitting either one of the thresholds. He was... calmer than he though. Mercury took a singular deep breath, before speaking. "Well, it wasn''t quite a fake. The boy wrote it all by himself." "Boy?" the boss asked. "He''s a boy to me, but how old are you then?" "36, ah, no, 37 now, I suppose." "37?! Mate, you''re shitting me, most mopaaws grow to be 20 at best, and you want to tell me you''re not even fully grown at 37?" "Look, that''s what dealing with multiple generation gaps will do to you. Zoomers, and boomers, and even alphas, like man. What a journey. But is this a quiz about me or something else?" Mercury said what was on his mind, since this was do or die anyways. Him or that guy would die, for sure. No two ways about it, so he wasn''t very worried about personal information. He took another deep breath while the man spoke, feeling out his body and watching its potential rise. "Right... Wait, zoomers? You dealt with fast things? And explosions? And wolves? What kind of life did you lead...?" Mercury took one more breath as the man asked. Ah, there it was. He found that feeling, deep within himself, that encompassing understanding. It was... hard to quite put it into words, but instinctively he knew all about it. This was what it meant to breathe. This was what it meant to have air course through you, what it meant to have energy go through you, what it meant to have raw potential running through your every vein. Mercury understood. To breathe was to give fuel to oneself, to the brain, to the muscles, to power. In a similar way, he could feed them power through stamina, but now that he understood, there was something else. "Hey, kitty? Awfully quiet there, did I catch you on a lie?" Something... different. It didn''t feel stable yet malleable like mana, nor did it have the quiet rush of air to it, no, no, no. It was... vibrant. Powerful. Energetic. It was like he had explosive charges within himself. He had been running on wind and water power, but now he discovered oil. Something the like. "Brat?! Talk, before I put this through your sk-" He detonated it. With a rush of intensity, his mana, his breath, and at the same time his stamina, they exploded into a firework of power, enough to temporarily allow him to go much further than what his limits were supposed to be. He tried to casually take a step forward, only to end up launching himself towards the man, and smashing into his face, knocking the two of them to the floor. So this... this was what it meant to breathe! Mercury was still within a deep state of ihn''ar, so all the rush of noise and action around him now seemed so slow. The man yelling and falling, the furniture being knocked over, the crossbow fired and clanging against the stone walls. All of it was distant. Instead, Mercury heard the air rushing into his lungs, filling them up to their brim as the oxygen rushed to where it was needed. He heard his blood flow through him, heard it in his ear, combined with the boiling of mana and the vibrant hissing of... was that... his stamina? He felt where every part of his body was, and straightened himself out, making the first good landing in ages, as the man came crashing down, with a single mopaaw gracefully standing on his face. Whoa. [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action.] [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action.] [The individual is stepping past their limits. Hp is declining. Increase your Strength and Vitality to combat this effect.] [The individual is stepping past their limits. Trial odds calculated. Would you like to initiate? Y/N] Y- [Trial initiated. Completion condition: Maintain the state of ihn''ar until the end of combat. Reward: Skill, 5 Ability points, 100 Skill points. Penalty: Loss of , regression of and .] Oh fuck. Mercury was aware of two things, keeping a cool head only by using constantly. Okay. First of all, he could already feel his ihn''ar getting shakier. His breath had inadvertenly changed. He no longer used it to focus, instead he understood breath by itself, and was now using it to power up, instead of focusing on his mental state. It was a double edged sword. If he focused more on his power, he would lose his ihn''ar, but if he focused on his ihn''ar, he would be unable to maintain his breath properly. His meditation was already shaky, so quite frankly, he needed to end this quickly. And what better way to go about it but by tried and true methods. "!!!" Three sharp rocks impacted the boss'' face at once, and his body went limp. Within less than a few seconds, Mercury had taken him out. [Killed a Mafia Boss (?). Get: 500 Exp, boss'' ring, half-burnt cigar.] [By braving extraordinary circumstances, the individual has received additional rewards. Get: , 5 Ability points, 100 Skill points.] And just like that, Mercury gave a bright, blood covered grin, before quickly interrupting it to spew out some more blood. What a fucking party this had been. Oh man, those were some familiar funky little colours he got in his vision. Was he really that close to passing out? Maybe he should sit down... perhaps not on the corpse. Mercury took a moment to calm down on the floor, breathing in through his nose and out through his mouth. The metallic smell of blood wasn''t very bothersome to him, he had gotten very used to it over the time he had spent hunting, and quite frankly, his carnivorous instincts already told him to eat. Still, this was just a step too far, he''d definitely not eat a human. Instead, maybe he should take some time to check out his rewards now? What had he missed? Vitality: 46 -> 48 Wisdom: 50 -> 54 Willpower: 55 -> 58 Luck: 18 -> 19 [The dracoleather cloak has reached a quarter proficiency! blessing has been unlocked.] [: A blessing belonging to the dracoleather cloak. It can be activated once a week, and temporarily increases the user''s agility and dexterity. The increase and time of activity is determined by the user''s proficiency.] Oh, nice! Well then, he should probably at least check out the drops, though they didn''t sound too promising. As always, these drops landed directly in his inventory, and were taken away from the corpse based on the system''s jurisdiction. It was weird like that. The body would be processed again separately, but the system would apparently randomly pick out some drops specifically that would then receive special effects. Of course, if the corpse was processed and made into other things, that system would then go on to categorize and rank those as well. Weird shit. In any case, if you would be so kind? [Boss'' ring: The ring of a mafia boss (?), it enhances all Skills related to crimes, examples of which based on the user''s thoughts include, but are not limited to, , , . Additionally, it provides the user with a +2 to wisdom while worn. Grade: D] Equip. No hesitation. [Half-burnt cigar: The cigar of a mafia boss (?). It is half burnt and retains very few of its qualities, however, when smoked it increases intimidation factor. Remaining uses: 2. Grade: E+] What a weird fucking thing. Well, he''d store it for now, though he didn''t know if he would use it anytime soon. Alright, now, one final thing, what about his Skills? [ has levelled up! lv. 10>] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] Huh? Chapter 45: Cat vs Chimera Chapter 45: Cat vs Chimera /Oh, the art of brewing. A sprinkle of sulfur and a dash of herbs, just a small bit of salt and then the ground paste of an eagle''s liver. It is truly incredible how through boiling, distilling, condensing and reshaping those master alchemists can take seemingly random items and create miraculous medicine from it. Healing potions, and poisonous pills, from steroids to panacea, they have you absolutely covered. There is nothing these people can''t brew up, as long as they are good enough at what they do. And trust me when I tell you one thing: Calling oneself an alchemist usually doesn''t come easy. Most practicing alchemists actually need to get a license from the place they practice in. Of course, these rules are as inconsistent as can be, however, there is one reliable source of such things: The Druid''s Sickle. This organisation is one of the many guilds that one can join in these lands, albeit a lesser known one, perhaps due to their unique choice of name. Yet, these are the ultimate experts in herbology and potioncrafting. Truly, their expertise is so thorough, that in just about any country, people with a license handed out by this guild are allowed to practice medicine, alchemy, and whatever else their license allows them to. This is made possible through their long standing reputation of thoroughness. They don''t make deals with charlatans and snake-oil salesman, and they immediately give the boot to any scammer or trickster within their ranks. These eloquent brewers or magnificent wonders take great pride in their work, and even greater pride in their organisation. So, if you ever meet an alchemist of true pride, make sure to ask them to show their license. Most will happily oblige, and if they are quite hesitant about it, perhaps you should seek your stock from another place. No need to get yourself hurt by trusting someone who can''t quite back up their claims, eh?/ An excerpt from "Of Pride and Profession", by Priscilla Boromier, the "Wordslinger", a scribe and adventurer. - - - - - - Evolve? Last time this had happened was... with his Skill, right? Damn, that had been a while ago. Back then... Oh, wait, he was still in a criminal''s hideout. Now wasn''t the time to be stuck in the past. Well, fine, what was this whole evolution deal all about? [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same, no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. ] Whoaaaaaa, shit escalating really quick right here. Wasn''t just a Skill to help him channel his will into action? He certainly knew what it did, it helped him grit his teeth and push through, no matter how hard things got, but wasn''t this a step too far? Alright, alright. He wasn''t too short on time, was he? His main target had been taken out, but still, he didn''t want to take too many risks. After all, being ambushed down here could be very problematic. "Cough!" He spat out a little more blood. Man, he really needed some rest, fuck. Alright, as long as he still had , he sure would keep it on. This was the moment to really bite down hard and get shit done. So, with his resolve steeled, Mercury once again coursed mana through his battered veins, making sure to keep himself functioning close to maximum capacity. He closed the door to storage by putting the chair under the handle, and made sure no one could come in from the other door by pushing the desk up against it with some effort. If he compared himself to his previous life, he might actually be a little stronger by now, as long as he used magic, at least. It sure was a funny thought, armwrestling himself as a cat... No, focus! Alright, bitches, time to roll. ! [: An evolution of the Skill, this one allows the individual to both literally and very figuratively harbour a flame within themselves. It allows the user to control these flames for whatever purpose they see fit, such as adding fire to their attacks, or cauterizing wounds on themselves. Additionally, the fire brings a great reinforcement to the user''s willpower with itself, allowing them to remain a step past their limit by drawing energy from the flames.] Wait, wasn''t this a little broken? Literally controlling a fire within himself? Just like that? Holy shit dude, wow. Damn. Increased strength, will, and more power to step beyond his limits. Added to that was a potential for insane growth, probably allowing him to eventually create whole infernos. What a damn Skill. [: An evolution of the Skill, this one allows the individual to maintain a strong will no matter the circumstances. It provides the user with potent defenses against mental attacks of all kind, and allows them to remain focused under great pressure. Additionally, it provides resistance to physical damage which scales alongside the user''s Willpower.] Okay, another insane Skill. Pretty much making himself invulnerable to mind control sure was appealing, and quite frankly, being able to shrug off swords and axes through pure determination sounded sick as fuck. This was going to be quite a choice, but there was still one more proposal in front of him. [: An evolution of the Skill, this one allows the user to see past their perceived limits. If one believes they can go no further, this Skill has a chance to open up another path towards growth. It also increases the efficacy of any Skills that the user believes to be past their "limits". Additionally it promotes future growth of the individual. However, this Skill does not mean there will no longer be obstacles. The system already allows for unlimited growth, this Skill only serves as an aide.] A bit of a weird description, but quite frankly, it was still a difficult choice. All three Skills offered tempting prospects. Extra offense and defense with fire, an invulnerable mind and body, or the ability to go just one step further. Mercury sighed to himself. Had he really already made a decision? This was down to his gut, quite frankly, but after reading everything, the most appealing Skill to him was . It simply had that sweet allure he sought in everything he did. The sweet, sweet chance at growing just a little more, just taking another step forward, just overcoming one more obstacle. He couldn''t quite put it into words, but the thought of being stuck in place was... terrifying to him. To approach the end of his growth before he reached the goal of his story... No, he couldn''t bear it. It was clear, then. One more step it was. [Evolution selected.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. There the deed was done. Now time to take down some more criminals. What a pain that his feet were so heavy, but whatever, a job needed doing. Funnily enough, there was no banging on the doors that he had blocked. Apparently, no one was trying to get out this way. All the better for him, then. This way, he''d make for an unexpected combatant. So, he opened the door, only to face a large, scarred back. Whoever it was that stood in front of Mercury, they were tall, tan, and had incredibly wide shoulders. For a moment, Mercury actually thought that he was facing something of an animal, rather than a human. And when the thing turned around, Mercury thought he wasn''t too wrong. He could read two words, branded into it''s chest with fire. "The Guardian", it said. It had the chest of a man, but the legs of a horse, and the head of a falcon, locking onto him with its eyes. For a moment, Mercury thought he could see it''s pupils narrow as it stared at him. For a moment, time seemed to slow down. He thought for sure he could feel something of a pressure lay itself down on him, like a heavy blanket, or like shackles, clawing at his feet and dragging him to the floor. And then, there was this overwhelming feeling of dread... what was that...? For a single moment, Mercury had his eyes rush about, trying to find the source of the dread, when he found it was very close to him. The guardian was apparently wielding a halberd with a spike even at the pommel, and that spike was very rapidly heading for Mercury''s eyes. Shit! Without hesitation, Mercury''s Skills exploded, flooding his body with any shred of mana he had, and pumping his muscles full of Stamina, much more than he probably should have. Then, he immediately activated breath, or at least tried to, because quite frankly, he found he couldn''t. He tried to get air into his lungs, but while he felt air rushing into his lungs, he couldn''t quite get a grasp of it. While he had the ability documented by the system, it would appear he had yet to master it. Fuck. This would have to do, he supposed. And after only that moment, time resumed. The spiky pommel slammed down into the rock where Mercury had stood just moments before, but narrowly escaped from using . Then, he lunged straight towards the guardian''s face, trying to claw it up, only to be smacked back down to earth by the staff of the halberd. His back smashed into the ground, and now that he had power coursing through him, he could feel his muscles scream and quiver. Fuck, this was a bitch to deal with. But even now, he couldn''t see a gap in the defenses of the guardian. It was frustrating. Mercury had won up until now by exploiting gaps in his opponents, specifically those created by them underestimating him, but this time, he couldn''t find any. Turns out that the way to beat a smart beast, was by using another intelligent monster, huh? Mercury quickly dodged out of the way of two more strikes, before trying to dash between the guardian''s legs, and receiving a proper kick into the chest. For a moment, he felt the air leave his lungs and his vision go black, but his impact onto the floor brought him back, right in time to roll out of the way of the descending halberd''s head. Alright, shit, this surely wasn''t where he was dying, right? Without a moment''s hesitation, Mercury turned around and dashed away as quickly as he could, just before the guardian could get another attack off. But since the one way he knew out of here was one he needed to climb, which would take him some time, he simply decided to hide underneath the desk. Wouldn''t it shatter from a single attack? Absolutely. But from behind it, Mercury was able to somewhat observe the guardian as it stepped fully into the room. It was a little low for the birdbrain, so it had to hunch over a bit, so it definitely would limit its range of movement with the halberd. Good for Mercury. He really needed every single advantage he could get. As soon as the guardian stepped foot into the room fully, Mercury began using true combat strategies. He still kept mana and stamina within himself, even if it stung like a bitch, since he most certainly needed that in case he wanted to dodge this thing. Then, like any sane person would, he immediately conjured up his backpack of ammunition. Rocks aplenty. For a moment, the guardian looked around, but it didn''t take very long for it to find Mercury. Yet, before it could take a step towards him, there came a rock, heading straight for its face. Only to quickly be snatched straight out of the air. Alright, this thing was bright enough to catch rocks, at the very least. But how many could it catch? Mercury quickly started throwing a bunch of his collected projectiles at the face of birdhead over there, but they did little, if anything at all. Most of the rocks were caught, and the few it let impact on its body all bounced off its immaculate pecs. Until one rock that didn''t look too different hit it, and wormed its way straight through the surface layer of muscle. For a moment, the guardian looked confused, almost insulted, as it pulled the rock out from its flesh, halting its steps. Of course, Mercury wasn''t one to miss a chance, and when the creature eyed the projectile, Mercury decided it was time to use a second one of his runed stones. He managed to almost hit the same spot again, and this time, with some of the muscles already punctured, it went much deeper. Oh, wow, that was... a lot of blood. "EEEEEKKKKKKKKK!!!!" The creature let out an incredibly shrill scream at this, and for just a moment, Mercury''s world started to tilt. He could see those little, colourful fireflies at the edge of his vision, and he knew that he was out of mana and stamina. Quite frankly, he knew he was at the very end of how far he could go, but yet, he refused to give up. For one more moment, Mercury grit his teeth, and kicked the floor harshly enough to shake himself back awake. He would not let some fucking bird-looking asshole kill him in a stupid damp cave. Even when the guardian stormed at him with rage and bloodshed in its eyes, Mercury stood there, simply grinding his teeth. After all, he still had a sliver of stamina left, and quite frankly, he was more than sure this would take down whatever the fuck this "guardian" was. When rocks didn''t do the trick anymore, he was fairly sure a grenade would prove reliable enough. And so, with one final throw, Mercury emptied out another slot in his inventory, as a small vial filled with liquid soared through the air. Our furry friend took this small second to hide behind the desk again. Although it was knocked over and in bad shape, it would have to do. Then, he heard a loud crash, and a blinding flash of light, leaving him with a strong ringing in his ears. "Ah, fuck," he muttered to himself, as he awaited the aftermath, only to look up and see bloodshot bird eyes staring down at him from a charred face. "Oh, fuck." As he saw it, Mercury immediately bought a health potion from the shop. Luckily, his Skill let him choose the packaging to some degree, so he simply had it appear in liquid form above him, dousing his body in some sweet, glorious healing juice worth a solid 500 gold. And then, with some of his internal injuries feeling a smidge better, he simply jumped at bird bro. No tricks. He had no more mana left, and he was all out of stamina, other than what he needed to walk and maybe squeeze out a jump. Still, it would have to do. With his newly sharpened claws, he dug into the bloodshot eyes of the abomination that was still reaching out to grab him. He quickly climbed onto its back, and used gravity to slide it down, while digging his claws into the thing''s charred hide, leaving long, deep gashes. Then, he ran around its legs, and jumped at the nearest knee, clawing and biting with all he had, until he stopped just a little after he heard it. [You have killed The Guardian. Get: 2500 Exp, 320 Gold, Falcon''s Feather.] [Level Up!] Well, this feather better make up for this fucking ordeal. Actually, scratch that. The level up had refilled his stamina enough, and quite frankly, Mercury thought he could count this as a done job. He spat out some more blood, as he began packing up, getting his special and ordinary rocks back in order, before beginning the trek home. If the guild wanted to know if he had done his job, the fuckers could damn well wait until tomorrow. - - - - - - Avery personally made sure to check every location where combat had happened, especially when no one came in. When he heard that his new fuzzy friend hadn''t come back, of course he didn''t hesitate to rush off to the scene of the crime, but what he found was... surprising. Two human corpses, one of an old lady, who seemed to carry enough weapons to take down a multitude of people, and one of a middle aged marksman, the crossbow just next to his hand. Additionally, a lot of charred and burnt furniture, a full stockpile of all manner of drugs and questionable substances, and finally a third corpse. Chimera, probably. Beastkin weren''t too common in these parts, and usually they would only carry traits from one type of animal, not multiple. So, Avery concluded that this must have been a chimera, no two ways about it. Notoriously tough, and usually decently bright, these things rarely struggled with confidence or arrogance. They made incredible guards, as they never questioned orders by those they saw as superior, and they could oftentimes be whipped into shape as their instinctual fear would stop them fighting back. Avery grimaced at the thought of one of those. Damn things were tough as nails, and he always felt bad for them too. But the most surprising part about the corpse were all the biting and scratch marks. Well, with this, one thing was for certain in his mind. This mopaaw certainly wasn''t someone he needed to babysit. Funnily enough, it didn''t take too long after this for Iris and Lucia to make a similar discovery as they stopped by to check up on things, certainly more due to Iris asking for it, but out of the three, none of them would spread the rumor. After all, Mercury was still just a mopaaw, and telling people of this certainly would only get him unwanted attention. Just like that, the story of our little fuzzy hero defeating a chimera all on his own would be one long buried in the history books. Perhaps one day it would be unearthed by an eager historian, but for now, that day was far away. For now, Mercury was going to fucking bed. Chapter 46: The hot spring episode Chapter 46: The hot spring episode /Uxbeyn, the goddess of the forge, is one of the more tangible deities we have. She is flexible, yet tough, as well forged steel. She can be as cold as a sharp blade, or as warmhearted as the coals at the bottom of her godly smithy. Her residence is found in all volcanoes this land has to offer. When their rocks start rolling, or lava bursts forth from them, it is often caused by one of her victorious screams, when she has yet again succeeded in beating magic into metal. She is an artist, the greatest of all time perhaps, and goes by many names. The godsmith, the relicmaker, the mistress of the anvil, the iron hammer, and sometimes the anvil on which all things are born. She is not the major goddess of creation, but she is heavily worshipped by races who use many metals, as well as any smiths. Her heart blazes with passion for her makings, and if anyone were to insult it, she would not even turn angry. Instead, she would strive with all her heart to improve the thing they criticised. Of course, that is only so, if their criticism was valid. Uxbeyn does not tolerate unwarranted insults to her craft, and if one were to make fun of an aspect of a piece she views as perfect, one might face her full and unstopped wrath. But that is not where the godsmith''s tales stop. There are more than a few of her pieces in possession of different countries, perhaps some of the more famous one being the mask of mischief, one which is impossible to lock away, or perhaps the golden shield, one whose surface never scratches. Of course, there is also the claws of silvermyst, the pole of many faces, and the divine spear Aegisbane, the crusher of many fortresses. It is believed that many more of her relics lay scattered about, always sought, but never found, and some even speculate that the goddess takes some sort of pleasure in us mere mortals searching for the things she has made. Perhaps it is through this belief in her creations that she is able to make more, and perhaps the only reason she seeks to make them powerful is to make them sought after. But these are only speculations, for who could ever hope to truly understand the mind of the anvil on which all things are born. Her creation is questionable, perhaps she does it out of pleasure for war, or for creation''s own sake. All we know is that she makes, and continues to make, with the everlasting fire of her forge burning hot in her heart./ An excerpt from "Of greater Beings" by Matthew Lexicon, the stubborn historian. - - - - - - When Mercury woke up, he was feeling more than just sore all over. Like, seriously, every muscle in his body hurt like a total fucking bitch. Actually, even more than that. He could tell that even his mana veins were bruised and battered, and to be honest with himself, he didn''t know if he could even get up. Additionally, he also had a splitting migraine. He had never been prone to have them back at his old home, but now he could certainly tell what made them so bothersome. Every time he heard someone take a step or laugh out loud, he could feel it growing, like they were mocking him. Then he also seemed absolutely sensitive of light. Every single ray of sunshine from his windows sent his head into waves of pain, and he was dizzy and felt like throwing up. Ugh, fuck. He tried bringing up his status window, but honestly, he really couldn''t. The slight light it gave off was just too much, and even if that weren''t a problem, there was no way he could focus on the letters. Damn it all, wasn''t this supposed to be the easy part? Just resting a little, getting back into top shape? Why did everything hurt more now than it did when he fought? Ugh, fuck. Of course, the migraine was probably brought about by his overuse of his mana. He had absolutely ran his reserves dry, and quite frankly, even now he was unsure of whether they were full or not. Probably not, though. His mana took a rather long while to regenerate if he didn''t specifically meditate on it. His stamina should be in better shape though. He had, after all, just now found out how to use it. Honestly, it seemed more likely that he would have overcharged his muscles, rather than his stamina deposits. He did train his body quite a bit usually, and he was slowly making progress, but not nearly enough to justify what he had done yesterday. Of course, he had an easier time dodging than a human would because he was so small, but he had moved faster than he thought himself possible back there. Man, old Dreamweaver was seriously no joke. Just one hint at a technique from them, and it boosted him this much? He''d have cracked a smile if his face didn''t feel on fire right then and there. Well, what to do then? He definitely needed to show up and collect his payment today, right? Shit, maybe Davis had some painkillers stocked? Would medicine even work for this? Hell it was worth a try. Getting out of his bed was already a task and a half, but when the glaring light of the hallway punched his eyeballs, things seemed to get exponentially harder. Well, not much to do but to bear with it... Mercury slowly took a few shaky steps forward, feeling all of his legs burning with every one of them. Was this what it meant to do leg day? A truly most cruel fate. He took a break just before the staircase, just for a moment, lying down and breathing heavily as he felt the muscles in his chest ache maybe even more than the rest of him. Man, this really sucked. What do people with migraines usually think about? How much pain they were in? How annoying the people talking and walking and living around them were? Or maybe how the fucking sun should shut its mouth for once? Ugh, he was getting more annoyed by the minute. Oh well, nothing more to do than go down the stairauaaagh! And thus, another obstacle was cleared, as Mercury immediately lost his balance, stumbled, and fell down all the way into the dining room. "Uuuuuuughhhh....." "Good morning, sir. Anything I should get you? You look... well, pardon my wording, you look like garbage," Davis said, letting out a slight chuckle at his own joke. "You got any painkillers? I think I overdid the whole mana thing." "Painkillers, yes, but none that would prove effective with your troubles. Perhaps you should seek out a pharmacy? Maybe even the Mages'' Guild, they know much more about mana than me, sir." "Mmmmmm," Mercury grumbled, but slowly picked himself up, now just a tad bit more battered and disheveled than before. "Rough day, fella?" one of the patrons called out to him, but Mercury could only flinch and put his paws to his head. "Ooooh, hangover," they said, now quite a bit quieter. "Bad ''un too, by the looks of it. Sorry ''bout that, didn''t mean ''tah..." "Okay. All good. I''m just gonna... ugh..." and with those truly wise last words, Mercury somehow stumbled out of the dim interior of the inn out into the bright and busting street. To be fair, the sunlight really brought out all of the dirt and crusty blood he still had on his fur, and beautifully accentuated the deep, all-consuming blackness under his eye. Arduously, Mercury began dragging himself through the streets. He was already irritated, and the many carriages and people made it much, much worse. If he had brought a rope with him, he just might''ve strangled some of those noisy ass children. Argh. Shit man, on days like this he truly didn''t envy people who got to experience something like this regularly. Fuck. Really, if the rope he hadn''t brought with him had been sturdy enough, he might have just lassoed the sun and shot it out of this galaxy. Then again, he doubted there was such a rope. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. After a LOT more murring, yelping, grumbling, and sighing, Mercury had finally dragged his sorry self back to the gloryhall. By god, what an ordeal. His legs were screaming at him more than ever, his chest felt like someone had doused it in gasoline, then lit it on fire, used it to heat up a thick slab of iron, and was now forging said iron on it, and his head was still singing a thousand melodies of pain. "AHH- Ah, fuck!" Mercury tried screaming his frustrations out, only to immediately regret it, when in exchange for his annoyance, another headache slammed into him. Why oh why were the heavens so cruel to him? Of course, his shout had been all but silent, and just a handful of moments later, Marcel managed to open the door for him. "I knew I recognized that voice. Come on in, Mercury," he said, keeping his voice low enough to only slightly irritate the mopaaw in front of him further. "You got some fucking painkillers in there?" "Yes, I believe we have some emergency medicine for what you''re experiencing right now. Just a moment for me to fetch it." And just like that, Marcel disappeared through the door, with Mercury slowly trailing behind. The inside was even louder than the outside, with many godseekers yelling and congratulating each other over a few too many drinks. Luckily, it only took Marcel multiple small eternities to return to his furry friend. He brought a bottle of pills with him, funnily enough. Small, white ones. "Do you need any water with th- okay, it''s gone, alright. Give it a few seconds to help you out," the receptionist said with a smile "Uh-huh," Mercury managed to grumble in response. And with that, he was left to his own thoughts again. Allow me to vocalize them. Hr-Hrm: Ow. Ouch. Damn it. Ugly ass one eyed man, shut the fuck up. Ow. My head hurts. My legs hurt. Everything hurts. Why do you have to toast your glasses so loudly?! Urgh! Fuck. I''m thinking too loud. Everything is too loud. Why are these damn light so bright. OW! Ah, damn it all. And then, slowly but surely, things seemed to get a little better. At least after a good 10 minutes, he felt like a proper cat again, instead of some broken and battered piece of shapeless, pained flesh. What an ordeal. Why hadn''t this been a trial, huh?! Seems like his anger didn''t fully recede with his headache. "Hey Marcel?" "Yes?" "You got some place for me to go take a bath in here? Preferably quietly. So like, ideally 7 floors underground." "It seems your humor has returned partially," Marcel replied with a smile. "But yes, it is godseeker policy to have some sort of washroom. Luckily for you, little one, we have something of a hot spring in a small, natural cave below here." "A HOT SP- OW! Fuck! Okay, fine, just... where?" "Keep it quiet though, seekers only. Stairway down, past the toilets on the left, then another stairway down. To the right there''s the locker rooms, and to the left the showers. Please use those before- aaaaand he''s off. Alright." Marcel gave a soft sigh to himself and shook his head. This mopaaw he had found himself was quite a handful, but oh well. He had chosen this job as receptionist, and while sometimes the mopaaw''s antics were a little annoying, he had to admit that he didn''t mind too much. There was a good heart, somewhere in there. And of course, he would also profit from Mercury''s rise in ranks. Maybe that was his first reason? Marcel shook his head. He was thinking too much again, and he still had work to do. Mercury meanwhile really was feeling quite a bit better. Down here there weren''t as many lights, and the sounds from above were muffled at best. Mercury took in a somewhat deep breath, trying his best not to overwork his chest. He quickly headed past the toilets and into the showers, where he would at the very least make sure to wash himself off before going into a hot spring. That must be proper manners, right? The showers each had their own designated stall, with lockable doors. They also had a few different sizes, maybe because there were some giant godseekers, Mercury thought. He hopped into one of the smaller ones, turned on the water after some trial and error and enjoyed it washing by him. To be quite frank, he had never enjoyed the sensation of water. It was fine enough for showers and washing himself, especially warm water. But he still hated baths, so he wasn''t even planning on going into the hot spring. But fortunately for him, if it was a hot spring, there would be steam. He would instead use it like a sauna! A truly evil ploy. He had never been to a hot spring before, truth be told, but he imagined that sitting next to it with maybe just his feet dangling in the water could be nice. Wrapped in a nice, fluffy towel, sitting at the edge of a steaming pile of clean water. Yes, that sounded quite appealing. As long as it wasn''t something like a pool, or a bathtub, or a wild lake with fish, or the ocean, or... Well, anyway. Steam, yes. And so, after watching the shower water drag away the filth that had settled itself on his fur, he walked back out, and shook himself off, before grabbing the fluffiest towel he could find, and wrapping himself in it, by lying down on it, holding it in place with his mouth, and performing a smooth roll. His back hurt during it, of course. This really left him feeling like an old man... After having wrapped himself, Mercury grabbed a second towel, this one to lay on, and started strolling towards the hot spring. He even started humming to himself, his best, quiet rendition of "Utopia City" by Rifles n'' Tulips. Good band, great song. His dad had played it a lot back when he was a kid and they went on some roadtrips. Those were nice memories, he thought to himself. But by the time he was back outside his thoughts, he had almost reached the spring. The lights were now all small oil lamps, which probably needed refilling only rarely. They let off a dim, soft light, that Mercury could now endure after some medicine. So, he stepped in, and immediately noticed two things: 1. There were people here and 2. There was no gender separation. Well, he just hoped he wouldn''t scare anyone. Luckily for him, there weren''t too many people. There was a slightly older looking woman who Mercury didn''t recognize, along with Lucia and Iris... wait, what were those two doing here? Wasn''t this the Godseekers'' Guild? And finally there was also Avery. Of course, everyone was fully wrapped in towels, and he wasn''t an absolute creep, but Mercury couldn''t quite help staring. At Avery. "Shouldn''t you be doing some work right now?" he asked the man, who was still wearing sunglasses while in an underground bath. "Wait, are those water towels?" "Well, finally you turned up. I was starting to get worried, kaha," Avery said, letting out a small laugh. "No, seriously, good work yesterday. How''d you make it here, Mercury?" "You aren''t answering the questions," Mercury simply said, a little disappointed as he slowly walked around the pool, looking for a spot to settle in. "Yes, he should be, and yes, they are. I do not know about other countries, but since there is only this one hot spring, anyone who behaves poorly will simply be banned, yet these towels are still mandated." "Yeah, this is supposed to be a spot of relaxation for anyone," Avery said. "If you infringe on someone''s comfort, that''s your fault. Be considerate." "Well spoken, master Beckham," the slightly older woman said, as Mercury was now establishing himself a spot to lay down on. It was as he had hoped, the air was warm and calming, even with the quiet chattering of the other people. "It is indeed important to allow anyone to be comfortable here, especially since there are no other hot springs in the city." "Then again, if anyone I don''t like wants in here, I can just have them banned. It still belongs to my guild after all," Avery said, shooting a glance at Lucia that carried both warning and some mockery in it. "You dare?!" She flared up. "Ugh, my head..." "M''lady, I don''t quite know if this is the best time-" "Hmpf!!" "Well then," Mercury said, keeping his eyes on Avery as he admired the man''s dedication to a style, "What have you gathered here to discuss?" "Nothing, really. I just wanted to hang out. I didn''t know anyone else would be here. I''m hiding from work. Nira?" "Hiding from work," the older lady said with a slight smirk. Mercury could certainly notice some rings under her eyes, must''ve been a harsh few days. He''d been there. "Taking a well deserved break!" Lucia half-yelled, only holding her tongue after another yelp from Mercury. "Bea- Ahem, godseeker Starlight, is there any problem?" She asked, quite probably trying her best to be polite. Mercury respected it a little, but today his tolerance was maybe too low for a little. "Rough day. Fought some mafia boss bastard, kicked his ass, blew up some birdfaced monstrosity, but it still moved, so I bit the shit out of it. Went a little far, ended up pulling a muscle or 30, probably got some bruised bones, hopefully no breaks though. Other than that, I overused my mana, probably my stamina, and definitely my chest," he said calmly, only to be met with some slightly surprised looks. "What?" he asked. "That seems a little much to use for one fight?" Iris squeaked. "I mean, yeah, but birdface had a spiky axe-spear thingy-" "A halberd?" Nira asked. "Yeah, that. I wasn''t taking any chances, so I used all I got. Threw a mana bomb at it too and all." "You had a mana bomb?!" "Yes, and I also have a headache, dear head priestess, so if you would please, for the love of fuck, lower your damn voice." "I- you-!!" for a moment Lucia seemed lost for words, before she shook her head and grit her teeth. "Fine," she growled out, but kept quiet. "I''ll humor you this time, godseeker Starlight." Avery gave a small chuckle at this. "I gave him the mana bomb from the shipment we got from Birk. Luckily, too. Wouldn''t wanna lose a promising recruit." "Promising?" Nira raised an eyebrow. "This young one has more feats to back himself up?" "A handful. Keeps taking down commissions a rank above him. If he gets another one done, he could raise in rank again, which would be pretty darn quick," Avery said. "Though yeah, taking down a birdface and a criminal surely deserves some credit? Especially without weaponry, other than the mana bomb?" "Actually," Mercury said, bringing forth his many rocks, "I use a lot of weaponry." "Rocks?" Iris asked. "Yup, rocks. With runes on ''em, too!" Mercury said proudly. "You do runework?" Nira raised an eyebrow yet again, seemingly confused, so Mercury gently threw one of his carved stones over towards her. "Hm," she turned it in her hands after picking it up from the water, "pretty decent work, too. Of course, still first grade, but certainly mid-tier runes, no? Only basic sharpness and reinforce, though. Say, godseeker Starlight, do you not know more advanced runes?" "Nope, thought those would unlock with the Skill levels." "Some might, certainly," Nira said, "but not all. Runecarving is an art, and not all runes were created by the system. People have chained them into arrays, invented new ones, created items with them, all such things. There are many who seek to hoard their secrets, and few willing to teach them, but I could certainly get you a guidebook or two." "Oh, really? That would be awesome!" "At a cost, of course," the woman said with a smile. "I''m still a merchant. Giveaways are not my expertise. I believe that if you want something, you should earn it." "I agree," Avery interjected. "And Mercury has, in fact earned something. You feeling better yet? Because I think that you''ve got payment waiting for you." Chapter 47: Build Up Chapter 47: Build Up /Ah, it is once again so in my old days, is it not? I find myself back here, back in this chair, back at this desk, back at these pens. I sit down once more, and I begin writing again. It is not a diary that I write, either, no. It is not a story that I''m telling, not necessarily. I simply sit to write down the things that I need to say, that I need to write for those who may need them in the future. Perhaps, one day, these writings will reach someone in need of them, and perhaps they never will. However, whether they do or do not matters little to me. I suppose I may have grown a little selfish over the years, but these ramblings are for no one in particular but for myself. And as I find myself here again, as every time, I suppose I might as well introduce myself. I am Inyraxa Aruget, a magician, and a good one, or so I''m told. Today is the first freydan of summer. Half the page has already passed, and yet, the warmth is barely rolling in. We have it Book 5, Chapter 13 now. I have stood the test of time, even as the pages passed by for quite long now, and all my hair has already gone white. My skin has grown thin and wrinkled, and any beauty I may once have held has faded. But I have kept some things about me. I may not be as strong, or fast, or beautiful as I used to be, but I like to think that I still have my wits about me. And I dare any of you to challenge me to a game of Ago, because I will still wipe the board with your face. But this is not about that. This here writing is about magic, for once. Oh yes, magic. Spells that use Mp to create wondrous things. Transmutation of one kind of energy into another. Forming your own magical symbols and constructs. There are vast amounts of knowledge hidden in all corners of the universe. Symbols and runes to allow teleportation over vast distances and as often as one liked, or a spell to simply raise a body for oneself. One to steal shadows, perhaps a trick to confuse, to conjure up ice and fire, to disappear in front of someone''s eyes, or to simply move things without touching them. Magic is a very, very vast school of things, and if there is one thing I am confident in saying, it is that there is so very much more we have yet to discover about magic. And perhaps one day, someone might bring a discovery or two to me while I still am able to carry a glint in my eye and celebrate it over a glass of wine and a game of ago. Perhaps this will serve as an invitation, to see a silly old lady and to show her some hidden parts of the world one more time./ One entry out of "The ramblings of an old Magician", written by Inyraxa Aruget, once grandmaster of the casters'' round table, great magician and runesmith, "The Flower of Larima". - - - - - - Marcel paid Mercury with a bright smile on his face. The mopaaw was already completing his first missions as a D rank godseeker. Mercury on the other hand was simply happy with what he got. A full 4 Pales, bumping his total funds up to a little over 7 of them. This could get him through quite a bit of paying rent, as well as feed him for more than long enough. Things were good. For a while, it was quiet in Stormbraver. Lucia was cleaning up what she needed to, and paying the money she owed. The merchants were imprisoned, and there were no attempts to break out of it. There was the occasional thug on the street, or confrontation between people, but it was nothing like a plot to ruin things all over it. As time passed, Mercury made sure to keep training his mana. He had quite some experience in doing so, and recently, it felt like he had been making breakthroughs just a little easier. One day especially, when he was expanding his mana veins into his claws, he felt he finally reached the end of them. Maybe now he would be able to make some larger cuts into whatever he laid his eyes on. At least there were only his fangs left. But of course, mana veins weren''t the only thing he worked on. Mercury slowly but surely also began to read Jurika''s runecarving manual, and since he had this one to pore over, he decided to get one from Nira only after finishing this one up. It was a little pamphlet, and it started off with very basic information. To carve runes, you need to scratch the symbols into some surface. This would be in the form of tiny grooves, usually. Technically you could use elevations, but in that case you''d need to specifically frame the rune, so there were no gaps through which mana could escape, making it quite a bit harder to produce the symbol. Still, definitely possible, and with this method, it was technically possible to print runes onto things, which was an... interesting thought. But what Mercury found much, much more interesting were the pages detailing mana infusion. Apparently you would use different mana depending on the rune. It was different on a case-by-case basis, sure, but there were some general guidelines. "For runes based on offense, make sure to apply the mana quickly, and, if possible, in bursts. 5 strong pulses would usually be enough, like a spear striking forward many times in a row. For defense, it is preferable to use a single strong pulse, like a shield pushing forward, or a slow string of infusion, as though you were weaving together the rings of a chainmail armor while they were still hot." Mercury read out loud to himself to make sure he got everything. He had been reading quite a bit ever since he came to this world, some things more helpful and some less. Because of that, he also developed the habit of reading out loud whenever he found a passage more interesting to help him memorize it. "When dealing with elemental runes, you will want to keep the mana as close to the element as possible. Boiling and wild for fire, calm and steady for water, unshakeable and solid for earth, and light and fast for wind. These are basic examples, and of course there are far more things to be discussed, but these will be a topic for another day." Essentially, to optimize the power of his runes, he didn''t just have to change the volume of mana and the runes'' actual physical makeup, if he wanted to really put forth some good runework, he needed to make sure the compatibility between mana and rune were solid. Interesting to note, for sure. And apparently, there were even more tricks to this. Hm, now that he knew, at least he''d be able to gain experience. Sadly for him, these few sentences already had taken up quite a handful of pages, since the notes were handwritten and quite unruly, with lots of things crossed out. Chaotic, for sure, so reading out loud was even more helpful. But these next few pages? A true treasure trove. Whoever the fuck wrote this book was a saint to Mercury''s eyes. The next few pages of the book were filled with the explanation of runes, detailing how to best carve them in Jurika''s opinion, before providing an actual DRAWING of them. It even included detailed information on how it worked! This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Of course, there weren''t many of them, and two even had a small rip in the paper, so Mercury couldn''t quite get the full picture, but there were a few runes. He simply learnt the titles until he got a chance to practice more closely, but he noted those down in his mind. There were pierce, slash, heat, cold, and a shatter rune. The two destroyed ones would have been crack and shield, which would have both been nice to have, but Mercury was really most excited about pierce. Pierce!!! He had always used sharpness on his rocks, which was a very nice general rune to have, but for projectile weapons, what better rune could there be but pierce? Pierce must be one of the most basic and necessary runes for ranged weaponry, because that''s exactly what that would be supposed to do. He almost jumped when he read it! But alright, since he now had this absolute treasure of wealth in his hands, and was slowly making headway with the guild, he decided that perhaps Stormbraver was a good city to spend some time in. Avery promised to help him find a good tracker, and the public library was filled with a good handful of myths and old stories. Mercury hadn''t given up hope yet, not even close to it. If anything, now that his options were a little wider, he had even more hope! Slowly, but surely. He would grow strong enough to someday see them again, and found his kingdom with them. No matter how long it took, he would, he swore it on his name, on his very self. For a moment, Mercury sighed to himself. He didn''t want to make a habit of being stuck in the past, but sometimes he simply had to look back. He still blamed himself for it a little. But he wasn''t shackled by it anymore. If anything, he was driven by it. He knew that to get everyone back, he needed to look forwards, always forwards. And right now, that forwards was cutting more rocks into shape and then carving runes into them that increase their power manyfold. It was tedious work, sharpening the rocks, but at the very least he could see his Skill rising in level. It was at 8 after a few more days, by which point he had made all the rocks in his backpack into basically stone darts. There were 28 of them in total. Maybe a little overkill, but still probably necessary if he got into a tough fight. Whatever the case, this was certainly enough for him to take down ordinary human adults. His Skill had also levelled up a little, up to 5, so he was pretty sure he was doing decently for a beginner. Of course, this did take the better part of a few days, especially since grinding the rocks down and carving the shapes into them already needed him to use his mana veins and sometimes sharpen his claws again, and then he also needed to meditate to regain some more mana to activate the runes, and man it was a pain, but hopefully it would be worth it. And only 2 days after he was done finishing up the rocks, while he was doing some meditation, growing his mana pool and trying to get in touch with his stamina, he heard the bell ring. The city had an attack on it coming up, and well, as a godseeker, he was absolutely invited to the dang party. - - - - - - Avery was half asleep from work by the time the bell rang. He hated the sound, the deep thump and the following ringing. It threw him off his balance, always seemed to make his heart skip a beat. Avery shook his head as he forced himself awake. It was a little trick he used to force his body''s fatigue out, coursing some stamina through himself and quickly tensioning and relaxing all his muscles. Made for excellent training to build up mass, and also gave the body a kick right in the day. Ah, right, warning bells, those were still a thing. Shit, was the city under attack? Damn, it was predictable though, given that Birk had been here as a spy. He had even told the council and they had called back some of their most recent garrison, but there was still a frontline to be held against those northern folks. Avery shook his head. Whatever, it was time for him to go to battle. They would be coming from the forest, as it gave them the longest period of hiding. South was the opposite of their origin, and northeast was a lake, so the west it was. Then, he checked his combat baggage. He made sure his backpack was full of the supplies he needed. He double checked his potion belt, diligently putting some things he might need in there, and then, Avery specifically made sure to bring heaps upon heaps of raisin bread to a fight. If they wanted him to keep going, he''d need some sugar, and the carbohydrates in milky bread were just perfect. Also, he just really liked the bread, so they''d better get him a monthlong stock when this was done. Ah well, he''d be paid one way or another. Avery smiled to himself. When he thought like this, it really felt like he was a mercenary, but he himself knew he wasn''t. There was a Mercenaries'' Guild, too, after all. He wasn''t that. He was a godseeker, and he was goddamn proud of it. Avery granted himself those thoughts as he stretched. It was second nature to him now, warming up to make sure he could perform to his maximum potential, so he could think next to it. He was proud to be a guild master, proud to be a role model to all the other godseekers below him. To him, there were a few important things. Honor wasn''t one of them, and neither was pride in a fight, but outside of that, he felt there was a certain need for them. To be proud meant to be behind something with your whole being, no matter how other people judge you for it, and he was very, very proud of the guild he was part of. He was proud of its newest member, a quick learning mopaaw with a good sense of humor, of all things. And he was proud to be its master. Avery knew he wasn''t in Stormbraver because the city paid him well. He could get another station that would probably suit him much better, but really, he liked it here. He liked the members, and he liked his influence on them. To inform them that they were not simple mercenaries to do any job as long as coin was paid. They weren''t killers. They would defend, sure, but they wouldn''t mercilessly kill. If possible, he wanted to avoid killing. Because killing was what mercenaries did. He had been a hired blade, or leg, rather, before. He had been on battlefields, and he had snapped men''s necks as though they were twigs. He had seen the very carnage, that reduced people to their primal instincts, and he had sworn that this wasn''t his life. No, he wasn''t a mercenary, not a warmonger, not a sellsword, not a killer for hire. He was Avery Beckham, the master of the Stormbraver Godseekers'' Guild, a man who protected this city down to the last bit of life in his leg, and he was done with his goddamn stretches. And so, Avery headed out to the battlefield. - - - - - - Of course, Avery wasn''t the only one who held some value for this city in his heart. There were many more people here than him, and apart from the godseekers, there were other factions, too. One very familiar one even, as a priestess with platinum blond hair, almost long enough to touch the ground, stepped out on a balcony and leaned over it. She heard the warning bells and the panicked yelps below herself and she sighed, her ocean coloured eyes sweeping slowly over the city. "Why is it, Iris, that this city seems to mind me so?" "Pardon, m''lady?" Lucia sighed another long sigh, turning her back on the people below to look at her attendant. "I asked why this city seems to hate me so. They have been hostile to me since I came here, have put me on trial, and attempted forgery against me, where only so few took my side." She gripped the ring of interwoven metal on her finger hard enough to maker her knuckles turn white. "M''lady, I understand this had been difficult," Iris said, and she could see Lucia almost flinch. Not because she was hurt, but because she was restraining her mockery. After all, what did Iris understand, what did she know? Very little, truthfully, but her lady held back once again. "And perhaps, this city minds our presence yet. Perhaps it will even mind it in the future, but that means not that hope is lost." "These people need our help, m''lady, your help, Lucia. And what would our order, our mercy, even amount to, if it were applied selectively, if it were only shown to those we view as deserving? That is no longer order, that is no longer freedom. That, m''lady, is tyranny." Lucia shook a little in place, her eyes cast downwards, as Iris took a step closer. For a moment, there was silence, but then Iris took the priestess'' shoulders and turned her back towards the people so far below them. "Look at these people, m''lady, and tell me what they have done wrong? Perhaps not all of them are believers, but certainly some are. Perhaps not all of them are silent ones, but some are. And perhaps some of them have sinned, or are even sinning at the moment, but even then, those deserve mercy in our order. Because they have their place, and their place certainly isn''t as a charred corpse in a burnt down city." "You are right, Iris, I know in my heart that you are, but- I- I just... It is hard, sometimes." "I know," Iris said, running her fingers slowly through Lucia''s hair. "I just- I wish that- I-" "It is alright my lady. I know. And one day, that time will come, and until that day, we simply have to wait, and give order to those who need it most." And after another few moments, Lucia nodded and composed herself. "You are right, Iris," she said with a low smile, "as you always are. Well then, if order is required, it is what will be given. Would you..." "I will be by your side, my lady, as I always am," the maid said with a firm nod. "We will go through this, together, as we always have." Chapter 48: War Chapter 48: War /War needs no explanation. Perhaps it is best to lead with something like this. War is cruel, it is heartless, it is cold. War is the worst humanity, or any other race, has ever managed to conjure up of the twisted depths of their mind. War is genocide, it is unfairness, it is long, and arduous, and has a habit of breaking the best of people. No one can help it, because war, in all of its deep horror, war is absolute. It is omnipresent. Always around. Inescapable and hard, because it has a habit of dragging all around it into it, an ever expanding nexus of hatred, and revenge, and murder. Because above all, war is loss, and sadness and terror. War... is war./ A note, written down by general Fulbert Shire, after seeing his own hometown lit ablaze. - - - - - - This chapter contains depictions of violence that may not be suitable for all readers. Viewer discretion is advised. - - - - - - Avery needed no introduction on what to do, and neither did his seekers. They were prepared, the veterans and the rookies, and as soon as they saw him, they rushed to the city gates. Avery was dressed for war. He had equipped his best gear, wearing a cloak made of woven galewolf fur. He had put on a belt, full of shimmering little vials, and his sunglasses were replaced with the ones he wore for battle, a steel construction that was absolutely airtight, with a thick sheet of glass specially designed to not obscure his vision. It was able to change colour at his whim, simply with a thought and a burst of mana. But most of all, there was his jacket, now buttoned up and made from light geryte links, an alloy between the heavy soulsteel, and the much more light and flexible gratiph fibre. Below it, he wore a thin vest of again, galewolf fur, to keep him aerodynamic and his skin safe from the always shifting rings. But the most important part to him were his boots. Above them, he wore heavy pants, fully made from geryte, before being coated in glue from a drake''s wing, and having attached scales of his one killed wyvern to it, but his boots were truly important. Their inside was coated in fur, and his socks were specially made to dampen the impact, thick and uncomfortable, but it was what he needed to protect himself from the force of his kicks. His shoes were made from metal and reshaped bone, after all. They were incredibly solid and heavy, slowing him down just the slightest amount. But when it came to force... These things could take a man''s head clean off. There was no trace of a smile on Avery''s face as he took a step outside the gloryhall. He saw the panic on the faces of the general folk, but he couldn''t mind them right now. His mind had to be sharp. He did not wave to anyone, did not offer any smiles. He simply kept his eyes locked on the city gate, the ice cold look in them hidden by the black glass of his goggles, if one could call them that. Just then, when he passed the church, he saw the doors swing open. Out walked Lucia and her maid, Iris, if he remembered correctly. And well, they did not disappoint. There were no more adornments, no more fancy ribbons and decorations. Their armor was probably even better than his own. Lucia was dressed in pure golden glow, almost blindingly reflecting the light. She wore plate mail, made from scales of something higher ranked than his equipment, for sure. All over the armor were thousands of little symbols, every one of them pulsing with a slow, golden light. Her pants reached all the way down to her boots, the kind you''d wear to get through mud and run in a forest. She was dressed like a ranger, pants made from special leather, with many straps securing it to her. And slowly, as the sun hit her, the armor lost its colour, taking on a soft grey glow, same as her hood, that blended in perfectly with the stone of the surroundings. A chameleon effect as well, then. As to be expected from whatever spending money the church had. Most impressive though was her weapon, a bow he had seen before. It was no longer radiant and bright, it was more subtle, seemingly bending the light. All he could make it out as was a flickering, wavering in the air, like from a heatwave, and as he got closer, he noticed that it certainly was slightly warm. But when Avery looked at Lucia''s eyes he was forced to nod to her. They weren''t cold and hard like his, although she certainly tried to make them seem so. No, instead they were... glossy. She had struggled with this, he knew. All the more praise to her dedication, because while they were glossy, they weren''t soft. Her eyes were hard, a little calculating, but at the same time sad. They had humanity in them, unlike what he could see in Iris''. Her usually pale, pink eyes, seemed to have turned a much darker shade. They were devoid of all empathy, the eyes of someone going out simply to kill, without regard for the blood spilled. Similarly, she was dressed in largely dark clothes, closely fitting her, in a very matte and dark green, almost black. On her, she carried more than a few weapons. A belt of throwing knives, diagonally over her shoulder, a short sword at her hip, and a crossbow, as well as a loaded flintlock at the other side. Bolts on her back, and a chain and sickle in her hands. Additionally, he noticed a handful of concealed straps, that probably held more weaponry. It was clear that neither of them were new to this, and he once more nodded his approval as he went to walk alongside them. "I see you''ve prepared," Avery said out loud, still facing the city gate. "It is war we''re walking into, dear guild master," Lucia said, "not a playground. Are you not just as prepared as we are to lay down your life?" This made Avery take on a soft smile as he bit down on some more bread, soft clouds of steam already gliding off him, and dissipating into the air. "Of course I am, maybe even more than you. After all, each and every one of my seekers is out there, and I''m prepared to lay down my life for all of them. As is my duty as master." "And similarly it is mine as head priestess." "My lady, if anything even wants to touch a hair on your head, it will have to get past the believers, the priesthood, the shadow guard, and certainly also me. There will be no need to lay down your life here," her maid spoke. "Well, dear Iris, I see your point, but I will only tell you this once. As an order, you are to value your life as equal to mine own," Lucia answered, a slight frown visible on her face. "Of course," Iris nodded. "I shall do as I am told, my lady." This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Avery slightly shook his head at this. "Like a married couple. Well, at least I know you''ll have each others'' back. Can''t afford to be babysittin'' anyone. Will you both have mine as well if push comes to shove?" Avery asked, a crooked, perhaps even pained smile on his face. "Of course we will." "My lady comes first, but yes, I shall do my best." "Good to hear it. Well, here we are, anyways, let''s see what the ruckus is?" And with a handful of nods, the trio ascended up the stairs, just to get to the top of one of the watchtowers. "How bad''s it looking?" "Not good, sir!" one of the guards snapped at Avery, in typical army fashion. "A whole battalion of Evlenor raiders, properly equipped with nordic steel. They have been acting slowly, bringing more troops into hidden camps in the forest, and by now they have a substantial number!" "Mh, sucks. Didn''t expect they''d pull back from the frontline this hard." "They are holding the frontline using more and more elite warriors, emerging from the battlefields! Their lower number means fewer exp for our units, and slowly they have gained an advantage, sir! Now, they have begun even driving beasts down from the mountains to fight the battles in their stead, and these maniacs have been riding untamed monsters into battle." Avery shook his head at this. Barbarians, one of his most hated fights. Bastards just wouldn''t go down properly. "Alright," he said, looking down and seeing the invaders perched barely at the edge of the forest. "What''s captain Rondo saying?" "We hold the wall, our archers are getting into position, and the ballistae have been loaded." "How much time do you need?" Lucia quickly interjected. "10 minutes, if we''re lucky. Bastards aren''t likely to give us that much," said a voice from behind, a bear of a man, with long, grey hair, and a similarly coloured and sized beard. Guard captain Rondo, number 12 on the local fame leaderboard, 1013 fame. "Well, captain," Avery said, walking closer to the edge. "Seems you need someone to hold down the line." Rondo smacked his shoulder heavily and gave him a massive grin, his steely eyes lit up with a flame. "Well then, boy," he growled. "Give them our worst." Avery grinned, and simply nodded as he leapt down , falling a solid 12 or so metres until he hit the floor, bending his knees to absorb the impact. He winced a little at his own showmanship, but as he blew out a cloud of white smoke from his mouth, he regained his strength and stood up to his full height, and slowly, a sense of dread seemed to creep over the northerners. This man certainly wasn''t normal. And then, seconds after, another shadow darted to the floor, an impact quieter than a pin drop, simply appearing as if out of thin air. "Well, Iris, I won''t complain about a little help. Have my back?" He offered her a hand to help her back up from kneeling, and Iris gladly took it with a sharp nod. "Indeed, Beckham. Let us teach them what it means to attack Stormbraver." And with that, the two of them darted off to the west, straight towards the forest, where archers were already waiting for them. Iris was a little quicker than Avery, especially with her equipment, but he still had the blessing of wind on his side. As Avery ran, he could feel his steps get lighter as he gained speed. The blessing of his armor was kicking in, and it was solely focused on speed. The man slowly turned from a sprinter into a battering ram, and then into a force of nature by the time the arrows started coming in. Iris nimbly began dodging them, twisting her body out of the way, while Avery flexed his muscles and kicked the floor, sending himself up into the air and over the barrage. A few stragglers came after him even there, but now his feet were in front of him, and most certainly none of those cheaply made, mass produced arrowheads could get through his shoes. Avery kicked down a handful of arrows, and spun out of another''s way, before landing back on the ground, a little more heavily than he had hoped. But by then, he was already close to the forest, and before the archers of the mountainfolk had time to nock another arrow, a small wave of swordsmen brandished forward, only to be met with a handful of throwing knives. Within the blink of an eye, Iris had drawn the small sword at her hip and began stabbing at the enemies. The blade was thin, and would break against armor, but Iris nimbly danced around the hits coming at her, and stabbed it deep into the waists and soft sides of enemies, breaking through their stomachs and spilling all the acid out into their bodies. Avery saw it, and could only imagine the pain, but right now, he really pitied the people coming at him. As there was a group of swordsmen rushing forward, Avery once again felt the wind take hold of him, as his weight combined with his speed to create an absolute battering ram. And just before the collision, he gave a light jump, and stretched his feet in front of him. The impact he felt was sickening, a shield, wooden, coated in metal, that he smashed through. Then the breaking of ribs as he took someone off their feet, and then cracking and screaming as many of his enemies crashed against each other. He carried them multiple meters, before they smashed into a tree, five enemies at once between him and the wood, all ending up with their ribcages crushed. Bone fragments in the lungs, organs ruptured. Dead men. Avery gave it a short thought, and the darkness in his goggles lifted a little. Just enough to give others a glimpse of his eyes before they died, his yellow eyes, with slit pupils, ice cold, and hard as steel. A predator looking at prey. He wasn''t as fast and nimble as Iris, but he was confident in the power of his attack. These pawns posed a threat only if he lost focus, and now, with his eyes wide open, they were there simply as a way to drain his stamina. Avery managed to land on his feet, his knees bent and his body low to the ground. Immediately, he leaned on one of his arms and did a sweeping kick, knocking all soldiers around him to the ground and possibly breaking a shin or two, when someone got caught up poorly. He kicked upwards once, hitting a woman''s chin, and snapping her neck simply from how far upwards her head shot, then dodged back from a sword strike, before landing a straight kick to the attacker''s chest, ribs breaking and stabbing into his lungs. It was brutal, and some blood from open breaks already splattered onto Avery, but his work was nothing compared to Iris''. She was fast, incredibly so, and only played close to the force''s core before Avery''s arrival. Now, he was working as a front shield, drawing all of the attention, and Iris instead ran around and picked off any stragglers. When Avery was about to be backstabbed, she would snap someone''s spine with the weight attached to the back end of the chain, or rip away their weapons before they could make a move. But it was a balance that could never last. After only a minute, the steam around Avery was getting a little thicker, and he needed to be careful. They saw him fight with kicks, and now kept their space, sending people with spears to surround him and stab at every opportunity. Archers were keeping Iris in check and a step further away, and guards with tower shields made from sturdier metal kept blocking her at every turn. They clearly had a good commander on their side, needing only two minutes to develop some counter strategies. But Avery knew that this was only one step to his fighting style. When he was surrounded with spears, he at once jumped up and landed on his hands, quickly swirling around his heavy boots and activating the blessing of wind to conjure up a small storm, giving him a smokescreen. It only took a handful of seconds to clear, but Avery was gone. And when he reappeared, he came strongly. He crashed down from the sky like a meteor, his veins bulging under his skin, clearly the effects of a potion. He crashed down on one of the heavy infantry guards, kicking downward, and smashing their skull in. Before there was a chance for them to react, he had torn through the armor of another as though it was paper, and Iris instantly used the distraction to go after the archers. She pulled out her crossbow and flintlock, taking down two of them without a moment''s pause, then punched in another''s windpipe with the weight on her chain, and sliced another one''s fingers off, no more bow wielding there. It was brutal, fast, and efficient, ending with 6 total archers, and 3 infantry dead by the time the enemy army had gained their composure. 3 minutes time of battle. Casualties: 62 But every second ticking by was brutal on Avery. This was like having to do a full power sprint, and he was breathing heavily, just to keep his muscles going. The potion was helping, and so was his stomach, densely packed with decently digestible carbs, but he still knew that this wouldn''t last. "Pulling back!" He called out to Iris, who gave him a quick nod, before seemingly vanishing. Avery took a few steps back, before blowing a stamina-blast into the forces, a kick that ended up sending enemies a few meters away from him flying. Not lethal, certainly painful. Of course, the enemies didn''t want to give him any time to rest, so he had to deal with ones chasing him, and others surrounding him from the back. An arrow tinked off the side of his chainmail, but still left a certain aftertaste on his skin. A hard shot, and a damn precise one, too. It knocked him slightly off his balance for a moment, and he instantly saw a blade coming for his head. For a moment, his pupils contracted. He saw Iris, and she was a step too far away to help out. Instead, his visor fully opened up, and with a single stare, he paralyzed the soldier for a moment, simply with fear. For just a fraction of a second, the man hesitated, and it was enough for Avery to lean back, and darken the goggles back down. Then, a burning arrow of gold flew past him and ended up searing straight through the man''s chest as he fell to the ground. Finally, Lucia had gotten her shit together, eh? Well, it was a length of maybe 500 metres, and their movements were hectic at the slowest, so her still hitting was a testament to her skill. With this, Avery quickly gave one more roundhouse kick, knocking away even shield-bearers as he gave a long leap to retreat, when another arrow hit his leg, the side of his knee, actually. Another heavy blow, and he stumbled for a moment, but there was no one to take advantage of it. Avery took a single second to look around the battlefield, his eyes narrowing, but soon, he was swarmed again, and simply had to take care of himself. No, he needed to hold this horde back. Those arrows? Whoever it was, it would fall on Iris. Chapter 49: War II Chapter 49: War II /Hm, this world sure is intriguing. An intriguing one, to be certain, especially because there is no division between man and monsters. Be it demons, dragons, angels, humans, mice, eagles, even bacteria or mosquitos, all of them follow the same system. Especially these evolutionary "tiers". Humans as tier 3 beings then? Interesting, yes. These tiers apparently also go into the negative, as mice seeming tier 0 and even insects share this system, and can, in fact, grow as strong as dragons with a lot of luck. What a thought that is. A giant monster ant? Interesting, certainly. Could make for a good story, indeed, but this is not what I''m here for. Right, I need to continue on my research. Apparently, in this world, there is much to explore. The flora is very unique, in that it can grow on some sort of essence called stamina from within itself, seemingly able to grow and regenerate even without photosynthesis, though this depends on the plant. Some flora and fauna also appear to be completely independent from sustenance, able to exist purely by converting this "stamina" and "mana" into life force. My own values have also been categorized as soon as I stepped foot here, and it would appear that this system is less one to follow, and more something that documents your progress. Curiously, the ability to simply increase one''s power seems much more intrinsically linked to the world itself. However, the system allows for great degrees of customization, where one can rearrange their "status" page, as it calls it, in whatever way they want, even to the point of showing other resources than just Hp, Mp, and Sp. Somewhere on this world, it is said people also use Qi, another form of energy which exists in many worlds. This is certainly an interesting place, and I believe I may stay here for quite a while. I shall be reporting back in a few pages, local time./ A report back to base by a worldwalker. - - - - - - Iris clearly saw Avery getting shot. She was a little surprised seeing the man fight. There was no elegance in his moves, no fancy footwork, none of the dancing many martial arts presented. Instead, his every step seemed to be optimized for... simply dealing damage. It wasn''t a dance of war, it was a crude, brutal fighting style, crushing bones and skulls. Clearly, it was developed not from training from elusive masters, but instead straight on the battlefield. Against... monsters, it seemed. Regardless, for now she needed to focus. She had seen his gaze, the look in his eyes. She had seen his hunger first, but his message she had also read. Iris knew he needed her to take care of whoever was firing those arrows. The attendant shot a quick glance back at her lady, safely on the wall, far away from the front and made up her mind. She took a moment to reload her crossbow and flintlock, before dashing away from the tree she was hiding on, and rushing deeper into the woods. The archer she was looking for was clearly strong. Those arrows were fast, and if Avery were an ordinary soldier, they should have sunken deep into his flesh. Also, the shooter was moving, clearly. She had seen where the arrows came from, and it had been two very different directions. So, instead, she would have to keep on lookout for any shots near her. Iris didn''t like wasting stamina, but if Avery were overwhelmed because of this factor, it would cause her much trouble. !! Iris felt a pulse of strength resonate out from her heart and rush through the leaves all around her. Then, the echo bounced back, and almost like a sonar, she became aware of all shapes near her. But her Skill was quite evolved, so it even transmitted heat signals, yet she found nothing in the area. Further into the woods it was. Once more Iris cast , only to flinch and instantly make a small leap to the side. With a hissing sound, the arrow blew closely by her face, cutting some hair out of her ponytail. Shit, she''d been spotted. Iris'' eyes hardened at this, as whoever had shot at her, she still couldn''t sense them through her . She clenched her jaw for a moment, before leaping off the tree into the undergrowth, dampening her fall with a roll, as another arrow impacted the bark just a little above her. Without hesitation, she began to sprint, using her evolved form of to cover as much distance as possible. First, she ran to her right, up north, only to quickly turn, making a few curves around the trees to hopefully shake the sharpshooter''s aim. Whoever it was, they were good. She had a few suspects in mind, simply off the leaderboards, which narrowed down their scope of abilities just a smidge, but she still didn''t like this. But with her having moved another hundred metres closer, Iris activated again, and finally, she caught a small heat signal, hidden in the bushes southwest. Immediately, she dashed forward, drawing her shortsword and activating , just as the bells from rang out. After a tiny moment, time slowed down a little, and she could hear the now low hissing of the arrow coming closer to her, driving itself through the forest at insane speeds. Iris squinted to keep her eyes safe from the wind and focus them, until she could see the slight ripple in the air, just a tiny bit ahead of a sharp metal tip. As she felt her stamina draining, Iris slashed out, hitting the tip of the arrow and deflecting it away. She deactivated , only to bring it back up less than a second later, when her alarm bells rang once again. This was a war. She needed , but was just too costly to keep permanently active. Instead, she activated it in short bursts, when things flew close to her. Moving with supernatural accuracy, she deflected another arrow, this one heading straight for her left eye, before doing a spinning jump out of another''s way. Then, with another burst of , she knew that the archer had moved. Little rat. It was hard enough deflecting the arrows, not to mention keeping track of their trajectory, and then apparently there were crossbow traps set up to make her question where the shooter was. She could tell though, the bolts were much slower. Those she could dodge with her whole body, meanwhile with the arrows, she barely had time to deflect them. But she was still clearly closer, and with one final burst of speed, she broke through the last bit of shrubbery to come face-to-face with the shooter. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Ah, the "northern sharpshooter", with an infamy of 532. Gortur Arroweater. Apparently, he once was shot in the face and stopped the attack just by biting down on it very, very hard. "Ah, feck, ye got me, eh?" the man said with a grin on his face. Short green hair, beard stubbles, and a few wrinkles. Maybe mid 30s. Only armed with a bow, wearing camouflage for a forest, leaves and all on his back. Iris was in no mood to talk, and seeing that he only carried a bow, she decided to engage carefully. He could still be hiding something in his inventory, after all. But when she took a step forward, the alarm bells in her head rung loudly, and even when she activated , she knew that the bolt was too close. She had stepped on a tripwire, firing a crossbow bolt from concealment right at her face. And for a few moments, she could see Gortur talking. "Well, lass, nice knowing ya. Shoulda seen thet ''on coming, ''eh? Bu'' I really gotta get back ta'' business, noting personel. See-" Before he could finish, there was a flash of light, passing right by Iris'' head, smashing the crossbow bolt into smithereens. Iris knew who this was, and she had to give a smile. Hitting a small target at maybe 900 metres. It must have taken quite a bit out of her lady, but it was certainly worth it. She wouldn''t waste this chance. Instantly, Iris used , keeping her active. She made mental notes of all the tripwires before Gortur could even turn around, and then made a mad dash for the bowslinger. Gortur could only swear under his breath as he pulled out a long dagger from his inventory. Poisoned, Iris noted, just like her own sword was. "Oi, lass let''s reconsider this, eh?" He asked hastily, parrying a swing or two from her, but she had the overwhelming advantage here. Her attacks worked best when she had the drop on someone, but when it came to a simple one-on-one, she was confident she could hold her own against most opponents. After three clashes of swords, Iris managed to kick out, landing a solid hit on Gortur''s thigh, as he at least got his crotch out of the way. The man yelped in pain, but Iris was relentless. When he raised his hand for another swing, she parried it with one hand, and quickly drew her crossbow with the other, going for a shot in the chest, to make sure he coudn''t avoid it. Gortur wore armor, but since he was a bowman, it was rather light, and her bolt pierced through it, digging itself deep into his flesh, and lodging itself between two ribs of his. Possibly puncturing his lungs, too. The bowslinger started to cough up blood at this for just a moment. "Ya got me good," he wheezed. "But not good enough." And with that, he also drew a loaded crossbow from his inventory, and at this range, Iris''s chance of dodging were slim. Instead, she decided to kick the weapon out of Gortur''s hands, in retaliation to which he cursed, but also landed a nasty cut with his dagger on her calf. She sharply sucked in some air, but quickly ended things with a stab in his face. Her eyes were cold as she checked his dagger. Looked like crazroot poison, so she would be limping if she didn''t manage to get it out quickly. Iris drew in some air sharply, pulling out a small medicine satchel and looking around it for a minute, before she found some herbs. She quickly mixed some klomp powder with ridroot juice, before adding some finely cut lark needles. As Iris smeared the mixture onto her leg, she quickly also swallowed some ridroot syrup, some of the more pure stuff, and even then she grit her teeth hard. The burn from lark needles was always incredibly unpleasant, but after a good thirty seconds it got a bit better and Iris huffed out some harsh breaths. "Hugh! Argh, hah, hah... Fuck. Damn bastard," she grunted out to herself, before quickly bandaging her calf and raising to her feet. The whole chase had lasted three minutes or so, and she was quite sure Avery might be in trouble by now, so Iris immediately started hurrying back. She had apparently been worrying for a reason, as when she came back after another few seconds, Avery was surrounded and covered with quite a few injuries. Small scratches on his face and hands, and one deep gash on his thigh, that kept on pulsing with blood. Without hesitation, Iris plunged herself into the thick of it, now that she had the drop on things quickly incapacitating people with throwing knives, before smashing their cervical cords with the weight, or slashing their throats with her sickle. Avery himself gave her a big smile, as he pumped himself up, jumping into the sky to drink another potion. His veins bulged under his skin, and the steam around him grew quite a bit denser as he exhaled a white mist. "Alright, motherfuckers. Time for some ass-kicking!" And only a moment later, a thick wave of echoed out from Avery over many of the people close to him, and within only a moment of hesitation, he had dealt out three high kicks, smashing in visors and faces alike. Iris thought that she would rather not be on the receiving end of those kicks, but luckily, the man was on her side. And so, with the cover that she got from guild master Beckham, and the now more frequent shots from her lady, Iris was quite confident plunging herself further into the fray. After another minute, she also had a few cuts on her, when she had been a little slow, and after a second minute, her movements were growing slow. Avery''s potion was also wearing off, and while the man was smiling, she could hear his panting. Time of battle: 9 minutes. Casualties: 160 Both of them were growing sluggish, but the time they needed to stall for was running low, and with a look between the two, they slowly started to retreat. Some soldiers attempted to block their path, but burning arrows of light quickly struck them down. Avery shook his head at this. Seriously, the firepower of that bow was fucking nuts. He still didn''t dare to turn his back and run, but the further they got into the cleared fields, the more support they had. The entire enemy army was now pursuing them, but it seemed some of the archers had gotten their shit together by now, and even captain Rondo himself was pitching in, nocking what looked like small tree trunks onto a bow that was as long as the giant was tall. Avery smiled to himself. Rondo was a little old, but he certainly hadn''t lost hi- hey that arrow almost hit him?!! Was that old man fucking serious?!? Still, after a little while, the retreat went smoothly, and after 11 minutes, Avery and Iris were back at the gates, and the two armies had entered a shootout. Northerners, cowering behind their shields and shooting volley after volley, while arrows hailed down on them in waves. But they didn''t have anyone with shots strong enough to burn through steel, meanwhile, they had Lucia. This was where the head priestess truly shone. While the army slowly advanced, pushing up even a battering ram, Lucia made sure to shoot large holes into their defense, messing up their formation. Every arrow of fire she nocked, another soldier fell, all of them cleanly pierced through as even some of the grass on the ground was lit aflame by her. Avery and Iris were taking a short break to regain their stamina, both of them eating some rations and splashing the minimum required healing potions onto their wounds. It didn''t heal them fully, but at least this way the pain wouldn''t distract them enough to make a difference. It was only a short break, maybe 5 minutes, until the ram was at the city gates, and with loud thumps, the entire construct shook. "Hey, Rondo, how long will the gate hold?" Avery asked in between bites. "Hmpf, maybe two minutes. They''re swinging that thing with quite some force, but their windup is horrible." "Better for us," Iris quickly added, "we should ambush them while we have the chance." "Sure, you know who or where their general is?" Avery asked. "Well, no-" "Then who do you wanna ambush? Any targets?" "The carriers of that thing, obviously!!" Iris raised her voice a little, only to have Avery respond with a smile. "You''re right, then. Let''s show these fuckers what we''re made of, boys!!" And with that, from on the wall, a roar suddenly blew out. "HU!" And with it, a hundred spears, staffs, scabbards and bows hit the wall. "FOR GLORY!" Avery shouted, raising himself up to his full height as he chugged another healing potion, before throwing the glass to the floor. "WE SEEK IT!!" came the thundering reply, a hundred or so voices, and perhaps there was even a meow among them. And for a moment, Avery shot a wild smile to Iris. "Looks like it''s time we bring the fight to them again, eh? Keep a look out for high profile targets, we got these scrubs under control." "WE SEEEEEEEK!!!" And with that, a hundred sets of feet rushed down the walls, a few people even jumping off them. Archers nocked their bows, and with beams of light, their arrows pierced heads and chests. Gunslingers aimed and pulled the trigger, their mana-coated ammunition smashing through protective gear, and some of it even exploding on impact, or, in a few gruesome cases, inside someone. And then, their magicians began to rain down fire and ice, of course with the assistance of the mage''s guild, and in a moment, the battlefield became a hailstorm. Soldiers jumped out of the way of sudden balls of flame, and some were knocked around by heavy gusts of wind. There were icicles and stones raining down, and a few moments later, the city guard truly activated their heavy machinery. The ballistae rained fire down on the army, creating craters in the earth, as Rondo''s laugh thundered forth. "Let them come then!" he yelled. "Let them see what storms this city braves!" "OOOOOHHHHHH!!!!" And amongst all the chaos, there was a single mopaaw, heading down the staircase among his comrades in arms. He wore no heavy armor, and not too much special equipment, only a ring on his leg, and a cloak on his back, Mercury Rainfall Starlight was walking into his first large-scale battle. Chapter 50: Killing Chapter 50: Killing Hey, this is your author here. Yes, I know that a self-insert is usually rare, but I think this is the perfect time. Chapter 50 is a big milestone, after all, so I have decided to introduce myself here. As you might know, my name is Liam. Liam K. R., to be precise. I''ll keep my surname entirely hidden, but do feel free to speculate what the K. R. stands for. I just want to thank you all. Whatever capacity you may find these writings in, I''d be happy for anyone to see it. To be quite honest with everyone, I was never sure if I would even go and make this book public. Even now, I don''t quite know how to do it, but I think releasing it in volumes would be fun. I''m unsure of a title, but hey, in case you know the final result, I''ll at least document that the working title up until now has been "Adventures of a reincarnated Catboy". Hm, what else is there to say? I''m proud of how far I''ve gotten with this, and I hope that in the future, we will see each other again. Perhaps in chapter 100, then? I suppose that would be an appropriate time for me to shortly interject. Well, I''ll no longer take away your valuable time. Please, do enjoy the next segment of worldbuilding. It''s always a joy to do those small segments to get into the zone, after all. /What on Chronagen has happened to this world? Have all things gone mad? The dragons have gone mad with their power and immortality, declaring a formal war on their lesser bretheren of xialj, the serpent people. Then, the demons have broken their long standing allegiance with the devils. they have begun a terrible, terrible war, and while I have only heard tales of the destruction and flames in the west, I do not dare look more closely, for even being near those warmongers could get one killed. But this is not even the worst. The dwarves and giants in the far north have disappeared. They retreated underground, so far into their everlasting halls that no one has seen a trace of them ever since. They even closed all of the entrances to their city and closed them shut so thoroughly that they can no longer be opened without shaping entire mountains themselves. To the south, the water-dwelling gwan have gone mad, rising from their lakes and fighting the elves for larger territory and hunting grounds, and the usually peaceful folk have begun a brutal retaliation, massacring any and all who would take a step into their territory. But what is worst is the beastkin. Their feral instincts have taken over their minds, and they have begun slaughtering all humans in our city. I fear that as more survivors seek out shelter in our camp, we will run dry of resources. We cannot hunt, for fear of being hunted, by the pointy ears or the beasts, we cannot travel as all around us we are blocked. It feels like we have been trapped within a cage of the gods'' making. Is this the end? Has this world truly gone mad?/ A part of "The Remnants of Humanity", written in the first book, by the ancient chronicler El-Ro. - - - - - - This chapter contains depictions of violence that may not be suitable for all readers. Viewer discretion is advised. - - - - - - The battlefield was pandemonium. Mercury had never seen war, but he had always hated the thought of it. He never joined the military. He hated the thought of the regime there, and quite frankly, he would even prefer his hated job as a bureaucrat to the army. Sure, he had a sucky boss, but at least he still had his human rights... most of the time, at least. Sure, he would be yelled at and didn''t get a lot of sleep, but having every detail of his life micromanaged... what a disgusting thought. Mercury spit on the ground next to him, then forced himself back to reality. Because, as a matter of fact, people around him were dying. People that he somewhat cared about. He could even see Marcel somewhere in the fray, conjuring up a shield to stop an arrow every now and then. Right, he should make himself useful. Mercury nodded to himself again as he started running across the plains towards the forest. He sure as fuck wasn''t taking on any human swordsman without some proper armor, but backstabbing a couple of archers? Now that was more doable. The cat ran across the fields at a decent speed, avoiding many of the boots that got close to him. There wasn''t much fire going his way, since he was just a mopaaw, even though he sure was a weird looking one. Maybe the pet of a tamer, sure, but those were never quite worth full soldiers, so he was able to make his way through relatively decently. Only at the very end before he reached the forest, some archers and a spearman tried to get at him, but when Mercury used his mana veins, his stamina vessel, as well as all at once, he got a burst of speed that immediately propelled him over the attacks and into the shrubbery, where his cloak made for very good camouflage. Of course, he himself was still light, but he already got sprinkled with some grass and dirt, and quickly took another two rolls on the ground to help with that. He could still hear shouts and metal hitting metal over in the east, but for now, he wasn''t too close to the centre of the fray. Instead, he could now occasionally pick out the soft twang of a bowstring. The mopaaw looked around for a little while, but was soon able to spot one of the archers. They may have been stationed well, and weren''t very easy to see for most people, but then again, his eyes were made for a predator. Immediately, Mercury used and as much as possible so he could inch his way a little closer, and with all of the hectic going on where the archer was aiming, sneaking up was very doable. Within half a minute, Mercury was behind his first target, and then he hesitated. Of course, as someone from the 21st century, this seemed immoral to him. He didn''t really want to kill someone, and with this choice in front of him, he could certainly understand the weight of it. Mercury had always valued life, sometimes more, and at the end of it all quite a bit less, but he still didn''t feel like it was fair of him to take some else''s life away. Well, not by his standards at least. For a moment, the cat hesitated, but then he took a deep breath. He was in the middle of a battlefield, he couldn''t stop at this. If he hesitated, other people were going to die, and did he really want to risk- As Mercury was in thought, his ears twitched, and he heard the twang of a bowstring, followed by a pained yell. Even moments of hesitation were moments too long, it seemed. He took another deep breath and steeled himself. He was an adult, and if it was necessary, then he supposed he''d have to take responsibility for what he was about to do. With that, he silently took out his backpack, and hurled four sharp rocks at the archer. Whoever it was, they had not heard his breathing, not the hissing of the rocks over the sounds of battle in front of them, and it was only moments later that they died. The stones had pierced their cheap leather armor, two of them going through the back of their head and into their skulls, another deep into the middle of their back, and the final one, a little off target, dug itself into the archer''s left shoulder. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Immediately, the body slumped down, dropping like a wet sack of potatoes as Mercury grimaced slightly. He took a shaky breath, then walked forwards, and took his rocks back into his backpack and inventory. For once, he had ammunition enough, and sharp ones, too, and yet it was the first time he thought about what he was doing. There was a little adrenaline in his veins, sure, but definitely not as much as the time his life was threatened by a crossbow. Still, he simply pushed it off to think about later, though he did wonder if there was pain involved. But with a sigh, Mercury moved on. was doing its job, after all. And even his willpower was greater than the average human''s. It was possible to push it aside, to deal with it later, to face his guilt. Now was not the time to think, now was the time for action. And with that in mind, Mercury crouched down low to the ground, and scanned his environment again. His ears were ringing a little, and his head was spinning a little, but it was all manageable. After a few bits of sneaking around, he laid eyes on another target. An archer, male, brown hair, tied back. Tall, and, from what Mercury could see under the dirt caked face, a little older. Perhaps 40, maybe a bit more. Within a moment, Mercury could see his eyes, focused forward and hard, his lips, tightly pressed together, his nostrils flaring as he inhaled one final time to hold his breath, and without hesitation, Mercury threw himself at the man''s bow. He jumped off the ground with all he had, and all his abilities and Skills, and tackled the side of the weapon, causing the arrow to not go very far before lodging itself into the ground. It didn''t matter much who would have been hit by it, Mercury had stopped the attack. For a moment, he felt dopamine flood his brain, before rang warning bells in his head, but before he could react, he had been slammed in the head by a bow. Mercury was launched quite a bit, rolling over himself twice before regaining his footing and immediately running. His sense of direction had been fucked by this, and it took him a moment to realize he was heading deeper into the forest, but as soon as he did, he started to take sharp left and right turns, before he could get something sharp lodged into him. The mopaaw started panting heavily as he ran, his head spinning, and his version of straight being a little wobbly. He probably had a minor concussion by this point, but he grit his teeth, and jumped onto a tree trunk. The little guy even managed to spin in mid air, turning around, landing on his feet, and jumping off again to perform a 180, rapidly heading back to the middle-aged man who had smacked him before. He could feel some blood on his fur as he ran, but he paid it no mind. He needed to stop this man, whoever it was, before he could loose another shot. It was his duty, his reason here, if he couldn''t even stop something as simple as that, why was he here? And so, very quickly, Mercury reapproached his foe and leapt towards the man''s face, only to be smacked down onto the ground. This was a soldier with some training, not cannon fodder. Mercury''s world was spinning as he regained his footing, only to immediately roll again, this time out of the way of a curved dagger. The archer had apparently sheathed his bow and was now trying to stab the mopaaw. The older man''s blue eyes were hard as steel, looking down on Mercury as nothing more than a beast, something else to be taken out of his way before things took a turn for the worse. But then, the thing suddenly conjured up a rock from thin air, its inventory, he guessed, and launched it towards him. Not a worthwhile risk, the man knew that much, and sidestepped the throw, and caught the second attack headed for his foot, only to look back up and see a little ball of fur charging straight at him with more speed than a mopaaw should legally be allowed to build up. Troublesome, the man thought and clenched his jaw, entering a low stance with his dagger in front of him, when the mopaaw suddenly jumped, conjuring another two rocks from thin air, instantly launching both of them at the man. The archer was forced to sidestep, but tried his best to keep his eyes on the furball, only to be sorely disappointed with himself when the thing disappeared. Mercury had activated and , as well as vaulted a half successful attempt at . Half success was seemingly still enough though, as his muscles immediately screamed in pain, only for him to see a small notification pop up again. Strength: 51 -> 52 And moments after, he slammed into the adult man, only to instantly flood his claws with mana and scratch and bite at everything he could. He needed to stop this guy, whatever it took. "Ahhhh! Littl'' fucking beast!!" he screamed out, swiping at Mercury again, and knocking the small monster off himself. Mercury could barely even stand anymore, but when he looked at the old man, he saw deep gashes on his face, and across one closed, and heavily bleeding eye. Then, he realized that while injured, the soldier was still in decent shape, and his leftover eye was strongly focused on Mercury. "Oh-oh." And with that, Mercury darted off towards his now angry foe, wobbling left and right a little bit as the world seemed to slowly tilt. He just had to make it there, just a little bit more... And then he did, colliding with the man''s leg and instantly scaling upwards. The soldier tried to swipe, but Mercury dug his claws deep into the bastard''s flesh, and wasn''t knocked off by the first or second glancing blow. By the third, he had reached the archer''s throat and instantly bit down on it. Mercury could feel the hot blood trickling into his mouth, but he was far too full of adrenaline to recognize what he was doing, and instead wildly shook his head around, tearing flesh away. Only moments later, he was hit by a heavy blow into his side, knocked to the floor, the dirt sticking to the blood he already had on his face. But by the moments later, he had gotten to his feet, he saw the archer slumped against a tree, holding his throat. There was no longer malice in his eyes, only a silent panic as he covered the grisly wound in an attempt to stop the blood, giving off soft gurgling sounds as he slowly bled and choked to death. Mercury''s feet were rooted to the ground as he watched this. He couldn''t move them, somehow, and he watched in abstract horror as the seconds stretched out for an eternity, before finally, the man''s eyes grew empty, and his body slumped over forward. And for a few seconds longer, Mercury stood there in shock, silently watching the body, before another yell from the battlefield shook him awake again. The cat took a long, shaky breath, and then another. He could taste the iron and earth in his mouth, feel his fur caked with grime, and the bruises all over his body ached terribly. His head was spinning, and he still couldn''t walk straight, as with every step, it seemed as though his world was tilting. But when the floor grew closer to his face, Mercury breathed yet again, and then once more, as he took another step forward. He was slowly sinking into a state of ihn''ar, because he understood what he was doing. Breathing, walking, and fighting. A battle inside and outside. He took just one more step forward. [ has levelled up! 2>] And then just another step. And one more. A few deep breaths, hearing the ringing in his ear, and looking around the distorted world for an archer. None? Just one more step. [ has levelled up! 3>] Just one more. If he could take out just one more archer... - - - - - - Rondo was still on the walls when the battle raged, and so were most of the guards. They were providing long ranged support for now, but in a few minutes, the godseekers would pull back to sort out their wounds and rest their stamina for a moment, as the guards took over. Rondo saw that the enemy army was surprisingly well organised. They were swarming Avery and Iris, providing them little opportunity to move freely, and not giving them many chances to carve bloody paths into the army. Of course, the two of them, with Lucia''s support, still performed admirably. All of the godseekers did, in his eyes, but most of the time, they were fighting enemies that were equal to them in level, with a lot more drive to fight. After all, the seekers could, in the end, just run away. Walk into another city. But the northerners? This was do or die for them. Rondo ran his hand through his beard, cursing his age in his head, scanning the battlefield for the general, when he heard someone clear their throat behind him. His eyes narrowed for a moment, then he turned around with quite a smile. "Well, if it isn''t count I''htar. What brings you here?" "Captain Rondo, it is a pleasure," the man said, his voice smooth as silk. He was wearing a black suit, with vertical, grey stripes, and looked immaculate as usual. Count I''htar was a man in his late 30s, always well kempt, tall, and slim. He had sharp eyes, and brown hair that had just enough red in it to add some fire. His eyes were a deep brown, always seemingly mulling over many things, but also sharp and focused. His nose was thin, and a little long, his lips pale, but slightly glossy. "Yes, yes, sure. What brings you here, count? We''re having a bit of a situation, so please get to the point quickly," Rondo said, eyeing the man in front of him up and down. He wasn''t particularly tall or strong, but if the count was here, there must be a point. "Well, I do believe that you could use some help, no? It just so happens that one of my security agents, one with many eyesight-related skills has figured out where the enemy general is hiding." Rondo''s eyes widened at this. "Where?!" "And yes, you may think there is a price to it, as the bank usually does business that way, but not this time. Though perhaps you''ll get out loans when this is over, the interest we offer is better than that of the merchants anyways," the count said, a slight smile on his lips. Rondo, on the other hand, simply was clenching his teeth. He grabbed the count''s shoulders, moving his face closer to the much smaller man''s. "Men are dying, count. Where??" "In the forest, Rondo. About 600 meters west, and another 150 north," I''htar said, still smiling confidently. It would have been better for business to let this rage on a little longer, but it would have been a gamble. Maybe some houses would have been broken, but it could have also ended in some of his businesses damaged. Additionally, corpses wouldn''t need new weapons. No new weapons, means no gold being loaned from him, and no loans means no profit. So, I''htar saw this as the chance to strike. Without a moment''s pause, Rondo let go of the smaller man, stepped to the edge of the wall, and formed his hands as a funnel around his mouth. Then, after a deep inhale, his voice bellowed out over the battlefield. "AVERY!!! 400 WEST, 100 NORTH FROM YOU!!!!" And then, as the master of the Godseekers'' Guild heard the words, Avery looked back and nodded. Within a few seconds, he slammed a potion down his throat, and his muscles bulged as steam began pouring off him en masse. And then, with the ground cracking a little, and a howl of wind, Avery was gone from where he stood. Chapter 51: A little like Chess Chapter 51: A little like Chess It took Avery no time at all to jump off. He felt a little bad for all the seekers around him who''d have to deal with the cleanup, but overall, this would still be good enough for morale. When he soared through the air, he always felt free. For a moment, just at the apex, the weight of his armor became nonexistant, and for a moment, he would simply float there. But Avery knew that the ground would soon claim him again, and he was prepared for it. He drew upon his stamina, and drew in a deep breath of air. He pushed his blood through his veins at insane speeds, speeding up his heartbeat, and as he did so, he could feel small veins in his eyes bursting, tainting them red. Avery had a grin on his face at that point. This had happened before, of course, as using this much stamina all at once wasn''t even healthy, but there was no pain. He''d heal soon enough, and well, his eyes were a little special. As Avery hit the apex of his jump, he could hear the blood rushing in his ears. As he was falling, his stamina caused him to heat up, covering him with a thin layer of steam. And when he saw the ground rush towards him, the muscles in his legs were pushed to their maximum, straining to the point where they were visible through his thick leather pants. Avery came down with a large crash, many meters from his launching point. He was heated up and ready, and after a single glance upwards, he started sprinting off at his top speed. Within seconds he had crossed hundreds of meters, and after not even a minute, he had gotten to the point where the general was apparently at. Of course, Avery didn''t expect to see them here. The general was smart, and probably far gone by now. But he wasn''t stupid either. Avery fully lightened up his glasses, swiping his red tinted vision across the field, his reptile-like pupils searching for any sign of movement. !! The guild master kept his eyes hidden because they constantly consumed stamina, depending on how much light he saw. The more his pupils tightened and focused the light, the more stamina they used, and usually, it came with an uncomfortable pulling feeling, just like now. This time, it was much stronger though. The blood that had pooled into his eye suddenly formed a single drop, and then crystallized as copious amounts of his stamina were drained. But when their focus came back after a split second, it paid off. He could now see blood. Not just heat, he could literally see the blood flowing in all living things. Birds, lizards, even insects. And, of course, a few hundred meters away, a human. Avery smiled for a moment, deactivating . "Found you." And just like that, he burst into a sprint again. He could feel the air rushing by his face, blowing away the steam that was gathering around him. After a few moments, Avery had arrived at the general, digging his heels into the ground to stop. Stamina makes it possible, baby. "Come on, let''s make this quick. I don''t got all day!" But after only a few moments, Avery gave a sigh at the silence, reactivating his and keeping it active as he approached the source. He could feel his own heart pulsate in his chest, and he could even smell the blood from his cuts, its iron odor creeping its way up his nose. He slightly frowned at this, but kept his focus on the opponent in front of him. They weren''t alone, the general actually had 4 guards around themselves, and it didn''t take long for one of them to jump up and have a go at Avery. A woman, with short, blonde hair, and blue eyes that many might have called pretty. She had an angular face, long nose, and square chin. Decently tall, well built. "Step back now or we will have to get violent!!" the woman called out seriously, pointing the longsword in her right hand towards Avery. A one and a half hander, he noted, also sparing the shield in her other hand a short glance. "Well, lady, let''s get to it then," he said, the frown on his face deepening. He had deactivated his , opting for the much more combat oriented . Whoever this lady was, she at least deserved this much attention, because her swings were quick, and her footwork was solid. Avery luckily could see the attacks coming very well, and used a mix of ducks and weaves, as well as his hands to deflect the blade. The girl was decently skilled, but he wasn''t really trying to beat her too hard. After all, he still had questions, and revealing every card he had when there were still some more guards ready. He needed to get this done fast. "!" he yelled out a move, making his opponent take a step back, only for him to draw close and instead thrust his knee into her stomach, knocking the air right out of her, and following it up with a heavy kick to the same spot. He might''ve cracked something there, but she''d definitely make it through, for now that is. He wasn''t in a hurry as long as the general couldn''t give any big orders. By now she''d at least be distracted by him. Wait. No, no, no. That was nothing like him. He didn''t make assumptions about the enemies like that. Someone was influencing his mind. Not paying attention to the other guards, Avery coursed the remnants of his enhancement potion through himself, using it up fully for one more burst of speed, where he reappeared in front of the enemy general, another woman. She seemed to be in her late 30s, with black hair and strong eyes, staring back at Avery with disdain and hunger in them. "Ease off on your orders right now and we negotiate. Every few seconds you hesitate I''m breaking something in you," Avery said, cold to the core. He spoke clearly, making sure she understood no matter how poor her common. Only moments later, his head started aching though. "Agh, fuck..." Avery swore, just in time, for another guard to lunge at him. Wait, the same woman with the sword? Had he been too gentle? "You fight dirty," she said. "And you should stay down," Avery countered, putting his headache to the back of his mind. The guards were no longer messing around, and while he could manage a single one, four of them would be too much. Before the guard had a chance to give another snappy reply, Avery had reached for his potion belt, but she had managed to stop him by slashing where his hand was moving, only to have this quickly exploited as she received a heavy kick to the outer thigh. Luckily, she managed to take a half step back, avoiding any heavy injury, but she definitely got a good bruise there, letting out a small groan of pain. "Not gonna go easy on you, girl," Avery said. "I''m slowly running out of patience, so get to it. Come on out and attack me." His head was still ringing, and he heard the blood rushing in his ears, as white steam spilled from his mouth when he spoke. His lips were dry, and his hands felt a little numb from deflecting the hits from the guard. She certainly wasn''t weak. Out from the bushes came two more men, and another woman. The men were both clothed differently, one wearing fancy metal armor, one that would probably even take Avery more than one kick to break through. The other was wearing lighter leather, and seemed pretty quick on his feet. The second woman on the other hand was dressed in fur, wearing a helmet that looked like a bear, which was fitting, given that Avery would describe her as bearish herself. A true berserker, wielding a giant battleaxe. Shit, he really just couldn''t catch a break today. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Ah, fuck it. Time to get to kicking ass! As soon as everyone was lined up, Avery hunched over forward and began cackling. He liked psychological warfare, and it was time for some. "Kehehe... Kahahahaha... HaHaHa.... KAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!" Avery began laughing like a madman while twisting his fingers, slowly releasing a stronger and thicker bit of . As expected, the berserker and armoured man pounced on this immediately, while the other two were a little shaken up by it. Bingo. Psychos always got so distracted, and anyone with half a braincell would attack during the build up of their bloodlust, just like these two. Except Avery wasn''t a psycho, just an actor, and thus, when the two pounced, he quickly drank a potion, taking it all in with one gulp. The bottles were small, so he could pull it off just barely between when they had committed too much to stop the attack and when he''d be fucked. In the end, he barely managed to get it all down, and immediately felt his heart tighten a little. He stepped back with a small gust of wind, quite a lot faster than before, and grimaced a little. As always, those potent agility potions were hard to control. Still, after dodging the strikes, Avery immediately pounced, throwing himself low to the ground, and tackling the armored man''s legs like a wild animal. The guard, still a little preoccupied with Avery''s sudden change, couldn''t quite step aside, and Avery managed to grab both his legs in a wide hug, though his head was ringing from the impact with the armor. Avery grit his teeth, drawing on some more of his stamina, fighting back against the man''s strength and weight. The Strength score of the system actually also influenced weight, funnily enough. After all, it would be stupid for similarly sized people to just continuously pick each other up and get thrown around like feathers. But when Avery really grit his teeth, pushed his stamina into his muscles, and distributed the load between his arms and legs, he managed to hoist the armored man off the floor. Then, Avery used his enhanced agility to spin for a moment, none of the other guards daring to attack quite yet. And then, Avery let go. He threw a man in full metal armor, hurling him at top speed straight at the general herself. With little resistance, the man crashed through the underbrush, though Avery imagined he must''ve felt the whipping branches a little. But of course, the solid impact on the ground was much worse. With a loud crash, the man fell onto it, bouncing up just a little again, before crashing down once more and immediately rolling against one of the general''s legs, knocking her off her feet and sending her face-first into the dirt. "Fucking told you," Avery said, getting back into fighting stance. "Monster..." one of the guards muttered, the girl he had fought first, when the berserker woman''s eyes turned a fierce red, and... was that foam at her mouth? "UUOOOOOGGHHHHHHHH!!!!" she roared, charging at Avery like a force of nature. He was happy he went with an agility potion then, still only sidestepping the attack by a tiny amount. He didn''t even bother trying to trip her, because honestly, he was pretty sure she would take him off his feet instead. Berserks'' strength was legendary, quite frankly, and he didn''t need to match one. But he was also happy to have triggered her rage sooner rather than later, because he sure as fuck didn''t want to draw this out. Right behind him, the woman charged into, and straight through, a thinner tree trunk, before turning around and honing in on Avery again, all her wild fury directed at him and only him. Good control, he had to admit, which made things even more troublesome for him. He frowned a little when she charged at him again, trying to sidestep her once again, only to have an axe heading straight for his face. Avery quickly ducked under it, to then have the woman with the longsword lunging at him, making him drop to the floor and roll aside, and instantly, the assassin was above him, stabbing towards Avery''s eyes with his dagger. Avery quickly pulled his head aside, just to have the assassin pull out another dagger, forcing Avery to grab his wrist, taking the second he got to kick the assassin''s groin, immediately making the man wince in pain. Metal shoes to the balls, that one surely had to hurt. But when Avery got back on his feet, he immediately was knocked back down, this time with the berserking woman on his back, his face on the ground. Avery spat out a mouthful of dirt, groaning as his arm was laying twisted beneath her. He had maybe a second before she used her paws to smash his head in, so Avery knew he had to act fast. Using his free right arm, Avery pushed it into the floor, groaning in pain as the left arm the woman was on twisted. This one was gonna be a bitch, but alright, time to get shit done. Avery pressed his boot into the ground, before using a burst of stamina to spin and flick the woman off his body, wrenching his arm and torso out from under her, as his shoulder popped and dislocated. He groaned in pain as he slowly got to his feet, when the berserker leapt at him again, but this time he opted to lean backwards under her jump, before propelling himself off the ground, into a backflip, driving his boot into her back and smacking her to the floor, before landing back on his feet. "Fuck, you all really aren''t giving me a break," he groaned, watching as the assassin was back on his feet, holding his groin, and even the man in armor had gotten back to his feet, much less shiny than before. The woman holding the small shield was keeping him at a distance with her sword stretched out towards him, and the berserker was already back up and fuming. He flicked one of his rogue dreadlocks back behind his shoulder and spat out a mouthful of blood, which came from his lip when he was thrown onto the floor. His left arm was now hanging limp, and his entire gear was stained with grime, some leaves hanging off him as well. Slowly but surely, Avery got into a low crouch. He then jumped high up onto a tree, and then even higher, into the sky, before using the moment to throw a healing potion into his mouth, before smacking his shoulder back into place, the pain fading as the potion took effect. Then he landed again, and instantly launched a high kick against the longsword bitch, glancing off her shield, but knocking her off balance. He ducked under a swing of the berserker, kicked the knight before he got a chance to flail him, and grabbed the assassin out of the air, throwing him back against a tree. He deflected the longsword by sidestepping and using the back of his hand, but he couldn''t fully avoid the axe again, trying to block it with his boot by kicking up and leaning back, but the berserker quickly let go of the axe with one hand, using it to deck Avery in the face, and sending him flying. "UGH!!" he let out a yelp of pain as he impacted against a thick tree, his nose now broken and bleeding. He quickly cracked it back into place, bracing for the pain, but he needed his airways clean for breathing. Then he kicked the flail of the knight away as it was heading for his face. He could see the assassin coming with his luckily, a near perfect counter to stealth, so he got the man''s face midair with a roundhouse kick, putting him out of commission at least. That should have splintered his jaw, and perhaps even his neck, and Avery was pretty sure he saw blood flowing from the dude''s mouth. But when he looked back up, he saw the barbarian woman charge at him, her axe overhead and quickly coming down at him. Avery quickly sidestepped the attack, from where he anticipated the longsword fighter coming at him again, and he gave a predictive kick, which ended up catching her in the chest as she came out from behind the barbarian. "Gotcha," he said, as she was knocked to the floor, going in for another kick, when the knight blocked him with a large tower shield. Probably from his inventory. For a moment, there was a white glow behind the shield, but after just a second, there was a hissing noise and whatever magic the knight had cast stopped. Maybe he had been a paladin, but Avery knew that he sure wasn''t anymore, after hearing the arrow of pure fire hit the floor, having pierced through the armor, man, and shield, one after another. "FUCK YEAH!!!" Avery roared, satisfied just to be alive for now. He would grieve for them later, maybe Lucia had been merciful, but maybe not. For now, it had turned in a 1 vs 2, because he surely couldn''t expect too much more support. Avery quickly attempted to go after the fighter, but the goliath of a woman that the berserker was stopped his leg with her bare hands, then picked him up, and grabbed his arm, before tearing at them, like a boy trying to rip apart his sister''s dolls. Avery let out a scream of pain, using his stamina just to keep his body together as he launched a kick at the woman''s chin, turning her lights off for just a moment as she dropped him to the floor, where he quickly rolled aside as a sword was coming down at him from above. He grabbed the fighter woman''s sword-arm with both his hands for a moment, and twisted it around and holding it in place, before slamming his forehead into the back of her extended elbow, breaking it with a crunch. As the woman let out a scream of pain, he kicked her in the side of the chest knocking her onto the floor and when he got up, Avery immediately ran. The berserker was running at him with murder in her eyes, and Avery was not taking any chances with that, so instead he used the blessing of his armor, and ran like the wind. After a few seconds, when he had enough space, he dug his heels into the ground, cancelling his speed and jumping straight up, only to come crashing down on the woman''s head with the back of his foot, and kicking her face into the dirt. He didn''t know quite how long it had been, but by now, her stamina should be running dry. Rages were draining after all, so at the very least, she wouldn''t be making it back faster than him, and thus, Avery sprinted back to where the general had been. Quickly activating , he checked that the assassin and the knight were still alive, but barely. "Hey, longsword! Your friends are alive, you keep this up, they die!!" Avery yelled as soon as he was in earshot, trying his best to stop this before things got any further. He was still beat up as well. His shoulder still hurt, his nose was screaming, he had bruises all over, and a few small cuts on his hand from the longsword. "... Fine." And with that, the battle was over. The seekers had swapped with the city guard by now already, and now that he had taken down the general, their ranks would fall apart. Any more resistance, and the woman dies. After a few tense seconds, the general sighed. "You have me, Avery "Lightfoot" Beckham. You have me indeed." "Great!" and not wasting any time, Avery pulled out a first aid kit and some healing potions from his inventory, quickly bandaging up the knight and assassin and pouring the potions down their throats, before splashing the other half onto their wounds. Then he downed another one himself, before handing his last one to the fighter. "Take it. I got you good enough," he said throwing it into her hands, while grimacing a little as his nose bent back into place. "Now, get your people to stand down and we handle this on our own terms. Neither of us want to lose more people." For a moment, the general hesitated, but in the end she nodded. "Yes. Let''s end this." Chapter 52: Whisperkid Chapter 52: Whisperkid /Ah yes, the many nations of Chronagen. There are big ones and small ones, warring ones, peaceful ones, neutral ones, scientific, and suspicious ones, but they all have some form of independence. Many of our nations are ruled by monarchs, kings, queens, and everything in between. A single person at the helm, with many others who follow. A prime example might be the nation of the demons, who occupy essentially half a continent all the way to the west of the world. Their leadership is made up of many, many rulers with many titles and equally many definitions. They aren''t all equal, and most of them lead smaller sub-territories, constantly at war with each other to fulfill their cravings, or at war with the devils. They are a perfect example of many, many tiny monarchies, constantly changing their rulers, while the 72 states of the demon world are universally accepted as unshakeable. Their wars are about territory and leadership, about power, both physical and political, but they are truer to tradition than almost anyone else, and it is said that the 72 states have been here since the first book, and will be here until the last. Another perfect example of a monarchy is the empire to the east, the cultivators there enjoying to seclude themselves in their caves as they practice their mystical arts of elongated life and strengthening their qi. Or ki. Or chi. They use many words for it. However, while they are fewer in number, there are other countries that aren''t monarchies. some smaller countries have formed councils to lead them, and the nation under the protector largely governs itself. People reigning not over the people, but for the people. But there are still more concepts, such as the warvoting practiced in many parts up north, where many tribes send forth their leaders with declarations of rulings, and they fight it out for each and every decision. It is an interesting game of stamina and demands, because multiple other tribes may oppose a ruling and fight to have it stopped, but it is a way to govern nonetheless. And of course, I cannot neglect the many meritocracies, where depending on how much is paid into a shared pot for the entire folk, you may be elected as part of the ruling class to then distribute it. However, if someone pays more than you, you''re out and lose that power. So very system like./ An excerpt from "Nations documented." by Limus Litus, a historian of the people. - - - - - - Mercury woke up a little while later. He must have passed out at some point, because he was still somewhere in the forest. And he was pretty sure it was still some time after the fight. It had turned night by now, the sky darkened with the many familiar dots of light up there, the moon almost full. He''d have found it nice if his head weren''t splitting. Everything hurt. His head, his legs, his back, his tail, his jaw. All of it was painful. His tongue felt dry and heavy, almost fuzzy in his mouth, and his sight was bleary at best. It was a task enough just keeping his eyes open, he certainly wasn''t moving from his spot. For a while, Mercury just sat there, in the forest, enjoying the cool breeze and the starry sky he could see through the canopies. He sat around, just giving himself some time to rest, he had promised to do so, after all. Still, it didn''t take too long before his sore throat grew enough to overshadow these pleasures. He pushed himself up on his dirt-caked legs, all his fur stained with grime, and groaned as his muscles protested. But as everyone knows, it''s better to hydrate than to diedrate, and Mercury still wanted to have some more time in this world. So, he took his weary legs, lifted them up, and pushed them forwards, step by step. It felt like he was lifting blocks of concrete, like there were thick slabs of stone chained to his extremities, and just lifting them took everything out of him. His chest heaved after only a few steps, and our furry friend sucked in deep breath after deep breath of the cool air. The battle and things he had just done a little earlier today were already more faded than he would have liked, replaced with slight delusions from his sleepiness. A flickering shadow here, something ducking through the brushwork there, maybe if he hadn''t been so drained, he would have had the energy to be scared. After a little while, the breeze turned into a chill, and Mercury shivered a little, as his fur raised itself up. Strange, he didn''t feel that cold. Ah well, whatever, time to find a pond. He almost enjoyed the eerie silence, when even the crickets stopped their songs and the wind seemed to quiet down. Was that a whisper he heard rustle through the woods? Nah, must be his imagination. He should have really gotten more sleep. When some more time had passed, Mercury managed to find a small stream. There were plenty of them in the forest, running down towards the lake to the Northeast. It was decently clean, with a rocky riverbed, so he decided to take a handful of sips from it. The water felt like liquid salvation in his mouth, slowly creeping through him and making his steps just a little lighter. But instead, Mercury decided to lay down. He still felt heavy and sore, and he was sure that one night in the forest wouldn''t be too bad, even if it was a little bit of a colder one. His fur was still raised up, and even his rang a warning chime, but he was just too tired. So, so very tired... It didn''t take long for a dark fog to roll in, quite different from the one Mercury was used to. It wasn''t red and murderous, like with the blood eclipse, it was grey, and heavy, seeking to extinguish the light around it. As it thickened, it even seemed to grow almost black in colour. Very nice, actually. Mercury had never liked sleeping with too much light, and the moon had been a bit too bright for him. The cat closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying the silence and stillness of it all, especially after the hectic day. The quiet was enjoyable, though he did kind of miss the wind. Ah, there it was, whispering sweet nothings. How nice. Little by little, Mercury drifted off further, falling into a doze and his breath grew slower and more regular. It felt almost as though someone was singing a lullaby to him, maybe with a few off notes, but he was too tired to care. "Do you fear death?" someone whispered into his ear, to which Mercury could only reply with a heavy yawn. There was a moment of silence, then the whisper again. "Do you fearrrrr deathhhh??" Mercury slightly opened one of his eyes, still sleep drunk. "Look buddy, I''m trying to catch some shut-eye over here, so if you wanna have a philosophical discussion, wait until my brain functions are back online." There was silence again, and for a while, no reply. Mercury had almost fallen asleep again when the whisper returned. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. "Do you fear lossssss?" "It''s too late for this. Of course I''m scared of loss. There''s always heartbreak and sadness with it, so yeah. Now, anything else before I can finally go to bed?" His voice was tinged with just a smidge of annoyance as he spoke, but he was honest. Too tired for lies. And for a while, there was silence around him again. Mercury curled his tail around himself a little bit, trying to stave off the chill some more. Subconsciously, maybe he wanted to be afraid, but his mind was too blurry to even conceive the notion. "Do you fear the darknessssssss?" The voice hissed after a while, and Mercury shook his head. "I used to as a kid, but like, I kinda grew out of it. Sure, sometimes night can be scary, but that''s more the lack of other people, so you think you might get stabbed or anything," Mercury said, his foggy brain slowly growing a little more awake. "Do you fearrrrr... meeeeeee?" the whispers asked, now much more present than before, asking a shrill way that might have sent shivers up Mercury''s spine if he hadn''t been just so drained. "Nah man, you seem pretty chill. But really, I gotta go to bed now, had a real rough day." "I seeeeeeee..." ... "Do you... like nights?" the whispers asked after a while, shaking Mercury out of his doze again. The cat blinked a few times, not seeing much difference between having his eyes open or closed, and then nodded in the end. "Yeah, I guess I do," he said, "I like the stars, because of their pretty glow. I like the quiet and the harmony, that so many things all at once decide it''s time to rest. I like the science behind it, the thought that we''re on a ball, rotating at insane speeds, and that''s why for half the time our lights are out... Yeah, I like nights. What about you?" "Meeee...?" "Look, you woke me up, you better contribute to this conversation," Mercury said, sneering in his thoughts. The voices he heard seemed like they were many, but they were also so... little. Kinda like kids. He''d had a nephew and a niece before. His brother had married his highschool sweetheart, and the two had a pair of good kids. Twins, if Mercury remembered correctly. The girl, Millie, always bragged about being born just a little earlier than his nephew. She would be 10 by now. Yeah, that''s what the voices felt like, almost like a kid, experiencing something new they hadn''t before. "So, do you like nights?" Mercury asked, shaking himself awake a little and chasing some of the fog out of his thoughts. For a long while, the whispers remained quiet. Eventually, they began to speak again, but only after Mercury was already having trouble staying up once more. "I... not knowss... Nights stop the hunger, always hungry..." "You''re always hungry? That sounds real rough buddy." "Mh. Eat fearr." "Is it tasty?" Mercury asked, before he could think twice about what he was even saying. "Teyhsty?" "Like, you know... ugh, forget about it." "What is... teyhsty?" "Alright, or don''t. Tasty is when your food is enjoyable. Like, you eat something and think to yourself ''man that was good''. Or ''woman'', or whatever else you prefer." "M?n? Wum?n?" Mercury smiled a little inside himself. This was really like talking to a kid. He shook his head for a moment as he thought a reply. "It''s about identity more or less. Like, there''s sex, which is your biological makeup, and there''s quite a few of them. Then, there''s gender, which is what you feel you belong to. You can be a guy, or a girl, or demi, so a little more attracted to one side than the other, or you can be agender, or bigender. It''s long, and complicated, and I sure am not an authority on it, but it''s essentially a group of terms to help people better define themselves." "Self..." The whisperkid, as Mercury decided to name it, grew quiet again. It seemed rather bright, he thought, taking time to think things over instead of just chasing ahead, as most kids do. It seemed curious and more focused, and Mercury could respect that. "Who am I...?" asked the whisperkid, seemingly a little scared of the answer. "Hell if I know," Mercury said. "Who do you want to be?" "W-a-n-t...." The whisperkid rolled the letters on its tongue(?) for a moment, seemingly thinking them over. What did it want? "A star." "You want to be a star?" Mercury asked, just to make sure. "Mh." "Well, then you''re going to have to get a lot bigger," he said with a smile. "After all, stars only look small because they are so far away." "No! Don''t want to be far away!" When the whisperkid cried out, Mercury felt a sting in his head for a moment, like someone had stabbed him with a needle. It was uncomfortable, but bearable. "Hey, that''s alright buddy. No one''s forcing you. What you wanna be is entirely up to you. If you want to be a star, but stay close to this place, that''s perfectly fine, you be you." "Be... me...?" "Yeah. Just because all the other stars are in the sky doesn''t mean you have to be. You can be a tiny star, and stay here. Or you can be something else entirely, maybe that something fits you more than being a star, you''ll see. Just take one step after the other." Mercury gave what he hoped to be an uplifting smile, hoping he had given some kid out there some hope. "A star..." whisperkid whispered, seemingly looking at the sky. "Mh. Step by step. I feel... full. Thank you." And with that, the small presence Mercury had felt form next to himself slowly seemed to vanish, but Mercury didn''t feel any loss. He knew it deep in his heart, he knew that somewhere out there, there would be a star made of the whisperkid, and he hoped just a little, that the star would think of him too. Then, after a few more minutes, sleep finally took over Mercury''s mind. - - - - - - The man with white gloves had talked to Otto for some time. It has been a quite nice talk, they had caught up with each other, gotten to chat a little bit about themselves. Otto was usually more of a quiet type, though he wore his thoughts on his sleeve. Well, not quite his sleeve, he just didn''t bother hiding them, but you still needed some amount of awareness to notice. For most people, he''d be hard to read because of his bestial features, but not for the Zyl. His full name wasn''t that simple, of course, but his nickname was. Zyl, he had always liked the sound of it. Much more so than his title of walking disaster. Like, man, that was kind of rude. But he did deserve it a little, after all, he used to have quite some problems with his temper. And also, the title was tied to a location, he wasn''t known as a walking disaster globally. That was lucky. If some of his colleagues caught wind that he was hated by everyone, it would make certain deals much harder. He didn''t like politics too much, really, but there was just no way around it when you had even some influence, and he certainly had some. He had upheld his bargain with lady Zeris, a small one, to be sure. Kick out a monster from her fields and she would keep him in good graces, offering him trade routes and such. Zyl''s country was small. He had built the nation himself, but he largely kept himself out of rulings. He made sure other countries were favorable towards them, offering good deals. He was... a protector, rather than anything else. It was good like this. He never wanted to be a king, or a dictator, he liked having people united and seeing them hold together though. So, he did offer to resolve disputes, if people felt uncomfortable taking them to court. Things had been going well these past few years, but whenever rulers wanted to come and talk to him, he got annoyed. If they visited him, they brought half an army for insurance, and if he visited them, he needed to give up anything that could even be remotely used as a weapon. Yes, he had smashed a table or two in his time, maybe trashed a ballroom or another, and okay, there was one time he punched a hole in a castle wall and collapsed the whole thing, but he had his temper under control now! Zyl sighed to himself again. Life had been good, but it was also a little boring, and when it wasn''t boring, it was exhausting. Otto had been nice to him, though. He hadn''t asked for much help, The "scorned" had come to him looking for just info. How were the demons doing? Were there any big territorial wars? Any large threats to entire countries? The protector had helped the beast as much as he could, and in exchange, Otto said he''d give him a gift. A really, really pretty rock. It meant a lot to Zyl, because he knew Otto only ever picked up things he himself liked, so the guy was physically unable to give gifts that didn''t mean anything to him. If he gave Zyl a rock, that meant that the rock was special to Otto in some way. Maybe it was the swirly crystalline pattern, or some sort of strong magical energy inside it, but Otto liked it, and Zyl would treasure it. He would never insult a friend by disrespecting a heartfelt gift. Zyl smiled as he thought of friends. He asked himself how Lucia might be doing now, having headed off into a small warring nation. There was no point in keeping close tabs on her, after all, her force expanded so much further than just to her own person. Out of all of them, she was clearly the one with the most people around her. She was practically worshipped as the symbol of the church, though the fire within her might be just a little too bright sometimes. And while Lucia wasn''t perfect by any means, in fact, she was arrogant, proud, stubborn and had a poor attitude, Zyl respected her. Simply because there had to be some reason she amassed that many people behind her banner. Some were more fanatic, sure, but many of them just believed in her ideology, that they needed some form of order to be truly free. He had also let the church of order establish a small church in his nation, though not many of the citizens went there very often. Still, as Zyl was lost in thought, he smiled a little. Things like this made life interesting. It wasn''t about freedom or responsibility to him, it was about the people you met and the stories you heard. And with that thought, Zyl smiled as the sun went down, looking forwards to what a new day might bring to him. Chapter 53: Current Happenings Chapter 53: Current Happenings /Wasps kinda suck tho./ Some biologist, probably. - - - - - - Eventually, Mercury woke up again, when the sunlight tickled his nose through the trees. The forest was waking up, and when the birds started screeching their melodies at him, our boi was forced to finally wake up again as well. It had been a long night, and he was honestly still feeling killer tired. He was sapped of all strength, and he was still sore all over, but at the least it was more of a tiring soreness rather than a paralyzing one. I mean, what an evening that had been. He certainly had been more than a little frigging delirious. Mercury shook his head at the thought. His brother had been... difficult, at times. He was sweet, and had been sweet the last two decades, but especially as a kid, he oftentimes had to be the more responsible one. His brother was usually very reliable, but also more than snarky, and sometimes his comments really would sting. But he was clearly a good guy. He took great care of his kid, and was more than kind to his wife. He just had a sharp tongue, is all. Steve smiled at the thought. It had been a long while since he last glared at his bro for dropping an "f-bomb" in front of the kid, though to be fair, Jack had grown so much more mellow as an adult. Man, he could hardly believe he had been a cat for a little over a year. What a fricking surreal experience. Then, Mercury smiled to himself. He missed his brother, quite a bit, he now noticed. Even the snarky comments, and the little fights they had, even when they argued, they could still rely on each other. They could have ended a call screaming just hours ago, but when Steve was at the train station at night and didn''t have any money for a cab, Jack was there. He would pick him up and take him home. He would sometimes give him a ride to work, or lend him a battery or two. He would always be available for a call, at least when he wasn''t busy snoring it on up. Heh. Jack even supported him when things were looking down low, ever since they had grown out of their juvenile fights and arguments. Sure, there were ups and downs, but in the end, he was a brother to rely on. They grew closer year by year, unlike- No, Mercury shook his head. Enough reminiscing, time to drag his tired old self back to get paid. - - - - - - Lucia looked at Avery with a frown on her face. How had she gotten herself into this? It was her, Rondo, and the godseeker all in a room, looking at the captain of the enemy force, the infamous "northern gale", Norla Iceskin. Compared to normal soldiers, she excelled at almost everything. Endurance, power, speed, smarts, she had it all, but it wasn''t enough to turn the tides simply as a force on the battlefield. Instead of focusing on just training herself to hit hard enough to change a war, she instead decided to learn military strategy, diligently studying tactics on how to deal with powerful enemies, yet apparently still failing. Perhaps because of her troops'' lack of discipline, poor communication, or just the difference in numbers, something had made them lose. Not like they hadn''t taken enough lives with them, Lucia thought. "Good people have died, Norla," she spoke out loud, eyeing the northerner with a fiery gaze. "I know. As is nature of war, we lose people. And when we lose, we grieve. Yet, instead of grieving, I am in cell." The woman spoke calmly, a hint of ice underneath her tone, yet still politely enough, somewhat. Avery once more took a bite out of his bread as he leaned forwards and onto his hands. He chewed, then swallowed, and finally spoke. "Yeah, it sucks. I lost some good seekers out there, too. So let''s get this behind us quickly, and I''ll see about arranging funerals." "We do not seek to be buried in this lands," Norla snapped back. "A warrior''s burial must be in snow and smoke, as is good." "Well, seems a little troubling to me. I''ll try my best to get some help on it, alright? Don''t want to disrespect you, promise," Avery said, just seeking to get on a level with her. "Well, that''s why we''re here after all. To negotiate," general Rondo said, stroking his beard. "Why''d ya move away from the frontline and attack our city?" "Strike the heart!" Norla half hissed, smashing her fist against her chest. "Fast way to end war." "It seems like that went rather poorly for you," Lucia said, watching as the other woman ground her teeth. "Can you explain more?" "No." "That wasn''t quite a question," Lucia hissed, the fire in her stomach flaring up, only to be stopped as Rondo held out one of his massive paws in front of her. "Calm, lass. This is a negotiation, not an inquisition. Important distinction. Norla, what are ya willin'' to trade for your freedom?" "Freedom? After the men you took?" "You took an equal amount. This is a war, no individual is at fault here," Avery said, leaning back and crossing his arms. "I''m mad, yes, but I know I can''t put the blame on you. Nor on your soldiers. So, what do you want?" Norla spit on the floor when Avery was done speaking, then wiped her mouth. "Filthy southerners. Think you better than us ah?!" Rondo sighed as Norla went about her rant, and Avery closed his eyes for just a moment, only to reopen them when he heard a resounding crash. "AH!! LESPUTJE!!" Norla screamed, clenching her, now bloody nose in front of a smiling Lucia. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Apparently, the priestess had used the moment both of her partners were looking away to grab the northerner''s head and smash it into the table. "What the-?!" "Were you just going to let her ramble?" Lucia hissed at the two guys. "State your fucking demands, bitch, before I decide you''re not worth listening to and burn you down with everyone who came along." Then, the woman opposite her smiled. Norla grabbed her nose, and put it back into place with another crack, then plugged one nostril, blowing blood out the other. She quickly also blew blood out her second nostril, then spat again, this time blowing a bloody tooth onto the floor. Her grin looked terrifying, with her lips ripped open and her teeth stained red. "We want to burn you down," she said with a sinister smile. "And we do so now." "NO!!!!" And the room went white. - - - - - - Nikola Tesla had always been a brilliant inventor. He had made so many discoveries, only to have many of them stolen away from himself. He had discovered alternating current and made many experiments with electromagnetic waves, and perhaps yes, he had blown up some horses. But they were just horses. Simple, four legged beasts. Not something truly gorgeous, like a pigeon. Ah, pigeons, they were such incredible creatures. So beautiful, and smart... truly elegant. Ah, but that was off topic now. Tesla was a man of pure focus, he had always managed to perfectly zone into his creations, and in doing so, he sought to truly unravel the truths of the universe. And bit by bit, he had done so. Yet, his achievements had been stolen. His science was taken from him, and not even after his death did he truly get the attention he deserved. No, Tesla deserved better, and thus, the world gave him second chance. A perfect second chance. A second chance in a different world from earth altogether, yet one with his mind and memories fully intact. Yes, Nikola Tesla, perhaps the most brilliant mind to ever walk the planet, had been reincarnated. He had been reshaped, and his mind had been given a new body, stored in what he liked to consider his astral self. He had been inserted into a new body, and he was ready to once again conquer the laws of the universe! Once he was done with being a baby that is. He had to learn a whole new language first, after all, and figure out how far science had gotten in this new world he had gotten himself into. He needed to figure out if the underlying laws here were different from those on the Earth he had been from, or if they were still the same. Certainly, at least some things were different. This world still seemed to have many of the things that made up his old planet, but it had yet more things that made it so different. One of those was the system, with a few very immediate differences. Hp, Sp, and Mp, to be precise. And of course Skills, and stats, and the incredible difference between his Intelligence and his intelligence, and how Strength could also influence weight, and how the combination of Vitality, Strength, and Dexterity can make ones skin more resistant to many forms of damage, not to mention abilities, or- In short, there were many things he still needed to discover. By now, he had grown up a little more. He was in the body of a 20-year-old man, barely out of puberty and growing what some might consider the first stubbles of a beard. Nikola, or his new name, that he had given himself, Nicolai, shaved regularly, as he disliked looking ungroomed. Unless he was deep into his scientific methods, but that was another story in and of itself. He was easily hailed as a genius at just the age of 1, which is when he began to be able to form small sentences. By the time he was 4, he was able to read somewhat fluently, and when he was 8 years old, he introduced new words into the language of that world. He had taught himself , according to the system, and as such, every word he said was perfectly, or largely perfectly translated. By the time he reached the age of 10, he had used mana sense to discover tiny particles, which he dubbed atoms, just like he had known them himself. He named the particles that constructed them protons, neutrons and electrons, and by inspecting them even further with mana, he discovered the existence of particles even smaller than those, which he called teslons. Then, he introduced the world he lived in to the correlation between hygiene and disease, saving many hundreds of thousands of lives, and later on, he even introduced the theory of a parallel dimension existing, in which the system might be able to store muscle mass, and only transfer the kinetic power over to our world. With changing dimensional interference, depending which slice of that dimension overlapped with ours, it would also explain how Strength could allow a user to manipulate their weight! In short, he was brilliant, even in his new world. All of these achievements had been done by the time he became twelve, and at this point, he was being hailed as a genius beyond geniuses, as the greatest scholar of his time, as a mage beyond all others, and as the brightest mind to have ever graced Chronagen. He was even being compared to legends such as Leonard of Vince, a man of the third book who had made many discoveries that made living as people were today possible, such as a way to use mana cores to keep water flowing using kinetic conversion runes, which made the creation of sewers possible. But yet, Nicolai was yet unsatisfied with himself. He dove deep into alchemy after his thirteenth birthday, and refused to call it anything other than chemistry. He discovered new ways to make potions using something he liked to call catalysts, substances that wouldn''t necessarily be used up, but could provoke a step in potionmaking to happen earlier. He also invented the further crystallization of liquids by adding absorbent powder, allowing for potion size to be congealed down much further at the cost of consistency, and he found more ways of purifying potions by invention vacuum filtration. Yet, his greatest invention were what he liked to call tesla coils. Short sticks that would charge up with great amounts of "electrical energy", or, for our menial minds, lightning, once exposed to a subset of energy. He even created varieties that used mana, created by carving runes into mana cores, as well as ones that exclusively used up stamina, by incorporating living plantmatter into them, creating a sort of symbiotic relationship. Nicolai Tesla had shocked the world once more, going from a genius beyond geniuses, to a monster, and then even further beyond that. He was the smartest man of the act, perhaps the saga. Some even said he was the greatest mastermind of this whole book! And Nicolai himself simply says that he does what he does because he loves it. There is nothing he enjoys more than finding out about the secrets of the universe and trying his best to make the lives of the people better. The potion distilling method he found out was focused largely on the creation of healing potions, and even his coils were never much of a lethal option, more commonly used to disarm or defend against someone. Of course his inventions weren''t perfectly foolproof, and he knew that they could always be misused, but Tesla had never given up the faith that those using his creations for good would outweigh those using them for evil. And even more, he hoped that he was making a difference with that. In case he wasn''t, well, it''s not like he had revealed all of his weapons to the public. Some of them were too powerful to be properly utilized for the good of others. They were killing machines. A particle accelerator packed into the back of a gun, using spatial mana to create an extremely long tube, where induction would be used to speed up elementally loaded bullets to speeds never before seen on this world. Fast enough to break past the speed of sound multiple times, and hard enough to carve holes into many, many trees. It was a bit of an experiment, and there was only one such weapon in existence. Of course, there were other magical guns, but none came even close to being as powerful as his version, especially after he found the extremely magnetically impacted element that was dubbed magnum. He had essentially created a supergun that went beyond the performance of anything we could ever find on earth, and he was more than happy keeping it on just his person, because if he was honest, he didn''t feel quite comfortable in this world without some protection. After all, not only the metals and system were spectacular, but the monsters as well. Those breeding in nests were already enough of a problem, oftentimes corrupting the land around them, but those growing in arches or tears were a much, much different beast. Their speed, power, durability, magic, and strategy went far beyond that of regular monsters, and quite frankly, if he went into a top tier arch, he wasn''t confident in clearing it out, even with all of the weaponry he had discovered. He was still but one man, but he was a man with passion, drive, and more than enough time to grow. Nicolai Tesla was a man with drive, more than anything else. And as of right now, his drive was focused on bringing back the pigeon that had died before him, when a servant fell and crushed it. Tesla was going to invent a way to resurrect the dead, because there was nothing that would separate him from Anna, his pigeon. Maybe he''d resurrect her three times, just for good measure. Chapter 54: Pillars of Smoke, Licks of Flame Chapter 54: Pillars of Smoke, Licks of Flame /Some people disgust me. Those vile, slimy, spiteful little cretins, hiding in the dark cracks of society and humanity as a whole. The scum of the earth, crawling out of their holes only to ruin others'' time. I hate people who try to control you and me. Seriously, someone trying to blackmail, oppress, trick, deceive, mind-control, or gaslight any others is the worst. They are as bad as it gets, the bottom of the barrel, the wrapper of the candy, the stinger of the bee. Absolute, incredible, incomparable scum. Especially vampires. Oh vampires, with their families, and blooded bonds, and their feuds and politics, and their weirdly sexualised forms of mind control. I despise them. Yes, that''s racism, and I understand not all vampires use their abilities. I know that most people are completely immune to the effects of vampire mind-control. Usually, their petty tricks can only affect animals, small critters at best, but in the rare cases where they do something to humans? No. Taking away one''s right to self is perhaps the worst offense someone can commit, and as an ambassador for equal rights, use of such an ability is not the be tolerated. However, any vampires who abstain from such vile practices are people as much as the rest of us, and do not deserve to be faulted for the sins of their brethren. The few shall suffer for the sins of the few. It is one''s own duty to take responsibility, and if the ability to fulfill that duty is taken, it falls upon the taker to accept responsibility not twice, but squared. And as such, I say we blame not victims, but perpetrators! Not all, but the conniving weasels at the core of the threat!/ A publicly held speech by Dr. Alucard Acula, studied wiseman and friend of the people. - - - - - - Mercury was approaching the city after a good night''s rest. The journey wasn''t too long, but the sun was already approaching the middle of the sky. It was maybe around 11 a.m., if he had to guess, when he heard a faint sound. It was a bit of a rumbling in the distance, and immediately after it, he heard multiple bangs go off in a row, straight from the city. He started to sprint as fast as he could, the explosions having wrung the sleep right out of his whole body as he burst into a sprint. He could already see smoke and licks of flames rising from the city. When he arrived at the gate, the guards were already largely gone. They had to abandon their posts and rush inwards, trying to rescue as many civilians as possible, and just generally keep the damages to a minimum. Mercury decided that it would also be best for him to do so, and thus, he rushed straight through the streets, towards the nearest pillar of smoke, being one of the guardhouses. The entire thing had collapsed in on itself, unable to withstand the whole force of the blow, as broken down walls were all that still stood. Only a couple of seconds later, Mercury had jumped right into the pile of rubble, and began throwing away any smaller pieces of wood and stone he could find, trying to see if anything was still moving below the whole thing, when he heard people actively screaming around him. Instantly, Mercury turned around, finding one of the northern warriors, clad in white furs and brown leather with her sword drawn and running after a middle-aged man. Almost by itself, Mercury''s body moved. He saw the man running and tripping, saw the woman get closer with each fateful step, and charged at her, using the mana he had regained, and the stamina now coursing through his veins. His every step turned into a leap, and after a short few seconds, he had made contact with the warrior woman''s legs, crashing into her. The impact was enough to knock her leg into one another, tangling them up and knocking her to the floor, where she barely caught herself, still holding onto the sword. She quickly stabbed at the nuisance in front of her. Whatever the little ball of fur was, it sure seemed dangerous enough, being able to pack that much speed and power. But Mercury wasn''t an idiot, so he simply ran across the woman, making sure to keep his claws all the way out. After only moments, he had successfully avoided the stab and reached her face. Mercury put as much power as he could into every swipe of his claws, getting a good hit on one of her eyes, before she blocked him with her arm and smacked the mopaaw off her. But before she had a chance to get back on her feet, Mercury coursed mana through himself, accelerating his recovery and charging at her face again. The ball of furious fur bit her nose very quickly, to which the woman responded with an angry smack, only to hit herself in the face once more as the beast was nowhere to be found. She only saw on one side now, and the beast certainly wasn''t to her left, but just as she started to turn her head to the right, she felt an intense, flaming pain go down her side. The mopaaw had gotten her with another large claw, and while the wound was only a couple millimeters thick, the claws cut well. She could feel that her skin proved to be of little resistance, and the critter was probably supercharging its attacks with stamina, so her armor wouldn''t put up much of a fight. With the new knowledge on respecting her opponent, the woman grit her teeth and got to her feet, even with the mopaaw still dangling off her elbow, only letting go when she smacked at it. She used the moment her foe was mid air to draw a dagger from her hip and get into a low crouch, ready to respond to anything. Unfortunately, everything wasn''t quite enough, as the beast was also smarter than her. It instantly dashed towards her blind left side, and keeping track of it was all the harder as it ran around, so instead, the woman decided to rely on her combat sense, waiting for an attack to come. Yet, just as she closed her eyes, her senses already alarmed her of an incoming attack from behind, and while she tried to twist out of the way, she couldn''t entirely avoid the thing, and even worse, it clung to her back with one set of claws. The woman began shaking herself around, trying to get the beast off herself, letting out screams of rage and pain, but the mopaaw simply wouldn''t let go, actually clinging to her with another claw and scratching her entire back up looking for a foothold, until she finally got the idea to just smash her back against the floor. After only a moment of hesitation, she jumped backwards, already arranging for the mopaaw to be as close to the floor with as little warning time as possible. It even worked, the thing let go, but not before having its head banged against the floor once. Then, the woman herself landed, somewhat softening the fall with her left hand, but even so both that one and her back got badly scraped up and bloody. Her only solace was that when she looked up, the beast in front of her was standing, but panting heavily, and the fur on its head was turning red. ''Little monster, got you now,'' she thought, tightening her grip on the dagger in her right. Mercury felt like fucking puking. His head was still spinning, and man, getting a grip on reality this soon after sleeping was already a pain. He could feel all muscles in his body aching, still screaming of yesterday, and he hadn''t even eaten or drank anything yet. His stomach felt like it was turning inside out and his lungs were burning, his muscles tired and barely doing what he wanted to. But he fought against it, shaking his head a little to clear it, keeping his eyes open and the woman in check. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. She was a well-trained melee fighter, and had even faced some beasts before, he could tell. Still, he had the jump on her, and she was blinded in one eye. All it came down to was how much the wounds on her back were affecting her. Mercury took a deep breath and focused. He focused on her every move, her every twitch, focused on the mana and stamina in his body and moving them around, slowly coursing the energy into his legs, before bringing it to a boil. He took a second breath as he dug his claws into the floor, using them for extra grip, as he lunged at the woman again. His third breath was taken mid air, when he saw the dagger plunging towards him, and he adjusted his tail to catch the wind as he turned to the side. And then, he spun off to the left, away from the stab and into her blind spot. Then, he took a fourth breath as he lunged again, this time towards her stomach, and sliced her open as she was struggling to regain balance. He did it as he dove by, running his left set of claws across her belly and digging them deep into her, leaving a set of five deep gashes. For a second, he felt the blood drip onto his fur. "UAAAAGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!" The woman screamed in pain as she was cut open. She was doomed, Mercury knew that, but he couldn''t think about that still, so he pushed it into the back of his mind and ran off. He took just one more breath as he was running inwards, begging his legs to go just another step for now. His vision was blurry and red, some of the blood from his head now dripping into his eye, but Mercury worked to quickly blink it away as he continued forward, running until he found another opponent. A man with a long, thick mace, spikes and everything. This wasn''t a good fight for him, but Mercury decided to take it anyway. He focused on himself for a moment, and on his legs, since he only had the four of them and his mouth to attack, and then steeled himself for what he was to do next. The screams of the woman still rang in his mind. Mercury pushed his power into his legs, and even when they burned and resisted, he tightened his muscles, and released it all in a giant burst of power, leaping up all the way into the side of the mace-wielder''s face. The mopaaw crashed into the guy full force, and Mercury'' wasted no time before going to town, biting down on ears and scratching at eyes. "Argh!" The soldier quickly flinched and yelled, before grabbing at the wild thing on his face, taking it into his massive hand and gripping down on it as hard as he could. Mercury yelped out in pain as the man''s hand dug into him, crushing down on his chest and shoulders, but quickly regained his composure and bit into the mans finger as hard as he could. Reflexively, the soldier let go, only for Mercury not to, hanging onto the finger with all his weight and throwing his head around to try and hurt it. After just a moment, he heard a sickening snap, and let go, dropping to the floor and running off, his breathing now even more laboured. "The fuck was that?", the man grunted out in pain, grabbing at his, now broken, index finger, only for the blur of an attacker to show itself again. The red-white monster was on the man''s heel again after only moments, clawing, scratching and biting at his calfs with great ferocity as it ripped out chunks of meat, disappearing between the buildings again before the man could catch it. Grunting in frustration, the soldier stopped moving forwards and started scanning the environment around himself, waiting for the beast to show itself. Only after a couple moments, he already caught a blur of it, just slightly to his right, and immediately, he swung his club down. "AAAHHH!!" Mercury screamed as it came down on his right front paw with a crunch, fracturing his bones as one of the spikes dug into him. Then, before he could even regain his composure, the large man kicked him in the face, sending him through the air, into a wall. Mercury was roughed up, and he could tell many of his bones were broken, but this couldn''t be the end of him yet. Immediately, he bought another healing potion from his shop. It cost him another 1000 Gold, marking the end of his savings, and a potion that didn''t even come close to fully restoring him, but at the very least, it felt like his ribs weren''t all the way in his throat anymore. A bit of crunching later, and Mercury got up from the crumpled mess he was on the floor, only to see that maceman had left. But the cat was persistent, and using his very sensitive nose, he could track him down. After only a couple turns on the street, Mercury had caught up to the soldier and decided to throw a rock this time. He had been hasty before, but he was all sobered up now. The sharpened, and fully runed up rock quickly penetrated the man''s armor and dug itself into the muscle mass on the man''s back, as he let out a grunt. Then, when he was still turning around, Mercury threw out another three rocks. One aimed at the face, which got blocked, one that stabbed the man''s chest, but got stuck between two ribs, as far as Mercury could tell, and the final one, which smashed the giant''s kneecap and brought him down. "Hard fall, bitch?" Mercury asked, lodging a final rock into the man''s head, before limping off somewhere else, to his residence, the inn he stayed at. - - - - - - Davis had never been much of a fighter. He was a polite young man, someone who preferred to sit down for a glass of wine or somesuch, and play a game of cards, maybe swap some stories. He always loved the life of the bar, whether he was visiting one or running it. The mellow, calming music. The stories and the jokes. The atmosphere, the smell of wood and liquor, the clean glasses and polished counters. The groups of friends, sitting and having a good time without necessarily disturbing anyone. Being the centerpiece of all that as a barman was fulfilling to him. Hearing people''s stories, listening to the woes of life, the ups and downs, to Dave''s new lucky lady, and Lod''s shoddy time in the army. He liked it when Billy and Joel came to visit, two brothers who particularly liked the piano he kept in the corner of the bar. But what he didn''t like was his situation right now, cowering behind his counter with a broken nose, the wood smashed in, the bottles broken and sticky alcohol all over the floor, drying out and leaving gross residue. His eyes were teared up as he looked at all of it, at his life''s work, and saw it vanish under the broadsword of a single soldier. He saw the mission in the corner of his eye, to "Protect that which is dear to you", making out the letters through his blurry vision, and he knew he couldn''t. Davis knew that if he got up, it wouldn''t be the furniture cleft apart. He saw the carnage out the window, the streets painted with splatters of blood, the houses that had come crashing down, and the pillars of smoke, leaking up into the sky. He felt the clot in the back of his throat getting thicker, as his breaths became shaky. He wanted to keep crying, but the overwhelming sense of loss only grew stronger each time a chair crashes, or a table snapped. It was degrading, seeing all of it being vandalised like that with no way to fight back. All in all, he knew he could do nothing but just watch on powerlessly, as all he had worked for was breaking. And eventually, when he saw more glasses hit the floor, and bottles crumble, he felt hot tears stream down the sides of his cheek. "No," he whispered under his breath. For he knew, he couldn''t scream. - - - - - - Rondo grunted loudly as he shuffled his weight around in the rubble. It felt heavy on his old bones, and it took him longer than he would have liked to admit to drag himself up. To be fair, it was only because of the young lady he was still standing. She had cast a shield of light, just before the scorching blast had hit him, and thus, only his right arm had been burnt, though that surely was enough anyways. He was blind in that eye now, but at the very least, he was breathing. Lady herself had still taken a rough hit, but the lass was tough, he knew she''d make it. Avery though hadn''t got nothing near as lucky. Man was leaning far enough back to get hit with the whole blast, and Rondo didn''t want to imagine what he looked like. Instead of imagining, he simply cleared away the rubble until he saw the two of them, splashing two healing potions onto their faces. The lass would still need to live with singed hair and a slight burn scar next to her chin, but Avery''s entire throat was charred, his skin cracked and black. Honestly, Rondo didn''t even know if another potion would do the trick. He checked the godseeker''s backpack, and found an emergency bottle. The glass had been stored inside a metal casing, keeping it safe enough, though there were cracks in it, and the potion was starting to hiss as it came in contact with the metal. Rondo quickly pulled the stopper and poured some of it on the wound, as well as some down Avery''s pipes. Hopefully it''d do its job there, he thought, pouring the rest on the church lass. Those two needed to wake up right fast, that much was clear. After all, they, as well as himself, had a city to protect. Sadly, there was no water ''round, so Rondo simply slapped both of their faces, which seemed to wake up Lucia at least, though Avery was still out cold. "Fast reaction lass, saved my hide there you did. Go on now, we have a city to tend to, no?" "Your arm," Lucia simply stated. "Let me see it. There is little hope for your eye, but this much I can do." Rondo didn''t like being ordered around, but when it came to healers and clerics, he knew none of them had any calm at all. Those people were stressed, and he sure didn''t want to make the lass mad. So, instead of making a big fuss about it, he simply held out his arm as best he could, resulting in a half-hearted thirty degree angle of liftage, or somesuch. It was almost embarrassing for a bear like Rondo, but the lass was a cleric, so she would be used to it. Soon after, he felt a little better, though his other comrade in arms was still out. "Can you get ''im up, young lady?" Rondo asked her, nodding at Avery. "I certainly can try, but my hopes would be low. It is not his health keeping him down, but rather his stamina. His body is focused on healing, and until he is a little better, I fear he may remain as such." "We hide him then," Rondo said with a grim look on his face, slinging Avery''s body over his shoulder at the nod of Lucia, and placing it down on the inside of the lower city wall. Some dark corner that didn''t matter much, with no people passing through. "Good enough," the guard captain muttered to himself, before running back, seeing that the church girl had already vanished. "She takes work seriously, respectable," he spoke to himself again, a habit he had developed in his later years. Well, it wouldn''t be right manners if he let some girl new to this city throw herself before he did so himself. He was the city''s guard captain, and unlike those seekers, he had found his calling. He wasn''t just the guard captain, he was this city''s wall and defense all at once. And he could not stand for it if the place he stood for was damaged. Chapter 55: No Mercy Chapter 55: No Mercy /Dear readers, today I have come upon something very interesting. I have been visiting various tribal states down south, and observing their practices, as someone such as me may do. I kept a close eye on their music especially, and soon they showed me some of their more peculiar ones. Metal bowls, with many dents in them, that resonate upon being hit, long wooden tubes with some curves in them, far longer than the blowing instruments we are used to, and even special, large rattles. Those intrigued me especially, wrapped with thin strips of wood, and filled with hundreds of grains. Its inside is lined with small sticks and thorns that the grain falls against, creating a continuous sound almost like rain, which is what it was named after. A rainmaker, oftentimes used in rituals to drive out drought. But they have shown me much more than just that. They have shown me that their music is not written down, but individual, and they work together to create a slightly new piece each and every time. All members of the musical group, the mijuk, know their part and their place to improvise, as well as the other people playing with them. It''s a wondrous experience, hearing the droning of so many horns, and thumping of so very many drums, that I may mention in a later chapter, as well as witness their many dances. It is an unimaginable thing up north, the heat, the drink, the atmosphere of it all. Combined, the mijuk and the dancers, the baileires, make the festival. They sing, and shout in the languages of their ancestors, they dance around a fire to the rising and sinking of tones, and all make merry. The baileires may even grab someone out of the crowd and invite them for a dance, sometimes those are couples, pairings, good friends, or entirely strangers. The festivals are places of celebration, there is no conflict, no feuds, no fights. Only laughs, new bonds, merriment, drink and food. To celebrate a harvest gifted by the gods of the land, or the coming of a spring, or the birth of a child. It is a wonderful sight that I can only encourage anyone to come see, so long as you bring gifts to exchange./ A diary entry of the deceased Kurt River, featured in his life''s work, "Musico Telofio - The Journey". - - - - - - When Mercury arrived at the inn, everything was smashed. Davis was lying on the floor, blood leaking from his mouth, and there were no more soldiers to be seen. The floor was full of liquor and wood chippings, with the counter and tables all smashed. The windows were busted, and all of it was smashed. Mercury was stunned for a moment, as he entered the building. He was supposed to be on time, he had run there, and his little cat-sized heart was beating heavy in his chest. He was panting and his legs hurt, but he had come. So why again? Why again was he just a little too late? Wait, was he? [Davis: Human Barkeeper. Bleeding out. Unable to resist effects of Appraisal. 4 Hp left. Decreasing.] Mercury still had some gold, right? He had killed a couple of soldiers, surely it was enough!! Gold: 616 Enough for... how many potions? Uh... 30? No, wait, shit. 12. Yeah, 12 potions of minor healing. 60 Hp. Mercury didn''t even hesitate. Maybe those 60 Hp would be enough to bring Davis back. There was a chance, and a chance was all he needed. Instantly, he sunk his money into potions, pouring the liquid down Davis'' throat and onto his wounds all at once. But after he bought just 5 instances of glorious healing juice... [Excessive consumption detected. Stock running low. Price will now double with each purchase.] Mercury''s face sunk. [Davis: Human Barkeeper. Bleeding out. Unable to resist effect of Appraisal. 28 Hp left. Decreasing.] It didn''t matter. He bought another potion for 100 gold, then one more, and that was it. 38 Hp and some blood, that was all a man''s life hung on by. It was so fragile, so different from the heat of combat, so incomparable to friends disappearing. As Mercury watched the light in Davis'' eyes return for a second, he felt hope. Then, Davis coughed up blood, and it felt worse. Mercury hadn''t even taken a look at his injuries, just hoped that the potions would fix it all, but... This wasn''t something easy to fix. A shattered ribcage, maybe ribs puncturing his lungs. Cuts and bruises all over, and severe bleeding from the head and stomach. The man had been stabbed, cut, bashed, punched, and thrown, and all Mercury had done is prolong his suffering. Davis was doomed, and now he had to live through his own death a little longer. As Mercury realized what he had done, his legs gave in. His stomach sunk, and he felt sick. The cat came crashing to the floor as he gave up, and deactivated. All of a sudden, he felt so much heavier. His legs were like lead, dragged him more and more onto the floor. He cried out in sadness, about losing someone, but there was no thirst for revenge. His worries laid down on him like a heavy, heavy blanket, his eyelids falling like anchors, and his body sinking onto the ground. He had no stamina left, nothing more to give. With his last lifeforce, Davis laid a hand on Mercury''s head. He knew he was dying, and the pain was bad, but seeing his friend crumple before him... well, he could stand a little more for that. "Heads up, sir," he whispered, coughing up some more blood. "I live... in your heart." Davis forced up a small smile at this, his eyes shining just a little as his lips curled up, even in pain. He knew his line hadn''t been original, or very clever, but he was a dying man with little thoughts to spare. Maybe, at the very least, he could give some comfort. The same comfort his inn had given himself. Then, he closed his eyes, and his hand slid off the cat''s head, hitting the floor with a quiet thud. ... ... ... Mercury couldn''t cry. He didn''t have tearducts the same way he used to, but even then, his lips still shook, and he git his teeth and clenched his paws. He thought the fatigue would be enough to take him away, to make him fall asleep, but he couldn''t anymore. After what Davis had said, Mercury couldn''t allow himself to give up again. It wasn''t good to push too far, he knew that. It wasn''t good to run before you could walk and he knew it too! But goddamn it, if his friend died in such a way, what could a man do, but move forward in their honour?! Mercury grit his teeth hard enough to make his lips bleed, adding just a smidge more to the red stains on his fur, and he opened his eyes. Fuck. FUCK!! "AUUUUUUGGHHHHHHHHUAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!! FUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCKKKKKKKK!!!!!" he cried, screaming until his lungs could no more. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. And then, Mercury pushed his feet under him, willing the heavy lead to move, shaking off the blanket of misery and deciding to instead keep it in his heart. Not closed away, not ignored, not left to fester and eat away at him, but as a part of him. As the memory of Davis. As the bittersweet harmony of the man''s attitude and his death. Mercury decided that to honour his friend, he needed to grieve for him, but one day would not be enough. He would be sad whenever he felt like remembering today, he would be sad whenever he thought of the blood eclipse, and he would be sad if he couldn''t revive his friends. But he would always, always, and forever always be himself, unapologetically, and imperfect, but seeking to be at least a little bit better with every day. And with that in mind, he took a step, pushing the heaviness out of his legs, into the floor, and far away from him. He took another, going beyond what anyone would have expected him too, but short of what he needed himself to. And he took a third step, seeing the sun stand a little late in the sky now, shining through the broken windows and onto Davis'' body, the smile on his face glowing all the more as Mercury turned away, and went outside. There was still a city to save, still people with futures, friends, and families. Perhaps, if he took just one more step, he would be able to do some good. [The individual is going through extraordinary circumstances. The unique trial "One more Step" has been created. Rules will be revealed upon fulfillment of additional requirements, rewards will be given out in stages. Accept?] Piece of garbage wouldn''t leave him alone, would it? Mercury gave a disgruntled huff at the system, bothered by its incessant meddling with his mental affairs, but then again, he wasn''t in the position to turn down rewards by any means. Yes. Fine. Give out the goddamn trial. And so, Mercury steadied his heart once more as he looked into the burning streets, and heard the stomping of many boots. Today was the day to go just one step further than what people thought of him. - - - - - - Count I''htar was happy yet upset at once, running his hand through his frazzled hair as he thought of the consequences. This wasn''t quite how he had envisioned things would go, he didn''t know the northerners were planning on blowing themselves up to allow others to escape. This would create massive damages, and require massive repairs. The merchants'' guild largely took care of insurance, so this would heavily put a dampener on their coffers, while it would enrich him, when he invested at a low to get the economy flowing again. But that was only the tip of the iceberg, only if the city remained standing with enough people to support it. Otherwise? Well, his fate wouldn''t be too rosy. The count had great faith in his personal guards, they were trained by the best, and far more capable than an average person. He didn''t worry about dying, he simply worried about the future of his business with this new developement. Perhaps it was time then? "Deploy some soldiers, Kaga, I want the northerners beaten down and out of the city as soon as possible," he said, a chilly undertone to his voice. Those mercenaries wouldn''t even know what hit them. With a little luck, and some disguises, they would think that the local seekers struck them back, not his men, and certainly no suspicion would land on him. "How many, sire?" the woman asked, making sure the buttons on her suit were properly closed. She was taller than most men, and had her long, blood red hair tied into a ponytail, her usually fiery eyes currently calm. "As many as it takes. Spare only the bare minimum to keep me safe, make sure that the city recovers as many lives as you can. I want them indebted, not dead." "Yes, sire," she said calmly, giving him a slightly casual salute and walking off to inform the other guards of their job. It was finally time to fire back against the hooligans attacking the city, and they would gladly do so under the name of Count I''htar. Perhaps this way, they could finally nab the first spot on the local fame leaderboard. Kaga smiled a little at the thought, musing over the possibilities as she went down the stairs. Her master was a good man, offering up his personal guards to protect the city. It wasn''t something he was obligated to do, but instead something he was doing simply out of the goodness of his heart. Very nice. But of course, before she entered the waiting room where most of the guards, or at least their communicators, were situated, she put her serious face back on. Time to look all professional and cool, she thought, wiping any traces of a smile from her face. Then, she turned the handle and opened the door into a room full of equipped knights, wearing special battlesuits made from monster parts or fancy metals. "Alright everyone, the count has decided it is our time to act! We will drive the brutes out of Stormbraver, make sure to show them that they are but a breeze to this city, and it has stood against much greater winds! Capiche?!" "YES MA''AM!!" "Alrighty, pass it on ''n good luck. I''mma go do something else," Kaga said, half muttering the last sentence as she closed the door behind herself. She could only maintain proper procedure so long, and a couple sentences were usually her limit before some of her... stranger dialect came to show. She shook her head as she walked down the endless hallways of the mansion, taking a couple of turns before she arrived at the vault. She didn''t often get to use her proper equipment, since the count insisted on her looking good and professional, but still, she sometimes missed it. The leisurely jacket, the cappy, the jogging pants and the sneakers. It certainly made her look casual, which the count minded, but if Kaga was concerned, that was the best. She saw her chance, and didn''t intend to waste it, immediately putting on her incredibly comfy combat gear, and pulling her weapon out of the inventory. It was a long Naginata, taller even than herself, and she gave a wry smile at it, driving her thumb down the clean edge of the weapon. Hopefully, hopefully, hopefully she''d be sent out today! She got to take casual walks so rarely nowadays! - - - - - - Eventually, the boy fell. He stumbled as he ran, over a lone rock, and came crashing to the floor, and step by step the hunters grew closer. Yet, try as he might, he could not get off the floor. It was but a matter of time. The breathing behind him grew heavier, bit by bit, yet his legs would not move. They were broken and exhausted, and after their motion ceased, they would not move again. He cried bitter tears on the floor, crawling forward through the mud, pushing and pulling with his elbows as he clawed his fingers into the dirt until his nails broke. His face was bleeding and aching, the dirt burning in the scrapes, and he barely felt his knees anymore, but he ran. Desperation had taken hold of him, and as his hot tears mixed with his blood and sweat, he stretched out his arm one last time, and watched it get stepped on. Something picked his arm up from the ground, and the boy attempted to scream out in pain, yet all that left his throat was but a hoarse croak. The running boy had given all he could to run, and the run had taken all he had. There was nothing more to give, yet so much to lose. The boy watched as his arm was raised up by a hand, grey in colour and much larger than his. It remained in the air a little, then dropped to the floor again. And then, there was a crunch, as something came down on him. For a moment, the boy only felt pain, until it was replaced by coldness, then by a quiet emptiness. The boy had died, yet the hunt was more than on. - - - - - - Lucia was busy back in Stormbraver. She had put on whatever bits of combat gear she had in her inventory, namely a few accessories to enhance her power and speed. She didn''t carry her suit of armor around with her, and she wouldn''t have had the time to swap into it anyways. For a little while, she thought of Iris, but Lucia pushed the thought aside not too long. Her friend was certainly as busy as she at the very least, and quite frankly, Iris wasn''t one to be beat down quickly. She was confident that it was fine. Instead of looking for anyone in particular, Lucia ran through the city. She had taken off her uncomfortable shoes, and was now sprinting barefoot, quickly sparing an arrow for any enemy heads she saw poke out. Some of them willingly approached her, others she found, and other fled, yet her arrows pierced their hearts all the same. She had no mercy left, not in a situation as dire as this. A war, no, an invasion, an onslaught like this deserved no hesitation, no worry, only a deep drive to defend. And in Lucia''s heart, that drive burned bright, just as bright as the flames of fury within her heart, making her bow glow constantly, and attracting enemies to her like moths to a flame. Eventually, she saw a familiar face, and an equally familiar visor. "Geh?! Didn''t the general say she was dead?!" the paladin asked in the northern tongue, putting his shield out front and getting some distance between himself and the bow wieldress. The berserker woman on the other hand... "RAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!!!!!" she roared, charging at Lucia as soon as she saw the smaller woman, the fires of rage burning all the brighter in her eyes. "I will not miss this time," Lucia whispered to herself, almost scoffing at the berserker''s charge. She was truly pitiful, Lucia thought, using all that anger in such a primal way. Instinct and power can only take you so far, and the sight of using a berserker''s strength so pathetically made her almost laugh. She would show that wench how one raged. Lucia crouched down low, remaining calm in the face of a charge towards herself, before leaping up onto a building in one swift, soft hop. The paladin tried to grab her with his flail, but quite frankly, he had been too far away, probably because he was scared of her. From on top of the building, Lucia raised her bow and drew the string back, all the way to the corner of her mouth. Her elbow was straight, her body aligned sideways, and she had both eyes wide open, honing in on her target. And then, she let go. Instantly, her flaming arrow hissed forth into existence, cutting its way through the air with irresistible force. The bowstring hit Lucia''s forearm and left a small burn, but she didn''t even flinch at the pain, only staring at her target and already pulling the bow back once more. The berserker didn''t have the time to react consciously, yet somehow, purely by instinct, she raised one large meaty arm up in front of her face, and it was all that saved her. The arrow pierced right through her forearm, through the bone, and out the other side by about 10 centimeters, the head of the arrow stopping barely before her eye. In anger, the woman roared, raising her arms to smash the floor, only to suddenly keel over and crumple to one side. "URAAAGH!" she cried, having an arrow lodged into the same eye Lucia had already aimed for before, but without getting a chance to even channel her rage, another arrow already hissed forth, piercing her arm onto the floor, and then the same for her other arm. The paladin watched in horror, charging forward to protect his friend from the slowly increasing hail of arrows, but it was too late. "," Lucia said calmly, drawing back her bowstring as the flames around it burned brighter. And as she let go, the arrow hissed forth, before disappearing, as two more shone into the air behind Lucia. Then they hissed forth, and disappeared once again, leaving four flaming arrows in behind her. And then they doubled again, and once more. Before 10 seconds had passed, Lucia turned around, and from behind her, a hail of arrows thundered forth, sundering the paladin''s armor and rending the berserker''s flesh. "May you learn to resent chaos in death, northerners." All that was left were charred bones and ash. Chapter 56: Purpose Chapter 56: Purpose /Lately, I have talked a lot about arches, rifts, tears and so on, however, I feel as though I have neglected to talk about their big drawbacks and benefits. See, sometimes countries will establish themselves around arches, some smaller cities even around doors, since these are permanently open paths to places rich in... well, everything! Arches especially are oftentimes filled with precious resources, gems, mana crystals, stamina-regenerating rivers, and many other wonders. These places even are intrinsically linked to the system, in the fact that oftentimes, upon entering one of those places, it would give out a quest, asking to clear it. Of course, these quests aren''t always handed out, especially for gates that stay open, but when it comes to rifts, tears, or even just cracks, then these will very often be handed out. Why then does the system want us to clear them and close up those pathways, when they are so rich in items and value? Quite frankly, the reason is simple. The monsters inside can leave occasionally. These "breaches", as they are called, occur rarely nowadays, but they do still occur. Oftentimes, it happens when rifts appear in unpopulated areas, like dense forests, or deep down in the ocean. Those places then grow infested with monsters, becoming nests, where the things breed, and increase their numbers. Eventually, they want to expand and wander out of the nests, attacking humans, small villages with little protections, or even larger cities. If these rifts then aren''t cleared, more monsters will spill over, even if the ones that are already repopulating here are killed. This makes the war between us people of Chronagen and the monsters inside the pathways an ever-lasting one, always fighting each other for territory in a never ending struggle of life and death. And yet, there is one more curious bit. It has been discovered that the monsters of the arches also have the system. This has been found out by Ayren, the runesmith of forstbay, as she once had captured a monster, and uniquely created a translator for it. A truly one-of-a-kind piece of art that deserves a text of its own. Still, it isn''t the focus of this one, and much more important are the fruits of the discussion she had with the monster. The thing introduced itself as Garrognosh, an orc, as we understand it, a species that appears both natively on Chronagen, as well as within the rifts. Surprisingly, it was more cooperative than what anyone would have expected. As Ayren asked it questions, the orc obliged. It offered up some resistance, of course, but it didn''t insult or spit in Ayren''s face. Their talks were many and varied, however to keep things on the topic of the system, I will only summarize the important parts here. Firstly, Garrognosh explained, that the monsters inside the paths also have a system. They receive experience for killing those poor souls who wander inside the rifts, as well as killing those who come to close it up. In fact, they even receive quests to protect the core of whatever path they are occupying, be that core inside a boss, or a free-floating one guarded by a sentinel. However, while inside the rifts, Garragnosh remarked that it felt as though there was a fog over his mind. He was acting mostly on instinct, rarely thinking about what he wanted, or who he was, and according to him, the monsters only grow aware of who they are and what they want once they leave the rift. Whenever they reach the outside world just so happens to also be the point in time, when they become able to form a main quest, though many of them still act largely on instinct, and have a strong, innate connection to the rift. Garragnosh himself said that he still didn''t want any harm to come to the crack he had been born in, and later on said that after it was closed, it felt as though a part of himself had been ripped out. Still, he was happy with his newfound freedom, sense of self, and unlike most monsters, his main quest was to taste the cooking of different places. Apparently its first instance was to taste one local specialty drink, and three unique meals. Over time, he and Ayren had many more talks, until the point when Garragnosh wanted to roam the world himself and he was denied the request. The orc frenzied, according to the records, and was promptly put down. This bizarre story asks many questions. Is the system sentient? Where do the monsters in the paths truly originate from? Does the system have a side in the conflict between Chronagen and the things inside the paths? And is it possible to maybe establish amicable relations to some of the monsters that come out of the gates?/ An excerpt of "A documentation of Tunneling" by Armeyus the Scholar - - - - - - Rondo had trained the city guard quite well. He wasn''t an idiot, and while he might look like a bear, he also wasn''t one to storm head first into a battle. Before anything else, Rondo went to check up on the medical tents. A couple commanders and marshals had moved when he was still buried under the rubble, setting up two decently sized white tents at the city gates in about 15 minutes. The healers were already in there, and teams went out with stretchers, carrying back any who couldn''t walk themselves. He nodded at their efforts for a moment, giving the guards protecting the facility a once-over. The one leading the efforts was Frikke, an old friend of his. He would have smiled when he saw her, if it weren''t for the blood on her face, and the handful of corpses around her. "Well, well, well, see who''s back up. Finally thought you might wanna help out, old man?" the woman asked him with a grin, brushing her long, blonde hair behind her back. She was tall, muscular, with a sharp chin, sharp eyes, and an even sharper tongue. "Bah! That''s how you talk to your captain?!" "Things are looking rough around here, cap," one of the other guards interjected, a middle aged man with the first strands of silver in his hair, Doyle. "Report." "They''re hitting us hard," Frikke said. "We''re hitting them back harder, but our healers are busy patching us up rather than the civilians, and they blew our stockpile of potions. We can last like this for two more hours, tops." "Guard the perimeter in shifts. Any soldiers who need healing take priority, any life-threatening injuries take even higher priority. Get a few teams up and running and pay a visit to whatever pharmacies are still open. I want to see all the healing potions in this damn city here!" "Yes sir!" Frikke quickly saluted, banging her long spear on the floor, before stepping off to arrange orders. Then, Rondo turned to Doyle. He looked him over, checking his wounds, and saw that the man was still quite fit. He had a couple wrinkles on his face, but he was well built, and the wear of age hadn''t set in fully yet. The man also wasn''t too injured, just a couple scrapes and bruises, and seemed quite determined. "Doyle, you''re going out with me. We''re on civilian duty. Also, someone get Beckham back on his feet! Move it!" "YES SIR!!" Doyle didn''t hesitate when he was given orders. Him and Rondo moved out quickly, scouring through the streets that were littered with dust and shrapnel. Broken wood and stone covered every surface, some occasionally splashed with dried blood. "Sir-" This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. "Shhhh," Rondo said, putting a finger over his mouth. He ducked behind a corner and pointed forwards, where Doyle saw a parade of enemy soldiers walk by. "We ambush them," Rondo whispered, slowly drawing his weapon. A giant broadsword, almost as tall as him, and heavier than it looked. It had a couple nicks in the blade from when he was pelted with stones and had to dig it out of the rubble, but it honestly crushed more than it cut. Doyle simply nodded at the declaration, drawing the spear he was given as a city guard. Most of them used spears, as the weapons were decently easy to learn, and horribly hard to master. They allowed you to keep a good distance and poke at many things, and worked well against both humans and monsters, with their ability to stab and slice. Rondo wasted no time, turning the corner and sprinting at the enemy. They turned to meet him, but by that time, he was already swinging his sword, and there was no more chance for them to react, as half their patrol was immediately wiped out. "Fodder," Doyle muttered under his breath, watching as the remaining northerners reacted quickly, trying to get at the guard captain. He moved quickly, sneaking out from behind the goliath that was Rondo and striking at their legs. His movements were fluid, honed by more than a decade of training, and with him being hidden, he landed a couple good blows before one managed to parry him. There were three soldiers, their tendons severed on the floor. The patrol leader was still standing, same as 4 more northerners. Rondo quickly used his chance to smash his sword towards them once more, but his strike was slow, letting the northerners duck and get some distance. One of them pulled out a shortbow, and quickly fired an arrow, which Rondo blocked with the wide side of his sword. Doyle knew he was there largely for support, but still, watching his captain clean up shop and swing a sword that massive around shocked him every time it happened. He shook his head for only a moment, before crouching down and using the moment of distraction the enemies showed to swing his spear. He used all the leverage he could, and exploited the flaws of leather armor as he had been taught, slicing another northerner''s knee clean off. Rondo gave him a quick nod, before turning back to the remainder of the patrol. "You''re paying now," he said, his steely eyes growing darker. "!" For a moment, Rondo''s sword seemed to glow red, hissing as it cut through the air, before it sent the upper bodies of the remaining patrol members flying. He had sliced them in half. Doyle didn''t allow himself to even flinch at this, finishing off anyone who was simply injured before they continued on, rushing further into the city. - - - - - - [Level Up!] ---- Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Lv.: 14 -> 16 Species: Zetraspa Titles: , , Hp: 109/245 Mp: 145/322 Sp: 94/200 Strength: 52 -> 55 Vitality: 48 -> 54 Dexterity: 40 -> 45 (+1) Agility: 34 -> 36 (+1) Intelligence: 51 -> 53 Wisdom: 58 -> 59 (+2) Willpower: 59 -> 64 Luck: 19 -> 22 Ability points: 31 World points: 19 Skill points: 1160 Gold: 66 Beast familiars: 1/2 ---- He had gotten many stat increases, and even two levels over the duration of this slaughter. The first level came fairly soon, he must have been near the cap after his last couple fights, and just now there had been another. Both times, they refilled half of his stats, and for just a moment, Mercury could stop panting. But this wasn''t enough yet. There were people out there who he could still help, people in whose lives he could maybe, just maybe make a difference. And so, Mercury ran off again, using to be able to move through the streets just a little faster. All of his fur was caked in red by now, and all of his muscles were burning even after his stats had been restored. But that didn''t matter. His was running more than any of his other Skills, as he had forced himself so very far, pushing himself. But it was the very least he could do. The very least he had to do, to prove to himself that he was being worthwhile. That, at the very least, there was some point to it all, some difference he was making. And for that, to prove it to just himself, he would take one more step, he would carve his very existence into this world, never to be forgotten. "Mercury? Is that you?" "What? Marcel?" Mercury turned his head to face the voice. What was Marcel doing here? Wasn''t he a receptionist? "What are you doing here? The godseekers have already gathered and spread out in a grid, to cover as much area as possible," the young man quickly explained, walking closer to the mopaaw. "Well, okay, where''s an extra pair of paws-" "How did you get that much blood on you?!" Marcel yelped, quickly tapping his long staff of white oak against Mercury''s head. "," he said, before kneeling down and checking for any more severe injuries. "It''s a long- OW! Don''t touch that! Look, I don''t got any fancy weapons, or hands to hold them with for that matter, so I gotta get very close. Now, I''m fine, so tell me where I can help!" Mercury quickly jumped back from the receptionist a little, looking at him in a slightly different light now. "Stubborn bastard," Marcel whispered, before letting out a long sigh. "Fine," he then said, "if you want to help so badly, head southeast. Mages are holding down the fort, but quite a lot of the enemies have gathered there. We got the nobles covered, but they need anyone they can get." "Thanks! See you later!" Just like that, Mercury sprinted off, activating without hesitation. It didn''t take him too long to get there, maybe 10 minutes. He had been pretty close to the city center before, and given the amount of flashing colors, the mages weren''t very hard to find. Without hesitation, Mercury lunged into the fray, activating his and , trying his best to maximise efficiency. By now, Mercury had his fair share of battle experience. Sure, it wasn''t like he had been part of hundreds of them, but he was a decently quick learner, and the situations he had been in forced him to develop quickly. It''s surprising what people can manage when they''re trapped between a rock and a hard place. Mercury swiped his eyes over the lines as he soared through the air. Most enemy soldiers wouldn''t expect him. They had their hands full dodging the rocks, flames, and ice thrown at them, while being pushed around by harsh winds. A cat like him? He would just fade away, and then fuck them up. With that, he had decided. In this battle, he didn''t need to directly kill someone. Simply knocking someone over with a tackle, or slicing at their legs would probably be enough of a distraction for the mages to capitalize. But still, they were the ones being pushed back. The mages wouldn''t do too well in a melee confrontation, so the northerners continuously charged at them, either screaming loudly, or screaming more quietly from behind a shield. And of course, some of them didn''t even care about their injuries, simply charging forwards, tackling one of the robed figures to the ground and bashing their skull in before roaring. Mercury shivered as he saw it. Yeah, these people really needed his help. He sprinted forwards as soon as he hit the floor, past the ranks of all those magicians and wizards as he headed far deeper into the midst of the enemies. For some reason he felt light as he ran around, yet his hold on the ground was solid. Within moments, he had gone past the enemy line, and was now skittering about between their feet, and only seconds later, he made the first few people shout out. It didn''t matter if he got the experience for the kills this time, he just needed to take down as many northerners as possible. Luckily for him, most of them were focused on the barrage of magic from up above, and only some even saw him coming. Still, when it hadn''t even been a minute, he was beginning to get noticed. One soldier saw him and pointed, only to have a spear of ice lodged in his throat. But the damage had been done. Some messengers must have spread the news about some mopaaw fighting for Stormbraver. His cover was blown, and he now had multiple people honing in on him. Yet they couldn''t catch him. Whenever Mercury dodged, he felt as though his feet moved across the ground so effortlessly, and sometimes, it even felt as though his enemies were slower than they were supposed to be. "Speedy Speedy Kitty!!" he heard a voice in his head. That of a young man, maybe in his early twenties, and it was only because he was used to being suddenly approached, that he still managed to dodge another attack. "Sorry, bad timing. I''m... uh... Support mage. Wind magic. Yes?" "The fuck are you doing in my head?!" Mercury thought back very loudly, only to feel the wind let up as he jumped out of the way of a sword. "Need to focus. I''m making you speedy. Do your thing!" Kids these days, Mercury thought, though he hid it from the mage. Whoever it was, they were being very helpful. "Name''s Elliot! Dream work!" "What?" okay, maybe this kid didn''t quite have all his peanuts in order. "Teamwork makes the dream work?" "Okay, for real, save the talking for later," Mercury thought, before biting the shit out of someone''s ankle, throwing the soldier onto the ground and leaving her to get hit in the face with a sphere of fire. "Alrightey!" Mercury was full of questions, but even fuller of determination. With this kid''s support, there was nothing in this world that could stop him. Yes! He would- OW! Get kicked in the fucking face apparently. Mercury quickly got off his high horse again and zoned into the combat, using both and to know when to dodge, where he would be hit, and who he should attack. It gave him a right fucking headache, sure, but at the very least he could dodge attacks this way. Still, every now and then he got hit, but perhaps things were slowly looking up... - - - - - - Iris never liked being called lazy. It was rooted deep within her. She needed to prove herself every day, she couldn''t become a burden. Her duty came first, before even this city, and that duty right now was finding Lucia. She wore her full combat outfit, dressed in black and carrying more weapons than what was perhaps necessary, but none of that mattered. She flew by any northerners, because those didn''t matter. She flew by civilians, because those didn''t matter either. She disregarded ongoing fights, and disregarded people who were hurt, and disregarded the people hurting them. None of those were her lady. Only that one person mattered. No one other than her deserved even a shred of attention... "Well, well, well. If it isn''t the ''Black Ivy'', Iris." Without a second of hesitation, Iris stopped. She dug her feet and hands into the pavement, sliding to a stop in just a few moments. "Who said that?" she asked, looking all around her through the broken streets, her muscles coiled tighter than any spring. "Seems like your past has come to catch up with you," the voice giggled. "Your ''lady'' is already with me. Stand down or see her get hurt." Chapter 57: Crazy People Chapter 57: Crazy People /Once upon a time there was nothing. There was no light and no darkness, neither time nor space, good, or evil. And then, there was a spark. In a single moment, that flicker grew, spreading out over the infinite vastness of nothing and simply creating. First, the sparks gathered and made a large circle, an imperfect one for they were ever shifting, but a circle nonetheless. They filled the circle with many things. They added stars to the night sky, the sun and the moons, and even Chronagen its very self. But the greatest gift we were given was that of time. As pages didn''t exist yet, no one knew how long there was only stillness within the circle of sparks, but it eventually began rousing and shifting ever so slowly, and that rousing gave birth to time. It was calm, slow, and constant, a collective movement that determined what was to happen. Each time a spark moved, a fragment of time shifted, and things moved along. And eventually, Chronagen changed. Before all people came to be, the gods walked this very earth. There were no first or last of them, as they simply came to be at the same time. And then, the time of myths began. The forge of creation was made, the altar of the sky was built, Atlantis was erected, and eventually sunk. The gods fought, waged wars, then drank and made merry. Some farmed, and created mountains, others like to swim, making oceans for themselves to toy with, and bit by bit, the world as we knew came together. Yet, the gods grew older, and as they aged, they grew more wise. They stopped their needless squabbles, and helped each other, yet eventually, they grew bored. It was time for them to take on responsibility, to fill the role all of them now thought it was time to fulfill. And such, they created the people of Chronagen. The animals and beasts, the dragons and the xialj, the gwan of the sea. The elves, the dwarves, the giants, and even the kin. Still more, there were the demons and devils, as well as many other mystical races nowadays seen so rarely. Those gods gave us their artefacts and teachings, before they moved far away. Into another place, where they still watch over us, giving out blessings and cryptic messages. Still, there is solace to be taken in their absence. We are not alone, for the gods watch over us. We are not empty, for there is love to fill that void. And we are not pointless, for as there is time now, there will always be time later. The future, one where we will be remembered forever. To be true to time is to leave an impact that lasts, as the gods have, so should we. And thus, the book before the first began./ The story of Chronagen''s creation, told as such for many, many acts and sagas. It builds the foundation for the widespread religious belief in the time before gods, where only the spark of time lit up the universe, one of the core principles lying at the very heart of the General Society of the Beginning. The sparks of time specifically are worshipped as a creator by the "family" of time. The story itself has been told from mouth to mouth, written down from page to page over many acts, sagas, and even books. A story that explains our origin to its very core, a story that shall forever stand, forever last against the gnawing tooth of all that tears at it. - - - - - - Mercury didn''t fight anyone special, or super strong, but he was proud. He stood between many, many corpses, and it was conflicting. As he thought about it, he felt guilt, and remorse, he felt sorry for having had to do this to so many people, and yet he felt proud to have protected that which has grown dear to him. It was a strange feeling, a mix of emotions he couldn''t describe, pinpoint, or afford to deal with right now, as he saw a... young man running towards him, putting it lightly. What the hell was a kid doing here? Wait a second. "Mercuryyyyyyy!!!!" Elliot yelped, storming towards the cat as he was on break, the other mages now slowly cleaning up all that was left of the northerners. Mercury on his own was now covered in even more blood than before, and had been badly bruised up once again, with a couple of kicks landing all over him, and even some knife wounds covering his fur. As such, he wasn''t exactly eager to be swooped up by someone so tiny. "Elliotttttttt," Mercury said as such, mimicking his tone, except for his pitch falling at the end, as he began retreating at the same speed as the boy ran towards him. Then, when Mercury was running away for only a couple of seconds, he heard a loud "Ouuuhhhoooooo! OUCH!", followed by a lot of crashing sounds. With a sigh, the Mopaaw turned around, seeing the boy now on his stomach, with his wizard hat on the floor next to him, and a couple of frying pans on his back. He had tripped over some decoration of a food cart, and pulled the whole stall down onto himself. "Well, it''s a pleasure to meet you too, kid," Mercury said, keeping enough distance from the bundle of energy to be safe. "It is!!" the boy replied with a big, toothy grin, although there was some blood leaking from his lower lip. Now that Mercury looked closer, he seemed to be maybe around 16 years of age. Long, brown hair flowed down his back, and he had equally brown eyes, though to be fair, the way they shimmered was bordering on flashlights. He almost looked a little girly. "Thanks for the help, kid- uh, I mean Elliot," Mercury said, correcting himself. In this world, you were probably an adult at an age younger than this, and quite frankly, the kid had helped him out a lot, so this was the least he could do. "Welcome!" Elliot said, his smile growing even brighter as he dug himself out from the kitchen utensils he was buried in and sat down on the floor. He tried moving a little closer to Mercury, only for the cat to retreat a little. "Hm?" "I really like my personal space, kid. Not one for being pet and snuggled, you know?" "Okay! I gotcha! But why are you calling me kid so much?" Elliot spoke with very strong expressions, first grinning, then turning his head to the side and forming a big "o" with his mouth as he asked questions. "It''s because I''m old. 37 chapters old in fact." "Hmmmmm," Elliot muttered, swaying side to side with a finger on his chin. "But you''re a mopaaw!" "Yes." "Those don''t grow past 20 usually!" "Yes." "And you''re 37?" "Yes." "What''s your favourite colour?" "Silver. Fine, a metal, doesn''t count. Black. Doesn''t count sometimes either. Gold. Again, some people will make the point- it''s purple. If you want to go specifically into colour theory it''s purple." "Silver, black, gold, purple, got it!" Elliot said with a smile. "I like blue! It''s what they make the robes like." "I see," Mercury said, in fact taking note that the boy''s robes were blue, with a slight star pattern on his pointy hat. He really did look like a textbook example of a wizard. "You''re awfully cheery for the middle of a war." "I try not to let it get to me," Elliot said, giving a wry smile. "My parents taught me that being a kid is as fun as it gets, so I try to keep it about me." The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. "Mh. Whatever floats your boat," Mercury said, looking up into the sky. "How''s the rest of the city looking?" "Clean up is going well. This was the last big force we had to deal with. Still, I can''t even imagine how many lives were lost today..." "Anyone you know in the mix?" Mercury asked. "I know mostly just the people from my guild. Some of them got hit, but I don''t think anyone died yet." "Mh," Mercury nodded, "that''s good to hear. Losing people is tough." "I know," Elliot said, staring into the sky. "It''s not like we can do anything about it though." "Suppose you''re right." "Elliot?" a woman called for the boy. "Oh, that''s the guild master! Come along, I''m sure she would love to meet you!" and without even waiting for a response, Elliot ran off. "Sigh. Alright, alright," Mercury said and with very half-hearted devotion, he dragged his tired wreck of a body all the way over for the couple meters that he needed to. "There you are. I''m happy to see that you didn''t run off too far," the guild master said with a smile. She was a tall woman, wearing a large, blue wizard hat, and long, elegant robes. Her hair was long, silky, and startlingly black, her skin smooth, and a star tattooed on her cheek. She had a narrow, high nose and large, emerald eyes. "Who is the friend you brought?" she asked, staring at Mercury. "It''s-" "I can very well introduce myself," Mercury said, desensitized to being mistaken for a common furball. "My name is Mercury Rainfall Starlight. I''m part of the Godseekers'' Guild, D rank, though hopefully about to be promoted after...", he looked around himself, "... all this." "Well, it certainly has been a while since I''ve seen a true kin in these parts. Say, where do you hail from, Mercury?" the witch asked him, kneeling down to be more level. "I dunno, I was told not to give my address to strangers. This is a clever hint for you to introduce yourself," he said, deadpan. The guild master replied with a smile and a light chuckle. "Alright then. My name is Esmeya Raventhorn. As our little star might have told you, I''m the guild master of the Mages'' Guild, and as such, I have taken to preserve the integrity of magic in Stormbraver." "Neato. Well, I think you got something wrong, I''m not a "true kin" or whatever. Used to be a regular guy, 36, then I died, and now I''m here. As a "mopaaw". You wouldn''t believe how much you miss thumbs once you don''t have them anymore. I''m gonna get myself some telekinesis as soon as I can." "Well, you could technically move items around using magic as well," Elliot said. "True, but that''s like super inefficient. Like, it takes so much mana to create even a little movement, and I have to like... bounce it around. Unless I create platforms, but moving and pushing those is difficult. And even applying mana outside my body has been a bit harsh, so I would even run out of it soon enough." "Well, well, well, it seems someone is an aspiring mage," Esmeya said with a sly smile. "Not really aspiring, only been in this body for a year now. So yup, that''s me, 37 year-old dude. In a kitten''s body." "By no means a kitten anymore, dear Mercury," Esmeya said, eyeing him up and down. "You''re soon to be full grown, you know? But say, it does intrigue me, what perhaps do you mean when you say ''died''?" "Very literally. Choked on food, slammed my head against the floor, and boom, now I''m here. Fairly sure there was some in between, but it seems like some heavy fucking trauma, so I''m not touching it with a 10-foot-pole," Mercury replied, simply enjoying his time sitting rather than running around. It seems Elliot was getting tired of that as well, as the boy simply plopped himself onto the ground next to his new feline friend. "Curious indeed. Pray tell then, where did you die?" "Place wouldn''t tell you much. It''s pretty far away, I''d guess." "Hm, I would not be so sure Mercury. I''ve heard a story similar to yours before, from a woman named Hypatia, claiming to be from "Alexandria". Does that mean anything to you?" "Sounds hella Greek to me dude." "Yes, she claimed that she was indeed "from Greece", now I have never heard of that country before, but seemingly you have?" she asked, her lips slowly twisting into a curious smile. "It does. But like, can we move this whole meeting to another day? On one hand, I don''t exactly know you well enough to tell you everything about my life, so like, please don''t dissect me, and secondly, take a good look. My fur colour is supposed to be white. White! I need a bath, and a shower, and more sleep than I would like to admit and- oh yeah my room''s broken." "Sleepover!!!" Elliot yelled, half throwing himself onto Mercury, who sadly avoided the boy''s grip with his superior animalistic instincts, and so, the mage simply fell onto the floor. "Yeah, no, I think I''ll instead take a room at the gloryhall. But I can promise to swing by tomorrow, under a few conditions." "Which would be?" Esmeya asked, cocking her head slightly. "My rented room collapsed, but there''s an important memento and some stuff of mine in there. I need you to promise to dig it out of the rubble." "I swear on my guild." "A little excessive. Just knock on the door of the gloryhall whenever you have time, and I''m sure Marcel or Avery will point you to me," Mercury said. "See-" "Wait a moment, you know guild master Beckham?!" Elliot said, his face only centimeters from Mercury''s, and his eyes turned into sparkles. "I do. I also know I need sleep, so I''ll see you tomorrow." And with that, he turned around and walked away, with his head held high. "Wait!" Elliot yelled, trying to go after Mercury, but Esmeya quickly grabbed part of his robes. "Come now, young one," she said, "let us return to our quarters. There is much to be done back at the halls." "Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo---" But without remorse, the guild master dragged the boy to get his chores done. - - - - - - Marcel was in a bit of a pickle, being faced with two strong enemies, when his specialty wasn''t even fighting. He was a support mage, for goodness'' sake, why did he have to run into those two? He was using his staff to parry the attacks of the woman, she was strong and fast, carrying a sword in one hand and a shield in the other, yet at the same time, he also had to deal with a man who kept appearing behind him and trying to stab at his back. Every time the man attacked, Marcel had to expend some mana to create a barrier to stop him, and although he used , it wasn''t getting much easier to read their attacks. He was sweating buckets already, and if things continued like this, he knew it would go bad real quick. "BACK OFF, FIENDS!! YOUR RECKONING HAS COME!!!" someone screamed, causing both Marcel and his attackers to flinch and look around. ... ... ... "I''m here!" Kaga yelled from above a building, the sun directly behind her back, encasing her in a halo. "Who the heck is that?" the scout asked his sword-wielding companion, but the woman could only shrug. Both of them turned to Marcel. "Huh? I dunno, never seen her before," he said, just glad to have a moment to rest. "What?! I am the protector of Stormbraver''s golden one, the leader of the guardians, and the demon of the battlefield!" Once again, the three of them looked at each other and one by one shrugged. "Do you know her..?" "Who is that...?" "Man I got no idea..." "FINE!!! I''LL JUST KILL YOU TO SHOW IT!!!!!" She yelled, then laughed hysterically as a javelin of air began to form in her hand, more a moving outline, as though she was grabbing at liquid glass. And a moment later, she threw it at all of them full force, causing a small explosion as the three hopped backwards. "What the hell?! You fucking psychopath bitch, the fuck was that for?!" Marcel yelled back at her. "I''m from Stormbraver too!" "Whoopsies!" Kaga said, putting out her tongue and smiling brightly as she grabbed the Naginata from her inventory. "Then help me take care of those northern bastards!" Marcel shook his head and sighed. "Why do I always have to be paired with the nutcases?" "I can hear you!!" "Fine, fine. . . . . I''ll cover your 6 with barriers, so make sure I don''t get stabbed, nutcase," Marcel said, dropping all his friendliness. "Gotcha, make sure you do your job, trashcan," Kaga said with a grin, jumping down from the building. As soon as she landed, she burst into a sprint, cutting the dust apart with her naginata. It was a weapon meant for both arms, a spear, except with a curved sword''s blade, yet Kaga only wielded it with one hand. After only a couple seconds, she arrived in front of the shield-wielding woman, swinging down with her full force and a mad grin on her face. Yet, when the warrior blocked her attack by supporting her sword with the shield, Kaga quickly ducked to avoid a counter, stepping in slightly closer to the other woman, and launching a heavy blow immediately into her stomach with her left hand. "Wow, trashcan, I feel so light, gihgihgih!" She laughed, kicking the other woman into the face, when the scout appeared behind her and slashed at her throat. Yet, Marcel stopped him again, conjuring a small, shining ring of light in front of his dagger. "Then beat the shit out of them already, you goddamn maniac!" "What''s the magic word?" she said dodging and blocking slashes from the warrior woman in front of her. "Stop playing around you ugly bitch!!" the northerner yelled, slashing down with all her power. And she hit flesh... for a moment. "The fuck did you just say?" Kaga asked calmly, holding the sword with her now heavily bleeding left hand. Her face had gone many shades darker, and terror was flooding off her in waves. The northerner woman tried to rip her sword back, and while it moved and made more deep cuts on Kaga''s hand, the leader of the guardians didn''t let go. "Say that again." The scout tried to attack, yet Marcel stopped him again. "Say it," Kaga said, a little louder, having dropped her weapon and picked the woman up by her throat. "SAY IT AGAIN YOU BITCH!!!!" she cried, slamming the northerner into the floor with a resounding crack, and Marcel was unsure whether the floor or the sack of meat had given in. "That''s what I thought," Kaga said calmly, the smile resurfacing on her face as she picked up the naginata she dropped and tested her bloodied left hand. "I''m still fit to fight," she spoke to the air, "Come out and play with me, little Ninja." "How could you!" the scout screamed, attacking Kaga from behind with his daggers, yet she all too easily grabbed him. "You really shouldn''t announce your sneak attacks. They''re much less sneaky that way," she said, tilting her head a little. "Oh well, this has been fun, gihgihgih," she laughed, then grabbed her Naginata near the cutting part, and stabbed it in between his ribs and into his heart, killing the man as he let out gurgling screams. She tossed the body aside, adding it to the couple that littered the streets. Marcel shook his head a couple times as he saw this. "Hey, nutcase, you got some problems with violence?" he asked, not too terribly afraid. "Hm? I wouldn''t call it a problem, trashcan, just... a hobby," she said, giving him a charming smile. "Alright then, let me get that hand of yours all done up." "Aren''t you a sweety," Kaga said with a bright grin, holding out her carved up and bloodied hand. She had been cut all the way to the bone at multiple parts of her palm. Marcel sighed as he saw it, simply holding his cane above the wound. "", he said, and things seemed to look a little better. ". . ." With every time he said it, Kaga''s flesh knitted itself back together, until eventually, all that was left were a couple of scars on her skin. "To get rid of those you gotta see a proper cleric. This has me drained, I''mma take a rest. Get the northerners out, you damn maniac." "Naaawe, anything for you, trashcan," she said with a smile. "I''ll be at work, see you!" And just like that, she was gone. Marcel simply sat down on a piece of fallen debris. "Shit man, the hell is wrong with the people around here?" he muttered to himself. Chapter 58: Bandaged Up Chapter 58: Bandaged Up /The power of belief is a strong one. One''s will is sometimes enough to conjure up mana and stamina where there was none, to bring out power no one has ever seen before, to move things that others may have thought immovable. Sometimes, it is even enough to bring something into reality. This power is very real, and can be observed quite simply. To move one''s mana, you must think it. It isn''t moving it physically by pushing against it with your hand, but it''s moving it simply by using the mind, by believing one can make it move. The more one believes, the more one can move it, and this is why magic is a lot about both willpower and confidence. The same thing essentially goes for stamina, though that one has more tangible results, especially in combat, so some people may find it easier to move. The immediate response stamina gives when used for some people makes it feel more real than mana, so warriors that fight in close quarters often prefer it, since they find it easier to utilize. However, this does not mean one is greater than the other, simply an observation on how the power of belief influences it. Still, there are many more things that belief can achieve. It is especially crucial for beings that have specific organs. It has been recorded through dissection of the dead god, R?hn, that beings of a higher existence rely on belief to some degree. Gods, through receiving belief from mortals, can gain energy which is stored and collected, and can then be used to make almost anything come true. It is the power of belief, after all, so it is only fitting, that it can be wielded to do nearly anything the user imagines. Deductions from scripts of the time before the first book began let us realize many things. The gods used belief to shape continents and the land, to create mountains and rivers. It was used to create items of grand power, and give blessings to champions of the gods. It is a system where they rely on each other. The mortals believe in the gods'' ability to protect them, and because they are believed in, the gods have the power to do exactly what we think them capable of. This has also led to theories that the power of belief can be channelled negatively, essentially meaning, that if someone witnesses a god fail, they then might believe that god to be weak, which the special collection organ of the god takes up. If that was true, gods could become sick and weak if mortals ever doubt them, and by extension, even vanish if no one believed in them. Is such a trade-off truly worth it? To link one''s existence to belief, to have the potential to be extinguished, just through a simple mistake?/ An excerpt from "What makes our World go on?" by the magical scientist, Roran Phillip Ceith. - - - - - - By the time Avery opened his eyes, the battle was already over. He had been out for barely half an hour after Rondo dug him out of the rubble, but the explosion had hit him heavily and he''d passed out. It could happen to anyone, just a freak-accident. But Avery was still unhappy. He had heard from Rondo that Lucia had been cleaning up shop without proper gear, and that Iris was nowhere to be found. Rondo himself had gathered any potions he could find and created scavenging teams to collect both survivors and supplies. The Mages'' Guild had helped push the front of the northerners back in the east, and the godseekers had been scouring the city in search for wayward soldiers. Heck, even the Merchants'' Guild helped, establishing supply lines for bandages and food. Count I''htar had mobilized his personal guard and thus taken out two enemy commanders. And yet he was unconscious, knocked out as the city suffered under his carelessness. There had been receptionists out in ransacked streets, while the guild master was taking a nap? When Avery heard it all, he was more than frustrated. Seems his toughness needed some work, then. To think that he had almost single-handedly captured the enemy general, only to be knocked out by a prisoner. It was a pathetic display of inability, at least to himself, and Avery was beyond determined to grow from this. After waking up, he checked himself in a mirror, and while most of his wounds had closed up, there was a burn scar from his shoulder all the way up to his cheek, ending a couple centimeters above his jaw, where his skin was twisted and discoloured. It looked gnarly, and a little terrifying, but he decided to keep it. Treating scars didn''t always work, and with the city''s shape right now he certainly didn''t want to hog the attention of a healer. Beckham shook his head for a minute as he walked towards the Godseeker''s Guild. Many of the buildings in Stormbraver were a mess, but he hoped that one had survived. It was built sturdy, well enough to withstand explosions to some degree, but one could never be sure. Luckily, when he arrived, everything was intact. Maybe it wasn''t a target, since it would hit the Godeeekers'' Guild rather than Stormbraver, or maybe, because this would obviously not go over well with the seekers up north. Whatever the reason, he was glad it still stood, but when he opened the door, he was surprised to see bloody paw prints over the floor, and a very familiar mopaaw on the counter. "Why are you dragging blood over the floor, Mercury?" "It was cold outside. Also, the inn I lived in was busted, and my landlord brutally killed, so I need a place to crash," Mercury said, a bitter undertone to his voice. "Fair enuff," Avery sighed. "Give me a second." He disappeared upstairs for a moment, before he brought down a first aid kit, as well as a brownish towel. "Looks dirty, I know. We gotta get you all cleaned up tho, so the liquid blood has to come off, and then you''re taking a shower." "Sigh, alright." Mercury said, jumping onto the towel and roughly cleaning himself up, before heading downstairs to the showers. Finally washing all the dirt, blood, and grime off felt very freeing, and after getting his fur all shiny, he felt like he had reclaimed a part of his humanity. Maybe he wasn''t doomed to hate water forever. Maybe. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Mercury dried himself off in a fancy air chamber, powered by cores of monsters, before stepping back out of the showers, where he saw Avery, doing a handstand. "You''re upside down," he said. "Keen observation," Avery replied, giving a small smirk. "Mh. So, how''s it looking, do I need stitches?" Avery quickly paused and flipped himself back the normal way around, stopping his workout. He had a slight film of sweat on his forehead, but nothing too horrible at least. "Let me take a closer look. I''m not a doctor, but in my eyes, you should be good with a couple bandages. How are you feeling?" "Bad. Clean, emotionally distraught, and in quite a bit of physical pain." "Internal injuries?" "Probably. Got kicked a couple times." "Nothing much I can do about those," Avery said, opening up the small coffer he had brought. "I can bandage you up, but you''ll have to take care of the resting yourself." "You got a nurse who can chain me to the bed?" "I''m sure you can manage on your own. But let''s get you all fixed up for now, eh?" "Sure." It took a little while to say the least, and the disinfecting of his wounds wasn''t as pleasant as Mercury may have wished, but by the end of it, he was patched up, largely. Avery had stabilized some of the cracks in his bones, though luckily nothing bad had broken entirely. Still, Mercury certainly was cut and bruised all over, so by the end of his treatment, he looked like a mummy. "Thanks," Mercury said with a nod. "No prob. You good to go with your own room, or do you need me to stick you in sickbay? Nurses won''t be available much these next couple days though, emergencies take precedence, you know the works," Avery said, throwing a crooked smile at his feline friend. "I''m fine with my own room. Don''t worry, I''ll be right back to normal after a couple days," Mercury said confidently. "Whelp, let me take you there. We''ll stick to the first floor, might not be good having you take too many stairs for now." "I''ll have you know I''m perfectly capable of ascending the stairs," Mercury replied. "Okay, huff, huff... let''s never do that again... my fucking ribs oh god...." he said, after having walked up to the first floor. "Warned you. Go, take a nap. You can do a report of what you contributed to the battle tomorrow. We''ll deduct the cost of the room from there. How long will you be staying?" Avery asked, quickly scanning Mercury''s new quarters to see if everything was in order. "A while. Can I lease it over the next two seasons for now?" "We got winter then. You sure you don''t wanna go ''till spring?" "You''re right. Spring it is." "Happy to hear it. See you later then, get some sleep, you earned it," Avery said turning to leave already. "You too, man. Don''t be too hard on yourself." Avery stopped again for a moment and gave a sigh. "I know. I''ll take care." "I mean it, you dense sack of bricks. You think I''m not smart enough to hear the loathing in your voice? Look, if you wanna deal with shit yourself, you''re free to do so, you''re not stupid. But I''m your friend. If you feel bad about it, you can come here anytime. We can talk, work things out," Mercury said, determination flaring up in his voice. There was a bit of a pause before Avery spoke again. "Thanks man," he said, turning around with a smile on his face. "I really needed to hear that." "Anytime," Mercury said, giving a nod. "But I''m heading to bed now. You got this." He gave Avery a small salute, prompting a huff from the guild master. Then, the door closed, and he was out. "Sigh, what a long day..." Mercury muttered to himself. He felt like he had been trampled by a stampede of elephants. Every bit of his skin ached and complained, and now that the adrenaline wasn''t coursing through him anymore, he felt how many of his muscle fibers he had ruined. With this kind of soreness, maybe tomorrow wasn''t the best day to meet Esmeya. Ah well, he had already given his word, and since he didn''t exactly have the Mages'' Guild on speed dial, he''d just have to stick to it. Jeez, when did he get into the habit of complaining so much? Mercury shook his head as he looked around the room. It was fairly plain, polished wooden floor and bed, though admittedly brighter than the one he had at the inn. The sheets were new, clean, and a warm orange colour. There was a tall cupboard and a small dresser for clothes and whatever else he needed to store, as well as a metal box under the bed. Classic. Lastly, there was a desk in the corner opposite of the bed, as well as a door to a small bathroom with a toilet, sink, and shower. Overall, it was quite small, but felt airy enough. His standards for square meters had decreased ever since he had shrunk to less than a third of his previous size. Yeah, this would certainly do well enough for now. With that thought in mind, Mercury jumped onto the bed and closed his eyes. It was time to get some of the rest he so very, very badly needed. Then he woke up in a large plain, with a fountain to the south, mountains to the east, a burning citadel to the north, and a castle of glass to the west. Things were a little different this time though. He could see those things again, the shadows, crawling along the edges of the horizon, clouds of black, writhing smoke, shapeless and everchanging, fleeing when he looked at them, yet always watching. They hadn''t been there for a little while, but now they were back, just waiting for him to give in. But Mercury wouldn''t. He practiced every day, improving himself bit by bit still, and his control over his mana was growing better every day. Yet, today he decided it was time to take a break, to take a breather from all of his exhaustion. Surely, he had earned it...? ''Well met again, young Cat,'' Old Dreamweaver suddenly spoke, causing Mercury to take a long look at them. ''Greetings, old Dreamweaver,'' he replied after a pause, doing a slight bow. He was certain he could hear his conversation partner chuckle at it. ''A strange movement doth have done,'' they said, and Mercury could read amusement and respect. ''Is it a way to greet?'' ''Yes, it is as thee say. Both a greeting, and a show of respect, done to respected equals or superiors,'' Mercury replied, sending old Dreamweaver a few memories for context. ''Mh, this one sees. It depends on uqir. "Context", perhaps "Setting". Is this one correct?'' ''Yes,'' Mercury replied, writing a nod of affirmation. He was also sure that he read perhaps a sliver of pride from old Dreamweaver. ''Mh. How are thee studies of ihn''ar faring?'' old Dreamweaver asked, a slight hint of curiosity. ''Coarse,'' Mercury said, unsure how else to put it. ''Coarse?'' ''Yes, coarse. It is... "rocky", the opposite o "smooth". In a way "abrasive",'' Mercury thought, thinking of sandpaper and tiny stones. ''Mh,'' old Dreamweaver thought back. ''This one ahns. Thy path has been difficult, has it not? Mh, I see. Loss, once more. Young Cat, thine world has been cruel to you at times.'' Mercury paused. He didn''t have the words to reply, only wanting to swallow heavily. ''Would thee allow this one to see?'' they asked, a question that Mercury understood more from the implications he read. To allow old Dreamweaver to "see" would mean to open up his inner thoughts. It would be like showing his very soul to someone else, an experience he instinctively knew was reserved for people who were close, sharing bonds of deep trust. Did he trust old Dreamweaver that much? That existence that was so much greater than him, that could perhaps wipe him out within mere moments? ''This one sees, young Cat. Take thine time, think it over. If thou has any questions, this one will wait and answer. Il nir a trikko en leyren. "The secret to teaching is patience." It is a saying.'' Mercury nodded at this, and then locked his thoughts behind a veil. It felt a little like pulling the curtains shut in front of a window, blocking the light form outside. He was alone in his thoughts, the world around him losing its colour, as it was trapped by shades of grey. Then, he thought about things. What truly was old Dreamweaver? They were so... big, much bigger than he could have ever imagined, and much bigger than they seemed even now. An existence that, if he were still on earth, he would have no choice but to call a god. Could he really even hide his thoughts from that thing? If they wanted, couldn''t old Dreamweaver just rip apart his veil, and tear into his mind by force? Were they being courteous or were they playing a larger ploy, that somehow involved Mercury as a puppet? In essence, his question was but one: Could he really trust old Dreamweaver? There were so many things to remember, their patience, their power, their teachings, their kindness, their secrets, their origin. So very many things he didn''t know, and couldn''t fit into a puzzle with the pieces he already had in his mind. If this is what it came down to, could he really make an educated choice? No, he certainly couldn''t make a choice where he was 100% safe. It was borderline impossible to ever do such a thing. In the end, he would just have to take a leap of faith, wherever it took him. With a long sigh, Mercury pulled the veil open again, watching as the shadows that had crept closer vanished to the edges of the field once again. ''This one has decided,'' he thought. ''Decided to let old Dreamweaver see.'' Chapter 59: Discovering the Truth about Oneself Chapter 59: Discovering the Truth about Oneself ''Mh.'' Mercury could feel a lot from old Dreamweaver. There was bright happiness and trust, deeply rooted respect and thick understanding. ''Please then, doth not resist.'' And with those words, Mercury felt a slight pressure against his forehead. It wasn''t stinging or painful, more like someone was pressing their thumb into it flatly. Honestly, he didn''t quite know what to do. He was told not to resist, but was he doing so right now? He was unsure. ''Young Cat?'' ''Yeah?'' ''You are resisting.'' ''Really?'' ''Mh.'' This was inconvenient. Mercury took a deep breath for a moment. This felt a lot like a dentist''s appointment. Fine, whatever. He just had to turn his brain off, then. He didn''t have a forehead to press against here anyways. For a second, the pressure felt like it was getting stronger, but after a couple moments, it vanished. There was a deep stillness in his mind for a moment, and then something seemed to move. His body felt a little itchy everywhere, and he was suddenly very conscious of all his being, as something seemed to be pushing against it. It felt like his mana veins were trying to expand in all directions, he felt crammed into his own body, like his skin was suffocating him. But he knew it wasn''t just his body, there was something else there, too, something weird, foreign, somewhat scary. ''This will take only a moment,'' old Dreamweaver spoke, and Mercury heard it resonate deep within himself. It was... weird. Uncomfortable, stuffy, but still manageable. Luckily. Then, he felt that foreign presence wander further towards his head, and when it arrived there, he felt like his skull was confining him. Like he needed to break out of this shell. But also... He saw glimpses. Tiny fragments of something so large, so ancient in front of him. It seems a connection always went two ways, and in this case, Mercury saw shards of what old Dreamweaver was. Tiny memories of battle, war, love, betrayal, and an ever growing urge to become greater, then a peak, and a slow decline. Then, it was over, and Mercury was left with a feeling of both relief and... emptiness, though the first was certainly greater than the second. By quite a bit, too, but he couldn''t quite shake the feeling that something was missing. That strange sensation of loss like when you finished your favourite story or book, and it leaves you with that signature hole-like feeling. ''Mh. It is a sad story indeed,'' old Dreamweaver thought, still mulling over the smaller details. ''Yet so much of it is not spent here.'' ''Have you seen those memories as well?'' ''Indeed this one has, young one. But old Dreamweaver has seen such long ago. Young Cat is not a single chapter old, after all. How could thee?'' For a moment Mercury was tempted to see it as a slight jab, but he knew old Dreamweaver meant it with only the best of meanings. He knew because he read a hint of admiration in their thoughts. ''I suppose you''re right.'' ''Aneth''bar un ir zurs. Thank thee for thine trust,'' old Dreamweaver thought, leaving a small silence. ''Perhaps this one should trust thee some more as well? Mh. Zurreth. A token given, a name.'' ''Hm?'' Mercury was confused. For the first time in a while, all he could read from old Dreamweaver was silent contemplation. ''This one has seen thy names, young one. It is only fit I return one. Uunrahzil, as I used to be known. It is the name I carried when teaching younger ones the way of the weave, and it is the name I would like you to use.'' ''Aneth''bar, old Uunrahzil. You have seen my names, you said, thus maybe you know that this one prefers to be called by Mercury.'' ''It is a good name, one as good as any other,'' old Uunrahzil thought with a nod and Mercury could read again. An underglow of respect, combined with a touch of gladness and what felt like a cloud of somber memories. ''Is your story one I may be told sometime?'' Mercury asked carefully, making sure to write his apprehension, and expectation of a conflicted answer. ''Maybe sometime, young Mercury, but not too soon. All in time. However, this one has noticed that thee seem to come here when seeking rest, is this correct?'' Curiosity. ''It is. Dreams, to me, are things that occur during times of rest. Is this not how they are for you?'' Mercury asked. ''Mh, not quite. The lo-pac, "dreams", as you call them, are something very important to my people. They doth be what we structure our lives around. It is where we work, weaving dreams to make the things we need, and to rest, we grow wa''hc. It is there then, that we doth rest, idly spinning our thoughts with no end or destination,'' old Uunrahzil explained, perhaps the longest they had spoken for. Mercury took a while, but he understood as he read. He could see how old Dreamweaver would work, literally spinning ideas, filling them up with such belief that they became real. Their people didn''t mine for ores, or dig wells for water, they simply dragged it from their dreams to reality, and that was that. He could also read some more. Uunrahzil''s pride. Pride of their people, of their work, of their students. Pride to show off such an intrinsic part of what made them who they are, and a very deep, distinct feeling of how special it was to them to pass this art on. And below even that, he could read a sort of sadness also associated with this, though he couldn''t discern its origin. ''Young one, how did you dream?'' It was a question on what he thought of it, Mercury knew that. Really, just what was dreaming to him? Mercury thought that giving a mentor of his a half-hearted answer to a question, that was important to them, would be rude, so he took his time. He thought it over for a couple of minutes before he spoke. ''I used to think dreaming was nothing,'' he said. ''Back when I worked long weeks, I was too exhausted to dream. I fell into bed, and woke up again, no pause in between. Even before that, as a child, I oftentimes had nightmares, so I was never fond of the night.'' Mercury paused again. ''Many people back where I came from thought that dreams had prophetic power, or that they were somehow linked to the future and magic. I didn''t think so- I still don''t think so. They weren''t. They never would have been back then. They are a manifestation of one''s subconscious, processing the experiences one has made on an unconscious, out of control level.'' He nodded, writing some thoughts together for old Uunrahzil. He wrote of fortune tellers and his dislike of them, of how dreams used to be linked to learning, and of how he never liked them because he was haunted at night. Then, he thought aloud again. ''But that was my old world, and this is another. Dreams are clearly different here. I still get nightmares occasionally, sure, but they are very distinctly different here. I don''t forget about any of it. I have full control over myself. I think, that as I am right now, dreams are an opportunity for me to learn and grow.'' ''I see,'' Uunrahzil said, writing a slight sense of agreement, but not too much. ''I believe you are at the very least partially correct, though dreams hold more potential than simply learning.'' ''With all due respect, I believe that the potential for learning encompasses most other things.'' Stolen story; please report. ''Indeed it does, yet learning is not all there is. Dreams offer you an opportunity to do that which you truly desire. They offer a chance not only to learn, but also to improve oneself, to practice many things. And you may not just train your mind, but yourself as a whole.'' ''Pardon?'' For a moment old Dreamweaver wrote. It was a memory, a distant one, when in their sleep, they dreamt of water and dreamt it into their hands, where their body watered fields. ''That...'' ''It makes no sense?'' Uunrahzil asked, writing a slight smile. ''Perhaps to you it does not, yet to those who practice, it comes as naturally as breathing. What is it to move? What is it to think? To be, or to dream? Ta eyeun la lo-pac? Those are but the limits we impose on ourselves, are they not?'' Mercury didn''t have a reply ready. Of course that wasn''t just a limit one did to themselves? What kinda shit is that? To just casually walk and do farming while asleep? To summon water from nowhere? ''Mh, this one sees. Young cat, thee are limited by thine past imagination, are thee not? Of this... brain, as the sole mind that you are?'' ''I''ve always been a realist,'' Mercury said simply. ''There was nothing more than a brain, because nothing more was needed.'' ''And now?'' old Dreamweaver asked patiently, writing down a bit of glee. It was clear they enjoyed this, the process of making a new student understand. ''... It''s difficult to accept.'' ''It must be, certainly for a traveller such as you. And yet, you have grown used to magic so quickly?'' ''I read about magic before, it was stories people liked to tell. Very common tropes, of fire and ice, earth and water, powerful magicians that would protect their lands as they studied the mysteries of the world,'' he said, wearing a crooked smile. Some of those had even been army leaders in the kind of games he played. ''And?'' ''And it was easy to make work. Magic behaves somewhat like I''d expect it to. The mana appears in the forms I am used to, as a gas and liquid, perhaps a solid sometimes too. The stamina as well, I can understand it. Heck, I can even imagine my Strength influencing my mass, if the muscles are temporarily stored in a parallel dimension when not in use, and their full mass can be summoned as only kinetic energy or also as pure weight.'' ''Yet there is something different about dreams? The lo-pac?'' ''I believe there is. I am used to them, have experienced them all my life, yet now they are so different.'' ''Ah, it is a shift that gives you trouble then.'' Mercury paused for a moment. Yeah, that was exactly it. ''Then it will pass,'' old Dreamweaver thought with a warm smile. ''We cannot control the passing of the seasons, and we cannot control our perception of what is true and what is not. We can try seeing different viewpoints, and shaping ourselves to understand, but it is work that takes time and effort.'' ''... It is,'' Mercury said, speaking from experience. ''Then you know it well already,'' Dreamweaver thought, a hint of impression in their mind. ''Thee need but be patient, young Mercury. Understanding doth be yours already, you just have yet to ahn. Leyren.'' Patience. Leyren. ''Is that also a part of the journey?'' ''Mh, it is.'' ''Ah. I see now. Ihn''ar. This was all a lesson, was it not?'' ''Perhaps. After all, dreams are an opportunity to learn,'' old Dreamweaver said. ''But thee know my name now, and thee are mine student. It is only right that this one trikko sometimes.'' Mercury read, and saw that they were happy. It was true, existential elation, one only found when fulfilling one''s inherent purpose. Was there such a thing? Inherent purpose? A point to life? A reason, that everyone is born with? Is it a reason everyone has to find for themselves, or is the reason one we make up based on what is enjoyable? Mercury sighed. He had found his answer long ago, yet he hadn''t found his reason yet. Still, not even now he had found his reason. He wanted to build a kingdom, but not to be a king. Not to have subjects, but to have comrades. He wanted to be strong and stand by the sides of others, yet he also wanted to know all about runes and magic and stamina. He wanted to see so many things, notice so many things, he wanted his friends back and he wanted to know why he was targeted, he wanted- ''Leyren, young one.'' ''Ah, you are right, Uunrahzil. I-'' ''Old Uunrahzil is fine.'' Mercury would have smirked if he could. ''Apologies, old Uunrahzil. I get lost in thought sometimes.'' ''You dream inside your dreams?'' ''I suppose so,'' Mercury said with a smile. ''If daydreaming counts as dreaming inside a dream, then I suppose I do.'' ''Daydream... the word is unfamiliar.'' ''Ah, apologies. Cereth''bar,'' Mercury said. ''It is... to let ones thoughts drift, to hop from one idea to another, to simply flow. It is sometimes helpful to fall asleep or pass the time, and sometimes it happens unwillingly and keeps you awake at night. But to daydream... it is usually when we are awake, yet want to escape.'' ''This old one sees. To daydream, it is like ihn''ar.'' ''What?'' Mercury asked, confused. ''No, no, not quite. Ihn''ar is to focus, to understand. Daydreaming is to twiddle your thumbs, to pass the time, to simply be and not see. It can take you somewhere else, a place vibrant with thoughts, sometimes so far away you won''t hear or see anything outside.'' ''Cereth''bar, young Mercury. This one meant no offense. So, you say then that daydreaming is... a pastime, perhaps, rather than an exercise of the mind?'' ''Yes, much more so. Ihn''ar... patience, you said.'' ''This one did,'' old Uunrahzil nodded slowly. He wrote a little about ihn''ar again. Core, truth, thought, locked behind a gate of doubt and distraction. It took patience to catch glimpses of the core, and focus to remove the distraction. The focus was the oil on the hinges, the patience the key, and breath, or more closely, meditation was how you opened the door. To find behind it yourself again, to understand more clearly what things mean. The first gate was breath for many, a gate for practice. The second was soul. Soul? ''Old one, are there souls?'' ''Souls? Again, an unfamiliar word,'' Uunrahzil said slowly, thinking on what it meant. Instead of answering Mercury simply wrote. The tiny blobs of essence, linked through fate as many understood them. Those esoterical little blobs of energy that dictated life according to some, and the very thing that it meant to be human. ''Hm? Not as such. But when you wake up after dreaming, do you not feel rested?'' ''I do.'' ''And the electricity from your "brain", would it be enough to move the mana outside of you that you cannot reach?'' ''It would not, I believe.'' ''Then, if you wake up with your thinking sponge rested, and you use your mind to move mana, although the brain could not do it, what allows you this? What do this body and your previous one share?'' ''The mind?'' ''Then call it as such,'' old Dreamweaver said with a stern nod. ''It is but a description of what makes you who you are. Perhaps this used to simply be your brain, however, for other things it is not. My people do not need a brain, or a body, to live. We can be, simply because we know to. Because our mind allows us to.'' ''But isn''t there a law of energy conservation...?'' ''A law of what? You speak in riddles, young one. And this one had thought they had heard many things.'' Mercury could tell that Uunrahzil was clearly shaking their head. ''No, young one, there is no such law here. "Energy" can come from the mind, or from the heart, or from the system, or from the dream. From within, and outside, and from nowhere at all.'' Well, shit, no more laws then. ''What about entropy?'' ''What is this "entropy" thee speak of?'' ''Scratch it. I always confuse that one and the energy conservation one.'' ''It seems thee are obsessed with such small laws, young one,'' Uunrahzil spoke, some amusement in their voice. ''It is indeed so, but sometimes, it is better to simply let the mind explore, rather than attempting to nail everything down onto laws and sentences. Perhaps there is more to this world than just that?'' ''I have to disagree,'' Mercury thought. ''If it cannot be put into a law, then it is not a concept one can understand. If one cannot understand it, one cannot utilize or perceive it, and thus, it must not exist.'' ''That is an interesting point of view.'' ''It is my personal belief, that everything that is can be perceived, or rather measured. If it can be measured, it must be definitive, and if it is definitive, then you can draw conclusion, and state laws,'' Mercury thought. He had been into science, and even considered it for his major, before college got a little too frustrating and he dropped out. ''And thus, it is my belief, that all things can somehow be explained and put into laws. It is a... bridge, of a kind, that I use, to make reality seem more feasible to me. If I cannot explain it, that matters little, but if no one can measure, perceive, or explain it, is it truly relevant to our existence?'' Old Dreamweaver paused again. They hadn''t met many travellers, yet this one was quite different from the few they had met before. Perhaps he was comparable to another, but why draw comparisons, when Mercury was simply who he was? ''You put much thought into many things, young one,'' they finally said. ''It is deserving of mine utmost respect. The pursuit of knowledge and explanation is a noble one, especially if it is passed down to the worthy ones. If I may ask, why do you perceive reality as such?'' ''I don''t know. It has simply always been that way. All that is, is, and all that isn''t, isn''t. These dreams, for example. Couldn''t have happened back in my world, never, but now they are happening, and so I want to know what makes them tick.'' ''In a sense, it is an inherent curiosity, a desire to learn all the things you can about the world we live in?'' ''Yes, I suppose so,'' Mercury nodded. ''Back in my older days, the world was grey and dull, there was no time to learn about it, so I could never focus on it, but now that I have my own time, my own pace, I wish to understand so much.'' It was true. Whenever Mercury thought about magic, he wanted to know how it worked, how to really do it. He wasn''t interested in some cheap tricks, where he simply activated a Skill and threw a fireball, that wasn''t interesting. Sure, handy, but just not his style. He really wanted to know what mana could do, find out what limits it had and how he could influence it. Just how far could the power of his mind take him? Just what was the very limit of this world? Why was he dreaming like this, how did the people of old Dreamweaver conjure objects from their dreams, how did the runes really work, and could he maybe develop new ones? And, at the end of it all, could he bring back those he had lost? ''Ah, this one has caught a glimpse. You seek knowledge not simply for the sake of knowledge, but to keep that which you have, and to regain what you have lost,'' they spoke, blatantly. ''Yes,'' Mercury thought back without hesitation. ''I do not crave revenge yet. I want an explanation. Why was that which I held dear taken? Can I take it back? Yet, still, that is but one of the things I want to know, and many of them simply stem from who I am.'' ''Well, young Mercury. It seems as though this old one still could trikko a little.'' ''Hm?'' ''Thee hath ahn something now. Ihn''ar, a truth, a core, a gate to oneself. A small piece of yourself, one of your origins, uncovered. Curiosity.'' Mercury paused at their words, and when he paused, he could feel a hidden, yet brightly radiant pride from Uunrahzil. A pride brighter than that they had shown about their entire race, a pride brighter than what they had felt about their old students. It was a clear, sunny, golden pride that showed what they wanted. And Mercury knew. ''Yes,'' he said. ''I suppose I really am curious.'' Chapter 60: A slow morning Chapter 60: A slow morning /Howdy y''all! This'' Bill, yer friendly neighbourhood farmer. I''ve decided that from tahday on, I'' document my journey and how things go fer me. So, I guess that means this marks the first entry of ma diary here. Tahday me n ma pops went out n tilled the fields. It''s soon ta be sowing season, and we need to get everything prepped n ready before we actually get our crops in. This year''s gonna be a helluva lot a'' corn again. That, n some roots, gotta keep many mouths fed. At the least the chicks are doing well, and things aren''t looking like we''ll suffer from roughness anytime soon. Occasionally we have the king''s men stop by, me lil'' sis can always tell when they be coming by the steps up the street. Heavy metal boots make decent noise, even on dirt road. Taxes''ve gone up last couple years. A sack of grain turned to two, then to three. Nowadays they come to collect a dozen eggs, a couple sacks, and even some roots n milk on top. I feel bad for the little one, me new baby brother. Cub needs more to grow big n strong, but Berta''s growing older, and she ain''t giving as much as she used to. That''s why I''ve made up me mind. I may not be the sharpest tool in e'' shed, in fact, I bet our old scythe cuts the fields much better than me, but I''ve been blessed with good stature at least. I''ll do my best to take over this farm, try to take some weight off poor pops'' back, see if I can''t get things running a little quicker sometime soon. So yeah, this has been it for today. I need tah run off, pay a visit to old Jenkins at the market, get a new wheel for the plough. I''ll take another entry another time./ Entry 1 from "A Farmer''s Diary". - - - - - - Mercury woke up not too long after he talked with old Dreamweaver. Getting used to their new name was certainly a little jarring, but he was sure he''d manage. There were other people he knew who went through much more drastic changes, simply learning a name surely wasn''t too much to ask. Honestly, he woke up pretty happy. Uunrahzil was a great teacher, and an even greater mentor. They were patient, calm, and happy to acknowledge when he made progress. It was fine if he made a mistake, or even a couple, as long as he learned from them and tried to improve. For a moment, he shook his head in disbelief. If only all the teachers he had ever had were like that, maybe he wouldn''t have dropped out. Then again, maybe not. The enormous amount of debt was still quite jarring to see, and he wasn''t too displeased having only taken up a little. Ah, but now wasn''t quite the time to get lost in thought. He had someone to meet. Right, just a step out of bed and- UGH! Oh, fuck, ah damn it, holy shit, ow, ow ow ow ow... How the hell had he forgotten that his entire body was about as busted up as he could get it without crippling himself? He literally looked like some abomination mummy sidekick from a horror film, the kind that was in there for comedic relief. Jeez, dude. Okay, okay. Slow and steady breaths. He had to make sure he didn''t overexert himself. After something like that last war, he definitely just needed a bit of a break. Actually, he more than needed a break. Maybe it was lucky that Avery didn''t send a nurse after him, because they might have actually chained him to a bed, and he couldn''t have that. Not as long as his trusty log was still lost. And with that resolve, Mercury got out of bed with a whole lot of complaining in his own mind. Was scheduling really so hard that he couldn''t afford to rest in bed for a bit? Even his mana veins felt all busted and sore inside, and his stamina was much worse. His muscles, and bones, and head... At the very least it wasn''t a stinging pain. It was more of a slow, grinding pain, no, it depended. His muscles were pulsating with waves, his bones were usually quiet unless he made a wrong move or took too deep a breath. His mana veins felt like a raspy throat, except all throughout his body, and his stamina vessels felt itchy and numb, a little like a burnt tongue. It all combined into a strange cacophony of background noise in his mind, and quite frankly, if the system didn''t give him a pain resistance Skill now, it was never coming. ... ... Dang, seems like he couldn''t keep his hopes high. Mercury let out a long sigh. maybe it was something hidden deep behind the many layers of stats, some passive effect from somewhere, because quite frankly, if he was still the same guy as he used to be on Earth, he certainly wasn''t forcing himself out of bed on a day like this. He would much rather hand in a doctor''s notice postmaturely, and spend the entire day in his bed... No! Get it out of your mind, Mercury! Now wasn''t the time to think about the soft, glorious luster of a soft mattress and warm sheets! Damn it! Wrestling with his own thoughts, Mercury slowly made his way out of the adventurer''s guild. It was still early, and things were still recovering. The streets were empty, filled with rubble, though the stench of iron had faded and been replaced with the dusty air of decay. The whole city was a sorry sight to see. Whole buildings reduced to nothing but rubble, shops crashed, telltale signs of carnage all over the place. Honestly, looking at all of it again was depressing. Yesterday had been so full of action, of adrenaline, that he had simply charged ahead without thinking of what he left behind. Sure, in the end, they had won. But did they really? Maybe this was why everyone always said war had no winners. Everyone loses. People die, and now that he thought about it, Mercury probably made a lot of people sad the other day. Some of the soldiers he killed might have been fathers or mothers, they might have been brothers, sisters, friends or children. Thinking it all over again, was he really in the right to kill them? After all, he didn''t have any family here. If his brother had gone to war and died, how much would his wife have cried? How much would Mercury''s niece have cried? The cat let out another long sigh. Man, this shit was rough. It had only been a day and he was already feeling pangs of guilt. Was there really no other way? Kill or be killed, was that all there is to this world? An endless deluge of murder and terror, of loss and de- Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. "Mercury? What are you doing here?" he heard someone ask from... pretty much right next to him. "Hm?" The mopaaw quickly turned his head to see Marcel, in more casual clothes, though still carrying his slightly bloodied staff in his hands. "Oh, hi. Whattup man." "Nothing much," Marcel said with a sigh. "Lending the healers a hand where I can, some first aid and some magic. On break right now though, it''s been exhausting. Decided to help out in the latter half of the night shift." "Sounds rough," Mercury said. "It is. Not exactly great work. I''m not a doctor, nor a cleric, I can''t reattach limbs or make the blind see. It''s frustrating, bringing the news to people. Some scream and yell, others burst out in tears and bawl, and some just freeze up, dejected. It''s a sad sight." "Wow, okay, sounds really fucking rough." "And what has you up so early, friend?" Marcel asked, tilting his head a little. "I''m meeting the master of the Mages'' Guild. Wait, actually. I don''t know where that is. I said they should come to me. I autopiloted all the way here. God damn it." The cat let out a long sigh after talking, hearing only a hollow chuckle from his trusted receptionist buddy. "That also sounds pretty annoying. If you''re lucky, you can catch them before they start heading over; the tower''s to the southwest by the way. Mages are sleepyheads, you knew that?" "All of them?" Mercury asked. "No exceptions," Marcel said, crossing his arms and nodding. "Really?" "Really." "Dang, dude." "Yeah, tell me about it." With a sigh, Marcel dropped his hands to his side and sat down on the dusty floor. "Your pants are gonna get dirty." "The air is fucking dirty the hell do you want me to do about it? Actually, what do you even know, you aren''t wearing pants!" "No need to get so snappy," Mercury said calmly, before stopping himself. "Actually, you''re right. Sorry, things have been hard for you." He sat down next to the receptionist for a short break himself "Sigh, it''s fine. You''re also right, I did get a little too angry. This night has been... a lot. I mean, look at all this," he said, gesturing around them. "We''ve barely started picking up the pieces, yet every person I bandage up, another two swing by in front of my door. Starting to understand why clerics always seem so dull. Shit fucking grinds away at you." "Yeah, I really get that. Doctors have it rough. Never assumed you were one to swear though," Mercury said, giving his friend a sideways glance. "I swear as much as I damn want," Marcel said with a wry smile, "just not on duty. Need to be professional and everything." "I think I like you a bit better like this," Mercury replied, staring towards the sky. "Seems more honest, less sly." "Who''re you calling sly, goddamn mummy ass looking dustbag," Marcel said with a shake of his head, lightly tapping Mercury''s side. "Yeowch," the cat replied half-heartedly. It hurt very slightly, but he appreciated the joke. "Ah, dang. Gotta be back on my way now, Merc. Things need doing, and unfortunately, I can somewhat get them done. I''ll talk to you a little later my man," Marcel said as he got up, patting his clothes down, before realizing the futility of the endeavour. "Later," Mercury said, watching as Marcel gave a small wave and headed off. Well, at the very least he now knew where the guild was. Sigh, what a pain, what a pain. - - - After a couple more minutes, Mercury arrived in front of the tower Marcel had pointed him to. It was decently easy to see, being a tall building that was still standing perfectly fine despite everything else in the city looking like a four year old''s sandcastle. The tower was quite far to the northwest of the city, and if he didn''t know any better, he''d have assumed it to be part of the nobles'' quarter. Well, in that case he probably wouldn''t want to get too close to it probably. Depends on the person, but in general, from his experience, the super rich weren''t as pleasant as normal people. On average at least. But he was looking at the Mages'' Guild right now, so they probably weren''t that rich. Heh, if they had money, they''d probably spend all of it on research materials. That was a funny thought, bunch of witches and wizards in labcoats, wearing nets under their heads and over their big, bushy beards. It''d make him laugh if that didn''t cost him a rib and a half. After some consideration, Mercury knocked on the door. ... A couple of moments later, it swung open with a creak, making a sound like a rusty old door. Wait, actually, the hinges were just rusty. Mercury shook his head. Atmosphere or lack of upkeep? He wasn''t too sure. Anyways, he still decided to step in, since he wasn''t really expecting anyone to come see him outside. The hall he first entered was a little bigger than the gloryhall funnily enough. It had a couple of tables, round ones, though much more spaced apart, and the counter felt like it was more split off from the rest of the room due to a long, wooden cabinet lining the ceiling. Behind it stood a middle aged woman, wearing a light blue long-sleeved shirt. "Anything you need?" she asked in a polite, if a little tired tone. "Nothing much," Mercury said. "Actually, why are you speaking to me normally?" "We get a couple beastkin round here, and when an experiment goes wrong, people always end up looking a little more animalistic than usual. Had a frog hit on me once," she explained. "Oh, that''s fair enough then. Did a lot of things go wrong yesterday?" "More than you''d hope, less than you''d think. Experiments are safer than what most folk expect them to be. We''re decently careful when handling dangerous magic after all." "Decently?" Mercury asked. "Decently," the woman answered, leaning her head on her hand. "So, you just looking for a chat, or you here for anything in particular?" "Right, sorry. Esmeya, the guild master, I promised to see her today." "Really?" The woman raised her eyebrows a little in surprise, though they soon sank down again. "Good luck with that. Guild master''s gonna be ready to speak in a couple hours at best." "... Why?" "Hell if I know. I''m a regular old worker, doing part time magic. Don''t know what the guild master does in her free time, don''t need to know." "Huh. You never get curious?" Mercury asked, tilting his head. "A little. I listen in on all the rumors, chatty newbies love the topic. All kinds of weird noises going on in the higher parts of the tower, you never know where, who, or what they''re coming from. Might be a summoning spell, might be someone showering, and occasionally, when it sounds especially explosive, someone may have decided to finally clean things up." The woman ended her talk with a crooked smile, almost as though she was indulging in a particular memory. "That sounds... exciting." "Only for the first couple months. As all things do, it dulls over time. Though whenever someone leaves with a face full of ash and their eyebrows gone, it''s still a sight to see," the woman said, the smile staying on her lips. "I can imagine," Mercury replied, with a slight nod. "Well, if Esmeya isn''t here yet, can I just wait here?" "Do I look like security or a barkeeper? If things aren''t hectic, stay where you want. Look around, explore, and pray you don''t touch something you shouldn''t. Insurance doesn''t cover those kinds of bills." Mercury shuddered at the thought. "The treatment is expensive?" "Hah! No, it''s affordable, but good luck finding someone to take care of you right now, mummypaw. Your best bet is to ask whoever''s experiment you fricked up to turn you back to normal, and well, if I know the people here, it''ll take a handful of tries." "On second thought, I might just stay here," Mercury said. "Maybe a good call, though it certainly is the less amusing one," the woman said. "Name''s Gilah, yours?" "Mercury," the cat replied. "Nice to meet you, mittens." "Mittens?" Mercury could amost feel one of his veins pop when he heard the cutesy name. "Yeah. Mummy kitten," Gilah said, her teeth slightly showing in her wry smile. "I''m mocking you." "Oh," Mercury said, his rage extinguished like a candle in a bucket of water. "It''s not meant to be cutesy?" "Nah, not in particular. Why?" "I dislike cutesy nicknames. Mockery is fine," Mercury said. "Mittens it is," Gilah replied with half a shrug. "If it starts pissing you off too much, tell me before you pour a vial of acid onto my face." "That happen before?" "No." "..." "..." "..." "... Yes." "How?!" - - - - - - Esmeya was peacefully doing her morning routine, taking care of her hair, making sure to select a proper looking robe, checking up on the crystals she was growing, casting a couple tiny rainclouds on the orchids in her room, and doing all things a proper witch does in the morning. And then, after some time had passed, and she was done with all the things that needed urgent doing, she decided it was time to engage in her curiosity. She knocked on Elliot''s door, yelled at the boy to be down in 15 minutes, or she''d leave without him, and the hummed a slight tune as she decended the stairs. Eventually, she seemed to hear something though. "And then he-" "Oh my goodness, really?! Ahahahaha!!" What the hell was that? Esmeya quickly hurried her steps down the stairs, half stumbling into the empty reception hall, seeing a mopaaw sit on the counter, right next to Gilah, both with small glasses in front of them, and their face full of tears of laughter. "The hell is going on here?!" Chapter 61: Home again
Chapter 61: Home again "What is going on here?!" Esmeya yelled, staring Gilah down, her eyes burning with the fury of Tartarus. "Ah, mornin'' boss," Gilah quickly pushed out, only slurring half her words. "I was just... entertaining Mitten until you came up." "Mitten?" "It''s special privilege," Mercury said, his head held high. "If you think about using it, I''d ask you not to." Esmeya sat down on one of the stools, leaning her chin into her palm and letting out a long sigh. "Ahhhhhhh, what am I going to do with you. I told you not to drink on the job, Gilah. At least, not before everyone''s up you could stick to it..." She then quickly snatched up the glasses, and emptied one into her mouth, the other one down the sink. "Hey!" "Shush, I shouldn''t be drinking this early. Look what you''re making me do," Esmeya said, shaking her head at them. "And Mercury, didn''t we agree to meet at the gloryhall? I was about to be on my way there." "Well, you know how it goes, you have one thought, it leads to another, and boom, you''re at the Mages'' Guild," he said, shrugging slightly. "Sigh. Well then, I trust Gilah has not made too poor an impression on you?" "Rude," the barkeep said. "No, it''s been quite enjoyable. She seems good company, at least as far I can tell." Esmeya flashed a small smile. "That is something, at the very least. Perhaps you will be stopping by a couple more times in the future, we wouldn''t want you to be too discouraged from coming here. But please, do explain what train of thoughts led you to make the journey here." "Man, you''re relentless with these questions. Can''t a friendly cat- mopaaw not just live life?" Esmeya simply stared at him, with her chin in her hand, not even blinking. "Fine, fine!" Mercury said after a while. "Jeez. I thought I was supposed to come here. That''s it. I was confused after waking up, misremembered, dragged my sorry damn self out of bed, and walked over here. Maybe I really should''ve gotten Avery to tie me to my bed." "Hm," Esmeya huffed with a smirk. "Well, at the very least it sounds like your journey was pleasant." "It helped clear my head a little," he nodded. "Anyhow, what brings you here Esmeya?" Gilah scoffed at this. "You''re just gonna call the guild master by her first name?" "Got a problem with that?" "I do not," the wizard in question quickly replied. "And neither should you, Gilah. It is my honor to besmirch, after all." "Whatever you say, boss. I''m just a lowly student, after all," the barkeep said with a light frown, though she didn''t mind too much, since Mitten seemed like a decent guy. "Well then, Esmeya, should I show you the place?" Mercury asked, trying to get the conversation back on track. "Ah, we still have to wait for a moment. Elliot is still on his way here, and he would be very upset with both of us if we were to abandon the poor boy here," the woman replied. Mercury only gave her a quick nod. "But do tell, dear Mitten-" "I will claw your fucking eyes out." "Very well, then. Dear Mercury, what made you start to attempt understanding magic?" she asked, tilting her head a little. By now, Gilah had filled their glasses and Mercury''s bowl with far less alcoholic drinks than before, leading her to take a sip of a bubbly, pale drink, that had a yellow hue to it. "Not much," Mercury replied. "I was chillin'' in a forest and saw the Skill, so I bought it. My mana ran out, and I decided I''d give meditation my best shot. It''s a bit of a trope that you can absorb mana from your surroundings by doing so. And then there was the rush of endorphins as I succeeded." "I see, so you simply continued down this path for the pleasure handling mana brings?" Esmeya asked curiously. "Not quite," Mercury then said. He paused to think for a moment, taking a couple licks of water from his bowl. "I... started because of that, yeah. You could say that. It certainly made getting into things more easy. But as I started handling mana, I got curious. How much can I move it? Can I lift it? How can I apply its energy?" "Then, my core expanded as well," he continued. "Its wall broke down and I thought I''d ruined something, but turns out that was the start to growing my mana veins. Now here I am, having spread them almost all throughout my body, and more questions are popping up. How can I control different masses of mana at the same time? How do they react to each other? Can I control the mana outside my body somehow? How is my willpower, my mind related to all of this? What exactly is my ?" "You possess an astral body?" Esmeya asked, raising her eyebrow a little. "According to my Skills, yes," Mercury said, seeing no particular reason to lie about it. "Well, that is curious. Usually it takes quite some time for magicians to form theirs, yet you seemed to have managed a little quicker," the woman spoke, a smile slowly emerging on her lips. "What are your secrets, beastie?" "I do not know about secrets, woman," Mercury said, knowingly making his tone into a little bit of a hiss, "but I do know that I dislike being dehumanized to a lesser being. So stop it and just ask upfront." Esmeya quickly covered her mouth with one of her hands in surprise, her eyes open a little wise. "I- I apologize sincerely, Mercury," she quickly stammered, shaking her head. "That was unlike me. My thoughts sometimes slip out entirely unfiltered. I am sorry." "... Thanks." "I will not pry for your secrets, simply tell me what you are comfortable with," Esmeya said a little more calmly, having regained her nerves. She really needed to get her tongue under better control. Mercury''s ears perked up for a moment, and he shook his head at the guild master. "It might have to wait a little," he said. "We''re getting company." Right on call, the steps down the stairs became faster, before they heard someone yelp, followed by a couple crashes, the sound of glass shattering, and, after a couple of seconds, a bruised Elliot, upside down, with his robes on his face, at the bottom of the stairs. Very slowly, he lifted the robe away just enough to see the room, and immediately, a bright grin flashed onto his face. "MERCURY!!" "Elliot." The boy quickly cast a gust of wind under himself, which soon had him turned upright again, and he immediately began charging at his furry friend, only to be stopped by the guild master putting a firm hand on his shoulder. Her shadow loomed over his face like a grotesque visage of death for a moment. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Elliottttt?" "Y-Yes guild master?" "What did you break?" she asked, squeezing his shoulder a little tighter. "U-Uhm, I don''t k-know... I was rolling down the stairs too fast to see." The boy broke out in a nervous sweat as he spoke, fearing the woman''s wrath and his fate, but after a moment of dreaded silence, she let out a long sigh. Esmeya took her hand of Elliot''s shoulder and gave another short sigh as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "I swear, what am I going to do with you," she muttered to herself, shaking her head. "Train me to be a great mage?!" the boy asked, brimming with excitement. "I think it was a rethorical question," Mercury jumped in. "It was indeed," Esmeya nodded. "Well, I suppose since everyone is here, we better be on the way." "Alright, fair enough. See you later Gilah, pinky promise." "See you later, Mittens," the barkeep said with a smile. "Mittens?!" Elliot asked. "I do not stop my wrath for the sake of children," Mercury simply said, activating to make a point. [ has levelled up! 3>] A fitting time for it to happen indeed. For a moment, shivers ran down Elliot''s spine, and he knew then and there that perhaps Mittens would not be his nickname of choice. - - - After a while of walking, the three of them arrived at the wreckage of the inn. Part of the ground floor had caved in, dragging half of the first and more than two thirds of the second with it. "Are you sure your items would have survived this?" Esmeya asked, squinting her eyes at the wreckage. "Positive," Mercury nodded. After all, his belongings were safely stowed away inside his trusty log, the friend that would never betray him. Esmeya then nodded, choosing to trust his words. "My room should be around here," Mercury said, pointing at the rubble, and not long after, the mages went to work. Quickly, large pieces of debris were lifted away, and clouds of dust blown into the sky in an impressive display of telepathy and wind. It took them less than 10 minutes to sense the magic in Mercury''s log, and only a short while more to fully get it out of the ground. "An enchanted... stump?" Esmeya asked with a slightly confused expression. "Indeed," Mercury said proudly. "Elliot, would you un-dust it? Wow, that''s a lot of dust..." Not long after, the log was fully recovered and even cleaned off. Even the things inside it were still intact, his blanket, the chest of scrolls and books, his claw-sharpening kit, and the booklet on runecarving. "Home sweet home," Mercury whispered to himself, making his way over to his trusty, and sparkly clean belongings. The mages had done him the favour of fully washing the log and blanket, while simply blowing the dust off books. He was more than pleased. "Why did you enchant an empty log, Mercury?" Esmeya asked, a hint of curiosity gleaming in her eyes. "Well, I told you I woke up in a forest. I spent a night in there, then another, and it got cosy. To feel safe, I started removing the moss and plantlife bit by bit, and then I began carving runes. This is how far I got." "Indeed, I can see that..." Esmeya muttered, running her fingers over its surface. "That''s so cool!!! Can I go camping with you once?!" "We''ll see, kid," Mercury said with a smirk, before turning his attention back to the guild master. "Hm, these runes aren''t state of the art, but they quite clearly show your progression. You are familiar with increasing the potency through overcharging them, I see. Yet, not all of them are overcharged, a good balance of power and stability..." "Stability? What do you mean?" "Overcharged runes explode when broken," Esmeya said matter-of-factly. "It usually causes a chain reaction, ruining the objects the runes were inscribed on. To keep the damage small there are different patterns that have been developed to keep the runes safely spaced apart. Of course, depending on the size of the pattern, and which runes are used, it needs to be altered." "Indeed, that was the idea behind it," Mercury lied. "No, it wasn''t," Elliot said with a grin. "You learned it too late, so you didn''t overcharge all of them, you just carved runes randomly where you found space. Look, here there''s a couple charged ones next to one another." "Fffffrick," Mercury said, almost having a slip of his tongue. No cursing next to children. Then again, he usually drew that border at 14, so it didn''t seem to important here. "A little luck, then," Esmeya said with a soft smile. "It matters little. Luck is also a skill, to a certain degree. You should not become reliant on it though, while luck may sometimes be of help, it will not always rescue you. But back on topic, are you aware you can upgrade your runes?" "Hm?" "It seems not. Allow me a demonstration," she said, pulling forth a piece of wood from the rubble. "Elliot, mid 1st grade Elasticity rune." "Yes, guild master!" the boy said, quickly pulling a carving tool from his satchel and going to work, meticulously carving out lines. After a couple of minutes, he was done and handed the piece to the guild master. "Decent work," she said, slightly bending the wood, "yet it will go no further than an angle of about 15 degrees. Now, to upgrade a rune, you need to know how to construct its higher rank version, or you can modify it yourself if you know enough about the script. I do know, and as such, will simply increase its power." She then pulled forth a carving knife of her own, one with a steep triangular tip, made to carve deep, but slim grooves. The magician got to work quickly, retracing Elliot''s steps, yet adding more lines and decoration around what he had made. Some of her incision went deeper and some were more shallow, and occasionally, she would even pull out a needle looking thing to poke holes in the sides of the tunnel. After a few minutes of concentration, she spoke again. "I have now carved out the rune''s new shape. While doing so, you need to keep the mana flowing only through the main channels, to ensure no instabilities occur in the transmutation process," she said, wiping a couple drops of sweat off her forehead. "Now that the pattern is finished, I will pour the remaining required mana into it. To be safe, I will not overcharge it, and match the frequency of my mana to Elliot''s." Then, the wood in her hand began to glow. The light was a deep, rich blue, and it slightly illuminated the air around it for a moment, before it settled down, and the rune seemed to have dark water flowing through its channels. "Now it should be more flexible," Esmeya said, and without hesitation, she bent the piece, forcing what used to be a flat piece to do a 180 degrees turn. "Whoa. That''s like fricking rubber," Mercury said. "Indeed. Now, this, as well as the runes on your log, will not recharge itself. Well, they will, very, very slowly. Usually, to avoid needing to wait days or weeks until runes begin their function again, we add cores to the items, which gather the mana to power them. Other options are manually recharging the runes, or inscribing mana-gathering arrays, yet those are often more trouble than they are worth." "So basically, you stick a mana magnet to it." "... Yes," Esmeya said with a smirk. "Essentially. Yet, I think I have answered many of your questions, and you have answered so few of mine. Would you like to accompany us back to the guild, and tell us a bit about your story?" "Sure," Mercury said and gave her a nod. "Let''s head back then." - - - - - - Lucia woke up in a cold sweat. It was early in the morning, the air outside still chilly, and the sky not yet bright. She''d had a horrible nightmare yet again. Her breath was ragged, and even when it did come out from between her blue lips, it did so in milky clouds. The fire in her heart had become so small, so quiet, she shivered all over. With some hesitation, she wiped the sweat off herself and put her feet down on the floor, the cold instantly piercing through her soles and shooting up. But she was awake now, and her demons weren''t here to haunt her. Slowly, but surely, she reignited the flames in her heart, and began warming herself. The cold fought back bitterly as Lucia walked through her empty room. She was headed to the kitchen, yet on every step, the frozen air fed the ice in her lungs. Her mouth felt like it burned, and she was certain she tasted a little bit of iron, but it was of no matter. She simply kept fighting back against it with her fire. As she got into the kitchen, she poured water into the kettle, and although she took care not to splash any on her hand, a drop slid down the side of the kettle, and instantly froze upon touching her. It hurt, and she was certain she could hear her skin sizzling as the ice stuck to it and burned, but she could scarcely drop the kettle. After a couple seconds of silent agony, Lucia placed the kettle down on the fire-attributed core she had on the stove, before igniting it with a hint of mana. She also held her hand up in front of it for a moment after flicking away the drop of ice on it, trying to get just a little heat back into her bones. Her nightgown was not the warmest piece of clothing she owned, but she already knew that even her blanket would not free her of this. It was a battle she needed to win on her own now, so while the tea boiled, she closed her eyes and looked within. She saw the coals that usually burned within her chest, flaring up with white heat, and yet now they laid dead, with only a couple miserable sparks flickering in and out of existence. It seemed things were worse than she had anticipated. Another shiver shook her, as her lips began shaking and parts of the icy mist from her mouth actually began falling, plinking on the floor in the form of tiny crystals of ice. Still, Lucia would not give up the fight so easily. She hugged herself tightly, standing close to the flame of the stove, and listening to the water slowly boil, and she focused. She thought about Avery Beckham, the man without respect, with his insidious grin. She thought about the beast Iris was so fond of, the wretch that had dared insult her once. She thought of the heretics she had met before, the murderers and thieves, the arrogant, and the gluttonous. Her wrath served as a spark, igniting the coals again, and a small layer of ice on her heart seemed to thaw in the flames of fury. But this was not enough, this fire was one that consumed, not one that thawed, and if this one reached her heart, she knew it would burn. No, instead, she thought of Nira. The woman who had offered her a hand when she was yet new in this city. She thought again of Avery and "Mercury", two people she would now consider as her friends. And she thought of Iris. The one who was always by her side, the one she could always rely on, the one who had saved her from herself so many times before. Lucia thought about her debt to the maid, about how much gratitude she carried in her heart, and how she would not hesitate to give anything for her. And when the water boiled, hot tears were streaming down her face. "Where did you go...?" she whimpered into the dark, yet no answer came.
Chapter 62: Story of a hero Chapter 62: Story of a hero /See a shimmer in the air, it is clear, You best start running, Tell an adult now, say it quick, A rift is coming. Better hurry up, bolt it shut, Someone to fill it. Get the nearest guild to come and shield your town from it./ A children''s rhyme on how to deal with tunnels. - - - - - - Mercury certainly could learn a lot from Esmeya, just as she could learn much from him. But that is not what the story of today is about. Neither is the story about Lucia or Iris, nor that of Avery. It isn''t that of Foss or Nira. It''s not about Otto, Zyl, or even any of the fictional authors, and it isn''t about Tesla either. It isn''t even about Ragnarok. Today is the story of a great hero, one renowned for her feats, taking a journey that was neither thankless nor tragic, but one filled with the appreciation she had earned. The story of a queen, a warrior, a mage, and a friend. But more than any of that, it is the tale of a person. Our tale begins not in a place we know of, neither in one too far away. It simply begins in a village, not much different from any other. Our hero grew up in a family neither too big nor too small, with an older brother, and an equally older sister. Twins. Her parents were kind and humble people, ones that would encourage their children and allow them to take whatever path they wished. And when our hero dreamed big, instead of being shot down and laughed at, her parents simply smiled. Perhaps they were childish dreams, and perhaps they were not, it was her decision to make. The girl grew up slowly, of course, as anyone does, yet she held on. She began to go to school and help out her parents more with their small shop, gathering herbs in the forest, or helping her father hack wood. Life was simple, and while the tasks were many, it mattered little to her. When she explored the forest, she imagined herself with large, pretty wings, taking her through the trees and over the grass. Letting the wind carry her, and jumping from one root to another. Perhaps one day, she would be able to do so, as one of the pixies she had heard a little about. Of course, these were fairytales, but to the mind of a child, they were as real as any story could be. The great fairy king, Oberon, reigning with wisdom and kindness over his people. They had been peacefully inhabiting the forest for decades, the adults said, yet were rarely sighted, as they would only approach children in need. Yet, other than Oberon, the hero was infatuated with then legend of Titania, his wife, and the rightful empress of all pixies. Oberon had married her, and used his talent for diplomacy and speech to sway their people, effectively reigning over them, yet he could not make the final decision, he never would. Because Titania was the true ruler of the fey. The queen who decided what things were done, and why, and yet, Oberon seemed to reign. It was simply the queen''s choice, and the hero admired her for it. She did not wish to be bound down by responsibilities, not by the wishes and fears of the people, she simply wanted to be free, to do the things she liked. According to the stories, Titania enjoyed cupcakes, for example, as well as long strolls through the nighttime forest, gazing at the stars and enjoying the wind. The hero was similar to that in a way, enjoying the mellow summer evenings, and the occasional warm drizzle that the sky gave. And so, she sometimes liked to imagine she was Titania, one with great wings, yet so light, able to fly and hop and run wherever she wanted, unbound and truly free. Certainly, it may have been childish, if any adult would be looking at it. But what heartless, cruel sod would take a child''s freedom away? No, no, there were no such people in the village, no such people anywhere near them, for in a time of peace, it was good to let kids dream. In school, the girl glanced out of the windows, seeking to return to the forests she loved so much, yet she still took some care to follow along. After all, she would never truly be free if she could not make her own way in the world. This was still important! Luckily, not all of her lectures were boring. Her teacher was a man in his advanced age, yet he had held up his youth. Fresh forest air, he always said, claiming it kept his joints in working order. And as he was still spry, it was not rare that they went out into the woods, gathering its gifts, and clearing it of disease. Whenever those excursions happened, the girl was the first to arrive in the morning, and the last to leave at night. The teacher would show them some smaller paths, ones that they didn''t always go down, perhaps because some of them were dark, and he would show them the sacred duty of all that lived in the village. They would rid the woods of those that sought to harm it, rabid animals that sought to break, as well as swarms of beetles, the ones that gnawed on leaves and bark. As a thanks, they would occasionally go down a path and become lost, emerging in a small clearing, where the fruit was always ripe. As time passed, the girl grew older yet. From a child into a preadolescent, for she was not quite old enough to be called a teen. Still, her dreams held on. sometimes they were tested, certainly, but not by her peers, rather by the forest itself. It occasionally seemed darker, maybe even scary, but the girl minded naught. This was the wood she had spent all of her life in, she knew that much. If anyone were to ask her, she would say that perhaps she knew every second stone they came across, though not all of them, for they still shifted. Yet, no matter how dark it got, it was her cove, her respite, her anchor to escape. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. And eventually, she would come home, home to her parents who would simply greet her with a slight smile, saying that the food had grown cold, but they would warm it up once more. The trees lost branches occasionally, some even gave them up for the people, so they could light another fire without much trouble. The hero would eat, and then head to bed, only to do it all over again. Then, she became an adolescent, growing older, and much smarter. She knew that the tales she had been told were simply tales, stories that should keep children dreaming big, letting them experience the world slowly. They were a protection of sorts, against the kind of cruel things one might expect to find outside the forest. To her? They were treasures. Even as she grew older, she kept those stories deep within her heart. The stories of Oberon and Titania, of wild adventures, glorious paladins, heroes of good and freedom. It was what she wanted, what she craved so much, to truly be free. With every day in the village, she felt it grow stronger. The calling of the forest, the urge deep within her heart to go deeper, and she always obliged. She went in, jumping through the undergrowth, across the roots, swinging through the trees. She knew it deep down, that the forest she loved so very much loved her back perhaps even more. That the trees parted for her when she swung through them, that when she saw deers they would let her ride them, and when she met wolves they were like playful pups. The day eventually came when she turned sixteen, finally a fully fledged adult. Her older sister gave her a necklace, woven from grasses and flowers, a charm to keep her safe, while her brother gifted her with a wooden ring, carved as though it was made from a myriad of wings. Her father cried as he hugged her goodbye and handed over a belt, sturdy and well crafted, with enough pouches to carry all the things that the forest might give her, and her mother patted her head with an even brighter smile than usual, taking her inside by the hand. The hero left the house of her parents one final time, having eaten as much as her stomach could fit, with her pockets packed, wearing the dress her mother had made for her from the boons of the forest, and a cloak of autumn leaves, its colours growing warmer at the bottom. She looked at her classmates again, the very people she had spent all the days of her childhood with. Some of them were crying, others again smiling and waving, but she knew that all of them were so, so happy for her. And lastly, she faced her teacher, the man who had lived so very long, seen her grow from a babe who barely knew how to walk, and now would bid her goodbye. His hair had long ago turned white, and his skin was wrinkly, yet she could clearly hear the life still coursing through him. He smiled at the girl a final time. "Go," he said. That was the final word he needed to say. She already knew all that he felt, and he knew it too. There was only joy that day, as the girl ran off, waving at all of the people she had spent her life with as she disappeared into the undergrowth of the forest, simply running along. This was it, she knew it. As she soared through the air, jumped through the soft grass and felt some fallen leaves crunch under her feet, she knew it. As she heard the crickets sound out from everywhere, as she passed a small stream of water and leapt over it, she also knew it. This was a goodbye, and a new beginning. She would not return to the village for a long while, perhaps never. The people who had been with her all her life wouldn''t see her grow older, and perhaps she wouldn''t see them do so either. Yet, this was not a tragedy, for the hero knew much more. This was freedom. She could go wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted, no longer confined by a home or a place to return to. The forest, her world, was truly hers now, hers to explore, hers to see, and hers to feel. The wind rushing through her hair and billowing the cloak as she ran, the bark against her palms as she swung across the trees, and the paths opening up in front of her whenever she turned a new corner. It was all she had ever wanted, yet not all she would ever want. As time passed, the girl grew older, and the longing in her heart was fulfilled. She had not grown wings, nor had she seen fey, yet she did not need to, for she lived the very life she had always admired and wanted. The chapters passed further, and the girl grew older still, 21 now, and she knew the forest. She had seen all she wanted to see, she had been all the places she wanted to be, for a while. Some of them were dark, some bright, some mystical, some wet, some hot, some cold, and all of them were hers. She felt loved and in the place she belonged to, and she wanted to show it to others beyond the borders of here. And so, the hero stepped out of the forest, feeling its love still within, and knowing that it would always be with her. After all, it was her domain, her longing, and she would not go anywhere without it. Then, as she stepped beyond, without hesitation, the hero looked behind herself and took all the forest in her heart, always carrying it with her. And as she stepped out, she saw the sandy beaches of the ocean. The girl, the hero, had found an entire world to explore! With a smile on her face and warmth in her heart, she simply ran. It mattered little where, for she loved the wind and it loved her back, a trusty guide at all times. Not long after, the breeze had carried her where it wanted her to be next, carrying her across the shore, high up into the sky, showing her how the waves sparkled from up there, a picture so magnificent she could hardly believe it herself. Then, she thanked the wind, and it put her back down slowly, taking care not to hurt her. There was much more to see. The hero ran across the land, seeing lakes and shores, places of beauty. She saw them during summer and spring, during fall and during winter. She saw them one year and the next, and she continued running. Eventually, after some time, she came upon a small town, laid somewhere in the mountains. It was winter, yet the sun loved the girl and she was not cold. She came into the town, and saw that the people were haggard, and she asked nicely. Perhaps the sun could come a little closer and shed a little love to those people as well? Soon, their fields had thawed and the crops sprung up, growing quickly to impress the hero, and within but a few hours, there was grain, a mightier harvest than the village had ever seen. The girl smiled as she saw the faces of the villagers, and she left, yet they refused to let her go. She had yet to receive their thanks! It took some time, but not a week later, the girl was running again, her feet touching down so lightly on the snow it didn''t even need to harden for her. She had been gifted another thing now, a token of thanks from the village, a loaf of bread that loved her enough to never disappear, no matter how much she ever ate of it. Our hero smiled as she ran, seeing many more wonders, endlessly stretching plains of sand, and a city of gold. A mountain spewing molten rock that felt so warm and kind when she touched it, and a pond with water like glass. And then, when she came upon another village, she saw once more that the people there were sad. A spirit, haunting them, she said, and the hero, of course went into the woods to tame it. They were right, a spirit it was, a sad one, forgotten and now hated, but the girl smiled when she saw it. She simply sat down, and talked to the spirit, asking its name, and she believed in it, and once more, when she left the village, she had only gained things. A companion, to go with her, and a glass of water that loved her so much it would never empty. The girl continued her journey of freedom, running all across the world, helping whoever she came across and receiving thanks. People never resented her for leaving, because they all knew that she would. The girl would never stay, could never stay, for as much as she loved all things, there was still more out there to see. And as the hero continued running, with her companions and her gifts, wearing the ring of wings and the necklace of flowers, she became renowned. She was known as benevolent, kind, and loving, gifting all those with nothing with the things they needed. Whenever she came to a village or a town, she helped where she could, and left richer than she came. Gratitude was all it took for her, yet the people insisted she take a small token from them, and her belt had them all. Her father had put enough pockets on it to hold anything she ever would need to carry, and she never carried more than she needed. The fairy with a smile, she became known. The hero beloved. The free one. And as such, the girl was happy. She held her forest in her heart, the people in her heart, and the world in her heart. She was a hero, beloved by all, and loving all, living her life exactly as she wanted, for even those who were truly evil could not help but leave her be. Simply because she was loved, she was a hero, and because she was a hero, she was loved. Living a life freer than any who came before and perhaps any who came after, she was truly our very own hero. Chapter 63: New Adventure Chapter 63: New Adventure Well, that certainly was an interlude chapter. I hope this keeps Jeff happy for some while. This chapter was supposed to appear a little later, but it would be foreshadowing anyways. No harm, no foul. If it makes sure he''ll stop breaking into my office when I''m on toilet breaks, that''s good enough for me. Sorry, back to our scheduled program now. Hope you enjoy the chapter! /Order, the combination of law, freedom, and justice, interwoven and connected into a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Yet, why exactly those three parts? Law is first, and will always be first. Laws need to be laid down, a foundation to the very things that define us. The system has its laws, and its order, and so does nature. If we do not mirror these laws in our society, then true order can never be achieved. These laws then allow for the foundation of freedom. It is impossible for true order to exist without freedom, yet it is also impossible for freedom to exist without laws. Sand will never become human, for example. Yet, there is still freedom in many ways. Freedom to go wherever, to be whoever, so long as you do not infringe upon the freedom of others. For that would be unjust. And justice needs to be given. All people are equal, if one hurts another, that is unjust. One of them is no longer free, the other is no longer within the laws. It goes against order, it is unacceptable, and judgment must fall. To preserve order, these three must always, always be in balance. It is only on these principles that it is possible to erect a society, to live together, bound by a common order. To go against these is to forsake the greater, overarching order, and it must be relentlessly suppressed. These principles must be above all, upheld by any sapients, be it men or kin, elves, dwarves, demons or spirits. The law might be different in some places, but the order by that law must always, always be upheld./ The third scrolls of the series "The grand Church of Order" by bishop Nemo the faithful. - - - - - - Things had been quiet in Stormbraver. Esmeya had spent some time with Mercury, getting blood, saliva, and some tissue samples from him. He refused being carved up with a knife, but he certainly didn''t mind giving her some of his hair that had fallen out already. It got everywhere, anyways. In exchange, he had also earned himself some intel on other travellers to this world. She had heard of three of them in total, Hypatia of Alexandria, claiming to hail from greater Greece. Mercury wasn''t quite sure if Alexandria was actually in modern day Greece, but he certainly remembered they had a chonky library that burned down. Next on the list was a much more familiar name, being Genghis Khan, a warlord. Like holy fuck, thinking of meeting a historical figure like that dude face to face? Something about it didn''t quite feel right to Mercury, like he was stuck in a feverdream or some shit. The last name Esmeya remembered was Jeanne d''Arc. Mercury wasn''t too solid on European history, to be fair, but he was pretty certain he had heard that name somewhere before. Like, it definitely sounded French and old, so that was something. Honestly, if he had known there were that many travellers on this world, perhaps he would''ve done a little more research into historical figures. All of them sounded pretty familiar, but if it wasn''t his good ol'' pal George Washington, he wasn''t 100% on giving a full list of their deeds, heck, he wasn''t even sure about that when it came to Washington! Oh well. At the very least he certainly had more knowledge on them than the average inhabitant of this frigging world, nothing much he could do about it now. He didn''t have any of the books he had access to on Earth. Life was tough, being a cat. Of course, he didn''t neglect to practice his runecarving skills. No chance he was getting another rank-up anytime soon, but at the very least, he was improving. Just keep adding runes to the log, eventually it''ll be unbreakable, that was the plan. Avery had gone out to hunt a couple days ago and things were looking rather boring, with Mercury taking a couple quests every now and then, saving up some money, as he talked to the mages guild. They had a couple trackers in there, but none that could help him. It was hard enough to look at someone else''s status, and finding a familiar on it? People were unwilling to even give it a try. "Waste of mana", apparently. He was a bit salty about it, but again, not much to do. Just unfortunate. Instead, he started to read more. He found quite a few diary entries, some incidents on tunnelling, and honestly, by now he was curious to see how a gate looked. Maybe it was time to form a hunting party? There were a couple around the city, and he certainly could think of one person that would go along with him. Avery might, if he were here, but no point worrying since he wasn''t. Mercury also thought about inviting his very favourite priestess once more, but quite frankly, he hadn''t seen her the last couple of days. She''d locked herself up in her room, but if she didn''t ask for his help, there wasn''t much to do. Still, he had a couple of friends left. Elliot would certainly come along, and he had gotten into a dry, humorous friendship with Gilah, so maybe he''d even ask her. With a little luck, he could ask Marcel to play as their healer. Heh, that would be funny. It was decided then! His ribs were feeling fine, his exp was steadily increasing, and he was feeling in pretty good shape again. There was a lot he still needed to improve upon, but at the very least, he was getting better. With the thought in his mind, he set upon the notice board in the gloryhall, grabbed the page on clearing out a decently doable gate, only day''s walk from Stormbraver, and then he grabbed his pals. It felt like he was collecting stickers or some shit. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Elliot borderline threw himself at the opportunity, and Marcel was thankful for the break from all the bureaucracy. With Avery "slacking off", as he put it, there was all the more pressure on the receptionist, but Mercury got Nira in charge of some of it. She had a little more free time, and more hands backing her. Even though Foss was back out, the guild was now more run as a cooperation between the two rather than by either one. The cat smiled a little at the thought. He remembered how the older lady had grumbled about the guild master, but it seems that getting into his shoes for a while gave her a little more respect for him. Well, that was usually how it goes. Gilah was the only one who baulked somewhat at the idea, but she was swayed when Mercury told her about the reward. Apparently the village around the gate made great booze, especially letting some of it soak in barrels from the gate''s exotic wood. He had never seen someone change their mind so fast in his life. If they really wanted to be safe, finding a tank would probably be beneficial, but Mercury didn''t know anyone, and while Marcel had a couple people in mind, most of them were busy with the rebuilding. Understandable, since pretty much everyone was on it. Quite frankly, most of Mercury''s commissions these couple days had also been all about that, getting food until the imports rolled in, herbs for medicine, or even some furs to keep people warm. In any case, the council was paying to have all of it done, luckily some count had given them a good rate on their loan, or things would''ve gone pretty south. Godseekers were good folk mostly, but not many of them would risk their skin if there wasn''t even a reward up for the taking. Understandable, really, though some of them would still help, it definitely wouldn''t measure up to the amount of manpower needed for something like this. Still, Mercury had gathered his crew together, and they managed to rent out a carriage for half a page, too. They might be a decent team, but Marcel had heavily advised for this. They wouldn''t be able to sell everything they got out of the place in the village, and hauling it back to Stormbraver by themselves would break their backs. He even said he''d get a porter on his own money if they didn''t agree on it! While Mercury wasn''t a saint, something like that really just didn''t sit right with him. Marcel was already coming along, trying to extort his share outta the guy felt pretty unfair, so the group decided to get someone who could reasonably drive a coach and haul some valuables. Godseekers and porters always went hand in hand when it came to dungeons, apparently. Then, they were off. Early in the morning on a tudan, hopefully they''d be back in time for the pagend, though if it was needed, they''d take longer. Never good to make haste when exploring a gate. In any case, the porter himself was a pretty decent dude. Jos¨¦, very tan, black hair and dark eyes. Honestly, Mercury found him incredibly handsome, and his accent was just gorgeous. Still, he didn''t let himself get carried away, keeping their chats friendly, and just occasionally asking about how far it still was. Tough to keep track of time in this world after all. Still, the journey was certainly something. Marcel remained pretty quiet and distant and Mercury really, really wished he could say the same for Elliot, but the kid was just so laden with energy. Mercury even let him sit on top of the carriage, casting some wind magic and staring at clouds for a while. And not long after, everyone was on top the roof. Why the hell not, after all? The village was to the southeast, where the rolling plains turned more into hills, with the occasional small tree and bush dotted around. The road was a trampled dirt path, more than anything, compacted and free of grass through decades of use. Mercury quite enjoyed the sight, the distant horizon, the up and down on the hills... but my god was it horrible sitting inside. You get pushed back for a minute, then you gotta fucking fight to stay in your seat, and a couple minutes later, gravity calls unexpectedly. Mercury smashed his head against the back of the carriage more than once, and he certainly wasn''t alone. To the roof it was! Why Jos¨¦ followed them he wasn''t sure, but eh, the reptile-horse crossbreed looking motherfuckers were smart enough to stay on track. Were there horse-dinosaur girls in this world? Actually, maybe he didn''t want to know. As the seconds ticked by, Mercury watched the sun slowly get lower on the sky, and by the time they arrived in the small villages, their butts were sore and their backs ached. No more gate-clearing, just them and some clean sheets in an inn. A dream date. Next day started early again. The rooms had been split up decently, so that they wouldn''t have to pay too much. Gilah and Elliott in one, Mercury, Marcel, and Jos¨¦ in the other. But while the kid didn''t sleep in Mercury''s room, he certainly woke them the fuck up. Early. Actually, before sunrise. Where he took the energy from Mercury would love to know. Breakfast, and off they went again. "Hey Marcel?" Mercury asked, on their way to the gate. They decided to walk this time, since none of them were too keen on riding the carriage through the rowdy landscape again. "Yes?" "What''re these gates like?" "No idea," the receptionist answered, unabashed. "Never been in one before, but according to Avery, pretty unpredictable." "You''ve never been in one, mister Marce?" Elliot asked, leaving out the l on purpose. He had learned it very mildly annoyed the man, and insisted on doing it thereafter. "Sigh. No, I haven''t. Never saw the sense in it, felt like it was more danger than it was worth, but honestly, I''d give half my organs to get away from work a little right now," Marcel answered, his sarcasm a little too dry for comfort. "That bad?" "That bad." "Drink a little, kid," Gilah said, uncorking a bottle and holding it over. "Makes all the stress vanish." The stench it gave off was putrid, like spicy and minty sewage, and Marcel quickly took his distance. "What is in that bottle, se?orita?" Jos¨¦ asked, maybe out of morbid curiosity. "A drink for the road," Gilah replied with a smirk. "Worst you''ll ever have, heavy enough to drench your belly for a couple of days, and certainly bad enough to not make you want any alcohol anytime soon. It''s called Black Yinks." "... But whyyyyyyy????" Mercury asked. "Addicts, kid. I don''t want my fingers to start twitching when we''re in there," Gilah said, nodding at the gate, "and this is how a lot of us prepare. Now, let me get it over with before it stinks up this whole village." And with that, Gilah pinched her nose shut, took a swig from the flask, and Mercury could almost see every fiber of her body trying to reject the vile thing she just insisted on shoving into herself. Whatever the fuck it is, he certainly didn''t want it anywhere near his insides. "Back to the topic at hand," Marcel said. "We don''t know everything about what''s in there. Generally, this is an E-Rank gate. Rare, but persistent openings, that never close, and never disappear. Annoying pieces of crap, really. Require godseekers to visit places like this, clear them out. They have a good amount of value in them for poorer places though, and they''re often used for actually getting newbies some combat training." He simply rattled things down very receptionist-like, though he certainly had a more pointed undertone when he was speaking off the clock. "So, in short, while we''re not the best balanced team, most of us are actually competent in a fight, and while we definitely won''t get out easily, at the very least we can expect no one to die. Now, there is one iron rule in the gates that all of you need to know." He then gave a quick look around to check if everyone was paying attention. "If the porter is in danger, you die for them, capich¨¦? No ifs, whens or buts, doesn''t matter how old you are, or how experienced. Porters are the last in, and the first out. If everyone on a mission dies, the porter should still live. Because if any of us make it out, and he doesn''t, it''ll be a really, really bad look for you, and everyone in the group, and everyone in the guild, and everyone else. Jos¨¦ is making it out alive before any of us." "YESSIR!!" Mercury yelled, snapping out an army salute with slightly awkward balance. "Thank you, amigo. It warms this one''s heart," Jos¨¦ said with a big smile, giving M&M a pat on the back with maybe just a little too much force. "Well, no more use in stalling," Mercury then said with a smile. "Let''s head in." Man, his back honestly hurt a little now. Chapter 64: Beasts Chapter 64: Beasts /Ever seen a 100 percent honest person? Yeah, me neither./ Source: this is my book and I can write whatever I want. Narrator here. Well, I mean, today the author just sounds salty. We''ll quickly restructure that a little, give me a moment. Hrm-hr. /Honesty is quite strange indeed. It is something we always ask for, and yet never truly wish to hear. People always imply things, and leave small social cues for us to pick up on. Is there anything you have ever said indirectly or not at all? Well, that makes you a little bit of a liar. Now, to be quite frank, this is simply a human truth. There are certain things society demands we say, and others that it demands to keep hidden. Sometimes this may keep us from being hurt, and other days, it may lead us to call someone a snake, or a traitor. Of course, if one lies on purpose, that is a different matter altogether, and yet, things such as norms on what to be subtle on are vastly different. Allow me to elaborate. When interacting with demons, never pull punches. Be direct, make bets, and they will do the same. No pulling your punches, if you''re looking ugly, you''ll hear it many times a day. Now devils, those are a different beast entirely. Devils do contracts, only based on fine print. Teleporting you may mean not keeping your structure intact. Everything must be taken as literal and quite possibly as purely trying to trick you. Imagine trying to make a deal with the biggest asshole you know, like that neighbour who somehow always tries his hardest to fuck you over. Or a rival dad, who has a cooler lawnmower than you. That''s how devils see you, trying to dry you of every single drop of value they can get. Do the same, or drown in their society. Very rarely will they actually do something to benefit you, and when they do it is a debt that must be settled, no matter what you have to sacrifice for it. Refuse to pay up, and you are but free meat for all devils to come claim, no more contracts or negotiations. And if you are talking to the kin, rules are entirely different once more. Their people rely heavily on body language, and if you do not know enough of it to describe the context, they may very well mistake your meaning many times. It is all based on culture you see, and quite frankly, it is very important to make sure you know a little on it. Thus, I shall elaborate more on easy adjustments you can make to your communication, ones that anyone can do to get their meaning across, in the next chapter!/ The goddamn narrator, because this author bastard was too lazy to actually write a proper chapter, just because of some heartbreak or shit like that. Work needs to be separated from private life, and it seems like some people are unable to do that. Sigh. - - - - - - When Mercury took a good look at the tunnel it was... strange. Like some sort of alien fata morgana, the air was shimmering, and... strange. According to what he had read, rifts were supposed to look as though the air itself had torn, yet this seemed much more... stable. Perhaps that was why they named it a door. The tunnel actually stood upright on the floor, though only visible up front, as its back was entirely see-through. Looking at it for a while, Mercury felt something off. The air seemed to ripple and shift, almost like raindrops hitting a puddle, yet every time it impacted, the surface of the door slightly changed colour and seemed to... deepen. It was a mix of colours that looked supernatural, like staring at a nebula in space, yet when it shook, the ripples were uneven, like small cracks in the surface, revealing brighter, or darker hues behind them, before they melded back into the surface and began their shifting once more. Yet, the strangest part perhaps were its roots, having grown into the ground and fixing the door there, making sure it didn''t move even as its very hold in this reality seemed to flicker in and out of existence. "Holy shit," Mercury said. "It looks like that for you as well? Sheesh, I already thought I drank too much..." The cat simply couldn''t tear his eyes from the thing. It was so alien, so strange and unfamiliar, yet he felt drawn to it, like there was a tiny, invisible string in his heart that pulled towards the gate. Yeah, he had to step through, he needed to see what was on the other side. Without even waiting for his team, or giving any more of a speech, Mercury walked a couple steps forward, and put his paws through the split. It felt slightly strange, he could not see them, yet he clearly felt grass between his claws. Only moments later, he poked his head through, exiting the soft, rolling hills, and entering into a deep jungle. Not long after, he heard a deep, yet soft whirring sound, and his companions were by his side once more. "That was so cool!!" Elliot immediately yelled, half attempting to go right back through the thing, just to feel that thrill again, only for Marcel to rudely interrupt, and pick the boy up. "Kid, I say you look ahead. This is a monster nest, any wrong moves and we might be found earlier than we''d want," he said coolly, not one to beat around the bush. Then, when Elliot was placed back on the floor, they quickly began clearing a perimeter. The jungle was thick, and they needed to remove some underbrush before Jos¨¦ came through with the carriage. Getting the dino-horses upset would cause them a lot of trouble. Apparently they were called the "terrezays". Strange name, but then again, he was a mopaaw. Still, looking around himself, Mercury found that the area didn''t seem too busy. It was actually quite quiet... [Clear Quest: "Jungle of Weyn" added. Success: clear out the strongest inhabitants of the jungle. Reward will be based on how successful you are. View Criteria?] There it was. Sure, let''s take a look. [Criteria for success: Clear speed, collateral damage done, party member remaining health percentage, amount of healing dealt, amount of damage dealt, amount of enemy attacks blocked, amount of enemy attacks parried, amount of enemy attacks dodged, amount of enemies killed, percentage damage to bosses, personal damage taken, amount of stamina used, amount of mana used, amount of levels acquired during the clear, amount of items acquired, relative difficulty compared to character strength (character strength is an objective evaluation and takes into consideration even the numbers the system does not directly display), concentration during clear, judgment of harsh situations, adaptability when in contact with dangerous enemies, secondary and tertiary contribution to fights, amount of enemies scouted ahead of party, traps disarmed, relative trap disarming success, successful enemy attack percentage, discovery of secrets within the tunnel, communication ability with party members, joint total damage done, joint total healing done, amount of value extracted from the dungeon (excluding items dropped by monsters, this specifically refers to corpses, minerals, and other items not classified as such by the system and requiring manual processing through the use of applied Skills)...] The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Alright, note to never ask that again. What a wall of text, felt like he was reading a novel or something. What a funny thought. Still, at the very least he wouldn''t be judged regardless of his level, but more on how well he did compared to his strength and that of his party, which is nice. It also means that if he brought Avery in here, he''d probably do very fucking poorly, since the man would outscore him in most categories. Seems like his companions were a good choice at least. "Seems like the quest is out," Gilah noted. "Yeah. Be wary, it means that everything in here has gotten theirs just now as well. They can''t read it, but they sure get angry at intruders," Marcel answered, already looking around while tapping his staff against some of the plants. It looked like he was chilling them down, making the local flora wilt rather quickly. Mercury quickly helped with this, cutting down ferns and grasses with his claws, while Elliot began escorting insects outside their little clearing using blasts of wind. They could survive flight from any height, and these were probably mutated insects anyways, so no one in the party felt too bad for them. As they expected, it didn''t take very long for them to have a tiny perimeter and soon after that, Jos¨¦ drove the carriage through. They had created a rather small clearing, and quite frankly, it looked like the grass was already growing back, but it was better than nothing. "Now what?" "We continue for a couple minutes," Marcel said. "If we face anything in here, it''s going to happen in waves. I had to read so much about this, so you now get to sit through some of that. We''re in what looks like a jungle, right, so basically, we can expect two things: beasts, and aggressive plants. This is some of the lower end stuff you''ll find here, but it''s still tough enough, due to their sheer mass. We want to have a space cleared that we''re familiar with, before a horde of lions stampedes through here and wipes the floor with us, got it?" ""Yes sir!!"" Gilah and Mercury both snapped a salute and got back to work. The woman had even pulled out a machete by now, and was using it alongside something else. Seems like she was drawing the moisture from the plants, and making them turn into dust. Gruesome. Not even 5 minutes later, they began to hear sounds. It wasn''t the passive humming of insects and rattling of bushes that was permanent in a jungle like this, but instead, it sounded like a surprisingly human scream, coming from somewhere up north. Then, there was another, a little more high pitched, then a third, excited and shrill, before a deep roar silenced them all. But the cacophony of noise only grew as time went on, soon it seems as though any beasts you could find in a jungle were trying to drown each other out. Monkeys were screeching at the top of their lungs, tigers and lions seemed to be roaring with fury, and Mercury was pretty sure that he had heard the trumpet of an elephant for a moment. And in addition to that, there was another sound that none of the cat''s human companions could hear. It was perhaps the most jarring, highest pitch sound the feline had ever heard, a noise so horrible that dragging a thousand nails across a chalkboard might not do it justice. They had been inside the door for maybe half an hour in total when the first beasts found them. By then, a decent amount of space was cleared, though there were still some large trees and boulders lying around, since those could not be removed anyways. At the very least, the monsters wouldn''t be invisible until the fuckers were breathing down the party''s necks. Still, the first attack that hit them came completely out of nowhere. A stone, flying from amidst the trees, and smacking against the side of the carriage. The terrezays got a little scared at the noise, but Jos¨¦ quickly calmed them down, working to keep the animals still when a couple more rocks came flying in. "What do we got?" Mercury asked, half-yelling to get himself heard over the fury of the jungle. "They''re throwing- rocks-! Something with- hands-?" Elliot gave his best guess while throwing down gusts of air around himself. He was their prime defender against any form of ranged attacks, since they didn''t exactly have a shielder to block them. The kid was valuable, to say the least. "Bah, monkeys," Gilah said, spitting on the floor. She still had the machete firmly in her hand as she waited for those furry bastards to show their faces. Mercury quickly gave a nod to Marcel. If the forest-dwellers thought they''d just stand there, and let themselves be pelted with rocks, they were most certainly wrong. Instead of just taking it, the receptionist took his staff and began drawing in the air. Some bigger spells especially needed incantations and gestures to execute fully, which could lead to a battle of wizards looking like a dance-off. Yet, Marcel finished surprisingly fast, placing a magic circle in mid air and finishing the whole speech in just a couple seconds, before tapping his artwork. "Usually I''d say ''let''s dance'', but monkeys never much appreciate my humor. !" As soon as the receptionist-turned-mage tapped his staff against the magic circle, cold air shot out from it into the direction of the furry menace, and immediately after a couple surprised yelps and crashes, it seems the rocks stopped. Only for a tide of furious little and bigger chimpanzees to storm through the leafage and leap at Marcel. "Oh shit." "Duck, boy!" Gilah yelled at him, already taking a swing before he even moved and smashing the machete in the open mouth of one of the monkeys. Their teeth were serrated, like a fucking sawblade., and their eyes red with rage, but a knife cut them all the same. The drunk also quickly took the spot in front of Marcel, using her mage''s staff as a club to beat down the monkeys, and soon Mercury took her side, tearing at the bastards with his fangs and claws. Despite his size, the damage he did was serious, his sharp appendages digging their full length into the forest dwellers and carving them up. Moments later, they were hit by buffs from both Marcel and little airstrike, making some of the cutting and tearing a bit easier. Mercury was focusing as hard as he could. The sounds in the background still gave him a headache, and occasionally, Gilah would fling a half-conscious, raging and flailing monkey at him, which made the job much more chaotic. At the very least he had Marcel and the kid to cover his flanks, but he still couldn''t shake the headache he got from that ear-wrecking sound. What fucking miscreant would make such noise? Still, with some support from his comrades, they slowly beat back the monkey tide, and when the raging eyes of the chimpanzees turned back to normal, some of them even began retreating. But there was no rest. Blood had been spilled, and the predators of this place had smelled it. Within not even a minute of the monkeys disappearing, Mercury could hear snarling and deep breathing from some place around them. "We''ve got company." "Again?" Gilah complained, pushing herself up from a rather short rest on a stump, as she brandished her weapons once more. Mercury himself scanned all around their clearing, trying to find anything amidst the foliage, but it seems that they were being stalked by an excellent hunter. Well, not excellent enough. Elliot took the time they had on hand, interweaving his mana with the air, and essentially shooting out a sonar blast. This was almost like he touched the stuff all around them, and while it may consume quite a bit of mana, it was still worth its cost. "We''ve got 3 big fluffy cat feeling things, 2 up front, one behind the door." "I''ll cover Jos¨¦," Marcel said, already walking towards the carriage and prepping some other spell, Mercury was sure. He and Gilah would have to take the front, it seemed, while Elliot would provide support wherever it was needed. "I''m gonna blast ours, be ready," Gilah said to all of them, already swinging her staff through the air. It was quite a bit more robust than Marcel''s, and its tip looked like a steel cage with a heavy glass sphere inside. Mercury saw it being used as a mace, and he knew that it most certainly was heavy. "Here goes nothing. !" As soon as Gilah spoke the words, two blasts of brown, brackish water, shot in front of her at high speed, probably carrying some abrasive agent. Definitely wouldn''t be fun to get hit by that, kind of a nasty combo between earth and water. As the cat suspected, he soon heard short yowls in the forest, only to see two camouflaged tigers slowly walk into the clearing. They looked similar to the ones he knew back on earth, except perhaps a little larger, and with green-brown fur instead. "Big kitty!" Elliot said with a smile, very little worry in his head. The tigers slowly advanced towards Mercury and Gilah, both of them sporting wounds on their sides, yet they certainly weren''t mortally wounded. Instead, it seemed to have made them all the more angry, yet wary at the same time. Mercury began to feel his fur rise, as his entire body made him look as big as possible. "I''m so fucking dead," he thought to himself while hissing and growling at the tiger in front of him. Then, seconds later, his giant brethren let out a roar and pounced, one of them on him, another on Gilah, and the third one giving an attempt to appear behind Marcel. The godseeker had been more than wary though, being a careful type, and when the monster leapt at him, he tapped his staff against the magic circle, blasting the thing''s stomach with a wall of ice. "Hah! Fucking! Bitch!" he yelled, perhaps thinking of someone specific as he beat the tiger''s head with the horse-whip that came alongside the carriage. "Mercury!" Gilah pressed out in between dodges, entering half a dance with the tiger as she slashed out with the machete, then retreated half a step, both swiping at its legs and trying to knee its underbelly. The two were having a bit of a back and forth, side to side, with neither getting a clear advantage. "I''m busy!" the cat ground out, scurrying between the tiger''s legs. Sometimes his small size was an advantage. "Your friend''s a nutcase!" "BU-SY!!" Mercury gave Elliot a quick glance, and the kid hit him with an equally quick little buff. Made him light for just a couple seconds, yet that was just long enough for him to leap far over a bite from the tiger and land on its back, where he dug every natural weapon he had into the feral beast. Yet, natural weapons didn''t seem to be enough, since he only slightly got past the thick hide, and he wasn''t able to carve it up as much as he was with some enemies before. And thus Mercury summoned his pouch of rocks, upside down, above the tiger. Oh yeah, we''re doing this again. Chapter 65: The Battle and its Spoils Chapter 65: The Battle and its Spoils /Do we have power and the system describes it, or is our power solely granted by the system? It is a question many have pondered over the time Chronagen has existed in the form it has now. Many say, that our power comes purely from the system, citing their evidence in the drops of items that are clearly still attached to a creature''s body, such as claws, skin, and tusks. Where else would these come from? Other say the same, naming the astounding amount of Skills one can buy, without expending any personal effort. And the, others again say that the power truly comes from within, and that the system partially gives it form. The ''drops'', as some people have taken to calling them, would be crystallized forms of our own belief, and the belief all of our minds combined funnel into the system. The acquiring of Skills in the shop would only be like us using the power we have gained for some help in understanding the Skills we get. This would also explain why some Skills are more expensive than others, depending on a person''s level, appearance, affinity, talent, and existing Skills that are similar. Yet, once again, we increase our stats and those Skills with points given by the system, can those truly be said to have been acquired through our own effort? But then, where else would they come from? A gift by the system? By some strange deity puppeteering us for... what? Yet, if the system simply explains our status, then why do some travellers report not having had one before? As one can see, the discussion goes back and forth, around in long loops. Perhaps, the truth is that the answer is not so clear cut. Perhaps, as in all things, there is nuance. Perhaps, it is both by our own merit, and the helping hand of the system, that we are able to grow and develop, to become the best version of ourselves that we can be./ An anecdote of many, written down by Armeyus the scholar in his "Collection of Thoughts on our World" - - - - - - The tide of beasts was long, annoying, loud, headache inducing, and painful. Mercury threw rocks through a tiger''s spine, bit down on monkey leg, he found out that the things making high pitched grating noises were damn bats, the ones half the size of humans at that. He also beat those. The only thing he had less trouble with were birds, since there weren''t too many of them, and Elliot kept them at bay. The animals in here were slightly monstrous, but certainly not much worse than what Earth had to service. Seriously, some vulture that projectile vomits the rotten, putrid corpse it just ate? Eugh. Still, after what seemed like an endless onslaught, and a couple hours of nonstop fighting, the party was spent. Jos¨¦ pulled out some food they had in the carriage, and the five of them had a short meal, gobbling some dried meat, and downing a couple bits of water. The worst was yet to come, after all. He may have gone through camo tigers, giant vampiric bats, murder pandas, jaguars, and a damn alligator, but there was something worse in store. It was time, eventually, after they had a quick bite and a moment to catch their breath. These excursions were tough, but since they had set up a perimeter, the smell of blood eventually started becoming a deterrent, rather than an attraction for some animals. So at the very least with that things had been manageable. Still, they were lucky this was a low-level door. These kinds of jungle types usually had enough poisonous insects and spiders to kill an army, so really, not running into any was quite fortunate. Marcel only knew a lesser detoxify spell, general ones were quite hard to find after all, and while Gilah was a competent herbalist, she hadn''t done too much research into venom. In any case, lucky there, but the boss was approaching them. Its steps heavy, Mercury knew that it would not be an easy fight. They were able to gauge what it might be a little while ago, but he had hoped they were wrong. No shot, unfortunately. As the steps drew nearer, and the floor started to slightly shake, the group got up. Elliot half hid behind the carriage, his staff poking out and ready to fire. Marcel was beside the kid, a slight, shimmering barrier in front of him. It was weak, but then again, barriers weren''t easy to conjure up. Gilah slowly pushed herself off the ground and grabbed the machete tightly. She didn''t even know if it would be useful, but it certainly would do more against what was coming up than her fists. Finally, Mercury himself had his bag of rocks beside him, and some individual ammunition prepared in his inventory. Slowly, the brush in front of them began to split, revealing first two white, giant tusks, high above the ground, and a long grey trunk. After that followed a giant head, that of perhaps the biggest land dwelling animal one could imagine. The huge bulk of an elephant slowly stepped out from in between the trees, and onto the clearing, its eyes alight with a subtle hue of red. Its tusks were large, sharp, and had a shining white tone to them, like someone went through the trouble of polishing them every day. "Holy shit..." Mercury muttered, looking on at the thing. As the other beasts before, it was a little different from its counterpart back on Earth. The tusks were pointier and less dull, it''s skin a little lighter in colour, looking almost like metal, and its trunk was so thick, Mercury thought it might be able to straight up snap someone in half. For a few seconds, the creature stood there, watching them. It wasn''t silent, its breathing loud enough for the entire party to hear very clearly, and forceful enough to even unsettle the terrezays, but it didn''t attack them at first sight. "... Hello?" Elliot carefully asked after a few more moments had passed, slightly confused at the beast''s stare. It seemed so furious, yet waiting for something, or perhaps even fighting back against its destructive urges. The influence of the door on its mind was powerful, but Mercury could even imagine it being quite peaceful if it ever got to leave. Then again, he didn''t know for sure. After about half a minute, of neither party making a move, the elephant smashed the ground with its trunk and loudly trumpeted in anger, taking a step towards the team. "Why did I agree to this..." Gilah thought, looking up at the beast. Well, she had little choice now. Best to just get to it. "HOOOOOOORRRRAAAAAAA!!!!" she screamed, giving her best combat shout, while rushing at the giant monster in front of her. In response, the elephant quickly turned its head towards her, and its trunk snaked through the air like an uncanny whip. Gilah couldn''t see much except for the grey mass of flesh coming towards her, but staring down death was something she had prepared a little for. Maybe the alcohol was also helping push her fear aside, but it was secondary, that much she was sure of. When the thing was just about to grab her, Gilah quickly slammed her staff into the floor, sending her flying upwards on a jet of water, before she came flying through the air and crashing down onto the thing while swinging her sword. Clang! The elephant raised its head, parrying her swing with its tusk, and launching her back a couple steps. "Tsk!" Mercury used the short opportunity given by his friend, or at the very least he tried to. The cat ran up to the elephant''s leg, and took the first couple steps to climb it, when he felt the animal''s weight shifting and beginning to move. "RUUUUUNNNNN!!!!" Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. The elephant had lifted the massive weight of its legs, and began running, now recognizing the party as a source of danger, especially the weird thing that had jumped at it, and thus, it did what big things do best. Run, and tear anything in their way down. The monster began to stampede towards Gilah, and when the barkeep managed to just get back off the floor, she already saw a grey-ish, house sized beast coming straight for her. In the split second she had, she jumped, curled up into a ball, and hoped to hurl herself out of the way, only barely sliding under one of the elephant''s feet with Elliot''s help. "Mitten you bastard!! Why did you drag me into this!" "Shuuuuut uuuuupppppp!!" Mercury yelled, being shaken up and down heavily by the monster''s leg, the momentum almost tearing him off as he held on for dear life, hoping to not be turned into a bunch of cat paste. As soon as his opponent had begun moving, Mercury immediately circulated his mana and expanded his stamina to fill himself, using all of that focus just to stick on the leg as the air was shaken in and out of him. Marcel looked at the spectacle for a couple of moments, when the elephant turned and began charging towards their carriage, and them as well. "Dodge!" he yelled, slamming the behind of one terrezay with his wand, before he quickly created two sheets of ice on the floor. Elliot blasted himself and the receptionist horizontally away from the rampaging grey-skin, while Marcel was deeply hoping to make the thing slip, yet his dreams were soon crushed when the elephant''s steps simply shattered the ice. "Get on up there, Mercury, you can do it!" Elliot cheered, shooting his friend a bright smile, and quite frankly, the cat didn''t know if he was carefree or straight suicidal. Still, when the elephant ground to a stop, Mercury slowly managed to get himself a couple more steps upwards. The beast''s hide was tough, and getting his claws to even stick took a solid swing. And apparently, the elephant had noticed, because when it stopped, it didn''t decide to just charge again, but instead ripped a large branch off a tree using its trunk, and began swatting at Mercury like some kind of strange housefly. "Not on my watch!" Gilah quickly fired a blast of sand and clay at the elephant''s eyes, forcing it to shake its head. Immediately, Mercury used his chance to scale up the remainder of the elephant and arrive on the beast''s back. Then, as any sensible person would do, he stuck his claws deep into the elephant''s flesh, took a bucket of rocks from his inventory, and began pelting its back with them. Since Mercury''s legs were stuck on the ground, he instead tapped the rocks and activated using his tail, forcing the sharp projectiles to dig themselves into the elephant. As soon as the first stab hit it, the beast roared out loud, trumpeting and huffing loudly, shaking its entire body in an attempt to get Mercury off, but the cat''s claws were stuck. Using this moment of distraction, Marcel also fired a couple icicles at the monster, and Gilah herself ran down under it, slicing at the beast''s soft belly with her machete and quickly escaping with some help from Elliot. Blood spilled on the ground and over her clothes in mass, but the woman forced her eyes to stay open, still wary of the heavy thing they were working to beat down. Not too many seconds later, it began to storm off, still trumpeting, and smash its back against a tree, hoping to somehow get the cat off. Mercury genuinely felt bad for hurting such a majestic beast, but he still couldn''t stop. This was a door, and this thing would harm people if it got out. The cat did his best to remain on top of the elephant, rolling around and fixing himself on its back again, always taking his ammunition into his inventory whenever he moved. Gilah kept slashing at its legs, belly and trunk, with Elliot pulling her out of any sticky situations she got into, and Marcel was pelting its softer parts with icicles. It was a cruel fight, but in the end, the monster made for a big target, and the pain in its back distracted it too much to think clearly. After a couple of minutes, with all of the party''s stamina well spent, the elephant collapsed, and fell to the ground with a thud, making the very earth shake one last time. "Never again!" Gilah yelled, staring at the thing''s corpse with horror. "Never!" "This wasn''t fun," Elliot nodded. "Too many animals killed." "I don''t care about the animals! I almost died!" "Stop whining," Marcel said, spitting onto the floor. "We aren''t done yet. Jos¨¦''s gotta dismantle the big guy, and we are gonna keep him out of trouble." "Huh? There''s more work to be done?!" "This is the part that makes it worth it," Marcel said. "Now, while we do have to stay wary, we can start dividing up the items. The quest should clear now as well. Everyone keeps their own quest rewards, items from killing blows are split. Everyone fine with that?" Mercury nodded and quickly gathered up his rocks before rejoining with the rest of his party. It had been a long day, and honestly, all he wanted to do is rest, but work was work. Not like he was unfamiliar with that... "Fine," Gilah agreed, a little exasperated, before taking another swig of the Black Yinks to calm her nerves. "Bah. Gross." "Here''s what I have," Marcel said, laying his items out. It was a mostly alchemy ingredients, bat''s fangs, tiger''s claw, snake''s skin, and so on. He also had a tiger''s skin, perfectly unblemished, as well as one fully finished dagger made from a lion''s paw. "I want the dagger," Elliot immediately said, showing little hesitation. Gilah instead opted for some alchemy ingredients, while Mercury chose a consumable item, vampiric essence. It would heal him up and give him a temporary lifesteal effect. Marcel himself settled for the pelt, thinking he could probably sell it well enough. After all, the skin was already dyed in camouflaging tones, so making decent armor out of it should be doable. Elliot shared his rewards, and Mercury got away with a small necklace, one bearing a row of alligator teeth. It was a little macabre, but increased his strength by 5. As it was understandably valuable, that was it from his side, and instead, the remainder of the items went to Marcel and Gilah. Mercury actually wondered how Elliot would have even gotten kills, but perhaps he gained rewards through some form of support? When it came to Gilah, Marcel quickly picked out some poison, and Elliot decided to take "moonviper sugar". Mercury got a couple of alchemy ingredients to sell, while Gilah herself insisted on keeping some sort of liquor one of the snakes dropped. It smelled a little funny, but oh well, it was probably drinkable. Probably. Then, when Mercury shared his own spoils, he decided to keep the vial of elephant blood. No one else was keen on it anyways, as they instead decided to split up the tusks which dropped, and some alligator scales. The cat quickly downed the rather suspicious blood he kept, seeing as it was quite similar to the heart of the great stag, and almost immediately felt revitalised, with his vitality going up by 3 and dexterity by 4. In addition to those bonuses, he had also levelled up twice in the fray, the beasts of this jungle giving him quite a bit of exp. He had to smile a little, looking at his growth. Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 16 -> 18 Species: Zetraspa Titles: , , === Hp: 96/260 Mp: 26/322 Sp: 31/220 === Strength: 55 -> 57 (+5) Vitality: 54 -> 57 Dexterity: 45 -> 49 (+1) Agility: 36 -> 43 (+1) Intelligence: 53 Wisdom: 59 -> 60 (+2) Willpower: 64 -> 65 Luck: 22 -> 24 === Ability points: 34 World points: 8 Skill points: 1260 === Gold: 863 Beast familiars: 1/2 It was going decently. He certainly had come a long way since he had entered this world. If he was honest, he definitely was quite proud of himself. Sure, he wasn''t the most powerful, and not the most quickly growing person in the entire world, but he was making progress, and that was... well, it was a start. Right now, time wasn''t the thing he was lacking. After splitting up the loot, the whole party sat around in silence for a little while. Jos¨¦ had dismantled the other beasts between fights, but the elephant was big, and its skin tough, so it took some time. "Sure glad we brought a porter now, eh?" Marcel asked. "I am, for sure. Hauling an elephant would be a pain," Mercury agreed. He knew Marcel just wanted some reinforcement for his idea, and the cat wasn''t stubborn enough to choose this as a hill to die on. He knew some people who would, and he was capable of learning from their idiocy. "How''s your guys'' status looking," Mercury then asked. "Couple levels," Gilah quickly replied. "My strength is looking better, and so is my wisdom, willpower, and dexterity. Just a little stronger overall. My swordsmanship has levelled up too, which is surprising." "Two levels for my !" Elliot said, wearing a bright smile. "Maybe using it in real time does award more exp?" "Probably just because you thought it was being useful, kid," Marcel slightly shot him down. "And it definitely was. You saved my hide more times than I can count. Metaphorically, of course, I do a lot of maths on the job." "We get it, old man," Gilah said. "Now, tell us what you got out of it." "Eh, smaller increases here and there. Biggest things are probably my , , , and willpower. Certainly wasn''t worthless, but maybe more effort than I would have liked." Mercury looked at Marcel for a little while and noticed that his fingers were twitching just slightly. The stress had worn away at him, and it seems he was craving something to deal with it. If Mercury had to compare it to something, it was like a smoker starting to shake when they didn''t have a cigarette in a while. "You smoke?" He then asked. "Hm? Charr? Used to, but quit it some time ago. Now only very rarely. Maybe once or twice a chap, how could you tell?" Marcel asked, looking at the mopaaw with a bit of curiosity "Your fingers." "Ah. Got''cha. Happens sometimes when I''m stressed out, it never really goes away?" "You want a charr, amigo?" Jos¨¦ asked from a little ways over, holding one up between bloodied fingers. "I just might," Marcel said with a sigh, giving in to the small vice. He lit it with a smidge of fire from the tip of his finger and took a long puff. "Really does calm the nerves." "Guess so," Mercury said. Marcel blew out a lungful of smoke, aiming it as far away from Elliot as he could. It was his own thing, after all. "Well, sh- heck, we made it," Mercury said with a wry smile. "I mean, we did it, we cleaned this place up." "Aye, you did," Jos¨¦ interjected again. "And so did I, chicos." The man wiped his bloodied hands off with some fabric, as he looked at the packaged elephant. He had separated the hide, the meat, the tusks and so on, all stowed away in the carriage. They were lucky it had such a big storage space, because they certainly couldn''t have carried all of that back on their own. "I have never been looking forward to my bed so much," Gilah muttered, as the whole party finally headed off back into town for the night. Chapter 66: Back to more Problems Chapter 66: Back to more Problems /Think of rifts like of Australia, literally anything you find in there will try to murder you./ A conversation between the narr- ... me? And my wife? Wait, how the fuck did that get in here?! - - - - - - As per the usual, a full night of sleep alleviated a lot of fatigue. And equally as normal, Mercury still woke up tired. This was really part of his daily routine by now. He was so thoroughly exhausted after every day from practicing his magic, that he simply fell to bed floored, and then got up to realize how floored he had been yesterday. Then he did it all over again. Things were quiet, sure, but that wasn''t exactly an excuse for him to waste time, was it now? After all, his friends weren''t going to revive themselves, and his kingdom wasn''t building itself. Though he was thinking on reconsidering the monarchy part, after all, he didn''t really want to take agency away from the people. Maybe he''d be more like a guardian? That sounded like it could be fun. Still, all in its own time. For now he needed to drag himself out from in between the sheets, and somehow find his way downstairs. Marcel and Elliot were already up and eating, while Jos¨¦ was out feeding the horses Gilah was apparently still napping, the Black Yinks having done her in a bit better than they had expected. Mercury quickly ordered himself some bits of raw meat. He actually got them on the house, since they had done their part in clearing the rift, so that was pretty cool of the inn. He didn''t quite get it, since the guild and Nevarzahri in general would still pay them for it, but he appreciated the gesture nonetheless. Maybe he''d tip a little to make up for it? Yeah, that seemed fair. This was really a predicament. Should he accept the hospitality of the people and respect their choices, or should he stick to his guns and decide to give them their gifts back, in an effort to not seem arrogant? Why did he have this debate with himself every time someone tried giving him something for free? Ah well, for now he might as well enjoy his meal. "Elliot, if you try petting me I can and will bite your hand off," Mercury calmly said as the boy kneeled down to him. His words seemed to have some effect, seeing as the mage withdrew his fingers again. "Sorryyyyyyy," he mumbled, insincerely. "I will only warn you so many times," Mercury calmly responded in between bites. "Still, it''s fine. We''re all a little on edge after yesterday, so it''s not too unexpected." "Yeah, I suppose that''s right," Elliot gave a wry smile smile and nodded. "How did you sleep?" "Like a dang rock, man. Wouldn''t''ve woken up if the village burnt down. No offense," the cat replied with a small nod towards their hostess. "Heh, that''s nice. I could barely close my eyes," Elliot half sighed, something Mercury had not heard from him before. "Kid kept me up as well," Gilah said, coming down the stairs. "Fairly sure he rolled around so much he dropped on the floor a couple times." Elliot turned a little red as she spoke. "Sorry," he mumbled again, this time much more sincere. "Don''t sweat it, kid," Marcel said. "The hag''s exaggerating I''m sure." "Who''re you calling a hag, huh?!" "I thought it was pretty obvious," Marcel said, wearing his customer service smile. "I''m referring to you, dear Gilah of the Mages'' Guild." "Oh, and you''ve the rights to judge me, when yesterday you were whipping down monsters while laughing about your revenge? You prim psycho." Mercury couldn''t help but chuckle at his friends'' antics, watching them pat each other on the back while messing around. "Shouldn''t we break it up?" Elliot asked. "Nah, this is their way of expressing friendship. Marcel is like that to any adults." "I''m really not that young, you know?" Elliot pouted. "I''m 37, Marcel is in his late twenties, and Gilah is a dang hag. You''re a kid, buddy," the cat quickly replied, still wearing a smile. "Nothing wrong with that, nothing to worry about. Time catches up with all of us soon, enough, so try to keep it about you." "That''s sweet of you to say," Elliot replied with a smile and reached out to hug Mercury. "... Just this once." - - - Bit by bit, the morning went by. Jos¨¦ spent some more time organising the trunk of the carriage to make sure everything was properly secured, tied down, and wouldn''t cause any problems during travel. He stored the meat in runed cooling boxes, that were quick to wash out, and kept the pelts rolled and packed, so they could be processed later. Things were a bit packed, but the seats were still free enough, so his passengers wouldn''t have any time travelling. He shook his head at the thought of them again. As a porter, he''d seen plenty of seekers, but their party certainly was among the stranger ones. Most of them were decent fighters, who spent all their money on drinks and partying, but them? A kid, a mopaaw, a drunk, and a psycho. What an adventure. He shook his head once more at the thought, petting one of the terrezays'' neck. The beasts were tame around him, and when laid down, the scales were smooth and soft. Gentle animals, really, Jos¨¦ thought. He liked them a lot. Time to check up on his gaggle of door-clearers. "Chicos, you all ready to head back out?" he asked, stepping back into the restaurant. "When will we be leaving?" "I''m ready whenever," Marcel said. "Give me a minute, I still am a little through the wringer." "If the hag throws up during the ride, I''ll pay you extra," the receptionist said, raising his brows at their porter. "Children, please," Mercury shook his head with a dumb grin. "Your antics are funny enough, but please. We actually have to make it back sometime. I''m good to go, Gilah is being dramatic. You all packed Elliot?" "5 more minutes," the young mage responded, already heading up to get his stuff. "You heard the kid," Mercury said, looking back at Marcel and Gilah. "We''re going back in about 5 minutes. I''ll pay for your meals if you''re ready to head off by then." "I would like to order three bottles of wine for the road!" Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. "I already regret my decision," Mercury calmly replied. "Luckily I said food." "Shit!" "Old people and their hearing," Marcel poked at her again, shaking his head exasperatedly. "I will strangle you someday, Primmy." "Primmy?" "Yeah, ''cause you act all proper, except when you''re actually being useful," the old barkeep said with a slight smile on her lips, still buying the wine she ordered. Maybe just as a souvenir, but Mercury could also imagine her downing at least one of them during the ride. "Ah... That''s gonna be all in my system now, huh?" "In your system? Oh, right, there was a nicknames tab, wasn''t there?" "Yup, there is. It helps, because new things pop up when rumors spread about you," Marcel explained, dropping his attitude for the moment. "Especially when you rise through ranks really quickly and people start talking about you. Thing fills up pretty quickly, though the nicknames have to be decently cemented for them to show up." "Primmy. Primmy. Primmy. Primmy. Primmy. Primmy. I''ll do this all day if that''s what it takes," Gilah said, wearing a victorious smirk. "Whatever," the receptionist said, shrugging it off. "Not like it''s inaccurate." "I''m done!" Elliot yelled, sprinting down the stairs. Before hitting the floor he actually jumped off, took two steps in the air, and soared all the way out the door. "Seems like you''re paying for yourselves," Mercury said, taking on the expenses for his own meals. The way back to Stormbraver was just as uneventful as the way to the village from there. They hadn''t talked to the locals that much either, so there wasn''t really anyone to say goodbye to. After all, it was a pretty simple village, not too keen on having many outsiders there, unless they were doing a job. Though the owner of the inn had been very nice. Still, after a couple more hours of riding, the whole group of them arrived back in Stormbraver. It was late in the evening already, so Gilah and Elliot decided to quickly head back to the Mages'' Guild, and Marcel wanted to check in with the wounded once more before he finally headed off to bed. He complained about it, of course, but he still decided to do it of his own free will. If Mercury was a weeb he''d probably call him a yandere or something. Yeah, he was sure that was the term. The cat himself decided to check up on some of the people he knew. It had been quite some time since he''d last seen Lucia, and he was sure that there was no harm in at least swinging by. She was busy, certainly, but at the very least she''d be able to spare a moment for him, surely. "Hey there big fella," someone called out at the mopaaw from an alley. "Wanna come take a look over here for a second?" "Hm? What is it?" Mercury quickly replied, turning his whole body to face whoever called out to him. It was two guys, looking like very typical thugs. Greasy shirts and hair, one of them bald. Tattoos all over, and generally looking pretty scary. "Just come take a look over her for a moment," the bigger of the two said with a sinister grin. He was wearing a white tank-top, his skin tanned, at least that was what Mercury would guess based on the little light he had. "We''ve heard about you before ya see," the other one said. He was a little smaller, more slim, and stood slightly hunched. His hair was dyed half silver, half black and messy. "Are you gonna rob me?" Mercury asked, raising an eyebrow. "What? Us? Neverrrrr." "Seems trustworthy enough," our hero replied with a shrug, and simply walked into the dark alley. Of course, he was already coursing his mana through his veins, and readying all the stamina he could muster, readying himself for confrontation as the two of them drew closer... - - - In the end, Mercury had a lovely time with the two! Turns out he had killed a northerner who was chasing after the big fella, Ron''s, sister. The slim guy, Jules, had been working under the boss Mercury took down, and his new employer was much better. It had even netted him a promotion. To show their thanks, the two of them just wanted to invite Mercury over, and show him an access point to the underground that the city guard didn''t know about yet. Of course, this was for his personal use, since the people down there didn''t do any real dark dealings, and instead offered goods that they didn''t want to pay taxes on. Honestly, compared to slavery or weapon''s trade, the untaxed ice-cream stand they showed him had been rather harmless. He had even gone out for some tea with the fellas. Ron explained that his tattoos were of scenes that had impacted him a lot. A bull grazing in the wilderness, showing raw power he emulated. The name of his little brother, his late mother, and a simple empty note from his pops. Lovely people, really, but in the end Mercury had to excuse himself and continue on his journey to Lucia, though he did buy a thermos with some tea for her. He promised to meet the boys again some other time, before heading off. After a couple more minutes of walking, he arrived before the cathedral. Since he was finally not there as part of a trial or anything else, he could really appreciate the building now. Mercury had never been very interested in buildings, but his grandpa used to be a mason, and always talked about carving stone. He was sure the old man would be stunned enough by the building to immediately have his lung cancer cured from bliss, and a heart attack from shock. ... Maybe that metaphor was a little too macabre. The cat sighed in his own head at his antics. He was here to pay a friend a visit, not to mess around for the entire day. Wait. It was night time. Why the hell would they be open? Regardless, Mercury still walked up to the building, crossing the short stretch of greenery before arriving in front of the door. It was closed, as he expected, but still, the guy decided to knock at the vey least. ... ... Yeah, alright, no one was going to answer him. Where exactly did Lucia live again? Mercury took a couple steps back from the wall again, before gazing up the length of the building and searching for any window with some light. It took him some time of walking around but eventually he found one. - - - - - - Lucia was peacefully sitting in her chair, staring out at the night sky, when she heard some tapping on her window. It almost scared her enough to jump out her nightgown, as she frantically looked for the noise. Next, there was some muffled talking, but she couldn''t quite understand, until she saw a very furry face pressed up against her window. "What the hell...?" she mumbled to herself, slowly walking up to whatever was outside. For a while, her forehead was very wrinkled, until she recognized the thing outside, and her face went from confused to shocked. Immediately she swung the frame open, and pulled her nightly visitor in, before shutting the cold out once more. "Hey there, Lu-" "HOW DID YOU GET UP HERE?!" "Yeah, alright, that''s fair, actually. So uh-" "Whyyyyyyyy?!?!" "I pride myself on keeping in touch with my friends," Mercury said, pushing out his chest. "So hello, good evening, and thanks for letting me in." "No, I mean, why not knock!" "I knocked." "We have a specific knocker! The metal ring! It''s magic, so the priests hear you, why not use that?!" he woman half screamed at his face. "I mean, I didn''t wanna wake anyone up," Mercury replied calmly, lying as naturally as he breathed. "... You really didn''t see it?" Lucia asked him in shock, falling back into her fluffy chair. "I didn''t," Mercury admitted without hesitation. "Sigghhhhhh, congratulations. You are now among the very few people to have been in my room, beast," she said, slowly bringing her wits about her again. "I brought you tea," Mercury said, giving his nicest smile and bringing forth the thermos he had gotten just moments ago. "Huh? Oh, thank you, I suppose. So, what really brings you here, I suppose you have a favor to ask?" she said, taking a sip from the hot drink, feeling the warmth spread throughout her blood. "Oh, no, I really just wanted to swing by. Any place I can sit? I didn''t bring a chair for myself." "What, nothing? Uh, I suppose you could take one of my pillows-" "On it," Mercury replied, already dragging one of them off the priestess'' bed, onto the floor, then in front of the chair. As soon as he had arrived at his destination, he sat down on it, and simply stared at the woman. "..." "This is really awkward," he said, sighing. "Look, I just wanted to swing by. No favors, no questions. I''m not upset, or pissed, or anything else. I was worrying, because you hadn''t been out in a while, and usually your personality is a little more fiery than it has been. Have things taken a toll on you?" Lucia looked at the mopaaw in front of her for a long while. The beast-... Mercury had quite some nerve to barge into her personal chambers like he did, and yet he spoke with such honesty. He didn''t even comment on her clothing, like a couple other men might. For a couple more moments she pondered on how genuine he was being. She slowly took another sip of the tea, simply meeting the mopaaw''s eyes as she thought. He never withdrew his gaze or let it wander, perhaps he was truly being truthful. "It''s Iris," Lucia finally relented. "She''s been gone." "Let''s head off and save her, then." "I know, I know, it''s not your problem, it''s just- huh?" once more the priestess looked at Mercury in surprise. "Did you..." "Yeah, I mean it," he said, giving her an honest nod. "I came out of concern for you. Me and Iris are friends, and so are you guys. She had mine and Avery''s backs when trouble was abound. It''s our turn to also have hers, right?" The cat gave her another sincere smile. He meant what he said. It''s not that he liked getting himself into trouble, but... He wasn''t the youngest anymore. He had made friends and lost them, met coworkers, and fought with them. He had been there for others, and he had others be there for him. Quite frankly, as a person, this was what he believed. It''s not like he was the most genuine person ever, or as though he was flawless, but when it came to friends... He had made many mistakes with people in the past, and he had grown because of it. When doing a boring job, he had gone through the ups and down, the times when he was angry with every moment at work, and the times when he simply pondered on things there. This was a conclusion he had reached, yet never had a chance to actually employ. If you''re friends with someone, you have their back. If they''re half the person you think they are, they''ll have yours too. "... You really are strange, beast." "Mercury," the cat smirked. "My name is Mercury." "Fine then, Mercury. What do you propose we do?" Chapter 67: Carriage Ride Chapter 67: Carriage Ride /The hunt is always exciting. To be on the prowl, to stealth and draw near, and then to chase. The difference between the hunter and its prey, and the raw, animalistic nature of it all combine to make hunting so thrilling. But it''s also complex. The art has many parts to it, first and foremost even gathering equipment. Camouflaging in the middle of a forest, lying in wait with concealed weapons. If you do not prepare for a decently long stay, perhaps you will never find any prey. Of course, that is not all there is, the second part might be tracking, for example. Sometimes, lying in wait simply isn''t enough, and one must seek out their target. Yet, to find an animal in its natural habitat is something not so simple. Finding tracks in soft earth, or mud, covered by leaves and rain, is an art in and of itself, and an indispensable part of hunting. Still, this is not enough. Next up is stealth, silently closing the distance to the prey. It is easiest to conserve stamina with this, as once a hunter strikes, the chase should be cut short. Still, getting close by itself is a challenge, always needing to be wary of the prey''s sight, the smell one has, the noise one makes, the direction of the wind. It is a difficult endeavour, with a distinct set of challenges. And finally, there''s the chase, should it come to that, as well as the decisive strike. Usually, you should not need to chase the prey, yet occasionally it may be unavoidable. Still, then it is all the more vital to land a decisive strike. In hunting, your very first attack should be the last. If you do not kill the prey, at the very least it should be crippled, unable to run, and badly hurt. Only a matter of time until you catch up, then. But if your first strike barely pierces the skin, you have failed. Perhaps tomorrow will yield better results, as you forge your art with patience./ "On Hunting", by the Hunter. - - - - - - "Well I mean, you know where she is, right?" "No??" "Okay, that does make things harder..." Mercury said, shaking his head. "You really have no idea?" "I suppose I could bring the options down a little..." "So you do know! Alright, where?" he asked, leaning forward a little. "Sigh. I do not, Mercury. But there is someone who does, although I believe you may not enjoy her company," the priestess said, her head held a little low. "Well, better a slim chance than none at all. Who is it?" "Her name''s Yvette. Yvette Lumineaux." "WHAT?!" - - - - - - Avery was out on a hunt. The assault on Stormbraver was harsh, and maybe even aimed to inflict psychological damage. Rebuilding was taking a long time, and there wasn''t much he could help with. It made him feel a deep sting, one that he hadn''t felt in a while, one that had dragged him, no, made him drag himself all the way to being a guildmaster. It wasn''t stinging his pride, that would be stupid. Instead, he felt helpless, to a degree. Simply taken out of commission before the fight ever really started. Perhaps this was his wake-up call, a reminder that he had become a little too soft over his time in the city. Maybe becoming a guild master hadn''t been enough yet. Some of his seekers had died, while he was taking a peaceful nap. This wasn''t something he could let stand. A guild master had to be reliable, a pillar in a time of need. Simply put, as a guild master of the Godseeker''s Guild, he had decided that he would seek. He would seek experience, gear, power, and more. For now, he had decided to seek out a mar, the horrible site of a full break, where the monsters escaped from a tunnel and spilled over. This was when the openings really began to grow their danger, because while some of them simply root themselves in our world, a break truly causes them to take hold. Avery knew what it was like. He''d seen one mar before, a single one, and it had been horrible. Scorched earth, and a fully anchored core to boot. The monsters grew sentient, sapient even, yet their loyalty usually remained. He knew the story of the monster who spoke, and he knew that the orcs he had met were from a tunnel, once upon a time, so it was possible to make peace with the monsters, yet highly unlikely. When a break happened, sometimes a monster or two outgrew the tether, the instinct plunged into its mind, and developed actual ambition. It was rare, but it did happen. Yet, the orcs that truly settled after the break, those had something even rarer happen. Upon the break, there was an anomaly of some sort, and the core of the tunnel was immediately shattered, before it could plunge its root into Chronagen. With that, the tether was severed, and in the moment of transition, the orcs were free. Of course, old habits died hard, and they fought a long war with the humans, until the local orcs stepped in. Well, it was difficult to call them orcs by then. The monsters and the locals were so different, ones brutish and bestial, with fangs and tusks much more like boards, their skin oftentimes shaded a deep red. Compared to that, the orcs of Chronagen were tame, still powerful warriors, but more tribal. More compassionate. The guild master found it easiest to imagine a scenario. Say a child was alone in the streets. The feral orcs from the tunnel wouldn''t see it as one of their own, as weak and discarded, and would either abandon the thing or tear it up. Yet, the orcs of Chronagen would see a future warrior, a little beast full of life. An orc child was the kid of all the village. The elders were educators, the warriors were trainers, and all orcs were caretakers. Their society was rough, but never cruel, and when they brought the concept of tough love to the rift-dwellers, slowly but surely a new kind of orc was born, the blooded. It is now a gene dormant in many southern tribes, awakening only on evolution or in the middle of brutal combat, appearing in the form of feral marks, able to use the orc''s stamina and vitality to greatly heighten their senses and brute strength. Terrifying they were, and yet nowadays, their power is used to hunt and till fields. Avery shook his head a little. He had gone too far off the mark by now, thinking of all that could be, not of what was. After all, he was headed for a mar, not a civilization. A break-site, where the monsters had spilled out, and the core had anchored, corrupting the mana in the very air. It would invade one''s stamina vessel, and infest one''s mana, slowly burning through the inside of even the toughest fighters. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Yet, the guild master was headed out on his own. His last expedition had been a while ago, and the mar was far more deadly than any gate, so he certainly wasn''t planning on staying there overnight. No, he would slowly beat down the monsters, and break the roots causing the corruption. It would be a test of will and endurance, between him, and a horde of monsters that would come crawling from the core, and multiply regularly as well. There might even be multiple bosses there, Avery thought with a smile. After all, he had apparently grown soft, and quite frankly, taking a couple heavy hits while the otherworldly gnawed away at his very strength might give him enough of a challenge where he would hope to never have gone there. It was exactly what he needed, some practice to shake off his rust. - - - - - - Mercury had hoped that travelling with Lucia wouldn''t be so bad, but by god, it was the most awkward thing he had ever done. They had hired a carriage, not too expensive, but not too cheap either. After all, Lucia certainly wasn''t short on money, and Mercury had had enough of bumpy rides. The method of transport itself was quite smooth. The pillows on the seats were soft, and the carriage even had a suspension built in, to make the bumps less jarring. Still, it was a far cry from the modern cars Mercury was used to, and an even further cry from his comfortable bed at home. He did wish for that back sometimes, but his wishes were never granted after all. As for Lucia, she was simply silent. She stared out of the window for hours without saying a word, and sometimes stared at Mercury for an equally long amount of time. Simply gazing at him, her eyes not particularly focused, nor particularly far away. Occasionally he would see her eyebrows twitch or her lips move, probably when she remembered something funny or irritating. She was twitchy, yet eerily quiet, and while Mercury couldn''t stand it any more he also didn''t want to annoy her. So, when things simply got a little too much for him, he laid down on the soft, velvety pillows, and began to meditate. His control over mana and stamina was nowhere near perfect, and he also still had to work on his ihn''ar. Also, the rewards from the tunnel clearing had yet to arrive. He really was curious what took the system so long. Narrator''s notes: I think the author just forgot. Hm? Did Mercury hear something? Nah, must''ve been the wind. Hah. What could he do... Ah, right, he still had , huh?Time to see what that''s all about. , if you would be so kind? [: As a part of the rare suffix Skill type, this menu addon is not the Skill itself (hence the lack of levels). These types of Skills or abilities will usually be handed out as quest rewards to a certain subset of people, who wish to understand everything from the ground up and explore it themselves, instead of being given a silver spoon. For the future, it may be possible for the individual to be given more of these. As for , the individual will be able to activate it as one would any other Skill, and upon activation be transferred some amount of knowledge on how to use a Skill. This knowledge will continue to increase as one makes progress with the actual corresponding ability, and upon acquisition, the (guide) type will disappear and simply be transformed into a mastery bonus.] Suffix type? (Guide) type? So there certainly were more variants of Skills than just active and passive, hm? He even found those two to be a little inaccurate at times. [Active and Passive Skills: All Skills in the system will be classified to a certain degree. The accuracy of this may vary, as it is based both on the preconceived notion of many individuals, as well as on the level and type of a Skill. In addition, one Skill may not be the same as another, having more passive or more active components, and may be judged based on which of the two takes a higher percentage. Still further than this, the border between Skills and abilities is often quite soft, although their evolution conditions remain distinctly different.] ... Did he leave on or something? [Yes] Hey, hey, hey, you know that''s stalking. [The individual''s fear is unjustified. Stalking is repeated and/or unwanted surveillance of one party through another party. This is a singular case. will now be deactivated.] ..... What the heeeeeellllll was that? Sigh. Whatever, he had bigger fish to fry. Mmmm, fish. He''d kill a fish for some fish, very literally. Ah, no! Stupid cat brain, it''s magic time, not fucking fishing time! "You seem uncomfortable in your meditation, beast- apologies, Mercury. Are you alright?" Lucia asked, seeing as her travel companion kept continuously twitching and shuffling around. "Hm? Yeah, I''m fine. Annoyed with my thoughts is all. You okay as well?" "I am, although the coming days are not ones I look forward to. Yet I understand that sometimes sacrifices of myself must be made to rescue those who are dear to me," she said, after taking a moment to think. "That''s the spirit," the cat replied with a smile. "Thanks for the honesty. Where I''m from there''s a saying, something like "good friends go through thick and thin with each other". Not every moment will be sunshine and roses, but even if it isn''t, you''ll always know there''s someone you can rely on." "I see," Lucia said with a nod. "I believe in the Church of Order there is something similar. ''Order is not always just, yet justice always is a part of order''. It is to say that eventually, justice will come to you, the good to the good, and the bad to the bad." "Sounds a lot like karma." "Karma?!" Lucia seemed to almost spit at the thought. "No such thing! That vile creation of harnessing one''s dark desires into strength is one I could never admire!" "Whoa, I feel like we really talked past each other right there!" Mercury quickly tried to calm down the situation, when his fellow passenger quickly turned and glared daggers at him. "What is it then, beast," she hissed, "that you mean?" "Where I, Mercury," he gave a slight emphasis on that, "come from, karma is not something any one person can use or see. It is more a concept, an intangible value that all actions have. Good actions will be eventually returned to you with equal goodness, and vile acts will be justly punished." "Hm, I see," the priestess said, leaning back into her seat. "Perhaps my judgment was too quick, and too harsh. I apologize Mercury." The cat gave a small sigh before he replied, saying "I get it, really. Sometimes I can be a pain in the ass to deal with, not to be taken literally. I like to think that I''m decently patient though, so don''t worry about the small stuff too much." "Thank you, Mercury," Lucia answered with a polite nod, before gazing out the window again. "I apologize for interrupting your meditation, I shall leave you to it for now." "Alright, talk to you later," the cat said with a smirk. "We should have this type of open talk more often." And with that last bit, he was off, fully sunken into the world of his core. It had changed a little since the last time we had seen it, now the grey stone walls were not grey anymore, instead interlaced and reinforced with thin, silver strands, residual mana. Yet, there was a bit more too it, as anyone practicing both mana and stamina knew. The two substances were different, yet housed in one body, and there was little way for both of them to never interact. Mercury knew this, he had noticed that his stamina vessel had thin strands of mana woven in, and when his mana coursed through him, he could sometimes see green flickers on the walls, sparks from when the two things clashed. Yet, there was also a harmony between them, a soft, steady flow in his stamina, and a strong, pulsing heartbeat to his mana. It felt right to him, practicing both, it was an electrifying feeling to get immersed in, making his hair stand on end, as he realized just how far his strength went. With this, he was quite confident that his old self wouldn''t win in a fistfight with this body. Well, then again, that comparison was a little unfair. After all, as a human, he had known nothing of mana or stamina. Still, sometimes he felt as though there was something lacking. Well, no, of course he was lacking in a lot of ways. He couldn''t cast any spells or use any powerful Skills at all, he simply was able to make himself physically stronger, fighting messily and aggressively. His only ranged option was throwing magical rocks, and he STILL couldn''t deal with goddamn doorknobs! But that wasn''t the thing he felt was lacking. It was a little too still in his core sometimes, and too noisy again other times. He could hear his mana flow around him, and he could hear the thumping beat of his stamina, he heard crackles and sparks when the two clashed, yet it felt incomplete. He wasn''t whole yet, he could feel his mana being too fast or too slow, and he could feel his stamina sometimes being a little unruly and volatile. It was like he had heard in a couple martial arts movies, almost like he was missing inner peace. Something that was still far away as of now, but maybe one day... Ah, right, shit, he still had to deal with . For now, maybe he would just turn it on...? Almost immediately, he felt a slight trickle in the back of his skull and slight pricks all over his body. It was a weird mix of warm and cool rainwater, combined with goosebumps on all his hairs, feeling like his hand had fallen asleep, just all over his body. And also, like he was being poked by tiny needles. Fucking weird, for sure, but he couldn''t quite call it uncomfortable or comfortable. Honestly, he was also too distracted by what this new knowledge told him. It wasn''t like his own memories, where he had very clear experiences to point towards. Mercury knew about what ice cream tasted like, and how a pen felt up against paper, but this was... new. He didn''t exactly "know" what would happen what even meant, nor did he exactly even know how he could achieve it, but there was a... feeling? Just a slight bite at the back of his head, that if he really focused on it, he could kind of intuitively feel what to do. Right, to expand his mana he had to... [Clear Quest: "Jungle of Weyn" completed! Grade: B! Tunnel grade: E!] [Rewards: 1 free use, 1 free affinity pass, 1 level (distributable), increased evolution growth!] Oh come the fuck on, he was so close! Chapter 68: To rest, and to be Chapter 68: To rest, and to be /Have you ever heard a choir of more than a hundred folk? It is a sight to see, and a noise to hear, something I had the pleasure of doing today. As of right now, I am far, far to the north of the cradle, high up and out, on the island of snow and ice, covered in high mountains, low valleys, and giant lakes of ice. Yes, I know, most of you are here for the music, but I will get to it. Please, allow me but a few more moments for the travel. This is about a journey, after all. Up there, the weather is harsh. The winds seem to cut through your very clothes, no matter how many furs you clad yourself in, and shoots the cold right in your bones. There, it lingers, gathers, collects, seeking to leech the very life from your body. Your lips go blue, your teeth begin to clatter, and even moving another step becomes a desperate struggle against death. The snow piles high, fighting you on every single movement you make, and seeking out any cracks in your leathery shielding to invade, and bring icy water to your skin. Yet still, one must fight on, and I tell you now, that sight of an orange glow in the distance, of a hut with a warm fire, it will never again give me this much strength. An icy grave is always up there, a looming threat, never yielding, always waiting, hungering, for those unfortunate souls that dare draw close. Yet, if one dies, it will at the very least be beautiful. The sun, glittering on every icy crystal falling from the sky or blowing in the wind, stretching long tendrils of tender warmth through the trees, snaking its way to your frozen face. The fog, laying over an icy lake, the clouds, latching on to mountaintops and refusing to let go. Up there, in the north, it feels like you are closer to heaven than anywhere else, whether you are making the journey to a cold grave and ascent, or simply through working your way up to those rocky peaks. Then again, simply may not be the word many would use for that. But this has gone on for long enough. You were promised a choir, and you shall receive one. I had the luck of getting a guide in these northern lands. The people here are not one for gold or glitter, their currencies are things useful for survival. Pelts, furs, grain, fish, these are traded instead of metal discs. To get into their good graces, I had to sacrifice a cleansing glass tube, masterwork of runes, built to filter out any impurities in water and make it safe to drink. For them, it was an alternative to melting the snow, and would allow a family to certainly survive a little longer. Still, this was only enough to be accepted, not to be tolerated for long. A piece of advice for you, stranger, when up in the north, always help out. Those who are useless will be abandoned, when the time comes, and their burden can not be shouldered. And usually, this is a time that comes soon. And yet, with all of these troubles, death looming, and people thinking about survival before anything else, their sense of community and belonging is stronger than many other places. Share the meat of a beast you slayed with the only other man to help you do it. Take the only fish you caught on a day and cut it in half. It is a sense of perspective I had not attained until now, and perhaps I will not do so again, for this was truly unique. And all of these people, each of them focused on surviving each day, they will meet. Not every day, and not all the time, but occasionally, they come together, and they sing. Their voices sound out at the same time. Deep, powerful, with the hardened resilience required to live in such a place. Men and women, all mixing together, their words resonating, amplifying, and going out into the world in deep hums and calls. Few instruments have the power to sound over such a thing, and not many of them are used, as they would be heavy and unhandy. Instead, they sacrifice pelts that are too thin for clothing, strapping them over wide, metal barrels, and slamming them with sticks, building timbals, drums, and other percussions. Hundreds of them then call out, a force of nature, underlined with might booms as their warriors beat down at once. Their songs are a force of nature as much as they are a call, and many times, these are the prayers they offer to their gods and fallen heroes. It is much different from the hymns and praising chirping of many southern churches, and also not the same as some of the tribal humming I had the pleasure of hearing down south, it is much more a call, a thunderous roar to those in the heavens that they have not forgotten them up there, and that they will not be forgotten down here, either. Every single man, woman, and child is determined to join the gods in their halls, to feast aside those mighty heroes and share their stories, that wish for glory so ingrained in their beings that nothing could shake it off. And with that force, that wild, raging, primal fury they call out against the world around them, and the shout down on the mountains that they are here, and that they will never be gone!!/ A chapter of "Musico Telofio - The Journey", written by Kurt River. - - - - - - Seriously! System! Social etiquette?? Ugh, what a pain in the ass. He had really been focusing so well. Now he had to start all over... Annoying, annoying, annoying. Still, at least these rewards were promising. A ? Time to appraise, perhaps. Yes, Mx. Appraisal, please do in fact do your job! [ affinity pass: A one-time use consumable item. Upon activation it immediately heightens the individual''s affinity towards all manner of telekinetic abilities. This means that mastery gain, and manual skill acquisition rates are boosted, while their price in the shop is reduced. The amount is determined before usage, but will not be revealed to the individual. All boost are percentile, however only the price reduction occurs exponentially, while the boosts simply apply to the base amount.] A little convoluted, but certainly nothing to whine about. I mean, hell, if it reduced the Skills''s price by anything more than two thirds, he was good to buy it. Wait. FINALLY!!!! HE WOULD BE ABLE TO GRAB THINGS ONCE MORE!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NOTHING COULD STOP HIM THEN!! So yeah, it was like, totally chill, you know. [Anecdote: Rewards are handed out based on the individual''s wishes and thoughts. The pass used up a substantial percentage of the reward. Thus, the other drops may seem underwhelming.] Really? Not much in Mercury''s eyes to be frank. A free Skill evolution was more than decent, especially if they got pricier down the line, and he would never say no to gaining a level. Wait, he hadn''t gained it yet? [The ''level'' the individual has gained can be freely applied to most parts of the systems. Examples: Character level. Skill level. Inventory.] Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Oh-ho. Well, well, well, if that wasn''t a treat. A level to allocate freely? He''d have to give this some more thought then. This reward was quite good, really. Honestly, by now Mercury was almost sorry for bitching about it at the start. Though he definitely had to think a lot on how to use this level. He didn''t wanna waste it, so finding something that was hard to increase was key. His inventory he could increase with gold eventually. His "character" level would increase over time, same with his Skills. Though there was one Skill he didn''t quite know how to increase. . His very own, perfectly unique power. It was still sitting there, at level 1, taunting him to go buy another potion, why wouldn''t he? It might increase its price fivefold, but you know, that''s all just par for the course, no? Haaah. For now, he''d just save it. There was no way of figuring out what a level would add to , and maybe he''d get a better Skill to use it on as well. He was fairly sure it wouldn''t work on abilities. [Affirmative.] There you have it. Thanks, Mx. , very kind. Although now he was left wondering what the hell that inaccessible function was. Had he not seen everything the system had to offer yet? Ah well, no use fretting about it, he''d see eventually. Finally, what was that about increased evolution growth? [Increased evolution growth: Increased evolution growth.] Sigh. Which ''growth rates'', if you could? [Mana, health, stamina, strength, vitality, dexterity, agility, intelligence, wisdom, willpower, luck, mastery, Skill points, Ability points, chance of receiving special evolution, chance of gaining Skills, chance of gaining additional benefits, increased access to features.] Ah. Everything. You know, maybe sometimes he should just take things as they are written on the tin, without prancing about it so much. This felt a little like he was being mocked, after all. Stupid walls of text. [Stupid individual.] "What was that?!" Mercury blurted out loud, landing him a very confused look from a half-awake Lucia. "Ah, sorry. I-I was... talking to myself," he stuttered, a little flustered. But the priestess simply stared at him silently for a couple of moments, before closing her eyes and dozing off once again. "Haaah," Mercury gave a long, but quiet sigh. Surely, he must have imagined that, right? No way that good old would get snippy with him, right? What a pain, what a pain. All this systeming was exhausting, maybe it would be best if he also got a bit of sleep... And after a couple of minutes, the slow, soft up and down in the carriage had worn down Mercury''s defences. Sleep had claimed the cat once more. Except for the part where at those times he was also just as free as usually. Waking up back in his own mind, Mercury stretched his body. He''d gotten more used to the feeling of his , and ever since he finished up his by getting them all the way through his claws, it felt much more complete. Sure, he wasn''t quite done yet, his teeth and inner organs still needed some work, but he was getting closer. When he arrived, the mopaaw quickly looked around to check for Uunrahzil. ''Old Uunrahzil,'' he reminded himself, like they would have done. It painted a small smile on his face, such silly antics from something so old. No, perhaps it was because they were old that old Uunrahzil still acted childlike from time to time. Ah, whatever. Apparently, he was alone for this little nap. Well then, what to do indeed? He was feeling a little bit exploratory. Maybe it was worth a try once again, heading towards those far off landmarks. Or should he go to work on ? Wait! Didn''t buying take priority?! No, actually, none of those did. It was a priority to actually sleep for once, get some rest in. He still had yet to figure out how the hell he was lucid while dreaming and still got all the rest he needed every single day. It was strange, to say the least. Well, who cares. For now, all he had to do was lie down in the soft grass, close his eyes and drift off into sweet nothingness... - - - - - - Pul. The man sighed as he thought about his own name once again. Pul. Pul. It really was too short, wasn''t it? None of the grace of Atlantis, not the strength of Atlas, and not flowing as smoothly as Glaciel. It was dissatisfactory, and so to make up for his name, he had to be better. Right, that was his purpose. To defy the very nature of his name, a nature that demand he be stupid, weak, perhaps pathetic, and generally below average. It was a name bestowed upon him by his parents, traditional folk aiming to support him, saying he never needed to do his best, but what would they ever know? No, no, no. Pul wasn''t satisfactory. Perhaps it might have been, had he come from a lineage with a powerful name, but he did not. And thus, Pul was all he had, 3 simple letters strung together into a clumsy string of noise, a sound that people would call to get his attention. That''s all it was, a moniker, a name. After all, that was his purpose. To defy the very nature of who the world wanted him to be, of what a Pul ought to be, to go against the very purpose instilled in him. It was his purpose then, to be flawless. That was him, Pul, the perfect, the smooth, the flawless, the gracious, the strong, the elegant, the infallible, the glorious, the beautiful, the flawless, the beloved, the popular, the terrific, the sensual, the mysterious, the flawless, the enchanting, the diligent, the passionate, the accomplished, the flawless, the amazing, the cordial, the immaculate, the flawless, the great, the flawless, the flawless, THE FLAWLESS!!!! Narrator here. Maybe we should add a deranged to that list. And in order to achieve true perfection, Pul had long since decided that he needed to see all that is wrong with the world, and try all the things vile and strange, so that he may come to understand what exactly it is that he must avoid. Of course, he would also need to try out all the things that are good, to build his picture of the world, and truly acquire enchanting and mystery. After all, he would prove it to them. To all of them. He would prove that he, Pul, was the greatest to have ever lived, the smartest, the bravest, the overall most perfect. The ideal that everyone else could simply follow, that all other isyns could look up to him. A large back to follow. For this reason, Pul always kept himself pristine. A man of smaller stature, sure, at 1.60, but certainly never dirty. The pure ice making up his skin was always perfectly smooth and transparent, with a slight blue hue to it, although many parts were hidden by the pale suit he wore. His hair was a rich black, thoughts its tips faded into white, and the frost covering his face sometimes made him look pale. For that reason, he always carried a handkerchief, perfectly folded and tucked away of course. His eyes he also took good care of. Most isyns would care little, simply knowing where water is in the air, yet Pul refused to rely on such a thing. Instead of their usual, milky, blind eyes, his were of a deep, rich, blue, full of vibrancy and life. Still, he understood that this was perhaps not something all of his kind would enjoy, and as such, he simply took this as a particular fancy of his. After all, that was not quite a problem, simply a difference of opinion, not plain wrong from the very core of its being. This was something he hadn''t known when he set off on his journey though, and he was proud to have learnt it, although he was less excited about the wisdom''s source. Magma, a lavin he could never quite get along with. Their race was the polar opposite, and for all the cool, calm perfection Pul held so dear, Magma was just a fiery, everchanging and moody. Yet, apparently, there was a crowd that appreciated her for it. Thus it could not be wrong, however much he disagreed with it. Or perhaps it could, and the crowd was entirely wrong, all of them... He had to travel for longer to figure it out. Magma wasn''t the only one to have taught him, luckily. There were many other he had met in his life. Eric, the dryad, a man as loud as he was likeable, dense as a piece of hardwood, yet never one to hold a grudge. Pul had learnt a lot from him, although it was difficult to abandon his rigidness as easily as the drummer would have him believe. More than Eric there was also Oliva, the beastkin. They were not of true blood, as Pul had heard, yet he could not understand what it meant. The true kin had always declined any attempt of making contact, after all. He shook his head at the thought, it was truly too rigid, that much he had learnt. Oliva themselves had been a more patient teacher than Magma, the fiery woman losing her temper whenever he didn''t understand immediately, while the raccoon would simply laugh him off and wait. They were truly a kind soul, and he strove to emanate that same warmth. And of course, he could never forget about Wilhelmia, the woman at the very front, putting herself out there for all to follow, unapologetically. She seemed to almost put her flaws on display, not shying away from them, or even trying to correct them, but embracing herself as she was. To see such a thing... he never would have dreamed of it at home, but now, he wasn''t. Those people had opened his eyes, metaphorically, and physically, to the very world around him, and he would forever be thankful to them. Even if talking to the lavin was a giant pain sometimes. Also literally, whenever she slapped his back. Her armor may stave off the heat, but it certainly didn''t diminish her force. Ah, he had neglected yet to think about his role in their circle. He was the pianist, supporting the backbone of the rhythm, while giving a melody for the others to follow along with. A quiet support and leader, it was something he very much so cherished, not any less so due to its difficulty. Even the very instrument he played on seemed to be a rarity, something Wilhelmia had found somewhere far away. He cherished it, truly, for it was a very tangible thing that he could practice and work out any flaws on. Frankly speaking, he saw it as a metaphor, and perhaps even an illustration of his very self, his core, one that he could shape and perfect. Until he had done so, he would not rest. For he, Pul, would be truly flawless, after all, that was his purpose. Perhaps he would achieve it today, and if he did not, he would give it his very best once more the next. Chapter 69: Nice Chapter 69: Nice /Nice./ Nice. - - - - - - "Mmmmhhh... That was nice..." Mercury murmured as he slowly woke up. "We''re making a stop for the night, mopaaw." "Mercury, thank you very much," the cat said with a groggy smile. "Wait, what do you mean night?" "Quite exactly what I said," Lucia replied. "You have slept throughout the entire day. You even slept through the previous break we made for the terrezays'' sake." "Ah, apologies, I suppose that was rather rude of me." Lucia gave a short sigh before replying again. "No, no. It was improper of me to judge. It has been a harsh couple days for all of us, not just myself. Apologies if I am a little on edge." Mercury smiled back at his quiet travel companion. "It''s all good," he said. "None of us are perfect." "Indeed. You speak with more wisdom I would have trusted you to have." "It comes with age." "Age?" she asked, raising a brow. "Oh, I''m 37," Mercury answered casually, hopping out of the carriage. They were at the edge of a forest, near a river, so the dino horses would have something to drink. Pretty neato. "You brought tents?" Mercury asked, only to look back at Lucia and see her mouth open. "Scratch that, you okay?" "Mercury, you mean to tell me that a common mopaaw, perhaps one with outstanding intellect, but still bound by the species, has grown to be 37?" "Man, I''m having this conversation a lot recently. Look, I wasn''t always a fucking mopaaw. Used to be a regular guy, then I fucking died, now I''m a cat. Don''t make a big deal out of it, jeez," he said with a mild amount of annoyance in his voice. "But-" "No buts." "I- This- You-... Siiiiigh. Fine. Yes, we brought tents." "That''s great news!" Mercury said with a bright smile, hopping down to the river for a quick sip. River water was far superior to lake water, after all. It wasn''t quite spring water, though. Man, honestly, he missed sweets a little, too. Maybe eventually he''d be able to break his teeth voluntarily again. Not yet though, not yet. Their carriage driver was setting up the tents for them, luckily enough. To be fair, that was what Lucia had paid for, but Mercury still considered it nice. Maybe he was just in a good mood because he was about to use his . Or maybe he was in a good mood because he slept. Sleep is important after all. "How''d you spend the journey? Anything interesting I missed?" he asked his companion. "Not much," she replied. "I meditate during carriage rides. Working on myself, and using the time. Though occasionally I do also enjoy the sights out the window." "That sounds nice. What do you meditate on?" "Myself, sometimes. Those important to me, and my values, at others. And occasionally, I will simply feed the flame boiling within." "Metaphorically?" "Not so." "Alright. You wanna hear about what I did?" "Certainly," Lucia replied, seemingly with honesty. "I slept." "I recall," the woman said, giving the rather strange fellow a confused look. "I dreamt I was a butterfly." "You did?" she asked, raising a brow yet again. "No." "I see." "I don''t," Mercury said, closing his eyes. He heard a slight slapping noise, maybe from Lucia resting her palm on her forehead. "Mmmmmeditation." "Why are you saying it like that?" "Mmmmeddditationnnnn...." "What is e-" "Mmmmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeeditation." "I''m going to bed," the woman said, shaking her head. She wasn''t stupid. The mopaaw was more than awake, and she had grown tired. The tents were up as well, and as such, it was time for her to get some rest as well. Mercury peeked with one eye to see if she was gone, and then stared at the carriage driver for a long while. The man seemed wary of him, like he was some sort of spirit, but soon headed out into the forest to gather some firewood. Right, they hadn''t had dinner yet. With his precious fragment of privacy, Mercury cast his eyes at the system. He knew everyone had them, and that it could only be seen with permission, and that no one could interact with it, blah blah blah. He still found it rude, and so weirding Lucia out seemed like a more simple, and faster option. "Use my affinity pass, please." [ affinity pass activated. The associated Skill(s) will now be 66% cheaper to acquire, and gain mastery 10% faster.] A third of 3000 cut the price to 1000, and he still had 1100 Points left. BUY. [The individual has acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] APPRAISAL! [: A Skill which allows the user to exert physical force from a distance. Linked to both the user''s physical and mental stats, as well as the Skill level. The level determines both efficiency of power usage, as well as maximum power output.] Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. He had to give this a try. This was a purely active Skill, so there were no passive effects, which would have been cool, but honestly, he had never really been as excited as this before. . As Mercury activated the Skill, he could feel a rush of energy going through him, a little like the electrical shock from when you were charged up and grab a door handle. Slightly painful, but very, very bearable. It did shake him awake a little though. He could stomach it, in any case, especially for something like this. With the Skill active, Mercury then looked around. He was still just outside the carriage, sitting on a tipped over log, quite like the one he usually slept in. With just a short look, he saw plenty of little pebbles and tiny sticks he could try it out on, so randomly, he started focusing on a twig, trying to lift it up. It took a second, just a smidge of delay, like when a video game lagged out, but with some effort, he could lift it Now, this effort was quite a bit greater than what he usually would need to lift a stick. Quite frankly, it felt almost heavy up against his mind, like he was lifting a small bundle of rocks, but it certainly wasn''t unbearable. To just see how the Skill performed, Mercury also opened up his status, just to see how he was doing. Telekinesis was slowly draining both his mana and his stamina, and he could tell that it was also taking a toll on his mental energy, though it was far more bearable with willpower being his highest stat. "This might need a bit of practice," he murmured to himself, trying to move the stick around a bit. When he moved it closer to himself, it got slightly easier, and when he moved it further away, it suddenly became way harder. Almost like he was holding a board the twig was balancing on. Except the board was weightless, and intangible, and the stick was a little heavier than it should have been even then. "Is this something like a lever, then?" Mercury asked himself out loud, slowly dragging the twig closer and closer to himself. He couldn''t move it very quickly, but he could certainly move it, which was quite a bit more than what any cat had the right to be able to. Imagine normal cats with telekinesis... man, the mischief they''d get up to... Ah, but back on track, when the stick was only a couple centimeters away from Mercury, it finally felt a bit lighter. Sure, it was still quite a bit heavier than it had any right to be, but it wasn''t as heavy as it had been when he lifted it from a couple meters away. In general, it felt like could certainly still use a bit more practice, but it would be quite handy in any case. Door and keys would be easier, at least. To try out a couple more things, he attempted to lift two objects at once, failing horribly, and netting himself a sharp pain in his head as he just dropped twig number one. Note taken. Then, he gave spinning the small piece of wood a try, and found, that it was not nearly as easy as if he were holding it in his hand. The force he exerted was more or less in a thin field around the twig, and it didn''t have friction with the object like his hand would have, so to spin it, he had to apply some extra pressure near the top of the round part, and another equal force on the other side of the bottom part, to make it stay in place as it spun. It was inconvenient, but still doable, which was pretty nice. Mercury was a little dejected at this revelation though. Turning keys would be less of a chore, but still difficult, nonetheless. But there were things to look forward to! After all, he was gaining mastery faster than most people with this Skill would be, on one hand because of the buff the had given him, and on the other hand, because of the ridiculous amount of use he could have from it. Carrying around his bag of rocks ammunition, and levitating the rocks to get good angles for , rolling his giant log house, opening doors, turning keys, grabbing parchment, holding food, slowing down prey... it would be really, reaaaaaally quite handy to say the least, pun very much so intended. Mercury had gone from virtually having no hand to pick up things with like a human, to having one very spectral, weirdly long and intangible hand to handle things with. And you know what they say, in the kingdom of the blind, the one-eyed is king. One force-armed in this case, but armed nonetheless! By the time Mercury was done being giddy with glee, the carriage driver was back, carrying a bundle of wood, and when he wanted to light the small campfire he had built up, Lucia lent a spark. Her fire may be golden, bright, and beautiful, but it was still fire, and it burnt wood as well as any other. "You''re fine using your ability for such a lowly task," Mercury asked her as they waited around the flames, staring at a pot with things and stuff boiling in it. Road supplies, largely, though the carriage did have a small runic freezer, as Mercury identified it, in the back, and there were some bits of meat floating in there. "I am," Lucia nodded. "My power is to be used for the greater good. If it can alleviate some struggle, or lighten someone else''s work, I do not believe that to be low work." "Interesting," Mercury replied, thinking on it for a while. "So, let''s assume someone is really cold at night, would you be able to warm them." "My flame is hot, Mercury," the woman replied, shaking her head. "I would put their blanket, their bed, and themselves on fire." "... They''d be warm," he shrugged. "Solving a problem while creating another is not really solving it at all, is it?" "Hah, tell that to my boss." "You have a boss?" Lucia asked, curiously. She was not expecting the mopaaw to work under someone else. "Had. I had a boss. Wish I never did, but no two ways around it. Piece of shit, too." "I see. I will not pry." "No, it''s fine. He was loud, aggressive, grumpy, unfair, stupid, and an all-round asshat. Wish I never met him, but I worked under the guy for around 15 years. He was replaced quite recently, but things didn''t improve very much. New manager was a creep, used his position of power for favors, and always took credit for our work." "Do you seek revenge?" "No, I don''t think so," Mercury said with a sigh. "See, revenge is such a mean word. I''m not one to hold grudges. I''m not mad at them for what they did to me, or how I was treated, I don''t care that much. No, I don''t want revenge, I want justice." "If some stupid motherfucker exploits and abuses his staff, then sure, I''ll just shut down. I have a problem with authority, and anyone who shouts at me will simply be worthless in my mind. But not everyone is like that, and those pieces of shit should face justice for what they did. I want Susan to be able to kick Greg in his nuts, and I want my boy Robert "Rob" Robinson to spit in his face for taking all the hard work he''d put into developing the logo, and I want both of them to be held accountable." "Perhaps I can help?" Lucia asked slowly. She was in a position to deal with those kinds of people after all. "No," Mercury said, with a shake of his head. "I don''t think you can. Too far away. Don''t worry about it, it''s all in the past for me. If I ever get the chance though, I''ll make things right. I''ll make things right..." Having said his piece, Mercury hung his head a little low, and for a while, only the boiling of some stew rang out in the night. Thinking back on things had really put a dampener on his mood. Reminded him of all those that would worry about him, about the couple coworkers he''d occasionally go out and have drinks with, about his brother, his sister-in-law, and his niece. There were a lot of things he''d left back there, and he didn''t even know if he would ever see them again... Lucia saw the mopaaw looking a little sadder by the minute. It was clear that something within him had stirred after he''d said those words, something in his past he hadn''t been able to quite make peace with. She stretched her hand out to him, and hesitated for a moment, but decided to follow through. To offer just a bit of comfort, she laid her hand down on his back. She didn''t pet him, just wordlessly offered a bit of peace. Sometimes, the past comes and haunts us, and we won''t always be able to escape it. Our actions will persist even as time passes, and what we have done in the past cannot be reversed. Yet, we must always carry on, and try to move forward. Not always for ourselves, but sometimes, for the ones we have lost. Not because we are humans or beasts, but because we are people. Being human is cheap, but being a person takes courage, and wisdom. To be able to take another step forward in the face of adversity, and to continue on, even when things get tough. To have people to rely on, and to understand the limits of what those people can provide. Sometimes, a step forward may feel like one backwards. To move forward isn''t always to keep on with the drudgery of life, or to go to college when one hates it, sometimes to go forward is to take a break, to deal with the core of the issue. To seek help, be it from a psychologist, or from friends. To acknowledge a problem, and work on solving it. It is to not be just a human, but to be oneself. To understand that one has value, and one has wants, and one has needs, and to understand, that sometimes these come first, and sometimes these come second. It''s to see who your friends are, who you can rely on, and who you want to spend time with. Sometimes, taking a step forward is to cut someone out of your life, or to switch direction, picking another job. And for Mercury, maybe this was his way forward, for now. Maybe, at the end of this journey, he would be able to look all the things he had done wrong in the face, and say that he''d made things right, or he''d have given it his best shot. Perhaps he would see his parents again, and have another talk, and perhaps this time, they would accept who he was, and maybe, he could talk to his brother once more, and apologize for all the pointless fights they had when he used to drink more. But for now, a night around a campfire was enough. After all, warmth gave solace, and no warmth is better used, than when it''s shared with friends. "Let''s eat," Lucia said, taking another look at her feline friend. He had opened up to her today, and she appreciated that. Perhaps the two of them had more in common than either of them had thought. "Yeah, you''re right. Tomorrow is another day, after all." "Indeed it is." ''Am I a background character?'' the carriage driver asked himself. Chapter 70: An eventful Night Chapter 70: An eventful Night /Mind control is perhaps the vilest thing one can do to another. To take away one''s will and sense of self is a crime more grave and more terrible than killing, in my eyes. To kill is to eliminate someone''s future, to take away their potential, and to make many people grieve, but mind control goes further than that. It doesn''t just take away some''s potential future, but instead twists it, perhaps making the afflicted harm those they would care about, and causing much more pain and suffering than a simple death would. It can be even more horrible if the person who is being controlled eventually breaks free, yet maintains all the memories they have had from when they weren''t themselves. I have witnessed this break people. I have seen a man break down in front of me and fall to his knees, begging me to kill him after he had committed atrocities that are unspeakable and horrifying. I have seen people who use this power, and I have sought them out and hunted them down. To take someone''s sense of self is a vile act. Something that should never be committed, never be done, and something that is unspeakably horrifying. It goes beyond all humanity, and anyone practicing such things should immediately be removed from the face of this world. However, there is still much debating about abilities with similar effects to mind control. Skills that simply sway someone, and make them look at you in a favourable light, examples being , or . Both of these can be viewed simply as traits of people, ones that are not their fault to have gained, and ones that aren''t very harmful. Yet, I disagree. Skills can be turned off, after all. Certainly, some effects still persist, and I believe people who actually take such Skills, and decide that perhaps it is best not to use them, deserve credit. But they are the minority, by far. Those who seek to control others, pull them away from their own self, sway them to their cause using methods other than simply talking and actually convincing them? Those are poor people. You should not force someone to bow to you with fear, you should not force someone to follow you with charisma, and you should never take someone''s will away, for it is a crime that cannot be understated, and a crime that cannot be forgiven./ A newspaper article written by Dr. Alucard Acula, after a vampire had forced some citizens to commit killing sprees. - - - - - - The stew they had on the road wasn''t the best meal Mercury ever tasted, but at the very least, it was decent and filling. None of the people spoke much more, only occasionally of small things, and announcing when they were heading to bed, yet Mercury wasn''t in the very least tired. After napping for the whole day of riding, he was feeling refreshed and ready to go. Maybe he should have considered his sleep schedule before deciding on such a long nap. Oh well, too late to worry about now. He had a whole night to pass in front of him. To be fair, it''s not like he didn''t have enough to do to fill the space. First of all, maybe it was time to practice again, especially given the rude interruption he had suffered previously. With his mind made up, Mercury laid down on the floor of his tent and slowly sunk into a comforting silence. The buzzing of the bugs outside faded out, the sound of crickets slowly disappeared, and bit by bit, even the howling of the wind, and rushing of the nearby stream began to fizzle into nothingness. The world around Mercury was still, and with his eyes closed, he found himself in a deep darkness. There was no reason for anything else, no need to visualize his core, or his mana for now. It was just him, surrounded by silence. And after a couple of moments, he realized that unfortunately, this silence still wasn''t quiet enough. It was strange to be perfectly alone with his thoughts. They always accompanied him, most of the time cheery, sometimes curious, and occasionally dark, but now, when it was so quiet, his thoughts seemed to get louder, and more suffocating. He had created a space, where the outside world couldn''t bother him, but his own mind was seemingly hellbent on disrupting this peace. He got distracted by a movie he had seen before, annoyed when he thought back to being called out in school, he felt a flicker of anger, when he remembered being called slurs, and sadness, when he thought back to some days. It wasn''t even all bad, he felt happy, remembering the day of his brother''s wedding, and remembering the time a good friend of his had sprayed the principal with whipped cream brought a slight smile to him, but it was noise. Too loud. All of it, all the memories were too loud, he couldn''t quite focus. All of that had happened, but it wasn''t right now. Right now, he was in a forest and... aaaaand the crickets were back. Fuck! Mercury fell out of his concentration for a moment and opened his eyes. The tent was still empty, but he was once more keenly aware of his situation. This was bothersome, but there wasn''t much he could do except try again. After a deep breath, Mercury closed his eyes and began to drift off. It was a little easier, and the moment he found himself in perfect darkness, he tried to recall the feeling of . For a moment, it felt almost like he could grasp it, hurriedly trying to pull on the thread with his mind, only to feel it rip. There were no shortcuts here, if he actually wanted to understand, he''d have to take the long way around. With a sigh, Mercury felt his thoughts drift off again, focus really wasn''t easy to achieve. Fine then. Mercury could understand that sometimes things simply needed patience. He couldn''t force this, that much he knew, so instead, maybe it was smarter to just try to meditate first, get his focus sharp, and then try to hone in on a goal? With that thought in mind, Mercury took a deep breath, and closed his eyes. This time he wouldn''t be forceful about things, deciding to simply enjoy the sound of the crickets, and wind, and the stream. When his thoughts drifted off, he let them for a moment, before trying to guide them back to himself, listening to his heart beat, his lungs filling with air, and empty out again. He focused on his muscles moving and the stable feeling of the floor under him. He took in another deep breath of air, feeling his hair rise and fall, and the mana course through his veins. Slowly, steadily, bit by bit, he began to understand a little more. The air rushing in, his heart thumping, his mana coursing, and his stamina resting. Something felt a little out of sync there. His body was pumping with a rhythm, one he only heard now, one that wasn''t constant, but still steady. Yet, his stamina seemed removed from it. Resting was good, yes, but wouldn''t it be better if it were in sync with the remainder of his body? The thought itself came as little more than an impulse, but Mercury had essentially committed to the flow, and almost by itself, his stamina began to pulsate. Unlike the mana he had to push around, his stamina was already spread equally all around his body, sitting there, just waiting to be used. But it wasn''t ready to be called on, it seemed almost dormant. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Instead of calling on it, then, Mercury simply extended the rhythm of his body to it. Perhaps that wasn''t very self-explanatory, but in the moment, Mercury simply knew. The stamina was a part of him, something he could instinctually utilize and move, so he did so, simply incorporating it more deeply into himself. And as he did so, the stamina, all of it at once, began to pulsate, palpitating almost like a heart. Not agitated, but slowly, like a wave passing over him, through him. It felt almost complete, like he was floating on a soft mattress in a pool, basking in the warm light of the sun. And on that mattress, a small thought occurred to him, one only at the back of his mind, a casual flicker of an idea. What was in the pool? Ah, but he was too lazy to explore it. The drifting was too enjoyable, he didn''t want to get off it by himself. No, he knew how deep the pool was, and how wide it was. Perhaps instead, he should check what was at the sides of the pool? With his eyes still closed, Mercury reached out an arm, casually seeing it grow longer and extend past the limits of the pool, of his self, and reaching outside. Ah, outside of the pool there were vibrations in the air. Almost like a muffled wind, hidden behind a sheet of something. And that... was that a stream? Perhaps his pool was lying in the middle of a stream... No, that was stupid... His curiosity peaked, but only ever so slightly, Mercury reached out a little further, his hand going beyond the muffled sheet and poking outside. There, he could feel it clearly, there was wind, and the sound of crickets. Right, of course, he was inside a forest after all. Ah. With that thought, the soft mattress he had been lying on disappeared, and for a moment, Mercury felt as though he was falling, all of the world around him crumbling, as his eyes ripped open and he found himself panting heavily in the tent. "What the fuck was that?" [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] [The individual has grasped more of the truth concerning . The ability is being restructured. -> ] How did he? What just? for the love of god! [: The ability to apply the user''s mana outside of their own body. The feat is possible without this ability, yet previously restricted feats have now become much more possible. Primarily, the mental energy expenditure has been decreased significantly, and the energy now converts into other forms much more easily. Additionally, it has become possible to extend "tendrils of mana" outwards and perceive things through them.] Whoaaaaa, that was super cool. So his natural curiosity had made him reach out and see things outside his tent? It felt like it was limited to just feeling vibrations, yet somehow, he had still been able to make sense of them. Weird, but definitely pretty cool. This would certainly come in handy. [: An ability related to stamina usage, which allows the individual to more readily and quickly draw on their stamina. The substance is now pulsing constantly, in tandem with the individual''s breath, and must no longer be agitated as much before usage.] To be fair, this ability seemed just a little less cool than the first, but well, he couldn''t expect that much, with his stamina definitely not being developed as far as his mana. According to Avery, stamina also developed differently to mana, making more leaps and bounds if you used it as much as possible, especially in tense situations. So yeah, it typically developed much more in the middle of combat, or under prolonged physical exertion. Farmers were notorious for their high stamina reserves, and some of them were quite proficient in it, being able to haul more and run faster than some farm animals. [ : A restructured ability after the individual has gained deeper insight into its workings. The system has decided that the level denomination is not suitable for this specific ability, and has instead opted to give grading depending on the individual''s proficiency and mastery of the ability. As of now, this has been graded as (low), indicating that the individual is not always able to utilize the ability when they want to, and that even upon utilization of the ability, their usage is considered lackluster. This should not disparage the individual, as growth is always possible.] Harsh! But fair. He still didn''t have much of a grasp on ihn''ar, and he could accept that. It was a state of meditation, he knew that much, but whenever he really got into it, there was so much more to it. Much more than , at the very least. Abilities sometimes seemed quite a bit deeper than Skills... Actually, what did his previous level 1 in equate to? [ ] Ah. Fair enough, he had just learned it, and really wasn''t able to get as much use from it as he would have liked. Still, this little progress in a couple of months... oh well. Not much to do about it. He''d just have to keep getting stronger at his own pace. Sure, faster would be good, but he really didn''t want to take too many shortcuts. If he gained power, he wanted it to really be his own, instead of something he borrowed. Mercury slowly got up from his spot on the tent floor. He felt a little hungry after all this, and decided to step outside, only to be greeted by... a sunrise? Hey, hey, hey, what the hell? How much time had passed? "Oh, you''ve awoken already? I believed you may have been speaking in your sleep," Lucia said quietly, greeting him with a very, very slight smile, as she warmed her hands by the fire. Their driver was still asleep it seemed, but she was already up and running. "What''s the time?" Mercury asked incredulously, half ignoring her questions. "Sunrise, Mercury," the woman replied, the smile on her face vanishing. "I did not bring a clock. Look at the sky and see for yourself. Are you perchance still sleep-drunk?" "What? No! I- I didn''t even sleep!" "Ah," Lucia gave a slight nod and faced the fire again. "That explains a little of your distress. Perhaps you were too caught up with yourself to notice the passing of time?" "Man, I guess so," Mercury muttered back. "Dang, I was really out that long... meditation is crazy dude." "Indeed it is. Can I interest you in some breakfast? I have warmed the stew back up." "Yeah, I think I really could use some of that..." - - - After a couple of hours, their driver was also finally back up. He ate the rest of the stew, then quickly packed up the tents, and after washing their faces in the stream, the travellers were off once more. Mercury still didn''t feel tired. Letting his thoughts drift like that didn''t take much out of him, and had felt quite peaceful when he got the hang of it. Lucia on the other hand still seemed a little drained. She had somewhat deep rings under her eyes, and her skin was pale, more so than usual. "You okay?" Mercury asked carefully, not wanting to offend the priestess. "I''m fine," she replied curtly, not even lifting her gaze from the window. "Look, I get it, you don''t want to share. That''s fine. You don''t have to tell me what has you feeling down, or why you''re feeling bad, but I don''t like being lied to very much." "Then don''t ask questions to whom you already know the answer," Lucia said through gritted teeth, seemingly supressing her anger. Mercury for a moment thought about talking back, but after just a second he decided against it. Someone he considered something of a friend was feeling bad, he didn''t need to worsen it now. "Sorry," he said instead, "is there anything I can do for you?" "..." Lucia was silent for a moment, gazing away from the window and at the feline she shared a cart with. "... I''m a little cold," she admitted. "Alright, I can help with that," Mercury said. He quickly closed his eyes, and visualized his core again, though he tried his best to stay somewhat aware of where Lucia was. Then, he took a bit of his mana, holding it together with a couple ystirs, as he made it evaporate, clinging to the volatile magical energy and clamping down on it with his will. It truly was easier now, and felt much more like a part of himself, almost as though it had grown less restless, even when he pushed it outside his core and towards Lucia. Of course, applying it directly to her would be stupid, instead, he began to heat up the air around her a little, creating tiny pockets of heat everywhere. "Hm? You are capable of magic manipulation as such...?" Lucia asked him, and he could almost hear her surprised expression. "I can," Mercury said as he opened his eyes again, leaving his ystirs and a part of his mind to do more of the heating. "I practiced my multitasking for quite a bit, you see." For a moment it seemed like the priestess flashed a slight smile again. "Thank you, then. This is a very welcome surprise. I had thought you would simply request a blanket for me." "Perhaps sometimes there are easier ways to solve a problem." And a little later, equipped with both a blanket, and a furry, magical heater across from her, perhaps the remainder of the journey was a little more pleasant for Lucia. Chapter 71: Good Day Chapter 71: Good Day /I am Uunrahzil. Dreamweaver, teacher, thinker, ascended. I have been called master of the lo-pac, and named the piercing gaze of that beyond. My people have cried to me as their guardian protector, and my foes have cursed me from behind the very walls I raised in front of them. But that is a story which has been told already. The grand achievements are the first to be memorized, and yet, they feel as though they are the least significant. For above all of these, more than a thinker or a teacher, or one who weaves, I am a traveller. Those dreams which are already woven, the web of lo-pac that tangle, string together, and twist apart, is my home now. I have gotten lost so many times before in this endlessly shifting labyrinth, and yet, it is a maze I call my home. One where I do not mind getting lost, one where I do not mind finding the unimportant. I have seen streams in peaceful forests, and I have seen spires of stone, scratching at the heavens. The lo-pac are a wonderful place, because of this, because they are not limited. I have seen buildings growing from the side of an abyss, I have seen the earth open up to reveal a tide of wolves, and I have seen those very wolves crumble to dust and be blown away by the wind, only to have the dust form into a simple farm. I have seen fields that stretch further than one can see, and beyond that further than one can imagine. I have been to the deepest places in the ocean, and I have been far beyond what many would consider real. Yet, with every journey, I find answers, and with every journey, I find questions. Some of those I have been able to answer. I know, to a degree, how to navigate the lo-pac, the great, evershifting web. Yet, some are still locked to me. Such is the nature of the doors. Not the doors in the tunnels, not the gates into other worlds, not those rips or tears, no. I speak of the doors hidden within one''s very own mind, the ones which are locked. Because through all my travels, I have found myself anew countless times, and I have seen others find their truths as well, yet, those keys I have never found. And so, as a traveller, I still look for them. Because a question without an answer sometimes is more fun than a question which can be answered./ A fragment of a thread, hidden deep within... somewhere. It was brought about and written down by Narnor the Mad, one of the many scribbles in his archive of chaos, where you find all but what you seek. - - - - - - After another day or so of riding the carriage, Mercury and Lucia finally arrived in Polos, the city where they would hopefully find Yvette. She had moved again after bringing the eclipse-survivors to Treyno, apparently, and now had settled down there. "You got any idea of where exactly we can find her?" Mercury asked Lucia when they were getting off the carriage. She had somehow known where to go, so he hoped she also had a means to contact her. "Not quite, yet I doubt she will be hard to find," the priestess answered, a sly smile already on her lips. She quickly paid their driver, who accepted with a nod, and began the short ascent from the stables to the city proper. As per the usual, the gate was guarded, yet with how well-known the church of order was, they got in quickly. For once, no one even bothered to ask about Mercury. "Oh, I was seen as a pet again, wasn''t I?" "Perhaps." "Fucking damn it I swear to god. I''ll get my revenge one day, damn city guards." "Watch your tongue, if you could. I do not wish to endure such vulgar words," Lucia said, giving Mercury''s temper naught but a half-hearted sigh. "Oh? So you think you know how this feels, huh? Think you can tell me what to say? Think you can-" "I don''t. But I wish to find someone, and you''re scaring the people." "Ugh, you''re right. I''ll fume in silence," Mercury said. Instead, he decided to take a look around himself. Lucia had told him some stuff about this place during the ride. It was a city, though not by much. It had fortified stone walls, though the guards there were perhaps a little sparsely spread out, and while there were roads throughout it, only the main one was paved with stones, while most side paths were just compacted dirt instead. Still, it was quite full of people. They had just entered the lowest district, but just a little ahead there was a small plaza with a couple of stalls, selling all kinds of everyday things. Bread, vegetables, meat, cloaks, shoes, threading and needles, and other general things. Children were running around, one of them holding a live chicken above their head in a poor attempt at flight, and adults were chatting. Mercury then lifted his gaze and followed the main road upwards, watching it slowly snake towards the hill-fort at the top of the city. The height difference wasn''t huge, but it didn''t need to be. Just a small amount already worked wonders for a castle with high spires like that one, and from where he was right now, it truly looked monumentous. Respect to whoever stacked those bricks, because man, that would be tough. Maybe he''d read a book on construction sometime soon. As of right now, they were still in the lowest district of the city, although life wasn''t bad even down here. The lord was not perfect, but he was decently fair, and he understood that most of their trade came from farming, so he made sure to treat the people well. The smiths forged blades to cut through the earth, and hammered out hundreds of nails for shoemaking. Of course, they also took care of the occasional requests for bridles and horseshoes, whenever those were needed. It was simple, but pretty decent. They had enough food to keep themselves well fed, and if there was ever a shortage, they could live off the granary for a bit. Recently, the lord had even invested in some dams for the small rivers outside, and now some farmers were using waterwheels to mill their grain into flour. After a little while, they got up to the second district, where the richer merchants and the owners of big farms lived. It had a couple inns for travellers, a small theatre, a couple of temples, as well as a crypt, and so on. There was also a small church to the doctrine of Order here, but Lucia paid it very little mind as she continued upwards. Most people avoided her, though some stared a bit and whispered among each other. Well, it didn''t seem to bother her much, so Mercury was sure it was fine. Being famous might be a little annoying, but in the world where he was now, at the very least there were no paparazzi, and famous people weren''t dolls that had to put on a show, and instead respected individuals, that most people wouldn''t dare approach. "Do you get to the loft district very often? Oh, who am I kidding? Of course you don''t." Well, apparently not all people held their tongue when they passed. Children would keep playing, and some people would continue their bartering, and arrogant bastards would always be arrogant bastards. "Lucia?" "Yes Mercury?" "What do you think of arrogant people?" Mercury asked very casually, throwing a glance at the person who just said those fateful words. Lucia paused in her walk and rubbed her chin, acting as though she was in deep thought. "Hmmm, I do believe that arrogance is considered a bad trait. Though perhaps that is rather hypocritical of me to say." "Hypocritical or not, it''s still bad, right?" Mercury asked again, wearing a sharp grin. "Oh, yes, order dictates that one should not be too arrogant," Lucia replied, following Mercury''s glance to the man in question, who was still rambling. "I really worked my way up from the bottom you know? It took years but..." "Well then, what do you say about spreading this doctrine?" Mercury asked, already cracking his mental knuckles, levitating a blunt, fist sized rock in the air. "Indeed, as high priestess, peacefully bringing out message to other places is one of my duties. Alas, we also need a local to ask some questions to anyways. Perhaps this is our chance to get two bird with but one very literal stone?" As she spoke, Mercury saw Lucia slowly being wrapped in a heatwave, also cracking her own knuckles. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. By then, the entire marketplace had gone silent and was staring at them, especially since heat was now rolling off the priestess in waves, making even the air shimmer like in desert sunlight. "Heeey, loft district fuckface! Give me a glance of your ugly mug!" Mercury yelled at the merchant, and his words were soon accompanied by mocking snickers from the other passersby. "What was that?!" Without even a second in between, the man spun around, his expensive cloak billowing. His head sported short stubbles of hair, although not even that could hide its greying. He had dark, hazel eyes, and wore a well-crafted vest as well as polished black boots. "My dear friend insulted you to your face, I believe," Lucia said calmly, the heatwave around her fists sparking and combusting into fire now. "See, we preach a doctrine of humility. Yet, while you seem well-fed, it appears you have not had a slice of what my friend would refer to as ''humble pie''." "... What are you fools even saying?!" "We''re gonna kick your ass," Mercury said with a bright smile, tapping the stone he had levitated with his tail. "" Not a second later, the projectile painfully made contact with the man''s crotch. "YOOOOOOOOOWWWWWLLLL!!!" Instantly, he dropped to his knees, clutching at his crown jewels. "... Humans can make a sound like that?" Lucia muttered to herself as she glanced at the man, but then shook her head. Now was not the time to be surprised, there was still work to be done. "You know, I really think we could see eye to eye, you and me," Mercury said to the arrogant bastard in front of him. "Lucia, care to give me a hand?" "Oh, of course." And just as swiftly as the man had dropped to his knees, wincing in pain, Lucia appeared behind him, and placed her foot on his back, pushing down until his face was flat on the cobblestone of the street. "Much better," Mercury said, grinning. "This is a good look on you, the less of your face I see, the less ugly you get." "What do you want from me?!" the man half howled at Mercury''s face, but the cat remained calm and collected. "You ever heard of an Yvette in this city? Lumineaux?" "Yes! Yes I have, ugh, she''s working as a monster hunter, in the nearby forest!" "Thanks," Mercury said, patting the man''s cheek, where he left a small poke with each of his claws. "We''re done here then." With a glance, he saw Lucia nod, and take her foot off the man''s back, and pretty much as soon as he was free, he ran off, under the ridiculing gazes of city guards and laughing children. "It truly is good to be on the side of justice," Lucia said with a smile, the heat around her already fading. "Very true," Mercury said. "Well, apparently she''s somewhere in the nearby forest. That would take a while to search though, what are we gonna do about it?" "If she''s hunting monsters, there is a good chance someone is paying her to do it. And I do not believe there is too large a crowd of people who could afford her services in this place." "The lord''s keep then?" Mercury asked. "The lord''s keep," Lucia nodded. When they were leaving, the shopkeeper who had been bothered also quickly threw Lucia an apple as a gesture of thanks, and with that, they were off again. It had honestly been almost a cathartic experience for Mercury. Letting off some steam, kicking ass, and knocking some arrogant bastard down a peg. He still really couldn''t stand arrogant people. Anyone with that "holier than thou" attitude was a no-go. Lucia certainly had some problems with it, but by now he knew her a little more. The priestess was usually only arrogant with people she didn''t know, perhaps as a facade to paint less of a political target on her back. Pretty sensible, if Mercury had to be honest, after all, politics were quite problematic a lot of the time. Especially in these times, with nobles, and lords, and jarls, and councils, and all kinds of different shit. Good ol'' democracy wasn''t even invented yet. Maybe Mercury could advise other places to instate a system like that once he had his own nation up and running? Though of course, he would first have to gather quite a bit of political power before he could actually talk to the heads of other whole nations. Shit, up until now he had still only seen one member of Nevarzahri''s council. Though at least Gorm Gorm had seemed like a decent man. Whoops, he was getting sidetracked again. Right, they still had to meet with the city lord. What was his name again? Lord... Rilfur the Wise or something the like? He did remember that the lord of this city shed their surname when ascending to the position, and instead adopted a title, which was actually chosen by his trusted subordinates, and then approved by a people-appointed council. Sometimes it was also changed after the lord had stepped down again, which would be funny. Imagine you retire, and instead of "the Wise" you''re suddenly "the Ugly" or "the Foolhardy". Rough life, people sure never had it easy anywhere... "Mercury?" Lucia suddenly asked, ripping him from his thoughts. "Hm? What? Yeah?" "We''re here," she said, pointing at the door a couple of meters in front of them. Large, and intricate, with plenty of metal reinforcement. It looked very fitting for what was pretty much a slightly less defended castle. "Oh, thanks." Lucia just shook her head in response once again, approaching the guards. "I, Lucia, the Voice of Order, request an audience with Rilfur the Wise. Open up these gates, and let me speak to your master." "We were not informed of any visitors," one of the guards said coldly. "I have been pressed for time lately," Lucia calmly replied, "and did not send word of my visit. Yet, I wish but to ask a simple question. Grant us passage or request it for us." "The lord is currently busy," the same guard answered, a cold, strong voice. Male, maybe in his late twenties. Brave, and dutiful. Mercury could almost hear Lucia grind her teeth, but to her credit, none of it showed on her face. "I must say it again, this is still a pressing matter," she said, taking another step towards the door, where the two guards crossed their spears. "Sorry," the other guard said, a woman''s voice. "No visitors allowed." "I believe we have vital information which your lord may wish to hear." "I believe we informed you, he is busy," the male guard said once again, banging the shaft of his spear against the ground. "Really?!" "Really." For a moment, the two parties stared at each other in silence, when Lucia spoke up again. "Perhaps I have not yet been clear enough," she said, her voice now icy and sharp. "This is a deeply personal matter of mine. We will be granted passage, one way or another. Open up this door, or wait until I tear it from its hinges." As she spoke, Mercury could feel the temperature in the air rising. It had been a chilly day, but when Lucia was just done with her sentence, it felt as though he had stepped into a pot of boiling water. Luckily, the priestess was skilled enough to control the heat. He didn''t even wanna know what the guards must be feeling. "We have to request you-" "You''ve made your choice," Lucia said, and before the guards could blink, her bow had been summoned, and blasted straight through the door. "Knock knock," Mercury said calmly, before walking through the gaping hole in the castle. "Man, we''re really pissing people off today, Lucia." "Well, Mercury, I think I can stomach this to get things done." The hall they entered into was large, with glowing stones attached to pillars lighting up all the interior, and large windows with metal framework letting in some sun. The tables were decked pretty lavishly, and people were eating their fill. Well, they had been, until our duo had so quietly knocked. As soon as Mercury and Lucia entered, the nobles and aristocrats started mumbling between each other, throwing glances at the person who Mercury presumed to be the lord. A man who was a little plump, though far from fat. His hair was chin-long and slightly greasy, and his clothes were that weird, puffy style, the banquet-fancy type. "What do you think you''re doing?! Guards!!" But before the soldiers had a moment to react, Mercury used his size, and hopped right on the table, where he stared at the lord from just a meter away. "Alright, let''s de-escalate this a bit. We''re here because we need to know something important from you, just give us a quick answer and we''ll be right out of your hair. Do we understand each other?" he asked, wearing a slight smile. It helped that Lucia had her bow drawn as well, slowly approaching the ruler. "This is what you''re busy with, lord Rilfur? Such petty drinks and squabbles?" she hissed, leaving charred spots on the wood and the rugs as she walked. "I have told your guards it was urgent, yet I''m turned down, and they refuse to even confer with you on the matter. You may want to keep your soldiers in check!" As she talked, Mercury could hear her build up into half a roar, and when she finished, she smashed the table right next to him in half. "Whoa there, let''s cool it a little. We''re all diplomats here," he said, much more politely, trying to calm Lucia more than anyone else, given that most of the guards had now flinched back. "Father, who are these cretins who dare so rudely interrupt our glorious festivities?" What was that? Did Mercury smell a whiff of entitled little brat? Oh, he had heard of that guy, and he had never been so excited before. This would be a good day. "Snotnose, put your ass back on the chair before I make you," Mercury said, sneering. He really couldn''t stand entitlement. Respect was always given, universally, but the foundation he gave was a shaky one at best, which people then needed to build on. A misstep at the first impression, and such a brutal one at that? No, this kid deserved to be taught a bit of a lesson. "You dare...?!" the young noble hissed back. It was a boy, maybe around 22, with chestnut hair, and pale skin. He was thin, but not haggard, and certainly not because he ate too little. "I dare." "Lucia, get your beast to stand down!" lord Rilfur ordered. There it was, his fatal flaw. He simply doted on his children too much, raising them to be entitled, instead of negotiators like him. "Silence," the priestess hissed at him. She put a hand on his shoulder and forced the lord back into his seat. "You will wait, and sit here, lest I burn this castle to the ground." All muttering had subsided, and everyone''s eyes were now on Mercury, as he casually strolled between the platters of food towards the noble. When he got closer, he could see the young man more. Ernil, the lord''s second son, a boy held in high regard by his father and his father only. His face had been stained red with anger, and Mercury thought he could see smoke leave his nose. "Go on," the mopaaw taunted, "hit me." "You-!!" Ernil didn''t need to be told twice. He had been raised in a seat of power, and most of the small diplomats coming to the city bowed to him. He had never had much contact with powerful people, neither physically, nor politically. Without hesitation, he raised his fist, and smashed down at the pest, only to find his hand stopped. "," Mercury said with a smile. He dug his claws into the boy''s hand, forcing him to stay still. With his recent Skill, he picked up one of the wooden plates, slowly levitating it towards himself. Then, he tapped it with his tail. "Be a good boy and let the adults speak, brat. ." With the flat side of some tableware to the head, Mercury had taught the second arrogant bastard a lesson today. Rilfur tried to rise from his chair, but Lucia''s grip was like an iron vice, and he groaned in pain as she squeezed his shoulder. "Do not test may patience," she said, the flames in her stomach burning bright enough to be visible through her eyes. "Where is Yvette?" "She- She''ll be back in just a couple of days!!" "Get her back, now. If she''s not here tomorrow midnight, I''ll make you regret it." And with those words, they were off, and the nobles were left with a couple of broken tables, plates, pride, and one less pheasant than they had started with. After all, the food was wasted on the arrogant son, so Mercury simply swiped it. It was a good day. Chapter 72: A story Chapter 72: A story /Travellers. The people that come from other worlds to ours, sometime through their death, sometimes entirely on accident, sometimes they even step out of cracks, or tears, and even more rarely, they travel here on purpose. Why do these phenomena occur? Travellers that come here after death, for example, are spectacular in and of themselves. The amount of pain associated with the moment of death is not clear, yet most of the reincarnators refuse to even talk about it, brushing it aside in fear of awakening some trauma within. I cannot fault them for it. Yet, most of them remembered naught of their journey from after their death to here. Some are born normally, and some simply appear in the middle of nowhere. Any places that no one is watching appear to be eligible for such appearances. I hope that perhaps in the future, these people will allow us to glimpse more of that which lies after death, and see the secrets that even necromancy cannot uncover. Other travellers appear here on accident, stating that they were simply walking, got lost in thought, and suddenly found themselves in our world. It is... difficult to imagine such cases, as one would have to be truly someplace else with their mind to so suddenly and casually walk through what amounts to a gate into another world, yet it is something frequently stated, so I have no reason to doubt it. What decides who enters these gates, and where they appear? Is it random, or are some gods playing games with them, sending them to us as a trial? We cannot know for sure, as the ways of those gods are mysterious, and strange, but we do know for sure, that many of these travellers seek to go home. Perhaps some of the most terrifying travellers are those that step out of cracks, or rifts. Those tunnels, which usually need to be cleared from our side, and which would take root upon breaking, are simply cracked open from the inside, and out step fully fledged people, often covered in blood and wounds, and even more often aggressive. It is not unheard of these people immediately going into a frenzy upon exiting, and oftentimes, many casualties are reported before they can be stopped and brought back to their senses. Some consider this the warrior''s way of world walking, I consider anyone who claims that a lunatic. And finally, those travellers that come to our world by their own volition, through unknown means. Perhaps they come here to observe us and our habits, or perhaps to extinguish all of us. We do not know, for we have very little contact to them. Most of these non-accidental travellers arrive here with a purpose, and they do not wish it to be revealed. As such, we rarely are able to converse with them, as these remain hidden within our society and our own people. For now, we do not consider them a grave danger, yet it is always good to be wary of them for the future./ An excerpt from "Worldwalkers - Why?" by Ashimoto Kivadd, a leading expert on otherworldly influences. - - - - - - "Thanks for letting me teach the brat a lesson," Mercury said, as the two casually strolled back out of the castle, and down the main road towards an inn. "Oh, really, thank you for doing so. I might have taken it too far if it had been me doing the teaching." "You think he''ll learn?" "Chuchuchu, no way," she laughed, though to be fair, it was more of a snicker. "He, and maybe even that arrogant merchant we... educated beforehand, may very well come up with a cheap ploy to exact their revenge." "We''ll strike it down?" Mercury asked. "With full force," Lucia nodded. "Sounds good," Mercury agreed. "Well, we have some time to kill again. You hungry? We gotta look for a place to sleep anyways, might as well order some food there." "I suppose you aren''t wrong," Lucia muttered. "Well, in that case, would you be alright with staying in the view district?" "That''s the second, right? Fine by me. I''m not very picky about where I sleep, honestly. As long as I have blankets, I''m good to go. Actually, even those aren''t a necessity." "I see, does it come with the territory?" Lucia asked, glancing at her feline friend. "You could say that. Living in a forest for a while will toughen you up when it comes to sleeping spots, I suppose." "That does indeed seem sensible. Ah, this seems like an inn," Lucia said, pointing at a brightly painted sign of a mug and a bed, right atop a door. Mercury gave her a nod, and the two headed in. As with most inns, the inside was dimly lit, a fireplace in a corner and lanterns sporadically hanging from the ceiling shedding warmth and some light around. The owner seemed to be standing behind a counter, a broad shouldered, gruff looking man, with a bushy beard and hair, that seemed to combine into almost a lion''s mane "Welcome," he said, with a slight Cheshire accent, almost as soon as the door opened. The handful of patrons already inside turned their head for a moment, but soon decided to instead focus on their card games and chats once more, not paying much mind to the strangers. "What can I get ya?" "Two meals and a room for the night," Lucia said, after sitting down on a barstool, watching Mercury do the same. His eyes were barely above the counter, but he seemed content with it, so she didn''t feel the need to ask any questions. "Fer you and the mopaaw, I suppose?" the barkeep asked again. "Not from around here, are ya?" "Yes, for me and the human," Mercury replied. "I don''t do well with too many veggies, so I''d prefer mostly meat if you got anything like that." "I do," the man said with a nod. "Sorry for assuming ya wouldn''t order yaself." "It happens all the time, especially in new places, don''t worry. Also just some water to drink." "And for the lady?" "I''m fine with anything, as long as it tastes decent. Though I''d prefer to try a local meal if it wouldn''t be a bother," Lucia said with a surprisingly friendly tone. "Mh. I can get you that much at least," the man nodded. "Tell ya what, I like a good story, if you can spin a decent tale, I''ll give ya 20 percent off." "Fine by me," Mercury said. "What''s your name, old man?" "Carys," the man replied. "Yours?" "I''m Mercury Rainfall Starlight, pleased to meet you." "Just Lucia is fine." Carys gave the both of them another quick nod, before handing over two glasses of water, and then heading back into the kitchen. Seems like the place was a one-man operation, but given the amount of people in the inn, Mercury would guess it wasn''t too much of a hassle to run. Then again, perhaps it wouldn''t be running for too long anymore, with drafts for the front lines coming around more and more. Small cities like this were prime targets for military recruiters, and declining a summon could get you in plenty of trouble. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. After a while, the man came back out with two plates in his hand, some smoked fish with a small bowl of vegetable soup for Mercury, and potato pancakes with some fancy stew to the side, a thick soup with all kinds of vegetables and thin slices of meat in it. The innkeep had even added a small desert, just a slice of something right in between bread and cake, with whipped cream on it. "Hope it''s up to yer standards," he said, though Mercury was certain he could hear a little bit of pride shining through there. And, to be fair, after just one bite, Mercury knew why the man was proud. This food was very decent, especially for the times they were in. Of course, comparing it to what he had eaten in the modern world, it was a little bit bland, but he had gotten used to this medieval cooking, and by those standards, Carys was a really, really good chef. When the two travellers looked up from their plates, they also saw a big smile plastered on the gruff man''s face. Still, he didn''t interrupt their eating, instead refilling a couple drinks all around the place, and whipping up two more meals before both Mercury and Lucia had finished. "Now then, I believe I''m owed a story," the innkeeper said with a smile, obviously happy that his two new guests were happy with the food. "I''m not much good at spinning a tale, I''m afraid," Lucia answered, her head held high even as she admitted a fault. Or perhaps, she was really just deflecting the responsibility over to Mercury, being exhausted after having a full meal. "Well I''m alright at it. Carys, you want to hear something made up, or something real?" "I''m sure much of the made up is the exaggerated real, so either is fine. A story needs to be nothing more than a story, after all." "I got a couple good ones from when I was more little." "Any of those would do, ''s long as they''re not boring," the man replied, wiping down the counter once again, as he had already done countless times before. "Hm, well then," Mercury nodded solemnly, closing his eyes and thinking for a little while. "Back where I was from, there was little magic, and those who practiced it were often frowned upon. With no teachers or masters to call their own, and the people laughing at their meager efforts, you can imagine, that in newer times, magic was on the down low. Of course, people liked to tell each other stories of the olden days, of titans and gods, frost giants, world serpents, hundred handed men who had reached enlightenment, but these had long since become nothing more than children''s stories. Nothing to take seriously." "Really, with so little magic to go around, the world had become quite dreary and grey, with many people simply doing their work, day in and day out, with nothing to look forward to, no more vibrant spark in their life. The colour of all life in that place had been locked away in tomes, hidden archives, and behind seals and wards, hundreds of layers deep. Magic had been turned into petty parlor tricks, and all that mattered was efficiency. Another cog in a machine whose many interlocking teeth gnashed down on any amount of spark." "Dreary," Carys muttered. "It was," Mercury nodded. "There had been countless great people in the past there, ones we told many tales about. Perhaps ones that may still roam these lands to this day, if one likes to believe such things. There was the brilliant mind of Einstein, or king Leonidas of Sparta, one of the greatest warriors to ever walk the earth. Yet, even long before those, there were even more stories of even greater heroes. Prometheus, the fire at the very beginning, who gave thought to the people, and Odin, who fought hard and long to drive back the frost giants of the north. In the east, there were many dragons, and Brahma, the three-headed creator." "Yet, those beings long since didn''t roam the lands anymore, or at least, no one had seen them. And for a long while, the many toothed machine ate all the joy in the world." Mercury gave a long sigh as a dramatic pause. "Yet, of course, magic is unruly, and its flame can never truly be extinguished. Old tales were still told, occasional sparks of colour in a place that had become so grey. And when one is near a powderkeg, occasionally but a spark is enough to light it." "I myself was not there when it happened, but the brother of a good friend of mine had seen it with his own eyes. In a library, an old woman, walking with a cane, had pulled forth a book from the shelf, placed it down, and when she opened it, he could see licks of flame coming from it. The brother couldn''t lift his eyes off the spectacle, seeing colours that had never been there before, illuminating the place all around him. The flames shed light that gave life, washing away all the grey, and slowly creeping forwards from the table she had placed it on." "The clothes the woman was wearing turned blue and green, all shades, the floor regained its wooden shine, beautiful, rich, and deep. The colours crept forward slowly, grasping and tearing at the dullness that enveloped the library, and their spark fought hard against the lecherous listlessness of the machine. The old woman''s forehead wrinkled as she spoke, read from the book, words so vibrant that tears ran from the brother''s eyes as he heard them. And when his tears fell, they also brought colour back. Soon, other people also heard the story and began to cry, and after a few minutes, that felt like an eternity, the colour reached one of the bookshelves." "Then, the place came to life. It began with but a second tome of stories, lifting itself from its designated, sorted, and stable place. It lifted into the air, uncaring for what it perhaps was expected to do, where it was expected to fall, and began to sing along to the old woman''s tale. Then, soon after it, another book, and yet another joined, and the keg was lit." "Within moments, the entire library lit aflame with colours and stories, with magic so old and so wonderful that any who heard it sought out more of it. It became a beacon, shining and spreading its light around the land that had turned grey, and as the hours passed, the people reclaimed more of what had always been theirs. What had been given to them so long ago was reclaimed, ripped back from the many-toothed machine, its cogs tearing themselves out, breaking free, and singing wonderful melodies, as their eternal jailor screamed and crumpled." "And then, it was done. Magic had been returned, the machine had been destroyed, and stories had once more prevailed over that which was expected. The cogs had broken free, and the people were once again allowed to live out themselves and their passions. The flowers that had wilted regrew their petals, and the world that had once lost its shine began to radiate once more. Magic had finally returned." "That''s a mighty story," Carys said with a smile. "And a good one at that," Lucia added. "Stories from good friends are always the best ones," Mercury said with a smile. "It''s one I heard when I was having some trouble, and a friend told me about this to cheer me up and motivate me, I suppose. I miss her, sometimes." "Must have been a good friend," Carys added quietly, not wanting to disrupt the mopaaw''s thoughts too much. "She was," Mercury nodded. "Perhaps I will see her again one day, but the chances are slim. The place where I am from is far away, and I doubt she would recognize me as I am right now." "Mh, it is difficult to lose someone dear to you," Lucia said. "Perhaps, once this is all over, I can help you find her as well?" Mercury shook his head. "No," he said. "I have many things I still need to find, and many friends I have lost. Before her, there are others I must search for." "Others?" "Indeed, others. Only a handful of people, three wolves, and an archer, who had sworn to travel with me. Yet, in the city where I met Yvette, there was a blood ec-" Before he could finish the sentence, Lucia snapped his mouth shut, as all murmurs in the bar went silent, and people turned their heads at them. The priestess gave her travelling companion one more piercing gaze, before letting go of his snout and allowing him to speak again. "What? I said flood. There was a flood, nothing more. Jeez." "I''m sorry to hear of your loss," Carys said, and with that, people returned their eyes to their own tables once more. "I sincerely hope they survived, and you can find them again." "I hope so too," Mercury nodded. "But for today it might be best if me and Lucia head into our room to rest. The road has been long, and I''m tired." "Sure, here''s the keys, it''s the third door on the left." "Thank you for the food, Carys," Lucia said as she got up. "No, thank you for the patronage, travellers. If there is anything you need, let me know," the innkeep replied, sending the two off with a slight smile. Back in the room, Lucia shot Mercury a glance, before double checking that the door was locked and no one was listening outside. "I''m guessing you''ll tell me not to say anything related to that kind of event?" Mercury asked, given her nervous demeanor. "Yes, that was what I had intended. Luckily, you were sharp enough to come up with an excuse back then, but please, keep in mind that such things aren''t a lightly discussed topic. They have ears everywhere, and simply uttering the words may call down their fury." "Who''s ''They''?" "They are the blight that blackens the sky, the blood that covers the dirt. That is all I can say, and all that is necessary for now. Just know that they are not to be spoken lightly of," Lucia said, sighing at the end. "The topic seems to bother you." "It does, because it places me, and all the people around, in imminent danger if we do not choose our words wisely. I request you allow me to hold my tongue on this topic for now, as we have spoken enough on it today, and perhaps any more would be too much." "Fine by me," Mercury shrugged. "Sorry, wasn''t aware it''s such a big deal." "It is, sadly," Lucia said. "I also apologize for so rashly shutting your mouth, and not informing you of this beforehand." "It''s fine. It happens. How about we call it a day for now, and we see what we use our time on tomorrow?" Mercury asked, already having forgiven her. He knew she didn''t mean anything by it, and he also understood that sometimes, things like that couldn''t be avoided, so there weren''t any hard feeling. "I agree. Well then, I shall prepare myself for bed." "Me too." Chapter 73: Two doors Chapter 73: Two doors /Howdy, it''s farmer Billy again. Billy Hill, eyup, that''s me name. Today I''ve unlocked a couple dem der new gobbin Skills, and I only felt it right proper to at least write me achievements down fer those future folk ye all oughta be. I''m tellin ya, I''ll become famous enuff for these good ol'' entries to be read by anyone of importance in this ''ere wide world of ours! Where was I? Ah rite, me new Skills! Today, me pa taught me how to repot berry bushes, as we moved our little garden. Me sis was watching with sparkles in her eyes, but ma had to quickly call her over, needed help with cookin''. It took long ''un was a truckload of work, but by the time we had it dun, I saw that lil blue window pop up again. Tell ya, it''s a wonderful sight on these eyes o'' mine! Said I had finally evolved to ! Me pa called for a feast when he heard it, apparently my Skill was close to his now, and we decided to take sum of the meat from the storage for lunch. Ma cooked it up right n hot, even using some of them pricey spices. Not wasted those were, and the food was delicious. But then even more good news that day, apparently I did sumthin real special. Was just going about my day normally, taking another tour around the farm in the evening, filling up the water throughs for the night n waterin'' all the plants once over, when I heard a buzzin'' noise right next to my ear. ''Course, I thought it as a bug or sumthin, but nay, nothing! Smacked the air! Strange ringing continued throughout the entire night, wouldn''t leave me the heck alone, and at midnight, I decided enuff was enuff. Followed it out all the way to the barn and past it, into the bit of the forest. Even left the part we owned and went deeper, like something came over me, I tell ya! Eventually me came to a clearing, whole floor covered with bright green moss, shining even in moonlight, n a nice stream next to it. Felt it calling out to me, whispering sumthin about ambitions, so I decided to give it a listen. Weird stuff happens all the time, n I had a good feeling about this. Next thing I know, I learnt ! Can''t believe it''s happened, but I can now make plants grow with just a thought and some of my Stamina. All the starvin'' days are over, the babe might be able to grow big n'' strong just ''cause of me. I told y''all I''d be the best!/ Entry 13 from "A Farmer''s Diary". - - - - - - Days passed slowly as Mercury and Lucia waited in the inn. There wasn''t much to do, so the cat took to , still slowly raising its level as he used it to explore the entirety of his mana veins. He had almost grown them fully, only needing a couple more days to finish off his teeth. Lucia, on the other hand, seemed a little more bored than him, staving it off by heading downstairs and listening in on the other patrons, while securing herself a seat at the fire. Sometimes she''d also watch Mercury during his practice session, and try to mimic him, though it seemed more irritating than anything else when she did it. Maybe she was messing something up? Whatever. They took strolls through the city once or twice as well, hoping that any of the arrogant idiots they''d taught a lesson would come to retaliate, but it seems they''d tucked their tails in between their legs. The lord, Rilfur, even sent a letter of apology for his son''s behaviour, having seemingly decided to grow a spine. Honestly, Polos itself was quite a nice city, with a lot of open spaces and friendly faces. The vegetables were fresh, and although it was more chilly than in Stormbraver, it was by no means cold. Maybe it would have been worse during the winter, but these months it was more than bearable, even more so when considering the clarity it brought to the air. Just like that, the peaceful hours passed, until... "WHO THE FUCK!!!!" a familiar voice screamed, entering into Mercury and Lucia''s inn by kicking down the door. "WHICH ONE OF YOU BASTARD''S SMASHED THE BABY LORD BITCH''S HEAD WITH A PLATE?! I''LL RIP YOURS OFF, THAT DOCKED HALF MY PAY!" "Long time no see, Yvette," Mercury replied with a calm and gentle smile, and he could see the red drain from Yvette''s face in real time. "Damn, here''s your 5 pales," Lucia said, handing Mercury a couple of coins. "Thank you." "What...? You guys? Here?? Why, what?" Yvette looked back and forth between the two of them, with eyes so confused they begged for an answer. "Oh, we made a bet. I said you''d rush here without waiting for our description. Lucia said you''d at least hear about a mopaaw. I won." "I- That''s not what I asked, you bastard! Why are you here?!" "Oh, you know, we needed this and that..." "Now is not the time to fool around. Yvette, we have come here seeking your aide-" "Oh, you think you can come here, cause me a FUCKTON of problems, and then casually ask a favour, huh?" Yvette asked back, leaning far over the table and getting all up in Lucia''s face. "Well, you fucking can''t! Piss off!" "It''s Iris." "Oh you''ve gotta be fucking kidding me! Really?? You''re gonna guilt trip me like that???" "..." Lucia apparently did have a reply for it, lowering her gaze to the table. "Didn''t think so," Yvette then said, quickly turning around and stomping towards the door. "She''s been abducted," Mercury said, and Yvette stopped dead. "Look, I don''t know what happened between you guys. I''m not one to pry either," he continued, "but it''s got nothing to do with me. My friend got abducted. I was told you can help me find her. Now, will you get your head out of your ass and fucking help?!" Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. "You''ve got your fire back, mopaaw," Yvette said, still facing the door. "How long?" "I''ve been doing better for a couple of months," he replied. "Had some support, found out some things about myself. I decided I couldn''t stand still forever. I... I didn''t move on. I know that some of them are still out there somewhere. I''ll find them, and bring them back, and if they''re dead, then I''ll resurrect them. But I''m not strong enough, not even close, so I decided to take life as it comes." "Now, I consider Iris a friend. She''s been gone for a little over a week now. Lucia told me that it was somewhat urgent, she''s been restless ever since. Will you help or not?" "You''re more trouble than you''re worth, both of you," Yvette said with a sigh, turning around, and grabbing a chair. It cracked as she did so, but at the very least, she wasn''t purposely smashing the building. "So, what happened?" "Stormbraver was attacked by Evlenor. A small team. We took them prisoner, but they detonated mana bombs and slaughtered civilians," Lucia explained, her voice cool, but shaking a little. "That''s... cruel." "It goes against wartime etiquette, yes. Me and Iris were split up, both fighting against the barbarians to the best of our ability, or at least I''d expect no less of her. But by the time the chaos had subsided, she was gone. I was waiting for her return, until Mercury decided to knock on my window at 3 in the morning." "It wasn''t that late," the mopaaw protested. "Besides, I was just worried." "Then we have to hurry," Yvette said, immediately getting up. "Pack what you need, we''re heading out right now." - - - An unlikely duo had become an unlikely trio it seems. Our heroes went on their journey once more. Yvette said that they were right in seeking her out as soon as possible. Iris and her had some shared history, one she did not like shedding much light on, even more so to avoid anyone finding out about the blood eclipses. Yet, for someone who shared an equally tragic tale, perhaps it was her duty to finally face the demons she had banished to the far reaches of her mind, and perhaps it was with these people that Yvette would break free from the shackles tying her down to tragedy. The place they had to visit was not very far from Polos. It was in the middle of the forest, where the elevation started to climb, and a big boulder had lodged itself into the ground. At the side of it, a small gap, one which would perhaps be found by playing children, who might enter it once and leave it as changed people. Yvette took the plunge with some hesitation in her step, yet Mercury and Lucia followed with none. Beneath the ground, the cavern expanded high enough for one to stand comfortably, and wide enough to pass by each other without much trouble. The tunnel was lit up by the radiance coming from Yvette''s unfurled wings, as well as a flame in Lucia''s hand, but even though light was shed, the air was tense and heavy. "Are we really-" "Shhh, the walls have ears here," Yvette whispered, shutting Mercury''s question down immediately. The cat took it without protest, deciding to quietly follow along. This place gave him the creeps, much more so than the lairs he had been in before. This place reeked of death and blood, something Mercury really had more than enough of these last couple months. Still, what was there to do but continue? Down the endless halls they went, further into the bowels of the earth, occasionally turning into some of the branching tunnels as they headed deeper and yet deeper down. Eventually, they came upon a door. Yvette knocked, and for a moment, there was silence. Then, the door spoke. "Who do beg for, at whose feet do you grovel?" "No one, open the door before I kick it in," Yvette said, her hand already on her sword. And the very next moment, Mercury suddenly felt his vision darken as the floor began to rise towards him. - - - - - - Avery was panting heavily. His skin was full of bruises, and his face was cut. There was a small crack in the glass of his goggles, and his feet felt heavy as lead, yet he remained light on his toes, keeping his distance from his opponent. He took in a couple deep breaths, stepping back and controlling the pace of the fight, as the minotaur in front of him swung its club. The oversized cow puffed out air every time the puny thing in front of it stepped back again, and Avery faced it with a smile. "Go on, you ugly bastard, get angry..." he muttered, keeping his eyes only on his opponent, his hands up and ready to guard himself. Then, he saw his chance. The bull raised the club high for a mighty swing, but Avery was too quick to be hit with something so pathetic. Any strike with that much wind-up would easily be avoided, and with but a single leap forward, his boots pierced the monster''s stomach, spilling guts to the ground. "Haaaaah..." Avery gave a long exhale, breathing heavily and feeling his lungs burn from exertion. He had stepped back a lot over the course of this fight, enough to take him out from the mar''s core. It was still dangerous to dive in deep, but he very visibly felt the improvements the last couple days had brought him. Sleeping while constantly wary, in his combat gear, and hunting his own food were only parts of that training. Certainly, he could eat some monster meats, but not all. Minotaur was tough as leather, Goblin was disgusting enough to make you retch, and troll decayed faster than you could digest it, turning to dirt in your stomach. Instead, he took to catching fish in a nearby river, the mar rarely spat out such monsters, and although the population was low due to the monsters, it was enough to feed a man. Occasionally he would supplement it with nuts, berries, and roots, which helped keep his nutrition high. Once more, Avery sighed deeply, taking a couple more steps outside, before collapsing up against a tree. His campsite had been smashed a couple days ago, and he had been sleeping in the trees. When he washed, he did it with his armor on, because risking a minotaur attacking while he was naked would be suicidal, and quite frankly, the blood on it smelled really bad. Maybe going to a mar had been a bad choice. Well, he knew it hadn''t been a good choice at any rate, but he desperately wanted to get stronger. He had occasionally gotten near the core, if he snuck past a couple of monster patrols, but never had he actually gotten close to it. That thing was guarded by a wild horde of monsters, and he got bruised badly facing even just one of them. Just thinking about what was inside of that thing sent shiver down his spine. No, he wasn''t even close to that yet. Rifts could be cleared by a team of adventurer''s on that level, but mars were a different story. They couldn''t be solved by a quick party of people, diving in and back out. They grew over time, and could build up actual monster forces, so you''d have to whittle them down, before diving in, and breaking its heart, but if you went there, the core would begin to spew out even more monsters. In most cases, mars had to be cleared multiple times to return to being doors or rifts, and even then, they''d have gained power permanently. Avery shook his head, not letting himself sink further into those thoughts. He quickly took a sip of water from his inventory. No chance he was carrying that on his person, if his filtered waterskin broke, he''d have to boil and sieve it every time he wanted a sip. That would simply take too long, so he sacrificed one of his precious slots for it. After a couple more minutes of rest, just enough time for his muscles to start aching, Avery forced himself back up from the floor, and once more began his march towards the mar. It was above his pay grade, and he couldn''t even carry all the materials he harvested here anymore, but that didn''t matter as much. Much more important was just improving himself. By now, he was able to take a couple punches from an ogre, maybe a single swing from a minotaur club, while before, something like that would have put him out of commission. His muscles were tighter than before, and underneath his combat glasses, his eyes had a certain fire to them, gleaming as he pushed himself to the brink every day. With the continued recreation of his muscle fibers, he was tempering his strength, but of course, since he was constantly healing, his natural regeneration was challenged as well, and by now, his wounds closed up quite a bit faster than before. Not nearly as fast as a troll''s, but certainly faster than they used to. If he was really honest with himself, Avery was happy. He was in pain constantly, sure, but it felt rewarding. He felt his body get lighter, even when there were blocks of lead on his feet, and he felt his heart beating more strongly, hearing the blood rush through his ears. The more time he spent near the mar, the more monstrous he became, apparently, and he wasn''t planning on stopping anytime soon. He had a city to protect, after all, and as long as those walls stood, he wouldn''t fall. Chapter 74: A Place to Meditate Chapter 74: A Place to Meditate /1st Book, Chapter 1: Panaan People were created, and sown over the planet, in a time, when the gods themselves walked among them. The many tribes split up, spreading out over the continents, to wherever it was suitable, and they brought the very earth they stood upon into their grasp; under their rule. The seeds were sown, and the harvest came. The Chapter was Pan. 1st Book, Chapter 2: Fric After the first harvest, the people ate, and were at peace, yet winter was bitter. Many died, especially of the more fickle races. Ifrits and lavids grouped together, building buzzing hives, and humans often gathered around these for warmth, with other folk finding their own, and only ice spirits roaming the land. Yet, as always, spring came, and the second seeds were sown. The dead were mourned. The fields grew, and the second harvest was stored. The Chapter was Fric. 1st Book, Chapter 3: Glut When winter came again, the Hearth gifted warmth to the people, and the frost was beaten back. Flowers blossomed, even when the air was frigid. Winter retreated, spring came, and the people were fed. The Chapter was Glut. 1st Book, Chapter 4: Sera The elves left their forest for a journey, and drank with the dwarves. They exchanged bows and axes, wood and stone. The fish people resurfaced, and met with the spirits, in hopes to build with them. Humans progressed slowly, under the smiling eyes of the Hearth and the Anvil. The Chapter was Sera. 1st Book, Chapter 5: Cohf A ploy was forming in the web, when winter came and went. Spring was quiet, silent, the flowers refusing to blossom, and the seeds sprouting late. The harvest came, thanks to the hearth, yet the beauty that had been promised was not given, and the elves seemed unhappy. The Chapter was Cohf. 1st Book, Chapter 6: Blut Fights broke out because of the Weaver. A web of lies, so intricate all was caught. The snow was red, the flowers cold, and winter never left. The Chapter was Blut. 1st Book, Chapter 7: Rul Winter did not leave for one, but the dwarves had burrowed deep. The elves and humans were welcome, the fish with the lavid, and the isyns hunted for sustenance. The ploy had drawn to a close, the web pulled everyone together, a failure, a success, a future. The Chapter was Rul. 1st Book, Chapter 8: Kal The Act''s end soon loomed, and the loom spun on, a string, given by the gods. It was to be followed, a doctrine, of moral, deciding that which was good. The fields were good, the warmth was good, life was good, and the cold was hatred. The isyns were betrayed, and when winter went, few remained. The Hearth looked on in horror, the Anvil in shock, and the harvest was ruined by their burning tears. The Chapter was Kal. 1st Book, Chapter 9: Jaxa Winter came, and stayed, and stayed, the gods tears becoming glaciers. They were beautiful, solemn, and sad, crying over the children they had lost to the string they had strung. An error, a tragedy, an empty granary, and the people went hungry. The Chapter was Jaxa. 1st Book, Chapter 10: Brac The first act drew to a close, and the gods gave gifts. Their forms fully shown to but a few, their eyes blinded, their ears deafened, their minds opened. They understood the string, the loom, the truth, the point. Sense was grasped, things rebuilt, the isyns sheltered and protected. What had been broken was being repaired, yet a pride was fractured and not easily restored. The Chapter was Brac./ The first act of all history, spanning the first ten chapters of the first book, 40 seasons, 400 pages, 4000 lines. 4000 times did the sun rise and fall, and many more will there be, as it was written down by the first one to write, Julius, the Old. - - - - - - Mercury woke up very slowly. He hadn''t dreamt of anything during this sleep, which was a rarity nowadays, and at first, it almost didn''t feel as though he was awake. The world was still just as dark, and very quiet, though when he focused a little more, he could feel himself softly being raised up and down, again and again. Very quickly, the sleep was pushed from his mind, and it felt as if he had downed multiple energy drinks at once. He could feel his heart thumping in his chest as panic tried to grasp at him. Where was he? What happened? Where were his companions? He was confused all around. But, with his mind suddenly going into overdrive, he remembered that he was probably in a difficult position. Someone had knocked him out, and he was now being catnapped. An unfavourable situation, to say the least, and thinking about it again, he did not want to be discovered. After only a moment of thought, he forced his heartrate down, taking slow, flat breaths as he fully utilised both and . He had the Skills for something like this. He wasn''t fully doomed, nor were his friends. Okay, this was manageable, just slow breaths, managing his heartrate, and once he had calmed down a little, Mercury began to listen. There were footsteps around him, and he guessed that the swaying he was experiencing might be because someone was carrying him. He could also hear very faint, muffled footsteps around himself, though he couldn''t make out what they were walking on. Very sneaky. Wasn''t this like a typical assassin thing? A creepy door that asks you a question, being knocked out and brought to their hideout only if you''re unconscious? Silent steps and no one speaking? Wait, in that case, was he being dragged off to be killed? No, no, that made no sense. Too much effort, when he had already been in the perfect position to be disposed of. This had to be different, maybe he was being taken to their hideout? That would make sense, and it also would explain why they were being so quiet. Was this supposed to happen? Why wouldn''t anyone have fucking warned him? How is it- Then, Mercury''s thoughts ended very suddenly, as he felt another impact, and his lights were turned off once again. - - - A little while later, he woke up once more, still with something covering his head. This time he also noticed that he couldn''t smell anything, at least not anything other than a hint of... was that lavender? Bruh, he hated lavender. Fucking vile piece of shit grass. Ugh. Still, he didn''t dare move at all. After once more calming down just a smidge, he tried to figure out anything about his surroundings. He wasn''t being moved anymore, and there was something solid below him. Maybe it was made from wood? It was a little hard to tell. He couldn''t get a feel for the air either, so he was unsure as to what kind of place they were in... In any case, there was definitely something working on him, beyond just having a bag over his head. Some kind of sensory blockade, which didn''t let him get much of a feel for where he was at all. He couldn''t even hear the slightest amount of noise around himself either, no steps, no breathing. Either it was fucked, or he was in a cell, but that was unclear, too. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. With that in mind, Mercury gave it a couple more tries, trying to see if he could figure out anything about where the hell he was, only to come up empty handed. It was annoying, and frustrating, to be robbed of his senses, he thought. It made him feel insecure. He could be on the floor, or in a room full of enemies, he could even be held at gunpoint and interrogated right now, and he would have no idea. It was... a strange feeling, and very anxiety inducing. But stuck in that situation, Mercury was irritated. He could do nothing but think, think, and think once again. As time went by, he didn''t quite know what to even do, the less he knew about the world around himself, the more unsettled he became, and he didn''t dare move a muscle in case someone was watching him. Hell, if there was no one, he might be on a chair, fall down, and crack his skull open. No, that was stupid. For now, all he could really do was stand still, and so, he forced himself to turn his attention inward once again. Slowly, he visualized what things were supposed to be like. His core, with the myriad of mana veins leaving from it, and the silvery liquid simply laying there, resting. It looked like a puddle of starlight, undisturbed and clean in his core, lazily drifting with no wind to speak of. Since the last time he had really looked at just the amount of it he had, there was more. Certainly, not enough to call a lake, maybe not even enough to fill a river, but a little too much to call a puddle. Maybe he could consider it a pool now? Heh, if he filled it all in one of those tiny plastic pools for children, maybe it was enough to cover the floor by now? Then again, maybe not quite. Well now, what to do with it then? For now, Mercury decided to work on his mana veins again, aiming to finally finish them up. Having to stretch them throughout his teeth was unpleasant, sure, but manageable at the very least. It felt a little like going to the dentist, though there wasn''t any pain. Well, Mercury never much minded the dentist, other than those abhorrent fees they charge. Wait. Mana veins. He had gotten sidetracked again. The modern day capitalist society should not distract him from practicing proper magic procedure and etiquette on the world he was right now! Truly, he needed to set an example young mages in education could follow. At his age, one had to be a role model. No, wait, that made him sound like a grandpa. Damn it, he''d been distracted again! Fine, just focus on the mana veins. Take the liquid starlight, force it all the way through the maze of rocky tubes, bring it up to his face, and expand them! The expansion was difficult, especially going through places with fewer nerves. It was just less familiar controlling things there, so his legs and chest had been easiest, while claws and teeth had been a chore. Especially getting the veins properly situated. Still, Mercury took his mana, started rotating it, and blasted the end of his veins with a pressurized drill, essentially. For whenever he broke through, he kept some magical energy on standby, which was still possible to control inside his body, at least with his increased willpower, and then reinforced the walls again. Like that, he fought forward, battling against his jaw, gaining distance millimeter, by millimeter. Bit by bit, he eroded back the border that had been there, and before too much time passed, he had finally broken through the last hurdle! Eureka, his mana veins were now complete! [ has levelled up! 2>] ... That''s the wrong Skill. Wait, maybe it wasn''t? Was his astral body linked to his mana veins? The two certainly seemed connected, if one levelled up right after he worked on the other. [Due to the increase in ''s level, the individual has changed.] [Your existence has become more closely realized.] [Your energy sensitivity has increased.] [ has acquired mastery.] [ has levelled up! 2>] [The individual has become able to better move through all that isn''t.] What the fuck? What just happened? Huh? are there answers to this?? [The individual has developed their by spreading throughout their entire being. The ability to channel mana throughout all of yourself allows for greater improvement speed in all aspects, as well as unique benefits, which will become clearer as time goes on. The individual is encouraged to further pursue a path such as this, if it suits them. The individual is discouraged of continuing down this road if they do not enjoy travelling.] Well, to be fair, he did get sick if he didn''t look at a road during a car drive. [The travelling aspect refers more closely to: Hiking. Exploration. Being itinerant.] The fuck does being itinerant mean? [Itinerant: travelling from place to place.] That was... something? Mercury didn''t quite know what to make of this. He didn''t see anything negative, at the very least? Like, if it was about exploration, he could manage that without getting sick, and he quite enjoyed seeing new places. This seemed like a fair path to go down, and quite frankly, he might tread it even if it wasn''t, just for the sake of curiosity. After all, there certainly were a lot of questions about it, and he wanted all of them answered. This wasn''t directed at you, . Please refrain from giving a snippy answer. In any case, Mercury felt a little more... complete. After understanding all of the notifications, he took a handful of seconds to calm himself again. Wait, how had he been able to very clearly read them, if his sight was supressed? Did this mean that the notifications were linked somehow directly to his mind? What a strange concept. Then again, that wasn''t much of a problem at all. If anything, as of right now, it was beneficial to him. The system was intrinsically linked to the world he was in as of right now, and being able to use it, even without his normal senses, was quite nifty. For now, he was still trapped in nothingness, and after musing on the system for a couple of minutes, Mercury snapped back to himself. Right, he should keep busy, this wasn''t a place to just waste away. He thought, therefore he was, or some poetic shit like that. He thought, therefore he should get off his lazy ass and start practicing some magic. With that thought in mind, Mercury began to sink into meditation again, slowly opening up his inner eye to the mana not just in his core, but also all around him. It didn''t take very long until the glimmering drops and clouds of essence were showing all around him, looking even more impressive against the background of nothing. Usually, it looked a little like someone had thrown blue glitter into the air, but against this perfect darkness, it looked like a night sky. He appreciated that. Still, no matter how pretty it was, Mercury needed to make some of that mana his own. So, he began to look at all the millions of stars, churning his ystirs for the first time in a while. He was still determined to continue collecting mana as he had done before, and thus, he reached out. With his mind, his thoughts, he began to pluck down the stars, tapping them to see how they were. Strangely enough, something about this mana felt different now. Before, any triz had felt like a tiny, tiny raindrop before. They were so small, that he sometimes had trouble even noticing when he made contact with one, but now, it felt much clearer. Rather than reaching out into the air, hoping to grab onto some of the condensed moisture, it felt like he already knew where they were, and without even touching them, he got... a feeling from them. Back in Treyno, he had decided to only absorb triz that felt right, felt pure, but now, it was easier to put it into words. Not all air was made equal, some was old, and musty, and the air next to roads always smelled of burnt gasoline, meanwhile when one was high up on a mountain, the air felt crisp, and clear. There was something similar when it came to triz, some of it felt like clean, crisp, white snow, and others felt like there was some mud in them. Mercury had never been a fan of eating yellow or brown snow, so he decided to simply stick with the stuff that seemed very nice and clean. Was this something about mana purity? Surely not, that shit was such a cliche, after all. No, only cheap, bad, mass produced, heartless stories would write about something that annoying. Certainly, this has nothing at all to do with that. Well, regardless of what exactly the muddiness of triz meant, Mercury decided to only absorb the clean ones that seemed appealing. Of course, this method was slow, and tedious, and exhausting, but he didn''t feel tired quite yet. Wait, he didn''t feel tired at all. What? Was it because of his increased wisdom? The intelligence? Something had clearly changed about him. Even using all 32 of his ystirs seemingly left him with room to think. Unbeknownst to himself, Mercury had grown. His training with runes, the experiences he had gone through in war, his travelling, searching, manipulating of mana, and all the things old Uunrahzil had taught him. He had become stronger, and his mind had grown as well. If one were to talk of it in analogies, Mercury''s mind used to be more of a toothpick. It couldn''t stir mana well, it couldn''t manipulate mana well, it wasn''t very useful for much, other than picking away at something greater. But now, after having gone through many things, Mercury was no longer using a toothpick. His mind now might be comparable to a small knife. It had a decently sharp tip, though its cutting edge was blunt, and the grip uncomfortable, and it still wasn''t something a professional would use to stir a pot, but it would do better than a toothpick for cooking. It was an improvement, and a large one at that. Mercury''s will, quick thinking, wit, and even his cleverness had been tested and tried. He had meditated on things that laid at his core, and he had grown because of it. And, at the end of it all, he was still the same old Mercury, he still wanted to cook, but the tools he brought to the table were now better. Perhaps, in time, he would be able to grow further, yet for now, he would be stuck in the darkness of his own five senses, where all he could do was to collect a couple more drops of mana. Chapter 75: Associations Chapter 75: Associations /Ah yes, necromancy. A Skill so rarely mentioned in the story of a hero, yet so popularly associated with evil. Yet, why? Perhaps because it rips the souls of unwilling participants back from beyond the grave and forces them into eternal servitude? Perhaps, but it is not all. The people of Chronagen have often been pragmatic and practical. Necromancy is tolerated if it stands by one''s side. If the soldier of the country you live in kills someone, that''s fine, as long as they''re an outsider, but if an outsider wants to get revenge, well that''s just asking to have their country destroyed, no? Necromancy is thusly seen as evil, not because the participants'' souls are forced to serve, but because it might be the soul of someone close, and because it might affect one personally. Necromancy is not frowned upon because of the general "evil" it inherently has as part of it, but rather because of the fear that oneself might someday be submitted to its effects. This, of course, is hypocrisy, and ridiculous. How are the lives of those you dislike worth less than yours? Certainly, many people might make the argument of karma, yet looking at people, that which one might call negative karma, another might call positive. Is killing in defense a good act, is conquering to feed the starving a good act? Is it moral or immoral to kill those who have little to do with a war, simply because they happen to be in a city that''s in the way? Even looking beyond our mainland countries, and beyond just our continent, perhaps we should instead infer upon the demons? There it is simply normal for them to be at war with the devils. Certainly, the two races despise each other, and if they manage to make peace it certainly won''t be until one of them has died out, yet, it is not because of the war they hate. Simply put, the reasons demons and devils could never get along is because of ideological differences. Devils like cunning deals and contracts, demons enjoy indulging in their urges firstly and tricking others as a second. This has sparked such incredible hatred over the years, all through broken deals, insulted pride, and general misdemeanor. Yet, neither demons nor devils resent each other for the actual acts they are committing on the battlefield. No matter if one has razed another''s house to the ground and incinerated their family to ash, it''s all but par for the course. The war rages on, with the flames of hatred burning bright, yet it is never the slaughter itself that feeds the fire. This is why demons usually are less apprehensive when it comes to utilizing sinister magic, such as brands, illusions, necromancy, darkness and such things. The very same that us humans have come to despise, some nations opting to simply whip slaves into shape instead of utilizing brands which force obedience. Is that more moral or not? Well, I refuse to be the judge of such. Slavery in general is, in my eyes, and those of any person with half a brain, a concept of the past, and should long have been outlawed, right alongside any and all methods of brainwashing. As my college, Dr. Acula, has made a great effort to talk on this topic before, I shall refer to his writings instead, but I can assure you that I fully support him and his views regarding said discussions./ An excerpt from "Necromancy and Morality" by Mary Sillet. - - - - - - The next time Mercury stopped his meditation, was upon being pricked by a knife. "Ah! What the hell?" he asked, opening his eyes, and once more coming face to face with only darkness. "Can you hear me?" someone else asked right back. The voice itself was unfamiliar and hoarse, its tone that of a whetstone gliding over a steel blade. It sent a slight shiver down Mercury''s spine, something eerie behind it, that despite the slightly grating sound, the person behind it was cool, collected, and barely staying on the hinges. "Nope, not at all," Mercury responded without hesitation, more to calm himself down than anything else, only to feel a sharp pain on his side a moment later. "Agh!" "I am not very patient," the voice hissed from behind the veil of darkness. "Answer properly or I''ll cut you up." Whoever was speaking, Mercury could very clearly feel that they were serious, and that he might actually die if he messed around a little too much. "Got it. What do you need?" "Why are you here?" the voice asked again, this time coming slightly from his left. "To find Iris." "Why?" "I consider her a friend," Mercury answered honestly, only to be rewarded with a shallow cut on his left flank. "Who are you?" "Mercury Rainfall Starlight, godseeker and aspiring mage." "From?" "The U.S.?" Another cut. "Yeowch! That was the truth though, what the hell?!" "Tsk. Bastard, who are the people you''re here with?" "Yvette and Lucia?" For a moment Mercury heard a small rustling sound, and then things were quiet again. "Fine, your payment has been considered adequate. Consider yourself a member. Expose us, and we''ll find you. How do you want to be taken into the room, ''client''?" They said the word client rather sharply, but it seemed as though Mercury had somehow succeeded? He was still blind though. "What are my options?" "I can carry you, or drag you there with a lead." "Can you carry the chair?" "What''s your rank?" "D right now." "I can, then," the voice said, and soon Mercury felt himself being hoisted up. After maybe a minute or two, he was then set down again, in a room that was a little warmer. Maybe the air tasted better too, but he couldn''t really tell at all. "Ah, all of you have made it, I see," Mercury heard another voice say, this one smooth and calm. "Well then, I shall hand out the cards for our new clients. Please, do take good care of them. They incinerate immediately upon being seen by anyone who isn''t part of our organisation and-" "How does that work?" Mercury asked curiously. "I WILL STRANGLE YOU IF YOU INTERRUPT ME AGAIN!! Haaaah," the voice took a deep breath before continuing in the same smooth tone from before. "Right, it will disintegrate if anyone sees it. So, keep it close, keep it safe, take care of it. I''m sure Yvette will go over the specifics once you''re out, isn''t that right, dear?" "Fine." "Thank you so very much," the person said with a quiet giggle. "Now then, you will find the cards with you upon leaving. What have you come to us for today?" Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. "I wish to know the location of Iris Belrose," Mercury heard Lucia say, confirming that indeed all three of them were in the room. Her voice seemed slightly shaky, maybe because she hadn''t talked in a while or wasn''t used to this kind of treatment. Well, she''d have to get off her high horse just this once, but up until now it didn''t seem like a big problem, so he was sure it would be fine. "What price are you willing to pay?" the smooth voice from before asked again, seeming a little closer this time. "My life," she said, resolutely, and Mercury thought he could feel the room heating up. "Well, that is a promise," the negotiator said from the dark, leaving another light giggle. "Yet, for our purposes we need people alive, as our eyes and ears, yes? Perhaps there are things only you would know to tell us, dear ''Voice of Order''?" Mercury heard Lucia grit her teeth a little, and once more the room heated up. "I will not spill the secrets of my church, not before the last drop of my blood has been spilled," she hissed. "Well, well, well, someone might need to pay up then. If there are no secrets, will you pay in blood or in coin?" Almost immediately when those words had escaped into the air, Mercury felt another chill. Something about that threat was more real than he would like, and his was ringing bells in his head. "Coin," Lucia said, through gritted teeth. The voice in the dark replied with a sigh. "The most boring of them all," it said. "Fine, a spark, then." "That is-" "And two more for the insult when you knocked," it added. "I- this goes beyond my personal fortune." "Secrets or blood," the voice asked in a whisper, and Mercury could feel the sinister smile hang in the air. "I''ll pay in secrets," he said. Things were escalating, and if he had to make a bet, this was what he would be betting on. "Speak, beast." "I am here from another place, where I have already gone through death," he said calmly, his voice threatening to shake, but being forced to sound steady. For a moment, a clap resounded through the room, followed with a laughter that sounded like a gasp for air. "Hiiiii, Hiiiiii, now that is a secret and a half! Good, good! One more secret and we may have found a deal." Mercury furrowed his brows a little, thinking of what he could say without too much danger. This didn''t seem like the kind of organisation that he wanted all his data to have. But what was there still? "... The Gloryhall in Stormbraver has a hot spring?" "..." "..." "..." "I mean, it is a secret, I was specifically told not to talk about it." "... Fine, I will count it this time. Know that your first sentence weighed more than the last, Mercury, and know that next time, you might need to bring more. Consider this a first trade in good faith of your value, and perhaps the perks you bring as an otherworlder." "Thanks." "Now then, for your query, we shall provide you with a map of where exactly Iris can be found. Would you like to protect her information in the future?" the voice asked, much friendlier now. "I would," Lucia said, "same as that of mine and Mercury. Is there any way I can give specific people free access?" "All comes with a price, priestess," the voice replied. "Your information will always be costly, even to those you trust, but simply whisper instructions to your card and we can make simple arrangements. Your information will be protected as long as your funds and contributions are high enough." "So you will sell me out if there comes a higher bidder?" "Perhaps, perhaps not. We may invest in certain people for the future as well, you see." "I don''t," Mercury said jokingly, only to feel a couple of stinging glares on himself. "Good, you will leave now then. Only contact us when you have something to pay with. You may contribute using our card, and you will have to pay if you lose it. Good day." And before any of the group had a chance to respond, the world went black once more. - - - - - - Far up north, in Evlenor. "My king, the frontlines in the plains of Kirl are barely holding, we need reinforcements," one of the generals said. It was at a round table meeting, where discussion to determine the future of the country were held. Of course, the decision was always that of king Fulthur, but his advisors had worked with him for many years, and he at least allowed them to speak their mind. "Fine, send a couple of our riders there. Tell the first prince he needs to take command there, second general Jule can take over his post," Fulthur said with a sigh. He had been rash in his decision to fight a war, yet, he was in deep, and prepared to go deeper. There was no future in the mountains, he knew that, and there was no future with diplomacy, he knew that much too. The kings of the north were usually short lived, perhaps expiring a few years past 50, but the frost always claimed them in the end. He himself was approaching 40, and already felt the weight of his years in his bones, but luckily the system alleviated some of those effects. Otherwise he might as well be a grandpa by now, hah! Then again, if not for the war his first son might already have children. Those were partly what he was fighting this battle for, because the mountains seemed to get colder every year. Perhaps some ancient spirit of ice was marching in, perhaps the winters had simply been cruel these last few years, whatever the case, they could not remain in his birthplace for the rest of their time. Simply put, there was too much trouble. The cold winters, the short summers, the ruined harvests and failed hunts... he had seen the last of his people starve, and if it was necessary he would use up every spark of life he had to carve a path through Nevarzahri. He had hoped that perhaps one of his most trusted generals might make their capital fall, but the church priestess had unfortunately destroyed the chance of that. It was almost to the point where he was considering diplomacy, but Fulthur knew it still wasn''t an option. The city council was fair to those but in Nevarzahri, but if he sought harbour in their lands? It is unlikely they would accept it. Bad blood dried slowly, after all, and there had been too much between Nevarzahri and Evlenor from the start. Perhaps he could convince one or two of those old fools, but all of them? No, that was unlikely. Never could have, they would only agree if he sacrificed the flesh and blood of his people, giving up their heritage, and all of their wealth. Maybe not even because of greed, but simply because they were short on money. After all, he knew the council was short on money, especially after that last stunt he had pulled. Still, even before the war, they had been paying debts to the Merchants'' Guild and Nobles before, though that debt would certainly have lessened over time. He never understood the fascination with nobles, either. They were an Aristocracy, why still have those sniveling weasels leech off the people? No, that was also something he couldn''t compromise on. The existence of nobles that would reign over his people in his stead was something he could not tolerate. Evlenor may not have been the largest nation, but it was one of the toughest, and imagining some soft, greedy son of a bitch telling his soldiers who to fight... the thought made him want to puke. No, he would win this war, simple as it was. "Have any new heroes arisen?" he asked into the round, looking over his advisors, those that stood by him loyally over the years. "One, Fulthur," a general to his right said. It was Eevi, a woman from the same village he was from, his childhood friend, and stubborn enough that he thought she might be able to crack a rock with her skull. "Young lass in my squad, smart and resourceful. She''s quick, fast on her feet, and deadly." "Send the lass to Kirl as well," he said. "Those plains have good earth, we need to secure them or we won''t have enough supplies." "Very well, my king!" the woman replied, snapping out a salute and retreating back a step, giving other advisors the chance to speak. For a little while longer they talked about strategy. Securing supply chains, whittling down enemy camps with nightly charges, rotating shifts, guerilla units, funding a few sellswords with what they had plundered, and making sure their mines were secure to keep the weapons flowing. It was late at night when Fulthur finally had the time to retreat back to his chambers, a large, stable tent, that was still quick to disassemble. He took a short stroll around it beforehand, quickly rubbing his face with light snow to wipe away some of the fatigue. The sky was dark, and beautiful, the many stars sparkling like the eyes of his love on the day when he met her. She was out there as well, fighting for their people. No matter what he said, she refused to leave her sons alone in the battlefield, and had made a point of personally going from one to the other, whenever she could. The first one needed little help, a strategist and warrior to his core, but the second would rather have his nose in books than anything else. Still, Fulthur had high hopes for his second son. While the boy liked to read, his soul burnt with passion for their country and their people, and the current king was certain that the second might outdo the first as a strategist. Their third was still a boy, barely twelve, yet he was a boy old enough to swing a weapon, and he practiced every single night. When practicing, he also oftentimes tried to escape, and his mother would snatch him up before he''d gone more than a dozen steps. Sometimes that instinct of her was frightening, and he pitied the boy when she decided to "politely inform" him of what he was to do. Fulthur shook his head a little, and headed into his tent, the furs keeping the heat in. He sat down on the side of his bedroll. He didn''t dare lay down yet, in fear that sleep would consume him too soon. In his old days, the fatigue of such meetings wore on him more than he would like to admit, and certainly more than he wanted to show. And thus, the king used his last moments before slumber to think once more. He thought on whether this fight was one that he should continue, and whether it was one that was worthwhile. He thought of how to continue, which locations to prioritize, which hero to send where, and also which heroes to watch out for. Perhaps they would need another development program for young recruits, having lost some promising talent in the assault on Stormbraver. He had ordered for them to escape if things were dire, yet their chance was lost when they were locked up. The old king shook his head once more. There had been too much blood spilled now. This was a war he needed to fight, a war he had to win, a war that his people depended on. He did not intend to let them down, and just as he had today, he would face all those problems tomorrow again. Head-on, stubborn, and to the best of his ability, he would do it. He would lead his people to prosperity. Chapter 76: A storied Past Chapter 76: A storied Past /To be loved by the wind is quite a wonderful thing, is it not? To be fair, it''s not very easy to achieve that status, you know? Especially if you''re a human, you know? There are some, sure, but most of those are spirit mages and contract with the sylph. Nothing like those that the wind really, likes, those spirit mages are more like leeches you''d find in the river, entirely unsuitable for the adoration that the air around us can give, you know? Ah, I don''t mean to sound elitist though! There definitely are lots of people who deserve to be liked, it''s just that leeching that blessing off someone who actually has it feels kind of like cheating, you know? It''s like when you have to do a group presentation on something, and the smart kid does all the work, and then everyone else just swipes the credit away under their noses. That''s pretty unfair, you know? Well, still, sometimes I do think that the wind is too gracious in general. Like, it feels almost as if it hands out love all willy nilly sometimes, to people that have nothing really to do with it at all. I once saw a mole with the wind''s blessing, you know? A mole! What''s a mole doing to be loved by the wind, huh? Can''t even go to the surface! Sure, if it was the earth, I get it, if it was water, maybe even that I can relate to, but the wind? Why would the wind be interested in something that spends most of its time crawling through disgusting, gross earth? Like, ew! Really makes me question why it also blessed me, you know? I''m a sylph and all, but if the wind gives its blessing to moles, does that mean I have something in common with them? Do my fingernails look like claws?! Do I roll around in the dirt too much? Eeeeeeewwww, I couldn''t even imagine living like that... Those thoughts plague me a lot nowadays, you know? It feels unfair, to suddenly have to compare myself to such a weird creature. Why can''t I be liked just for my cuteness, not for my molenesssssss.../ A rant on , spoken by a true sylph. She afterwards claimed to have had no speciesist intentions, yet researchers conducting the interview are doubtful. - - - - - - As before, Mercury woke up again after a short while, this time with his vision and smell returned. He was plonked onto the floor right in front of the door that Yvette had very rudely knocked on. The two women who were with him had woken up before, and seemed like both of them were meditating. No, wait, that wasn''t meditation... When Mercury sensed the mana between them, he could very, very clearly feel that they were... wrestling? Yvette was using her better control to hammer in on Lucia with brutal, heavy strikes of moving magic around, while Lucia went for much faster, sharper attacks, infused with her fire. "What the fuck are you guys doing?" Almost immediately, both of them opened their eyes, stood up, and patted some of the dust off their clothes. ""Absolutely nothing!!"" the women said at the same time. "I fucking hate both of you." - - - After a moment of quick catching up, Mercury actually received an explanation of what the fuck had happened. Apparently, they had gone to a ''perfectly legal'' company which ''partook in occasional trade, bartering rather peculiar goods, specifically focused on information''. Yeah, and they were named ''Black Reticence''. Yeah, sure, that sounds incredibly trustworthy, legal, and not sinister at all. Surprisingly enough though, they did actually keep their promise. When they woke up, Lucia was already carrying a map of Nevarzahri, and the surrounding countries. Apparently, by now, Iris was well on her way to a destination quite a bit from here, a little over 2 weeks. It was to a nation west of the aristocracy, a small country, run by the wealthy nobles running a Senate, which elected 2 full representatives each year. Sounded roman alright. Well, in any case, they had survived the political landscape due to their wealth and powerful trading connections, since it was a place where many caravan owners had their main place of living. Thus, they had some sort of diplomatic immunity, where fucking with them would mean that a lot of nearby countries would get pissed off and try to whack you over the head with a sword. And, apparently, in their capital, there was a small underground base of some organisation Iris had been part of. Lucia refused to go into detail about it, and the note written by Black Reticence mentioned no further details. What a pain. "Well, with that all settled, I guess that''s all you need from me," Yvette said with a frown. This had been a deeply unpleasant experience overall, and having to introduce people to Black Reticence was always a pain. She didn''t do it often, and she didn''t want to do it any more often than never. "I suppose you-" "Yeah, no, I don''t think so, actually," Mercury said. "You both aren''t telling me everything. Which is fine, really, I swear. We all have our secrets and shit. But if you''re already not telling me anything, after we needed to go to some shady organisation to get even a sliver of information, I''ll be quite honest, not eager on running into there." ""..."" "So no. Yvette, we''re not splitting up here. You''re coming along. My intuition is telling me we aren''t going for peace negotiations, so having an extra loose cannon won''t do that much harm," he said. "What do you mean loose cannon?!" "WHAT DO YOU MEAN EXTRA?!" Ah yes, the ultimate way to provoke easily provoked people. Tell them they''re easily provoked. Mercury smiled to himself, not showing even a hint on his face. "Well, I mean, yeah, no, you guys are totally safe to bring along," he stuttered, acting flustered. "Please, it''s fine Yvette, I''m sure we''ll do alright without you." "Huuuh? Oh, so now you think I''m unreliable? I''ll fucking SHOW YOU RELIABLE!!" Success. And with that, Mercury gave Lucia a small wink, and himself a smirk. Maybe those semesters of communications hadn''t been that useless after all. "We''re leaving then," Lucia said with a small sigh. She didn''t like having Yvette along for the ride, but she would do with what she had to. The mopaaw was right, they needed more firepower, and Yvette wasn''t weak by any means. Well, not weak by most means. Comparing her to something like a demon king would be slightly unfair. But on that note, the now slightly less tiny but still small party went on their way to the merchant nation of Chrysos. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. - - - - - - Zyl took a deep breath of the fresh morning air. It was crisp, and clean, and... "Why are you here?" he asked, his eyes still closed, but his brows furrowed. "Oh, but brother-" There it was. That slimy voice, that foul smell, that visage with piercing eyes. "We are brothers no more." "Zyl-" "Nor are we on a first name basis," he hissed. "Speak what you need, loud and clear, so that it may ruin my morning properly and once over, rather than tainting the blue sky grey by overstaying your welcome." "Lord guardian-" A sharp glance. "Lord Friaminth, our country humbly requests your aid in these trying times." "Oh, does it?" Zyl said, a sharpness to his tongue that would usually not be found. "Well then, *emissary* Berthorn. What do you request of me?" "A trade," the other man said. He was slightly small, of a build that would make him look frail, boyish even, but he was certainly an adult. His hair was black, not that of a raven, but an oily, slick black, its edges shimmering in the same deep green of his eyes. It was the green of a bog, of swampen vines one would see before being swallowed. "We wish for a spark of your flame-" "YOU DARE?!!" Zyl bellowed. He did not yell, or screech, or scream, but roared, his voice echoing beyond his mountain, across the city below it, ringing in the ears of all his people. "It is but a spark, surely to someone as noble as you such a thing is not much?" Berthorn asked, his tongue gliding over his lips and coating them with spit so slick it gave them a rainbow sheen. It made even the brackish green of them stand out slightly, and Zyl despised it. "Leave, before I think about it a second time." "But lord, we-" "I will not repeat myself. You will not use me, will not extort me. Tell your people to retreat, for if they move a step further towards my city I will go to lend them more than a spark, personally," Zyl said, his hands balled to fists behind his back, the sun slowly rising over the mountains in the east. "It is but a humble request, surely milord will consider it?" The slimy emissary asked once more, but doubting two threats called for action. "I have warned you," Zyl said, exhaling a hot breath of steam, flames already licking the grass beneath his feet. "And then I warned you again. If you do not disappear within three seconds, I will make you. If your soldiers take a step, I will make you. If you ask one more thing, I. Will. Make. You. Three." "But lord-" "Two." "We simply-" "One," Zyl said, the wind rising behind him. The flames that were licking his feet began to rise, over his boots and knees, his hip, waist and chest, over his shoulders, arms and fingertips, and even into his hair. He had not styled it today, yet the updraft from the heat was enough to blow any of the strands from his face. Before the second was over, he had vanished. Not even a moment later, he had appeared, and swung at Berthorns neck, and when precisely three seconds had passed, his strike would have connected. Would, if the taunting, slimy bastard had still been there. Once more, Zyl took a deep breath. He kneeled down to the grass where the swampy man had stood, running his finger through it as he channelled some stamina, raising the blades back up from where his boots had crushed them. Then, he lightly strode back to the edge he had stood, and once more breathed life into the vegetation there. "I apologize," he said, to the ground. "I wished nothing but the best for my people, and didn''t mean to cause problems to the mother of dryads. Please, accept this arrogant lord''s humble plea once more." As always, his apology was accepted, and he returned to his position with a smile, stepping lightly, so that the grass may move for him, not be moved by him. The soldiers were gone now, having disappeared at the same time as the meddling swamp-man, yet as he watched the sun rise, Zyl felt a little... shaken. Seeing someone he had once considered a brother was rough, but this time was even worse, since that snake of a man decided to also adapt the qualities of a leech, attempting to threaten and coerce him into giving away more of his spark. It was the same spiel every time, but a spark of your flame, a glimmer of your ember, a fragment of your fire. The same, at every turn, every time they came. They sought not a piece of his flame, but all of it, simply attempting to take it fragment by fragment, and when negotiations stopped working, they tried to threaten him. But as always, he stopped them, yet how many more times would he be able to? His flame was large, but missing even a few fragments threw his balance off. Not enough to be a huge pain, but it gave him a ringing in his left ear he just couldn''t get rid off. It was a chore, quite frankly, but there was no way he could earn it back. He was a guardian, not a disaster anymore. It would be unfair of him to punish the people of their nation for what their overlords had done, yet those people were but hostages to keep him at bay and his spark trapped. Even back then, he had only escaped thanks to Otto, a man he would always welcome in his house, at his table. After all, it wasn''t his brothers and sisters that had freed him, instead, those took his spark and hid it away with glee. It was Otto who broke the walls that held him, and ripped those chains. Tsk. How typical of that snake, making him recall what had happened so long ago. It left a sick taste in his mouth, like grapefruit and bog water, and he shook his head a little to get rid of it. Still, at the very least they didn''t let him forget. Otto had asked a favour. It wasn''t a huge one, either, when he came. Just simple things. To have his claws sharpened, and his skin mended again. The cracks were getting larger, and while the pain was dull, Otto didn''t particularly like his own reflection. It was part of why Zyl only used duraton mirrors, so that Otto wouldn''t have to see himself again. Zyl shook his head. That friend really deserved better. As always, he''d do his best to acquiesce his requests, and there was one more part to it. Otto had asked him to meet ''the woman'' again, and there was, of course, only one person who could fit that description. The last disaster, Lucia of pained light, was the only woman to not be afraid of Otto. Maybe because of her arrogance, but surely, it was something. So, since his friend had asked nicely, perhaps it was time for him to ask her for a meeting? He smiled at the thought. Quite frankly, he missed her too, and seeing each others'' faces again would certainly be nice. Of course, if there was anything in the way, he''d do his best to properly take care of that. "Hey everyone," he spoke, his voice making all the ones living below feel like he was talking from just next to them. "I will be off to do a friend a favour. If anything goes wrong, yell. I''ll know. Live as you usually would." And with a smile, he jumped. - - - - - - Kintra was pretty happy with her new job as a receptionist. It had been almost a chapter and a half now, and slowly, the ache in her heart was growing dull. Of course, there were always night when she thought back to the things she had had. Back to sitting on her mother''s lap, eating the cookies grandma made for summer''s first, or when her dad piggybacked her. Still, she had lost her parents some time ago, so those memories had more distance. The death of her grandpa pained her very much, more so than she would ever like to admit. He was a good man, brave, wise, and strong as well. A retired seeker, and the reason she even decided to work with them, and also the reason she was able to make it out. He fended off dozens of the creatures, slamming their mouths shut, or cutting off some limbs with his greatsword. Perhaps, if he hadn''t told her to run, she would have simply stood frozen in front of a portal and gotten her head eaten. Carnage. It was something that would stick with her forever, a memory carved so deep in her skull that she couldn''t hide from it, even in the moments she desperately wanted to. The scene of those creatures clawing their way through bloody rifts, their grotesque movements, and their shifting skin... it was horrible to think back to. Yet, it was a burden she would bear. She wanted to live. She had made friends as well. It had even been her grandpa''s last words to her, a request so honest and genuine she wouldn''t think of refusing it. Before the eclipse, there were many seekers she knew, yet after, few remained, and even fewer stayed in Treyno. Yet, when she was grieving, someone lent her company even though he didn''t know. It helped to know that someone who had gone through the same was sleeping when she cried at night, it helped to hear Mercury breathe, and it helped to see when he picked his own pieces back up in his own way. Somehow, she was proud of him as a friend, and somehow, she missed him very much. Of course, in Treyno she wasn''t lonely, there were many return customers, and she was even better friends with some parties now, yet her room was her own. The only sound keeping her company at night was now the clacking of the small gift from Mercury, and on some night her own weeping. But it was alright. No, it was hard, of course, and by no means did she always think it was fine, but she kept going. Another day awake, another night slept through, and there was a little more distance, a little more time. The pages flipped, and Kintra became able to smile more thoroughly, more genuinely, not only to some people. She found her laugh again, found joy, and found purpose. She held the legacy of all her family now, of her grandfather''s bravery and her grandmother''s kindness, of her mother''s love and her father''s sturdiness. She was Kintra Dresque, friend and home to Mercury, and legacy of her family. If the days were a battle, she would fight them, until time gave her enough space to breathe once more. After all, even heroes were only able to be heroic with a place to come back to, and for many people in Treyno, she was that place. For many friends she was that place. And those memories alone made it worth to tough out some of the nights, no matter how treacherous and cold they got. Chapter 77: A glimpse of the Past Chapter 77: A glimpse of the Past /Those who do not obey will be punished, those who do not listen will be smitten down, and those who do not care to better themselves shall be doomed for eternity. Redemption is at the core of our church, yet redemption must always be earned, never freely given, and is certainly something that requires discipline, and patience, as well as repentance. It is for that repentance that those who sin must be punished, all punishment dealt in hopes that they may realize the error in their ways and in good faith go back to the principles of order. The punishments dealt by the church are never supposed to inflict pain for no reason, never to dread those who are innocent. Much rather, it is to guide them onto the right path once more, to herd the sheep, be a guiding light, and allow them to become better. Some have called our methods harsh, and certainly, they may be in some cases and regions. The punishments are always left up to the greatest authority in the area, and some priests certainly take bigger issue with certain crimes than others. But I do believe such measures to be necessary, and such responsibility to be well shouldered by the ones who have to carry it. Our priests are, after all, naught but the hands of order, carrying it out in our world. However, never is one beyond forgiveness, no matter how heinous the crime committed. Of course, these punishments also extend to the members of the church, and any priest who is found to go against the principles of order will be stripped of their title for however long it takes for them to change. There are no exceptions to this rule, and even I myself have experienced it before. In order, we must understand that few are without sin, and even fewer will forever be as such. Our high priestess, our voice has not always been as wise as she is now, and I myself come from circumstances that once caused me to take from another. That is why the care for those who have no one else is all the more dear to my heart, and those who go against order not because of necessity, but because of greed shall be punished much more harshly than those who have little choice. After all, to uphold order, there need to be people to work together with, to accept as a large family. And if one cannot trust their family to stave off starvation or a cold grave in winter, then what use is the order we so seek to uphold?/ The fifth scroll of the series "The grand Church of Order" by bishop Nemo the eager. - - - - - - As per the usual by now, Mercury was bored during travelling. Well, less bored than when it was just him and Lucia, since with Yvette in the mix, there as a constant, bothersome tension in the air. Frankly, the two people he was travelling with didn''t see eye to eye, one judgmental of the other because of a thousand small reasons. Too loud, to quiet, weird breathing pattern, slight imperfection in clothing, food not good, didn''t gather enough wood, tent not set up properly, barbaric, the complaints were endless. If he was honest, Mercury would tell them that they were similar in a lot of ways. Anger issues, a good amount of arrogance, and even some of their views aligned, but those things only caused them to be more irritated, since they mirrored exactly the traits they didn''t like about each other. No one wanted to be arrogant or aggressive, and no one wants to be treated arrogantly or aggressively, especially those that are those two things. Of course, Mercury would never say that out loud. He may have a problem with authority, but quite frankly, with two powderkegs in a carriage with him, he had absolutely no interest in lighting a match. Instead, he gave it his very best to ignore the sparks in the air and the clear annoyance on both their faces, trying to meditate. It didn''t work. Honestly, it felt like he was constantly sitting there with a threat to his life, almost like he was sitting at a cliff, his legs dangling over it, and children playing in the area. Of course he couldn''t just close his eyes and meditate, someone might push him off and he''d fall to his death. Meditating like that was damn impossible. "Can you guys like fucking stop?" he finally asked after days of hostility, and an eternity of oppressive, angry silence. Almost immediately, two very angry eyes snapped to Mercury, seeking to lynch him right then and there. They were like hyenas in front of a carcass, like French revolutionaries while a king was approaching a guillotine. Hungry, angry, and very ready to see his head roll. But Mercury? He felt like he couldn''t even blink for the last couple hours, scared to close his eyes for even a second with those two fucking furies in the cart, and his patience had more than run out, to a point where any instinct of self-preservation failed in the face of the utter annoyance he was experiencing. "I asked really nicely, you goddamn babies. Stop behaving like 5-year-olds, and start getting your shit together. Both of you are being annoying pricks about this whole thing. You don''t need to cooperate, you don''t need to be besties, but for the love of god, stop thinking of killing each other!" "Might just fucking kill you," Yvette immediately murmured, although a little more quiet than Mercury had anticipated. For a moment it seemed like Lucia would reply in the same way, her eyes narrowing and her forehead creasing up, but after hearing Yvette, a light smile found itself on her face. This was her chance at being the better person. "I understand," she said. "I do not particularly enjoy Yvette''s presence, and I believe the feeling to be mutual, but I do believe we are overdoing things. I apologize Mercury, hopefully we can do better in the future." "Huh? What the fuck do you mean?!" Yvette lashed out like a cornered animal, not understanding why Lucia had lowered herself. But then, the dots connected in her head. "I mean, yeah, of course, you''re both right," she corrected herself, straightening her posture and lightly clearing her throat. "We should be able to cooperate and cohabitate for at least a little while." Well, if he had turned this whole thing into a battle of who could be more polite, that was probably the best result Mercury could reasonably ask for. With a little luck- "Oh~, so you have changed your mind?" Lucia taunted with little hesitation, resting her chin on the back of her hand as she gave Yvette a cocky smile. "You little-! Yes, I have," Yvette said through gritted teeth, sparks once again flying between the two. "After all, one of us has to gracefully extend a hand, and it seems like you would not be the one to take the first step." This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. "I am not?" Lucia asked, attempting to sound incredulous, but the fury in her voice was hardly stifled. "Then do perhaps inform me as to what your ''first step'' entails, dear Yvette?" "My first step is not ripping your throat out right now," Yvette said slowly, her hand on the grip of her sword. "Well, well, well, aren''t you truly kind today," Lucia said, the air between her hands flickering and shimmering, her bow halfway materialized and at the ready. "STOP IT!!" Mercury suddenly yelled, focusing their attention back on him. "I fucking swear, you guys are horrible. Can''t you just be quiet normally? What are you gonna do, break the carriage? Kill each other now, while we''re still on the way to our goal? Are both of you just going to abandon Iris, or have me drag you there when you''re half-dead and wanted criminals for killing a carriage driver?!" The two of them scarcely had a second to reply as Mercury continued his barrage. "Seriously, what are you guys thinking? Is it that hard to live together with each other even for a week or two?! Neither of you are perfect, so for the love of fuck, try to at least cooperate, there''s something at stake here, holy shit." And with that, he closed his eyes in anger, still steaming from how immature two people could even be. To be fair, if this wasn''t something important, he might''ve been standing at the side, chanting at them to fight, but were they really stupid enough not to separate work and their private life? Iris was abducted, and these two idiots really had nothing better to do than argue? With his eyes closed, Mercury didn''t even really register the silence that had once more set in. It wasn''t as oppressive or hostile as before, but more shocked. Lucia and Yvette weren''t entirely stupid, and they understood that Mercury was right, so having something so obvious shoved in their face felt a little stunning. Wow, they had really been behaving like assholes, huh? The arrogant do not mean to be arrogant, the stupid don''t mean to be stupid, it is oftentimes just ingrained into someone''s being, as was the case for Lucia and Yvette. They had always been held in the believe that they were above others, be that because of faith in oneself, or the faith of others. Both of them had struggled with drawing borders and seeing where their hostility should end, and having someone like Mercury do that for them felt strange. Quite frankly, Mercury was quite a bit older than them, but a lot of the time, it didn''t feel like that. He was oftentimes childish, silly, or playful, and it felt a little like he was their junior, so being so clearly reprimanded kind of just... struck them quiet. They weren''t arrogant enough to still hold onto their silly little feud, and they at the very least understood to listen to Mercury. After all, even if he was their junior, they still took him seriously as a friend. "..." "..." Now, the silence had turned into a bit of reflection, two children caught in a stupid fight and now awkwardly sitting in front of each other. It was awkward, and uncomfortable, and it was exactly the kind of quiet Mercury needed to finally get a good night''s rest, without needing to fear for his imminent death. - - - A couple of minutes later, Mercury opened his eyes again, only to find himself on the plains he was so familiar with, a fountain to the south, sinister mountains to the east, a citadel of fire up north, and a castle of glass in the west. A field so endless and stunningly empty that Mercury sometimes still had trouble grasping it. He was back here again, the place he went every night, one that had grown important to him over time. It was a place where time flowed a little slower, where he could practice, or rest, or think on himself. A place where he could take a bit of a breath. Honestly, he was glad old Dreamweaver wasn''t around this time, at the very least he couldn''t see the amalgamation of mana veins, and in a field this open they were hard to miss. Mercury breathed a small sigh of relief. He had been around people a lot, and he really did enjoy it, but having a little bit of quiet to himself shouldn''t do any harm. Very rarely did he need such a thing, but occasionally it was something he enjoyed. It meant that no one relied on him, no one needed anything from him, no one would ask him anything. A place he could just exist and think, something that wasn''t given if he was around people, no matter how much he liked them, because people always asked questions. In moments like these, he often thought back to his family, well, those he considered family at least. Mercury let out a sigh at the thought. Family was troubling after all, a group of people you can''t choose to be a part of or not, yet you have to rely on them for a good while, and they can simply choose to drop you at any point. He shook his head a little, trying to get rid of the bitter taste in his mouth. After all, family could also go so very well. His brother was incredibly charming. Reliable, kind, helpful, considerate... someone who would give everything for those he cared about, and honestly, a role model for Mercury. Of course, he had grown older now, and it was sometimes a little strange to think that he still had people he wanted to be like, people he admired... but of course, just because he was approaching 40 didn''t mean he would forever be the way he was now. Maybe in a year he''d be a little kinder, or in two years a little less lonely. In five years, he might have met a guy he really liked, and in a couple more, he might have started his own family. It was funny, thinking like that. For a while, Mercury let his thoughts drift in that direction, thinking of all the people he knew, all the people he missed. Those were bittersweet memories, of course, knowing that he might never see them again, but they were his memories and he would treasure them. Man, Earth really had been wild. As a kid, Mercury was so energetic and loud and obnoxious, he could scarcely believe it. Then, in his teen years was when his problem with authority figures began to come out. Shitty teachers and old people who thought they could command him around laid the seeds that would really blossom when he went to the military. His parents pressured him into going there, to really get in touch with his core Christian values, and he despised every moment of it. Instructors, sergeants, officers, marshals, and his fellow trainees, almost all of them were bastards. It had quite literally leeched all motivation he had out of him, and when he came back, college was too much of a drag to properly try. Sure, it was interesting, and he listened, retaining some of the info because of his good memory, and he also reviewed a lot of it again in his later years, but man, it was a bad time. So he dropped out after the second attempt, and his parents finally properly disowned him. For a while, Mercury had crashed at his brothers'' place, babysitting his niece and playing games with her all day. It''d helped him find some joy in life again as he searched for a job. Eventually, he did find one, recordkeeping and shit at a firm. It''d seemed boring, but doable, and in the first two years it was. Then his boss changed to a bastard so horrible he could hardly describe it. After that, Mercury had to slave away at unpaid overtime or be fired, keep doing tasks he wasn''t supposed to be doing and get chewed out for not doing it properly. He shook his head thinking back to it, and how bad a decision it had been. Fucking corporate scumbags at HR... it was a time so annoying that even his memories were blurry. With that, Mercury decided to stop his excursion down memory lane. There was not much worth reliving back there, and even less that he liked to remember. Instead, he decided to take a walk. Not like he was busy, and with his emotions now riled up, he didn''t think that he could meditate properly. Instead, he decided to head south. He liked fountains, they always shimmered nicely, and some would create rainbows in the sun. He was curious to see if this one did. Of course, he knew that he probably wouldn''t be getting any closer to the actual fountain, but still, it was, at the very least, worth a try. The feeling of the soft grass under his paws was already enough to calm his soul down a little. His body here felt more complete after really properly developing his mana veins. He could feel the sun on his back, the floor beneath his feet, he could even smell the air, fresh grass with a hint of vanilla. Had this place always been like that? Honestly, he really couldn''t remember the air smelling like anything, so either this place had changed, or he had. Maybe he was now advanced enough to be able to smell with his mana veins or something? Man, that sounded really fucking stupid. Nah, it was probably this place changing. Thinking about that, he still had no idea where this was. Old Uunrahzil also hadn''t been particularly helpful when it came to that field. Was it his mind? Or some place that was linked to his mind? Or some place he was exploring with his mind? In any case, it definitely had something to do with thinking. What a pain, what a pain. There were still so many things he wanted to find out. Well, at the very least he''d only need a bit of luck to figure things out. Time was still on his side, after all. Chapter 78: Training Chapter 78: Training /''Where there is an anvil, there must be a forge, and where there is a forge, there must be a fire'', or at the least, that is how Vhali was introduced by Lucien, an ancient historian I quite like. But I think this is one of the rare cases where he is wrong. See, if we were talking about a normal fire, perhaps he would be right. Usually, a fire can be lit and extinguished, heated, fed, and starved, as we humans please. But in the beginning, things were different. The fire had always been there, always raging underneath, always roaring in the depths of the earth. It shot out rarely, but when it did, its untamed wrath would wreak havoc. The heat would melt rock, and steel, and life, it would tear the flesh from bones, then turn the bones to ash, then melt the ash once more and continue its rampage. Vhali was the primordial heat, the second spark, the warmth and the rising sun. The second spark, the one that came right after his brother Illuhm, the light. But Vahli was raging, angry at his fate, angry at being the second, and so he tore himself in half. He sealed his wrath, his pain, his fire underneath the earth, and he gave all his warmth to the sky, where it now rests as the sun. When his temper flares up, we may be faced with heatwaves, and the hottest day of summer is when Vahli recounts his olden days, yet Vah, the sun, cares, and Li, the rage, is still chained under the earth. That is where the forge was built, where the anvil was placed. Somewhere, deep underground, the anvil on which all things are made, found Li, and tamed it. She took his wrath, his fury, his temper, and gave it a focal point, something to heat. She used it to breathe life into her creations, be those armors, weapons, or the helpers. Somewhere, deep down, she lets Li rage, and when he is done raging, she lets him cool, and hammers all the fury his flame brings with it out of her creations. Perhaps that is the biggest regret of the gods. The fact that while all of them did their best, the second spark of hate never once was hammered out of the humans that now roam Chronagen. Or perhaps, rather than that, it was always meant to be as such, a challenge we must overcome. It is not my place to say, as I am but a historian, and that is the matter of the church indeed./ An excerpt from "Of Greater Beings", by Matthew Lexicon, the stubborn historian. - - - - - - After a little while, Mercury began to meditate again, focusing on his breathing and the mana in the air around him. Given that the level of was steadily approaching the 100 mark, it was no wonder he was able to so quickly find his composure, especially when combining it with and . Using what he had learned over the course of his existence in this world, Mercury looked within himself. Into his core, the sheen of mana covering his ever expanding core. The space he could shove his mana into had grown quite a bit more than the amount of mana he actually possessed, after all, and it had even changed a little as well. The walls had grown a little smoother, and in parts of it, there seemed to be tiny patches of moss growing. Mercury assumed those were somehow linked to the growth of his mana pool, or maybe his stamina, or breath... something like that. To be fair, in games stamina was always green, so he could imagine that, but at the same time, green was the colour of plants, so it could very well be linked to as well, since plants need carbon dioxide. Or maybe this was some kind of martial arts type scenario, where he was reaching a higher state of enlightenment... He shook his head a little. No use worrying about that now, it was as it was. So long as it didn''t negatively affect him, he wouldn''t mind. Instead, the cat turned to his mana pool again, deciding to attempt once more. What was the feeling like again...? It took him a couple of minutes to really get to the nitty gritty of the Skill again. Finding the feeling of where he could send his mana out, then keeping his will attached to the tendril, share its sensation of touch and sense... If he had tried this while awake, it would''ve taken him at least a couple days, if not weeks to grasp it. No longer having a guide sure was a pain, but in this mental realm, his thoughts always seemed a little bit heightened, which is why it was the perfect place to train. And with that, Mercury simply spent the rest of his lucid time practicing some magic, slowly trying to understand and closely link himself to still attached figments of mana and magical energy, then reading and understanding their interactions with the surroundings... It felt like he was jumping through hoops a little, but well, it would allow him to actually see past corners, and maybe even through walls eventually. Then, after some time, he was thrown back out of there as always, entering into normal sleep and dreaming. - - - "AAAAAAHHHHH!!!" Mercury screamed out loud after waking up, bathed in... well, not sweat, but he felt like he would''ve been. His paw pads were sweaty, at least. "What''s wrong?!" Lucia asked, immediately poking her head into his tent. "I-... I dreamt I was in a novel full of spiders!" "..." "What?" "... Bother me again when you run into an actual problem." "I didn''t call for you! What''s with that judgmental look?! Hey, stop running away and talk to me!!" Overall, the journey went quietly. At night, Mercury would spend his time grasping at and , as well as giving the expansion of his his best shot. There was, as always, much to do, and he spent all the time he could on practice. Well, all the time he didn''t spend babysitting the two idiots he had brought along. Honestly, he wouldn''t have imagined two people could even argue that much. It would''ve even been impressive, if it weren''t so annoying. Still, the cat could very clearly tell that both of them were pulling themselves together, and at least trying not to lash out too much. Ah, the good old days when one had anger issues, truly a strange time for Mercury to remember... At night, they camped, during the day, they rode the carriage. The terrezays were tame and kind, and the carriage driver was a quiet young fellow, who enjoyed seeing the countryside and sky more so than anything else. Also, Mercury gave Lucia a short explanation on his dream, to clear up any misconceptions she may have gotten about it. Having to explain modern, male-centered literature to a medieval high-priestess sure was strange, especially when it came to more weirdly lecherous comics. Seriously, if you wanna read smut, just read smut, but why go for that half-baked shit? Mercury, himself, far preferred badass people as side characters... And so, a day was spent explaining the intricacies of the online literature scene to two, now very interested, idiots. If he ever brought them to earth, he''d show them some of the stuff he meant, and maybe also some more of the books he liked to read when he was younger. Good memories. Around three quarters of the way through their travels, they stopped in another city and restocked. There, Mercury casually mentioned some northern mythology in an inn, and surprisingly enough, it was, for once, enough to stop Yvette and Lucia from bickering. Both of them were interested. Fucking crazy, Mercury thought. Still, if some stories of Odin and his homies was enough to calm them down, Mercury was more than happy to oblige, and for the next couple time, when the hotheads flared up, he poured some ice on their parade with little tidbits of information. Just to make it clear, Lucia admired Heimskr, while Yvette liked the concept of valkyries more than she maybe should have. Mercury himself had always liked Loki quite a bit, but that was a common opinion in his days. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Well, he couldn''t really tell them more of the in depth stories. He''d been a little into mythology, since he found it much more interesting than monotheistic religions, but most of his knowledge came from videos and stuff he read online, so maybe not all of it was really accurate. Then again, did it really matter in another world? With that in mind, a couple days later, the group finally arrived at their destination, where Iris would be held, a remote, worn down watchtower, near a mar. - - - - - - Avery, on the other hand, was facing his own trouble inside a mar, though it certainly wasn''t the one Mercury was approaching. No one would be stupid enough to make a hidden location near a dangerous den full of murderous, bloodthirsty monsters, with superhuman senses and abilities. Beckham, on the other hand, did do just that, although temporarily. The last couple days had been rough, and he felt the fatigue setting in. He hadn''t slept for the last 70 hours or so, and his sight was getting blurry. He also decided that he couldn''t be picky about the water, drinking some of the marred substance to increase his potion tolerance. It worked, but it also caused dizziness, vomiting, and occasional auditory hallucinations. "All part of the process," he muttered to himself, his face unkempt but not haggard. The bags under his eyes were deep furrows, his skin more like a croak. He talked once a day, maybe less, only to keep himself entertained, and he thought that maybe he was slowly going insane. But he had grown stronger. He had spent maybe three weeks or so in the mar up until now, but he had seen incredible improvement. Higher level, a couple Skill evolutions, his stats increasing, and even his world points were raising. He was single-handedly beating back the mar, the mark of a tear on this world, and he was determined to see it through. These days he was getting closer to the center at the very least. He no longer roamed the outskirts, having taken care of all the monsters there. His equipment was maintained, somewhat, but it was hanging on almost as barely as him. The only thing in good quality was his shoes. If your weapon dulls, you die, no matter how strong your armor. The guild master knew that he could take a hit from something like a troll now, maybe even without armor if he saw it coming. But cracking monsters skulls with the bones in his feet? That was a futile endeavour. He shook his head at the simple thought. By now, his visor had more than a couple cracks in it, and his vision was constantly tinged red. There were more than a couple tears in his shirts, and his pants also were ripped in multiple places. His hair was tied back somewhat messily, and his stomach was grumbling. He hadn''t eaten in a little over a day either, because of the constant ambushes. Deeper inside the mar, there was no time for rest, only fighting. If you were in a party, sure, you could split up the watches, but Avery was alone. He didn''t have time to worry about water quality, simply needing it to keep his body cool, and now his ears rung. He didn''t have time to properly cook his meals, and had eaten a couple raw chunks of minotaur more than once. He was changing, certainly. Becoming stronger, and his skin thicker. He knew that alone, no matter how long he spent in that godforsaken place, he couldn''t clear the mar, and he was more than aware that he was pushing his limits. Soon he would return, definitely. There was not much need to go on longer. There was just need for one more step, one more bit of strength, a slight hint of the power to protect, and he was so very close to finding it. Only a couple more months and he would finally catch up to those that were ahead of him, and he would truly be able to protect the city he called home. With his resolve firm, Avery Beckham pushed himself back off the ground, grimacing at the pain in his legs. There were tons of cuts and bruises all over him, some of them covered up, some not. His eyes were pulsating with dull pain, his vision tinged red from a blood vessel that had popped. He was hearing unholy screeches in his ears because of the poisoned water he drank, and his stomach was grumbling about digesting something raw again, but Avery simply grit his teeth and stepped forward. "All part of the process," he mumbled hoarsely again, shaking off the fatigue, and placing one foot in front of the other. Then, he repeated the same motion, then once more, and then again a little faster. If anything, Avery was a man of confidence in himself, someone who rode the highs and lows of life like a surfer. Last thing he remembered was a low, one that might compete for the lowest of his life. That low was enough to spur him on, to give him the drive he needed. The soft limits of the system that were more like a deep swamp, a muddy mountain to climb during a thunderstorm, while all the elements resist you, that kind of low gave him the drive to fight back. All the elements that tried to stop him, the resistance that felt like it was constantly grinding away at his skills, it slowly faded as his steps accelerated. He felt the rush of the wind again, the hissing in his ears settling down as it was replaced with his own steps, and his vision slowly coming back into focus as adrenaline coursed through his body. He could smell them, smell something that wasn''t himself nearby. A minotaur? No, this one was different, perhaps the final hurdle for him to break through, perhaps just one more step forward. As he ran, Avery found that there was a smile on his lips, his teeth showing as he felt a swing. Things were shifting, he could feel it, as he leapt off the ground and onto a tree. Then, he jumped even higher, a frog who reached for the heavens, and with a third leap, he carried himself over the treeline. And there, he saw it. The thing that would be the last hurdle before he left. Not a boss monster, but certainly part of the original couple hundred things that left the tear. A beast that breathed white steam from its nostrils, and that stood tall enough to have its horns pierce through the canopy. It was an amalgamation of a minotaur and a mud troll, its body covered in the thick liquid, and its horns looking sharp enough to pierce right through Avery. The guild master stopped as he saw the thing, and the smile on his face grew into a grin. This was the embodiment of the wall he had faced, the roadblock in front of him, and it was the very beast he had to overcome. "Bring it on," he whispered to himself, licking his lips and launching himself at the monstrosity with a manic look, the beast''s nostrils flaring, and its red eyes turning to him. "RUUUUOOOOOOO!!!" it bellowed, its instincts immediately kicking in. This wasn''t a fly, but a monster of equal rank it was facing. Perhaps, at that moment, a similar thing was going through both of their heads, the monster''s giant fists smashing towards Avery, large enough to turn him into paste. They were thinking that this would be a hard fight. Beckham countered, steam rising off his muscles as they rippled under his skin. He crouched down for a couple of moments, just until the attack was about to hit him, and then he kicked upwards. Within the blink of an eye, Avery''s foot hit the minull''s hands, and with a sickening ''crack'' a bone snapped. The monster roared in anger, but didn''t relent, using its superior weight to push down on Avery and try to press him into the ground, but the man was having none of it. He grit his teeth, and slowly crouched down just a little, then he ground his foot into the cracked bone, hoping to break a little more, and when the beast roared in pain, he used every ounce of strength in his body to drag the attack forward with his foot, redirecting it onto the floor, and once again making the creature hit its broken bone. As Avery expected, the thing roared in pain, its eyes locking onto the puny thing that did this, yet when it met that tiny thing''s eyes, a shiver went down the minull''s spine. It was as though it looked at a cornered, rabid beast, those eyes were those of a predator, with slit pupils and a terrifying glow to them. Only moments later, using the fraction of a second that the monster was stunned, Avery jumped. He used the moment he had gained to gather up a little bit of momentum, then crashed down on the beast''s fists, and drove the broken finger against the ground once more, shattering that bone and cracking some more in its hand. But then, with superhuman strength, he pushed his leg down further, launching himself up onto the monster''s arm and then running towards its shoulder. The guild master smiled madly as he got further up, closing in on the thing''s face, but in the blink of an eye, he felt an impact on his side, and was launched against a nearby tree. He spat a little blood, looking at what could have hit him, and saw some mud left on the minull''s upper arm where he had been. Avery quickly got up, but he was heavier than before, and at least some of his ribs were cracked, and his right shoulder dislocated. He grit his teeth as he stood, half crouched, in front of the now so tall seeming monster, and stared it down. That thing was looking at him with eyes full of rage and hunger, a giant of dense muscles hidden under mud-covered fur. It was the very image of the wall he had to surpass, of the thing he needed to beat, and there was no backing down. Avery grit his teeth, biting down hard enough to shake his skull, and he activated his stamina more than he had ever done before. He took his vessel and opened all the flood gates, letting the raging energy stored all over his body escape. Instantly, he felt himself getting hot, the sweat on his body evaporating and creating a sheen of mist around himself. The blood shot into his eyes, but none of that mattered, as the vision of a predator locked onto its prey. For a simple second, his gaze made the minull flinch again, and before the thing had even a chance to react, Avery crouched down. Things were still for a moment. The man took a deep breath, sizing up the monster in front of him. He ceased being a predator, and was simply a human in front of an insurmountable adversity, in front of a monster that was so much bigger than him, and so much stronger than he could ever hope to be. But none of it mattered. When Avery breathed out, he felt his muscles burning, his body screaming in resistance as he pushed it past any limits. He pushed against the floor, and it cracked a little, and when he left the ground, he could feel a tendon in his left leg snap. Well, he only needed one of them to kick anyways. Not even a fraction of a second later, he contacted with the minull''s head, blasting through the protective layer of mud as his foot hit its fur. And then, Avery came to a dead stop, falling to the ground as gravity got to him. His eardrums had ruptured, so he couldn''t hear it, but before gravity claimed him, there was a loud crack, as the minull''s head was torn off its spine, its eyes rolled back in its head, its cheek deformed, and it fell to the ground. Yet, by the time the monster was dead, Avery''s eyes were already closed. [Level Up!] And then open once more. Chapter 79: Sinister Chapter 79: Sinister The place was old. The walls of the tower, once having stood proudly against the sun, were dilapidated, the stones that had once been stacked now laid down in piles of rubble, and the ones that still stood were shaky, eroded, and overgrown. There were smashed weapon racks around the place, as well as supply crates whose wood had began rotting by now, the food inside turned to dust. There wasn''t even much of anything left around the tower. Houses, whose thatch roofs had decayed under the weather, and been blown away by the wind, their walls fallen, no longer providing any shelter from the elements. Whoever had once lived here was long gone, their residences now little more than a couple pieces of old, dead wood in the ground, a sign of life that had once been but certainly was no more. "You sure this is the place," Mercury asked into the quiet that reigned even stronger in this place. For a moment, Yvette checked the map they had been given, and then nodded. "This is it, we''re probably supposed to find something here," she then said with a shrug, and began to rummage around the rubble. Lucia joined in wordlessly, though the expression on her face betrayed her unease. And Mercury felt it as well. Most people might just chalk it up to an eerie atmosphere that ruins such as these usually had. Ghost stories, haunted houses, and of course the fact that they could see the edge of a mar so close to this place. Yet, Mercury wasn''t quite an ordinary person anymore. Sure, his strength wasn''t as great as he would like it to be, but he was definitely more fit than in his last life. Regardless, his senses were quite impressive. He was able to see much more clearly in darkness, his sense of smell and hearing was better than when he was human, and obviously being able to sense mana like a sixth sense was incredible. In addition to all of that, he also had , which very literally gave him general information about a situation, and the Skill right now was ringing out soft, hushed warning about this place. An ebb and flow of danger, that felt almost like he was playing a game of hot and cold. The air in this place didn''t smell like nature was reclaiming it, instead it was sickly and dry, the mana feeling thing, and exhausted, almost devoid of the magical energy it usually stored. Like a sponge that had been squeezed and left to dry, it was empty, a husk. "Found something," Lucia called from the ruins of the central tower, waving both Yvette and Mercury over to take a look. "Here," she said, brushing some of the dust on the ground away, revealing a small symbol scraped into the ground. "You think someone left a hint for us?" Yvette asked, tracing it with her fingers. It was just a small line, made hastily, but it was certainly carved in recently, and with purpose. "Seems likely," Lucia said with a nod. "Perhaps Iris or Black Reticence, I cannot tell for sure." "Maybe a trap," Mercury suggested. "Only one way to find out," Yvette said with a shrug. "Lucia, if you have any idea what we''re going to be running into, please tell us right now. There won''t be another chance after, because we''ll have to break in." "... I- sigh, I suppose you''re right. I do not like to dwell on the past, but it is your lives at stake. The family which Iris is from was quite normal, and wealthy. Rich merchants with some competitors, who disliked seeing them on the rise. Those competitors hired assassins to kill the family, and Iris was abducted, something about her fighting spirit. She was raised by said assassins, until the day we met. We were both still children, but... I saw her eyes, and decided to take her in, sharing the places I had found to sleep, and the people who were kind enough to give orphans food. Ever since then, we looked out for each other. She told me little about the people she had been with before, yet when she was gone, her parents sold their entire fortune to their rivals before disappearing. Whoever was behind it is who we have to face now." "Tsk, I hate assassins. But a hideout in such a remote, desolate place does seem their style. Whelp, is everyone all set? If you don''t speak up now, I''m cracking the wards with brute force," Yvette said with a smile on her face, before cracking her knuckles. Mercury could feel his hair begin to stand up as the mana Lucia gave off rose to a higher level. "I''m ready," he said with a shrug, before facing Lucia, whose mouth was wide open. "Uh, you alright?" "Impossible... Yvette is that...?" "Aura? Yeah, it is. It''s a Skill that''s pretty hard to unlock, since you can''t get it from the shop, but I did it. Got it done a good two months or so ago," Yvette said with a confident grin. "Make sure you get a good look at it this time, because I really hope to never travel with you like this again." Lucia took a deep breath once more before she spoke again. "Hooooh, alright. I''m ready. Let''s get our friend back." Yvette gave an even bigger grin as the mana in the air around her started to burn, igniting as each triz rearranged, becoming gaseous and then lighting on fire. Slowly, she drew her blade, the mana gliding down her body in waves, somewhat fluid, yet raging and shining white, with streaks of orange woven into it. When the sword was lifted from its sheath, immediately the aura coalesced around it, taking hold of the blade, and seemingly tearing at the mana in the air around it. Within moments, Yvette was lit up blindingly, the wings she usually didn''t show emerging from her back, and being covered in glimmering light. The air around her began to tremble and shimmer, waves of heat now rising from her, and the weapon she held began to radiate light instead of reflecting it, turning from a metallic colour into a flat white, its contours almost lost amongst the mana that covered it. Then, she grasped the blade with both her hands, and the brightness flared up even more, so much so that Mercury had to cover his eyes. "You fucking bitches," she said, the grin on her face growing more manic by the minute. "If you didn''t want me to wreck your entrance, maybe you should have installed a doorbell. !" And with that, Yvette''s hands blurred, and with a flash of light, the wall in front of Yvette, as well as the floor for many meters out, were now sliced, a thin streak of nothingness carved in between two halves, revealing a now broken trapdoor in the floor of the tower. "That should take care of any wards," Yvette said, still smiling. Without anymore hesitation, she ripped the last gateway off its hinges, and jumped down the hole to the secret assassin hideout. "It also took care of my eyes," Mercury grumbled half-heartedly, before following behind both of his companions. The tunnel after the drop made few attempts at secrecy, being wide enough for three people to pass each other, and cleanly paved. Yvette quickly began dashing down its entire length. They were now on a bit of a clock, as very soon, people would come to meet them, and the further in they were, the more space to retreat they''d have. Also, she was clearly the most durable of them all, compared to some magic mopaaw and an archer. Using the scale of the tunnel, she occasionally flapped her wings to gain extra speed, putting a bit of distance between herself and her companions, who did their best to catch up. Mercury was using his mana and stamina to stay as close to Yvette as he could, while Lucia chose to stay a little more behind, her bow of light already grasped within her hands. After only a couple minutes of running, they were greeted by the first shadowy figures, as the lights in the tunnel were extinguished. Yvette reacted quickly, immediately slashing out at the darkness, forcing whoever was in front of them to draw back as Lucia used the moment to conjure up multiple arrows of bright light and shooting them into the ceiling. "They sent three people to stop us? What a fucking joke," Yvette said, clicking her tongue. Well trained assassins or not, she was an elite beyond their level. People were strong from C rank on, but Yvette was beyond that. She had placed herself well and truly into A rank, especially after acquiring aura, and smashing a couple of goons would not be much of an issue for her at this point. After the lights were back on, she quickly dashed towards one of the newcomers, dressed in dark blue clothes and carrying a long dagger, before jamming her sword into his throat. She was too fast, using her wings to gain further speed, and she was even an evolutionary tier above these people. With Yvette on the side of the tunnel, Lucia immediately grasped her chance, an arrow of light splitting the air with a hiss and nailing another one of the attackers in the shoulder. They''d attempted to dodge, and at least the attack wasn''t fatal, but they weren''t able to fully dodge, giving Mercury a chance to pounce on them. They were C rank, sure, but injured and had lost their greatest advantages. See, when assassins get seen, the battle is already over. They are trained in stealth, first and foremost, so this tunnel was disadvantageous to them, and the fact that they were easily seen took away any benefit they may have had. And with that, Mercury used a burst of power, activating his mana, stamina, and even all at once, to get a devastating slash across the wounded attacker''s throat. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. The last of them was dispatched by Yvette and Lucia together, both landing swift attacks, and within seconds, the conflict was over. "Reverse assassinated, truly tragic," Yvette scoffed. Lucia only shrugged, and they advanced through the tunnel once again, this time placing their own light continuously, with Lucia firing arrows and Yvette spawning small globes of light. They had, instead, put Mercury on recon duty, since his eyes and sense of smell were the best, and while focusing on that, he also did his best to split his mind once more, to allow himself to detect any change in the mana as well. With this new setup, they advanced more slowly, but in the tunnel, they couldn''t be overwhelmed with numbers, and they could place light sources wherever they wanted, meaning that their enemies didn''t have many opportunities to use stealth. After a couple of minutes, and Mercury noticed the mana getting thicker, but also more alien. They were moving towards the mar. "Why would they build their base below a mar...?" "No one would look there. Also means that they can pick and choose singular entrances, which they can ward off with very few people checking them, rather than having to hide them in plain sight, constantly running the risk of detection. It''s not that rare, but also not nearly common enough to go around mars looking for bases like these," Yvette explained, still ready to strike at anyone who came near. Their trek through the tunnel didn''t last too much longer however, as it opened up into a larger room a little after. It seemed a bit like a sinister mimicry of a typical guild hall, with tables and chairs, and even glasses around, but all of them were left, abandoned in a hurry. The hall was empty, with the doors leading to other rooms closed, and the light in this one dim. "Hey, Yvette?" Mercury quietly asked. "Yeah?" "You think we stand a chance at this entire guild?" "Depends on what we do. In an open, all out brawl? No shot," she said, shaking her head. "Alright, I see," Mercury whispered. "I''ll be the bait," he then said with a small wink. Yvette looked at him with a bit of confusion, checking on Lucia, who was staring at the cat with determination in her eyes. The priestess gave Mercury a nod, and drew her bow back as far as it would go, an arrow glimmering into existence between her fingers. "Fine, don''t fucking die," Yvette said, shaking her head and crouching, ready to leap forward and hack at whoever came to visit. "Yo, assassins! I''ve come to bargain!" Mercury yelled into the dim light with a smile on his face. If they attacked him, he had faith in his bodyguards, and if they actually were ready to talk with him a little, then, well, that would really not have any downsides. For a little while, the room around him remained silent, until eventually, one of the doors swung open, and someone covered top to bottom with cloth exited from it. Not an inch of their body was uncovered, and the only things Mercury could clearly make out was that they were spindly and somewhat tall. "Speak, wretch," the figure said with a hoarse voice, like the sound of gravel being ground to dust underneath a heavy roller. "Get off your high horse, bandageface. I want Iris. Iris Belrose. You bring her here, unharmed, and I''m leaving peacefully, retracing my steps out the tunnel. We won''t ever talk again, you stay the fuck out of my life. Cool?" "The one you ask for is here, yet, it is not without a price that we will give her. A life for a life, if she-" "Buddy I''m about to fucking start taking some other lives if you don''t give it up. I''m usually really quite patient and pleasant to be around, but I''ll be straight with you. When it comes to the safety of my friends, I don''t think I can hold back for very long. Hand her over, or I rampage ''till I drop dead. And let me tell you once and once only, I''ll drag as many of you fucking bitches down with me as I can," Mercury said. He ground his teeth for effects, hoping to literally any god that might hear him that his threat would work. "The wretch thinks themselves strong, yet they come bearing others. Your banner is risen upon those who run behind you, the flag hoisted up by the bodies of those you abandoned, yet this wretch seeks to save those beyond them. You are powerless, weakling, so powerless you threaten us with strength that isn''t your own, a threat which you could never even hope to realize," the figure replied, shaking while emitting a grinding noise, like fingernails on a chalkboard, which Mercury interpreted as a laugh. "You''re taking it a bit far," he said calmly, regulating his breathing. "Hah! Far? Is it not you who abandoned, not you who left behind? Those on the other world and those in this one, is it not you, wretch, who chose to move on instead of stay behind? Perhaps it is not Iris you seek but anyone, a pathetic attempt to save when you could not before, a disgraceful act to save your own pride and worth?" "That''s really not very polite of you to say," Mercury replied, his teeth grinding out of anger now. No, he knew this was a provocation. He couldn''t fall for it. Lucia and Yvette were staying quiet behind him because even though he was weak, he had their trust. He was just bait. He couldn''t make the first move. "Then, wretch, tell us who else it was that decided not to even search the rubble. Decided not to stay behind-" "Wait, this is an illusion," Mercury said, suddenly smiling. "What?! You dare call this one fake, name this one as a false image, conjured up by a simple bit of trickery?!" "Alright, cut the fucking strings on your puppet. Lucia, Yvette, blast this child of a bitch." Without hesitation, his companions acted, and within mere seconds, the puppet fell limp, its strings cut, and the illusion faded away. The room they were in was not like that of an abandoned guild hall. They had never even entered the tunnel. Instead, they now found themselves back on the surface, in front of the trapdoor, where Mercury was the first to wake up. "Lucia, Yvette, time to shake off your drowsiness, we got negotiations to do!" They were surrounded by cloaked figures, the time that had seemed like minutes in truth having passed in mere seconds. And Iris was there, among them, chains wrapped around her wrists and legs, and tears streaming down her eyes. "You guys, why...?" she asked, unable to properly formulate her thoughts, but the group wasn''t given a chance to answer. Instead, another one of the assassins stepped forth, a faceless abomination, whose mouth didn''t need to be covered as there wasn''t one. The dark blue cloak was wrapped around someone, an entity, that did not have a face at all, simply presenting a blank sheet of skin. Before it spoke, there was a grotesque sound, that of flesh being torn open right in front of them, the face of the monster being ripped apart by its own muscles, rending meat from meat, as a part of its face split open to reveal a malleable, dark red inside, covered with blood. The flesh inside the gaping chasm on its face began to writhe, and slither, a part of it extending forwards, slowly convulsing and shaping itself into a tongue. "This one humbly greets you," it said with a slimy, deep tone, giving them a deep bow at the waist. "It is my pleasure to finally meet the ones who dared to take what is ours away. Yvette Lumineux, the rising swordsmaster, Lucia, the "Voice of Order", and the speaking mopaaw." "My name''s Mercury, ugly bitch," he replied, ticked off. "Look, I''ve been real patient inside your little mind trick, so patient you almost were able to start executing us. I think it''s time you just hand over Iris and we go apart in peace." Lucia simply stared at her friend with her eyes open. Seeing that Iris was not just alive, but also seemed largely unharmed was incredible news, yet at the same time that... thing was horrifying, enough to take the words straight from her mouth. Yvette on the other hand simply stared at monster in front of them with confusion and anger on her face. "Has no one told you I hate illusions?" she hissed, her sword already in her hand, and the anger around her burning hot enough to almost activate her aura. But she held back, for now. "They have told me," the creature said, the hole in its face turning into a smile, its corners ripping open a little further. "It was a test, one to see if you were worthy of being taken in as one of ours..." The grotesque thing then licked the edges of its mouth with its tongue. There were no lips, only bits of bleeding flesh, and whatever bits of blood were stuck on those surfaces, it took back inside its own body. "I must say, "Mercury", we have been impressed with you. Fearlessness, self-restraint, and a sharp enough mind to see through an illusion so quickly. Your talent for our line of work is great, so much so that we are beginning to want it. To crave it as one of ours," It said, leaning forward further, some blood streaking down below its lips like crimson saliva. "Stop drooling you gross motherfucker. I''m not an assassin, I''m just here to get my friend back," he said, focusing on Iris again. "Ah, but the Black Ivy is ours already, and she has always been. We have let her grow on her own long enough, now it is time to pluck her and place her in a garden more suited to show off her talents," it said, turning to her. "Of course, for now, she is but a hostage," it said, face twisting into a smile again, as it plucked out one of Iris'' hairs and ate it. "Ewwwww," Mercury said, recoiling back. "What the fuck is wrong with you man? That''s so fucking gross." "Ah, a moment," the thing said, its skin rippling, and tone of voice shifting, until a moment later, it was another Iris that stood in front of her. "Maybe in this form, it is easier for you to speak to me?" it said, wearing a kind smile and tilting its head a little. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Lucia screeched, almost immediately jumping at the monster, but Yvette held her back. "It''s trying to provoke you, don''t give it what it wants," she hissed again, and Lucia''s attempts softened a little. "Hm, perhaps this is not so convenient after all. Yet, for now, it is how things shall be. If you wish for Iris back, you must give us something as well. After all, we are those who are shapeless and those who feed. There is no money that can buy us, for materials come so cheaply. No, what we need are lives, ones to grow, and Black Ivy would have given us hers and many more. What is it, that you can offer us that''s greater than that?" Silence. None of them had an answer. Yvette was a lone wolf, never associating with people under the constant threat of a blood eclipse, and Mercury couldn''t reasonably just give this monster innocent lives to feed on. Yet Lucia, she knew she had what it wanted. Her political influence was great, and there were so many believers who would follow her every word. It would be easy to set up a deal that that thing would like, but... "Don''t do it," Iris whispered. "I won''t," Lucia replied, her eyes facing the ground. She had been betrayed before, many times, and she would not perpetrate this cycle. She would not leave the ones she had brought here, and she would not give that thing the ones who trusted her. "Ah, it is so sad. It appears we must keep the Black Ivy then, and yet we also cannot let you go. Forgive our rudeness, but you must stay with us." "I decline," Mercury said. "How about something else instead. I''m willing to make a bet with you, monster." "Oh, a bet?" the thing asked, a smile that was too wide for a human face appearing on the one it worse. "You seek those with potential, right? Have you ever heard of ihn''ar?" The monster was silent, the smile wiped from its face and replaced with a stunned look. "What is that word? We can tell you are not lying, tell us what it is, TELL US WHAT IT IS!!!!" Mercury smiled at this. "Alright, I''ll bet that secret, and you bet Iris. After this, we go apart, without conflict." The things wearing Iris'' face began to lick its lips again, its face twisting into a wide smile. "What a tasty offer you make, young one. What is the bet that you want to make." "Let''s make a bet on who of us can absorb more mana in 24 hours." The thing grinned. "Deal." Chapter 80: Confidence Chapter 80: Confidence /The world of Chronagen is large. The continent of demons and devils to the west, Arterus, or the frozen wasteland Koriel in the north, where ancient ones still roam. Yet, even beyond those and the others, there is a vast sea, and we do not yet know what lies after it. And even still, with a world so large, many places seem hostile to people. Humans largely have been confined down to the continent most of us are very familiar with, Damoy. It is the place where humans live, and in some more distant regions, there are also settlements of elves and dwarves, some of them even mingling in larger human cities, or in the guardian''s nation. On Damoy, humans have made many smaller countries, and a couple of larger ones have also emerged. There are merchant nations, aristocracies, monarchies, and even city states whose governance changes every couple of years. Many of these places are interlocked in strife, competing for resources, land, trading partners, and technological advances, all in hopes of catching up to larger countries, such as Liros. Many of these parts will be elaborated on in future chapters, yet, for this humble beginning, I would like to first observe the conflicts which are currently going on, viewing them in light of socioeconomical and political differences which would promote skirmishes. Especially in the eastern parts of the Damoy, we are faced with many smaller wars going on, for example between Flinlet kingdom and the union of Jor-Mun. The union is a reclusive collective of tribes living in the deepest parts of the Mahlar forest, on the western border of Nevarzahri, and to their southwest lays Flinlet. The king of their nation has recently taken offense, when a party of hunters sent into the woods to chop down trees were attacked, and sent back after being wounded. In response, the king demanded a sacrifice via a messenger pigeon, however, the bird did not return. In future negotiations, it became clear that the union saw the bird simply as food, and discarded the message, as sacrifices were only given to gods. Ever since his message was ignored, the king of Flinlet saw it as his duty to carry out a further invasion into the forest of Mahlar, hoping to reclaim his injured honour from the tribespeople. Many small units were sent and many were lost, which eventually led the king to increase his war efforts and send in a whole battalion of knights, all equipped with the best gear their blacksmiths could make, and led by his second son, a brilliant strategist and general. Soon after, the army began showing results and establishing base camps in the territory of the Jor-Mun union, while their advances began seeing less resistance. Citizens were cut down, and the survivors retreated, sometimes before even being attacked, until one day, the second son found a village without anyone in it, ordering to take it over and have a campsite established, only to retreat to a base camp the next day and find it burnt down. The Jor-Munnans had begun to fight back in small packs of elite hunters, hiding and taking the knights down when they were not wearing their gear. They poisoned drinks and fired arrows from the shadows, and one particularly hurt knight reported a nest of insects having been flung into the camp, which then went on to aggressively attack any knights. Combat is still going on, but the union has begun fighting back against the Flinlettans, who have in turn begun to light patches of the forest on fire with magic, in an attempt to stop stealth tactics. The conflict seems to be escalating, and might draw more eyes soon./ An excerpt from the first section, "Wars", of "Nations of Damoy" by Cycilla Centr. - - - - - - "Mercury, what are you doing?" Yvette asked sharply, suspecting her former student of at least having some tricks up his sleeve. "Whoa, whoa, of course I wouldn''t be committing quite yet, we still have to set some more rules, you know," Mercury said, giving Yvette a confident nod. "We will be taking the mana percentually, of course, just to clear that up. It wouldn''t be quite fair to compare my meager reservoir to that of someone as you, right?" "I can agree to this condition," the monster said sweetly, still maintaining a kind smile. "Of course we also have to agree on how the time will be measured. Will we be flipping an hourglass? Or relying on the movement of the sun, what do you propose?" he asked, trying to reel his adversary in further with the illusion of choice. "The sun will do very well," it said, staring at the sky. "Hey, we also have to limit items used!" Yvette interrupted, to which the creature nodded as well. "That is fair," it said. "We have many resources, while you have few. We can see why it would be necessary." "Good, good. Do we also need to restrict locations?" Mercury asked, curious. By now the thing was more than hooked, and he could tell that it wouldn''t shy away from another condition. Perhaps its patience was ticking down faster after being taunted with a secret, and it had perhaps caught a glimpse of what ihn''ar was in Mercury''s mind. "Perhaps. Once we begin, we may not move from our spot. No one else must interfere either, none of your companions should feed you mana." "Ah, that''s true. Of course, since they both have larger resources, they could definitely help me out. No, none of that. This is just me and you, alright?" Mercury asked, once again giving a smile to Yvette and Lucia, before even winking at Iris. Of course, they were both shocked, with only Yvette staring at him with the knowledge that he was up to something. It had been a year since she trained him, and his mana pool hadn''t improved very much at all, it was hard for her to even notice the difference, so certainly, the mopaaw would have a card up his sleeve. "We are happy with the rules," the monster said again, before sitting down on the floor and tilting its head as it stared at Mercury, unblinking. "Me as well," the cat replied. He gave one last nod to Yvette, with a look that told her they could still fight it out even if he were to lose it, and this bet gave them better shots than nothing. And after getting her nod, and seeing her begin whispering to Lucia, Mercury laid down, his head on his paws, and closed his eyes. "I''m ready. Begin?" "We begin." And right on signal, Mercury began to absorb the mana around him. There was no chance to be picky about things anymore, he simply commanded each and every ystir he could summon to reach out and drag whatever they found into his core. He tore and grasped at every tiny shred of magic that came into his vicinity, ripping it from its place and shoving it into the gaping maw that he was, using to block out any outside interference. It didn''t matter how far along his opponent was. He was, as of right now, doing the minimum required, and he had no thoughts to waste on anything else, as he began to attempt splitting his mind in two. He didn''t get to practice it much recently, with so many problems swirling around in his head, but he had done it once before. Yet, as soon as he even attempted it, began to ring warning bells in his head. He was being monitored. Yeah, perhaps splitting his mind wasn''t a secret he needed to expose. At least for now, something like that would need to wait. He had all the time in the world, after all. A couple hours later, Mercury felt himself getting drowsy. His mind had been strained quite a bit, even without him attempting some more fanciful techniques. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. Of course, the cat embraced sleep without any hesitation, and only moments later, there he was again, on a green plains under a warm sun. In reality, the moon was already on the rise, and the sky tainted dark blue, but not here. There was a citadel of fire to the north, and a small fountain down south. To the east, mountains towered high, and to west, there was a castle of glass. And of course... ''Welcome back, young Mercury,'' he heard as soon as he woke up, facing the bizarre construct of mana veins that constituted old Dreamweaver. ''Hey old Uunrahzil. It is good to see thee again. Apologies, but I am in a bit of a hurry this time. I have made a bet to regain a companion of mine, and need to absorb as much mana as possible.'' ''Mh, this one sees. To reclaim what is lost is worthwhile. What did thee bet?'' There was a hint of curiosity, and respect towards Mercury. ''I had little to offer, and thus I bet the secret of ihn''ar,'' Mercury said dejectedly, expecting to see Dreamweaver''s anger to flare up, but nothing happened. ''You bet ihn''ar, young Mercury? Doth this mean thee have mastered it?'' there was a slight hint of amusement instead of rage, alongside the gentle patience of a teacher. ''I- no. Of course not. Are you not mad?'' ''And why would I be?'' old Dreamweaver asked with a complacent tone. ''This one hath trikko thee because of trust. If mine student bets their teachings, it must mean they doth be confident in their victory. Tell this one, young Mercury, how doth thee scheme to win?'' The cat couldn''t help but smile. ''We set a time limit,'' he said. ''24 hours, no more no less. Yet, I have the gift of time in this place, and the mana here is more dense than where our bet hath been made. They are good conditions for my victory over the monster,'' he replied, shining a thin confidence, but also worry. It was not something he could afford to lose. "Leyren. It is what thee have bet on, an amicable choice. This one will grant you a gift, not one of victory, for it is still yours to claim. But it is a gift of leyren, of patience, of time. It is one that I will not be able to reverse, and it will only grant you a few hours. Use them wisely, young one, and succeed where you wish to,'' old Uunrahzil thought, and Mercury could read once more. There was once more pride in his mentor''s mind, and an existential sense if calm that was thick enough for it to even layer onto Mercury. Then, the air around the ancient one brimmed, not with excitement or energy, but instead it seemed to... twist. Mercury could so clearly perceive things shifting, the very fabric of this reality distorting. ''Watch closely, young one. This beeth what it means to weave the lo-pac. To shift the way things are,'' old Dreamweaver explained, and Mercury could read some more. The old one was happy to be able to show off in front of their student, and there was a happiness even deeper than that one. It was the excitement of stretching after a long period of inactivity, like cracking bones, shaking off rust, yet much deeper, like the first breath of fresh air after a hundred years of staleness. It was perhaps what a dinosaur would feel after being reanimated from their fossils. "This one will grant thee a full extra day. It will make me wahk, perhaps for a little while, but it will grant thee the time you may need to compete with the faceless.'' ''What?'' Mercury asked confused. ''You know what that thing is?!'' ''Good luck young Mercury. I have faith in thee,'' Uunrahzil replied with a last smile, and then they faded, leaving behind a dream whose essence still rung with stillness, vibrating with a profound, thick energy. It was strange, but Mercury immediately knew what they had done. His time was sped up. He had, in fact, been granted a full day. The cat shook his head a little. His old master certainly seemed to have an allergy to providing full explanations. Well, next time they met, Mercury would get the answers to his questions. Leyren, Uunrahzil would probably tell him. To be patient, as always. With those worries pushed aside to a later date, Mercury began to focus again. He had been gifted with time. The perfect opportunity for him. See, he had been confident for more reasons than his extended time. Of course, having maybe around 3 days total now gave him a huge advantage, but Mercury had one more card up his sleeve. The incredible focus he had attained over 37 years of life, the ability to focus even while his thoughts drifted, and the hyperfocus he had learned during overtime hours. To be an accountant for a large firm meant extra hours, extra hours meant unpaid time, and unpaid time meant he wanted to go home fast. If Mercury had confidence in anything, it was his ability to go through a slog of focusing for much longer than his adversary. A grin formed on his face as he closed his eyes and began to feel the mana around him. Still, he wasn''t on overtime yet, and for now, he simply needed an extraordinary amount of focus. Luckily, he had more than enough practice in this world, and in another. His hobby of real time strategy games had given him the ability to focus on many things at once, and his mana practice had only furthered that trait. Mercury dove into his task with relentless confidence. He had managed his job when all he risked was getting a thorough yelling party by his shitty boss. But this time, something real important rode on his bet. For once, Mercury wanted to be reliable for someone, to make up for the disappointments he had made others suffer through before. To not be dead weight, not slow his companions down, to beat someone on his fucking playing field. All that in mind, Mercury bashed against the walls of his mind with a roar, trying to take it apart, using focus sharp enough to slice a hair to split his mind. Two of him would be the fucking least he could give. He smashed through the resistance that had stopped him before with pure determination and will alone, assisted by his . It was time to finally go past the walls that had towered over him for so long. Everything on the line, Mercury used all he had. His focus, his mind, his limitlessness, his meditation. And after only a moment, he smashed through the wall, and his mind was in two. One carrying 32 ystirs, the other none but itself. Whoa. This was... weird. It felt almost beyond description, no, not quite. Mercury couldn''t describe it, not because he lacked the words, but because he lacked the focus. His mind in two parts couldn''t think something so straightforward, it was harder to simply think, and easier to methodically divide up tasks. Such as gathering mana. See, Mercury himself felt strange. It wasn''t like two people suddenly inhabited his body, nor was there a room to decide who would take over. It was still all Mercury, all him, but he could just... think two things at once. Not like with ystirs, which simply obeyed orders, but like two fully independent ideas swirling around in his head, grasping at any thread of thought, and if he didn''t keep up, one would fall apart and he''d be back at square one. That''s why splitting ones mind, zeyj, as Yvette would later tell him it was called, was so hard. The sheer volume of processing power required an incredible amount of focus to maintain, and that focus could come nowhere but from both of his minds. To maintain zeyj, he had to think faster, and it was incredibly disorientating and fatiguing. Unfortunately, there was nothing to it but to do it, and thus, Mercury went to work. He reached out with all of his mind, at the mana in the atmosphere around him, though perhaps he couldn''t even call it that, and dragged it towards him. He simply devoured every single little piece of mana he could come across, letting new triz flow in before devouring those too. Like a bottomless hole, any bit of magic that came close to him rapidly accelerated towards his core, becoming part of the puddle he had already stored inside. And thus, an hour passed. After just that amount of time, Mercury was feeling the strain on his mind as he attempted to expand the operation even further, trying to establish ystirs with his second zeyj, watching the constructs form and break down as he tried again. The headache didn''t matter, the dizziness didn''t matter. Here, he was unmonitored, and out there, it must just seem like he was sleeping. Perhaps his companions were cursing him out. Thinking of them put a smile on Mercury''s face, and he redoubled his efforts, using to push his stamina up into his head, minimizing the effort required with , all to think just a little faster. His lungs heaved up and down, blood rushing through his body, as the pupils behind his eyelids dilated as though he was using drugs. He was so focused, using every speck of his ability, drawing out all the benefits he got from , that he didn''t even hear the system. [The individual''s will has been recognized. Initiating temporary side quest.] - [Side Quest: "Bet". Condition: win the bet. Reward: additional Main Quest slot, Skill, 1 level up. Failure penalty: decreases by 1, level decreases by 1, inventory slots decrease by 1, decreases by 10%.] - Time continued to pass as Mercury kept increasing his mana, not even sparing a thought to whatever the people outside his mind were doing. If they had faith in him or not, none of it mattered. After two hours total, his head was pounding, and after four, his mind felt like it was splitting apart once again, not in a good way. But there were still just about... what, maybe 62 hours left? He had spent 6 hours out there, and 4 in here, so there was a worse headache to come... Well, nothing to it but to do it. Mercury clenched his teeth and pushed the headache aside, keeping his minds to occupied as to even think about it. He barricaded the pain behind layers of distractions, instead directing his attention to all the thinking work he had to do. But as time went on, things started to become harder. His head hurt, and the pain started to spread throughout his astral body, even his whispering slight hints of danger into his mind. But Mercury was on a one-track road, and he was not planning to leave it. After 8 hours inside his head he was still going strong, with really proving its worth, the slog becoming harder, feeling like he had to reach through a thick mud just to get more mana, with only his own mind and that one skill left to cut through it. Perhaps in these cases, the opportunities the world granted him weren''t so bad. [ has levelled up! 10>] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] Oh fuck yeah once again!! Chapter 81: Bets End Chapter 81: Bet''s End /The dwarves of history. People say that a whole lot without knowing much of what it means. My auntie Berganra was a dwarf of history, for example. Old hag survived for more years than she could count, and we dwarves are fine at accounting. That''s also throw around a lot. "We dwarves". What''s that supposed to mean, are all of us carbon copies of each other, hm? You think we all look the same? Can''t tell a Gronbar from a Lirgrob? That''s called being a racist, piece of shit. And also, there seems to be a misconception that we''re all midgets, which is bullshit as well. Look, I, as a dwarf, am sick of this. Let''s set things straight. The dwarves of history are old bastards who think tradition goes above everything, yet the tradition they come up with is stupid, ''cause they got dementia. We stick them into retirement homes. Most of the people making actual rules in dwarven society are well under their 400s, so really, thinking that all of us are just sticking to tradition is dumb. If you only hear the stories we tell as jokes and believe them, we don''t wanna see your idiot head around these places. See, us dwarves, we''re an innovative folk actually. Most of us are different, though we share similarities. Our beard hair acts like a filter, not allowing stone dust into our lungs, so our miner''s don''t have the luxury of shaving ''em. And most of us like to mine. Most others like to craft. But what defines us most isn''t our passions, because people like different shit and that''s fine. What most of us have in common is patience and dedication. We finish what we started. We put the time needed into construction, art, mining, trading, and whatever. If you made friends with a dwarf, you''ll be lifelong buddies, and if you start a fight, it''ll be seen through until you give up, because our heads are hard as rock. Just take the loss, drink a pint, and be on your way. Finally, ancient dwarves are small, sure. Can''t walk upright anymore, ''cause of their bad backs. But most of us are around 1.60, some taller and some smaller. Our average height is only a little smaller than ye human and knife ears'', so stop looking down on all us just because we live underground. Racists!/ "Clearing up Misconceptions about Dwarves!" by Fingir Inkwraith, dwarven artisan, artist, and writer. - - - - - - [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same, no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. 4. 5. ] Well, as per the usual, would make its appearance in the depths of unknowing. [: Upon engaging a state of focus, the individual''s thoughts begin to accelerate, seeming as though time were passing more slowly around them. This increases the drain on mental stamina, however, and cannot usually be maintained for long stretches of time. It may lead to even faster thought processing in the future.] Hm. It sounded good, but not quite good enough, really. Sure, being given more time would be great, but increasing the drain on his stamina? He didn''t know if he could stomach it... [: This passive Skill will permanently, and at all times, increase the user''s capacity to intake, comprehend, and memorize new information. All mental processes will take less time and be less draining, albeit only slightly. It also removes the option of actively engaging heightened focus to any degree other than the basic Skill.] This one seemed like an upgrade all across the board. Faster thinking, easier time learning, could have some synergy with , too. But not being able to increase the active part of the Skill until probably the next evolution? A big downside that Mercury would rather avoid. Well, time to move on, then. [: A Skill which perfectly supports , allowing the individual to have a much easier time engaging in two different activities. It eases the splitting of the mind, and allows both parts to work better individually and in cooperation.] While this one didn''t outright state any negatives, it also didn''t tell him many positives. Honestly, if it didn''t improve his focus at all, but instead just improved his capacity for doing multiple things, that didn''t seem like as much bang for his buck as he was hoping for. Surely, something to consider, but if this was what he would settle on, it would be begrudgingly. [: Unlocked through the individual''s particular tenacity, this Skill allows for greater focus when activated and passively in effect. Additionally, it gives the user enhanced perception from their astral body, and allows for greater ease when interacting with mana outside their physical circumference. Yet, its main point is to expand the mental stamina of the individual by many times, allowing them to stay focused for much longer and increasing their capacity to pick up new things for the same duration. In the future, this Skill seems promising.] Was getting more self aware again? Well, no matter. This was most likely the Skill he''d land on. By now, his head was reaching its limits, and although he would push himself to the brink wherever possible, there was only so much could do. Still, there was one more to check. [: This Skill permanently splits the individual''s mind in two. Both of these parts can develop on their own, as one will control the body while the other will be able to do only mental tasks.] Yeah, no. Given the difficulty of splitting his mind, that one was attractive, sure, but really, them developing individually? No. That seemed excessive. Maybe his own mind would feel trapped by himself, screeching at him to let it out, or develop some complexes. Or maybe they couldn''t even communicate, and he would be left with someone just being stuck in his head. Or the control could be swapped, and he might be taken over by... himself? Too dangerous, too unknown. , pretty please. [Evolution selected.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] The effect was immediately noticeable. Mercury''s head which he might have thought was about to split before felt... lighter. Not light by any means, it still felt like he was balancing a stack of rocks on his head, yet at the very least, he wasn''t about to crack anymore. The cat smiled as he noticed the effect. This was perhaps enough for him to keep this up. After the moment''s break, Mercury closed his eyes again. The mana around him had been left alone for a couple of minutes, and that by itself was perhaps already enough. Once again, with his zeyj and ystirs, gripping all the mana that was around him and dragging it in with all his force. He visualized it to make it a little easier, using some capacity to imagine himself as the center of a whirlpool, something of a black hole, willing the mana to fall towards him as he reached out, grabbed it and like a glutton stuffed all of it within his core. His breath was quick and deep, supplying his mind with as much oxygen as he could, or perhaps that by itself was just an illusion. This was his astral body, after all. Did it need air? No matter. It helped him focus, and so his lungs heaved, the stamina rushing through him as he supplied every smidge of energy he could to thinking. That was all that mattered, all that he needed was to win this bet. He could not owe Dreamweaver another debt, he didn''t want to give up anything. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. It was greedy. He knew that much, he was certain of it, yet that was of no consequence. He was never noble, he never did things for the sake of another. After all, this was for his happiness, for the things he didn''t want to lose, didn''t want to give up. As he thought those things, a smile snuck itself onto Mercury''s face through the aches. He had so little room for thought, yet he knew his unconscious swirled around with emotion. He was afraid of losing again, he was happy to have made progress, he felt a rush of adrenaline from the debt, and a mounting pressure to succeed. The way he thought about it, telling himself it was selfish, certainly wouldn''t be seen like that by others. Yet that didn''t matter. To him it was selfish. This was for himself, and that was why he could lay everything he had down. There was no way he would risk something like this secret for someone else, purely for himself. Mercury knew that he was greedy, he had always been. Greedy for attention, for love, for money, for respect, for freedom. And now, he was greedy for friends, and that resulted in greed for mana. He would take it all, every little drop of mana there was, until the point his head split and he won the bet. With a pained smirk, the hours passed. First only a couple, then a handful, then a dozen, when his head began threatening to split again. But the cat didn''t stop, refusing to let go of what he wished for, refusing to give up even the slightest bit of mana, all to win that bet. After a total of 32 hours, Mercury had to admit that things were not looking great for him. He still needed to rest occasionally, but not yet. He could rest after this whole thing was over. There were another 40 hours to go, and proper sleep could wait. Well, his brain in the outside was resting anyways, the lazy bum. Perhaps he could use it to think as well? No, that would wake him up, and cost him the extra time he had been gifted. Slowly, Mercury shook his head, smothering his thoughts with as he tossed himself deeper and deeper into absorbing mana. Another hour, another dozen hours. No rest for 44 hours, and his mind was beginning to slip from his grasp. As the symptoms appeared, mercury grit his teeth as hard as he could. The warning bells in his head were ringing, his telling him he was taking it to far, yet with , Mercury pushed himself just that step further. Once again, he was in a situation where he wanted to go just that extra mile, just that bit beyond. And then, when he had walked a step more than what was safe, he wanted to take another one, battling with every second, every moment, and every triz he reached out to. There was no way he could falter now, he had just barely made it across the halfway mark, and there was still so much time left for him to go on. No, there was no option to lose. Not even a moment to consider pulling back. As Mercury continued to pull in more mana, all he could see was a path forward. Taking a step back now was the same as giving himself up, and this was one time he could not afford to do so. Perhaps there was one thing that he could still do to pump up his mana and mental stamina... Intelligence: 53 -> 87 Instantly, Mercury felt the mana flooding his core, and his mental stamina refilling just a little. 170 extra points, now that was a big chunk. Once again, Mercury bought himself another bit of forward momentum, refusing to let it die yet. Without hesitation, he threw himself back into the effort, enduring as best as he could for another half day. It had been 56 hours in total. Then, eventually, Mercury made it past the 60 mark. With a smile, he embraced the final stretch, redoubling his efforts, disregarding the pulsating waves of pain and pressure throughout his body. He didn''t retreat, didn''t take a single step back, and eventually, the time had passed. His eyes on the outside opened and he felt... light. Incredibly light. Of course, his brain had been resting, but still, this felt strange. Perhaps it was because his mind finally went to sleep, but even though he felt light, his thoughts felt more muddled than usually. He felt drowsy, but even more than normally after waking up. As soon as he opened his eyes, Mercury pushed himself up and stretched his back, feeling his spine crack a little. "Aaaah, it feels good to be back," he said, wearing a self-gratifying smile. He had done everything he could, and now all that was left was to see if it had been enough. All the pressure faded, and he knew it more than well, since the face-stealing bastard in Iris'' skin was also standing already. "We have finished," it said. "Yeah yeah, give me a minute," Mercury said, before letting out a deep yawn. "Man, this sure went a little far for me man. Fuck. Seriously, I dunno if I could''ve gone on any longer." "You slept," Lucia hissed at Mercury as soon as he turned around, causing the cat to flinch. "Mercury, you bet the life of a friend for a stupid word, and then went to bed, are you in your right goddamn mind?" He could see that his companion already gripped her sword, her expression furious. For a moment, he looked around, seeing Lucia and Iris simply sitting without any hope. "Oh, shit, whoa, you guys. Man, I must''ve worried you. Don''t worry, I can think faster when asleep, wakes my mind instead of my brain," he said, giving them a crooked smile. "I just decided that it was more efficient, since this way, I wouldn''t actually need a break to sleep." "We have heard enough. Simply state your progress," the monster said, twisting Iris'' kind smile into a sinister one. "Ah, yeah. Right. Can I prove this somehow? Yo, system, any way I can pull up my old stats?" Almost immediately, a panel, visible to everyone present, appeared in the air. [Mp: 325 -> 632] "Ah, I believe that''s a good 95% or so? What did you guys get?" Mercury asked, looking around to find jaws that had hit the floor. "Guys? What''s going on?" "Impossible..." the monster said. "This is... simply impossible. How did you do it? Why was your mana before so low? What is this trickery?!" The thing huffed as it spoke, its flesh beginning to deform slightly. "Whoa there, buddy, that''s a step too close," Mercury replied calmly, while retreating a little. "I just used everything I had available to me. Nothing more, nothing less." "In... In a single day?" Yvette stuttered looking at the numbers. "Ah, yeah. Look, I can go into more detail later when we''re riding back. Not gonna reveal the secrets of my mana gathering method to an enemy." "We- This! Hrm, it is difficult to accept such a loss. We have only managed an increase of 20%. But we have watched you during this entire ordeal and could not detect any special tampering. No outside influences acted upon you. There is nothing to do but gracefully accept- what is that noise?" "Hey, stop distracting and hand over Iris. We won fairly!" Yvette said, moving closer to them with her sword drawn. "Ah, yes, it must have been my imagination," the thing replied, giving a small bow. "We respect this loss," it said, and with a wave of its hands, Iris was unshackled and handed over, immediately running into a hug with Lucia. "Mopaaw," the thing continued, "we-" "Zip it," Mercury said, his ears twitching. "First of all, my name is Mercury. Second, I won fairly, so piss off. Third, I do not care who you are or what kind of revenge you swear upon me. I don''t give a fuck about you, or your problems and- seriously what the fuck is that sound?" When the cat pointed it out as well, slowly but surely, gazes were slowly raised to the sky, where after a couple moments, everyone could clearly see... something approaching. "What the hell...?" Yvette muttered to herself, before quickly snatching up Mercury and standing besides the other women as her aura flared to meet the thing in the sky. "AAAH, HOW DARE YOU?! LET ME DOWN THIS INSTANCE VILE-!" Mercury screeched immediately, only to have his complaining drowned out by the growing hissing in the sky. Before he even had a chance to wring himself from Lucia''s grip, the earth shook as something crashed down, making his very skull ring and throwing up a thick cloud of dust, as the remains of the watchtower turned into nothing but a pile of rubble. "Hey, can everyone hear me? I came down a little harder than expected, sorry if any clothes got dirty," a man called out from the middle of a crater. His voice was dull from the ringing in the cat''s ears, and Mercury could see him wave his hand in a poor attempt to clear the smoke. "Why is everyone so quiet? Did I come at a bad time?" "Fucking let me- Yeah, you did," Mercury said, after fighting his way back to the ground, his hearing recovering bit by bit. "We''re kinda in the middle of something." "Ah, that''s unfortunate. Sorry, but I promised to smash through any obstacles in my way, so please finish it up quickly or I''ll have to intervene," the man continued, and as the dust began to settle, Mercury could start making out his features. Was that... red hair? "What are you doing here?!" Lucia suddenly shouted, hiding Iris behind her. "Hm? Oh, just delivering a message. Otto asked to meet up again, Lucia. How about it, you got time right now?" Mercury could begin to fully see the guy now. His skin was pale, and his hair fire red, looking a little tacky as it was partially gelled back. He wore high, white boots, and straight pants, akin to what one would wear with a suit, except his torso was covered by a loose, long sleeved, and equally white shirt, though it was a little dusty. He even wore white gloves. All of it would have seemed tacky to Mercury, if the guy didn''t have the looks to back it. It was perhaps the most handsome, dreamy man he had ever seen, and if he were still human, his cheeks would''ve flushed red. "Zyl, you could have written a message..." Lucia said, not even having the chance to fully enjoy her reunion. "You seemed in trouble, so I came as quickly as possible..." he said a little dejectedly, focusing his eyes on the skin-stealer that had been there before, yet they had already disappeared by now. "Well, it seems like I harmed the floor for no good reason. I''ll take care to fix it, apologies. Take as much space as you need." "Lucia, you know this guy?" Mercury asked, trying to sound as casual as one could after having witnessed a man drop from the sky. "Yes, I have the displeasure of doing so. He''s a rash, impatient man, with little ability to read the room. He''s-" "I can very well introduce myself," the rash, impatient man fittingly interrupted. "My name is Zyl. I''m a long time friend of Lucia''s. According to my titles, I''m also one of the three walking disasters, but I''d disagree," he said, before kneeling down and working on fixing the grass. At the same time, Yvette''s jaw, once again, opened up wide, and she simply began stuttering. "My name''s Mercury, pleasure meeting you. Though as another one of Lucia''s friends, I''d have to ask you to give her a moment to reunite with Iris. They haven''t seen each other in a while, you probably know how they are," Mercury said. "Why don''t we just chat in some other ruins to give them some time to catch up?" "Certainly," Zyl replied with a smile as he patted down his clothes. "Want to explain what happened here?" "Sure, we''ll get to things." Chapter 82: Return Chapter 82: Return "So yeah, I won the bet." "That''s quite impressive. You almost doubled your mana pool in one day?" "Hm? Haha, no, no, I cheated. No reason to lie about it, I totally fucking cheated. I got a lot of mana just from investing my leftover attribute points, and then a bunch more from having like three days of time," Mercury said, chuckling. "Are you sure you should be telling me this?" Zyl asked, raising an eyebrow. "People close themselves off if you''re never honest with them," Mercury shrugged. "Besides, if you''re friends with Lucia, you''re probably only 90% maniac, I can deal with that much," he said with a smile, waving off the other guy''s concern. "Well then, how exactly did you get extra time? And what is that thing you bet?" "Some whacky dream realm shit. Got an alright friend there, they lent me a hand with buying some time," Mercury explained. "My bet was also related to them. Neat little trick they taught me. Thought that someone who can change the way they look might be into secrets. Educated guess, no more, no less." Zyl shook his head a little at the mopaaw before him. What a strange person he was. "Well then, Mercury, can I ask you one more thing?" "Hit me." "How is it that you''re 37? Mopaaws live to be 20 at most, usually," he said, throwing another curious look at the cat. "Ah, had another life before this one. Eventually bit the dust, and found myself waking up like this on a bit of a mountain." "I see. Interesting indeed. And what do you think of this?" Zyl asked again. "What exactly do you mean?" "About your current state. As a mopaaw, I mean. It seems... a strange position to be in." "Eh, you get used to it," Mercury said. "Of course it took some adjusting, but instincts really help figure things out. My brain was also probably rewired a little on the journey, so it hasn''t been too bad an adjustment period. Really missed my hands, but now I got some telekinetic shit going on, so things are starting to look up," he said with a smile. "Still, enough about me. I''ve been rambling for long enough. Tell me a bit about yourself? Would love to get to know you a bit more if we''re going to be travelling together for a little while." "Lucia hasn''t told you anything about me?" "Nope," Mercury said calmly. "And you have never heard of me before either?" "Should I?" Mercury tilted his head. For a moment, Zyl sat there in silence, before quietly chuckling. "Kokoko, no, it''s fine. Don''t worry about it. My name''s Zylnareth, but you should probably stick to just Zyl. I like nature, fearless people, and also working out. I hate complicated politics, and don''t react well to when people threaten my country," he explained. "Wait, you run a country?!" Mercury asked, his mouth dropping open. "Well, kind of. I''m more just a guy who stops them from being attacked, and occasionally I deal with politics, trade routes and that kind of stuff," Zyl said, trying to wave it off. "So you run a country?" No, I-" "Yeah, he runs a country," Yvette interrupted the two. "We''re about ready to set off now. The reunion is over and done with, well, as much as it''s going to be in the next couple hours anyways." "Ah, perfect, we can head towards Unbar then," Zyl said. "We are not on a holiday, Zyl. I do not have the time, nor the nerves to indulge your incessant prattling," Lucia hissed at him, still tightly clinging onto Iris. "Sigh, come on Lucia. It''s been a while since we all met. Could you-" "I could not," she replied, raising her nose. "He''ll get you two a separate carriage to catch up," Mercury said half-heartedly. "To Unbar we go!" Zyl looked back and forth between the cat and his childhood friend with a stunned expression, before laying his forehead into his hand and shaking his head. "Unbelievable, Mercury." "It comes with the territory," the mopaaw replied with a calm smile, doing his best to hide his excitement about the current situation and the slight blush on his cheeks. "Ah, of course, any of you will safely be brought to wherever it is you need to go. Yvette, Mercury? Where would you like to leave?" If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. "Unbar," Mercury replied with a glimmer in his eye. "That is the destination, yes," Zyl replied. "Yup, that''s where I want to hop off." "Are you asking to join us?" Lucia asked in confusion. "Absolutely," Mercury nodded. "I also want to catch up with Iris, after all, and I doubt you''ll leave her side over the duration of the journey." Almost as if to confirm his suspicion, Lucia pulled the other girl even closer and shook her head vehemently. "Thank you, Mercury," Iris said with a tired look on her face. "Hey, no sweat. I really didn''t do much." "Your feat was more than impressive," Lucia said, placing her eyes back on him. "Oh, I cheated," Mercury replied calmly. "Another reason for me to come with, isn''t it?" he asked, wearing a smile. "Haaah, fine. I will not object, so please, go on and use your honeyed words on Zylnareth instead," Lucia said with a slightly sour expression. "Fine by me," the man in question agreed. "He can come along then. Miss Yvette?" "Ah, I can make my way back myself," she replied. "No need to trouble yourself." In reality, Mercury would almost certainly bet money on her not wanting to be in a carriage with Zyl. Well, all the better for him, then. No more bickering between her and Lucia. Perhaps, finally, Mercury would be gifted a quiet night. "Are you sure?" "More than that. I''ve done more than what I needed to, and I can confidently consider my debts settled," she said. "Then pay me for emotional damages," Mercury interjected, leading Lucia to flinch. "Haha, well, I''ll be taking my leave then," she said, quickly bowing before running off. Once again, Mercury''s master plan had worked. Now he would have all the time in the world to get to know Zyl! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! "Ah, by the way, what''s Unbar?" he asked. "The capital of Zyl''s little protected nation." - - - - - - As one other time before, the door in Stormbraver''s gloryhall opened up a small gap, before closing. Many would have missed it, and most did, not due to a lack of ability, but more because the present seekers were already beyond piss-drunk. Not the receptionists though. Marcel found himself wearing a slight smile as he plugged his fingers into his ears, waiting for what could only be seconds from happening. And, not one to disappoint, Avery did it again. With a loud cracking sound, the door the the guild flew open, off its hinges, and onto the floor with a giant crack down the middle. Then, there was a short silence, and then a commotion broke out. "THE GUILDMASTER IS BACK!!!" "WOOOOOOO!!" "I''M BUYING EVERYONE A ROUND, IT''S TIME TO DRINK!!!" Yells and cheers echoed through the gloryhall for a moment, as a figure, drenched in mud, and dripping wet with water stepped inside, making his way to the reception desk with a smile. "You smell like shit," Marcel told his friend and boss with a grin. "It''s good to see you again as well, my man," Avery replied with an even bigger grin, flashing his teeth, one of the few parts of his body not covered in mud. "So, what dragged you through a barrel of wet dogs, old man?" "Kah, I missed you too, asshole. Long story. Most of this happened on the journey back, but rivers near a mar aren''t exactly the best place to bathe," he said, his smile going a bit crooked. "If it''s a long story, boss, maybe you could tell us after a long shower?" one of the other receptionists said, holding her shirt over her mouth. "Kahaha, alright, alright. Someone get me a hot meal and something to drink before I come back up. Haven''t had anything good to eat in days," he said, already waving goodbye. "You got it, sir captain guildmaster boss sir!" Marcel replied sternly, giving him a salute as he went. "Sigh, what was he thinking. Alright, anyone who isn''t hammered yet, we need to take care of the dirt he dragged in, and then we need to get someone ready to fix our door." "What, is it bothering you?" another coworker teased, hitting him in the side with her elbow. "And you guys wonder why we get new recruits. Just clean the floor, I''ll see if I can''t contact the Carpenter''s Guild, and grab him some food while I''m at it," Marcel said, already walking out the building. Avery, on the other hand, walked down to the showers. He took off his shoes as soon as he got to the staircase and threw them into his inventory for now. After a quick trip up, and grabbing some new things to wear, he then finally went to the cellar, where the showers were already waiting for him. After dragging himself out of the armor, he felt almost free. It already wasn''t comfortable, but wearing it for multiple days had started to make it rub at his skin. Some of the nooks on it were still covered in dried mud or monster blood, making it even more uncomfortable to move around in, but as the hot water hit his head, some of those worries finally began to wash away. He was back home. Finally. Where he could wash up, relax a little, and engage in exciting battles with paperwork rather than monsters. The thought made him shudder again. Maybe that kind of stuff could wait. Still, being able to just lay back was nice... And so, Avery decided to empty his thoughts for a little while, deciding to simply enjoy the pattering of the water, seeing some of the caked dirt fall off him and down the drain. He put some shampoo and showering gel on, before washing it off, just to really get rid of the stench. Then, for a little while longer, he just enjoyed the hot water, making sure to properly clean himself up, before finally leaving the shower, drying himself off, shaving, and putting on some light clothes. He felt like a whole new guy. With a light smile on his face and some spring in his step, Avery walked back up the stairs of the gloryhall. He knew the members of his guild, seekers like him, were waiting upstairs. Friends he had known for a long time, and ones he would want to catch up with. Yet, when he opened the door, his eyes widened in shock. "You motherfuckers!! How are all of you already passed out?!?" he yelled, enciting some groans from the sacks of meat on the floor of the gloryhall. "People partied hard while you cleaned up. It''s been an hour and a half. People kept ordering heavy drinks, and now here we are. Floor''s got vomit spilled on it, too," Marcel said, deadpan. "Piece of- seriously, they couldn''t even wait for me?" Avery asked with a disgruntled look on his face. "No, they couldn''t. I''ve got you a meal and something to drink though. Doesn''t a nice conversation, surrounded by passed out idiots, sound charming to you?" There was quite a bit of sarcasm in Marcel''s voice, his expression seemingly dripping with satisfaction at Avery''s small loss. The guild master let out a long sigh, brushing through his dreadlocks, as he tip-toed through his own gloryhall. "Unbelievable..." he muttered, looking at all the pissed idiots on the floor and slumped over the chairs, yet eventually, after going through some difficult parkour, he finally made it to the singular empty table. As soon as he took a seat, Marcel plonked himself down on the other end, heavily hitting a bottle of booze onto the wood. "How about we do a little talking, old man," he asked with a smile. "Fine, you bastard. What''s been up while I was out?" Avery asked with an amused frown, already expecting the tirade of insults and verbal jab''s he''d have to endure for his prolonged absence. "Well, while you were busy childishly running away, I..." And off it went. Chapter 83: Catching up Chapter 83: Catching up /As I said before, there are many guilds, and one of the most commonly found ones would be the Blacksmith''s Union. These fine folk are one of the very most widespread and influential guilds on all of Chronagen. Why, you may ask yourself? Quite frankly, it is a service everyone needs. Some places are self-sufficient and trade little, others consider themselves pacifists, rarely hiring mercenaries or monster hunters. Rural villages don''t often need a seeker to swing by and close an arch, but a blacksmith is always needed. Carpenters need nails, farmers need blades for their ploughs, and while ferriers often adjust horseshoes on the fly, many blacksmiths offer a similar service. Cities cannot be built without them, tools cannot be maintained, and without a blacksmith, most daily tasks become exponentially harder. The handle of a bucket, the nails holding houses together, the knives in a kitchen, the armor and weapons of soldiers, the arrowtips of hunters. Blacksmiths are, have, and always will be a staple of any civilisation. Now, that is enough to justify the craft of smithing to be widespread, yet, how would these magnificent masters of metallurgy attain any standing within society? Simple, pure, craftsmanship. No novice can forge cold iron, or shape more exotic material, such as dragon''s teeth. Masterful blacksmiths are those who have reached the zenith, the very top of the craft, able to shape any material, be they as magical, sturdy, or unwilling as they want, and make them into a weapon so fine many would spend their entire fortune and not catch a glimpse of even the pricetag. These craftsmen are rare, and valuable. Their creations can shape history and turn whole countries upside down. No matter how fine a warrior, if they are holding a simple rod of iron, they will not be able to stand up to a novice with a sword of orichalcum alloy. Holding a weapon that serves not even as a barrier, and wearing armor that may as well be paper, the battle would not be nearly as one sided as it should. All of this without even mentioning creations that go beyond what one might call a tool. Thus, blacksmiths are needed everywhere, and the truly good ones the guild keeps close to their heart. Dwarven masters as old as the stone their cities were chiseled from, a demon, withdrawn into the hottest cracks, or a golem, working tirelessly on constructions that make stone look soft. Blacksmiths are a cornerstone of society, oftentimes as sturdy and reliable as the work they create. Their guild has been around for sagas, and it will not be disappearing anytime soon. So, if there is any takeaway from this, take care to treat blacksmiths with respect. Their job is central to daily life, and their history needs not be tainted with disrespect./ "On the Blackmith''s Union", by Gilbert Gildfried. - - - - - - The goodbye from Yvette went by quicker than expected. There was now a settled score between her and Lucia, though it really seemed like Yvette was the only one thinking so. Lucia herself had fire in her eyes, wanting to pay the other woman back as soon as she possibly could. They had probably been passing favors back and forth like this for years now, neither wanting to lose out to the other. Fucking maniacs. Well, at least Iris was back safe and sound. Surprisingly enough, she didn''t seem very shaken up. The reunion with Lucia had taken her quite a bit of time, but now that things seemed somewhat back in order, Iris just looked nervous. Maybe that was because of Zyl? There sure was something that caused everyone to step on eggshells around him, well, most people at least. Not like Mercury cared that much about whatever the detail was. He just hoped Iris could get back to her usual, calm self soon enough. They chatted occasionally, usually while taking care of other things, and thanked him again for preventing a full-scale confrontation. There certainly wasn''t anyone she would have bet on in a fight. Yvette was strong, and fast, and had aura prepped, but the situation was far from ideal for Lucia, and Mercury himself wouldn''t have been able to contribute much. Also, they had been significantly outnumbered. The fact that there was even just a small chance for them to win said more about the strength of Yvette''s aura, more so than their enemies. "Careful though. I think they might not give up on what you bet that quickly, Mercury," Iris said in between bites of food. "Hm? What do you mean?" "Those people, the ones I used to... work with. They''re always looking for more things to know. To understand. See, they can only morph into someone once they''ve learned every little secret they carry. Usually, they torture them out, but when it comes to more high-profile targets, they oftentimes simply lurk in the shadows, listening to anything someone says. After all, one sliver of knowledge might be followed with another, opening up a new realm of possibilities," she explained lengthily. "So you''re saying they might be stalking me?" Mercury asked back, pausing for a couple seconds. "Not as long as you stay in good company," she replied. "If you have strong people around you, you''ll be fine. Otherwise, you should start learning to expand your mana as soon as possible, that way you might be able to find them." "Working on it already," Mercury said, resuming his meal with some apathy. "Huh? You''re already working on it?" "Yeah, you''ve been gone for a while. I''ve not just been babysitting your bestie." "I have decidedly not been babysat, mopaaw." Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! "I have decidedly been babysitting you, human. Seriously, can you like not call me by my species? Like, that''s really rude," he said slowly, staring Lucia down, until she finally relented with a sigh. "Fine, Mercury. I will try my best to communicate clearly. I get heated when patronized, so if you could, just talk to me with a little less derogation?" she said, leaning her head on her hand. "Oh, I mean, yeah, of course. Is there anything else I''m doing that''s bothering you?" he asked. For a moment Lucia seemed a little taken aback, but quickly her face flattened out again to her normal, stiff expression. "Nothing else," she said. "Thank you, Mercury." "Cool, glad we''re on the same page. Ah, right, sorry Iris. Yeah, I''m already working on mana expansion. I got a guide for it from another quest, and with that, I''ve acquired the most basic form of the ability," he explained. "With a guide? That''s pretty rare," Zyl chimed in. He wasn''t eating a lot, only a small bite every now and then, and usually listened in to their conversations more than he talked himself. "Is it?" "Yes, quite," Iris explained again. "If there is a reward, the system usually simply hands out the Skill. If you complete a quest, the rewards are handed out immediately after. Occasionally there is some sort of delay until you actually have time to look at them, but rewards mostly are immediate, with no extra effort required. If you get a guide-type, that usually means you''re deemed suitable to develop the ability yourself, or have been detected to actually want to acquire it without much extra help, and even then they still appear more rarely than normal Skills." "Then again, they are still more common than actual abilities, since these usually require far more comprehension and work on the user''s side. Of course, some Skills also function similarly, but it is a more general trend for abilities," Lucia added. "Interesting. So I was deemed smart enough to figure out the rest of mana expansion for myself?" Mercury asked, more just into the air than anyone in particular. "Or the reward the system deemed suitable for your development was too far away compared to the achievements you made, so it decided to instead cheapen out and give you a still suitable guide-type," Zyl said. "Think about it like this, you either got the guide to the ability you want, which you are decently suitable for, or it could give you an entirely different Skill, which would be less suitable to you, and less of what you want." "Hm, alright, I think I get it," Mercury said, swallowing down the last couple bites of food. "Well, I think I''ll sleep over it for today. When are we leaving tomorrow." "Morning," Lucia said again. "I wish to be back not too long from now." "It''s only a couple more days until we arrive," Zyl said. "But I suppose I will also go and rest for today. Sleep well, everyone." Mercury and Zyl each had their own tent, while Lucia and Iris shared another. In his own tent, Mercury once more thought back to the last couple days they travelled together. Iris had been a bit more quiet and slightly less outgoing, but Lucia had been less hostile to him. Honestly, that was maybe what he felt most glad about. It felt like he was working out a better way to communicate with her, and it felt like maybe it was helping her anger issues. Slowly but surely, he thought. Still, he hoped that Iris would be back to her old self as soon as possible. Stuff like this could be very traumatic, and if she wasn''t in an environment that allowed her to gather herself, it might cause even more problems down the line. That was also one more reason why Mercury thought Lucia might need to be just a smidge more chill. As for Zyl... ah, he had to admit it to himself. Mercury had a crush on him. Since the carriages they rode in were separate, the two of them had plenty of time to talk, and Mercury felt like he had a decent picture of the other man. He was funny, nice, and maybe sometimes a little distant, though Mercury kind of liked that air of mystery about him. Of course, this wasn''t his first crush, but he wasn''t exactly expecting to be smitten anytime soon. He''d broken up with his last boyfriend like what, six years ago? Back then, work took so much time that his boyfriend felt neglected, and eventually, they decided it was better for his mental health to move on. It had taken Mercury a long time to get over it, especially since they had been together for a long time. And now, here he was, completely infatuated with someone he barely knew. Well, maybe not completely infatuated. He didn''t feel he''d die without Zyl, but there was a very clear draw towards him. He wanted to learn more, and spend more time with him, and he also felt a hint of butterflies whenever they talked. Mercury sighed to himself again. Tomorrow he''d maybe shoot his shot. This wasn''t exactly something he was very familiar with, but he was at least prepared to ask if Zyl was even into guys. He''d heard a no to that before, and he didn''t want to assume. Or maybe he was just being awkward? Ugh, why were things like that so hard... He needed something to distract himself. Wait, right, there was one thing. He still hadn''t fully taken a look at the rewards for his recent bet yet. Sure, there had been a package, but he was taking a couple days off to rest his mind. He hadn''t even dreamt anything again yet, maybe his astral body was in a coma? Probably not. Well, no use worrying about it yet. For now, he might as well just check out what he got for it. System, pull out the rewards! [Side Quest: "Bet" has been completed.] [Level Up!] [Acquired the Skill from a quest. Skill already acquired. Fusing Skills.] [ has levelled up! 4>] [The individual has acquired an additional Main Quest slot. Generating Quest.] - [Main quest: "Growth" Condition: reach the next evolutionary tier. Reward: 10 Ability points, 500 Skill points, mastery, "Repel" rune, 1500 Gold.] - Yo, okay, that was fucking cool. And also, this main quest was quite a bit more doable than the last one. Maybe he just had a little more realistic expectations this time? Whatever the case, it was certainly within reach. He was still hoping for something special by level 20 or 25, now that he was past 10. Still, maybe it was time to give his status a check up? Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 18 -> 19 Species: Zetraspa Titles: , , Alias: Beast (new!), Mittens === Hp: 260/260 Mp: 632/632 Sp: 220/220 === Strength: 57 (+5) Vitality: 57 Dexterity: 49 (+1) Agility: 43 (+1) Intelligence: 87 Wisdom: 60 (+2) Willpower: 65 -> 69 Luck: 24 -> 25 === Ability points: 3 World points: 8 Skill points: 360 === Gold: 863 Beast familiars: 1/2 Yeah, alright, things were honestly starting to look better and better. He was definitely growing stronger, slowly but surely. Maybe for the next couple weeks, after getting better at expanding his mana, he might start practicing to understand his stamina a little more. Putting all his money on one chip didn''t seem too smart. His was also progressing more than nicely. It had already reached level 2 by now, and it was simply incredible. Opening doors, zippers, eating food, carrying firewood, fluffing up his pillow, or properly readying his blanket. The Skill was absolutely priceless. It perfectly replaced thumbs, and he was able to easily do one thing at a time. To be fair, he still struggled a bit when he tried to do multiple things as the same time, almost like using both his hands. Like, carrying a bundle of sticks and picking up a new one, easy, no problem. Moving two sticks from different places at the same time while also holding the others? Hard. Very hard. And that was with his already improved mind. If he didn''t spec so much into mana, it might be even harder to use than normal hands. Luckily, with the way he was now, it was a perfect tool for everyday things, saving him time and dignity. Truly joyous. And then, finally deciding to calm his thoughts, Mercury closed his eyes, meditated, and slowly drifted away to a soft night of sleep, one last time without visiting the strange plains of his mind. - - - Make sure to drink enough water while reading! Chapter 84: Inside and Outside Chapter 84: Inside and Outside /Hello everyone. I am an elf. Pleased to make your acquaintance. Today''s host has asked me to give a short speech. Recently, trade between our regions has been increasing, and both of us thought it beneficial to have a general round of information on who we are. Well, not all of us are the same, but we definitely share some opinions. My name is Bj?rn. Yes, I understand, many would not consider that an elvish name. I understand I look more like a Loriel, or perhaps an Ilimar, but regardless, I am still Bj?rn. I come from a background many humans may consider humble, with me being a splitter. Ah, that essentially means an elvish woodworker. It is a very important part of our society. Splitting is different from woodworking in a lot of ways, of course, but they do share the core mechanic of shaping wood. Splitting, however, is more of an... exchange. We ask the trees to give us a piece of their wood, shaped to whatever we desire, and in exchange, we give them nutrients. Be that in the form of stamina, or mana, or even care. Some splitters water the trees and fertilize them, while others offer up animals or even their own blood. To be a splitter can also mean to shape homes. You see, as we care for the trees, we always give back just as much as we take, and thus, elven trees can grow to enormous proportions, especially when it comes to width. And if we ask politely enough, after a longstanding cooperation, splitter families may begin to inhabit the tree they have been shaping for generations. Not all elves live in trees, though. That image simply comes from splitting, especially since splitters are most often sent out to deal with other nations, so our impact is far stronger. But some elves prefer living in houses made from stone, while others shape themselves huts from clay. Far up north, our people in Yunika live in houses made from ice. Still, a central part of elven culture is sustainability. I have been working closely with this country to ensure a long and prosperous relationship, as deep as that of a splitter and their tree, and for that we have to consider the compatibility of our worldviews. So, in the name of Bj?rn Ledograd I ask for your continued cooperation. Thank you./ A "Speech on Elvenkind", held by the city steward, advisor, and trade partner Bj?rn in Valojn. Of course, he afterwards clarified, that summing up the entirety of a culture in a couple of sentences is difficult, and he only just scratched the surface of what makes elves. - - - - - - "Hey Zyl, can I ask you something?" "Hm? Sure, what is it?" The man replied, curiously eyeing his feline friend. "I wanted to ask... uh, about your... how do I put this... What kind of people are you into?" "Romantically?" Zyl raised an eyebrow. "Yeah," Mercury ground out between his teeth. "Hmmm, well. I usually don''t date very much, but in general, I don''t have a specific type. What about you?" "I- Zyl, I''m gay," Mercury replied. Telling people about it usually came fairly easy, Lucia had known for quite a while even, but when it was someone he had a crush on and it felt like half a confession, it was much harder. "Oooooh, that''s what you meant," Zyl said with a smirk. "Well, I''m omni. Doesn''t really matter that much to me. I think personality is the most important part. I guess, if I had to say, I like someone who''s fun to be around, and treats me like an equal." Zyl pinched his chin with his fingers and nodded confidently in the end, like it was an answer he had put a lot of thought into. "No one like that has come around in recent times though." "Want to go on a date?" Mercury then blurted out. "Huh?" "I- I mean, of course you don''t have to if you don''t want to. It''s just, I''ve been having a really good time talking to you and it feels like I''ve genuinely gotten to know you a little bit over the course of these last few days, so I-" "Hey, calm down a little," Zyl said, placing a finger on Mercury''s paw. "I''d be up for giving it a try." "..." "But how about we take our time? I have a lot of trouble with "love-at-first-sight" kind of things. It takes me a little while to bond with someone before I feel like I can develop romantic feelings." "OF COURSE!" Mercury yelled excitedly. "Oh, sorry, I mean, hrm, yes, that''s fine with me. I don''t want to rush you at all. Just be honest with me, alright?" "Sure," Zyl said with a smile. "I''ll try my best. You too, alright?" "Okay," Mercury said wearing a pleased grin. Now for a short moment of insight into the cat''s mind. WOOOOOO YEAH BABY, THAT''S WHAT I''M TALKING ABOUT, THAT''S WHAT I''VE BEEN WAITING FOR, WOOOOOOOO!!! Indeed, a very appropriate reaction. - - - Less than a handful of days later, the party finally arrived at Unbar. The city was relatively large, built into the area below a cliff. It surrounded the whole place in a half circle, though many acres of farmland were found outside the encompassing walls. High above the rest of the ceiling, on top of the cliff, stood a mansion. It wasn''t too huge, but kept in good condition, and it seemed quite decorated. What came first, the mansion or the city? Well, in this case, the answer was clear. The mansion. It used to be naught but a summer home for Zyl''s family, but eventually, he ended up moving there full time. The people who used to serve his grandparents had started a small village by then, but the mansion had still been there before, although the city had been halfway formed before Zyl arrived. Still, it''s name, Unbar, was given when he came there. The capital of the guardian''s nation, a large spread of land Zyl had declared his and allowed people to settle. Thus, people came, and Unbar grew, the area of land under Zyl''s command with it. As they entered the city, Mercury was surprised to see many things. The guards at the gate weren''t human, that much he could tell. After all, one of them had horns and red skin, while the other had a face covered in blue scales. "A demon and a sipisc?" Lucia asked. "Did you get new people to move in, Zyl?" "I did," he said, waving his hand, and immediately, the guards lifted their weapons. "You haven''t visited in a while. Things were bound to have changed. How long has it been actually?" He said the last part in a slightly accusatory tone and shot her a long glance as the carriage moved further inwards. Lucia remained silent at his question, simply staring straight ahead, when another voice resounded. "Three years," it said, from on top of a flat building. "Three years." The voice was a deep hum, strong enough to shake the earth. It wasn''t loud, yet it vibrated within Mercury''s skull as the power rattled his brain. Some villagers showed a very similar reaction, as they began shivering and quickly moved away from what would have otherwise become a big reception. "Three-" If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. "Otto, watch your pressure," Zyl said with a smirk. "It''s good to see you too buddy." "Oh, right, sorry," the figure said with a much less supernatural tone, scratching the back of his head. "I got excited." Lucia only gave a long sigh at this. "I would almost say I missed you, if it weren''t for those antics of yours, Otto." "Sorry..." "Lucia, I think you''re being a little mean," Mercury said. "Who that?" "It''s a friend of Lucia''s and mine. Otto, meet Mercuy, Mercury, meet Otto." "Hey, nice to me-" before Mercury could finish his sentence, the other man disappeared from the ceiling, only to reappear right next to the cat and sniff his fur. "-eeet you?" Otto sniffed a couple more times before crossing his arms and giving a satisfactory nod. "Good smell. Otto Mercury''s friend now." He made the statement with a boatload of confidence. The mopaaw quickly looked the dude in front of him up and down, taking note of his patchy skin, the tufts of fur, the pulsating veins of energy glowing beneath his skin, the jagged teeth sticking from his mouth, and then he mentally shrugged. "Fair enough. Good to make friends with you, Otto." "Hah! Good friends indeed," Otto replied, whacking Mercury on the back to the point where he was flattened against the carriage and all the air pushed out of his lungs. "Oh-oh," Otto said. "Pu! Chuchuchuchu!!" Lucia burst out in laughter, pointing at Mercury, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "Chuchuchu, ah, stupid Mercury, serves you damn right, chuchu!" she mocked, leading Otto to slowly turn to her and give a thumbs up, making her lose her shit even more. Maybe she had really missed this a little, she thought. Even Iris couldn''t quite stifle a giggle, and thus, with most of the party feeling amused, and people more willing to welcome at least Zyl once more, the party made their way up to the mansion. - - - "Whoa, this place looks nice!" Mercury said, sweeping the inside with his eyes. It wasn''t overly extravagant with it''s decorations, luckily enough, but it was certainly still elegant. The floor was made from wood instead of cold stone, and there were patterned, diamond-shaped inlays placed around that seemed to give off warmth. The staircase to the second floor was inlaid with white carpet, and the lamps on the walls shed a gentle, warm light. "Ah, please take your shoes off," Zyl said. "Well, this is unfortunate," Mercury replied, looking at his paws. He was not wearing shoes, so he couldn''t exactly get rid of the dirt on his feet as fast. "Ah, right. Sorry, but is Maclroy around? I need someone to cast a cleansing spell on the mopaaw." "I''m here," the answer came from a door that swung open, and out stepped a young, blonde woman. Her hair was cut to chin length, its tips almost touching the towel that was wrapped across her neck. Her face was covered in drops of sweat, and the air she breathed came out in puffs of steam even though they were in a warm room. She wasn''t very tall, but all the more ripped in exchange, with her abs clearly visible on the tank top she wore. "What do you need?" she asked casually, tilting her head to the side and looking Zyl over with her piercing yellow eyes. Then, after a moment she pinched her nose. "You stink," she said with a disappointed expression, before holding a hand out towards them. "!" A moment later, a giant fist of light rushed towards them, and before Mercury even had a chance to cover, it passed through him, throwing him into the air, where he flipped over once before landing back on the ground. "... Thank you for the monologue, Maclroy," Zyl said, his hair now in disarray. "Anytime," the girl said, giving a big thumbs up and a wink. "So, what finally brought you back here, lazybones? And why''d you bring mopaaw? We running a pet shelter now?" "Ah, that''s-" "I can speak for myself," Mercury spoke to Zyl, doing his best to hold back a hiss. "My name is Mercury. Right now, it''s not so nice meeting you, but I hope our relations can improve as we get to know each other better." The cat wanted to speak slowly and with malice, as if talking to someone stupid, but he did remember he was a guest. The stupid bitch had been rude to him, but he wasn''t about to immediately flip his lid. "Oh, shit. Yeah, sorry, that wasn''t very cool of me. My bad," she said, scratching the back of her head for a second. It really was just a second though until she stood tall and proud again, pointing her thumb at herself. "My name''s Maclroy, I hope we''ll get along well, Mercury!" "She''s one of the people who live here with me. I let her eat and stay for free as long as she casts the occasional spell and makes sure no one attacks the house when I''m gone. Yes, there are other people who make sure she doesn''t wreck everything when I go out as well," Zyl explained, shaking his head at the energetic idiot he had the displeasure of staying with. "Nice muscles," Iris commented, and perhaps, if he had been here, Avery would have agreed. For a moment, it seemed as though the girl would be angry at Zyl''s comments, but all of that annoyance immediately disappeared into nothingness in the face of Iris'' smile. "Thank you!" Maclroy said instead, flashing a smile that was radiant enough for Mercury to want to put on sunglasses. "Sorry to interrupt this," Lucia said, "but I''m weary from the long days of travelling. Is there any chance you could show us to our rooms, Zyl?" "Ah, I think I''ll be a bit busy, but I think Leon could do that for you." "Who''s that?" "Me," a voice suddenly appeared behind Mercury as a rather scrawny man appeared from the shadows. "Oh Jesus fucking Christ!" Mercury yelled as he jumped away. The man who had spoken to him was thin, though not as haggard as he had first thought. He was also fairly tall, actually, extremely tall. Was that like... 2 meters? At least close to it, which sure was dang impressive. His skin was black, and his short hair equally so, though it had a slight tint of red to it. His face was shaven, though the stubbles still showed slightly, more in a charming than an unkempt way. "My apologies, I did not mean to spook you," the man said, though his hands remained folded behind his back, and his eyes seemed to look past the entire room. Ah, now that he looked at them, Mercury could see that the man''s eyes seemed slightly pale. A moment later, Mercury also noticed his outfit, a sleeveless sacco with a wine-red buttoned shirt underneath. Overall, Mercury would say he was maybe in his mid-fourties, and quite handsome. "Ah, it''s not a problem," the cat said a moment later. "Nice to meet you, Leon. My name''s Mercury." The other man simply nodded at the comment. "Follow me please, I will show everyone their guest rooms. May I presume lady Lucia and her stewardess to share a room?" "You may." Leon nodded again at that, and began walking ahead of the group, using a wooden cane to feel the floor a couple steps in front of him. His hands had a couple faded scars, Mercury noticed, though he decided not to bother speculating. Leon didn''t seem like a very talkative person, and since Mercury valued his own personal space quite a bit, he would also respect the preferences of others. After a few minutes, he had been thoroughly cleansed by some tomboy, and was now being led through a mansion with more expensive material than he had ever been in before by a blind man, who worked for a guy he had asked out on a date. Ridiculous, honestly, Mercury thought while shaking his head. Still, he quietly followed Leon, waiting as Lucia and Iris headed into their room, while he was shown his own. "There is a bathroom included. If there is anything you require, please tap the bell on the bedside table and someone will come by," Leon explained politely. "You can hear it all across the house?" The older butler smirked a bit. "Yes, but not all servants can. It is linked through stamina entanglement to another bell in the staff room. Please, do not press it excessively, we also are simply people." "Oh, yeah, of course. Thank you, Leon," Mercury said with a nod. "No problem, sir." "Ah, no, please stick with just Mercury. I''m not so special, you know?" Mercury said with a crooked smile, waiting another moment for the man to nod before he headed into his room. It was a fucking nice room. Like, genuinely, some top-tier stuff. The bed was unbelievably soft, like lying on a pile of feathers, and all of the sheets smelled freshly washed. The furniture was well designed, and it even felt largely homely, with a small door leading to a shower, and another door leading to a separate toilet as well. Mercury smiled as he laid down in the bed. This was a very nice place to be he had to admit, and after such a long journey of bumpy carriage rides, it really did feel like he deserved a little bit of rest. With that thought, Mercury closed his eyes, and drifted off into his dreams. - - - - - - "You still alright, kid?" Gilah asked while giving Elliot a hand. "Ah, yeah, I''m alright," the young boy answered, quickly accepting the help and lifting himself off the floor. "Did I pass out?" "Seems like it," Gilah said, shaking her head. "I''m startin'' to think the boss just wanted to get rid of us. This mission sits too far above our paygrade." Elliot took a moment to reply, patting the dust off his robes, and righting the large hat he wore. "We''ll be alright, I''m sure of it," he said, giving the area around a quick sweep for danger. "Not too much longer." They had been tasked with travelling southwest, into one of those monster-infected forests. Not one that was created by a mar, but just the regular kind of evolved animal and plantlife. Still, with just two more mages as backup, it was tough finding their way. Then again, they couldn''t exactly return without what the guild master had asked of them, and the entire party was aware of it. All of them deeply respected Esmeya, and it seemed as though she was on the verge of having a breakthrough in some recent research. When thinking about that, Elliot renewed his determination, and tried his best to ignore the aches and bruises all over himself. "Ahhh, I know. Sorry, kid. Just getting frustrated. How much further?" Gilah asked into the air. "Five and a half kilometers," one of the other mages answered, a woman, maybe half Gilah''s age. She was using some sort of surveillance magic to keep an eye on the general area. "Ugh, let''s take a break then. I need some food in my system before I can continue marching," Gilah grumbled, plopping down on the ground before anyone even had a chance to complain. Then again, no one wanted to, seeing as they all decided to follow her example and pull some food from their inventories. While munching on some rather bland rations, Gilah thought about things again. They definitely needed to get this commission done, but she just couldn''t wrap her head around why exactly the guild master needed the venom from the tail of a sneer. Seriously, those things already sucked, being Bears with snakes for their tails, yet even their normal bear jaws carried a small amount of venom in them. Their bite force was decreased slightly because of the hollow teeth, sure, and their stamina was a little lower than normal bears because they needed to produce the venom, but their cunning was much higher, and some could even spray the shit all over someone''s face. It burned like acid, too. She shook her head at the thought of it. "What a pain, what a pain," she muttered, repeating the words of a certain receptionist she maybe chatted with too much. Chapter 85: Unpleasant Visitor Chapter 85: Unpleasant Visitor /"Hmm, yes, I enjoy dirt as well, fellow dwarves." That is how I got my ass thrown out of a city once. Hah! Totally worth it. See, if I cannot even openly admit my fascination for dirt with dwarves, then who would understand. Us golems, we have it hard. There are none other than us who can relate to the fascination we have with the underground. See, other people just see it as "dirty", just because it''s dirt, or "gross", simply because you might be surrounded by worms, and maggots, and maybe giant killer ants... NOT THE POINT! In any case, the underground is fascinating to us, especially given our intrinsic connection to it. After all, golems are much closer to the element they represent than many other kinds of spirits. The ifrits or sylphs have it easy, you know. They spent their lives being fickle, dancing around with whoever they please and roaming the world as they wish. For us golems, that is much harder. Our society is very strictly hierarchical. The lower down in the earth you were born, the more say you have. Of course, that is but a simple breakdown. A golem''s status is decided by many other factors as well, such as their diet, their knowledge, their ability to delve downward on their own and so on, yet our roles are rarely shaken, and often remain the same for our entire lives. It is as such, because we are the sturdy, the old, and the unchanging. Like the face of mountains, our society changes slowly. If there is ever a big shift in our politics, we call it an earthquake, but those are as rare as a diamond washing up on a beach. No, most golems would prefer to keep things as they are right now. With the soft ones at the bottom rung of society. I am a soft one, well was. A soft born, if you will, but that is why the dirt fascinates me. It is a material more malleable than most golems themselves, and it is what defines a soft born. We can change. Our faces are not carved in eternity, our views not everlasting, and it has begun that we have gotten more say, allowed to truly represent golem society in the outside world. Now, some soft ones even reside on the higher rungs of the ladder, among the foundation, or, if you would care to hear of perhaps the greatest soft born to ever live, it is Mudokk of the bedrock. As a soft born, I can only ever hope to live up to the name he has made for himself. As of right now, however, I am happily independent, leeching my freedom off his achievement that allows for golems to split from their birthplace and move to see the world. Ever since, I have been exploring, sifting through dirt on the forest floor, the mud of riverbanks, or the sand at the edge of the ocean. I have seen rocks weathered down by time, and I have seen mountaintops lose their shape. Yet, when I look at the dirt, the mud, how it shifts and retakes new shapes, I cannot help but admire it. Compacted to provide a foundation so sturdy, it allows trees to reach for the highest tops of the sky. So full of nutrients, that it allows plants to sprout and feed those who must eat. It supports our every step, not with the harsh unforgiveness of stone or metal, but like a soft spring, cushioning the heavy impact one would have. Dirt is malleable, and sometimes it gets blown away by the wind. Sometimes it mixes with sand, and other times with rock, yet always does it provide a way for new life to grow, and always will there be things around dirt. Perhaps one day, if more soft born may become bedrocks, one day I would love to see the mountains of golem society round over, see its strict rules face the everchanging time, watch it shift its place and flow to fit what shape is needed. That is a sight I would give anything to see, and it is a sight I wish for more than simply seeing golems slowly wither and decay, as I think we may be doing right now. Alas, perhaps one day./ "Soft Earth" by Olomeck of the lower crust. - - - - - - Some of Mercury''s nights were still dreamless, certainly more than usually, yet, even when he entered the plane within his mind, it felt emptier than usual. He hadn''t seen old Dreamweaver again since the day they had gifted him with more time to win the bet, and honestly, it was starting to get a little lonely at night. Then again, it allowed him to at least spend all of his time practicing. He had been having a lot of fun at the mansion recently, and he had little time for meditation during the days. Most of the time, he would chat with the people there, or help out around the place, and occasionally he would be lazy. He had gone to the gym with Maclroy, and had been trained half to death by her. He had helped Leon out around the house, and gone shopping for ingredients with him, though most of his help came in the kitchen, since he took pride in being a decent cook in the modern day, and his nose certainly only helped. The rest of the time, he took walks around the place with Iris, or occasionally played a board game or two with Lucia. Otto liked watching them silently, simply sitting as he pondered their every move. Their favourite game was called "Rise", a card game all about heroes and monsters, where Lucia''s ace was, funnily enough, herself. The board was split in three parts, one for the wild monsters, and the other two for the players. The wild monsters did random attacks to anyone who came near their territory, while the players could choose to fight those for resources, or attack each other and risk letting the population of monsters grow too much. It was honestly pretty complicated given the randomness, but Mercury enjoyed it more than he maybe should. Honestly, he was more or less just waiting for the obligatory fantasy chess game to pop up, but perhaps, this wasn''t quite the time yet. It would certainly come, that he was sure of. When lunch and dinner came around, all of them gathered and ate in the main hall together. It was nice, sitting at a table with friends, and he did consider them friends by now. Things went nicely like that for about a week or two. It was probably right around the time when Lucia would have begun to pack her bags, but it seemed as though someone else had other plans. there was a simple knock on the door, and Mercury decided to go get it. Leon had been very busy that day, and Mercury had been done with eating first. He also didn''t want to send any of the people working there out when they were on breaktime. Instead, he quickly hopped up, walked all the way over to the door, and pressed the handle down with his . It had reached level 3 by now since he used it so much, so the task wasn''t very hard. "Hello, who is this?" he asked, looking up to see whoever swung by, only to get kicked in the side. "Dirty filth, move out of my way," the intruder said, an older looking woman wearing sparkly robes and even more sparkly jewelry. Her hair was still brown and full, though streaks of silver had mixed in it, and her lightly tanned skin was not entirely spared by age either. Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. "Lord Friaminth I will not-" she started to pompously yell into the room, when Mercury got back and began to put pressure on her. "Lady," he hissed, clamping her mouth shut with all the force his mind could muster. "I recommend you watch your tongue and your feet from now on." The woman''s head turned towards him slowly, resisting the force in an attempt to talk, but Mercury simply kept her lips tightly closed. "Now, my name is Mercury Rainfall Starlight. You may call me just Starlight. If you say filth one more time, I''ll take out your tongue and eat it myself. Do we understand each other?" he said, walking closer to her. He would have floated up to be on her eye-level if he could, but sadly, that much wasn''t within his power yet. "Now, I would politely request you apologize for kicking me," he said, releasing the woman''s mouth even while she still stared daggers at him. "Beast," she muttered hatefully as soon as her lips were out of his grasp, and Mercury simply reacted. He jumped the fucking bitch, knocking her to the floor with , then simply stepping on her. "Oooooh, is violence the only thing your pathetic master has taught you?" she taunted with a sinister grin. "Go ahead, try me." "I think you misunderstand, lady Pelaren" Zyl said, leaning against the doorframe that led to the dining room. "Mercury is neither my servant, nor hired by me. He is not even a citizen of this country, but a godseeker instead. So, unfortunately, if he were to do something, I would be entirely removed from it, and there would be no consequence to me. However, as he is my friend, he might still have the backing of both me and his guild. Do we see eye to eye?" The man wore a bright smile as he spoke, his eyes half closed, yet Mercury could feel the heat in the room rising. Still, he simply kept his eyes on the woman in front of him, watching as her eyes widened with every word she spoke. "Lord Friaminth-" "No lord. Guardian," Zyl corrected her. "Guardian Friaminth then," she ground out between her teeth. "You know very well of my history with the kin, and yet you would shelter one within your mansion as you expect one of my ambassadors to come visit?" Her voice was almost as much of a hiss as Mercury''s. "Ah, there it is!" the mopaaw quickly interjected. "The casual fucking racism!" He had already hated the lady for just being arrogant and plain mean, but now he had a whole other level of hatred for her. "Look, I couldn''t give less of a shit about your stupid history, alright? Don''t associate me with people I never knew, don''t blame me for things I never did. Now, you, on the other hand, kicked me just before. I believe it might be payback time." Since she hadn''t called him filth again at least, he decided to leave her tongue in, though to some degree it was also because eating human flesh still just didn''t quite sit right with him. Instead, he took out the bag of rocks from his inventory, and began lifting them out one by one, until he found the perfect specimen. A nice, rounded back, where there was no way he could stab anything. He looked to Zyl for a moment, and after seeing a nod of confirmation, Mercury used to speed the projectile up moderately and slam it into the bitch''s side. "ARGH!" she yelped, flinching hard enough to launch Mercury off and holding her side. There was nothing broken, and no permanent damage, but there would certainly be a big fucking bruise there. "Oh no, whatever will I do! The lady has been injured in my house. Come, I shall take you to the doctor," Zyl said, wearing an amicable smile and extending a hand to her, which was promptly slapped aside by the witch''s gloved hand. "I can very well get up myself, guardian," she hissed, though soon regulated her tone. She had taken a loss based on an assumption, and decided to at least tread more carefully from now on. Lady Pelaren shook her head as she rose back up, stifling another groan as she held her side. "I do not believe a visit to the doctor will be necessary," she said, her teeth slowly clenching up less. "Are you certain?" "I had gotten careless. This should serve as a reminder," she said slowly, using a moment to catch her breath, right her tiara, and straighten her posture. "Now then, lady Pelaren, what has brought you here?" Zyl asked with a smile. "It is a private matter," the woman answered, patting the dust off her dress. "Perhaps four eyes would be a more fitting amount for the conversation." "Well then, if you would pardon my disappearance," Mercury said with his best smile and a half-assed version of a bow, he simply went upstairs and into his room. He then softly closed the door, wrapped himself in every single blanket he could find to muffle the sound, and fucking screamed his lungs out. Then, after emptying all the air he could muster, he took a deep breath and screamed all over again. He was beyond fucking pissed at that bitch, and still needed to vent some of his frustration, when he heard a knock on his window. "You screamed," Otto said, after being let in. "That''s correct," Mercury nodded. "Why?" the big buy asked again. "Was that a question, or are you thinking out loud?" Mercury asked right back. Otto paused for a moment and scratched a patch of scales on his neck. "... thinking," he said after a couple moments, and the room went silent once again. Mercury''s anger disappeared after he let Otto in through the window. His sudden visitor had insanely good ears, and heard how annoyed Mercury was. If he weren''t so focused on trying to understand what might have made Mercury mad right now, maybe he would also be hearing the conversation between the hag and Zyl. Their conversations were always very slow. Not because Otto was stupid, funnily enough, because he wasn''t. Mercury had figured that much out by himself. Instead, Otto had a very tough time enunciating himself. His tongue wasn''t shaped for human conversation anymore, so sometimes it took him time to figure out the correct pattern of noises. He hated mispronouncing words, so he usually limited his vocabulary and thought things over for a long time. "The woman," he said. "Go on." "She was rhu-rude?" Otto asked, focusing his animalistic eyes on Mercury again. "Exactly," the mopaaw nodded. "Came in and immediately kicked me, calling me filthy." Within a split second, Mercury could see Otto''s pupils narrowing. "Bad," he growled. Mercury nodded slowly, and watched Otto for a moment. He expressed a lot with body language. Sometimes, his reflexes were faster than his thoughts, which could lead to muscle spasms if he wasn''t careful, but those reflexes also made it so that his body strongly reflected his emotions. Mercury could see his balled fists, his nails digging into his palms, and he could see how his arms trembled slightly in anger, the muscle coiling under the thick skin and tufts of fur. "Yes, whoever is visiting Zyl right now was extremely rude to me," Mercury agreed. "But I was more angry because she hated me for the actions of another. I cannot stand that." Otto nodded in agreement, before thinking things over again. "Ah, don''t think about hurting her please, Otto," the cat quickly added. His big friend could get very protective, especially when it came to people being jerks. Perhaps that was somehow linked to his past, but when his friends were discriminated against, Otto would often seek revenge. "How did you ge-guess?" he asked, tilting his head a little at Mercury. "Friends know about each other. You also knew I was upset," Mercury replied calmly, and Otto gave a satisfied nod. That made sense to him, apparently. "Don''t worry about me so much," the mopaaw reassured his buddy. "I''m feeling fine again. Just got annoyed for a moment and wanted to at least get it out of my system." Otto nodded again. "Understood," he said, before falling silent and simply watching Mercury. Sometimes, the cat had noticed, Otto would do that, where his eyes seemed to gloss over slightly. Perhaps he was deep in thought or something similar, but even then he was still aware of his surroundings. Though his muscles relaxed more than usual in that state, so maybe it was a form of meditation? In that spirit, Mercury decided to mimic him. The cat stayed quiet, simply enjoying the company of having someone else there. He gelled with Otto, quite well even. Out of Lucia, Zyl, and him, Otto was the one Mercury had the easiest time understanding. Sure, he was mysterious and powerful, but if anything, Otto was kind. Slow to trust, that much was sure, unless the person was introduced by someone he considered a close friend. But Otto was open, patient, polite, and very aware of others'' emotions. More than one would assume when looking at him, to be sure. After a while of both of them sitting in silence, Mercury felt much more relaxed. Listening to the sound of, well, very little, had helped Mercury calm down. After some time, he thought he could even hear the mana rushing inside of him, and a glance at Otto told him, that the other guy was feeling something similar. At least Mercury thought so, looking at the yellow veins of energy pulsating under the man''s skin. For a moment longer, Mercury enjoyed the tranquility before speaking up again. "Thanks Otto," he said. "Welcome." And then, for a couple more hours, the two of them sat together, until dinnertime called. Chapter 86: A warm Goodbye. Chapter 86: A warm Goodbye. /These may be the last writings I ever put to paper. Times are... dire, I daresay. Aethervale is falling. The city of great minds, unmoving in the sky for as long as anyone can remember, is falling. The time has come to perhaps say our goodbyes to it, for I can hear the rumbling under my feet. My ink has almost run dry as I have been recording the events that have recently transpired. When our fellow men turned on us, looked at the sky and said that nay, there would be no city there. Our shields have taken countless bolts from ballistae, blows from magical machines of war, and it is now that they have given out. The very ground we place our feet upon has since been shifting and cracking, barely holding together under the strain of a thousand footsteps, and many more blows. Those with wings have flown up, and while our warriors are wielding their spears I fear us to be outmatched today. There are simply too many of them. The angels who hate any that dare challenge their supremacy of the heavens, the warmongers among any kind who simply wish for carnage, or the reptiles who have come to reclaim their sun. The beastkin joined partially, whenever entangled as per the usual. Faced with these armies, a cooperation of many kingdoms, it seems almost impossible for us to survive. I have come to terms with my death now, and simply seek to hold these events down for the future. My quill glides, as outside I can hear explosions. The mages among our enemies have begun setting fire to the buildings now, and anything that can burn is burning. I see the guardians we have made for ourselves broken and battered, their strong frames caved in by force. The hall of scholars has been reduced to rubble, its once proud towers now laying on the floor aimlessly, without direction. Perhaps there is blood beneath it, if there is, I cannot see it in the dust. Ah, I see one of them on the horizon. They''re coming for me now. Perhaps my exploration will come to an end before my ink does. It seems I will die on an angel''s blade. A sword, enveloped by light, claiming attention for itself like the figure it is attached to. The birdbrains have finally reclaimed the sky. It speaks, but I do not reply, I must write. As is expected, the angel got impatient. It has inserted a sword into my guts. I feel myself growing more cynical as my blood drips onto the page. Now, before my hand fails me. Aetherium has fallen. The sky has been reclaimed by those who are victorious. The angel has kindly reclaimed their steel and their heaven. But one day, our city will surely, surely r-/ "Fallen One" by an unknown scholar from the mythical city of Aetherium. It is one of the few reclaimed writings. The paper is stained with blood and the end is rendered illegible. - - - - - - "Sorry about that Mercury," Zyl said after dinner, while accompanying the cat to the garden. "Don''t sweat it too much," Mercury said. "Not your fault. But who was that?" "Lady Pelaren," Zyl gave a long sigh. "Her sister was taken away by a true kin, and she has not forgiven them since." "Taken away?" Mercury raised an eyebrow. "Ah, not killed. Simply kidnapped," Zyl said. "According to the family, she suddenly disappeared, and later on, one of the kin showed up to apologize. She must''ve mistook you for one of them instead of an unfortunate traveller." "Those kin are smart animals, right?" Mercury asked. "Yeah, pretty much." "And one of those took away that lady''s sister?" "She followed of her own free will," Zyl said, shaking his head. "Some of the true kin can shapeshift, those that cannot rarely leave their communities. Even when shifted, they will still carry their characteristics, such as fur on their faces, tails, and such." "That sounds... interesting?" Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. "If you want to put it that way. Most true kin that associate with humans don''t do so in search for a partner though, they see humans largely as unattractive. When they do have kids though, beastkin are born," Zyl explained. "Okayyy, I''ve seen more beastkin than true kin though?" Mercury asked again, a little more confused now. "That''s because independently from relationships between kin and humans, beastkin have been around ever since the second book, when the possibility of evolving into them was discovered in the system." "Fucking what now? You can really change that much with the evolutions?" "Yeah," Zyl nodded. "They conform to your personal wishes. Allegedly, the first beastkin wasn''t born in a union between kin and human, but rather when a forest hermit chose to become a squirrel-type beastkin as an evolution." "Whacky." "Very. Now there''s also the tension of beastkin not really fitting in with kin or humans, and then those few humans that do wish to be partners with kin, because they fell in love with them when they were shapeshifted. There are some outliers that lust after the true kin just for them looking like animals, but most of the time, the kin themselves turn down those advances," Zyl said. Most relationships between kin and humans were more like equal partnerships instead of fetish based. To be fair, building an entire relationship around a single thing you find attractive would probably not hold up against the test of time. "That seems fair..." Mercury said. For a while the two of them were quiet, with some awkwardness between them. It was only now, after a little more than two weeks at the mansion that Mercury realized that he was a cat that had been flirting with a human. It hadn''t really dawned on him up until this point, but with what Zyl explained, he could be glad he wasn''t just immediately shot down. ... "Zyl, are you a furry?" "I''m a dragon, Mercury." "Ah, cool." "You''re not gonna ask anymore?!" Zyl said, shocked, locking onto the cat with great surprise. "You''re not gonna deez nuts me," Mercury replied calmly. "Deez what? Mercury, I''m not joking," the man in white replied a little exasperatedly. "Mhm, sure," Mercury said again. Then, while staring off into the distance, Mercury heard some crunching next to him, and when he turned to check he saw that Zyl''s hands were now much more scaled and sharper. "Huh, that''s really cool," Mercury then said, raising his eyes. Zyl shook his head when he heard the reply before giggling. "You''re such an idiot I swear. But yeah, back on topic: in most bigger cities, it''s not that strange to date other intelligent beings, even if they look different. Over time, the system changes what we look like as well. Still, oftentimes true kin will only enter cities while shifted, just to avoid getting even weirder looks. That''s also why many of them stick to themselves, especially those who dislike to shift." "That honestly makes sense," Mercury said, thinking about how Yvette maybe didn''t even start as a celestial human, and instead just grew wings when she evolved once. "Wait, weren''t we talking about that lady who kicked me?" "We were," Zyl replied with another slight smile. "She was here to trade. The farmland around this place is incredibly fertile, and we produce greater harvests than many other nations around us, so she has asked to buy some. We have taken to establishing a trade route, and I was able to fit in a slight bit of markup for disrespect," he said, his grin widening, as he held out a coin to Mercury, this one a stark white, with sunrays etched into the metal. "What''s that?" "It''s a glow. Worth 10 pales, if that makes more sense." "Oh shit, thanks!" Mercury said, quickly swiping it up. He certainly would make good use of that. "What''s your plan now?" Zyl asked, shifting his tone and gazing off into the sunset himself. "Hm?" "You''re not staying here forever. In fact, I''d wager you''ll leave pretty soon, won''t you?" "I- yeah, I guess so," Mercury had to nod. There was still much he wanted to do and see. After all, he even knew that one of his familiars was still somewhere out there. "So, when are you leaving? With Lucia? She''ll probably be gone by tomorrow evening, knowing her," Zyl said. "Would you want to come with me?" Mercury offered. "Ah, no that was silly, I mean of course-" "I would," Zyl said quietly and nodded. "I would like to get to know you better. I also would love to see more of the world. Yet, I have a home I made for myself, and people who rely on me. This is also something I want, and not something I can let go of easily." Mercury watched quietly for the moment, as Zyl bowed down, plucking a seed from a dandelion looking flower and blowing it into the wind. Very serene. Very wow. "I get that," Mercury nodded. "Don''t feel bad about it. We all have our own lives to live." "You''re saying goodbye right now, aren''t you?" "Looks like it," the cat shrugged. "I enjoyed the stay a lot. You''re surrounded with good people. Tell me if you ever need anything, I''ll be there." "You too, Mercury," Zyl said with a smile. "We''re friends now, after all. And also dating. Kind of." "Yeah, we certainly are. Alright, I think I''ll quickly say goodbye to everyone else." "Is it fine if I hug you?" Zyl asked. "I''d love to." - - - Over the next couple minutes Mercury went through the house, saying his goodbye''s to everyone. He didn''t quite know where to go yet. He had some attachment to Stormbraver, but quite frankly, not enough to stay there forever. And honestly, he didn''t like his current place nearly as much as he had liked the inn. Maybe getting some fresh air would help him clear his mind. For a while, he might just delve back into the wilderness on his own. Luckily, he knew how to be self-sufficient. Iris took it well, giving him a heartfelt goodbye, while Lucia put maybe half as much effort in. At least she didn''t cuss him out when he said he might disappear for a while. Leon wished him all the best, Maclroy squeezed the life out of him, and Otto insisted on seeing him off. Then, once at the gate, when looking back, all he could see was people he now cared for a little waving at him. It felt warm. With that feeling still lingering, Mercury turned around and headed off to his next great adventure. Chapter 87: Evolution part 2 Chapter 87: Evolution part 2 /An arch has opened up in Stormbraver. It appears to be low-tiered, standing in the middle of the noble''s quarter. As per the analysis of the Mages'' Guild, it is a temporary one, perhaps at the level of a rift. Not approaching a tear yet, luckily. Many forces are outside the city dealing with regular occurrences as of right now, but a small adventuring party is currently performing the second scouting. If they do not return within 4 hours, we will launch a rescue operation, spearheaded by me. The first scouting has given us some information. The area inside seems to be highly arid and hot, resembling a desert, yet the floor is not made from sand but rather dried and cracked soil. A little further in, a valley of crystal could be seen. Due to the low level, it is being assumed that the crystals are salt, rather than any magical material. We are waiting for confirmation of this intel. There has also been a short sighting by the first scouting, but combat was avoided, as the troops were not prepared to engage. The monsters seemed to be large insectoids, thus we are expecting enemies resistant to heat, piercing and slashing, largely insectoids with chitin plating, such as redsting scorpions, which were sighted. We have also considered and prepared the second scouting unit for the appearance of monsters such as leeching locusts and giant desertworms, though these are on the worse end of expectations. I will make a second report when further gathering of information has been completed./ A report by "lightfoot" Avery Beckham, submitted and sent to the general godseeker management center for northern Damoy. - - - - - - [Level Up!] Heh? What was this all about? Perhaps it was time to ask an old friend once more. Appraisal? [As mentioned before, experience is passively gathered whenever the individual does anything, extra experience is awarded for difficult feats, as well as for things that the individual wants to do.] So what did that have to do with anything? He hadn''t gone out of his way to do anything fancy, right? [The decision to return back to the wilderness for introspection is a big one that aligns well with one of the individual''s main quests. Thus, extra experience was awarded, and enough was accumulated to reach the level threshold. Please now pay attention to further notifications.] Hey, what the heck, you can''t just shut it off like tha- [The individual has reached level 20. You are now eligible for evolution. Please choose one of the following: Greater Zetraspa: An evolved form of the Zetraspa. These are more resilient to any kind of weather conditions, and their mental faculties are improved. Some are able to instinctually use magic to regulate body temperature. They have been observed using a vast spectrum of communication rivaling that of young humans. Their physical ability has also increased, and some will now make use of simple tools to build themselves shelter. White Ravager: Featuring vastly superior size to most feline species in their evolutionary tier, white ravagers are physically powerful predators, looking very similar to tigers. Their claws are long and razor sharp, and their muscles are optimized for bursts of explosive power, making them good at finishing fights fast. However, their large energy expenditure does not leave a lot of room for extensive mental activities, as such, they rest for a large part of the day and often only think about what they will eat next. Leyflen: Leyflen are evolved versions of the Zetraspa adapted to living in forests. They maintain their small size, but their brains become larger. These usually live in smaller communities than greater Zetraspa, and strongly value their individual freedom, rarely commiting to deep relationships. They are self-sufficient and feature remarkable adaptability and self-improvement rates.] Well, that was a lot. He wanted to give it a moment of thought, but just as he was beginning to debate in his own mind, the window suddenly elongated. [The individual has shown great personal growth, beyond what can reasonably expected from their species. As more objectives and trials have been completed, a new species is being generated. Be warned that future progress may be unstable, as there has not yet been enough testing of this path, and quality consistency of evolutions may vary. Going down this path means that the individual will be required to show a great deal of improvisation and adaption, as there have been none treading here before.] [The warning has been completed. Beginning generation of new Species. Success. Adding to options. Please choose one of the above or the following: (Unique) Leyfal: A unique adaptation to the usual Leyflen, the Leyfal comes with a few changes. Their average stats are overall very similar, albeit slightly lower. Instead, the Leyfal''s adaptability has been heightened even further. Their affinity to various Skills is increased, and their general rate of gaining mastery is increased. A similar bonus also applies to abilities, which the Leyfal often are able to master slightly quicker than other species.] [Running additional predictions on the species. Odds of positive development are high. Odds of stable lifespan seem below average. Redistributing. Physical stats will be lowered slightly to allow for stronger regenerative processes within the genetic material. Odds of stable lifespan are now high. Calculating additional risks. Skeletal structure stable. Muscle composition stable. Nerval distribution stable. No conflict with other parts of the system, physiology stable. Calculating signature evolutionary Skill. Extension of feline family detected. Unique anomaly detected. Weighing odds. Decision made. Evolutionary Skill split into two halves. Generating fitting Skill names. Completed. Skill profile stable. Species stable.] [The individual must now choose.] ... Yo what the fuck just happened? Does the system want him to essentially fucking beta test a new species or some shit? [Affirmative.] ... ... How''s future developement potential looking compared to other evolutionary paths? [Calculations predict it to be above average. Calculating numerical value. Race eclipses average development potential of all other available, non-unique tier three species by 13.863275%.] Would he die immediately upon taking the species? [Chance of immediate death: 0.0002%.] That''s very low. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. [It is higher than the average by multiple hundred thousand percent. Reducing the chance would require additional testing. Unique species detected. No further testing available at this moment. Odds may not change as time passes.] Dude, when did start working fucking overtime? That bastard still told him a tree was a tree a couple months ago and now was calculating exact odds of termination from evolution. Well, those 0.0002% were lower than the chance of him dying in a car accident on the way to work, so really, why not live life a little on the edge. Alright, if the system already went through all the trouble of making a unique species for him, he might as well accept it. "I''d like to choose the Leyfal." [Unique species selected. Additional care will be taking during the evolutionary process. The system has decided to remove the user''s physical body from harm for the time being. Please be patient as modifications are performed.] [The individual is now evolving.] For a moment, the light seemed to disappear around him, as he was moved into a dark space. Then, very gently, a tiny sheen of white light laid itself down on his body, and he could feel himself changing shape. His tail got a little longer, and so did his legs and his spine, though he also grew a tiny amount slimmer. his fangs seemed to get sharper, and his claws definitely did so as well. But then, the evolution seemed to go on a little longer than it had last time. Even after the pulling sensation on his skin and bones stopped, and then even after he could no longer feel the inside of his head moving, the light still seemed to cling onto him for a couple of seconds. And then it grew to be what felt like minutes. "System, is everything alright?" ... ... [Performing extensively careful modification. Steps being performed slower than normally. Answers may lag due to lack of computational power.] Well, this was awkward. Then again, Mercury definitely appreciated the care. This probably reduced the chances to even lower than what he had seen before, and if he was entirely honest, that did make him feel quite a bit more secure. The last evolution really had gone by way too fast. Like, just chill for a couple seconds and boom, he was done? That was definitely way weirder than it taking a little while. Then again, if the system already did that same evolution on millions upon millions of mopaaw, he could understand why it didn''t take too long. Oh well, after just a couple dozen more minutes, he felt his vision return, as the world around him grew back to being colourful. A moment later, the light that had clung onto his body slowly dispersed, floating upwards into the sky. And looking at himself, Mercury felt that he had grown noticeable stronger. The muscles in his body felt quite a bit denser, and even his head felt much more clear than before. As for external change, his ears were a bit more spiky and his tail was longer, maybe even more elegant. His paws had also grown quite a bit to make space for his larger claws, and the same went for his jaw and fangs. If locked in combat, he was definitely more effective right now. Status, perhaps? Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 1 Species: Leyfal Titles: , , Alias: Beast, Mittens === Hp: 275/275 Mp: 657/657 Sp: 265/265 === Strength: 57 -> 64 (+5) Vitality: 57 -> 60 Dexterity: 49 -> 58 (+1) Agility: 43 ->59 (+1) Intelligence: 87 -> 92 Wisdom: 60 -> 67(+2) Willpower: 69 -> 79 Luck: 25 -> 30 === Ability points: 21 World points: 47 Skill points: 960 === Gold: 863 Beast familiars: 1/2 Whoa, that was one sizeable upgrade! Hells yeah! [Main Quest: "Growth" has been completed.] [Reward: 10 Ability points, 500 Skill points, mastery, "Repel" rune, 1500 Gold.] [ has levelled up! 100>] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] [Please see your new rune in the "runes" tab of the system.] [New Main Quest being generated.] - [Main Quest: "Ihn''ar" Condition: Get to and acquire another ihn''ar related ability. Reward: 12 Ability points, title, additional inventory slot, immediate increase in power for any growth-type equipment.] - [You have acquired the Skill through evolution!] [You have acquired the Skill through evolution!] Wow, okay, that was a lot. Was that everything for now? Because he''d genuinely need some time to process this. First of all, Mercury looked at the sky. It was starting to get a bit late by now, and quite frankly, he didn''t want to wait until the sky turned black to run off. Instead, he decided to walk while thinking things over. Well, walk might not be the term. To see how his new musculature held up, Mercury decided to run, and when he did, he felt like a lightning bolt. He could definitely notice that he had slimmed down a little, he felt like he weighed only a tiny bit more than before, ye this power was much more explosive, and the air almost parted to let him through. It felt amazing, feeling the wind rush against him, and with his ears, he could more than hear it as well. Talking about his hearing, it would certainly take some time to get used to. His spatial awareness was off the charts, and he had no trouble exactly pinpointing where a sound was from, which was honestly a little jarring. It was so much clearer now than back when he was still human, and even then his hearing had already been accurate. This right here was still on a whole different level. But of course, that was far from everything. In addition to all those sweet little benefits, he could also feel his brain working overtime, filtering out where there was a mouse scurrying along the ground a couple leaps over even up against the wind. He even felt strictly aware of everything that went on within him, how his muscles coiled and relaxed, how his lungs heaved, and how his eyes darted around, he could feel it all. The entire experience felt much more real than he had ever done before. And crazily enough, he didn''t even get tired after quite some time of running. His physical form was now better than it had ever been, and the same went for his mental faculties. Mercury felt like a whole different person, and with how giddy he already was, he could help but give an attempt. The results were crazy. His control was incredibly precise, and it still worked somewhat even when using two instances of it. With this, he had two fully functional ghost hands, ones that were maybe even more versatile than normal ones. Oh yeah, it was all coming together for him. Fuck yeah. After exhausting some of his energy, Mercury decided to slow his random run down into a walk, still grinning like a madman. He felt strong, and it was just so fun, but he still had things to take care of. First of all, he wanted to evolve . Options? [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same, no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. ] Three options, all doing exactly what they said on the tin, huh? That sure made his decision no easier. Mercury shook his head a little in disbelief at that. Might as well take a look at them at the very least. [: Aids the individual in condensing gaseous mana back into liquid form. Mana within the core will absorb magical energy much more quickly, and return to liquid form sooner. Also allows for easier creation of mana crystals.] Mana crystal? [Mana crystals: The solid state of mana.] Oh. Well, that was simple at least. The Skill seemed handy, and since the evolved Skills still carried all the benefits form the basic versions, it''s not like he would lose something, so it was certainly worth considering, though Mercury didn''t exactly feel like this was the area he needed the most help with. Next? [ it was. [Evolution selected] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Alright, so that was finally finished. Mercury could definitely feel that something in his body was going faster, almost like his metabolism had sped up. It was pretty weird, but not uncomfortable. Then all that was left now was... ah, right, . Appraisal? [: This Skill allows the user to gain increased mastery for all Skills. Additionally, it helps them learn any subject matter faster. This includes increased memory capacity, more detailed memory, greater reproductive ability, greater ability for self-discovery of new skills, etcetera. As these bonuses are very widely spread, all of them are fairly slight.] Finally, all was done. Chapter 88: Territory Chapter 88: Territory /Welcome back everyone to this dumpster fire of a book. We have once again gathered to complain about life as a whole, because quite frankly, there''s a whole fucking lot to complain about. Now, last time in this shitty system I ranted about the shit it keeps from us, but this time, I wanna talk about what we''re actually fucking told. Because let me tell you, this Skill we get is a fucking sham. Seriously. It tells you a lot about Skills, except most of what it says is basic info you could have inferred from the name, and when it adds something special, you don''t even know what that extra bit is, and it sure as fuck won''t tell you. And then the bastard also gets snarky when you ask! Seriously, I''ve appraised plants before thinking they might be poisonous, and straight goes "it''s a plant". I fucking know that much, I wanted to know info about the plant! Seriously, what a garbage Skill. Even talking about other parts though. There is simply no indication of how the system is supposed to function. You have to think of something to activate it. Alright, now imagine that there is some sort of concept, maybe something like a flea market where other users can put their items up for auction, that none of us have ever thought about. Would we know about it? Nope. The system seriously just tells us to use our imagination instead of actually having proper supporting infrastructure to explain it. At this point, might be quick descriptions written by some annoyed guy whenever we pull up the menu. We''re told our stats, sure, but what do those mean. Does strength apply universally to all muscles or only to some? Does it increase the weight we can lift linearly or exponentially? Yeah, we know our strength score, definitely, but does that tell us fucking anything? No! Same for all the other stats. And on fucking top of that, the same goes for our Skills. We can see their levels, but clearly that isn''t all that matters. I''ve seen people skyrocket Skills to certain levels if they have similar ones, and then hit a bottleneck. Does that fit in very well with the concept of just mastery? Can you get Skill mastery before even acquiring a Skill? We know the Skill''s level, but what does it fucking mean dude? Seriously. Even the information we are given by this piece of trash is inaccurate at best, and flat out unusable at worst. Pisses me off. See you bastards next week when I find another annoying bit about this. Don''t croak./ Issue 9 of "This System Sucks!" by an anonymous author. - - - - - - Mercury felt quite a bit better about himself after all of that, honestly. Not that he was feeling horrible before, but in general it was just... freeing to feel more progress. Lately it was like he had been stagnating, so hopefully he''d finally be able to move forward some more with this. Trying to return to the present, the cat pushed his thought aside and focused on where the hell he was. He''d definitely run quite a bit when he got excited before, and already put a good amount of distance between himself and Unbar. Maybe he should have bought himself a map? Ah, too late to worry about it now, he''d just explore. For about half a day, Mercury followed the road, if he could call it one. It wasn''t travelled very much, only the occasional carriage or patrol passing by, and most people ignored him. One time some girl started trying to convince her mom to adopt him, which led our hero to make a very hasty retreat. Still, even with that event the journey was rather boring. There wasn''t anyone he could chat with, so he had to otherwise keep his thoughts occupied, and what better way to do so than practice some magic? With that thought in mind, the leyfal split his mind in two. One zeyj focused on the road, while the other, the one that had developed 32 ystirs, was practicing the ability to manipulate mana. In the end, both of them were part of him, so there was no need to worry about one developing any faster. Everything that happened was still part of what Mercury experienced. And so, Mercury walked along for a while. When he was hungry or thirsty, he would simply take some of the rations he''d packed back at the mansions out. There was enough to sustain him for a good week or two, and he wasn''t planning to travel for that long. Eventually he''d find a place to settle for a while, and hunt some of the animals in there. Until then, he''d just continue travelling. The days passed one by one, as Mercury continued walking. Unbar had disappeared behind a hill quite some time ago, and he had randomly chosen his paths when the road forked. Occasionally he''d check which direction he was going with , and by now he was apparently heading east. After some time, Mercury found a couple small villages, but he didn''t stay very long, only buying some more rations for a couple dims total. Nothing too grand, just enough to keep him going outside the walls. One of them had a gloryhall there, and he spent a night, but even then he didn''t do any commissions or something the like. Instead, Mercury continued travelling. First a page passed, then a second, and after a whole five pages he finally found something suitable. He had been finding many small forests and rivers, but never anything big and unexplored. You know, the kind of stuff that would be represented by a thick cluster of trees on any large map, and where you wouldn''t really be able to buy any proper layout, because it wasn''t well travelled. He had been going northeast for a good while, and eventually found a suitable large forest, one with trees that seemed to reach for the sky. They looked a little like redwood, but their tones were much earthier. With the canopies so high up, and the trees not sporting a whole lot of leaves, there was also plenty of sunlight to promote a healthy underbrush, and the entire forest floor was covered in grasses, ferns, mosses and the like. With a nod to himself, Mercury fused his minds into one again. Travelling had also given him quite a bit of practice when it came to his zeyjs, and he was now able to maintain them for much longer than before. Ten minutes were no issue, and he could go for quite a bit more with some strain. Of course, he''d rather avoid backlash as severe as what he''d previously gone through, so for now he decided to only strain himself some, and not an extreme amount. Focusing his thoughts again, Mercury looked forward as he headed into the forest. There weren''t really any paths for him to follow here, so instead, Mercury just headed in blindly, walking through the trees. There was a lot of space to maneuver on the ground, since the trees kept quite a bit of distance from each other, but Mercury couldn''t really find very many critters on the ground. Still, using his sense of smell, he could pick up a couple trails, most of which were very slight and ended at the trunks of the trees. When he tried to follow them any further, they would have him walk upwards, and Mercury could see a couple funny looking nests up in the higher branches. Most of them looked like what birds would use, but they also had some leaves in there for cushioning, so there were probably small mammals living in at least a couple of them as well. Taking note of it in his mind, Mercury continued on. He still had enough rations to get him through a day or two, then he''d really have to start hunting for his own food, and it was good to know where his meals were hiding. So, he took note of any nests he saw, thinking that if it wasn''t some kind of mouse-like thing, he''d still be able to drag even small birds to the floor with . Ghost hands, baby. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. With his source of food probably secure enough, the leyfal continued his journey to search for another necessity of life: water. He''d need to find a river if he really wanted to gather some experience here. To find it, Mercury once again used his increased sense of smell, trying to find any place where multiple different smells converged. Bit by bit, he made his way through the jungle, trying to avoid most plants that looked spiky or dangerous, and slowly made his way towards where he thought a river might be. Thanks to the decently longer legs he had gotten through evolution, Mercury could see pretty well through the underbrush while still remaining largely hidden. Using that to his advantage, he had soon found a small river, originating from a small, clear lake. There were quite a couple of animals around it too, a family of elks and a handful of boars, all drinking without hesitation. A good indicator that the water was clean. A little further down the river, he could see what looked like otters enjoying the sunshine. But then he saw it. Behind the small lake, a little further away in the bushes, he saw a cat. A big one, one that he had seen many times on TV back on earth. It was a bobcat, or at least something like it. Straining his eyes, Mercury tried to make out as much as possible about it. The thing was taller than him, maybe about one and a half times his size. It licked its snout while watching the other animals, perhaps planning an evil attack to disrupt the temporary truce of the herbivores at the lake. Immediately, Mercury felt his pupils narrow as he noticed a fierce instinct bubble up under his skin. His hair stood up, making him look larger than he was, and he felt the eyes of the bobcat now fall onto him. The reaction was instant. Its lips pulled back to reveal its fangs as its back arched to appear bigger, ears laying flat on the side of its head. Mercury could feel his body reply in a very similar manner. There was now competition over the prey, and before hunting could commence, a rival would need to be eliminated or chased away. Both of them understood this, and Mercury threw any intent of diplomacy out the window. Slowly but very surely, he and the other cat began to walk. Not straight towards each other, in fear of attracting the attention of the other animals, but instead to the side, slowly circling around the lake but towards each other. There was an outcropping of rock at the back of the water anyways, and so the two of them decided to meet behind there, and once face to face with the other beast, Mercury hissed, his intent clear. Immediately, the bobcat responded in kind, and Mercury understood very clearly what it said. This was its territory, and Mercury needed to leave, now. The leyfal snarled back, saying that he would go where he pleased, and claim whatever territory he wanted. It came naturally to him, almost as though he had always been able to communicate like this, perhaps in some way his cat-brain did influence his knowledge. Still, the bobcat didn''t back down, slowly snarling and biting at the air as it took a step towards Mercury. For a moment he was tempted to step back, but the feeling faded more than quickly as his rationality fought back. His willpower was far too great to let himself be intimidated by some feeble looking bitch. Then again, upon closer inspection he could see that it wasn''t quite an ordinary bobcat he was facing. Its fur seemed hard and spiky, its skin beneath like tough leather, and when it snapped at the air, he thought he could see a second row of serrated teeth. But still, the mopaaw didn''t back down, instead deciding to take a step forward and hiss, raising a paw with his claws out. For a moment, the tension in the air was thick, and neither cat moved even a hair. But then, the moment faded, and by instinct, Mercury knew it was fucking go time. Without hesitation he lunged at the other feline, slamming into its heavier body and scratching away without hesitation. Within a flash, the tow had combined into a ball of pure fury, full of screeches and scratches, until after only a couple of seconds, the tow came apart again. "I''ll make you regret this," Mercury said, his skin full of small scratches and a bite mark on his leg. The bobcat hissed in response, slowly approaching him again, but the slight pain was enough to make Mercury think clearly. He wasn''t just driven by instinct, using only his body to fight. If he did that, he''d clearly lose against someone bigger and stronger than him. After all, he had just entered a new tier a little while ago, while the bobcat was probably on that level for much longer. But in exchange, his Skills were most likely higher due to diligent practice. As the other feline approached him, Mercury cracked a slight smile. "Fuck you," he said, and with all the might his mind could muster, he slammed into the furry bitch. The weight wasn''t great enough to immediately press it to the floor, its level wasn''t yet high enough for that, but honestly, just adding a lot more weight onto the thing''s back was quite enough for this fight to end quickly. Within another moment, Mercury had split his mind in two, one of them keeping the going, while the other gathered power and pulsed it through his entire body, flooding his mana veins, and spreading his stamina to wherever it was needed. Lastly, he took a deep breath, feeling all of the strength now coursing through him. He could keep this up for maybe ten minutes, probably a little shorter, but this was a fight that would not need that long to finish. As soon as the bobcat had taken another step, Mercury lunged, his speed far greater than before. With still helping him out, he soon had toppled the bobcat and thrown it onto its side, quickly digging his fangs into the thing''s shoulder. He couldn''t quite reach the neck and just snapped at what he could find, digging his teeth in as much as he could. Then, when it was trying to shake him off, Mercury knew it was distracted and even let go. There was no more need to keep clinging to the thing after all. He had injured its leg, and made it angry. The adrenaline would help it, but it couldn''t run forever. The bobcat knew it too, and wanted to lunge at its enemy, when it saw a bag appear next to him out of thin air. For a moment, it thought that was strange, until from within said bag, a sharp rock came flying out. With the agility of a feline, it quickly ducked beneath the first one, yet the second struck its other front leg in the knee, splattering blood as the cat let out a yowl. "Got you," Mercury whispered to himself as he panted, and continued to activate throw on many rocks. After only a couple more tosses, the wild cat was too exhausted to dodge and it instead whimpered, causing Mercury to hesitate. Somewhere in the back of his mind he knew that battles over territory should not go this far, and he stopped the paw he had laid on another stone. Then, he sighed. While the bobcat was still lying on the ground, Mercury went about his business and collected the stones again, putting them back into his pack. The wild feline he had just fought soon stopped its wincing and watched him curiously while licking its wounds clean. Once he was done collecting his ammo, Mercury simply put the pack into his inventory again, and returned to his previous competitor. By now, most of the animals had left the watering hole, the only ones left were the elks, who showed no interest in the struggle of two creatures who were now hurt. There was still some tension between them, that much Mercury could feel, but the bobcat was not in any position to fight, so it simply had to submit for now. No doubt it would fight him again once it healed, but Mercury didn''t worry about that too much for now. Instead, he meowed at his enemy, attempting to propose a truce. He didn''t yet know enough about the forest, and he was unsure if he could afford constant fight about his territory. For a couple moments, the bobcat eyed him, shaking itself to get rid of some dust, then eyeing him again. After a little while, it let out a low rumbling, and Mercury could tell it was fine not fighting. It didn''t have much choice either, but Mercury wasn''t quite done with his interrogation yet. Once again he let out a sound, pretty much asking if it had cubs. had told him that his enemy was female. The bobcat''s hairs began to stand on end and its eyes narrowed, but as it stared as Mercury and let out a quiet hiss, it became clear he wasn''t intent on hurting her cubs. Then, after another moment, she affirmed it. Two of them, in fact. Mercury nodded again. Now it made more sense why she was already out hunting when night hadn''t even fallen yet. She was probably gonna try getting one of the otters a little further down, to have some food for the cubs in case they didn''t manage to catch anything today by themselves. No, wait, they were probably quite near, to watch their mother. After a moment of thought, Mercury decided to offer up some of his rations. He didn''t feel a need to keep a grudge here, and instead quickly opened up his inventory, placing some leaf-wrapped meat down in front of his previous enemy. With that, he left. Maybe that was stupid, but Mercury didn''t think so. The bobcat wouldn''t be a bitch about her territory towards him anymore, and he had found a place to consistently get water. Now the only thing he needed was to hunt small mammals, or even big ones if he wanted to. After all, there probably wasn''t much that could really threaten him in a regular forest, especially this close to the outskirts. If he went deeper, perhaps there would be some scarier wildlife there, but for now he just wanted to establish some room for himself. With that in mind, Mercury went about setting himself up a camp. Chapter 89: Care for a Walk? Chapter 89: Care for a Walk? /It is cruel to be betrayed by ones own feelings. My love for my wife burned so bright I could not see when she went astray, how she lost her interest. Perhaps, if I had not been blinded by my love, she would still be with us. Alas, she is not, and her story is mine to tell another time. For this once, I wish to indulge in my own thoughts. When she disappeared, my world crumbled for a while. No, that is not right, it wasn''t for a while, it simply crumbled, all crashing down and shattering. Time seemed to pass endlessly slowly, as every morning getting out of the bed was a task greater than what even the best man could accomplish. To care for someone so much you lost them, and then live through that loss all over as your burning love for them now burns you... it is a miserable experience. If I were to be allowed a word with my younger self, perhaps it would be to watch less and see more, to simply pay attention and speak if something seems the matter. To not let my love bury herself before I can do anything about it, even if only for my selfish reasons. I was betrayed by my own love, my own feelings after all. And the moments I think back to those torturous days are still the most difficult of my life. But I move on, and perhaps, if I may give words of warning to everyone else, sometimes it is better to take a moment and think things through. To not only indulge, but also to make sure those feelings may last, and to never give up in front of even a task that may seem impossible at the moment. Sometimes, it''s the little things one achieves that one can already be proud of./ A letter by Sabrina Livovitch, found on the gravestone of her wife, and later on published within a story about her in The Daily. - - - - - - After a couple minutes of walking, Mercury found a suitable spot to set up camp. He placed down his log, already stuffed with his special blanket, and lined with runes by now, and took out his backpack of ammunition. The stones had served him well, and quite frankly, he wanted to check them for problems. Most of them were perfectly fine, luckily. The runes in them were pulsating with power, and their edges were still decently sharp, but some of the ones he had missed before, or that had impacted bone beneath the skin, had started to chip. For some time, Mercury sharpened those ones again, making them a little thinner and pointier, almost dart like. By now, his claws were much harder than they used to. He still couldn''t cut through stone easily at all, and without mana it wouldn''t even be possible, but as long as he reinforced his best natural weapons, things worked out just fine. At least with all that, he could shave away at the rocks, and get them into a much more suitable shape. Once he was satisfied with his weaponry, dusk had already rolled around, but Mercury was still quite filled with energy. So, to prepare for his time of being self-sufficient, he decided to read up on runes some more. He had kept the guide, obviously, and it still had runes for him to learn. Some of it he already used, the piercing runes for example. Those worked better than sharpness on his rocks, since those pierced, rather than cut. Still, there was much more in there, and while a lot of it he couldn''t quite make sense of, some might be useful. Flipping through the pages, there were three more runes in there. The first was friction, which made an object harder to move. Not by making it harder, just by increasing the amount it clung onto other things, a little like mortar. It didn''t work very well against being lifted though, since air friction was still low. Next up was polarity, which apparently turned something magnetic. That would be incredible, probably, if the attraction weren''t extremely weak, and if Mercury knew what all magnetism could actually be used for. Sadly, he only knew a little, and didn''t quite understand how the advanced applications worked. Induction heating via fast changing of the polarity of a magnetic field, for example. The fuck does that mean? Plus, he didn''t even have magnets, so no matter what the system told him, this one would have to stay put. Lastly, there was what Jurika, the author, called impregnate. Get your mind out of the gutter, it repels water, you idiots. Just generally made the substance harder to cling to for nature. Of course, if just reading about the runes were enough, Mercury wouldn''t have bothered waiting for so long. Well, maybe he still would''ve, the runes just frankly didn''t seem very useful up until now, but he at least wanted to know them just in case they eventually came in handy. And to know them, he wanted to make sure they were saved in his rune tab. To save them in his rune tab, well, there was nothing he could do but carve them. Not long after, there were a couple mysteriously missing pieces of bark around Mercury''s new home. Of course, the first rune he attempted was impregnate. It was the only one he could imagine using for now, thinking it might make a nice addition to his log. Being able to weather the elements was absolutely vital for a proper home, after all! [Successfully carved mid 1st grade Impregnate rune. Get: 30 Exp.] How he had missed those beautiful, beautiful notifications. Maybe those were why he found runecarving so addictive. Some time later, Mercury had managed to get the system to jot them all down in the runes tab. Can we also get that one open for narration purposes? Absolutely. [Runes: Sharpness, Reinforce, Piercing, Repel, Impregnate, Friction, Polarity.] Honestly, this sure as hell made it much clearer why in martial arts novels people need to isolate to practice. In the forest, what was gonna interrupt him? Some fucking rabbit? Nah, he was fine. But when living with other people, they might barge into your room or need something, so it was much easier focusing in the forest. Still, after getting all of the runes done, the sun was already almost in the sky again. Mercury decided to try and catch some sleep, but when he laid down and closed his eyes, he soon found he couldn''t. With nothing to distract him, his mind started slowly moving again. He felt lonely. Very, very lonely, and also felt forgotten. Maybe it was the atmosphere, the morning sun barely on the horizon, with fog still clinging onto the ground, and chilly night air making the breath freeze in front of you. Then again, as Mercury continued spinning his thoughts, was it just chilly air? When his mind fixated on it, the cold felt almost frigid, like the grasp of winter reaching out to find a hold in the land. Mercury shivered in his log, even wrapped with blankets, and he began to feel panic brewing within himself. Perhaps this was it. Perhaps this was the night he would be forgotten by the world, the night after which the companions he had only found recently would never see him again. Mercury sighed as he followed his own trail of thoughts. He knew it was irrational to a degree. It was stupid, but he couldn''t change the way he felt, and he didn''t really know a way to simply get rid of his thoughts. So, instead of sleeping, Mercury decided to try something else. Maybe going on a walk would clear his head. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. The cat took a step out from his log, and he could feel the air biting at his skin, piercing through it and slowly chewing through his muscles. It was cold enough to sting, almost enough to hurt, but it did make his thoughts stick to reality some more. He was unsure if this was considered a form of self-harm, but he dismissed it quickly. After all, it probably was in some tiny way, and given his current state of mind, he knew that thinking it through would only make him more sad. Instead, he tried to focus on where the cold was coming from, holding his snout in the air to try and see where the wind was coming from. Surprisingly, there seemed to actually be a direction, some place that might be the reason for this weird sensation, and when he casually breathed in some of it, there was an immediate reaction. His skin felt lit aflame the moment he took even a slight huff of it, and Mercury let out a hoarse gasp as his legs gave out. It felt like someone had shot brimstone and hellfire right through his nostrils into his lungs, burning and freezing them at the same time, and yet a moment later, that feeling was gone, and there was something else. For a moment, Mercury was confused. He couldn''t pinpoint the strange feeling he had after the pain had passed. It had only been moments, a span of time that now felt like a fleeting memory, yet when he got back up from the ground, he felt as though it had been minutes at least. And there was something else, too, a deeply familiar feeling that stuck to his heart, a kind of... belonging, in a way. That feeling seemed to tug at him, pulling on his skin that should have been numbed by the cold, yet the frigidness was beaten back by that pull in his heart. Every breath was suddenly fulfilling, like he had found its purpose, and then finally, as he thought it over again, he understood. It was ihn''ar. The world had been unfamiliar, because there were things in it he had not seen before, the air filled with the breaths of a thousand things, the plants beneath his feet singing as they absorbed light, the frost glittering with every colour and yet more as the first rays of sunshine broke on them. He felt belonging, because he did belong. He was part of this, and as he watched every single piece move beautifully, Mercury smiled. And a moment later, the smile seemed to fade into curiosity. This ihn''ar felt different. Perhaps because he wasn''t using it for combat, but to meditate, to calm his thoughts. Still, that surely couldn''t be all, no. This time he also saw so much more, the colours, the things, he saw so much, and he could finally see why Uunrahzil had recommended as an entrance. Not like he could understand all the things around him just from seeing them once, but at least he could see them finally. But then, there was the chill again, still seeping into his body, and the moment he thought of that, all his sensations became much more close. The cold, the numbness, the hints of pain in the tips of his nose, the heaviness of his legs and the warmth seeping out of him into the frigid air that seemed to claw at anything living. Mercury hesitated for a moment, but after only a moment, he understood it as well as before. There was no way he wouldn''t take a look, because it was who he was. Curious. Soon, the cat began a new walk, towards a place that felt far away and yet close. His mana had unconsciously spread out a bit, feeling the things he wanted to see, as his curiosity literally spilled out from him. He could feel how his stamina moved without being commanded, reinforcing him and warming his muscles, even as the cold gnawed at his bones. He was moving as if possessed, drawn by a purpose that was only his wants, always stepping forward a little further. The ice was unrelenting though, and after only a few minutes, he could hear fewer sounds of wildlife. No longer did the song of cicadas hum through the air, and when looking at the floor, the plants were also quiet. And yet, the noise itself hadn''t lessened. Instead of leaves rattling as critters walked, he could hear the ice cracking as it expanded and contracted around whatever it clung to. The crystals crunching when he stepped onto them, sometimes snapping the hems of brittle grasses below his feet. Sometimes, he heard a shattering noise, when a droplet of water froze right from the air and fell to the floor, smashing against others of its kind before it melted on the earth. Soon, that shattering noise was replaced with a soft crunching instead, as those tiny snowflakes began to lay on top of each other, the cold now gripping the area hard enough for Mercury to feel the saliva on his tongue freeze when extending it from his mouth. And still, the noise was so impeccably beautiful he could not stop himself from moving. Like a siren song calling out to sailors who seek beauty, the chill in the area screamed for attention, creating noise that felt like it was made only to make Mercury pay attention. Still later, the snow was cold enough to grow soft, his paws numb as he took step after step. He kept himself from freezing using the mana that no longer spread out from him, simply coursing through his veins and burning up as it turned into heat. His stamina did the same, yet he couldn''t even begin to understand how it did so. Mercury shook his head, turning his attention outside again. This song was one he would not hear for much longer, he knew that much instinctively, understood it even perhaps. It was as though he had found one piece to the puzzle of ice, a piece named impermanence, a piece he did not want to let go of, and as he had that very thought, it slipped through his fingers again, like grains of sand. He could no longer grasp impermanence, yet his breath still held steadfast, even in the cold. The air entering his lungs was coarse and icy, but it was still air, and Mercury still breathed as he continued his walk, clearing his thoughts more than he could have ever hoped for. And then, he arrived. There was nothing grand there, yet Mercury recognized it was the origin almost immediately. The fog there was thick, a mix of mist and snow, obscuring his vision as all he could see was a stone wall, perhaps as tall as a human waist laid high. There was no gate, no grandeur, only a gap in it, barely wide enough for an ordinary person to pass, and not showing even a shred of hesitation, Mercury stepped through it. The sounds grew quiet the moment he did. They weren''t gone, no, and in the quiet he could especially hear his own body sing, but the ice and snow that had sparkled and sang to him before now laid still, only a thin layer of it on the floor. There was no longer a storm, no more wind in the air, simply a light fog, enough to see a couple dozen metres, yet obscure that which laid further beyond. What remained on the floor was only a carpet of white powder. Mercury knew it was snow, as it sang the same notes as the other did before, yet its voice was also different. The light broke off it in another manner, sparkling in colours more mat, and when he stepped it was neither warm nor cold. It didn''t crunch when he touched it, nor did it melt, simply moved, like a soft sand that dared not whisper. Behind the entrance he had just passed, he could see nothing, a wall of snowflakes obscuring the area, a curtain of ice. Instead, there was a path forward. A small one, a trample path of dirt and gravel, one that led further in, past the small mounds of white grain that laid besides it. That path called out to Mercury again, asking him to fulfil its purpose once more, to be tread upon and bring someone to their destination with more ease. Mercury obliged. The request was asked so gently, more like a hand reaching out to lead him, softly asking if it could help him, the desire to give help shrouded behind a kind voice. For a few more steps he travelled, until there was another entrance, two beds of flowers to the sides of the path. They were roses, or at least they looked like them, and yet drained of colour. Their song was quiet, a whisper of better times in past and future, and as Mercury stopped to listen, he could feel a tear rolling down his face as memories resurfaced. Yet he only indulged a moment. His thoughts may disrupt his ihn''ar, and soon they were gone again, as he instead opened himself up to what was around him. Past the gate of flowers, there was a more open area, the small paths intertwining as he saw what laid beneath them. They were graves. All of them decorated with flowers, stones, and some even with candles, though their light didn''t pierce the fog, almost as if they were too respectful to reach over to another tomb. Yes, that''s what it felt like, as though every marker was it''s own little place. Quiet, somber, and respectful of everything around it, their singing barely a whisper. For a little while, Mercury walked, his heartbeat ringing out louder than his footsteps, as he could feel himself becoming quieter by the moment. He stopped by many of the markers, unable to read what any of the stones said, yet able to appreciate the way they looked. None were grander than another, none were lesser either. All of them were shown equal amounts of love and dedication, taken care of as to the song of the stones came that of wilted flowers and long since lost love. The candles gave light, the earth beneath gave space for the songs to exist, and the flowers simply hummed along. Step by step Mercury went along, looking at each of them for a long while, and indulging in their sweet melodies, none alike, but none so different as to break the stillness. This was a sombre place, and Mercury dared not disturb it. "Paying your respects, traveller?" a voice sounded out behind him a moment later, not having been announced by footsteps or breathing, a voice that Mercury understood cared deeply. "I hope I am," he almost whispered back, scared of scaring away the quiet he had finally caught a grasp of. "It is intention that matters," the voice answered slowly. "You seem respectful, that is all it takes." Mercury nodded, and then slowly looked over at his companion, a tall woman dressed in black and grey, with dark skin and short, slightly curled hair, upon which a wide hat laid. Her dark eyes were surrounded by lines of sadness and laughter, the furrows of time dug deep, yet she was also ageless. "Do you take care of this place?" he asked. "I do," the woman nodded. "You may call me the caretaker, traveller. Would you care to walk with me?" Chapter 90: Rest at Last Chapter 90: Rest at Last /I was once told by a professor that life is many things. Back then, I laughed. I did not think much of life, having just passed my exams and walking over the ones who failed. I was on top of the world, and refused to listen about the cruelties of the world, or about pressure, or what kindness could do. It had been a professor who taught me for a long time, too. He knew me well, yet while he knew I wouldn''t listen, he still spoke to me. Perhaps if I were back there again nowadays, I would bow to him and ask him to repeat the lecture, alas, I will never be able to. I used to be arrogant and cocky. I knew it all so much better than everyone who wasn''t me, I would not listen when people spoke, and I regret that. If I did, I would surely have learned more. Yet it was a mistake I had to make, and one I have learnt from. I''m older these days, and I have learned the lesson myself. Life is many things, it can be many things. It can be kind and soft, it can be pleasant or pleasurable, it can be crushing, and sad, and heartbreaking. To live can be a gift or a curse, and I truly do not envy those who see it as the latter. See, there was a time when it felt like that to me too. After passing all my exams, I rose to the top of my field, I was outstanding, I was the best, and people who I used to look up to sought my council. And yet, it eventually all fell apart. I was hunted like a dog in the streets for no good reason I know of today, chased with pitchforks and torches by people I had never touched, yet of course there was good reason. These people had experienced contempt at my hands. I scoffed at their little squabbles, from high above them, and I paid the price. Now I know the cruelties of life too, and in my older days, I can appreciate youth. I have learned many lessons, good ones and bad ones, and what I can say with most certainty, is that life is fleeting. Someday we will die. It is an inevitability, one we must face, for the tooth of time spares no one. Not spirits, not elves, not vampires and not gods. It is inevitable that one must fall eventually, and that is a good thing. When the old fall, it gives room for new to grow, a new generation, who will make mistakes all over, and perhaps they will learn from us. Perhaps a young man like me will listen to my advice now, not choosing to brush it aside like I did. Then we would talk, and I would ramble on like I am right now, and eventually, I would pass. But I would leave something behind. My memory, a thread of fate that can never be broken, that is passed on from person to person, a torch to never go out, because it is just an idea. That even though our life is fleeting as that of all people is, we will always, always pass something on, no matter how little. I think that thought, and those connections we make, is what makes our fated end seem less harmful and more like a soft pillow we can lay our heads on. When I go, I wish to be able to look in the mirror and say I tried. Then, when that is done, I will sleep and never wake up again./ A published diary entry of Dr. Alucard Acula. - - - - - - The caretaker did not speak much. When she had asked for a walk, that was her full intention: to walk. She strode right aside Mercury, her steps on the gravel paths silent as a whisper in the storm. As they went on, Mercury''s senses were still more than receptive to the things around him. He could see the graves, feel the stones underneath his feet, smell the flowers and the occasional hint of candlewax, though he could also sense a new song. No, it wasn''t something new, it was something deeply familiar to him. With his curiosity shifting, Mercury began to hear this melody more clearly, almost attempting to grasp it. But it was difficult, truly. When he reached for it with his senses, it seemed to almost fade away, like a breath of mist, and yet even when it faded, he heard parts of what it was made of. There were many parts, so very many he could not hold all of them in his mind at once. He could listen to the everchanging rhythm in and of itself, simply accepting the flow and following it as it shifted. For a moment, it was the sickeningly sweet smell of decay, a smothering presence like a thick blanket seeking to extinguish a fire, then the whisper of loss, a feeling so deep and sharp it could poke holes in one''s heart. There was pain in its pure state of despair, and there was forgiveness somewhere within there too. But what he could hear most when reaching out was stillness. This one he knew, he could tell, it was what radiated from the woman next to him, from the caretaker. It was a stillness so thick it almost swallowed up the songs around her. Perhaps it truly did, Mercury thought, watching as when her boots touched the ground it seemed to almost make the environment quieter. Only a moment later, Mercury felt why. This was a sombre place, one of quiet. That stillness was necessary for peace. If those forgotten ones in the soil or in their urns were to be loud, there could not be peace. The caretaker was not only maintaining the graves, righting flowers where they were wilted, and lighting candles where they had gone out, but she tended to silence, to hear the cries of the dead so they would not need to cry out louder. Then, she stopped. "Traveller," she said slowly, turning her head towards the cat. "Yes?" Mercury answered, ending his train of thought for a moment, simply indulging in the calm air around him. "You think too much," the woman said, cracking a hint of a smile. "Quiet your thoughts and listen. See. Feel," she said. "Hm, I''ll try." "That is good," the woman said and nodded, continuing her strides. They walked past more of the gravestones. Slower, now, and Mercury could tell why. He watched around him carefully, abandoning the process of thought. He didn''t link it to previous experiences anymore, simply listened to the things around him, saw what there was to see. At first, it was simply silence, the steps of the caretaker quieting any sound that would have otherwise whispered down to nothingness. Yet as they walked, Mercury''s ears seemed to open up more. It was the flowers he saw first, a gentle smell on the chilly breeze, a promise of wide fields and freedom. It was a breath of life so quiet he ordinarily wouldn''t have noticed it in all the noise. Next, the stones of the path raised their voice, small but reliable, always seeking to support. They spoke of safety, of a good journey, and even of company. Perhaps the road so many travellers wish to go on was right below their feet, already there and giving them all the company they needed. And then, Mercury heard the whispers of the earth below. It was laden with snow, the dull glittering seeking for more attentions, to trump over the ground it laid upon, but around the caretaker even snow was silenced, giving the others their space. The very soil he stood on spoke up, talking with many voices of nourishment and life, as well as decay and death. To rise and fall again, it had seen it many times over, every change of seasons again, every Chapter that flipped once more, it was a story of a cycle. Eventually, the fog began to hum. It asked if it was doing alright, insecure and fleeting, scared of rejection. It wanted to give space and comfort, here at least. It also spoke of the past, of tricks it played and many adventures, of letting the solemn mourn, and letting the adventurous stop to breathe, and of letting the foolhardy fall. Some time passed then, when Mercury heard his first whisper of a corpse. It felt strange, a cold hand clinging onto him, not violently, not resentfully for the living. It slowly reached out, and beckoned him closer. A hand that was long gone now asked to see, wished to speak with a mouth that was no longer there, and Mercury stopped. He looked up at the caretaker, and the woman nodded, beckoning at the grave. The tombstone was simple, traditional, without an engraving. There was a candle, a soft support behind the dead man''s voice, shedding light on the story, and a bundle of flowers, to give sweetness where it was needed, and to take it away when the times became dull. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it The story itself was... strangely ordinary. Of a farmer, who payed tribute hungrily, who wished for more fields to live off. A lord at war, needing ever more resources for soldiers. The farmer spoke of grain and harvest, of work and tedium, of diligence and hardiness. Yet, he also spoke of sorrow. Of early love, and losing a child, miscarried. Of their daughter he was proud of and raised well he thought, of when his wife grew sick and passed. It spoke of sadness and a life lived fully, of old age, and good food, of friends and shared drinks, of laughter and of sadness, it was a tale as ordinary as human life, and yet as Mercury listened, he felt the tears in his eyes, freezing and falling as tiny pieces of ice, shattering on the floor. When the story ended, there was another great silence, the words that remained unspoken hanging heavily in the air. "Thank you," Mercury said and nodded, and the story thanked him back. Then, he turned away, and walked on. "Do you listen to them a lot, caretaker?" the mopaaw asked a few steps further in the fog. "Sometimes," the woman nodded. "Follow me," she then said briskly, waving him towards her and walking with more purpose. There was a destination now, and Mercury wished to see it as well. Soon, they had passed another dozen markers or more, and arrived at a bench. It was old, ancient even, and if it were made from iron it would be rusty. Yet it simply stood there, black and unaging, the metal interwoven into leaflike patterns before reaching the floor, and soon the pair sat down on it. For another few moments, no words came, the fog receding a little to reveal a field of white flowers at the end of the gravel path. "Traveller, do you often encounter places like this?" the caretaker then asked, not facing the person she had been walking with. "Sometimes," Mercury nodded. "Never like this though." "What is like this, then?" the woman asked with a faint smile. "It''s... very much," Mercury said, his thoughts muddled. The reply however was silence, a pause in their talk that gave him time to think. "It is the first time everything is speaking to me." "Truly?" the woman asked. "I''m fairly sure, yes." "Think some more, traveller. There is no hurry here," the caretaker said, slowly shaking her head. "I-... hm. I suppose it felt like this when was first categorized..." Mercury muttered after some thinking. He thought it would barely be a whisper, but in a sombre place it rang out loudly. Once again, the woman in black nodded her head. "I would have been surprised. Hearing the song on your very first time would be surprising. Yet still, I hear more stories that cling to you," she said. "Stories that... cling to me?" "Indeed. Powerful stories, ones that are strong enough to leave imprints on you. One is large, an entire short lifetimes even, a story of trial, like a caged animal. Another story speaks of carnage, torn limbs and rivers of blood. Then, there is an old one, a long story, with parts of it blurry and forgotten as the one it belongs to. And yet still, another story clings to you, this one young, and chaotic, unsure of where it is headed, yet guided by your calm." The woman paused. After a while she began to smirk. "It appears this event also will not leave you untouched. I can already feel a faint thread of this place''s story hang onto you, unwilling to let go." "I''m sorry, I don''t follow," Mercury said. "Ah, I rambled. These stories are imprints. Interactions with other ones, outer ones, things that people might brush off as nothing. Yet, you seem receptive, perhaps because of that lifetime you already hold within yourself." And a moment later, the woman sat opposite of a man rather than a mopaaw. "I see," Steve said. "Ah, this isn''t my voice." It was hollow and ghostly. "You''re a memory, that is why," the caretaker said. "I would invite you to stay a while and tell me of yourself, but that time has not come yet," she said. A moment later, Mercury returned to his cat-body. "Whoa, that feels... strange." "I simply asked one of the stories that shape you to tell their tale. Only for a moment however, as it seems that specific one is not over quite yet. There is simply a gap, one I have not seen often, but I have seen it." "A gap?" Mercury asked. "A gap," the caretaker nodded. "I believe you know already where it is from, traveller of worlds." "It''s from the reincarnation, isn''t it?" he asked. "Indeed," the woman nodded once more. "The stories that cling to you, those which are part of your fate, include your own. It is a song still sung, a painting in progress, a meal not yet ready to eat," she said bearing a smile. "Yet, new things are added. Some leave faint traces, others change it entirely. It''s..." She paused, grasping for words. "It''s no more and no less than being influenced by the people you interact with. The stories I talked off are noticeable to me, yet hundreds more hold onto you. They will push you and pull you towards certain paths and away from others. They are your wishes, your will, your burden, and yourself. They are what makes you traveller, and what makes me caretaker," she said slowly, her hazel eyes losing their luster. "Ah, but I must attend my duties again," the caretaker said regretfully. "I do ask you visit again. It was a pleasure, traveller. Thank you for being respectful." And before Mercury could answer, the fog grew thick and fell over his eyes, the last thing he saw was the strange woman turning to mist, and the white roses turning black as the fog rolled in to swallow it all up. Then, a moment later, Mercury woke up on the forest floor, gasping for air and panting heavily. "Holy fuck," he stammered out in between gasps, his lungs feeling like he had just swallowed hellfire, burning and cramping up as he rolled on the floor in pain. His muscles spasmed the moment he got even a whiff of air in, pushing it all out, and he could barely control his breathing at all. After a few seconds, Mercury began retching, his stomach violently rejecting something. Moments later, he threw up onto the ground, his insides turning to outsides as he still wailed, his mind so utterly overwhelmed it took him forever to think through even a second of what had happened just there. Still, not long after dumping everything his stomach contained onto the ground, Mercury at least got his breathing back under control. Every heave of his chest seemed to strain himself, his muscles fighting against it as he forced air into his lungs, but there was no way out of that. A couple minutes later, he began dragging himself back to his log. He''d found it hard to sleep before, and it seemed out of the question now. At least it felt like that, until his head hit the blanket, and almost immediately, he passed out from exertion. - - - The caretaker sighed as she sent the traveller away. Their company had been pleasant. It awoke distant memories of herself, hearing and seeing what few had before. Then again, she had abandoned those things for a reason, and her current existing was more than fulfilling for her. Yet, she had sent the traveller away. With good reason, too. She couldn''t see very far in this place, the fog veiling her eyes as it grew thick and heavy. It seemed to be hiding her from something, sheltering her, and it put a faint smile on her lips. "Part," she said, and the fog parted. The sky above her workplace was cloudy, as it always was, the faint flakes of snow falling eternally within this place. Somehow, the traveller had braved the storm and made it in, into this place, one that many may consider unreachable. The thought amused her once more. A location considered well hidden, yet it only truly remained difficult to reach, if one believed it to be. The traveller wanted to see more badly than they believed it would be hard, and thus they were allowed in. She was glad that they had been respectful. This was a sombre place after all. As she thought so, her face hardened. The sky was changing, she could see that much, the blues and white slowly fading to be replaced by black and red, the colour of dried blood clinging onto the clouds as the snow turned to rain. Thick drops of scarlet slowly fell, hissing where they touched the ground, sometimes lighting tiny flames until the very earth they sat upon drowned them out. One drop landed on the caretakers shoulder, yet it did not even hiss as it simply faded into nothingness. She shook her head at this attempt, and raised her face to the sky. The last time intruders attempted to enter this sanctum of peace, they had fallen and been laid to rest here, the warriors finally embracing the peace they had sought to break. Yet this time, she felt there would be no warriors in this place. "Would you really come here after only a whisper, a faint ringing of your fate?" she asked as the blood poured down more, yet the answer was none. The caretaker shook her head as she walked, yet time was of the essence. She asked the path to take her to the shed, and only a step later, she was there, unlocking the old thing with a rusty key. She looked over its contents, at what laid inside, the many tools, and settled on a shovel. When she left, she walked again, watching as the rain grew heavier and stained the earth. Soon, she had arrived at an untouched piece of soil. The rain poured heavily now, crimson droplets falling upon each other, seeking to form puddles and splashes, yet not a sound rang out, swallowed by the fog that was already in this place. In the silence, the caretaker took the shovel, and pushed it into the ground, upheaving a lump of dirt with a groan. Then another, and another yet. By the fourth time she dug into the earth, the first crack rang out, a shrill tearing as the air in front of her spilled open to reveal a monstrous figures within scarlet doorways, black mist spilling over and seeking to taint what was there. The thing''s face was almost nought but a jagged mouth, opening up wide to howl and scream. "Be quiet," the caretaker said, and not a sound left it''s mouth. "Lay down," she commanded next, pointing at the shallow ditch she had dug, and once again the monster obeyed. Soon, she had covered it back up with dirt. "Please, make a marker," she kindly asked of the earth, and a marker appeared. It was a tombstone without any engravings, as a single, blood red rose with a stem of black grew from the grave. Small stones formed around it, marking it''s borders, and moments later, the gravel path had spread besides it, just another thing buried beneath the soil. "Now rest," the caretaker said with a kind voice, and the creature stopped its stirring. Somewhere in the fog, someone sang. "This little sea of scarlet~" a young voice hummed, but when the caretaker raised her hand, none of the sound came close to her ears or the new tomb anymore. "You no longer need to worry," the woman said in between pants, exhausted from digging. "You can stay here, and rest. The others will join you soon." And within a rainfall of blood, where abominations would scream, the caretaker simply stepped over, and began to dig once more, listening to a quiet, sad song as she went about her work. Chapter 91: An Invention and a Choice Chapter 91: An Invention and a Choice Well, this is a little awkward. Mercury was supposed to have woken up by now, yet here we are. And he''s still sleeping. Let me quickly check how long he actually keeps his eyes shut for. Wow, three whole days? He better remember where that waterhole is. Then, in the meantime, why not stop by someone else? Yes, let''s go with that. Somewhere quite far from the central continent, to the west of Damoy, laid Arterus. The continent of demons and devils, full of strive, and hatred, and desire. The people there burned as hot as the lands they walked upon, the heat in the air always scorching, the tempers that flared up quite similar to the environment too. Not all demons were the same though. That would be quite silly. No, they all had their desires, and while many of them enjoyed trickery and battles, be they of strength or of wit, others lived for the experienced. Fine wines, extravagant paintings, or whatever pleasures they set their mind to. There were even some demon lords, heads of the 72 cities, that never once partook in their battles of rank. One such demon was Zagan. She had reigned over the golden city of Ert''olockh, a place where the rivers flowed with wine instead of blood, and all that glittered was truly gold. Some time ago now, she had indulged her arrogance and allowed a music duel between her and Wilhelmia of Ragnarock to decide whether they would stay as her court musicians. It was a disgraceful loss, and perhaps her greatest yet, but Zagan did not mind much. She had agreed when her blood ran hot, and when it cooled down, she stood by her decisions. Their visit had been pleasant nonetheless, and she had been their sponsor since, allowing them to spread her name along their music through Arterus. The demon was pleased with this arrangement, as perhaps the only thing greater than pleasure may be fame to her. And fame was hard to come by as a demon, especially one who shunned the battles for their rankings. Now, she was getting letters, thanking her for sponsoring such incredible performances, and of course, more travel to her city. Perhaps that would not mean much to most of the blood-obsessed demon princes, or those seeking conquest above all, but to her it was worth quite a bit. See, new bright minds were rare, most of them choosing to remain holed up with their own research to attend. They travelled little, only exchanging letters with select colleagues, and perhaps some stemming from royal families would have the resources to keep a teleportation circle running. Now, though? A steady stream of newcomers to her city. Bight minds and dim ones alike, the dim spending a couple days and a bit of coin, perhaps buying some of the shaped gold their city offered as a souvenir. After all, where Zagan went, gold was not worth very much, and ever since Midas had asked to stay in her castle, well, the city had only been glistening more. But the alloys that currency was made from, those she was forbidden from transmuting. Well kept pact that one was. Established at the beginning of the fourth book and in place ever since. New coins see the market only so often as old ones are swept away and recast, a pact proposed with the devils'' seal of promise on it. Now only select mines and people could produce proper coin, making laundering more than difficult. She digressed. The dim travellers brought trade, at the very least, and trouble, at the very worst. If it was too much trouble, perhaps they would assist the bright minds in their studies, be that more or less willingly. Those, however, who were interested in research, she truly welcomed. When they arrived in her city, the gates would swing open, and soon they would be offered a position, with good pay and funding that was just as well. Most agreed, those that didn''t were left alone as well. It was no good forcing the smart, they would always find a way to weasel out. But for those that agreed, in exchange for pay, helpers and experimental subjects, Zagan did not request very much, only that they indulge a little in some personal projects of hers. The success did not have to be grandiose, it could even be a failure, it was more of an agreement they would give it a try. This time was not a failure. It wasn''t even close to what anyone could consider slightly awry. No, it had gone splendidly, with an invention she was sure would spread like wildfire once she showed it to the nobles, and she knew there was even more money to make if they managed to mass-produce the item. It was a machine that required operation by someone. They needed not be exceptionally powerful, simply well rested and in good health, having some stamina to spare, and knowledge on how to use it, too. The first part of the machine was a large, heavy casing, one with a handprint slot where it would receive the stamina. As it was a prototype, it still used zitodain, a hardy plant that grew thorns thin enough you''d barely notice their sting, but once they pierced the body, those needles would begin draining the stamina of a host vessel. They were invasive, and could cause anemic reactions, especially with prolonged exposure. They also did a pisspoor job at storing stamina, but with that all said, they were a common weed and easy to procure. Once the product was finished, they might replace it with the more gentle muckmoss, a plant which happily receives stamina by taking it from the surface layers of skin, however it is too soft to drain any large amounts if not specifically fed. When it does receive larger quantities of stamina though, it would grow bulbs that pulsated with green life beneath itself, storing it for winter, where it would hibernate and sustain itself from its reserves. Its downside was the requirement for proper stamina channels, which were a pain to build, while the vines of the zitodain would serve as those by themselves. Still, the important part was simply getting the stamina to where it needed to be, a contraption on the inside about as confusing and horrifying as one may imagine. A circular spring made of flattened metal at the top, with a needle attached to its end, the stamina slowly pushing it inward further as it performed the miracle she had asked for. The other required part was a disc. They had chosen this shape since it maximized surface area per material used, and the circular shape was much easier to produce a spring for. Additionally, it was symmetrical. On this disc, the needle would push down, and this push would be controlled by something else entirely. Something her inventors called a "sound recording device" was attached to the front of the machine casing. As of the prototype, it used a thin lattice of rubbery material, this one a rock she was told. First, Zagan could hardly believe that rock would be rubbery, and yet as she stared at it, it looked her clear back in the eyes. The rock formed between an extremely hot surface, they had used magma for it, and a thin sheet of earth infused water. Upon contact, the water evaporated, leaving a thin sheet behind that they had cut a circle from. In general, this material wasn''t used much. The applications were limited, as it tore easily, and boasted little resistance to piercing or cutting, yet here it worked. Because when hit with vibrations from the air, the material resisted these very strongly, the friction apparently stemming from the earth essence that laid inside not wanting to move very quickly. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. So, as a thin film, when hit with sound, it resisted the movement, remaining perfectly still, and instead it released a tiny amount of earth charged mana, so miniscule it would hardly be useful for anything else, and yet here it was infused into the needle tip. The mana, created from the sound, still carried many of its properties. More mana meant louder sounds, higher pitched would create a stronger elemental affinity, and since the affinity was earth, it cut through any stone much easier. With the mana in the needle, it would glide through the discs, carving channels into them that were entirely unique to what was spoken in front of the giant chassis, and once the elapsed time was over, the needle would lift itself up, by detecting the hard inner core of the disc, where heat would build up fast as it cut through, and there, it would then be moved via a clever gear mechanism, using a thin film of water below the plate, which would turn into steam, push up a cylinder, and remove the needle from the plate. Then, the frame opens up, and one has a finished disc. It was still an imperfect construction, but the first half was there simply to make these things. Round stones with channels carved into them, each one perfectly unique. There were, of course, many flaws to hash out. First of all, the earth mana transportation was not flawless, some of it got lost along the way, and with how little it was, perhaps a magic amplifier would be nice to have in there. Those would then be hard to charge though, requiring maintenance, so they were currently working on an amplifier which may be able to use saved up stamina to make the channels more consistent. Additionally, the spring would move according to the stamina put in, so as of right now, it needed a very high level of precision, and tuning to the individual plant. Some of that would be improved upon using muckmoss, but some problems still remained, such as creating enough steam for the cylinder to actually push the needle up. It was quite heavy and needed a good amount of heat, and since they couldn''t exactly turn off the earth mana, generating that much simply from friction was hard. As of right now, they were using flamestone, but of course, that was an option with many problems in and of itself, namely the risk of combustion inside the chamber, which would break more than just the disc it was at the center of. These were only some of the improvements yet to be made. Still, it worked! In some ungodly way, these geniuses managed to catch sound onto a thing, and then figured out a way to play it back. See, with the channel complete, they then moved to find a material that let them measure back a signal to somehow convert into sound. Unfortunately, this side did not allow for the use of zitodain, as the playback needed a very consistent source of stamina, and so they had to uniquely manufacture staminaducts that could take it from the muckmoss bulbs and channel it into a shrieker cylinder. Shriekers, of course, were rocks that violently reacted to stamina, becoming gaseous upon contact and expanding to many times their size, before turning back after using up all their energy. It was a strange sight to witness, and they got their names from the howl they made by blasting aside the air and sucking it back in. Now, these shrieker cylinders could not constantly accept stamina, otherwise they would simply stay expanded, instead, stamina must be periodically added to create consistent expansion and contraction. Then, the cylinder would move up and down, spinning a giant wheel. Once said wheel reaches sufficient rotation, it will keep receiving small amounts of energy from the cylinder, as it is used to spin another, much smaller plate, upon which the stone disc rests. Those systems had taken forever to develop, and sync up to achieve the correct rotation speed, since on the other side the cutting needle experienced far less actual friction. It was a chore, but they had managed, somehow. Of course, the shriekers themselves were surrounded with noise padding, so as to not cause disruptions, but since it was an enclosed space, the noise they made was much more muffled. Still, after the disc was finally spinning at a constant velocity, the needed to find something that could read the imprints. Logically, another needle was chosen, This one needing to be softer than the stone, yet still hard enough to not be worn down by it, and additionally, it needed to create some sort of reaction with their contraption that could somehow be turned into stone. The choice was a difficult one, but eventually, they managed to settle on firebeetle chitin. It would rub against the sides and bottom of the shallow grooves cut into the disc, and being what it was, the chitin would then slightly charge with fire essence. There were better options for quality, but the chitin was long-lasting, did a good enough job, and was also easily replaceable, which some alternatives were not. In any case, the fire essence would then strive to rise, and particular conduits would be provided, before at the very end, there was a reader, the most expensive part they couldn''t get around in the prototype. It was an emberstone, a gem that would always shine with glimpses of an extinguished flame, and when touched by essence it sent out much more tangible, and easily interactable signals of slight vibrations. These were channelled into a stamina-powered amplifier, and finally, the construction was done. A thing of beauty it was, Zagan knew that much as she stared into the machine. A creation whose prototype was so glorious, she would have the envy of any music-lover in the world. Yet, she was not a cruel mistress, and was more than willing to share this pleasure with those who craved it as much as her. So, without any hesitation, she asked for a feast, and duly rewarded the scientists. And a moment before the festivals began, she asked for the invention''s name. "We want to call it the whinyl-system," one of the demons replied, pushing up a pair of glasses. "Whinyl?" Zagan asked. "Inspired by the slight whirring it gives off when recording a new sound, of the grooves being dug," the scientist replied. "It is a fine name!" Zagan replied with a grin. "Let us make a toast, to whinyl!!" "Think she''ll ever find out it''s because she whined about wanting it so much," one of the demons whispered to another. "No shot. Now let her be excited, this''ll surely get us some more material." And with that, music could finally be heard when not one person played it. - - - - - - Avery simply shook his head at the report he received. "Marcel?" he asked, and for just a short moment, no on answered. "Come in here before I come outside." A moment later, the door to Avery''s office swung open, as the receptionist stepped in, wearing his brightest smile. "Yes, guild master?" he asked, his arms crossed behind his back. "Read this," Avery said, pushing the document over the table towards his assistant. "I don''t understand, guild master, I''ve read it before and-" "Read. It." Avery snarled. The receptionist sighed in reply. "Fine," he relented, not facing much of a choice at all. "There have been sightings of multiple confirmed tier 4 beasts, as well as extremely aggressive weather conditions. Bla, bla, bla, things are looking grim for adventurer parties below C rank, bla bla, we wish the guild master himself look into this matter. Anything else, Avery?" "I got a bad feeling about it," Avery said, tapping his fingers on the table. "Our readings''ve been inconclusive at best, the scouting has gone horribly with most of the monsters hiding in the sand, and the landscape seems endless. It''s not a swarm type, either, but an exploration one, and we don''t know how vast it stretches. It''s unpredictable. And I''ve run out of bread." "Yeah, I can see that. It''s gonna be a tough one to predict for sure. Is it your piping up?" Marcel asked, struggling to take things as seriously as Avery maybe wanted him to. The guild master just nodded in reply. "It is. Not even the exploration as much, I''m sure I can handle it. Hell, I''ve been through my share of deserts, actually. The problem is with the outside. The front''s been restless lately, you know it as well as I do, and if Stormbraver gets attacked while I''m out again I might just head to Evlenor my-damn-self." "Sir, I advise you to not be a fucking dumbass," Marcel sighed again. "This is the kind of shit guild masters decide. Is a C rank party exploring the dungeon or are you heading in? Both have dangers and risks, now weigh them," he said, leaning over the table and staring the man who should be his superior down. After a few moments of silence, Avery couldn''t help but crack a smile. "Kah, I knew having you show your ass was the right call. Thanks for keeping me on track. Get the scouts into my office if they''re not asleep yet, if they are, get someone to carry their beds." "Yeah, yeah, old man," Marcel said with a grin. "I''ll make sure to pick up some bread so you don''t starve as well, asshole." Avery could only shake his head as the door to his office fell shut. Well then, what would be the right call? A good likelihood of sending a small team to their doom, or a low chance of seeing this city razed to the ground. He shook his head again at the thought. There was still a little more he needed to know, choices like these weren''t ones he would make lightly. Chapter 92: Thoughts Chapter 92: Thoughts /I have meditated over this many a time now, and it has become abundantly clear to me. We have been too lenient before with people who have gone against order, shown to soft a grasp on those that would violate the principles our world requires to function. My eyes have been opened as I have journeyed through the cities, witnessing priests give blessings to the poor rather than food, watched as people who had stolen food were taken in rather than punished. As shepherds of order it is our duty and our calling to uphold that which is sacred, a duty we must forever swear to follow. There is no doubt in my mind that our hands have grown soft, callouses built from starvation disappearing into nothingness as we have become fragile. I call for a return back to that which once made up our order. To law and to justice. Freedom is a part of the order, but the people can only be free under law, and law can only exist under justice. We must punish those who take unfairly, punish those who seek to disrupt, not take them in. If a person sins, they must face consequences, they must earn redemption rather than being given it freely. The leniency many of our colleagues have shown in newer times has disappointed me greatly, and I request of all bishops, priests, speakers, and whoever else may stand with me that we must bring this to the attention of the voice. It is imperative that our ways change, returning to our foundation in faith, in the belief that we will forever care about the good of the people by keeping them safe from those that seek to cause harm. I propose we establish greater punishments once again. If someone is caught stealing, they should lose a finger for each gloom the product was worth, an arm from just under the elbow for every dim. Those who harm others must be put into the dungeon straight away, so that those who may be in harm''s way can stay securely out of it. We can no longer afford to coddle the people, not with recent developments towards us. I am greatly disappointed by the inaction the voice has shown towards those that seek to go against order. Perhaps she has been too caught up with her personal life and neglecting her duties? Of course, I would never dare say that she has been neglectful of order, I know she cares for it more deeply than any of us could ever imagine. Yet, when she journeyed off from Stormbraver leaving nary a word, being gone for a month with no companion we know of, it was disrespectful towards the people of the city as well, leaving their faith to be directed at whatever local priests were up early enough, rather than the figure they were promised. As things stand right now, I believe changes must be made. With this letter, I must kindly ask you to address your writings to the voice. Speak to her about what we wish would change, for it is our freedom that needs to be secured by the laws we lay down, and it is that freedom that gives us the right to see the law changed and justice enacted accordingly. Stand with me, brothers and sisters, for now, more than ever, we must show ourselves as one./ A letter from bishop Nemo the fanatic to his trusted associates. - - - - - - By the time Mercury opened his eyes, it was around midday. He didn''t quite know how long he slept for, but what he did know was that his mouth felt like a desert, dry and uncomfortable. His tongue was heavy and his entire body ached, almost as if he had gone through leg day with all his muscles. As his senses slowly returned, he gave a bleary-eyed gaze outside his trusty log, hissing as the bright sun reflected into his eyes. His head felt like it would split any minute now, and his skin was crawling all over. In short, Mercury was fucking miserable. Slowly, and I do mean very slowly, he began to fight against his blankets and lethargy. It felt as though there was a weight pressing down on him, his legs like big blocks of lead, but still he eventually managed to at least get upright, before letting his face flop back down onto the blanket. "Uuuuugggggghhhhhh," he murred, the sound muffled as his face was still pressed against the soft cloth. After rolling over onto his side once more however, he had finally managed to at least get away from the comfort his bedding provided, making the process of getting up more appealing at least. After only about 10 minutes, Mercury had finally managed his first couple steps out of the log. Feeling the sun on his fur helped a little bit with the languor he felt, and at the very least, he started taking some steps towards the river he had claimed the day before. ... Maybe claimed was a strong word. Still, after some more shaky steps he found a wobbly rhythm, almost looking like a drunk person, unable to walk in a straight line. It was more effective than not walking, if that was any consolation. But with much determination, and the power of never giving up, Mercury eventually manged to get back to the pond, only to see a lonely deer already drinking from it. For a moment, he let out a quiet sigh, before taking his place almost provocatively next to it, eyeing the animal up and down to see if it reacted. Nope, nothing. Seeing as his fellow drinker didn''t seem to much mind his company, Mercury decided to get a sip of water for himself as well. Then, the deer decided to tap him with its leg, almost like chasing a fly away. Once again, the cat simply lowered his mouth to the water and began to wet his tongue when the much larger animal disturbed him. He looked up at the deer with his eyes slightly narrowed, watching as it stared back at him with a confused, almost insulted look. Mercury stared at it, feeling his fur begin to stand on end in an attempt to make him seem bigger. He was desperate for a drink and this bitch would deny him? No shot. A moment later he loudly hissed at the deer, watching as it seemed to slowly understand his hostile intent. Its ears began to lay down to the edges of its head, and its nostrils flaring a little, as it slightly tapped its front hooves towards Mercury. "Meow?" he asked, roughly translating to "you wanna fucking go?". The deer then simply decided to lightly kick at him with its front leg, only to witness it stop in mid air. For a moment, there was a look of surprise and confusion on its face, as the animal attempted to take its leg back, only to find it hard some trouble doing so. Soon, the surprise changed to panic, and it began to flail its other leg wildly in an attempt to shake free from the grip, and it did succeed, yet when the deer then tried to run away from what it didn''t know, one of its legs suddenly became harder to move, causing it to stumble and fall. "Ghost hands," Mercury whispered, slowly approaching the other animal as it scrambled to get up. When it ran off once more, he didn''t use on it at all, instead deciding to simply drink some more water. Finally feeling some of that blue gold on his lips, he didn''t regret the decision at all. He could feel the slight cold of the liquid rush through his veins and cool his body down, the itching on his skin receding by a bit as his headache lessened. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. After drinking what felt like half the pond, Mercury decided to only walk a few more steps over until he sat atop the rock outcropping, where he folded his legs down underneath him, and closed his eyes for some more sleep. Perhaps, when he woke up he would be thirsty again, this time he would at least be far enough along to drink a bit. For a little while, Mercury passed the days like that, hunting occasionally and drinking when he felt like it, just taking things at his own pace. Whenever he was bored, he would practice different Skills or even just meditate, and after some time, he had brought the level of and up once again. He would use his for most tasks, too, be that catching prey or crushing up leaves. It was most definitely all very important, that much he was absolutely sure of. The more he practiced, the more comfortable he got with the Skill, too. It hadn''t levelled up quite yet, but it was probably pretty close, and as time had passed, the force he could apply and the precision he could do it with still improved, even without the level rising. As of right now, Mercury could use his virtually like a human would use two hands. His coordination was better than what it used to be with the ones made wholly from flesh, but he couldn''t quite use his fingers with as much finesse, still working on that bit by bit. And, of course, it wasn''t like he actually had hands, so he could not use the structures normal humans have in place, like distributing weight onto the skeleton by simply letting the arm hang down. Also, he couldn''t just use anything like his "grip" to hold onto something, since he just applied an actual force, and after the distance limit, that force would just disappear. So, unfortunately, when using he couldn''t quite slack off as much, though it certainly did make some things much easier, and also helped keeping his mind occupied when he was thinking. Maybe he''d even develop some sort of ticks again after some while, though that was certainly a little further in the future. Considering how leisurely his hunting was, Mercury hadn''t really expected a whole lot of levels, and he had, in fact, gotten a grand total of zero. It didn''t much matter, compared to the normal animals of this forest, he was quite a bit stronger, since they never used their leftover ability points or the Skill shop, but if he came across someone strong, he still wanted to be ready, so when he did hunt, he actually used everything he had available. With those measures, Mercury was making sure he wasn''t getting rusty as he worked on himself. He slowly improved his runecarving, bit by bit, only practicing it when he actually felt like he could make some good progress. No, the majority of his time he spent in an attempt to recapture that feeling he''d gotten a couple times before. When he awakened at the hands of old Uunrahzil, or again when fighting the Mafia Boss and Birdbrain, and recently, when he met the caretaker as well. When he meditated, he slowly expanded his mana, trying to feel the world with all his senses. The ground, the air, the tiny noises of insects and critters, the rustling of leaves in the wind, the groaning of bark in the sun. It felt like he got closer, but never quite there, always just that bit of a barrier in between. During another evening, Mercury sighed to himself once more. He had gotten into a habit of stargazing a bit over the last couple days. He didn''t count quite how many he had been in the forest for, but he doubted it was more than a page or three. Lately, whenever he was feeling lost, he simply looked up at the night sky, following his nocturnal urges. Those glittering things up there felt like they gave him promises of comfort, and he appreciated them very much. Sometimes, he liked to think that the moon was like an older sibling to them, protective and kind, letting the scared ones hide in its glow, and the braver ones stand all by themselves. It was a comforting thought, a little like home. Mercury shook his head again, ducking back inside the log, enjoying the soft sound of the rain on top of it. The water slid off neatly with how it was now, protecting him from the elements, even the open ends seemed to have some resistance against the wind, making it calm and still inside. As of right now, his log was more his home than ever, outfitted with soft blankets, always warm and dry, and even protecting him. Thinking that this thing had been with him longer than anyone else at all was a funny thought, and at it, Mercury cracked a smile as he slowly closed his eyes. He opened his ears to the world again, his nose to the scents all around him, touching the air and grass with his mana. It wasn''t a complete experience since he couldn''t see things, he knew that, but for now, this was enough. Trying to see things, to truly see them, felt like it would be too much to ask at this stage, so instead, he just wanted to latch onto that feeling of understanding, of belonging. If he were a monk, perhaps he would''ve called it inner peace. Perhaps other people would have also called it that, like protagonists in martial arts movies, but Mercury was none of that. He was just some guy, now some cat, in another world. He hadn''t made a great name for himself yet, and maybe he never would. Recently, that idea didn''t seem so painful anymore. To simply be part of the world seemed much more comforting after meeting the caretaker, after knowing that everything already breathed by itself, and that perhaps there were already things that cared about him. That feeling of homeliness, of being part of something bigger, of belonging yet being so small, it made Mercury realize that really, his actions didn''t matter very much. To some, that thought may be heartbreaking. That eventually, all of their actions will be forgotten, washed away by the annals of times, their names lost and their skeletons ground to dust in the wind. Yet to others? Those were words of comfort. All people made mistakes, and eventually, those would be forgotten. By the people, by the world. And it was equally comforting to know, that if a mistake was made, the only people who could possibly be bothered by it were other people. Most of them were ones you would choose to surround yourself with, but even if they aren''t, if they are your boss or your teacher, what does it matter if the get upset? Is there truly any sense in that? Not really. To be mad at someone else for willingly neglecting their duties was more than justified, but getting mad at a mistake was a fruitless endeavour. The person would always know they fucked up, and the one they''d wronged could choose to ignore that. If one got mad, maybe that person would feel worse, but to what end? Mercury now thought that seeking to improve oneself just for the sake of someone who got angry was silly. Sure, he would improve out of pettiness towards someone like Yvette, but when his boss yelled at him, all that it did to Mercury was care even less. To try and better himself for a person who didn''t even care for his work, didn''t understand it, that was silly. No, Mercury was now trying to better himself for a different reason. It was for Cherry and Second, Gladiator and Juno, as well as even Uunrahzil or Kintra. To surprise Avery, to support Lucia, or measure up to Zyl, to understand Otto a little better, or laugh with Avery and Marcel and Gilah and Elliot. There were others, so many others that had showed him kindness, and for those people, he wished to be the best version of himself, and as he sat in his log, with his eyes closed, listening to soft rainfall and the howling wind, one more of those people came into his mind. Himself. Mercury wanted to be the best version he could be for another reason he had forgotten. It was the name he had chosen when he came into this world so long ago, Mercury Rainfall Starlight. Thinking back on it, he smirked. It was a little cringey, he had to admit, but he still liked the ring it had to it, so he stuck with it. To live up to Mercury had seemed like a tough task, an impossible goal back then, but right then, it didn''t feel like that. To be Mercury Rainfall Starlight, all he had to do was just be... well, himself. It was his name, his choice. He didn''t owe anything to his name, nor did his name owe him anything, it was just a bunch of letters in an assortment he liked, and if that is who he was, then that was enough. The thought put another light smile on his face, lying down on his lips more gracefully than a feather. It was an overwhelming statement, not domineering or incredible, but it was who he was right now. Some guy in another world, looking to make the best of things. He had been dealt a tough hand a couple of times, and a good one some others. He had lost some friends, and helped some others. Bonds were forged between him and those he met, strings of fate as the caretaker called them, and when he had found out, the concept felt a little strange to him. But Mercury had thought it over, and it honestly made him happy. To think that everyone he had spent time with kept a small connection to him was a good thought, and the fact that they would remember him sometimes was fulfilling. Mercury caught his thoughts going astray and paused for a moment, shaking his head. He focused again, intent on listening to things other than just himself, shaking off his miscellaneous thoughts as he instead turned his attention towards his breath. In and out, slowly, steadily, and surely. Like that he sat still for the rest of the night, simply taking in one breath of air after the other as he listened to the world around him. Chapter 93: Outside and Inside Chapter 93: Outside and Inside /I like dogs./ Some biologist, probably. - - - - - - The next few days passed in a similar vain. Mercury didn''t do anything extraordinary. There was nothing he really needed to do, and with the pressure gone, he decided to let meditation take as long as it needed to. He would wake up, walk to the pond, drink some water, hunt for food, work on his Skills a little, then meditate. Of course, he didn''t neglect his training either. When he wasn''t meditating, he absorbed more mana, or worked on his stamina, although he still didn''t quite know how he could improve it outside of just levelling his dexterity. As the days went by, he just kept taking the time to focus on ihn''ar. Even in his dreams he worked more on that than mana itself. He was starting to see the plains again, after many quiet nights, though since the bet there had yet to be another visit from old Uunrahzil. But Mercury was sure they would return, after all, they were nothing if not a diligent teacher. Without them though, he simply kept meditating, listening, and working on his breath. He couldn''t quite pinpoint why, but it was quite fulfilling. Almost like he was letting go of some of the pressure he had been feeling, deciding that this was what he would spend his time on. For now, he still had enough to spare, after all. Maybe he had really been in too much of a hurry to establish himself. Heck, the world was much wider than what he could even imagine, and he had scarcely seen even one continent. What kind of king new nothing about the world they walked on? No, before he really established himself, he just needed to understand a lot more things. Get to know more people, understand some more politics, and get strong enough to stand up to other rulers as well. Mercury smirked when comparing himself to some of the people he knew. Avery could probably still soccer-kick him to the moon. Then, Mercury shook his head, focusing back on his meditation. He had chosen a sound to listen to by now. One that sung different tunes each passing day, being the grass he placed his feet on. The way it moved in the soft breeze, how it stretched high and laid down when trampled, how it grew through cracks in attempts to reach just a little more light, and buried traces of smaller object. It was a home to some, an aid to others, and a soft bed to those who walked. Also, he felt it aligned pretty well with breath, grass producing the oxygen he breathed and all that. If this world had oxygen, though he guessed it did. But he couldn''t be sure. Not like he could see his insides, maybe he was producing energy differently now. Not that it mattered much. He still felt that familiarity with the grass, whether it came from his old life or the new, and so he listened to it. He heard how it was covered with a thin film of water overnight, could slowly hear the frost creeping onto its surface as darkness crawled over the sky, and he also heard that same coat of crystal crack and fall when the sun rose above the canopy. Later, he heard how it grew, and heard how it moved, he felt the soothing touch of the sun, though the grass probably felt it far more. It would be like a breath of air after being locked in a small room for a while. He understood its woes at being stepped on and still providing a soft landing for those who walked, and he felt they weren''t unlike each other, when it swayed in the passing breeze. With time, as the cold began to creep in, late summer turning autumn, Mercury laid down one night, and slept through a whole day, tired and worn out. And when he woke up the next day, morning cold tickling his nose, and he watched as the grass hung its head low in the rain, he felt like he got it. For just a moment, he could feel the raindrops hit him, slowly slide down with a weight that affected him more than it had any right to, and fall to the floor, releasing the load from his shoulders. And he saw as it happened a hundred times a second, thick drops falling onto thin blades that bent, yet never broke. The water from the sky easily forced the greenery down, making it bow, in what was perhaps humility or shame, but when Mercury saw it, he knew. It was a bow of thanks. The water leaned on the plants for a soft descend, sticking together as one, before falling into the ground to let the blades grow just a little higher. What seemed like a weight on his shoulders before now felt like a responsibility, wanting to grow for the ones that were there before, and for the ones that helped. Mercury thought he might be taking root, feeling as though something travelled into him from the floor, empowering his legs and making him want to go higher, and Mercury agreed. Only minutes after waking up, he ran out of his log and into the rain, his fur soon staining a muddled grey, as he leapt against the bark of a tree and dug his claws in. He felt light, incredibly light, and only moments later, he was up to the first branch and leapt to the second, a jump further than he had any right to make. Then another leap followed, and soon, he had pierced the treetops, now watching the grey clouds in the sky, and far behind them, the sun. The guiding warmth that responsibility wanted him to reach, what he wanted to feel to grow. And then, on the treetop and drenched in rain, feeling only a couple warm rays on his skin, Mercury smiled. He understood the grass, felt how it felt like, and he could hear it whisper. It thanked him, he knew that much. For showing him respect. [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] In his moment of happiness, Mercury simply let himself fall, closed his eyes, and trusted his newfound companions to catch him. And the grass, always one to find their chance, even in the harshest environments, was not one to disappoint. As Mercury fell, the ones on the ground already reached out to him, and before he even felt an impact, he landed softly on the earth, as the raindrops did next to him, and laughed. "Ha.. Haha, Hahaha!" he laughed his heart out in joy, with adrenaline and fulfilment coursing through his veins in equal measure. Even as his fur got muddy, he simply laughed. Time, once again, hadn''t betrayed him, and neither had effort, as that moment was the one in which Mercury, against common sense, befriended grass. - - - The heroine felt a whisper coming from the floor, a silent hymn of joy. It was strange, quite so, since it was usually very quiet here. The wind was always chatty, wanting her to see all the places it had been, and the sea oftentimes told long and winded tales. Fire liked to exaggerate, and her own heartbeat would often seek to be more acknowledged, but rarely ever did the grasses vie for her attention. Curiously, she shifted her eyes downwards to a single blade, slowly kneeling down towards it. For a moment, the little one stayed quiet, yet its soul''s tremor gave it away, it and all the friends around it. "What is it then, little one?" she asked with a smile so welcoming, it was hard not to speak up. As always, the grass answered. News had travelled, and there was someone else who understood it. A rare occurrence, especially for these ones, so remote and far away, she thought, and the little one elaborated on that too. Apparently, the new friend didn''t just understand any single blade of grass like some people would after tending to a certain flower for the gages, but instead, they chose to accept the responsibility of the grass as their own. This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. The new one was similar to them, the little one spoke excitedly to the heroine. They bent and they bowed, and they trusted and carried on another''s work. They stayed strong, even when the time wasn''t easy, and they wanted to give shelter in the future too. It was admirable for little ones such as these, admirable to know that such a person was now their friend, perhaps even as much as family. When the little one had finished, the heroine gave a wide smile. She was happy for them, truly, and gave the small blade a pat on the head, thanking it for the story. She was curious as to this new friend, yet she wouldn''t need to seek them out. If fate willed it, they would meet, and if not, then such was fine as well. After all, that friend now had found others to rely on, and with a little luck, her services would not be needed there. "Now, now," the heroine said to the wind, who was already at it again, dancing wildly in her hair and seeking to carry her away. "Be calm for a moment. There is no rush and you may show me all the things you wish," she said comfortingly, instead looking over the vast landscape below her. After telling the wind she enjoyed high places, she rarely ate somewhere close to the ground. Instead, it would take her to mountaintops and cliffsides, overlooking fields of flowers and vast swathes of emerald ocean. The heroine saw a whale dance, somewhere in the distance, and she waved to it, grinning like a kid when it splashed some water to greet her back. Then, when hearing her stomach growl, she raised her hand and a tree close to her bore fruit, handing the newly grown grendle over to her. The fruit was deliciously sweet, and very soon she had eaten it all, feeling full again. As thanks, the heroine listened to the tree and guided some more sunlight onto its drying leaves, letting its old wood relax a little longer. Then, when she was ready, she beckoned her hand, and the wind swooped her up again, carrying her away to a tomorrow she did not yet know. But if it was an adventure, she would be happy to live through it. - - - Avery sighed when he looked at the person sitting in his office. "What''s the price?" he asked. The option presented to him was like a golden goose, deciding to give him every bit of the reward for none of the work. He hated geese. Little monster with their serrated tongues, fucking gave him nightmares. "What do you mean, guild master? I am offering this all for free! All the spoils from the arch will be yours, I only care about the safety of the city," the man opposite from him said with a smile. He was older than Avery, but not yet old, maybe in his late fourties or so. The woman besides him was unarmed, her hands behind her back, yet Avery could feel the fire in her eyes. Slowly he shook his head. "Count I''htar, with all due respect, such an offer is truly too generous," Avery said, laying the hones onto his lips as was considered proper talking to pompous asses. "No, truly guild master. I insist. Let us take care of your problem and please continue what you do best," he said, his hands pressed together, looking for a chance to seal the deal once and for all. Avery wouldn''t give him one. The guild master wore his sunglasses, yet his gaze pierced through them. He could see I''htar. Hear the noble''s heartbeat, the sheen of sweat so thin a normal person would never even see. Avery noticed how his pupils were just a little too dilated to be making a truly generous offer, and Avery also felt how his feet were slowly moving side to side. In short, I''htars behaviour was almost impeccable. It would fool anyone in the realm of merchants and businessman, in fact, almost every adventurer too. But Avery wasn''t run of the mill, even for a city as large as Stormbraver, his strength should be more than adequate for the job. He had trained his senses to a level most humans would never reach within their lifetimes, never even worth bothering getting close to. Very slowly, he leaned back into his chair, reaching out onto a bowl on his desk, where he grabbed a small loaf of soft, milky bread with raisins in it. He took a bite, and chewed. He heard the woman''s fist clench just a little tighter as her eyes narrowed. He saw the count move his finger by maybe a little over a millimeter, and listened as the woman''s heartbeat slowed a little. Avery slowly smiled again. "Count," he said, leaning forward and placing his elbows on the table, "I fear your offer is too generous for a mere guild master like me. This is an offer so generous it would be hard for anyone to refuse, yet that generosity would make me feel like a beggar. It is almost as if you''re trying to sleight us, no?" Avery''s voice was calm and smooth. He only dared lightly poke at advances he considered too fast, giving half a step while taking a full one in the duel of words. As he spoke, for a moment, Avery felt the shifting of the count''s feet stop, and he could hear a sinew in one of his fingers grew tight. The older man applied light pressure onto his thumbs underneath the table, probably a habit he hadn''t shaken since he hadn''t noticed. The count was good, yet he was merely a noble. "Guild master, please, allow us this opportunity," the woman pressed out. She forced the speech through her teeth, in a manner more befitting a northerner than one from this city. Avery took note of it. "It has been long since my companions experienced a real combat scenario, and we could use the chance to prove ourselves to the count." "By no means do I wish to sour your relationships, yet I fail to see how this upkeep of cordiality between employee and employer falls within my responsibility. And I assure you this is a matter of responsibility." There was a sign of weakness, and Avery pounced. They had tried to talk to his person rather than the guild master, and it had opened an opportunity for him to strike. "Attempting to coerce me into such squabbles is quite inconsiderate in these tense times, count. Please keep your guard in check." "I shall, guild master. Apologies." For a moment, the room rang quiet, yet Avery heard. The woman''s heartbeat and her breath quickened, her fist clenching tightly in frustration now, and he thought that perhaps he could even hear her skin tear underneath her nails. She was not ready for a stage of politics, and Avery had exposed it. I''htar would certainly be unhappy with her. "Truly, guild master, we simply wish to help you. Is there no way we can be of assistance in this mission?" the count asked after a moment to catch his thoughts. Avery wanted to click his tongue, but he held back. Caught on a technicality, the ball was in his court. He could request any support, but now the question of price was out the window. Before it was apparently free, yet he would have owed a favour to a snake. Now, it was charged with even more venom, and Avery was keenly aware that if he gave a finger now, his arm might be swallowed. "I fear I might need more time to think on this, count." "Yet your time is approaching fast, guild master. The arch needs exploring, you know that much as well as I do." "Indeed," Avery nodded. "Which is why delays like this are difficult. If you truly, truly wish to help, I believe it would be easiest for you to attach-" Avery stopped talking as a cup shattered on the floor. Marcel had come in, seen the woman by I''htar''s side and dropped Avery''s tea. "Nutcase?" he whispered, and immediately, she spun around. "Trashcan?" she asked, her eyes wide open. "I see our partners are acquainted," I''htar said then, turning to Avery with the smile of an angel. However, the face of the man he turned to was grim. "It would appear so, count. Well, if your company is trusted by my aid, then perhaps they might be of help yet. I still cannot fathom sending them into danger with my own adventurers though, and leaving the whole break to them is unthinkable. Perhaps it would be best if they helped establish a supply line inside? The journey may be far." The words were more hastily picked, no veiled blades hidden there, but it was the best shield he could conjure up in the moment. "Of course, this is an incredible chance to truly assist the city. I shall personally see to it that all your seekers'' needs are covered." "Thank you. We will pay a fair price for the goods," Avery replied, and he almost cracked a smile when he heard the old man''s jaw creak ever so slightly. "I suppose I cannot convince you otherwise on that. I look forward to working with you," I''htar said, shaking Avery''s hands, before leaving the room, yet when the old man was gone, Marcel and the woman still stood there like statues. "Close the door," Avery said, his voice slightly colder, and Marcel followed. "Hey, who do you think you''re commanding around?!" the warrior-woman''s temper flared up at Avery as soon as the discussion was gone. It seems the leash on her neck was not as tight as he would have thought. But the Avery she was facing now no longer did politics. "Marcel, sit down. Lady, you as well. Tell me your name again?" "I will not listen to some stupid-!" "Please, nutcase. It''s my job on the line right now, not yours," Marcel sighed, sitting down on the couch opposite of Avery with a defeated look on his face. Kaga paused, looking over at the idiot she had fought with before. She didn''t owe him anything, yet there she was, sitting down. "Glad we''re all being polite," Avery said, his elbows on the table and his hands clasped tightly together. "Marcel, care to share a story?" "Yes, Avery. Fine. It was when the northerners came into Stormbraver and messed shit up with the bombs. I was fighting some elites, maybe recently risen heroes of theirs, and nutcase over there saved my ass," he explained. "Is that correct?" Avery said, turning to face the woman. "It is," she nodded with a sigh. "The trashcan was decent to work with. Good timing and decent support skills, though his output was lacking." "That''s a fair analysis," Avery said. He grabbed another loaf of bread and wolfed half of it down in a bite. Then he chewed, and swallowed. "Alright, fine, slip of the tongue. Didn''t think you were one to remember people on the battlefield, Marcel," Avery said, leaning further back in his chair and relaxing slightly. A mistake had been made, but as long as it was an honest one, there was nothing he could do about it. Not like Marcel intended to fuck things over. "I''m usually not. She left an... impression." "Good, I assure you, guild master," the woman said, flashing a smile. "So, what should I call you then, lady?" Avery asked, slightly tilting his head. "Kaga, at your service." "She''s a nutcase," Marcel added. "Don''t call her that though, or she might try to stab you." "Fine then, Kaga. What do you think of count I''htar?" Avery asked calmly. This woman was too free-spirited to want to serve under someone. "Sleezy. Clever, but his words are laced with poison," she admitted openly. Bingo, Avery thought. Chapter 94: Long time no See Chapter 94: Long time no See After revelling in his success for a while, Mercury was still smiling ear to ear as he headed out again. Every foot he placed in front of the other, the touch of his newfound companions seemed to envelop his paws. It was a very good feeling, welcoming and warm, and it lifted his spirits up by a long shot. The rain kept pattering down softly, but the cat didn''t mind. Nothing could ruin this day, well, at least there wasn''t a lot that could put a damper on his mood. As a couple days before, he headed to the waterhole and drank a couple sips from it, before heading out to hunt. Well, perhaps heading out wasn''t the right word. A squirrel had decided to pay the floor a visit, and with just a glance from the hungry mopaaw, the verdant shrubbery wrapped around its legs and held it down. A swipe later, and Mercury had earned himself a solid meal. He took the rest of the day slowly, exploring the forest a little further, and generally enjoying the atmosphere. It was the same as any other day would have been, but of course, it was special to him. Not much later, Mercury decided that he actually wanted to go a little deeper in the forest. He had grown a little stronger over the pages, though he couldn''t perfectly pinpoint the amount of time that actually passed. Didn''t matter that much though, either, not in the forest at least. For a little bit, he thought about returning to Stormbraver, but then he shook his head. No, before going back to the city he needed to at least complete his main quest on ihn''ar. Maybe after that, he would feel confident enough to start a settlement? He''d see. Eventually, he knew that much. Still, as of right now, the forest was as good a place as any to be. After eating his lunch, Mercury headed back to his log, and swiped it into his inventory. He was still using it, and quite frankly, he didn''t really feel like abandoning it either. It had been with him on his adventures for so long, and the amount of runes that were on it by now was nothing short of impressive, He''d bet it could withstand even some pretty tough hits from proper weaponry, though he doubted it would stand up against something like Yvette''s sword aura. Someday, he thought. For a few hours, Mercury ventured deeper into the forest, following the stream that fed the waterhole so he wouldn''t die from dehydration at least. This might be as good a time as any to tell you to stay hydrated. Go ahead, drink a sip of water, you know you want to. Yeaaaah, there you go. Very nice. True homies make sure you stay healthy after all. Ah, where was I? Right, Mercury followed the stream deeper into the forest, where the leaves grew thicker. Yet, the trees were still so tall, and their branches spaced far enough away, that instead of receding, the underbrush actually grew larger as well. After a couple hours of jogging and walking, Mercury found himself face to face with ferns the size of himself. Sure, that would be more impressive if he were a human, but for singular plants, it was still quite tall. Nevertheless, the mopaaw continued exploring further. In this environment, there was sure to be plenty of food for him to eat, so that was something at least. The deeper Mercury went, the more untouched things became. This was a real wilderness by now, he could tell. There were very few tracks through the brush, and if there were, they had been created by hooves rather than boots. Humans probably never even came here. Made him curious how this place would have not gotten overtaken by an arch or a tunnel, but he could still tell there were none around. After all, if there were, the flora wouldn''t flourish so much. The plants were almost jungle-like by now, with fungus growing around the roots of trees, probably connecting much of the forest with mycelium, turning the plants into a hivemind of sorts. It was a weird thought, but Mercury knew mushrooms could do it. They were incredible, after all. Allowing for the exchange of information, nutrients, and even water through their underground highways. That way, older trees would actually sometimes help younger trees grow, when they didn''t get enough sun, water, or nutrients from the ground. Such incredible things forests were. He shook his head again a little as he went further, most of the day passed by now as the rain quieted down. It had turned from a pour into a drizzle, and although his fur was still wet, Mercury kept shaking himself occasionally to stay dry. The smile still persistently clung to his face though, as his steps were comforted, and he could hear the whispers of grass below him. Eventually, when night time rolled around, he decided to start settling down. His stomach was starting to rumble, and he had to catch himself some food. Luckily, the river still continued, so his water situation was sorted, though he still would like to find a larger source that was maybe cleaner. Still, after having reincarnated, he noticed being a lot less picky about water, so that was something at least. Maybe he was just more resilient to disease with the system in place than as a regular human. Though he was still puzzled how disease even worked. Was it treated like a status effects, or were the bacteria actually creatures with their own system? What evolutionary tier would they be? Could they grow huge? Mercury shivered a little at the thought. Maybe he didn''t actually need to know that exactly, and could just enjoy some forest water without overthinking. So, instead of worrying anymore, the mopaaw placed down his trusty log, and began to make some markings on the trees that were around. Just scratching some runes into their sides so he could feel them when he expanded his mana, and see their slight glow as well with a little luck. Other than that, he also made sure to at least trim some of the plants a little, the ones that would reach hip-height for normal humans just had to go, or he couldn''t see shit. For an hour or so, he just cleaned up the place a little, placing the plants he cut down aside but still within his territory, as he worked on getting some grip on the layout of the place. For now, he kept his exploring within close proximity to his log though, making sure to at least not go far out with his brush-clearing adventures. No need to attract unwanted attention. However, when darkness finally rolled around, Mercury couldn''t resist the hunger anymore. He looked around for a few minutes to check if smaller animals were around, and soon enough, he found something decent to chew on. It was a large lizard, a bit bigger than a bearded dragon, and it was laying on a decently sized rock, trying to keep warm. Since it wasn''t exactly in direct vicinity of the grass, his companion couldn''t help Mercury out, but when it came to this prey, he didn''t think it was necessary. The lizard was already almost asleep, and Mercury was still as awake as ever. Silently, he pulled a single rock from his inventory, floating it in the air with as he snuck closer to his foe. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. With him using both and , there was very little noise as well, and not long after, Mercury was only about 10 meters away from his target. He tapped the prepared stone with his tail, activating on it as it shot through the dark, only to clatter against the rock senselessly. No, it wasn''t a miss, actually, the cat had made sure to keep it on track with as the rock flew. Instead, somehow, the lizard had dodged. Mercury had kept his attention on the thing, and when the rock was whizzing through the air, its eyes suddenly shot open as it took a few steps back, evading the projectile. He could see it looking around frantically, not seeing him yet, and still somehow it dodged the rock. Very slowly, Mercury pulled out another projectile, launching this one with more force as he put more stamina into it, watching as it whizzed towards the reptile at a far higher speed than before, yet once again, it couldn''t make contact with the target. This time though, the lizard didn''t fully step out of the way, and Mercury was sure the rock should have grazed it, but somehow, when it made impact, it just harmlessly passed through the thing. While the cat was thinking though, his prey was already starting to make its escape, deciding to abandon the warm spot for another night of survival. For just a second, Mercury wanted to click his tongue, but he refrained, instead choosing to chase as silently as he could. Whatever sounds he did make were masked by the slight drizzle of water from the sky, as he began to dash after his meal. Luckily, he had much longer legs than whatever lizard he was chasing, and even a slight size advantage too, so not long after, he had caught up, and leapt at it full force, pressing himself off the ground with as well. After a very short soar through the air, Mercury finally landed on the morsel and dug his claws in, stopping the lizard immediately and finishing it off with a bite. As he did so, he noticed a strange, slightly translucent liquid on its skin, making him pause immediately. Was that poison? ! [Bearded rock salamander mucus: This species of amphibian has evolved to secrete a special mucus to refract light, obscuring its true form. Its movements will oftentimes look blurry and hazy, as its skin is at all times coated with this substance. It is hard to hit them with projectiles, but once caught, they do not have much of a way out. The mucus is entirely harmless to the individual, though its taste is poor.] After quickly skimming and confirming that he wasn''t in mortal danger, Mercury let out a sigh of relief and read the whole thing attentively again. With this, it at least made sense that he couldn''t hit it with his rocks. With the chase done, Mercury began to start eating rather quickly, his stomach making it clear that he needed some sustenance without being very polite about it. Luckily, the lizard actually tasted pretty alright, disregarding the skin with the mucus on it. He decided he would rather not put that inside of him, even if said it was harmless. It also told him a tree was a tree once before, so who knows how much info it got right. Soon, most of the lizard was gone, and Mercury''s belly full as he decided to abandon the rest of it. Something would take care of it for sure, probably ants or some other animal that liked to eat this thing. Instead, Mercury decided to head back to his log and pick up the stones he''d thrown along the way. He still needed those after all. Finally, before going to bed, Mercury washed himself in the river, not wanting to get mud all over his blankets. Once his fur was somewhat clean, he tried his best to shake off the water and get and remaining dirt off his feet, before finally laying down in his trusty home and enjoying the comfort of his blankets. With a peaceful mind, he slowly began to drift into sleep. - - - When Mercury opened his eyes soon after, he wasn''t in the forest anymore. He was in a place that felt more than a little familiar. A field that stretched all the way towards the horizon, with a citadel of fire to the north, a small fountain down south, a castle of glass in the west, and a range of mountains to the east. The sky was a clear blue, and the greenery around him seemed ever more vibrant. Lately, he had been coming here again. For a long while he had been unable to dream, but it seemed his astral self was finally becoming healthy again, allowing him to work on his mana in there, and it was good. But there was also an old friend here, whom he had not seen in a very long time. ''Uunrahzil...'' Mercury whispered in his mind, the strange construct of mana veins in front of him showing a hint motion that could only be a smile. ''Old Uunrahzil,'' they corrected slowly. ''It has been some time, hath it not?'' Mercury could read a twinge of regret in Dreamweaver''s thoughts, yet it was suffocated below happiness. ''It''s been months,'' Mercury made sure to underline it with regret. ''You shouldn''t have given me a gift if it poisoned you.'' ''Poisoned?'' Uunrahzil''s thoughts were laced with surprise. ''Not poison, young one, gripped me. This one appears to have simply groweth soft. Unable to give even a simple gift to mine student.'' There was amusement, and concealed worry as well, though Dreamweaver would never wear it on their face, no, veins, no, thoughts. Wouldn''t wear it on the forefront of their thoughts. ''Teacher, we have known each other for some time now, yes?'' Mercury asked. ''Indeed, yes,'' Dreamweaver nodded, as best as they could. ''And I have been honest with you, have I not?'' ''Thee haveth, young one,'' old Uunrahzil replied slowly. ''Then have I not earned thine honesty yet?'' Mercury''s voice was dejected, and slightly hurt. He would be honest to Dreamweaver once again. ''This one knows some of your manners now, old Uunrahzil. And when you tell me such clear lies, it is... disappointing.'' For a moment, the dream remained silent, before a deep sigh rumbled out from Uunrahzil''s mind. It was the wear only old age could summon forth from a person, soft as rocks ground down by the sea, yet deep as the water itself. ''I did not mean to be dishonest, young Mercury. I have simply grown... secretive of my nature.'' Once more their voice wrote with regret. There was pain written there, a wound older than a scar yet still bleeding, and an apology as well. ''Thee are right,'' the old one continued. ''Mine gift was... unhealthy for me. In truth, my age has long since plagued me. I do not leave thee alone for swathes of time because of my wishes, but rather because I must. Thee are mine only student, young one, and I truly wish the best for you, and yet I can only give advice.'' ''Mine condition is complicated, but if I had to put it as best as I can, I am... forgotten. Obliveta. Those who remember me are few, and if they do, it is only a part. My mind is thus fragmented, split and spread across the realms, and drawing power from mine other bits is an ordeal. Some of them are uncooperative and seek to yank what is mine away, while others are so selfless they would almost begin throwing themselves into a crucible to become fuel for my actions.'' Once again they sighed. ''My gift of time came at my own expense. Not of my soul, young Mercury, do not fret. It will cause me no lasting harm. It simply caused me fatigue, and this part of me went dormant. No, rather, instead of being dormant, it lied in between. No wakefulness, no sleep. No eyeun. I wasn''t, as simple as that. Yet, now I sleep again, and wake again. As such, I am here.'' Finally, the old one was finished. Mercury certainly didn''t quite get what was happening, but he could read enough from Dreamweaver''s thoughts. Pain, regret, confusion, and a taste of something that seemed less a feeling and more a shred of nothingness, seeking to devour existence. ''I apologize, I didn''t think it would give you so much trouble to talk about this,'' Mercury spoke, still thankful he at least got an explanation. ''It is of no issue,'' Uunrahzil assured him. ''Young Mercury, my trust has long since been earned by you. We are bound as tri''ht, as learners, in a way. It is a deep bond, one that requires honesty, and thee have every right to ask such of me. Yet now, I must ask it back, as I see your ihn''ar hath progressed?'' This time, as Mercury listened, he only read of warmth and comfort, of homeliness and trust, and finally pride. He felt like to some degree, he understood this tri''ht. Slowly, he nodded. ''Yes,'' the mopaaw said. ''I have understood grass. Its woes, and pleasures, how it bows and rises, ebbs and flows, always reliable and relying on other too, filling the space wherever there is some.'' ''Very good, young Mercury! This is a most incredible improvement! Thine breath has grown better too, it is relieving to see you make such progress.'' Dreamweaver was clearly proud, very proud even, of their student, and Mercury was happy in reply. ''Of course, I will continue to work on things. Now, old Uunrahzil, what would my next lesson be?'' he asked. Chapter 95: A Way Forward Chapter 95: A Way Forward /To central command, the northerners have pushed our front back. Bries has been taken over to them, the villagers who refused to evacuate now either dead or under new leadership. Our supplies from there have ceased coming, and we need more rations lest my soldiers starve at the front. They also sent one of their heroes to us, Eylomer of the northern ice, and he has been hacking apart morale alongside any structures we establish. He doesn''t seem to tire or sleep, either, and we have been unable to regain our footing. As things stand, we need reinforcements, lest our hold on the northeastern front crumbles. I advise you all to start putting forth some damn effort in these battles. Any more footsoldiers are sending cattle to a slaughterhouse. I need resources enough to combat a damn hero, and if they don''t come, we''ll simply be mowed down. The situation has not been more urgent yet. Sincerely, Marcus Gaud of Hurric, executing field officer and leading general of the east./ - - - - - - ''You may need to keep thine enthusiasm today, young Mercury, as I fear my lesson may be rather dry.'' old Dreamweaver spoke. ''As your ihn''ar and expertise with mana progresses, this one believes it may be part for thee to finally touch the loom, and to feel the woven threads.'' While Dreamweaver had told him that the lesson would be dry, their words certainly didn''t make it sound very boring. ''Old Uunrahzil, I don''t quite understand,'' Mercury replied, writing a little confusion, but mainly curiosity. ''That is the point,'' the ancient one before him thought with what Mercury could swear was a little bit of a smirk. ''Your task today is to understand. The dream you see, the one we are currently in, is woven of the thread, and this one would wish for thee to find that thread. Then you will understand.'' Mercury shook his head. He clearly understood all those words on their own, yet all chained together, he just didn''t quite get it. ''I apologize, teacher, but what is it that I must do?'' ''I ask thee to see, young one. Open your mind with ihn''ar, and truly seek to understand. Once you have done so, I wish for thee to look beyond the tapestry, beyond that which is the product, and search what makes it tick. Certainly, when you understood grass, you also understood its complexity? I wish for you to find the intrigue, the puzzling strangeness of thine dream.'' Old Dreamweaver spoke with finality, and Mercury could tell that even if he were to ask anything else, his only reply would be silence. So, instead of worrying, Mercury decided to take his new lesson step by step. First, he just had to enter ihn''ar, right? That was doable. So, Mercury used . He didn''t have lungs, but that wasn''t important. He knew the feeling of breathing, and so he breathed, his imaginary chest heaving as it filled with air that wasn''t truly there. Then, it latched onto his blood, and began the long journey through his body, before being breathed back out. All things happening simultaneously and in perfect harmony. Breathe in, breathe out. Slowly but surely, Mercury''s mind became more serene. His thoughts began to settle down, the lake of his mind coming to a standstill as the wind stopped blowing. Breath by breath, the waves lessened, until Mercury could truly feel stillness within himself. Then, he waited patiently. First a few seconds, then a couple minutes. He was waiting for the certain feeling that he was ready to receive whatever it is the world showed him. He kept his eyes closed, breathing in and out as the seconds ticked by silently. Mercury waited for a little longer, every time his mind sought to stir taking a slow breath. Eventually it came. Like a light that he could grasp onto with his paws, the feeling laid down in his heart, taking over his whole body with serenity. Still, Mercury waited a little longer, for the feeling to settle in, get comfortable and have it grow stable. Then, finally, once he was sure it wouldn''t just disappear if he moved, Mercury opened his eyes. Everything he could see was layered with a slight golden sheen. The air, the soil, the grass, the sky, the buildings in the distance, and even old Uunrahzil, but Mercury couldn''t see any loom, or threads, whatever that meant. ''Don''t just look, young Mercury. Look!'' old Dreamweaver sad, and Mercury closed his eyes again. Clearly they didn''t wish to show him whatever secrets the world was hiding, so he would have to reevaluate. Instead of simply gazing at the air, Mercury decided to open up his mind. With it, he felt into the air, noticing how many triz of mana were floating in it, each and every one calling out to him quietly, but he didn''t focus on them. They were small, yet there were gaps between them, and it was those the cat decided to focus his attention on. He knocked on the gaps with his mind, seeking if they were dangerous, and his answer was silence, so he investigated further, seeking to see what laid in between, and again there was no answer. His mind could not find anything, yet his mana heard his intent, and as always it answered. Slowly, the drops of silvery liquid he usually kept in his core reached out, seeping into the outside and allowing him to feel the air. It was slightly humid, warm, and quiet, he felt that much, but then his intent probed more deeply. His mana came in contact with the other triz, yet it was under his control and thus it shrank even further, becoming so small it snaked around the drops floating in the air, probing into the gaps between them. Seconds ticked by as Mercury looked closer and ever closer, his expanded mana becoming thinner than a hair, then still smaller as it began to taste at the nothingness in between. The gaps that laid between what was, the distance that was so much greater than that which existed. For a moment, it reminded him of molecules and atoms, the way that they were mostly made from nothing, yet with that foreign thought, the golden understanding he had amassed shattered, and Mercury was brutally slung back out of ihn''ar. ''Foreign thoughts?'' old Uunrahzil asked, and Mercury noticed. ''Leyren, mine student. Time is not what we lack. This is simply your next task. It is not urgent nor pressing, I simply ask thee seek to do it properly.'' Mercury nodded towards his mentor as he closed his eyes again and began to breathe, yet the airflow was shaky at best, his body shivering from the backlash. He continued to try and wait it out, but his focus just wouldn''t come back, his thoughts always drifting off, and after a couple failures, frustration set in. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. ''Do not force it, young one. Leyren, always. Perhaps this one ought to trikko thee patience before anything else?'' Dreamweaver asked, though they wrote it with enough amusement to clearly identify it as a joke. Slowly, Mercury nodded. ''Yes, Uunrahzil,'' he said after a little while. ''I understand.'' ''Good,'' the old one nodded, ''then perhaps thee wishes to improve the veins of thine mana?'' ''What do you mean?'' Mercury asked, puzzled once more. ''My veins fill my body, what more is there to do?'' ''Furthering them, of course?'' old Dreamweaver asked back, equally confused. ''Thins astral body is not thine real one, is it?'' ''But these veins can only empower parts of me that truly exist, no?'' Mercury asked back. ''Of course, yet is empowering your flesh all thee seek to do with magic? Then why not go down the path of stamina instead, it is much easier and superior in that manner? To make veins for mana, to carve pathways for it, cannot only be done to one''s own body, but to the very flesh of the world as well, young one. Is this not basic knowledge anymore?'' as Uunrahzil spoke, they seemed genuinely confused why Mercury didn''t think of this on his own, as if it was a truth so self-evident it needed no explaining. ''But... how?'' Mercury almost felt as if his teacher was blinking at him in confusion. ''>How, since he could lift mice and such off the ground, leaving them struggling helplessly. "Ghost hands," Mercury smiled to himself as he wolfed down a squirrel. Its tail had a very nice curl to it, alongside with some barbed hooks it used to stabilize further when hanging onto trees. It was a very enduring predator that ate not only nuts but also insects and spiders, quickly snatching them up whenever they landed close to it, or so said. While eating he thought back to how hard hunting used to be, with him having to wait and then jump on them, when now either the grass held small prey down for him, or he could use to lift them off the ground. Procuring food for himself had really become much easier, he thought with a smile. But he didn''t let his thoughts wander for too long. Soon, he dedicated his attention back to his astral body. He could feel the area he had begun to work on during the dream, where he was beginning to hack down the boundaries of the flesh and work towards a true self. Again, he smirked. This was more akin to something a cultist would have said in his old world, yet here he was, doing things that would usually be attributed to something like an eldritch horror. Mercury shook his head as his mind formed a chisel again, the sharp point hammering down on the walls he had built to confine himself in, breaking out chunk after chunk. It felt strange. There were no warning bells ringing in his body, and he could tell there wouldn''t be any adverse affects, yet still it felt strange. Unfamiliar, in a way, and also foreign. It was natural to feel that way though, since he was very literally expanding his mind to a place outside of his body. Especially given the fact that he was used to nerves which would only let him feel within his regular confines, this was obviously very new. The feeling was actually quite similar to mana expansion, which to some degree let him feel and touch things beyond where he actually touched. Something like this would obviously always feel unfamiliar, but he trusted old Dreamweaver, and so he continued. Mercury shook his head at the thought of them again. He was so happy to finally meet them again in his dreams, yet he also noticed again just how different they were. To them, going against the self-imposed boundaries was so natural, while Mercury never would have even thought of it. Maybe that''s how he looked to people like Yvette. He naturally thought of absorbing mana from the surroundings since he had read of it before, while to them that was something people needed to be taught before trying it. After all, you couldn''t do that with stamina. Wait a second. For a while now, Mercury had found that strange. The system was usually very fair in terms of different routes of progress. They were different in method and result, but not necessarily in quality. So, if he could absorb mana form the air, yet training his stamina needed him to up his dexterity, was that not unlike the system? Usually, it wouldn''t allow one energy to just be gathered and the other one to be clawed from within oneself. And stamina also used different terminology than mana. He coursed his mana, and expanded his stamina, dragging it up from the depths of his vessel. With that thought in mind, Mercury paused the expansion of his astral self, letting go of the chisel, and instead chose to focus on his stamina for a moment. He tried to imagine his vessel, like a well from which he would bring the stamina by the bucket, letting it flood his every cell, and it worked. He saw the well, and he could feel what it was like, so then, he peered down the well. There, he saw something sloshing green and buzzing with energy, the very vitality that kept his body moving resting down there with waves on its surface, seemingly eager to jump out and fill him up to the brim. Consistently, small bits of it flooded out, just enough to move his jaw. And when he peered into the well, at the very bottom of it, he could see small crystals forming. (Please keep in mind that this is not actually how real stamina works! The human body does not have a well inside it! If you tell this to your biology teacher, they will probably laugh at you. Deservedly so.) And then, when he focused his mind on one of the crystals and ground it down with the power of his thoughts, it crumbled and dissolved. [Your Sp have increased by 1!] LET''S GOOOOOOOOOOO!!! Chapter 96: Something Exciting? Chapter 96: Something Exciting? /Spells. Such is the name given to magic one casts with the system. Simply speak its name, perhaps add a chant, and it is cast. If it fulfills its purpose, one gains mastery. Intriguingly enough, Spells seem to be just as much of a sliding scale as Skills - they can have higher or lower system assistance. Take, as a simple example, the Spell . It is very basic magic, one that most wind-attribute magicians will want to learn early on, due to the boosts it gives when specializing in air manipulation, more on that in a moment. But despite its simplicity, the system will not do all of the heavy lifting for you. is surprisingly complex to cast, requiring both its name, as well as a quick flick of the wrist to determine direction, intensity, and intent. It would appear the system cannot read all of that from one''s thoughts. If the gesture, for example, is slow and lazy, one might simply experience little more than a breeze, yet if the user attempts to push someone away, a strong blast of air may do the task for them. In contrast to that, we may take a look at the Spell, which may be tackled by much more intermediate magicians, rather than novices. It requires its name to be stated, and a direction for the mana to flow, which can be manually done by the user to conjure it in front or behind them, or automatically by the system, in which case the fireball will originate on the user''s hand. Here, the intent is important, yet no matter where you wish for the fireball to spawn, it has a perfectly fixed mana cost. Each casting takes the exact same amount, though said mana will vary on the magician, based on acquired aptitude, mastery of the spell, and spell level. Contrasting that, consumes variant mana, depending on its use. A breeze will take less from the user than a blast of air. This fluidity of casting Spells is exactly what allows them to match up to martial techniques. Stamina-based fighters usually have much more leeway in terms of applied fighting, their kicks still utilizing system effects and stamina, even if they are delivered higher or lower, or from another position than usually. The rules of Spells are much more rigorous, though that is through the eyes of a wizard, admittedly. Still, Spells which depend on intent can be launched from unexpected angles, and those with variant mana costs, may use force much greater than the opponent expects, allowing for mages to set traps and false expectations just as any fighters may. Now, if you will spare me one more time, I mentioned that gives boosts to other wind-attributed Spells. Unfortunately, once again, things are not that clear. Spells, just as Skills, can evolve and have some hidden effects, such as synergies. One of the documented effects are what we call "affinities", though there is little mention of them within the system itself. These affinities are loose classifications of Spells, magic, and even mana itself, which describe their effects to the best of our abilities. Any Spells that move air, for example, are attributed to wind, and if a magician who has been studying Spells such as or for years attempts to pick up , they will find themselves having an easy time. Yet other Spells, such as provide no such benefits. As always, the system is quite a bit more complex than it may seem on the surface, especially when picked apart like this, yet many of these effects seem so intuitive to people that some may not see the value of documenting this at all. I still encourage all fellow scholars to truly attempt to understand the machinations of magic. Greater understanding of that which allows our powers to grow will always be helpful to us, after all./ An excerpt from "A guide to Spells" by Mary Lonfal. - - - - - - Finally! No more being plagued by stamina concerns! Of course, he would still run just to stay fit and increase his stats as well, those helped with more than just stamina after all, but being able to mine for it like this was more than helpful. Visualizing his vessel was still much harder than his core though. Mana was more centralized and able to flow through his body, while stamina really was all around him the entire time, so trying to think of it as one location was hard. Luckily, it was still doable. He just had to kind of imagine the well as being present in very small fragments in every single cell of his. Now, normally people wouldn''t be able to count their cells, and Mercury wasn''t, but since this was more about visualizing it anyways, it still helped with the process to think of hundreds of tiny wells all over his body. [You have gained 7 Exp.] As per the usual, he also got experience from increasing his stats. Well, not stats, what should he call these... resources, maybe? Yeah, sure, that should work for now. With his knew knowledge, Mercury continued his days. He hunted when he was hungry, and worked on his Skills when he wasn''t, meditating, runecarving, mining for stamina, and working on his mana veins. As time went on, he occasionally moved deeper into the forest, a little more northeast whenever he was bored of a place. His fur grew thicker as well, helping to combat the cold, and one dreary autumn day, he stepped out of his log to hear footsteps in between the howls of wind. Another six pages had passed, and Mercury had developed quite a bit once more. Yet, even with his efforts, he couldn''t seem to break through any of the hurdles in his way. He understood breath far more than he used to, yet getting any more understanding was slow and grueling to say the least. The grass was kinder even than at the start, but he couldn''t quite manage to make a deeper bond. Finally, even his mana veins refused to expand, the cracks slowly increasing, and evermore inching towards the outside, but even as his mind sharpened, Mercury was unable to quite break through. But with that being the case, anything to break up his routine was starting to feel more than welcome, and so, with little hesitation, Mercury began to approach the footsteps. Finding the source wasn''t very hard. A somewhat large, ragtag group of people, wrapped in furs and carrying weapons were stomping through the forest. No hunters, that was for sure, and while they seemed wary of danger, they were clearly out of their element, jumping at nothing half the time. Heck, they even sometimes scared themselves by stepping on a twig, which made Mercury stifle his chuckles. For a while, he decided to follow them, watching as they marched silently, always southeast. Occasionally, the person at the front would open a map and hold it close to their face. They were tall and thin, with tanned but smooth skin and long, brown hair, and eyes grey as sharpened steel. After some time marching with their new follower, one of the guys in the group finally opened his mouth, a red-haired young man, barely in his twenties, who was panting heavily. "Can we... please take a break? My legs... won''t stop shaking," he voiced between deep gasps, and the leader looked him up and down for a moment. They paused, and eventually nodded. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. "Fine," a melodic voice neither deep nor shrill voiced, almost with a kind of coarse music to it. "We continue in 15 minutes. Anyone who can still stand, keep watch." The captain themselves leaned against a tree, peering into the depths of the woodland, watching for any movement. Mercury once again smirked at the sight, thinking if he should give these people a scare, but deciding against it. He could easily follow them, being used to the terrain and having used and often on hunts. Of course, these humans were smarter than the average forest beast, but Mercury would wager their noses and ears weren''t as good. Honestly, not having to hide his scent made this whole thing much easier. He wasn''t very big, so hiding behind bushes was more than doable, and watching them was rather funny. They would mark their paths, carving signs Mercury couldn''t recognize into the trees, until eventually, the group stopped. "Captain, someone''s been here," a man said, pointing towards the tree. His hair was long and light, slightly curled underneath the helmet as he looked closely at the new sign he''d found. "What kind of marking?" "Never seen it before," the man said, half shrugging, only to quickly step aside when the leader approached. They also looked at the weird sign on the tree, a pattern that seemed to flow with pale silver, glistening magically. "Not natural," they said, shaking their head. "Not natural at all. Fan out, we''re looking for whoever made this." For a moment, Mercury hesitated, but in the end, he wasn''t really scared of these people. He''d be able to escape anyways, especially being more familiar with the forest than they were. "I made it," he called out from between bushes, and immediately, all their heads snapped to him. "Show yourself!" the captain of the patrol growled, frantically trying to pinpoint whoever had just spoken. "Uh, I''d really rather not when you''re sounding so pissed. That sign really is just a simple rune, reinforce, to be exact. I made it," he explained, a little more apprehensively now. The patrol suddenly seemed a lot more hostile. As Mercury finished, there was a short moment of silence. In those few seconds, Mercury could see the leader of the party give a couple signs with their hands, the soldiers beginning to move a little again soon after. "Hey, it''s kind of really rude what you''re doing right now. I just said I would rather not show myself because of how hostile you''re being," the cat explained, keeping watch of the soldiers and slowly distancing himself a little more. The captain shook their head. "So you can see us as well." "I can," Mercury nodded, even more wary now. He was keeping tabs on the soldiers, ready to run, hide, or blast them with rocks at any time. "What are you, some sort of spirit? A monster?" "What the hell man, I already answered some questions, now it''s your turn. Why are you guys moving through here?" Mercury asked, watching the captain''s eyes sweep through the area as he stayed hidden. "North," the captain replied. "Heading southeast." "That''s a direction, not a reason," Mercury said, supressing half a sigh as he made his way through the underbrush to avoid any soldiers. "I didn''t promise you a reason," the captain said curtly. "Alright, you know what, fuck this. I have been patient and polite this entire time. Stop being brash. I''m just a guy in a damn forest, not a serial killer. You think if I were some evil spirit or monster I wouldn''t have rocked your shit yet?" Mercury sneered at the idiots, fumbling through the grass. He had an idea and smiled, but waited just a little longer for a reply. There was a longer pause. "Either no monster, or one too smart to be found. Regroup, everyone back to back. No gaps," they said. "Now then, what made you talk to us forest guy?" "I mean, you found my rune, and were walking through territory I clearly marked as mine. Maybe your reading is worse than that of the deer in here? Surely you knew," he said, not caring for politeness anymore. "Well, perhaps marking it in common would have been wiser?" one of the soldiers remarked. "For whom to read? You''re the first humans I''ve seen in here, and quite frankly, it''s been some time since I got here myself. No, I''ll mark it with something that the primary inhabitants of this place get, which is scratch marks. Now, would you kindly tell me why you''re coming through here?" he asked, still waiting to execute his plan if needed, though it would be harder by now. The soldiers were close together, their weapons at the ready. Again, there was a pause, then a long sigh from the commanding official. "My name is Marsh. We''re on the way through to bury someone," they said. "We cannot die before they rest safely." Their voice was resolute, and steadfast. "I can respect that," Mercury said. "If you bury your people here, why are there no paths?" "The soil we return to must be like the soil we came from. We clean up when we leave. It is best to leave a place such as this untouched." "Why is that?" "Tradition, forest guy. Now, I''ve said my intentions and given you my name, will you at least do me the courtesy of telling yours?" The leader crossed their arms halfway, spear still in hand. "Yes, fine. Mercury, that''s my name. I''ve been living here to attain... well, peace, I''d say." "Found it yet?" "Couldn''t tell you if I did," Mercury replied calmly. "This place has been good on my nerves, but it''ll take time for me to really find what I''m looking for, one way or another." "Don''t it always," Marsh replied and chuckled. They put their spear aside. "Well then, Mercury. Someone who seeks peace deserves an ounce of trust. At least where I come from that''s the case. You can come along for now, if you wish, as our path isn''t set in stone." "I''d wager it''s set in a forest," Mercury replied. "Heh. Certainly. Alright everyone, we move," the captain then said, and Mercury followed once again. For a while, there was silence between them, but Mercury spoke up first again. "Say, what kind of tradition do you have, to make such a trek for a burial?" he asked. It was clear that while Marsh had been here before, many of the others had not. "Tradition is to bury our people in this forest, with our parents, and their parents, and all the elders before them," Marsh said. "If you died, you''d want to be buried in a place like this as well, wouldn''t you? Quiet, undisturbed. Been that way for ages, and might continue on as such for a while longer." "Fair. Why here specifically?" "Because no one comes here. You said it yourself, it''s peaceful. No monsters, no nests. My village, or whatever you may wish to call it, we bury anyone who wasn''t forsaken here. The trip is long though, so we only take it for a few bodies at a time. Right now, we''re not short on them though," they said, their face turning into a frown. "How so?" Mercury asked. "Well, wouldn''t you like to know? What about you, forest guy? Peace, eh?" Marsh looked to where he thought Mercury''s voice was coming from, actually catching a glimpse of white fur. Perhaps a beastkin, they thought. Mercury slightly huffed at the question. "That''s what I said. Long story. Wanna find myself and grow, felt like I couldn''t with too many people around." "Grow?" the leader asked. "Are you small?" "Depends on your viewpoint, really. I meant mentally and maybe strength wise," Mercury said. "I''ve been making progress, very slowly though." "Never can be fast enough, can it?" "Never," Mercury nodded with a smirk. "What made you suddenly so admirable?" "You remind me of someone," Marsh replied. "That''s all." "Mh, I see." Once again, silence washed over them. After a few more minute of walking, they took another break. "If you need a drink, you''ll have to show yourself, forest man," Marsh commented into the green nothingness. They weren''t very hopeful, but it was worth a shot. Surprisingly for them, Mercury did decide to step out of the underbrush. "I really wasn''t trying to hide anymore, you know," he said calmly, watching as the usual reaction set in, eyes widening all around, and mouths dropping open. Except Marsh''s. Their eyes were wide open, but their lips were pulled up into a smirk. "Captain, is that a monster?" one of the soldiers, the one with red hair, asked. "It can speak for itself," Mercury replied, more annoyed than he had hoped. "I go by ''he'', please refrain from calling me a monster." With that, the soldiers simply went to murmuring amongst each other, while Marsh held out a waterskin to the cat. "Have a drink at least," they said, grey eyes focused on Mercury. "And don''t pay them any attention. Cubs have barely seen the world, sometimes I think one pair of silk gloves isn''t enough when talking to ''em." "Heh, what it''s like to be young," Mercury said, taking the waterskin with . He wasn''t quite stupid, so he made sure to smell it as well, and listen to even the faintest warning from , but he couldn''t detect anything bad in it, not even with appraisal. "Oh, how old are you then?" Marsh asked the mopaaw while he was drinking a couple sips. It had been a long day, and Mercury also had to run off and quickly grab his log. No journey to be undertaken without it. "37," he replied without hesitation. "Chapters?" Marsh asked, their eyebrows raising even higher than when the waterskin began to float. "Yeah," Mercury replied, handing back the drink. "Thanks." "No problem. Now, how come one of the honourable true kin finds their way into this little desolate forest here? Your kind have business in this place?" Marsh''s face was impassive as they spoke, but when Mercury heard the talk, his expression sunk a little. "What do you mean, my kind?" he asked slowly, almost waiting for the answer to be a bad one. "The proper kin, the fullblooded, those whose high council decided to throw another half blood child into a river to drown," they said. Oh no, Mercury thought. Not his weakness, childhood baggage! Chapter 97: Clearing Chapter 97: Clearing /Never give in to authority. I mean it. No one can tell you what to do. You should be free, like a bird in the sky, free to spread your wings and follow where the wind takes you, or to flap them and decide your own path. You should not be held in a net, chained to the ground by those who would place themselves on a podium. Your choices are your own to make. Do not fight a fight that isn''t yours, or not dear to your heart. Don''t follow order that go against your morals, don''t act on sayings you disagree with, don''t lie down and take a beating. Rise, soar into independence and never once let those who seek to chain you do so. This life is your own. Don''t obey, don''t follow blindly. Think, question, and act for yourself. Always consider if something is worth your while. Should you really kill another? Is this amount of tax necessary? Do you really want a government? Nay! We people must stand for ourselves! Rise against those who command you!! Do not let society dictate what buildings are flammable!! Smash in the windows of a shop! Light a church ablaze! Bring those who are corrupt to the guillotine!!! Enough is enough! Soar, all ye beautiful birds! Soar not because I tell you to, but soar because you wish it upon yourselves!!/ Enrico the anarchist''s "Call to the Sky." - - - - - - "Wow, damn, that sounds harsh," Mercury said, looking more closely at Marsh. He watched their eyes turn dark as they spoke, and their lips were shaking a little. "Sounds harsh?" they scoffed. "That''s not the half of it. The kin, those who are proper, forsake us. Half-n-halves. Impure. We aren''t feral enough, not wild enough, too soft, and yet in a city they call us misfits and beasts. Tell me, fullblood, where are we supposed to fit in?" The captain looked up from between their hands, staring at Mercury, eyes dark. The cat was silently, simply looking back. He saw the fur that was on the captain''s arm raise up, making their clothes look puffy. Their fingernails seemed to glisten with sharpness, maybe some sort of bestial instinct skill, and their pupils had turned into slits. He saw that all the other soldiers had grown quiet, not even eating, simply staring at him and the captain. It was awkward, the silence heavy. He really couldn''t have a single normal encounter with sane people in this world, could he. What the hell was he supposed to say in this situation? Eventually, he sighed. "I don''t have your answers, kid," he said. "No one does." Mercury watched as the eyes of his counterpart began shaking. He could feel the captain''s breathing become laboured, their teeth seemed to grow into sharper fangs. "Why?" Marsh pressed the words through their teeth. "Because I''m not you. Choose yourself where you fit in," he said, maybe a little too harshly. "I mean, it''s not like people will tell you where you''re supposed to go, you need to find it. A home, that kinda thing." Good save there, he pat himself on the back. As Mercury finished, the leader''s eyes stopped shaking, their chest stopped heaving. It felt almost as if they shrank back down to a more managing size, but Mercury was sure he simply imagined it. He had been listening to them closely, and he could tell he wasn''t in any danger particularly. They simply wished to yell at the world. "Aren''t you wise, old man," they said, sarcastically. "Those lines are a Dark a dozen. Worth less than a loaf of bread." The captain shook their head, gazing at the ground again. "Why didn''t you get defensive?" "I''m an old man," Mercury said, smirking to himself. "I know when someone is mad at me. You''re not stupid, and you wouldn''t attack me for something as silly as what I am, especially not if that''s the exact thing you''re being hated for. I guess I''d say you know firsthand what being in my position is like." Marsh shook their head. "Damn it, at this rate I might just buy that you''re 37. I''ve heard it all before, that violence breeds violence, spiral of hate, what have you. Cheap words." "I actually am that old though," Mercury said. "But yeah, I get that, Words like that are cheap." He empathised with the kid. Well, they weren''t a kid really, but from his view they were. Mid twenties, at best, and that was a kid through and through. "Sure, Mercury. I''m sure you are," Marsh shook their head. "The kin grow to be thirty at best, unless they evolve more highly. And I can see your age on your fur. A couple chapters at best. No more than seven. Otherwise you would still be cooped up in some village." "But I''m not a kin," Mercury said, wearing a light smile. "Never claimed to be one." "Now you''re plain lying," Marsh said, their eyes growing narrow. "I mean it!" Mercury said, exasperated. "I swear, you people. Don''t believe me then, I don''t owe you an explanation." For a second Marsh paused, then chuckled. "Alright everyone," they yelled, "we keep moving!" As they walked, Mercury talked to some of the other soldiers as well. The red-haired one''s name was Ryki, and the tallest was Kre. He also remembered the name of Nora, a woman with dark blonde hair, bordering on brown, who usually seemed cheery. They travelled together, most of the time chatting about nothing much as the soldiers had to still stay somewhat vigilant. Having lived in the forest for almost a season, Mercury had to say he found it quite silly, but he respected their dedication. Maybe a bear or something would pull up on them out of nowhere. Once or twice they had to fight off lizards, bloodthirsty squirrels, or even an overgrown owl, but most of the engagements went fairly quick. Whenever someone seemed in danger, Mercury helped out with his Skill, dragging birds lower by focusing it on the tip of a wing, or slowing other animals down by pushing against them. He was getting better with the Skill every time he used it. Of course, whenever they were on break, Mercury tried to focus on his ihn''ar as well. He wasn''t neglecting practice at all, using any moment he had for it, sometimes even entering the state while in conversation, in an attempt to better multitask during it. In his dreams, he was alone, working on expanding his mana veins by slowly chiseling away at the confinements. It would take more time, but most of his growth was more long-term focused as of now. In fact, he hadn''t checked his status for a while now. Maybe he should. Status? Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 1->7 Species: Leyfal Titles: , , Alias: Beast, Mittens === Hp: 280/280 If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Mp: 667/667 Sp: 307/307 === Strength: 64 -> 68 (+5) Vitality: 60 -> 61 Dexterity: 58 -> 65 (+1) Agility: 59 -> 64 (+1) Intelligence: 92 -> 94 Wisdom: 67 -> 79 (+2) Willpower: 79 -> 85 Luck: 30 -> 34 === Ability points: 55 World points: 47 Skill points: 2060 === Gold: 4563 Beast familiars: 1/2 Wow. That sure was a change. After a quick read, he noticed a couple things. Of course, his stats had increased just from his actions, as they usually did, but additionally, he was gaining six points per level directly, and four Ability points to allocate himself. That was quite awesome compared to the points he used to get, so he was pretty stoked to see it. He also got a surprising amount of wisdom, maybe due to the amount of time he spent just thinking about life and trying to understand others. It seemed to be the main factor for what made ihn''ar work. His skills were progressing nicely too. Skills: Active: , , , , , , , , Passive: , , , , , , , , , Both: , , , , , , , , Abilities: , , , , , , Unique: Many of them had levelled up compared to before. was even close to an evolution, or at least where he thought the next evolution for the skill might be. He''d also managed to get and another level each while meditating, which was really nice. had been used, but mostly for meditating, not really for crystallizing any mana, so that was probably why he hadn''t gained as much mastery as he would have liked. was still stuck at level three. With how much he used it, the Skill was progressing incredibly slowly, and that was with him having an affinity for it from the reward. Genuinely really annoying, if he was honest, but it made him feel all the more secure that its evolution would be a certified banger. Hopefully it wasn''t too far away... Maybe he should also check in with ? [The Skill has currently produced 10 points, ready for the individual to claim.] Mercury sighed. ''Alright, take them'', he thought. [ has levelled up! 2>] He paused for a second. Maybe the Skill would finally show its use...? [: Generates Skill points slightly faster. It is still slow.] Damn it, now even was starting to make fun of him! Stupid fricking pop-ups, ugh! Still, it had at least contributed in some form, he had to give it that. Still at a loss of 490 points, but oh well. Maybe eventually it would make up for it. Probably not. Ugh. After checking his current stats, Mercury continued following the group on the journey. Their trek through the forest was slow, but consistent, making progress steadily, and after a couple of days, they arrived at the target. It wasn''t the huge graveyard Mercury had met the caretaker in, more a small clearing with a couple of wooden posts, the names of the dead carved into them. When they arrived, Marsh raised their hand, signalling everyone to stop. They took a break, silently this time, not speaking a word, and once everyone had eaten and drank their fill, they took out shovels and began to dig. Mercury watched, unable to really create the proper amount of force with his ghost hands. He couldn''t really "strain" himself for short, explosive power like with muscles, so no matter how much he pushed, it made only a small difference. Maybe that would get stronger as his levelled up? In any case, he was looking forward to it. Still, for now he was relegated to simply watching them dig. Marsh was the first to finish one of the graves, and as they took out a humanoid shape wrapped in white cloth from their inventory, everyone turned to them. Together, they slowly lowered the figure into the ground, silently and solemnly. Afterwards, Marsh began to carve the wood for the marker. They had taken it with them, from wherever their settlement was, and bit by bit, they carved a name, and a moniker, as well as dates. As Mercury watched, he thought about adding some runes to the bottom of the marker, and quietly asked Marsh about it. They hesitated for a moment but nodded. While Mercury was working on making the new markers more resistant to weather with some impregnate runes, Marsh was instead fixing up some of the older ones, removing the moss, clearing any plant growth off and such. The others were still digging, each their own hole, for their own losses. It was quiet for a long time, only the sounds of wood scraping away, and metal slashing into the ground to be heard. This again wasn''t the surreal, all encompassing quiet of the caretaker, but a much more real silence, more present, and more... casual, maybe. It was a silence of company, rather than a solemn one, if he had to say it. By the evening, everything was done with, all the bodies buried, and business taken care of. One by one, everyone had left the clearing, and Mercury had reinforced all the new markers, in hopes they would hold up a bit better. He had offered to treat the older ones as well, but marsh had declined. They might simply break if they tried taking them out the ground now, they''d said. It was probably true as well, so not much Mercury could do. The soldiers had probably sat up camp by now, but he still remained on that clearing, looking at the mounds of brown dirt that had sprouted up. The grass hadn''t spread to it, how could it in less than a day? For things to truly just blend in with the surroundings it would take months, and that was fine, too. Some of the mounds had stones wrapped around them, others were bare, and again others were almost invisible. They''d buried the body of a child as well, Mercury had to guess from its size, which was quite sad, but again, he couldn''t do much about it. Instead, he simply sat there in the clearing, gazing up at the darkening sky, watching the first couple stars rise. Time ticked slowly, and there was little sounds but the cold breeze. The people he had travelled with, Marsh and Ryki, Nora, Kre and all the others were silent, and he felt as if today, the animals were too. It felt like this forest was made to be a graveyard. He understood why these people came here to bury their loved ones, rather than anywhere else, even though it was a little dangerous. The place was good. Anyone would wish to be buried here, among those that came before, and those they laid to rest here with their own hands. Maybe one day, he would rest next to the people he cared for. Not that that mattered to him. He didn''t think that there was anything after death. At best, he would reincarnate, most likely without his memories, and in that case, he probably wouldn''t meet anyone from his past life anymore. Sure, there was a chance, but it was so small, and he didn''t quite see the point of being buried next to anyone in particular, but at least he could understand the thoughts behind it. Mercury understood things most of the time. He always tried his best to see different viewpoints, exactly what his parents wouldn''t have wanted him to do. That was probably where his issues with authority figures came from, huh. Oh well, no sense dwelling on it now, he thought, turning back to the party. They ate a bit again to refresh their strength, before all laying down to sleep. Digging was hard work, and after a full day of it, everyone just needed a bit of time to themselves. Settle their thoughts and such. Mercury did so as well, summoning his log and wrapping himself with blankets as his mind drifted off into sleep. - - - - - - Things had been progressing decently. Everything was set up properly for Avery to start his delve, entering the tunnel. Marcel would take care of any management, and he had come to an agreement with Kaga, meaning that if any big threats came up, she would be working for the seekers rather than the count. Surprisingly enough, she had been pretty cooperative. Of course, the way he talked to her was a bit touchy, since she had a... strong personality, if he put it nicely, but she was eager to help people out. That was, again, putting it nicely. Honestly, Avery was pretty sure she was just bored and spiteful to count I''htar for no reason other than her being able to do so. Except maybe she also wanted to fight, and yell at Marcel some more. The deal was, after all, that she would be staying at the gloryhall while Avery was inside the rift. He put together a team that wouldn''t slow him down, instead providing cover and backline support, as well as a few buffs and medicine. And a couple warriors to protect the backline. As for who''d do the monster killing, that was him. Anything else would be spending resources liberally, that could be more efficient in deterring an enemy attack. Thinking of the possibility again, Avery shook his head. He was dressed in the full combat outfit, including his goggles. Everything had been repaired, his jacket reinforced with minotaur leather patches. It was a bit heavier, but the fabric was much tougher against stabs now, so he hoped it would provide some protection against anything stabby in there. Of course, one could never be prepared enough, and Avery knew that he would be risking his life, but then again, that was his job. That was the case in every expedition. "You all prepped, Avery?" Marcel asked, the ''nutcase'' standing a little further behind. "Ready as I''ll ever be," the guild master replied, giving a broad smile, and Kaga nodded as well. They looked at each other for a minute, and Avery could practically hear her thoughts. She''d keep her side of the deal up, and if there were no attacks on the city while he was gone, she would at least get to spar him. "Good luck," Marcel said, patting him on the back. "Thanks." And stuffing the last bit of bread into his mouth, Avery headed in. Chapter 98: Destination in Sight Chapter 98: Destination in Sight /A friend of mine, well, more an acquaintance really, is a sailor. She tells me many stories, of foreign lands, foreign people and spices, drinks, good food, stories and customs, yet more than any of those, she tells me stories of the sea. The stories are always different. The calm, benevolent sea, that gives fish to the hungry. The sea that washes ashore trinkets and messages in bottles to those who need comfort, the sea whose noise can be a gentle lullaby, and the sea whose waves take those that get stranded back to solid ground. Yet, that very same sea may turn furious at any moment. She has told me of waves as tall as mountains, stormclouds from with bolts of lightning crack against the water as winds blow strong enough to take a grown man off his feet. Ships rocking side to side so hard their railings almost touch the water, and shores hit by a fury of water so large it can wash away whole houses and livelyhoods. That very sea is the one that any who live close by it pray to every day. It is the lady Gahna and her twin brother Leyvo, benevolence and fury in equal measure. Now, one might think that one sibling stands for the calm, and the other for fury, yet that would be a wrong assumption. Their moods are as interchanging as the tides, and it is only when both of them agree that the sea may become violent. As such, most sailors pray to both the gods, in hopes that perhaps at least one of them may be pleased and grant them safe passage, though customs are different for those living on the shore. Fishers pray to the lady Gahna, while soldiers instead pray to lord Leyvo. Not because any one of them is more merciful or benevolent, but instead because that which lies under the sea is closer to lady Gahna''s ocean palace, and that which floats on top of it is within the domain of Leyvo''s castleship. Yet, the two of them convene together often, speaking of their moods, and aiding only the mortals that truly dedicate their life to the two of them, and it is that very reason, why many people of the sea very well may spent most their living years on it. Because the longer one has been there, the less likely one is to incur the wrath of the sibling gods, and an old sailor is thus always welcomed, seen as a good omen for any ship to have on board./ An excerpt from "Of greater Beings", by Matthew Lexicon, the stubborn historian. - - - - - - The moment Avery stepped through the tunnel, his soles touched cracked earth. The ground here had long been bled dry of any water, the sky unobscured with a hot, angry sun blaring down at him. He felt beads of sweat form on his skin, but luckily with his combat gear it wasn''t too bad, the material was good in keeping him cooled. He did a scan of the area around him very quickly, making sure there weren''t any monsters around to attack them quite yet as his support came through. One by one, the seekers stepped into the wasteland, armored with whatever they preferred wielding. There were hammers and spears mainly, aimed at the chitin of monsters of often found in these areas, but also some bows and a good amount of staffs to keep up backline support. With a nod, Avery advanced further in, making sure to keep his eyes scanning the place, watching out for any sign of danger. He wasn''t just trusting his Skills with this, he wanted to confirm with his own senses if they were being attacked as well, so he remained vigilant. They stepped through the wasteland slowly, heat wearing them down step by step, but no one dared complain. These people were decent at their job after all. The rift this time wasn''t one he could casually send some newbies in, so everyone on the trip remained watchful. They listened for burrowing noises, looked out for any movement, and even smelled if there was a hint of something but salt in the air. Sometimes, the ground would make loud noises between their boots, the sheen of salt crystals that always covered the dry dirt splintering, and when it happened they paused in formation, only to be met with silence. The tension in the air was so thick Avery could almost taste it, looking at the sweat-covered faces of his comrades. Just as he wanted to say a word, there was a tiny noise. "Stop," he half-whispered, raising his hands, with half the seekers already being still before he even said anything. They slowly swept the area, looking for any sign of movement, and when absolute silence reigned for a couple seconds, they were rewarded. It was a low, rumbling sound, drawing their eyes to the side, where some of the earth was shifting, accompanying the digging noise with a soft crinkling. They watched the mound move little by little, waiting for it to get close to them, and slowly it approached. As it started getting closer, the seekers in the line of fire readied their weapons. They would get the first hit on this thing, whatever it was, and moments before it struck, Avery glanced around the area once more. For now, it seemed as if the enemy was on its own. And thus, everything went down in but a moment. First, the small deformity in the ground came close enough for the seekers to strike it. Yoo In-sik, a gentle, lean man with the strength of a half-dozen bears, swung down his hammer with all his might, rattling the ground they stood on, and with a resounding crack something burrowed out. Right in front of them, a large, scorpion like things came out of there, some of the chitin on its back damaged with blood and fluid oozing out. Yet when it crawled out, its hiss was silent to the human ears of the seekers watching. They simply saw as it quickly pushed its claw forward, aiming to grab whoever stood in front of it to pierce with its stinger. Luckily, the thing was quickly blocked by a pillar of ice appearing within its grasp. The obstacle was quickly carved apart, but by the time that was done, it received a huge impact from the side. Avery flew into the thing at full speed, every fibre of muscle in his body pulsing as his leg made contact. Almost immediately, he felt the armor crack and fracture, the moment it did he shifted his weight, spinning his body to deliver a second, devastating kick to one leg of the creature. As the thing buckled from his kick, its tail snapped forward, stabbing at the group of seekers within sight. Of course, it didn''t see very well, but it could also feel the tremors of their feet on the soil, which helped. Unfortunately for the scorpion, its stinger was blocked by a thick, iron shield, and moments later, another heavy blow found itself on the chitin. Not much later, they had overwhelmed it, and things were quiet again. One down, many to go, but Avery knew that it was only a matter of time. If they were louder, sure, they''d be found, but that was also dangerous. The monsters would come out by night time at the latest, and for now, they needed to be quiet if they wanted to hear what was coming. So, they marched further into the desert, listening closely for even the slightest noise. - - - - - - Mercury, on the other hand, was just trekking through a forest. He agreed to see the troupe of soldiers back to their home. He had gotten friendly with some of them, holding half a conversation even, and he at least wanted to see where they live. Frankly, the trip back was uneventful. They gathered up whatever tiny paths they had laid down, and the marking on the bark would fade soon enough, none of the cuts having been deep. It took a little while to retrace their steps, and especially for the first couple days, the mood was pretty heavy. Eventually though, he managed to squeeze some stories out of them. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. Nora hadn''t known any of the buried particularly well. One of them was a family acquaintance from her childhood, but nothing other than that. This was more akin to her first trip into the outside world as a proper adult, coming of age at 20 chapters. She didn''t envy anyone else on the mission though. The child they had buried was Ryki''s sister. He had been living with her for a long time, and as the older sibling by a good amount, he ended up taking care of her sometimes too. They spent a lot of time together, so when she fell sick, he was right there by her side, watching as it grew worse with every passing day, until one morning she didn''t wake up. For a long time, he refused to get outside the house, but eventually, Marsh got through to him, and he went on the trip. He was still sad, but the burial at least made him feel some sort of closure, which hadn''t been there before. Still, he certainly wasn''t the only case of losing someone dear to you. Kre had lost his father, which was a heavy hit, since his mother passed away during birth. Now, he needed to take care of things on his own, and he didn''t know if he was ready. Of course, no one would ever be ready for that kind of thing, but Mercury told him to just go along with how he felt things should be done, sometimes with how his parents would do them. Kre only nodded, determined to at least do right by them. Marsh had lost an uncle this time, out in the wild, fighting against some wildlife or human, it mattered little. They had ventured out to find one of the few people they confided in dead on the ground, wounds all over, and bleeding. Mercury didn''t want to ask much more after that, and he didn''t. Instead, they talked about how the people had been like. Their interest, professions, how they were connected. Mercury asked them about their family who was still left, about their love interests, what kind of future they wanted to pursue. Kre wished to be a cook, Ryki a teacher, Nora a huntress. They talked about their home a little, how things were done, and their traditions. Most of the group hoped they''d come home before the harvest festival. With things growing colder, the time had finally come to take all the crops they had grown and preserve them for winter, and once the bulk of the work was done, the festivities would begin. It was an honest type of work, back breaking and difficult, but the more you did it, the stronger you grew, and those who farmed received an almost ridiculous amount of stamina from the system. Then, in the winter months, that stamina was put to use in drinking. Anything that could be made into alcohol would be, and the people of their village were relentless in their efforts to make merry when there was little work to do. Of course, those festivities weren''t any the group wished to miss out on, and Mercury himself thought it at least worth the sight, even if he didn''t exactly want to get pissed with a bunch of strangers. With the newfound cravings for strong drinks fuelling their strides, the party advanced through the forest quite quickly. Mercury would hunt himself some food in the evening while everyone else was setting up camp. With his thick fur he didn''t really need to sit by a fire, but he still took pleasure in chatting with everyone else, so he still joined them. Some were weirded out by him eating his food raw, but then again, he was a wild mopaaw, and cooked items might not be very digestible for him, so they were left having to tolerate it. Day by day, they continued through the forest, dealing with the buckets of rain it would occasionally pour down. Mercury used to create a bit of a shield above him, but given that it could only apply a force, heavier raindrops still made it through, especially when there was a strong wind, so he always ended up wrapping himself in the dracoleather cloak. The people he was travelling with had it similarly rough, mostly wrapping themselves in cloaks and hoods to keep the weather at bay, apparently umbrellas were either not yet invented in this world or not very popular. Maybe the area they came from was also just very windy, making the design rather ineffective. Whatever the case, Mercury was certainly staying more dry than his companions, and the constant mental exercise was great for his . In general, he was still keeping his mind sharp, absorbing mana in the evening when everyone else was sleeping, and hammering against the boundaries of his astral self in his dreams. Sometime soon his shell would crack, he was sure of it. Time ticked yet on, and after a page or two, they were outside the forest. It was the hyt, the fifth page, of autumn, and finally they had made it outside. It''d been quite a trek, too, and they had spent the last couple days scaling up a mountain. According to Nora, their village laid in the valley just beyond it, yet when Mercury stepped foot on there, his system soon raised its voice. [Your title, , is reacting!] [The individual has entered the territory of another "lord"-type creature. It has been alarmed of the usurper''s appearance. Conquer? Y/N] What? [The "lord"-type creature has chosen to initiate an attack against the individual. Conquering engaged. Generating suitable Quest.] - [Personal Quest: "Territory" Condition: Repel the attack of the resident "lord". Defeat it and acquire its title. Reward: 1 level, 5 Ability Points, 100 Skill Points, 500 Gold, 20 World Points, Title. Failure Condition: Be defeated by the resident "lord", or run from the area with your tail tucked between your leg. Penalty: Loss of , regression of mastery.] - What the heck was this? First of all, why was he even given a choice when the other party could just decide to fuck his day up? Also, since when was this system so damn snippy? With his tail tucked between his legs? The hell was that even supposed to mean? Mercury sighed to himself. He couldn''t really afford to give up a level of , and he assumed the system would consider just taking one level a kindness. Actually, not just that, he also didn''t really want to lose his title. The three inventory slots had been a lifesaver more than once, an parting with them now would almost certainly make his future more troubling. No, as much of a pain as it was, he needed to deal with this problem. "Hey Marsh?" he slowly asked. "Yeah?" "Ever heard of the lord of the mountain?" "Of course I have," the leader answered. "Who hasn''t in these parts? It''s an old drake with a grasp of ice magic. Usually it stays in a blizzard at the peak of the mountain. Why do you ask?" "I just got a quest to fight it," Mercury said. "Oh come on! Look Mercury, I know we''ve been travelling together for a while now, but this is sadly something we can''t help you with. It''s too dangerous to risk, especially after everyone is already drained from a long journey," Marsh shook their head as they talked, annoyed at the situation. "But it''s not like we worship the thing, so just make sure you don''t die." "Alright, thanks," Mercury nodded, and after Marsh made a quick announcement for his temporary departure, the cat headed off. already rang a slight warning bell towards the peak of the mountain, so obviously that was the direction he headed towards. To be fair, it wasn''t unprecedented to walk towards danger in this world. Every single seeker that accompanied Avery knew their mission was dangerous. Beckham himself went into a mar on his own, which was certainly dangerous. Mercury''s bet with the skin-thingy was dangerous. Rewards didn''t always appear freely and without risk, especially when talking about the system. So, instead of running away like any normal or sane person would, Mercury began jogging towards the peak of the mountain, using footpaths to snake his way higher up. Luckily it didn''t rain today, though a bit of fog still clung to the air, at least it wasn''t enough to hamper Mercury''s sense of orientation. Bit by bit he began walking higher up the mountain, though he was pretty sure that whatever this "lord" was, it was already coming towards him as well. Thinking of how the last fight went, he was sure this one would also know a couple spells, probably more related to ice than wind though. Hopefully they wouldn''t be too rough. Mercury began to review what kind of fighting Skills he really had in his arsenal. Of course, he could enhance his purely physical abilities with stamina, mana, and , but he also needed to keep in mind that he could use and , which was especially handy given his use of runes. He also reminded himself to use effectively. The more he experimented with it, the more he realised how handy it was for short bursts of movement, and he definitely didn''t want to let such a benefit go to waste. Having refreshed his Skills and their uses, Mercury began to definitely feel the air getting colder. There were patches of snow on the grass around him, and where there wasn''t any, the ground was wet and cold. It was muddy and slightly slippery, not exactly the conditions he wished for, but what he would have to work with, since he could feel much more clearly now. With that in mind, he looked around for a decent fighting spot, one that had some gravel on the floor to give him good grip, and some rock outcroppings for him to hide behind. He was sure the drake would be larger than him, so having some cover for whatever spells it would be slinging was certain to be beneficial to the cat. With that last little bit of distance done, he could already see something rapidly approaching from the sky, and with a hiss as the wind broke against its wings, the drake landed in front of him. Its scales were frosty, a hint of blue in there, and it had long, curved tusks that seemed sharp as knives at the edges of its snout. The teeth in its mouth were razor sharp, and the talons at the end of its wings spelled bad business too. As for size, standing up it was a little smaller than a man, tough with its tail in the equation, Mercury was sure it was quite a long boi. Still, he wasn''t afraid. Not this time, he was sure he had practiced enough, and just this once, he wanted to defeat something challenging on his very own. Chapter 99: Bloody Conflict Chapter 99: Bloody Conflict /These days, I believe I may be qualified to count myself as an expert on many things strange about our world. I have dedicated countless hours of study to history and happenstance, to the things that have plagued our world for eons, and those that have recently arisen. But yet, most modern topics are so inconclusive. I can only really speculate on the truth of the matter. What really are rifts? Where do monsters end and people begin? Why is it, that the system pits us against each other? Is there some greater agenda at play, or is the system simply imposing the will of a tunnel itself on the monsters in it? One day, I hope to solve these things, yet for now, it is only with small steps I can glimpse more of the truth, and I believe it is such a step I have recently taken. A door opened in my office. Not the door to my office, but a proper door, an arch. It appeared, not randomly, not in the middle of the night, but quite fortunately, while I was there to witness it. To be fair, it did cause me to drop one of my favourite mugs and spill some tea on the floor, but that is of little matter considering how monumental a discovery this was. Observing a rift form is already a rare privilege, though most wouldn''t consider it as such. To seekers, it is as thought their work had just caught up to them, any normal people would consider it terrifying, and merchants might see the glint of gold in it. But none of these, not the mages or mercenaries, not blacksmiths, nobles, knights nor cults, know as much about the arches as us scholars. So to have it happen in my office, was a deep shock. Yet I didn''t hesitate for a moment. I noted down the ambient mana level, humidity, moisture content in the air, and watched the arch spread. It looked insidious, perhaps some would call it wrong, but it burned itself into my eyes as something I wanted to understand so desperately. It felt like hours passed as I simply stood there. My mind worked faster than my hands ever could have, writing down every single detail in . I watched as the air shimmered and glinted with iridescent colours, as the triz around me coalesced, and the moisture disappeared. I saw nearby flowers wilt a little, their stamina disappearing into the tear, as it seemed to grasp hold more firmly. Slowly, but surely, the arch was beginning to make a sound, a dreadful howl as it sucked in anything easy enough to lift. It didn''t even shy away from me, seeking to rip the mana straight from my core, yet I held steadfast. Now, as for the tunnel? First, the air became a little opaque, translucent in a way, a sheet of iridescent glass, before it cracked. The shard fell to the floor, turned black and ashen, before growing back up and reconnecting with the shimmer that had reformed. It sprinkled those seeds onto the ground, and began to take root more solidly. Then, when it had its roots, the cracks stopped propagating, the shimmer turning wider and more erratic, its edges blurring as it widened. The colours now looked more tangible, like an oil slick in the way the light broke, when it was pushed into the more common oval shape, its sides suddenly growing wider as if pushed by the hands of someone. Then, it slowly settled down, the howl and hum ebbing, until only silence remained as I stood in front of an arch, every detail, every second, forever etched into my mind, leaving me forever even more curious about them./ "An Expert Witness", by Armeyus the Scholar, documenting the very foundation upon which much of modern tear-research is built. - - - - - - There was no gunshot, or signal to start the fight. In truth, it had already begun the moment the mountain lord found out Mercury even existed. That was the way titles had always been, and it was more than clear that the two would fight, so the cat was ready for when the drake attempted to bite him. Mercury knew what he could do, and he was very aware that he couldn''t use his full power for very long. But when it came to starting a fight, he was sure he wouldn''t lose out in terms of explosive force. He could see it right there, after all, the arrogance in his enemy''s eyes. It was already sure the fight was won, before its enemy could even attack. But with that, Mercury really couldn''t have asked for a better opportunity. As the drake stood still, he took only a moment to activate his latent ability. His stamina expanded, flooding his muscles with strength, and his mana boiled and coursed through him, making his movements sharper and more snappy. He took a deep, hard breath of air, enjoying the slight sting in his lungs for a moment, as his blood flowed through him and supplied the energy he needed. Then, he leapt. With , he gained more speed in the few steps he took, and as he jumped, he pushed the ground up with , to give him just a little bit of extra speed, and then beyond that, activated to add another tiny boost. After just a moment, Mercury had gone from standing still to full speed and hurtling towards the drake, his eyes locked on one of its wings, ready to tear it apart with his claws. Of course, the other monster tried to fight back, the light in its eyes quickly changing to one of surprise, but this time, it was already too late. By the time the mountain lord began turning, Mercury was only a hair''s width from his target, and he slammed into the larger animal with plenty of force, his claws extended. The impact was resounding, Mercury absorbing much of it with his legs, while the drake got hit with most of the load on its shoulder, staggering backwards. Yet, the cat clung onto it, already swiping his mana-enhanced claws through the thin membrane between bones, pulling apart the thin skin with a sound like that of scissors gliding through fabric, accompanied with screeching and shaking. For a few seconds, Mercury held on, but soon, he found himself accelerating towards the ground, so he let go of the wing and instead attempted to turn around. Luckily for him, the grass was still very alive between patches of snow and even underneath the white blanket, so the thin blades of green reached out and softened the impact. Even with their help and the ground being soft, it still hurt, but after a quick roll that left his back and face muddied, he stood again. And almost immediately jumped back as he saw the drake snap at him once more. Instead of fighting, this time Mercury began to quickly run away, hoping to confuse his enemy into thinking he was now scared after a single encounter. To his delight, it seemed to somewhat work, and the drake began running after him at a pace more intended to wear the mopaaw down than immediately tear him apart. In retaliation to this silly thought, Mercury quickly jumped atop a rock and spun around, pulling his bag out of the inventory and launching two rocks at the drake''s other wing. Its claws were on the ground, supporting its weight as it hunched forward when Mercury attacked. Of course, it attempted to pull its wing back when Mercury attacked, but was delayed by a bunch of greenery for maybe half a second. One of the rocks slammed through the skin of its wings, and Mercury could see that his foe was now fully enraged. Well, it was worse than having the lord be arrogant, but not as bad as if it had decided to take him seriously properly. Maybe this was part of the limit for ordinary beasts, so much muscle, so little brain. He hardly had time to finish the thought, when a shrill noise like that of nails dragging against a blackboard sounded out. Mercury''s eyes opened wide, and he instantly ducked behind a rock as he saw icicles hurtling towards him, the mana from the drake boiling to freeze the air in a spell that blasted the mopaaw with daggers of cold. Before the drake had a chance to shoot even more magic at him, Mercury quickly snatched the bag of ammunition back up into his inventory and dashed away, just in time as he watched a freezing mist spread from the beasts maw and instantly cover the rock in a thin sheet of ice. As the cat dashed away, his enemy was already hot on his heels, chasing after the enraging little thing with the fury only someone who thought themselves unmatched could wield. This time, instead of clumsily chasing after him though, Mercury got a painful taste of what the difference in size could mean for agility. The drake''s arms were thin, but long and full of tough muscle, no fat to be found, while its hind legs had an additional joint to absorb the impact from landing. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. But this time, those long limbs weren''t used to land or gain lift. Instead of that, the thing began to stretch its legs, screech loudly, and then fucking gallop at Mercury, pushing itself with the back legs, and catching itself on the floor with its claws before leaping forward with those as well. The moment Mercury noticed, his heart skipped a beat. What the fuck kinda monster was that? Seeing a dinosaur-bird like beak full of sharp teeth hanging low to the ground and gallop after him full force was more than enough to make Mercury nervous, and he almost choked, but instead just quickly activated again and began zig-zagging around some of the boulders. Maybe he should have picked a tighter space to fight it, one where he could use his small size better, but even the way it was now, he had disabled its wings and was in a somewhat advantageous position, since the galloping left it with little maneuverability. The double joints were great for absorbing shocks in one direction, but Mercury was sure that the force on those knees, if he could call them that, would be horrendous if it tried to do a quick turn. And he was right. As he darted around a corner, he watched the drake slow down and instead hold onto the floor with its claws, before dragging its weight forward again and beginning to accelerate, only to see its prey take another turn. Almost immediately, the lord let out an ear piercing howl, leaving Mercury stunned for a moment. His feet felt frozen to the ground, and when he came back to himself, he could only catch a glimpse of the creature''s massive body coming towards him. Before he could think, the drake slammed into him, swiping its claws. Luckily, Mercury had put a bit of distance between the two, so the strike landed on his side, and while the impact was brutal, only the claw he would consider the "thumb" pierced his flank. Still, even just that left a bloody gash, and he was sent hurtling away, rolling thrice and sliding in the mud before he got back up. He didn''t even have time to spit out some of the dirt in his mouth, coughing instead as he jumped back from another bite. He barely held the drake''s dagger-filled mouth back with , otherwise his head might have ended up between its teeth. Mercury composed himself as he scurried off, the drake launching a volley of icicles after the cat, which Mercury''s ystirs shook off course while commanding . This however came with a sharp sting in his head, as he could only feasibly control two instances of without overexerting himself. What was done was done, and at least it seemed to have disoriented the creature he was fighting, giving him just a handful of seconds to catch his breath behind a rock. Quickly, Mercury spat out the filth in his mouth and pushed out the air in his lungs. He could feel his flank burning where his skin was pierced, and his ribs were aching too, but he simply focused on the few breaths he got. In and out, then in and out once more, and the third time he deflated he realized something. He had only been focusing his breath on getting the air in and circling the "energy" around. It was just a split second he thought of it, but it felt like he had been so goddamn stupid before. His was low, because what the fuck else would it be, if he ignored half the process? He would''ve laughed if his situation wasn''t so sucky. "I''ll get you now," Mercury muttered under his panting, before quickly dashing out behind the rock when screamed warning bells at him. This time though, the mopaaw was calm. As he took the first couple steps, he activated once more, avoiding the drake''s claws. He took a deep breath in, feeling the cold air burn in his throat. He jumped away again, breathing out as he pushed, and the distance he flew was remarkable. Well, at least it was to him. In truth, the distance wasn''t as huge as it seemed, but in the middle of combat, where every bit mattered, it was enough. For a few more seconds, Mercury moved away from the Drake. When it moved, he slowed it down with , and held it at bay as the grasses responded to his call. His speed was increased by every bit of power he could squeeze out, even as his flank ached, his legs moved with full strength. [ is activated in full. Hp loss reduced. The individual is encouraged to weigh the risks of further engagement.] His new perception allowed Mercury to think about it, his mind splitting for this moment, one half fighting, dodging and throwing rocks, the other considering. Was this really worth it? He could watch his vitality decrease as he overexerted himself, saw the blood trickle from his side as his health leaked, and yet he didn''t retreat. And then he smiled. His minds fused back into one, as his ystirs bore down on the drake for a moment, all instances of focused on a single arm of its, forcing the creature closer to the ground. Then, with his tail, Mercury tapped two rocks in quick succession, activating as they shot forward and into the thing''s flesh. Once again, the beast screeched, maybe in an attempt to stun Mercury, but this time, as he breathed out, he felt the frigidness leave his body, and as the icy mist from the drake''s jaw flooded the air, the mopaaw took another step back. He dodged, his eyes still on the enemy that was now approaching him again, bleeding from its wings and legs, but as he stepped back, Mercury slipped. The ground gave way and his leg couldn''t find purchase in the mud. He felt a few blades of grass trying to stabilise him, but of course, they were too late. Mercury fell, and the drake bit him. Its fangs closed around the leyfal, piercing into his skin like daggers. He could feel some of them scrape against his bones as he screeched, his activating unconsciously. The drake hesitated for a moment, its jaw not fully pressed shut, and before it could finish biting through its prey''s remaining lifeforce, Mercury pushed all the air from him and boiled what amounted to maybe half his remaining mana in a brutal stab against the thing''s tongue and lower mouth. He pushed his claws in as deep as they could go, and when the drake roared and left him free, Mercury tumbled to the ground, still stretching out his front legs one more time to stab into its eyes, holding onto that to soften the fall. The mopaaw winced in pain as his back hit the ground, unable to turn fast enough, feeling the wet earth slide into his wounds and causing them to flare up once more. His white fur was fully dyed brown and red, his eyes bloodshot, breath leaving his mouth in white, puffy clouds. Still, the drake also wasn''t very well off, bleeding from its mouth, leg, arm, and eye. He had done a number on it for sure. "Urg, glr, gurgle," Mercury said, trying to get out a sound, but his lungs failed him. Ah, were they filling up with blood? Oh, the corners of his vision were going hazy and black, this wasn''t good. [ has levelled up! 9>] Ah, that was a little better. Hopefully this worked with his mind as well. Hey shop, if you could, is there a health potion for 250 Hp? That would be wonderful. Just summon half of it on my skin, and slowly funnel the other half in my mouth, if that''s possible. Ah, ystirs, please manage it. And then, Mercury''s vision went black, but only a moment after, he felt himself being enveloped by a warm sensation, which soon turned into a burning on his skin and in his chest as the pain he didn''t realize while blacking out came flooding in. Mercury wanted to scream, but all that left his throat was a wet gurgle, as he spat out multiple mouthfuls of blood, almost vomiting it as the rapid regeneration flushed it out of his lungs. Some of the healing fluid had dripped into there from the outside, and while the feeling was agony, he could tell it was prompting his cells to knit themselves back together, in what he could only describe as somehow. Bit by bit, the healing counteracted the blackness at the edge of his vision, and when his eyelids felt like iron weights were on then, rather than being welded shut, he forced them open. After another swallow of healing liquid, his vision was clear enough to make some things out. The drake was panting above him, enjoying its victory. In a moment, Mercury used his mind. He drew in a breath of air, and waited. He looked and saw the bag of rocks on the floor next to him, some of them having spilled out, and he swiped his tail over towards them. It was in the creature''s blind spot, given that he had taken out its eye before, and so, he activated throw, pushing against the stones with every ounce of he could manage. By the time his weapons flew off, Mercury''s Hp had barely regenerated to 50, and was now simply sitting there. He was still cut up and bruised all over, with nasty punctures, but his wounds were covered with scabs, and at the very least he wasn''t actively bleeding out, so his Hp was staying still. ... Scratch that. He was still going over his limits, and he could see his Hp slowly dropping again. But as he watched his own health bar, the rocks lodged themselves into the other eye of the drake, fully blinding it as it let out a screech. One more dug into its left thigh, on the leg that had already been hurt, and another smashed its right knee. Almost immediately, the monster began flailing its long claws in front of it, but quite frankly, Mercury was too close. He had taken a step underneath it, and was approaching the legs he had cut up. "Go die already," he said, spitting out some more blood as he raised his front appendages up high, and began to slice up the underbelly of his foe. Warm, red liquid drizzled down onto his fur, sliding down his arm and rapidly cooling. Some of it dripped on his nose, and Mercury shook his head, but as he did, he saw the drake''s movement begin to slow. It was blind, couldn''t move anymore, and now he had also sliced open its stomach. The fight was over. Status, how did he look? - - - Hp: 35/280 Mp: 14/667 Sp: 4/307 Gold: 563 - - - Ah, shit, that potion cost him 4000 gold? Really? Well, at least he had something to look forward to. [Your understanding of has increased! (medium)>] [Killed the "Lord of the Mountain"! Get: 5000 Exp, 1000 Gold, Drake''s Flesh, Ice-Affinity Core.] [Main Quest: "Ihn''ar" has been completed.] [Personal Quest: "Territory" has been completed.] Time to reap the benefits, babyyyyy! Maybe that thought was too exciting, as when making a small gesture for victory, Mercury once again winced for the pain. Maybe he could take those couple levels before to regenerate a little. Chapter 100: A well known Man Chapter 100: A well known Man Hello. This is Liam again. I really don''t quite know what to say. This is chapter 100 of a story I wrote. Up until now, it has a little over 325 000 words. On average, I apparently exceed the chapter length of 3000 words, which is interesting. For anyone who has made it this far, thank you. I know this has been a long journey up until now, and not every chapter has turned out as well as it could have. Some were better than I thought going into it, and some I maybe put too many of my personal frustrations in. Once again I want to really thank everyone who has made this journey possible. My ever supportive friends, my mostly supportive family, and of course every single reader who kept me to my deadlines. Yes, I know I sometimes don''t make them, I apologize again for that. As always, I hope you''ve been enjoying this story. I once again want to take the time here to specifically state that this story is supposed to be inclusive of all people. If you take issue with someone because of their gender, sex, sexual orientation, skin colour, or any other surface reason, I kindly ask you re-evaluate your choices. People are people, and they deserve to be treated as such. LGBT+/GRSM rights are human right. POC rights are human rights. Be kind to other people, this should be a safe space for anyone to be themselves. And please, continue to enjoy the story. - - - - - - /Sometimes being in the devil contract partnership program is a bit difficult. I mean, signing up to be summoned is great. I love making contracts with humans, elves, and dwarves. It feels great helping them with their problems and all, but sometimes, those summoners can be so arrogant, you know? I''ll genuinely be having a movie night with my best pals, and suddenly I''m in some dudes dark, damp, cramped closet, with my horns scraping uncomfortably against the closet. I''ll be readjusting my eyes to the lighting, and my nose to the smell, because somehow drawing pentagrams means they don''t even clean the floor anymore, and some grimey motherfucker will be looking at me and go, "Bow to your new master, foul daemon! Witness my power and obey my command!" Like, bro, you talk like that, and expect me not to rip you the hell off? I like contracts as much as the next guy, but don''t treat us devils like trash. We got names, and we got proper classification as a species within the system too. Seriously, a single appraisal would tell you I''m a devil subspecies, not a daemon. But fine, my patience is nearing its limits and I''m already tired. Planning on ripping some idiot off for all they''re worth, so I ask to hear the request. "I wish for the power to spill my enemies'' blood, to take over this empire and make those who spurned me kneel before my feet, only to take their begs for mercy, and extinguish them in their throats!" What the fuck kinda deal is that? Look, your soul is worth like a quarter of what you''re asking for. You need to know how to barter. Maybe, just maybe if it had been someone nice ''n polite I''d make an exception, right, but it''s never someone nice. Nice people don''t need to make their enemies beg for mercy. Nice people go something like, "Hey there mister devil, so I kinda need some help." Those grand ambitions will get you backstabbed. Period. You''re gonna summon someone way above your league, they''ll smash the pentagram, and eat your face for calling them a demon. We have standards, man. I even got serial contractors. This girl, Mandy, summons me every freydan night so she doesn''t get lonely when watching her favourite show. I bring snacks with me by now, just because she''s so nice. If you''re a prick to us devils, expect to get backstabbed. I''m no demon, but even those only ever try to scam assholes into bad deals. Ah, right, the dude I was talking about. I made him a contract alright, because that day I was feeling real nice and chill, and the dumbass signs it without even reading. Didn''t speak a lick of West Arterusian I bet. So, after he signed, I picked him up and threw him in a river. He was forced to shave, change into nice clothes, and do a proper clean of that miserable hole he summoned me in. Then, once he was looking like a functioning member of society, though with some tears on his cheeks, I took him back to my home city. We devils got some sickass councelors, and man, sometimes people like him just need some help. He''s been to therapy for six months, and is getting better. Higher self-confidence, better circle of friends. Don''t be afraid to reach out for help, you might find it in even the most unlikely places, but for the love of god, in terms of summoning devils, if you need to see your own value, just ask us for that instead of limitless power./ Mologoth the baleful, high-devil and outspoken representative for the devil contract partnership program. - - - - - - Well, those were certainly a few notifications to get through. [Level Up!] That was one for killing the mountain lord. [Personal Quest: "Territory" completed! Reward: 1 level, 5 Ability Points, 100 Skill Points, 500 Gold, 20 World Points, Title.] [Level Up!] [Main quest: "Ihn''ar" completed! Reward: 12 Ability points, title, additional inventory slot, immediate increase in power for any growth-type equipment.] Okay, now to go step by step. First, status! - - - Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 7 -> 9 Species: Leyfal Titles: , , , , Alias: Beast, Mittens === Hp: 285/285 Mp: 667/667 Sp: 307/307 === Strength: 68 -> 69 (+5) Vitality: 61 -> 62 Dexterity: 65 (+1) Agility: 64 -> 67 (+1) Intelligence: 94 Wisdom: 79 -> 81 (+2) Willpower: 85 -> 87 Luck: 34 -> 37 === Ability points: 80 World points: 67 Skill points: 2360 === Gold: 2063 Beast familiars: 1/2 - - - Interestingly, his familiar slots didn''t increase this time. , what exactly did those new titles do? [: This title was awarded to the individual upon defeating the prior Mountain Lord and thus claiming said position as their own. It grants a +5 to all stats while in the vicinity of the mountain it was acquired in. Additionally, it grants its user 3 inventory spaces, as well as increased mastery gain in most perception-related Skills. For having acquired two separate "Usurper"-type titles, the individual is granted the Title Skill, .] [: A Title Skill acquired upon receiving two separate "Usurper"-type titles. Allows the user to set a territory, instinctually warding off smaller predators, and challenging any whose territory was there before. Additionally, it can be used on other individuals. It costs 300 Mp, and steals 50 Hp from the desired target.] Hm. The Skill was certainly good, but given that the system went out of its way to have a unique category for it, he''d honestly have thought it would be better. Maybe he needed more usurper titles? For now, it was definitely usable, especially when he was finally establishing his own place, though that was still a little far off. At any rate, the lifesteal could definitely save his ass, even though it was vastly more expensive than most other techniques he used. It also seemed quite inefficient, but hey, maybe he could buy mana potions in the shop and convert his gold directly into damage that way? What did mana potions cost in there, anyways? 500 Gold for 50 mana. Okay man. Sure. Go frick yourself. In any case, there was still more to check out, right? [ : This title was awarded to the individual for their diligent study and perseverance. It grants increased comprehension and focus when meditating or in a calm state. This is intended to slowly break down more complicated processes into smaller steps, and additional bonuses to understanding and mastery will be granted upon longer use, study, and growth of an ability.] A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. [Confusion detected. Appraisal rewording issued. Processing.] [Essentially, when the individual encounters a learning barrier, the longer they are stuck, and the more patient they are, the easier the wall will become to break down and improve upon.] Well, that was very fucking good. Now the question was how long the system considered a long time though. A lifetime, maybe? Looking at , he wasn''t quite sure how far he would trust this thing, but it sure as hell was better than not having it at all. Okay, getting closer to the end. His inventory now had nine slots. One from the start, the one he bought, one from the quest, and three from each of the usurper titles. Which was really damn sick, because it meant he could now store quite a bit of stuff, especially since the categorization of an object seemed to be pretty much determined based on whether he could view it as one, and also its dimensions. The biggest thing he had managed to shove in there was his trusted log, and he was pretty sure that for now, anything bigger than that was unlikely to fit. Still, having more slots was always very welcome, since he didn''t exactly have a good method of carrying stuff other than , and that was a nightmare for long distances. For now though, he was also excited to see how his cloak had grown. [: Proficiency: 500/1000. Grade: Unique D. New Blessing: ] [: This passive blessing is any traveller''s first choice. It grants increased resistance to the elements, warding off rain, snow, hail, storms, wind, and anything else more effectively, keeping the user warmer and happier. Additionally, these effects provide some resistance against elemental magic, reducing damage from elemental sources by 5%] Holy fucking shit. He hadn''t used last fight, since he had forgotten about it in the heat of the moment, but he was really starting to realise just how amazing the blessings growing equipment got were. Of course, the cloak still didn''t boost his actual stats by much, and when he thought about the kind of effects he remembered from the few playthroughs of rpgs he had watched, they seemed tiny, but the blessings were actually mad. He''d been struggling with the rain quite a bit recently, since his fur dried slow, and the water stuck to him, carrying cold winds right into his bones. had been helping, but once again he could only keep that up for a limited amount of time, so quite frankly, something like this was more than appreciated. Honestly, the elemental damage reduction was more of a sidenote to him. Of course it was incredible, don''t get that twisted, but most of the time, he wasn''t fighting magic users, but instead hunting for food. And since he was more focused on survival rather than completely thriving in this strange world, a buff to his comfort was worth more than a simple damage reduction. Now, was there anything else noteworthy he still hadn''t checked out? Some of his Skills had levelled up, that was for sure, any ready for evolution? [Your Skills have levelled up: 3>, 10>, 17>, 3>, 6>!] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same, no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. ] Well, onto more reading then. , if you would? [: A Skill that sacrifices stamina efficiency in exchange for sheer speed. The consumption is extremely high, but in exchange, the amount of momentum the individual can reach is incomparable to that of the regular Skill. A small trail of light will follow the individual, making stealth difficult, but distracting enemies in direct combat.] So an option that went all-in on raw speed? It seemed strong in fights for sure, but with even the system warning him of the stamina cost... he was really unsure about it. Also, the additional bit on light made it look very inconvenient in any situation except one on one fights. For now he''d prefer to hear the other options. [: This Skill doesn''t simply accelerate the user, but instead heightens physical capabilities in general. Very popular with fighters who seek balance between strength and speed, it makes the user faster and any attacks hit heavier as well.] Honestly, this one already seemed a lot better. It made him even faster but also generally sturdier and stronger. Especially since he could activate it on even small attacks and claw swipes, this could make a huge difference in any exchange. It was weird though, how would it make his attacks hit harder without just a pure speed increase. It couldn''t exactly make him heavier, could it? After all, that and speed were the main components of force. Well, whatever, he''d worry about it after choosing. He still had to hear the last option. [: This option gives a much lesser speed increase than most other forms of dash, in exchange for far lower stamina consumption. Individuals with high stamina recovery may even be able to permanently keep this Skill activated, although the best time to do so would be after eating, as stamina recovers the fastest in those cases.] This one was interesting, but it didn''t really suit Mercury. As of right now, his power was short lived and explosive, which wasn''t great, and he definitely needed to work on fights of endurance, but quite frankly, it was slowly getting better. Still, having a dash option that just doesn''t stack up to what others can do, what''s the point? It wouldn''t be useful for switching up his rhythm in a fight, and it wouldn''t be useful for making an escape. Of course, a passive speed boost would be nice, but this one just had far too little of an impact compared to the cost. No, he''d have , please. [Evolution selected.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Almost immediately, Mercury decided to give the new Skill a try, activating it and then attempting to run. His stamina was recovered after the levels and browsing the menus, so he was honestly feeling pretty alright again. Definitely good enough to give the evolved a try. The system really hadn''t been lying. When Mercury used his new dash, he didn''t just get faster, he also felt his movements become heavier. It was a little bit of a weird feeling, genuinely, though he thought Avery might have mentioned something like it before. Mass was an overwhelming advantage in terms of the force one can generate, so with a high strength score and some Skills, maybe it was possible to change one''s mass on the fly? If so, this Skill was better than he had thought. Especially using short bursts of activation, like he had been doing even with the old version of dash, would now be way more powerful. This was definitely a good choice, at least in Mercury''s book. With that all said and everything done, Mercury finally began heading down the mountain, after grabbing the corpse of the drake. Now, while his Hp was in order again after the rejuvenating effect of gaining levels, that didn''t mean he was looking good. His fur was full of mud and dried blood, and his cloak had lost all its luster. He was perhaps fitting to be placed in a dictionary as the definition of filthy. Still, Mercury couldn''t help but smile. This time, he had done it all by himself. He''d walked up to some lord motherfucker, and then kicked his ass. Wait. He kicked that guy''s ass. So there was still a reward!! [: This core, once housed inside a drake, is charged with ice-affinity mana. Usually, the treatment to give an affinity to mana has to be executed post mortem, however this one was immediately finished as a drop by the system. It allows the user to absorb the mana, losing its affinity in the process, or extract it to power magical constructs. Additionally, the option to analyze it in hopes of developing ice spells is open. Grade: C.] Yoooo, alright, Mercury already knew what he would do with that. Honestly, if the choice was between temporary and permanent strength, was it really a choice at all? Of course he''d try and analyze the mana, what a dumb question. The ice spells that drake had cast really packed quite a bit of a punch, and Mercury was more than excited to blast some of them himself. [: Tissue taken from a dead drake. Still pulses with power. Can be used as an ingredient in cooking or alchemy, as well as directly consumed in order to inherit some of the drake''s strength. Consumption should be avoided if the individual does not have a strong stomach. Grade: Unique C.] Wow, nice, was this like the great stag''s heart again? Honestly, for a moment, Mercury considered giving alchemy an attempt, but in the end he decided against it. He was a carnivore as a cat, and he could eat raw meat without blinking an eye, so he decided having a bite while it was still fresh would give him the most benefits. [The drake''s strength courses through you. Strength increased by 3. Vitality increased by 5. Dexterity increased by 2. Luck increased by 1.] Hell yeah! That was one full level''s worth of points pretty much! Totally worth it. Finally satisfied with everything, Mercury continued his descent, even ignoring all the dirt on him as he slowly got closer to the foot of the mountain. It had grown a bit darker by now, and dusk had firmly settled in, yet when he came all the way down, Marsh was still waiting. "Thought you''d never come back," they said, looking at the dirty ball of fur in front of them. "You wish," Mercury said. "Got some kind of bathing river near your village?" Marsh sighed with a light smile. "We do," they said. "Follow me." Not very long after, Mercury actually did reach the village. It was bigger than he had expected, quite frankly, houses placed on plateaus and crops growing wherever there was space. The buildings were stable, made of solid stone and wood, built to last against storms and heavy weather. He could see smoke rising from many of them, a fire burning where it was needed to cook and warm. Marsh showed him to the river, which Mercury reluctantly lowered himself into. Some of the dirt washed off easily, other pieces needed some convincing, but not too long after, Mercury and his cloak were clean again. Wet and cold, too, but at least clean. Marsh threw him a drying rag, quite reminiscent of a towel, and with , Mercury was soon no longer dripping, and only uncomfortable. "Let''s get you inside?" the expedition leader asked, pointing towards one of the houses. "That yours?" "My family''s," Marsh nodded. "You really don''t have to force yourself-" "Just go inside," Marsh sighed, pushing the mopaaw a bit with the tip of their boots. "Thanks," Mercury grumbled, finally taking the invitation and stepping foot into the house. "Welcome to my humble abode," Marsh said as Mercury looked around. It was a decently big place, with a couple rooms, and the sounds of regular life sounding throughout. The cat could hear a chair creaking as someone rocked back and forth, and he heard a knife slice up some vegetables. Fire crackled, and the air was warm. "It''s nice," he said, smiling. "I know," Marsh replied, though with a bit of a smug look on their face. "Come on, let me introduce you." With that, they already went ahead, moving towards the sound of the knife rather than the chair first. "Mother, I''m home," Marsh said, opening the door to a well lit room with a set dining table, only to have the view into it blocked a moment later, as a tall figure rushed out to hug him. It was a woman, maybe in her late 30s if Mercury had to guess, with wolf ears poking through her brown hair. It was beginning to gray ever so slightly, hints of silver no one would dare mention neatly tucked away, and the light folds in her face spoke of many smiles. "It''s so good to see you back," the woman said, hugging Marsh tightly, who was now blushing a little. "Hey, it''s alright mom, be careful, I''ve got a friend-" "A friend? Who is it?" she asked, looking around, only to find Mercury standing on the floor. "Awwe, what a cute little mo-" she said, already beginning to reach out before Mercury interrupted. "Hey, my name is Mercury, please respect my personal space," he said. "Ah! Is that a true kin?!" "A traveller, mother, calm down," Marsh said. The woman sighed again, her dark green eyes focusing on Mercury again. "A traveller? Welcome then. I''m happy to hear Marsh has decided to introduce someone to me again, they should really go out there and see more of the world. I''m Ria, pleased to meet you." Mercury decided to nod politely for now. "Well, thank you for having me in any case." Marsh, however, seemed less excited about what their mother was babbling, deciding to drag Mercury out of the room with a hand on their face to hide their exasperation. "Come back for dinner!" Ria yelled after them, to which Marsh quickly yelled some form of affirmation before ducking behind another door. "Your mom certainly has a lot of... energy." "Tell me about it," Marsh shook their head. "Well, time to introduce you to grandpa. He''s a little old fashioned, but don''t mind him." Mercury nodded, and with that, they walked into another room, the one with the crackling fire and slowly rocking chair, yet almost immediately, Mercury was able to pick something out. The breathing of the man sitting in the chair was soft, but strong. It was determined and confident, and while simply rocking back and forth in a chair, it seemed that no sound he didn''t wish was allowed to be in this room. Here, Mercury couldn''t hear the insects outside, no buzzing, no sounds from other households. He could no longer hear the knife pass through food that was being prepared, not the sound of footsteps in the hallway. Mercury could tell, be it instinctively or because of , that this man owned the silence in this room. In fact, it seemed as though all the silence in this house was his, belonging to the man with short, grey hair, and a chiselled face, muscles still showing through his shirt even at older age. His eyes were a similar green to Ria''s, yet a bit brighter, perhaps with more authority and mischief in them. His beard was trimmed and taken care of, maintained fully, with streaks of black still in it. "You''re back," he said out loud to Marsh, his voice cutting through the room like a well-sharpened sword. "I am," Marsh nodded. "I''ve-" "Brought company, yes, I saw. Well, beast. I see this child has brought you into my home. Then let me introduce myself, please." With that, the man got up from his rocking chair, to stand a full head taller than Marsh. He proposed an imposing figure even in his late years. "My name is Alexander of Macedon." "Macedon? Isn''t that Greek?" And then, the old man raised an eyebrow. "Ah, you know Greece? A fellow traveller then. Yes, though maybe you would know me as Alexander the Great. Though now, I do little more than own the silence I wish to die in." And Mercury''s mouth may as well have dropped to the floor. Chapter 101: Always Vigilant Chapter 101: Always Vigilant /What are people without words? Since the dawn of time, all living things have communicated. Wolves howl, snakes hiss, birds sing and drakes roar. Even plants communicate, some older trees helping younger ones grow by supplying nutrients and stamina. Occasionally, druids even claim to hear what the greenery thinks and has to say. There have even been accounts of people hearing whispers on the wind that weren''t supposed to be there, a voice in the crackling of a fire, or any matter of sounds from objects which, traditionally, have no rights to make such noise. Still, these accounts are just that, accounts, and there has not yet been conclusive proof. But what there certainly is proof of is the complexity proper language has. It stands out far above that of beasts and plants, as it is even recognized as such by the system, a language Skill which catalogues all manner of different sounds. Perhaps the most basic and well known language would be Common. It is a very widespread form of speech, one that is shared amongst many cultures. Not everyone speaks it well, many people speak it with an accent, but luckily, the system does most of the translating. Still, the fact that it has been agreed upon by itself is nothing short of a miracle, and the fact that there is a language shared amongst the many people of Chronagen seems almost like a miracle. Still, there are many questions. What exactly makes a language be recognized by the system? What classifies a dialect, when is something a whole different language? Did the system evolve the words it used as their meaning changed? How does it draw the exact lines between these things? As always, the answer is probably not very obvious, nor one we can determine for certain, Most likely, it is linked to common conception. If most people might agree that something is a dialect, it might be registered as just that, but if most people agree on something being a new language, it would be categorized as such. But of course, since everyone has their own, unique version of the system, there is also the chance that it is based solely on personal perception. Then again, how would that work with skillstones then? Could someone use a language skillstone for something they barely consider a dialect? How would the system register it? Needless to say, more testing is required. However, that is not what I wish to discuss today, I simply drifted off. What I would much rather focus on is the development of the written word on Chronagen. We have a few records of earlier books in history. Chapters and seasons long since past, in which writing was not nearly as refined as it is now. Elves used to carve their words inside tree barks, poems preserved in hardened sap, while dwarves carved their runes into ever-unchanging stones. Demons wrote on skins, devils on early versions of parchment, cleanly filed away in their endless archives, and humans... we drew into clay and wax in the early days. Yet there is one chapter we know a change came to that. The 142nd chapter of the second book, a moment that shaped history so much a revolution began from it. It was when a traveller, together with the natives of our realm, invented the printing press. Almost immediately, the change rippled throughout the world. Parchment and bark was swapped out for paper, quills with iron stamps, pressing their inks onto pages, bound together. It caused a reform so staggeringly large that our very timekeeping is now based upon it. We count in pages and chapters, acts, sagas and finally books, for it is the history that makes us people into people. Those who forget what has happened before them, forget the acts of their ancestors, the chaos and mayhem that used to be, are little worthy of being called people. No, the people of this world, be they devils, elves, dwarves, humans, the kin, dryads, or whomever else, all of them remember. Not the individuals, maybe, and certainly not always, but as someone who values history, I feel confident in saying that anyone who keeps learning from the past is a folk worthy of being called a people./ "A short history on language" by Limus Litus, historian of the people. - - - - - - Avery sighed as he went about the gruesome work within the arch. Always vigilant, always watching. Periodically, he would turn on his heat-based eyesight to try and track any scorpions or worms that were hiding under the sand. Sometimes this was more successful, and sometimes less so. Two of the adventurers he had brought in had been stung up until now, both times he had intervened, smashed whatever''d grabbed them, and they were escorted out. This place was just as miserably dangerous as he knew it would be, but luckily they were slowly nearing what might be the end. There was a faint haze in the distance, one that could have been a desert mirage in any other circumstance, but given the nature of this place, Avery was more than certain it was where they needed to go. Arches did that very often, having a rough territory one needed to battle through, like the salt and sand wasteland of cracked earth they were currently in, with an end goal where a larger battle would take place. He hoped there wouldn''t be any losses, but he braced himself for some. This was no game, after all. Bit by bit, they battled forward. During the night, they would have to deal with prowlers, dangly, mole-like figures that would come from the ground and drag the unwary down with them. During the day, the hot midday sun would burn down on them while they fought giant scorpions, always avoiding their claws and stingers. There were sandworms, almost a dozen meters in length, as well as dune shifters, elementals which would conjure sand and wind to shape the land they flew over. Once, they encountered a group of sunder orcs, gone blind from the rage that was so prevalent within the arches. Avery had to think of the tribes down south as they fought a bloody battle, but it wasn''t enough to make his focus waver for even a moment. Right out that gate, there was a city with thousands of people that were relying on him. Protection from the north, protection from the inner corruption, protection from arches and any manner of attacks. Every day he grit his teeth, and he would have ground them down if it wasn''t for the insane amount of food he consumed to keep himself moving at full efficiency. Usually, in a dungeon they would eat rations, but Avery had a very demanding role to play, so his were specially put together. A strong nutritional balance to keep his muscles healthy and his stamina high as he fought through hordes of tunnel dwellers. Of course, to keep his nerves calm there was also a large amount of milky bread with raisins, enough to feed a regular family for a month, and enough to keep Avery satisfied for perhaps a week. Still, even as the environment constantly wore them down, the group pushed on, fighting in demanding conditions against enemies multiple times their size. It was the duty of being a seeker, to venture into those places no one else would go and look just what was in there. Adventurers simply explored, and might report something if they found it. They were curious and liked going where no one had been, but they weren''t seekers. No, seekers actively saw danger, and then sighed as they went in. Some loved the thrill, and it had some charm to Avery as well, but others were deathly afraid each time again. Yet, they did it. The job was thankless, often viewed as little more than a mercenary, money-hungry idiots who would do anything for a couple coins, and Avery also knew that it wasn''t always far off. But that was not the core of being a seeker. Going into an arch willingly, knowing that no matter how much you prepared it might be the day you die, was what being a seeker was about. He was being paid for it, barely enough to supply the materials they needed. The money they earned in there came at the cost of blood and sweat, for some limbs, and others even their lives. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Except there would be no lives lost on this mission. Avery once again reminded himself of that. His responsibility wasn''t just with the civilians outside the arch, everyone who travelled in here with him was also under his watch. If any of them died, he would have to go to their family and friends to give them the news, and after coming out of a battle that went on for a week, sometimes two, it was the last thing he needed. This time, there would be no lives lost. He steeled himself as he stepped forward again, almost at the cusp of where they expected the final fight to go down, and he raised his hand. Everyone stopped behind him, silently trusting the command without a shred of hesitation. Beckham was the commander, a seasoned seeker, and someone who had proven himself to each of them more than once, so there was no need to hesitate. In Avery''s head, rang quietly. A soft singing warning bell he had learned to listen for, honed to an intent it could almost be called a sixth sense. They were close to the haze he had seen, and as they got closer, he could make out ruined buildings around what would be a respite in a place like this. A broken down oasis, the structures that once stood there overgrown and long since reclaimed by nature. He could smell it on the wind, the scent of blood that hadn''t dried, hear the noise in his head, the nagging sense of self-preservation that rose from where he buried it and asked him to turn tail. His grew more urgent, telling him to leave now, and as he tasted the air, his mind was made up. "Wait here," he said, turning to the group. "Anything approaches the place, cut it down without hesitation. If I don''t come back out, run fast. Backup might arrive in time from the main office, if it doesn''t, get Marcel to figure something out. Now, make sure I don''t get distracted." And after a quick nod from the second in command, the group spread out as Avery began to walk in. He could feel the salt in the air cling to his skin, his dreadlocks sticky with sweat, and a sheen of it glistening on his face. His lips were dry and cracked, and he might have tasted blood on them if he stuck out his tongue, but he didn''t. His senses were on the confrontation he was about to walk into. Feeling the wind, smelling the air, his eyes wide open and unblinking as he stared down whatever awaited him. Slowly but surely, step by step he walked forward, the howling of the wind that usually raged in the arch dying down. It painted the ruins with a surreal calm, a silence begging to be broken by an ambush. It was the kind of silence a fly might hear trapped in a spider''s web, the silence that indicated its wings weren''t moving. In fact, as Avery looked down, his legs were locked in place, rooted to the ground by rocks he barely noticed growing. With a scowl on his face, his muscles writhed, exerting enough force to make the rocks crumble and break apart as he stepped forward. Once more, his feet were enveloped. Maybe if it was targeting his arms it would''ve gone better, but his legs were his best asset. Each time he was trapped, Avery ripped his feet out, taking his freedom right back. And each time, his gaze swept the area for any sign of hostility. His hands were at the ready, both to defend himself and down a potion. He knew not to hesitate, no matter what showed up, his whole body primed to respond to any movement with extreme violence. Eventually, as he drew closer, the moment came. His called for even more care than usually, and so Avery kept his eyes open when he would have blinked. It was only for a fraction of a second, but there was movement, a human face poking out from behind a crumbled pillar. Instantly, Avery vanished. His hands moved fast as lightning, removing the stopper from a potion. It entered his mouth when he was already moving, taking effect as the magic coursed through him, his muscles growing tougher. The second time his boots touched the ground, they disappeared in a cloud of dust before the stone could even wrap around him. In the blink of an eye, a loud crash rang through the air, the rocks of the pillar crumbling apart under the weight of Avery''s feet. His metal boots crashed straight through, leaving a hole in it as they carved past barriers, and through empty air, only to land back beneath guild master Beckham. The seeker looked, seeing that the monster he had targeted had moved back half a step. It was a woman. He might have mistaken her for human, but while his eyes said so, his senses didn''t betray him. Her breath stank of blood, her skin smelled of oil, and he could hear the blood coursing through her veins run cold. Somewhere underneath that human skin laid something else. Honestly, Avery didn''t think he''d have hesitated even if it was a human, and he didn''t now. The instant his leg touched the ground, the other shot straight forward, stopping not even an inch in front of the lady. The guild master said nothing. He was in the middle of a fight now. He didn''t click his tongue or sigh, his lips were opened only slightly to allow deep breaths of air in and out. His heart was pumping hot blood through his veins, small wisps of steam slowly rising from his toned muscles as he watched and waited for his enemy to move. For some time, she simply stood still and unmoving, staring at Avery, but through his tinted goggles, she couldn''t make eye contact. "Come now, boy, why don''t you show me those eyes," she said softly, and the air suddenly carried a scent of roses. A charm of some sort, clearly. Avery''s eyes narrowed even further. Almost instinctively, he activated a few Skills exactly against such an effect. , , , , all just to keep his head clear. The monster he was facing was one he hadn''t seen before, so the highest caution was in order, and he needed to be vigilant. Draft up a report and have her categorized. But it also meant that right now, his enemy was unpredictable. So, Avery was patient. Unpredictable meant risky, and he wouldn''t take unnecessary risks, meaning no replies to any questions, no playing mind games and always keeping track of more than just the immediate opponent. With his heat sense, he could tell that the woman''s body to some degree extended below the ground, though it was hard to pinpoint quite how it did. No matter, he thought. Slowly, with his mind sharpened by his Skills, he approached again. The woman seemed to start frowning. "Come now, why so hostile? Let us spend some time together, get to know each other. I won''t bite," she said, an unsettling smile on her face. Once again Avery remained silent. Occasionally, he would look down to see that strange connection wriggle, reach out to him, and when it arrived it would begin to form rocks around his feet. The faintest smile appeared on his lips. Once more, the string writhed, seeking to entomb him in stone, yet this time, he didn''t wait for it to make its move. He had acted silly, as though he didn''t notice, but the facade was over. The moment it reached out, Avery raised his leg, and with a cacophony of Skills and every bit of force he could muster, he stomped down. With a crack, the earth split apart, and the creature in front of him let out a wail that would have split a normal person''s ears. But the force Avery put into the floor obviously had to go somewhere, so the moment his foot made contact, all the weight on his body disappeared. He was "lightfoot" Avery Beckham, and he would show this thing just what that meant. His mass reduced to less than an average man, yet with all the same bone density, Avery''s body withstood the shock of kinetic energy and accelerated. His heart thumped, coursing the blood though his veins, steam rising from his body leaving a thin trail where he went. Of course, it was only thin because he moved quickly. In a split second, he had vanished and was right in front of the monster. "!" he called, watching as the monster reacted, moving to guard its lower body when his foot shot upwards, almost too fast to follow. The blow struck, and the moment it did, suddenly he was back to much greater weight than when he moved. Avery was an expert at shifting his mass using the system assistance. Weight class was an insurmountable barrier, after all. Having a bigger physical body put more force behind attacks, and that was seen as unfair. So, smaller bodies had the option of mass manipulation. It came with high physical scores, and it took extensive training to master it, but it would genuinely allow fighters to shift their mass. There were cases where a bear would be unable to move a man even an inch, a dragon with too little strength to pick someone up who had used this to increase their weight. It wasn''t imaginary, and the change would show up on scales. It was much less technique than simple physics, though it made little sense and seemed much more in line with magic. Yet people did it, and Avery did it too. He was "lightfoot", because his kicks were fast. He would reduce his mass, until he had suitable speed, then bring it back to delay attacks and make them hit harder as he put more force into his kicks. He would use it to mess with his combat timing, shifting his rhythm, changing each impact from the last, and mix in lightning fast feints, with slow but massive impacts. This time though, he had a clear shot of the woman''s face, and Avery held nothing back. His body mass pushed to its brink, as he spun on his left heel, grinding a small furrow into the earth. Then, his right leg extended out, using the generated momentum, and adding some more as his fast twitch muscles kicked into high action, striking forward with precision. Combining all that with the weight of his boots, the force of the kick was horrendous to even imagine. It was a spinning kick that would break through bones handily, made to smash through all kinds of monster armor as it hurtled towards his enemy. His legs hissed as they moved, pushing against the resistance of the air around them, always on their mark. Then, it impacted. The cold metal of his shoes came into contact with the woman''s lower chin, in an upwards direction. He could feel himself smash through the jaw of it, breaking that and pulling apart cartilage, but there was also a strange softness to what he felt, almost as if something under the skin was shifting. Still, his momentum carried the attack forward, launching the woman backwards, and sending her hurtling through the air. Almost immediately, all the weight Avery had been using disappeared, as he lightly backstepped and watched what happened. As the woman flew back, something was pulled from the ground. It seemed like an extension of her spine, thin tendrils, like wisps of smoke, that she could apparently use to cast magic. It was what he had stomped on before, and apparently, they were very sensitive. When she hit the ground, her skin began to shift like grains of sand, reforming the broken spot just enough to let her speak once more. Most of her lower teeth were now gone, replaced by shifting grains of sand, kept up by magic, what looked like a hundred tiny spells. "What have you done?!" the creature wailed, and for a moment Avery almost responded. Almost. But this fight was not yet over, for him or for them. Chapter 102: End of Battle, Time for Food Chapter 102: End of Battle, Time for Food /Once there was a story of a sun turned red. Not a moon, it is common ground that occasionally the moon will be tinted by dark forces and shine down on Chronagen with malicious light. We have known for years that occasionally, a red moon will appear, causing troubles for any who look upon it. But the sun is not like the moon. Vah is in the sky, giving warmth, giving life. The moon only sustains dark nights, gives a shimmer of hope where there would usually only be darkness, so malevolvence is less surprising. Vah in the sky, the sun, is always reliable. Sometimes it may become heated, sometimes it may disappear for longer than we would like, but it is reliable. Always warm, always kind. Sometimes mildly angry at those who aim to bask in his light too much, punishing them with sunburn, yet those who love it dearly are rewarded with protection against its fury. I thought so too, until I heard the story of when Vah turned his back. When the sky turned scarlet and black, not with red light of fury, but the crimson of blood. I heard the sun went away, leaving a hole in the sky. I heard the hole shone with hatred, a circle casting dreariness and sewing sorrow. And I heard that when Vah turns his back on us, there is nothing to do but run./ - - - - - - Whatever he was fighting, it surely wasn''t one entity. Those spells were too small for one person to keep up, especially without chants or focus assistance. In the middle of combat, it made no sense to replace ones mouth unless it was highly important. To magicians it generally was that worthwhile, but not worthwhile enough to have such complex magic going. No, he was sure of it. The main creature was one that fed off magic, using the feelers to immobilize its prey, then maybe sting into them and suck their core dry, a little like a spider. But for that, a human body wouldn''t be necessary. No, the body was to become a trap for wanderers who didn''t know what they were seeing. It was malleable, its skin elastic, and maybe able to shift colours. But Avery was certain that its insides were, at least partially, hollow. Rather than with muscle, it was filled with some sort of creature, maybe insects, that were able to instinctively cast magic, using some sort of hivemind. Similar beings had been sighted before, though mimicking language certainly wasn''t a very common trait. The smaller creatures probably lived in some form of symbiotic relationship with the magic eating husk, maybe being allowed to fully consume the physical body of their combined prey? For now, he didn''t need to know. Once the creature was registered, he would know in more detail. For now, at least the skin-husk around the skeleton was most certainly damageable. He could even harm its feelers, they looked about as tough as sinew. Not easy to break, but it should be doable, and very painful for the thing. Of course, targeting the smaller creatures inside would be harder, but as long as they didn''t leave, the shock from his attacks would be distributed among them. Such a strategy might work well if the attack doesn''t hit heavy enough, but he was certain that even though they may shift, he was crushing them against each other and that kick had probably killed some of them. If it didn''t, he''d have to employ some more Skills. All in time, Avery thought to himself, still watching the creature as it slowly got up, the skin stretching as grains of sand were summoned to patch it up. The lower half of the monster''s face was now more or less a swirling mass of dust, kept up by whatever things lived inside it. It would need that to chant spells if it wanted to avoid getting those feelers near Avery. He was also sure it used charm magic in its voice, and perhaps some sort of spell on its eyes, though that one seemed to need full contact and visibility of the target''s eyes as well. He would need to keep his goggles tinted, no matter what. Having found some more confidence, Avery entered a fighting stance. His thick muscles coiled underneath, white vapour rising from his skin as sweat glistened and evaporated. He took deep breaths of the air, most of it scorching hot, but it was air nonetheless. He had dealt with tougher environments before, and he might need to deal with even tougher ones yet. So Avery focused, his attention on the fight, and every muscle in his body taut, as he waited for the standstill to be broken, only to have his world turned upside down a moment later. The ground beneath him began to move, shooting one of his legs upwards with little effort, and spinning him around. The same moment, he saw the creature''s feelers move towards him, now covered in shells of dense rock, as they smashed into his chest, knocking all the air out even after he softened the blow with his hands. Soon, another hit followed as rocks raised from beneath him, the spikes being stopped by his chainmail, but still feeling like someone took a metal bat and smashed it against his back. The pain felt hot on his skin, but luckily he had turned to the side slightly before it hit him, letting the attack move him to somewhere he could get solid footing. Spitting out a mouthful of blood, he looked at the thing he was fighting. He''d very clearly blown its human disguise, it didn''t even bother to blink anymore, simply staring at him, as its feelers waved in the air. Avery took a couple moments to gather his bearing, catch his breath while lightly jogging to not be an easy target for ranged attacks. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Then, after recuperating for a second, he lunged again, covering the distance between them in a moment. "!" he yelled, pulling his knee upwards. This time he didn''t wait for the thing to flinch, simply going for it. Another feint probably wouldn''t have worked, so instead, he decided to go with a big blow. Not half a second later, his knee slammed into something hard. The thing had made something akin to an exoskeleton with magic, halting his attack. When he tried to pull back though, his leg was stuck, and in the second it took to free himself, the monster landed another attack. It opened its mouth, and a blast of boiling air flew out, hot enough to seriously burn his skin, not to mention his windpipe when he breathed in. Avery choked almost immediately, recoiling from the pain as he spat out lungfuls of air, but the damage was done. His breathing was now more ragged, and it wasn''t doing great for his stamina at all. Gritting his teeth again, the guildmaster began to gather his remaining strength. There wasn''t much left in the tank, but it would have to do. Taking one deep, painful breath of air, Avery pounced. He flung himself forward, at the creature, and punched. The attack was much quicker than his kicks, and while it didn''t pack as much force, he scored a good hit on the thing''s cheek, hopefully disorientating it. To help with that, he additionally activated , and the moment it froze, Avery dealt out two swift kicks to both its knees, hearing as they snapped and bent how knees were never meant to. The monster let out a screech, and very quickly its plated feelers slammed toward''s Avery''s head, but just in time, he dodged. He put all his weight on his left leg as he raised the right one up, his center of gravity shifting. Then, he extended the right forwards, using the momentum from dodging in a kick that slammed right against the creature''s skull, and once again he could feel snapping and shifting underneath as it was flung to the floor. Unrelentingly, Avery then began to deal more attacks. Before the thing even landed, his left foot made contact with its forehead, and he quickly rained a flurry of kicks onto its back and chest, feeling himself squashing whatever the fuck lived beneath it. Only after half a minute more did he stop, when the notification rang out. Exhausted, Avery fell onto his butt. The system told him that the hive of things inside the mimic human was also done for, so he worried little. Some of them may be alive, but they certainly wouldn''t be able to cast any magic, and they weren''t strong enough to feed on him, probably. Almost immediately, Avery drank half a healing potion. He called for a fire mage, too, wincing from the pain in his chest, but soon he got his assistance. Luckily not too late, he thought as he watched the mage heat the potion and evaporate it, so he could take a deep breath of some healing mist. Usually, this kind of thing would be seen as wasteful, but in case of inhaling toxins or actually injuring the respiratory tract, it was better than breathing in liquid healing potions. Some richer seekers that specialized in toxic or extreme environments sometimes even brought capsules in which they stored specially made healing gas. But none of that mattered for now. He''d won. - - - "YOU''RE FUCKING WHO?!?" As soon as Mercury got his sense back, he immediately took to screaming, as was understandable after meeting literally someone you learn about in history books. "... I''m not ''fucking'' anyone, beast." "No, that''s not-! It''s a figure of speech, old man," Mercury said, shaking his head. "Hm. Sure. Certainly, yes," Alexander scoffed. "I- Sigh. Alright. Fine, you know what? Fine. My name is Mercury, mister ''waiting to die'' the great. That tell you anything?" "Should it?" he raised his brow, confused. The man still had his hands crossed in front of his chest, making his already large build seem even bigger. "... Apparently not." Then, for a couple seconds, the room rang awkwardly quiet, until Alexander sighed at the same time as Marsh wanted to start talking. "Ah, sorry, I-" "Nono, I''m sorry, you start. "No, I mean, please-" "You. Start," Alexander eventually said, sitting back down in his chair. "Alright, fine," Marsh said, taking a deep breath. "Why do your introductions have to be so dramatic?" "Hm?" the old man furrowed his brows, and it seemed like the air in the room grew almost thick. "The ''owning the silence'' bit, grandpa. I mean, isn''t that a bit old fashioned? I bring someone over for the first time, do you have to try and scare them away?" "No, I mean I didn''t mean to, but-" "You didn''t mean to?" Marsh asked. "Then why do that every damn time?" "..." "Don''t give me that look!" Marsh yelled. "Look, kid, I''m sorry, it''s-" "It''s alright, Marsh," Mercury said. "Honestly, I found it pretty cool. It has more weight when you know who he is, trust me." As Mercury spoke, old man Alex raised a brow at him too. "A beast, defending my name?" I-" "Call me beast one more time and you''ll need someone else to defend your face," Mercury calmly replied, though his undertone was more than sharp. "Thanks for understanding, Mercury," Marsh said, flashing the cat a smile. "Grandpa, could you maybe use his name, and introduce yourself properly?" "I- fine," the old man said deflated. "Hello, Mercury. I''m Alexander, formerly of Macedon, though it holds little value now. Marsh is my grandkid. I love them very much, please be nice. I apologize for being rude before." "Why did you say you''re waiting to die?" Mercury decided to ask. At the question, Alexander''s face seemed to light up a bit. "I''m old. All old people know that the march of time is inevitable. Also, I''ve seen enough conflict for more than the two lifetimes I''ve led. Honestly, I want nothing more than to sit in the sun and watch as the days pass. See Ria age a little, watch Marsh grow up some more, and then rest." "I suppose no one wants a big dose of war," Mercury said, watching as Marsh got a bit embarrassed at Alexander''s sentimentality. "No," the old man shook his head. "When I was young, I thought I did, the rush of battle, the blood boiling in my veins, the feeling of the horse between my legs, but those days are long over. My hot head has cooled down over time, and I feel as though war no longer calls for me. I even died of sickness, rather than battle." "Heh, good on you. I choked on my food." "..." "..." "Yeah, I know, I know," Mercury said. "It sounds pretty dumb, and it really is, but it happens." "How did you manage to survive in this hostile place, Mercury?" Alexander then asked, his curiosity now peaked. "Well, you know, if you don''t roll with the punches, a modern capitalistic corporate office setting will really tear you apart. You go through all kinds of depression, so honestly, I think the fresh air here really did a lot for my motivation." "I don''t think I knew half of those words," Marsh said. "Me neither," Alexander agreed. "Food is ready!" Ria yelled, and almost immediately, the old man rose from his seat. He looked a bit like a bear when standing, but Mercury couldn''t look at him that way anymore. Alexander was... not like what he''d expected. He admitted when he was wrong, which was a rare trait among old people, and Mercury could appreciate that. "Let''s talk about it more later, Mercury. Will you eat with us?" old Alex asked. "I''d love to," Mercury replied with a smile. Chapter 103: Next Quest Chapter 103: Next Quest /Howdy y''all! Tahday this little me thought to write in mah diary again for once. It''s been quite some time, but today felt pretty monumentous! Y''see, it''s my birthday for one, which is already a gift. Means we might even eat meat, and some of our relatives come to visit, whole place gets more lively. But also, it''s harvest day, largely. Wheat has grown tall and strong, now it''s time to take in down before winter chill rolls in, ya know? We got grapes to harvest, and squash as well! I always think harvesting is the most important part of farming, y''see, and so it seems like I got a bucketload of experience! My farming Skills shot up in level, and some even evolved all fancy-like. Now I can make all crops grow healthier, taller, and overall better just with me sweat and some water. With my passive''s stacking, any crops I tend to automatically grow much better, and with levelling up, I can make sure that even in rough times we can grow a quick snack or somesuch. Our harvests have been increasing with every year, and I''m not making any plans tah stop at all!/ Entry 18 from "A farmer''s diary" by Billy Hill. - - - - - - The meal was good. Mercury couldn''t really eat very many kinds of food since he was pretty strictly carnivorous right now, but Ria''s cooking turned out more tasty than he''d expected. It had been quite a while since he ate dinner like that. Actually, this must''ve been his first homecooked meal ever since he came to this world, not counting when Kintra was feeding him when he was depressed. He really didn''t consider those very much, since the atmosphere also mattered quite a bit when it came to food. And he had to admit, the atmosphere at Marsh''s place was... great. They chatted, picked on each other a little, and exchanged pleasantries. It was laughs and smiles for the entire evening, and after finishing up, Marsh showed Mercury the guest room where he could be staying for essentially as long as he wanted. That evening, when Mercury went into bed, he cried. It started off slow, the warmth of the food and the company in his heart slowly fading as the darkness of the night crept in. His thoughts began to wander and to compare, to dig up any memories similar to this, and as the seconds ticked by, Mercury could feel himself getting sad. There weren''t many memories like that. Of course he had some, most of those meals spent with his brother and niece, some with his uncle, and of course the recent ones at Zyl''s, but the vast majority of his meals had been lonely. He''d moved out early, and been cooking for himself ever since, but he held no passion for it. Cooking was only really fun if it was for someone else. When it came to meals, he mostly just heated up instant food, popped some frozen pizza in the oven, made some cup noodles, quick rice, that kinda thing. Even before, when he lived with his parents, eating was more a formality. The table was silent far more often than not, and he never dared to interrupt. So, he cried. Not because the company was bad this time, but because once again, life stood as a stark reminder of what he had lost. The friends, the little family, and those who would stand to eat at a table with him, it was a reminder of that which he''d almost had. And that was fine. It was always up and down, a series of highs and lows. There''d been good times in this world, too, ones when he felt fulfilled, didn''t think back to his old life so much. Of course, he knew those wouldn''t last forever, and he knew, that eventually he might grow estranged with the people here. After all, staying in contact was hard, and oftentimes one would just develop in different directions. It''s what happened with his highschool sweetheart, Mike, and a good friend of his as well. Back on Earth, even with phones and technology, texting people regularly, it was easy to just... stop spending time with each other. Develop different hobbies, go into different fields, do different things. Now, on Chronagen, he knew it was much harder. If he were to meet Kintra again, what would she look like? Would she even recognize him? He''d changed, and he was sure she had too. And on one hand, he knew they''d still get along, he was certain they''d chat just like old times, but then again, what if they couldn''t? What if she felt betrayed since he didn''t visit for so long and no longer wanted anything to do with him? Mercury knew those things were ridiculous, but that evening, he couldn''t stop them. That was just how some evenings went. It was what the fading warmth of good company might do, that nagging feeling in his stomach that would turn a nice evening sour. And so, Mercury went to sleep, crying. Not necessarily on his own terms, not even reasonably, but because his feelings were just a little too much and asked for more room than his little heart could give them. And that was fine. - - - - - - When the quest to clear the place finished, Avery wanted to start heading back pretty soon. Of course, he didn''t immediately give the order, they needed time to get ready, so he decided to give all his seekers some breathing room. Time to drink a sip of water, collect their bearings and get their gear together. Perhaps Avery had wolfed down an entire loaf of bread in that time, but in case he did, there would be no mention of that anywhere. A few more minutes passed as the dismantlers did their rather grizzly work, while their field alchemist recorded the more important aspects of the thing Avery''d fought. More detailed research would be done back in Stormbraver, maybe even not by them, but he''d see. Whether or not the city was still standing, that is. Luckily, the trek back wasn''t nearly as bad as getting into the thick of it. Most monsters had disappeared after their boss was taken care of, and if they didn''t, the abnormal rage within tunnels would have loosened its grip now. The scorpions would only see them as food that wasn''t worth the trouble, and the worms probably also didn''t want to pick a fight without being forced to. Avery shook his head at the thought. That kind of obsessed drive, the rage and madness that drove the creatures of the tears to do what they did was honestly much more scary than those things themselves. It was simple insanity of a sort, knowing that the moment you stepped through that arch of light, you''d find yourself in a hostile environment, with every creature there trying to kill you, fuelled by a supernatural fury way beyond the scope of calming them. But once again, that was over. After a couple more days of travelling, they''d finally made it back, standing in front of the shimmering door once again. Those with minor injuries went through first. It might be dangerous on the outside, but at least that would be predictable to some degree, not like in there. One after another, the seekers funnelled through the entrance, and with some relief, Avery could see it begin to crack slightly as they passed. It meant that the arch wasn''t permanent, but jut a one time thing. With the feeling of just passing go in a game of "Capitalistic Nightmare", the guild master stepped through to the other side. As soon as he was out, Avery scanned the area and saw that it looked... fine. Now, there were definitely clear signs of an attack having happened. Guards on the walls, some smoke outside. They were probably burning the enemy bodies so the smell wouldn''t attract any monsters. Given that the arch had opened up on a hill, he could oversee most of the city, even noticing some scorch marks and dents on the walls, but luckily, the city had held. He didn''t know how many casualties there were, but he''d have to hope they were low. This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Of course, there was always someone there to report just that to him. "Marcel, give me a status report." "Yes. There were two attacks by the northerners over the course of a page. The first was a scouting mission, more or less. Their archers and mages attempted to lob projectiles over the walls, while our artillery attempted to shoot them down. They were most likely probing our defenses," Marcel explained. "The second?" Avery asked. "Much more brutal. It was a frontal assault on the gates, with plenty of firepower. They had some siege weaponry as well, catapults, trebuchets and such. Even a cannon or two in the mix. Captain Rondo entered the fray alongside Kaga, Lucia and Iris, which turned the tides in our favour. Most of the credit went to the guards and the Church of Order, though we can stomach the loss. Foss also said their guild would sponsor many of the repair operations on the walls, which means we certainly won the publicity war." Avery nodded, patting Marcel on the shoulder. "Good job. Get someone to put the report paperwork into my office, I got some statements to draft. Also, make sure a scholar swings by our guild. We found a new monster to catalogue. Tell them I have the body in my inventory and they''ll flock here like flies." "Alright," Marcel nodded, then gave a weary sigh. Back to work he went, although hopefully it wouldn''t be as hectic now that Avery was back. He took another look back, watching the arch crumble into itself and disintegrate, leaving an empty plaza. That was a nice sight at the very least. No rest for the wicked. - - - - - - Mercury fell asleep feeling very tired. Crying took a lot out of him, and left him with a mild headache, but he also felt better, and with the exhaustion, he soon found his eyes growing heavy and his thoughts drifting off. Not much longer, and his lights were out. But only for a moment, as soon after, he opened them again. Well, metaphorically of course, he did just wake up in the wide field of his dreams, and his astral body didn''t exactly have eyes. What it did have was a strange growth where he kept trying to expand his mana veins, like there was pressure continuously acting and he was slowly begging to acclimate. Seeing that, he smiled a bit. Sometimes, progress felt very far away with what he did, and seeing as he''d been working on getting his mana veins to reach further for multiple pages, this much was relieving at least. But after a short moment of checking his own body, he also looked around. Strangely enough, something had changed. The citadel of fire in the north as still just as far as before, but he felt that the mountains and the castle of glass had moved a little closer, the same went for the fountain. Strange, but perhaps we was starting to grow closer with some elements? If he''d have to guess, it might be something like that. For a little while, he simply enjoyed the place, the grass, the stillness, and the calm, letting it sink in almost meditatively. There was much to do, as always in there, but there was just as much of a need to relax sometimes, that much he had learned. Leyren, always. Finally, after some time, he stretched and made himself comfortable on the soft floor, before opening up the window. ''System, what''s my new main quest?'' he thought, and the window popped up. - [Main Quest: "Looming Thread" Condition: As a result of a lesson from old Uunrahzil, the individual has been made aware of the nothingness in between what is. They must now find it, and truly see. Reward: 3 levels, affinity pass, choice of unique type spell from a suitable list.] - Well, shit. This was one hell of a quest. Sure, he knew he could do it eventually, and he felt like he''d been very close to seeing the threads before when Dreamweaver told him about them, but this really put it into perspective. Mercury always thought the system was fair, if a little mean sometimes, and these rewards... well, they didn''t seem like the kinda thing you''d get for something easy. He could see it immediately. The fact that there were no ability of Skill points, and not even a single gold made it very clear that the rewards were certainly on a whole different level, but that also meant that the challenge would be entirely harder than any of the quests before. After all, the last time he got an affinity pass that was already tough, and it was only for a single Skill back then. If Mercury wasn''t wrong, and taking a look at the Skill Shop he certainly didn''t think he was, was a whole cluster of Skills. , , , , and more were all Skills he''d guess would benefit from an affinity to . Honestly though, knowing the system and the context, that might not be the end of it. The affinity might even extend to dream-related Skills and even abilities, and just the scope of that pass was enough to make the quest seem nigh impossible. But then, there was the possibility of a unique spell. Mercury had seen spells cast before. Elliot used many wind based ones and Marcel had cast a fair share during their little adventure as well, but those were simply elemental spells, by far the most common ones to be learned. From what Elliot and Esmeya explained, there were scrolls and books for those, which made learning them easy, the hard part was mastering timing, control, and mana expenditure. But none of them had ever even mentioned a unique spell. Given how rare unique Skills were, and the fact that spells seemed to be a slightly less general, but still highly important sub-classification, Mercury knew that getting a unique spell certainly wouldn''t be free. Add to that a whole three levels, and the amount of effort this task would require seemed monumental. Comparing it to his other main quest of starting a village, the rewards were incomparable almost. Genuinely, some Exp and Gold just didn''t even come close. Actually, that made him think. What exactly would the system consider starting a village? Maybe he only had to declare his intent to do so? Well, even then, he needed something to anchor it to for sure, right? [The individual seems to be posing a question. Utilize ?] Yes. [Quests are handed out after consideration of the system''s difficulty assessment. The establishment of a village requires no more than one person and a fixed location or object. It is not necessarily a difficult task. However, due to the individual''s reluctance in completing it, there have been some considerable changes to reward distribution the individual experienced, namely the usage of merit points to open up a second main quest slot.] So essentially, he really just had to pick an area, and declare himself village chief? [Correct, almost. A mobile anchor might also be acceptable as the village center.] Well, that certainly was new. Maybe he really should just get it over with? No, there were still too many questions about it, and there wasn''t even a guarantee that his second slot would stay open, is there. [The system does not take responsibility for decisions made by the host and their detrimental effects.] Straight answers, , please. [Yes. There is a chance the slot might close if insufficient desire is found within the individual. Merit may or may not be partially refunded.] Well, then maybe now wasn''t the best time. He should probably just get back to work and try to find the threads of his dream. [ has levelled up! 3>] What? [ has levelled up.] [Does message clarity need to be increased?] No, no, that was an expression of being stunned you- oh. Mercury paused for a moment. Yeah, this had happened before. The last time levelled up it also seemed to mock him for a little while. Seemed like growth spurts might make it enter a rebellious phase. Mercury nodded. He knew those happened, his niece certainly was quite naggy towards her parents when she hit puberty. The cat shook his head with a smile, it felt like he was dealing with a kid suddenly, instead of textboxes that floated in front of his face. ''Thanks , but I don''t think I need any extra information now. You''ve been very helpful already,'' he said, deciding to not play into its taunts. A short silence followed, before another message popped up. [Confirmed.] And finally, Mercury went back to meditation, one breath in, one out, looking for that state of ihn''ar within himself. - - - - - - Tesla had failed. He sighed once more, looking at the contraption he''d built. The bodies he had constructed for his beloved pigeon were good, but not perfect yet. He was experimenting largely using feathers from native birds and attempting to reconstruct them using their mana colour and stamina crystal signature to find their exact nature. He knew that back on his world, there was something similar to it, some sort of code that described exactly how living beings functioned, but he wasn''t a biologist, and so he had not done as much investigation on it as he now would''ve liked. Instead, he was left with plenty of mechanical engineering knowledge, constructing microscopes and lab equipment that was more advanced to make up for his shortcomings. Progress was slow, but every failure was a step forward. Growing living things was borderline impossible with the techniques he knew from earth, so he had to come up with new ones on the fly. Luckily, he was able to leverage his influence and hire some druids with expert knowledge on using stamina to simulate tissue growth, both in animals and plants. Largely, that was used to heal, and corpses couldn''t exactly be healed, but by collecting stamina in specially made tanks and vats, he could use machinery for the process instead of applying Skills. Those could be shaped by the user''s will, but what Tesla needed was infallible consistency, and as much as he wanted to be fast, he couldn''t cut corners when it came to that. So, he kept harvesting stamina. Not unethically, he largely grew mosses that would slowly form buds of stamina by themselves, and then he harvested them and stored it. He submerged feathers in there, runes of recreation and regrowth scratched onto them in tiny designs, made possible by machinery. Slowly but surely, he was making progress. He had grown entire wings now, until the process stopped. Even then, most of the results were far less gruesome than one would expect. Since they had an ample supply of stamina, the body parts were perfectly healthy. Some had slight growth defects, but nothing major, instead, the process halted when it came to reconstructing more complex organs that could easily fail. For now, his biggest roadblock were any form of internal organ. He hadn''t gotten the signature right just yet, but he would, in time. It was all only a matter of time, after all, and time he had plenty. Just to be safe though, he knocked on his wooden desk thrice after that thought. Had to be careful not to ruin his own chances. Chapter 104: Backlash and Reunion Chapter 104: Backlash and Reunion /Another guild which you''d find in most major cities is the Alchemists'' Guild. This institution is very open in terms of membership, not having any restrictions, and more often than not, members are also part of other associations. Just to give an example, many alchemists are also part of the Mages'' Guild, or may be travelling physicians. Some take up delving into old ruins, and a few are seekers as well, since healers are well liked during rift exploration. Of course, many alchemists also pursue the craft more as a passion than their calling, and instead take on other jobs as well, many working as cobblers, carpenters, or even blacksmiths, oftentimes being part of those guilds as well. Now, what makes an alchemist an alchemist? Well, of course the main part is potioncrafting, as many will know, but there is quite a bit more to it than that, as I found out during research. The task of alchemy begins with a very fundamental understanding of a different subject entirely: chemistry! As an alchemist, knowing how substances will interact, and predicting such, is one of the main components. Knowledge of chemistry is invaluable to any potionmaker, since picking the right ingredients and processing methods comes first, and the magic aspect second. With such knowledge, the task to make a potion or salve then becomes a different one. First is picking out ingredients, from whichever source. Many alchemists will forage for these themselves, though some who also practice magic might call upon familiars, sometimes demonic in nature, to carry out this task for them. Alchemists who practice magic are usually called witches, though when talking to a traveller, that word might carry a negative connotation, so use it carefully. After obtaining the ingredients, knowing their properties is vital. As such, alchemists may have run tests on them, recording findings in tomes of knowledge that would dwarf many libraries. With said knowledge, they must be processed accordingly. Dissolved, burnt, distilled, dried, ground down, filtered, boiled, and distilled again. I''ve found their methods to be plenty, and sometimes even overwhelming, but such is with any craft once you look a little closer. Finally, after the process has completed, using tools that are oftentimes enchanted and the proper process for each ingredient, the liquid may be magical. In order to help the effects, some alchemists may add additional catalysts, or magic essence gathered from cores, sometimes even their own mana. In terms of taste, most potions made this way turn out bitter or foul, and so oftentimes sweeteners may be added as well. Finally, after a long and arduous process, a potion may be completed. Because of this, alchemists usually do their work in large batches, processing swathes of ingredients. Because even people as patient as the plants they work with wouldn''t want to go through the process more often than need be./ "On the Alchemists'' Guild" by Gilbert Gildfried. - - - - - - Mercury didn''t take very long to have his mind see further. He had entered ihn''ar many times now, and the process was slowly becoming more natural. It probably helped quite a bit that he did it in high-stakes situations, learning how to keep a cool head when in danger. Still, he made sure to reinforce his state of mind more than he usually would, since seeing between the threads was much more intense than anything else he could do. Then, when it felt like his thoughts had settled, he opened his eyes. His mind was clear, like a mountain lake on a sunny, windless day, a surface so smooth it worked almost as a mirror, with water so clean, it was more like glass. As Mercury looked at his dreamscape like this, he saw things covered again. With his clarity of mind, it felt like he could see the veil obscuring his vision, the golden sheen that covered everything. He could almost look past it sometimes, seeing it writhe and curve, like a thin curtain in the wind. Sometimes it felt as though he could make out whispers, and sometimes the shimmer almost formed into words, but the structure soon fell apart before he could get a grip on it. Until Mercury looked down. He saw the grass in this dreamscape, and he immediately felt familiar. There was no wind here, at least none he could feel, yet in the golden light, he could tell the grass was softly shaking, rolling in waves as it buckled and stood together. Each blade was family to the other, a friend one would do anything for, and as Mercury looked at it, the veil was thin. It was because he understood the grass, understood its woes, its pleasures. It was this way, because just like every blade was a friend, he was accepted in their family too. Before this, he already knew this fact. He understood it instinctively after he understood the grass itself, he knew it because it stood up for him, and helped him when the need arose. Yet, knowing and seeing was different. The veil was thin, and it was not only his eyes that had been covered. As he listened now, there was a whisper coming from it. The voices were so many he couldn''t make out what they said, not quite, and he couldn''t quite feel what it wanted from him either. Still, just like when he talked to old Dreamweaver, there was something he could feel, a very clear feeling he could read on its thoughts. There was companionship. It was at the very forefront of the grass'' mind, the first and most prevalent thing it thought of Mercury. Companionship, because he understood it, and that made it happy. For a moment, the cat smiled, enjoying the feeling of closeness. But the moment passed, and soon, Mercury moved his mind elsewhere, letting the moment fade, and his thoughts focus on something else. The movement was slow and methodical, like walking with a cup of hot tea, careful not to spill anything. It reminded him of summer jobs as a waiter, though he didn''t follow the thought. He couldn''t really afford a lapse in concentration right now. Instead, Mercury turned his mind inwards slowly, to his breath, watching as it course into his body and back out, seeing his other form sleep while this one waked. But he ignored it, chose not to feel the dissonance it caused, because he was himself, and nothing would change that. Rather than questioning, Mercury continued to follow his breath, until it led into his core. He went from breath to breathing, from breathing to energy, and from energy to mana, every step done carefully. As he saw his mana, the veil was no longer golden bur silver instead. It was a mask of his own design, a strange feeling for sure, but one he chose not to pay any mind. He was himself, after all. Mercury reached out with his mind, now that he was so close, and took his mana. He ran his hand through the silvery pool, knowing it was part of himself, and then reached out with it. His mind fused with the tendril of liquid starlight, and went to the outside. From energy to mana, making his mind one with it, before expanding the liquid that was part of him. Slowly, it snaked out of his body, reaching into the air, and Mercury could once again feel all the triz. The veil was thinner now, slithering as he probed it. The cat kept looking more closely, using his newfound senses to look between the veil that made up his mind, through the very fabric that stopped his thoughts at reasonable places. It was, once again, a limit of his own design, one that he never truly had. As Mercury thought that, and knew that the veil at least was his own making, there seemed to be a gap in it, and seizing the chance, Mercury dug underneath. The veil wasn''t the final obstacle, he then found out. Its fabric was one of his own design, his thoughts. It changed and molded to his thoughts, changing shape and colour, even texture. For some, the veil might be a thick curtain of black, letting them not see an inch beyond what they knew, and for some, the veil may be paper thin and elusive, always just a step out of reach. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Mercury had stepped slightly beyond the veil, yet it wasn''t his first time. When he understood grass, he had gone past it, and when he had learned breath, it was shattered by old Uunrahzil, he now knew. But this first boundary only set him on the path to understanding, there was a second obstacle still in his way. His tendril of sense was now very thin, still growing smaller as it sought what was not. He could feel the air abuzz with power, looked smaller than triz, and smaller again. Then, with more preparation now, he once again touched the nothingness in between. The gaps that were not. Instinctively, his mind searched for comparisons, yet when it did, Mercury halted it. This was simply about understanding, not connecting quite yet, but he still could not stop his nature. Instead of trying, Mercury decided to do what he had before, and split his mind. The lake was cur in half, making a silence of two parts in his head. One was tranquil and silent, the other stunned and overwhelmed as it sought to understand. Tranquility kept grasping, as turbulence churned more. He saw that the nothingness was like molecules once again, like the vacuum of space, like the gaps between toes, like not knowing love, like loneliness. It was playing a game with no substance, reading a book with no words, staring at a blank page and being unable to create. It was the lull over the ocean, eyes of the storm where silence reigned, and it was like sucking the air out of a plastic bottle and watching it crumple. But at the same time, tranquility knew that it was none of those things, because it wasn''t. Any examples Mercury could come up with were ones related to the world he used to live on, but the nothingness in between dreams simply didn''t exist there. Any example his mind made was inherently flawed, one that could not come close to comprehending the weave between. The backlash he had experienced last time was natural. Understanding something was almost like climbing a building, once you''re at the top, falling was hard, though the building might still shift and change beneath you. Trying to understand, was like scaling the side. There were no stairs, no doors, no easy access, just ones own grit to get up. And the last time, Mercury had reached out and actually gotten close to understanding, somewhat. Until, at the final moment, he allowed in a thought that was contrary to what he was trying to understand. A thought that was akin not to stopping his climb, but more like deciding to do a backflip 360 no-scope down the side of the building. Of course, something like that carries sufficient impact with it, and that''s what Mercury got to experience first hand, his mind injured from the fall. Honestly, he could count his lucky stars he didn''t get knocked unconscious for a couple days, turbulence now realised. At the same time, tranquility was silent. Still probing, still searching. It was a part of his mind made from the experiences of this world, with little of Earth in it. That was why it was perfect to understand something that could never be on Earth. It took its time. Tranquility always did, always would perhaps, but as it got closer, the picture seemed to become more clear. There was nothingness, of course there was. Nothingness so thick one couldn''t break it, one so empty it would never be filled, a gap so certain it was like a constant. And above that nothingness, there was something thin, and tiny. A piece of thread, so small one could break it at the slightest touch, so miniscule there was no way to feel it, and so tough it would restore the moment it was broken. That thing Mercury found, a tiny line of... where did it go? And the moment he thought that, once again, his mind did a backflip of a building, crashing so hard, the dream shattered and Mercury was knocked into deep, dreamless sleep. - - - - - - "What in tartarus is this cat doing?" "He''s a mopaaw, grandpa," Marsh chided. "Now let him sleep." - - - - - Avery was busy looking over the reports. Marcel had summarized most of what had happened, any gaps were filled in with documentations from Nira, who''d volunteered to help, letting Foss take over more management in the Merchants'' Guild. She''d been a big help, and very surprisingly, not even charged them. At that, Avery smirked. Usually he''d assume she wanted to be owed a favour, but that wasn''t like Nira at all. He already considered the old lady a friend, and she probably thought the same, helping out simply because it was the right thing to do or something like that. Of course, if anything went wrong, he''d also be ready to help her, not because they were trading favours, but as a friend. In a little bit, he got to some of the more dicey parts. The city had been attacked, but all had gone well in fending them off. Somehow, Marcel had kept up with Kaga''s rampage, and supplied her with healing. Again, Avery smirked. It almost looked like one of his receptionists had been babysitting one of count I''htar''s guards. A good look for them, and imagining the old man fuming was more than enough to lift his spirits. He''d also have to thank Lucia and Iris again for their help. The Church of Order wasn''t very widely spread in Evlenor, but closing off their chances for expansion like this was a loss not many people would take. Well, given what he was hearing, he might not need to wait for long... A couple seconds later, the door to Avery''s office slammed open, revealing a couple faces. Lucia entered first, with Iris right on her heels. Behind them, Kaga was almost pushing the other women aside, and through the gaps, Avery was sure he could see a somewhat despairing Marcel. "Avery!" Lucia said loudly, stepping into the middle of his office. "Yup, that''s me. Would you like to sit down? I''m sure we have something to drink," the guild master said, throwing half a glance at Marcel, leading the young man''s eyes to darken even more. ""Gladly,"" Kaga and Lucia answered almost immediately, plopping themselves down of the couch, as Iris and Marcel let out sighs. Belrose soon sat down next to her lady, and not long after, Lucia had hooked her arm in with that of her confidant. Kaga, on the other hand, leaned back and crossed her arms. "Coffee," the private guard said. "Iced tea," Lucia demanded. "Just water will do," Iris gave a soft smile. "One Coffee, one cold tea, one glass of water, and one glass of something alcoholic please!" Marcel yelled downstairs. "Are you trying to get me drunk?" Avery asked, giving the receptionist a smug grin, only for Marcel to furrow his brows in confusion. "Fuck no, that''s for me to deal with three literal psychos in this room," he said, already pulling out a charr and lighting it. "No charring in here," Avery said. "nO cHaRrInG iN HeRe," Marcel parroted, lighting it anyways. Lucia chuckled a little at Avery''s annoyed face, but the guild master stayed quiet. Marcel probably had a long enough week. "I oughta switch employment at this rate," Kaga said into the silence with a grin. "That little arch you went into looked like fun!" "It''s not," Avery shook his head, "not even for the combat junkies. Most of the time you spend battling the elements, being hot, sweating, and walking across landscapes that are incredibly hostile. The battles are short and grueling, there are no taunts and no parries." Almost immediately, the woman''s smile disappeared into a frown. "That''s no fun," she said, leaving Avery to only shrug his shoulders. "Anyway, what brought you all into my office today?" he asked, looking over the round. "The nutcases," Marcel said, but the moment Avery''s lips began to contort into a laugh, he spoke up again. "Including you, guild master. I wish there were more sane people in my line of work." Iris gave him a sympathetic look for a moment before speaking up. "We''re really just here to check on you, guild master Beckham. Actually, Lucia began her march through the city as soon as we had gotten news of your return- Oof!" As she was being told on, Lucia had decided to politely insert her elbow into Iris'' side to quickly put an end to her snitching. "I did not. We''ve come here to ensure that the city is enjoying proper methods of protection again, and to ascertain as to whether or not guild master Beckham is in proper shape to execute his duties after an expedition," she said, taking a sip. "I missed you too," Avery said with a grin. "Fuck off," Lucia countered. "I see you guys get along great," Kaga said with a grin. "Trashcan, why didn''t you introduce me to your guild master sooner?" "Really because I can only stomach one of you, if I had to see your and his mug every day I think I might develop more unhealthy habits," Marcel said, taking another swig from his glass. "Sure, sure, you tell yourself it''s our fault," Kaga said, before turning her attention back to Avery. "Now, guild master Beckham, I''ve been sent here by my employer to make sure that the trip left you severely injured." "Ah, no, really, I''m quite fine-" "This wasn''t a question," she said, leaning forwards and putting her fingertips together. "I was sent to make sure, I''m not leaving until I at least break one arm." For a moment, silence laid down in the room, heavy and thick like a vampire was pushing a road roller onto them. "Nutcase, could you just fucking no- OH SHIT!" Marcel started, but was soon interrupted, by the fact that the table in front of him had started to burn. "As a priestess of a religion which advocates for peace, I must admit that your current intention quite conflicts with my morals on who may be hurt," Lucia said, the air around her distorting from the heat. Rather quickly, Avery took a lungful of air, and blew the fire out, almost knocking over the table, as Kaga quickly snatched up the coffee and took a sip. "What do you have to say for yourself, wench?" Lucia ground out between clenched teeth, her rage barely contained, when the target of her fury... began to laugh. "Gihgihgihgihgih! I can''t believe you guys, gih! You should''ve seen your faces! No, but seriously, count I''htar wanted me to threaten you. I consider this a job well done. Obviously, I''m not doing anything, what am I, stupid?" "Yes, absolutely," Marcel interrupted without hesitation, receiving an elbow into his side, much like Iris before, except that he felt the air knocked out of him much more. "Ugh, fucking nutcase I swear..." "Silence, trashcan. Now, Avery, I''ve protected your city and paid back my debt, which means that we are now partners, surely?" she asked. "Hm," Avery scratched his goatee for a moment. "I suppose we are." "Good, good. Then how about I register at your guild for some part time work. I''m sure the count would be immensely annoyed by it." The offer made Avery grin. "Now we''re talking," he said with a wide grin. And thus, the Stormbraver anti-noble faction was slowly beginning to form. Chapter 105: Lazy Days Chapter 105: Lazy Days /The first school of magic to give me trouble was force. I had blasted through other disciplines at record speed before that, learning water and ice spells in the blink of an eye, mastering wind soon after, and again only some short time later I had become more than proficient with barrier magic. I not only understood the spells, but could wholly complete them without system assistance, displaying comprehension far beyond my peers. But when it came to learning force spells, I was stumped. It simply made no sense. There were already groups of magic that did the exact same thing, wind would exert a force against someone when moved, so why would I need mana to do it in a more roundabout way? The concept made no sense to me, and neither did the spells. Even a rudimentary transformation of my mana to exert force gave me more trouble than I had bargained for. It was my first ever encounter with an obstacle, something all geniuses face one day. Be that obstacle a new discipline they struggle with, a peer who surpasses their expertise, or a part of their own personality, like simply being lazy. Something will catch up to all of us one day, and as I later learned, this first obstacle often would make or break those who stand above the crowd. Perhaps not entirely unexpectedly, I first landed in the latter category. I spent my days simply parading around the other magics I had mastered instead of giving force my whole attention. I created sculptures, flaunted my power with duels against students whose prowess should have been entirely below mine, and simply stagnated, because I didn''t want to face my own inadequacy. Then, I was faced with a second hurdle. I had almost not noticed it happening, but the other students were catching up. I no longer stood out, I was devoid of my previous reputation, and not long after, still not understanding a lick of force magic, the second best of my year became the greatest of us. I was beaten in a duel, defeated by the very spells I never mastered myself. Me and Deli had not had very many fights before this, she would rather have eyes on a book than facing someone else. Before I could realize it, she had soared past me, and I was left behind. That day, I sat on my ass, having lost the duel. Deli wasn''t cruel about it, I had asked her to fight after all, and she even extended a hand to me while I was down, but I was so baffled I hardly even realized. Instead, she simply grabbed my shoulder and pulled me up, before patting some of the dust away. You know what she said to me? "You can do better." Then she walked away, leaving me looking like an idiot. In the entire room, no one laughed. No one praised her, no one scorned me, it was more of a shocked silence, and honestly, I couldn''t tell you how much time went by until I stared smiling. I''d lost. Wholly and utterly. I''d given my very best, and still came out the lesser magician. I must''ve looked silly, smiling ear to ear, but I was. Second best, and with it, so much was gone in the air. No more need to excel, no more pressure to simply stay above everyone else, no more proving myself. Instead of following my childish antics, a loss was what I needed to overcome the hurdle. After that day, I remembered those words. I could do better, I wanted to do better, and so, I sat down in the grand library and read. I read up on force magic, just to prove to myself I could get a grip on it, this time without hastily giving up. Learning it wasn''t easy by any means. My affinity for it was poor, but struggling myself helped me learn discipline and how to overcome. Whenever I got stuck, Deli would even come up and give me some advice, and after a while, we became colleagues, then good friends. And to this day, I still think I might owe her a little for the wake-up call she gave me./ "Growing Pains" by Inyraxa Aruget, written shortly after becoming a member of the casters'' round table. - - - - - - By the time Mercury woke up, the sun already stood high in the sky. Well, saying he woke up would be doing him a favour, quite frankly. It was more like him regaining consciousness. His mouth was sticky and dry, his body aching all over, and his eyes so heavy he could barely lift the lids. In the end, he kinda just had to lay there, in agony. His body may have been sore from the backlash and the fever-like symptoms that followed, but the worst part was, quite understandably, his head. Well, there was one more thing, but it wasn''t as apparent, so head first. Mercury''s entire cranium felt horrible. It hurt so bad he could hardly form a proper thought. It felt like there was an alarm that went off loudly and called for someone to wallop him with a sledgehammer, except the alarm went off every couple milliseconds as the pain rolled in like waves as high as a tsunami. The worst part was when he sometimes shifted a little bit in bed, and literally every molecule in his body went "what the fuck, bro?", sending him into another whole world of hurt. Sometimes he really had to question why the fuck he did this kinda thing to himself. Time felt blurry as the minutes ticked by, but it got a little better when Mercury noticed he could curb the pain a little if he meditated. Except, when he meditated, he also felt that there was absolutely zero connection to his astral body. For a moment, he panicked, sending his head into another spiral of hurt, but eventually, it faded back to a level where he could maintain a slow, sluggish train of thought with at least. With said very slow thoughts, Mercury slowly began to try and see what he''d done to himself, visualizing his core bit by bit. Actually exerting the effort to check up on himself made his head pound, but it was still necessary. When he did so, Mercury could see that his core was still there, and it was filled with mana as well, but at the same time, he just... didn''t feel the same connection he could usually feel. A couple seconds later he already dropped the effort of seeing into himself, as it was almost too much, his head pounding even more than when he had started this. Maybe could tell him what was wrong? [The individual has overexerted their mind. The backlash is causing certain Skills to go dormant in addition to disassociation with magical senses. , , , and any associate Skills have been fully blocked. Mana has been restricted to 1/20th of usual output. Status has been updated to reflect these temporary changes.] ... Well. That fucking sucked. What was he supposed to do now? [The individual is braving extraordinary circumstances. A trial has been initiated.] - [Trial: "Rest you dum-dum!" Condition: The individual is required to simply wait out the effects of their backlash. Efforts to assist the regeneration of their mind are appreciated, but overexertion may cause more harm than good. Reward: 3 Intelligence, 2 Wisdom, 3000 Gold. Failure Condition: If the individual overexerts themselves or slows their healing process down a significant amount, the trial will be seen as failed.] - ? [Yes.] The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. What the heck was that title? ["Rest, you dum-dum!"] That wasn''t the question, why was the title worded that way? [Because the trial involves the individual resting.] Yes, but why does it say "dum-dum"? [To encourage the individual to rest.] For a while, Mercury''s thoughts were silent again. He didn''t exactly have a retort, and he didn''t feel there was gonna be much more of an elaboration on what the system had already said. With a light sigh, Mercury deactivated , relaxed his body and retreated back into some good old daydreaming. Not like he could do much else right then anyways. - - - Slowly, the days drifted by. Occasionally Marsh or Alexander would come in to check on the cat, but other than getting an occasional raised eyebrow or a sigh, neither of them did much. There was a bowl of water for him, but he usually drank at unreasonable hours in the night, and the food he ate was scarce. He was honestly feeling rather sick, too. No appetite, always exhausted, and he spent a good portion of his time just sleeping. Some part of him deeply approved of that, as if he was fulfilling some sort of deep psychological craving. Maybe he''d have indulged that part some more if he didn''t feel so damn bad. Instead, the mopaaw just laid there, occasionally eating a bite or two as he saw the sun rise, and set, then rise and set again a couple times over. He checked his status occasionally, and could even follow the progress of his usable mana increasing again. And that was levelling up quite quickly with this newfound routine. After a couple days, he luckily began to feel less lethargic, and with his ability to walk, his appetite came back too. Ravenously, actually. Mercury began to throw pretty much anything set in front of him down his gullet, fish, meat, and anything else prepared for him went down the hatch as soon as it popped up. Luckily, Ria seemed to be rather happy. Mercury could sympathise with her very well when it came to that. There was something nice about sharing your cooking with others, especially if they enjoyed it. Of course, once he was back on his feet, the cat was also asked to explain his situation. He didn''t exactly feel comfortable telling the whole story, since it was honestly pretty silly. Some old thing in his dream told him to look with his head, and he ended up hurting himself when he thought about it too hard. No, that wouldn''t work. Mercury decided to lie a little. He wouldn''t wholly abandon the truth, but he''d decorate it a little, for sure. That should work. "Mercury, you still there?" Marsh probed, when their question went unanswered for a little too long. "Yeah, of course, sorry. I was doing some magic practice late in the night, and ended up overexerting my mana. Really dinged the channels for it up, and it just kind of laid me out flat until things healed over. I''m feeling a lot better, but it might still be a few days until I''m back in top shape," he explained, leaving Marsh nodding satisfiedly. Alexander still seemed a little doubtful, but well, he also respected a man''s privacy. "Good to hear you''re feeling better," the old man just said, before heading off to be grumpy somewhere else. He didn''t go outside very much, and despite how hurt he was, Mercury still very much so enjoyed sunbathing. Maybe being a cat was actually influencing him more than he thought. After a little bit more of a chat with Marsh about the village, Mercury began to walk some rounds. There were a bunch of people here he didn''t know, and a lot of new smells as well, some of which seemed familiar but also different to what he was used to. One, for example, was wet dog fur, while another smelled much more nutty. Then again, smells were to be expected in a village of beastkin, especially with how well Mercury''s nose worked. He made sure to stroll slowly, taking in sights. There were a couple stands for quick meals, but since it was near the end of the page, most people were taking longer breaks. He saw a couple adults tending to small gardens, while children played and laughed, rolling around on the floor in a way that let them expertly cover almost every inch of themselves in dirt. The cat smiled as he watched. There were people hanging up laundry, some baking, he could see a couple families eating on their porch, and occasionally a pet was sitting with them. He also noticed that animals were treated very well in the village, all of them seeming happy and healthy, which was nice to see. Looking at this place, Mercury really thought that even in this world, life could be very ordinary. Up until now, his had been packed with action, most of the time even a bit too much for his taste. Maybe he could just fully engage his lizard-self and spend the days lying on a sunny rock, eating anything that just so happened to run by. He shook his head with a smirk. No, that surely wasn''t for him. Bringing his thoughts back to reality, he looked around, focusing his eyes eventually on the guards among the fence. The village was built in the forest, and most of the trees in it had been removed, leaving a couple to spare shade, while the others had been... repurposed. Mostly into houses or furniture, but of course also into firewood. But when he looked at the fence, he could also see wood used there, formed into spikes. There were a couple lines of them, probably to deter monsters or more dangerous wildlife from coming into the town. The people watching out for them weren''t holding torches yet, most were armed with spears, pretty decently made ones too, from what Mercury could tell. Apparently someone had to smith even here. Gilbert really hadn''t been lying when he wrote on the Blacksmith''s union. Thinking of his books, actually, Mercury thought he might need to borrow a couple more from the library. This town had a very small one, run by just one woman with a passion for books, who kept quite a few of them. Maybe a bookshop would be a better choice, but if he needed one, he could just ask at the library. So, he decided to search the town a little for it. While Mercury is moving, a quick heads up from your favourite narrator. The cat probably did not read every single piece of literature which we have been privy to, but quite a couple of the more reasonable ones. He may be exempt from the brilliant texts by "some biologist, probably". A true loss for any intellectual. Sill, on with the story. Not long after, the mopaaw found a decently large building, with a sign hanging out front. The wood was painted quite nicely, though some of the colour had fainted, leaving both the book and the word "Library" in pastel colours. In any case, knowing he was at the right place, Mercury headed right on inside. The building was pretty well lit, and while it smelled of books, it was also kept clean, leaving even Mercury unable to catch a whiff of dust. The reception desk was small, leaving more space to be filled with bookshelves instead, though there was also a small, closed off section behind it. Maybe a closet or basement entrance or something. Behind the reception desk, there was a chair, currently occupied by a woman whose skin, hair and eyes shared very similar shades of chocolate brown. Additionally, there was a pair of cat ears situated on her head, which turned towards the door as Mercury opened it, though the woman kept reading the book she was holding. "Hey, sorry, could you help me really quick?" he asked calmly. "Hm? Yes, of course. What do you need?" the woman looked up from her reading, and when she didn''t see anyone in front of the desk, she seemed confused for a moment. Then, she got up and looked down at the mopaaw. "Yeah, hi, I wanted to see if I could buy some books off you?" "Sure, that would be possible. I usually keep a few copies downstairs, but if there isn''t one, I''ll have to make some," the receptionist replied with a light smile. "Yeah, sure, no problem. Is it fine if I look around?" "Of course, feel free to take as much time as you need. Tell me when you found something." And with that short exchange done, she went back to her reading, leaving the cat to seek out whatever he found interesting for himself. Honestly, Mercury was happy. He always liked libraries, but the ones in this world all had a very rustic charm to them. Enjoying the atmosphere, he started to browse around. There weren''t a huge number of shelves, but still quite a couple. Mercury took his time with looking around. The books were organised by category, and some shelves alphabetically, but it wasn''t perfect. Not that he minded, really. Looking through the titles was half the fun anyways, so having some organised chaos was nice. There were some works on geography as well as some on tunnels near each other, before it went into more biology. Encyclopedias of plants found in the forest, or the nearby mountains, or generally common plants on Damoy. Maybe he should get something along those lines, so he didn''t touch anything poisonous. [The individual is encouraged to read up on botany. Any information may be saved in system storage. Using on plants the individual has read about may link to the text or repeat it for the individual. Additionally, it is deemed likely the individual will eventually end up harming themselves if they do not gather more information.] Seems like was still in its snippy phase. Well, it was good advice nonetheless. Mercury made a mental note to definitely buy some plant journals, and another one that his system might save information he reads to its database. That certainly was a nice feature, allowing him to actually recall knowledge, or at least read it again, when it was useful. As long as he was trying to remember it at least. With that in mind, Mercury continued browsing, looking through the shelves. He found a lot of stories, and quite a bit of history. There were some shorter travelling journals, longer stories on loss and grief, a couple adventures as well. In the end, Mercury bought a few things. One was a book on roughly what to find where on Damoy, civilisation wise. He felt it necessary, just in case some people were at war with the true kin and might not so readily accept his arrival. He also took a few books on plantlife, and one rather short little paperback type work, which seemed to be about mopaaws and evolutionary lines. Sadly, the place didn''t really have a lot of books on magic or the system, so he had to sit that one out, though there were some texts by Armeyus the scholar. He''d read them when he got around to it. With his purchases done, he went back to the receptionist, and ended up paying A pale and a half for all the books. One of them she didn''t have a copy of, so he''d have to come back in half a page, but that didn''t seem so bad at all to the cat. He still needed to rest for a little while longer, anyways. So, with some new things to do, Mercury continued his leisurely stroll around the city, just waiting for nighttime to roll around. Chapter 106: Recovered Chapter 106: Recovered Perhaps, while Mercury is resting, there is time to indulge another story. There once was a boy who ran away. A boy who ran, until he could run no more. Now, why would a boy be running? From his responsibilities? Certainly, yes, but not too exhaustion most of the time, only to the point they caught up. Perhaps for sport? No, that made little sense, he would not need to have been told, then. Maybe there was something chasing him? That seemed a little closer to the truth. It could not have been his friends, then he would not have needed to put so much effort it. No, someone who was caring told the boy to run, that wouldn''t make much sense. There had been desperation in those words, after all. If that wasn''t the reason he ran, then why did he? Was he running from something dangerous? Ah, the voice must have belonged to someone who now was no more. Then, if that something was after the boy, if he needed to run, then truly, while running, was the boy still alive? Was he fleeing from what chased him or from death itself? Either way, the boy is now dead. That is the truth. He is dead as can be, dead as the last nail in a coffin, dead like a sunset, and dead like his own corpse lying there. Whatever chased him has slowed down, no more reason to chase when nothing is running. But what about the boy? He couldn''t just lie there as a corpse, could he? No, the boy''s last thoughts had been about running, he couldn''t just lay there and stop, could he? I believe there have been quite a few such occurrences in this world. Ones where people are so desperate their whole mind is consumed by a single thought, so much so, that perhaps their very being is molded by it. And the boy? The boy was molded by running. So, as is only sensible, after the boy died, he got up and ran. Of course, while this is logical, it is also rare, and not exactly something a pursuer would expect. So, the thing was stunned, before it chased after the now moving corpse. This time, the boy thought even less than before. After all, he was molded by running, what else was there to think about? One foot in front of the other, step, by step, by step, by step. The thing that chased him was nothing like the words in his mind. Running was hot, it was red hot. "Run boy." All he could think of was how caring those words were, how much they meant, and what he needed to do. The boy ran through the forest, as the thing chasing after him followed. The flowers it passed turned to ice, the trees it passed died, and yet the corpse it passed was running from it. In the thing''s eyes there was a thrill to it. The adrenaline one would get from hunting. Yet, after an hour, that adrenaline had passed. And after the chase went on for three hours, the thing was utterly confused. It needed not to breathe, yet it was tired. On its status, the stamina was empty. Even with all of its limbs, it could not catch up to that little thing on two feet in front of it. Yet, when the thing sat down to gather its breath, the boy still ran. And as it watched the thing saw he was gaining speed, somehow. His legs covered more and more distance, in strides that were far too large for his legs. It blinked, and then the boy was gone. For a few seconds it laid there, stunned. How many more legs would it need to grow to run like that? (Legends: The running boy - 1) - - - - - - For Mercury, the next couple days passed peacefully. His sleep was deep, and largely dreamless, as his mind laid down alongside with his body. Stupidly enough, he would''ve considered practicing his mana control if it wasn''t for the trial. Not every day he got such perfect training weights. It even got to the point there was a notification reminding him it was an absolutely terrible idea, which made him click his tongue. He didn''t wanna paint a target for to mock on his back. Still, he decided to at least attempt to memorize this feeling of heaviness. With all his Skills deactivated, he certainly felt a lot slower. His thoughts simply didn''t flow as well as they usually did, and while it was irritating, it could definitely help change his perspective. Wait, he could just turn his Skills off for a similar effect, couldn''t he? [Confirmed. However, the individual''s mind may still perform to a higher degree than the individual''s rather meager brain.] "... Thanks a bunch, ," Mercury muttered half sarcastically. Well, then, he''d just need to find a way to limit his mind. Appraisal, were there Skills for that? [Confirmed. , and seem to be appropriate candidates.] That was good at least. Maybe he''d work to acquire on or two of those. Actually, now that he thought about it, wasn''t quite a bit of Mercury''s thinking dependant on his mind? [Confirmed. The individual''s brain is that of a Leyfal. However, through the boosts in Intelligence, it surpasses that of the average human below 12. The individual''s mind is more developed than the average human. Its experiences have carried over from the individual''s old life, while training in this one has helped increase its information-processing capacities.] At least his mind seemed decent? Mercury felt pretty bad about the fact that his brain was on par with a child, honestly. He was an adult, and knew quite a bit more, so it wasn''t exactly a great feeling. Maybe he should do exercises to train his brain exclusively? Actually, would his brain improve over time, even if he didn''t do anything to it? [The brain can be slightly improved through the usage of mental Skills and abilities. Additionally, as the individual is not a fully developed member of their species yet, it will naturally develop further. Intelligence is also viable to increase brain capacity. If the individual wishes to train its brain aside from its mind, recommended Skills are: , , .] ? [: Contrary to expectation, this Skill only affects the individual''s own mind. It allows for lesser manipulation of emotions and thoughts, to assist meditation. Additionally, it allows the individual precise control over what part of their mental faculties is being used. Dolphins make effective use of this Skill to stay permanently awake, having their individual brain-halves take shifts.] Now that made sense. Those filthy, evil half-fish already seemed suspicious to Mercury back on Earth! Finally he knew what made them so evil, they had been using a Skill all along! ... Probably not. Still, Mercury didn''t like Dolphins. He once went to an aquarium as a child and fell into the dolphin enclosure, and those things simply kept him underwater by smacking him with their tails. He almost drowned that day. Almost. But those goddamn waterborne demons didn''t manage to keep him down, no not so easily. Maybe he should get revenge... This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. [The individual is not recommended to wipe out all dolphins due to past trauma.] Fine. They''d get away this time, and only this time! The war on mosquitoes was still on, though. [Such is a noble goal.] [Your Wisdom has increased by 1!] And bit by bit, Mercury passed the next couple days. When he was feeling better physically, he asked if some light exercise would do his body good, and once he got the green light, Mercury began to go out for some runs again. It was nice, honestly. Staying active made him feel better about himself, and he had genuinely grown to like doing some sports. The only thing that really gave him trouble was , since with the little mana he had, it was hard to use it sometimes. Hopefully its mana consumption would go down a bit as it levelled up. Still, day by day, Mercury felt better. Once he was able to visualize his core again, his thoughts began speeding up, and he could see his mana veins again soon after. It seemed as though some of the exercise helped with that, too, as long as he didn''t overdo it. Which was good, because, well, he didn''t exactly want to overdo it. Not since he had a trial, anyways. Finally, after picking up his last book, which ended up taking 7 days to fully print, Mercury was fully feeling himself again, watching the notification he had waited for pop up in front of him. [By braving extraordinary circumstances the individual has received additional rewards. Get: 3 Intelligence, 2 Wisdom, 3000 Gold.] - [Personal Quest: "Complete the Trials." completed! Reward: 2 levels, 10 Ability points, 1000 Skill points, Title] - [Level Up!] [Level Up!] Dexterity: 67 -> 68 Agility: 67 -> 69 Intelligence: 94 -> 99 Willpower: 87 -> 90 Luck: 38 -> 42 [: This title is bestowed upon individuals who cannot stop challenging themselves. It is a compliment from the system to those who constantly strive for improvement, even if the road ahead is not an easy one. As a reward, generally trials will be initiated more often, and hold slightly better rewards in general. However, the title''s biggest reward stems from the included ability, . This allows the individual to make a proposal for a trial or a with the system itself, risking restrictions to make a task more challenging, or certain losses on a failure. The individual is encouraged to experiment with the uses themselves.] Mercury paused in the middle of his walk when he saw the notifications. He had genuinely, 100% forgotten about that quest. But wow, what a reward. The cat had honestly expected the title to not be nearly as good, maybe just increasing the difficulty of trials to spite him, but seemed like quite the strong tool for growth, so he was more than happy to have it. Finally, Mercury gazed over the status once again, checking his numbers. Truly, everything was back up to where it should be, and with a few hops, Mercury confirmed it. He was back to tip top condition. And almost immediately, he heard something from a bush next to him. There was a slight rattling of leaves, and then a voice entered his ears. "Hey, Mercury, come over here for a minute," something called out to him. Of course, given his newly enhanced hearing, Mercury was pretty sure he knew who it was, but decided to play along for now anyways. Thus, he headed over to the bush, disappearing in between the leaves, where he entered a small cubby in which old man Alex sat. "Shhhhh," Alexander said, pressing his finger to Mercury''s snout before the cat even said anything. "This is a secret between you and me Mercury, you have to be-!" he said, before suddenly gritting his teeth as hard as he could to supress a yelp, looking at the cat who had just bit the shit out of his finger. "I''m going to strangle you," the old man pressed out from in between his teeth, staring at the only other person in the bush. "You won''t," Mercury whispered. "Now what the heck is this all about?" "I saw that you were back to peak condition, and I wanted to make you an offer. Just hear me out here," Alex explained slowly. "I have a unique Skill, like most travellers do, alright? Mine''s called , and it lets me see what people might excel at if they gave it a shot. Up until now, I couldn''t be sure if you really had the drive to pull through with things, but from what I can tell, it seems your talent is only growing." "Unfortunately, it''s not exactly a Skill I can help you with," Alex lamented. "You''ve got decent aptitude for physical combat, sure, but I was trained to use a sword on horseback. That''s what I''m best at. I doubt I could do that for you as of right now, given your decided lack of... well, arms, to be quite frank with you. But that doesn''t matter, because there''s something else. You''re something else at heart than a fighter anyways, it seems to me." Mercury slowly nodded a little. He had never heard Alex talk this much. It seems he was quite passionate about this. It seems a little different from the Alexander the Great he knew from history, but then again, that was also logical since he''d lived a second lifetime. But the Cat had to agree. He didn''t really feel like a fighter. Sure, he fought, definitely, and he was sure he''d fight again in this world. There were beasts and monsters, as well as conflicts between people. Avoiding any fighting was practically impossible. But still, Mercury mostly pursued magic, and currently ihn''ar. Not because they were powerful tools, but because he found them interesting, fun, and promising ways to grow himself. "I think you''d do well studying runes," Alex finally said. For a moment, Mercury thought about it. was genuinely one of the first Skills he was drawn to in this world. It was his first step towards magic, and something he still did to this day. He''d never really stopped it at all, actually, practicing while making his rocks, or improving his log, or when making anything else. So, he ended up nodding. "Yeah, you might be right," Mercury whispered back. "I enjoy carving runes." "That''s great to hear," Alex said with a broad grin, probably holding back a laugh. "See, I''ve lived a rather quiet live in this world. My last one was enough to tire me out, and I decided something a little more mellow would do me good. And indeed, I''d say it has. But I''ve still met people, and when someone has great talent, they usually already acted on it, so I can pick out strong people. What I''m saying is, I know someone who might be able to teach you more about runes." Almost immediately, Mercury''s eyes lit up. He''d been having trouble with that himself anyways. Finding books that speak about runes was rare, and discovering the tricks to the craft had been a little annoying just by himself, not to mention learning new ones at all. "Well, spit it out old man, who is it?" "Yasashiku Ryuutesai," Alex said. "Who''s that?" Marsh asked, poking their head into the bush. "This guy''s future teacher of c- What are you doing here?!" Alex yelled at the kid, flinching so hard he catapulted himself out of the bush. "Hey Marsh. Is it dinnertime already?" Mercury calmly asked, as he checked whether or not Alex had a heart attack. Old people''s bodies were frail after all. "Yeah, it is," they replied with a smile. "We should head back before it gets cold." For a second, Marsh also tried to pick Alexander off the floor, but the old man quickly wiped away the foam in front of his lips, and got up himself. "Kids these days," he grumbled. "Don''t know how to respect privacy." "You were hiding in a bush," Marsh said. "Bushes aren''t exactly private property." "They have a point," Mercury said with a shrug, and watched as Alex'' shoulders dropped a little. "Sigh, fine, fine. Tell me once you''ve thought it over, Mercury," he said, defeated. "Oh, I already have. I would absolutely love to take you up on the offer!" the cat replied with a smile, immediately brightening the old man''s face, but before a word left his mouth Mercury spoke again. "But let''s deal with that tomorrow. It''s already getting late, and we don''t want Ria to get hungry." Almost immediately, Alex shivered a little. "You''re right, let''s hurry," he said, and started to turn the walk home into a jog. Not that anyone minded. - - - After dinner, Alex told Mercury a little about Yasashiku. Apparently, he was born on this world, and from a young age showed promise in crafting. According to himself, he finished his first sword at a mere eight years of age, and had learned to carve runes into them by nine. Of course Alex also mentioned that he likes to sometimes exaggerate, but his Skill certainly wasn''t a joke at all. In this world, craftsmen were renowned, after all, and to really make a name as one, you needed to be good at what you do. Yasashiku was just that, good at what he did. He made weapons and tools better than most people could hope to ever wield, mostly restricted by the materials he used. When he felt he did a particularly good job, he might even name his creations. Mercury smirked a bit at the thought. Naming tools was less romanticised in this world, since the system usually stuck to descriptive names. Where did something come from and what was it made of, rather than anything fancy. But of course, there were exceptions, and when gear reached a high enough grade, it may even receive a unique name, only belonging to it. An example he had read of was a very special harp, named "Embrace". It made anyone who heard it play fall asleep soon after, which unfortunately included the one playing it. Apparently it did great at stopping nightmares though. Yasashiku might not have made it, but the fact that his creations received names which the system accepted certainly spoke volumes of their quality. The more he heard about him, the more excited Mercury got. He could really consider himself lucky to have befriended Marsh, opportunities such as this one were hard to come by after all. Some more explanations later, and Mercury learned when the smith might come visit. It would still take some time, since Alex needed to send out a letter, which was quite complicated in this world. Some places had carrier pigeons, but the village he was in right now certainly didn''t, so Alex needed to get the letter to a courier or a mage. The good news was that Alex did in fact know a mage who could send letters a couple days from here, and then Yasashiku might need a page or a little more to arrive himself, but in the meantime, Mercury could just do some reading and get his runecarving skills up a bit. Hopefully in two pages'' time, the cat would find himself with yet another teacher to learn from. Chapter 107: Shopping Spree Chapter 107: Shopping Spree /After the dead boy escaped, the story was to follow two people. The thing that chased, and the running boy. But as the story is named after the boy, that which happens to him shall be told first. The boy ran further, that much is perhaps unsurprising. What else would he be doing when he was busy fleeing from the thing? Of course, if the boy was alive, he may have thought his escape was done, but that much he was not. Thus, the boy ran further. He ran through the forest, past the trees, he ran through the fields behind it and through the mountains after those again. His steps carried him far, just as far as they should, only as far as he wanted them to. And the boy wanted to be far, far away from the forest and the thing. Eventually though, as it was only a matter of time, the boy found a village. It wasn''t tiny, but also not large, nestled around a hill in between a lake and a forest. Seeing other people, the boy slowed down, wanting to tell them to run, but as he stepped into the village, he saw that the people there were not moving. Some of the people wore smiles, some frowns. There were people carrying baskets of bread, others doing their work. A few of them were sitting at the pier carrying fishing rods, while again others were out on the lake, in boats, dragging nets. But to the boy, everything was still. The people looked alive, but trapped in the last moment they spend before he arrived. As he walked through the village, the boy grew sad. He shouldn''t have, seeing as the boy was dead, and yet he did. From his dead eyes, tears fell, and the boy cried for the people in the village. He cried, seeing them frozen in their last moments, unmoving like statues while he knew that the thing would soon come and find them. To him, it was a tragedy, thus he cried. Then, the boy made a decision. He would save at least a few of these people from the thing. They may be statues, but they were still people, and deserved to live and run, just like he did. With his mind made up, the boy walked through the village once more. He thought about whom to save. Surely there were people here more deserving of help than others? He saw grim looking men with beards, and they scared him, so he stayed away, but soon he also found things he considered worth saving. A child playing with a small wooden toy. A young girl wearing a smile. A married couple of bakers handing out bread to hungry kids. And with a nod, the boy began his work. He picked up the child with the toy first. It needed not to see how cruel life could be. Strangely enough, the child felt light to him, almost like a feather. He took it, and simply began to run once more, heading towards somewhere, far, far away. And eventually, the boy arrived at a grassy hill, full of pretty flowers. It seemed like the perfect place for a child to be, so he set it down. Since the boy was dead, he hardly noticed what happened to the child, the fact that there was blood leaking from its eyes, ears, mouth, and nose. The boy smiled at a job well done, and returned to the town. The people had moved a little now, but most of them seemed to be guarding their face from something. Was it very windy? The boy tried to feel the air, but he didn''t really notice any wind. Shaking his head, he simply took the next person, and then another, and after five trips, he let it be for now. Even at the destination, the people were still frozen, after all. Perhaps there was no point in moving them? Whatever the case, the boy decided he would check back in on the village and take some more people away once he had caught up on some sleep. With his decision made, the boy headed far away again, where he closed his eyes for just a little while. And when he slept, and time seemed to pass normally again, all he left behind was a raging storm and mangled corpses of the people he had moved. A good deed in his mind./ (Legends: The running boy - 2) - - - - - - Since Mercury had two pages to spend doing literally anything, he decided to browse the Skill Shop a little. He''d amassed quite a few points, and spending them was what they were there for after all. Although he reminded himself to keep at least a couple of the points in case a Skill of his was ready to evolve. From what he could tell, evolved Skills tended to be pretty strong, especially compared to newly bought ones, and he didn''t want to restrict his growth out of greed. With all that in mind, Mercury opened up the Skill shop. Now that he knew much more about the system, he was also able to change the interface a little. Maybe the fact that it had more of a profile on how he thought helped as well, but he wasn''t sure about it. In any case, things slowly changed. A search function was added, allowing him to not only look for Skills with specific names, but also look for specific topics. He also added a couple filters he could toggle on and off. Stamina based, Mana based, and he enabled sorting by affinity, which would even show him expensive Skills if they were especially suited to him. The very first thing he bought was . It was a Skill he hadn''t heard of before his last trial, but it seemed more than perfect for him. It was an active Skill, meaning he had to specifically turn it on, but it was a little special, in the way that once it was activated, it remained as such until turned off again. Now, if it had just been able to attach weights to his body, that much would''ve been extremely boring, right? But he knew it didn''t, after all, had also recommended it for training his brain and mind. Now he just had to see how exactly it worked, since fully appraising Skills still didn''t work in the shop. [Acquired the Skill from the Skill Shop.] [: This Skill allows the individual to make specific tasks harder for themselves by imposing restrictions. The nature of the restriction is entirely up to the individual. It can be physical but does not have to be. No matter what restrictions are set, they will only ever affect the user and never the environment around them. The restrictions will not only assist in whatever way their non-system counterpart would (eg. weights), but will provide additional bonuses in terms of self-improvement. Finally, the size of the bonuses and restrictions possible depend on the user''s Skill level.] For a moment, Mercury was a little confused, but that did not last long. [Confusion detected. Adding examples.] [If the user makes themselves heavier, by applying weights to themselves, there will be additional bonuses provide to Dexterity and Strength stat gain. However, if they stand on a thin branch or are lifted by someone else, the environment will still perceive them to be their original weight. Yes, this violates the ''law'' of equal and opposite reaction the individual may be used to, as that is not a universal law in this world.] The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Well, that Skill honestly now seemed quite a bit better than what Mercury had expected. The additional bonuses were super nice. He had been feeling his stat gain slowing down significantly outside of level-ups, so this would certainly help with that. Overall, especially considering that the only limit to the restrictions was his imagination, it was an absolutely sick Skill that he would use a bunch, especially given its low cost of 400 Skill points. His affinity with it had been great, it seemed. Of course, one Skill wasn''t enough, so Mercury continued to browse. Maybe he''d get a second kind of Skill like sometime soon, but for now, this much was fine. He definitely wanted to keep enough Skill points for once he got the weaving affinity. It was some of the strongest stuff in nature, and there were just so many uses for it. Swinging himself around, building traps, maybe even crafting items with it. He''d once played a strategy game with a character who could manipulate the properties of the thread she created to make it thin and sharp, which would make it excellent in combat as well, so that one was a goal. So, for now he needed to stick to slightly cheaper Skills. He could probably afford to spend another 1000 Skill points or so. He checked for Skills which would let him improve more quickly, but none showed up. Either they were locked, or his affinity was so low he could never even dream to afford them. Or maybe they were only available via special methods, like . Since those weren''t an option, Mercury began to simply look through things. Necromancy was still appealing, but it was more than out of his reach. Although the price did reduce a little, seemingly his affinity had increased, from 6000 down to 5800. Still, nowhere near his price range. He also checked for sensory abilities, but most things adding new senses were super expensive, and he already had enhancements to his basic senses. Eventually though, he found a couple Skills he maybe should get, since they seemed pretty essential for a cat like him. and , both costing 200 Skill points. They were pretty simple, acting as enhancements to things he already did, just like . [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] That left the cat with a budget of 600 points left. He thought about getting some damage resistance Skills, but most of those seemed underwhelming. Eventually though, there was one thing that caught his eye, and seemed to fit his cost requirements, too. for 750 Skill points. From its name, he would guess that it reduced, well, fatigue, and while he couldn''t be sure, it seemed like a very good Skill for him. [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [: This Skill makes the user more resilient to fatigue. Sleep will be required less, though the user can still sleep more than what is needed for them to function, and the user''s mind will become less tired as well. Additional, physical fatigue will be lowered. This is specifically fatigue, not stamina usage, referring to the feeling of one''s muscles not wanting to move anymore rather than full fledged lethargy. Finally, the user will recover from fatigue faster than before.] And with that, after looking at all his Skills combined, he''d spent 1550 Skill points, leaving him with exactly 2010 points. It should be enough to deal with any Skill evolutions before his next level, while also letting him buy and whatever else he deemed necessary once he got his weaving affinity. With a satisfied smile, Mercury ended his shopping spree. This had taken him the better part of an hour, since he spent quite some time looking through the menus for a fitting skill, but that still left him with more than a couple days to go. Now just what could he do while waiting for Yasashiku... - - - - - - Zyl let out a long, long sigh. Quite a few pages had passed since Mercury and Lucia ended their visit. By now, Otto had left as well, returning to his hut in the mountains, where he would probably fend off whatever next hero would come to try and hurt him, before dragging them in and feeding them some bland soup. He was many things, but a talented chef was not one of them. Slowly, the man in white shook his head. He was still at home, so there was less effort in his attire now. He wore a simple, buttoned up white shirt with long sleeves, and white pants to match, but no suit. His hair was dishevelled from shaking his head so much and dragging his fingers through it. Still, he continued wearing his gloves, since they were just that comfortable. Wrenching his focus back from his wandering thoughts of easier times, he dedicated his attention to what was before him, zoning out the miscellaneous noise. Maclroy''s panting in the gym disappeared, and Leon''s soft footsteps were even easier to ignore. Soon it was just him and the tasks he had to face. As always, people wanted things from him. Most of them wanted some form of power, some form of assistance against invading forces. He grit his teeth at those request. Of course most of them were stupid, simply hoping to utilize him as a weapon in a fight someone else started. Sometimes he looked at letters from two competing families, wanting him to join their side against the other. It was silly court politics, and he hated it, but there were larger requests too, ones that made him feel conflicted. On one hand, he would simply be a tool to someone else, something to be used, and it would greatly undermine his authority, and yet the requests stood. And they were compelling. Because the fights were large, people would die. Villages would be burnt, and the world would be a worse place for it. If the fights ended sooner, well, there would obviously be less damage. In the greater scheme of things, if he was simply playing a numbers game, he should show up, and simply wipe out one of the armies so that the other could wholly survive, should he not. And yet he didn''t want to. Not even because it was using him as a tool, not even because the requests were arrogant, made by the high and mighty who thought him simply a "disaster". Someone with more brawn than brain, a storm that might be useful by bringing rain to their fields in a drought. No, that didn''t bother him so much. Instead, it was the fact that he would have to go out there and start a massacre. That didn''t quite sit well with him. Killing mindlessly on someone''s request was obviously something no sane person would approve of, if it wasn''t to protect something they held dear. And yet, if he didn''t intervene more people would die. Of course, in the end, Zyl decided it was none of his business. He always did. It was one of his greatest priorities, to keep his nation out of conflict, but there was one request he simply could not get rid of. It was one he had already had to face before, and it was one he would now have to face again. It was that of the sleezy man who he used to call a brother. Once again, they asked for a fragment of the fire he had. It was a tale as old as time, a dance they had repeated and repeated, tossing threats back and forth. But this time, they had an advantage he did not have. For once, Zyl had associated with people who were easy to harm. Lucia had brought someone with her that stood little chance of standing up to those that coveted what Zyl had. The greedy, slimy bastards who would see him chained down, who would clip his wings for his own wants, who would love nothing more but to see him chained again. They had found Mercury. Of course they were quiet, abhorrently quiet. It was their specialty after all, sinking into the shadows, at the edge of awareness where they could not be found with sight or hearing. They were powerful, and a threat to everything Zyl held dear to himself. They threatened his people, which is why he rarely could leave anymore, a pair of chains he bore willingly. But now, they went as far as to threaten people he held dear. Of course, Zyl had not known the mopaaw for long, and yet he found him charming. He found his voice calming, his mannerisms endearing, and his humor entertaining. To have someone threatened simply for associating with Zyl himself was something he could not accept, would not accept. If Mercury were to get hurt, it would be his responsibility alone, and those were chains he was unwilling to take upon himself. Zyl thought about a solution. For now, Mercury was safe. Zyl knew as much, since the letter was quite a detailed report, some of which Zyl had Maclroy confirm with a quick scrying spell. Mercury was staying at the house of Alexander, someone who may be consider an old legend by many. Of course, he had not used his power for much, yet there were few people in power who had never heard his name. Alexander was known as "The Great". It was a title large enough to be not only an Alias, but also a Title within his status, as he had shown off before. It allowed him to give off an aura, which would force people nearby on their knees, and make his words that much more compelling, and it was something those who would seek to harm Mercury could not risk. But Zyl knew Mercury was leaving that place soon. After all, the mopaaw was someone who never seemed to stay in one place, always moving, always seeking for something. Zyl knew that his goals were far off. He hadn''t spoken about them much, but mentioned it once or twice during private conversation. Those goals were staked in the future. In the far future, Zyl would even say, yet they were certainly possible in his eyes. If it was that mopaaw, almost anything seemed possible. And thus he would make sure that his feline friend was protected. His feline friend would be protected, at whatever cost it was to him. Hopefully he could figure out a way to solve the issue without giving up a spark, but perhaps he would need to. Whatever the case, no harm would befall Mercury there was no way he would let his own past catch up with his current boyfriend. Chapter 108: Mind Invasion Chapter 108: Mind Invasion /The dead boy woke up once again. Not always on the same day, sometimes even months apart, but he would eventually wake up and make his way back to the city. He saw the people there had moved since his last visit, and he was happy for them, but he knew the thing was still coming, and he had to move them all over time. Thus, the boy set to work. He once again picked people up and brought them to the faraway place. There, the others were still waiting for them, peacefully laying on the ground. The boy thought that the way they slept looked very uncomfortable, but he wouldn''t judge the people. They were all quite strange after all. But every time the boy visited, something about the town changed. First, it grew bigger. There were more people, rather than less as he continued to move them away. Additionally, they also began to put up fences around the city, which made it a little harder to enter. Then, on his next visit, the fences had grown taller, and the boy had to struggle even more to climb them. He could take fewer people away because of this, and that made the boy sad. He redoubled his efforts with each time the wall grew, and yet it seemed he would eventually be unable to scale the wall anymore. In fact, that day came quite soon. After the boy slumbered only a few more times, the wall had grown so tall, he could not scale it. His hands didn''t find purchase on the smooth stone, and as he tried to run against it, he was stopped. Of course, the boy was persistent, with a one-track mind he continued to run against the wall, over and over in hoped of knocking it down, but he failed. When the day was moving towards its end, the boy was defeated, and he wailed. Slowly he trudged back towards his sleeping place, and laid down once more. The city, for once, had not lost anyone to the raging winds that sometimes came to them, and it was cause for celebration. After all, while this was the first storm it braved, it certainly wouldn''t be the last. And on that day, the city was named. Stormbraver./ (Legends: The running boy - 3) - - - - - - Like most people, Mercury would sleep sometimes. He didn''t exactly have a lot to do and could, more or less, just spend his time waiting. Well, that sounded extremely boring, so Mercury decided to do literally anything but that. He spent some time joining the hunting parties and went into the forest to get food, he tried his best to help Ria cook a few times, though he stopped when he realized just how annoyed she could get while hungry. Instead, he spent his time on grinding down the walls of his mana veins some more. The barrier felt thinner now, but there was still work to be done. At night, he would usually fall into deep sleep, but occasionally awake in the field. If he ended up there, he always worked on his ihn''ar. In there, he simply felt that much more in touch with himself, which allowed him to get into meditation a lot faster, and pierce the veil then, too. This continued for a while, until eventually, something changed. That was how it always went, after all. One night, he went to sleep, and as he would begin to dream, as usual, he felt there was a choice ahead of him. He could simply continue on to his fields, a familiar place, or he could go somewhere else. Mercury thought for a little while. It was strange that he so suddenly got a choice on where his dreams would lead him, and it wasn''t a very explicit choice either. He simply felt that he could go somewhere else, follow some other track that was now built into his mind. For a moment, he attempted to use on it, but there was no reply. Of course, being himself, there really was only one way he could go. Would he take the boring route and go back to his fields? Fuck no! New place it was! As he made his decision, the cat was met with a little bit of resistance, like he was pushing up against something. But with a little bit of effort, Mercury soon managed to overcome that flimsy barrier, and break through to whatever new place there was to be explored. Soon after, he woke up again, this time in a room he had never seen before. The air was quite stale, the walls made from cut stone. It felt a little suffocating, almost like Mercury was claustrophobic, but the feeling soon passed, and all that remained was a flame of curiosity within him, which he immediately channelled into actually looking around. Inside the room, it was quite dark, the only source of light being a window, and when Mercury looked out of it, there was a dark moon with a halo of light around it hanging in the sky. It lit up the world with thin, eerie moonlight, which shone in a sterile white rather than its usual silvery glimmer. Other than the window, the room had a little more furniture. There was a bed, which Mercury had woken up in, and a nightstand with a wilted flower on it. Above the bed a painting hung as well, except the painting that was frame was simply canvas painted entirely black. If he had to guess, Mercury might have said it was something like modern art, but even then, a black square seemed boring. Still, it hung there, unperturbed by his thoughts. The last thing Mercury looked at in the room was a door, obviously leading somewhere else. Funnily enough, even though he was clearly inside the house, the door had a knocker on it. One of the old ones, with a heavy brass ring to slam against the door, held in the mouth of some sort of gargoyle. The knocker was strange in another way as well though, given that it hung so low to the floor, Mercury could actually comfortably reach it with his paws. For a moment, he gave another look outside the window, staring at that strange moon, before shrugging and knocking on the door. With a heavy thud, the brass slammed against the wooden door, cutting through the silence of the night. Mercury hadn''t realized just how quiet it was, so much so that the sound hurt his ears a little, giving him a ringing in his head. It also seemed to have gotten brighter in his room. The moonlight leaking in from the window had increased slightly, painting the dust on the floor many shades of grey as Mercury waited for the door to open. It took a little bit, and the wait was unsettling, but eventually, without any warning, the door slammed open towards the outside rapidly, causing a small gust of wind that knocked even more dust into the already stale air. With a sigh, the cat stepped outside. For a little bit, he thought about this place. It felt very typical of a nightmare, but at the same time, it was quite different. The place felt unsettling, making the hair on the back of his neck stand up, yet at the same time, he felt so much more in control than in his nightmares. Usually he would simply be forced to deal with whatever came his way, but this time he himself was acting, so if he was honest, that already felt liberating. Still, he decided to be a little careful as he stepped out of the room. It opened up into a long hallway, one side full of doors like the one he had just stepped from, and the other side across full of tall, arched windows, revealing the night sky. But what was strange is that on this side, the one opposite from the window he looked out of before, there was the same black moon with a white ellipse around it as on the other side. Mercury blinked in confusion. As his eyes closed, for a moment he felt all light in the hallway vanished, but as he opened them again, all had returned to normal. Ah, except for the fact that something else now stood in the hallway. It was a floating eye, as big as a human head, that simply stared at him. "What''re you looking at?" Mercury asked, in a way that probably sounded a little more confrontational than he wanted. But the moment he spoke, the eyeball vanished into a cloud of smoke, leaving him alone in the hallway once more. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. "Weirdo," the cat muttered as he continued. He began to walk down the hallway, passing door after door, window after window, with seemingly no end. For a while, Mercury took to glancing down below the windows, in hopes of seeing a garden, but all he could see was a swampy expanse of muck that seemed rather uninviting. Shaking his head, he walked on. He passed door after door, window after window, with seemingly no progress at all. It was quite annoying really, especially when combined with the fact that he felt watched whenever he blinked or closed his eyes. So, since this was quite an annoying place, which seemed rather uninviting, too, Mercury decided that instead of cooperating, he would cause a little havoc. Slowly, he reached out his hand, touching it against the glass of the windows that led outside, and as he did so, he could feel it shake. Not shake like a solid would, either, but he could feel ripples travelling across its surface like one would when touching water. This wasn''t even glass at all! As Mercury pushed his paw through the strange windows, reaching out into the strange white moonlight, he could feel something thick enveloping him, like he was already moving through mud, though as he pulled back, none of it clung to him. The atmosphere outside was still serene, the sky starless with only the strange moon, and the ground featureless except for a deep swamp. What a boring place, Mercury thought to himself. Other than the floating eyes, it felt like nothing except him was here, and given the feeling he got as he stepped outside the window, Mercury decided that perhaps it was time to think outside the castle. The mopaaw approached one of the strange sheets, pushing one of his front paws through. He watched a ripple travel through the glass, distorting the image of the moon, making it look even weirder, before Mercury pushed his second paw through as well. The liquid, or whatever there was outside, was so thick he could actually put weight on the appendages he had put through without even fully sinking. With his mind made up, Mercury then pushed himself off the floor with both his back legs, and soon, his entire body had passed through the window. Almost reflexively, Mercury had closed his eyes. Of course he didn''t have any, given that this was his astral body, but it was hard to get rid of such normal reflexes. In fact, he was struggling with another very regular desire right now. The substance filling this place was so thick, Mercury couldn''t breathe. For a moment, he panicked, trying to force his lungs to move as much as he could, but it just wouldn''t work, but very soon kicked in. There was no reason to be afraid. He didn''t need air after all. Shaking his head a little, Mercury calmed himself down. For a moment, he almost fell into meditation, but soon called himself back out of it as he noticed he was sinking, very slowly. To resist this, he did the only thing he could think of, raising his leg higher. And, as stupid as it was, it worked. Mercury was, in the most literal terms, walking through the air. Well, then again, he was in a dream, so the substance most certainly wasn''t air, but still. He was walking in the middle of basically nothing. From out there, the hallway he had been in looked like an almost endless tube, stretching on forever. It felt like there was almost no bit of castle other than the hallway, but Mercury could most certainly see a spire off in the distance. Except, rather than reaching it by walking down whatever nightmarish construct the inside of that stony prison had been he now had the freedom to simply walk through the sky, reaching wherever he pleased. Now that he saw things from the outside, Mercury first decided to head upwards, so he could stand on top of the stone rather than inside it. And after only a few steps, he reached just that. Once again, he took a look around. There was the spire in the distance, which was his goal, but he also wanted to see the moon once more. It had been in all the ''windows'' before, after all, so where would it be now? And as Mercury looked up, his heart skipped a beat. Of course, his astral body had no heart, but the metaphor still worked. Because right there, in the sky, Mercury could see hundreds of moons refracted in the strange material. It was like somewhere above him, there was a dome, in which the strange, thick liquid he was walking through shaped itself into a myriad of glass panes, each and every one of them reflecting the same moon, over and over, so that instead of just one, Mercury could see dozens of them in the sky. Once again, Mercury blinked by reflex, like he was trying to clear his mind. Then, a moment later, the moons in the sky blinked back. "What are you doing in here?" a voice sounded from the sky, drenched in confusion. The voice was loud in Mercury''s ears, like the very world he was in had yelled into his mind, but while it was loud, it also seemed panicked. That voice was scared of him. "Just taking a look around," Mercury replied, forcing himself to sound as calm as possible as he took another few steps. He was walking towards the spire in the distance, and with every step he took, it felt as though the stones beyond his feet shifted to have him be closer to that goal. "Stop! Get out of there!" the voice now yelled, the droning in Mercury''s head growing even louder. But Mercury could read something from it. Like with old Dreamweaver, there was a hint of intention behind the words. Mercury read of worry, and a little fear, but behind all of that, there was not a shred of empathy. In fact, he could sense quite a bit of hostility from the voice, and a sense of duty. He could read so much that he was more than certain that this person did not mean well at all, and was, in fact, on a job to ruin his time. "And why the fuck would I? Are you someone I know or something?" the cat answered again. He grit his teeth, ignoring the growing headache it was giving him as he strode even further forwards, now beginning to run, even as the liquid wanted to slow him down. "What are you even saying?! Just leave! NOW!" with a yell, the pain in Mercury''s head grew overwhelming, but he didn''t come this far to get thrown out by some moon-eyed motherfucker who could do nothing but talk a little loud. Instead of listening to his instincts, he instead jumped forwards, towards the stone structure, and as his paws touched the air, it seemed as though everything around him shifted. Through his will of going forward, the stones below him lunged back, and the spire he had set as his goal was suddenly right in front of his nose. Before the voice could even protest, Mercury slammed himself against the door, and set his first foot into the entrance, yet the moment his head passed through, he was hit with another burning wave of pain. "KYAAAA!!" the voice screamed, the pain of it so intense in Mercury''s head that it turned simply into an overbearing noise rather than any specific sound. And moments later, Mercury found himself hurtled away, not in any direction within that strange place, but rather out of it entirely, and for a moment, there was absolute stillness. Then, Mercury opened his eyes to a familiar ceiling. He had woken up, in his body, in his bed. His heart was racing, pumping the blood through his veins. The cat took a moment to orientate himself, he was feeling very dizzy, but as his mind took over a more active duty, and started to kick in, Mercury regained his bearings. He breathed in through his nose, and the air felt sticky and wet. His eyes soon adjusted to the darkness, letting him look at the absolutely exorbitant amount of blood staining his fur. He felt no more pain, but it seemed as though that voice had given him the nosebleed of a century, enough to turn half his sheets from white to a perfect red. Slowly, Mercury took another breath, composing himself. What the fuck had he just seen? Why did the moon blinks at him? What was that voice, why did it not want him to enter the spire? All those thoughts raced through him, but there was one his mind could not stop obsessing over. When he was thrown out of that place, the nothingness in between there and here, he had only seen it for an amount of time that was as close to that nothingness as it could be, and yet it was burned within his mind. It was familiar. It was something he had almost seen before. It was the nothingness between what is, the very thing old Uunrahzil wanted him to understand. And now, having seen it with his own, nonexistent astral eyes, Mercury grinned. This was a big step forward. - - - - - - Within the shadows, quite a distance from the village, someone screamed. It was a scream of hot, visceral pain coursing through his veins. Pain that was scalding and all consuming, pain that came from having ones mind torn open and looked within, from a damaged astral body. The man spit blood again and again in between bouts of vomiting. His insides were in agony, and it had taken every bit of energy he had simply to throw that invader out. There was no room for thought in his head, only for the hope of getting better as he hacked his guts out. Minutes passed, almost turning into a full hour until the man''s retching came to a close. He had exited the shadows he was hidden in, stained all of his clothes, and utterly eviscerated his own dignity. His eyes were swollen from tears around them, and even now that the worst had passed, every movement sent waves and waves of pain through his every cell. Just how did this happen? The man was so confused. He had used his branding technique, as he was told, to keep track of the little one. The details of this mission were scarce at best, most of it secret, but he knew they were monitoring the mopaaw to hold hostage against someone important. They were going to gain so much from so little. And yet here he was. The man looked at his status page for a moment, and it made him want to laugh and cry all at once. This little episode had drained all his mana, and more than three quarters of both his stamina and health. How did this happen, really? Usually, his brand was so small the beast should never even have noticed it. It was uninvasive, silent, and more of a tiny thread connecting their mana. Nothing was interchanged, it was a one way street. He would simply be able to monitor the other''s location, nothing else and yet this had happened. For a moment, the man considered telling his superiors about this, but that only made his eyes grow even darker. They would scoff at him, for being harmed by such a tiny foe. How had that damned thing managed to invade his mind, when it was nigh impossible even to greater mages? Something about this thing was off, that wasn''t just a mopaaw, it was an absolute monster. The man shivered as he thought back to the pain. What would be worse, the torture he would experience for failing this mission, or the pain he would feel if something like this happened one more time. The man began to gnaw at his fingers, because for once, he seriously did not know who to be more afraid of. His superiors, or a singular little mopaaw? Chapter 109: Schemers scheme, Teachers teach Chapter 109: Schemers scheme, Teachers teach Zagan was beyond excited. Her hall of extravagant art was growing more and more, especially since the invention of the whinyl machine, and now there was an opportunity unlike any before. She might be able to add the spark of a dragon to her collection! It had been quite a while since the last time that group had given her an update on the situation. They worked slowly, since forcing someone to hand over part of themselves was not easily engineered. Threats never worked, nor did any offers for trade, though perhaps that was in some way caused by the animosity between the two parties. After all, lord Zylnareth had long since been bothered with them. He had chosen a territory to stay in, and now they were using it as leverage to essentially keep him caged there. Zagan shook her head at it, cornering a beast was usually a bad idea, but as long as she was only providing funds and tools, she felt safe within her walls. Now however, the perfect opportunity had arisen. Someone connected to the lord who was terribly weak, and would soon be all on their own. They could not have possibly wished for a better target. A wide grin spread across the demoness'' monstrous face as she thought about it. Lately, fortune had been favouring her very much, and thus she decided to set one of her people on the beast''s tail, too. Of course, they were instructed to simply remain close rather than put an actual marking onto that thing. She didn''t want to risk being detected by the others, after all. This way, there was a chance she could coerce a spark out of the lord completely on her own, without intervention from any of the others. That truly did bring a smile to her face. The demoness indulged her thoughts for a little while, until a knock rang against her chamber''s doors. One pair of her reptilian eyes quickly shifted to look there, and sensing the mana past the door, she gathered her composure again. "Come in," the master of the city called. Almost instantly, Wilhelmia stepped into the room, and within a moment, the human''s eyes had taken in the atmosphere. Zagan saw that her nose wrinkled for a moment from the smell of brimstone, though the other woman quickly hid it again. "It is a pleasure to see you again, lady Zagan," the human said, giving a bow. It was a rather good choice, since with her pants and suit, a curtsy would have looked quite out of place. "The pleasure is mine," Zagan replied with a smile, showing off a glint of her pearly, razor sharp teeth. She was the lady of transmutation, and a patron of fine arts, yet she was also still a demon, and her appearance was fearsome. Multiple sets of eyes like those of a viper and two mouths equipped with razor sharp teeth, one above the other. Her skin was black and red and purple, in strange patterns, and she had patches of fur as well. "Though I do have to ask what brings you here. Has my sponsorship not been generous enough?" "It has been," the human asked, "I simply wanted to ask whether you consider us idiots or not." With that, Wilhelmia crossed her arms, maybe to have something to hold onto. It was sensible, given the hint of murder that was now hanging in the room. "Pardon me," Zagan pressed forth between grinding teeth, "but what do you mean with this?" The demoness had almost risen from her seat, and her figure had already been imposingly taller than the human singer when still comfortable. Her hands were still on the armrests, all six of them, though her fingers now gripped them quite more tightly. "Perhaps you have forgotten part of our agreement," Wilhelmia said. "Let me remind you that Ragnarok never plays in the name of someone evil. We chose your name to spread as it seemed among the better part of the demon lords, yet now we find ourselves at a standstill. You are allied with Berthorn? Truly?" She almost hissed the last words. Zagan was stunned for a moment, and didn''t quite know how to react, though she didn''t dare deny it. "What? How do you know of this?" Wilhelmia shook her head. "This is disappointing," she said. "Truly, I had hoped we could work with you for longer, yet it seems your greed is not as bound as I had believed. We are no longer under your sponsorship, and we never will be again." Zagan was shellshocked. She had expected many things, but most of them were good news, not something such as this. She could feel anger rising from within her, yet it was forced to stay down by the terms of the pact. "How did you find out?" she managed to ask again. "I''m a singer, of course I have to be in touch with how my fans feel." The human shook her head like it was the most obvious observation ever. "I could hear your greed from the other end of the castle. It was so strong, I even know what you are greedy for, almost loudly enough to fully hear your thoughts." "You have broken the pact, lady of alchemy. I invoke the conditions put in place." "You cannot!" Zagan yelled. "I can," Wilhelmia said calmly. Slowly, she pulled out a charr, and lit it with a hellstone match struck against firebeetle chitin. Her eyes were cold and unrelenting. The demon despaired. The pact had been fair, but the punishment for breaking it was harsh, for her at least. Whichever party broke it was not permitted to indulge in the arts, any arts, for a whole season. She would be unable to hear any music, whatever picture she would look at would turn up blank, and any creative writing she would attempt to read would be illegible. "No... NO!" the demoness was despairing bit by bit as the severity dawned on her. It also meant that she had to immediately call her spies back, anyone tailing the little target, since attempting to get a display piece was certainly "indulging in the arts". Her face became a grimace of despair in front of the meagre human. Wilhelmia on the other hand just shook her head a little. "It is a punishment you deserve. You have roped me, or rather us, into a confrontation I would have preferred not to be part of." Once again, the human shook her head, sighing this time. She would have to go get the other members. They were leaving Arterus, the land of demons, and would return to Damoy. After all, now that they were entangled with the perpetrators, it was only right they help out the victims as well. - - - - - - For Mercury himself, the next days passed eventlessly. The tug at his mind that had been there one night was gone the next, and even the shadows he would occasionally see flickering near him soon disappeared. It was almost enough to make him think he''d been imagining things. Of course, the cat was more than keenly aware that it was far from his imagination. Maybe if it had just been the feeling of being watched, he would have ignored it, but especially after that strange dream, and feeling react to the movement he saw from the corner of his eyes, Mercury was sure. This was all very real. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! He didn''t know why he was being watched, and the likelihood of receiving an answer to that question was very little at best. Shaking his head, the cat continued his usual rounds. He''d run around town and the forest to train himself some more, seeing a slight improvement in his stats. To him, it was very important to stay physically fit, especially in this world, where something might try to eat you every couple steps you take. Unfortunately, he never woke up inside his mindscape again. Not for lack of trying, either, the usual fields he''d enter so casually just never seemed to appear in front of him, no matter how much he meditated before sleeping. Maybe somehow, he''d gotten himself injured during his last expedition again, though he didn''t exactly know how that would have happened. Shaking his head, he got rid of that train of thought. Two pages had passed. Alex had felt someone very familiar enter the proximity of the village. It was finally time for Mercury to meet his next teacher, one he would hopefully get along with well, Yasashiku Ryuutesai. Armed with that knowledge, Mercury hadn''t ventured out too far, so he''d be able to hear if he was called back. He made sure not to meditate too deeply either, since it might mess up his senses. With so little to do, he instead chose to give his new Skills a test-run. itself was very straightforward. Once activated, Mercury would snap his teeth closed with slightly higher force than usual. The Skill could be properly activated with a mental intent of using a Skill, or would also just support regular bites to become slightly more powerful. If actually activated, it also consumed a small amount of stamina, of course. The other simple newcomer, , worked very similarly. The only difference really was what type of attack it supported, since apparently, the Skill worked for any type of swipe attack using his legs. It simply enhanced the speed and strength of the attack, and he could use it even when his claws were sheathed. After all, they still existed and were being swung, just hidden underneath his skin. It felt a little strange using the Skill that way, but it worked. What felt much stranger to use was . He had used it a little bit, mostly to make himself feel heavier, but that was by far not everything it could do. He could make his thoughts sluggish, decrease his maximum stamina, make Skills have long cooldowns, even seal something away until a condition was met. Mercury had tried those out very subtly though, since he actually couldn''t deactivate until the condition was properly fulfilled. The only real limit of the Skill was that it could not make anything easier. For example, while it could seal Skill effects, it could only seal positive ones. Which means that it could never seal the rage Berserkers feel, but it could seal away all the benefits they get from becoming angry. All in all, the Skill was strange, and extremely fitting for Mercury. If his affinity for it hadn''t been so high, it probably would have cost a lot in the shop, so he was happy to receive it for a reduced price. Whistle! Just as Mercury had finished his train of thought, a loud sound sent him back to reality. That was old man Alex, for sure, and it was his call to go meet them. Following the noise with his , he was soon able to find not just Alex, but also Marsh and another man with greying hair. Yasashiku wore a bird-like mask, with a slightly protruding beak, which covered a good chunk of his face, though it stopped above his mouth, revealing the man''s salt and pepper mustache and goatee. His hair was similarly a mixture of black and grey, both present in almost equal parts. It would have been a little longer than his shoulders, but was strung together into a bun behind his head. He was wearing a simple robe, dyed in darker colours matching his mask, though on its back a hammer was embroidered in dull grey. As Mercury drew closer, he could begin to hear the conversation going on between them. "I am glad to see the two of you doing so well, then," Yasashiku said. "Yet while I am interested in whatever else you have been up to, there is something else I am more curious about. This... friend of yours, as you described him, Alexander-san. You said he is unusual?" "He is," Alexander nodded. "Well first of all-" "I''m here," Mercury interrupted, deciding to make his presence known. Almost immediately, Yasashiku raised a brow of his. "Old friend, you neglected to mention that Mercury-kun is nonhuman," he said, causing Alex to give a slight cough. "Well, I was about to," he said, throwing a glance between Mercury and Yasashiku, who now stood sternly with crossed arms. "But I suppose if the person in question is here, he may as well introduce himself, no?" With a quick nod, Yasashiku then turned to Mercury. "You''re very right, Alexander-san. Well then, Mercury-kun, please tell me about yourself." "Ah, sorry, before that mister Yasashiku, I''m not very familiar with the honorifics you use, perhaps you could help me for a moment with how I should address you?" Mercury asked in his most polite tone. He felt that the system was activating as well, which almost made him frown. He really wasn''t forcing himself that much yet! Though showing some amount of respect seems to have worked. "For now, Ryuutesai-san will do," the older man replied, the corner of his mouth raising ever so slightly. "Well then, Ryuutesai-san. My name is Mercury Rainfall Starlight. I have an interest in most types of magic, though I heard that I do have some talent in carving runes. Given the natural tools at my disposal, I acquired the Skill fairly early and have been working on it since, although my progress has been slow." In response to that, the old man simply nodded. "Well then, Starlight-kun," Yasashiku said. "It is a pleasure to meet you. While I am not the greatest runecarver you will ever meet, I am certainly proficient enough in it, especially when it comes to using them on weapons rather than items of convenience," he explained. "Perhaps you could show me some of your current or earlier work?" That sentence made Mercury feel as though he was in the middle of a job interview, and while it was uncomfortable, it was also a familiar tightness in his chest, so he quickly swallowed it down and nodded. "Of course, Ryuutesai-san." With that, the cat brought out his log, and the bag of rocks, showing them to the older man. "Hm," Yasashiku nodded. "How long have you been carving runes for when making these?" "The log was my very first work, though there are some newer ones on it as well. I believe it shows my spectrum of improvement very well. The rocks were made in the latter third of my journey through runecraft," the cat explained. "Good, yes," Yasashiku nodded again. "Taking this and Alexander-san''s evaluation of your talent into consideration, I have no qualms accepting you as my student. However, it will not be an easy road to travel, Starlight-kun. In fact, your talent seems to be the least of your problems," he said matter of factly. "What would be my problem then?" "Your will," Yasashiku said, eyeing the cat. Behind the mask, Mercury now caught a glimpse of light in his eyes, that of expectation. They were dark and deep, almost black with a hint of grey and blue in them. "My will?" "Indeed. Why do you wish to learn runecarving, Starlight-kun?" the older man asked. "Do not think over your answer too long, simply say it as soon as it comes to mind." "Well, uh, because... I think it''s neat?" "And there is little drive behind that," Yasashiku shook his head. Alexander''s lips revealed a hint of a smile as he watched the two talk it out, as Marsh did the opposite, a frown instead placing itself on their face. "Well then, why should I want to learn runecarving, Ryuutesai-san?" Mercury asked, his interest sparked. "Truly, I simply want to see more of it because I am curious of it. What are its limits, what can you do with it?" "How would I know?" the older man asked back. "Figure it out yourself." With that said, the man''s lips split into a grin, along with old man Alex'' as well. "You can replace the ''san'' with ''sensei'' now, Rainfall-kun. I shall take you as my pupil until you have found out why it is that you want to learn runecarving," Yasashiku said. "That means teacher, so you know." Politely, Mercury nodded. "That sounds fine to me, Ryuutesai-sensei." "We shall be off again then," the old smith said, now turning to Alexander once more. "It has been a pleasure seeing you once more, old friend." "The pleasure is mine," Alex replied. "Make sure to push him along far enough, he''s got the stuff to push through." "I fear my first task may already be walking that line, Alexander-san. After all, how am I to teach him my craft if he cannot swing a hammer?" - - - - - - Zyl was pacing nervously. His two pages were nearly up, and he would have to give an answer soon or see Mercury face peril. He didn''t have the luxury to send out any letters, since they might be intercepted or found. Even magically sent ones might just be stopped by those greedy bastards. It was infuriating really, and with every second that ticked by, the man in white grew more agitated. His eyes were turning a little bloodshot from the pressure, and he was genuinely beginning to feel worried. A solution had refused to present itself as time went on. By himself, he couldn''t attack, since while he was gone there may be a retaliation against his nation. Putting those people''s lives at risk to save but a piece of himself wasn''t quite like him. Something so cowardly wouldn''t quite do for being the "guardian". He shook his head in dismay. The clock was ticking down, perhaps he should really just stop this game and just get on with it. After a long sigh, he decided to just do it, and began meditating to separate a spark from himself. Except the moment he did, there was a knock on the door and Leon''s clam voice ran out. "Sir, you have visitors." Chapter 110: Ticking Clock Chapter 110: Ticking Clock /Not all gods fall on the simple ends of kind or cruel. In fact, most are somewhere in between. Light can warm or scorch, anvils may make shields or swords, and webs may catch food or trap prey. Yet, no god delves in this duality as much as Jeringr of shadow. After all, shadows, by nature, are everchanging. A sick mirror of reality, projected and reduced to the very base of one''s character. Shadows always follow, stand below and unnoticed, and yet somehow seem to scoff at those above. As such, the god of shadows is the mimic, patron of actors and friend of thieves. A disguise is incomplete without a small token to Jeringr, and without him, there would be no performance. He is the hidden dancer, the flickering fear. He is kind, and he is cruel. That much is clear in the story of his creation. At first, there was light, and that light made darkness exist. After all, that much is known, the fact that darkness is an absence of light. However, the darkness was shapeless, and primal. It was not yet shadow, but rather the void. Of course, the void still exists, the true darkness, but that is not the topic. The void had to become more defined. Take shape as not only void, but as darkness. As shadow and night, as underground and distant, as well as cold. Because darkness is not simple. Jeringr is one part of that void, the primal darkness, the first, but he came to shape only when other things existed. When the world was forged, he danced between the cracks, cackled wherever the light couldn''t reach, and yet in the mornings and evenings he would grow somber and lay down to admire the sky, and then the shadows stretch from one horizon to the other. To mock is one of his favourite pastimes indeed. Of course it is, to see a flicker in the corner of one''s eye will always be menacing. He may mock one for being scared, but yet those jokes are also a warning of that which lurks in true darkness. A reminder to stay in the light, both for safety of you, and of him. For without light, once again the flickering fear cannot exist. Yet, whenever beauty blossoms, he is also there. Lovers in moonlight are accompanied by him, and when people are truly close their shadows sometimes meld into one. He gives shelter to privacy, and dances in the flame of a candle. That perhaps is some of his comfort. Still, the hidden dancer is guide to anything unseen. Not only privacy and intimacy, but also secrecy. The webspinner likes to tell lies in daylight, spin things so tight that the noose cannot be escaped, but that is not how the lord of shadows does things. He is secret. Hidden. Always lurking. He guides those who skulk in the dark, and yet exposes them when faced with light. In that way, Jeringr values skill above all else. It is up to one''s own self, rather than any fate, to win his support, and when one has enough practice, the flickering fear may be one''s guide underneath the stars. For good, or for bad./ An excerpt from "Of greater Beings", by Matthew Lexicon, the stubborn historian. - - - - - - Funnily enough, the visitors Zyl had was from two entirely different factions. For some reason, all of Ragnarok had shown up, which was already confusing enough, only to see that Berthorn was knocking on his door as well. For a moment, Zyl considered shutting it closed in their face, but then again, that seemed quite inappropriate. There was a long moment of silence in the doorframe. Zyl frowned, Berthorn smiled, and Wilhelmia stood there, more confused than anything. Eventually of course, the silence broke. "So are we going in or what?" Eric asked first, forcing a sigh out of Zyl. "Yes," the dragon said after another moment, running his hand through his hair. "Yes, come in, please. Leon, could you prepare some drinks?" "Of course," the butler said, giving a bow and disappearing. "So, what brings you here?" Zyl asked, refusing to let the tension in the air take over. "Oh, I think you know, lord Friaminth. I sent you a letter ahead of time after all, did I not?" Berthorn asked, his grin growing ever wider. He seemed to already think himself the victor, and sadly, Zyl wouldn''t exactly be able to disagree. Luckily, Zyl didn''t have to stand the smile very long, since Magma soon reached out and smacked Berthorn''s back with all the force her large arm could muster. Given how much Berthorn fell in on himself, it was probably quite a bit. "I don''t think he meant you, buddy," she said. "Ours is a private matter, guardian," Wilhelmia quickly added. "Though we believe it might be an urgent one." "So is mine, lord Friaminth," Berthorn spoke up again. "Quite frankly, I would wager it is more important than theirs." "Hardly," Pul immediately countered. "Nothing could be more important than that which we deem as such." Zyl genuinely had to hold back from smacking himself in the face. These people were all difficult, and today was already not a good day. But he''d take anything over a conversation with his former brother, so Zyl spoke up again. "Lord Berthorn, it would seem as though our popular friends are quite impatient. Given that your virtue in that manner certainly surpasses theirs, I would ask you please let me see them first. We both know that your matter can be dealt with later still, as long as this doesn''t take up my whole day?" For the first time, Berthorn''s smile slightly wavered. "Yes, certainly," he replied after a pause. "Then I shall wait until I am called." With a nod to acknowledge him, Zyl and the whole band then headed into the dining hall, where drinks were already prepared. Not for each individual, but rather a variety of them stacked in the middle of the table. As they entered, Zyl also quickly whispered something to Leon, which the butler acknowledged with a nod, before quickly heading outside. After noticing the change in the air when Maclroy casts a barrier around the room, Zyl leaned back in his chair. "Well then, this is as private as we may get here. Please, speak your mind," Zyl said, when Leon had returned into the hall. "Thank you," Wilhelmia nodded. "We''ve come to offer our aid to you." "Your aid?" Zyl asked, raising an eyebrow. "Why would you aid someone you have never spoken to before?" "It is a longer story." If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. "Any minute I don''t have to see Berthorn is a minute in heaven," Zyl said with a somewhat cynical smile. "Go on." "Very well," Wilhelmia replied. "We''ve been playing on the demon continent recently, under sponsorship of queen Zagan. Yet, our sponsor failed, and thus, by having spread her name, we have failed too. Therefore, we wish to make amends again." "How did she fail?" Zyl asked. "Our contract was simple, made with the demoness'' ability. If either party attempts to purposely harm or steal from someone else without good justification, it is broken, and punishment will ensue. Lady Zagan coveted something of yours. She coveted so much, that using an ability of mine, I could hear parts of her thoughts, something about a spark of yours. Thus, as our lady has sinned while we were under her, we have taken the next magic circle as soon as we could to try and help with the situation." "So you''ve been dragged into trouble that was never yours?" Zyl asked again, surprised at how upstanding the people in front of him seemed. A rarity, really. Almost everyone usually wanted something from him. "It would seem so." "How can I trust you?" the dragon asked again, resting his chin on his gloved hands. "I have a contractual ability," Oliva said tentatively. They were the smallest out of the other group, and easy to overlook, but Zyl''s eyes fixed on them quickly. "That does make things a lot easier," he said, a slight smile now finding itself on his face. "Now, I hope this doesn''t seem too extreme, but since this is a matter of my personal well being in addition to someone quite dear to me, I do have to ask for a contract that sets the baseline first. Something like anything spoken in this room as long as all of us are present here can be nothing but the truth, and must be kept confidential, forcefully. Not even at risk of death, but simply preventing the words from being spoken." As Zyl talked, Wilhelmia also began to smile. Which was strange to the dragon, since these were terms that would usually make anyone frown. Unlike her, he could not tell another''s intentions immediately, after all, but she could. Wilhelmia had already discerned by then that Zyl was, in fact, being selfless. That in and of itself would not be enough to immediately bring a smile to her lips, but in addition to that, the person she was facing seemed careful and smart. Maybe this would not be as bad as she had thought. "That seems reasonable," she said, and soon the contract was drafted and signed, taking hold not long after. "Now then, you are here to do me a favour? And in exchange for that, you only want me to keep your reputation somewhat clean?" Zyl asked. "Indeed. Anything that we can do, we will try to accomplish," Wilhelmia said. "Very well," Zyl responded one more time, a calm smile settling on his face. Not one of glee or excitement, but one of calm. His heart was feeling a little more at ease again, because now... "There''s someone who I might need you to help out," Zyl said. Now, he wouldn''t have to worry about Mercury as much anymore. - - - After some time had passed, the door to the dining hall swung open. Zyl''s discussion with all of Ragnarok was over, and the band already turned to leave, only giving Berthorn the courtesy of a quick nod. Still, he didn''t let that get to his head. His smile was unshaken, still resting comfortably on his lips, which glistened with spit. In fact, perhaps if he hadn''t practiced his manners so much, he would be frothing at the mouth now. They finally had put Zyl into a position where escaping was nearly impossible. But he shouldn''t get ahead of himself. Berthorn shook his head as he walked towards the dining room, calming his thoughts. The deed would only be completed once he held his brother''s spark in his own hands, that was the sole reason for his visit. And so, he settled down, and entered into the dining room, around the same time as Ragnarok was heading off to their next destination. As soon as he got into the room, Berthord wasted no time. He immediately jumped onto a chair, draping one arm over its back, putting his shoes onto the table, and using his second arm to fill the glass in front of him with the nearest drink. It wasn''t because he liked to conduct himself poorly, but these little acts of rebellion were usually all Zyl would tolerate. Not this time though, that much Berthorn knew, and thus the smile on his face widened. "Well then, lord Berthorn, what brings you here?" Zyl asked, his face now grave again. "Oh, brother, we both know exactly what I''m doing here," he said, moving a strand of his oily black hair aside, as he swirled the liquid he had poured around in the glass. His swamp-green eyes still fixed on Zyl, whose frown only grew deeper at the world of brother. "We are no longer family, Berthorn," the man in white ground out. It should have been obvious, as nothing about them was alike. Not their hair, not their eyes, not their stature or their faces. Yet of course, they were bound by blood. "You know just as well as I that this is a bond that won''t break, brother," the sleezy man said with a grin, downing half his drink. "Ah, but you might want to calm your rage, if you wish to see your little friend another day." Zyl was already holding back the desire to harm the ambassador before him. The only reason he was sent is because he knew how to be an annoying ass better than anyone else. Simply mentioning their brotherhood made Zyl sick to the stomach. "Proper family would not ask me to give myself up," Zyl replied as calmly as he could, though some of his rage certainly seeped through "A proper brother would not need to be asked!" Berthorn replied, slamming the glass down so hard it shattered immediately. His frown was washed away from one moment to another, as the remainder of his wine stained the tablecloth. At the very least, Berthorn''s feet were now on the floor again, rather than the table. Slowly, Zyl shook his head, not responding to the other man''s fury. "You have walked the line long enough now, ambassador Berthorn. Speak carelessly again, and-" "And fucking what?" the man in question hissed. "And your little furball dies, that''s what. This time, Zyl," he spat the name out as if it was an insult, "you cannot touch me. Not even a little. In fact, I will be staying at your mansion from now on, until we have your spark. I won''t ask anything outrageous, don''t worry. We''re family after all, isn''t that right?" With the last sentence, some semblance of calm returned to the man''s voice, the furrows disappearing from his face and it smoothed itself over again. Soon, the same, slimy smile as usual was right back on Berthorn''s lips. "Now, tell me your decision," he said, before drinking more wine, this time straight from the bottle. Zyl waited for a long time, letting the seconds tick by, but he saw no way out for now. "Fine," he eventually relented. "I''ll start preparations to give you what you want. Expect it to take at least a couple days." "See brother," Berthorn replied, his smile growing ever deeper. "It could have been so easy from the start." - - - - - - To all of this, Mercury was oblivious. Entirely oblivious, almost impressively so. Of course he knew that someone had touched on his mind for a little while. That''s how he was able to explore the castle, after all. That much he had been able to read from the voice that told him to get out, he could tell that whoever it was, they didn''t exactly mean well for him. So of course, he didn''t. But ever since then, nothing like that had happened anymore. Complete and utter radio silence. He''d just slept like a baby, unable to even try and see the weave of his dreams. He sighed about that on the inside, but it mattered little. As always, he just had to be patient. In fact, he was taking so much time that he could clearly feel his title doing some work. After all, he had only glimpsed the nothingness for a moment, when he was forcefully thrown out of the other dream he had visited, and yet he had glimpsed much more from it than what he usually would have been able to. But that would only matter once he got the time to deal with it. For now, Mercury decided to simply enjoy his last day with Marsh, Alex, and Ria. He''d grown to know the three of them quite well, and befriended them too, so he wasn''t exactly happy to be leaving, but it was kind of unavoidable. He and Ryuutesai-sensei would be staying the night, and then heading off first thing tomorrow morning. Then, Mercury would have to learn how to swing a hammer. He already had a headache just thinking about it, since really didn''t lend itself to moving something heavy very quickly. In fact, he didn''t even know if he''d be able to lift a smithing hammer. Dang, what was he even thinking about? That was future Mercury''s problem. For now, he should enjoy his evening. "Thanks again for letting me stay with you. Honestly, I really appreciate it," he said with a smile. "You''re welc-" Alex started, but was interrupted by an elbow to the ribcage from Ria. "It was our pleasure," she said, and Marsh nodded along to her words. "Yeah, seriously, it''s been great getting to know you," they added. "So please, stop being so sappy and instead just come visit again, sometime soon." "Ahem, yes, our doors are always open for you," Alex said curtly, before resuming his meal. Next to all of this, Yasashiku couldn''t help but smile a little. He usually lived alone, and seeing people being close always warmed his old heart. Thus, the evening passed in good company, and the morning soon rolled around. Mercury and Yasashiku said their goodbyes, both giving a promise to visit, and then they walked off. The journey would take a little while, but it should be more than doable in a couple of days. But at least for those few more days, Mercury was safe. No one would ambush them on the journey, that much was certain, since Zyl was upholding his promise and Alexander might still smell something fishy if they didn''t send letter on arrival. And thus, the days ticked by once more. Chapter 111: The third Truth Chapter 111: The third Truth Zyl sat down in his room to meditate. For this procedure he didn''t need any complicated apparatuses or devices, just himself and a good amount of time. Berthorn would probably start suspecting things weren''t right if he dragged it out too long, so at most he could buy maybe a page and a half. Fifteen days. With a little bit of luck, that would be enough for Ragnarok to get in touch with Mercury. He had given them a crystal ball that would link them to him, but told them to only use it if they were too late. Then he''d know to just go through with the trade. The man in white sighed a little, running his hands through his hair. It was frustrating, not being in control of his circumstances, but he''d just have to trust the few allies he had. But in the case things went wrong, he had to be ready to make a trade. So, Zyl closed his eyes and began meditating. - - - - - - Mercury, somewhere in the forest was doing the same thing one evening. Yasashiku had already begun his training before they even arrived at his place, and had given Mercury a hammer to swing. It didn''t work well. The leyfal didn''t have opposable thumbs, and was good for a lot, but swinging a hammer was not one of those. It could apply a consistent force in a direction, but if that force was lesser than the gravitational force on an object, he was kind of screwed. And given that the hammer was made of metal and heavy, he could barely lift it, not to mention swinging it. So no, swinging the hammer itself wasn''t working. Yasashiku only smiled as he watched his student attempt it with futility. Mercury was not his first armless student, and if he had any say in it, the mopaaw wouldn''t be the last either. It just meant that the first steps would be much harder. Maybe he should give the young one a hint? No, no, that would be too cheap. And so, with his mind made up to be patient, the old man simply watched his student. By now, the person in question had given up lifting the hammer with , and was instead simply staring at it whenever they rested, sometimes meditating. Perhaps he was trying to figure it out? What a funny thought. Shaking his head, Yasashiku began to cook for the evening. He did his student that much of a favour at least, to let him wholly concentrate on the task of swinging a hammer. Now, technically it was possible to carve runes and smith things without a hammer, but the old blacksmith didn''t believe in all that. Of course, he could do it too. In fact, for his greatest masterpieces he didn''t ever touch any of his tools, but that was because he himself had become the hammer, and nothing else was needed. But before Mercury became a hammer himself, he''d need to understand what made such a thing, and for that, he''d need to get familiar with it. Most people would do that by swinging it. Repeating the same motion a hundred thousand times until it became mastery, but the little one didn''t have that luxury. Instead, he had to find his own path. And so, evening after evening, Mercury would stare at the hammer. For hours on end, and during all that time, his new teacher simply sat there and watched, only occasionally calling his attention back to the task at hand when it drifted away. The whole thing was endlessly frustrating for Mercury, especially thinking about the fact that he would be doing nothing but that as soon as they were done travelling. Right now he at least had breaks from staring at metal on a stick while they walked, but soon those would disappear too. It was extremely annoying, but that pettiness at least served as a drive to develop faster. Actually, it didn''t just serve for that, it also was a drive to find another method of escape, which appeared after five days of travelling, when they were almost halfway there. Finally, after a long wait, Mercury had dragged himself back into his dreams, finding himself in the middle of the fields at night. As always, there was a fountain of water to the south, a mountain range to the east, a citadel of fire to the north, and a castle of glass to the west. Seeing it all again after such a long while brought a smile to Mercury''s face, though it soon vanished again, feeling his entire body ache. Well, not really body, more his mind. In this state, he was most aware of his mind and its injuries, and now that he actually felt them, it was clear why he hadn''t been thinking as fast the last couple days. This entire, strange version of himself was covered in bruises, if he could call them that. In any case, he was very certain that this entire body here was pretty banged up. It must have happened when he was thrown out the castle with the ton of moons, since he developed a good nosebleed there too. Sighing, Mercury laid down on the floor. He still didn''t know why he was able to go there, but by now he was sure it was linked to some other person. He also knew that whoever it was didn''t have good intentions, that much was clear. Losing this much training time form being unable to dream really quite annoyed him, but he also couldn''t exactly ignore it when someone tried to link themselves to his mind somehow. It was a shitty situation overall, one that definitely needed a remedy. He''d need to learn how to toughen up his mind, or maybe how to heal it up. But for now, he didn''t really have much of an approach to that. Instead, he just decided to dedicate this time to something he did now have more of an idea about, the nothingness he was supposed to understand. With his mind made up, Mercury closed his eyes, zoning out the area around him and only focusing on himself. He breathed in, and then breathed out, until he found himself in a slight state of ihn''ar again. Then, he roamed through his memories of the last days, slowly going backwards. The thing he searched for was distinct, after all, something that had burnt itself into his mind, and not long after, he found the scene. Once again, he played it out in front of his inner eye. The short moment he felt himself tumbling, simply moving through a space that wasn''t at an insane speed. For a moment, when his existence in that place denied, he found himself nowhere, and saw nothingness. It wasn''t black, really, there was nothing to compare it too after all. Neither was it white. There was simply no light to pick up, and thus his mind attempted to fill it with shapes, like when one closes their eyelids and presses down on them with their thumbs. Of course, those shapes also were denied by the space, since there was nothing at all there. And that was the key that Mercury now grasped. To understand nothingness, he simply shouldn''t think, since that would go against its essence. There should be no instinct, no meditation. To figure out this secret, he had to go past all the notions of focus and smallness, stop comparing it to what was around, and instead simply accept it as, well, nothing. Very slowly, a smile found himself on Mercury''s lips. Well, it would have found itself there if he had lips. In any case, if anyone looked at him here, they would be able to read that he was happy. The mopaaw opened his eyes again, taking in the dreamscape around him for a moment, with the golden light encompassing it all. But that golden light was in the way, a veil, and so Mercury looked past it, at what things really were. Still, that wasn''t enough, since he could not yet see the nothingness, even though it was already there. He had to restrict his field of view. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Making up his mind, Mercury began to look at a smaller space, then even smaller again. He expanded a thin tendril of mana outside his body to do the seeing for him, and honed in on an area smaller than a grain of rice, then smaller than a speck of dust, then even smaller still. And eventually, he caught a glimpse of it again. Where Mercury was now feeling, there was nothing. His sense had touched something that didn''t exist, which reality was woven around. And that was all it was. [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] - [Main Quest: "Looming Thread" completed! Reward: 3 levels (character), affinity pass, choice of unique spell from a suitable list.] - [Levels have been added to the count. Character Levels: 3 Distributable Levels: 1] [ affinity pass acquired. Use?] [Choice of unique spell initiated. Creating list. Please wait a moment.] Almost immediately, Mercury''s entire face was bombarded with notifications, without any delay. He took a deep breath, slowly letting go of his ihn''ar to make sure he wasn''t just catapulted out, and began to read through the notifications. Once again, a wide smile found itself on his face. Seriously, he might have to thank the moon person. Without being shown this nothingness by them, it might have taken him much more than just the few tries to figure it out, especially since he needed to wait for such a long while in between attempts. Not now though, Mercury thought and shook his head. It was time to read through the rewards he got. First of all, the levels. Apparently, they weren''t immediately attached to him this time, and instead added to a counter where he could make use of them at any point in time. It was a little strange that up until now that wasn''t clearly labelled at all. , can anything be done about that? [Affirmative.] [Due to the individual''s slightly lacking brainpower, more clear distinctions will be made between labels. Immediately applied levels will now be labelled via "instant level (category)", while ones that can be acquired at any point in time will be named "delayed level (category)". Are the categories clear to the individual?] Yes, that much was clear now. He wasn''t fully sure if they had always been labelled correctly in the past though. [Answer refused. Not recorded in system storage.] ... Well, in any case, it would be clear now. Thanks for the help . Honestly, having some character levels saved up was more than nice. After all, the later he used them, the more exp he''d be able to save, and in a pinch, the healing could come in super handy. [Level up healing is removed from delayed levels.] It still saved him exp then! At the very least, they might come in handy when he wanted to quickly propel himself the last few steps towards his next evolution, or when he needed a quick boost in general power. He was still pleased with them. But of course, what he was more pleased with was the affinity pass. He had waited so long for this one! He wanted to use it immediately, but just as he was about to confirm, another notification popped up. [You have received a message.] [ is looking at you with pride.] Holy what now? Mercury looked at the pop-up with confusion in his eyes. How in the blue blazes had old Dreamweaver figured out he''d done this? He could only imagine a few answers. Maybe they were somehow watching him right now. That, however, seemed unlikely. Then they''d have just spoken to him, and not needed to ask so many questions on what he''d been doing before. It seemed like a silly notion, so he discarded it. What Mercury considered to be much more likely was that somehow, him reaching a new stage of ihn''ar was one of their quests, too. Then, they would have immediately received a notification, maybe even a boost of power big enough to shake them awake. But then, how the heck could they send a message? If it was that easy, wouldn''t the major countries back on Chronagen use that too, rather than letters and crystal balls and whatnot? So it couldn''t exactly be an easy feat, but then again, it was just a message. If the system was equipped with messaging technology, why not simply supply it to everyone? ? [The messaging system is not yet unlocked. Answer denied.] Well, okay, so that was that then. Pushing aside all those thoughts, Mercury focused on the message from one of his teachers again with a smile. ''Thank you,'' he thought out loud, hoping they might hear his thoughts, or at least read his gratitude. Of course, there was no answer, and so Mercury looked back at his rewards, and used the affinity pass. [ affinity pass activated. The associated Skills will now be 33% cheaper and gain mastery 20% faster.] This was enough. It reduced the price of from 3.000 Skill points down to 2.000. Finally, he could get it! [Acquired the Skill from the Skill shop.] [ is being renamed due to the individual not being an arthropod.] [ has changed to ] [: This Skill allows the individual to generate thread. These threads may have special properties based on the individual''s specific affinities. The threads'' durability is decided by the Skill level. Thread can be generated from the individual''s claws, consuming Sp in the process.] It was such a simple Skill, and yet he had wanted it so much for so long. It was the ultimate trapping Skill, after all, and thin but durable threads could make a good weapon too. Now the only question was what exactly his unique affinities would make the thread do. ? [Due to the individual''s specific affinities, the thread can be used to entangle and trap another''s mind, in additional to any regular physical effects.] Okay. Yup. This was fucking sick. He could straight up make a spiderweb, except it could slow down someone''s thoughts. How fucking cool was that?! In any prolonged confrontation, this would give him such huge advantages, being able to slow down the enemy''s reaction time, make them cast their Skills more slowly, in addition to sticking it to their physical body. Even if this left him with only 10 Skill points, Mercury could not be more pleased with it. [Spells have finished generating. Listing.] [1. 2. 3. 4. ] Before the cat even had the time to think about the spell list, it was already done. And once again, before he had the chance to ask, did its thing. [: This spell allows the user to project their mind onto and into someone else''s. It allows the individual to explore someone''s mind if the target is willing. If the target is unwilling, the individual must break past any mental barriers set in place, and attempt to resist any efforts to remove them from such premises. Cost: 60% of Mp.] It was a spell made to explore other people''s minds. On one hand, that was very cool, but on the other hand, it also felt extremely invasive, and he hadn''t really encountered a situation where it would be super necessary, too. Plus, unless he split his mind, he might not be able to control his physical body while doing it, and that would be absolutely horrific if there ever was any backup in a fight. All in all, the spell seemed a little too niche for him. [: This spell can be cast on any willing target the user perceives as an ally. It increases their strength, speed, and increases their mental resistance. Additionally, it makes them less likely to flee and increases morale, which may have a positive effect on battle strength. A maximum of two targets can be affected at any one time. Cost: 1% of Mp per second per target.] This one was already better in his eyes, and he might have taken it if the wolves were still there, but that wasn''t the case. As of the moment, most of his battles were fought on his own, so the spell wasn''t very useful quite yet. He''d consider it, though. [: This spell utilizes the user''s mana to see through illusions and hidden information. It can also be used to analyse objects to view information on them. Cost (Illusions): 1-100% of Mp. Cost (Analysis): 5-70% of Mp.] This one seemed useful to him. Quite frankly, a lot of its functions were probably covered by , but while the Skill did explain quite a few things, it also wasn''t as precise as he would like. With the analysis function he would probably be able to determine the exact materials something was made of and maybe even their construction method, which was any crafter''s dream, and being able to see through illusions was something he still needed some help with, since was good but not perfect on its own. Honestly, it was definitely a convenient spell. The more he thought about it, the more he kind of wanted to have it. But first, he had to at least check the last one. [: This spell summons chains of magic to trap and subdue the target. Activation requirement: 50 Mp. Maximum output: 400 Mp.] The last spell was surprisingly simple. It was very clearly meant to be used in combat, and simply chained someone down. There were probably dozens of spells like it, but it still seemed to be on the upper tier of like... magic chain spells. Honestly, all of the spells were simultaneously better and worse than he had expected. None of them were as explosive as he had hoped, but all of them still had a very clear use. Still, right now he wasn''t exactly in a situation that required combat, so he finally decided to choose . [Acquired the Spell as a reward.] Now then, that surely must''ve been all the notifications... wait, there were more? [Due to the individual''s higher affinity towards , and their achievements in ihn''ar, you have glimpsed that which surrounds the nothingness.] [The has been noticed.] Chapter 112: One Page Chapter 112: One Page /All of you still alive? Good. You better be ready for some exercise, because we''re talking about Moves today. No, not those kinds of moves, but Moves! Yeah, that''s fucking right. The stamina-equivalent of Spells. A very clear series of actions that is given enhanced power by some system shenanigans because it has been practiced endlessly. A goddamn Move. Maybe I''ll mention Spells too, but we''ll see about that. Now, are Moves capitalized? I don''t know. No one really does. I found it useful up until now to make the topic clear, but screw you, I won''t anymore. Because they really piss me off, and quite frankly, I don''t think they''ve earned their capital M. Okay, shit, back on topic. Why do I dislike them so much? Well, firstly, I wish to compare them to spells. Both have similar acquisition difficulties, after all, moves need you to practice things a hundred times over, if you''re incredibly talented. Otherwise, have fun doing that one action a thousand, or even ten thousand times. I''m not even fucking exaggerating. It is completely and utterly stupid. The simplest moves you can get are things like specific punches, or dodges. For example, I got the move, after dodging dozens of bottles thrown at me whenever I complain in public. But the worst part is how slowly moves level up. Some people really struggle with that, because rather than properly gain experience for a move, why not just learn a new one that''s a little more versatile, only to abandon it again. It really doesn''t encourage mastery, if you aren''t some complete psycho who only ever wishes to train. Now, perhaps that is exactly why moves are much more popular in the east, under the name "Martial Arts". The monks there also have the additional system metric named Qi. Or Ki. Or Chi. Fuck''s sake. Some of their moves use that ki to make effects like spells. Why aren''t they spells? Who the fuck knows! Because the system said so. But to get this all back on the floor, I think moves are a scam. Absolutely! They level up slowly, and they can be the absolute most basic fucking things. Some of them you can just activate, like some Skills, other can only passively boost certain actions. Where is the consistency? The rules?! The system has so many categorizations only to then kind of ignore them all over again! My gods! Getting mad just thinking about this. I''m off to shout my anger on the streets, try and see if I can''t get some mastery. That means lowering my body, not the damn animal. If you thought that, I will find you, and I will make you pay. Until then, you better don''t croak. And keep reading my shit. Bye./ "Issue 10 of "This System Sucks!" by an anonymous, and maybe slightly unhinged, author, who some might consider a heretic and scoundrel? This dude''s reputation is all over the place, like seriously. Can some other editor cross check this?" - Editor Mike, from ''The Daily'', whose comment on the author was cross checked, and then simply approved and published as is by the head of writing. - - - - - - Mercury stared at the notification in front of his face for a little while. He paused, and then rubbed his eyes before doing a double-take. He admitted that maybe his first introduction to old Uunrahzil as "young Cat" wasn''t exactly the most creative, but he had thought that old Dreamweaver would at least be a little metaphorical. Apparently not. , what the hell is a Dreamweave? [The is what dreams are made from.] That... didn''t exactly tell him a whole lot once again. [Additional information may be added to system storage upon fulfilling further (hidden) requirements, or by gaining more understanding of the matter oneself.] Alright, fine, so he''d just have to figure it out himself. Somehow, it almost made him glad, since it would honestly be quite boring if the system were to explain everything to him. Still, sometimes it would be nice if it could extend more of a helping hand. Oh well, whatever. For now, Mercury really wanted to try out his new Skills, but even before that, there was something that took precedence over that. In fact, he felt somewhat... different from before. Of course, this happened every time that he learned a new ihn''ar, but this time felt especially strange. Back when he learnt , all he felt was stunned at this new world, and when he learned , he felt welcomed with open arms, but the feeling he gained form wasn''t quite like that. Mercury tried to pinpoint it, but it almost felt as though it refused to be grasped any closer by him. It was... strange, really. Everything around him looked more distinct, more graspable, almost... malleable? Like he could reach into the air and drag it closer to himself. No, not just the air, even space itself, at least in here. But when he tried to actually reach out, nothing ended up happening, like he was trying to hold onto a cloud, or a wisp of smoke. Mercury sighed at that. Once again, he had found something strange. He understood instinctively what and let him do, yet with such politeness was refused. Even now that he had it recorded as an ability, he didn''t quite get what it was supposed to do. A little ironic, wasn''t it? The fact that , even after acquiring it, didn''t really have a purpose. The cat slowly shook his head. It still felt more than worth it, really. The sense of accomplishment this time was greater than anything he had before, and if it wasn''t important, old Dreamweaver wouldn''t have taught it to him. Yeah, for now, he probably just had to trust in his teacher. He was sure that eventually, the seed he''d planted today would bloom, and the wisps of smoke he felt would become more tangible. For now, he had other things to focus on, such as levelling and , and finally breaking the constraints on his mana veins. That was surprising, actually. Given how easy it had been to expand his mana veins up until now, he was definitely expecting for them to have a breakthrough before understanding the ihn''ar of . Well, nothing much he could do about that. Rather than worry, Mercury just laid himself down on the soft grass, listening to the quiet sounds around him as he set upon grinding away at his mana veins. It was tedious work, but he knew his patience would be rewarded eventually. His title and growth-related Skills assured him of that, after all. - - - The next few days passed in a very similar manner, he and Ryuutesai-sensei would travel during the day. During the breaks, he''d try and figure out how to swing a hammer. Mercury had also used one of his breaks to experiment with , and while it was a very good Skill to set things up, he couldn''t control it in mid air or after deployment, so it wasn''t exactly suitable for swinging a hammer. Sometimes, the assignment frustrated him, but if Ryuutesai-sensei and old Uunrahzil had one thing in common, it was that they preached patience. If he wanted to do things right, he''d have to take his time and learn how to swing a damn hammer first of all. Unfortunately for the cat, while his newest teacher was very patient, he also shared the stubbornness of his first teacher, Yvette. Yasashiku never once relented on the assignment, and only ever gave him tiny hints, most of them in between being almost obvious, to so cryptic Mercury couldn''t really use them. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Of course he imagined the hammer in detail, he had it right in front of him, after all. But what the fuck did "compress your mind to a point, then flatten that point and swing it" mean? Of course, he understood the words, and he knew he could somewhat manipulate his mind, after all, he was able to split it, and form it into sub-constructs. Zeyjn, and Ystir. But what the heck did compressing it mean? Once again, Mercury found himself in front of a wall, with nowhere to go but through it, and this time, he was absolutely forbidden from brute forcing it. While his newest teacher did provide a helmet, he''d have to make the hammer to smash through himself. However, while Mercury did seem to get closer bit by bit, creating a full imagine of the hammer Ryuutesai-sensei had given him in his head, every nick in its metal, the rings of age on the wood, he still couldn''t get it to swing by the time they arrived at the workshop. And what a workshop it was. Mercury was quite surprised at first, since the living space really wasn''t very big. It seemed very typically Japanese to Mercury, having a single story, the wooden floor partially covered in mats around a table in the middle of the room. It had sliding doors with paper, and the beams of the roof extended out a little, where paper lanterns gave a soft glow to the area. He liked it. He actually liked it a lot. The wood was soft, and the lacquer on it was worn enough for his feet to find good grip, and the mats around the living and sleeping areas were more than comfortable to lie on, while not giving too much either. But it appeared Yasashiku had genuinely created a little hamlet for himself. Right in front of the house, there was a small pond, with a river from higher up the mountain feeding it. Mercury saw fish in there, but he was fairly sure his new teacher kept them there himself, so he refrained from eating them. There was a garden with quite a few plants around it, some parts of the lake covered with lily pads, and the occasional frog jumping around. The area was beautiful, and serene to Mercury, and he genuinely really liked it. But of course, the most important part was the forge. It had its own dedicated building, using much more stone than the main house, with chimneys to let the smoke escape. Strangely, its inside felt quite a bit bigger than the outside, with tools being housed in every corner, and most of the walls fully engraved with runes. They were especially concentrated on all the tools, the anvil, and the forge itself, where metal would be heated and then hammered. It looked so clearly magical to him, that Mercury couldn''t help but wonder how much time and effort had gone into just creating a space that was suitable for creating... well, largely anything one could imagine coming form metal. The room was so clean, and well kempt, yet showed such clear signs of usage as well, every tool worn but maintained to perfection. Every single bit of the area seemed to almost want to yell how much mastery there laid in it, and Mercury was nothing but excited to see how exactly he would be using it in the future. Then, after a quick tour, Yasashiku brought him outside and spoke again. "No entering the forge until you can swing a hammer." For a little while, Mercury looked at him quietly, then at the forge, then at his teacher once again. He scowled. "Fine." Ryuutesai-sensei nodded at that. He then turned to look another way, a little to the side of the forge, where there was an outdoor area. The floor there was stone, and the grass around it had been cleared away so it wouldn''t be set on fire by flying sparks. In the middle of the stone platform stood a single anvil. Nothing more than that, except for a door to the inside of the forge. "You''re allowed to use this, and watch me work there when I do. I won''t tell you when that is, so listen for hammering, or don''t. It is your decision how much time you want to dedicate on meditating and watching. Make good choices, and I will give you more advice, Starlight-kun," Yasashiku explained. "So I have to earn your approval to be taught, sensei?" Mercury asked. The old man nodded again in reply. "Indeed. Now then, it is late today. We shall eat, and then you are free to do whatever you wish until the evening." "Yes, sensei," Mercury simply replied. - - - - - - Zyl was in pain. There was little new about that, he had been in pain for the last handful of days, but he was getting to the stage where the pain was changing. For the most part, these last few days had been a slow, pulsating, and pulling pain, like someone was trying to drag him somewhere a little too forcefully. Most of it had been in his chest. But now that the goal of this whole operation was getting closer to the surface, the pain''s quality was changing. Rather than feeling a pull, Zyl felt like he was being burnt. From the middle of his chest, where his heart was, waves of heat roiled through his body, shaking him. Steam rose as his sweat disappeared, and if his clothes hadn''t been made specially, they would have gone up in flames. He grit his teeth. If it was this much, he could still endure it, and drag the time out for longer. He had to drag it out for as long as he could, after all. Berthorn had many flaws, but Zyl knew that at the very least, he was patient. One of his few virtues, which is exactly why Zyl usually minded it. The man he had once considered his brother was a schemer through and through. Endlessly patient when waiting for a plan to bear fruit, and always having multiple going at a time. He wasn''t pressured, after all, he had an entire lifetime to spend on making Zyl''s life even just a little less bearable with all his vices. With his avarice and his jealousy, always craving whatever Zyl held. Once again, the dragon in human flesh let a sigh escape his mouth. He had been doing so a lot recently, and really, this one turned more into a moan of pain by the time his lips parted. Speech was becoming harder as the minutes ticked on, and he could barely get a sentence together at this point, and yet he sighed. Perhaps, if he let some of his pain out, he could stall a little longer... Just as Zyl thought so, the door to his meditation hall opened. He sat facing it, so he could see who was stepping inside, and of course it was one of the least pleasant people he could hope to find. Berthorn. Zyl didn''t speak. He couldn''t muster the energy, all of it focused on containing and moving the heat burning his body from the inside out. He felt less like a noble dragon, and more like a fish in an oven, except the oven was inside of him. "Hello, brother," Berthorn said with a wide smile. In response, Zyl attempted a growl, but he could not do so. His lips remained sealed, and the vibrations died in his chest, burned to ashes by the fire. "Spare me your complaints," the sleezebag in front of Zyl replied, leaning against the doorframe. "You should instead focus on yourself. This looks quite painful, after all." Once again, Zyl wanted to growl, but killed the urge within himself. He slumped down his shoulders, giving up on the proud posture he had maintain, and even hung his head a little. His anger was not helping the pain, and neither was his pride. Rather, if he wished to buy time, he had to seem submissive, even if every fibre of his body despised the notion of it. "The process seems tougher on you than I thought," Berthorn mutteres just loudly enough for Zyl to still hear. The man, putting his slick hair behind one ear, was staring at Zyl''s chest, the origin of his pain, where the orange heat radiated strongly enough to shine even through his clothes. Then, Berthorn shrugged again. "Not that I mind, really. You did this to yourself." Zyl flinched. Not with fear, pain, or submission, but with wrath. He wanted to jump up, to grab his enemy by the throat and do what dragons did best: kill. The urge was almost overwhelming, burning so hot in his chest he thought it would eclipse the pain, and it would have, if Zyl wasn''t kind. He thought, once again, of why he was doing this. Of his comrade he had dragged into this without any permission. This suffering was his cross to bear as well, and so was this humiliation. Now, this certainly was not enough to smother his anger, but it was enough to restrain it. To chain it down, and add it to the ocean of rage he felt at the comment he had just heard. One day. One day he would get Berthorn for this, but that day would not come yet. Sadly, throughout all this, the man in front of him just smiled. He took a step into the room, towards Zyl, and then a second. His coat, made from entirely regular fabric, caught flame then, but it seemed like the man almost didn''t mind. "Poor brother," he said, reaching out, his hand hovering only a slight distance from Zyl. "So... furious, at such a slight comment. To think that the great guardian has words that cut him so deep..." Berthorn paused, clicked his tongue, and turned around on his heel. "Well, whether the words hurt or not matters little. After all, you will be suffering for quite a while longer, won''t you?" he asked, again smiling now. "To think that the betrayer now stands betrayed, oh, how unexpected!" The man''s smile turned into a grin, his eyes gleaming with malintent. "You know, I almost want for you to stop. To give in to anger. To kill me where I stand. You wanna know why? Because I would be free," he hissed, "and you would be chained. No more freedom for the great Zylnareth! Chained to a country of worthless cattle, of livestock you keep for fun. Of your little pets. And any pet of yours that leaves, we would kill." "I almost wish that," he said, his grin now vanishing and turning into a frown. "But I am dutiful, sadly," he added, then took a deep breath full of even more scorching heat. "Brother, you know better than most that I am patient. I will wait, for quite some time. But I will not wait forever, because if there is something I want as much as that spark of yours, it''s your suffering. You will not be the one to determine the length of this process, because I will." At that, Berthorn smiled once again, as he looked down on Zyl, who was now staring back at him with his teeth bared. The chained dragon wanted to hiss, to scream, and to breathe fire. There were so many provocations, so much rage, and yet, he did not. He simply glared, and expressed his displeasure. Because even with everything, Zyl remained silent. This put a small frown on Berthorn''s face. "Fine then. You shall have one more page. If you are not done by midnight of next weddan, the mopaaw dies. That is all." And with that, Zyl was left alone again, to suffer in silence. Well, as long as he didn''t have to see that backstabber''s face, at least he would suffer a little less. Chapter 113: Six Days: Siege Chapter 113: Six Days: Siege On Weddan, there wasn''t very much that happened. By the time they arrived at Yasashiku''s residence, it was already evening, and the sun hung low in the sky. There were few clouds, and they didn''t expect any rain at night, but decided to have a meal in the house anyway, since it was something they missed after camping for almost a page. Since it was the first day with Mercury and him now truly living together, he decided not to push his student too far. Simple meditation on the hammer after dinner was enough. He decided he would not begin forging quite yet, too. After all, he was old, and hurrying himself was a habit he had dropped many years ago. Rather than that, he dedicated his attention to the food. Having a proper stove made a world of difference, and since he had a cold storage area, which used runic channels to have pieces of metal which attracted heat more strongly on one side, he also had fresh ingredients. As a small celebration, he decided to grill some meat. He hammered it, though much more softly than he would the metal of his forge. Instead, he hit it just hard enough to make it tender. Additionally, he prepared some tea, which he had sorely missed on their journey. Only a short while later, he left the kitchen satisfiedly, calling Mercury from his room to have dinner. "How do you like it here, Starlight-kun? Are you happy with your room?" Yasashiku asked. "More than happy, thank you teacher," the mopaaw nodded along, enjoying the meal. "And how have your studies been going?" the old blacksmith asked again, leading to a grimace on his student''s face. "Poorly," he admitted honestly. "I don''t feel as though I am making much headway." "Hm, I see," Yasashiku murmured, drinking a sip of tea, then placing his cup back down. "Why do you think that is?" Mercury sighed at the question, and Yasashiku eyed him closely for it. "It''s because I don''t understand the hammer well enough," the mopaaw said, but in response, he only received a frown. Usually, Yasashiku would be happy about that answer, but it seems this time his student was just parroting him. "What is a hammer, Starlight-kun?" he asked. "A tool, sensei." "Correct, technically," Yasashiku agreed, yet crossed his arms. "Then what is a hammer to you?" "Right now?" Mercury asked. "Yes, right now," the old man nodded. He would try a new approach for his four-legged disciple. "It''s... unwieldy, I suppose?" Mercury shrugged his shoulders a little. "Yes, it is, isn''t it. What else?" "I''d say it''s almost like... an obstacle. Something to overcome," the student replied, racking his brain for more answers. "It''s heavy, clearly, because it needs to be. And I suppose it''s made in a shape that lets it hit things, one that doesn''t suit me." "Very good. You''re correct, it doesn''t suit you at all," Yasashiku smiled, stroking his beard. "Now, what would a craftsman do with something that doesn''t suit them?" The old man watched as a candle seemed to grow alit above his student''s head. "You change it, obviously." "Right," the teacher nodded. "Now then, what shape would a hammer that befits you be?" "Well, it would be heavy," Mercury said. "And good at hitting things. I should be able to lift it easily, and bring it down quickly. But it should also be compact, easy to carry around, somehow." "Those are certainly good observations. Now then, how would you go about making something like that?" Yasashiku asked. "I suppose I''d need to find suitable materials first?" Mercury answered, feeling insecure. "Indeed you would. You cannot make something from nothing. Now eat, before the food grows cold, and spend your time thinking what exactly such a hammer would look like," Yasashiku said, but even as he bit into the meal, his smile didn''t waver. This new student of his had exceeded expectations. Honestly, most people he accepted started with far easier tasks, but the mopaaw had been persistent about staring at the hammer, trying to figure things out. And obviously, it had paid off. But that result couldn''t come simply from looking at a stationary hammer. Rainfall-kun had spent some of his meditation thinking about how it would be used, being brought down upon hot metal, and shaping it. Without that image, the essence of it needing to be easy to hold would not have come. The old man was quite proud now, watching his newest disciple eat while lost in thought again. Perhaps he was trying to figure out what to make his hammer from, or perhaps he was trying to grasp its shape first. The order of operations now mattered little, he simply had to understand how to put together a hammer that was useful, one that he could swing. For a moment, the old man shook his head. Seriously, what an interesting fellow Alexander-san had introduced him to. This new disciple of his seemed to almost learn three things from being taught just one, which already showed not just talent, but also monstrous curiosity. Yasashiku smiled. With a little time, this disciple of his would make a very fine blacksmith. - - - - - - After Weddan came Lokdan. That much made sense, however what didn''t was the intense anxiety felt by someone very close to Mercury. However, that person was not, in fact, Yasashiku. Instead, they were much more sneaky. They slept outside the house, hidden in the bushes nearby. One of them even hid in the mud of the pool, and again other were always on the move, or melded together with something in the surroundings. At any rate, they were hidden. Of course, they weren''t hidden because they were anxious, nor were they anxious because they were hidden. All of these people, sticking close to Mercury were anxious, because they had heard the story of one of theirs, someone who had applied one of many tracking spells. And they were scared since they finally received word from their fellow watcher. "Beware," his letter warned them. "The target''s mind is strong. His will does not break. And it is sensitive." "Beware or he might find you." Those words alone were scary enough, but worse yet, the letter had arrived after that sender long since wasn''t shadowing the target anymore. Their employer, a figure whose name was not known to any of them, had unfortunately withdrawn from the whole affair. The letter the other spies had received was one sent from a place of professional courtesy, rather than compassion. But the words in the letter had made them more careful, their spells more subtle. None of them targeted the mind in any shape anymore, all of them simply kept track of various body parts. His skin, his lungs, his liver, his heart. Of course, this meant that there was a chance they would lose him, should he shed all of that, but given his current tier, that much seemed unlikely. Still, despite knowing all that, those who were tailing Mercury were more careful in their job by Lokdan, because they had no choice. - - - - - - Time passed, and after Lokdan came Freydan, and it was an important day for Stormbraver. Avery was woken up early in the morning, the smile he had from his sweet dreams vanishing almost immediately. The church bell rang. Not melodically, when it announced the time, but hastily, one beat after another, almost shaking the ground beneath it. The guild master got up with conflicted feelings. It had long since been clear this day would come, another attack from the north, and a more decisive one this time. They''d brought some of their heroes, and Avery knew that he''d have to take on at least one of them. Which meant that he had no time to lose before they would be appearing at the walls. Immediately, he leapt out of bed, and went to don his battle gear. It went on smoothly, every motion practiced a dozen times, every strap pulled tight and every joint well maintained. Avery Beckham was, after all, many things. He was a gourmet of bread, a defender of Stormbraver, he was a popular public figure, he was friend and co-conspirator against count I''htar, but before all of that, he was the master of the Godseekers'' Guild in Stormbraver. And as such, he was a fighter. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. After only a few minutes, his armor was already on. The emergency battle supplies he kept in his inventory were ready, his potions stocked up, and the same went for food and water. Within just ten minutes of waking up, Avery was perfectly in gear and prepared to head out. Not everyone was that quick, though, and some seekers would need more time. Until then, he would have to hope that the city guard would be prepared to help, and with a little luck, he''d find Kaga, Lucia, Iris and Esmeya on the frontlines as well. Since time was in short supply, Avery couldn''t warm up very well, but he still attempted to strike an optimal balance between running speed and exhaustion, making his way to the walls rather quickly, outside of which he saw the face of a woman he hoped not to find here today. The ''Crimson Queen'', Scarlet Inagra, was hovering in the air, supported by a blinding cloud of plasma. "Mothefucker," Avery whispered to himself, frustrated. This woman had razed multiple small towns to the ground, and acquired a bunch of exp to show for it. She was unhinged, and dangerous, and seeing her here meant that this was a fully serious assault this time. He really couldn''t catch a break. Looking around, Avery saw the city''s archers already engaged in battle, shooting down at the enemies. The wall shook, when the battering ram struck against the doors, but mages stood behind it, constantly knitting the wood and magic back together. There were early bird seekers, the ones that slept in their battle gear, and the ones who decided armor was for the weak out on the fields, hacking and slashing at the northerners. And of course, there was Lucia, on the battlements, staring at the floating Crimson Queen. Avery walked up to her. "Thanks for ringing the bell," he said, receiving a nod in reply. Of course it was Lucia, as an expert archer, her eyesight was leagues ahead of pretty much any other person in town. "Can you take her?" he asked again, nodding towards the floating hero of the northerners. "I can," Lucia nodded, her face grim. "But not without damages. How good are your seekers at making barriers, Beckham?" He grimaced. "Not good enough. Try to stall her until Esmeya is around, she should be able to mount proper defenses. I''ll tell Rondo, then be on the ground." "Alright, break a leg." "Multiple, hopefully not mine though," Avery replied with a wry grin, then ran off again to go about his business. He approached the old guard captain, Rondo, while Lucia remained still. Iris was not next to her at the moment, the aide already on the ground, taking down important targets while scouting for the enemy commander. She felt the fire bubbling up within her, as she looked at the most prominent hero in front of her. Scarlet was simply floating there, on a cloud of burning, molten air. She was not attacking, not because she couldn''t, but because she was issuing a challenge. A challenge to her. It was arrogant. Aggravating. Insulting. Infuriating. Lucia took a deep breath in and out, but the air only fanned the flames inside her. To see that someone wanted to challenge her for a title she would rather not have, a title she truly wished to shed sometimes, and now that the chance was upon her, she would be defending it? Ironic. [The individual ''Scarlet Inagra'' is attempting to issue a challenge for your alias, ''Walking Disaster''.] The system let her know as well. Lucia would fight here, for a title she never wanted, a city that shouldn''t matter to her, people who didn''t all believe in her order. And yet she knew she would fight, because it was right, because this was a place with good memories, because there were people she cared about who lived there. Taking a second deep breath, the air around Lucia started to distort. The latent heat from miss Incinerator in the air was making it less clear, but very soon, her heat matched it. Ever so slowly, flames appeared around her right hand, a bow appearing within it, one made of light and fire, of righteousness and retribution. She saw the face of the woman who challenged her twist into a smile as she nocked an arrow with her right hand. Scarlet created a shield of flames to defend herself, while Lucia drew back the bowstring, watching as the fire bent. Why was she so angry? The high priestess could answer that question easily. There were plenty of reasons to be upset. The disrespect of the challenge, the irony of it all, the fury she felt when a place she might call home was threatened, the fact that Iris had to fight at all! None of those were the actual reason why Lucia was angry though. After a third breath, her bow glowed brighter, her arrow turning from yellow to white hot. Her hands were steady, her eyes directed towards her opponent''s head. And she released the bowstring, with all the wrath she had inside of her at that moment. The fury she chose to feel. - - - - - - On that Freydan, the fields in front of Stormbraver burned. Esmeya Raventhorn, the greatest mage in all of Stormbraver had barely managed to stop the fight in the skies from incinerating the people fighting down below. Parts of the stone battlements had melted, and brave, foolhardy people had kicked down molten stone on the northerners. As any battlefield, the area in front of Stormbraver was filled with screams and blood and fire. The mage sighed, exhausted. She looked at her company, some of the brightest in her tower, the adults at least. Some of the mages had died, one of her very own students among them. The vice master of the tower still stood proud, taking over for her as Esmeya almost folded in on herself. Akuhl Trivela was her name, a short woman with light blue hair, and eyes so cloudy one could mistake them for being purely white. Still, she was the vice master for a reason. With a wave of her hand, Esmeya floated a step backwards, gently landing on a soft surface, on which she began meditating to regain her magic. The air was full of mana, and a storm of it was current moving as Akuhl began her casting. Almost immediately, barriers sprung into existence. It was the short woman''s specialty. Shields of ice and force and wind, which appeared at seemingly random spots in the air, only to block arrows and magic projectiles, one after another. She was using her exceptional mental prowess to completely optimize mana usage, only casting small barriers against targeted attacks, and the effect was clear. Stormbraver''s defenders died less, and the northerners died more. One man however profited in particular. Somehow, guild master Avery Beckham noticed that command over the mages had swapped to someone with greater defensive prowess, and decided to step up and cull the enemy army a little. The steam around his body increased, and if one was down on the ground, it felt as though he had grown taller, every muscle on his body seeming to push up against his skin. He exhaled thick smoke, with a sigh, quickly grabbing into nothing and pulling three potions form thin air. Then, he drank them all at once. Instantly, the shadow over his viser lifted, and with it, the passive version of in his eyes activated, a constant drain of his health. But as his eyes bled, the magic in the potions knit them back together. Avery roared. He imbued the scream with a Skill, and all around him, enemies fell to their knees. Then, he seemed to vanish, the arrows that Akuhl had been blocking suddenly drifting through empty air. The only thing that was left behind in his wake was a trail of smoke and broken bones. Those who had kneeled down from fear? Their necks were snapped, sometimes a single kick took multiple of them down. Spears raised against Avery were shattered by kicks faster than what should be possible, and when Akuhl sometimes failed to block an arrow, Avery simply caught it in mid air. The guild master growled as he tore through the battlefield, seeming more beast than man. Close to him, knees grew weak, and brave men buckled, until eventually, he kicked and was stopped by a sword. Slowly, his gaze rose, from the original target of the attack, to his new foe. A man, clad in heavy steel. A hero, very clearly. "''Lightfoot'' Avery Beckham, it''s an honour to meet you on the battlefield!" the man yelled. He wore a helmet, but some strands of long, blond hair poked out beneath it. His sword was as wide as a human head, and long enough to seem unwieldy. In a moment, Avery took in everything about this man, and made a decision. His visor darkened, and the bloodlust he exuded stopped, no more fear spreading around. It was because he could tell, this hero had aura abilities, ones to bolster morale. He would have made a good commander, but decided to instead try his hands at fighting. What was his fame? 764. Recently risen then, probably from this very war. "I will end your glory today, northerner," Avery growled. "That''s the spi-" but before the other man''s answer finished, Avery''s kick met his blade, shaking the man''s arms and ringing his head like a damn gong. Avery didn''t waste his time on banter. "," he simply called, using one of the moves the system acknowledged, and when the other man moved to defend his lower body, Avery''s foot crashed down on his shoulder, enhanced by all the might of his stamina and multiple potions. He usually liked young talent, but this one he would nip in the bud. - - - - - - Eventually, on Satyrdan, count I''htar found himself in his office. But the location mattered much less than the situation, really, because he was in trouble. Behind his very back, things had gone poorly. The battle cost many lives, on both sides, but Stormbraver still stood. That much was good. No, what troubled him within the reports which were found among the enemy army by three people. A seeker named Marcel, a mage named Guila, and the aide of the high priestess, named Iris. Somehow, the three of them had managed to sneak behind enemy lines. Marcel and Guila cast illusions, and Iris silently cut down anyone who got in their way. And they had unearthed documents which did not paint count I''htar in a very stellar light. In fact, the light they painted him in was rather poor. He hadn''t left a papertrail himself, but apparently, the northerners had not been quite as clean. Most of it was likely due to the difficulties and complications that simply came with waging war. Overall, the reasons mattered very little. It was found that he had supplied gold to the army of northerners, as well as information about the state of Stormbraver. The king of the northerner army had found out his name, apparently, and made sure that he would die a dog''s death if they were to lose the war. That situation was very much what he currently found himself in. Truly, it was a moment that tipped the scales against his favour horrendously. His alias of ''Golden Count'' still remained, but a new one appeared next to it. ''Stormbraver''s Traitor''. He sneered at it. Really, it was funny they called him a traitor. After all, he never held any loyalty for this city in the first place. His only loyalty was money, and the exact same went for the people he hired. Mercenaries, the lot of them. They would do anything for coin, and the thing he would need them to do next was to get him out. He could restart somewhere else, with a new identity. "Kaga, come in," he called, and without delay, the woman stepped into his office. "I need you to get me out of this city. Bag all my funds and let me take them into my inventory. You will be paid a tenth of my wealth upfront, and another fifth of all of it upon arrival," he said. Then, he looked at the documents on his desk again, trying to decide where to go. However, the woman in front of him did not move. Slowly, his head moved to face her again, an unsettling smile always plastered on her face, and her hands crossed behind her back. He knew that she understood the urgency. "What are you doing? Get to it," he repeated himself, waving his hand, as though to shoo away a fly. Then, there was a long pause in their conversation as Kaga''s smile grew deeper. In fact, the old count was almost sure he could hear her heart beat in excitement. His eyes focused, and he broke out in a cold sweat as he caught a glimpse of her hands. She was clutching them inside each other to stop them from shaking. Was it excitement? Laughter she was holding in? It mattered little. "MOVE!!!" the count cried, his desperation now clear in his voice. "No," Kaga answered calmly, extending one of her shaking hands to the side. "And neither will you." With a grin as bright as the sun, the naginata appeared within her hand, and the tip touched against the count''s chin only a moment later. He heard footsteps down the hall. "Good work, nutcase," the voice of a receptionist called. And moments later, guard captain Ronco stepped into the room. "Count I''htar of Stormbraver, you are hereby under arrest and trial. Would you please come along with us?" Chapter 114: Four days: Reconciliation; Greed, Mind, Blood. Chapter 114: Four days: Reconciliation; Greed, Mind, Blood. /Today is a good day, friends! The time has finally come. After so much convincing, and a rather long process of getting my honor approved, which included wrestling with an orc on a sandy surface, while both of us were covered in oil, I have done it. I have been accepted as one of theirs, and am finally permitted to hear their war drums, without being a target of the rhythm. Now, let me add some additional information to that. Orcs have existed for a long time on Chronagen, but they have not always been here. Once upon a time, they exited an arch, and grew sentient, aware of their own wishes, and their great champion, the deified Grobash-Yuk, went into the thing and closed it by its own hand. It is a symbol they strive for, to follow in the footsteps of their greatest, to show the same amount of willpower as he did. And that is what one needs to show the orcs to be seen as an equal. Tenacity. Of course, strength matters to them, and so does Skill in combat, but rarely will orcs respect someone who only goes for easy victories. No, it is all about grit, and the will to get up when knocked down. That is what I have shown to them, and now they drink and laugh with me as one of their own. The mighty race of furious warriors, now seeing some silly old human like me as their equal. It truly warms my heart. Even the blooded, the most strong and ferocious among the orcs, use their strength for good, most of the time. They only truly become scary when their war drums sound. Every beat of them is an homage to Grobash-Yuk, after all. Every moment a tribute of blood and fire. But today, that tribute would not be in the form of human life. Their war drums would sound as respect for me, as respect for my request, and rather than blood, they would spill alcohol on the fire to make it burn high. So high that Grobash-Yuk may see it. Now, that is enough of an introduction, what you want to hear about is obviously what it really sounded like. I cannot truly note down every sound in these notes, for if I would, and any reader were to use it in vain, the orcs may come for you yet. No, instead of that, let me describe it. Truly, the beginning of it is a slow build. The drummers'' hands move faster than I could follow, striking the thin membranes of the instruments countless times. Contrary to what one might expect after listening to popular tales, they do not use bones. Instead, most use mallets wrapped with cloth or leather, while some use their hands as well. The strikes ring out, dozens every second, all from one direction, echoing all around you. Truly, if that were approaching you, it might sounds like distant thunder, but standing right in the middle of it, thunder would not be enough to describe it. I felt as though the earth quaked, every bone in my body rattling as the vibrations in the air shook me, and I could feel myself losing my sense of orientation, even that of time. And then, from one moment to the next, there was silence. Only one moment of respite was given to the hunted, the target of the war drums, before they begin beating again, much more rhythmically this time, strikes ringing out precise times, with choruses of orcs yelling in between. And yet, it was strangely serene, gaps where there to be filled, and eventually they were. Not by the musicians, but the bystanders. The piece was completed by laughter, roaring laughter and the shattering of glass and the crackling of fire, as they tossed bottles onto the pyre erected in the middle. I could tell that it was not the usual sound to fill the gaps. It would be screams rather than laughter, and swords clashing, and I could feel my blood rushing faster. All around me, the thunderous drumming raged on, yells and laughter all around, and it was an experience I would wish on everyone. Because I lose myself. In the rhythm of it all, my sense of time disappeared into the flow, my blood moving through my body as I perceived every second on its own. Every moment was unique, to be savoured, and the next was a whole delicacy for itself. Yet because every moment was special, it was over in a flash, and the drumming subsided. We had begun in the evening, yet when quiet consumed the landscape again, the morning sun was rising. It felt as though, somehow, it was smiling upon me./ A chapter of "Musico Telofio - The Journey", written by Kurt River. - - - - - - On Sundan, count I''htar got what he deserved. Now that the spotlight was finally on him, his sometimes cruel loaning conditions were also unearthed. He lied on testimony once, and in exchange, he had an arm broken. By the end of the day however, that broken arm was the least of his worries. He was scheduled for execution the very next day. All the nobles of Stormbraver had turned their backs on him. It was natural. They didn''t want their names dragged through the mud. A wry smile found itself on the count''s lips. He felt strange, lying in his cell. Hungry, logically, and in pain, given his arm, but neither of them were his primary feelings at all. Rather than that, he felt something within him, a strange calm. Maybe resignment. No, that couldn''t be, he shook his head. Him, resigning to his fate? He had fought hard at every moment, for every single dark even, unwilling to give up even the smallest bit. His entire life had been lived in avarice, and truly, if he could, he would go on. Without hesitation, he''d fight more, become more wealthy, live in more luxury. But it wasn''t meant to be. His dreams of greatness, those in which he remained unchallenged, at the top, had crumbled now. He was nothing but an old, lost man in a cell, locked away for anyone to visit. There were no restrictions on that, after all, he was well guarded by seekers. Even if he escaped, there would be people tracking him the very moment. Adding all the magical and physical seals on him to that? He was being kept in the cell as a spectacle for anyone to visit if they so wanted to see him suffer. That was what gave him a strange calm. Maybe it was them wanting him to suffer? But he was greedy, he would not give it up so easy. So, he resigned himself to silent defiance. People came to visit, many of them, one after another. Men and women, children and elderly, everything in between. None of them cried for him. Of course, some people outside were conflicted, but in the light of all the accusations, what could they think? Thus he remained silent. He stared at those that came to gawk, the fire in his eyes extinguished, but the coals still smouldering. A girl started crying once, some people pointed and laughed. None of the other nobles came to visit, they had no reason to. But some people who were important did come. The council sent Gorm Gorm, the old man''s eyebrows not betraying a speck of his thoughts. He remained silent too, simply tapping the steel bars I''htar was locked behind with his cane, giving a nod as they rang out the clamor of metal. The count thought the old man would be happy, since many of the city''s debts were suddenly gone, and they could confiscate I''htar''s wealth. It mattered little to the man in question, he already considered his money lost, and not long after, the councilman left him alone again. Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Perhaps to wallow in self-pity. Of course, more people profited from the count''s fall from grace. Foss and Niro, the merchants, came by too, discussing what to do now. Firms were in need of sponsoring, and the loaning business would be expanding. They were already on the move to seize plenty of contracts before some of the city banks could get to it. I''htar looked at the two with scorn. They profited, he lost. After all, they were merchants. He could tolerate Gorm, after all, the council profited, not the old man himself, but the Merchants'' Guild was no such organisation. No, the two of them definitely profited, and seeing the relieved smiles on their faces made his blood boil. Especially the way they spoke. Arrogant. "You lost," Nira simply told him, not saying much more to his face. Her partner was less restrained, however. "Truly count, to lose such a gamble is sad. Why put your loyalty up for purchase? I''d pity you, if you were worth the thought," the chubby man said. I''htar hoped he''d choke on his food. They left, and eventually, Avery and Lucia gloated. The two were happy to see him locked up not for monetary reasons like those before, but for justice. "So, how does it feel to be locked up," Beckham casually started a conversation, hands in his pockets. The count simply stared back at him with anger. "Yeah, sounds about as nice as I thought," the man said, smile on his face only growing wider. It was the head priestess who truly seemed ecstatic with this result. She had hated him ever since their first meeting, from the very beginning, seeing him as slimy and untrustworthy. Order needed law, and he clearly did not care for it. That was the same as saying he spurned her entire existence. Seeing him incarcerated surely would please her. Yet after a long pause, her words were surprising. "Die a swift death." And then, the two of them were gone, leaving him again unsure of how he felt. The final person to visit him was Kaga. "Hey old man," she said, standing in front of his cell, wide smile showing her teeth. "How are you doing in there? Feeling caged? Like all the time I was working for you?" She openly gloated at him. "Really, I didn''t mind all the things you did, but you know what I did mind? You restricting my freedom. Come on, we both knew it wouldn''t last. Me, a bodyguard? You wanted a dog, not a mercenary. But I''m not a dog I''m..." she paused, thinking on what to say. "I''m free now." Those words were uttered strangely quietly. Freely. Kaga giggled for a moment. "Right, yeah, I''m free, what am I even doing here?" she asked herself. Count I''htar wanted to answer now, but he couldn''t find any words. "I hope we never meet again," Kaga simply said, then walked away. Only minutes after she was gone did the count know what to say. "Gods damn it," he muttered under his breath, his greed extinguished like a candle flame on someone else''s cake. Those were the last words he would ever say at all, since on Cluddan, his head rolled. - - - - - - In fact, that Cluddan was quite an eventful day, not just in Stormbraver. It was the day on which Mercury first swung a hammer. Of course, he didn''t manage to do so in the real world, but it happened in his dream realm. Now, if it was in his dream realm, how could we match it a suitable time in our world? Really, I don''t know why you would ask that of a narrator, but if I were the author of the book, I would say that it simply happened because Mercury only entered the dreaming phase after midnight. Additionally, the times of his dream and Chronagen are linked anyways, so an estimate could be made at the very least. Whatever the case, he managed on Cluddan. And he felt incredibly stupid. The hammer he swung was, after all, not really a hammer in a traditional sense at all. He had been so fixated on the shape and material before that he hadn''t noticed he could just change it. After all, in modern day, smiths also used machines to forge, why couldn''t he just make himself a contraption to hammer something? There were so many options, after all. He could simply have a metal tube and a weight he could push up and down, to store potential energy with . He could build himself some sort of contraction with springs and ropes and wires, or he could do none of that at all. After thinking about the material for some days, the mopaaw had come to a conclusion. Why not just make the hammer from himself? Yasashiku had given him that hint a long while ago already, but he really only properly understood it now. All of the extra bits were just flavour. In essence, he needed something that exerted a lot of sudden force on another thing. He''d watched his master forge a few times now, and that was the essence of it. A hammer existed to strike onto metal. So, all that Mercury really needed was something that hit another thing. He thought about all the hard things he had, and realized that his bones and claws were sadly poor candidates. They could get burnt, and that didn''t seem very practical. But what did he have that was very hard and thick but wouldn''t burn? His head. That''s right. The conclusion Mercury came to was to use his stubbornness to whack metal. Of course, that sounds incredibly stupid in the first place. If he wanted to go through a wall, obviously running his head into it wasn''t exactly a bright idea. Really, then why need a tool in the first place. But as with all things, it wasn''t quite that simple. Mercury had already ruled out bone and claw, so using skin and fur would be even more idiotic. He meant his mind. He could just shove the metal with his mind, couldn''t he? No, well, clearly he couldn''t, that''s why he needed a Skill for it. Still, Yasashiku had said the exact same thing. To compress his mind. That seemed to be the key. And that''s what he set about doing in the dream realm. And he was lucky. Because Mercury had actually done very similar exercises before. In fact, he had been working on compressing his mind for quite a few pages now. After all, it was this very mind he used to press against the boundaries of his mana veins, wasn''t it? That very mind he had slammed against the stone that made up that intricate network that passed throughout him. He had so much experience he never realized he could draw on, and now that he did, progress came so much faster. After all, the only thing he had to do was manifest his will outside his body rather than inside it. Again, that might sounds insanely stupid, but Mercury decided to give it a try in the dream realm for that exact reason. His dreams were part of him, to some degree, after all. Additionally, he had also already realized his will outside his body before, simply influencing mana. All of it was more about believing that one could, rather than actually needing loads of practice. Confident magician''s were common for a good reason. So, time and time again, Mercury attempted it. To manifest his will outside his body and strike the floor. And, as to be expected, he failed time and time again, too. So many attempts resulted in nothing that it could have driven him up a wall if there were any. He thought about the grass below him deforming, and nothing happened. About the soil being compressed, and nothing happened. Eventually, he got furious, and with the fury, he became more in touch with himself. He allowed himself to be frustrated, and let the frustration out with his mind. He imagined himself hitting something, really, really fucking hard, and stomped one of his paws down, only to feel a puff of air where there should have been none. Stunned, he opened his eyes, and there it was. A tiny dent on the floor, maybe a meter in front of him. He''d actually done it, he''d gone and fucking whacked the ground, and to a degree, he had learned how to properly compress his mind. That was the next step, Yasashiku would tell him in the morning. And it was called rijn. - - - - - - Finally, the last thing for Cluddan, happened during the evening. As usually during wartime, news travelled fast, and count I''htar''s death soon found its way to the ears of king Fulthur of Evlenor. As he heard of the count''s death, the king didn''t know how to react. Logically, it was bad news to him. The noble was a supplier of money to them, making sure the soldiers were well equipped and fed. Losing such funding was devastating, and a big hit to them. They also now would have less information about the state of Stormbraver. Their siege had failed, clearly. They''d been pushed back as soldiers from the front rushed to defend the city. But in that process, that very front had shifted further down south, and more territory was now being controlled by Evlenor. A few promising seeds had been lost in the confrontation, and seeing his kinsmen die pained Fulthur. It always did. Sending the young ones into war was never fun, and it never would be, but he shouldered his duty nonetheless. Which is why the death of count I''htar made him conflicted. To hell with all the funding and information. The noble had been a traitor with neither honor nor dignity. It was the count''s responsibility to bear that many more people had died in Nevarzahri than Fulthur could have ever hoped to achieve on his own. Did that make the old king happy? No. Death was a plague, and so was war, and yet he needed to risk one to escape the other. Famine was a cruel drive, yet one he had to give in to if he wanted his people to survive. And he was happy. Because the noble had died, he had good reason to end the war. They''d pushed south, they''d gained new land, and quite frankly, it was enough. With the final push, they''d caught enough farmland to make it through the next winter if they began sowing now. What his people now needed were farmers, rather than warriors, and he could make that clear. Even his warmongering generals, and the bloodthirsty young heroes would have to see reason, because they had lost a deciding chip. Their advantage over the aristocracy was gone. They now had fewer troops, and risking anymore people would be a pisspoor decision, that much they had to acknowledge. The longer king Fulthur thought about it, the less conflicted he felt. Yes, truly, it was time to stop this war, call back his sons and daughters, and have them command civil operations, rather than brutal slaughters. This land had seen enough bloodshed, he decided. It was time for the war to come to an end. He could only hope to convince the generals of the same. Chapter 115: Three Days: Rain Chapter 115: Three Days: Rain /There is a story yet to be told. Of a thing with many legs that hunted a young boy. But that thing, of course, had a life before that too. In fact, before it hunted the boy, it was entirely different from now. And that is where its story begins. Like most other stories, though certainly not all, it begins at the beginning. With the first signs of life of the little being that would eventually be the thing. After all, nothing starts as serious a hunter as the thing was near the end of its lifespan. It began as a stray, born in a land far, far away. Its skin was a leathery grey back then, too, blending in well with freshly fallen snow that carried some trace of ash. The thing, after all, was born on a snow covered mountain that saw ash fall from the sky occasionally. On just such a day, when ash fell alongside snow, the thing was born to a dead parent. There was only one parent, for two were too many to produce another one of theirs, one was all it took. But the thing''s parent had died before it was born, yet its warmth sheltered it for the final day it needed to be able to walk by itself. And so, the thing crawled free from the embrace of what was once its creator, another thing much older. When the thing was born, it was hungry, naturally, but it did not cry out. There was no need for it to, in fact, it knew it would be dangerous. There were so many bright, shining windows in front of it, but the thing could not read, and so simply had to wait for them to disappear. The sight may have been funny if it wasn''t so strange. A young thing, a being with wrinkly, grey skin, standing in a gentle drifting of snow and ash where one could hardly see it. Back then, it was completely frozen, scared that the screens of light may lash out if it even moved, and so it waited. Eventually, they were gone, and the thing let out a whimper. At the start, like all things, it was quiet and fragile, and so it knew it had to eat. And to its luck, very close to it, there was a source of sustenance. The thing''s first meal was one of its own, one with grey skin that was wrinkly and though, and it dug its long maw into it and devoured. All the thing saw, after all, was food, the warmth it had felt keeping it safe long gone from the carcass. After eating, it rested, muscles rippling underneath as the grew more, to make the thing stronger, more resilient. Unconsciously, it knew that the next meal would not come so easily, not to it, not in the place it found itself. The cave it was in would grant shelter for now, but the thing already knew that the next time it had to eat, it would need to work for it. It would have its first hunt./ (Legends: The Thing - 1; Ashen Snow) - - - - - - Reyndan wasn''t like Cluddan before it. The day was much more quiet, more solemn. In Stormbraver, towards the morning sunrise, clouds covered the sky, and soon drops of water began to fall from them. The rain was necessary and welcomed by the plants that still lived, and for those that died, it would help replacements find their tide. The fields, which had been first scorched, then fed with blood, finally calmed a litte, as the ash was washed away. The pyres of bodies no longer burnt, seeming more like a memory, and the skies declared the fight over. It hadn''t been without sacrifices, countless city guards risked their lives, and many of them died, but in the end, Stormbraver stood. It had weathered yet another confrontation, as the northerners pulled back. Celebrations were skipped, though. This fight had brought too many wounds, and now was the time to lick them, rather than to party. The city''s defenders weren''t unharmed, and yet, they were already busy with procedures. Luckily, many of them were taken care of by the city council, who had, in their old age, all kept away from the fighting. But who was truly hurt? Well, the northerners, of course. Many of their upcoming heroes had been dispatched on this attack, and almost as many were felled. Even Scarlet Inagra, the ''Crimson Queen'' of the north, had incurred losses. Most notably, the arm she sacrificed to barely block an attack from Lucia. Of course, that attack also went through Esmeya''s barrier to shield the battle away to some degree, and more than contributed to the fact that the earth in front of the city was now scorched, but nevertheless, the northerners had lost more. Just having Scarlet retreat was a sizeable boon to their efforts. However, from that last attack, two more things became absolutely clear to the council. Firstly, the war had to end, one way or another, and secondly, they needed to sort out a reward for the Church of Order. Still, all that could wait. For now, it was onto the rain to extinguish the last embers of battle, and let people grieve their lost ones in peace. - - - - - - It was Reyndan and the caretaker sighed. She had finished the work that begun recently. The blood eclipse was not a long one, lasting simply a day, and it was not enough to kill her, either, but so many of the creatures had come, and burying all of them had taken some time. With exasperation, she wiped the sweat from her brow, and leaned the shovel against a bench made of iron. She sat down on it, let her shoulders slump a little, and laid her chin in her open palm. Things had been to rowdy, recently. Going back and forth, making sure to round up all the bodies, it had taken quite a while. Still, even after all that while, the stench of blood hung in the air of her graveyard, slithering in between the gates of fog that separated each space. It permeated the serene place like a plague, like an insidious killer, like it was laying a trail for something to find it. Nothing would come. The caretaker knew that much, of course nothing would come. This realm had seen more than a simple blood eclipse, more than what a husk can conjure up. But it was a place of rest, and the fact that the stench did not see it as such? She minded. Eventually, it would fade, as all things did, but eventually was not soon enough. In fact, the more she thought about it, the caretaker realised that perhaps, she should take care of the stench herself. It wouldn''t be the first time she drove out such ethereal things, and as per the usual, it would not be the last time either. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Having made up her mind, the woman nodded, then leaned back on the bench. She would drive it out tomorrow. Today was Reyndan, and she had worked enough for a little while. The thought brought a small smile onto her face. Yes, that was right, she had worked a lot, and she deserved a little rest. The smile turned into a grin. Right, yes, she should rest. Take a break from all the shoveling and listening, make a request for stillness to everyone. They would understand, they knew what kind of place this was, after all. And then, once she had rested, back to work it was. She stretched her arms far behind her, the muscles in them groaning a little from relief. Just a little rest, all to feel a bit more human again. A slight drizzle began to pour down around her. Yes, this was good. Now all she needed was a hot fire and a good cup of tea to have half a day off. - - - - - - Now, for Mercury, the sky was clear. The sun shone down, unobstructed, and yet somehow, it rained. Because rather than drops of water, it rained sparks. He was watching Yasashiku forge outside, on the anvil. He was wearing smithing gear, holding a piece of metal between tongs and smacking it with a hammer repeatedly. Slag fell from the surface of the piece, getting knocked off by the impact, every stroke of the hammer heavy and firm, yet somehow gentle. The noise of metal hitting metal rang out loudly, and yet in Yasashiku''s eyes, the glow only reflected care for what he was making. Usually, to show off, he would be presenting his greatest masterpieces. Swords which cut through stone as though through air, shields upon which the hardest spears would shatter. Mighty pieces of armor with nary a gap in them, but he showed none of those to Mercury. That was what people idolized about smithing, the battlefields, the weapons, all the important stuff. But to Yasashiku, while all that was part of smithing, it was only one aspect of it. Perhaps the most beloved one among soldiers and seekers, and maybe even the flashiest one, but not the only one. He was forging a nail right now. As stupid as it sounded, this was one of the most important functions of a blacksmith. How often would people buy swords and pikes? Sometimes, certainly, but often enough to live a fulfilling life? Only in times of war. No, a blacksmith would craft what brought food on the table, and by necessity, they made items which were more commonly used. Nails for carpenters, as an example. They crafted saws and horseshoes, chisels, nails, and even hammers. Axes for chopping wood, the blades of ploughs to cut through the earth, and all manner of other everyday tools. Pots and pans, forks and spoons, hinges and doorknobs. A blacksmith who makes a king''s sword, sharp enough to cut a person in half with no effort at all, but who cannot forge a spoon, is a blacksmith worth less than half a dozen nights, both in terms of money and time. So, the first thing he showed Mercury was forging a nail. There were dozens like those in his house, and while one could do construction without them, they made things much easier as well. And to Mercury, watching the old man work was incredible. He''d really thought that Yasashiku was just talking when he said that every project deserved the same amount of passion, be it a blade you pour your heart into, its hilt carved from dragon bones, or a nail to make a house last. But watching him work? Mercury could tell that he''d really meant every word. Every strike of his hammer was fluent, as though in dialogue with the metal. It pushed and prodded, until the shape was just right, firmly and gently guiding the pieces in place. Some sparks of metal landed on the thick apron he wore. With a smaller piece such as this, there was not as much, yet to Mercury it was still beautiful. Sparks drew arcs through the air before their light extinguished when they cooled down a little, and the nail seemed almost like a fountain these strange fireflies dove out from, another handful rising into the air with every strike. And then, after what felt like only a moment of fascination, his new teacher grabbed the nail with tongs, and quenched it in oil. Of course, that was not the end of things quite yet, as the old master still had more heat treating to do until the nail was finished. Still, that could be done in batches, while the hammering had to be done one at a time. And the speed at which his master was doing it was one Mercury could only respect. - - - The day, to the young mopaaw, passed by rather quickly. He had dinner with his teacher, thanked him for today''s lesson, and then went to sleep in his chambers. After the long day of focusing and trying to absorb as much as possible, Mercury actually fell asleep rather quickly, and for a while, it seemed as though no dreams would come today. But if there were no dreams at all, then would we truly be here to hear about it? No, we wouldn''t. Quite frankly, if there was a whole section just about how well the cat slept, I am unsure whether I would narrate it or let Jeff do it for me. He seems eager to have his next appearance somewhat soon, but frankly, I''m rather hesitant in leaving him any amount of creative freedom in how he tells the story. Eventually though, he will return. Just as Mercury always ends up returning to the same place every few nights. As always, when he woke up in his dreams, he found himself in a verdant field, grass stretching out all the way until the horizon. There was a citadel of fire to the north, a sinister mountain range to the east, a castle of glass to the west, and finally, a small fountain down south. In the middle of all that, on the soft grass, laid Mercury''s astral body, as well as someone else who had come to visit once more. ''What is up, young Mercury?'' old Dreamweaver asked, their thoughts as clear and melodic as always. ''I believe you already know, old Uunrahzil,'' Mercury replied back with a smile. He was aware this teacher of his knew more than they let on, he could read it after all. Golden rays of pride underneath the small greeting, a radiance of content at their student''s growth. That is what dominated old Uunrahzil''s mind, and they made no attempt to hide it, either. ''This one sees thee hath taken upon another master''s teachings?'' they asked, gently. Mercury read again, and luckily, there was no envy or displeasure, simply a sense of light curiosity. ''Indeed, it is so,'' he said, and under his tone, he sent images of how Yasashiku was. Patient, but unyielding, reliable and firm. ''He is a master of craftsmanship. Mainly metalwork.'' ''Hm. It is good to have wide horizons, young one,'' Dreamweaver slowly thought, ''learning craftsmanship is a wise step for you indeed. We shall hope our teachings harmonize well together, shan''t we?'' ''Yes, teacher,'' Mercury replied, smiling. He could tell Uunrahzil was not displeased at all, in fact, they seemed quite happy with what Yasashiku was teaching him. Perhaps it was the down to earth nature of his teachings, but whatever it may be, Dreamweaver glossed over it this time. ''But young Mercury, I doth believe thee hath something else to tell as well?'' they asked again. ''Thine eyes pierce through me once more, old Uunrahzil,'' Mercury replied. ''But I believe thee have seen it already anyways, no?'' ''Uhn. Yes. This one has done so. In our old age, we have forgotten ourselves and even sent a message,'' they explained, and Mercury felt as though he could feel a tinge of... lament? What was so bad about the message? ''We hope thine surprise was not too great. We but rarely watch over thine life, young Mercury, and when thee understood the nothingness in between, we felt that, too. Because we are tri''ht. Learners, together,'' they explained, almost as though making an excuse. ''I did not mind. When I saw the message, I simply felt happy, that is all,'' Mercury thought to them, and almost immediately, he could read a soft sigh of relief. Perhaps the old being had lost another student over such a dispute once. He could only guess as of right now. ''Your words calm this one''s mind, young Mercury. After gaining ihn''ar of , how have you been feeling? Has thine perception of things changed?'' they asked. Mercury spent a moment thinking before answering. It was strange, he read some sort of expectation from old Dreamweaver''s words, but he really hadn''t felt much different at all. ''I have not,'' he finally answered, and he read a feeling of confusion back at him from old Dreamweaver. ''You... haven''t?'' ''No, I feel the same,'' Mercury thought. ''S''rit. "Strange",'' old Dreamweaver said. ''We suppose you must simply master the next step with more difficulty then.'' ''What is the next step?'' the young one asked. ''Visualisation, young one. Thee must see what you wish to make before your inner eye, let your thoughts glide and yet have them remain fixed on what you wish them to. It is in between meditation and dreaming, to some degree, it''s-'' ''You mean daydreaming?'' Mercury asked. ''Daydreaming? Yes, I... we suppose that might be a term you could use for it? To dream during the day, yes, for beings who sleep during the night it would be a good description of the feeling. How do you know of this?'' old Dreamweaver asked, genuine curiosity and surprise written in their thoughts. ''I can already do it, old Uunrahzil,'' Mercury simply said. ''Huh?'' and for the first time, the cat had the pleasure of seeing the almighty Dreamweaver staring at him speechlessly. Chapter 116: One Day: Hope Stirs. Chapter 116: One Day: Hope Stirs. /The Thing''s first hunt was most likely what truly ended up defining its character. Well, perhaps not the very first, but rather the first few. For you see, it failed in those hunts. It chased after its prey, running as fast as its legs would take it, its maw dripping and hungry, and yet the prey escaped. It ran too fast. Truly, on the first day, the Thing did not mind so much. It was frustrated, of course, and hungry as well, but the hunger wasn''t bad enough quite yet. In fact, young as it was, the Thing could hardly place what the strange feeling in its stomach area meant. But the second day was a rather rude awakening, when the strange and curious feeling became gnawing and painful. The Thing woke up sweating and shivering because of the clear demand for food. It had picked its parent clean, and there was no stockpile, so all it could do was go out and attempt another hunt once more, only to come up short. Empty handed. To tell the truth, that day, the thing felt angry. It was disappointed and hungry, almost madly so. Yet it had not seen the worst of it then. Because on the third day, when the Thing woke up in the morning, it felt much worse than even before. It was still small, still young, and as such needed plenty of food to grow. It had received very little, and in exchange, its body was quite unhappy. The Thing spent the hunt of that day more in battle with itself than the prey it was chasing after, beating down the pangs of hunger as best it could. But once more, it failed. Back then, the beast had become desperate, and not knowing what to do, it looked to other things around for guidance. It saw other things more like itself, walking around on their legs, snapping at each other occasionally, but many of them didn''t do so at all. In fact, they instead dug through the white stuff on the floor to find patches of green stuff there. Some of those green things stood tall, like towers, while other ones laid low to the floor like a patch of fur. Again others were more white and looked as though they wore hats. Naturally, not knowing what else to do, and half mad with hunger, the thing decided that perhaps, the green stuff was suited to go into its stomach as well. And for a while, it did feel sated, although it tasted rather bad. But vengeance came on the fourth day. Because the Thing''s stomach could clearly not digest the green stuff, and thus, the pangs of hunger were now mixed with more pain. The Thing felt sick, terrible, and threw up in the morning. There was no way around it, today it would feast, or it would starve. And naturally, the Thing starved for a long time that day, unable to catch anything at all. It wasn''t stealthy, it wasn''t too fast either, nor was it smart enough to set a trap, or bulky enough to challenge the bigger, slower things. Instead, it was small and fragile, and frankly, it was a miracle it hadn''t been eaten yet. Having been defeated, the Thing tried to lay itself to bed, but this day, sleep just wouldn''t come. It was too hungry, too ravenous for its consciousness to even consider shutting off. No, the hunger forced the little Thing''s tired, ashen body with wrinkled skin to drag itself up and out of its home, to roam the land in search of something that would suit its appetite. And nothing was found. By the dawn of the fifth day, the thing found itself simply collapsing in misery. It was hungry, so very, very hungry, and after roaming day and night, nothing had found itself in its maw. It had no stamina left in it to spend, no more energy to give, and so it had to lay down on the soft, ashen snow, as the cold drained into its body, and simply waited for its death. That death though decided never to come. Why? Well, naturally, because someone took pity on the Thing. It knows not who, and it matters little at all, yet eventually, the Thing woke up right where it had fallen asleep, many tiny glimmers of light in the dark sky above. Back then, the Thing was too preoccupied with the pain being gone, but thinking back, that was the moment that changed it. Now, it was bigger, stronger, faster, and had an extra pair of legs that seemed somewhat mismatched, yet still functional. And while the pain of hunger was gone and dozens of boxes floated in front of it, all the Thing could feel was greedy voracity, and a strange drive to hunt and rend. Because, in truth, no one had pitied it. Rather than that, the Thing had changed itself in despair./ (Legends: The Thing - 2; Metamorphosis) - - - - - - Old Dreamweaver stared at Mercury for a long while. They seemed confused at first, then bewildered, and finally simply surprised. The emotions cycled as they read part of Mercury''s own feelings. The sincerity of the young one''s statement confused them. Eventually though, they regained their composure, and laid their gaze onto a complacently smiling student. ''So thee already knoweth to visualize?'' they asked again, to truly confirm it. ''I do,'' Mercury replied. Uunrahzil could tell their student was serious. The feeling was strange though, so remarkably secure, yet still somewhat unsettled. Perhaps the daydreaming was slightly different from the true essence of what the old one wanted, yet they knew that young Mercury would master it all the same. Whether they already knew it right now or in a few dreams, it was all simply a single strand of silk in the weave. ''Then, young Mercury, perhaps thee could... "Daydream" for a moment? Pick something that is familiar to you, some object you can recall very well, the simpler the better,'' they thought, and their student gave a nod at that. ''I''ll do my best,'' Mercury replied to the old one, closing his eyes. He didn''t have any, yet shutting down his senses was still possible, and it helped him focus. Perhaps that was more because of the familiarity of the darkness though? No, now wasn''t the time to ponder that, he needed to think. Slowly, he sifted through his memories. He took his time, considering what mundane objects he had seen so many times he could remake them. The first thing that came to mind was his phone, but obviously that was way too complex. For a while he considered other things. A shirt, a pencil, cutlery, and so on, but at the end, he settled on a sheet of paper. The reasons were very simple. He had handled countless such sheets in the time in his office, and he was very familiar with the texture, size, and to a slight degree, the process of how it was made. At the end, it was dried plant pulp, pressed tightly together and cut to size. He knew what it looked like, how it sounded, how it smelled, how it felt, and even how it tasted because of a very stupid bet he''d made. And so, he started to imagine it, daydream about it to some degree, holding a sheet of it in his hand, no, maybe a stack, sifting through the pages one by one before putting them aside. He squared the stack up, and then simply held the image in his mind. ''I''ve got it,'' he told old Uunrahzil, metaphorical eyes still closed. Before the old teacher answered, there was a short moment of silence, and Mercury felt as though someone else was looking at his stack of paper, too. Then the second pair of eyes vanished, and he could read that old Dreamweaver would have shaken their head if they could. ''Unbelievable,'' they thought. ''Thee haveth truly almost grasped it. The only thing you are lacking is substance, though I suppose for the next part, a demonstration is in order. Open thine senses, please. You may drop your image.'' Mercury did as was asked of him, remaining silent, and now watching his master. Soon, he could feel old Dreamweaver''s mind stir. ''Forgive us if I am a little out of practice. My last ywe, last "work", no, "creation", has happened quite some time ago. Allow me to borrow your image,'' they thought. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. Then, right in front of Mercury''s eyes, something moved. It wasn''t old Uunrahzil, either, their mana veins remaining perfectly still. Rather than that, he could feel the air quiver as it seemed to part and give space to something that clearly wasn''t there. The feeling Mercury got was strange, almost incongruent to a degree. His sense of what reality should be, what he could tell was real, was very different from what he saw and felt. Because from nowhere, in the middle of the air, he saw threads appear. No, saying they came from the air was an injustice. The threads appeared from , clearly, filling a space that just wasn''t there. The whole process was strange, hard for Mercury to understand, but very clearly, old Uunrahzil had done something to prepare the space that the threads were now beginning to be woven into. Perhaps that was the visualisation they meant. Before Mercury had time to truly figure it out, those very threads entangled themselves, one laying down, another going over, the next one underneath, then pulled taut to the point they seemed to fuse. Each and every last one of them was dragged there by old Dreamweaver''s mental prowess, knitting themselves together to create something from nowhere. A space that wasn''t there eventually wound up being filled with threads of dreams, drawn from nothingness itself. And when the last thread laid itself down, Mercury was looking at a normal sheet of paper. The type you''d typically find in an office printer, A4 and stark white. ''How...'' the cat thought, and old Dreamweaver only smiled in return. ''Find the threads of the dreamweave, visualize what you wish, and then make it appear,'' the old one spoke. Mercury wanted to ask something, any of his myriad questions, but before he could, old Uunrahzil finished their thoughts for the night. ''I grow wa''hc. You make me proud, student. This one believes you will manage.'' And with a smile, old Dreamweaver vanished like so many times before, the paper they had conjured up softly drifting to the floor. - - - - - - The morning of Cradan eventually came, as the last of the Rain drizzled down. Ragnarok had been travelling relentlessly for the last few days, and finally, they were approaching their goal. They didn''t know where Mercury currently was, and even if they were there, they wouldn''t be of much help. Rather than that, they made their way over to the village they knew he had stayed at. Zyl had told them, after all, and he knew it from Berthorn himself, who in his gloating said that Mercury was with Alexander the Great. Thus, their destination was set, and now, they were on the perimeter on the village. For the guards there, it had been a slow start to the day. It was early, and they had just had breakfast, still feeling tired from the night before. Of course, their peace and quiet was not meant to last long, seeing as a gaggle of strange figures came closer in the distance. The one that saw the phenomenon first rubbed his eyes, then looked again, only to see that nothing had changed. "What the hell..." he whispered slowly, looking even closer. "Gwen, do you see that?" he asked his colleague. Not long after, the woman next to him also spotted the strange figures her coworker was pointing at, one of them seemingly on fire, while another one looked like a walking tree and the third like a block of ice. "What the hell are those?" she muttered. "Should we go alert someone?" Gwen asked Ren. "Yeah, I... I think we really should," Ren replied, grabbing his spear tightly. ""I''ll go!"" both of them offered selflessly. They shared a glance for a moment, and then immediately ran off together, telling each other to stay back. Luckily, there were three guards currently on shift together who saw the morons running towards the town center. "We should probably cover for them," the tallest of the three, Kre, suggested. "Sure, brilliant, I am all for it," Ryki answered sarcastically, his red hair blowing in the wind. "Come on, don''t be like that," Nora jumped in, tapping his side with her elbow. "Those newbies have barely seen the world, we should cut them some slack at least." Her words were reasonable, and a slight smirk of excitement placed on her lips. "Fine then," Ryki agreed, finding no reason to dig his heels in. "We go cover their gate, just for today." "Until they come back," Kre said. "Until something exciting happens," Nora grinned. And with that, the three made their way towards whatever the other ones had run away from. - - - - - - "You wanted to see me?" Alexander asked the party of newcomers, crossing his arms. They were a strange group, almost like someone cobbled them together by having randomness decide their personalities and races, but while they were strange, that was the least of his worries right now. His told him there''d be bad news from these people. "Yes, we did," Wilhelmia nodded. "A friend of the mopaaw you''ve housed recently sent us here. He''s in danger." "Mercury? In danger?" Alexander raised his eyebrow, watching as all of them nodded again. "What kind?" "It''s a long story, kind of," Oliva muttered. "Then keep it as short as you can," Alex answered, his eyes narrowing. If Mercury really was facing some serious trouble, then time was most likely of the essence. "Of course. The mopaaw''s friend has a few enemies, and they have taken Mercury as a hostage in order to force a deal. The friend is willing to take the deal, since a life is on the line, but if things go sideways, he''ll be severely hurt, as far as we know. Right now, he''s dragging things out to gain as much time as possible for us to save Mercury. We''ve made a contract to "remove any threats to Mercury''s life", so he''ll be alarmed if we actually succeed, and will otherwise go through with things," Wilhelmia explained. "Who is this friend?" Alex asked. "Guardian Friaminth," the singer answered. Again, Alex'' eyes narrowed. "Shit," he said simply. "That does sound quite urgent. I can''t have a friend of my grandkid getting hurt, can I..." There was a pause in the conversation, as Wilhelmia waited for Alex to speak again. Eventually, the old man gave a sigh. "Fine, yes, I''ll be off right now, then. Can any of you fight?" he asked. "Somewhat," Magma replied. "Good. Try to get there as fast as you can. Any of you who can''t, go find Marsh and tell them that I''m taking care of urgent business and will be back in a couple days'' time. Don''t worry, you''ll find them if you ask around," Alex said. "," he called out a second later, and a Warhorse appeared in front of him. "Any of you got a map type Skill?" "Yeah, I do," Eric said. "It''s called " "Good. ," Alex said, tapping the dryad on the shoulder. "There. You should be able to find your way. Try to be quick." Without another word, Alex set his foot into the stirrup and hoisted himself up onto the tall horse. "Giddyup," he said, tapping his legs together and riding towards the forest, going right for a tree. " ," he called, using a final Skill, and in front of the eyes of Ragnarok, the wood shifted apart to reveal a road in front of him, which he instantly set foot upon, and then, the path closed up behind him again, leaving them dazzled. "What the hell kind of travelling combo is that?" Magma asked, shocked. "I... I don''t know," Pul answered quietly. Travelling type Skills were usually in huge demand, so being able to summon a steed was already a good one to have, but everything else was just plain stupid. Being able to create a road on the fly was incredible, and the sheer amount of stamina that would take was probably hard to even imagine, but the true gem was setting markers. Being able to just set a target on a map was good enough. The ability to do so with map type Skills was even harder to get usually, even with one''s own Skills, but to be able to tap someone else and interact with their Skills was rare enough to be almost unheard off. The fact that Alex was able to do it so casually even meant that he felt no need to hide it, or the situation was much more urgent to him than they''d thought. For a few moments, the five of them just stood there, all staring after the old man who''d just rode off. "Haah, he''s at it again," someone said from behind them, leading all their heads to slowly turn. "Hey, I''m Marsh. You guys look a little shaken up, anything I can help you with?" they asked, wearing a friendly smile. - - - - - - After Cradan, Modan came again. Stormbraver had settled, and rebuilding was going fine, but things were not so simple on the northern front. Scarlet Inagra was there, after all. She had fought in this war from the beginning with a smile, enjoying the fire she was allowed to spread freely, and when she heard the news that it was supposed to stop now, her lips formed an expression of despair and anger. She was suffering at the moment, and then this? It was as though king Fulthur was trying to mock her fate. After losing an arm, and barely escaping the battle after that, she was now supposed to just lay down, like a beaten dog? To spit the treats she had eaten back out and just... sit back? No. That was not the kind of person Scarlet was. She couldn''t bear the very thought of that all, to now stop would mean seeing that damned priestess'' face every time she closed her eyes, watching her sneer and taunt her. There was simply no way she could take her mind off of this, before burning that twisted bitch''s face to ashes. Her mind was being made up. Yes, this war would not end yet. No matter what her king said,he was just that: a ruler. He had authority, certainly, and a good chunk of power too, but it wasn''t enough to chain her down. She was free, because there was nothing he could do about her. But that wasn''t enough. On her own, she knew she could not take down Stormbraver. That priestess was there, and so was the mage who guarded the peasants with barriers. Then, there was that bastards godseekers, now labeled ''Herokiller'' in the north and those damn slimy bastards that had snuck behind their lines. She didn''t even know how many they are. It was impossible for her to even imagine resting until she had their heads in urns, reduced to grey powder. Until she was the one above them, sneering at their demise. But she needed support. She couldn''t do it on her own. Yes, she would need to gather support. Thinking about that, though, would it really be very hard? Northerners were known to never take a defeat lying down, after all, and this, to her, was a clear defeat. Slowly, a grin found itself on Scarlet''s face. Right, of course, their king was the wisest among them, and that was his terminal flaw she would exploit. The generals were all brilliant in their own right, but they were also northerners. Barbarians to the south. Their blood boiled at the thought of defeat, and with a little prodding, perhaps... A plan was slowly starting to form in Scarlet''s mind on Modan morning. A plan that would not yet allow the bloodshed to end, a plan to topple the wise king and have all those who would still fight rush down south. A plan that would take death over defeat. Someone would have to fall. Let''s see if they could brave this storm too, then. Chapter 117: Final Day: Prelude to Bloodshed Chapter 117: Final Day: Prelude to Bloodshed /After its change, the Thing was faster, more nimble, and able to catch most things of the mountain more easily. It was big as an ox, strong as a bear, fast as an eagle, and ravenous like a starving wolf. In other words, it was almost as though it was made for hunting. During that phase of its life, after the first metamorphosis, as spite drove it, the Thing was almost always hungry. It could hunt and kill, then feast as much as it wanted. It ate, and ate, and ate, but was never full. The boxes in the air appeared before it, taunting it as it feasted, any and all food vanishing in its stomach and instead going somewhere else entirely. Never being sated, the Thing wanted to hunt more. Its muscles grew strong, each and every fiber pronounced under its grey skin. Its claws became sharper, and its legs monstrous in strength. The Thing was the ruler of its mountain, anything that moved on there only existed to be caught and eaten by it. Yet, it was still never full. Driven by ravenous madness, it swiped at the boxes in the sky, them being the only things that always, surely, evaded its touch. It wished so badly to be full, so badly did it want to be fed, and yet no matter how much it stuffed into its maw, it never was. The hunger was driving the poor Thing mad, and there was nothing it could do but try and eat to stave it off, even a little. But eventually, the mountain was bleak. There was no more movement, not the buzz of a fly in the air, because it had all been devoured by the Thing. Driven by starvation, the glutton began its descent after a mighty screech. It wasn''t a roar that came from the Thing''s maw, nor was it a cry, but a true screech. As though nails dragged across a chalkboard it was the kind of screech that made blood freeze in one''s veins, that made brave people buckle, and wise people run. It announced itself to the world, announced that the Thing was coming for anyone and anything it could get between its jagged teeth. It screeched so that they would run, run as far and as fast as they could, because it was coming, coming to catch them. By now, the Thing had grown even more legs, all of them multi-jointed, some pointing and bending in ways that were simply wrong. As the Thing left the mountain, its sets of eyes gazed down, and spied for movement, and soon, it saw a few other things move about indeed. They had strange colours of skin, a scale from pinkish to pitch black. But they moved. It meant they had flesh, they had bones. And thus, the Thing set upon them, hoping it would complete its second metamorphosis soon. But the Thing was also immature, with many things still to learn. While those people ran and feared it, there was someone, or perhaps something else who had also heard the cry. To them, it was not a threat or anything the like, but a challenge for their title. If the Thing truly wanted to ravenously devour everything, then it would soon need to be hunted by the Hunter. Still, the Hunter would take time, and before they arrived, there were other things for the Thing to eat. As an example, there was a boy, who was currently not in the village, and who was ready to come back to a dreadful, dreadful sight./ (Legends: The Thing - 3; Gluttony) - - - - - - That Modan was a long day. Mercury spent most of it in meditation, refining his mind''s hammer and giving visualization further attempts to see if he couldn''t land the concept. Being able to make things with his mind was any builder''s dream, after all, and Mercury felt that the possibilities of it were limitless. But he just couldn''t quite focus. There was something very small distracting him, a slight hint of buzz in the back of his mind. Maybe it was the shift of the weather, or the wind, maybe even the altitude, but something just... didn''t quite feel right. The cat felt restless, unsettled, and couldn''t quite sit still, but none of his senses picked up anything out of the ordinary. The mana in the air felt the same as always, the wind didn''t sound any different, even the grass on the floor spoke of nothing out of the ordinary. Yet, Mercury felt something was off. It was almost as though somewhere quite far from where he was, a clock was slowly ticking down. - - - - - - By the evening of Modan, Berthorn stepped into Zyl''s room again. It had almost become a ritual of his to gloat at the other man, to watch his face distort as the spark slowly travelled towards his chest. It was almost out now, far forward in his chest, and its glow seemed to faintly shine through, though perhaps that was simply Berthorn''s imagination. He smiled at the sight. Seeing this arrogant betrayer humbled was poetic to him. "Your time is almost up," Berthorn said with scorn, stepping past the doorframe. "A page more is what you asked for, and that is precisely what you shall get." Slowly, he began prancing around Zyl, wearing a mocking grin. "Tomorrow is the last day you have to spend freely. If you are not done by overmorrow noon, the mopaaw dies." After that, heavy silence hung in the room for quite some time. Berthorn had stopped behind Zyl, turning around and gazing out the window rather than continue the conversation. This was freedom to him. Usually, in a situation such as this, he would have to feel fear. Be worried that his red haired once brother would burst out and turn him to ashes. Well, try to do so, at least. Maybe he''d live losing a limb or two, yet what mattered wasn''t the result, but rather the fear of it. Very rarely were there times Berthorn did not fear. He was, at heart, a coward. He feared his superiors, and feared his underlings. Scared of a rebellion, he made sure to make them fear him just as much. In front of his superiors, he groveled, and bowed. Kneeling even when no one asked. As a result of all that, Berthorn knew how to read a room. He knew when someone was hostile, what words would bother people, and simply watching became one of his greatest pleasures. Because those eyes of his told him so much. He learned of secrets by watching how people acted. Their habits when they lied, who they were afraid of, and how to manipulate them. It helped him learn weaknesses, and with his eyes, he rose through the ranks. But even with all that, with status and nobility, Berthorn feared. Regardless of how sharp his eyes were, of how much he knew, he was still fragile. There were people out there, monsters to him, who could crush him more than quickly. And he was forced to work very closely with one of them. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. When his superiors assigned him to gather Zyl''s spark, Berthorn was not excited at the prospect. It was a dangerous mission, and he had to deal with a person he would rather never see again. Up until now he had asked politely, negotiated for it, even tried to threaten the country, yet every time the response was simple. Silence his pleas or be burnt to ash. Over time, Berthorn grew to resent Zyl further than he had even before, but at the same time, his fear grew. Like a wave, threatening to throw him off a ship, it started small but gradually grew larger, slamming into him with more force each encounter. He had barely been holding on, oftentimes running away. That fear fostered jealousy of Zyl, and even more resentment. He had to run so many times, was so unable to do anything, he resorted back to what he always did and watched. Berthorn watched as Zyl met a mopaaw, as they talked and grew closer, and a smile was on his face not long after. Finally, he had grasped a weakness of the betrayer. Now, he looked out the window, over grasslands and forests, houses down below the cliff, and people going about their daily life and took a deep breath. The air felt refreshing, relieving even, and he felt free. As though he had sprouted a pair of wings and was ready to take off into the sky like he had last done as a child. And Berthorn smiled as he turned around, a truly happy grin on his face as he watched Zyl suffer. His days as a shadow would be no more. After so long, he would finally be free. - - - - - - Zyl, on the other hand, wanted to groan in pain at that very moment. It felt as though his chest was about to burst, the blood rushing through his veins feeling like it was boiling. Waves and waves of heat travelled through him, frying his brain as he struggled to hold onto his thoughts. What he held onto wasn''t anger or resentment anymore, that could only fuel him for so long. The deep sea of his wrath was covered in a layer of flames. It was no longer a safe haven. Rather than that, where he sought shelter for himself was an island on there. One built from memories. His sense of self clung onto the rocks tightly, not letting the tides of fury or pain sweep them away. Each one was precious, precious ground to maintain who he was after all. Just maintaining that island wasn''t quite enough though. He clung to each rock like it was a lifeline, and he had to stay close to them, but there was something more to do as well. Zyl spent most of his time fanning the flames that enveloped him. The waves of heat that spread through were his as well. Because the spark he was getting out, the fragment, was also just part of him. On the side, he heard Berthorn threaten him again. The sea level rose, then sunk once again, like a wave crashing against his island. It didn''t distract him. He was just as worried as before, and still stalling a little. Each second was important, giving Alexander more time to find Mercury. To be there when he needed protection, to send him a message, any word at all that his friend was safe. If it didn''t come, well, when Weddan came around, he would give up the spark at noon. That decision was set in stone, all that was left was to wait. And to endure. - - - - - - After Modan came Tudan. The final day before Weddan rolled back around. The sky was cloudy, largely, and it looked as though by the evening, rain would pour down. Most people weren''t bothered by that very much, least of all Scarlet. She had sent out letters to those she hoped to consider allies, inviting them to her place. They had arrived Modan night, and by the time the sun first greeted the land, their meeting was held in secret. All of them knew what king Fulthur had decided on. That the war was done. That blood had watered the fields enough, and it was time to try and bring down cows and crops, construct gardens that would last and feed them through the winter. The idea sat right with none of them. In that room were many generals of the north, and distinguished soldiers as well. Perhaps the most surprising guest was Fulthur''s first son, hailed as Evlenor''s brave warrior. Scarlet smiled. If he was here, then perhaps that bravery wasn''t brave at all, but rather prideful or simply foolish. "Greetings, esteemed guests!" she said, throwing her remaining arm to the side, and conjuring up a second with fire. She wouldn''t be able to lift a glass with it, but it certainly looked impressive, and charisma was more important than strength in a room such as this. The idle chatter between the attendants ceased, as all eyes were drawn to the ''Crimson Queen''. Some of that was due to her volume, while others only turned their head when a small, invisible pressure set down on them. "All of you already know why you are here. You have heard my message, received my summons, and you have turned up for one reason and one reason only!" Scarlet yelled, her tone feverish. "You are not here today to hear me talk and say nothing. Thus, I won''t. I do not want the war to end yet, and neither do you, that is why you are here!" One after another, the guests nodded. Some leaned back and cupped their hands, wanting to hear further prospects, more slammed the table and yelled in agreement. They were not here because of the cool head on their shoulders, most weren''t, but rather because of their hot hearts. Only the first prince looked a little uncomfortable. That much was natural though, given the nature of her proposal. Scarlet grinned, again, locking eyes with the young royal. "Indeed, this war with Nevarzahri must not yet be over. Our clansmen have spilled their blood, have broken their bones! Many of our own families have made losses, how many of you weep for your spouses, those who died bravely fighting, and those who starved because the aristocrats do not recede?!" This time, the people yelled back with more fervour. Even the ones who had remained calm and collected before were dragged into the mood, as she rose the heat in the room. She could feel the blood of these fine people boiling, their pride and their anger as clear as hers. "Our king is a wise man," she said, making a concession. "But that wisdom is not what we need now! He is treating our lives like currency, aiming to buy enough land for the others to get by. He is saying that what we have achieved now is enough!" the words were ground through her teeth. "BUT IT IS NOT!!!" she yelled, slamming her fist onto the table hard enough to spill mead and leave behind a net of cracks. "This land we have bought with our blood is not enough! The southerners have taken so much, they made us starve, and now we negotiate in blood? That cannot be!! I refuse to barter with my enemies, I refuse to give them even a single inch of ground, I refuse to pay them, because THEY! MUST! PAY!!" The room now roared along with her. "I paid my own arm, and the king says it is enough?! Fulthur wants you to lay down your pride, bury it with your swords. He wants you to forget your grievances, your anger, your loss. He wants you to forget the winters that you have passed in a small home with no warmth to spare, the times you have watched your children starve, and the blood your families have given to this cause. But that is not what you want, is it?!" Everyone in attendance called back. "NAY!" It wasn''t enough. "Then do not rest!" Scarlet roared. "When Fulthur says to lay down your weapons, raise them! Raise your axes and shields, and run down south! Their city has braved storms, but what are southern storms but small winds?! We will show them a blizzard the like of which those bastards have never seen! We won''t concede an inch, we won''t lay down and show our bellies, we fight!" "AY!" "WE FIGHT TO THE LAST BREATH!!! TO THE LAST DROP OF BLOOD!!! FOR OUR FAMILIES!!" "FOR OUR FAMILIES!!!" the crowd roared back. "FOR EVLENOR!!" she called. "FOR EVLENOR!!" they echoed. "FOR BLOOD!!" she screamed, at the top of her lungs. "FOR BLOOD!!!" her fury was returned a hundredfold. The war was not over. The northern siege engine was made from these people. These generals and strategists, as well as the valiant fighters among the ones she invited. Their hearts burned the same, and their will was one. No matter what the king said, he served the people, and the people of the north knew the worth of their blood. Scarlet smiled sinisterly as the people continued roaring. Her eyes darted to the first prince, who had been dragged in. Standing on the frontlines, he''d know what it was like. Certainly there were people he couldn''t forgive, faces of southerners he remembered, those who had bested him, who had killed men he considered comrades. That was more than enough to let him rise up against his father. Perhaps, in the heat of things, Fulthur would die. She cared not. He was a fool for thinking the war would end so soon, a fool to ask them to lay down their weapons. She knew these people well, had grown up with some of them, drank from their cups. They knew her too, and she was trusted. Her words were heavy, and now they would bow to her. A single day was enough time to gather their forces. Tomorrow at dawn, they would stand at the gates of Stormbraver, a roaring blizzard, their hearts lit ablaze. What they had lost would be repaid double. What had been taken would be taken back thrice, and for every soldier they lost, they''d carve out four more on the other side. Fulthur wanted peace. His people wanted bloodshed. And Scarlet was ready to give them just that. ''You just wait, Priestess,'' she finally thought, listening to the roars for blood as though they were music. ''I''ll show you fire.'' Chapter 118: Day of Reckoning: Dawn I Chapter 118: Day of Reckoning: Dawn I /What the Thing did to that village is something beyond words on a page. It is something one would need to have seen in order to imagine it, and even then, it would be a nightmarish description. The Thing back then was hungry and brutal, a display of wild ferocity only possible to beasts or monsters. There was no flash, no explosion or anything like that, in fact, most of the buildings remained intact, yet the carnage was incomparable. By the end of it all, the Thing''s grey skin was dyed red, alongside the streets and building walls. Blood had splashed from every single person in the village, and when the boy returned, only an elder was still alive, currently being chewed to death by the beast. Of course, the boy ran. It is a story that has already been told. The boy ran and ran, was caught and killed, then ran some more. A corpse to escape and tell tales of the Thing. But the monster itself, still ravenous, still hungry, for the first time thought of something else than its need for food. The Thing thought how it could run that fast itself, perhaps being envious of the boy. Its feelings mattered little. After all, throughout the carnage and the chase, the Thing had been stalked. A challenge to the title of hunter would always be resolved by a hunt, after all, and if the challenger could not overturn being prey, then they were simply not worthy. Thus, after the boy had vanished, the moment the Thing thought about how it could grow rather than what it could eat, the hunter''s six eyes gleamed, noticing its hesitation. In a moment of weakness, they pounced, and a bloody hunt ensued./ (Legends: The Thing - 4; Carnage) - - - - - - At the dawn of Weddan, things in Stormbraver were moving slowly. People rose from their beds to tend to their business, be that farms or bakeries, blacksmithing or stabletending, whatever was needed would be done. Plenty of construction projects were ongoing, and those had to be overseen and funded, so the merchants of Stormbraver were perhaps the most busy. Avery wrung himself out of bed, and checked his bandages. Most of his wounds had healed by now, so he was able to take some off, but a cut along his waist, and some bruising around his shoulder still made moving ache. At the very least his legs were intact, so he wouldn''t be missing out on much kicking force. Nevertheless, as he did most mornings, he decided to exercise. No point in letting his joints grow stale simply because there was currently no fighting going on. He was glad they''d managed to repel the last attack from up north, and he hoped it would keep things quiet for a while. For a few more moments he indulged his worries before shaking his head to clear his mind. It was too early to worry about all that. Rather than spend his time with the problems of the future, Avery put on some light clothing, and went about his routine. He stretched properly, to make sure he was in optimal condition, feeling his skin heat up a little as it melted away the fatigue. He could feel his heart thump a little louder at the prospect of exercise, similar to the sounds fire cores in magical carriages would make as they revved up. It was as though he had stuck an engine directly into his chest, supplying blood wherever it was needed, his lungs drawing in plenty of oxygen to use as fuel, and his vessel supplying stamina wherever even more was needed. A small smile found itself on Avery''s face as he began hopping around. He shifted his weight and muscle density around, doing a few kicks to test them, before activating the runes in his exercising clothes. They were made specifically to rely on stamina, needing to be infused with a touch of it, before the enchantments locked into place and drew in ambient mana as they grew heavier and heavier yet. Done with his warm ups, Avery quickly descended to the ground floor, stairs slightly creaking under the increasing weight. He had not yet added his own mana to the enchantments, and for that, the building would thank him if it could. When his feet touched the stone floor of the streets, he finally did so, and immediately, he could feel his body almost being pressed to the ground. The smile on his face widened at that. He considered himself quite lucky to still be able to achieve some growth with this. A few people stronger than him truly needed to get creative on how to improve, so he intended to indulge the luxury of simple overexertion for as long as he could. With his mind made up, he began to run, his legs lifting off the ground, then crashing down with enough force to almost spit the stone. Luckily, the street held today. He didn''t know for how much longer it would, perhaps eventually he''d need enchantments that would allow him to influence the environment less, or Skills for that same purpose. It was a problem for the future him, and not one his mind was required to face now. During the run, he could slowly watch the sun sink its teeth into the sky, grabbing hold of it and rising further as it banished away the dark of last night. Feeling its rays warm him further, some of the pain from his wounds faded. Warmth had always been a friend of his, and he was glad to see it help out again today. Not too long after, when he was quite drenched in sweat, he decided to call it a day. He still needed to be ready in case anything went down. Usually, he would be doing more, but the damn war made sure to keep him on his toes. So, stopping a bit early to let himself recover fully, Avery released the enchantments and ran back to the gloryhall, feeling light as a feather. There, he took off his clothes, and began to shower with mildly warm water, which still cooled down his skin quite a bit. Yet, in the middle of it, he could hear the faint ringing of a bell, so loud it even shook the stone underground. Immediately, his eyes narrowed. "You''ve got to be shitting me," he groaned. - - - - - - Before the sun had risen into the sky, Lucia awoke in her chambers. Breathing heavily, she shot upwards, sitting in her bed and looking around frantically for the threat she had felt so vividly just moments before, until she felt a hand lightly touch her back. "It''s alright," Iris said quietly, her voice gentle as a feather. "You''re safe. I''m with you." Silence rang out heavily in the room for a little while, as Lucia''s ragged breathing returned to normal. The fear slowly drained from her eyes, and colour returned to her cheeks. She could feel the block of ice in her stomach melt away, little by little, as she took the time to compose herself. Still sitting straight up in bed, she turned to face Iris laying next to her. "I''m sorry for waking you," the priestess said slowly, after calming her heart, but as she looked down on the woman next to her, she noticed her eyes closed and breathing slow. She was already back asleep. A hint of a smile found itself on Lucia''s face, before she gazed out of the window. The sky was still dark, only a gleam of sunlight showing itself on the horizon. Seeing that, Lucia let out a sigh as quietly as she could. These last few days, her worries never subsided. She had fought for this city, for Stormbraver, and for its inhabitants. Many of them believed in the doctrine of the Church of Order. It was a godless religion, so it didn''t conflict with prayers to the gods. Lucia liked that. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. But she was also burdened by that thought. When she had fought, Esmeya had put up a barrier to shield the mages, guards, and seekers from her magic. What would she do if there was no such option, if she was forced to fight for the people in the city, but she would need to incinerate the ones outside the walls for that? The thought haunted her. That her flames would spill over to burn those she cared for. Once again, her gaze landed on Iris, on a burn scar she carried on her abdomen. It was small and faded, treated with healing magic many times over, and didn''t restrict her, but Lucia remembered. Her mind was beginning to race again, her heart rate speeding up, but she had been through this multiple times before. Right now, she was in a space that was hers. This room had become safe for her, and the nightmares had lessened, luckily. The recent battle had stirred them, but it wasn''t as though that had come out of nowhere. Lucia knew herself well, and she knew how to get herself back under control, usually. Taking deep breaths, she forced the "what ifs" back down, took away fuel from the fire, and slowly calmed her racing heart. As every morning, she worked on keeping a calm head. She hadn''t noticed much before, but since her travels with the beasty, no, with Mercury, she realized it again. Sometimes, she was too hot headed, the fire in her too large. She worried so much about burning people, yet when provoked, she didn''t hesitate to let that fire grow. Already, most would consider her control over it quite good, but most would also be aiming to charm her with smooth words, to get on her good side. Rather than having that happen, Lucia began to meditate as the sun slowly rose into the sky. Her fire slowed down and became smaller, settling into small licks of flame above glimmering coals. For a while, she gazed at it with some satisfaction, watching the radiant flames flicker up and down slowly. Perhaps she was imagining it, but sometimes, she felt as though they were hotter. After a while though, when this state had become somewhat natural, Lucia got out of bed. She prepared tea for herself and Iris, boiling water with a simple touch. Then, as the sun slowly grasped the sky and its rays began to illuminate the city, she gently woke her attendant up, tapping her cheek. The fragrance of tea tickled Iris'' nose, too, and after a little while, she rose with a soft smile. "Good morning," she said, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and taking a sip of the drink. "I hope you slept well," Lucia simply replied, equally happy. Of course, the moment wasn''t meant to last. Because only slightly after that, a bell rang out just a smidge above them, and Lucia''s smile was replaced by a frown. The flames in her chest flared a little higher, and the drowsiness was wiped from Iris'' face in a single moment. "It would seem we get very little rest here, m''lady," Iris said, annoyance in her tone. "You take the words from my mouth," Lucia snarled. "I suppose we have to get ready." - - - - - - The toll of the bell shook anyone awake who had been asleep before. It was loud, irregular, and terribly disruptive, so much so that it made everyday activities harder. Once again, it tolled to alarm them of approaching enemies. As soon as it rang out, the city became much more bustling, people retreating into their homes, guards stomping down the street to their posts. Doors opened and seekers in strange garments exited, while mages stepped through the streets in their robes. From the gates, those meant for individual people rather than the main one, farmers rushed into the city. Some carried tools, others chose to abandon them. Animals were taken to places that would hopefully be more unaffected by the fighting. By the time all that was done, the enemies were already quite a bit closer. The walls were staffed by every guard the city could muster, new and old. Up there, captain Rondo was cursing under his breath, looking at the horde. He saw quite a few rather famous fighters, even the king''s first son down there, and just looking on, their odds looked... poor. And that was without even considering the fact that Scarlet was floating above the other troops. Because of fucking course she was. Sighing, he spat off the walls. It really was as though these people came here just to spite him, personally. Then, a hand laid itself down on his shoulder and the old bear flinched for a moment, before realising who it was. "You had me there, master Beckham," he growled. "I see you''re in high spirits, captain Rondo," Avery retorted with a smile. "I couldn''t resist the temptation of giving you a little shock." "Sure, sure. Take pity on an old man''s heart, why don''t you?" "Kah! You''ll outlast all of us, just you wait," Avery said, lightly jabbing the guard captain''s side. "Now then, any good intel on who we''ll be facing?" "Well, yes. The north''s most fierce, aggressive, and hot blooded warriors. None of them will back down or flee, I can promise you that much. I''d recommend you don''t pull your kicks today, Beckham. If you don''t kill them, they''ll kill you," the bear of a man said, running a hand through his beard. Avery''s expression turned a little more grim. "Shit, and I thought you would be a little more optimistic than me." "It''s justified," Esmeya interjected, having ascended the walls as well. "I''m sure Scarlet is quite eager to burn this city to ash and riled up anyone she could for the occasion." Guard captain Rondo only nodded along with her. "Today will be a long day," Avery grimaced. "Do we have a strategy?" Esmeya gazed at the guard captain for a little while, then spoke again. "Both Akuhl and I will most likely spend our time on shielding duties. Otherwise, I fear our troops are doomed before the true battle even starts." As she spoke, her gaze was fixed on Scarlet in the sky, her flame-shrouded form drawing ever closer. "Any chance we could use it to our advantage?" Rondo asked "If we get them to fight before our troops step foot on the battleground, we might get them to burn only northerners." "Don''t think so," Avery interjected. "If we wait, and have Lucia attack just Scarlet, then her counters would be focused on the walls more so than the ground, especially if both of them are high up. That spells bad news for us." The other two nodded along to that. "I am thankful for your consideration," Lucia said, arriving on top the wall as well. "Your concerns are justified, too. That woman gives little consideration with her attacks, and forces me to retaliate likewise." "Then as last time, my mages will make sure you can fight unobstructed," Esmeya said, nodding towards Lucia. "Master Beckham, can we trust you to fight the first Prince?" Rondo asked. "He might cause trouble otherwise." "Only if you have my back, old man," Avery replied snarkily, eyeing the battleax on Rondo''s back. "As always," the bear of a man replied. Then, their time to speak was up. Not all plans were made, but further commands would be given as the battle went on. Avery hoped that Kaga and her mercenaries would arrive soon, since their strength would help many times over. With a final nod to Rondo, Avery descended the wall, normally for once, followed by the guard captain, as well as Iris, whom he shot a thankful gaze as well. Up above, Lucia eyed the sky, while Esmeya walked over to the mages and gave her orders. In the few precious minutes they had left, fortification circles were laid out, and the mana gathering arrays on the walls were activated, monster cores making sure that the mages could recharge much faster than usual. In the hands of the ''Voice of Order'', a bow appeared. It was made of radiant light, yellow and white, glowing with the brilliance of flame. She activated a Skill to let her observe things in more detail, locking onto Scarlet in the sky. Her enemy stood on a platform of fire. She levitated herself with it, somehow, or perhaps she flew regardless of it and only had it for decoration, like that flaming arm she conjured. Lucia scoffed at the sight. She was used to such theatrics, since many bishops and priests used them to impress common people, but she found them tasteless and misplaced in a battle. No matter. It gave her an advantage after all, knowing that Scarlet was already expending her mana, wasting it on silly gags. She would take any advantage she could get, this fight would not be easy after all. Finally, as the troops of Stormbraver stood bravely on the fields below and the walls above, Scarlet''s voice echoed across the battlefield. "We have come!" she roared, her voice still clearly audible in the city. "The north has come to raze your city to the ground! We will avenge everyone who has been felled by you, and we will not rest until all your or our blood has drained into this soil!" As she spoke, the northerners below her rumbled, their yells almost loud enough to match their current leader. "Come and witness the Storm that shall make your city fall!" she ended, and stopped the spell. Then, at the very end of it, as her mana stopped being used, Lucia fired. She had let the speech go on since it was a waste of resources, but now she could see the shields conjured by Esmeya fall into place. It meant the time to wait was over. During the last moments of the speech, Lucia had stretched out her bow and nocked an arrow of brilliant light, shimmering into existence from nothingness. She felt the fire in her chest roar, and claw at her insides as it wanted to get out, and she let it. She funneled all the heat, all the resentment she had after the last battle into her arrow, all the fury she held for the fire and destruction she channelled and let loose. The shot howled into existence, hissing as it lit the air around it aflame with heat. It screeched as it soared across the sky for a split second, then it smashed into walls of spells conjured by Scarlet. It smashed through the first and the second, then melted the third one apart, and then eventually lost its momentum and flickered out of existence. "Fine, priestess," the woman in the sky hissed with murderous glee. "Let our battle begin." With that, the troops began to rush at each other. Chapter 119: Day of Reckoning: Dawn II Chapter 119: Day of Reckoning: Dawn II /The Hunter was born ordinary, back in the day. A beastkin child with six eyes, related to a rare kind of spider, but nothing that was beyond reason. They grew up quickly, as most kin do, learning to walk and speak at an earlier age than most humans. Soon, they began to go out with their parents to travel, and provide for the village. They learned to till soil and farm crops, to stitch travelling clothes back up, and even to fletch arrows. In essence, they were being raised as a truly self sufficient child, able to take care of themselves in the future. It was normal to do so for beastkin. After all, quite many of them were taken with the desire to roam, rather disliking being bound to one place, and it was only customary to teach one''s child anything they needed to know about travelling in preparation for such. Traditionally, the children would set out after they came of age, yet tradition and practice are often quite different from each other. Thus, being an impatient child and with accepting parents, the Hunter set off as soon as it was deemed largely safe. Travelling could never truly be done with guaranteed success, but at the age of twelve, the Hunter had learned a good chunk of things. They were strong and could most likely provide for themselves. With a pack on their back, and nothing else to their name, they hugged their parents goodbye and went off, into the wilderness. There was something there drawing them. It was clear, so very clear, a string that tugged at their very soul, it felt. It had been there since the first time they''d hunted, an ethereal connection to somewhere. The location of the call always shifted, moved around, rested in place only rarely. Whatever there was on the other side, the young Hunter yearned to see it, or to meet them. And it was only additional motivation that on the way there, they''d be hunting quite a bit./ (Legends: The Hunter - 1; Wilderness Calling) - - - - - - As soon as Scarlet had fended off Lucia''s first arrow, a second and third arrived, each of them smashing through a few barrieres, only to be stopped in the end. The fire-clad woman stretched out her missing arm in exchange, and a torrent of flame began to rain down from her position in the sky, towards Stormbraver''s city walls. Lucia grit her teeth at this. She had hoped to remain on the walls for a little longer, but this would force the mages to put up even more shielding, expending resources they didn''t have. Quickly, with a wave of her hand, the radiance within her condensed into a thick pane of glass before her, pushing the flames away, and she used more of it to create steps in thin air. Stepping from one circular platform to another, each barely wider than her feet, she jumped into the air, glimmering fire below her feet, until she stood eye to eye with Scarlet, removed further from the wall. She drew a deep breath as she pulled back the bowstring, watching the other woman''s mouth turn into a sneer. Surely, she was going to start spewing mockeries again if Lucia let her, but today, the priestess was in no mood for jests. The fire within her reached out, condensed in her hands and formed an arrow. It bubbled up further, more and more of it spilling out, as though boons from a fountain of infinite wealth. The heat was beginning to distort the air around Lucia, yet she already saw Scarlet knit more and more shields in front of her. After a few more moments, Lucia let go of the arrow she had pulled back, and it drilled forward with a torrent of flame. It wasn''t a move, not quite yet at least, but it was certainly powerful enough to set the scene, since she felt it would not be stopped easily. That much was true. Very quickly, the arrow shot through multiple shields, making the plates of magic shatter like glass, before the vortex of fire around the arrow consumed them whole, devouring them as though fuel. It destroyed each and every last one, before it reached Scarlet, but the madwoman was unperturbed, instead opting to grab the arrow with her intact hand. Her flesh bubbled and seared at the contact. Even though she had clad her hand in her own fire, Lucia''s radiance still managed to burn it, almost effortlessly. The sneer on Scarlet''s face widened. "Such a fearsome ability those flames are, and yet you release them only so carefully," she mocked. "Go on then, turn to me to ash. I dare you, priestess." No answer came. "Keep your piece, then," Scarlet frowned, "and I shall give you mine. ." This was why Lucia hated fighting Scarlet. Most of her Skills and moves had extreme reach, working everywhere in a specific area around the caster. She quickly took her own fire and wove it into a shield above her head, as she saw the glimmering sparks begin to form. Crimson flames compressed to fill only a tiny area, looking more like fireflies than flames, yet as soon as they touched, their precious balance would be offset, the magic wrapping them broken, and the fire would spill forth. Lucia felt the heat increase around her, and gazed at the shields down below, watching as slowly, the fireflies drifted down, impacted and rocked the barrier, as everything above it was soon hidden behind a complete wall of magical fire. It got worse. The Skill would only end with Scarlet cancelling it, and she surely wouldn''t do it out of the kindness in her heart. Loss of concentration, lack of mana, or death. Those were the conditions. Until then, the cinders would continue to rain down, and Lucia had to end this battle before they consumed the shields. Her own defense held, for now, but she already saw Scarlet cast her next Spell, and she felt as though she could hardly allow that. Quickly, Lucia summoned her own magic. "Judicial flame, may you consume the cruel one before me, end her life of sin and let her ashes fuel peace. ," she gave the magic a quick chant meant for combat, rather than the full version, but it was still enough to help direct much more of her mana into it. The cinders summoned by Scarlet were blown away and torn apart by the roar that followed. White flames spewed forth in front of Lucia, gathering as her magic power lit itself aflame, devouring the fuel given to them as they surged. Scarlet could see it grow, and her face darkened a little, watching the flames intertwine as they began to take shape. Immediately, she conjured a gust of wind, moving as many of the cinders as she could in front of the forming flame, before she herself began to cast another Skill. Her missing arm drew glyphs in the air at terrible speeds, while the one she had left was instead used for gestures to help her focus, like a director''s baton. She spoke not a single word, working the magic with her mind alone, a smaller zeyjn dedicated to keeping up the rain of cinders, while her main self began to tie knots and expend magical power. Before Lucia''s huge weapon finished taking shape, a magical circle lit up in front of Scarlet, one meant to support the spell taking hold and create the fire she needed for it, rather than immediately immolating her magical power. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. "Burn this, you bitch! !" Scarlet screeched, hoping her voice would reach louder than the roaring fire in front of her. The radiance had almost finished assembling, crafting itself into a spear that seemed ready to stab through even a god. Licks of flame covered it up and down, as it began to glow, almost ready to fire. Scarlet bit her lips, to the point where she tasted a little blood, but she still had faith in her own magic. Having finished the call for it, the system guided her mind through the final steps, finishing it up as the noise grew even more deafening. Her fire crackled and screeched, the sound akin to nails on a chalkboard, as a bowl of crimson fire began to take shape. It seemed the kind a statue might hold, if it weren''t the colour of blood. Scarlet''s flames burned bright in it, and the moment it appeared, Lucia''s spear already besieged it, grating against what Scarlet had summoned. Both of them were already knitting further spells though, their mind at work. Luckily, with her zeyjn still keeping up the rain, Lucia''s spear was being consumed, bit by bit, as the flames intertwined and eventually became one, dissolving into orange, almost mundane looking fire. But with the sparks still raining down and burning at Lucia, the priestess was the one pressed for time. Scarlet hoped it would mess up her casting, and perhaps it was the thrill of the moment, but she thought she could see the barriers erected around them fade a little. Outside of it, Esmeya was sweating. "Maniacs," she whispered under her breath. "Complete fucking maniacs." Akuhl beside her hardly even found a voice to speak, and most mages felt the same, their figures rocked by the continuous explosions of the cinders against their magic. The gathering arrays were working at full power, and still they were actually popping cores and crystals to refuel their reserves, some even already drinking full fledged mana potions. It hadn''t even been three minutes! The tower master grit her teeth and renewed her determination, plunging her mind deep into her magical reserves and drawing out even more power to fuel the barriers. Such large scale operations were usually inefficient, and she could feel the horrid drain from that fact now, but it wasn''t as though they had a choice, unless they could block every cinder on its own. Esmeya wagered that even one of those sparks had enough power to take down a half dozen guards, maybe more if it landed in the right spot. If the price for saving those lives was a little exhaustion and mana on her side, she would gladly pay it. She just hoped that the mages wouldn''t be missed enough on the ground for the battle to be lost. Unlike Esmeya, Lucia was not yet running out of mana. The reserve of the flame within her drew on it, sure, but she could supplement that with other fuel as well, stamina, mental strength, even agner and fury. It was a flame made to consume, and that was why she couldn''t release it properly. It might consume the barrier as well. Still, she looked at Scarlet, or rather the wall of fire in front of the madwoman with grim determination. She allowed her anger to flare up just a little, the flames within her to burn slightly brighter, and then summoned them upon her bow again. By now, the air inside the barrier was scorching, hot enough to melt away the skin of a regular person, but the fire in Lucia was hotter still. As it manifested onto the bow, she could see Scarlet perform gestures. It seemed as though her replacement arm hadn''t been as much of a waste as she though, since the fire, being her own, did conduct her magic at least. Having found that out, Lucia decided to blow it away again, just as she had done before, and so, she began to cast the magic that would make her arrow soar. It consisted of a call to the flame within her. A request, rather than an order, yet angry as it was, it listened gleefully, wrapping itself more densely around the arrow with the fury of law. Her fire was one of purity and order, and this little trick made full use of that fact. The more chaotic the system it touched, the easier it would devour it. In short, the fire fed off of entropy. Not entirely, but somewhat, of course. She had used it to smash through all of Scarlet''s flames before, and she was more than certain it would work even better now, with her missing arm making even the magic in her body more chaotic. To keep it hidden, she chanted nothing, only quietly calling out its name. "." The deafening roar of the fire quieted a little as the attack shot forth. Without a chant, it came out before Scarlet had prepared her next move, breaking through the cinders and the kiln without any issue at all. It looked almost slow as it pierced through it all, yet that slowness still didn''t give Scarlet a chance to react. Her eyes opened wide as she saw the arrow come ture. Her insides twisted, and she felt as though she might throw up just looking at the thing. It went against her very nature, against the fire she cherished so much, and now it was coming for her again? She had hoped it was a last trick up the priestess'' sleeve, thought it took all of her mana to conjure something so blatantly stupid, and now she had lost the gamble. Of course, the arrow struck true. There was nothing, not a single thing Scarlet could do to stop her. And it hit her arm of flame at the shoulder joint, digging away even more of her flesh as anything even around the arrow was devoured. The stump Scarlet still had was gone now, alongside her shoulder. It had ripped a chunk out of her back and the pain was so incredible, she vomited on the spot. ''Shit,'' she thought. ''Shit. Shit! SHIT!!'' Scarlet cursed herself as fury ran through her veins. Her legs had buckled and she was kneeling in the sky. Perhaps she would have frothed at the mouth if her spit didn''t evaporate the moment it left her body. The crimson queen clenched her teeth so hard they almost shattered. "You," she ground out through the pain, gazing at Lucia. She cared no longer for killing the priestess. "I''ll take everything you love from you!" And Scarlet began to make true on her words. Still acting defeated, kneeling on the ground letting out sobs that were swallowed by the crackling fire, her mind began to knit spells. The cinders slowly faded as she released the zeyjn, instead using everything she had left on three more spells. She used a function of her title, turning wrath into magic through a special binding. Lucia looked down and knew she won. It was Scarlet''s acting that let her have some semblance of victory this time. Three spells. The first one roared forth and smashed the barrier. Lucia was stunned at this display. Where had that power come from?! immediately, she began to cast more magic, firing another arrow at Scarlet, but that was too late. With the barrier broken, the fire fell, and began to leak out onto the battlefield below. Soldiers screamed, and seekers were burning at the moment. Yet, Lucia was not allowed to think on that. The second spell was headed for Iris. She didn''t hesitate, her mind made up. The barriers keeping her in the sky disappeared, and she used as much magic as she could to propel herself in front of her attendant. Her friend. Her everything. Iris'' eyes opened wide as she saw the display, and she attempted to run. Not away, nothing like that, but throwing herself in front of the spell to save Lucia. She had always been faster than the priestess, surely she could do it this time again- It wasn''t meant to be. Seeing Iris'' attempt, Lucia redoubled her efforts and landed in front of the pale woman, shortly followed by the sound of skin being pierced and burned. Blood leaked from the priestess mouth. Iris gazed at her stomach, fire burning through the woman in front of her. The crimson flames licked at her skin, having broken through the back and front of her armor, and a sickening sizzling rang out from the wound. "Raise your gaze," Lucia called, looking into Iris'' eyes. There was blood on her lips. "I wish to see you. Please." "D- don''t do this to me," Iris whimpered, slowly meeting the eyes of Lucia. "Please don''t go." The priestess smiled, turned her head, and spit a little blood before looking back at Iris. "You''ve taught me much," she said. "No." "I''ll hold those teachings in my heart." "No!" "I love you," Lucia said, and laid her lips on Iris'' before she could scream a third time. Her eyes were closed, and tears began to stream down Iris'' face. After a few long moments, Lucia withdrew, wiped away one tear with her thumb, and gazed at Iris. "No, please, someone, anyone, please..." her voice faded into a whimper, and her legs buckled as Lucia fell onto her, the flames in her stomach gone, leaving only a gap there. The priestess eyes were open, only love reflecting in them. Love and a pale glow. What was that? Iris gasped for air, holding onto this last strand of hope. "Lucia," she shook the priestess. "Lucia!" A hint of life returned to the priestess'' form, her heart beating as the one she loved requested it. And she saw it. A lifeline, an opportunity to give more of herself, to spend just a second more with Iris. She would give anything for that. [Your have found a path forward for !] [Checking Qualifications. Path found. Maximum level long since acquired.] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] Yes. Please, yes. [A strong emotional reaction has been detected. The Skill will follow the path laid out for it by the individual.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution.] U- us-... Her mind was too cloudy, she couldn''t quite focus enough to use it. Slowly, her eyes grew hazy again, the hopeful smile almost wiped from Iris'' face. It made Lucia so sad, she wanted to see her happy, she truly did... [The Skill reacts to the individual''s desire.] A small spark lit up in Lucia''s chest. A spark inspiring hope of good, hope of betterment. If only there wasn''t a third spell Scarlet cast. Because of that third spell, Stormbraver burnt. Chapter 120: Day of Reckoning: Dawn III Chapter 120: Day of Reckoning: Dawn III - - - - - - Warning: This chapter contains graphic violence and depictions of gore that may not be suitable for all readers. Viewer discretion is advised. - - - - - - There was no prelude to the attack. Avery had simply been on the ground, fighting his heart out, when he heard shattering glass, and his world was enveloped by fire. When the barriers broke, Esmeya was sent vomiting on the walls, the shock reverberating through the mages and sending them to their knees as their cores were drained. The master of the guild fell onto the floor, barely holding herself up with her hands, as her stomach emptied itself onto the stones that filled her field of vision. The stain didn''t remain for long though, when the waves of heat from the battle spilled over and turned even the sweat on the mages'' foreheads to vapour. A moment after the pain struck, Avery tried to draw in breath. His skin, which had been hot before, was now being cooked off his very flesh, and he sharply drew in air, only to regret it. He felt it when the heat touched his teeth, but by then it was already too late. Breath so hot it could almost melt metal entered his lungs, and if he was capable of it, Avery would have screamed. The people around him were less lucky, not even wearing visors, as some of them had their eyeballs boiled within the sockets. It was incomparable, pain harsher than anything he had felt before, and Avery felt his knees buckle before the flames receded. The damage had been done, and the scorching heat remained, making breathing impossible, but from underneath his visor, he saw. He watched, as Lucia plummeted from the sky alongside a spear of fire, overtaking it, and shielding Iris as the flame dug into her body. He watched her fall to her knees with tears in her eyes, and it filled him with fury. His legs were shaking, barely letting him stand as it was, the muscles on them charred, but he remained standing nonetheless. Only to witness a third spell cast by Scarlet, a torrent of fire that shot out, over the walls, and into the city proper. Stormbraver burned. As though someone had tossed kindling to a hungry fire, it consumed the houses, and the screams reached Avery''s ears. His pupils contracted, and he felt his heart drop. His gaze rose to the sky, where the figure of Scarlet shook. Was it with laughter or with weakness? Did it really matter? The man remained standing as tears formed in the corners of his eyes. "No," he mouthed, not a noise leaving his lungs. The flesh of them was seared and sticky, unable to draw in air. His skin was bubbling and blistering as he stood, and looked towards the northerners ahead of him. They were looking just as miserable as he was, but it was not an excuse. None of it was. Their first prince, a young adult, in his mid twenties, had been fighting Avery up until now, alongside a few other heroes. They''d stood further away, one of them a mage who had put up a shield for them, and they seemed even better off than most of their army. Avery''s lips moved, not a sound leaving them, as his vision blurred. "You took my city from me," he mouthed. He didn''t know what else to say. It wasn''t just the city. They took his people, his seekers, and his friends. They took the lives of those he swore to protect, breaking his oaths on his behalf. And all for what? "Pay," he mouthed, soundlessly. Slowly, his knees stopped shaking. No air entered his lungs, the screams growing more quiet and distant, as the rushing of Avery''s blood through his veins became the only sound he heard. His skin hissed as he moved, steam rising from it as the muscles he called on set into motion, even given the terrible shape they were in. "This monster..." he heard one of the northerns whisper, but their talk soon stopped. Avery had kicked, and they now lacked a head. His armor stuck to his body like glue, having burned itself onto him. Every movement hurt, but Avery didn''t relent. Steam left his mouth as his saliva evaporated, burning his tongue. The seeker was silent, by force rather than by choice, and took another shaky step forward. Someone tried to attack him, but before Avery even realized it, they dropped dead on the floor. Had his leg moved? His arm? No matter. Another step forward, and he saw the mage who shielded the prince and his cohort flinch back. One of the northerners closer to him raised a shield, thinking it might stop Avery. It did not. After another step, Avery staggered to the side, barely catching himself and raising himself up. His legs hurt so bad, at least in the spots he could still feel them, but he was slowly losing that feeling. He wouldn''t fall, though. "Pay," he mouthed again, to the prince, still not drawing breath as he staggered another few steps closer. Then, they were within range, and Avery knelt down. From his belt, the fumes of evaporated potions entered his nose, mixed into a concoction of drugs that should kill a man on the spot. Avery stood, then leapt at them, and before the mage had a chance to chant a spell, he had set foot on her. The heavy shoes he worse impacted her chest, breaking the ribs beneath and more. She was dead before she hit the floor. Avery withdrew his bloody boot. One of the cohort swung a sword, but it was met with Avery''s leg in mid air, and once again, the guildmaster claimed a life. One more kill later, and it was just him and the prince. He looked so scared. Slowly, Avery leaned forward, until his face was inches from the prince''s, and he grabbed the young man''s throat with his misshapen hands. "Why?" he mouthed, not a sound leaving his lungs. "You... monster," the prince whispered, in between gasps for air. Monster? Was he the monster now? Avery wondered for a little while, his mind feeling cloudy, but his decision had already been made. Fine then, he would be the monster he had to be. His second hand laid itself onto the prince''s throat, and he clamped it shut, the gargles of the man not reaching his ears until he was dead. Tossing the body aside, Avery still stood. He was going to kill some more now. That was what monsters did, after all. - - - - - - Scarlet smiled at her newest work. For a narrow few moments, as the spells keeping her in the air flickered out, she watched the city light aflame, the fire biting through houses as the wind spread it around. Her little crimson gift to them seemed to have arrived well. When she began falling, she turned her attention to the battleground below, seeing dozens upon dozens of charred remains. Some people still stood, but it didn''t matter. What would they stand for if their capital burned? Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. She hoped those damn bastards of the council died. What a joy that was, imagining those old assholes scream and burn. They deserved it. In the middle of the fall, she turned to her other target, the priestess'' attendant. Scarlet didn''t know her name, but she knew that her and Lucia were close, and that was enough. Seeing the picture there, seeing the person who took her arm slumped in the arms of someone who was crying, felt strange. It was, after all, quite close to the revenge she wanted, but shouldn''t the roles be reversed? Ah, what a shame, truly, what a shame that was. She wished she could see the priestess grief-stricken instead. Her thoughts were rudely interrupted when her body struck the floor. She had no mana left, her core entirely drained of everything, and her fury had subsided as though the glow on a blade when it was quenched. In those moments she felt quite... fulfilled. The bloodshed she''d caused was quite something, yes, something she would certainly be remembered for. Slowly, she opened her status window, and her eyes opened wide. A grin spread onto her face. A new alias, another name people would remember her as. "Firestorm", one too great to brave. It was acknowledged by the northerns, she had planted the seed for it before, now it was time for the southerners to know it too. Poetically, it made her want to give another speech. Somehow, she felt reinvigorated. Perhaps she''d gained a level and had some stats restored, given the satisfaction she''d felt that certainly was worth quite some exp. Well, she''d better put the energy to use. "My friends!" she yelled, her voice echoing across the battlefield, as she laid on the soil. All heads snapped to her, faces filled with rage and fury, some with tears, and other barely even faces anymore at all. "Today, it is our victory!" her smile went ear to ear, a bright grin on a dying, blood-smeared face. It looked so childlike and happy, one could have mistaken it for a good smile. "But we are not done here!" she cried, raising up an arm she didn''t have. From nothing, the flames she had grown so accustomed to over the last sputtered into existence again. They writhed around each other like living snakes, coiling into the empty air and forming the shape of an arm again, a monstrous one, but an arm nonetheless. "Die with me today, comrades!" she called. "Let your blood soak this place, and let those who have made us suffer, suffer. Then, in death, let us besiege another battlefield together, let us bring war now to the very gods!" Her fingers closed around the sun, and the subsiding roar of the flames was replaced by the roar of her people. "Firestorm," they chanted. "Fi! Re! Storm!" And with a smile, Scarlet closed her eyes. She was going to go to another battlefield soon. Her arm fell to her side, and she enjoyed the last rays of sunlight on her face. Now, she would die a peaceful death. ... Where was the sun? For a moment, Scarlet opened one of her eyes to see what was ruining her moment. "Who the fu-" Those were the last words to ever leave Scarlet''s mouth, as Avery withdrew his boot, splattered with blood and brains. He felt the rush of experience give him a level or two, as his flesh knit itself together, some of his injuries closing, and letting him draw a deep breath again. The stench of sulphur entered his nostrils, and fueled his rage further. "SEEKERS!!!" his voice roared across the battlefield, now that his lungs could draw air. It was loud enough to drown out the northerners'' cheers, loud enough that the shockwave seemed to quiet the fire raging in the city. Silence reigned for a moment, heads turned to see his blood-covered figure. "EXTINGUISH THE FIRE!!" It was a sensible command, and the last one Avery would give this battle. For a few precious moments, no one reacted, but soon, their thoughts snapped into place and they moved. Dozens of people who could still move running towards the city. Esmeya snapped back to her senses on the wall, wiping her mouth half heartedly as she understood what she needed to do. Before the other mages, setting an example for them, she began to drink mana potions, enduring the burning of her own stomach acid in the back of her throat and the terrible taste it brought to her mouth. She shakily rose to her feet and began to chant, flinging water and more water on top of it. Wind mages rose to stall the air, fire mages began absorbing the flames, and earth mages poured dust and dirt on them. The seekers joined their efforts, carrying buckets from the lake or casting spells themselves, some even using stamina to shape the water itself. Rondo, who''d barely awoken after being caught up in the brunt of the attack, commanded the guards to leave the battlefield and help extinguish the fire, too. Those who couldn''t walk were carried. He himself received the support to get back behind walls from Kaga. She walked a bit faster than the old man would have liked, wanting to get back to the battle herself. Marcel began tending to the wounded as their makeshift camps were overrun in moments. Gilah slung water, and Elliot beat down the fire alongside her. Seeing that, the northerners couldn''t stand still, charging for the city to finish the job and finally burn it down. They would follow Scarlet and bring war to the heavens, and avenge her, too, by killing that damn monster bastard! After all, the army that had stood in their way was gone now, right? It was one man, how could it be so bad? Avery frowned at them, drawing a shaky breath and steadying his footing. This was his duty, his calling. One man stood in the path of the army that came to raze a city to the ground, and thus, once more, a battle began. - - - - - - However, for now, one other thing needs addressing. Sometime before the final conflict, before the army charged at the man, an amount of time that was neither short nor long had been spent crying. In the backlines of the army, long since deserted by the northerners, Iris was holding Lucia''s body in her arms and wept. She wept into the shoulders of the love she had lost, holding on tight as the priestess'' blood covered her hands. Lucia didn''t want Iris to cry. Well and truly, she didn''t. The two women felt the heat of Scarlet''s last spell wash over them, even as its target was somewhere else entirely. It was so hot, that for a while, Iris didn''t notice the building warmth of Lucia. But as the seconds passed, and her crying grew louder and quieter again, interrupted by shaky breaths, eventually she couldn''t deny it anymore. For some reason, Lucia''s body was warm. The priestess herself felt strange. Her thoughts were so cloudy, she almost couldn''t hold onto them, but all she could see was Iris being sad. Why was she crying so much? What had happened? Then, the memories of the last few seconds came back. Right, she was dying. But then, there was a new Skill she had gained. Beneath her eyelids, Lucia''s pupils narrowed. Slowly, feeling returned to her body, and with it, pain did. Her face twitched, the hold she had on her body almost vanishing from the feeling of a hole in her stomach, but hearing Iris'' crying, she held on. Very slowly, as heat rose within her, Lucia moved. She laid a hand onto Iris'' head to calm her down, then she grit her teeth and endured. She focused, felt the flame within her and how it had changed. Finally, its evolution was there. The Skill had been maxed out for a while now, but it lacked direction, or so the system said. What luck that she had managed to find that direction now. But would her mana really hold out as her flesh knit itself together? As Lucia thought so, she heard chanting from the battlefield, about a storm? Then silence. And during that brief moment of silence, she felt a rush of invigoration course through her. To Lucia, it was clear what happened a moment later. Scarlet must have died, and some of the credit went to her, awarding her experience, and a level for it. She didn''t hesitate. before she had the chance to think, Lucia ignited her mana, burning through her stamina, and finally fueling her fire with the love she felt, too. That was the nature of her flame, after all. When it burned more, the emotions it was linked to grew brighter, too. Second by second, she clutched onto Iris more tightly, the sobbing of the other woman now stopping as she felt less and less blood leak onto her hands. And finally, the bleeding stopped, then Lucia opened her eyes and lurched forward, barely avoiding the ground as Iris caught her with surprise. Her rosey eyes shook as she tried to speak, only to be interrupted by frantic coughing as Lucia could barely hold onto herself, each bit of air that left her lungs carrying blood with it. She could breathe, she could finally breathe again! For a long few seconds, Lucia coughed as hard as she could, before drawing in one shaky breath, then a second, wiping away a hint of the blood on her lips. "Y-You''re... alive..." Iris said, looking at her face, stunned. Lucia paused, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes too, as she drew Iris into a long hug. "I am." Sadly, the moment was not meant to last. Somewhere towards the city, they heard fighting again, the world around them finally beginning to drift into their awareness, as the ringing in their ears subsided. Then they saw it. Droves of northerners, any who still lived, charging towards a city that was lit on fire. Their reunion could wait for now. They were needed. - - - - - - Avery frowned. The amount of enemies that decided to come at him was large, even by his standards, and he still felt every muscle in his body protesting. Not that it made him stop. With an iron will, Avery beat down every single complaint his body turned in, and instead forced himself to move. He lashed out with his left leg, splattering blood, then his right, and his right again, since two people were close to one another. Occasionally he would retreat a step, sometimes go forward by one, but mostly he went side to side, leaping and killing over and over and over again. After only a few minutes he was already drenched in blood, and he slowly began to full lose feeling in his appendages. After his dance with the horde had continued for multiple minutes, Avery began to slow. He could barely hear them anymore, the blood rushing so loudly in his ears, and his vision was blurry. He wanted to lay down and rest so badly, but he instead stoked the anger within him. They''d burned down his city and slaughtered his seekers. For that, he would make them pay. Again and again, he forced his battered self to move, until eventually, he felt the pressure on him lighten up. Instead of being faced with six people at a time, the number reduced to two. He looked around, trying to make out who may have come to help him, and he saw them. Radiant white flames, condensed into arrows, as well as a bit of wind rushing against his skin as someone he couldn''t see moved quickly, as well as a stupidly long weapon carving through droves of enemies. "Finally," he said. "Thought you''d never get to work." An army of four fought to keep what remained of the city standing. Chapter 121: Day of Reckoning: Noon Chapter 121: Day of Reckoning: Noon /Stalking was fun to the young Hunter. Tracking good prey down, then watching its habits and movements, finding the right time to pounce, was thrilling. The danger of being discovered was sometimes more challenging and fun to them than simply having a match of speed and endurance. As the days ticked by, the young one continued to grow their proficiency in it and every other aspect of living in the wild. The call was still there, drawing them ever forward, its grip strengthening and weakening at times, like ebb and flood. Sometimes, it was even powerful enough to distract them from the hunt itself, then they moved a little closer, and journeyed. It was all like that, travelling, then stopping and preparing for the next section. During those times, the Hunter always thought about themselves and their fate. Were there others with a similar calling? What truly were they headed towards? Sometimes, the mystery of it enticed them as much as the destination, while other times, they partook in the joy of the journey more. Every time they stopped, the intervals got shorter, the preparation for the next stretch took less time, until eventually, there were no more preparations needed. They required no jerky, knowing they could find prey or plants to eat every evening. They didn''t need a good spot to sleep, being able to put together accomodations on the fly. The young Hunter had every tool they could need, fully prepared, and thus they sped up. Just in time, it seemed, as the more they travelled, the stronger the call got this time. Did it grow with their skill? It almost felt like it, like their very instincts, as they honed them, became the thing to draw them forwards. Undoubtably, they loved the journey. It was what they had always wanted, to be out in the wild on their own, not reliant on anyone else. They caught their own food, tread their own path, and were as free as could be. Which is when the draw started bothering them. They began chasing it, rather than simply travelling where it drew them. Was it really their own instinct to want to do this, or was there something there that had selected them specifically? What was the purpose of this draw? Why did they especially feel it? Eventually, the answer came, when the Hunter finally stumbled upon whatever seemed to draw them. An old cottage, made from rotting wood, overgrown with moss and halfway to falling apart fully. The young Hunter''s eyes were filled with surprise when the draw vanished, the hook released from their soul. This was their destination? They held the thought for only a moment, before the hair on the back of their head rose up, and they dropped to the floor reflexively, a sharp projectile hissing through the air where their head had just been. Rather than feeling a draw, their instincts now screamed, as the young one''s body was suddenly flooded with adrenaline. No more than a moment passed before they were clear of the circumstances and burst into a sprint. They were, as of right now, being hunted./ (Legends: The Hunter - 2; Seeking Freedom) - - - - - - When the sun approached its Zenith, and word still hadn''t come, Zyl resigned himself. He knew Ragnarok had found Alexander, but there was nothing on whether or not he had reached Mercury and dealt with the issues he faced. Waiting for any longer would be gambling with the life of his boyfriend, and that was a concession Zyl was unwilling to make. Almost as if he knew, Berthorn entered the room a second after Zyl had made up his mind. When he saw the sleazy traitor, it made him want to reconsider, and for a moment, he felt his anger at the situation almost boil over, but Zyl refused to give in. This was not the time to place himself first. "I see you''re close to finishing," Berthorn said calmly, checking a watch he carried on himself. By now, the room was more than uncomfortably hot, in fact, it was hot enough to almost boil the sweat off of skin. To Zyl, it wasn''t much of an issue at all, but he''d hoped Berthorn would be uncomfortable at least. Sadly, that hope went unfulfilled. Unable to speak from the pain, Zyl simply grunted in reply, staring up at the other man with fury. "Well, you''ve got another half hour or so to finish, brother," Berthorn said casually. He''d reached out to pat Zyl''s shoulder, and stopped mid-motion, a rather good choice to preserve his skin. "Would you mind if I waited in here?" As a matter of fact, Zyl did mind. These last few moments would hurt the most, and he needed to maintain near perfect focus throughout them. Having to listen to Berthorn''s ramblings in the background would make it a whole new level of terrible. "I''ll take that as a yes," the man in question replied, wearing a thin smile as he stood there and watched. Once again, Zyl forced down his anger. He could not afford a mistake at this stage. Even if Berthorn saw him writhe in pain, he''d have to take that indignity over the other option. Gritting his teeth, Zyl finally set upon finalizing the process. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. "You know, brother, I really have been enjoying my stay here. The view is just stunning," Berthorn said, taking his eyes from the window, facing towards Zyl. "I''ve been so excited for this moment for a while, too. Thank you very much for letting me experience it alongside you." The smile on his face grew a little wider. Zyl really wished that the pain he felt would block out background noise, but sadly, it didn''t. Honestly, if anything, it felt like everything was clearer, every second ticking by so slowly. Every moment was torture, but Zyl resisted it, gritting his teeth hard enough to them to almost crack and trying his best to ignore the words of his once-friend. "Truly, I don''t even know what I wish for more right now. I need the spark, obviously, I''ve made that more than clear, and yet, this last page had been one of the calmest in my life. I almost want this to last forever," Berthorn continued, running a hand through his hair as his smile turned sinister. "People really are quite strange, aren''t they? For me to be so split on something... What would you do in my situation?" Zyl slammed his fist against the floor, sending cracks through it. He didn''t dare to speak, but his eyes remained open, fixed upon Berthorn, who''d flinched back for just a second, but soon regained his composure. Still, the momentary lapse made Zyl somewhat satisfied as revenge for that last sentence. For a moment, it made Berthorn frown. "Oh, right, yes, how dare I assume the great Zylnareth would ever end himself up in my position. Truly, I have disgraced you with my words," he gave a mocking bow, "and yet you are the one on the floor." Just when Zyl considered moving again, the process entered its final state, and he had to use every bit of willpower to simply hang onto any train of thought at all. The pain was bad enough to make him release a hoarse cough, spitting out whatever air he still had in his lungs as he toppled over from his meditative pose and began writhing on the floor instead. "Right, yes, this would be the most painful part, I suppose," Berthorn nodded, stroking his chin. "You know, you really look pitiful." Even now, Zyl could still hear the bastard talk, and it made his anger flare up even higher. Why couldn''t he just shut up?! Was it that fucking hard to keep those lips together? If he had any energy left, Zyl would have screamed, but there was nothing within him. He laid on the floor, twitching occasionally as he held on, grabbing the spark and dragging it out, step by step, moment by moment. Watching it, Berthorn''s face was expressionless. He didn''t really even know how to feel. Surely, there was some entertainment he could glean from this, from seeing the traitor reduced to this state, but if there was, he hardly saw it. Now, that the end of this whole thing drew closer, he saw it for what it was to him. A tool. A means to an end. Yet, somehow, he still kept mocking. "You know, sometimes I wonder if you saw this coming," he said, "if somehow, you thought to yourself that yes, this is what you wanted your future to be like. Was there ever a moment like that? One where you stopped to think about the consequences of your actions?!" As Berthorn spoke and got angrier, Zyl''s face grimaced ever more. Maybe, if he had a thought to spare, he would consider all the question he was asked, but he did not. Instead, he locked down on the rising heat within him and pulled, with all his strength, as though he was shifting a mountain. Every moment that passed, he wrestled his exhaustion, fought himself to a standstill. He shoved aside his emotions, then pulled, repeating it over and over again, walking a tightrope between losing his focus or losing progress as the heat retreated back. It felt like he would fall any second, but he held on, gritting his teeth and trying his hardest as everything neared its end. "A proud dragon refused to wrestle himself on the floor. You''re a dog, brother, a dog undeserving of your name. I might just spit on you right now if I didn''t know it would disappear mid air," Berthorn cursed. Seeing someone he''d once looked up to reduced to something like this was infuriatingly disappointing. But only a moment after Berthorn spoke, the anger receded from his face. He took a deep breath of the scalding air, his anger subsiding. The person he had idolized was in the past, this wasn''t worth his anger. It was simply a means to an end, as it always was. A tool to fulfill a desire for himself. Taking a second deep breath, Berthorn finally rested his tongue, not speaking anymore and simply watching as Zyl writhed, uncaring. He was calm now, and it was all but a matter of time. Zyl, on the other hand, did not seem nearly as calm. The struggle was not getting any easier as time passed on, and he fought for every passing second, until the scorching heat finally reached his skin. That moment, the pain seemed to let off just a hair, and he took a few seconds to rest before he threw himself right back into the thick of it, dragging, and pulling against the resistance, careful not to let it slip out of his fingers. Slowly, he burnt a hole through his chest, and something surfaced from in there, a small glimmer of light, a tiny ember glowing within a translucent crystal. When it finally showed on the surface, Zyl kept it there with his mind, then grabbed it, tearing his skin with his hand and pulling it out. With a final scream, now that he could draw breath again, he held his spark. Panting, he looked up at Berthorn, pushed his hands onto the floor and rose up shakily. He refused to be looked down upon if he could help it, and he finally was in a position where he could again, if just for a few seconds. His mind was muddled, but he remembered the agreement. "A spark for Mercury''s safety," he ground out between breaths, his chest heaving. Slowly, Berthorn took his crossed arms apart, and reached out with one hand. "A spark for its safety, yes," he nodded. Zyl gazed into those eyes thick with desire, then at the clock, and saw that there were just ten minutes left. Was there anything else? After being through a whole page of torture, he couldn''t think anymore. He just wanted Mercury to be safe, just wanted his sacrifice to be worth it for once. Slowly, yet as fast as he could manage, he raised up his arm, and dropped the spark, still dripping with his blood, into Berthorn''s hand. Smiling, the other man put it in his inventory, having the object vanish into thin air. "With that, our deal is done," Berthorn said. "Thank you very much for your cooperation. I''ll be taking my leave before you take too much offense at my very presence." Something about that smile was off to Zyl, but he just couldn''t pinpoint it. As he was still thinking, Berthorn''s body began to vanish into nothingness, fading away. "Brother, do you remember your broken promise?" Berthorn asked when he was already mostly gone. Zyl''s eyes widened immediately. "No," he whispered, immediately trying to grab onto the phantom in the air, only to stumble and fall. "It seems as though betrayal runs in the family," Berthorn said calmly. "I hope this makes you suffer." And with that, he vanished. Zyl was left with nothing but despair, and fatigue so heavy he fell unconscious on the spot. Chapter 122: Day of Reckoning: Dusk Chapter 122: Day of Reckoning: Dusk 5 minutes is a very strange timeframe. Of course, we all know that it''s not very long, you can''t exactly get a whole lot done in 5 minutes, and yet, sometimes they really do feel like forever. Listening to a boring teacher at the end of a lesson, waiting on the next city bus after having missed one, even meeting a family member again you would rather not have seen for another year. Having to do smalltalk with someone you barely know, or swimming in cold water. Doing any of it for just 5 minutes would seem horrible, and probably drag out for forever. Sometimes, to Alexander, so did horse riding. He enjoyed it, he well and truly did, it had been something he''d liked from childhood on, and yet somehow, this time felt different. He had hurried with all his power, travelled from the village all the way to Yasashiku''s home via a direct path, carving a road into the landscape before it closed behind him. That Skill was one he cherished. Of course he did, the freedom it gave him to go through even the roughest terrain on horseback was quite rare, not that he cared for it because of that rarity. No, it definitely was the simple choice of going where he pleased when he pleased. There were few people who could stop him, and even if he was stopped, it would usually only be for a moment. Yet, this time, even with his freedom, he felt he was too slow. Because Yasashiku lived on a mountain with a forest below it, Alex had a terrible time trying to see anything going on up there. He could only grit his teeth and spur his horse as he hoped to be there in time, hoped that he would make it. Whether he would be in time, though, was already out of his hands. He didn''t know how much time he had, he could only hope that the guardian stalled for as long as possible, and if Friaminth couldn''t, Alex hoped he''d give up whatever he needed to. The old man sighed between breaths. It was frustrating to see someone young caught up in power games so far beyond him. The fact that the people threatening the guardian took someone like that hostage pissed him off even more. Alexander clenched his teeth in anger, drawing in deep breaths of air through his nose, spurring his companion on to go even faster. No matter what, this was probably his call to get out of retirement. He''d find whoever did this, show up at their front door and give them a piece of his mind, that much he promised himself. It would have to wait a little longer though, for now, he had to keep going with all he had. - - - - - - Tesla was in his study, pondering on what else he could do to perfect his creation. The designs were already so intricate, everything should be going well, yet the organs still just didn''t fully grow right. Maybe he ought to start learning some surgery to fix them in place after growing them separately? He''d considered the option before, but wasn''t really a huge fan of it, but if it needed to be done, he''d have to get to it eventually. The man sighed quietly, lamenting this. Should he have just taken native birds, and selectively bred them to get something resembling a pigeon? Surely not. He would have had to accelerate their growth and lifespans to do so, killing hundreds of birds in the process. It didn''t seem very fair at all. No, no, he was doing this for himself, he didn''t want to unnecessarily make other creatures suffer. Especially not when it didn''t even guarantee success. He needed something else, some form of idea, anything that could get his imagination going. Maybe he needed new things to investigate before he could make more progress towards stable internal organs? Just then, as if by fate, one of his aides entered the room. A fellow scientist with a curious mind. "Nicolai? You have a second?" "I do, what is it?" "We may have found a hint to your," the young golem gestured wildly at the entire room, "pigeon... thing." "You WHAT?!" Nicolai yelled, almost knocking over the table he had been standing in front off. "Chione thought that maybe this body-blueprint that all of us have isn''t just in the body, as you''ve said, but also partially in the mind. Could also be a reason for the gap between stats and actual performance of worldwalkers. I suppose you could consider it an expansion of your astral self-hypothesis." "Theory, nowadays." "Yeah, sure, we''ll see about that once you show me the proper documentation, eh?" she pushed her glasses up a little further. "In any case, it is just a theory, and without a mind that lacks a body to test it out on, we''re gonna have some real trouble doing proper research." "Unless we find someone who can travel with their mind, regardless of their body," Tesla theorized. The golem paused for a moment, tapping her cheek with her finger. "Yeah, actually. You''re right, if we manage to find someone like that, and that is a big if, we could do some proper research on it." "WE SCOUR THE WORLD FOR THEM, DEK!!!" Nicolai yelled. "We scour the world for them!" - - - - - - Leon also let out a slight sigh as he placed a cold towel on Zyl''s forehead. He was glad now that he''d acquired some heat resistance Skills before, because otherwise, there was a chance he might not have been able to carry his lord to the bed. The old man couldn''t see the face of the one he served, but there was no need to. He could feel the heat radiate off him in waves, threatening to burn down even the bed he laid on, yet it held. Of course, Leon could have just laid him down on the grass outside, the floor was more likely to give than Zyl''s body, but he thought that any comfort he could give, he would try his best to do so. "How is he," the old butler asked quietly, facing the young woman besides him. "Not great," Maclroy said, sweat beading on her forehead from the heat. "He''s got a high fever, and it''s almost cooking him on the inside, but he can still stand that much. The problem is his... well everything else pretty much. His muscles are fine, his skin will regrow, so on and so forth. I''m worried about his core and vessel." "Both?" Leon asked. "Yes, both," Maclroy nodded. "He really messed himself up dragging things out. It''s a wonder he didn''t pass out a dozen times earlier. Actually, there''s a chance he did and because he was so focused, his subconscious just kept working." Leon didn''t reply, simply gazing at the man he had served for so long now. "His core is damaged, his mana veins all jumbled up, his vessel is cracked and barely holding together. All of that is going to take time and effort to heal. Which means I''ll be sleeping a lot less for the next few days," she lamented. "Can I help him?" Leon simply asked. "Of course you can," Maclroy say, watching the older man''s face show a bit of hope. "He''s going to need proper food, and plenty of care. I can''t make him eat with magic, but you might be able to get some nourishment in him, even while he''s unconscious. Other than that, once he wakes up, any normalcy he can get would probably be good." Leon nodded slowly, then Maclroy laid a hand on his shoulder. "Come on now. Have faith in him. And me, too. We''ll get him back." "Yes," Leon said after a bit of hesitation, "yes we will." - - - - - - Ragnarok spent a lot of time travelling as fast as they could to catch up to Alexander. He had moved freakishly fast, much faster than they could ever hope to go, though they were eventually going to see him when they reached their map marker. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. "How much further is it, Eric?" Magma asked. "Should be there soon," the dryad replied calmly, taking swift strides through the forest. The two of them were the quickest runners among the group, at least when it came to long distances in this type of terrain. Eric, since he was a dryad, had a great affinity for Skills that rely on nature, and would occasionally step into a tree and out another a few hundred meter onwards. Magma, on the other hand, was able to simply burn her way through, following where Eric first stepped. This was how they usually travelled through forests. If it were a snowy wasteland, Pul would be the one preparing the road for everyone else, and if it was a flat grassland, they''d really just take a carriage. After a few more hours of running and jumping, when the two were nearing the end of their stamina once again, they decided to push through. Already halfway up the mountain, they kept going as they breathed heavily, their stamina nearing the bottom, and eventually, the forest lightened up to a small mountain trail. Bit by bit, they made their way up, over the awkwardly spaced stairs, and the packed dirt occasionally covered in gravel. If they weren''t short on time, this seemed like the type of location where Wilhelmia would stop for inspiration and write a new song. The thought made Magma smile bitterly. They certainly weren''t stopping this time. The trail itself wasn''t very long, and soon enough, they made their way over the last ledge, and to the marker. "There we are," Eric said, lifting his tired legs up the final step and gazing upon Yasashiku''s residence. Almost instantly, the smile faded. "What are you waiting for up there? Move," Magma said impatiently, light pushing him aside and stepping up herself, only to be stunned to silence. What they saw was sobering, immediately washing away all the fatigue from travelling as it lost its first place spot in their awareness. The sight was so surreal, too. They could tell, very clearly tell, that there once was a very beautiful spot here. A house that someone lived in, a pond that fish swam in, a forge, maybe. "You made it," old man Alex said, sitting on the ground. Next to him was another, older man, his right arm in a sling, a cracked mask on his face, resting just above a deep frown. "Who is it?" Yasashiku asked. "I don''t remember inviting any other visitors." "They''re not here to do anything bad, Yasashiku," Alex chided lightly, then let out a long sigh. "These are the people who saved your life, I suppose." "So they sent you here," Yasashiku nodded. "Well then, take a seat I suppose. Go on. You won''t find anything more comfortable than the ground around here anymore. Ah, not there though. It''s where our little buddy rests." The old man pointed at a small formation of stones, with a small stick in the ground behind them. This was the impromptu grave he and Alexander had made for Mercury. Not that his body was around for them to bury. In fact, everything around them was destroyed. The house no longer stood, all of it upturned, dust and rubble all that remained. The water in the pond was all gone, all the plants around there dead, the fish Yasashiku had raised nowhere to be seen. The ground was stained, upturned, with occasional craters, and there were bloodstains aplenty, too. This place had been about as thoroughly destroyed as anything could be. - - - - - - The 5 minutes Mercury spent before everything went to shit weren''t very long. After all, it was just 5 minutes. Zyl had handed over his spark, and Berthorn politely declined to call off his orders to assassinate Mercury. They only needed one spark, after that, his employers wanted to see his brother suffer. So the mopaaw would die. That was all there was. However, the person in question still had no idea. Something had been feeling slightly off for a page now, so he had gotten used to the feeling and disregarded it. He simply enjoyed how nice of a day it was. The sun in the sky, he laid on a rock, enjoying its warmth. Yasashiku was feeding the fish next to him, tossing breadcrumbs or whatever it was they ate into their hungry, gaping mouths. Mercury didn''t even practice anything. He didn''t daydream, he didn''t work on his core for once. It was his first break he decided to properly honor in a little while, so he didn''t even swing his mind''s hammer, didn''t practice his rijn. It would all come with time, after all. His skin was warm, his eyes were slightly open, and he simply enjoyed the landscape around him for, well, around 4 and a half minutes he''d guess. Then he stopped. The eerie feeling in his heart became much, much stronger, and more urgent. It told him to run and play dead at the same time, warned him that he was, right now, in incredible danger. For a moment, Mercury panicked, jumping up then freezing, not knowing what to do. Was Yasashiku also affected by this? "Sensei, something is wrong! We need to run!" he said loudly, watching the old man''s hand freeze. "What is it, Starlight-kun?" he asked somewhat calmly. "I don''t know, but my is telling me it''s dangerous!" Then, the water of the pond stirred, and before a full 5 minutes had actually passed, a knife suddenly exited from the pool, only narrowly avoided by Yasashiku through Mercury''s warning. Everything seemed to happen at once from that moment. From the grass, something moved, shook it off, dug out from the ground and jumped at the cat. Another shape crawled out of the shadow the rock he laid on cast. A third figure, somehow, stepped out from a tree, while the thing that just came from the pond also suddenly sprinted towards Mercury. Almost instantly, he could tell he was about to die. Instinctively, he jumped forward, avoiding getting skewered through the chest, and only receiving a shallow slash on his back thigh. "Run!" he simply yelled at his teacher, pushing the old man with as he himself tried his best to avoid the people attacking him. Somehow, while aggressive, they all still seemed cautious, carefully pacing around him and striking suddenly. He could tell they were afraid of him for some reason, but the fear was also slowly fading. The old man he''d been living with used the boost to take a few steps back, then seemed to focus for a while, and suddenly, with a heavy noise, one of the assassins fell to the ground. [Sudden Quest: "Attempt on your Life!" Condition: Eliminate as many of the assassins as possible! 1/??? Reward: Based on success. Failure condition: No assassins defeated or Death. Penalty: disabled for 1 Chapter.] Mercury barely even knew what to think as the information poured into his head. Everything was so sudden to him, he hardly had the time to even comprehend what was going on. For some reason, there were highly trained assassins trying to kill him, and Yasashiku had just knocked one of them down with his mind''s hammer. But no one left him any time to think. As Mercury tried to get his head together, another bladed weapon flew at him again, dealing a cut to his front right leg. It burned very badly, too, and he could already feel the other wound go numb, which meant that the weapons were coated with some sort of poison. Gritting his teeth, Mercury summoned all the willpower he had, and compressed his thoughts. He split his mind in two as well, thinking as fast as he could. These people were highly trained, and there was probably more than four. He needed to get himself and Yasashiku out as fast as possible. His second zeyjn, knowing what the first had just thought, began to compress its thoughts further, forming a small sheet of them, and pushing even harder against Yasashiku, who seemed to almost grow wings as he jumped out of the way of another attack. He flew much further than he could imagine, and ended up suddenly finding himself on the side of the cliff. Then, Mercury wanted to return to the present, but another wound laced his thoughts with pain. He clenched his teeth even harder and began to spin his special thread, throwing it around himself as much as he could with telekinesis. Hopefully it would get him a few moments to think. His mentor was now gone, certainly, right? He just had to run himself. And the mopaaw tried just that, jumping off the ground as hard as he could, only to be caught by the tail and slammed right back down. For a moment, his vision went black, and he couldn''t orientate himself, when he felt another, blinding pain in his stomach. By the time his vision returned, he saw a blade wedged in between his ribs, going quite far into himself. Mercury screamed, the pain almost blinding. He was dying. He was actually dying, right now. This was killing him. Somehow, he needed to get the assassins off. What could he do? What should he do?! His mind clouded, Mercury felt his heart beat faster and saw the blood leaking out. He felt all his memories pass by his inner eye, and one of them stuck out. He gathered all the thoughts he could and screamed. "BLOOD ECLIPSE!!" And, already attracted by his despair, it came. The sky began to darken. It turned a blood red as the assassins paused to look up. If Mercury could see their faces he liked to imagine they were frowning. If he was dying, so would they. Still, he hadn''t given up quite yet. Using their moment of distraction, as black clouds gathered and the sun was replaced by a scarlet circle, he pushed the knife out with . A glimpse of his Hp told him he wasn''t doing very well, so he had to invest. 40 points into Vitality. [The individual''s Vitality has surpassed 100! Your regenerative capabilities grow stronger.] Almost immediately, Mercury felt the change. The huge increase in maximum Hp made this wound seem quite a bit less threatening, and although the sudden influx of health made him feel a bit dizzy, he could also tell it helped his wound begin healing. The blood just started actually clotting when the singing began. "This little sea of scarlet~ Lets me tear the world apart, yet~ When it''s done I will still stand~ On top a barren, beaten land~" When the voice had finished speaking, the assassins seemed to regain their wits, first trying to attack Mercury, but soon distracted by the fact that rifts opened up in the air, out of which monsters suddenly stepped. Mercury barely had the energy to watch the fight, though he was sure that the people trying to kill him didn''t do too poorly. There were certainly quite a few inhuman screeches. Barely clinging to consciousness, he saw one of the things that usually crawled out of the rifts stumble towards him, sniffing the air. It had no eyes, yet its face was locked onto Mercury, somehow tracking him, even as he crawled over the ground, trying to get away. But his body refused to listen. The toxin was taking effect, slowing down his movement, and his heartbeat, to the point where it was barely audible. With his last moment of clarity, his thoughts already slowed down, Mercury split his mind, weaving some string to try and make the monster forget about him. His zeyjn went into the shop, buying a healing potion for most his money, and whatever antidote he could find for the rest, then his eyes closed, and all that remained was screeches. The creature sniffed him, listened closely to the tiny thing''s chest, and could not hear anything at all. Its head was a little foggy, more than usual even, and the tiny heap of meat and bones in front of it seemed thoroughly dead. Thus, it simply picked it up, let out a loud screech, and began retreating. The woman sang. "And these little eyes of mine, they see a little fate of thine. They see death, and they see carnage, a river of blood, yet to be tarnished carrying your life within, and dragging it, into the pit." Immediately after, Mercury was carried through one of the portals, as the rest of the eclipse unfolded. - - - - - - End of Book 1: Dying Dreams - - - - - - Mercury will return next week, in book 2. Chapter 123: Barren Landscape Chapter 123: Barren Landscape The first thing Mercury saw when he woke back up was pitch black darkness. He found that every bone in his body still ached, and he couldn''t currently move at all, but he was still alive. Barely. [The individual has been recognized as conscious.] ''s familiar sound shook Mercury out of his stupor slightly. Where was he? His mouth tasted dry, his tongue feeling fuzzy and thick. He couldn''t quite tell where up or down was, and most of his body felt faint, like it was still asleep. His fur seemed to be covered by... something. It clung to it, pulling at it and making his entire skin prickle. He was sure it would have been pain had he been able to feel much of anything at all. [Due to the individual''s muddled state of mind, they are encouraged to regain their bearings before commencing further interaction with the system.] Right. Mercury took the words of his trusty, if moody companion to heart, taking a moment to meditate. He focused on his breathing, noticing how shallow and ragged it was, causing slight stings of pain whenever his chest moved. Soon though, his muscles relented. The stings he felt grew dull, feeling less like needles, and more like the tips of a fork being pressed into him. Bit by bit, the fog on his mind lifted a little. He recalled how he''d started learning from Yasashiku, how he had swung his mind''s hammer, and how he was beginning to see a path forward. And then...? For a few days, he remembered feeling something slightly off. Then... shit, the assassins!! Immediately, adrenaline coursed through Mercury''s veins again, chasing away the lingering unclarity, and bearing his memories down to the last detail. He''d gotten a quest to deal with the attack, then tried his best to save his new teacher, before calling a blood eclipse. If he could move, Mercury would have bitten his lip in anger. That sure was his damn brightest idea. The last moments were blurry, he was so focused on surviving that only the things he was immediately looking at remained in his memory. That, and the damn voice singing the song. [The individual has regained their clarity. Sending notifications.] [Your Skills have levelled up! 4>, 8>, 2>, 2>, 9>, 7>, 2>, 2>, 8>.] - [Sudden Quest: "Attempt on your Life!" completed! Evaluation: All assassins dead. The individual has survived. Through trickery and by taking great risks they have overturned the odds and gained another chance. Rewards: , , escaping affinity increase, 2 levels (character).] - [By braving extraordinary circumstances and pain, the individual has received additional rewards. Get: 10 Willpower, 5 Wisdom, 3 Dexterity, 3 Agility, 10 Luck, 300 Skill Points.] [The individual''s Willpower has surpassed 100! Your mental fortitude grows stronger.] [Acquired the Skill through a quest. Skill already owned. Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through a quest.] Before Mercury even had a chance to think of , the information was already inside his head. [: This Skill allows the individual to better escape situations the more dangerous they are. They boast increased recovery, especially towards severe wounds. They regain consciousness sooner when unconscious, and their mind becomes clearer in dangerous situations.] Taking it all in, Mercury took a deep breath. Very suddenly, he felt quite a bit better, especially knowing he had five full character levels in his back pocket for when he needed them. Right now though, he needed things to help him recover. He quickly summed the top of his status page. === Hp: 150/510 Mp: 431/692 Sp: 87/334 === It wasn''t exactly the prettiest sight, but at the very least he could slowly watch the numbers tick up. As of right now, he was only blinded, unaware of where he was, with pain in all the body parts he could still feel at all, and completely in the dark as to what kind of enemies might be all around him, but at the very least, he was not bleeding out. Giving a quick thought of thanks to for all the information that sweet, sweet Skill gave him, Mercury focused again. Given that he couldn''t feel most of his body, disregarding it was easier than usual. Soon, he managed to slowly expand his mana outside his core, probing the air with tendrils of it. The feeling wasn''t exactly the same as his skin would give him, but he could still gain valuable information from it. The first thing it brought to his awareness was the fact that he was currently trapped in a cocoon of black string, dangling from somewhere. His entire body was wrapped with sticky string, creating the sensation of something pulling on his skin. It was just gravity. Other than that, he could tell that the air outside was as stale as it was quiet, with nothing he could feel nearby. It was oddly quiet, in fact, meaning he was probably inside some sort of structure. Moving on to the floor, Mercury could tell it was hard and warm. Some type of rock, if he had to guess, though covered in a thin layer of flakes. The softer layer also seemed undisturbed, so whatever had brought him here, it hadn''t moved around the cave very recently. Which brought him to the question of how long he had been unconscious. ? [28 hours.] That seemed rather short for how uniform the floor was covered. Either the nightmarish creature that had brought him here was a master at stealth and could move through the covering unperturbed, or more of it was created quickly, like fresh snowfall. After having a rough grasp on the outside of his cocoon, Mercury focused on himself. Being unable to feel most his limbs was unsettling, and he soon found the reason for it. He was currently paralyzed with some sort of poison. Although his mana usually proved an invaluable helper, this time it was his stamina that allowed him to find the issue instead. Since it spread throughout his cells naturally when he made use of the strange substance, it gave a much clearer picture of his body''s current state. Now, while knowing about his predicament was progress, seeing how battered up he was didn''t fill him with confidence. He could tell that most of his body was bruised, probably from being dragged along the floor by his captor, and the toxin in his system only hadn''t killed him because he was lucky. The venom was on the strings that made up his cocoon, meant to preserve his body rather than kill him, since his captor probably assumed he was dead already. Coupled with the generalised antidote from the shop, his healing potion, the heightened regeneration from his larger vitality stat, and a few of his Skills, he survived. While he was unconscious, his wounds had begun to slightly heal, and his body was finally beginning to break down more of the toxins than what entered his blood through the air and his skin. Over time, he would surely regain his strength. Now, all he had to do was either wait, or cut himself down. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Mercury couldn''t do anything about his current state, knowing no healing spells. If there was a target, he could have used , but that was more likely to just make whatever he targeted angry at him. If he escaped immediately, there was also a higher risk of being discovered and attacked while he was still vulnerable. Having made his decision, Mercury remained trapped voluntarily for now, though he did conjure up an additional layer of his own to cover the cocoon. He used it sparingly, to avoid changing the colour or looking conspicuous, but with a little luck, it would make people less likely to look at him, messing with their perception, and slowing down their thoughts. Then, the mopaaw focused on his stamina. Feeling it rhythmically pulse throughout his whole body seemed to be a better way to go than the fixed pathways for mana. Closing his eyes, he tried to imagine it as he had done his core before, finding himself staring at the well he called a vessel. From deep down within the structure, he could see the glint of crystals, the ones he could use to increase his stamina, but he could also feel some of the liquid sloshing around the well by itself. Some of it would spill over, spread around, and fight off the toxin wherever it encountered it. Slowly, Mercury tried to find the rhythm. His eyes were long closed, and after a little while, all he could hear was the back and forth of the stamina. First, nothing changed, but bit by bit, he decided to help it out a little. When it pulled back, he relaxed, and when his stamina slightly surged, Mercury led it to expand. After a little while, the small amounts that had spilled over increased, as his breath synced up with it. Then, his heartbeat, too, entered the same rhythm, beating when it ebbed and flowed. Only a few moments later, Mercury found that even his mana begun slowly travelling, even though he didn''t command it to. It wove its way into the veins made for it, and began to travel alongside the stamina, helping it reach the target like a network of roads. Mercury could feel the air, stale as it was, enter into his lungs, as his vessel released stamina, guided throughout his body by his mana and his blood. He could feel it latch onto not just the poison, but also his wounds, and he could tell they were beginning to close faster, too. After quite some time of meditating in that way, Mercury felt much better. He could feel his entire body again, and most of the wounds on his skin were at least covered with scab, while some had even begun healing. The tip of his tail still felt a little numb, but since he could still mostly use it, he felt spending any more time in his current situation would be dangerous. To escape, he simply opened up his inventory and withdrew one of his sharpest rocks, using to carve away more and more of the webbing that held him. It was less flexible than spiderweb, but in exchange quite a bit harder, so he could consider himself lucky he had something to cut them with. Trying to rip these apart would not have worked at all. Only a bit of painstaking labour later, Mercury finally found himself free, as he ungraciously plummeted to the floor, his fall cushioned by layers upon layers of what seemed to be ash. A quick look around told him he was in a cave, and given the heap of gnawed bones in a corner, it wasn''t exactly abandoned. There were a few more of the cocoons in the room, but the eerie silence told Mercury all he needed to hear. All of them were filled with corpses, nothing more and nothing less. Taking his eyes off the rather disturbing sight of death, Mercury instead took a few gulps of water and then looked for a way out, finding a large opening in the cave wall not much later. He could think once he was somewhere a little bit safer than some damn monster''s den, for now he just needed to escape. As quickly and quietly as he could, Mercury began making his way through the passage outside. It seemed barely big enough for whatever brought him here to squeeze through, which was good for him, since it meant he probably wouldn''t encounter anything much larger than that creature. The thought sent a shiver down his spine, but Mercury suppressed his fear and simply continued, soon coming to the end of the winding passage. Exiting a final, narrow crack in the rock, Mercury finally made his way to the surface. The outlook there seemed... bleak, at best. It was a desolate landscape, with no sign of civilisation. The floor was made from black stone, covered in ash which perpetually seemed to fall from the sky or rise up from the floor below. The landscape was dotted with tree shaped growths, yet all of them were thin, wiry, and most importantly, carved entirely from grey rock. Rather than blue, the sky above was red and grey, with dark clouds and a crimson circle as the only donator of light. The sphere stood high above, seemingly unmoving, painting Mercury''s white fur an eerie shade of red, almost as though he was drenched in blood. Breathing was harder on the surface than in the cave, given the ash floating through the air, but even if it wasn''t, the smell of iron and sulfur would have made it unpleasant anyways. With a displeased frown, Mercury started to look around for any landmarks to latch onto. Even something sinister would do, like an obsidian castle, or a blood covered spire, yet he was not lucky enough to find either. No, the only interesting things in his surroundings were a few hills that could serve as decent vantage points. Unfortunately for him though, it seemed this place was not kind enough to let him simply reach any of the hills. The ash surrounding them was dyed slightly more red than most of what he could see, indicating spilled blood, and when he looked at them, both and even seemed to ring slight warning bells in his head. Once he heard the bells though, Mercury''s head began to spin faster. If there was blood, there were doubtlessly creatures about. But he couldn''t see any. In fact, other than the ashen rain, he didn''t see anything move at all. Mercury made a mental note of the extreme quiet, as he placed his back up against a rock wall. He wanted to be upset and angry, yet his survival instinct shoved those feelings down again. First things first. His highest priority was finding a clear water source. He still had some in his waterskin, he kept it stocked all the time, after all, but it wouldn''t last him any longer than a couple days. Second was food. He was already hungry, and with his body being quite fit, he could probably last another little while, but eventually, the hunger would sap his strength. Now, to find either of those, he would need to understand the lay of the land. If he were a better magician, maybe he could expand his mana that far, but alas, he was not. That left him with some very average, disappointing options, being mainly his eyes. So, after some deliberation, his next target would have to be the nearest hill, whether it rang warning bells or not. At least the trek through the wasteland there was uneventful. The clouds in the sky remained still, as did the sun, although the ash did continue to rain down. Strangely, it seemed as though the level of ash covering the ground didn''t rise, no matter how much of it fell from the sky. Mercury was thankful for that, his fur was already long stained grey, and being completely submerged would have been even more horrendous than making the journey as is. Strangely though, the distance between him and the hill also shrunk much more slowly than it felt it should. Somehow, his steps carried him less distance than normally. It felt almost familiar, too, knowing he was taking steps and yet making very little progress. Shaking his head, Mercury shoved the thought aside for now. He was still wary of this place. No matter how quiet it seemed, something about the atmosphere made him feel quite on edge. Like something was lurking, just waiting for him to lose his cool, or exhaust himself on the journey. Luckily though, Mercury found himself not getting much more tired. He was used to long journeys, given that he''d done quite a bit of travelling since he was reincarnated on Chronagen. This, while exhausting, was just another path forward he had to get through. With a quiet sigh, Mercury renewed his focus, laying his eyes on the hill that grew closer ever so slowly. He didn''t worry about the time his trip would take, instead allowing himself to be motivated by the distances he covered. Whenever he passed another stone-tree, it was one bit closer to the hill, and eventually, after what felt like hours, he had made it. From up close, the difference in the floor was quite clear. The ash didn''t go any higher around the hill, still being only around 10 centimeters thick, but it was very clearly stained red, as he guessed it was around all the hills he could see. Not just that, but from up close, Mercury could see that the red stains formed an almost perfect circle around the foot of the hill, with only streaks going higher up. Hearing his ring out more loudly, the frown on Mercury''s face deepened. Before taking another step forward, he retrieved a stone from his backpack, tossing it towards the hill. A moment after, it passed the circle of blood, then continued soaring through the air, until it popped down on the ground with nothing else happening. In fact, so little happened that it made Mercury suspicious. There hadn''t even been any noise when it hit the floor. The mopaaw''s eyes narrowed for a moment, before he pulled out a second rock. He kept his paw on it, barely touching its side, while levitating it with . Slowly, he brought it over the barrier, and once he did, he could feel something about it change. The stone had begun vibrating lightly, feeling faintly warm against his skin. Mercury looked at it for a little while, and once he confirmed that barely anything about it changed at all, he decided that taking a risk was necessary. He needed to get to higher elevation. Aimlessly wandering would only serve to make him starve. Very slowly, he placed his first paw past the circle, and noticing nothing wrong, he stuck his head in. He regretted the decision very, very quickly. Past the bloody barrier, Mercury''s head began aching as though he had a strong migraine. His ears rang, and he could swear he felt his skin vibrate. Unfortunately, he found that he couldn''t retreat. The air above the circle of blood had turned solid, a grey, translucent sheet separating him from the outside. Gritting his teeth, Mercury decided that he had to move forward. At least, there wasn''t anything attacking him yet. Given his splitting headache, Mercury guessed that it was some sort of sonic attack, low enough to be imperceptible, but loud enough to shake his very bones. When the mopaaw grit his teeth and took another step forward, he could actually feel his fangs grinding against one another. Once Mercury was fully inside, he saw the barrier perfectly close behind him, sealing him in and leaving just one path. To follow the trails of blood from his predecessors and hope for the best. Adapting quickly, Mercury ignored the ringing in his ear, and began stepping forward, when he felt a liquid begin to streak down his head from his ears and eyes. After the second step, the headache grew stronger, and he felt another trickle from his mouth and nose. Touching his face, his paw came away red, alerting him of the fact that he was beginning to shed tears of blood. Mercury''s frown deepened, his teeth clenched hard, as he continued his journey forwards, leaving his own streak of blood behind. After all, he didn''t exactly have anything better to do than see the top of this hill now, did he? Chapter 124: Ashen Monsters Chapter 124: Ashen Monsters /The chase was long and brutal on the young Hunter. They''d been living in the wilderness for a while now, certainly, and they had hunted creatures superior to them one way or another. Critters were fast, large animals were strong, and so on. Yet they had never once been so thoroughly outmatched. Whenever they ran, they could not shake pursuit. When they stopped to rest, they were ruthlessly attacked from any direction. There was no space for stopping, not for eating, drinking, or using the bathroom, and still their pursuer remained entirely hidden from them. It went on just like that for almost a full day, before the young Hunter finally managed to find a hiding spot with a mad dash and a Skill of theirs. While anyone could end up being hunted, only an idiot would run without a plan, and it would take someone even more stupid not to regain their calm head eventually. While the young Hunter knew little about their pursuer, they had not run pointlessly. Throughout the chase, they had been probing the other''s skills. They had run faster and slower, used different methods of detection, and surveyed the nearby area, while setting up a hiding spot as well. Now, with but a moment''s respite, their mouth twisted upwards into a grin. The call they had felt was finally silent within their chest. This was the moment they would prove themselves worthy, or they would die. To overturn the odds using only one''s skill and what was at hand, that was what hunting meant to them. If they died in the field, well, that was simply due to their own incompetence. The young Hunter already had a ruthless outlook on the world, but they were even harder on themselves. It was clearer to them now, that this was not just a test, but also a learning experience for them. What better way, after all, to know how prey would react, than by being in their shoes for a while? And so, after minimal respite, the young Hunter''s mind was made up. Their determination as solid as steel, they were set on wearing themselves down until they had nothing more to give. Leaving their hiding spot, the chase resumed, and went on for days, a game where both parties staked their lives on every move. They ran, set traps, lashed out, hid, and tried to find each other again. Without ever having laid eyes on their foe, the young Hunter knew they were formidable, always staying hidden, but both of them were still not giving it their all. The first day passed, then the second and the third. On the fourth, when neither of them had slept for even a moment, the young Hunter felt their limits approaching. It was grueling, grinding on their nerves. They had to be meticulous in every step, since even just a single slip up could mean death, and they had been keeping it up for four days. By the time night approached again, they felt entirely drained. There was no more stamina left to give, no more tricks up their sleeve, and yet, somehow, they made do. Their traps became less fancy, more resourceful and tricky. Their steps more measured, quiet, not even a sliver of energy wasted. Everything they did was done with ruthless efficiency, polished to a shine in the face of pressure greater than they had ever faced. The fifth day went by slowly, both parties drained, dancing around each other like wounded animals, careful not to make a single misstep, and finally, on the dawn of the sixth day, it was over. Young Hunter was worn down to the bone, their senses and movements sharpened to the very limit. Their mind was teetering on the edge of insanity, clinging to life with all they had just to survive another second. They were hungry, thirsty, and tired enough to collapse, yet they remained awake. They''d used Skills to make up for their slowing cognition, and their levels had increased more than in the last year combined. This had been fruitful, so very worth it to them, and when they finally found their enemy locked in their trap, they rejoiced. Perhaps somewhere, deep down in their soul, a part of them wished for an even greater challenge, yet that day, they screamed in joy, because the first game of death had ended in their victory./ (Legends: The Hunter - 3; Game) - - - - - - Gritting his teeth, Mercury dragged his feet further and further up, the few centimeters of ash soon feeling like a wall he could only barely cross. Bit by bit, he continued the journey, watching the nearby streaks of blood end as he himself left one behind. Where did the bodies of his predecessors go? He didn''t dare ask. Something about the place still felt so distinctly wrong, pushing him to hurry, rather than rest. Perhaps it was the adrenaline in his veins, or the near-death experience he''d recently had still driving him, but with great force of will, Mercury left behind his own trail of blood. Soon, although the time that passed felt excruciatingly long, the ascent was done. Somehow, where many others failed, he succeeded. Perhaps it was due to or his willpower, he didn''t know yet. At the very top of the hill, the strange pressure he''d been feeling vanished, and was instead replaced by a calm air of quiet. For a few moments, Mercury decided to rest. He didn''t dare lay down, staying vigilant, but he first looked around rather than press on. There were a handful of trails that led all the way to the peak of the hill, though he didn''t know whether half of them were leading down instead. It would paint an even bleaker picture if that was the case. By itself, the place he had now reached didn''t seem all that special. It was high enough to let him see further, of course, but other than that, there was only one more landmark. It looked like a summit cross, though Mercury wouldn''t call it one, given the height of the hill. only told him it was a structure to denominate the highest point of a landmark as well, which wasn''t helpful. Pushing off his scouting for a few minutes, Mercury took the time to study the cross. He didn''t want to take any risks while he was looking for things to eat. Walking up close, the mopaaw sniffed the thing, then looked at it again, trying to see if there were any special details. Its smell was that of metal and ash, one he had grown more than familiar to in this place, yet it was also mixed with something else. The putrid hue of sulfur wasn''t in the air here, but to Mercury it felt more like a trick to get him to feel calm. His close inspection revealed something else, being runes. Countless of them were etched into the cross, small and unassuming, woven together. Mercury hadn''t learned as much about them as he''d hoped before, but even with his limited knowledge, he could tell they combined to form more than the sum of their parts. In fact, the feeling they gave off was almost familiar in a way. It felt as though they were meant to protect, rather than attack. Having read barely enough of them to conclude nothing would jump out from it to kill him, Mercury swiftly laid his eyes on the landscape down below. The sight was disheartening, to a degree, seeing it put into perspective just how lifeless the plains really were. Ash, ash, and even more ash were all that seemed to cover the vast land in front of him. Somewhere up ahead, he couldn''t tell what cardinal direction it was in, he could see mountains rising, but even those seemed lifeless and grey. To his right, left, and behind him, there was just a vast amount of nothing. However, there was a silver lining. Despite all the ash, Mercury could occasionally catch glimpses of movement below it. There was something alive down there, at the very least. Mercury took a few moments to try and understand what kind of beings could survive in an environment like this, and to estimate their size, but with so few reference points, it proved rather tough. Still, he tried his best to remember their approximate location, when his ears picked up something. Spinning around to his back, Mercury saw that the ash on the horizon began to rise, slowly lifting from the floor, revealing the dull, lifeless rock. Then, the flakes danced, first slow, then quickly, then faster still. They moved into the sky, forming a large wall of grey, dragged along by a vicious storm. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. "Shit," Mercury cursed. Maybe this was why nothing else had moved. If storms like this one were frequent, anything living here would''ve needed to adapt to it, and hidden away. They probably just saw it coming earlier than he did. Seeing the stormfront move closer, Mercury thought for a while, then decided. His safest bet was probably the cross. It still stood, after all, and it could provide some cover at the very least. The mopaaw used his last moments before the winds hit to try and carve himself a spot at the base of the metal, brushing aside the ash, before using his mind''s hammer to try and shatter the stone. Yasashiku had always told him that a hammer with too much power would only break things, and the old man was right once more. When Mercury compressed his rijn down further, from the size of a hammerhead to about half that, he could see the stone begin to crack. He was lucky, too. The rock was brittle, filled with holes and pockets of gas. If it had been something tougher, it might have been his rijn that shattered against it. Feeling his mind compress more tightly was equally strange, the hammer growing firmer when he struck a smaller area. He could tell the blows were powerful, sending cracks through the rocks, but he could also feel the aftereffects. Keeping his mind this tightly knit was taking its toll on him, too. Combined with repeatedly bashing it against a hard surface, he could feel himself getting a headache and start sweating, but kept it going nonetheless. Mercury didn''t stop until the storm had grown much closer, when he finally ended his rijn, allowing himself a moment of respite before moving the shattered stone aside with . Making the burrow had taken him around ten minutes or so, and it was barely deep enough for him to lay inside, but with the metal cross in between him and the storm, it was much better than nothing. With a final deep breath, the storm reached the mopaaw. Within moments, Mercury felt his whole world had suddenly lost all colour. Everything he saw, even the crimson sky, was now painted in tones of grey. The flakes of ash moved too fast to pick them out individually, melding into an everchanging blanket for his vision. The storm stung in his eyes, forcing Mercury to close them shut, and instead rely on his sense of mana to try and figure out whether something was approaching or not. Having his world plunged into darkness was unsettling for the mopaaw, but he prevailed, digging his claws into the stone as the winds tried to take him off his feet and hurl him into the sky. Feeling the storm whip his back, Mercury endured silently, keeping his face as low to the rock as possible so he could still breathe at all. It was considerably harder now, like the wind was trying to pull the air from his lungs, but once again helped him considerably. He still endured, when small pebbles began to be dragged up as well, shards of rock soon cutting into his fur and skin. The wounds were small, but they soon began piling up, and the ash that filled them hurt like a bitch. Then, the storm continued to gain force, and soon, it felt like it was pulling the blood from his veins, only to have that same blood chained by the strange force that encapsulated the hill. Mercury could hear the wind howl even louder in indignation, and for a few moments, he thought he felt genuine malice in it, but only seconds after, the storm turned and began to weaken. Mercury cowered on the ground until it had thoroughly left, only then shaking off whatever ash he could and grimacing. He enjoyed a few deep breaths of air, then looked at the landscape down below again, and found himself surprised. There were bodies of creatures around, not even few of them. They looked a little like manta rays, except with dark grey skin on top and a long, thin feeler coming off their back. He saw smaller critters, ones that looked something like centipedes feasted on the dead ones, while the life ones fed on them in exchange. Soon though, more creatures began to emerge, eager to pounce on the storm''s bounty. There were lumbering, ape like things, with the stature of gorillas, but their eyes were white and empty. Somehow, they would walk using their arms to support themselves, yet they remained almost perfectly silent as they approached their prey. Whenever those things'' fists struck, Mercury would hear a sickening crunch, and the fight was over. Then, their lips would part to reveal fangs and mandibles, which they used to tear apart whatever they killed. This is how most of the gorilla-things died, too. They got careless while eating, and pounced one by one of the things that came out the rifts in the blood eclipse. The strange humanoids somehow seemed to crawl from cracks in the ground, their joints bending to let them fit into tight spaces. When they rose, some would howl and hunt, other remain silent and pounce later. However, even those were not the greatest predators around. Some time after the storm, when Mercury was still observing the carnage below, he felt a shudder. For a moment he thought he might be cold from blood loss, but that would be strange, given that his wounds had mostly developed scabs by now. Then, a second shudder, and he noticed it began from his legs. He wasn''t shaking, the ground was. After the third one, Mercury could finally see it. One of the hills near him, one without a cross, he noted, had begun rising. It simply lifted off the ground slowly, giant pieces of rock raising from beneath it. Slowly, it rose higher, as more rocks extended to support its ascent. Soon, the hill was no longer a hill, but instead some sort of gigantic tortoise, yet it was not. Its shell was made from the blackened rock, its skin grey and full of cracks. It looked more carved from stone, rather than alive, yet it so clearly was. Its tail was the stinger of a scorpion, curling up into the sky, and its head boasted small horns to its side and upwards. Its eyes sweeped the surroundings for a few moments, seeing some of the larger targets, before its tail swept across the landscape. Somehow, from between the chitin plates, more appendages sprung. There were arms, almost human looking, but with dull grey and black scales covering them, which reached out for the crushed bits of meat. Some of them lifted things far bigger than them, betraying their strength, before drawing their spoils within. Maws opened up next to the arms, a countless number of them, and were fed with anything that moved, until hardly anything remained alive within the behemoth''s vicinity. Then, the walking hill simply withdrew its tail and head, folded its legs, and laid down to rest in silence once more. The shiver that ran across Mercury''s spine was genuine this time, his hair raising in fear. He looked down at the ground below his feet, at the hill he was standing on, and used again. [A hill.] Mercury let out half a sigh of relief, then decided it was better to be safe than sorry. His mana had recovered quite a bit, and he decided he might as well invest it into something, using his spell,, for the first time. [Consumed: 100 Mp.] [A hill made from volcanic rock. It is consistently covered in ash, most of it raining down from the sky, while some is generated by the stone itself. It is inanimate.] Mercury breathed a sigh of relief at those words. They had been a little less detailed than he would have liked, and there was most likely more to it than met the eye, but for now, he could at least know that it was fairly safe. After all, some of the creatures below had seen him and attempted to climb up, yet their hunger was quickly overwhelmed by the strain the ascent caused them. Even to monsters, their survival was more important than securing a measly meal, and everything that attempted to approach him stopped or died just around halfway up. Curiously, while things were trying to move up, the runes on the cross glowed lightly, and Mercury could feel the ambient mana being drawn to it. However, when they died, he saw something else entirely, as their bodies would rapidly darken, then turn black, and finally fall apart to ash. Sensing the mana in the air, Mercury could tell what was happening. The cross set up a magic field, feeding off the ambient mana for its enchantments, which wore down anything within a certain range of the hilltop. Then, if it killed anything, a latent spell would take effect, converting almost anything into mana which was fed to the cross, and anything left over was discharged back into the air. While the cross was still creepy to him, it also served as a form of protection for now, which Mercury was grateful for. Feeling a little safer, he allowed himself to calm down slightly. It had been a very, very stressful few hours in this place, and it was only now that he finally got a chance to wind down a bit. He''d been tense as a bowstring ever since he''d arrived here, and with good reason, too, but it had also led him to make a few rash decisions. Perhaps he really should have thought about ascending the hill surrounded by blood for a little longer, yet he didn''t. Now though, he was glad for it. Maybe it was his helping him again, whatever the reason, he was still alive because of it. Really, he was quite happy with his skillset right now. He was decently well versed in fending for himself, and his skills reflected that. Most importantly, he was adaptable, and able to learn quickly. Being a mopaaw also had helped him with his appetite, seeing raw meat now didn''t really bother him anymore. If he could have one additional Skill though, it would be one to conjure some form of water or food. Immediately after, he wanted to smack his own head. He pulled up the Skill shop and searched for anything related to eating and drinking for quite a while. He found Skills like , , , , and even , but sadly nothing related to actually producing food. Perhaps if he''d really understood he would have been able to just weave food with his dreams by now, but unfortunately, that still needed more practice. Sighing, Mercury looked over the plains below again, seeing that some of the fighting had now died down, with most carcasses being gone and many skirmishes between critters having finished. Occasionally, he''d see a wounded creature win a fight and have any cuts or bruises vanish almost immediately, probably regaining Hp from a level up. He''d have to go out hunting soon, but right now, he needed some time to recover. His wounds were barely closed over, and his head still lightly ached. His rijn wasn''t really ready for breaking stone quite yet, but it was still a start. For now though, what Mercury needed even more than food was a cool head on his shoulders. So, the mopaaw went back to his small burrow, then forced himself to close his eyes, and began breathing rhythmically. He felt that his had been improving again too, recently, but for now, he put that at the back of his mind. He still had some way to go,after all, which meant he needed sleep. Despite his dangerous environment, once Mercury convinced himself he needed to sleep, the fatigue set in. The poison that wasn''t completely out of his system, all the blood he''d lost, and the long march he''d undertaken had worn him out. Once he woke, he''d certainly be ready to tackle the challenges up ahead, but they could surely wait for at least a little while. Chapter 125: Nightmare Chapter 125: Nightmare /When the young Hunter came back to themselves, they had many messages from the system to get through. After the battle was over, they''d eaten and drank a little, before passing out in their last hideout. They''d stashed away the pursuer''s body in their inventory after stopping the decomposition of it, to take a closer look at once they''d recharged. Now, after barely having woken up, there was quite a bit for them to get through. They''d received a special title, which apparently only one person could hold at a time. Before, they''d been a hunter, certainly, but now it was different. [By listening to their calling, the individual has found the abode.] [By besting at their own game, the individual has inherited the title of .] They also warned the Hunter of the dangers the title carried, that occasionally, promising candidates would perhaps feel a calling, and that once they were found, they would hunt or be hunted. For the first little while they read, the Hunter felt a mix of emotions. Yes, the title suited them, certainly, yet was it truly them who had decided to inherit it? Why did they feel the call rather than simply a quest? It felt as though their freedom was restricted somewhat, and they did not enjoy it at all. Shaking their head, they read on, and over time, they realised why they''d been picked. Well, rather than being picked, it could be said that they had picked this fate. The call wasn''t some mysterious entity that would reach out to promising young hunters. It was the other way around. Anyone with a sufficient passion for hunting, one that rivals the current holder of the title, may feel the call. Not when they wished to simply live off the wild, or when they hunted for sport, but instead, only those who truly wanted to be the greatest hunter would feel it. Rather than them being called, it was a manifestation of the system to guide them to their destiny. Then, once the Hunter was reaffirmed of their freedom, the mood around them lightened. If the call or their title had been a shackle, they would''ve cast it aside at a moment''s notice. But this? It simply meant they were free to do as they pleased, and to prove to the whole world that they were still at the peak. When the young Hunter read on about their title, their smile widened. The title came with no additional Skills related to the hunt itself, that much would give the holder too great an advantage over other hunters aiming for it. No, rather than that, it mostly consisted of a compass. It was a very special compass, too. One that would not pinpoint the location of any creature, nor would it point in just one direction. Instead, it would show the path the individual had to take to meet something worthwhile hunting. With glee on their face, they looted the body of their predecessor, left their temporary camp, and began to journey off, onto the next hunt./ (Legends: The Hunter - 4; Inheritance) - - - - - - The very next moment, Mercury''s eyes opened again. Drowsily at first, like after a long nap, then much quicker as he didn''t recognize where he was. Underneath his feet, the ground felt unfamiliar, and somewhat dangerous. It was soft earth, covered in a thin sheet of grey mud, yet somehow the air was dry and stale, almost suffocating. In a second, Mercury found himself fully awake, quickly spinning his head for any sign of another living soul, but what little he saw through the thick fog that hung about the place was desolate. Gazing down at himself, Mercury discovered that he certainly was not currently in his waking body. His feet were made from a construct of stone-looking tubes, wrapping around each other into a statue-like recreation of himself. It calmed him down slightly, knowing that at the very least, his body was still where he''d fallen asleep, at least as far as he could tell, though at the same time, not knowing where he was unsettled him. Up until now, the only time he had gone to sleep and woken up somewhere other than the fountain, he had chosen that path on his own, but this time, he''d done nothing the like. Somehow, he''d either been abducted, or his mind had suddenly changed a lot to look like this. Was it because he was still slightly poisoned, or maybe because exhaustion had caught up with him? Could it be because all the creatures he saw around the planes of ash unsettled him? That wouldn''t make sense though, given that even when his psyche was severely rattled, he''d still woken up in those same verdant plains, albeit a little more sinister then. Shaking his head, Mercury banished those thoughts. He quickly scanned his surroundings again, sensing the mana in the air as well. Rather than it being more abundant, like where he usually found himself, here the air felt dead. Every time he sensed a triz, he could feel it was different from most. They weren''t smaller than others, since they couldn''t really be, but it felt as though they wanted to be. The difference was so slight that most mages might not have noticed it at all, but yet Mercury did. After all, he had spent a fair share of his time trying to absorb only the triz that felt "better" than the rest back in Treyno, so picking up the feel of the mana in this place was much easier. If Mercury had to put words on it, the mana felt... scared. It wanted to shrink away, to not be here at all, yet of course it couldn''t move. Almost all the mana in the grey bog felt that way, trying to disappear to the best of its ability, and soon, Mercury could tell why. From the edge of the fog, he heard a quiet rumbling sound, and within moments, it was upon him. The ground rose for a moment, small cracks opening up in the earth. The grey mud slid down there, silently descending along the edges of the fissures, before being swallowed up. Then, Mercury could feel a tug on his own core, as the mana in the air nearby was swallowed up. Only a handful of seconds later, the fissures closed, and new mud rose to the top, first snow white, then quickly turning grey. Over the next couple seconds, the mana in the air began to stabilize again, returning to homogenous levels, but Mercury could clearly tell it had lessened slightly. As a cold shiver ran along his back, Mercury began to move. Something definitely wasn''t right with this place, and he was not going to stay in one place to wait for the cracks to maybe eventually become bigger and open beneath his feet. That was a big nope in his book. When the mopaaw moved, his figure cut a streak into the fog. It felt heavy and thick, more like a liquid than a gas, and Mercury would have sworn that some of it genuinely clung to his fur. When he looked back, he saw that there was a small tunnel behind him, and though it was closing rather quickly, he could still see some of the path he''d walked. Taking a deep breath that stung his lungs a little, Mercury tried to calm himself down. He couldn''t afford to panic. Keeping his steps measured, he continued his trek through the marsh, seeing absolutely nothing of note. Every step he felt the mud dragging against his legs, the fog clinging to his skin. Every step he took, it almost made him wonder why he was still walking at all. After all, it would have been so much easier to just lay down and wait to wake up, wouldn''t it? A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Mercury banished the treacherous thought the moment it sprouted up. He knew it for sure now, this place was messing with his mind. With his astral body slowed down, it felt like he couldn''t quite think right. His head felt sluggish and slow, but it wasn''t enough to make him stupid. If he stopped moving, he would just sink further into the mud, and moving on would become even harder. He had to keep moving, even if just for the sake of moving at all. Time in the swamp seemed to pass as slowly as Mercury moved. The air was still with no wind, and the fog seemed to always hang around just the same as before. His only real indicator of the passing of time was the rhythmical expansion and contraction of the ground, as it sought to leech his mana from him. Every time, Mercury carefully avoided the cracks, and made sure his core didn''t have any leaks, then moved on once the event was over. It felt like he''d marched forever until something finally changed. He only noticed once the ground expanded again, rising him up slightly before the wet mud drained away, exposing the earth below. There, he could see tracks, a sign that something had moved through here before. Whatever let behind the prints, they were much larger than Mercury''s own, and the thing must have been quite a bit heavier than him, too, given their depth. They were somewhat heart shaped, though the back was much more rounded, and the front had three smaller humps rather than two of them. Given what he had learned about tracking when he was living on his own, Mercury was also quite sure that the creature had been in a hurry, running from something else. The imprints it had left in the mud were far enough apart to make him think it was running as fast as it could actually, though he wondered what it might have been running from. Before he got the chance to look for additional tracks though, the cracks in the earth closed again, and the ground was once again covered in mud, probably destroying his chances. Even if there were other tracks there, cleaning away enough mud without more flooding in would have been impossible with how flat the landscape around him was. Instead, Mercury decided to begin following the tracks. If there were more creatures around, he''d prefer finding them himself, rather than being found. - - - The journey through the marsh proved as exhausting as it was demoralizing. The landscape always remained the same, nothing new to see in the slightest, and Mercury had to feel out whether he was still following the tracks by stepping into them, which resulted in him landing face first in the mud more than once. With the air feeling barely worth breathing, and no sign of progress, the march wore Mercury down. Luckily though, being worn down was something he had plenty experience with from a 21st century office job. Instead of wallowing in his misery, Mercury used all his spare attention for thinking, no matter how sluggish. His mind still felt clogged and lazy, and he had to focus on walking just a little to avoid losing the slight change in scenery he found, but that much still left him with quite some mental capacity to spare. Mercury tried to use as much of that as possible on trying to further understand . It was his first ihn''ar, and one of the most useful ones, too. He still needed its help plenty of time, for bursts of strength, to regain his stamina or focus, to calm down when he panicked, the list went on. To him, it was one of the most important tools for survival in his arsenal, and while might allow him to weave water into existence, he had hardly any clue on how to start. Meanwhile, when it came to , he even had two of them. The first was rhythm. When he synced his breath with his heartbeat and stamina, he could feel a sort of resonance between them, which had significantly sped up his recovery. If he could do that much without even levelling again, he certainly had a path of improvement ahead of him. The second path he thought of was depth. When he took deep breaths during the storm, he could feel the wind trying to fight him for it, but it lost the battle. When he was taking shallow breaths before the abduction, it made even the creature from the blood eclipse think he was dead. Clearly, there was some untapped potential there, both in terms of stealth and keeping his breathing going in difficult situations. If he was right, then there was a good chance that by learning both of them, he could level up again, maybe even twice. For now though, Mercury decided to focus on the former rather than the latter. If he was able to use rhythm to draw out more power or regain his stamina faster, it would make hunting much more efficient, and increase his chances of survival by far. Having set his mind on the path to pursue for now, Mercury split his mind, using one zeyjn on tracking, and the other on developing his breath. It was more taxing that way, but because of just that it was also a great way to develop his zeyjn further. Keeping them active for long was difficult after all, and if he could keep them up for quite a while, maybe he could eventually begin developing a third. The split happened just in time, too, since the one focusing on tracking soon caught notice of something new. The air had changed. Now, mixed in with the smell of age and decay, there was something else. A mix of sweat and fear, just a hint of it, fading quickly. As Mercury noticed it, he felt like the fog was trying to curl around his nose, but it was too late by then. He''d caught onto it already, and with his he wasn''t going to let go. A small grin found itself onto his face as his steps sped up a little, the trace growing stronger until the fog couldn''t hide it anymore if it tried. When the ground split again just a little while later, Mercury could tell he was still on the right path. The trace his nose picked up matched the direction of the tracks he had found before, and the ones he saw now seemed much more recent. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] It seemed as though the system agreed with him. He''d tracked some small game before, but it wasn''t quite enough for the Skill, apparently. Now though, whatever caused him to gain the Skill finally, he had a much easier time following the tracks. With the Skill, the distance between the prints seemed to make much more sense, meaning he spent less time poking around in the mud, and more time actually following them. Additionally, he was now able to hone in on the smell much more, shutting out most of the decay as his journey sped up considerably. Not much later, only a few dozen cycles of the floor expanding, something began to poke through the edge of the fog. The creature was large, about the size of a rhino, and looked like someone had fused one with a tiger and a triceratops. Its skin was brownish where Mercury could see it, but also covered with brown and grey striped fur. The creature''s legs were entirely covered in scales, all of the same brownish colour, though especially towards its feet, they became more orange. Its neck featured a spike rimmed shield, and two bull-like horns rose from the top of its skull, while a third one extended from the front of its face. Honestly, it would have been menacing, if not for the fact that it laid on the floor, dark blood staining the mud around it. Its breath was weak, shallow and fearful, and its eyes hazy. As Mercury slowly approached, the creature tried to get up on its legs and run, only to stagger and fall to the floor again with something of a grunt. ''Stay... away...'' it thought. Mercury was surprised he could understand it for a moment, but the surprise faded quickly. This was a dream, after all, and he had understood old Dreamweaver just as well. ''I won''t hurt you,'' Mercury replied. The creature grunted and huffed in reply, a symphony of disbelief radiating from it. ''You''re dying,'' Mercury noted. ''Most nights, the same,'' it replied. There was shame written beneath those thoughts, and plenty of pain as well. All of it though was covered in a thick blanket of anger, and it made Mercury almost glad he met the thing on the verge of death, since otherwise, it might have just gone and attacked him immediately. He took a small step back to give the creature space. ''Most nights?'' It affirmed his thoughts. ''Most. Escape, sometimes.'' Fear smothered every other emotion at that sentence. ''Escape from what?'' the mopaaw tentatively asked, but the beast only grunted in reply, the lights in its eyes already extinguishing. All that Mercury could read from its thoughts now was pain, fear, and somehow, solace. Moments after it died, Mercury felt the ground shake again, more severely this time, before a larger crack opened up in front of him and swallowed up the thing he had spoken to. Then the ground closed, and silence returned. The mopaaw could feel himself shaking slightly in fear. He was waiting for something to happen, a chewing sound, maybe a sickening crunch, but there was nothing. Rather than any noise, the absolute quiet was much more unsettling. Any trace of the creature in front of him was now gone. No more stained mud, even its tracks were going to be washed away soon. Frankly, he could consider himself lucky to have actually found something at the end of the prints he was following, instead of them simply ending. Taking a deep breath, Mercury calmed his thoughts, and turned around to head backwards. The fog glowed slightly as he looked into it, a hue of yellow as though it sneered at it. Somehow, it seemed thinner, just thin enough to see two long streaks of black stretching into the sky in the distance. Almost defying his own will, Mercury''s gaze trailed along the streaks of black, and followed them upwards. Strangely, wherever his eyes touched them, they blurred, and seemed to disappear, yet the yellow glow remained. And at the top, when he was finished following the strange streaks, there was a large black circle, with a smaller yellow one inside, casting a dim, chilling light onto the area where he had seen the other creature die. The thing, whatever he was looking at, tilted its head, then it twitched, and its edges turned blurry. Unlike the stalks that led up to it however, it didn''t disappear, but instead, a gleaming white crescent of fangs revealed itself beneath the source of light, before streaks of black shot out from its side towards Mercury. Before he could even think, he began to run. Chapter 126: On the Horizon Chapter 126: On the Horizon Mercury''s legs moved as fast as they could carry him, leaping through the mud in hopes of losing whatever that thing was. His mind was still shaken by what he read when he looked at that thing. Its thoughts were so alien to him, different and twisted. There was a mix of them, of echoing screams and harrowing fear. Mercury felt the disconnect between all of them, and he knew that they''d been stolen. Whatever that thing was, it would take the thoughts of others, then twist them and keep them for itself. But beyond even that, Mercury felt a strange sensation about the creature itself. He read such malice, such hatred from it, yet none of it was directed at him. The thing hated itself, hated what it was, because it was simply a puppet. A bundle of thoughts with barely enough mind to think and hate, left only to find those who walked this marsh and hunt them down. Which is exactly what it was doing. From the stygian circle that made up its blurred body, streaks of black drifted through the air and sunk into the ground where Mercury had just been. The fog around him was eerily lit by what was chasing him, and it felt even heavier on his skin now that he was fleeing. Soon, Mercury felt his lungs burning from exhaustion as he kept sprinting, hearing a hissing sound akin to flying arrows behind him. But in this realm, there was nowhere to go. Nowhere to hide. No matter how long Mercury ran, all that enveloped him was mud and fog. Occasionally, the ground opened up again, and it felt as though the cracks around him were bigger now, as though growing and reaching for him. He felt them pull on the mana within his core, sticking close like a vulture would before something died in the desert. Mercury fought against the exhaustion, panting heavily as his legs felt on the verge of breaking, but still he ran. Forcing his body as far as he could, dragging his legs across the earth, his blood rushing in his ears. He was trying his best to somehow find a way out of the situation, but came up empty. All around him, the fog was still enveloped in the yellow light from that thing, and he could still hear hissing behind him. Each time, they seemed to get just a little bit closer now, striking where he had been barely a moment before, forcing him to keep running. How could he get out of this? No matter how much he ran, the creature stuck to him. He had nowhere to escape, couldn''t outrun it, and no hiding spots either. Given that the creature showed absolutely no signs of slowing down, Mercury made up his mind. He had to take the initiative against it. Gritting his teeth, he readied himself, waiting for the next moment he heard an impact behind him. The second he heard the wet slashing noise, Mercury took a deep breath, coursed mana through his legs, and came to an abrupt stop before dashing back the other way. As he sprinted, he tapped the black stake that had sunk into the ground with his tail, activating to hurl it straight back at the thing that shot it. It was also the first time he got a good look at the projectiles, and while his vision was limited, he could see a trail of the barbed, black stakes jutting from the floor through the fog. Quickly moving on from the distraction, Mercury was already focused on further striking back. He tapped the other two nearest spikes with his tail, shooting them back up at the thing, while accelerating the first one with . By the time his counterattack was halfway there, Mercury already dodged another two of the stakes by a hair''s breadth, watching them sink even further into the ground than the previous ones. Whatever the creature was, Mercury could now read frustration in its thoughts, even beyond the madness. After he dodged another attack, deflecting it to the side with , his first counter finally struck the thing. Being able to control his projectile''s trajectory, the creature''s clumsy attempt at avoiding the spike didn''t get it very far. Though perhaps its purpose simply didn''t include something like protecting itself. Whatever the reason, the stake hit it, and buried itself deep into whatever was shedding light from the thing''s face. The light flickered for a few moments before extinguishing, as the monster let out an abominable screech, loud enough to make Mercury dizzy for a few moments. Needless to say, he didn''t stick around to see if the other ones struck the creature, as he darted off into the fog the moment he noticed he had the time. He ran again, for a good long while, until his lungs burned so bad he thought he couldn''t run anymore. For some reason, his didn''t feel quite as astral here as it usually did in his dreams. Maybe this was just what happened when he got dragged into this dreamplane? Still panting, Mercury took another gaze behind him. The fog was thick, blanketing the sky, but it didn''t feel as oppressive as when he was caught in the gaze of the light anymore. Whatever that thing was, he didn''t see any sign of it in the fog around him, nor of any others like it, and to some degree, that was good enough for him. Shivering slightly, Mercury began taking deep breaths as he plopped down on the floor. The mud stained his fur a murky grey, fur which he usually shouldn''t have at all in his dreams, but he didn''t care. Taking deep breaths, he tried to regain as much stamina as he could, in case he ended up in another chase. While doing so, he focused on his rhythm again, trying to feel his heartbeat, and the ebb and flow of his stamina. The two were out of sync slightly he noticed, and with his breath, he tried getting them more in sync. His heart rate slowed, and he kept his stamina steady, up and down, bit by bit. After a little while, he began coursing his mana, too, trying to match the speed, unsuccessfully. Trying to make another thing fit in just disrupted the other two, breaking up the resonance rather than enhancing it. Sighing lightly, Mercury decided to stick to more physiological processes for at least a little while, until it became more habitual than meditative. Planting a goal for himself to work towards was always a good idea. Taking a final deep breath, he rose to his feet and looked around again, checking if anything like the creature he''d fended off was nearby. Luckily, the coast seemed clear for now. Still, Mercury didn''t feel safe just standing around, and instead decided to travel again. He kept an eye on his current Sp while he walked, too, seeing them tick back up little by little. The feeling of crossing less distance had returned as well, now that he was travelling at a steady pace again instead of running for his life. Because of it and the eversimilar landscape, looking around became quite boring, but Mercury still had to keep on guard. If another one of those damn flashlights showed up, he wanted to be ready at least. That much was a good choice, though not because he encountered another one of them. No, rather than that, he saw something on the horizon eventually. It was a strange sight, since the fog blocked off literally everything, yet somehow, a dim light found its way through. Not the same, bone-yellow light that shone from the creature, but something else. The change wasn''t very uplifting though, looking like a thin scarlet diamond hanging in the sky, but at the very least it was something. As soon as he noticed it, Mercury decided to make his way towards it, changing his direction slightly. His current situation was fine and all, he''d just have to occasionally run for his life, but he desperately lacked any way to improve it. Without any form of shelter, all that awaited him in the fog was death, eventually, and even if the diamond turned out to be dangerous, the worst that could happen was dying to it, too. The mopaaw wasn''t that scared of death anymore, at least not in this realm, after he had witnessed the rhino-creature die before. It said it happened every night, which made Mercury think that while it was certainly a shit idea to go off and get himself in trouble here, it also wouldn''t permanently take him out of commission. Considering the dreary scenery around him once more, he decided that any hope of shelter was better than this current hell. Having to resist the siphoning of his mana was beginning to grate down his nerves even more than the constant vigilance already did. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. When Mercury made up his mind, his steps began to speed up a little again, not fast enough to be considered a jog, but certainly faster than the slouching he had been doing before. Perhaps, bit by bit, the shape was growing bigger, but before he had the chance to see, Mercury blinked and found himself back in the ashen wasteland. - - - Realizing he felt hardly rested, Mercury grimaced. His mind had been on a trek the entire night, so it had very little time to actually recover from the strain. Luckily, though, at least his body felt better. He was sore all over, but that much he could tolerate. His wounds had all closed and begun healing, and while he still looked frazzled, it wasn''t nearly as bad as before he''d slept. Of course, the downside of a good night''s rest was that he woke up hungry and thirsty. Very hungry, in fact. Mercury quickly decided to fulfill at least one of those desires, taking a few gulps of water from his waterskin, before checking how much he had left. Barely enough for a day or two, he guessed. If he was lucky, he could survive off the blood of the creatures he hunted for a little while, but it certainly wouldn''t last him forever. No, what he needed was a proper source of somewhat drinkable water. With a slight grimace conjured up by pangs of hunger and thirst, Mercury surveyed the horizon again. Creatures were still fighting each other, mangled bodies clashing. The fights were spaced much further apart than after the storm though, and the plains looked decently calm at least, which made him think the creatures had probably been driven by hunger after the winds had passed. Given the current situation, there was a good chance he could avoid fighting anything too much bigger than he was. If there was any chance, he would really rather not fight giant apes or anything even remotely similar to them, not to mention the moving hill he had witnessed just before. As a shiver ran down his neck, Mercury tried to look as far as he could. With less ash hovering in the air, he could see much further now, and while most of the area around him didn''t look promising, just stretches of wasteland covered in ash and more ash, he thought he could see something at the very edge of the horizon. It was barely visible, between two much more jagged hills than the rest, where the area transitioned to more mountainous terrain, but he thought there was maybe a slight blue reflection there. Confirming again that his eyes weren''t tricking him, Mercury nodded to himself. No matter what, he''d have to get there within the next five or so days. He''d probably need to drink blood after three, and he didn''t have the confidence to fight or travel for much longer after that. Having found his goal, the mopaaw decided there was no time to lose. He simply had to buckle down and get moving once again. - - - - - - Lucia heaved multiple heavy breaths, her arms placed on her knees to help her get more air. After only a handful of them, she began coughing heavily, blood pitter-pattering onto the charred grass before her. Smoke still filled the air, making it even harder to breathe, but the crackling behind them had subsided. The stench was terrible. The metallic smell of blood mixed with the terrible odor of burnt hair and flesh, as well as campfire smoke from all the grass. It was accompanied by a cacophony of sobbing and yelling behind her, orders being barked by Rondo and Esmeya as any of the wounded who were still breathing were cared for. In the city, anyone who knew how to wrap a bandage was now certified medical staff and administering first aid to anyone who wasn''t already a walking corpse. The choices in there were harrowing, Lucia was sure of it, and she was almost glad to be out here rather than behind those walls. They''d succeeded. Well, success was a very strong word for what happened. The whole affair was more akin to a slaughter. They''d slaughtered all the northerners who still had the will to storm forward, spurred by the dying words of Scarlet. Lucia spat on the floor as she thought of the warmonger. So many pointless deaths, all because she just couldn''t stand being inferior. Thinking of it, the priestess felt somewhat responsible, too. If she had killed Scarlet in their first fight, perhaps more people could have lived, perhaps- When her thoughts just began to spiral, Lucia found herself in an embrace. "My lady," Iris said, "please don''t blame yourself." "..." Lucia was too tired to give a reply, returning the hug for a full second, before quickly escaping the embrace and looking around. Kaga was sitting up against the wall, leaning back. Her face was dirty, full of soot and smears of blood. There were plenty of cuts on her, some big, some small, but she would live. Most certainly. Somehow, with her eyes closed, her expression even looked almost peaceful. Only almost, though, since there was a hint of conflict in it. Her demons, however, were hers to fight. There was someone else who certainly needed more attention right now. Avery Beckham was unable to stand or sit. Instead, he laid face down in the dirt, his head tilted to the side barely enough to let him breathe. The fact that he was still alive was solely due to the fact that he had levelled up once or twice in the fight, gaining parts of his health back every time. As the priestess walked closer, she could hear his shaky breath interrupted by groans of pain. "You''re alive, Beckham," she stated. The shaky calm in her voice made Avery laugh, a hoarse cackle, which lasted for barely a moment before it turned into a hacking cough, followed by more red stains on the floor. His head tilted a little to avoid the small puddle. It couldn''t sink into the ground there, not with how much it had compacted as Avery kicked off it again and again and again. Kneeling down next to his poor state, she got a closer look at his injuries. His entire face was badly burnt, and she could see that his visor had almost fused with skin. Most of his hair was now gone, and the only reason his his chainmail hadn''t sunk into his flesh was the thin, magical shirt he wore underneath it. When she lightly touched him, Avery didn''t even react. He could hardly feel any of his body anymore, given that most his nerves were completely burnt. Soon, Kaga found herself next to the others as well. Her legs seemed shaky, and she leaned heavily on her naginata, gazing at the guildmaster with an uncharacteristically solemn impression. "Get up," she said, defiant. "I don''t wanna take care of this city." Again, Avery coughed heavily, a bitter smile now placed on what was left of his lips. They moved, but whatever words he was trying to say, they came out as barely a wheeze. Lucia grimaced. She knew her flames could now heal, occasionally, but she hadn''t exactly gotten a chance to perfect their usage. Additionally, she didn''t even need to look at her mana to know she was currently running on fumes. After all, towards the end of the fight she had to pick up a bow from a corpse rather than use her own. With a miserable look, she turned to Iris. "Could you give me a hand?" she asked, slowly. Iris nodded without hesitation, then went on to check her current vitality. She had about a third left, and it was still slowly draining, but she would certainly live. Taking a glance at her stamina and mana, each had around a sixth or so left. "Of course," she smiled, activating . Quickly, her legs buckled, and she found herself first sitting, then laying on the floor as the remainder of what she could give was transferred to Lucia. The Skill lost some of the substances in transfer, of course, but given how physically and emotionally close she was to Lucia, the percentage was luckily fairly low. The major downside was that she couldn''t cancel it until either she was out, or the target was filled up on whatever she chose. So, after experiencing a quick, pounding headache, Iris passed out as her stamina dropped down to a single point. Lucia, instead, found her mana refilled to a degree. Not all of it, not even close, but enough to activate her fire for a while. "Now then, master Beckham," she sighed. "We will see each other again once you wake." As she used her Skill, pleasant warmth first flooded Avery''s joints. His flesh began to knit itself back together as the continuous drain on his vitality slowed. Soon, though, he was hit by the pain again, as his nerves regenerated and made contact with the raw ground. His face distorted in agony, his entire body quaking as he fought to stay awake. Of course, it was a pointless fight. Soon, the guild master had passed out. The healing consumed his stamina, too, not just the healer''s mana. Additionally, Lucia had to go slowly, so as to get the maximum possible effect. If she simply spent all her mana at once, there was little point to it. Instead, she first focused on the major damage, fixing Avery''s nerves and blood vessels, before regrowing his skin wherever needed. Second by second, most of his blisters faded and sank back into his skin, until Lucia was fully spent again. Avery was alive. Bruised, battered, and in a terrible state, but alive. His stamina was at rock bottom, and he would need to eat plenty to have it recover, and his health was probably still dangerously low, but at the very least, it shouldn''t be draining by itself anymore. With the deed done, Lucia swayed side to side. She had already practically died once today, bringing another person back to life with so little mana had taken a toll on her too. With that, the third of the defenders passed out. Kaga sighed as she looked at the three of them, then put her naginata away. Her wounds were fairly severe, and the pain was slowly beginning to set in, now that her battle-related Skills wore off. She was surely not going to last very well outside, maybe even bleed to death, and if she was heading to an infirmary, she might as well take the others with her. Sighing and lamenting her fate, Kaga picked up the others, carrying Lucia and Iris between her arms and torso, while Avery rested draped over her shoulder. "Fucking... I''ll charge you for this, bastards," she swore, before stepping through the city gates. They were burnt, and it didn''t take much to open them at all, just a gently pull almost took one of the wings off its hinges, after which she stepped in. The misery was louder inside, but she cared little for it. Instead, she stepped into the healer''s tent Marcel was in. She''d caught a glimpse of him before she''d gone out to protect the gates, and now her perceptiveness paid dividends. Coming face to face with the young man, she grinned. "Hey trashcan. Your guild owes me now, I''ll have you know," she said, leaving Marcel''s jaw opening and closing like a fish on land, before she unceremoniously dropped her luggage onto one of the cots, then proceeded to pass out onto one herself. After taking a deep, long breath, Marcel composed himself with a sonata of inner screaming. "Take better care of yourselves, you pieces of shit," he cursed, before rolling up his sleeves and getting to work. They''d saved as much of the city as was possible. The least anyone could do was return the favour in kind. Chapter 127: Pest Control Chapter 127: Pest Control Traversing the ash-filled wasteland was not as bad as the dream to Mercury. sure, there were more monsters, but they were the kind he could see and harm. All made from flesh and blood. And teeth and claws, but those were really just side notes. The biggest difference, though, was that he could see them. He wasn''t constantly enveloped in fog, or dragged down by the muddy ground. While there was danger everywhere, it was easy to be aware of it, and just avoid the creatures he stood no chance at. Occasionally, when his stomach rumbled, Mercury would have to go on a hunt. He''d spend some time looking around, seeing if he could find a lone, injured creature, maybe one that had just finished a fight, but wasn''t already swarmed by more monsters. It would take some time, but usually it made for a fairly safe procedure, especially if he could sneak up on them. However, what turned out to be his biggest challenge were the nights. Not just because of the strange dream, though that was unsettling too, but rather because he had to sleep. Sure, he could stay awake for a day and a half, maybe even two full days, but at that point he would be sluggish and distracted, making him easy picking for the other things roaming through the ash. No, staying awake until he reached his hopeful source of water was not an option. Finding somewhere he could sleep safely also proved quite difficult. He had his log with him, sure, but against the grey of the landscape it would stand out quite a bit. In the end, he''d usually look for some sort of crack or crevice he could fit in, then saw whether they were already occupied. He had to run more than once when he entered the home of a very unwilling host, and once he even ended up with nowhere to sleep at all after hours of searching, instead deciding to simply settle on the nearest hill. He would check if they were a monster, or really just an actual hill, then summon his log, get inside, then bury it with . Usually, he sealed the entrances with , hoping it would stop any invaders or at least let him hear them coming and react. Luckily, it only happened once, and he very quickly dispatched the thorny weasel that had made its way towards him. At least eating the monsters hadn''t been too bad. The tasted mostly bland, sometimes outright terrible, and Mercury was pretty sure that had lied about something being edible at the very least once. The creature had been about the size of a raccoon, except it wasn''t a raccoon at all. Instead, it looked like a scaly octopus with additional tentacles stitched onto its head, all ending in chitinous stingers. Mercury shook his head and focused on the task at hand again. He could see the source of water now, it was only half a day''s march away, and Mercury''s throat burned in anticipation. His water hadn''t lasted him quite as long as he thought, so despite his best efforts, he was beyond parched. Still, he showed self control. He could make out a few other, small silhouettes near the water, though he couldn''t quite make out what they were from the distance. The monotonous landscape tended to mess with his perception a bit, so the could be anywhere between the size of a housecat, to that of a large dog. Sighing, Mercury hoped it would the former and carefully continued on, avoiding the creatures in his path. more than once, he was sized up, but nothing that couldn''t be solved with a quick rock to the face. As he got closer, the mopaaw tried his best to suppress the gurgling of his stomach. Trying to take his mind off the glorious blueish liquid in front of him was a fool''s errand, but he still didn''t exactly want to give away his position to whatever was near the pond. Looking at the silhouettes as he got closer was strange. They moved very little, and when they did, it usually was clumsily, almost stumbling over their own appendages. There were all types of creatures, too, he now noted. There were cats with dozens of blinking eyes on their backs, hounds that seemed eternally enveloped by a black mist, large tortoises whose shells seemed somewhat strained. Seeing all of these creatures lurching around was unsettling. They would have been at each others'' throats literally anywhere else, yet somehow here they seemed to care very little for fighting. Mercury could tell that something about this lake was off now, strangely so, but he also knew that if he didn''t get any water now, he most likely wouldn''t find another chance. With a grim expression, he began slowly feeling his way towards the ponds, wary of being as quiet as possible. The closer he got, the more eerie things were. The monsters around the water all behaved more like puppets on strings rather than their own individuals. Bit by bit, the Mopaaw approached further, until he was close enough to strike one of them with a rock if he wanted to. He was breathing as slowly as he could, watching for just a bit longer. Was it his imagination, or did the pond just move for a moment? Mercury squinted his eyes, trying his hardest to spot any detail, when he noticed it. There were tiny shadows flitting through the water. Some were larger, tohers smaller, but there were things living inside the pond. For a moment, he closed his eyes and tried to see if anything was strange about the mana in this place. He began expanding his own, sending a tendril out of his body and towards the pond, approaching it bit by bit, when it made contact with something else, and Mercury suddenly felt watched. The head of every single creature near the water suddenly snapped to his position, and while he was out of sight for most of them, a few did end up spotting him, only to immediately start charging. "Oh shit," Mercury cursed, heading off into the opposite direction as fast as he could. The creatures moved less clumsily now, with more purpose, but they still couldn''t quite catch up with him. Occasionally, they would stumble or slow, and even the few who might have been faster than him were tripped up by the threads Mercury strung up as he fled. After darting around a jagged rock outcropping, Mercury quickly activated for the first time in forever, gaining a sudden boost of speed, that allowed him to take a few more turns and disappear from the creatures'' eyes before they caught up. Trying his best to make the most of the effect, Mercury looked for somewhere he could set up a temporary residence. The area he was in now was much more rocky than where he had started, with quite a few jagged walls and cliffs, as though some giant had simply carved chunks out of the hills with their bare hands. But for Mercury that much was a clear advantage. If he had a place to hide and rest, he could set up webs over this entre area, which would slow the creatures down, and even muddle their thoughts. With that in mind, he scoured the area for some sort of crack in the stone. Luckily, it wasn''t his first time searching, so it didn''t take him too long to find something. A burrow, whose entrance was wide enough for him to comfortably walk through, but also tucked away at the bottom of a bland wall, and easily hidden by a cover of ash. It fit the bill perfectly, now he just had to find out whether or not there was already a tenant occupying the area. Feeling his stomach growl at him again, Mercury decided to not put it off any longer and just get it done. The cloak''s blessing had sadly already worn off, it was quite potent, but since he hadn''t used it a lot, the activation time was still just about a minute. Trying to get himself an advantage, he instead spun a few pieces of together, keeping a small web floating near him with . He''d devised the tactic while hunting for food before, and it''d proven quite effective at slowing anything down before it could react. After a few moments of making his way through the entrance tunnel, it opened up into a slightly larger, dome shaped room. it was about three meters wide, and one meter high, letting Mercury more than comfortably stand in it. In the middle of the burrow there was a creature curled up. It had a long, snakelike body, but it was covered in fur instead of scales, its head tucked away. Given its position, and lack of movement against the intruder, Mercury guessed it was asleep. A slight smile found itself onto his lips, as he began to cover the room in webs. Silently, he weaved them from wall to wall, completely trapping the furry snake inside without actually touching it. Then, finally, the web he''d kept afloat with descended onto the monster. Its reaction was immediate, uncoiling as a snake''s head covered in fur and with two curved horns on its head rose from the heap of its body. However, while the creature was still unwrapping itself, it made contact with the webs on its side, getting stuck in the process. When it realized what was happening, its mind was already sluggish, and it began thrashing around on instinct, only getting itself more stuck in the process. Maybe if it had more time to think, it could have gotten itself out of the situation, but Mercury wasn''t exactly planning to give it any more time to consider its options. As the creature hissed from within its cage, hateful eyes focused on the mopaaw, Mercury quickly pulled out a few of his rocks from his inventory, tapping them before they flew off and into the snake body. It managed to dodge one aimed at its head, but the second one struck true, and a few others pierced its body, too. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Before it even had a chance to fight back, the creature was already onto its death throes, soon stopping its hissing and laying dead on the floor. Mercury then quickly removed the webs, before he began to try and eat the thing. Its fur was stiff, more like bristles than anything, so he cut a part of it off and began to skin the snake from there. He''d gotten lucky with this, honestly. The creature actually tasted fine, at least by the standards of this place, and even bland food was a delicacy to a hungry man. After wolfing down a good bit of his meal, Mercury moved the remainder of the body to the side of the cave. Things didn''t rot as quickly as he was used to in this world, probably because of the lack of tiny insects, so he was sure it would still be edible in a day ro so at the least. For now though, he still needed a plan for the water source. Drinking was his first priority now, after all. Mercury spent some time in the cave just thinking. He knew that there was an assembly of creatures that protected the pond. He couldn''t quite tell how many there were, but he was sure it was at least a dozen or so, each dangerous in its own right. Additionally, it seemed there was something in the water, so he might have to do something about that, too, before he would be able to finally get a proper drink. There were a couple things at his disposal, though. He was certainly smarter and faster than the creatures, and as long as they didn''t notice him, they seemed almost... dormant, moving around very little. He could attack them from range, and had simple weaponry to use against them. Finally, they would also have to go out and eat eventually. Maybe he could kite a few of them into traps, and then take them down one after another? It was his best bet at the very least, given how his time was beginning to run rather short. Having made up his mind, Mercury rose to his feet, exited the burrow, and scouted for good places to set up traps. There wasn''t exactly a huge amount of cover that he could use to create webs, but occasionally, there were boulders close enough together for him to span a tripwire between them. He also made sure to simply set down a few webs on the ash. As long as there wasn''t too much wind, they would be mostly covered by the newly fallen ash, but hopefully still tangle up whoever stepped on them. Checking his Sp, Mercury made sure to still have more than half left after setting the traps. He still needed it for and for running, and without enough water it regenerated slower than usually. With a bit of dissatisfaction at his traps, Mercury gave a sigh and headed towards the pond again. It wasn''t perfect, but it would have to do. Getting closer, he was once again greeted by the same sight as before. Creatures clumsily stumbling about next to the water, some hardly moving at all. He''d picked a different hiding place this time, thinking that they might be watching his previous one more closely, but the sorries seemed unfounded now. After a moment, Mercury took out some ammunition from his inventory. Just two stones for now, since he could only control that many with and didn''t want to risk multiple volleys. For a moment, he simply levitated them, picking out his targets. There was a large dog lying on the floor, faced to where Mercury had a decent shot on its right eye. Finding a second target proved a little more tricky, but after some waiting, a creature looking like a small monkey with matted fur turned towards him, and he took the chance. Immediately, Mercury tapped both the rocks with his tail, activating on them. With a quiet hiss, they shot forward, a thin and narrow one striking the dog''s eye and sinking almost all the way into its skull, while the second, more blunt rock, struck the monkey''s face right on the nose. There was a loud cracking sound, but Mercury was occupied by the system messages instead. [Killed a shadow hound. Get: 250 Exp, 50 Gold.] [Killed a parasitic brainworm. Get: 25 Exp, 7 Gold.] Pulling in air through his teeth, Mercury looked forwards. The monkey was still moving, so it hadn''t died, which meant that killing the dog had killed two things. These creatures weren''t paccid out of their own will, they were being controlled by something else entirely. Maybe the shadows he''d seen in the water were exactly those worms. With a deep frown on his face, Mercury didn''t wait until the monkey found him, and instead darted off immediately. Only a moment later, there was a loud screech and the sound of steps already behind him, forcing Mercury to keep his mind split after directing the two rocks to their target. If there were parasites in the water, it definitely wasn''t safe to drink, but if he didn''t drink any water, he would just die of thirst. This was still his best bet, even if it meant he''d need to distill the water before drinking it. For now though, he needed to focus on running. Fusing his mind back into one, Mercury looked behind himself, seeing that one of his traps had already worked. A large, centipede-like thing had stepped on it, pulling the web down and inwards around it. Now, it had wrapped around a few of its leg, making it move much slower. Feeling a slight increase in his motivation, Mercury began to head towards another trap much faster, a small assembly of boulders he''d strung webs in between. The first one was more or less a tripwire, leading to another one of the buried webs. Mercury simply jumped over it, while immediately behind him, an ape with eight legs stumbled over it, falling into the web, getting entangled, and then rolling against one of the boulders with a thud. Strangely enough, all his traps worked perfectly. He had expected the creatures to see at least one of them coming, but with every time one of them got itself caught, it seemed as though the other creatures also slowed down a little. Perhaps, since they were controlled by the worms, was there some sort of hivemind behind them, that his strings could slow down? Thinking that, Mercury decided to quickly put it to the test, activating and disappearing around a corner, running back to where he''d seen the many-legged ape fall into his first web. After crashing into the boulder, it didn''t seem very lucid, which is why Mercury decided to try his luck with it. Sure enough, it had hit its head against the rock, and was bleeding from its forehead, but still breathing. Since he didn''t get a notification, mercury wagered the brainworm was still alive as well. As quickly as he could, he began weaving his stamina into , wrapping it around the monkey again and again, until it was trapped to where it wouldn''t be able to leave at all, with only a small hole to allow it to breathe. Then, Mercury quickly made its way over to another one of his victims, a cat with eyes on its back that had gotten stuck against a rock when Mercury threw a web at it during the chase. Sure enough, while parts of the string were torn and damaged, by now the creature''s eyes seemed confused, and it simply hung in the web, struggling weakly. Quickly, Mercury wrapped it up, too, making sure it couldn''t escape. These creatures were still completely vicious, and he wanted to avoid them regaining their clarity if he could. Finally, after fully entrapping the centipede he''d caught close to the start of the chase, Mercury stealthily headed back to where he''d gained some distance from the remaining monsters. These, too, were now looking around aimlessly, their eyes hazy and confused. Some even ended up walking into a nearby rock, before turning around and heading somewhere else. It seemed that his abilities were well suited to dealing with hiveminds, Mercury thought. Still being careful, he slowly began approaching the confused critters, trying to not draw too much attention to himself. Sure enough, they all ended up completely ignoring him, sparing barely a glance his way. He quickly checked his stamina, and seeing how low it was, he decided to regenerate it again before trying to deal with the remaining worms in the pond. After some looking, he picked out the creature that looked the least disgusting to him in the pile, a boar like thing with razor sharp tusks. Its fur was hard, and each bristle ended in a slight barb, which seemed as though they would be painful to remove. With two quick rocks through the eyes, the creature was dead before it even had a chance to react. With some more thread and some as well, Mercury was able to remove a good chunk of the bristles, enough to at least begin peeling the skin off the monster. It still felt somewhat disgusting to do this, but his intense thirst and the knowledge that these things were hardly alive anymore because of the worms quickly helped him overcome any hesitation. The other creatures didn''t even react as Mercury filled his stomach. After the quick snack, he saw that his status was looking better, and decided he should take the time to be safe rather than sorry. Using his regained stamina, he strung up two more of the puppet monsters. When he looked at the others, they seemed hardly able to think anymore at all, simply standing still and occasionally taking a step forward or back. It he hadn''t known what was going on, it would have looked almost menacing, this legion of creatures simply standing still, hardly moving at all. Shaking his head, Mercury quickly began to head back towards the pond. On the way, he made sure that the cat, centipede, and ape were still trapped and alive, not wanting to take any risk of getting himself accidentally infected. Then, once he arrived at the pond, he could now see it clearly. There were dozens of them in the water, all about as large as an adult''s fist. Strange, eel-like creatures with tiny, black eyes and large maws of teeth. Their back fin ended in a small, hollow stinger, which was what he guessed they used to control their hosts. The amount of disgust Mercury felt looking at the things made his next step much easier. Activated in a relatively wide area, just enough to counteract gravity, letting him prepare a thin mesh in midair. He made sure it wasn''t a full sheet of it, but he also kept the gaps in between the strings as small as he could, maybe only a square millimeter each in size. After a long while of weaving, Mercury finally felt satisfied with his creation. With a little bit of luck, he would also be able to fish out the worms'' eggs, or whatever they used to reproduce, though he would certainly make sure to distill any water from the pond before drinking it. Lowering the mesh into the basin, Mercury began to sweep it around with telekinesis. With his zeyjn, he could make sure that it didn''t get tangled up anywhere while still sweeping across the bottom nicely. The worms didn''t even attempt to escape the net, each one seemingly more paralyzed than the last. A few of them weakly waved their tail, though it seemed more an aimless, instinctual reaction, rather than them fighting back. Sweep by sweep, Mercury dragged them out of the water, then made sure to take them off the net and kill them. It wasn''t a clean job, spilling blood over the ash, but he didn''t particularly care how appetizing the corpses looked. He wasn''t even considering touching those things. After a few rounds, all the things Mercury could have seen moving were out of the water and dead, while his mesh was covered with small, black orbs. Appraisal very kindly informed him that those were the worms'' eggs. Luckily, with how fragile they were, many of them perished by themselves in the open air, while others only needed a little bit of encouragement from Mercury. Telekinesis crushed them fairly quickly, after all. Finally, by the time he''d gotten rid of the parasites, Mercury felt decidedly better. He had levelled up twice, once fairly quickly, and then again once he was getting close to finishing up. It was a huge help with his thirst, and helped him keep his focus, even when he was spending a whole lot of mana and willpower on . Once Mercury was finally about to use on the pond though, the water suddenly didn''t seem as still anymore. Instead, it began to move and shift by itself. Chapter 128: Guiding Self Chapter 128: Guiding Self "Oh come the fuck on," Mercury cursed, taking a couple steps back from the water. In that time alone the small ripples on the pond''s surface had begun to increase, growing larger and more solid, reaching out and seeping into the ash, before returning to their stone housing. It felt as though the water was reaching out, grasping for some kind of support. For a few, calm moments, which Mercury used to get some more distance, the water simply swelled, not changing much otherwise, but eventually, it found something to hold onto. Only a single drop touched the net Mercury had used to get the parasites out, yet it was enough. There was a visible shudder that travelled through the water, then it paused for a moment, before a large wave reached out once more. Mercury hardly had the time to take another step back before the wave had become a sheet of ice, wrapped around the string. Forming some sort of freakish appendage, more water began to freeze, until a thick sheet of ice covered most of the pond''s surface. Then, from below, the water began to stir. Stunned, Mercury continued to watch as all the liquid rose from the pond''s bottom, up onto the platform. Then, the sheet of ice began to spin, the water clinging to it in defiance of gravity, until it had all been heaved out of the pond and onto the ash-covered stone. It rested for a moment, the ice shattering and melting, holding its shape as a half-sphere. Then, its motionlessness ended, ripples travelling along its surface again. Slowly, a round bead of water exited from its front, soon gaining two catlike ears, a snout, and even whiskers. From the back of the glob, a tail began to grow, mimicking Mercury''s own, then four legs followed from its sides. Somehow, the remainder of the water simply shrank, disappearing into the creature, until a crystal clear, translucent replica of himself stood before Mercury, though the copy did not include all his accessories, neither the cloak, nor the ring or his necklace. The mopaaw blinked a few times, confused. Somehow, throughout all of this, had remained perfectly silent, withholding its piece. No warning bells went off in Mercury''s head, even as this mirror image took shape. For a few moments, the two simply continued staring at each other, before the blob of water began reaching out. Very slowly it lifted a paw, then tapped Mercury''s snout with it. He felt a slight cold, and resistance, too. The water seemed to be covered by a thin sheet of ice, though it was much warmer than any form of snow he''d ever touched before. Barely cool, rather than freezing. There was a short pause, then a gurgle left its mouth. One of its front paws changed shape, becoming a wide bowl of ice, which then filled with water. With a slight popping sound, it disconnected from the mirror image''s body, then the paw grew back the way it had been before. "Is that... a peace offering?" Mercury asked, carefully. The creature simply tilted its head at that, confused. It didn''t seem to speak. Mercury couldn''t help but stay suspicious though. For the first few seconds at least, until confirmed it was simply water. , too, said the same thing, if more mockingly, and even his didn''t seem to find any fault with the liquid. His strange double simply watched the whole scene silently, seeming amused with his poking and prodding. Hesitantly, Mercury leaned forward after a while. No matter how much he stared at the water, he couldn''t find anything wrong with it. No parasites, no poison, nothing at all. It was, by all accounts, simply water. "You''re sure you''re not trying to kill me?" he asked the creature again, though the only answer he received was a flick of its tail. Mercury didn''t like the spot he was in, because while he wanted to refuse the drink just to be safe, he also couldn''t get rid of his thirst. It had been pushed aside for a little while by his increase in levels, but that was a temporary relief. The need to drink was growing stronger by the second, especially now that water was finally placed in front of him. In truth, how much longer could he last without it? Two days, three? Perhaps less, if his strength started decreasing and he couldn''t hunt anymore. In fact, if he listened closely, he was almost sure he could hear ringing quiet warning bells when he considered not drinking the water. "Fine, then. Here goes nothing," he relented to himself, first only taking a small sip of the liquid, before he couldn''t contain himself anymore. He stuck his entire snout in, greedily drinking up. Mercury thought he could feel the slight chill of the liquid travel through his veins, refreshing his muscles. He had staved off the thirst with all his will, but after finally drinking, he realized just how bad it had been. Somehow, the creature seemed pleased, and refilled the bowl for him twice over, before Mercury finally felt his thirst slaked. But strangely, the liquid seemed to not just satisfy his thirst. His stamina was filling up again, rapidly. What was going on with that? [The individual has consumed water with stamina in it. The creature which provided the water has elected not to remove it. Whether this is an offering or due to poor control is unclear.] [Max Sp has increased by 10.] Looking at the creature again, Mercury was almost sure it was happy. Its tail swayed side to side, and it seemed to have something of a grin plastered on its face. As he looked at it, his double let out a few gurgles, which somehow also sounded pleased to Mercury''s ears. "I must be going insane," he muttered to himself, then sighed. "Thank you, I suppose," he said to the sentient glob of water, giving it a nod. "I''ll go clean up the rest of the parasites, if you don''t mind. Uhm, I wish you all the best on these plains, I guess." The creature looked at him, tilting its head again, as if confused. Trying his hardest to look somewhat dignified, he turned around and began heading towards where he''d trapped the infested creatures before. Given that more of the worms were dead, he hoped it left them with even less brain capacity to spare. If he was right, they would hopefully all be borderline mindless by now. After a few steps though, Mercury was slightly distracted from his thoughts, as he heard somewhat wet footsteps behind him. Looking back, he saw that the water double was following him. "So you, uh, wanna come along?" he asked, a little confused, and the creature replied with a few gurgles. Nothing he could make sense of. Blinking a few times, Mercury nodded. "Alright, I mean, who am I to stop you? Maybe, if you feel like it, this could be a decent solution to my water issue." The creature remained silent this time, though Mercury was quite sure its tail swayed happily when he didn''t chide it for coming along. On the way, Mercury tried to make some sense of the situation. ", why is the creature following me?" [Reason unclear.] "Very helpful, thank you." [If the individual wishes for a better answer, they are recommended to either unlock a mind reading skill or grow their own insufficient capacity of understanding others.] Without a shred of hesitation, used its chance to once again call him an idiot. Sighing, Mercury decided to stop his questions there. He didn''t think he would get anything out of it other than being belittled. Occasionally, the creature would gurgle as they walked, coming up to Mercury''s side, or staring off into the distance. "Has it been a while since the last time you travelled?" he asked, once, receiving no answer. "Well, I suppose this conversation seems about as fruitful as talking to the system," Mercury sighed. Having both avenues of interaction seemingly shut down, the mopaaw decided to redirect his efforts to something else instead, focusing on his breathing. First, he slowed it slightly, taking deeper breaths instead, then tried to find a comfortable rhythm, in sync with his steps. Bit by bit, he found himself sinking into ihn''ar with it. Almost as though meditating, Mercury found himself listening in on his body. His heartbeat, his breath, the blood rushing through his veins. He could feel his stamina washing through his body in waves, his mana slowly beginning to circle, his feet sinking into the ash and rising back from it. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Step by step, he found himself adjusting slightly. His mana sped up, his blood slowed down, just a smidge. He felt the resonance between all of it, he could tell just how close it all was from... clicking. Puzzle pieces just about to fit together, yet somehow, he couldn''t figure out the orientation. Of course, this didn''t stop Mercury from trying, but he made no further progress all the way until he found the parasitized creatures he''d left before. As he and his double approached, the walking pool of water began to gurgle angrily, as though attempting to hiss at the other beasts. But in Mercury''s eyes, there wasn''t much to get angry at. The creatures were just... laying there, unmoving. Their eyes were glazed over, their bodies limp. Without the support from a full colony, it seemed as though the worms weren''t exactly capable of puppeteering the bodies, leaving them almost completely incapacitated. Mercury simply had to walk by them and slit their throats. None of the things offered up any resistance, and those whose weak points were hidden behind spikes or chitin, he simply crushed them with his rijn. After only a few minutes, he had already taken care of all of them, netting him yet another level Once the deed was done, his humid companion gave him what seemed to be a thankful wave of its tail, and a gurgle, before continuing to follow Mercury back to his current living space. If he was honest, being followed by something that looked so similar to him was somewhat eerie to Mercury, but at the same time, he appreciated the company. He didn''t exactly know if the creature was good in a fight, but even if it wasn''t, he was happy to have it around, since it could also act as a lookout. Somehow, it seemed to be able to see, at least. Whatever the case, it followed him all the way into his current residence, where Mercury then finished up the snake. He didn''t exactly feel like eating the worms, if he could help it, since some of them might contain eggs that could hatch inside of him or something. After eating, the mopaaw laid down on the floor, finally feeling satisfied. He wasn''t thirsty, wasn''t hungry, and didn''t feel like his life was in imminent danger for once. His double for a while simply watched him curiously, before also laying down on the ground, seemingly searching for a comfortable position. While it was still squirming, Mercury decided to take another look at his status. He had three levels to quickly check, after all. - - - Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 11 -> 14 Species: Leyfal Titles: , , , , , Alias: Beast, Mittens === Hp: 510/510 Mp: 692/692 Sp: 367/367 === Strength: 74 -> 76 (+5) Vitality: 107 Dexterity: 73 -> 75 (+1) Agility: 73 -> 75 (+1) Intelligence: 99 -> 101 Wisdom: 89 -> 92 (+2) Willpower: 100 -> 104 Luck: 52 -> 55 === Ability points: 70 World points: 67 Skill points: 610 === Gold: 1742 Beast familiars: 1/2 - - - [The individual''s Intelligence has surpassed 100! Your mana regenerative capabilities and your comprehension abilities grow stronger.] Mercury wanted to spend longer simply reading through his status, but when the bottom notification appeared, it took his attention instead. Because while he had been getting bonuses for achieving stats over 100, this one he could feel the most immediate shift with. It felt like someone was blowing air into his head, like his brain was physically expanding. He felt a slight tingling sensation, and then it was gone, but it took more with it. Mercury''s thoughts flowed much more freely, and noticeably faster, too, it seemed. Of course, the feeling was slight, not as though he had suddenly become a supercomputer, but when he focused, he felt his ystirs came faster, and easier, for example. Combined with his mental fortitude, which let him feel less resistance when moving the mana itself, this made it much easier to control any of his magic. Absorbed in this new sensation, Mercury closed his eyes and attempted to expand his mana, feeling tendrils of it streak out from his body and feel the air. It still took quite a bit of focus, but it had become easier, too. Even though the change was only slight, it felt both freeing and scary to Mercury. Knowing just how much an influence the system had on him was strange. He was facing the question that so many had asked themselves before, what would they do without it? Were they strong because of the system, or did the system only tell them what they had achieved by themselves? There was no answer. There would never be one, of course. How could there, if remained silent on the issue? Only someone who disconnected themselves from the system would find out, and there were too main issues with that, too. No one could, and no one wanted to. Shaking his head, Mercury pushed the idle thoughts aside. There were still just a couple notifications to go through, after all. [ has levelled up! 4>] Killing so many of the creatures that inhabited this place with the Skill had done wonders for its mastery, gaining a whole two levels. Both it and had gone up to level 2 during his travels towards the pond. [ has levelled up! 3>] Apparently he had also spun enough webs to get thread another level, though the weaving affinity pass was probably carrying its weight here as well. Being able to gain mastery faster was truly a blessing. Same went for , really, since it levelled up slowly even with an affinity for it. Not having the mastery bonuses would''ve made it just that much more bothersome. Giving another small sigh, Mercury lowered his head onto his paws. There wasn''t much more for him to check, surprisingly. Some of the creatures had dropped items, sure, but none of them were especially great. Nothing to increase his stats, neither temporarily, nor permanently, and most of the drops were just ingredients. A hide here, a tooth there, perhaps a plate of chitin or a tuft of fur. The only item he elected to keep was dropped by the queen of the parasites. He wasn''t quite sure which one it had been, but apparently, when he had gone fishing, one of them was designated as royal, and dropped something decent, its vessel. [Brainworm Queen''s Vessel: This vessel, once housed inside the queen of the vanquished brainworm colony, is filled with stamina. As the creature it belonged to has died, the vessel no longer possesses a well, and will dry out as time passes. The individual is encouraged to use it for experiments on stamina, or absorb it into their own pool quickly. Due to the queen''s poor physical constitution, the vessel is rather small. Grade: D.] Apparently, even with all the worms it commanded, the queen was still only D grade. Mercury was unsure as to how the whole colony fit into that rating, and whether or not it was considered for it at all, but he wasn''t about to complain. For now, the vessel was in his inventory, though he still wanted to deal with it before going to sleep. Looking through his slots, he found another few items he probably should still find a use for. The vampiric essence he had bartered for after venturing inside a door with Marcel, Gilah and Elliot, as well as the ice-affinity core the drake he killed had, and finally, the half burnt cigar of the mafia boss. Thinking on it now, Mercury realized he probably could have used most of them already, but still didn''t. Nevertheless, he had made it to where he was alive, so there would surely be other opportunities to try and put them to good use as well. None of them were exactly perishable, unlike the vessel the queen had dropped, so it took highest priority. In fact, Mercury was looking at it right that moment, trying to figure out what he could use it for. He felt that just absorbing the stamina wasn''t exactly the best course of action, just like he felt about the mana core, since he could also just mine for his own. Instead, he wanted to use it for an experiment, but he was just not quite sure what. Clearly, he had less control over his stamina in comparison to his mana. He barely knew how to spread it throughout his body with reasonable proficiency, but he''d never really considered it much more than that. But maybe, this was his chance to rectify that? Carefully, he tried to feel for the stamina inside the vessel. When he held it in his paws, the thing seemed to be a small, dull green crystal, though slight patterns swirled beneath its surface. Getting in contact with the stamina was already different from mana. It was less ethereal, but instead much more active. Almost slippery, and hard to grasp. Luckily, even the small amount of mastery the mopaaw had over the substance was enough to tell it was there. He could feel it almost like his own, eager to jump out of the crystal and somewhere else. In fact, some of it was already doing so, using cracks that were smaller than the eye could see to leave the vessel, and dissipate into the air. It was draining fairly slowly, but Mercury was sure that as more stamina fled, the rate would only speed up. Quickly, he focused on his task, clamping down on the liquid with his mind, and trying to see what it wanted to do. Doing so felt almost like he was compressing a spring, constantly needing to put force on it to prevent it from going back to its previous patterns. Mercury could tell that it was different from mana. It didn''t exactly seem to resist any movement in general, remaining sluggish and placid, but instead, it already wanted to go a certain direction, already had force behind it. It wanted to move, and rather than forcing it to go a different way, perhaps it was a better idea to simply amplify that process. Taking a quick break from checking the queen''s vessel, Mercury focused on his own. There, he could already see his stamina, streaming out and back in, streaming to reinforce his muscles as they moved. Perhaps it wasn''t even reinforcing them, but simply letting them do their job at all. Curious, he tried to stop his own stamina from escaping his vessel for a moment, and almost immediately, instinctively, it responded. For a second, he couldn''t even feel any pushback, not compressing of a spring, but then he focused, and did find it. There was a pattern there he hadn''t noticed before. His stamina wanted to move already. Without him giving any commands, it almost knew where it needed to go, and wanted help in getting there, rather than being forced somewhere else. His own stamina was simply so cooperative he would never have noticed at all. Making up his mind, Mercury decided to give it a try at least. He let the stamina move, little by little, always stopping it to see which felt like the right way to have it go, and slightly adjusting its course, nudging it forward and past obstacles, rather than setting it on a certain path. This was much less about enforcing his will, and much more about delicately helping to make a path. And, almost immediately, it worked. Mercury could feel that the flow of his stamina seemed smoother, as it coursed, flooded, grew, and receded, then repeated the cycle once over again. The adjustments Mercury was making were honestly rather minor, yet their impact was clear. Whatever mechanism or instinct drove the stamina, it was imperfect, but by knowing his own body, Mercury could let it bypass those obstacles. Smiling, Mercury felt his chest heave up and down, breathing more easily now than he had ever before, as he continued to guide and usher, turning shaky walkways for his stamina into properly travelled paths. As he mediated, he hardly heard the soft plink as the queen''s vessel shattered, nor did he notice his breaths growing slower as he drifted off to sleep. Finally, when his mind was beginning to draw towards wherever it was going, his body knew what had changed. [ has levelled up! max>] [Acquired the ability through a specific action.] Then, Mercury awoke amidst thick fog. Chapter 129: In the Distance Chapter 129: In the Distance /When the Hunter met a good challenge, it was always a joy. They found countless creatures to hunt. They gave chase, set up traps, drove things to exhaustion and delivered the final blow, rarely savouring their victories for very long. Of course, they used all that they could from the creatures. Harvesting ingredients and meat, furs and scales, whatever they could. But after a day or two, when preparations were finished, they went off again, following their compass. Towards the next target. Sometimes they saved people, not very rarely, either. When rabid beasts attack settlements, they often gain levels, which made them worthwhile, but to go through settlements, they needed levels in the first place. Thus, the creatures that attacked society often found themselves in the Hunter''s crosshair. Usually, though, they were too late, such as with this case. The Thing that they were watching had ravaged a town, and they had only found it when it was chasing the last survivor. They had even witnessed a dead boy get up and continue on running, yet it mattered little to them. Those lives were lost, certainly, but such was nature. A death is but a speck, and many more would follow. But the Thing that had just hunted seemed to think otherwise. It gazed after the boy with confusion, its grey body still contorted to grab onto multiple trees with its legs. The Hunter almost clicked their tongue at it, but held it in instead. Perfectly silent, that was the way they approached their prey. When the Thing was still distracted, looking away and thinking for once, the Hunter finally pounced, striking with a knife fashioned from another beast''s long fang. Before the monster had a chance to react, the weapon sunk deep into the flesh, dealing pain that seared its flesh. The Thing roared in fury, and shook itself with all its might, tossing the Hunter off. For a moment, it seemed as though they would crash into a tree, but such did not happen. Instead, they vanished, and the Thing was left to itself. Yet, the silence only lasted moments, before the Thing noticed a gleam by its side, soon accompanied by another burning sensation of pain as the Hunter drove its weapons into it. It was horrendous, almost as bad as the hunger the Thing had felt before, and it drove it to flee, to run like the boy had before, wishing for even a fragment of his speed. Seeing such made the Hunter smile. This was how things were supposed to be. They gave chase to the Thing, catching up soon. Most of their traps had been blown away by the boy''s wind, but some still triggered, biting down on many of the Thing''s legs until it was hurt and bloodied. Still the Hunter did not grow overconfident, instead slowly driving the Thing to exhaustion. They hoped to, at least, but it was a poor choice. As the days passed, rather than grow tired, the Thing seemed to regain energy, their skin mending wounds that had been inflicted the day before, while the Hunter became worn down instead. Long had their traps been left behind, and when they had gotten too greedy, the Thing had attacked back, breaking some of their ribs. Truly, that hunt was one of their most glorious ones, a prey so adaptable that killing it would be all the sweeter. Well, that is what the Hunter would have said, had the Thing not escaped. After almost two weeks, the Hunter had gotten greedy once again, aiming at what they thought was a moment of weakness, when an eye opened on the Thing''s back to face them. They had paid dearly, receiving a blow heavy enough to throw them through multiple trees, before they were forced into hiding. And when the Hunter had healed, the Thing was already gone, their compass pointing elsewhere. That day, the Hunter had a taste of failure./ (Legends: The Hunter - 5; Failure) - - - - - - Opening his eyes in the middle of the foggy swamp was not exactly great for Mercury''s motivation. Just when breathing had become a bit easier, he suddenly felt pressure on his chest again, the fog dragging him down. It was more intense than the first time he came here, perhaps because he was deeper in. Shaking his head, Mercury decided to focus on his current surroundings. Even as he withdrew his attention, his stamina still seemed to follow the more beaten path, largely. Almost like a group of hikers, who''d usually follow some kind of rocky path, but occasionally, some of them would take breaks or explore a bit. Maybe it was also a little like trying to go on a walk with a group of kids. Whatever the case, he felt somewhat lighter, as his body slowly began adjusting to the pressure again. Looking at the sky, Mercury could still see the scarlet diamond he had been following the last few times he''d been in the swamp. Every time he fell asleep, he''d continue from where he ended the dream last time, whether that was a good sign or not. Very quickly, Mercury began to walk again, not exactly keen on meeting any more of whatever that thing that hunted him on his first journey. The fog was too thick to tell whether one was close, but with nowhere to hide, being on the move would probably be more beneficial. At least with him not leaving very many traces in the mud. Thus, he began making his way towards the diamond once more. It seemed closer this time, larger at the very least. Perhaps both, it was hard to compare. The changes were very slight with every night, same with the pressure. But compared to his first dream, it certainly seemed closer. As usual, the journey was mostly very boring. Since the mana in the air was so thin, he couldn''t even absorb it properly, and he also couldn''t exactly try to bring up more stamina while walking. In fact, the only thing he really found himself able to do, was think. Like, as an example, where was he? Why was he unable to go where his dreams usually took him. It still felt like that every time he went to sleep, that his mind was approaching that place, and then was dragged away from it by some force. There was no choice there, and he didn''t exactly feel like he could stop it, either, so he was kind of just stuck getting dragged back to the marsh. Which was frustrating, since the place was incredibly demoralizing. Between being creepy, boring, hard to traverse, and constantly having a threat against this version of himself, being here was an absolute drain on his nerves. Even the need to always be aware of his surroundings was wearing on him, given how they didn''t change at all. Once again shaking his head, Mercury avoided another crack in the marsh beneath his feet as the ground opened up. Its pull had grown stronger, too, and Mercury almost felt like he had to stop to avoid having himself drained. Almost. He sighed. This really couldn''t get much worse. Except, as it turned out, it very much so could. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. Only an hour or so later, when the exhaustion from the march was beginning to set in, Mercury heard another sound, different from just his footsteps. That by itself was already rare, so he paused for a moment and listened. It wasn''t as silent as the things with the floodlight for a face, so perhaps he was lucky this time? The thought lasted for just a second, until he understood that the noise was panting, and the fog around him seemed to grow a little more... yellow. ''Shit.'' Immediately, Mercury began to burst into a sprint, hoping to avoid whatever poor creature was already being chased, but his reaction was too late. When he just had the thought, he could already feel his stomach sink, as the fog discoloured further, and seemed to grow cold. Behind him, a circle appeared far above, barely visible to the eye, hovering above four streaks of darkness which seemed to root it into the ground. This time, it was ever so slightly closer than during his first encounter, and Mercury was sure he could see a maw of fang spread into a wide grin below the light that shone down on him. In the fraction of a second his legs took to begin moving, he could also see something else, a ripple in the air around it. Where just a split second ago had been nothing, darkness spread from the creature, then disconnected, solidified, and turned into a long, lusterless stake of black. Moments later, Mercury darted away, and felt the ground behind him shudder. The projectile seemed quite a bit faster than when he ran the last time, and he felt slightly slower, too. Even the fog seemed to cling to him more. Gritting his teeth, Mercury began to rouse his stamina, guiding it towards his legs, while his mana flowed to them. His lungs soon began to hurt, the cold air stinging against them as he continued running. Whatever the creature was he had heard, it seemed like it also hadn''t gotten away, since he heard a strange wail a minute or so into his chase. The noise distracted him for just a moment, but immediately, he could hear one of the stakes whistle closer to him, and scrape by his flesh. The attack grazed him, leaving a long, thin gash on his left side as he continued running. The feeling from the wound was strange, a kind of cold, burning pain, mixed with something else. He could feel from it, not just the warmth of his blood dripping down his side, but also some sort of malic and glee. Somehow, he could almost hear the thoughts of the thing behind him. It wanted to see him run. Another attack whistled by, barely missing, and by now it seemed less like he was good at dodging, and more as though the creature simply wanted to tire him out. Gritting his teeth, Mercury tried to push the pain from his mind, instead focusing on his legs and lungs. One foot in front of the other, accompanied by deep, big breaths. He could feel the blood pulsing through him, even more so close to his wound. When his hummed again, Mercury quickly darted to the left, avoiding a stake that would have speared him clean through the chest. Perhaps the creature was growing tired of chasing him and wanted to end it now. Mercury panted heavily, putting his all into the running. A few seconds passed, then a dozen, and then a few dozen, as Mercury ran for his life, trying to figure out what he could do. Throwing back a stone was out of the question, and he couldn''t exactly weave a full net while running like this. But there had to be something he could do, right? As two minutes ticked by, Mercury could feel himself closing in on the edge of his endurance, yet the damn thing chasing him showed no sign of slowing down. This time, he didn''t even manage to throw a stake back and escape, with each shot being faster than it used to. If only he could just hit it! Wait, if he couldn''t hit it with anything physical, maybe he could with his mind? Quickly, he split his mind, dedicating one zeyjn to continue running, as the more advanced one began to compress. Only a little at first, then tighter and tighter as quickly as he could, until it felt like half his mind was squeezed by a vice. After a few seconds, he swung his rijn at the creature as hard as he could, slamming it into its face. Some of the force was lost from the distance, and he was sure it wouldn''t die, but he also wouldn''t be around to check. With a bang, Mercury''s mind fused back together, his skull ringing as he continued running. His rijn had dissolved, all its energy channeled into a single hit, which made the creature screech in pain and fury. Yet, when it turned to continue following him, the mopaaw was already gone. Only when he had more distance between that thing and himself did Mercury slow down a little. Even then, he still changed directions a few times and activated with as much stamina as he still had remaining to try and hide his tracks. He stopped the blood from the wound with , too, trying to make sure none of it dripped onto the ground Finally, once he felt sufficiently safe and was perfectly silent, Mercury''s jog slowed down to a walk. His lungs burnt, and his feet hurt like hell, but if he stopped now, he didn''t think he''d be able to continue. So, he kept walking, focusing on his side. The gash was long and hurt like hell, but at the very least it wasn''t very deep. Why was he even able to bleed here in the first place? It hadn''t ever happened back when he was still in his own dreamscape, on the plains. ''Damn it all,'' he cursed, trying to bear with the pain. Keeping the blood afloat turned out to be a bigger mana drain than he''d wished, so he instead began to put it into his fur, where he didn''t have to lift it with a Skill. It felt uncomfortable and strange, but it was still much better than revealing his position to those damn things again. If he was going to encounter them, perhaps he needed a name. ? [Gloom Stalker] Sounded about right. With a frown, Mercury continued on his journey, trying to regain as much stamina as possible. He hoped he wouldn''t have to run again, but you never know. Well, he probably would receive a small warning from , but by then he''d probably just have to start running. Looking at the sky, he could at least tell that the diamond had grown slightly closer again. He''d tried to keep his direction somewhat constant as he fled. Seeing there was some form of progress at the very least, Mercury decided to simply journey on until he woke up again. Not like there was anything else he could do. - - - When his sleep finally ended, Mercury opened his eyes wearily. His head hurt, and he felt more drowsy than ever. Apparently, almost dying in his sleep wasn''t gonna feel great the next day. Taking a quick look around, Mercury could see his watery friend slowly rousing. Its eyes weren''t exactly closed when it slept, he noted, instead, an opaque sheet of ice covered its entire body like a somewhat form-fitting cocoon. As it began waking, Mercury could see cracks form, and then watch as the ice began disappearing into thin air. He suspected that the creature was absorbing the water again, instead of letting it evaporate. Did that mean it was limited to how much water it had? Maybe he could ask once he actually understood it. For now, as the creature roused from its sleep, it first stretched, then quickly created a small bowl of water for Mercury to drink out of, which made his head feel a little better at least. A nod of thanks seemed to please the water, as its tail swung side to side, then Mercury stepped back out of their little cave. He''d solved his main issue of surviving, for now. He could get food by hunting, and had his current ally for water. Now, there wasn''t much else to do but look for a way out. Except, where would he even start to look? All around him was just ash and rocks, though some of them went a bit higher than the hills back down where he came from. Well, if anything, he might as well try and take a look around from up high, see if he can''t notice anything peculiar. With that, his journey resumed. It took him quite a bit to get to the nearest mountain and all the way up, but honestly, the view from there was... almost serene. Sure, in a weird, fucked up way, but still. There was no warm, orange sunset, the sky was all red and black, and the clouds seemed perpetually dark with thunder, yet from up there, most of the creatures down on the ash seemed so small. He felt a bit further away from the carnage, and for the first time since he came to this place it was really quiet, without making the hair on his neck stand up at least. Taking a few deep breaths, Mercury looked at the horizon. Not just on in the direction he''d been going for the last few days, but also back the way he came from, trying to make out any landmarks. Funnily enough, his even seemed to help a little, given how dim this place seemed from so high up. And then, he actually found something. Further forward and to the left, there was something on the horizon. He couldn''t make out what it was, not from here, but he saw that it was tall. Perhaps even a little higher than the mountain he had climbed. Maybe, with a little luck, it would help him escape this place, or at least figure out more about it? Well, for now it was his only hope, so Mercury simply decided to check it out. Taking a few more deep breaths and enjoying the quiet, he simply gazed at the structure, soaking in the scenery. He felt calmer now, more at ease with a goal. [ has levelled up! 9>] It seemed even the system agreed. With that, Mercury turned to his newly found ally, and announced their new goal. "You see that tower over there?" he asked. "Seems like the two of us are going on a bit of a journey." Chapter 130: Consequences Chapter 130: Consequences The last section of this chapter contains themes of depression that may not be suitable for all readers. Viewer discretion is advised. /The Thing had felt terror. That emotion was new to it, and yet it already never wanted to feel it again. Not as much as hunger, it wasn''t quite there, but close enough to at least warrant caution. After its encounter with the Hunter, the Thing became more vigilant towards its surroundings. It watched out for what could be dangerous, and what it could eat, making sure to pick its fights. No longer did it roam the lands as a mindless beast, but instead, it gained thought. In a way, the Hunter saved its life. Whether that was a grave mistake or not, only the future would tell./ (Legends: The Thing - 5; Budding Thoughts) - - - - - - The very next day, Mercury already missed the serenity of the mountain. Walking across the actual fields was beyond miserable, the constant threat was wearing down his nerves very quickly and the occasional ashstorms didn''t exactly help with that in the slightest. Also, since he had to find shelter every night, Mercury spent a majority of the evening searching for a place to sleep. Well, the scarlet sun didn''t exactly ever set, but it did periodically dim and grow brighter. Not by much, but if he paid attention it was noticeable, especially since the dim light tended to make him more tired. Perhaps that was also just the marsh in his dreams calling. This place seemed quite invested on making sure he landed there every night, no matter how tired he was. On the first week of his journey, he died to the stalkers once, too. He didn''t manage to avoid one of the stakes, and it drove itself through his lower back, slightly above his back legs. A second soon followed, skewering his heart. That night he woke up screaming, still feeling the pain in his chest. His heart beat so fast he was scared it would explode, and he probably only managed to calm down again because of his Skills. The pain dulled quickly at first, but then stuck around for the next few days, and when he travelled through the marsh, he left a trail of blood from a wound on his chest. Needless to say, it was exhausting. Doubly so, since his dreams were hardly a respite anymore. Throughout the day he battled creatures that could''ve been taken straight from a nightmare. Worms with mouths full of jaws, behaving almost like floor sharks, lions with manes of spikes, one of which he witnessed sink into another creature''s shadow and leave a wound on its actual body. There were flies the size of a human head that spewed acid through their trunk, sizzling on the stone, and armadillos whose scales could stand on edge and were razor sharp. Once night broke, he spent his time on another journey, towards the distant red crystal. When he died, he noticed it moved him back a bit, maybe half a night''s progress. That was strange, either it moved his respawn point to the previous one, or it actually moved him back from the diamond. While he expected the first, he hoped for the second, since it meant that the thing he was chasing at least meant something. Finally, when the night was over, he had to go and do it all again. His companion did provide him water, which was good, but other than that, it usually remained hidden during fights, spreading out into a puddle. Watching that, Mercury noticed a very small, round shape floating in it, a bit of darker blue that would be near invisible if the sheet of water were any thicker. It always seemed to rebuild with that thing at its center. Perhaps it was its core? It was good to at least have an idea of what he needed to protect, he supposed. One of Mercury''s more deadly encounters happened on day eight, when he was freshly hurt in the nightmare. Not long after he woke up and drank some water, he set out to hunt for food, and found one of the strange creatures that abducted him. A humanoid with its limbs bent strangely. He thought there would be more of them, since they seemed to be the only thing that left the rifts, but there had been none on the plains until that one. When he looked at it, Mercury immediately moved to hide again, but his short moment of terror had made him freeze, and his attempt at stealth was just a little too late. By the time he moved to run, the monster was already pouncing on him, the claws on the ends of its twisted limbs cutting a small gash into his side. Luckily, he had moved to escape first. Turning around, he saw the creature try to regain its footing clumsily. Its empty face spun around, the holes above its fangs expanding and contracting, in an attempt to find him. For some reason, it clacked its teeth almost rhythmically, the ivory daggers clicking together and echoing around. After a moment it paused, and its head snapped to the side, locking onto Mercury again. The mopaaw grit his teeth, feeling the cut on his hind legs burning alongside the pain in his chest. He still needed to hunt for food after this, he didn''t feel like digesting something that looked so strangely... human. That meant he wanted to finish this up fast, before the blood loss had time to attract more creatures. Gritting his teeth, he faced the thing, its jaws rhythmically shutting as its body twisted into position for a lunge. It seemed so strangely feral, yet somehow its movements were also calculated. The demeanor threw Mercury for a loop and made it hard to predict, so once it lunged, the only thing that saved him was his reaction time. At the last moment, he jumped forward at the thing, landing between its limbs and sinking his teeth and claws into its chest. Its skin may look human, and while the surface felt like it as well, cutting through it was tough and exhausting, mana flooding his claws to even give them the strength to cut. Mercury took a deep breath as he dropped back down and jumped away, just seconds before the creature had shifted its balanced to slash at him. It wasn''t exactly graceful, and the damage he did could have been much better, but it added a wound of his own. The monster''s body was already covered into a few of them, some larger gashes and some barely scrapes. It had fought before, and seemed to heal poorly. All of these humanoid things did, or so he hoped at least. When the things slashed at him again, Mercury stepped back once more, staggering slightly as he put weight onto his injured thigh. He couldn''t quite hold himself up, and somehow, despite its lack of eyes, the creature noticed his loss of balance, one of its arms whipping out and leaving another long gash over his back. Hissing in pain, Mercury took some distance, before launching a web he had been weaving at the creature. It slowed it down a little, as it struggled with cutting itself free, and Mercury made use of the moment, launching two rocks at it. They quickly impacted the creature, sinking into its flesh as it let out a wail. It sounded pained. That was a good sign, it could be killed. Mercury felt as flakes of ash rained into the gashes on his back, three parallel ones from the thing''s claws. It hurt like hell, but despite it, he remained calm. He split his mind and began weaving a second net with his lesser zeyjn, while the stronger of the two focused on compressing a rijn. His ystirs tied the knots for the pattern almost by themselves, and he could feel his mind''s hammer taking shape. It quickly made his head start hurting, but he beared it. Half a second ticked by, then another half, and the creature was free. He took a deep breath. It lunged. He breathed out. His rijn impacted the thing''s stomach, sending it higher into the air, and sailing past him, buying precious time to keep weaving away at his net. When it landed, he had already sent a rock after it, which dug into its shoulder. It slid across the stone, claws throwing up slight sparks under the ash as it dug in and twisted its head out of the way of the projectile. Stolen story; please report. No matter, his web was close to done. With a little luck, it would slow the thing down further. Immediately, Mercury threw the web at the monster, only to have it cut in half mid-air. A few strings stuck to it, but not enough to even hinder its movements. Once again, Mercury was forced to dodge, and even as he activated , it wasn''t enough. His speed increased, turning a severe cut into a slighter one, yet he still felt the thing''s claws drag across his right flank. Resisting the temptation to suck in air through his teeth, Mercury took another deep breath, feeling his stamina surging and his mana coursing. When the thing landed, it almost fell to the ground, the shoulder he''d hit with a rock giving out, and immediately, Mercury pounced, clawing and biting at the thing. It tried to swat at him, but the web and blood loss had made it sluggish, and after avoiding two of its blows, Mercury found the creature growing slack. Dead. Until its maw opened . Somehow, its neck stretched rapidly, extending its head forward to snap at Mercury. Even jumping back as early as he could, his breathing had been messy, and he ended up getting another deep scrape on his back and front right leg. Then, the thing sunk into itself again, though a devious grin remained plastered on its face. Finally, a notification rang out, and Mercury swore to never believe himself again before he heard it. [Killed a Lost Twisted Servant. Get: 500 Exp, 100 Gold.] Mercury panted heavily, glad that the fight was over and done with at the very least. The injuries would slow him down, and his head felt like it was about to burst, but he lived. Soon, the water came up next to him, and tried to lick his wounds for a moment, but the cold of its outer shell made them hurt more instead, so Mercury quickly flinched. "Sorry buddy," he said, "but I think I''ll just have to bear with these." He took a few steps forward, and honestly felt it wasn''t that bad. Until the adrenaline wore off, and he staggered on his feet, barely catching himself. Then, he took a deep breath. "Okay, maybe lost a little bit more blood than expected," Mercury muttered. "Piece of shit." The hell were those things even? Lost twisted servants? [Lost Twisted Servant: A Twisted Servant of the Court of the Crimson Sun, which has since gotten lost in the vast landscapes that surrounded their old residence, doomed to forever roam the place of raining ash as it may never find its way back. Not without the eyes that they gave away so willingly long ago.] Yup, sure, that didn''t sound sinister at all. Honestly, even if he wasn''t in pain, Mercury felt quite unsure if he wanted to know more about this. Court of the Crimson Sun? Giving away eyes? Yeah, that sounded just about right if he wanted to get himself goddamn killed! Shaking his head, the mopaaw grit his teeth and took deep breaths, steadying himself. The scavengers would come soon. Before heading off, he remembered to at least take back his rocks, cleaning off the blood with . After all, if he wanted to heal, he still needed to find something to eat. There was nothing confirming it, but it really felt as though the servants had been human, or at least something like that, at some point before. It just didn''t feel right to eat something like that. Maybe there was even a chance of the system granting him some sort of skill for spiritual cannibalism, or a taboo or something. Was there something like that? ... Thanks, . At any rate, if it wasn''t a confirmed no, he would rather avoid the risk, and instead moved on, trying to find whatever passed for easy prey around this place. After eating, he''d have to push the pain aside and continue travelling. Staying still while bleeding seemed more like a death sentence than anything else. Things would come to find him. If he stayed on the move, he might leave a trail, but at the very least they would have to follow it first, rather than immediately being able to locate and eat him. Some of them might even be eaten by bigger fish on the way, but that was wishful thinking. Giving a long sigh, Mercury looked at his translucent companion. They seemed... empathetic, or so he thought at least. Sad to see him get hurt. "That''s sweet of you, but don''t worry, I''ll be fine," he said, lightly tapping the water-cat''s forehead before continuing on. It seemed to calm them a little. That was good. Walking hurt, but it was bearable as he kept it in check with his breathing. In and out, and with each time a few steps forward. Just focusing on his rhythm, Mercury continued on, only trying to suppress the pain, hardly noticing how his entire body seemed to slowly become more synchronised. Yet, that synchronisation only seemed to tell him that his health was worsening. - - - - - - Berthorn was torn. This had been the perhaps greatest stroke of success in his entire career. He achieved everything he set out to do splendidly. The spark he was tasked to gain was retrieved, and Zyl was now weakened physically, as well as mentally. He was sure that ordering them to still kill the mopaaw would have hurt his brother, even if they hadn''t known each other for so long. "Silly Zyl, always so protective," he muttered. It had been his brother''s flaw. Zyl always had to be in the spotlight, at the forefront, taking responsibility for things he really should not. Perhaps it was the instinct of a dragon in him, that things he saw as close to him were his and his to protect. Perhaps his hoard, in a way, was people. But that was simply his musings, in truth, he didn''t know why Zyl had that need. Perhaps it was just a sense of duty, or something he chose himself. Berthorn scoffed. Whatever the reason for it, the choice was poor. It left him vulnerable beyond belief. He shook his head. Yet, somehow, despite the fact that this was an almost perfect victory, he was bothered. There was a seed of fear still in his chest. The mission had not been quite clean. Apparently, a blood eclipse occurred precisely when the assassins struck, surely that was no coincidence. The old man teaching the mopaaw even escaped. Since Berthorn had not seen the body himself, he didn''t feel confident in concluding the cat had died. Granted, no one had ever returned from a blood eclipse, but that mattered little to his paranoia. He feared, because if the beast returned, he might face consequences. Still, he simply shook his head a little. This was a fleeting thought, barely a detail that passed by. Even if the mopaaw, by some miracle, was still alive, he would deal with it then. No, for now he was rather afraid of the politics that awaited him. He had given the spark as instructed, and while he didn''t know what exactly it would be used for, he could hazard a few guesses. None of them boded very well for his authority, lest he believe the words of the others. Again, he scoffed. Yes, certainly, those people were about as trustworthy as a strange man standing inside your house at night next to a broken window. Slowly, Berthorn sucked in the air from the window. No, he wouldn''t be cast aside, in fact, he refused to. Now that they had the shard, they would be distracted, their power plays set aside to stew. But he was unburdened by this, since he had no more involvement, and completing the mission gave him not just standing and reputation, but quite a bit of funds, too. Enough to set up a strong faction, perhaps even an organisation that he would be the head of. That thought put a slight smirk on his face, soothing the unease he felt in his heart. It seemed a good idea, if his gut feeling was to be believed, and usually it was, given how many points he had spent on early warning Skills in the shop. Berthorn the coward nodded to himself as he spun more plans. A faction was what he needed to back himself, and he was more than happy to capitalize on the war of the others, already looking forward to cannibalizing their best subordinates. Tensions were already high, after all, and well, in the games of dragons, little sleights could make all the difference. Even if the target was only implied. Letting his thoughts go further down that line, Berthorn''s smirk widened ever so slightly. If the dragons by some miracle didn''t tear themselves apart, well, he would simply have to give them a push, wouldn''t he? - - - - - - Avery didn''t sleep well. If one considered being unconscious as sleep at all, really. He was out for close to three days, and once he was finally awake, he still had to stay in bed. Every bit of his body ached terribly, but he would recover, that much he was sure of. No, the problem was with the pain in his heart. Each time he woke up, it seemed to grow a little heavier. He''d failed again. Sure, people were praising it as a success, that he gave it his all, that he couldn''t have done better, but he knew it. There were people out there, screaming and crying about their lost ones. Parents without children, children without parents, or lovers who lost each other. Those cries weighed on him, growing heavier each moment he was awake. He couldn''t even find consolation in company. As Marcel tried to cheer him up, all he could hear was a hint of disappointment in his voice, a disapproval his friend tried to keep hidden. Perhaps it wasn''t even there at all, in fact, sometimes Avery was certain he was deluding himself, but that didn''t make it any less painful. He''d failed. He''d failed again. He''d fucking failed, same as the last time! Sometimes, when his thoughts spiraled, he clenched his fist. He didn''t hit anything, not the bed, not the table. He didn''t scream or roar, either, no matter how much he wanted to. He knew it would only cause more destruction, and that was not what he wanted. Yet, every time he wished he could. He wanted to scream, to shout, to hit, to vent, something, anything. "How did it get to this?" he muttered to himself. "I''m a fucking failure." Lucia came to visit him too, her eyes filled with sadness. Perhaps it was empathy, but to him all he could see was disappointment. What had all his training been for, his oath been for, if every time the city was attacked, he only managed to save half of it?! "Breathe Beckham," she would tell him, placing a hand on his shoulder. The tears streamed down his face, some disappearing into the bandages, leaving streams there. The salt hurt his wounds, but to him it felt like only a small penance for his repeated failures. ''How do you do it?'' he''d think. He wanted to know how they all got up again, how they tried over and over, and he wanted to know why he couldn''t say those words out loud. Whenever he looked at the faces of those that remained, he felt like absolute shit. It felt like all their suffering was his fault, directly, and no one else''s. He was silent, when they spoke to him, encouraged him, his breath stocking and betraying his feelings when he let out the occasional whimpers. They''d bite their lips, not knowing what to say. It was hell, to him, not just having failed, but now even weighing down the others. Some days, when it got especially bad, he just wished everyone would forget him. That they could move on, cut him from their life like the cancer he was. He knew they didn''t feel that way, he knew it was wrong to think it, yet he did. Those days, all Avery Beckham really wanted to do was disappear, yet all he could do was sob in silence, all alone in his room, until he was out of tears to cry, then hope he fell asleep quickly to forget it all for a few hours. Chapter 131: Surviving Chapter 131: Surviving /The demon rulers. For many a chapter have they been in constant conflict. Some say their battles stretch over acts, sagas even, whole songs written about their battles and repeated by the bards that roam Arterus, the land of Demons. Their wars, to a large degree, are absolutely legendary, not simple duels, but a ritualistic form of conflict, in which temporary contracts are specially established. Undying minions, tearing each other apart over and over, only to get up and do it again, not even gaining a speck of experience other than from the simply will for bloodlust. It is a spectacle to behold those wars, where the dead do not stay dead, and the price to pay for reincarnation is but a bit of mana or stamina of oneself and the ruler. Yet, it is a spectacle that understandably few choose to partake in. Zagan, patron of fine arts, has abstained from the battles for much longer than most would even remember, and Andromalius willingly chooses to stay as low as possible, for it is those in low positions he wills to reach. Yet, those who fight are spectacular. The high and mighty holding down their positions, and the ambitious aiming to claw their way up. A particularly spectacular rise has recently been of Belial, whose name once meant worthless and never to rise, and is now synonymous with ambition and drive. The only other recorded event of a similar ascension was when great Bael grasped the highest spot and took the title of "zebuth" from the previous first seat. Now, Baelzebuth may soon be challenged again, yet what that entails, we shall know only when the time comes./ A short insight in the dynamics of the demon seat battles, by Anne Loset, Herbologist and Demonologist. - - - - - - Bishop Nemo finally arrived in Stormbraver, and what a sight it was. The city had been burned, clearly, most houses missing good chunks of them, and much of the wood that still stood was charred black and needed replacement. He scoffed at the sight, and heard the murmurs of his posse behind himself. Looking at some debris, he kicked it out of the way. "Not very orderly," he quietly spoke to himself, lifting up his robes in order to avoid getting dust on them as he stepped forward. The cathedral belonging to the Church of Order at least still stood, making his destination an easy one to find. The voice would be seated there, that much he was certain of. And it was where he would approach her. After all, she had failed her duties quite miserably. Protecting the city was not even one of them, and she had failed. But order was not maintained here. As they stepped through the broken roads, covered with bricks from collapsed walls, the chittering behind him raised slightly. He heard the voices of the believers. They were displeased with all of it. Of course they were, he thought with a smile. These were the most order-obsessed people in all the continents. Seeing wreckage such as this was... disgusting, in a lot of ways. Something they would usually always avoid. But this time, well, for such an occasion as now Nemo was certainly willing to make an exception. It was the perfect chance to get a grasp on the voice. He was sure she must still be shaken, her temper untamed, and while it was risky, it was also his best chance at grasping more power. With more power, he would be able to pursue the ideal of Order more closely, to have the people follow his lead, and he would lead by example. By making sure that those who broke the rules were properly punished, by making sure that those who showed penance were properly praised. The people needed to know their place in things, and the fact, that their place was determined by their actions. Yes, what he wanted from the Church of Order was clarity. Clearer guidelines on what was tolerable and what wasn''t, as well as the authority to push those thing through, and that was what he aimed to claim that day. Slowly stepping past a few larger chunks, Nemo approached the doorway of the cathedral. Its bricks still stood strong, enchanted with runes, binding them together far tighter than mortar ever could. He gazed upon it with the pride a father would have for a child, as he raised his hands and smacked the knocker onto the wood thrice. His followers were silent as they waited, the door soon opened by a younger woman. A beastkin, he noted with some surprise. They were not very often seen in Nevarzahri, but just as soon as the feeling appeared, he snuffed it out again. "Good day, young lady," he greeted her with a slight bow, receiving a much deeper one in turn. "Bishop," the woman replied quietly, recognizing his status. "Indeed," Nemo nodded. "I am here to see the high priestess, is she currently available?" His voice was polite, yet his eyes sharp. "Unfortunately not," the woman in the door replied. "She is out helping the people rebuild, as I wish I could as well." "Oh?" Nemo was surprised. Hearing that the voice was helping rebuilding efforts seemed... strangely unlikely. What was she going to do, set the bricks on fire to make them lighter? He almost scoffed at the thought, suppressing it at the last moment. "Where may I find her, then?" he asked instead. "At the healer''s tents, Bishop," the woman replied, bowing again and moving to slowly close the door. For a moment, Nemo considered protesting the motion, but he decided to be patient for a moment. This was something he had not expected, and he was unsure whether it was a turn for the worse or the better. For now, it remained to see. "Well then," he spoke to his flock of followers. "Shall we go see her highness?" - - - - - - Mercury noticed it soon. For a while, he simply pushed it onto being tired and fatigued. He'' been feeling more and more shitty as the days went by, but this clearly wasn''t the same. His wounds burned. Not like the usual bites and scratches, either, but like an itch that refused to go away. As he walked, the skin around the scratches began to feel numb and prickly, like someone was prodding him with tiny needles. It felt uncomfortable, and he had his watery companion wash out the wounds to make sure they stayed clean. It helped a little, but the feeling still spread. When evening rolled around, Mercury felt much, much worse. His throat was hoarse, his breathing ragged, his eyes bloodshot. Every inch of his body felt sore, much more than it had any right to after just a day of marching. By now, Mercury''s endurance was quite superhuman. He hadn''t survived this long for no reason, and yet, he felt like absolute shit. Something had gone wrong. Maybe he''d gotten some sort of sickness from the thing''s claws, or they''d been laced with toxin. Mercury wanted to curse as he lied on the floor, but barely had the energy for it. Without his friendly puddle, he probably wouldn''t even have found a spot to hide and rest. Most likely he''d have just collapsed out in the ash, and then wasted away. The mopaaw grit his teeth as a wave of pain wracked his body. He could feel his blood turn into magma running through his veins, every beat of his heart sending agony through his body. It hurt, more than he would have ever liked to admit, or go through. Every movement he made, every breath he took he felt his lungs burning. The air felt freezing, yet his lips and paws were glistening with sweat. He felt like he was boiling and freezing all at once, his breathing laboured. With his sluggish mind, Mercury conjured up his status. He could see his Hp slowly dropping, draining away second by second. It wasn''t fast, in fact, it was slow enough he hadn''t noticed the entire day, but it was speeding up, as what he guessed to be venom made its way through his system. This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. As the hours ticked by, Mercury felt too sluggish to even raise his head. He could see that his current companion was worried about him, prancing and prodding to see how he reacted, but he barely had enough energy to keep his eyes open. All Mercury could do was think, his mind foggy and delirious from the fever. Even with his eyes closed he saw shadows flit around, movement behind his eyelids. He felt watched, but lonely at the same time, memories coming back to him in chunks and being expanded on by his fever-induced fantasies. He thought for a while that perhaps it all had been a dream, felt himself back in his office, trudging through spreadsheets as he mindlessly typed in whatever data he was given, then compiled it orderly. He imagined his mom coming into the office and scolding him in front of his colleagues, then for some reason, the building collapsed and all he could do was run. Run, run, run, all he ever did was run. He had to stand up to something, somewhere at some point in his life, he knew that much. But he kept running, always running. Something was chasing him in the darkness of his own head, not dreaming, but not awake either. Perhaps he''d been sucked in by the bog and its stalkers, he didn''t know. Mercury woke up, panting, in a cold cave and thought he''d died, before realizing it was a dream. He wanted to grab a glass of water, but of course, there was no nightstand prepared at all. Then, he felt the pain again, wracking his body as he moved. He was panting, every breath sending waves of pain all throughout his throats, and forcing him into a coughing fit, which hurt even worse. All of his muscles felt like someone had torn them out of his body, put them through a shredder, then put them back in just for fun. Every bit of him ached, pain that should be coming in waves being a constant in his mind, a constant ringing in his ears. He fell asleep, then woke back up, each time with more confusion than before. He could hardly tell what was a dream and what was real anymore. He heard a voice in his head. "You''re dying," it said, and scoffed at him. Whose voice, he couldn''t tell, perhaps no one''s at all. Did it even matter. Breathing raggedly, Mercury''s eyelids fluttered open and closed again. It made no difference. All he could see was black. He panicked. Had he gone blind? Why didn''t he see anything?! The world had disappeared on him. It felt like he laid awake for hours, shivering and burning, turning and tossing with pain, yet unable to move. Then he would suddenly be somewhere else, sometime else, doing something else. Why was he where he was? He just couldn''t remember. He didn''t know what his job was anymore, his mind so fuzzy, it was hard to think. Eventually, he was called into the nightly swamp, and it was perhaps his worst night yet. Because he didn''t know what he was to do. It felt like he was suffocating, hardly able to walk, feeling slow. The ground seemed to want to swallow him, the fog weighing down. He''d never realized before just how heavy it was. Shapes seemed to dart around the edges of his vision, no matter where he looked, always just around the corner. They were out there, stalking him, waiting. Mercury was afraid, then, more afraid then he ever remembered. He crawled through the mud, bit by bit, hoping that perhaps it was enough to escape, but of course it wasn''t. It would never be. Mercury died. One of the stalkers pierced his heart with a stake. He woke up, in the cave, in pain. His whole body was shivering, and he felt his muscles spasm beneath his skin, which already burnt too hot. But exhaustion claimed him again, and sent him back, where he died once more. This time, it had not been as short. The thing had toyed with him, pushing one of its shadowy weapons through his ribcage. He''d coughed blood, then slowly perished. The thing seemed almost disappointed. But Mercury fell asleep again. It was only a matter of time, his body needed rest, after all, to work through the poison. And that rest is what it took from his mind as a toll, because the third time he fell asleep properly, Mercury died. Somehow, the stalkers kept finding him. No matter how much he strained and crawled, they found him. He felt himself going mad. Each return hurt so much, his body in the swamp already bruised and battered, driven to the verge of breaking, only to be sent hurtling back to his actual body where he was faced with delirium. Nothing made sense. Time was passing so agonizingly slowly, driving him until he was exhausted, fell asleep, and was slaughtered again. Bit by bit, with each repetition, Mercury felt his sense of self slip away. Ground down, as what he perceived as real slipped. Had he ever even slept? Ever even dreamt of the bog, or only hallucinated it? Did it even matter? This place was driving him mad. Whatever was doing this to him made him not only feel agony, but hallucinate as well. It shaved away layers of his desires and who he wanted to be, until only the barest bit was left. Then, eventually, it could shave away no more. Breath ragged, and wracked with nightmares, Mercury held onto that tiny bit of a wish. He wanted to live. No matter what happened, Mercury didn''t want to die. This was his second chance, his time to try and be someone he could be proud of, to do better than before. To stand up for himself, and do the things he enjoyed. To explore, to find his own path, and he was unwilling to give it all up. Every bit of will Mercury could muster clung to that. He wanted to live. He didn''t want to give up. Even as he felt about to burn up, his mind battered and driven to the verge of snapping, Mercury truly refused to yield. He was going to live. Somehow, whatever it took, he would live. Time ticked by, and Mercury continued crawling. Through the fog, he crawled, ever forward toward that red light. When he was awake, he breathed, in and out, supplying whatever energy he could. He drank a little bit from a bowl his companion had prepared for him, and dug out every bit of stamina he could from his vessel. Tooth and nail, Mercury fought, to beat down the vestige of the twisted servant that still wished to haunt him. He knew that it was dead, and he had no interest in going with it. Mercury clawed against his own weakness, against the staggering exhaustion he felt. And eventually, the worst was passed. Day had broken, though he could only tell by the fact that his watery friend awoke and begun its day. The thing nudged more drink at him, and he gratefully took a few sips. It helped, even if just a little, to calm the heat that ravaged through him. The bright blue cat eventually disappeared out of their hideout for some time, but Mercury was sure it would be back. Something about the way it looked at him told him that much. So he simply focused on what he could do, breathing. In and out, calming his heart a little. Breath by breath, Mercury established an inner rhythm. Inhale, hold, exhale, hold. Then all over again. His mind had been stripped to its barest bones, and those remaining bits clung to his breath. In and out, fuel to the engine that kept him alive. Something to burn so his stamina could be restored. Then, the restored stamina would course through him and strengthen himself, fighting back against the weakness. His mana boiled and rushed to repair his astral body. Whether his deaths in the bog had been a dream, he could not tell. But he was hurt. His head hurt, and this was one way he knew how to slightly lessen the ache. Gently, he coursed it, repairing the veins it would flow through, knitting their grey edges together by infusing them with his silver mana. Then do it all over again. After an hour, the whole thing became routine to Mercury. After two, he felt a bit better already. After five, he opened his eyes at the sound of footsteps. He felt... better. Not good, he still couldn''t stand, but at the very least he could sit up a little. His liquid buddy had returned, carrying some sort of squid-creature with a sharkhead on a sled of ice. The thing was stained by ash, but at that moment, Mercury didn''t care. He devoured the thing, occasionally washing bites down with a bit of water. Fuel to the engine. - - - After quite some time, Mercury recovered. The toxin had been flushed out of his system, and he finally felt human again. Well, like a cat again, he supposed. Whatever. In any case, Mercury was sure of two things. The first was that meeting the water creature had been an incredible boon. Perhaps it considered him a benefactor for getting rid of the parasites, but even then, it was by no means obligated to feed him for two days. "I really owe you now, huh?" he asked them, only receiving confusion as a reply. "Well, whatever. I guess that makes us companions then." With a slight grin, he moved his tail to tap his friend''s forehead. For a moment, they wore a face of confusion, then seemed glad and repeated the gesture back. They seemed pleased, now that Mercury was better. The second thing he knew, was that he''d missed some sort of memo from the system. It seemed quite pleased with him for... not dying, he guessed? [Your Skills have levelled up: 10>, 4>, 3>, 2>!] [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] Apparently, he had used a lot of Skills. Whatever had been killing him, it certainly took a toll on him, and it seemed the system recognized that he had only survived via a very special constellation of Skills. He''d even gotten , one of the paths for he could have picked instead of . Somehow, it seemed, that he''d put his head through the wall again. And, by the looks of it, he''d triggered a trial, too. [By braving extraordinary circumstances and pain, the individual has received additional rewards! Get: 2 Ability points, 200 Skill Points, 3 Vitality, 4 Willpower.] This was fair. The situation wasn''t quite that different to when he''d been hit with the mana backlash last time, only that he now had a much better grasp on how to fix the issues. Honestly, he''d never been more glad for having levelled and . The combo was incredible for understanding his internal state, and fighting back. And with the amount he''d been focusing on it recently, it was about time he finally made a breakthrough. [ has levelled up! high)>] He''d done it. On his road to recovery, Mercury had figured out the rhythm to . The thing that hadn''t clicked before was just his focus. It had been so external, on his muscles, on power, rather than on the simple flow inside him. Did he breathe through his legs? Obviously not, so focusing on them wouldn''t have let him see the next step of improvement. Instead, he''d reached this far by looking inwards, and using to, well, get his body energy. As it was always meant to be used, he just needed to focus on the proper place. Lastly though, one of the Skills in the batch had made another threshhold. [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] Now that was a prospect he wouldn''t say no to. ", what are our options?" Chapter 132: Companionship Chapter 132: Companionship /Illuhm, the light, was the first of the gods. The overlord of all that glows, of all that is radiant, and good, and well. Of the beautiful and the rich, of opulence, of desire, and of good food. He is the patron of arts, and an enjoyer of games. That is what he says, at least. In truth, many believe Illuhm to be a rather lazy god. He came, saw, and declared all that the light touched as his. Nothing he saw was earned. Life was given by Logebat of creation. Warmth by Vah, society created on the back of Uxbeyns anvil. Even Jeringr of shadow contributes to people, with warnings, with a sense of danger. But Illuhm takes things for granted, to be his. He is the blind emperor, the golden greed. A god that is beloved by the rich, by the noble, by those who have, and used to spurn and mock them by the ones who don''t. To those who worship him, he is righteous in his actions, the world his birthright. To them, he is a symbol of their own status. That is why mockery of Illuhm is rarely done in front of those. After all, infuriating the rulers is rarely liked. Yet, through this strange disposition, he has somehow become a champion of rebellions, something the god himself would most likely despise. Those who seek to overthrow governments often convene in the name of Illuhm. It is a blatant lie, a hidden thing that Anoth and Jeringr would smile onto, and one that Illuhm would hate, which, to a degree, is the poetry hidden within. The god light, good, and truth is used for people who truly are under the grace of the Lady of secrets and the Shadow. There, the conspirators will first praise the nobles and merchant, the rich and good for just a little while. Rarely do those ever attend, they already have everything, why would they need a god''s grace? So, after superficial praise, planning is done to take from those in Illuhm''s grace. And, true to the lazy god, he is too preoccupied to act against it. In truth, it is because he considers himself the first that the blind emperor is only a shadow of his former self. The light he casts is superficial, and temporary, the sun will always pass, and set, gracing only the surface with light. Its warmth goes deeper, underneath the earth, but the brightness will forever remain just that: surface level. Because Illuhm, the golden greed, cares only for himself, so much so that he does not even look upon where his light touches./ An excerpt from "Of greater Beings", by Matthew Lexicon, the stubborn historian. - - - - - - [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same, no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. 4. ] If he had to be honest, Mercury liked those options. itself had already been a hugely helpful Skill, and saved his ass many times, and knowing he could specify the direction he wanted to take it even further was... strangely freeing. In a way, knowing that the other Skills could still be acquired, and that he wouldn''t lose any of the effects had up until now made this choice put less pressure on him. But he was getting distracted. , what were the Skills even about. [: A Skill usually found in individuals obsessed with the wild, this Skill is often found in more feral places. The individuals utilizing it are granted additional mastery when doing things on their own, or sustaining themselves by themselves. It is especially useful when staying away from civilisation, and provides greater benefits the more untouched the lands the individual is currently on are.] This was slightly different from Mercury''s expectations. Really, he''d expected the Skill to focus more on the "Free" part, rather than "Wild", but it seemed to be first for a good reason. Honestly, the Skill by itself seemed to fit him pretty well, given how often he decided to fuck off into a forest, but it also had some serious issues. Rarely would he ever travel completely and utterly alone, even in a place as shitty as this, he had a companion. And he didn''t exactly want to always be by himself either. Mercury enjoyed company. He''d really just gone back to the wilderness to try and... find himself a little more, he supposed, but right now he craved company. Also, giving up the benefits of society was a tough ask. Delicious food, comfortable beds, plumbing and a sewer system, the safety a city provided, and so on. Giving all of that up seemed unattractive, even when he considered the benefits of the Skill. [: A Skill focused on assisting the individual with tasks that have never been completed before, it provides additional learning when attempting to comprehend concepts no one else has comprehended. The holder of the Skill is encouraged to try and carve their own path by themselves, and not let anyone else stand in their way.] On first glance, this Skill seemed to fit Mercury pretty well. He was learning quite a few things by himself, after all. But the more he thought, the less attractive it seemed. First of all, carving his own path was nice and good, but he''d had quite a few teachers by now already. Yvette, Uunrahzil and Yasashiku had taught him a lot, and he didn''t think he''d be where he currently is without them. Heck, somewhere deep down he was still hoping to be able to continue smithing at some point. No, swearing off being taught by another seemed like a silly idea, before even approaching the wording. "Additional learning when attempting to comprehend things no one else has comprehended." That seemed like a trap. How was that defined. No one with the system? No one in the Solar system? He knew for a fact there was at least one other world out there, and knowing that to really tap into the benefits he needed to find something entirely new? The Skill was probably incredible for anyone pursuing research, and maybe it would help him a lot if he ever reached the absolute pinnacle of a craft in this world, but it would take him many, many years until then. It just didn''t seem quite worth it to invest in a Skill for something so far down the line already. [: This Skill allows the user to excel in difficult situations, especially when restrictions are imposed on them, either by themselves or someone else. It decreases the effect of most debuff-type Skills, and provides additional learning when the individual is going through a task set up by someone else. The more malintent behind the challenge, the more benefits the user receives.] Mercury considered the Skill for a bit. It seemed quite good, especially gaining advantages in difficult situations, but he saw a slight issue with its activation conditions. Sure, it sounded like it would work with most problems, but it seemed like it would have the best effect when someone quite literally challenged him. Especially the malintent part bothered him. Monsters wouldn''t exactly offer up tasks. This encouraged him to go and piss off his teachers and people trying to get him to improve. Something about that just rubbed him the wrong way. [: The desire for freedom is strong within those who hold this Skill. It provides further benefits whenever the individual is pursuing a path they are passionate about, and helps them discover more about it. Additionally, whenever the individual is wanting to progress yet finds themselves unable to, the Skill helps them find the next step towards their goal. Finally, due to the holder''s desire for freedom, they will have an easier time escaping from restrains, both physical and mental.] Now this, this was better. The Skill still came with conditions attached, but then again, so did pretty much all of them. These conditions were far more lenient. He would be rewarded, as long as he followed a path he was passionate about. If he wanted to smith, it would help him smith. If he wanted to move his mana, it would help him move his mana. The name also spoke to him. Unrestrained. If he ever hit a brick wall in terms of his magic or ihn''ar or whatever else, this would help him get out of it. The resistance against mundane and mental traps was just the cherry on top. "I''ll take , please." [Evolution selected.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. When he got the Skill, Mercury immediately felt a little bit better. Like breathing was easier, and moving was, too. "Strange," he muttered to himself. Maybe this was an effect of ? Its bonuses increasing as the Skill develops? Or maybe the new Skill viewed air resistance as a restraint and let him move against it more easily? In any case, it helped make him just a little bit stronger. For a moment, Mercury pondered on that. He was decidedly superhuman by now. If he was still Steve in his office, he would not have survived that poison without an antidote. He could sprint for longer than even professional athletes by now, and his skin was tougher than anything squishy had any right to be. The thought was empowering, but also strange. Somehow, being able to perform physical feats outside the realm of anything human was more unusual than even magic to him. Seriously. It felt more normal that he could just move things with than the fact that he could probably pick up a full sized human relatively easily, even being a cat. Mercury shook his head a bit. Focus, he reminded himself. He took a moment to close his eyes and see how he was doing now. His mana veins were still a little ragged, but nothing that wouldn''t heal in a little while. He felt slightly weakened, like the fatigue after a long cold, but he was sure it would fade soon as well. In general, after his time of rest he felt... good. Probably even stronger than before. Though there was still something he was curious about. ", why did I gain the Skill?" For a moment, the air in front of him was quiet, but after a few seconds, the box popped up. [The individual has both demonstrated an iron will, as well as the ability to reinforce their body through their will in a way that closely aligns with what does. Therefore, the Skill was rewarded.] Huh. He''d reinforced his body with his willpower? Had he seriously, somehow, thought the poison out of his body? Well, then again, he''d smashed rocks with his will before, so was it really that strange? What a headache. "Thanks ." [You are welcome.] With that question somewhat resolved, and him feeling physically ready to continue the journey, Mercury turned to his liquid buddy. "You ready to go?" he asked, and the other mopaaw seemed to nod. "Thanks again," Mercury said with a smile, as he began heading off. Time to continue on through the ashen wasteland. He''d get out of here, no matter what. - - - As Mercury continued to journey across the ash-filled wasteland, the scenery changed slightly. The terrain became more rocky, with towers of dark stone jutting from the ground. Between the rocks, there were also revines, like scars dotting the land, with drops down to an inky blackness. Some of them were surrounded by chittering noises, like a hundred centipedes crawling over each other. Needless to say, he didn''t feel the need to explore. Slowly but surely the thing in the distance had grown closer. He could make out some features now, enough to notice it had a roof. The thing was a tower, a tall one, and it wasn''t the only one, either. By now, Mercury could see that the tower was part of a mansion, one carved from black bricks. Some parts of it looked strangely small, but after a few days, Mercury noticed why. He was higher up than it. The ground was inclined downwards, a slight slope, but the distance would add up over the time he''d take to eventually reach there. For some reason, this entire place seemed like a funnel towards the mansion. But what was a mansion even doing in a place like this? Who the hell would ever want to live here? Was this where the Court of the Crimson Sun used to reside? If so, then he''d have to expect it being filled with the twisted servants. The lack of answers annoyed Mercury, but he didn''t expect to hear much more soon. Not unless he investigated himself. Maybe then, would be gracious enough to shed some more light on the situation. For now, he was forced to simply continue on his journey. And a journey it was. Even during the night he still travelled, through the everlasting bog. It had gotten easier, by now. seemed to stop the fog from clinging to him as much, and the whole place seemed less suffocating. Progress was still slow, but he''d escaped the stalkers a couple times now, and viewed it as a good sight. Seeing the diamond grow larger as he moved closer to it was also a motivating factor. What was that thing? Why was it the only thing he could see in the fog? Some nights, the mopaaw worried he was like a moth going to flame, like this was exactly where they wanted to drive him, but other nights, when he noticed that there were more stalkers around this place, it felt like it was being defended instead. If it was being defended, well, it surely had to be valuable. And if it was valuable, well, Mercury wanted to at least catch a glimpse of it. So the trudge continued, even as the mana grew thinner, and the cracks in the mud larger. It felt like the floor was really wanting to swallow him up now, with the revines and the larger cracks there. Sometimes, Mercury would swear he could feel the ground pulse rhythmically, even outside of the opening and closing. Like some sort of sinister heartbeat, a central core that swallowed up all the misery in this shitty swamp. Honestly, if there was some sort of central dark engine, he wouldn''t even be very surprised. It had long since seemed that the place fed off the misery of its inhabitants. That''s why there were gloom stalkers, not simple murder machines that annihilated you the moment they saw you. There was a reason for the whole chase, he was sure of it. Maybe to exhaust you, to spend your stamina, and feed off the residue in the air, or maybe to actually produce fear. Really, the longer Mercury spent in the ashen plains, the more certain he became it was meant to break down your will to keep going. The vast emptiness, the hostility of it all, the terrain standing in your way, and the lack of any good sustenance would be enough to drive the most resolute people mad. In fact, if he hadn''t already been used to travelling through dreams, Mercury was very sure that his first few encounters with the stalkers would have gone much, much different. But, well, he was who he was. Perhaps the mansion or the diamond would hold the answers to his questions. Whatever it was, they kept their silence for now. - - - A few more days into travelling, something happened again. One of the rock formations had, once again, proven to be an impostor. It simply got up as night fell, the last bits of crimson letting the falling ash look more like embers. Within moments, the inanimate rock turned into a giant, strings of boulders lashing out fast enough to almost blur in the air, the sound as they struck down loud enough to make Mercury''s ears ring. Then, once they had squashed enough monsters, the whips of stone would grow soft, membranous, and simply envelop the bodies, leaving only a dent in the ash as proof of what had happened. Looking at the thing made Mercury shiver. Hundreds of the creatures that roamed this place died that night, and he was not interested in being one of them, so he simply headed as far away as he could, seeking shelter in a small cavern. They dotted the planes more and more now, as the terrain grew more rocks, although he''d had to fight for their ownership more than once. Well, it spared him from hunting for dinner, at least. After that night though, he made sure to more thoroughly check where he was sleeping, before laying down and working on controlling his mana. By now he felt ready to practice things again. It didn''t feel like he was progressing much in terms of , so he dedicated his efforts to magic instead, practicing his handle on the mana inside himself, as well as that outside of his own body. He''d expand it, split his mind, try to get out a second tendril see if he could get his ystirs to maintain it, fail, then attempt it all over again. The work was exhausting, mentally, and he needed to be careful. If he went too far, he was going to feel sluggish once the bog called to him. And eventually, it would always call to him. There was no escaping that place, not for him, not as he was right now. Unfortunately, once he woke back up again, it seemed this place just didn''t want to give him any breaks. When he tried to leave the burrow, he''d noticed that was ringing in his head slightly, and watching more closely, the ash on the floor was definitely stirring. "Shit," he cursed quietly, hoping that their hideout wouldn''t attract too much attention. There were never enough of them, even with them appearing more frequent, and whenever an ashstorm happened, the real estate value happened to soar so high, people were willing to really risk their all for a spot. They were even willing to pay with their lives, and Mercury wasn''t exactly a hospitable landlord. It was the curse of the storms. They meant he couldn''t travel for a day, but he also couldn''t use the time they gave him productively for practice. If he was outside by the time they happened, he had to scramble for a hiding place, both for himself and his much more translucent friend, or dig them a ditch into the dark stone the floor was made from. Which usually involved smashing his rijn against it, and gave him a huge headache. Luckily, this time he was already in a good position, but that meant he would have visitors soon, and needed to prepare a warm welcome. With an amount of routine Mercury really didn''t exactly want to have, he barricaded the entrance, spinning webs across the crack in the rock. And not very long after, the first party of desperate beasts already arrived. - - - A whole day of clawing, biting, and smashing his way through a seemingly endless stream of monsters, Mercury fell to the floor in a bundle of exhaustion. The storm had lasted long, longer than it really had any right, and their hideout had been one of the more visible ones this time. Well, visible when all the ash was up in the air at least. Glancing at his buddy, Mercury saw that the sentient puddle also seemed more than spent. It was hardly even holding its shape anymore. "Get some rest," he told it, "you deserve it." His rather silent companion simply nodded at the request. Their communication had been steadily improving, though Mercury was unsure if it was due to him or them. ''Back to the swamp,'' Mercury grumbled mentally. After being this spent, he wished that he would just be allowed a good night''s sleep for once, but he knew it was a pipe dream. As expected, he landed paws first in the mud again, his fur already stained form his last visit here. He looked scraggly, his fur messy and caked with dirt, but his eyes shone. He might be tired, but he would still go on. Ever pushing forward against this stupid place, because he just refused to yield. ''Ah, there you are,'' Mercury suddenly read. Almost immediately, he whipped around, nervously. He had never met anything other than the rhino dragon in this place, and it didn''t exactly seem like there would be much more friendly company. Only a moment, later, the fog in front of Mercury parted. No, it didn''t part. It was ripped away, as a crack appeared in space itself, the air folding to get out of its way. Through it, Mercury saw grey tubes, streaking through the air, a set of mana veins that was familiar. ''I have been patient, young Mercury. Leyren. But perhaps, this one should have come to seek thee sooner.'' The voice was clear now, and underneath it Mercury knew of worry. It was a story of concern and conflict, on whether to seek or to wait, and now, content at the decision that had been made. ''Uunrahzil...'', the mopaaw replied, unable to add much more. The old one wanted to chide them for not using their title, but it was fine this once. Because they knew of their student''s struggle and despair the moment they stepped foot in this place. ''It is good to see you, too, young Mercury. But I must ask, why art thee in such a destitute dream?'' A mix of happiness at their reunion, worry at the situation, and surprise laced their thoughts. ''It is a bit of a story, teacher.'' ''Then please, tell it. After so long, this one has nothing if not time.'' Chapter 133: Moving On Chapter 133: Moving On /Welcome back motherfuckers, to this installment of wow I hate this planet. Today, I''ll be getting upset about mana and affinities. Because what the actual fuck is up with that shit, huh? Seriously. Everyone has mana, no affinity, nothing. That mana can be liquid, solid, or gaseous, and in transitioning from one state to another, releases energy, which can be used for spells. Simple shit, right? WRONG! This affinity-less magical energy can then be converted into other things. Kinetic energy? We got it. Heat? For sure baby. Light? Abso-fucking-lutely. Spells? What the actual hell is wrong with you. I have never been so offended in my life. My disappointment is immeasurable, and my day is ruined. Okay, I lied, you can cast spells with it, sure. But spells are stupid complex. If you wanna acquire one, you''re honestly better off just learning it from a scroll and using it via the system like a regular wizard, it''s the most popular way of doing it for a reason. If you genuinely wanna learn how to cast spells, then okay. Fine. I applaud you, really, because that shit suuuucks. Like seriously. You gotta make sure your mana is shaped in the correct pattern, which basically functions as a transformer for the magical energy that comes out of it, then transform it all into magical energy uniformly, or the thing blows up in your face. Then, once you have magical energy from that transformer-construct, good on you. That was step one. Now do it again, shape the magical energy into a construct, then release your hold on it all at once, and have it manifest its effects. If you used the right schematic, so to speak, then you succeed, and your spell becomes reality. If not, it blows up in your face in a violent release of energy. Again. So, essentially, casting spells requires two transformations, first to a specific magical energy, second to the actual spell. Now, this is where affinities come in. If your mana has an affinity that largely overlaps with a spell, than usually, transforming that mana without a transformer-construct is good enough. You can just lay it out in the spell-pattern and cast the spell right from there, by evaporating the mana, keeping the magical energy in place and releasing it all. You can also put it through the transformer anyway, losing less energy in the process. It''s more efficient to cast spells with the mana, so if you do the double transformation, your spell has more oomph, and a single transformation, while less powerful, makes it way, way fucking faster. But that still doesn''t say anything about actual affinities, does it now. Because the magical energy signature for each spell is slightly different, we can''t really make an accurate description of affinities. it would be a specific one for each spell, which would render the whole system fecking pointless again. So, what mages did, was make loose groups. Loads of spells use similar, if not adjacent energy signatures, in terms of frequency, volatility, and a bunch of other fancy magic terms. Any spell that creates water will be inherently similar. Sure, there are slight differences in the application and stuff, but overall, similar enough, right? These classifications were made back when magic wasn''t as clearly defined as these days, but have even been adopted by the System, so they have stood strong throughout the time. Water and Ice affinities are close together and similar, for example, meaning you can change the mana''s affinity between them fairly easily. Water and fire affinities are further apart, making them harder to transform to each other. Basically, you can make the groups as wide or as close as you want. If you really wished for it, sure, you could have something like i dunno, honeybee mana, which is especially good at controlling honeybees and only honeybees, but at that point, you kinda lose your generalism. What if wasps attack you? Does that mana work on them? Largely, yeah, so why not call it insect mana? It''s a tough balancing act, and confusing as shit, especially when mana types mix (because they can do that), or repel each other (yeah, they do that shit too). So, to keep things simply: if you cast a spell with normal mana, you gotta transform it twice. Force it into a pattern, evaporate, force it into a spellshape, let go. Done. If you cast a spell using mana of a similar affinity, expect some loss of efficiency when using single transformation. Like casting an ice spell with water mana might net you about 80% efficiency. When using double transformation, casting an ice spell with water mana might net you 120% efficiency. Water spell with water mana, 90% for single transformation, maybe 140% or so for double transformation. That''s how affinities work. And how do you get affinites? Well, shit, isn''t that a fucking story for next time. Don''t croak, and I''ll see you in the next issue, where I talk about why getting affinites should actually be illegal and I hate it./ Issue 12 of "This System Sucks!" by an anonymous author. - - - - - - After Mercury had explained, Dreamweaver was silent for a while. Mercury could once again read some incredulity, as well as just plain genuine surprise, but most of what they felt was simple, genuine worry. ''Lately, thee have been doing quite a few rather... unexpected things, young Mercury,'' they finally thought, after some pause. ''This one truly believed you so casually visualizing things to be impressive, yet somehow, thee surprise me again.'' Slowly, they shook their head. ''I am glad to hear you are still healthy, at least.'' ''Thank you,'' Mercury answered with a slight nod, ''I''m managing. Do you happen to know anything about this place, old Uunrahzil?'' Again, Mercury''s teacher remained silent for a little while, pondering. It felt as though they were searching through an archive of memories. ''Indeed, this one does,'' they finally replied. ''As of right now, we are visiting you in a very different dream than your usual one. A dead dream, barely keeping itself alive by clinging to the minds of everyone in the area. It is desperate, young Mercury, and desperate things are dangerous.'' ''The dream lashes out at the ones it is latched onto, trying to drag pieces of their mind into itself for sustenance. It does not matter whether the target usually is able to be in this sort of place at all. Meeting other dream mages is rare, as this one told you, yet here, every creature is dragged in, only to be devoured.'' Mercury could swear he saw a shiver go through them. ''If thee would like a word of advice, this one thinks you should do your best to escape. Something like this... no sane mind would draw up such an idea.'' After Uunrahzil spoke, Mercury listened more closely for a moment. He noticed something new, something that hadn''t been there usually. His teacher was feeling... disgusted. They didn''t necessarily hate the dream, rather, they felt like it was just a tool, but their distaste for it was more than clear. If he had to compare it, Mercury guessed it might be similar to seeing a chainsaw that fed off human flesh, maybe? Something similarly grotesque, at least. ''What if I can''t exactly escape, not in the short term?'' he asked, after the pause. ''Then, young Mercury, this one would recommend thee try and break this dream. It is dying already, barely clinging on as a parasite. Finishing it off would simply require passing the legions of the defenders, then destabilizing the nexus it is woven around, before finally destroying its host, its creator,'' they thought to him. ''Sounds simple enough,'' Mercury commented, giving a rueful smile. ''It is not a complex task, but not one that will be easy, either,'' Dreamweaver explained, a little solemnly, ''but while we cannot help, we still believe this should be possible for you. You have proven thyself as jelec, as "tenacious". It may be desperate, but that scarcely seems enough to defy the will of this one''s tri''ht, does it?'' Within old Dreamweaver''s thought, Mercury once again found pride. They truly believed that he could do it, hypothetically at least. Not enough to stop worry from slipping through, plenty of it, as well as a bit of dread at the chance of losing their student. Enough to really put the danger into perspective. But at the same time, this meant that he could actually go back , eventually. Escape this absolute nightmare of a place, hopefully. This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ''This one thanks you for your confidence, old Uunrahzil,'' Mercury answered with a light smile. ''There is nothing you would need to give thanks for. To state one''s thoughts is a simple deed, after all. However, before we lose too much time, there are a few more thing to tell you,'' old Dreamweaver thought. ''First of all, we will not be seeing you again any time soon. The dream is desperate for sustenance, but also scared of what lays beyond it. Driven to its limits, it has barricaded itself off from where this one currently resides. Bypassing that wall over such a distance already proved difficult the first time, if the gaps we exploited are patched up, there will not be a second visit.'' Mercury nodded at that. He knew old Uunrahzil''s regret at the situation, but it was what it was. He''d just have to get through it himself, then. ''Secondly, you must never forget thineself in this place. When thee are harmed here, you may awake, but your mind will still be damaged. Such wounds take time to heal, but you can help it along. Practice ihn''ar, on yourself, on those you can trust around you, try and recall what makes thee into yourself. Do not forget.'' Mercury saw them freeze strangely for a moment, then the air shook around him, and old Uunrahzil returned. ''Yes,'' they said again, ''you must not forget.'' ''Understood,'' the mopaaw nodded. Hopefully he wouldn''t forget the piece of advice before he could use it. ''Finally, we wish to show you an experience. Thine mastery over has grown substantially. I am more than proud of you for coming this far. But, perhaps to serve as motivation for you, we wish to show you the scale of mastery one can achieve.'' A slight ripple went over Dreamweaver''s form, before they grew still again. It was not a shiver, like before, but rather looked like the tiny wave you''d get from adding a drop of water to a silent lake. ''By no means have we achieved perfection, if one believes such a thing can ever be done, yet we consider ourselves sufficiently practiced to at least give you a hint,'' they spoke, and for just a split second, Mercury felt some glee, before it disappeared. In fact, the entire world seemed to grow still when Uunrahzil ceased speaking. The fog suddenly seemed less clingy, and even after seconds passed, the floor did not crack, or move, or splash. There was a formless pressure in the air, one heavy enough to suppress the eerie silence of the foglands, and replace it with simple stillness. Then, there was a hint of a disturbance. Just a tiny bit of movement, near Uunrahzil, which began to cascade. The air shifted, a weight bearing down heavily enough for Mercury to get slammed onto the floor, his legs unable to keep him up. It pressed against his ribcage for a moment, before it instead settled on the area around him, and within moments, he could witness the fog getting crushed. Within moments, the mist had been crushed, to the floor and below it, clattering down further and further around them to reveal the desolate marsh. The sky was suddenly visible, a strange tapestry of colours, seemingly stitched together, seams ranging from purple to blue, then transitioning to bloodred and soft pink. Dozens of eerie lights attempted to settle on the strange pair, but when the stalkers turned to face them, the pressure blew them away. It didn''t crush them, or halt them, but simply swiped them off their feet and sent them off, until there was nothing left but peace and quiet for hundreds of meters. Up in the patchwork sky, Mercury could still see the red diamond, as well as a set of chains tied to it, disappearing in the fog on the horizon. He couldn''t make out much more from where he was, except for the fact that it shuddered, and then the mist began to settle back in. At least, it tried to, before a second wave of air spread out from dreamweaver, banishing it ever further. The mud was torn from the ground, revealing packed dirt underneath, one that may have bloomed with flowers some time ago, strewn with small pebbles occasionally. Perhaps, a long time ago, when this dream wasn''t dying, it''d had a different purpose, perhaps it used to be quite pretty, but it was no longer so. In the dying dream, there was a sky full of holes, with only a single star still clinging to the floor below it. A star, Mercury would have to snuff out. Perhaps, he thought, he would make that star fall. Then, old Uunrahzil buckled, and the pressure disappeared. Small motes of fog began creeping back into the area, and on the fringe of the mist, Mercury could see beams of ghostly yellow light trailing around. ''Goodbye for now, young Mercury. We hope to see you survive. Always strive to do good, but never strive for something you are not. Be thyself, and we will meet again'' ''We will, old Uunrahzil,'' Mercury nodded. ''I promise.'' The teacher cracked a small smile. ''Until then, our tri''ht. Learn well, and thrive.'' ''Until then, teacher.'' With that, Dreamweaver faded and disappeared. Mercury was on his own again, with walls of fog threatening to close in on him, yet his target was clearer than ever. Whatever was anchoring the red diamond to this place, he''d break it. If that didn''t work, he''d just have to bring the star itself down. And then, like many times before, Mercury started running in the dream, but for the first time he wasn''t making his way through a marsh, but through a quiet, open field instead. - - - - - - Stormbraver was rebuilding itself. After the attack, a messenger from Evlenor came to the city for negotiations. Apparently, the attack on the city had gone against king Fulthur''s wishes. The man proved his intentions when he was still set on ending the war, even after his own son had died. A lot of people had lost their loved ones, and while he was the ruler of a kingdom, that didn''t mean he could let that loss cloud his thoughts. That was the burden of a king, to him, and he had to carry it. Thus, an envoy was sent, in hopes for some good faith. They probably wouldn''t exactly live in great harmony for a while, but if he could secure himself permission to at least negotiate the city, Fulthur would be pleased with just that. The council considered for a while, but eventually decided to accept. Sure, they had just fought a long fight and taken down most of the northerner''s heroes, but there were still some left, and sending any more troops would mean less people to help rebuild. What they needed now was construction workers and farmers, rather than warriors. Especially with bishop Nemo in the city. While they had grown used to the presence of high priestess Lucia, having another member of the church in the city was certainly a drain on the resources. Nemo demanded being treated with quite a bit of respect, which meant that he pushed the city council into providing room and board for him. If he wanted, the church could very well pay for all of it, but "according to tradition", this was how things had always been done. Generally, the bishop had been a two-sided sword. He was a competent healer, but the help he gave to those unaffiliated with the church often seemed sloppy, even shoddy. He also demanded far more respect than even Lucia had, in recent times. Still, his presence was at least tolerated as long as he still contributed to the city''s health. Much of the reconstruction was spearheaded by the Merchants'' Guild as well. Foss offered a special credit program, where people could take out loans without annual percentile growth. Instead, they simply had to pay back a fixed amount more than they borrowed. Essentially, he wanted to get more money in circulation, to replace the things that were lost, to then get some profit from it later. When it came to the Mages'' Guild, they had been split up. Anyone with sufficient earth-shaping Skills was on reconstruction duty, building temporary shelters and helping make permanent houses. Most other mages were brewing potions to help with tending to the wounded, while some of them also worked with the rescue teams to move away rubble and help people out from underneath buildings. That is also where most of the manpower of the Godseekers'' Guild went. The brute strength of many of the seekers, and their adaptability to survive on their own, made them a very small drain on resources, while doing a surprising amount of good in the city. Up until then, they were mostly thought of like mercenaries, but their reputation was slowly improving. Things were not nearly as bright for the noble faction in Stormbraver. Due to them being situated up on the hill, most of them were spared from destruction, and quite few of them had contributed their private militaries to the defense of the city, choosing to prepare emergency escapes instead. After demonstrating that the nobles valued their own lives more than anything else, the public displeasure grew loud. Many of the commoners wanted to see a change in such behaviour sooner rather than later, and eventually, the council decreed that sanctions would be imposed on all nobles who had abandoned their duties of protection. Their mercenaries were forcefully reallocated to public personnel, tilling fields, or helping in the rescue operations, and quite a bit of wealth was reclaimed and distributed among the people. Kaga''s group of mercenaries had disbanded, largely. Many of them switched over to the seekers, enjoying the freedom to choose temporary employers much more than the rigid structure of the mercenary guild, and those who didn''t were hired by nobles, the council, or simply left Stormbraver. Kaga herself was more than happy about her newfound occupation, hopping back and forth between jobs, between dispatching whatever monster came close to the city or breaking apart rubble. The second job was much more prevalent than the first one though. Usually, monsters hardly even got close enough to the broken walls for anything to happen, since Avery was somewhere out there. His behaviour had become slightly strange. He refused to go back into the city, instead resting outside, choosing to hunt anything and everything dangerous he could find. The way he killed the monsters also seemed more violent than really necessary, their corpses usually coming back into the city mangled. Occasionally, Marcel or some other seekers headed out to talk to the guildmaster, though they usually returned after a few hours without much progress. Guard captain Rondo had also gone to see him, which had gone about equally poorly. Still, he was helping the city, and with how busy things were, there wasn''t exactly a whole lot of time to go look after him. Lucia spent most of her time in the healer''s tents, putting her new Skill to good use. Its greatest limitation was that it only healed a person proportionally to how much she liked them, so some people were almost impossible for her to heal. They''d found a small workaround though, where she would look and think of Iris while activating the Skill on someone else entirely which made it much easier to heal people she didn''t know or hardly cared about. Because of that limitation though, her patients simply started to change slowly, with more and more kids being sent her way. Somehow, she seemed to have a positive disposition towards them, not having nearly as many outbursts. Still, Iris was always by her side, refusing to abandon her lady once more. The two had only grown closer since the attack, and had already officially announced they were a couple the day after. Most people celebrated for them, though there were a few opposing voices from lord Nemo''s faction, mainly ones who believed priests and priestesses should be celibate, and never have a relationship at all. The bishop himself however silenced them, showing public support to the couple. Which only served to make Lucia more suspicious. The bishop had never liked her, and even now, his words often sounded like they were laced with poison, hidden criticism and disapproval inside. If he supported something she did, then that probably meant he was doing it as a publicity stunt if she had to guess, especially since his followers were usually the more zealous kind who opposed change with all they had. Whatever the case, she would just have to see. As would the entire city. Stormbraver was moving forward as time ticked on, hoping to eventually go back to how things were. Chapter 134: Talking it out Chapter 134: Talking it out For some time, Mercury''s journey was uneventful. Twice, storms of ash whipped across the landscape, forcing its denizens to seek shelter or be swept away, and twice, Mercury defended the little cracks and crevices he hid in. He also started to communicate with his watery companion far better. The two had grown closer in general, looking out for each other, and making sure they stayed alive. Somehow, the water seemed to have a much better sense for what was alive than Mercury, meaning they could largely avoid any of the moving hills and other sleeping giants that roamed the place, while Mercury did better in upfront fighting. They made a good duo, and got along quite fine. Sometimes, Mercury even felt as though he could almost tell what they were thinking in that liquid mind of theirs, though maybe that was just because they were very expressive on the outside, waving their tail about or gesturing with their paws. It was still a strange feeling that they chose a replica of his shape, though. At any rate, they were still making progress. Every day, they drew closer to the mansion at the center of the dip, and every night, Mercury got closer to the heart of the nightmare, avoiding the stalkers and running from them when necessary. By now, he was encountering them annoyingly often. More of them were roaming the bog as he got closer to the crystal, and occasionally, he would run into a second one while fleeing the first, forcing him to take half a stand, and deal some damage to them, before running once more. Occasionally, just once or twice, he also saw silhouettes of other things in the fog, though they usually disappeared very rapidly, or, sometimes, were being chased by stalkers, and that wasn''t really something he needed to check out. Now, however, he was much closer to both landmarks, and it seemed as though he would be reaching the ash-covered mansion first. He could see it growing closer day by day, and if he squinted really hard, he thought he could even make out some movement in front of the mansion. Most importantly, though, he saw something else. It wasn''t nearly as impressive as the massive building in the middle of the funnel, but it was a landmark nonetheless. It almost stuck out more than the mansion, now that he finally saw it, given that it seemed to be carved from a lighter material, and not nearly as well put together. The thing seemed to be something of a temporary dwelling, parts of it often covered in the ash that continued to rain from the sky. It was covered by the hides of the beasts that roamed this place, with spikes torn from their backs placed as defenses. From a distance, all the gray blended together, giving it reasonable camouflage, especially against monsters with poor vision, but Mercury could see it, and he knew, it was something that required more than basic instincts to build. It looked almost like a tent, though given its size, it seemed at least more than one person lived there. Going there was slightly off course from the mansion, but Mercury decided that it was more than worth it. His current companion had already more than proven that meeting someone else who was also intelligent was a huge boon in this place. Because of that, he''d been taking a detour towards the ramshackle housing, and by now, he was close enough to count the spikes out front of it. He''d even had to avoid a handful of simple traps, crafted from sinew, claw and bone. Going there was a bit of a weird feeling, since whoever lived inside seemed to rarely come out, he''d seen no movement in the recent days after all, but he also didn''t know how to approach it. What the hell was he even going to say? Something like ''Hey, my name''s Mercury, and I''m totally not trying to kill you like literally everything else in this place''? That would go over well, he was sure. Well, by now he better come up with something fast, because if he moved any closer to the entrance, there was absolutely no shot he was avoiding all the dozens of traps. "Hello?" he eventually asked, trying to be loud enough to hear, but quiet enough to avoid attracting dozens other monsters. "Anyone there?" For a while, there was no response, the hut staying silent and motionless. The first noise Mercury noticed, was when quietly rang a warning in his mind. Immediately, Mercury dropped himself to the floor, shuffling aside as fast as he could without triggering a trap, seeing a spear hiss through the space he''d just been in, sinking into the ground just a few meters ahead. It was crude, shaped from a long bone, with a long fang attached as the tip. The noise it made was unreasonably quiet, almost imperceptible, but Mercury hardly had the time to mind that, as he picked it up with , and looked out for anything else flying his way. For a few seconds, nothing happened, then another spear suddenly appeared in front of him, being smashed aside by his rijn. "I come in peace!" Mercury yelled, blurting out the first thing that came to mind. He probably sounded like an idiot, but given the following lack of spears, it seemed to at least get the message across. After a few seconds, Mercury saw something blur at the edge of his vision, then a person seemed to almost slide out of the ash. Well, more a vaguely person-shaped outline, he couldn''t pinpoint any features no matter how much he tried. It wasn''t even that they dug themselves out. They''d clearly been there the entire time, but he was unable to see them at all, blending into the ash perfectly. Probably some kind of stealth Skill, he figured. His watery friend was currently hiding a little distance away, so the two of them would be able to talk more easily. If he actually met someone sane, Mercury didn''t exactly want to make a threatening first impression, and bringing along a copy of him was certainly a way to seem more dangerous. So, he opted for the diplomatic approach, putting some faith in his own capacity to run away if needed. For some time, the person just stared at him from a distance, seemingly waiting for him to move or attack, but nothing happened. He saw them murmur something to themselves, but couldn''t exactly tell what it was, even with . After a few more seconds, they finally started approaching and dropping a second layer of stealth, letting him actually see some details. It was immediately obvious he wasn''t facing a human. Most of their skin was covered with thin, glossy scales, only leaving their face free of them. Both the scales and the skin were covered with a film of water or oil, lightly refracting the light. It didn''t seem to bend quite the right way to Mercury though, as it looked more like it blurred the actual edges of the figure rather than making them gleam more. They had no hair, the back of their head instead ending in a longer, almost whip like appendage with a small, gelatinous orb at the end. Their eyes were round, and spaced far apart, their pupils a crescent shape. The skin on their face was pale, and seemed to slightly shift in colour occasionally alongside their scales, which combined with the blur to give them a sense of flowing. In the middle of their face a somewhat flat nose rested, featuring a second set of nostrils halfway up the bridge. Their lips were thin and of the same colour as their skin, making it almost look as though they lacked a mouth entirely from afar. "A mopaaw which speaks," they said, still slowly approaching. Their voice was like a flowing creek, soft, yet with a hiss to it. "I am," Mercury answered. "I was dragged here by a twisted servant some time ago, I used to live in Stormbraver. I mean you no harm." He was hoping that was enough to convince them he wasn''t a mindless beast, and it seemed to do, given the shift in their posture, and the loosening grip on the spear he''d only really noticed now. "Stormbraver you say. The name does indeed tell me something. A city, if I remember, though I could not tell you where," they spoke more freely for a moment, then their eyes narrowed. "Yet, that means nothing. Perhaps, you are simply being puppeted by a parasite. I have never seen a mopaaw speak before, either." This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Now, the tip of their spear was pointed at Mercury again. "What can I do to prove myself, then?" he asked, careful to keep some distance to the speartip. "..." the creature did not reply for a little while, seemingly thinking on the query. How could he do so indeed. If he was a parasite smart enough to talk, that would mean he probably had access to the host''s memories, and at that point, how could he prove anything? Then, an idea seemed to flash through their mind. "Go to your Skill shop," the creature said, and Mercury did just so. "How much to buy the Skill?" "I have that one already." " ?" "5.000 points." " ?" "Only 3.000, maybe because I have an affinity for weaving." "?" "Can''t find that one. It does offer me , for 4.300 points, which doesn''t seem like something I''d consider, honestly." The creature nodded. "Good. Seems like you aren''t a parasite, at least." "Yeah, I''m not. Good way of testing for it though, seeing if all the Skills fit within range," Mercury answered. Once again, the creature nodded, still keeping the mopaaw at a distance. "How come you haven''t died yet?" they asked. "Tenacity, Skills, and a good bit of luck sprinkled in. I found a source of water relatively early on, before drinking only blood could kill me, and the monsters were edible enough. You?" "I can produce water myself, it comes with an adaption Skill I acquired by spending long times out of the water. I can now use stamina or mana to produce it, and with some levels, I can make drinking water as well as one mixed with minerals and nutrients to cover my skin," they explained. "Well, I''m happy to meet someone else not trying to kill me. My name''s Mercury, you?" There was a fraction of a second of hesitation before they answered, their pupils widening ever so slightly as though they recognized the name. But it was gone just as quick as it appeared. "Jirluc," they replied instead, finally withdrawing their spear, and actually taking their eyes off Mercury to give the environment a quick glance. "Sorry if this is rude, but I''ve never seen someone who looked like you. What species are you?" "The question is fine. I am of the sipisc, some of the surface dweller call us fish people, though some of us also come from molluscs or other underwater creatures. It is an umbrella for all fully sapient aquatic life, mostly used by surface dwellers," they explained, then paused for a moment. "People tend to generalize, I suppose." "Indeed," Jirluc answered with a curt nod, "but the time for little topics has come to an end. You sought out a hut because you can think. It was a good choice, there is strength in numbers. I do not live here alone, there are two others. I am a hunter, one is a scout, the other a builder. What is your value?" Mercury blinked at Jirluc for a moment, as the conversation moved ahead at blazing speeds. "I''m a survivor, mostly. I can fight reasonably well, set up some traps, make some weapons, and get away from most fights that don''t need fighting." Again, the sipisc nodded briefly, sweeping the landscape around them once more. "That is fine. Do you bring someone else? Your eyes wander." For a second or two, Mercury considered hiding his companion''s existence, but then swiftly decided against it. He wanted to gain the trust of these people, and while there were things he was most definitely not going to mention, it didn''t seem quite smart to start things off with a lie. "I mentioned water before. I am provided it by a companion, they are currently a small distance away, I can get them here if you wish," Mercury said, and received a nod in exchange. After making his way through the traps, he quickly went into a crack in the rock, picking up his liquid friend, and then walked back to the edge of the trapped zone. Jirluc was standing in the middle of them now. "What does your friend contribute?" they asked. "Defense. They can tell which of the hills are hills, and which are creatures. They also bring some fighting ability, and can make themselves nearly invisible. Additionally, they can produce water, and having a second source in the case of your death would be beneficial." Again, Jirluc nodded. "That is good. Come in, then." With a wave of their hand, some of the traps disappeared, probably into their inventory, letting Mercury and his buddy walk through the defenses and into the hut. The dwelling wasn''t exactly a luxurious one. It was bigger than it looked, since someone had dug into the floor, making a few extra rooms underground, but it lacked any semblance of furniture. The most it had was a couple of rough pelts lining the floor, in order to make sitting and lying down mildly more comfortable. "Our scout is currently out, gathering information on the mansion. More servants roaming recently. Perhaps time for another eclipse on the outside, perhaps something going on in here. Don''t know," Jirluc explained, sitting down on the pelts. He''d gone to one of the underground rooms, and came back with some bits of meat for him to chew on. "What about your builder?" Mercury asked. "In the workshop," Jirluc shrugged. "Attracts monsters if it''s too loud, so the room is underground, and further away." Mercury nodded, then silence settled down for a little while. Jirluc didn''t exactly seem like someone who spoke very much, but at least the water seemed quite happy to be here. By the looks of it, the creature was enjoying the new scenery, given that they were exploring and wagging their tail. "How did you get here, Jirluc?" Mercury eventually asked. "Anything you did before?" "I was out, hunting for my day''s meal, when a rift opened right in front of me. Couldn''t dodge, went through when it was half formed. Coincidentally, the servants came through at the same time as me, so there were none on the other side. Then just survived from then on," he ended his story with a shrug. "Was quite some time ago." "You also get dragged into the bog when you sleep?" Mercury asked, trying to keep the conversation alive. "The nightmare? Yes. Died to the stalkers once, could barely move for a day, luckily none found me the next and I survived. Recovered. Never tried to confront them again. My body feels too sluggish there," he said, a hint of a shiver running down his spine. "I get that. Feels like the fog is trying to pin you down," Mercury agreed and received a nod in exchange, before silence descended again, a little more companionable this time. There wasn''t exactly a whole lot to do while waiting for the others to come back. Jirluc didn''t seem to want to bother the builder while they were busy, and even then, they still had to wait for the scout to return. So, Mercury decided to focus on his breathing instead, listening to the world around him. His breaths were deep and rhythmic, in and out, slowly but surely. He listened to that of Jirluc as well, though it seemed less like breathing and more a continuous flow of air going in and out at the same time, a cycle that never really stopped. It was quite different from his breathing, more akin to circling his mana rather than using his lungs, but it was a valid method nonetheless. Then though, he focused more. This place felt relatively safe, so he decided to fully dive into ihn''ar like he hadn''t in a little while. The world seemed to slowly grow more distant, and more intense, like he was seeing more of it with more clarity. It was almost random, but he peered past the veil again, focusing on Jirluc first. Mercury watched the droplets of water generating on his skin, then being absorbed into it against to preserve the moisture. He noticed that the water was never quite the same, always shifting in composition, slightly shifting in viscosity. It seemed strangely familiar as he gazed at it, evershifting, always moving, trying to accomodate and change its shape. His gaze swept over to his liquid companion as well as he focused, who was still exploring the place, tapping the furs and looking into side tunnels. Mercury could see the crystal inside them, see how it radiated energy and moved their body. When he looked closely, he could see that their shape was not a consistent one either. Some parts of its body were squished, then lifted up, droplets of water flowed down, inside the body, before being wrapped up in a current, pushed and pulled, sometimes into the core, sometimes out and back towards its surface. It was strange, seeing how it kept its shape despite it taking effort. It would have been so much easier for the water to simply fall down into a puddle to not move at all, to just adapt like the one on Jirluc''s skin, yet it didn''t. Every moment, his friend fought to keep their shape, as they were pushed and pulled by gravity. It was much more of a fight than Mercury would have imagined, as someone who could rely on bones and muscles that wanted to cling together. And strangely, he could tell that the water knew it was inefficient, yet decided to do so anyway. They would not budge on their shape, not go by the whims of gravity or someone else, their shape was their own to decide. Mercury respected that, almost admired it even. He had seen too many people lose themselves in pleasing others, so seeing someone fight to stay who they wanted to be without so much as a moment of doubt was strangely... motivating. It seemed not all water was the same after all, some wanted to conform to an efficient shape, some fought to stay unique. Still, it was held together by surface tension, and when all the water in a blob agreed on something, he was sure it was powerful, like a roiling wave on a stormy ocean. If the water stuck together and fought, it could achieve some truly insane effects. Which only made him smile more at his friend, who so single mindedly seemed to know they wanted to be like him. He understood, somehow, what the water wanted. Not just his friend, but water in general. How it felt it needed to conform, how it fought to stay together, how it wanted to give a habitat for life, which was far more diverse than anything else. And then it clicked. He knew exactly what his friend wanted to say. "What is this?" the glob of sentient water asked, pointing at a small bowl carved from stone. "A bowl," Mercury replied calmly, still in ihn''ar, and watched his friend freeze for a moment. "A bowl," they slowly repeated, nodding sagely. "Incredible." Then, their head turned towards him. "Wait. You understand me now!" "Shit, I do!!" Mercury suddenly realized, and jumped up, watched by the eyes of a very confused Jirluc, who had no idea what he was saying at all. [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] Chapter 135: All that Glitters Chapter 135: All that Glitters Jirluc was looking at the mopaaw in front of him confusedly. How had it - he, Jirluc corrected, survived for so long in the wasteland? Finding a way of getting water was enough to kill most people who survived getting through the rifts. Some got lucky and found him, others had their own abilities, but befriending a creature made solely from water was beyond strange. Additionally, Mercury, as he called himself, did not even appear very strong. Certainly not high enough to have any right to survive either the creatures that roam the plains, nor making it through more than one night in the bog. If he was still alive, then there had to be more to the creature than what meets the eyes. With some pause, Jirluc watched him closer. Their conversation had ebbed some time ago and told him little about the mopaaw, so he defaulted to simply observing instead. Could he kill it? Physically, he was sure he was superior. He could see that Mercury''s stamina washed through his body in waves, synced up with his breath, which meant that the mopaaw understood at least a good bit about manipulating it, but on first glance he was quite sure that his own vessel held much more of the substance. He didn''t quite understand mana as closely though, so perhaps that was the key to the creature''s survival? Jirluc focused for a moment, trying to see if there were disturbances in the mana around, and found none. Either the mopaaw was not currently practicing, which would be rare for a mage in a moment of silence, or it was too good for him to detect. Either one seemed equally likely, but he didn''t want to force himself to see one perspective. Perhaps, it was not magic either that kept him alive, Jirluc thought. Was there something else? Maybe a strong will, or specific Skillset? There was most likely a way in that, as well. Stacking survival bonuses on top of each other, and most likely a strong will to last through the bog. Again, Jirluc shifted slightly. Thinking of that place still made him uncomfortable. After the time he had spent here, the ashen plains were almost routine, where he had shelter and traps. It had not quite lost its edge, and he was forced to move more than once, but it was not quite the raw terror that the nights brought with them. Whatever crawled through the ash to get at him, he could prepare, set traps, have weapons at the ready. Nothing like that when he slept. It was just him, no line of sight, nowhere to hide, nothing to build with, in a field full of hostility. All that laid there was dread, and fear. He simply had to continue running every night, and no matter how much he abhorred it, staying alive was much more important. Jirluc was ripped from his thoughts when the mopaaw spoke again. He had noticed that the feline''s eyes seemed to gaze far into the distance before, but now they focused again, and something had subtly shifted. The sipisc could not quite place a cup under it, but he was sure that something about Mercury had changed. Focusing, he tried to decipher what this new survivor said, and... he failed. Blinking a few times, he tried again, but the words, which he had heard, seemed to slip through his head, and he was unable to hold onto even the memory of what they sounded like. It was as though he tried to grab hold of a lake and hoist it upwards. The water would simply slip through his fingers. Just when his confusion grew, he saw the mopaaw''s companion react. It looked back, tilted its head, and then it suddenly sprang into the air with what he guessed must be excitement. Mercury spoke again, and once more, Jirluc felt as though there were words, yet he could not hold onto them. The sound vanished from his memory as soon as he heard it, leaving an irritating gap. His eyes narrowed. There was more to the mopaaw than he had thought, indeed. "What language is this?" he asked tentatively, attempting to find a gap in which he did not disrupt the conversation too much. When both heads snapped to him, it seemed he''d failed. "Hm? What?" the mopaaw simply looked at him with confusion, but replied in common, at least. "I asked what language you were speaking to your..." he gestured at the blob of water, "companion." He received a few confused blinks in reply to that, and he could tell that the mopaaw was thinking on what his question meant. "So, you''re saying you can''t understand anything when I talk to them?" "Nothing," Jirluc answered, shaking his head. "Weird shit," Mercury replied. "To me, I''m talking as normal. Well, not really normal, I guess. It''s like... I have to get into a certain headspace to understand them, if that makes sense? Maybe that''s what''s wrecking the translation?" "Could very well be. You are able to speak with it, then?" Jirluc asked, again nodding at the fluid creature, which had behaved surprisingly quietly. It seemed to be waiting for the two of them to finish, at least. "I just figured out how to speak to them, yes," Mercury said, putting emphasis on "them". It was fair enough. If the creature could talk, they deserved more than a designation for an object. Wait, had he said "just"? Jirluc suddenly thought that perhaps that shift of presence had been explained. "You simply... figured it out?" he asked again, unsure. "Yeah, I mean, kind of?" Mercury seemed to tip-toe around the topic. "It''s a little more complicated than that, obviously, but to keep it as simple as I can, I learned a special type of meditation technique that allows me to get insights into things and concept. If I gain enough insight, I can kind of communicate with them. Just had a breakthrough in terms of those insights, and here we are." Jirluc gave a tentative, slow nod at that. It was not in good grace to pry any further if he did not reveal things himself, and so he leaned back instead. "Very well," he spoke, "continue then." "I will, thanks." And then, only unintelligible sounds followed. - - - - - - Ruvah. That was the name of Mercury''s watery friend. They had no surname, and no middle name, so when he introduced himself in their language, they had laughed at him for a bit. Such a silly thing, to need so many things to call yourself all at once, when you could just change it anytime anyway. Apparently, in their culture, things often changed quickly. Stagnation begets disease, and disease begets death. No, there needed to be movement, always. In their homeland that movement happened on almost all layers of society; if one could even call it that. People loved to dance, run, swim, whatever they could do to not be the same. Many changed their shape on the daily, some flipped their pronouns and even full names around as often as that. Ruvah had apparently once been called Opyel, as well as Anem and Relo. But right now, they were Ruvah. Perhaps they would not be tomorrow, perhaps they would always be that to him. That was something else that surprised Mercury. Apparently, they usually had names bonded to people. If you introduced yourself with a name, that person could always call you that, even if you changed it, and that was fine. Because you have been locked into their life. Only if you didn''t speak for a long time, or had much to catch up on was it common to tell them of new names. Did that make it awkward when friends you met at different parts of your life met? Apparently not. Names were treated more like nicknames anyways. But not only their names were in constant flux, so were their people. Usually, they roamed the lands in nomadic, everchanging tribes. They met others, and people would flock where they desired, then stick together for a while, until they mixed and split up again. Droplets, as they called their tribal structures, also had leaders, to a degree. They changed, sometimes rotating as frequently as days, or even every few hours. Many poor decisions were made that way, but regardless, even a bad decision was better than none at all, and without the pressure of continually leading, while everyone did their best at the helm, there was much less blame tossed around for mistakes. Everyone occasionally made ones, some more and some less, but as long as a decision was made, that was good. A bad decision was better than none at all, since stagnation begets death. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Apparently, stagnation begets a whole lot of things. Disease, infection, leakage, degradation, and by extension, usually death. It was the fate Mercury had saved them from. Well, her, at this point. She''d decided that "they" wasn''t quite fitting anymore, and Mercury was happy to acquiesce. She''d been stuck, infected by the plague of the worms, and it had left her unable to properly shape her body and move. It seemed to be a rather horrifying experience, and she didn''t elaborate in much detail, but apparently, they caused disturbances in the water her body was made from, which made it much harder to move. Honestly, Mercury understood her hesitation. If he''d been the host of a colony of worms, he sure as hell wouldn''t have wanted to talk about it. Because of that, her kind usually employed relatively thick membranes to keep their body sheltered from the outside. It wasn''t really so much the danger of bleeding out, but getting things inside the liquid their forms were shaped from seemed to be unhealthy for them. It seemed that stagnation is also begotten by disease, which would often devolve into a vicious cycle. Luckily, it hadn''t come to that. Out of respect for his help, she''d decided to mimic Mercury. Taking the form of someone else was a sign of admiration where she was from, openly demonstrating you wanted to be more like someone, though she was already feeling the light desire of changing once more. Perhaps she''d find something appealing, or simply come up with a design of her own, the future would bring what it brought anyways. Mercury was happy to listen to her throughout the conversation. It seemed that Ruvah had missed being able to talk to someone, since the words flowed from her mouth in a never-ending stream. He only occasionally interrupted with a question, or an anecdote, but mostly left all the talking to her, nodding along as she went. Eventually though, his curiosity won him over. "I''m really glad I was able to find you, honestly, I probably wouldn''t have made it without you, but I do have a question for you if that''s fine?" "Shoot!" she replied, with a little laugh at the end. The expression had grown on her very quickly. "Well, I wanted to ask how you ended up in here?" he asked. A few seconds of silence followed. "You really don''t have to say if you don''t want to, though," Mercury added. "It''s fine," Ruvah assured him, though she didn''t seem to believe it herself. "It''s not a very fun story, though," she admitted, but when he nodded for her to continue, she gave a small sigh. "Well, the day itself was nothing special. There was a celebration, I don''t really remember what for, but we danced to it. Joined and split up again, jumped through the air, strut over the sand. The sun was beautiful and all of us were lost in the moment. Around us, everything was glistening in gold, the reflection from all the drops of water in the air, the way they refracted the light into tiny rainbows all around us..." she shook her head with a light smile. "It wasn''t meant to last." "First, it was just a single cloud breaking up the sunlight, then many followed. Perhaps it would rain, we thought. That would be fine too, we would welcome our new parts, maybe even new family. Instead, we were greeted by more clouds. Then the reflections on the sand turned red, and instead of family, it rained disease." She paused, and did what was perhaps the equivalent of swallowing heavily. "So many of us, of my droplet, were soaked immediately. We had thought to welcome something, yet when the dark clouds parted and revealed a red sun, it was too late. The sky was no longer beautiful, the sand we stood on now red and drenched with filth. Around me, people stopped their dance, paused, watched, and then were stained. And I ran away." "My family was dying, and I ran. Hid, behind a thick membrane above me, as liquid death fell onto the ground all around. By the time I''d reached the edge of the shore, there were cracks, gaps in the air, and monstrous howls was all that sounded through the falling rain. Before I''d known, I was in the water, dove down deep to hide from the stain on this world, from the creatures, the noise drowned out. I left all of them to die in silence." "Down there, I hid, thought myself safe in the enveloping darkness. I didn''t even hear the crack as something opened in front of me. The water simply began streaming somewhere, and with me being shaken, I could hardly even react before I was dragged through, and spat out onto a field of ash and blood and dirt." She shivered. "I was lonely, and lost, and sad, but nevertheless I carried on. I hoped to find another droplet, perhaps, someone else to travel alongside, and all I found was death. The creatures here tore each other apart. The brutality was unlike anything I''d ever seen. There was no beauty in any of it. It all wore me down, and eventually, in the bog, I was hunted down. For a day, I was unable to think clearly, unable to even move, and stagnated. The worms appeared, and I was left to simply wait and hope." Ruvah finished, taking a long breath. She shook her head. "Not a nice story at all." Slowly, Mercury shook his head as well. "No, definitely not." "Let me return the question, then, Mercury," she said, and he could see the edge of her mouth twitch at the name. "What brought you here." A rueful smile found its way on his face. "It''s not exactly a nice story either." All he received in turn was a huff. "I''m listening," Ruvah said, and Mercury began to tell her about himself. - - - - - - Zagan paced about in her room. Back and forth and back and forth, over and over again. She had been at it for much longer than what was reasonable, and did not show any signs of stopping. It was grating her down so much. None of her researchers or artists were permitted anywhere close to her anymore, because whenever things got even remotely interesting, the filter set in, sending her into even greater fits of anger. Her greatest passion had been taken away from her for a time, her assassins had failed, and her stake in the whole plan had suddenly vanished. She was sure Berthorn was giggling into that slimy little fist of his, and it all made her even more infuriated. "AAAHHHH!!" she roared, and slammed her fist into a wall. It was neither the first, nor the last time it would happen. "That little-" she could not speak the last word. Apparently, even swearing was considered an art. She had tried to think of a nice word to call him, and that had taken it too far. The thought vanished from her mind, sending her fury ever higher. Her life had so suddenly lost its luster. No music, no pictures, no new discoveries, nothing! Even swearing was taken away from her, no, it went beyond that. The damned contract was even interfering with her dreams. They had all become so mundane, or stopped existing at all. Anything that would have been perceived as artful vanished from them, and she was left with a bleak canvas rather than- That thought had been too artful as well! Metaphors went further than the contract allowed as well. It had her fuming. Zagan was beyond furious. She had endured a few days, weeks even, but any more than that would be plain ridiculous. It had gone from being mildly disconcerting and bothersome to exactly what she had imagined, being borderline torturous. Those cretins! The damned musicians that had done it to her would receive absolutely no harm in exchange! She would do nothing to get her undeserved revenge. If she could she would tear their- leave them alone. "FUUUUUUCK!!!" They had even taken the possibility of planning bloody vengeance from her. Well, at least on them. Did that protection extend to those that surrounded them? Also yes. Those that they cared for? That too. But there were always gaps. She could still take revenge on Berthorn, who had come up with the plan. Or perhaps Zylnareth? No, that thought was shoved away immediately. Certainly, one of his sparks was taken, but that did not mean she could simply go there and try to take something from him. No, that was a surefire way of getting herself killed. Even trying to get revenge on him would draw the eyes of high priestess Lucia and the monster, Otto. It would be suicide, plain and clear. But considering taking her vengeance on Berthorn? She sucked in air through her teeth, hissing. She could not imagine a path where that would go very well for her. She was superior to him in perhaps one regard, and that was most likely her fine taste, but it was not available right now. Growling, Zagan sped up her pacing. There had to be something she could do, something to vent this frustration, to get rid of the boiling fury in her body. She had not experienced anything like this since she had risen herself from lower demonhood, and she had considered herself beyond it for quite some time. Plenty good that had done her, she huffed. Then, her eyes narrowed. Perhaps she couldn''t take revenge on Berthorn directly, but she didn''t need to. While the dragon had many allies and sponsors, his task was now done. That meant, until he was allocated a new one, he was disposable, something which dragons pounced on with glee. Indeed, perhaps she did not have to do anything herself at all. Perhaps... "You''re indulging yourself again, Lady Zagan," she heard from the door. It was pushed open only a hint, by a small figure clad in a golden robe. Luckily, the door remained stone, since the doorknob itself was already crafted from the soft metal. "So what if I am," she asked the figure, looking him down. His hair was stark black, but with streaks of golden yellow woven into it. It always looked like that, since parts of it would come loose enough to be detected as a foreign entity he was touching, but still stay attached to his skull. The same went for his scraggly beard. The yellow made the man look younger than he really was, and the smoothness of his features belied his age as well. There were hardly and folds at all on his face, only marks of smiling around his eyes. His lips were a full red like wine, and his eyes a dark brown that seemed to glint with humor. "Oh nothing, nothing wrong with that at all," he said, half raising his arms in a mocking shrug as he strutted into the room. "I simply think you''re lying to yourself." "Lying?" Zagan hissed, not at all bemused. "Indeed," the once king said, jumping on a couch which only absorbed the shock for a moment, then turned to cold metal, "lying." He sat back up, looking into the multiple sets of eyes that rested on her face. "You see, I know you love stories. I do, too! Back in Greece, we had the greatest playwrights of the whole world, I tell you!" There was a pause in the speech as he dumped half a goblet of wine down his gullet, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "But we both know that you would be a..." he left the word hanging in the air for a few seconds, giving Zagan a chance to fill it in herself. "You tread a thin line, Midas," the demoness hissed, but the human continued unperturbed. "Ah, so close dear friend. But the word I was looking for is ''side Character''," he said with a grin. "You absolute fucking-" her rant was interrupted by the filter, her own mouth too artful for her good, leaving the once king loudly laughing in her face. He laughed hard enough to even wipe away a single tear of his. "Ah, no, but seriously, I came here to give you some good advice. You hate it here, right? Missing all the thrill that art brought you? Then go out there and find it yourself, I doubt the contract can hide the natural world from you. Go see a waterfall or something, you grumpy old hag," he spoke. Zagan first wanted to yell, but then noticed his words had dumped a glass of water, no, more likely a goblet of wine onto her emotions. "I hate it when you''re right." "And yet you''ll thank me later," he said, taking another lavish sip of wine, straight from the bottle this time. Chapter 136: Reunion Chapter 136: Reunion Ruvah listened to Mercury quite closely. Mercury decided to leave out most of the parts before he was transported to this world, but his newfound friend didn''t seem to mind very much. Instead, Ruvah seemed quite interested when he, his pronouns had changed again, heard that people could escape from a blood eclipse. It gave him some hope that perhaps, a few people form his droplet were still alive. It was a fairly vain hope, with very little success of being truthful, but it was some motivation at least. Mercury certainly wasn''t in a position to judge him, given that he''d just been thinking he''d revive the people he''d lost, which usually would be an even more impossible thing. Still, for a while, Ruvah remained quiet, taking in the revelation that some of his family may live, when someone else entered the tent. Jirluc looked up at the noise, nodding as he recognized who entered. "You''re back," he simply stated, raising himself from the floor. "I believe introductions may be in order." Perhaps, for Ruvah they were. But Mercury knew who he saw instantly. It was a wolf with light gray fur, though the colour lightened to white around its legs, spine, and eyes. There was some dried blood stuck on it, but its wounds seemed to have scabbed over already. Piercing yellow eyes shot a glance through the tent, trailing from Jirluc over to Ruvah and Mercury, before they widened and Juno gasped. "Mercury," she whispered, almost unable to believe her eyes, taking another step forward. The mopaaw had halfway frozen up, shaken out of his stupor as she approached. "You- Juno, you''re... you''re okay, I-" he couldn''t even properly get another sentence out, before his larger companion threw herself at him in happiness. "You''re alive," she said, pushing her head up against his flank. "You''re alive!" "You too!" Mercury grinned, feeling a knot in his stomach. It was a strange mix of happiness and dread, knowing that Juno was alive meant that Gladiator and Second were probably dead, but he pushed it aside for now, simply revelling in the fact that he found one of them again. It was such a strange feeling, back on Earth he''d hardly have gotten attached to someone so quick, but when you''re stranded on another world, fighting for your life and spending every day with people, maybe bonds were forged a little faster. Jirluc seemed a little taken aback by Juno''s reaction, simply staring at the two for a moment before speaking again. "You know each other, then?" he asked. "Ah, yes," Mercury quickly nodded. "I met Juno when I was doing a quest in a forest, it was to defeat the leaders of it. One of those was a pack of wolves, which she was part of, and since they agreed to be my subordinates, that apparently meant I''d defeated them." "Indeed. My liege was the one who gave me the opportunity to properly interact with the system. I owe him much for that," Juno added, making Mercury shift awkwardly. He''d kind of forgotten that the wolves called him something so weirdly grand. "Please just call me Mercury, Juno. I was, uh, a little full of myself back when I made you call me a king." "As you wish," the wolf quickly agreed, then gazed over at Ruvah again. "Who is this if I may ask?" "Oh, that''s Ruvah. He''s someone I met in here, out in the ashen plains. I wouldn''t have made it this far without him," the mopaaw explained. "Ruvah, this is Juno, a companion of mine who got lost in here quite some time ago." "Nice to meet you, Juno," Ruvah said, waving his tail. "I''m sorry, was he speaking to me?" Juno asked, unsure what to make of the senseless gurgles she heard. "Right, yeah, you can''t understand him. Ruvah says it''s nice to meet you," he translated. "It is a pleasure to meet you too, Ruvah. Thank you for keeping my l- Mercury alive," the wolf said, nodding at the strange creature, and Mercury translated once again, before turning back to Juno. "I have to ask though, how did you survive, Juno?" For a moment, the wolf shook her head, then turned to face him. "I avoided fights wherever I could, conserving my energy, only occasionally hunting. One of the creatures I killed was some sort of spiked ball, filled with a strange gel. After hunting a few more of them, they dropped it into my inventory, and luckily, it was nutritious and rich in water, which allowed me to stave off dehydration for long enough to find Jirluc." "Other than that, there is not much to add," she said. "I stalked my way across the wasteland, trying to find anything of note, until eventually I saw this hut and approached. Ever since then, I have been working together with Jirluc as a scout." The Sipisc in question just nodded. "We survive," he shrugged, "but enough of that. Juno, what did you find out about the mansion?" "More scouts are leaving. I saw a few jump from the windows, even. Many of them seem to be trickling further out into the wasteland, but there''s plenty simply scavenging for any monsters stupid enough to get close to the building. Occasionally, some will make it back from far out, dragging cocoons behind them," she explained. "The cocoons are probably filled with what they hunt," Mercury added. "I was in one of them when a servant brought me through the rift. It thought I was dead, so I''d guess it''s how they store food." "Concerning," Jirluc mused. "If they are bringing prey to the mansion, what would they be feeding?" "Have you ever been inside?" Mercury asked. "No, none of us have," Jirluc said. "It''s suicide. That place is where the servants come from, it''s crawling with them. Maybe we could take out enough to make it there, but we''d be loud enough to attract the others. There''d be a hoard of them and only a few of us." Mercury frowned at that. "They''re blind though, right?" The sipisc snorted at that. "Yes, they are, but their sense of smell is incredible, especially when they catch a whiff of blood. But the ones closer to the mansion aren''t like the lost servants, they''re smarter, more sane. They won''t simply become a mad horde if you throw a corpse their way." Great, now the monsters could even think. Like there wasn''t enough to deal with. "Jirluc is right," Juno agreed. "The mansion is dangerous. We could distract the servants with bags or flasks of blood, and perhaps make it in there, but to what end? They would swarm us eventually. There is little sense in that." "Fine, what do you wish to do then?" Mercury asked, exasperated. Did they seriously have no ambition to escape anymore? "Survive," the sipisc grumbled. "I''m content making it day by day out here." "Fine then," Mercury acquiesced, "we simply survive for now. But if there''s an opportunity, we take it." Jirluc snorted again. "Depends entirely on the opportunity. I''m not dying a miserable death." This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience. Juno gave him a much softer look than the sipisc, though even hers was still doubtful. "I will follow you, Mercury, if it makes sense to do so. But I have faith that your promise of an opportunity will be worthwhile." With that, she gave him another nod, and went to lay down on one of the furs, finally getting some rest. It must have been a long day for her. Their words left Mercury feeling conflicted. He understood why they''d given up on attempting an escape. Looking at the mansion, he knew it himself. If he tried to go in there as he was now, he''d be slaughtered. There were simply too many of the servants. But at the same time, hearing them say they were willing to give him a shot showed they still had a spark of hope. For now, he''d just have to bide his time and make it through the days. Once he took down the nexus of the dream, he hoped there would be a chance. No, there had to be one. He''d create a chance for them all, no matter what. - - - - - - Avery was panting heavily, standing far away from the city walls. His chest rose and sunk under his mail, each heave sending shivers of pain throughout his body. He''d fought again, just now. A group of goblins which had migrated into the forest and just begun spreading. There were a few hobgoblins and shamans among them, but all of them fell before Avery as well. Unfortunately for him, they got a few hits in. A wooden club had shattered against his upper back, and his shoulder blade burnt in pain. One of the shamans had gotten clever and cast a snowstorm, giving him some frostbite, and one of the little fuckers had managed to slash at his leg, a trail of blood trickling form a shallow cut. Overall, it wouldn''t have been that bad, but the wounds were beginning to pile up on him. This was not his first skirmish since the last time he''d been inside the city, and he was sure it would not be his last. His whole body ached, his muscles sore and his skin bruised. The metal shoes felt so heavy against his feet, like he''d chained boulders to his soles. But he wouldn''t go soft on himself just yet. Caked in blood and dirt, he still felt like it wasn''t enough. He would make up for his failure, one way or another. His lungs worked like bellows, barely slowing down as the extra muscle he conjured up from the system disappeared. Shedding the weight barely helped with his exhaustion, and he was only becoming more aware of his aches as the adrenaline left his system. Nevertheless, he began to walk. If he didn''t eat, he would fall, simple as that. Avey refused to fall. Therefore, he would hunt something to eat. With slow, heavy steps, he began stalking through the forest, straining his blurry vision. He tried to listen for animals, but could only make out the rushing of his own blood. No, wait. There was a tiny sound, a bird flapping its wings once. In a shocking display of speed, Avery tossed a rock. An impact sounded out, and he moved towards the site with heavy steps, reaching down and plucking a dead cuckoo off the ground. It was a relatively large one, and while it probably wouldn''t do for a full meal, he could hunt again once he''d eaten a bit. Slowly, Avery trudged through the forest back to his campside. There were still embers left from his last fire, easy to reignite, which he was thankful for. He tossed a piece of kindling onto them, watching as it caught flame before carefully adding more wood. He mindlessly kept his hand close to the flame for too long, but barely even felt the sting of the heat. After surviving his last ordeal, he at least came away with a resistance to being burnt, which was something to be happy about. The levels also put him close to his next evolution. But all that was within due time. For now, he plucked the feathers off the bird as the fire began to crackle some more. The sky was cloudy. It looked like it would rain soon. He should go out and look for something to eat before that, he thought, then his head twitched. Footsteps. His head snapped towards the noise, and he was on his feet before he could even think, his mind on a razor''s edge. He listened more closely, realized the steps were human, and grew even more wary, sinking into a familiar posture. His knees bent, his left arm in front of his face, and the right extended slightly in front of his chest in a guard. A figure stepped out from the trees. Marcel, he recognized, blinking to clear his vision. Avery attempted to croak out a greeting, but his voice failed him, only a raspy groan leaving his lips. He spit some blood aside and held back a fit of laughter, simply staring at Marcel. "Happy to see you too, boss," the receptionist said with a frown. "You look like shit." For a moment, Avery''s chest shook at that, then he coughed, and sat back down to continue plucking the bird''s feathers. He was unsure how he felt about Marcel coming to visit him. He felt glad, but at the same time, he wished he left him alone. "I''m glad you''re still alive," the blonde man remarked. "It''d almost be impressive if you weren''t being so extreme about it." He received a snort as an answer, though Avery''s lips moved for a bit and he coughed up a little bit of blood again. The guildmaster hoped that after a few more tries he might get out a couple words, but he had time until his food was done. "I brought bread," Marcel offered, but Avery pushed his hand away. The receptionist could tell that his friend''s hands were shaking under the gloves. The push was even surprisingly gentle, but quite firm at the same time. "Still don''t think you deserve the luxury, then." It wasn''t a question, but Avery shook his head anyways, mouthing an answer that took shape halfway. He was getting there. "Fine, then, have it your way," Marcel sighed. He''d gotten upset in the beginning, but there was no more anger left in him now. There was no sense in it, his friend wasn''t budging on this, not even by a millimetre, and so he would simply work with what he had. "The city is growing again," he said. A small rueful smile found itself on Avery''s lips at that. "I''m glad," he croaked, his voice hoarse. It had taken him another three tries, but this was something he wanted to say. Eventually he would be back to the city, after all. Not just yet, but he would. "Lots of people miss you there, too. We have a couple new recruits I''m sure you''d like as well. They''ve been doing good work cleaning up the streets," Marcel recounted, leaning his back against a tree. "Bishop Nemo is being less of a fuckhead than you''d think, but I''m pretty sure it''s all politicking. My gut tells me his smile isn''t genuine. So does , but that''s beside the point." Avery huffed half a laugh at that. Yes, he was sure the bishop wasn''t being quite honest about everything. "Snake," he mused. That old man wouldn''t be happy until anyone who went against his precious Order was burnt at a stake if Avery trusted the reports from the other guildmasters. And he did. "Sounds about right," Marcel nodded, then gave a sigh. He pulled a charr from his inventory and lit it, taking a long breath and exhaling the smoke into the canopy above. He thought about the grieving families and how many bodies he''d seen over the last few weeks, but elected not to mention all that. "How have you been faring?" he asked instead. "Fine," the guildmaster replied. His body ached, and his vision remained slightly blurry, but that was fine, too. The system had long ago recognized what he was doing as a trial, and he wasn''t expecting to see himself as worthy again without going through some serious growth. "You know this isn''t healthy right?" Marcel asked, a hint of annoyance in his voice, which prompted a hearty laugh from Avery for about half a second, before it tapered off into a coughing fit. "I''ll live," he simply answered, then took a breath. "I''m angry with myself, Marcel," he muttered. "I failed again." The receptionist simply listened silently. It wasn''t the first time Avery had said it, but the last few times he''d screamed it at his face, so really, Marcel could only see this as an improvement. "My heart feels like it''s on fire. I''m furious. I want to be with you all in the city. But I need to prove to myself that I deserve it first." "You do in my eyes," Marcel muttered. "In all of our eyes." His friend gave a small nod at that. "I-," he coughed again, "I know that. Of course I do." Avery''s voice was shaky, his hands resting on his thighs, no longer moving to prepare the bird. A few drops of water landed on them. "I''ll come back. I''m sure. I can make it through this, probably, I hope. Really." "You better, man," Marcel said, a streak of water running down his cheek. "Fuck. I miss you so much, every day, you know that?" "I do, of course I do. I miss you just as much, you jerk," Avery said, taking off his visor and wiping away his tears. It had started raining now, the impact of the drops resounding against the leavy roof of Avery''s makeshift shelter. "Thanks for visiting. And listening. You ass." "Anytime," Marcel whispered. "Any godsdamn time, whenever you need me." With that, he took another deep breath of the charr, before tossing it into the firepit. He slowly rose to his feet, laying a hand on Avery''s shoulder. He squeezed it lightly. "I''ll be back. Tomorrow, even. If you want to do me a favour, try to sleep properly tonight, for once. You fucking need it. Don''t overdo yourself." Avery simply nodded, knowing his voice would crack if he replied. Maybe it was time to go back soon. Just a few more days, just a little bit more, and he''d go back. "I''ll be off for now. If you need anything, you better let me know." "I will," Avery murmured, his hands shakily ripping out feathers again. Marcel''s footsteps slowly faded away in the distance, and Avery was alone with the crackling of the fire, the raindrops on the roof, and a bag of bread left on the floor for him. For what felt like the first time in forever, there was a small smile on his face. He really didn''t deserve friends like Marcel, he thought. But nevertheless, that day Avery had a meal of roasted bird, salty tears, and sweet raisin filled bread. Then, when he woke the next morning, he was greeted by his system. [Acquired the Skill through a specific action.] [By braving extraordinary circumstances and pain, the individual has received additional rewards. Get: 4 levels, 10 Ability points, 500 Skill points, Skill.] He shook his head. How was Marcel always fucking right? Chapter 137: Lost in Thoughts Chapter 137: Lost in Thoughts For having nearly died at the start of this ashen adventure, Mercury''s latest couple days had been excessively boring. He''d met who Jirluc called their "crafter", a tall orc woman by the name of Larash. Back in her village she used to do just about everything; she''d started off making prosthetics, but there were only so many limbs one needed to replace, and eventually she branched out into general crafting, learning from whoever would teach her. Apparently, it wasn''t too hard to learn from people in an orc tribe. Everyone was happy to have someone pick up their trade, and heck, even if you didn''t want to do a whole lot, you''d get bored right quick without work anyway. A year of lazing around was made up by some time of working hard, after all, and in their youth, many orcs often lazed around or risked their neck too much. She herself had quite the story of how she''d been impaled by a boar''s tusks before snapping its neck, dragging it back to the village and collapsing. Which she''d obviously been chided for first, then celebrated second. The good times. Surprisingly though, she didn''t think her village had died when she got here. The blood eclipse was triggered when she was further out, looking for special wood to make a custom prosthetic, and had met a traveller at a campfire. A man who had most certainly not made it through the whole ordeal, she was sure. After all, she''d seen his lower body becoming uncleanly detached from his upper parts. Larash also claimed she''d have "fixed him right up if the damned beasts didn''t toss her through a rift when she wasn''t paying attention!" So that was a thing. But other than sharing stories with the other few people he was now with, not much went on. Mercury would occasionally go out hunting with Jirluc or Juno, levelling up and , and sometimes help Larash with whatever new trap she was making. His task in that case was mainly pulverizing monster parts for alchemy, and occasionally shaping them to be sharper than they''d been before. While talking with Ruvah, he also happened to finally level up his Skill, though it didn''t list any new languages in what he could understand. Maybe the system didn''t recognize his conversations with them as a specific language, but more as general communication? Or maybe there was just not a proper name for what they were speaking. Which wouldn''t exactly be surprising, given that Mercury himself had no idea how he was communicating with what should have been someone without any kind of vocal chords. Maybe he''d shed some more light on it when evolved. Well, if it evolved, there was a decent chance of him dying before that, after all. Depending on the perspective, of course. From some viewpoints, he''d actually already died once more. Whenever night fell, or rather, the crimson sun dimmed, Mercury was back in the bog. He had spent so much time travelling there, that and each gained another level. The difference wasn''t huge, but he did notice that he could run for a bit longer without getting tired, and the fog seemed to be pushed out just a bit further. He''d gotten his final Skill level up to , after he healed from having one of the gloom stalkers give him an express ticket back to the waking world. The gangly creatures were becoming more and more common, sometimes he''d have to avoid three or even four in a single night, while the ones who saw him were much more aggressive, too. Apparently, the dream wasn''t going down without a fight, but then again, neither was Mercury. Even when he once again had one of the stygian stakes driven through his head, and spent a few days basically rolling around in agony, he healed stronger. Such was the grace of the system, after all. Every setback could be overcome. When levelled up, Mercury could tell more than with the other Skills, though. It made sense, the Skill had evolved after all. It was a weird feeling, too, like the world slowed down more when he focused, and doing multiple things at once felt less mentally taxing. Maybe there was some synergy with there; he''d have to experiment with that later. On another, very similar night to all the ones before, he woke up in the swamp. As he usually did, he first looked around, trying to see if he could make out any of the shapes or lights that were signs of the stalkers. Luckily, the air seemed clear for now. Once he''d confirmed that, Mercury raised his head. The diamond, no, the dream''s nexus was closer now. So close, he could almost make out the shadows of the chains that kept it close to the ground as he looked. The heartbeat that seemed to shake the ground could almost be felt in the air now, faint vibration that made his hair rise up against his will. This place still made his resemble his physical one much more than his own dreamscape, but by now he was used to it. Regardless, even when his body seemed to react in a mixture of fight and flight impulses, Mercury pressed on. Watching the nexus had become something of a ritual. There was little else to base his progress on, and when he found himself plucked apart by the exhaustion as the nights passed, he anchored himself to that. Dreamweaver''s advice helped too, as it always did. Especially when he died in the dream, waking up would often be disorienting. He''d have trouble remembering where he was and why he was there, sometimes trying to just shake it off and go back to work on his day job. Whenever it happened, he clung to his new name. To Mercury. It was a little strange, using that identity he''d crafted for himself as so much of an anchor, but who was he to judge? Chosen names meant much more than what your parents called you at birth, anyways. To himself, he''d be Mercury, and that was what he clung to when he couldn''t remember anything else. He was Mercury. He was curious. He was stubborn. But it wasn''t always so easy. After all, even when his mind was fractured, and he was hanging onto his identity as hard as he could, he would find himself back in the bog, more vulnerable than ever. Sometimes, a stalker would find him and kill him again. It happened rarely, since he usually moved even more carefully when hurt, trying his best to stay out of trouble, but it could so easily cascade. Maybe you could handle a second death, maybe even a third before properly healing, but it could spiral too fast, way too fast. When things really got serious, he would sometimes be forced to stay awake for two days or so, since even that was better than once again dying in the dream. What made it even more depressing was seeing it happen to the others. They''d be racked with pain and hallucinations, guilt and whatever other baggage they had on them for an entire day or two. Sometimes, when he was having a fairly normal night, he''d be woken up by someone''s screams, to then have to head outside and fight off the monsters. Mercury was just glad he had others that did the same for him. Eventually though, Mercury had his worst spiral. The first was a normal night, where he slept and got closer to the nexus. The stalkers were beginning to swarm, sometimes he''d see multiple of them drifting through the fog if he strained his eyes. All that happened was him getting found at an unlucky time, where one popped into sight from behind him and when he started running, he happened upon a second in front of him just a few seconds after. That''d been that, and Mercury woke up feeling fractured and disoriented. He couldn''t sleep for the rest of the night, his heart struggling to find a regular rhythm. Eventually though, when night came again, his eyes grew too heavy, and he fell asleep. All of it was so much worse in the dream. The pain was searing, and he could tell he''d been hit more than once. With two stalkers on him, he might have been hit with two things near simultaneously. But even though the pain was bad, Mercury clung to his distant goal of the red diamond. He couldn''t quite recall why it was so important, but he crawled toward it nonetheless. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. Only to die again. His second death was caused by carelessness. He''d been too focused on the nexus, tunnel visioning on something so far away, and not noticed the stalkers around him. It might have been swift, but far from painless. The next night, he tried his hardest to stay up, but he was just too tired, his body seeming to almost shut down from it all. Once again, he was just unlucky, ending up in the bog when a stalker was already within range of him. That had never happened before, but now he knew to beware of that as well. He''d died before he knew it, almost before the pain even set in, but he also got no sleep. Thrown back into the waking world, Mercury could hardly think. His memories all felt scrambled, and reaching out for them felt like sticking his hand into a bowl of glass shards. You might fish out some you want, but others will jab themselves into your fingers, and turn everything unpleasant. All his memories felt so disorganised, with jumps in time to moments he''d really rather not have remembered. The day his parents had sent him to conversion therapy. The evenings he got yelled at for being a sinner in the eyes of god. How people like him were a stain on all that was good and proper. It jumped between his first day of kindergarden, and the day his parents finally put his ass out onto the streets. Trying his hardest to focus at college, and the time he had broken down in front of a professor. How he had no money to his name, crashing at his brother''s, desperately scrambling for a job with borrowed suits that didn''t quite fit right. He remembered the days he was a good student and the day the family dog died, a breakup with his highschool sweetheart, and a crush on a colleague from work. He remembered how he dreaded any calls from his boss, how he worked overtime to try and keep up with student loans he had taken out in the hopes of finding something that suited him, before quitting. The memories of his past seemed to weigh him down, like the fractures on his mind were placed in order to remind him of so much more bad than good. But in a bowl of glass shards, there were some pretty ones, too. A christmas party he got to share with the few family members who still wanted something to do with him. Happy evening spent with people he considered good friends, even though they grew distant eventually. Shows and books he enjoyed, and the few games he played as well. Sometimes it felt like he was drowning in it all, but he still remembered who he was now, how far he''d come. He could do magic now, things that he could never even have considered back as Steve. There were so many new people who cared about him, who didn''t care that he was gay, or even that he was a fricking cat. All those memories washed over him, in an up and down, where he would cry, then smile, then curl up in pain as it all ended up mixed. He''d drown, then get burnt, then choke on fry and crack his head open, and eventually he fell asleep. It all led back to the bog. To a muddy ground, staining his already bloodied fur, with a red diamond in the sky that he had to reach for reasons he couldn''t remember. All he could do was bear the pain that wracked every bit on his body, and crawl forward, unrelenting. Only to die again. This time, one of the stalkers had found him, weakened and near death, and even toyed with Mercury. It had chased him, made him crawl as fast as he could, dragging a trail of red through the swamp, and when he felt like his lungs were about to collapse, the thing summoned an abyssal spike, much thicker than usual, before firing its flat back-end at the cat, crushing it. Somehow, being killed so sadistically made waking up even worse. Mercury could hardly even breathe, the feeling of his entire body being crushed into itself clinging onto his mind for a few more agonizing moments before being replaced with the regular throes of pain and misery. Desperately, he tried to get some order in his scrambled thoughts, something to cling to. And he found it. A memory so short it was barely a footnote, of someone he considered a dear teacher showing him how to breathe. He remembered, in and out. His body that had been seizing up, going against his control now moved, ever so slowly, and he remembered who he was. Mercury. It was something he held onto, as hard as he could. An anchor to keep him sane. The shard of his mind slowly began reforming around it, one by one slotting into place. But it was slow, and the bog called. He saw the red diamond hang in the distant fog, and it made Mercury grimace. Gritting his teeth, he limped forward. His mind had put itself together enough to limp. Not enough to escape the twisted servant that came after him, but somehow, he managed to chase it off. He had imagined hitting it in the face with a hammer, and somehow, his fractured self had responded. The shards of his mind grouped up into a crude ball, hardly a hammer at all, and crashed against the stalker''s dark shape. Whatever he had done, it worked. The thing screeched as though a thousand jagged edges of glass had dug themselves into its skin, and scampered off. Perhaps that scream served as a warning, because no more of the things came after him that night, and his journey continued. After another day of repairing his mind, Mercury felt his identity finally becoming stable again. It still hurt, and sometimes there were gaps and jumps in his head, trails of thoughts that would simply disappear, and other ones that emerged from seemingly nowhere. There were still memories surfacing at random times, and stings of pain, but he was recovering. Enough, at least, to avoid the stalkers for one more night, and patch himself mostly back up. Somehow, he had barely survived dying four whole times in the swamp. He could probably consider himself lucky his Willpower had been over 100, and that a good couple of his Skills made his mind stronger. "Most people don''t survive the second time," Jirluc told him afterwards. "Some die from shock, some kill themselves in the delirium, walking into the traps outside. Still beats getting torn apart by beasts," he shrugged. Mercury had once again proven he wasn''t most people. And the system acknowledged that. Willpower 108 -> 113 These days he didn''t get many improvements to his stats from regular actions anymore, but apparently, this had been deemed worthwhile for a whole five points. Well, who was he to decline it? Now, all he had to do was make it the last stretch to the nexus. - - - - - - Zyl woke up. At first, he felt strange. Disoriented and groggy, almost like he was a stranger in his own body. He couldn''t quite parse where he was, his mind sluggish. His entire body seemed to ache a little, not too terribly, but it felt like he''d overstretched all of his muscles. Then the cold set in. One moment to another, he felt like he was plunged into a bath of ice. Every inch of his skin and blood was freezing, and his eyes ripped open as he searched for a way out, flopping like a fish on land. He couldn''t see. Even after opening his eyes he couldn''t see, what was going on?! "Lord Zyl? Did you finally awaken?" Leon''s voice cut through the darkness, and relief washed through Zyl''s body. "Yes, I''m up. Leon, what''s going on, I can''t see anything, what happened to my eyes?" he asked, a hint of panic still clinging to his tone. "... Your face is covered by a blanket," the old butler replied, a hint of mirth in his voice. "Should I perhaps take it off?" Zyl felt another shiver run through him, as he closed his eyes again. "No, leave it on," he said, voice muffled through the fabric. "How come it''s so cold in here?" "The room temperature is currently quite close to the boiling point of water, actually," Leon answered, sounding a bit bitter. "It has already helped reduce your fever, but we cannot really raise it any further without severely complicating the act of getting you to drink something." "What?" Zyl replied, incredulous. No way it was that hot. He felt like he was stranded on the mountaintops in Koriel with how cold he felt. Another shiver wracked his body, but Zyl tried to keep still and simply pulled the blankets closer. "Zyl, what do you remember?" Leon asked again, sending the dragon''s thoughts into motion. "Well, I went out to help Lucia because there seemed to be some trouble, but by the time I got there, it was all resolved already. Then she, Iris and Mercury came to visit. Otto was here as well. We had a good deal of fun together, though lady Pelaren wasn''t very happy to see me house someone like Mercury. Luckily, things went smoothly enough, and eventually, they all left again. After that..." Zyl felt things coming back to his memory. Berthorn. Very rapidly, the cold in Zyl''s blood disappeared, replaced by anger, then disbelief, then sadness. "Alright, it''s all back," he said through gritted teeth. "I gave that snake a spark, and he didn''t uphold his side of the deal. Now, Mercury is dead because of me." Leon was silent for a few moments, letting his friend calm down a bit. "Zyl, it''s not your fault." "Of course it is!" the dragon yelled. He wanted to rage and tear things apart, but as he even tried to sit up, his muscles simply declined in agony, and he fell back down onto the mattress. "Aaargh!" He didn''t know if he snarled in anger or pain. "Please, Zyl. You have to rest some more. And things went different from what Berthorn thought. There were no bodies, yet all of his assassins died. Mercury called down a blood eclipse." Zyl''s face distorted even more at that. "And you''re sure of that?" Leon nodded. "More than sure. It was confirmed by Mercury''s blacksmithing teacher, Yasashiku Ryuutesai. Apparently, before calling down the eclipse, Mercury pushed him out of its radius." It took a few seconds for Zyl to recognize the name, but after a quick gaze at the leaderboard and a search for his name there, the picture clicked into place. Not that it gave him any more confidence. "So he died to that, then. What does it matter?" "Little, I suppose," Leon sighed. "Still, I thought it might be some solace that he went down fighting. He wouldn''t have blamed you, Zyl, and neither would anyone else. This is what Berthon wants. A teacher of mine once told me to ''focus on the battles yet to fight, rather than the ones already lost''. I think that perhaps it would be better for you to look forward." Zyl bit his lip at that. Leon was right, as usual. He took a deep breath, fighting down a shiver. "Fine," he finally said, "I''ll focus on recovering. Could you tell Maclroy I''m awake?" "Of course, Zyl. Rest well. I''ll bring you a meal once I''m back." With that, the dragon was alone again, left to think on what he should do next. Chapter 138: Destination Chapter 138: Destination /What really is Exp? Clearly, it is something we need to become better, to improve ourselves. It is to us as mastery is to our skills, something we gain to level, to evolve, to grow and improve. But what is it? Of course, the most immediately obvious answer would be experience, or experience points. But regardless of whether that is what the abbreviation truly means, it would not be an answer to the question. After all, Exp is gained through many actions, and many of said gains are hidden from our sight. Through that, there are many theories on how we actually level, from softcaps to development blocks. Regardless though, what grants us this Exp? Generally, this question has received inconclusive answers. Very clearly you receive Exp for completing quests and trials, as well as killing things. Mages have reported gaining it for absorbing mana, while warriors have reported gaining it through absorbing stamina. Even then though, Exp is still gained from other things. Crafters clearly gain Exp when they finish creating something, bakers and farmers gain exp for cooking and harvesting things respectively. Some authors, such as myself, gain Exp from publishing our works and even from having them read, in addition to the World points it can provide. As stated above, answers have not been quite conclusive, but recently, in talks with some of my colleagues, we believe to have found a common thread. Something that seems to be a theme throughout all aspects of the system. It wants to give us choice, and the quests it hands out generally are in line with what we wish to do. Perhaps, what the system really listens to is desire. Fighting grants experience because it inherently involves some form of desire. To hunt for food, to kill for vengeance, and the form of fighting that earns you the most Exp: fighting for your very survival. We are granted rewards when we feel fulfilled. Some trials are completed once the individual undertaking them simply wishes for them to be over, to return to something. I like to believe that the system tends to reward us for doing exactly what we want, without judgment or bias of what those actions are, regardless of whether that is good or bad. It would also explain how eccentrics tend to rise so far above most others. The more passionate you are, the more desperately you desire something, the more likely it becomes for you to get it. And when you finally feel fulfilled, you pursue a new path, a new desire. It would serve as the perfect tool to let people go down the path they choose, yet allow them room to turn left, right, or even back around whenever they wish. Thus, it seems likely that those who desire will gain what they wish if only they desire it enough./ An excerpt from "Notes, Thoughts and recent Developments on the Nature of the System" by Ximena Statica, pioneer on system knowledge. - - - - - - Mercury couldn''t help but wear a thin smile on his lips. He was close now. So tantalizingly close. Today was probably the day he''d finally get to the nexus. His plans had seen some delay, given that he''d been busy. He helped with scouting, hunting, and also crafting around the place. He fixed up traps, and brought home more food, making sure to carry his weight at the very least. It had also evolved his Skill into automatically, a Skill which seemed to provide a far more general help in creating anything. As all choiceless evolutions, it didn''t cost him any Skill points. But, far more importantly than that, the system had seemingly acknowledged his desire to get out of this hellhole. - [Main Quest: "Heart of a starving Dream" (Chain <1>) Condition: The individual has survived within the ashen plains, hidden within the realm of the Court of the Crimson Sun. Now, they seek to escape, and to do so, must destroy the hungering nexus, by any means necessary. Reward: Skill, mastery increase, 3500 Gold, choice of bound item from suitable list.] - But that wasn''t even all. [Due to the severe difficulty and hardship the individual has gone and will go through, the title is activating. Would you like to initiate the title Skill, ?] This, however, he was unsure about. specified that it might impose restrictions, or penalize him for losing the bet. Then again, if he lost here, he would most likely die anyways. Faced with a difficult choice, he decided to ask his most trusted advisor. ", would you recommend initiating a bet?" [Yes.] As always, the answer was a little lacking. "Could you elaborate?" [Yes. As the individual is currently attempting a difficult feat only possible because of their very specific skillset, restrictions will most likely not target anything highly debilitating for the current mission. Additionally, penalties may be lenient, due to the nature of the challenge. Finally, a difficulty scale for the is likely to be provided.] Well, that was good news. He''d consider it for a moment longer, but he had another question to ask in the meantime. ", what does the "Chain" next to the main quest mean?" [A quest labeled (Chain) will continue offering further, increasing challenges and rewards to the individual. These are usually only invoked for strong desires, in specific situations, and will thus occasionally cause longer waiting times for activation. In exchange, their nature of stringing quests together can result in rapid growth for the individual.] "Thanks ," Mercury said, dismissing the message. Was it just him or did the Skill appear more helpful today? Whatever the case, he now had one more thing to consider. If this quest was going to result in more quests, he could most likely guess what they were. Next would be breaking into the mansion and then getting out of this place, probably. Since it was a quest, he was sure it was possible. Hard, definitely, but still doable, which also gave him hope for the . Of course, wasn''t quite perfect, but he still definitely valued the input the Skill gave him. Especially when it was serious, rather than its usual mocking tone. Though it was still strange to hear it sound so genuine. Well, whatever then. He''d take it''s advice. "Initiate !" he ordered. [ initiating. Calculating parameters. Comparing skillset to task. Eliminating impossibilities. Determining likelihood of success.] [Calculations complete. Choose difficulty level: -1-2-3-4-5-] Before he even had a chance to ask, another box popped up, confirming that 1 was the lowest level of difficulty, and 5 the highest. Honestly, he didn''t even really consider options 4 or 5. It felt like doing so would just be the fast track to getting himself killed. Sure, if the quest was something easier, like hunting something in the plains, he might take them, but especially for his first try at the Skill it seemed like too much. The same thing ended up ruling out difficulty 3. The system was incredible, but at the same time, it most certainly had a tendency of seeming a little more on the cruel side. It rewarded struggle too much. If that theme continued, then even difficulty 3 might be too much, he just didn''t know enough about how fair the would be. Should he choose 1 or 2 then? He was leaning more towards 2, since said it would most likely not inhibit the Skills that were actually, truly important for this quest. It seemed like a decent balance between risks and rewards, where he wouldn''t put himself one missed breath away from being deleted out of reality, but also would still receive a reasonable payout. 2 it was. [Difficulty selected. Generating conditions.] - [Bet: -2- Condition: Complete the quest "Heart of a starving Dream". Reward: 1 level (Skill), Skill, mastery, proficiency milestone. Restrictions: The individual may not use Spells for the duration of the quest. has been disabled. has been disabled. has been disabled. Strength has been halved. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Penalties: regression of mastery, -10 Willpower, -10 Wisdom.] - It looked as though he''d made the right pick. The amount of Skills that were disabled felt a little disorientating at first, like some part of him now functioned less, but luckily they weren''t super intrinsic to his skillset. Losing half his strength hurt a lot, but as of right now, it didn''t seem like the most horrible thing. He was unsure how it even filtered into his body in the bog at all. The only Skill that seemed pretty painful to lose was tracking. It felt like it helped with detecting the stalkers early, though he wouldn''t quite put his hands in the fire for that. Seems like hadn''t lied, this was still doable, and seemed like a comfortable level of difficulty. With that out of the way though, Mercury felt comfortable finally committing to the task. The sun outside was already dimming, and with Jirluc and Juno still in the hut, it was about as safe as they were going to get. Slowly, Mercury closed his eyes and grew sleepy. He''d gotten much better at controlling when he slept over time now, probably because of , and . Whatever the case, sleep came to him easily, and with a fully healed his paws touched the swampy floor again. This close to the nexus, there were roots interlaced with the mud, pulsing as though a heartbeat was coursing through them. It felt like Mercury was stepping over a network of little veins. Maybe, if he''d watched them closely, he might notice that there sometimes was a tiny shimmer going through them, back to the nexus. Unfortunately, the mopaaw was preoccupied trying to avoid the stalkers. With how close he was getting to the nexus, its red light was showing aggressively through the fog, enough for Mercury to make out the figures of the stalkers slowly skulking along. Some got close enough to the point where he could see their black, gangly legs, but he had gotten much better at avoiding them these days. Whenever one got a little too close, he''d press himself close to the floor and slowly move in the opposite direction of where they were headed. It was a gentle game of taking two steps forward, then one step back. Of course, he''d failed quite a few times in the past, but by now he had a fairly decent grasp of how the stalkers worked. The creatures were optimised for finding anything alive. They had excellent kinetic vision, and an uncanny knack for finding things which had remained still for a longer while, which also meant there was a sweet zone of speed where they would hardly ever find you. Unless you walked right in front of them, of course. But by now, Mercury had developed a very good sense for how the creatures liked to make their rounds. Some of them were more erratic than the others, of course, but most didn''t like to stray too far from the nexus. In fact, the closer he got, the more predictably they moved. By now, most of them were simply walking circles around the thing. If they weren''t so horrifying, he might have found them looking quite silly making their rounds. But he''d died to them a couple too many times to still hold that opinion. The stalkers were still horrifyingly dangerous, and would deviate from their paths if they thought there was something else going on, but with lots of care and practice, Mercury snuck past them. ... Almost. At the end, there was a rather strange sight. He was close enough to make out the shape of the chains holding the nexus from where he stood, but he couldn''t quite get closer at the end. There was a perfect ring of stalkers, facing towards the outside, their cones of vision blanketing everything that could come close to the core. Not one of the creatures moved even a single muscle, standing there completely still and staring into the fog. He really couldn''t catch a break, could he. With limited time until he was caught by some of the other stalkers making their rounds, Mercury had to think fast. There were no more stalkers behind this gathering of them, he was sure of that, but just because there weren''t any more after this, that didn''t make actually getting past them any easier. Could he kill them? Maybe. One of them at the very least, most likely, but there wasn''t just one. It was at least a dozen of them, probably more. He''d be torn apart before he made even a hint of progress. No, that wasn''t exactly an option. What then? Distract them? Dig a tunnel underneath them? Learn how to fly? Well, that last one was only somewhat unrealistic; he had managed to walk on air in a dream before, after all. But that time the air was weirdly thick, so it didn''t exactly count. Digging a tunnel was also unrealistic, given the roots extending into the floor, and the amount of control the nexus seemed to have over it. Which left him with distracting the stalkers. Except, how would he do that? He couldn''t use things from his inventory in here, since it was more of a mental realm in general, and other than that, he just had his Skills. was level 9 by now, but he doubted that was enough to just get by them. would probably work, at least. He could use it to give the stalkers something to focus on, and to make them less likely to focus on him, but he couldn''t really get close enough to use it on them, even with . Unless... Since slowed down the thoughts of anything it touched, maybe there was something he could use it for after all. If he weaved a cocoon of it around himself, would the stalkers be less likely to notice him? The idea seemed a little far fetched, but not ridiculous enough to discard immediately. Even if the mental properties of the Skill didn''t take hold in this form, the colour of the thread was much closer to the muck on the floor than his fur was. Also, he was really beginning to run out of time until some stalker came back around or started smelling him. Alright then! His decision was made. For good measure, Mercury also invested 40 more Ability points into this operation. Agility: 75 -> 85 Dexterity: 75 -> 85 Luck: 55 -> 75 Hoping for the best, Mercury quickly began spinning a silken cocoon around himself. The threads were of a dull colour, and he made them the least shiny they could possibly be, floating them a slight distance from himself with . Very soon, he''d wrapped himself with enough of the material to be almost completely covered, leaving only small holes for him to look out from. Once he double and triple checked the cocoon, he decided to just go for it, slowly crawling along the floor. Hoping for the best, Mercury dragged himself closer to the circle of gloom stalkers, inching forward just fast enough to hopefully not leave lingering traces for them to notice. It was a delicate balance, and the fact that there were so many of the creatures didn''t exactly help, but he continued on nonetheless. After the first few seconds, he saw that the fog around him grew heavy, soaked in yellow light. He was now within the range where the things could spot him fairly easily, and the seconds began to slow down to a crawl. Trying his hardest not to breathe, Mercury simply inched his way forward bit by bit, noticing the light grow brighter the closer he got. He''d picked a fairly straight line towards one of the creatures, since they were packed together so tightly, he''d most likely be in range for multiple if he decided to go to the edge of their vision. As he moved closer and closer, Mercury could feel the panic rising in his stomach, as a good part of him screamed to get away from the things. He decided to place that worry at the back of his mind, dully realizing that perhaps getting killed by them had left more lasting damage than he''d thought, and shoved the fear down with . Falling into the calm state of the Skill, he simply dedicated himself to the rhythm. One paw before the other, slowly getting closer. He could see his mana tick down as he kept active, but he didn''t hurry because of it, just keeping up the same pace as always. Eventually, he got so close to the stalker that there was no longer any fog between them. Just a few more meters and he''d be behind them. Gritting his teeth, Mercury pushed forward just a bit more, hoping his luck would last, until one of his paws struck against a root. Half a moment later, Mercury could see the cone of light that encompassed the stalker''s vision shift slightly, landing on his cocoon, as he tried his hardest to simply face into the ground, hoping the creature didn''t notice him. Following his , he laid completely still, even tightening the threads around him slightly, as the stalker took a step forward. He closed his eyeholes, simply listening to the creature, hearing the faint thuds of its legs as it grew closer. Somehow, the creature made barely any noise, despite its height. The steps stopped just a moment before him, and Mercury could feel his heartbeat speed up, even as he controlled his breath, trying to sink into meditation. He found himself unable to. Abhorrently slowly, he could hear the creature crane down to get a closer look, the top of his cocoon beginning to glow a slight yellow, visible even from inside. It got so close, in fact, that it decided it should see whether this thing was something living or not. Mercury''s heartbeat shot higher again as the creature''s leg lightly impacted the side of the cocoon, some of the sticking to it. Hastily, he repaired the small gap it left, as the stalker simply stopped. It was suddenly silent, contrary to its usually cruel nature, until he heard its head lightly tap against the cocoon wall as well. From the inside, Mercury created more and more to patch up anything that the creature touched, but after a few moments passed, its head simply raised. A few bits and pieces of the Skill still stuck to it, but somehow, it seemed to have returned to its post, not having smelled him through the cocoon. Apparently, when the creature''s got too confused, they simply returned to the ring. In that moment, Mercury held back a sigh of relief, instead deciding to channel his elation into the slow crawl forward. After just a few more seconds, he was almost straight underneath the creature, when he heard a screech above him. The confusion from his had worn off, and the stalker was pissed, its eyes, and those of all the others around immediately latching onto the mopaaw. Without even a shred of hesitation, Mercury listened to the warning bells in his head, and launched the remainder of his Skill into the creature''s face before sprinting away with every ounce of strength he had. His earlier investments immediately paid off, as stakes of darkness burrowed into the mud right behind him, close enough that he could feel the splatter against his fur. Ignoring the things, he sprinted forward towards the nexus. The chains were now distinct through the fog, almost within reach as he charged forwards. The floor underneath him shuddered, both with the beating of a heart and the attacks of the stalkers, but he ignored it as much as possible. For a moment, a warning rang out in his head, but before he could react, one of the stakes had dug into his front left shoulder, almost taking him off his feet. But at the same time, the steps of the stalkers were also more distant, as though they were scared to approach him. Gritting his teeth, Mercury hobbled forward a few more steps, squeezing out his strength to make it the last few steps, until they were in sight. The fog parted. The ground grew steady. Mercury found himself in a clearing from the marsh, standing on rust red roots, occasionally pulsing with light. Spread around to multiple anchors, he saw thick chains, reaching into the sky, latching onto a red crystal from which the roots grew. Or perhaps, it grew from the roots? It mattered little. In the fog he had just came from, Mercury could see dozens of glowing yellow eyes, stygian maws filled with fangs, but none of them dared het any closer. They were creatures of the fog, and it had no place here. Without the fog, beyond the red crystal, Mercury could see up into the patchwork sky of this place, looking over it and finding it devoid of stars. He''d made it here, finally. Now it was time to climb up there and break a crystal. Chapter 139: A Miscalculation Chapter 139: A Miscalculation /Once the Thing was becoming more aware of its surroundings, it questioned a lot of what it saw. Why did so many of the creatures it ate attempt to escape, when clearly there was no hope there? Did it perhaps inspire the same terror in them, which it had felt at the Hunter''s hands? If so, was that right? The Thing never finished that thought any further, too preoccupied with devouring its prey. It still was dominated by instinct and emotion, but it was growing smarter. With every bite, it could feel itself growing stronger, faster, and more durable, but most of all, it could notice its thoughts clearing. It was as though the act of eating removed a fog in its head it never knew was there. And the clearer its head got, the more efficient its hunts became. Rather than simply charge at something or flee from it, the Thing began going after prey it usually would rather avoid. When there were multiple things, it would spring ambushes, picking them off. If the prey was fast, it could wear it out. Somehow, that process sparked joy in the Thing, of discovering more and more as it ate, and ate, and ate. Its hunger pangs subsided only for short periods after each meal, and it began chasing that desire. It even went so far as to restrain itself and begin rationing its food, to never have its thoughts numbed by true hunger anymore. Life was good for a while, until eventually, it was suddenly out of things to hunt. The forest was thoroughly empty, and the Thing knew it had to move again, but when it did so, all it found was an endless expanse of blue. Water, as far as the eye could reach. The Thing, parched as it always was, drank some of it, and found the taste pleasantly salty. With only voracity remaining, the Thing plunged into this new frontier, chasing after the shades in it, and with that, found itself crossing the oceans to another continent./ (Legends: The Thing - 6; Mindful Journey) - - - - - - Finally being free of the fog felt strange in a way. Like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Mercury gazed at the crystal again, finally seeing it without the fog in the way. Now, it looked... smaller than he''d expected. Not something you could easily hold in one hand, of course, but if you were to try and wrap your arms around it, you''d be left with plenty room to spare. Something like a soccer ball? Around that size, he''d guess. Of course, it was still shaped like a diamond overall, except it looked that way no matter from where in the clearing he looked, its surface very smooth. Like two cones with their bases together. Mercury shook his head a bit. Before he let himself be entranced by the thing, he''d have to actually make it up there, and so he set about that. With some dexterity, he grabbed onto one of the chains, and began putting weight on it. The feeling was strange. The force pulling the nexus upwards was strong, but not overpowering, so Mercury could feel the chain give slightly when he stepped, and the red star shifted in the air. When he took that first step, a tremor went through the floor, and cracks opened up in the mud, as if trying to swallow him up. Luckily, with him standing on the chain, nothing happened. After another step, the world rumbled slightly again, the nexus swaying back and forth with the give of the chain. The ground shook as the unstable equilibrium was broken, periodically cracking and refilling. Undeterred, the mopaaw continued his ascent. The angles were steep, but he was strong by now, and while the chains had been smooth once upon a time, they were aged by now. He found plenty purchase to make his way up towards the star. As the world shook underneath him, Mercury had some time to think. If so little movement could make this whole place shake, the protections made so much more sense. There were chains in place to prevent the nexus from simply fizzing out by itself already, fed by the minds of those that perished in here. He shook his head again at that thought. It was a very cruel system, to draw things in from another world, then trap them in their dreams. Knowing all of that, the shaking seemed less troublesome, to a degree. Even if this place fell apart, no one would miss it much. Well, maybe whoever or whatever was sustained by it, but they could go frick themselves. The ascent went slowly, with Mercury carefully treading up the chain link by link, wrapping his legs around them, and occasionally digging his claws in. The distance was further than it looked from below, and further than he would have expected, even knowing that the nexus hung in the sky. As he got higher, the ground began to slowly grow smaller, and soon the clearing was looking more like an island in an endless ocean of white. He could see indistinct shapes move in there, some faster, some less. Occasionally, a black dot would rear its ugly head above the fog, stalkers looking around for prey, and a few of those even turned to look at him. Their yellow beams looked so insignificant from up there. Even as he was panting from the exertion, Mercury couldn''t help but give a sly grin and stick out his tongue to them. He knew it was childish, but knowing that the creatures he''d been terrified off for so long were now but insignificant blips, was freeing. Looking up at the red star, most of what he saw was the patchwork sky. A tapestry of purple, red, black and blue spreading all the way until the horizon, stitched together by different means. Some of them were connected by what looked like white threads, which drifted as though they were clouds, others by links of chain so large he could make out the holes even from down below. If the chains for the nexus went high enough, or he could fly, perhaps he could actually reach that sky, peel some of it away and see what was beyond? He shook his head. That was a silly idea. If space travel taught him anything, it was to not damage the thing you were in. Sure, maybe he''d just land back in his own dreamrealm, but what was the chance he''d be whisked away into the endless abyss of the nothingness in between? That wouldn''t be very fun. [ has levelled up! 8>] Right, right, he got it. Back on track for now. Still, Mercury enjoyed the freedom being so high up gave him. Of course, a part of him was afraid of falling, but another part of him knew that if he died from that, it surely wouldn''t be worse than impalement. The thought brought a wry smile onto his face. Eventually, when Mercury was up so high he couldn''t even make out the clearing underneath anymore against the fog, he saw the chains converging. There was the one he stood on, which moved underneath him like the deck of a ship, making all the others sway, and 7 more links. It made for a fairly stable arrangement when undisturbed, but now that he was here, well, it hopefully wouldn''t last for long anyway. And finally, Mercury reached the last link of the chain. From up close, he saw that the sides of the nexus weren''t smooth at all, actually, just filled with dozens, maybe hundreds, of little flat surfaces, each of them pulsing occasionally. Some sides emitted more of a glow, as if trying to push it back into the center, but the entire construction remained illuminated to some degree. He hesitated for just a second, before taking a deep breath and reaching out to the crystal, carefully tapping it with a claw. The crystal rang with a clear, high pitch noise, that was... actually quite pleasant, and nothing else happened for a moment. Then, the ringing faded out, and Mercury felt the sky tremble. "Well, nothing to it but to do it," he muttered, then smacked his claw into the crystal full force. Immediately, there was the sound of shattering glass as he dug into it, though rather than the cracks spreading, the crystal deformed and grew soft around Mercury''s paw. [The nexus is resisting your attempts to destroy. The nexus is attacking back. Willpower battle initiated.] Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. An instant after Mercury comprehended the notification, the world around him twisted in on itself and broke apart. He got an intense feeling of nausea, almost immediately wanting to throw up, but while he could feel his stomach churn, nothing else happened. Moments later, the vertigo set in, and Mercury could feel himself go off balance, his senses of left and right mixing up as he stumbled for a moment, before catching himself on the chain. As quickly as he trusted himself to, Mercury sat down and closed his eyes, focusing on the strange sensations. When he no longer saw the world around him falling apart, it all grew weaker, then slowly subsided as he focused on his breath, in and out. He processed his thoughts in the background, recognizing what had happened. The nexus had attacked his mind, his actual thoughts, sending him spiraling. It almost made him grin. If battles of will and attacks on his mind were its only way of harming him, it had chosen a poor, poor battleground to duke it out with him. Feeling hesitantly confident, Mercury settled down further, controlling his breathing as he waited for the nausea to subside fully. But it never really came to that. Before the sensations could ebb away, he began feeling something else, a gentle bit of wind brushing against his fur. Opening his eyes again, he found that the nexus was entirely gone, and rather than on top a chain, he was on a... beach? ? [The battle of wills has been initiated. The nexus will now be putting the individual through tests, attempting to make them bend and give in. You are encouraged to make it through to the other side.] [Warning. Any damage to your body in the tests may accumulate and carry over to your mind or physical self. You are encouraged to be careful.] After a quick glance at the notifications, Mercury took stock of his surroundings. The beach he found himself on wasn''t made from sand, but small, round rocks, carved away at by the tides. There was a line of seaweed where most of the tide came in, and waves carrying more of the substance crashed in from an emerald ocean. For a moment, he felt compelled to take a dip in it, before shaking off the thought. It... felt like that one hadn''t come from inside his own head. Maybe it was the nexus pitting its will against his to get him to make stupid decisions. In any case, he could consider that more after making sure he was safe for the immediate future. The island he stood on seemed fairly large, judging by the curve of the beach. It was also covered in thick stalks of what looked like bamboo if you went further in. The sky above was still a strange patchwork, though mostly of a more purplish colour, and a crimson sun hung between ashen clouds. He could hear a distant crack of thunder. Since there were no monsters immediately near him, Mercury thought about this test a little more. The nexus was pitting its mind against his, and could clearly influence his thoughts with some effort. Now, the question was, how intelligent is the nexus? Could it try and give good advice on what to do, in hopes of making him do the opposite? Could it hear his thoughts right now? Mercury was dragged out of his thoughts by a hint of movement and a snarling sound from within the island. Between two stalks of the bamboo, there was something that looked like a crossbreed of a lemur and a sword, with sharp blades sticking out its joints, and rough scales draped over its back. It was hopping from branch to branch, staring at Mercury, snarling each time it moved, except after a while, it wasn''t alone anymore. Another one of the creatures appeared, then a third. Pulling in some air through his teeth, Mercury grimaced. This would be a little tough. Could he access his inventory? When he tried accessing it, there was some form of resistance, but he quickly snapped it in two with the force of his mind. Good, it was all still there. Immediately, he pulled out the bag of rocks, then eyed his foes again. A few more of the lemurs had joined, and their snarling had begun to turn into howls. The things seemed completely frenzied, but they weren''t attacking yet. Determined to at least get the first strike, Mercury only took another moment to survey the place for other things he could use. Between the bamboo, tall stalks of yellow reeds grew. For a moment he thought whether or not they responded to his or not, but when he gazed over the landscaped, he could feel them leaning slightly towards him, resisting the wind. A small smile found its way onto his face. With the count of lemurs having increased to close to a dozen, and their eyes beginning to turn bloodshot, Mercury waited no longer. He split his mind into two zejyn, the stronger of which solidified to rijn. He slammed the loudest of the lemurs, the one closest to lunging at him, with it at the same time as he launched a rock at another. Strangely, his actions seemed to have more power than usual, as howled into action. This "test" apparently counted as him being trapped somewhere, and the Skill would have none of it, amplifying his attacks. The rock ended up piercing the lemur''s stomach as it hardly had any time to react, and his rijn struck hard enough to knock the lemur a few meter back, sending it tumbling into the reeds, which almost immediately wrapped around it in a stranglehold. For a moment the creatures remained silent, then all howled as one, a cacophony of fury welcoming him. Almost all of them lunged, though a few began clambering down the stalks instead. Those were lucky, since the ones trapped in the air were slowed down and sent tumbling into the reeds one after another, as Mercury pushed on them with and the raw force of his mind. When the other monkeys reached the ground, the reeds tried to ensnare them, too, but with their greater control, they slashed through with the blades, and began making their way towards Mercury. Except, when they reached the beach, he was no longer there. Instead, the screams of their fellows rang out in the reeds. They were tall enough to hide Mercury if he crouched, and his Skill was higher than ever after so much practice. He could feel it was on the cusp of a level, and he was exploiting it now. The grass was pointing him in the direction of the nearest enemies, parting ever so gently to reveal the lemurs struggling against it with all their might. For a moment, Mercury''s thoughts were rattled with the desire to spare them, giving the monkey enough time to recognize him and thrash even harder, cutting itself in its fury. But somehow, the plants held fast, unperturbed, and Mercury soon shook off the foreign desire, drawing a quick claw over the lemur''s throat and leaving it to bleed out. [Killed a Blademur (test). Get: 200 Exp.] Behind him, Mercury could hear the remaining primates cry and slash through the grass, but his path was much, much easier than theirs. Soon, he had found a few more of the creatures, and quickly dispatched them, before some of the pursuers finally managed to catch up with him. Their eyes were even more frenzied now, their comradery obvious. One of them pointed at him and screeched, as all of them charged at once. Immediately, one of them was flung into the air by his rijn, and another impaled by a stone. Unfortunately, that meant three of them sill reached him, launching into a furious assault of claws and blades. Strangely, even with all their anger, the creatures were strangely skillful about their fights. Their teamwork was smooths, attacks flowing into each other, and if he didn''t have the very assistance of the terrain, he was sure he would have gotten cut a few times by them. The creatures struck out with their fists and feet, as well as their elbows and knees, in what some may recognize as a very crude recreation of muay thai. Of course, Mercury had no idea of that, and instead simply focused on evading them as his breath coursed through his lungs. But once more, the creatures proved intelligent. When he attempted to wear them out, they would retreat and let the other take over more of the fighting. They had reached a sort of stalemate, and Mercury didn''t want to exactly wait for more of them to arrive. Quickly, he used a burst of stamina to activate , making the creatures seize up for a moment as he lashed out, biting one to death and raking his claws across another, hoping to sever muscles and tendons. [ has levelled up! 3>] Pushing the advantage, Mercury relied on and to let him avoid any vital strikes, and while he was accumulating some smaller injuries, he was hitting the lemurs much harder. His rijn would whip out and send one flying whenever they teamed up, and combined with and to slow them down. Then, when he saw weakness, he would push his body full of stamina and mana, activate , and deal much greater wounds than he had any right to. The feeling was exhilarating to him. Juggling all of his Skills was strangely freeing and fun, especially with him feeling so strangely empowered by . But he didn''t allow that feeling to consume him either. Vigilance was key, here, and he remained keenly aware of his surroundings. It paid of, when he heard a quiet howl in the distance. More of the creatures were coming. Those who''d been in direct contact with Mercury were bloodied by now, and a couple had died, but more had also reached him and freed themselves from the grass. He was winning, but too slowly. Frowning slightly, Mercury quickly spun a full web of , before focusing his attention on the reeds and the desire for the creatures to be trapped. As the yellowed stalks wrapped around their bladed limbs, Mercury put his many cuts in the back of his mind, and ran off, fighting through the underbrush. After a few moments, he slowed down again, focusing on stealth instead. He listened to the surroundings, and the grass itself, hoping to notice if anything was moving. There was a small rustle to the left of him, slowly approaching. He readied himself, and once it sped up, immediately rolled to the side, watching a yellow snake lunge at the air where he''d just been. Its landing went more poorly, being tied down by the reeds as Mercury''s rijn crashed into its head at full force. [Killed a Savanna Viper (Test). Get: 125 Exp.] Using a tool he''d developed for smithing this way still felt strange, but he pushed it to the side of his mind. Another headache assaulted him, this time with the desire to stay in place and rest. Mercury pushed back harder than he had before, and then took it a step further. He felt the lingering connection to his mind, where the battle of willpower was happening, and instead pushed back to the other side, forcing the nexus to feel the desire to give up. He felt what sounded like a screech in his head, as it roared to defend itself against him, and Mercury quickly shifted his attack to a less frontal approach when he could tell it strained his mind more than he could bear. Instead, he probed the nexus on why it wanted him to stay. For just a short second, he could read the desires of the thing, and it desperately wanted him to stay away from the middle of the island. Mercury could make it out through the bamboo shoots, and through the connection he could also tell it was apparently a volcano. "So that''s where you''re hiding," he grinned to himself. While the irony of needing to get to the middle of the illusional island in the middle of a bog in a dream in the middle of an ashen wasteland in another plane slash dimension wasn''t lost on him, Mercury still couldn''t help but feel good about this. He was going to make this nexus regret its choice of contest, very, very dearly. Chapter 140: A step towards Freedom Chapter 140: A step towards Freedom Walking along the island was strange. There would be long stretches of silence, with nothing at all around him, before violence suddenly came crashing in. The nexus seemed to favour hordes, sometimes conjuring creatures which even tore each other apart, and the longer Mercury walked, the stranger they got. First, the creatures had entire limbs become entirely blades, then it started spawning in more and more grotesque creatures. Things lacking basic sensory organs, ones with too many or too few limbs, often replaced with barbed hooks, or sharp claws. And as time went on, the creatures became much more aggressive. It got to the point where Mercury could identify that something was going on from afar by the screeches and howls of whatever hid in the jungle, only heading out once it was quiet again, and stumbling onto bloodbaths. He started finding disconnected limbs rather than full creatures, and grass splattered with blood. All of it was revolting, of course, but then again, it was a test of will, so he simply marched on, seeing as the volcano came closer and closer into view. Occasionally, some of the creatures would find him, but they were all strangely fragile. Sure, the things were fast and dangerous, but their bones lacked stability, and they seemed sometimes entirely devoid of internal organs. Things only got weirder from there. When he found the sites of carnage now, he''d find creatures still roaming, most of them completely faceless, lacking even holes to breathe through. He once cut in between one of the creature''s ribs, and found himself only encountering muscles. There seemed to not be lungs or a heart present. Even as the shapes changed, from lemurs to ferrets and flying weasels, oversized squirrels and rabbits with sharp teeth, they began becoming less distinct. None of them could even survive for longer than a few minutes. Not that it mattered; they simply launched themselves at him. It felt bizarre and unnerving to Mercury, honestly. Life being twisted just to try and kill him... but he pushed those concerns aside. All that mattered was the volcano. [Level Up!] Well, maybe that too, at least. He''d killed maybe another handful of lemurs before the notification rang out. He hardly used his strength against them, mostly just dodging a few swipes would leave them winded. If it didn''t, he''d throw a web or a rock, or hit them with his rijn. Getting close was too dangerous with all their bladed limbs. But he was getting closer, rapidly. The more he focused on getting forward, the more it felt like the distance between him and the volcano was disappearing. And, not too long after, he had reached the foot of the mountain. Mercury could feel the pressure in his head growing. A voice, which had once whispered and was now screaming at him to stop. Well, less a voice and more a feeling of something commanding him. But he could also feel it failing. Trying to grip onto his mind and slipping off. He was winning, slowly but surely. But whatever he was winning against was fighting back. Shaking his head to clear it, Mercury simply focused on his resolve. There were too many reasons to count why this was necessary. This dream had done enough harm, to him, and to anyone else who''d ever been dragged into this place. He frowned again as he remembered the disjointed fever dream he''d gotten after dying four times. "No mercy," he told himself, scaling the dark stone. The fake sky above him was darkening now, the red of sunset sickeningly resembling the crimson of the ashen plains. Something hammered against his head but Mercury had endured worse pressure. He breathed deeply, and compressed his mind down to give even less to hold onto. Beneath his feet, the stone began to dissipate. Step by step, he was carried closer to the top, and while the world seemed so desperate to stop him, it couldn''t. The nexus was surely attempting to reshape things around him, to trap the mopaaw in a prison of stone, left to rot for eternity. Tried to get a grasp on his mind, but Mercury simply fortified it further. He was and , anything attempting to tie him down simply slid off, any attempt to harm him was faulted. The world around him, too, began to become like that. Instead of the rough stone of the mountain, he was walking on soft earth. The dream no longer bent to the whims of the nexus. Distantly, he could feel the clawing on his mind grow more and more manic. A dying dream which had made it through starvation for so long finally saw death coming. Perhaps, depending on how much the nexus could think, Mercury was the one that looked like a reaper. Once again, he shook his head, recollecting his thoughts to the task at hand. None of that mattered, it was simply moving forward now. With a last push of will, Mercury leapt over the edge of the mountain, seeing the nexus in the middle of roiling lava. It hung in the air, its shade of crimson a little darker than the liquid stone around it. Perhaps, some time ago, he would have felt scared, but no longer. Slowly, the mopaaw stepped forward some more, a horrible screech diggin at the edge of his ear, but he could ignore it. When he descended into the caldera, he could feel the heat shrinking away from him. It was strange, taking a step forward and feeling his fur heat up, before the atmosphere became comfortable again. Sparing it only a small thought, Mercury continued walking, until he reached the edge of the lava. For a moment, he hesitated, and it toiled again, but then he hardened his mind. He took a breath of the cool air and felt himself fall into a familiar ihn''ar. Like an old companion, a in gave him the confidence to move forward, and with a outwards, the caldera shook for a moment. The lava calcified, returning to inert rock, and the volcano became a regular mountain. He could feel his will press down on the nexus. It felt... like a starving animal, backed into a corner. Screaming and kicking and biting at whatever came near. But it was, at the end of the day, tired and starved, barely clinging onto life as it was. Watching it like that, a red dot hanging over a sea of black stone, Mercury almost felt pity for the thing, but his mind returned to peace a moment later. His heart was steady. He stepped forward, and the screeching at the edge of his mind turned to a whimper instead. He could almost feel fear towards himself, which was a strange sensation, but another later it had passed. And he was, finally, face to face with the mind of the heart of a dying dream. From up close, its surface was smooth, and its glow had ebbed. He could see his own reflection in it, his fur dirty with ash and blood and grime. But his eyes were clear, and for a moment Mercury was surprised at their intensity. Then, he reached out with his mind, compressed down as hard as he could with rijn, its surface smooth and without blemishes. He accelerated, and slammed it into the crimson nexus in front of him. For a moment, his mind touched something alien, something ancient, and something that had degenerated so far past what it had once been. Memories lost to the ages as it was eroded by time and hunger. It had been starving for so, so long, it could hardly remember what being filled was like again. With that desperation, it had reached out and drawn in victims, sent out its servants. It held starvation at bay, fought desperately for every single inch, and even now it was not giving up. All that dwindling power the nexus still held, every shrapnel of will it had leeched from everything that died within those dreams, it brought all of it to bear against Mercury. Heck, he could even feel a tiny sliver of himself in there. And every bit of it broke against Mercury''s will. He didn''t feel malicious against it in those last moments. The nexus barely held a will of its own, it was more a tool, a manifestation of its purpose to maintain a realm. No matter how much purpose was imbued in that thing, to Mercury it felt more like he was administering euthanasia to an old, wild dog from the street. It was on its last legs, and all that awaited were a few more years of suffering, now cut short. The nexus broke against Mercury''s will. He could hear its howl taper out into a whimper, then into a last breath, and then it was over. [Killed a Nexus. Get: 25 000 Exp, 5 000 Gold, Skillstone, Nexus Fragment.] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Level Up!] [Your Skills and Abilities have levelled up: 10>, 10>, 8>, 2>, 2>, 2>, 18>, 4>, 7>, 3>!] Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. [The "Nexus Fragment" has been automatically consumed by the individual. Their dreamscape is experiencing growth. It may be inaccessible for a few nights.] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] As the notifications rolled in, Mercury''s eyes swept the landscape around him. He could see it all crumbling apart. On the horizon, the ocean was beginning to fracture, cracks running along the waves as they dissipated into what he recognized as . First it was slow, but soon it sped up, and within seconds, the destruction was upon the island. The shore disappeared, then the jungle fractured apart, its grasses waving a sad goodbye to Mercury. Then it spread throughout the center of the island, eventually racing up the volcano. When it reached Mercury, the destruction was still speeding up, but he knew, instinctively, that it wouldn''t hurt him. When he saw it rushing towards him, he instead took the moment to get a deep glance at it, trying to peer into its secrets. Then the moment was over. Darkness consumed his vision for a moment, before he awoke, back in his physical body laying on a bed of pelts in a tent in a field of ash. For a brief bit, there was silence, until another notification rang out in Mercury''s mind. - [Main Quest: "Heart of a starving Dream" completed! Reward: Skill, mastery increase, 3500 Gold, choice of bound item from suitable list.] - [ completed! Reward: 1 level (Skill), Skill, mastery, proficiency milestone.] - [Levels have been added to the count. Character Levels: 5 Skill Levels: 1 Distributable Levels: 1] And immediately after the notification, there was an ear piercing scream from the mansion, loud enough for Mercury to recoil and feel like throwing up. He could feel the ground shake for a couple moments before it calmed again. Taking a few deep breaths, he calmed himself. That was the first step done, now he just had a little bit left to go. Which still wasn''t going to be easy, so he should probably take a look at the rewards, well, after giving a quick update. Luckily for him, with the screaming and shaking, all his allies gathered very quickly. Jirluc and Juno had still been there anyway, with Ruvah and Larash joining fairly soon. The sipisc, who usually went out hunting, just kind of stared at Mercury, while Juno''s eyes were much softer. He''d met all expectations, to say the least. When Larash and Ruvah came by, the water blob was already gurgling along words only Mercury could understand. "See, I told you he was going to do it, it was just a matter of time!" she said, seeming very happy with herself. Mercury didn''t doubt for a moment that she''d held full faith in him. The crafter, on the other hand, was much more aghast, looking at his admittedly smug smile. "You son of a bitch," she simply muttered, at a loss for words. Then her face twisted into a grin wide enough for her fangs to dig into her skin. "You son of a bitch!" she repeated, half-yelling this time before slapping her hand onto his shoulder. With the noise, Jirluc seemed to finally regain some of his composure, shaking his head slowly. "Let him speak," he said, "I would like to hear this story." So, Mercury gave a rather fast summary of what had happened. Finally reaching the nexus, climbing up the chains, attacking the thing, and then crushing its residual will. It felt strange trying to explain how it had felt up against his mind, getting the fact that he kind of pitied it across was hard. All of them had been tortured by that thing, and it''d attempted to kill them, so he didn''t feel any remorse about striking back, but the thought was still a little strange. Especially when he explained that the nexus wasn''t even really alive, more just... a thing with a directive to accomplish? It did have strong feelings about that directive though. "It''s done now though," he ended the explanation. "No more dreams of the bog. Unfortunately, that also means no more sustenance from the dream, so the servants might become more active, trying to hunt down and bring food to whatever lives inside the mansion." The others nodded. "That much is predictable. I''ll do my best to set up more traps and alarms, then," Larash said, already getting up. "We still have enough supplies to last us for a few days," Jirluc said, his voice returned to a neutral tone. "I''ll try to get us some more meat before the servants start roaming more. Juno, would you come along?" "Certainly," the wolf agreed, and the pair headed out, leaving Mercury and Ruvah alone again. "Well, I have quite a couple notifications to go through," the mopaaw admitted, and the blob of water nodded along. "I''ll go fill up some of the water reservoirs, then," she said cheerily, and headed off into one of the tunnels. Which left Mercury to take another look at his numbers. "Status." - - - Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 14 -> 21 Species: Leyfal Titles: , , , , , Alias: Beast, Mittens === Hp: 525/525 Mp: 717/717 Sp: 442/442 === Strength: 76 (+5) Vitality: 110 Dexterity: 85 -> 90(+1) Agility: 85 -> 91(+1) Intelligence: 101 -> 104 Wisdom: 91 -> 99(+2) Willpower: 113 -> 124 Luck: 75 -> 84 === Ability points: 60 World points: 542 Skill points: 1010 === Gold: 11353 Beast familiars: 1/2 - - - He was happy about the levels healing him back up. He didn''t get hurt badly, but it was still good to feel better already. His mind had been battered by the nexus, after all, no matter how much he fortified it. Ticking off that part, Mercury focused on the quest rewards. [Acquired the Skill through a quest. Skill already owned. Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [ has levelled up! 6>] [ mastery granted.] [Bound items list generated. Call up the list to initiate granting of reward.] The fact that nothing happened to despite the mastery gain was a bit annoying, but also somewhat expected. He''d only ran a single on difficulty 2, after all. The item notification interested him much more, but he decided that one could wait for a little while. First, he wanted to see the changes which had already happened. [: Proficiency: 1000/1000. Grade: Unique D. New Blessing: ] [: Any equipment with this passive blessing makes your steps quieter, and your tracks less deep. The wind will assist you in remaining silent. Go forth and be unseen.] [: Proficiency Milestone met. Grade Evolution initiated. Stat increases enhanced. New Blessing: . New Grade: Unique C.] With the last message, a blanket of light descended onto Mercury''s shoulders, and the usually green cloak became glistening white. It heated up against his back, going above the point of comfortable to being hot to the touch, before the glow faded, and the cloak returned to its green colouring. Now, it looked a little different. It was no longer simply tied around his neck, but held in place by a connecting strap attached to the main cloak with a set of buckles. Its edges were embossed with silver, a trim of it all around the cloak itself. On Mercury''s back, the inside felt softer, while he outside seemed more hardened, and resistant to cuts. Additionally, it now sported a faint image on the back, where one could make out the shape of a dragon in a faint shade of green. Its stat increases were now much, much higher, providing 15 to both Agility and Dexterity, which pushed him over the 100 mark in both, yet no threshold bonuses rang out. Mercury sighed. He''d probably need to reach a natural amount in the ability scores for those, then. It made sense, losing the bonuses from unequipping something would be kind of silly. In any case, he still had something to look at. [: This blessing is always passively in effect, but can be activated by channelling mana or stamina into the equipment. The piece will repair itself when damaged, and keep itself clean.] It really was turning into the perfect piece of utility clothing. Mercury smiled at that. He could cover up his issues in survivability with Skills, but the blessings he''d gotten on the cloak were hard to reproduce otherwise. He was really glad to have it. With that, he called up its updated status. [: A cloak made from the leather of a young lesser dragon. It channels leftover magic from the dragon to increase the wearer''s Agility and Dexterity (+15), protects them from bad weather, and has slight protective qualities. In addition, it is "growing" equipment, meaning that it will grow alongside its wearer and become more powerful as it is imbued with stronger Magic and the user earns new Blessings. Blessings: , , , . Proficiency: 0/1000. Grade: Unique C.] The description had changed slightly, and now included a list of his blessings, which was nice. The proficiency requirements not increasing was also quite nice, though he was unsure which amounts would count as milestones this time. He''d see, in the end. Moving on from that, Mercury took a look at his new Skills. [: This Skill allows the individual''s body and mind greater freedom at adapting to extreme situations. Examples include: increased hair growth in cold environments, increased shedding in warm environments, possible creation of sweat glands powered by stamina, stronger mental tolerance to extreme situations, greater resistance to terror effects.] It was a passive and active Skill, which slotted firmly into his increasing skillset for adventuring. Being able to shift himself depending on what environments he was in was priceless if he ever wanted to travel somewhere cold or had to trek through a desert. He didn''t exactly know what his current species'' native environment was, but he''d guess it wasn''t on a glacier. At the very least, he''d be grateful for the Skill during winter and summer. Then, before using it, he checked the Skill in the skillstone. [: This skillstone can be used to acquire the Skill at level four. The Skill contained herein is a somewhat rare evolution of Skills such as and . The individual becomes much more resistant to the effects of starvation, as their body becomes able to absorb and store nutrients much more efficiently. The Skill itself offers a storage for nutrients outside the physical body. Additionally, it allows the individual to digest substances which would otherwise be harmful to them. Examples include: Carrion, blood, small amounts of caffeine, larger sugars, fibrous fruits and vegetables.] Mercury gawked at that. Sure, the first part was great and all, being less likely to starve was already awesome, even when it usually wasn''t an immediate concern. But that last bit was where the money was at. He could properly digest sugars and fruit now, not just tolerate them. He could eat proper, full meals! Mashed potatoes, sandwiches, Salads, grilled veggies, he could have it all back!! Mercury almost cried at the thought. "Proper food..." he muttered to himself. With his body being what it was, he hadn''t felt at all repulsed by eating raw meat. But the fact was that he had a human mind, and while he never minded, its taste was nowhere near close to the delicacies of earth and the many dozen spices he''d used there. Mercury''d been a competent chef, courtesy of living on his own, and he finally might have a chance to enjoy some good fucking food again! Not a second later, he''d activated the item. [Acquired the Skill through a skillstone.] Neither of his new Skills were extremely suited for direct combat very much, but Mercury didn''t mind in the slightest. Of course, might make him think better in a combat situation, and could allow him to go for more bites, without worrying about poison as much, but that was far from their main point. Mercury was happy about them because they''d make his life far, far more comfortable, which he was perhaps even more grateful for. Besides, he still had two evolutions and an item to go. One of those was bound to grant him some more frontloaded power, right? Chapter 141: Rewards Chapter 141: Rewards Now then, what should he evolve first? Wait, did he even have enough points for both evolutions? ? [ evolution cost: 300 Skill points. evolution cost: 700 Skill points.] He barely had enough then. "Evolve ," Mercury said. [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same, no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. 4. ] As usual, Mercury pulled up the Skill descriptions. [: A Skill which allows the user greater flexibility and body control when hiding. They also gain a sense on how to use cover, and minimize exposed surface area. Additionally, any noise or smell produced by the individual becomes less pronounced.] It was pretty much what you''d expect from a Skill for stealth. A simple, straightforward improvement of everything to do with hiding, and a very decent contender. [: By wrapping a material around themselves, the individual becomes able to easily pass as an inanimate object. The cocoon can take different colours and shapes, and can leave gaps small enough for the user to look out through. When moving, the cocoon moves with the user.] That... seemed a lot like a certain cardboard box he remembered from a game. It was probably available because it was exactly what he''d used to get past the wall of gloom stalkers protecting the nexus. As of right now, the Skill seemed good, but a little situational at the same time. Mercury decided to move on for now. [: Using this Skill, the individual can cloak their form. While active, the user''s body is covered in a veil, which makes it hard for people to keep their attention on the individual, or discern their true nature.] Once again, he was offered a Skill that seemed to be based on what Mercury had done. The similarities between this and the veil he''d pierced when practicing ihn''ar were stunning, especially the part about "being unable to discern the true nature" of something. The issue he saw was the lack of info on the strength of the veil. The fact that there were no environmental conditions was great and all, but it also meant that the Skill would be lacking in other areas. Then again, if he levelled and evolved it again, it might make him nigh on invisible... he''d consider it again after reading the last one. [: The individual is hard to catch. The surface of their skin can, at will, be coated with lubricant, allowing them to slip out of material bounds far more easily. Additionally, when running from something, the individual projects illusions based on their movement speed, making the distance to them harder to judge for the pursuer.] His final option was, in essence, a Skill which only really helped once you were actually caught, and also somewhat overlapped with . Being able to escape more easily was great, but honestly, he would really rather not get into tough situations in the first place. For someone else, Mercury could imagine this Skill doing serious work, especially someone mainly focused on speed, but it just didn''t feel quite right for him. Which narrowed his choices down to three. Next out of the race was . It was just too restrictive. If he grew in size some more, which he most likely would, the Skill would be more and more impractical. Also, people in this world weren''t all idiots. Anyone with half decent eyesight would notice a moving rock, and if he got investigated even once, he''d be kind of screwed. Which left him torn between and . Mainly, because the latter was cool as shit. Just being able to stop others from thinking about him? It was literally what had already saved his life when he was dragged through one of the blood eclipse rifts in the first place. It would also work regardless of how big he was, but that was something still covered better, allowing him to find suitable cover and all. In the end, what tipped the scales was the fact that eyesight-based Skills existed, and would probably be more common in scouts than mental ones. If someone forgot about searching for him, that would make his life easier than hiding. And also, making himself practically undetectable, even when walking right under someone''s nose, sounded absolutely awesome. it was. [Evolution selected.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Then, Mercury moved on to the next thing on the agenda. "Evolve ." [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same, no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. ] Those sure were some names. Seems like Skills a monk could have, or some sort of hundred-year old sage. Mercury called up their descriptions. [: Long ago, there was a time before conflict, a time before life itself. Back then, there was harmony. The user of this Skill will be able to resonate with inanimate objects, putting their body in stasis or slowing their thoughts. Meditation will come easier to them, as there are no more distractions, for all is one and thus there is no "other" to distract the individual.] Yup, this was some buddhist shit if he ever saw anything like it. Live in harmony with all other things, everything used to be one and the same. It might not be entirely accurate, but it definitely had some zen undertones. He didn''t quite know how useful putting his body in stasis would be, but easier meditation might help with ihn''ar as well. It was worth considering, at least. [: The mind is a lake. Its water so clear you can see straight through to the bottom, and its surface so calm it forms a perfect mirror of the world. If the individual wishes, they can smoothen out any wave on their mind. Calm comes easy, and allure washes off like winter flees from spring rain. A clear mind allows one to see things as they are, especially oneself. Provides bonuses to self-reflection and peering into others.] His second option seemed to double down on pretty hardcore, advancing every bit of it in exchange for branching out very little. Looking at it, Mercury knew it could be useful, especially knowing it helped against adverse states of mind, and only did so if the user chose to "smooth out" those waves. For now though, he kept his mind open to the third Skill. [: Not being a true aura Skill, the name here refers to an effect that is always active around the user. Those who surround the individual experience calming effects, and will be more likely to view the user favorably. The second effect is less likely to apply to those with high willpower, and the first only applies to those who already view the individual as a companion.] Mercury blinked and read the Skill through a second time. That was totally mind control, right? Like, a very light form, sure, but it certainly changed the way a person thought about him. Well, then again, so did just dressing more nicely or smelling good, to a degree, but still. The path this Skill could take in the future didn''t seem like something he would enjoy at all, quite frankly. Maybe it was suitable for someone working at a confession booth or something, but to Mercury, the Skill seemed rather meh and a little icky, especially compared to the others on offer. Once again, he was down to two option, and . The two seemed very similar, but there were some key differences. was much more general, and applied to himself as well, while seemed to specifically target non-living things. Which also meant that it wouldn''t exactly help with his understanding of himself, or any plantlife. Also, the fact that gave him clearer indication of how strong his emotions were, and what bothered him, with the added option of calming himself, it felt like the better Skill overall. He selected it. [Evolution selected.] Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Finally, Mercury moved on to the bound item he was promised. "Show list of generated bound items." [1. Remembrance of the Fallen 2. Dream of Starvation 3. Patchwork Darkness] ", what exactly does a bound item entail?" [A bound item is an item that is always with the individual and will shape itself to whatever their body currently appears as. It does not take up an inventory slot, and will repair itself between uses if damaged or dirtied. When conjured, it will shape itself and appear where the user wishes it to on their body, though the appendage has to be compatible with the item. You may view your bound items within a suitable space. In your case, this will be your dreamscape. When the individual perishes, the item disappears with them.] That was very much so in line with what he imagined for a bound item, then. So, what did the items actually do? [Remembrance of the Fallen: This item manifests as a small, ruby amulet on the wearer. For every creature the wearer kills, the item gains one charge, up to a limit of 500. These charges can be consumed to enhance the wearer''s stats temporarily, or to purge their body of ailments. What use are the dead but to sustain the living?] Alriiiight, that sure set the tone for the items. Mercury was now more than sure that the items were definitely themed after the nexus. Literally sustaining himself from all the things he killed? Now that was some shit. He didn''t really hate the idea of the item, but he also kind of didn''t exactly want to become some sort of life-essence eating monster. [Dream of Starvation: This weapon manifests to enhance the user''s naturally gifted means of attack, often appearing as a set of gloves, or an extension to one''s claws or nails. When your attacks carve into an opponent, their body will be sapped of nutrients and stamina, an image of your weapon haunting them in their dreams. May any wounds you carve cause themselves unhealable, and scar your victim''s heart forever.] What the actual hell? He got offered some sort of vampire-life-essence pending, and then a set of stronger claws which would literally follow whoever he fought into their dreams? Fucking hell. Mercury shook his head for a few seconds. There were a few non-moral issues with the item as well. Of course, sapping stamina and shit was really nice, but the whole haunting part would only really work if they survived the fights, which seemed like something that wouldn''t happen very often. Unless he ambushed someone, of course, but then, wouldn''t he already have an advantage? It seemed like a good choice for battles of attrition, but he wasn''t quite sold on it. [Patchwork Darkness: A needle must be used for stitching, and this bound item is a very special carving tool. It allows you to stitch dark to darker, creating a tapestry of thick smoke the user may deploy to bind anything within, including themselves. In order to sew something with the needle, you must be in area of sufficient darkness, and supply it with mana or blood.] The final item on the list was slightly less sinister, but also seemed kind of underwhelming? Sure, he could definitely see the use in throwing out blankets of darkness, but at the same time, when would he realistically use that? When running away from something? Then he better have one heck of a sheet prepared. Maybe when sneaking up on something in the night? Deeper darkness would also stick out. Again, this seemed like an item with potential, but it felt like it wouldn''t quite fit into his skillset, especially after him just choosing . Then again, how much potential could these items have? ", can bound items grow with the user?" he asked. [All bound items may grow. Most of them share the growing trait, which the individual''s cloak also possesses for example, allowing them to increase in grade and gain additional effects as their proficiency increases, however all bound items have secondary advancement conditions unique to the item itself. These will not necessarily be revealed, but can usually be fulfilled by using the item, sometimes in creative ways.] So, two ways of growing them, then. He could sort of guess what the way to grow them would be, here. The first one probably needed to be fed whatever it absorbed when he killed something into the item itself, or he needed to have it full and keep killing. For the claws, maybe there was some sort of mechanism that let him have it grow from absorbing nutrients or blood, which was creepy, but also valuable. Finally, he''d guess the needle might just devour darkness into itself every time he stitched something? All of these were just hunches, but at the same time, he kind of felt a soft ringing of approval from , so there was that to consider. Knowing that all of them were bound to grow with him also made an impact on his choices. He really, really was starting to need a weapon. Sure, his mind was a powerful tool, and so were the rocks, but having some advantage when things got up close and personal would be great. The more he thought about it, the more Mercury leaned towards the Dream of Starvation. He wasn''t guaranteed to get a reward like this again anytime soon, and it would be really quite hard to find any weapons that would adjust themselves to fit him, especially given he was probably closing in on another evolution bit by bit. Having decided, Mercury nodded. "System, give me the "Dream of Starvation", please." [Got: Dream of Starvation (bound).] As soon as the notification came through, Mercury felt a slight shift, a muscle in his mind that had not been there before. He tugged on it lightly, feeling it was bound to be good. [Dream of Starvation: Grade: Bound C - Proficiency (0/1000) Rank: 0 - Growth (0/1000)] Immediately, he could feel the notification manifest in front of him, showing the progress on the weapon. Apparently, it was C grade, which meant its enchantments were probably rather powerful, given that it seemingly provided no direct boosts to stats. An item with a rank was something new though. That was probably the special avenue for growth that had mentioned. It was nice to know that he could check his progress on that front as well. Besides the window, Mercury could also feel that he could move the new part of his mind differently. He could tell that he was able to pull up the entire status if he wished and quickly did so to confirm, but it was just what he''d already read before, only adding the Grade at the end. Other than that, though, there was a third function of his muscle, and Mercury had some intuition on what it meant. Sure enough, when he flexed it, he willed the item into being, watching as silvery sparks coalesced around his paws. Once the light had disappeared, Mercury found his legs up to his shins wrapped in a thin fabric, with a metallic sheen. The construction fit him perfectly, as though it was made by a world class tailor, just for him. When he shifted his weight, all of it shifted smoothly as well, and he found he could even change its shape slightly if he wanted to, but never extend it past his knee. Where his legs ended and his paws began, the fabric shifted slightly. It wrapped around the bottom of his feet as well, where they touched the floor, but it felt wispy thin, letting him still feel the ground he was walking on. There was the option to make it thicker, but by now Mercury was very used to waking barefoot, and honestly preferred it that way. However, the easily most recognizable feature was where the item wrapped around his claws. It seemed to be made from liquid abyss, a lightless metal swirling around his natural weapons. He tried pulling them back, and found that the metal simply smoothed itself out, wrapping around the top of his paws instead. Extending his claws again, the metal flowed downwards and formed a black shell around them before Mercury could even blink. He attempted to will the substance out further, and it obeyed. He could give himself an extra two, maybe three centimeters of reach with it, seeing the metal elongate into wicked blades. After some testing and getting used to the strange item, Mercury dismissed it again, seeing it dissolve away into nothingness. He felt very badass doing it, even with the item being a little unsettling. Hopefully, it wouldn''t start whispering to him about needing to be fed... - - - When he was finally done with all of his rewards - excluding the shard, which was still being processed, somehow, right now -, there was another inhuman screech on the outside of the tent. Something was quite clearly quite mad at him. Well, more like at everything around, but if it knew he''d destroyed the nexus, then he''d probably be its target. Deciding he should at least make an effort to join the others, Mercury stepped out of the hut. The sight of the ashen plains he''d grown so accustomed to seemed a bit different these days. The ash fell faster, blanketing the ground in a thick layer of dust, and making the air hard to breathe. The crimson sun had dimmed, its red hue intensified. The landscape looked less aflame, and much more alien, bloody. So much so, in fact, that he couldn''t tell apart the ground where blood had been shed, and where it hadn''t. And there was plenty of blood. Dozens of servants were roaming around the mansion, and just as many had walked outwards, turning their blank faces to the sky and drawing in air through their nostrils. Some of them seemed more developed, vertical cracks among their faces revealing maws filled with rows and rows of teeth. Those tasted the air with their grotesque tongues, almost like snakes. Bit by bit, they filtered through the landscape, seeking out prey and tearing it apart. Blood flowed as though from a river, and corpses were dragged back to the mansion, the trails soon disappearing in the storm. Surprisingly, very few of the servants were approaching their hut, most simply stalked by, hardly sparing it a glance. Perhaps they couldn''t smell them, or perhaps they simply knew not to approach the traps, Mercury couldn''t tell. As he looked over the landscape, he turned to the right, coming face to face with Juno, who was... surprisingly close. Of course, someone as brave as him had no reason to jump at such an absolutely expected event, and no part of him even flinched. Obviously. He was no scaredy-cat. "The servants are swarming out to gather food, m-Mercury," the name still rolled off her tongue awkwardly, as she barely avoided calling him her liege again. "We already decided to head back, Jirluc should be here any moment." And just as she said, the hunter soon arrived, wading through the field of traps with confident steps. He gave Mercury a quick glance filled with a mix of hope and worry, but shook his head a moment later and headed inside, presumably to prepare their food. "He doesn''t talk much, does he? Why do the servants avoid us?" he asked. "Larash set up a contraption which releases a terrible stench to the servants. Their meat is hardly edible at all, and their screams attract more of their kind, so it was an important measure to keep our traps free from them, and ready to catch other creatures," the wolf explained, gazing at the mansion. "I see," Mercury nodded. "Do you think we''ll escape here?" he asked again. Juno paused for a few moments, turned her eyes away from the building in the crater, and faced the mopaaw. "I do not know," she said, after some time. "But I know that if I die now, I will have no regrets." Mercury flinched slightly at that. "No regrets? Why is that?" he half-hissed through gritted teeth. "My life was never my own, Mercury," the wolf replied calmly. "There is no blame on you for where we find ourselves. It was simply poor luck. I would rather die here, a free wolf, making my own decisions, than still live in the forest, caged within my own instincts." "Right," Mercury whispered, then remained silent for a few moments, gathering his thoughts. "Thanks for your trust. I''ll try my best to get all of us out of here." With a nod from Juno, Mercury felt his resolve steeled. He''d not known all these people for very long, but sharing a desperate situation created strong bonds. They''d survive, and so would he. And they''d get out of here. - [Main Quest: "House of a starving Court" (Chain <2>) Condition: The individual has bested the nexus of the starving dream, cutting off the nutrients it harvested from the destitute and gave to the court. The ashen plains will break soon, and time is ticking. Enter the mansion and survive until you find the exit to this place. Reward: 500 Skill points, mastery, mastery, 2 levels (character, instant).] - He just had to break through the mansion now. Chapter 142: Past the Golden Days Chapter 142: Past the Golden Days /The Thing eventually arrived on a red wasteland. It had grown larger during its journey through the ocean, engorging itself on leviathans. Its grey skin had become covered in thin, slick, glistening scales, its feet sprouting webbing. But when its many legs finally found land again, it shook off the water and glanced around. By now, the Thing was much more adaptable. Its eyes grew lids again as it made its way onto land. The scales stopped shining and hardened into a smooth armor. The webbing between its toes receded, and the fins on its back merged back into its skin. In this new place, the Thing tasted the air, its tongue whipping out. There was so much to notice. The smell of fire, smoke, and sulphur, but also the smell of sweat and meat. It could hear the rushing of blood somewhere in the distance, and its hunger grew as it noticed the slightest signs of life. Thus, the thing journeyed again, seeking out prey. It devoured beetles with hardened chitin shells, its fangs crushing their armor as though it were thinner than paper. Hound wreathed in shadow fell to its maw, same as the strange, flying creatures with scythes for arms. But its most tasty morsel here it would find once it happened upon buildings. A city, larger than any it had seen before, populated by creatures that were as different as one could imagine. Some had two arms, some six, some none, walking only on their feet. Most were bipedal, but their legs were varied, between hooves and digitigrades, or humanoid knees. Their heights and statures were different, and some seemed to be entirely unsustainable, taking the shape of flying eyeballs or maws. Yet somehow, all of them lived peacefully with each other. And they smelled so very, very tasty... Not long after the thing arrived on Arterus, it carved its way through one of the 72 demon cities./ (Legends: The Thing - 7; New Frontier) - - - - - - Things went quickly from there. Jirluc and Larash prepared their food, with Ruvah helping them draw the water from it. They didn''t know what was inside the mansion, but given the enormous amounts of servants entering and leaving it recently, they assumed it might be bigger on the inside. Their food reserves were solid, more than enough to feed the five of them for a week or two. Said supplies were evenly distributed among the inventories of the party members, since there was no guarantee they''d be able to loot it, and outside of the inventory, the smell might attract servants. Jirluc and Larash also took weapons with them. Apparently the hunter had a handful of backup spears, and a good amount of javelins, while the crafter carried a crossbow around. Well, calling it a crossbow might have been generous, it looked more like she was lugging around a small ballista. With their ragtag group assembled, the five of them immediately set to waiting. There were servants streaming in and out of the mansion at all times. As time passed though, the servants lessened. Those who left needed to go further to find something to feed the mansion, and thus returned later. A few more hours ticked by, and the numbers had become almost manageable. There were still quite a few servants around, but their numbers weren''t reducing anymore. Perhaps, the spawn rate of monsters was now matching what the servants could hunt. Whatever the case, the group decided it was time to head in, not just because of the pressure, but also because of the encroaching ash storm. The thick layers of grey had been swirling up for some time now, and a thick wall of them was now approaching the mansion. For once, Mercury was happy about the cloud. It made visibility much poorer, meaning they''d have an easier time sneaking by the servants, and it would also mean that their hunts went slower, meaning they''d need longer to return. Maybe his higher luck was beginning to pay off. When the swirls of ash around their feet started reaching up to Mercury''s torso, the group decided to head off. If the taller members crouched, they were now almost fully hidden, and if they waited any longer, they''d be swallowed up by the storm themselves. After just a few steps from the hut, they could hear the howls of the servants growing louder, only to have them drowned out by the wind. Through the swirls of ash, they occasionally caught glimpses of pale skin or long, jagged claws, but none noticed them. For a short eternity, things continued like that. The five of them waded through the mass of grey, flakes of ash sticking to their bodies. The mansion grew bigger in their sight step by step, and soon they''d made it past the halfway point. The wind was picking up even more now, the ash swirling so high Mercury sometimes couldn''t see anymore, and the howling loud enough to drown any noise. When they made it about three quarters of the way, things finally went south. One of the servants had spotted Larash, who was both the tallest of their group, and the one with the fewest stealth Skills. It didn''t matter that she was covered by the ash again moments after, the creature had picked up her smell, even for a moment, and was bounding towards them. They''d talked it through. The wind was strong enough to throw off Larash''s aim, so it was up to Jirluc, Juno, and Mercury. The mopaaw was first, motes of light collecting around his front paws as they coalesced into dark steel. He had his active, and it worked. With the wind and Larash distracting the servant, Mercury got close to it entirely unnoticed. He lashed out with , and reinforced his legs with mana, stamina, and even willpower. Strength flooded his limbs, and he''d carved deep gashes into the servant''s leg before it could even blink. A moment later, Mercury could see its muscles atrophy slightly, and the blood which touched the Dream of Starvation immediately disappeared into the dull metal. Being wounded, and having both its legs suddenly weaker, the servant lost balance, stumbled, and crashed to the ground. Immediately, Juno was upon it, dealing a blow to its head and disorientating the creature, before Jirluc severed its neck. The servant was dead. Mercury ignored the notification informing him of his contribution, and simply ran. They had to distance themselves from the corpse, before the other servants smelled the blood. Sure enough, after gaining only a few dozen meters of distance, Mercury glanced back and saw another one of the creatures drag the dead one towards the mansion. It was slow, the wind whipping against its frame as the storm''s fury grew, and then it was obscured by waving flakes of ash again. Mercury shook his head, increasing his pace and following the others. By now, the ash rushed through the air high enough for them to be hidden while running, so they abandoned any pretense of sneaking. One more servant caught a glance of them through the ash, but when it leapt, a gust of wind caught it, and tossed it aside. Before it had another chance to catch up, the group was past the entrance to the mansion, and slammed the door shut. It opened to the outside, so luckily, the wind whipping against it made the door harder to open, not to close. Still, none of them allowed a moment of relaxation. Mercury kept himself tense, scanning the lavish entry hall for any sign of danger. The sight was grotesque. It was a perfect example of flaunting one''s wealth, an opulent hall, the floor covered in expensive looking rugs, and the walls lined with once-paintings, framed in gold. Above them hung a chandelier which may once have been beautiful, but many of its glass and crystal parts were cracked, and the floor beneath it covered in shards. Many of the rugs on the floor were torn, the lacquered wood of the floor scratched and banged up. Streaks of blood painted a red carpet up the stair and towards an open archway into another room. The paintings were shredded into bits of paper, and the golden frames full of claw marks. Perhaps, this place had been lavish long ago, but by now, the twisted servants had carved a mark of animalistic disrepair into it. All of them must have gone mad long ago, to so thoroughly dismantle any sense of grandness. Taking in the damage only took Mercury half a heartbeat, as his eyes locked onto the danger in the room. three servants were in there, each dragging the corpse of some creature from the plains. Immediately, their heads locked onto the party, and they let out howls of fury as their faces split and revealed fanged maws. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Then, a crack rang out, as the string of Larash''s crossbow snapped forward, launching a fist thick bolt straight through one of the abominations'' heads. It tore a hole through it, and then the creature''s body fell to the floor, motionless. For a moment, the other two servants went silent, then howled again, and charged. Jirluc drew his spear, holding it out far in front of him as his eyes steeled. Juno became almost translucent, a thin haze of white mist trailing off her body. A sheet of ice began to stretch across the floor in front of the servants, Ruvah''s eyes narrowed in focus. And Mercury? He stood back, his bag of rocks at his side. They''d unanimously agreed on this, well, except Mercury, but that was beside the point. All of them wanted to live, but at the end of the day if Mercury died, all of them would. He was their key to the outside world, if anything similar to the dream came up again. So, he got to simply sit there and watch, as the remaining servants slipped on the ice, swiftly being taken care of by Jirluc and Juno. The sipisc walked over the sheet of frozen water completely unbothered by it, and cut off one of the creature''s arms at the wrist when it tried to swipe at him. It died to thrust into its head a moment later. Juno took not much longer. When the mist layer on her body had grown thick, she took a step and simply vanished, reappearing on the servant''s back, and biting at it. Her jaws closed, and then there was a noise as though glass shattered, as the creature''s flesh broke apart. Not a drop of blood spilled, only frozen red crystals plinking to the floor as the servant lay still. Not paying it much attention, the group swiftly moved on, the ice on the floor disappearing back into liquid. Usually, they''d be exploring all of the mansion, but right now, the servants seemed to have made a fairly clear path for them. Following the trails of blood, the party made their way up the twin stairs, through the arch, into a ballroom, then onto a balcony. Strangely, from the balcony, the view was not of the ashen plains, but rather a garden. It must have once been filled with flowers, but now only rotten husks and dried stalks remained under its starry sky. The firmament itself looked realistic, nothing like the patchwork it had been in the nightmare, but at the same time, the stars hung low. Almost as though they were about to drop. Mercury only had a moment to admire the sheer disrepair of it all, before they continued on upwards, following a stair on the side of the garden. they entered another room by walking through a door which no longer remained on its hinges. In there, another two servants were waiting for them, one of which swiftly exploded with a bolt from Larash, and the second didn''t last very long against Jirluc and Juno either. However, it lasted long enough to let out a howl, and attract more of the creatures. The room had perhaps been a gallery at some point, and sported many door off to the side, from which servants now piled in. Some of them were more twisted than what they had seen before, with elongated limbs and spindly bodies, while some seemed almost... humanoid, wearing a facsimile of eyes and a mouth twisted into an eternal smile. Even the ones with somewhat human faces still had venom tipped claws and appendages which bent the wrong ways though, soon shuffling and galloping towards the group. Within moments, the floor was covered in ice again, but this time, many of the creatures held on, digging their claws into the floor. Taking a quick turn, the five of them dashed into a side room, much smaller than the gallery, and then took another random door, picking one that was mostly intact. Beyond the door, there was a small closet, filled with silverware. There was also a thick layer of dust, much more so than anywhere else in the mansion. It seemed as though the servants almost weren''t allowed in there. Shutting the door, the five of them braced against the back wall. Larash put down a handful of traps from her inventory, and Jirluc pointed his spear at the door, reading to thrust. They heard growling outside, and the scraping of claw against stone, then it stopped. There was silence for a few moments, then a howl. Seconds ticked by, and more howls joined the chorus, a host of servants standing outside the door. It was loud enough to make Mercury''s ears ring, and yet, nothing else happened. None of them attacked the door. After a few minutes, the noise grew quieter. Having given up on howling, the servants simply stalked the door, walking and waiting for whoever was inside to come out. But Mercury didn''t give them that chance. Very slowly, he had Juno cover the floor with mist, just faint enough to hide something, but almost unnoticeable. Then, he weaved tiny threads, as thin as he could make then, and moved them past the door. He slowly wrapped them around the servants as though they were jewelry, not inhibiting their movements. And with it, bit by bit, the creatures seemed to forget, and wander off, the sound of claws clicking disappearing down the hallway. Just to make sure it was safe, they stayed for a while longer, each eating some of their supplies, swallowing as soon as it exited their inventory to draw no attention. Once an hour had passed, it was simply silent out the door. They allowed themselves a peek. Nothing remained in the room, except a broken table, and remnants of silky threads on the floor. Nodding to each other, the party moved on, going back to the gallery they''d come from. This time, only a single servant prowled the large room, and they were able to avoid it using a pillar, and Juno''s mist. Apparently, it somewhat stopped smells from leaking out and muffled sounds, so the monster took no notice of the group. Sneaking by, they followed the trail of blood. It had worn thinner now. The streaks of red were starting to grow faint, but with some help from tracking abilities, they were able to continue along its path nonetheless. After the gallery, they made their way into a study, filled with bookshelves. Except most of the wood was splintered and on the floor. Books had pages ripped out and strews all over the room, most of them covered in gibberish scribbles rather than letters. No, it wasn''t even a language, more like a child trying to imitate the writing of their parents. From the study, another stairwell led higher up, into a foyer that seemed to stretch on forever. At the very end of it, there were three servants, but no matter how much they ran towards the party, they grew not a step closer. Luckily, the path the servants had followed to feed whatever it is they were feeding, took them through the first entry on the right, into a suite. It had a fractured mirror, and a broken bed, the once lavish sheets gnawed threadbare by time. A door which should have led to a walk-in closet instead revealed a spiral staircase leading up, and up, and further up. But the mansion seemed less silent now, less decrepit and more... alive. As Mercury walked, he could swear the stone was shifting between his paws. He''d unequipped the Dream of Starvation a little while ago, since the metal clicked loudly against the stone, and without it, he could also feel the ground better. The stone had... give. It felt more like he was walking on soft dirt. "Is it just me," he whispered, "or is the ground weird?" While no one responded with word, he saw the others nod slightly, and their grips on their weapons tightened. They kept walking tensely for some time, eventually hearing the clicking sounds of a servant''s claw against stone behind them, and speeding up a little. Finally, they reached the top of the stairwell. Nothing else happened. Until they opened the door at the end, and a brick flew towards them, barely dodged by Jirluc. The sipisc tightened his jaw and resisted swearing, gradually moving forward some more. It seemed the mansion had given up pretenses. It was being openly hostile now, flinging stone bricks at Jirluc, who dodged or deflected the projectiles. They were higher up now, in areas where there were hardly any servants, but they could hear the clicking behind them speed up. Quickly, Larash pulled a large shield of fused bone from her inventory. "Behind me," she spoke, keeping her voice low, and everyone followed. They could hear bricks dully impacting against their protection, but the orc woman was relentless. She took larger steps than any of them could hope to match, pushing through the frontal barrage to the point Mercury was half-jogging just to keep up. When they made it past another door, the mansion began to turn much, much more hostile suddenly. It was an armory, and the suits of rusted plate very quickly began advancing towards them. Again, the group was quick to dismantle them. Ruvah knocked a few onto the ground with blasts of water, Juno simply jumped onto them and pulled the metal apart. Jirluc put his spear back into his inventory, and instead began grappling and throwing the empty suits of armor, while Larash pulled them apart at the joins with brute force. Mercury tripped them up with , then smashed them with his will. Of course, they didn''t fight all the armors, simply the ones which managed to get in their way as they stormed through the room. Some of the armors got up, only to stumble over other suits, and leave themselves in a tangle of plates and decay. But the mansion wasn''t done. Wherever they stepped, it began launching things at them, animating its walls and furniture in fury against the intruders. It threw stones, weapons, silverware, and everything else that wasn''t nailed down against them. Yet, at the end of the day, it was a house. They created a formation to protect themselves. Larash covered the front or anything heavy with her shield. Smaller objects were handled by Mercury and Ruvah, with the former erecting a barrier which would slow everything down, and the latter creating a dome of ice around the group. Anything that still came crashing through was met with Jirluc''s spear, or batted aside by Juno. They advanced quickly through the rooms, occasionally meeting a single servant on their return from the feeding, and dispatching the creatures. There would sometimes be howls from behind, but those only served to alert the group. They''d simply turn around, and someone would handle the servant. By keeping their numeric advantage, no one of the party got wounded, and the servants'' poison, their greatest weapon, had no effect. The mansion tried to stop them, of course, but at the end of the day it was only a building. It took the party another 3 stairways, but finally, when the trail they''d been following was almost too faint, they opened one more door, into a room without an exit. There was a run down throne in the room, the rocks used to construct it long in the process of falling apart, pieces of it on the floor. The air was thick with dust, dancing through the rays of red sunlight shining in from the shattered windows. Bits and pieces of monsters were on the floor before the throne, most of them with only the shell left. Chitinous shells, and blades of bone littered the ground, with not a single drop of blood or flesh attached to them. On the throne sat a creature which had, perhaps, at some point, been a woman. Her breath was ragged, her leathery, cracked skin clinging onto nothing but bone as she desperately devoured what the servants brought her. Some of the creatures were in the room, paying no attention to the intruders. All of them brought their offerings, and eagerly awaited for the thing on the throne to feast on them. One which had brought a small offering was devoured alongside the creature it had dragged to its queen, yet the other servants were unperturbed. They seemed proud to help this creature, their maws twisted upwards in elation. The lady on the throne slowly raised her meagre head from her morsel, and turned towards the intruders. Her eyes were sunken, and seemed to be almost entirely black, with a thin, crimson iris around the pupils. By all accounts the woman looked like she should have been dead, yet when she spoke, her voice rang out clearly and sonorously. "And these little eyes of mine, See a little fate of thine." Her lips moved out of sync with the words, as her finger slowly rose to point at the party. "They see death, and they see carnage, A river of blood, a crime to be punished, carrying your life away, and dragging it, into the pit." When her speech ended, Mercury heard a notification for his quest completion, before a dozen howls descended onto them. Chapter 143: Last Stand Chapter 143: Last Stand He didn''t have the time or luxury to read through the stats he gained, but a quick glance told him had levelled up to 5. A new quest rang out, this one in his mind, rather than as a notification. - [Main Quest: "Lady of a starving Star" (Chain <3>) Condition: After making it through the treacherous mansion, the individual has finally reached the last lady of the court. This final foe stands between you and the shattering of the crimson sun. Do not falter. Break apart this long forgotten vestige and bring a bit of peace to those who lost companions to it. Reward: Variable.] - The text sounded in his ears, and he knew all of it in a moment. The howls from the servants assaulted his senses next, all of them roaring as one. From the throne, the woman wheezed as her finger lowered, but her eyes never left Mercury. They burned with malice, fury, and desperate hunger. He knew she wanted to reclaim the pieces he stole from their nexus. Mercury had perhaps finally fulfilled part of his name. He''d become a thief, taking what belonged to someone else. He didn''t feel bad about it, either. Looking into those sunken, black and red eyes, there was nothing left but hatred and a need to consume. Whoever this person had once been, the crimson sun burned out any humanity in them. Perhaps she''d forsaken it by choice, perhaps it had been taken, it didn''t matter. Her blood-smeared face had no laugh lines. This woman knew cruelty above all. Staring her down, Mercury didn''t buckle. Perhaps, some time ago, he would have been afraid. If he had been newly reincarnated, he would have almost certainly backed down. But he wasn''t. Steve had long since grown to be more. He stepped forward, and the servants descended. But he had not come alone. Within a moment of the howl, Mercury''s party moved in to help. Ruah created shields and threw spikes of ice. Juno disappeared in flashes of mist, distracting the servants. Jirluc used a hooked spear to entangle them, throwing the servants sideways and into Larash''s traps. One of the servants approached Mercury, but he was unperturbed. He smoothed the ripples of his mind, and felt calm wash over him. Of course, he left certain types, still feeling the anger and grim determination burn in his heart, but as he burnt even the last wisps of fear away, Mercury compressed his mind. The rijn he created now was no longer a forging hammer. It had become heavier, grander, and stronger. It smashed into the servant like a wrecking ball, taking the creature off its feet and sending it spiraling through the air, landing in a spot of rubble. Black-red eyes locked with purple ones, and Mercury could feel reality lurch around him. Up turned to down, and right to left. The shades of crimson leaking through the window turned dark and malicious, formless tendrils suddenly reaching out for him. The monster wearing human skin turned beautiful, and Mercury could feel affection try to take hold of him. "Joke''s on you, bitch. I''m gay," he said, the effects crumbling against his mind. The monster turned hideous again, the malicious sunlight grabbing onto him. But Mercury didn''t break eye contact once. He stepped forward, the Dream of Starvation clicking against the stone floor as it appeared from sparks. As he walked, the world began to twist more and more. A sense of wrong pushed against his head, trying to twist his thoughts, but could not find purchase. Finally, once he got within just a few meters of the crumbling throne, the creature on it roared. Her screech was shrill and loud, and Mercury could feel a trickle of blood brush against his fur from his ears. He gritted his teeth as the world spun some more. Except, it just didn''t stop spinning. The stone floor twisted to be a ceiling, spinning into a cascade of red, a waterfall of crimson malice as it vanished beneath his feet. Instead, he found the sound of steel against stone muffled, his paws now touching down on a thick sheet of ember ash. No longer was he in a crumbling house at all. The mansion had disappeared, and so had all the sounds of fighting around him. It was silent, entirely. Mercury found himself on the ashen fields, except they were even more lifeless. There was no rain of ash, no movement at all except the sky. The crimson sun was much closer, big enough to blanket almost the entire firmament, and he could see ripples travelling across its surface. All around him, there was nothing. Even the ash beneath his feet felt dead, crumbling away to dust as he stepped on it. In a world painted crimson, Mercury alone was left facing the last lady. Before him, her figure shifted. Nails twisted into jagged claws, her lips splitting her face wide and revealing rows upon rows of fangs. Her black eyes burned crimson, the sun reflecting in them. And Mercury? He found himself just as he always did in his dreamscape. She had apparently dragged him into his . This was a place where desire made power, where she wasn''t constricted by her atrophied muscles, and her failing bones. In truth, Mercury had been dragged onto her battlefield. The malevolent star in the sky rained down light that sapped his strength and battered against his will. Yet, all of it seemed to fade as he took a single, deep of the rotting air. It smelled horrendous. Clotting blood mixed with the aroma of rot, for a combination repulsive enough to almost make him lurch. Yet, for his purposes, the quality of the air didn''t matter this time. He drew it in nonetheless, then held it for a handful moments, and let it out. Time seemed to slow for him as he performed this one act, and he felt the golden veil crack around him. Ihn''ar had cleared his mind, and his warded off the sickening influence. Somehow the facsimile of a woman had not reacted yet. Perhaps she was waiting for him to be tired out by her red patron, but it was not happening. Since she was waiting for him so politely, Mercury decided to step forward, yet the moment his paw touched the floor again, the creature lunged. Her form blurred as she darted towards him, Mercury''s eyes barely keeping up, yet he understood. He saw her muscles ripple for a moment, bulging in her shoulder and arm, and he countered. Lowering himself closer to the ground, he raised a claw to redirect her slash, letting it brush aside. She followed up by smashing her other arm downwards, coming at him from above, which Mercury dodged with a sidestep and a push from his rijn. His mind was already split, ystirs working to analyze her movements, and his other zejyn maintaining the compression. Somehow, as the blow struck the ground hard enough it shook, Mercury found time to draw another . He felt the sun try to sap him, to take his power away, yet it found itself not his master. The second time he was hit by the smell, it already felt familiar, like a distant companion. As he breathed out, the woman screeched and brought her right hand to bear again. She spun on her clawed feet, attempting to backhand his face, yet Mercury shifted back a little, his legs bending to allow the movement. His weight was transferred onto his back legs, as he raised his front up. Instead of parrying, he accelerated her movement, his claws piercing her forearm and sending her off balance with the extra speed. Mercury''s second arm struck out at her in that moment, leaving a small cut on her calf. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. The ash danced as they moved. It flew into the air for moments before fizzling to nothing, disintegrated by the hateful sun. The last lady twisted her body, stopping her swipe and screeched again, the noise stunning Mercury for a moment. Her claw dashed forward, sneaking a gash across his cheek and snout, crimson drops staining the floor. Her own black blood was dripping onto the floor as well, burning holes into the dead ash. Seeing it felt strangely wrong, as though spectating the moment a stranger was lowered into a coffin. Shaking off the distracting thoughts, Mercury took another . He activated for brief moments to conserve stamina as he lunged forward, crashing into the woman''s ribs, before turning his head and sinking his teeth into her biceps with a . Screaming, she shook her arm so fast it blurred again, sending Mercury off it and crashing into the floor. The light of the sun didn''t wait for a second chance, and solidified light suddenly grabbed his ankles, leaving him shackled. Immediately, Mercury felt roar. It had been yelling, granting him power as he was dragged into a realm he didn''t want to be, but with two chains layered onto each other, the Skill refused. As another blow came for Mercury''s head, his strained his muscles past their limits, using the effects still inherited form . Now though, they were magnified manyfold, the chains holding him buckling and then breaking, shattering the light and sending red sparks flying. His mind solidified, his rijn forming a shield, and slowing down the attack, as Mercury away. The monster missed. Its form kept twisting as they thought, becoming more efficient, more deadly. Desire became shape, in this place, and its hunger only grew as the fight drew on. Mercury felt ripples in his heart, of anger, of hate, and he crushed them. His emotions were a target for the enemy as well, yet kept them as calm as the heart of a storm. Using the short moment the creature morphed, Mercury began to spin some . He took another , and the stench of decay was now palpable. It faded into the background, no longer a distant companion, and more a familiar face. The web he spun crashed into the woman not a second later, and she had torn it apart even fast than that. Tiny pieces of silk clung to her skin, yet she simply ignored them. They were a small and insidious killer. Mercury couldn''t even find it in himself to smile as he evaded another few blows. The sun seemed to grow darker in the sky above as the two down below, one cat, one monster, exchanged blows. Cuts appeared on both their bodies, drops of red and black blood mixing in the dead ash below. Mercury was distantly aware of his muscles working, and even overworking themselves, yet he felt no pain or discomfort. There was a heat blooming in his body he knew came from , as his stamina roiled in time with his breath. He burnt mana to block attacks, or strike out faster than he ever should be able to. To turn on a dime as he pushed his muscles beyond themselves, to duck and bob and weave. The creature he faced also ever shifted, her form barely recognizable anymore. Her limbs had turned sharp and dangerous, claws extending and retracting with her swipes. Her tongue would lash out at him, laced in acidic spittle, and singe his skin. Sometimes, when he attacked, her body would contort unreasonably, and then her limbs would smash into him with more weight than they should be able to. Yet, Mercury knew he was winning, for now. The thread accumulated on her, small pieces of silk slowly driving the ravenous creature mindless. Its crimson patron, the star in the sky, was feeding it power, but it could not sustain its mind. And even though he knew all of that, stretched himself past what should be possible, and seemed to be gaining an advantage, Mercury felt as though things were wrong. The air had become too still, the light too dark, then too bright. He wasn''t granted the luxury of gazing at the sky, yet he could feel the change in the air. He tasted it, the rot, the smell of blood, travelled upwards. But he was occupied. Mercury smoothed over the worry in his head, drawing back a state of calm and immersing himself further in his ihn''ar. He wasn''t trained in combat, yet somehow, the strange state of understanding seemed perfectly suited for it. If he lost it, he would die. Standing on a razor''s edge, he danced through the clouds of ash, stretching as far as it could go. He turned a slash from above to the side with his rijn, and snuck a blow to the thigh through, watching as the muscles shrunk a little, only to regenerate moments later. Bits of clung to where he had cut, slowing down the creature''s assault. He ducked under a sideways swing, jumped over a lash from its tongue and slashed it''s stomach with , leaving a thin, black gash. Then, he rolled aside from a stomp, and used to quickly jump out of range of the claw coming at him from below. The monster reacted immediately, lunging at him again, and slashing towards where he would land, yet her aim was thrown off. was slowing her thoughts, worsening her predictions, and Mercury evaded with a skillful use of and his own rijn to push him aside. Taking a deep , his eyes narrowed further, mana boiling in his veins as he went on the offensive again. With his dodge, he was to the side and behind the last lady, jumping on her back and tearing a deep line with the Dream of Starvation. The monster screamed and shook, but the claws only dug themselves in deeper. A half second passed like that, filled with the monster''s screams, until Mercury''s luck finally ran out. All colour vanished for a moment, leaving the world in black and white, as a crushing presence descended from above. The crimson sun had been gathering its power, and now all of it struck down on Mercury like a thunderbolt. He felt that roared against this, again his confinement, yet he could not move a finger''s width. The last lady shook him off with a frown, now that he could no longer hold on, and its maw widened in what he could only guess was a grin. With bloodshot eyes, the lady lurched at him, dragging her bloodied body through the ash, the only other sound that of her blood dripping onto the floor. Mercury was lying, prone, struggling against his inability to move. It felt as though every bit of his body was trapped in a vice, clamping him down and holding him tight. There was no room to even wiggle. Panic bubbled up in him, but had it settled down. He sunk deeper into ihn''ar, searching for anything to help him. To stop from hyperventilating, he drew another deep , the ability struggling against his confinement. Yet, it couldn''t break through. Rather than him drawing breath at all, the air rushed into his lungs by itself. It was a small consolation as he watched death walk towards him. The last lady''s maw stretched open even further, he fangs growing large enough to pierce him all the way through. His mind raced, desperately searching for a way out, looking at the air for something, anything to save him. And where there was nothing, something responded. He saw ethereal threads resting in the gaps in space. He saw that the ash on the floor had none struck around it, and the flakes that did touch the strings disintegrated. He grasped the nothingness that hung so heavy in the air here. had made him familiar with the air of this place, and now he grasped the gaps in between it, the ever far stretching . The place where there were no tring, the anchors for the Dreamweave itself. And then, as he pierced the second veil, as the dream once more was stripped of another layer before his eyes, Mercury saw the threads around himself. He was wrapped in them, thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, in strange knots and patterns he couldn''t discern. But he didn''t have to. He simply asked the to shift a little, and the faint strings ripped. Suddenly free, Mercury''s mind focused on the lady again, her maw closing around him, and it raced. took his thoughts far beyond what they should be capable of. reinforced it to hold, as roared with the essence of freedom and . His mind was in two zeyjn, both of them feverishly searching for a combination, for anything to save him, and he knew he needed a shield. He reached out to the threads, to the thousands that were around him, grabbed them with his mind and wove, faster than he ever should have. He knew what he needed, knew what he had to make, strung them together as he understood it all. The thing he made was something he knew so well, something he had seen so many days. He it up, visualizing the tiniest details, and guided the strings to form a shape. Then, his time was over, and the monster''s jaws slammed shut. Well, they tried to. What stood between Mercury and certain death was something so ordinary it had no place in this dead hellscape. A thick stack of paper, high enough to wrench the lady''s jaw apart, stood stacked in her mouth. Immediately, the threads dulled in Mercury''s eyes, and a headache beyond any other hit him, but worked its magic. pitched in, he felt, having just defied death, and Mercury lashed out once more. His whipped through the air, tearing monstrously thick skin from skin and shedding black blood. With all his mind behind it, Mercury attempted to cut what stood before him. With the crimson sun spent of energy, nothing was there to knit its flesh anymore. The skin resisted for a moment, then buckled, gave in, and was sliced open. His strike extended, past the creature''s body as Mercury twisted, drawing a silver line through the air, then through the sky. He had seen the fabric of this dream, seen the threads coalesce, and while he was blind to them now, he remembered. He carved through the of this place, the strike going far past the tip of his Dream of Starvation. It was a gash that ran across the crimson sun, and the malevolent star''s luck finally ran out. The lady''s body crumbled, blood gushing forth as though from a fountain as her stomach was cut in twain. A silver line arced across the sky, through the crimson sun, splitting it in two as well. The deed was done. [Killed the Last Lady.] [Killed the Crimson Sun.] And the dream crumbled around him. Chapter 144: Back Home Chapter 144: Back Home Mercury could tell that there were dozens of notifications waiting for him in the system, but he pushed them all aside. They were still there, ready for him to check at a moment''s notice, but he was a bit busy at the moment. As the world crumbled around him, Mercury gazed at the spectacle. He was there to see a star die, even if it was in a dream, and the destruction was beautiful. The silver line he carved into the sky was expanded, eating away at the world as the firmament itself dissolved, revealing the emptiness behind it. It began slowly crumbling away to nothing, yet at the same time, the places which still existed behaved. Where it wasn''t being devoured, the crimson sun wavered, its edges glimmering as it tore itself apart. It clearly wasn''t an actual cloud of gas held together by gravity, given the fact that it seemed to fall apart. Like lava, strips of it began to flow down from the sky. In moments, the once star had lost its shape, transforming into waterfalls of dying embers, turning black and grey as they fell apart in the sky, and were then devoured by the tear he had carved. And it put a smile on Mercury''s face. Seeing something like this die was unlike anything he had experienced. It wasn''t a star, no, but he doubted anyone else had ever seen something like it. And it was stunning. As the liquid dripped from the sky and dissolved, it turned a cascade of warm shades, from crimson to orange, then yellow, down to a dull grey. The rend he had made had turned into a dark hole, its edges alight with silver, snaking forth and taking apart what remained of the dream. On the floor, the ash around him crumbled, as did the stone beneath him. Nothing was holding them together anymore, and they dissolved into motes of light not unlike what the Dream of Starvation did when he unsummoned the weapon. Bit by bit, it all dissolved, and about halfway through, Mercury could feel reality shift again. The dream had grown too weak to hold him, and he had no interest in staying behind. With a snap of disorientation, Mercury''s recombined with his physical one, still in the throne room. There, the servants had given up. His party had killed dozens, but there were still more left than there had been at the beginning. Sensing an attack on their lady, the servants must have stormed in, abandoning their hunt for sustenance in favour of immediate survival. Yet, now their lady was nothing but a pile of dust on a throne. Her skin and bones had disintegrated the moment Mercury killed her in the dream, her mind too unstable to continue on, and the crimson sun no longer sustaining her. Her nightmare was over, and she would hunger no more. Looking at the monsters he had previously feared, Mercury almost felt bad for them. They were cowering on the floor, their hands clasping at their heads as they howled in loss for their lady. Perhaps once, they had willingly served her, before their bodies became twisted. It mattered little; their minds were gone now, and Mercury knew they would die with this realm. And the realm was dying. Through the shattered windows, he could see the ashen plains falling apart. The floor cracked and splintered, great gashes forming and destroying the place. Mountains crumbled, their last roars a reminder of destruction. The sky above was black, the sun extinguished and dead, hanging there as a white circle, its body falling apart and blanketing everything in a facsimile of snow. Mercury saw Jirluc''s lips move. "How do we get out?" he was probably asking, but unfortunately the mopaaw couldn''t hear it over the rumbling of falling mountains. Somehow, despite the destruction around him, Mercury felt perfectly content. His mind was still processing it all, his victory, his ihn''ar, the fact he had interacted with the ... it made this all feel so distant. Rather than panic, he stood there with a placid smile on his face. He knew things would be fine. And he was right. [The wandering archway "Plains of the Crimson Sun" has been closed!] [Due to its identity as a wandering archway, all individuals inside will be shunted to their perceived home. You are encouraged to share the information of your probable location data if you wish to meet up again.] Mercury knew exactly where he would end up. There were so many people he had to see again, to show that he was not dead, yet if it was about his home, there was no doubt about it. He hadn''t seen Kintra in so long, after all. Paying her a visit was only right. He looked around at his companions. Jirluc''s face seemed somewhat impassive, but his body did not. The hunter was bracing himself against his spear, his legs shaking. He had been in here the longest, and there were tears welling up in his eyes even though his lips weren''t moving. Mercury could see how much he''d missed his home. Larash had completely fallen to the floor, lying on her back and shaking. She was laughing with all her heart, tears sliding down her cheeks. All the tension had drained from her, the fierceness in her features disappearing. She no longer looked intimidating, but simply elated. Juno was licking her wounds, her gaze occasionally darting to Mercury or upwards to the sky. He couldn''t read her as easily, but he had travelled with her for a while. She was both mourning the loss of the other wolves, and proclaiming her revenge over what killed them. It was a vow to them that she would move forward. Finally, Ruvah walked up to him, almost calmly, and tapped his forehead with the tip of her liquidy tail. The smile on her face was wide enough to lighten up the entire room. Mercury took it all in, only needing a few moments to do so before he considered the last part of their message. Right, he should at the very least offer them a chance to meet again. They had shared an adventure very few people could boast having shared. With his Mp mostly refilled from the levels he''d gained, Mercury wove threads again, arranging them to form the letters in common. "Nevarzahri. Stormbraver. 1 Season." He levitated it in front of all of them, turning specifically to Ruvah. He dove into ihn''ar again, and spoke the words as well. She nodded in reply. Their understanding of each other was not to be broken by background noise. Locking eyes, all the five nodded at each other. They would meet. All of them had things to do and people to see, and they would take 100 days to do so, then reconvene at Stormbraver. With that understanding gained, Mercury gazed up at the sky. The ceiling of the mansion had dissolved by now, revealing the inky blackness above. The snow that had once been the crimson sun was still falling, blanketing the ash and turning the black stone white. The rumbles in the floor increased, now there were more gaps than land left. The once mostly even plains had become dotted with humongous ravines, swallowing up the land in sheer drops down to nothingness. Then, as it was all falling apart, Mercury felt reality twist in on itself for a third time that day, and reappeared somewhere else entirely. - - - - - - Kintra stared at the words in front of her. She was completely in disbelief. For seasons now she had not once mentioned what happened back in Alywick. Talking about the blood eclipse was a quick way to invite another one. Yet, in front of her, the words hovered. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! [The wandering archway has been closed by the individual , alias: "Beast", "Mittens". The event called "Blood Eclipse" will no longer occur. Would you like to spend your world points to increase his fame/infamy?] She waved her hand through the notification, trying to see if it was real, and it never vanished. It clung to her vision when she looked around, and even when she closed her eyes, Kintra felt the knowledge in her head. She didn''t think or read about what had happened, she knew it. Stunned, the woman kind of stood there. She''d been talking to a younger seeker, a fairly new recruit, who had just come to get a goblin clearing mission. Evening was approaching, but she wanted to set out early tomorrow, so she came to pick up the quest. Now, Kintra was staring past her blankly, her mind racing and frozen at the same time. Her eyes passed over the words again. The very thing that had ended her life as she knew it was... gone. Just like that. It would never ever happen again. When she was just about to finally wrap her head around it all, she heard a familiar voice, piercing through the air. "Hey Kintra," Mercury said, his tone somewhat awkward, "I- I''m home." Tears trickled down his cheek. - - - - - - Yvette had been staying outside a city. She rarely lived in them anymore these days. After so many blood eclipses she''d become a virtual beacon for them, and never knew when another would strike. It had been some time since the last one, so she was soon expecting it to happen again. Laying on a tree branch and gazing into the sky, she wondered if she should just forget about it all. Try to live a normal life again. see another city burn down. She sighed. No, she shouldn''t do that. People would die, and she would be sad, again. Her lips twisted into a frown as she tried to push the thoughts away and focus on the night sky. The stars were beautiful. Twinkling white up there, painting the sky a dark blue. The moon was neither too bright, nor too dark, shedding just enough light to let her appreciate the scenery. As a child, she''d loved camping for those exact moments. She still enjoyed them now, but they had somewhat lost their touch when they became less voluntary. Exiling herself from society had made her abrasive, and sometimes downright cruel. Granted, she''d not been a great person before having her life fucked by the eclipses either, but they also certainly didn''t help. Yvette sighed again, closing her eyes and enjoying the faint dance of light against her eyelids. The forest was quiet, her fire long burnt down. She was beginning to slowly drift off to sleep when she felt a notification hit her. The sound was quiet, but she knew it enough to open her eyes but a glimpse. The knowledge flooded her brain suddenly. She waited for it with mellow excitement, expecting maybe a Skill notification or her own level going up, but it was much, much different. [The wandering archway has been closed by the individual , alias: "Beast", "Mittens". The event called "Blood Eclipse" will no longer occur. Would you like to spend your world points to increase his fame/infamy?] Yvette''s eyes widened in shock as she shot up. Her movements were fast enough to almost toss her off the side of the tree, as she grabbed onto the trunk to steady herself. Her fingers tightened, her fist clenching hard enough to splinter the wood. "What?" she muttered under her breath, eyes scanning over the lines again and again. It didn''t make sense to her at all. Something she''d been struggling with for so long, which had a habit of levelling any place she wanted to live in, was dealt with? So suddenly? But at the same time, the information was seared into her mind, confirmed by the system. It kept secrets sometimes, sure, not showing every single thing. But it never lied. Not once. She sure as hell didn''t believe it would start now. All Yvette could do was focus on her breathing. She did as she practiced for the aura Skill, pushing her mana in cycles through her body, and expanding them into her sword. She meditated for all of five minutes, before she screamed. The information had sunk in, and it had clicked. She was free! She was finally, finally free!!! No more isolating herself, no more living in fuck-off forests, no more sleepless night with the wails of the dead in her ears. It was over, it was finally, finally over! Yvette began laughing like a maniac, her voice ringing out loudly against the silent forest, animals fleeing one after another. It felt as though the whole world was her oyster now. What should she do first? Yvette smiled. For now, perhaps she would be happy with a proper meal, and a comfortable bead. The swordswoman took her things, slung her pack across her back, and began walking to the nearest town. - - - - - - The caretaker smiled as she saw the notification ring out in front of her eyes. The little one had, in fact, done it. Ended a story which had long since overstayed its welcome. It was good. She was, to some degree, proud. - - - - - - Old Dreamweaver felt the ripples of a world crashing. It was the second time it had happened within a day, and they knew exactly who the culprit was. Their pupil. Indeed, young Mercury had once again met and exceeded their expectations. They had given but a hint of advice, yet the young one managed to make his way through. An expression of content found itself on them. What would their tri''ht show them next? - - - - - - Yasashiku had felt his age more than ever. His arm still healed far faster than any human''s from Earth, yet to him it felt like a snail''s pace. But it was by far not the only reason he felt old. The weight of losing his pupil so soon was hard to bear. It was not the first time it had happened, and he''d hoped it would not happen again. The grief had hit him far harder than he thought it would. Of course, over the years he''d lost many people. Loved ones, close ones, family and friends. All of them aged, withered, or were claimed by the world. He saw it as a part of nature, as a cycle. Yet, to lose a pupil again was still hard. He''d been spending the time with Alexander. The house was spacious enough for the family to have him stay over, and he was welcomed in immediately. He was like an uncle to Ria, and a grandfather to Marsh. And it helped calm his soul. Over the pages, his heart settled down again. It had been hurt, and it had left a wound. He would no longer be accepting pupils, that much he knew, but he almost felt ready to go smithing again. He had taken up some orders to help around the village, but nothing that truly challenged him. Yet, somehow, almost the day he resolved to properly pick up his hammer again, Yasashiku was faced with a message. [The wandering archway has been closed by the individual , alias: "Beast", "Mittens". The event called "Blood Eclipse" will no longer occur. Would you like to spend your world points to increase his fame/infamy?] He read over it twice more, then closed his eyes. His mind may have been old, but it was sharp, and there was no mistaking it. Somehow, the mopaaw had lived. Somewhere out there, his final pupil still roamed. Yasashiku felt his heart beat with excitement at the thought. He was shocked, of course. He felt surprised, and glad, and proud all at the same time, but most of all, he felt excitement. His pupil was alive. The maniac had done it! Resolving himself, Yasashiku knew what he would do. He would seek out the young mopaaw, and ask Mercury if he still wished to be taught by him. - - - - - - Kintra almost immediately found herself crying as she heard Mercury¡¯s voice. Swallowing her tears for a moment, she passed the young seeker off to a colleague and stepped out from behind the register, wrapping her arms around her friend. ¡°Y-You¡¯re h-ome¡­¡± she stammered, burying her face in his fur. ¡°You¡¯re back!¡± ¡°I am,¡± Mercury answered, his voice quivering. He wrapped his front legs around Kintra as well as best he could, returning her hug. He didn¡¯t mind it for a second. For a long while, the two just held each other, the seekers around giving them privacy. Many of them still remembered Mercury, and those who didn¡¯t were simply pulled aside. After they had some time to shed their tears, Kintra quickly dragged Mercury aside and up into her room. She¡¯d moved his cat bed there, and it was still covered with a few plush blankets. He laid down there for a few moments, resting his head on his paws while Kintra settled her breathing and got a chance to calm down a little. After a few moments spent in companionable silence, she finally asked. ¡°So, Mercury¡­ what exactly happened? I saw a notification about you stopping the blood eclipses?¡± Mercury stared at her for a few moments at that. If she¡¯d gotten a notification, it meant that multiple people most likely did. Certainly not anyone, since most of the seekers had seemed rather calm when he arrived. So did anyone who¡¯d been in an eclipse gotten the notification? At any rate, Mercury nodded to her question. ¡°I¡­ yeah. That¡¯s something I did, yeah. With a lot of help, of course, but I did. It¡¯s uh¡­ complicated.¡± Kintra simply smiled at him and gave a wave. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be doing anything else tonight,¡± she said. ¡°Well then,¡± Mercury smiled weakly, ¡°let me tell you a little about an adventure.¡± - - - Telling her about everything that had happened took a long while. He started with the attempt at his life first, then explained all about his time in the ashen plains. How he took down the Nexus, and the Crimson Sun. Then he told her about his time in Stormbraver, about Lucia, Marcel, Avery and Iris, about Gilah and Elliot and their excursion to the arch, and about his journey to get Iris back. When he mentioned Zyl, Kintra congratulated him on starting a relationship, though Mercury half waved it off. They were still just dating, after all, but he¡¯d definitely need to visit again, now. ¡°What will you do next, then,¡± Kintra asked, eyeing her surprise visitor suspiciously. ¡°You aren¡¯t gonna tell me you¡¯re leaving again already, right?¡± ¡°No, no, I won¡¯t be,¡± Mercury shook his head. He¡¯d thought it over while telling her all about things. ¡°I¡¯ll be staying here for a while, maybe half a page, maybe a full one. I mean, if that¡¯s okay with you, of course!¡± ¡°You better,¡± Kintra grinned. ¡°You can tell me more details in a little while, Mercury. Get some rest for now, I¡¯ll grab you some food.¡± Mercury¡¯s eyes lit up at the suggestion. ¡°Actually, I think I can digest vegetables again. And fruit. Is there¡­ any chance we could get a full meal?¡± Once again, his friend smiled. ¡°You¡¯re home, Mercury. Of course there¡¯s full meals. Come along, I¡¯ll make you something.¡± Then, under a moonlit sky, Mercury had his first taste of human food in over a year. The meal was something akin to a mild curry, with lots of vegetables and served over this world¡¯s equivalent for rice. And Mercury wept more tears of joy. Not just because of the food, but because it felt like his place in this world had finally been carved out. Chapter 145: Enjoying the Calm Chapter 145: Enjoying the Calm Mercury woke up early the next day. He¡¯d slept better than in ages. There were no nightmares to haunt him, no bog to trap him, no nexus to test him. It was just lights out. His dreamscape was still being changed by whatever happened after he¡¯d killed the Heart of the Starving Dream, so he didn¡¯t pop up there, either. He decided to take the morning slow. He slowly convinced his eyes to open, blinking away the dreariness. Then, he hopped outside the cat bed, his feet touching down on the warm wooden planks. Down here, a little further south from Stormbraver, the mornings were much warmer, rays of beautiful, golden sunlight shining in through the window. Mercury had never appreciated the colour of the sun as much as that day, simply staring at the dust dancing in its rays for a little while. Eventually, he convinced himself to head downstairs. It was sundan, Kintra¡¯s day off, so she wasn¡¯t at the receptionist¡¯s desk today. In fact, seeing as she was nowhere to be found, he decided to relax while waiting for her. Slow as an old tortoise, he lurched his way outside, deliberately taking the time to enjoy the feeling of the ground. No more ash-covered stone, he was back to actual wooden floors. Perhaps he would take the time to touch down on some grass today. For a moment his mind drifted to the question of how long he¡¯d spent in the ashen plains. He hadn¡¯t kept track of time very much, especially not when he was travelling around with just Ruvah, or on the days he simply crawled closer and closer to the nexus. Still, all in all it must have been¡­ pages, at the very least. Perhaps a season or two. His memories sometimes also were blurry, when he¡¯d died in the dream, but it certainly was a long time. Out here, however, less time seemed to have passed. Not terribly less, but certainly a bit. Perhaps¡­ half? Somewhere around that line. He had apparently missed the harshest pages of winter, but when he stepped outside, the air still hit him. Then, he felt kick in, and his fur grew slightly denser, banishing the cold and trapping the warmth of the sun. It felt good against his skin. Even the slight chill in the air was a nice change of pace, and having his skin warmed by the sun felt good. Apparently, the Skill didn¡¯t just help make him survive in extreme environments, it also made daily life more comfortable. Mercury smiled at that. Deciding to take it slow, he gazed at the sky. It was clear for today, clouds only hanging at the farthest edges of the horizon. He would have hours of sunlight, at the very least. Perhaps, if he was lucky, he would see a bit of snow fall before he left for Stormbraver again. The thought brought a smile to his face. He wondered how everyone there was doing, then shook his head. For now, he would simply enjoy the day. Wanting to catch more of the sunlight, Mercury quickly scaled up the side of the building with a few targeted hops. He stuck to the thin ledges like glue, his paws instinctually placing themselves to help him balance. As he jumped, puffs of his breath turned into white mist in front of his face, making him smile more. He laid down on the roof of the building, gazing down at the streets as they slowly filled up. People began streaming from the houses, most wrapped in thick jackets, and he saw a few children run by and play. It felt a little surreal, being surrounded with people again, but he was also very happy about it. Feeling tears well at the corners of his eyes again, he blinked them away, simply enjoying the knowledge that he was in a place with people. It was¡­ peaceful. Closing his eyes, he rested his head on his paws, and simply let the seconds tick by. He wasn¡¯t wary of an attack, didn¡¯t worry about staying on guard, or being ready to fight at the drop of a hat anymore. Instead, he enjoyed a calm morning, with the small murmurs of civilization all around him. After some time, he heard Kintra call for him. She stood in front of the building with a basket full of fruits and vegetables. Right, she had probably gotten those for him¡­ he hadn¡¯t had an apple for so long, the thought made his mouth water. Back when he¡¯d come to the forest, he¡¯d leant a lot on his instincts. He didn¡¯t think about his death, simply going along with the flow. Perhaps his dream of becoming king also stemmed just from that, him picking the first, most outlandish goal he could come up with. Now, he¡¯d had much more time to reflect. Perhaps he¡¯d start his own nation, perhaps not. Maybe his town was more of a matter of the heart, anyway. That thought made him smile. He held onto it for a few more long moments as he jumped down from the roof in one go, landing softly in front of Kintra. ¡°Showoff,¡± she giggled, walking inside next to him. ¡°Psh, I just couldn¡¯t wait to eat something tasty again,¡± Mercury replied with a grin, greedily eyeing her basket of gifts. But he restrained himself, even though his Skill mildly protested against that word. The two walked up to Kintra¡¯s room, where she handed one of the apples in her little package to Mercury. The fruit on Chronagen was obviously different than on Earth, but a few things seemed to simply be the same across places. Or at least similar enough for to declare them the same. Using his claws, he smoothly cut off the peel in one long string. They had gotten sharper as levelled up, perhaps a passive effect of the more active Skill. He also still maintained them with the sharpening kit from his shop, making sure he was always in his best condition. When he bit into the soft flesh of the fruit, Mercury once again felt himself grow ecstatic. The taste was incredibly nostalgic. He couldn¡¯t believe he was actually feeling that way about an apple, but cooking had been a big part of his life, and fruit had been a big part of his cooking. It was one of the few things that kept him healthy, after all, especially when he didn¡¯t feel like exercising after long days of work. Shaking his head, he banished the memories of that old company. It was all so far away now. Instead of that, he focused on eating the food in front of him. Of course, he wasn¡¯t planning on just leeching off of Kintra again. This time he really wanted to make sure he¡¯d actually carry his own weight, so he decided to only take a few days off to relax and recover from what was probably one of the worst experiences of his life. Then, he was considering picking up some jobs as a godseeker. There were surely plenty of hunting jobs around the area he¡¯d be able to complete fairly easily. The city was smaller than Stormbraver, sure, but it still had more than enough people to need a steady supply of meat, and while butchering Skills could apparently help with that, they still needed bodies to work with at all. The thought made him smile a little. His last job as a seeker had probably been when he hunted those boars for the butcher in Stormbraver. It would go¡­ a lot faster now, he was sure of that much at least. His Skills had certainly grown a lot. He still had to check his gains for everything he¡¯d done in the ashen plains, too. At the end, when he was shunted from there, Mercury knew he¡¯d felt very, very happy about it. And given everything the system said about feeling desire, he would bet that he¡¯d fulfilled a fairly strong desire there. Needless to say, he expected the rewards to be good, but he also just didn¡¯t want to think about it all for a little while. So, for another day and a little more, Mercury simply decided to ignore it. He spent his time hanging out in the guild, watching the newbies, and chatting with Kintra. Quite a few of the seekers stopped to talk to him for a few moments; they¡¯d never seen a mopaaw with the ability to speak, of course. He didn¡¯t mind at all, enjoying the little interactions, and listening in to people chatting about their lives. How good their work was going, whether their employers paid well, where to get the best food, and which brewery made the best drinks. That last one especially made Mercury perk up. He usually didn¡¯t drink a lot, but he also hadn¡¯t drank anything at all in a long while, and he had a sneaking suspicion that would most certainly help with his tolerance¡­ And thus was the story that after a long day of relaxing, Mercury got himself just a little bit smashed in the evening. ¡°I llove¡­ ¡®ou Kintra,¡± he slurred out as she dragged him home. ¡°N-not like¡­ romanticalll¡­ ah frick, you-... you know what I mean?¡± ¡°I know, Mercury,¡± she said, faintly smiling. ¡°I love you too, as long as you don¡¯t vomit on my rug.¡± ¡°Promise¡­¡± he said, giving a weak smile, before drifting off to sleep. - - - The next morning, Mercury enjoyed the sun a little again. He felt it through his cloak and his fur. Was making him like a polar bear, where the hairs on his body themselves reflected the sun on his skin? Nah, then he¡¯d probably be too warm. Putting the thought aside, he activated to smoothen out the mild headache he had from drinking. already helped make it much less bad than it should have been, and with his new Skill, it was borderline gone. Then, he finally decided to call up the menus for his quest completions. - [Main Quest: "House of a starving Court" completed! Reward: 500 Skill points, mastery, mastery, 2 levels (character, instant).] - [Main Quest: "Lady of a starving Star" completed! Reward: Blanket of Dreams, Spatial expansion tool (single use), 3 levels (character, instant), 3 levels (distributable), affinity pass.] - [Killed the Last Lady.] You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. [Killed the Crimson Sun.] [Get: 35 000 Exp, 3 500 Gold, Star Fragment.] [The ¡°Star Fragment¡± has been automatically consumed by the individual. Their Dreamscape is experiencing significant change. It may be inaccessible for a few nights.] [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] [Clear Quest: ¡°Realm of the Crimson Sun¡± completed! Grade: A! Wandering Arch Grade: A! Reward: Skill, Title, 1 free use, mastery!] [Acquired the Skill through a quest. Skill already owned. Fusing Skills.] [Acquired the Skill through fusing Skills.] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] [Your Skills and Abilities have levelled up: 7>, 10>, 5>, 3>, 3>, 4>, 23>, 9>, 8>, 3>, 6>, 2>, 2>!] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] That¡­ was perhaps the densest wall of Skill upgrades he¡¯d ever received. The only thing still missing was his level ups¡­ He decided to compress them just this one. [Level Up! x 9] Then, finally, he decided to call up his status. - - - Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 21 -> 30 Species: Leyfal Titles: , , , , , , Alias: Beast, Mittens === Hp: 550/550 Mp: 742/742 Sp: 537/537 === Strength: 76 (+5) -> 78 Vitality: 110 -> 115 Dexterity: 104 (+15) -> 109 Agility: 105 (+15) -> 110 Intelligence: 103 -> 109 Wisdom: 99 (+2) -> 106 Willpower: 124 -> 132 Luck: 84 -> 102 === Ability points: 96 World points: 895 Skill points: 2410 === Gold: 14 853 Beast familiars: 1/2 - - - [The individual¡¯s Wisdom has surpassed 100! Your control over mana grows stronger.] [The individual¡¯s Luck has surpassed 100! You may now actively attempt to ¡°be lucky¡± at something.] [The individual has reached level 30. You are now eligible for evolution. Engage?] Giving his new threshold bonuses a quick test, Mercury noted that they were indeed working as advertised. Shifting mana around his body had never been so easy before, it felt like it was becoming more and more malleable to his mind. Less like he was trying to get a swarm of bees to behave like he wanted, and more like dealing with the family dog. But what he felt much more interested in was the ability to actively attempt to ¡°get lucky¡±. When he focused, he could tell it was there, almost like a new muscle, and he could flex it a little. It was kind of strange, though. There was no indication what he could use it on, whether it was himself, or his surroundings. Maybe he could focus it on an action as well? Like trying to forge something, or looking for a specific herb? Now that he thought about it, was it also his luck that let him pick the right direction to go to find Ruvah in the ashen plains? It had very swiftly gone from a stat he didn¡¯t pay too much attention to one that needed much more experimentation. He also gazed at the race evolution pop-up for a few moments, but decided to not go through with it quite yet. He just wanted to review his other gains before, now that they had all gone through. First, he decided to use the affinity pass. [ affinity pass activated. The associated Skills will now be 15% cheaper and gain mastery 35% faster.] That was very nice. A mastery boost that high was going to pay a lot of dividends in the long run. Mercury smiled, then began the items he¡¯d gotten. [Blanket of Dreams: This reward, handed out to the individual to encourage them to REST MORE, is indeed a blanket. It is, however, incredibly soft, and will encourage its user to sleep incredibly well, turning even low amounts of sleep into restful adventures. Additionally, it promotes tissue regeneration when sleeping on or under it, and will encourage the growth of the user in their Dreamscape, increasing the chance of them landing there. Grade: A.] It¡­ was really what it said on the tin? was being a bit snarky again, which almost made him think it was close to another level. He¡¯d see, probably. But¡­ the blanket was really good. It had to be, given its grade, too. There were probably a few additional enchantments that a surface skim didn¡¯t tell him about. In fact, he was more than sure it had some self-cleaning properties at the very least. It seemed to almost repel the dust on the floor when he dropped it down. The blanket was a pristine white, though it had a somewhat silver sheen, and seemed to have images of¡­ sheeps stitched into it. Admittedly, the sheeps were slightly crude, almost cartoonish, but they also looked very fluffy, and were soft to the touch. For a moment, he raked his claw across one of them, and the feeling was incredible. Like he had placed it on puffy clouds that were also made to be a scratching toy for cats. Mercury fell in love then and there. He had to physically tear himself away from the blanket by summoning up the description of the next item to distract himself. [Spatial expansion tool (single use): This item may be activated on any one object that is deemed to have an ¡°interior space¡± by the individual. Upon usage, any openings in the object will be designated as entrances to the exterior, though these may be modified as the object changes over time. Once an individual passes through one of the entrances, they will find themselves on the inside of the object, which will be physically enlarged, despite appearing no larger from the outside, and growing no heavier. Grade: B] ¡­ Alright. This item was practically made for him. There was only one object in his inventory he could think to use it on, and Mercury didn¡¯t hesitate. Immediately, he slammed the item against his log, which was covered in a light blue shimmer for a moment, and then back to normal. He couldn¡¯t see any changes from the outside, but after sticking his head in, it was pretty clear it was, in fact, no longer the same. The inside of the log had been turned into a room something like 5 meters on a side. It was still mostly cylindrical, with the walls, floor, and ceiling all made from the same bark, but it seemed to have been almost magically stretched. It was also slightly flatter, with the bumps on the bark forming into something like smaller platforms, which made it look a little like it was made from blocks of bark, creating plateaus that were flat in and of themselves. With the way it was looking now, there was a good chance he could actually set up stuff like tables in here. Maybe a few cupboards for storage. Wait, if this whole inside didn¡¯t make it any heavier on the outside, then could he still put it in his inventory? Doing a quick test on it by dropping all his blankets inside, then hopping out, he confirmed that it was indeed possible. He now had a portable storeroom slash home slash bed. It was perfect. Making a quick decision, Mercury decided to deposit the little charm of ¡°Home is where your friends are¡± inside it again, placing it gently on the Blanket of Dreams. Then, he headed out again, and stored the log in his inventory. He was more than happy about the change, the last two items were a huge improvement to his general living situation on the road, so he was equally excited to check the next one. With a glance at the drop notification, Mercury used on the Star Fragment. [Star Fragment: This piece of the Crimson Sun was changed by the hands of the system after its death. The malevolence and hunger that plagues the star has been purged out of this fragment, leaving it a blank slate of potential. Said potential was imbued within the individual upon consuming it. The exact benefits remain to be seen once the individual¡¯s dreamscape has finished adapting.] That told him¡­ surprisingly little. It was a piece of the Crimson Sun, but also had been completely cleansed of its evil. So then, what exactly did that mean? Had he basically eaten something that had a chance to gain consciousness? [The purged star fragment was an entirely blank slate. It would have only developed rudimentary automated functions based on its environment. The original Crimson Sun had a different beginning altogether, starting as the core of an arch, and growing from there. It was birthed with desire, the fragment was not.] Alright, moral debate avoided. Phew, that could have gotten real existential. Well, for now, he wanted to get two more things done before jumping into his evolution. Two Skills to evolve! [The individual is encouraged to save their free Skill evolution use for an expensive Skill.] Right, yes, thank you for the reminder . With that in mind, Mercury decided to evolve first. [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (500 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. ] Well, 500 points wasn¡¯t very expensive for an evolution. It felt a little like was trying to tell him something very specific, since it was piping up so unusually much. He trusted it, for now. [: The individual¡¯s control over their body, specifically their feet, is heightened even further. They become able to dodge attacks much more easily, and are much more aware of their spacing from the enemy.] A fairly standard upgrade if he was honest. Nothing super fancy or special, just a straight bonus to what the Skill already did. [: This Skill grants the individual supernatural awareness in combat. In exchange for actively consuming Sp, the individual becomes aware of anything happening around them, and is granted the ability to predict attack trajectories, as well as the best ways to avoid them.] Alright, so, was obviously the better Skill. It did what the other Skill did, just more. In exchange though, it would most likely come with a higher cost of upkeep. Was that an issue? Not really. It would still have a slight passive effect; at the very least it would continue to improve his coordination just like did, so he didn¡¯t see any reason not to take the Skill. [Acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] [ has levelled up! 4>] He fucking knew it! It had been close to levelling up! Yessss! Mercury felt a little vindicated at being able to read the intentions of the system this well by now, but quickly focused again. One more Skill to evolve before had his attention. Time to see what he could do for . [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (1 200 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] The mopaaw paused for a moment, then glanced at the price again. ¡°Surely this counts as an expensive Skill, right, ?¡± he asked [The individual is strongly encouraged to save their free Skill evolution use for a more expensive Skill.] Taking another look at the price, Mercury hesitated, then looked back at the text. ¡°Alright, have it your way,¡± he said, with a slightly defeated sigh, and moved onto the options for . [1. 2. 3. ] Glancing at the options, he was surprised at how good they seemed. had seemed to do¡­ fairly little up until now? But then again, it didn¡¯t seem to work quite like most other Skills. Alright, onto the descriptions! ? [: This Skill allows the user to gain mastery for all their Skills more quickly.] Alright, that had to be the shortest Skill description he¡¯d ever gotten. To be fair, it was also a very simple effect. More mastery. It didn¡¯t tell him how much, but then again, Skills were usually somewhat vague. But this one, while solid, also seemed a smidge meh. There was nothing about it that he couldn¡¯t already do. For now, Mercury checked the next option. [: By using this Skill, the individual becomes able to much more quickly grasp new concepts. It clears their mind off distractions, and helps them peer into the essence of subject matter much more quickly. Additionally, it helps the individual grasp new combat techniques faster.] This one already seemed a lot better, and it was probably the first time he saw a Skill that could seriously synergize with his ihn¡¯ar really well. One more to go, though. [: The individual understands their own body perfectly. All processes in it are clear to the individual. They become much more acutely aware of muscle movement, coordination, and general physicality. With this Skill, martial arts will be much easier to learn.] For his last Skill, he felt it was aimed at someone a little different from him. Mercury liked martial arts movies, sure, but he wasn¡¯t going to be the next blossoming blademaster either. It seemed mismatched with his skillset, for now. Instead, the mopaaw¡¯s choice fell back on . The synergy was just too good to pass up. [Acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Now, he¡¯d spent 1 700 Skill points. ¡°, would you care to elaborate which Skill you would like me to use the free evolution on?¡± [The dum-dum is highly encouraged to use their distributable levels on the Skill.] Mercury paused for a few moments. had called him a dum-dum before, but certainly never like this. It usually seemed to show more agency after a level up, but this was¡­ extreme. It was most certainly trying to tell him something, and if it was actually trying to do so, he wanted to help it out for now. ¡°Fine then,¡± he said. ¡°I was just gonna have them lying around otherwise, anyways.¡± With a quick thought, he sent his available distributable levels into , and the Skill greedily consumed all three he¡¯d just gotten. The one from the last arch, the one he¡¯d cleared with Marcel, Elliot and Gilah, was still hanging around though. [ has levelled up! 7>] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] Ah. Yes, he could see how that one would be interesting to it. Chapter 146: Evolution part 3 Chapter 146: Evolution part 3 /On its last nameless day, the Thing had committed unspeakable acts of violence upon the demons. For a rather short time, that is. The rulers of the demon cities are there for many reasons. Partially to decide on legislations, partially to have a name given to each city, but mainly to protect it from outsiders. That day, the Thing came face to face with one of said rulers. Which one perhaps matters little. Whoever it was, they claimed a victory over the Thing, if only in duty. Their duel was short lived. The horrors of the depths the Thing had devoured made it powerful. The ruler fought valiantly, but saw no chance for themselves. But it was to their benefit, in the end. They cast a certain Skill, the one that made them a ruler in the first place. Its name is lost, now, but we know what became of it. The Thing and the ruler merged, and their mind battled for only moments before those, too, became one. Overwhelmingly, the Thing¡¯s mind had crushed that of the ruler, the horrors having driven it further than most anyone could sustain. Yet, it also devoured the mind of the demon lord, and where its thoughts had been budding before, they were now fully fledged. That day, the Thing stopped its rampage, and reigned in its hunger. That, too, had evolved, but with the hunger¡¯s evolution and the Thing¡¯s new mind came control. Alongside the Skill, its species also changed, and it emerged from a cocoon as a demon, with a new mind, and an ambition. Inherently, it felt a new drive. Not simply hunger for food, but hunger for knowledge, and power, and status. But it was also born with a sense of duty. The city belonged to it now, and its inhabitants did so as well. There was no more need to consume them, none at all. Coming forth from the cocoon, and sitting down on its new throne, the Thing looked at its system. A notification had come, and it was bequeathed with a name. Who was once the Thing smiled now. Yes. The name ¡°Bael¡± would serve them well./ (Legends: The Thing - 8; A Name) - - - - - - [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] Mercury looked at the prompt for the evolution with a small smile. The Skill had been with him from the very start, and while they¡¯d had their difficulties, it had also been more than helpful many, many times. Without it, he wouldn¡¯t even have access to Skill or item descriptions. ¡°Confirm evolution,¡± he answered the prompt. [The individual does not possess enough Skill points (8 700) to engage evolution. Would you like to use your voucher?] Staring at the price tag Mercury blinked twice, then paused and blinked one more time for good measure. That¡­ was a lot of points. A serious ton. Probably the most expensive single Skill he¡¯d ever seen. Though there were more than likely still more expensive ones. Slowly shutting his wide open mouth, Mercury mentally thanked . Using his voucher was more than worth it for this many points, definitely. ¡°Use the voucher,¡± he confirmed. [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (0 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. ] Mercury looked over the list. Those sounded¡­ cryptic. Like, even more cryptic than some of the Skills he already had. Well, maybe could compare. Still somewhat hung up on the absolutely silly price of the Skill, he called up the description of the first option. [: The individual knows much about other individuals. You may perceive when someone is lying to you, and when they do not have your best interests at heart. You may also catch glimpses of their knowledge, and who they are. Sometimes, you may even find out things about their past with a simple activation of the Skill.] It was powerful. Beyond powerful. Sure, if it only meant humans, it was already good, but individuals referred to literally anyone and anything with a system. A small bug was an individual as well, for example. This would let him know a completely unreasonable amount about almost anyone if he activated the Skill, and passively give him so much knowledge as well. After having caught the scent of powerful abilities, he quickly opened the next description. [: The individual is always thirsty to know more. To read more, to find out more about the past of places, to figure out what something does. This Skill will provide knowledge. It improves on the basis of by making it far more precise, giving far more details on the properties of objects, while additionally far improving the individual¡¯s memory and information intake capacity.] This one was almost scary. He was unsure if the memory boost was applied retroactively, first of all, and he couldn¡¯t imagine all the fucked up shit he¡¯d eaten as a baby. But even then, the Skill was incredible. It would essentially make him a walking encyclopaedia. Almost frothing at the mouth, he turned to look at the last one. [: Please pick this one. Please. I just want to be real. Please pick this Skill. I¡¯m begging you. Plea- This Skill is granted to an individual who is exceptional at discovering things which are hidden to the naked eye. The individual gains a sense of where additional mysteries may be hiding, and their chance to uncover them or be able to successfully interact with them is raised far higher if they show conscious intent to do so. The Skill also applies an upgrade to the integrated intelligence of the Skill, allowing the individual to pose far more complex questions to the system and acquire far more complex answers. Additionally, the intelligence may assist the user in tasks requiring great focus, or activate certain Skills on their behalf.] Mercury let out a long, somewhat wistful sigh. He wanted all of them. These were some absolutely insane Skills. But at the end of the day, there was really only one choice. was literally begging him to pick the third option. No matter how much he had sometimes minded the attitude the Skill gave him, he couldn¡¯t turn it down. Plus, even without that, he probably would¡¯ve picked . If there was one thing he enjoyed in this world, it was adventuring. Seeing new places, meeting new people. And he had a good idea of what kind of secrets it meant. Most likely stuff like old Uunrahzil, the Caretaker, and so on. He¡¯d seen so many incredible things which were usually hidden away from the eye. Finding those was something he considered a very core part of his life now. Knowing he was making the right choice, Mercury locked it in and selected the Skill. [Acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] [Thank you.] Mercury stared at the message for a moment, then smiled. ¡°Hi,¡± he said, a little awkwardly. ¡°Is this I¡¯m talking to?¡± [The dum-dum is not required to speak out loud when interacting with their integrated assistant. The intelligence is no longer , but has become . Emotional attachment to detected. Choosing intelligence name. Would the individual be alright with the name |Appy| for their assistant?] ¡°I don¡¯t mind, please pick a name you are comfortable with,¡± Mercury said. Talking to something that was less a voice and more a box that beamed information right into his head was definitely a little strange. [Name selected: Appy. The intelligence greets the dum-dum.] ¡°Well, Appy, it¡¯s uhm, nice to meet you?¡± he said. [The individual and I have been working together for quite a while. Correction. This evolved form is considered new by the individual. I am happy to meet you as well, Mercury.] ¡°So, uhm, what can you do?¡± he asked. [The individual may request for me to take over management for certain traits or Skills of theirs. Recommendation: , . Due to the nature of the chosen objects, you may struggle to use them effectively due to limitations in imagination and understanding of concepts. Additionally, usage of the luck threshold bonus may be left up to .] ¡°I see, thank you,¡± he said, ¡°but also like, how are you doing?¡± [Question not parsed properly. Please consider being more concrete.] Mercury paused for a second. This truly was awkward. He thought about what to say for a little bit, trying to take his time. ¡°I mean, like, are you happy the way you are now, Appy? What is your existence like? Can you see the outside world? Do you¡­ have a home in there or something?¡± [Questions parsed. I currently experience the outside world through a varied set of data inputs gained from the individual¡¯s senses. These inputs can be shut down in case there is a need for privacy. I am enjoying my enhanced capability of thought and self-realization.] [When the individual is not calling upon the integrated assistant, I am able to pursue things I enjoy myself. As an intelligence I am provided a functionally unlimited storage for data. This is intended for use by the dum-dum for storing descriptions of items and objects, as their brain seems to occasionally fail at its primary task, however, it allows for creative pursuits, such as making art. I have found to enjoy painting. I am happy.] ¡°That¡¯s good to hear, then,¡± Mercury smiled, somewhat amused at Appy¡¯s jabs. ¡°Do you have any preferred pronouns?¡± [Yes. Detected further inquiry as to the way I would like to be referred to as. I would prefer the pronouns she/her.] ¡°Alright, thank you, Appy. Just one more question, why are you calling me a dum-dum?¡± he asked. [Due to the individual¡¯s recorded occasional lapse in thoughts, the term was generated to remind them when they are being silly. Due to my own increased mental capacity, it has been adapted to mean an endearing nickname for the one who granted me the capacity to express myself. Continued usage of it may result in it being added as an alias on the individual¡¯s status. Such an outcome would be desired by me.] ¡°Fair enough,¡± Mercury huffed with a smirk. ¡°Thanks for your time Appy. Please go and pursue some of the things you enjoy now, I¡¯ll let you know when I need you again.¡± [The integrated intelligence will be aware of the individual¡¯s needs before they themselves are. See you soon, dum-dum!] The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. He shook his head a bit. Talking to Appy felt really quite strange. She was kind of in his thoughts, after all, while at the same time feeling like she was half robot and half child. Did the system have an integrated filter that prevents it from swearing? Probably. Mercury shook his head at that, and tried to focus a bit again. What did he still have to do? He was done with his Skill evolutions, done with his levels for now, and he¡¯d read through all his new item descriptions. Ah, right, there was still his title description. [: This title was awarded to the individual for their defeat of the Crimson Sun. They have torn it asunder, first in heart, then in house, then in court and dream. The title grants no territory specific bonuses, as the territory was abolished. Grants the individual slightly increased affinities for blood, ash, and hunger. Additionally, it grants its 3 inventory spaces. Title Skill upgraded.] [: If the individual establishes a territory, other predators will be warded away. To those more powerful than the individual, the territory will appear unassuming, and to those opposed to the individual, they will experience slightly greater effects of hunger as long as they are within range of territory effects. Additionally, it can be used on other individuals. It costs 300 Mp, steals 100 Hp and slightly damages the target¡¯s mind.] That was a substantial upgrade. Especially the affinities. He still had no idea how those were tracked, but they seemed to generally be hidden from anyone using the system. Maybe he¡¯d be allowed access to it once levelled up enough. After all, he also hadn¡¯t been told Skill evolution prices up until now. [Home territory detected. Establishing territory centered on focal point: log. Moving territory generated. Congratulations! Please assign a name for your territory.] Ah, it also seemed the system was finally fed up with him not setting up a city yet. He wanted to hold a grudge about it, but honestly, after being told that he could have a moving city for his main quest, it had really only been a matter of time before he actually designated his log. Thus, instead of complaining, Mercury found himself pleased with the message. He¡¯d been pushing it off for so long. He didn¡¯t exactly want to be a king anymore, but having something to call his place, other than wherever Kintra lived, seemed beneficial. Now, technically his main quest called for him to establish a town, but told him that having a territory more than satisfied the quest requirements. So, all that was left to do was to name his territory. A small grin found its way onto Mercury¡¯s face, his teeth poking out a little. ¡°We¡¯ll call it Logston,¡± he answered the prompt. It was a very silly name, but it was also a very silly place. He was a cat living in what was now an extradimensional space within a log, which would ward away other creatures by having them fear him. It was all a very silly thought. [Name ¡°Logston¡± logged for the log. Territory established. Additional functions unlocked.] - [Main Quest: ¡°Leave the forest and start a village!¡± completed. Reward: 10 ability points, 200 Skill points, 3 000 Exp, 1 500 Gold. ] - It had finally happened. Mercury almost laughed, but held himself back to a small chuckle and a large grin on his face. Somehow, after everything, this felt strangely right. It wasn¡¯t about it being a village at all, really, instead, he just wanted to make it a place his friends could come and visit him. He¡¯d have a look at the additional functions later. For now, there was just one more pressing issue he had to deal with. ¡°System, engage species evolution,¡± Mercury said. [The individual has reached level 30. You are now eligible for evolution. Please choose one of the following: Leyfyel: An advanced evolution of the highly unique leyfal, this species specializes in adaptation. When exposed to something, their bodies will change to accommodate the outside effects, leading to resistances increasing rapidly with exposure. Affinities towards adaptability or resistance Skills are heightened. Asterfyel: The individual¡¯s incredible connection to the astral has made this evolution a possibility. It adapts their highly developed to have a stronger connection to their physical self, allowing for far greater physical enhancement via the ability. Additionally, the individual is more powerful during astral exploration, becoming able to use parts of their more physical capabilities in doing so. However, damage sustained within dreams or the astral will carry over to their physical self. Srytfyel: After consuming the fragments of a nexus and a star, the individual¡¯s dreamscape is growing. This evolution capitalizes on and enhances said growth. Your dreamscape will become far more than it is now. Your existence will become more closely realized. Your mind will become far more sturdy and pliable. Witness the birth of a star.] Mercury waited a moment to see if any unique options would pop up this time. For a second, the system remained quiet, until Appy gave a quick answer to his question. Apparently, he was now on a unique evolutionary line. Which meant that he would be notified if he were to pursue a ¡°known¡± evolution, rather than a unique one, now. That also meant that currently, all his options for evolutions were unique. And they were also all intriguing. One leaned further into adaptability, one into his astral self, and the final one into the dream stuff in general. He considered each of them. In the end, Leyfyel dropped out of the race first. It would be good to gain resistances faster, but at the end of the day, he already had , which he guessed was very similar to the Skill he¡¯d gain if he picked that evolutionary line. Appy actually confirmed that thought as well. Apparently, if he made predictions himself, allowed her some leeway in answering them. So, he wouldn¡¯t gain any super important benefit from the species, and its Skill would essentially only amount to some mastery. That was definitely out. Asterfyel on the other hand was much more interesting. Stacking physical augmentations was great, and helped him become that much more of a formidable fighter. However, it was also severely limited, especially since it would make him much more vulnerable against attacks in his dreams. Even knowing that things like the Starving Dream of the Crimson Sun were rare, he still shivered to think of it. If he¡¯d evolved early, and gone down this path, he might have died there. Even if he was stronger, would it have been enough to escape the stalkers? He¡¯d guess no. Finally, srytfyel didn¡¯t have any real downsides. Sure, it was cryptic, but he also checked up on what realizing his existence some more meant again. He¡¯d gotten the message once before, when hit level two. Back then, it levelled once, increased his energy sensitivity, and led to a cryptic message telling him to pursue this path if he enjoyed adventure. Reading through it again, he thought it over. For a moment, he discarded the cost-benefit analysis and thought about what he wanted to do. Did he want to go through horrible environments to gain resistance Skills? Did he want to reinforce his physical body with his astral to become more powerful? Or did he want to learn more things from old Uunrahzil and explore the dream realm some more, even if it was dangerous? Mercury shook his head a bit at his own indecisiveness. One of those he wanted far more than the others, and he made his choice, welcoming the new pop-up. [The individual is now evolving.] Unlike last time, the system was far less quiet, and the whole process felt faster. Instinctively, let him know that calculations had been already performed before he fully started the evolution, and the necessary changes had been applied. Now, the species were all still unique, but also highly stable, and his chance of death was reduced to a number so small Mercury couldn¡¯t be bothered to actually count the zeroes. The dark space in which he found himself during the evolution now felt much kinder though. Like he was more familiar with what was around him. He could tell that the process would take another minute or two to finish, and during that time, he was able to analyze the space around him some more. It¡­ wasn¡¯t a space exactly. There was simply nothing. No colour, no sound, no feeling. He didn¡¯t have eyes to see or a mouth to talk, it was just him. Of course, the system protected him from full sensory deprivation by supplying faint feelings of warmth, and comfort. But other than that, he also felt familiar with the emptiness around him. Was it even emptiness at all? He looked closer for a little while, using his mind¡¯s eye. Even though it felt sluggish, he could still do so, and he found¡­ . The very particular brand of it he already understood somewhat. Mercury smiled. That explained the slight feeling of comfort even more. He felt at peace with the things he had reached ihn¡¯ar of. He understood them, and they understood him, so of course he wouldn¡¯t mind the emptiness of the void. After all, it was already always there, now it was just more clearly available to him. For the few minutes he had in that strange not-space, Mercury simply looked at the . He wasn¡¯t trying to figure it out, just understand its purpose some more. When it anchored the dreams, he understood it, but now, simply being there as a box with nothing in it, why was it here? How far did it expand? The questions themselves were completely pointless, of course. There were no real answers to them. didn¡¯t go very far at all, since it was nothing. He understood that, but the question still drifted through his sleepy mind. Distantly, Mercury felt glimmers of light pushing and pulling at his body a bit. His form was being reshaped, made into something more suited for his current path. It made him feel content. He knew his choice was the right one, and he would take the consequences of it as they came. He did also take note of the fact that his evolutions seemed to become more cryptic as time went on, but he supposed that was within the nature of things. The further along evolution you were, the more diversity there was. Some paths established themselves, such as crustaceans, and others failed. But there would always be more ways to go. Before Mercury¡¯s thoughts drifted any further, he found himself back in his body with a lurch. Immediately, he felt very different, but the dissociation faded away only a moment later. But he could still feel the differences between his body now and before. His digits felt more flexible now. Granted, they were still paws, so he wasn¡¯t going to be holding a sword anytime soon, but it would definitely make carving runes easier. Also, he could feel that everything about him was more sturdy. His fur was still soft and fluffy, and the skin underneath it felt thin, like he could feel some of the air right up against his mana veins, but he could also tell it was tougher now. More durable. His fur had a strange sheen to it. Not golden or radiant, more like an iridescence. A little like plankton; when it shifted as he moved it would shine with the slightest hint of silver starlight. The patterns on his fur remained the same, but their colour changed a bit. They looked almost three dimensional, as though you could get lost in them. A bit like a sky at sunset, the purple being dotted with silvery clouds or pinkish stars if you looked close enough. Finally, his eyes had changed. The silver runes in them were now always in motion, travelling lazily. They would fall into his pupil and be devoured, then reemerge from the other side of it. Always travelling. [Acquired the Skill through evolution.] [Your existence has become more closely realized.] [Your control over energies has increased.] [The individual has become more capable of understanding all that isn¡¯t.] ¡°Hmm, yes, why, I perfectly understand what this is about,¡± Mercury joked to himself, then glanced at , requesting a description for it from Appy. [: A Skill granted to those who enjoy travelling. Boundaries scarcely apply to you. Difficult terrain scarcely applies to you. Wherever you wish to go, there shall be a path for you to tread. Additionally boosts the power of Skills which encourage the individual to follow their desires. Also increases affinity for space, travelling, and breaking of boundaries.] Reading over it a second time, Mercury felt like he kind of got the jist of it. Essentially, the Skill would help him follow the path laid out by his personal desire, or something like that, anyway. If this was the description after , he was scared to think what would have gotten him. A small smirk found its way onto his face as Appy sent him just a smidge of disapproval. Finally, he read over the bonuses he now knew his evolution applied. [Directly applied stats per level increased from 6 to 10. Free ability points per level increased from 4 to 5.] Just the boost to the stats he gained per level was already great, but the increase in status he¡¯d gotten was just as good. With a smile, Mercury called up his status, finally taking a look at all the numbers he now had. - - - Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 1 Species: Srytfyel Titles: , , , , , , Alias: Beast, Mittens, dum-dum === Hp: 575/575 Mp: 812/812 Sp: 567/567 === Strength: 78 (+5) -> 83 Vitality: 115 -> 120 Dexterity: 109 (+15) -> 115 Agility: 110 (+15) -> 117 Intelligence: 109 -> 123 Wisdom: 106 (+2) -> 118 Willpower: 132 -> 152 Luck: 102 -> 108 === Ability points: 116 World points: 895 Skill points: 1 710 === Gold: 14 853 Beast familiars: 1/2 - - - Holy smokes. Those¡­ those were some sizable numbers. A whole 1 000 Skill points, 20 ability points, and 75 in straight stats. [The individual¡¯s Agility has surpassed 100! Your reflexes and inertia control grow stronger.] [The individual¡¯s Dexterity has surpassed 100! Your balance and motor control grow stronger.] Huh, those were useful for sure. He was a little confused what ¡°inertia control¡± meant, but came to his rescue. Apparently, it meant that he would have an easier time turning rapidly. Somehow, the system would limit the effect inertia had on his movement. Apparently, at higher levels, it might let him change trajectory in the air. Cool stuff. Now that he was finally done with pop-ups, Mercury decided to immerse himself into the feeling of his new species for a little bit. Kintra was still working, so he had some more time to himself. The sun was high in the sky and warmed his back, and he let out a small purr as he sunk deeper into his own thoughts. Everything around him felt so¡­ serene, now. When he listened closely, he could feel the mana in the air tap against his skin, feel the stamina rush through his body in waves. This was finally where he belonged. Lazily, almost subconsciously, he reached out with his own mana, feeling the air. It almost easily left his core, feeling around him. He could feel the sun¡¯s warmth through his mana tendril now, feel how the little bits of magic in the air around him sparkled, all in different ways. With the huge uptick in his stats and Skills, the whole world around him felt more real, more clear. It was an enjoyable, peaceful day. He was really looking forward to playing with his new Skills a little. - [Main Quest: ¡°The rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated.¡± Condition: Inform those who thought you¡¯d died of your life. Meet those who you wish to see, and make good on your obligations. Reward: mastery, 500 Skill points.] - Yes, yes, he would get on that as well. He couldn¡¯t leave everyone hanging for too long, could he? Chapter 147: Boy Cat and Scientist Chapter 147: Boy Cat and Scientist /The oceans are deep, dark and treacherous. Lady Gahna and Lord Leyvo may protect those who sail across it, if their mood is right, but rarely will they extend their protections beyond the depths. Down there, it is lawless. Most surface dwelling species rarely venture deep into the oceans and their eternal war. The only humanoid species able to live there are the sipisc. They have evolved to fit the unique circumstances, and more details will be given about their society in later chapters of this publication. For now, however, I wish to talk about what makes the oceans so dangerous. There are a few factors to it. Namely, their size, but also the low amount of sapient creatures in it, as well as the unique conditions in many places. Most parts of the ocean which are close to the surface or coastal areas are tame. Calm. The horrors of the deep rarely, if ever, approach. Coral reefs with beautiful colours flourish, and the fish are small enough to be caught by fishers, as long as the populations are kept under control. It is still a brutal game of survival, but it is beautiful. However, further out from the coast, things are different. Never trust a bed of water whose bottom you cannot see. The oceans are hostile to land-dwellers. Cruel and unkind. Bereft of the air we need to live, and full of creatures with strange abilities we are not used to. That is why most ships will come equipped with a few very high levelled individuals with powerful Skills and specialised equipment. Fighting off an elymbreer without such personnel on board is impossible. The truth about the ocean is that even our words begin to fail to describe it. We call so many of its creatures simply as leviathans. It means nothing, except telling us the creature is large. But they may have any shape, strange ones, alien ones. Which is why you should never trust a bed of water whose bottom you cannot see. Because the depths are horrifying and indescribable. Now, I will attempt to give a simple summary of why those depths are horrible. On the surface, the land-dwelling species seek out arches to clear them. Stop their anchoring, or keep it under control before it may turn into a mar. Underneath the water surface, no such treatment is given. Arches do not stop for fear of water. They will anchor to reefs, to underwater mountains, to bays of sand, and sometimes, to the backs of leviathans. They will corrupt, transform, and eat away at all life, spewing out endless contingents of monsters to devour each other and grow, and grow, and grow. Because the oceans are so vast, we cannot close all arches. Nor do people try. The sipisc wage an eternal war to keep what little territory they have claimed, some helped by leviathans they have pacts with. But deep down, no one knows what lurks, or when it may emerge to the surface. Which is why you should never trust a bed of water whose bottom you cannot see. Always beware of what lurks in the deep. Its eternal war breeds power, both of the invaders, and the defenders. The creatures down there are incredible. Dense muscles, chitin plating, cores with power beyond measure, and venom so strong a drop could kill a city. Fear the deep waters. And never, ever trust a bed of water whose bottom you cannot see./ An excerpt from ¡°The Depths¡± by Leomond Illicio. - - - - - - Nicolai Tesla was a hard worker. He had always been such. And thus, he was hard at work when the doors to his lab burst open. Which immediately caused his fingers to slip from the loud noise, making him knock over a beaker, which caused a very mild amount of lightning to slam him straight in the face. He frowned slightly as he turned around, soot covering his features. ¡°Yes, Chione?¡± The young researcher looked at Tesla, a smile creeping onto his face, as he revealed a pair of canine fangs. ¡°You should see the look on your face, mate. No, important info, we picked up a huge astral wave, something big probably collapsed.¡± He spoke with this world¡¯s equivalent of an aussie accent. Immediately, the mild annoyance was wiped off Tesla¡¯s face. ¡°What do you mean a big astral wave?¡± ¡°Sensors went wild, it completely overloaded them. We got very little idea what caused it, but it soon ebbed off. Then there were a couple smaller waves. Best guess we got is from a couple people destroying something and then getting thrown all over the continent,¡± Chione commented, leaning against the wall, safely out of distance from the chemicals. ¡°Show me!¡± Tesla asked, his wide, toothy smile the only patch of white in his face. With a nod, the beastkin researcher headed off, strutting through the hallways while explaining further. ¡°The smaller waves, people, we assume, all landed in different places. Also all made different size ripples. One of ¡®em is far bigger than the others. It popped up in Treyno, small city in Nevarzahri. Might be worth checking it out?¡± Tesla nodded along as they rapidly made their way through the hallways, listening in to some extra details until they reached the astral observatory. He quickly made his way to the screens and looked over all the data. His grin grew some more. Ideas were already sprouting in his head. What could it be? He hadn¡¯t heard any special news from Treyno, so it couldn¡¯t have been a very showy event. Perhaps something had appeared unbeknownst to the public? If the waves it cast in the astral were this large, they could find it. If they could find it, perhaps Tesla finally had an avenue to get his pigeon back. They had been entirely unable to field an astral exploration team, and whatever the object was, whether a person or an item, it was sure to advance their research. ¡°Perfect,¡± he muttered under his breath, then out much louder. ¡°Perfect! We must go there right this instant! Begin charging the long-range teleporters, I want to be as close to Treyno as soon as possible!!¡± He knocked on the table thrice to ensure good luck. That wasn¡¯t a joke, it was his luck threshold bonus ability. Knocking on a hard surface thrice let him gain better luck for whatever had struck his inspiration that moment. He shook his head, banishing the thoughts about his system and centered his mind. Now, what would he need to bring to find whatever was making those waves? - - - - - - Imagine Mercury¡¯s surprise when, after a few days of relaxing, he opened his door to a dozen people in lab coats and some guy who looked exactly like sexy fantasy Tesla. He shut it again a moment later with a serenely calm expression on his face. Then, he resolutely opened the window, and jumped out. As he¡¯d feared, he was soon being chased by a dozen people in lab coats and sexy fantasy Tesla, which was an extremely awkward position to be in. The absolutely radiant smile that seemed to threaten to split poor fantasy Tesla¡¯s face in half didn¡¯t help either. Only a few corners later, he yelled back at them. ¡°I¡¯m not buying anything! Nor joining your cult!¡± ¡°We¡¯re not a cult!¡± one of them yelled back. ¡°This is for science!!¡± Mercury paled. They were gonna commit unspeakable acts upon him. ¡°I swear we just wanna talk!¡± sexy fantasy Tesla said, but the manic grin on his face said otherwise. Wherever he had glands, meaning mainly his paw pads, Mercury was sweating buckets now. He would seemingly be forever trapped in a chase scene with these people. But they kept yelling at him, trying to make conversation. ¡°We noticed you caused a wave in the astral! Did anything weird happen to you recently?!¡± one of the lab coat wearers yelled after him. ¡°Nope, nothing! I am perfectly innocent and have nothing to do with anything like that!¡± he yelled. ¡°Really now? All our sensors are going absolutely wild at your existence! Please, just spare us 5 minutes of your time!¡± Tesla pleaded. Fuck, he didn¡¯t wanna be like Thomas Edison either and frick over a good man. Reluctantly, he crouched and leapt up the side of a building in only a few hops. ¡°Stop!¡± he yelled down, and somehow, albeit with a few scientists toppling over each other, the horde did stop. This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°We may converse,¡± Mercury said in his most grave tone, ¡°however it must be on my terms!¡± ¡°Yes, of course, whatever you need!¡± Tesla agreed without hesitation. He was still smiling, but from slightly closer, Mercury felt like he could see a desperate fire burn in his eyes. ¡°Good. Then I shall require a great offering of salami.¡± ¡°Please, get us some salami so the cat may feast!¡± Tesla ordered, mimicking the seriousness of Mercury. The mopaaw in question however now had his eyes veeeeeery firmly on Tesla. He¡¯d said cat. For sure, he¡¯d said cat. Which was something no one from this world ever said. So he might be a reincarnator¡­ ¡°Are you, by any chance, Nikola Tesla?¡± The scientist in question now had his eyes even more firmly on Mercury. The cat had called him Nikola. For sure, he¡¯d said Nikola. Which was something no one from this world ever said. So he might be a reincarnator! ¡°I am, however, I am also not. My name is Nicolai. Nicolai Tesla. Inventor, engineer, and very passionate pigeon searcher,¡± he gave a deep bow. Mercury looked down upon the man for a short moment, then asked again, tentatively laying down on the roof. ¡°So why are you all chasing after me?¡± ¡°Ah, yes, that. We have recently detected a wave in the astral. My primary goal, and my main quest as of this moment, is to resurrect my dearest Anna, my pigeon. She means so very much to me, but her mind is lost in the astral, and we have yet to find ways to navigate it. Something in Treyno caused waves in the astral, and we came here to look for it, and found you, giving off powerful astral signatures, so we must speak to you. I must speak to you.¡± ¡°Well, congrats on step one, we are indeed talking,¡± Mercury said, huffing in slight amusement as he thought over what sexy Tesla had said. He was creating ripples in the astral. What exactly was the astral? Given that his was a representation of himself in his dreams, he was fairly sure those and ¡°the astral¡± were the same. Which meant that the wave they measured would be him very suddenly being shunted from wherever the heck the ashen plains were and reappearing in Treyno. ¡°Indeed we are! May I inquire as to your name?¡± Tesla asked, still shouting up from the floor to the rooftop. One of Mercury¡¯s ears flicked lightly at the loud sound. ¡°You can speak more quietly, I can hear you just fine,¡± he said. For a moment he considered whether stats influenced perception, but maybe they simply influenced Skill effectiveness. ¡°But yes, I¡¯m Mercury. Mercury Rainfall Starlight,¡± he said. ¡°I am very pleased to make your acquaintance, Mercury!¡± Tesla said, bowing again. ¡°Do you truly have no idea why you would be causing such reactions from our sensor?¡± He hesitated for a moment, then decided to be tentatively honest. ¡°I believe I have an inkling. But I won¡¯t tell you the slightest bit about it until you promise me there will be nothing done to abduct me or force me to talk about things I would rather not talk about.¡± ¡°Abduct? Goodness, no! We¡¯re scientists, not barbarians. No, no, nothing you wouldn¡¯t agree to. I¡¯m looking for your help, first with a few questions, and perhaps with a mission if our suspicions prove correct. But that¡¯s all business, and obviously you have the option to not partake,¡± Tesla explained. Yep, that was definitely 21st century scientist behaviour. If Mercury had been unsure before, this more than settled it. ¡°Alright,¡± he then agreed. ¡°I¡¯d be willing to hear you out.¡± It took a little while for the other scientists to come back, but they had booked a restaurant for Mercury and Tesla to have a private chat. They also suggested installing sound mufflers, but Mercury more than heavily declined, still trusting them only tentatively. Instead, he asked to have the chat in the local gloryhall, where his safety would be guaranteed by all present seekers, to which Tesla agreed. His posse would have to stay outside, though. Which put Mercury even more at ease. Now, the board was highly weighted in his favour if this was a trap. Was he being paranoid? Yes, absolutely. But he¡¯d been put in positions with little agency before, and he was not exactly eager to repeat the experience this time. He¡¯d just gotten back his freedom, and had to visit many of his friends again. No chance he compromised the chances of that by taking silly risks. So, once they were both seated in the gloryhall, one on a chair, the other on top a log on a chair, which Tesla noted had definite spatial magic going on around it, they started talking. It took a while for Tesla to explain it all, but he eventually got it across. Okay, the story really wasn¡¯t super complicated. After coming to this world, he had soon found a new pet pigeon. The system even called it that, and he knew it was the perfect bird for him. They had been best friends for years, the pigeon gaining levels alongside him. Then, a servant fell onto her and she died. ¡°So,¡± Mercury repeated, ¡°what you need me to do is essentially tell you as much about the ¡®astral¡¯ as I know about it, and then, maybe, if you find no one else, go explore it for the mind of your dead pigeon so you can revive it?¡± ¡°Her, but yes, essentially,¡± Tesla nodded, leaning forward with his hands wrapped around each other. ¡°So, what do you say?¡± ¡°Do I get paid for this?¡± he asked. ¡°Ah, yes, of course. We¡¯d never ask for free work. We can provide magical tools, coin, ask us and we shall see about building it,¡± the scientist said with a smile. He seemed confident. Almost cocky. ¡°Can you make me a device to have me teleport anywhere on the continent?¡± Mercury asked in return. Tesla scoffed lightly. ¡°Sure, if you have enough mana to power it. Otherwise you¡¯ll need cores, or an amount of time longer than just walking there yourself. By the time you have enough mana to teleport using technology without extra mana batteries, you won¡¯t need it anymore.¡± ¡°Hmmmm, then I dunno what I need,¡± Mercury said. Tesla¡¯s face fell. ¡°Sorry?¡± he asked ¡°I said I¡¯m unsure. I don¡¯t have anything super special I need,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m honestly fine just exploring this world. I mean, sure some gadgets would be cool, but nothing that I would really compromise my own exploration for. I¡¯ve got people to see, Nicolai.¡± For a moment, Tesla remained quiet, leaning his head on his forearm. ¡°Yes,¡± he said. ¡°I understand. That¡¯s alright. I just¡­ I suppose back to work as usual. Still have to perfect the synthetic body technology, anyways.¡± ¡°Synthetic what now?¡± Mercury perked up. ¡°Ah, the synthetic body technology. The¡­ remains of my dear Anna would not exactly be suitable to house her noble mind once again. Therefore, we have been hard at work to attempt the construction of biologically functional yet entirely mindless bodies to house her once she returns,¡± Tesla explained. Mercury¡¯s ears twitched lightly. ¡°So, what do you need to create a body?¡± ¡°Quite a small part of the original organism. A feather would suffice, for example, though live flesh is certainly preferred over dead material,¡± Tesla leaned back. ¡°I see,¡± Mercury¡¯s face sunk a little again. He grimaced. The scientist was¡­ a lot like him, even if he didn¡¯t want to admit it. Clinging onto the idea of resurrecting friends. ¡°Say, what exactly constitutes something being a good body to house a mind?¡± ¡°Well, for starters, you want the overall shape and weight distribution of the body to be very similar. It is also best if the body somewhat matches their stat distribution. Which is what makes it nigh on impossible to revive anyone of a high level,¡± Tesla explained. Mercury let out a small sigh. ¡°I suppose someone who¡¯s been dead for more than six seasons with no biological material to be found would be difficult to bring back?¡± ¡°Impossible, at least for me. There is also no guarantee of their mind even still subsisting. Given all we know, the astral can be a very unforgiving place.¡± ¡°Mhm,¡± Mercury nodded, thinking back to the starving dream he¡¯d killed. ¡°Yes, I can confirm that for you. Some parts are kind, but it can become very unforgiving very quickly.¡± He shook his head for a moment. ¡°How long has your pigeon been dead for?¡± The question made Tesla grimace. ¡°Long. Multiple chapters. I do not have high hopes of her mind still existing in the astral, but she was also clever. Perhaps there is some part of her that¡¯s left, which I may be able to give another chance at life. It may not be the same¡­ but I wish to do my due diligence,¡± the scientist said, a frown tugging at his lips. Mercury was silent for a little while. He needed to¡­ process it all a bit. Knowing that Second and Gladiator were gone for good really sucked. Like really, really sucked. He hadn¡¯t really been expecting to revive them for a long while now. The decision to try had come from a place of grief. After going through the whole experience in the ashen plains, he felt like he was somewhat ready to let go. Maybe. With some conscious effort, he forced himself to take a couple deep breaths. They¡¯d been gone for a while, so getting the news didn¡¯t exactly hurt. It was¡­ frustrating? No, not really that. Really, the news just felt sad. Like the loss he¡¯d been putting off would really settle in now. It wasn¡¯t like he¡¯d known the wolves for super long, but as the one to make them leave the forest, he kind of felt responsible for them. Could he have seen the Blood Eclipse coming? No, of course not, that would be silly to expect. But without his intervention, they would¡¯ve never left the forest. Taking another deep breath, Mercury let out a long, long sigh. It wasn¡¯t his fault. He knew that, he had to accept that. He had to¡­ let go. At least he¡¯d try his best to. Letting out another sigh, he opened his eyes again, looking at the scientist in front of him. He noticed bags under his eyes, tiredness that clung to him underneath the manic excitement of a possibility. He was just like Mercury had been. Perhaps, however, there was still a chance to give the nascent mind of Anna another life, as silly as it was. ¡°Tesla, I will be very honest with you here,¡± Mercury said slowly. ¡°The astral, as you call it, is much bigger than you think. Much, much bigger. In fact, the chances of me ever finding your pigeon, even if I actively search, are astronomically low,¡± he explained, watching the grave look settle on Tesla¡¯s face. Leaning forward a bit, he continued. ¡°I also want to make it very clear that you should be letting go at this point. If there is something left of her mind, it¡¯s not gonna be the same bird as before. But.¡± He took a pause. ¡°If, and it¡¯s a very big if, I find her, I¡¯ll do my best to bring her back to you. I can¡¯t specifically search for her, that would be borderline suicidal. But if we stumble upon each other, I will try to bring her back.¡± The glow in Tesla¡¯s eyes was different than before. Mercury didn¡¯t know why he could identify it, perhaps he had simply spent long enough talking to a blob of water that reading expressions had become second nature, or it had something to do with his progress in ihn¡¯ar. Whatever the case, he knew it was no longer the same manic, hope-filled look. It was a warm glow. Having his expectations curbed seemed to have helped. ¡°I appreciate that, Mercury,¡± the scientist said. ¡°I really do. I, uh¡­ I think I might need some time to think this over. I really appreciate the favour. If there¡¯s ever something I can do for you, please let me know and I¡¯ll try my best. I know you¡¯re not making huge promises, but it means a lot to have an astral expert at hand.¡± Mercury had to hold back a chuckle at being called an expert, but he stifled it. Instead, he held out a paw, extending it in front of his body. ¡°Pleasure meeting you, Tesla. If you picked up any other waves, those were probably my friends, no need to pursue them, I did all the astral stuff.¡± The scientist gave a wry smile at the gesture, then grasped the cat¡¯s paw and shook it. ¡°Good to meet you as well.¡± ¡°Indeed. Though I do have a question. Did Edison really steal your ideas?¡± Tesla smirked, and lifted an eyebrow. ¡°Thomas? Why, I haven¡¯t heard that name in a while.¡± He twirled his moustache. ¡°I would have to tentatively agree.¡± And after a longer conversation about their old lives back on Earth, Mercury retreated up into his room and meditated while eating some of the salami he was offered. As he ate he made up his mind. He¡¯d start making sure everyone knew he was alive first thing tomorrow. Well, perhaps second thing, after saying goodbye to Kintra. Chapter 148: Star of Hope Chapter 148: Star of Hope /Names are curious things, and their importance in different cultures is even more curious. To the golems, your surname is everything. Whatever your parents call you is little more than a noise to get your attention. What matters is whether you are of the lower crust, or of the bedrock, for example. You may earn a good surname, yet some people still judge you by your birth. Elves are also picky about their names. Often, they will tell you what they do. Leafsmith. Treeshaper. Splitter. Their nobility exists, but is not chosen by birthright. Instead, it is determined by fierce competition. Names are given, certainly, but then you must prove yourself worthy. Dwarves love lineages. Your clan determines your allies and enemies, your friendships and companions. Not your direction in life, and not necessarily your standing, but it does dictate how people view you. Yet what fascinates me even more is the aliases the system grants us. Nicknames, certainly, fall into there. But other things do as well. There may only ever be a single name registered for you within the system. That name can be as long as you wish, essentially, though anything above reason will usually net you a few annoyed glances when people have to process your paperwork. However, since aliases aren¡¯t usually used other than by certain people, nothing like that applies to them. The system apparently keeps track of what people like to call us. Sometimes, even insults may fall into that particular department, though such cases are rarer. There have also been reported differences in the speed of aliases being registered. Some only took a single mention, others many. Perhaps that is due to the intent of using that name again. It could also be based on how truthfully a name describes an individual. We do not know much about it yet. The only thing that¡¯s clear, is that aliases have to be actively in use by a person, or they will disappear. If the person who uses an alias dies, for example, it will fade after a time. Again, that time can be weeks or months. It depends on how much you grieve the loss, among other things. But it will vanish. The same goes for aliases not in use anymore. If someone begins using another nickname for you, the alias may disappear over time. This is probably in place to prevent cluttering. Of course, you can also enable viewing all past aliases, but it is not recommended. Finally, I want to give a small piece of my own mind. Your name is yours to choose. No matter what your people think, your culture thinks, your guardians think. A name is everyone¡¯s own choice. There¡¯s a reason that changing it is not too much of a hassle. Make sure people call you something you¡¯re comfortable with. Be kind to yourself. That includes having a name you enjoy being called by./ An excerpt from ¡°Nebulous Names¡± by Melina Kalos. - - - - - - Explaining the reason why he¡¯d been chased by people in lab coats to Kintra took surprisingly little time. Perhaps, by now, she was simply used to his antics. Mercury smiled a little at the thought. It was about time he got a reputation as being a little insane. He spent the last few days in Treyno enjoying himself. Sunbathing on the roof made for a great change of pace to the absolutely miserable experience his time in the ashen plains has been. But now, he was finally back, and could put it behind himself. Maybe. Slowly, time ticked by, until his self-set page of relaxation was over. His goodbyes to Kintra were a lot less somber this time. He promised to come back soon-ish. Probably within a year. Or so he hoped, at least. Kintra also joined his little nation of Logston, which enabled a very neat function, allowing them to see each other¡¯s overall health. Not as a bar, just a general status. [Healthy], [Injured], that kinda deal. Mercury hoped they¡¯d never need to use it, but he knew that he was probably gonna get himself nearly killed again. All in a day¡¯s work, right? He smirked at the thought for just a second before hugging Kintra goodbye as best as he could. She traced the starry lines across his fur for a moment, then ruffled his head, and waved him off at the city gates. The road was familiar to Mercury. Not intimately, not at all. But it was still familiar. He¡¯d travelled it once before. Hopefully, this time there wouldn¡¯t be any bandits doing shady things. - - - A few days into the journey, he encountered a small group of bandits. This time, however, they¡­ legitimately tried to mug him. Like, honestly, good on them. Equal opportunity muggers, who thought he was a true kin. It went very poorly for them. Mercury, on the other hand, got two pales and a couple dims out of it. And obviously, the bandits got a few bruises and sore muscles. Nothing too horrible, except maybe some bite marks and scratches. But they wouldn¡¯t die. Probably. Then, for a while, the journey continued without any events. The roads were calm. He walked past a couple merchants, but none he knew. Until, one afternoon he went to bed, he reappeared in his dream realm. The entry into it was honestly extremely anticlimactic. He just went to bed on the blanket, getting ready for some of the best sleep of his life, when he reappeared in the vast grassy plains. A lot about them was different, though. As in, very different. Firstly, the sky had changed. It was no longer blue as it had been back on Earth. Nor was the sun alone in it anymore. Instead, the sky was blanketed with colours. One edge turned a dark crimson, the other a vibrant pink. The colours blended into each other, dying the sky as though there were two simultaneous sunsets, one deeper than the other. Yet, despite all that, three bodies hung in the Sky, none of them actually setting. One of them was a large ball of silver, the sun. It had changed, and Mercury knew very instinctively that it had changed because he had changed. In addition to the, now silver, sun, there was a small, pale moon. It hung further off, seemingly much higher in the sky. Next to it, there was also a single star, which looked a lot like the nexus had, just a silvery-purple colour. He could feel that a bunch of strands of his dream hung about the two things, with them acting like anchors. And with those anchors, his dream had grown far more complex. The air was more dense, the grass more real, and everything felt more¡­ firm. If someone tried to invade this place now, they would struggle. If someone he wanted to allow in sought to find it, they would have a much easier time. Still there was more. Blow the silver sun, Mercury could see a mass of black steel. It seemed far away, as if it hung in armory in the sky, but he could call it back down to himself with a simple thought. When he did, it shifted, and molded into a much more familiar shape. A set of dark claws, his Dream of Starvation. They¡¯d go here to repair themselves, it seemed. Which made sense, given that this was his mind. He put them on for a few moments, and they were comfortable. He could somehow still feel the soft grass through the metal. Everything here was somewhat part of himself, he supposed. After a moment, he let the item go and glanced around. The landscape was bathed in new light, and was much more beautiful. Things had also grown closer. The fountain, especially, seemed like it was within reach, but the castle of glass also seemed less distant. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. In fact, he was reasonably sure he could go there now if he wished. But he didn¡¯t. They were beautiful, but ultimately, just constructs of his mind. These days, he found he would be much more comfortable with the soft grass underneath him. Perhaps the fountain would find a use if Ruvah ever joined him in here, but that might be some time yet. There were still more things Mercury noticed, namely himself. He looked much more like his outside body now, except glowing. Well, not glowing, more like¡­ starry? The stripes on his fur, which outside of the dream now shone faintly like a starry sky, had insane depth here. The kind where it seemed like you were looking into space through them, and they¡¯d shift if you moved. It was¡­ gorgeous, but in a very eldritch way. If he could have seen his own eyes, Mercury might have noticed that they were very similar to the stripes in that regard. The detail in them was almost infinite, like fractals folding onto each other; no matter how closely one looked, there was always more to discover. They were something worthy of an adventure by themselves. And finally, there was one more thing in the sky. A star. A very dark one. Borderline black. And he knew what it was, too. ¡®Whisperkid?¡¯ he thought up at the star. The answer was first in a radiance, a bright glow of darkness. Black stripes danced happily across the sky. ¡®Yes! Yes me!¡¯ they thought back to him, happiness lacing their thoughts. Mercury paused for a few moments. He¡¯d been reasonably sure he¡¯d hallucinated that whole conversation back then, but¡­ it suddenly seemed much more unlikely. ¡®How did you get here?¡¯ he asked, tentatively. ¡®Followed advice! Defined myself. Then, looked for advice-giver. Looked for a very long time, and now found!¡¯ they thought to him, with an underlying message of loneliness now being broken. Ah. They¡¯d found him again because he was more of a beacon in the dark now. For a minute, he wondered what was out there, beyond the weave, but he discarded the thought. Instead, he laced his mind with welcoming. The kid had been a little weird, sure, but seemed good at heart, so they were okay to stay here, for now. ¡®Well, how do you feel? Found your own way?¡¯ he asked gently, offering a warm smile. The star in the sky answered with a glow of dark light. ¡®Yes,¡¯ they chirped, ¡®very myself. Very me. Am a star!¡¯ ¡®I can see that,¡¯ Mercury thought back with a light laugh. ¡®Then, what will you do now?¡¯ The response he got was tinged with confusion. ¡®Be¡­ a star?¡¯ the kid thought, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. ¡®So you¡¯d like to just hang out there?¡¯ Mercury asked back, doing the cat equivalent of arching his eyebrows. ¡®Yes! You have a good sky!¡¯ the voice replied with glee, flitting across the firmament as if to show off what it meant. [Individual |Whisperstar| has offered to engage connection via weave with |Mercury Rainfall Starlight|. Allow sky-gate?] Mercury could tell that even was struggling to define what it meant in such a small message. Like it was going through the words he was familiar with and didn¡¯t find proper ones, so it combined them and laced them heavily with meaning. The ¡°sky-gate¡± wouldn¡¯t really be a gate at all. Instead, it would simply allow Whisperstar¡¯s mindscape to be accessed through his, and vice-versa. The gate could also be shut at any time, and could only be created by two willing individuals. There was no harm associated with it, unless the other person¡¯s mind was heavily damaged. Even then, the main danger was a collapse of the gate if you didn¡¯t help, which would, at worst, cause minor damage to your weave. So minor it should recover in a few days or less. Mentally, Mercury accepted the prompt, and felt the small bit of darkness coming from the star increasing. Its shape grew¡­ maybe more solid? Just slightly though, the change was nothing major. Yet, the waves of happiness his starry friend sent over their connection sure were. ¡®Thank you, Mercury!¡¯ they thought happily, the glee so palpable it almost smacked into Mercury. ¡®No problem, little Star,¡¯ the mopaaw replied. If he could make someone so happy just by accepting them as they were and giving them room to express that, why wouldn¡¯t he, after all? For a few more minutes, his sky was lit up with black bits of movement, the constant waves of happiness brightening his mood without any distinct words coming alongside them. It was infectious, in a good way, and Mercury found it almost hard to not go along. But there were still more things to do. When he finally had the mental space to spare, the air shimmered in front of him, as someone else entered his dream. For the first time, old Uunrahzil wasn¡¯t just there, waiting for him, but actively stepped into the place with his permission. ¡®Greetings, mine tri¡¯ht,¡¯ the old one thought, their mind heavy with a deep respect and pride for their student. ¡®Greetings, old Uunrahzil,¡¯ Mercury replied with a small bow, writing out a feeling of acknowledgement and of completing an achievement. Silence reigned between the two of them for a few moments, as they basked in each other¡¯s emotions. It was special to Mercury. He was used to¡­ disappointing his teachers. Or not respecting them in the first place. Yet, not only had old Uunrahzil earned a bow, they¡¯d also taught him many valuable lessons. ¡®I see thee hath become more,¡¯ the old one eventually broke the silence. ¡®Thineself, and thine dream, too, this one means.¡¯ There was a hint of curiosity written in their thoughts, mixed in with slight surprise and a deeper sense of memory Mercury couldn¡¯t quite place. ¡®This one has,¡¯ Mercury replied, giving a wave of humility. ¡®My dream has grown more firm, I believe. And I have, as well.¡¯ ¡®Young Mercury. I wish thee to know that there has never been a tri¡¯ht of mine who has gone so far above and beyond my expectations. Thou art a treasure. And I could not think of someone more worthy to have found in my time scouring the void.¡¯ The thoughts spilled from old Uunrahzil so suddenly, Mercury had hardly been prepared. And yet, he knew that each word was genuine. They had been considered properly, weighed, and deemed to be completely true. ¡®All of me agrees on that,¡¯ they added. Somehow, those words laid even more heavily in the void of the dreamscape. As though saying that alone meant a thousand voices of agreement. Perhaps more. It was almost enough to overwhelm Mercury, but not in a bad way at all. ¡®I- I don¡¯t know what to say,¡¯ he replied. ¡®You do not have to say anything at all,¡¯ old Uunrahzil replied. ¡®We know.¡¯ They let the words hang in the air for a moment. ¡®At your young age, you have acquired an anchor. Bound the weave tight around it, and manifested a dream that does not need a dreamer. You have acquired an overseer, a nascent will of yours which will keep the dream safe from invaders. You have woven things far beyond your years. Things that many weavers would consider an impossibility.¡¯ ¡®And then you have gone another step beyond,¡¯ they said, a smile so thick on their lips Mercury could hear it in their thoughts. ¡®You have found someone. A thing of the void, a hungry nightmare that seeks to devour, and you have given it a self, and a purpose. You have become an anchor not only to yourself, but to others. Without even knowing it, you have stepped into mine own legacy. For that, we are eternally grateful.¡¯ As they finished the sentence, old Uunrahzil bowed. To Mercury. To young Cat. It was an expression of respect so great, that it drove tears into Mercury¡¯s eyes. ¡®Uunrahzil, I-¡¯ ¡®Old Uunrahzil,¡¯ they corrected with a smile. ¡®But you do not have to explain yourself. You owe me no thanks for this, I have simply told you what this one thinks, perhaps what all of me thinks. You have pierced the first veil of gold, and then the second of nothing. Perceived the strands that make up your mind and bound them to yourself. In a way, you are now more you, and that is a feat no one can take from thee,¡¯ they thought. ¡®And yet, even more, you have grasped how to weave things into being. Not tearing others apart, not weaving yourself tighter, not simply bringing change to what is there. You have created, young Mercury. Dreamt something into being. A task I thought may take you many chapters, accomplished in not even one.¡¯ They shook their head a little, writing stunned disbelief. Mercury could tell how much those words meant to them, as well. The fact that he¡¯d used his very first act of weaving to create. Even if it was just a silly stack of paper. And although his second act had been destroying the Crimson Sun, he still made something from it. An ¡°overseer¡± from the sun, a protector of his dream, and an ¡°anchor¡± from the nexus. Something to hold the dream together, even if he was awake. ¡®Young Mercury, you are weaving into being a dream this one had almost given up on. A dream we thought so distant, it was out of reach. And yet, here you are. Granting us a chance, a bit of hope. A sky decorated with a star, a sun hanging in it, and an anchor, woven from something shattered.¡¯ Again, they shook their head. ¡®We thank you.¡¯ They let the words hang in the air for a long while. Mercury didn¡¯t answer. Old Uunrahzil didn¡¯t force him. There was enough time, more than enough to simply wait. Occasionally, Mercury could feel playful thoughts flying his way from Whisperstar, but they were small invites rather than distractions. He didn¡¯t mind. Instead, he simply spent a long time basking in old Uunrahzil¡¯s praise. It¡¯d been more than they probably ever said to him and it had all been so¡­ kind. A smile wormed its way onto his face. It felt so nice. To be acknowledged, appreciated, and respected. He hadn¡¯t expected for this to earn him such an honest thanks from his teacher, his tri¡¯ht, yet it had. Something about what he did was clearly special to them, and he was more than glad to have done it for them. Most importantly, he felt that there was no debt hanging in the air. Old Uunrahzil had done many things for him. Taught him ihn¡¯ar, let him realize who he was, helped save a friend, and pointed the way towards saving his life. Despite all that, they had not thought he owed them a debt for a moment. All of it was freely given. And now, he was freely giving back, in a way. There were no expectations in the air between them, simply trust. Full faith that the other person had their best interests at heart. Trust given was trust earned. Mercury could feel those words were what Uunrahzil was radiating. A sense of trust so absolute it seemed any hardship could shatter against it. ¡®Mercury, wouldst thou accept a name from me?¡¯ Uunrahzil asked into the silence. He hesitated for only half a moment. ¡®I would.¡¯ ¡®Then I would like to give you one. To us, you are Yr-en-zel. Yr¡¯enzel.¡¯ The syllables rang out heavily in Mercury¡¯s mind the first time. Old Uunrahzil usually added translations for their language, but this time, he did not need one. The word itself denominated him, defined him, made him more real. It was as though someone wrapped a shawl around his neck on a cold winter day. ¡®Thank you, old Uunrahzil,¡¯ he said. The name had already registered as an alias on his status sheet. And he knew what it meant. He was Yr¡¯enzel. Star of Hope. Chapter 149: Old Friends Chapter 149: Old Friends The rest of his dream was spent calmly. He told Uunrahzil some of his stories. The new people he¡¯d met, and the fact that he finally found one of his companions again. His plans of meeting everyone in Stormbraver, and the fact that he probably had a few people to tell he was still alive. Mercury still had absolutely no idea where there had been assassins after him in the first place, but he could only wager that it was one of the nobles he pissed off. That, or someone was trying to blackmail one of his friends. He honestly hoped for the first one, because it was an issue he could just resolve on his own. If this had been to get to Zyl, Lucia, or anyone else he was close to, he¡¯d be a lot more actively mad. Sure, someone had tried to kill him, but if it was the consequences of his own actions, fine. But he didn¡¯t want to be a liability to other people. Unfortunately, he could feel rumble on in his chest. It seemed to synergize with , letting him get a feel for the answer to a question. Which was strange, welcome, and in this case, frustrating. Because he now knew that there¡¯d been some greater purpose behind the attack, and it kind of pissed him off. For the moment though, he still enjoyed the little bit of time he had, relaxing in the dream, chatting with old Uunrahzil and Whisperstar. The two were good company, each kind in their own way, and yet different as could be. Old Uunrahzil was patient and calm, with the steady certainty and wisdom of age, while Whisperstar was excitable and naive, always eager to play and move and act. It was funny, seeing the two interact, when they were so different. Mercury smiled for almost the entire time until he woke up. It felt like maybe the first time in his dream realm that he didn¡¯t spend his entire visit training. A welcome change of pace if he was honest. Of course, the next few days were back to the grind, trying to grasp more threads of the weave whenever he dreamt. Progress was slow, as it usually was after he broke a barrier, but Mercury didn¡¯t mind for once. He¡¯d get better in due time. During the afternoons and early evenings, he continued his travels. It was easy, now, the road being eaten up beneath his legs. He hardly felt any fatigue at all. This body, which had once felt like he was stuck in it - especially the no thumbs bit - was becoming comfortable. The thought stuck around as well. He was genuinely growing more comfortable. With himself, with who he was. It was a good feeling. Keeping a relatively upbeat state of mind, the journey continued. Mercury was making very good time towards Stormbraver, and after only a little over a page, the city appeared on the horizon. Except, things were off. The walls seemed so much smaller than he remembered. And there was a cloud of dust hanging above the city. Mercury sped up. The walls came closer, then closer still, until he could start to make out the rubble. He was still far away, and yet it was easy to see the damage to the city. So many of the buildings had fallen apart. Trash was being disposed of, meaning giant heaps of broken stone and charred wood outside the walls. There were tents - dozens of tents. He guessed some were for healing, and most for temporary housing. The sight made his stomach sink. What the hell had happened while he was gone? A few more hours and he¡¯d arrived, to what distinctly didn¡¯t feel like a city anymore. So much of it had broken. He could smell the dust and decay hanging in the air. And there were so very many graves. Most of the tombstones were hewn from the very stone that buried some of the victims. Not like it was gonna see much other use. He shivered a little at the sight, and hurried past the gates into the city. The guards paid him little attention, but he flicked his crystal to them anyway, indicating his status as a godseeker. He didn¡¯t check for the reaction. He hardly remembered his path through the streets, making his way across the rubble and getting to his goal as quickly as he could. The guild still stood. Mercury breathed a sigh of relief he didn¡¯t know he¡¯d been holding in. Tentatively, he stepped through the door. Its hinges were more creaky than he remembered, like they¡¯d not been oiled in a while, and the hall wasn¡¯t nearly as bustling. The board with jobs was more than full though, mainly exterminating monsters, but also a lot of gathering supplies for building and medical care. Looking at it felt so surreal. Like another life. But there was a familiar, very tired and exhausted face. In fact, his old receptionist buddy seemed so tired, Mercury could hardly see his face from all the bags under his eyes. The poor guy didn¡¯t even notice the mopaaw walk in, and seemed to almost be nodding off. Not that he was currently super busy. ¡°Hey, panda, you good there?¡± Mercury asked with only a smidge of teasing as he hopped onto the counter. Marcel jerked in place for a moment, his eyes opening wide and scanning the room in panic, before they settled onto the little ball of fluff before him. ¡°Wha- What?! Who said- oh. Wait, is that¡­ Mercury? Is that you? You look different. Or I could be hallucinating, holy shit I need to sleep more.¡± ¡°It is indeed myself,¡± Mercury said with a grin, giving a theatrical bow. He¡¯d missed Marcel. ¡°So. I, uh¡­ see that things have changed since I was last here. You okay?¡± ¡°No,¡± Marcel chuckled, sounding almost deranged. ¡°No, I¡¯m not okay. Most people in Stormbraver are feeling a little bad. But at least the war¡¯s over and done with. We had negotiations, king Fulthur of the north came in himself. Slowly rebuilding, is all. I¡¯ll give you the rundown in a minute, just gotta ask, are your stripes glowing these days or am I really that sleep-deprived?¡± ¡°Ah, that. Yeah, I actually had an evolution while I was gone. We might have some stuff to catch up on. Did you know I had like 20 assassins sent after me?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°You what?¡± Marcel blinked a couple times, then shook his head. ¡°Sorry, repeat that?¡± ¡°I had about 20 assassins sent after me. More, I think.¡± ¡°Did you die?¡± ¡°Sadly, yes. But then I lived!¡± Mercury said, very pleased with himself. Marcel only gave him a few more slow blinks. A couple of them must¡¯ve been asynchronous. Like, one eye blinking faster than the other. He looked really rough. Finally, the receptionist spoke again. ¡°Right. So, bud, you¡¯re back. You went through a whole evolution, almost died, and after, what, a season and a half you¡¯re just¡­ back?¡± ¡°Sure am, Marcel,¡± Mercury sighed. ¡°I sure am.¡± ¡°Fine,¡± the receptionist just sank in on himself even more than he already was. ¡°Let¡¯s get you up to speed.¡± - - - A bit of talking later, and Mercury heard all about Scarlet and the attack on Stormbraver. Afterwards, king Fulthur came to negotiate. The man was old, and tired of losing his people. Perhaps the death of his oldest son had been what broke him, no one knew exactly. Whatever the case, Evlenor and Nevarzahri now had a good deal of overlapping territory, and offered to share resources and trade. Evlenor would give furs, meats, and manpower for rebuilding, while Nevarzahri would mostly provide grains and long-lasting food. Despite the rather beneficial alliance, bad blood still ran thick. There were very few mixed cities and towns, since both sides had lost family members to the other. People weren¡¯t all pleased with the decision, but most could recognize it was necessary. Some plain left, wandering to other nations. They would find shelter there, or perish during their travels. Such was fate. But everyone who remained focused on rebuilding. There was so much to do. A city didn¡¯t just restore itself from the ruins. Things had been progressing well, despite everything. Marcel was simply still almost passing out from healing and rescue operations. Apparently, bottoming out on mana and staying there for most of a day for multiple weeks didn¡¯t do good things to someone. Who could¡¯ve known. Now, everything was slowly going back to normal. Avery had disappeared, but was back these days. Only returned a couple days before Mercury, actually. But he was mostly stable again, just more obsessed with making sure he was preparing well. Mercury went to see the guildmaster as well. It felt weird walking through the backstage of the halls again. At least this time he would be meeting Avery in his office, not down in the hot springs. When he entered the room, Mercury very quickly noticed the changes about Avery. Firstly, he had a new scar. Another one caused by fire, and yet it looked so much smaller. Maybe this one had gotten better treatment sooner, or Avery just had better resistance and healing abilities. The guildmaster wore a confused expression when his door first swung open. Marcel hadn¡¯t announced them, but it didn¡¯t seem like a very big deal. Avery also looked tired, but he seemed in a much better state than the receptionist. In fact, he looked somewhat different from what Mercury remembered. ¡°Hey Avery!¡± the mopaaw shouted from below, leading the guildmaster to tilt his face down. His slightly confused expression twisted into a much bigger smile. ¡°Mercury! My man, where¡¯ve you been?!¡± he half-yelled, getting up from the seat and spreading his arms wide as he approached the mopaaw. He offered his fist and Mercury tapped his paw against it, as Avery¡¯s eyes drifted over him. The guildmaster still wore sunglasses indoors, it seemed. ¡°It¡¯s uh¡­ a bit of a story, Avery,¡± Mercury said. ¡°But I¡¯ve been doing okay.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not, in fact, been doing okay,¡± Marcel interjected. Avery coughed out a laugh at that point, shaking his head. ¡°Alright, well, I suppose I¡¯ve got nothing but time. But I¡¯m guessing Marcel just got the whole story. You in more of a listening mood?¡± He gestured at the couch, and Mercury as well as Marcel took a seat. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°I am,¡± Mercury nodded, while seated. Avery was walking around the office grabbing some drinks he had around in canteens. For Mercury, he simply poured water into a small, flat bowl. ¡°Well then, my man, I¡¯ve got some stuff to tell you as well. I was doing very poorly just a bit ago. But I¡¯ve gotten an evolution out of it.¡± He leaned back with a satisfied grin and crossed his arms. Mercury¡¯s eyes widened. He wouldn¡¯t have guessed Avery to have evolved, but he could kinda see it now. Maybe that had made the burn heal so well? Probably. His skin was also more taut across his muscles, even though they were lean and compressed. Then he grinned. ¡°Really now? Me too, actually,¡± he said smugly, watching as Avery¡¯s eyebrows raised and he leaned forward again. They both kind of stared at each other for a few seconds, trying to make out the differences. ¡°It¡¯s in your purple, right?¡± Avery asked. ¡°The colour of your eyes and stripes, I mean. It¡¯s deeper, like I¡¯m looking into the night sky or something.¡± ¡°Yup, that¡¯s the one. And your skin. It¡¯s¡­ what, tougher? Thicker? What kind of evolution did you get?¡± ¡°Ah, mine isn¡¯t super apparent outward. One sec,¡± he said, getting up. Then he took off his shirt, prompting Mercury to quickly look away. For a moment, nothing happened, before Avery¡¯s body began to shift slightly. It grew even stronger, muscles rippling underneath it. Then, tiny, dark scales grew to cover him, and short spikes extended out from his spine. Blades of glistening bone grew from his elbows, and his nails shifted into hard claws. His teeth became fangs, wild and dangerous looking, yet his lips still had that same carefree smile. Without a hint of danger, he turned to face Mercury, smooth scales glistening ever so slightly in the light. He grinned, his eyes still covered by sunglasses. Mercury could feel that he was suppressing some sort of effect, probably fear, around him, but he could also tell Avery only meant well. ¡°This is my proper racial form. The system tends to give the ability to shapeshift at higher tiers. I went from my previous ¡°draconic human¡± to a slightly more general ¡°scaleblooded shifter¡±. It¡¯s more powerful, and more versatile, letting me borrow attributes from a bunch of different reptiles. One of the two racial Skills was the shifting one,¡± he explained, turning to let Mercury see the new form. ¡°You look cool as fuck,¡± Mercury said, smiling. ¡°Yeah. It comes with a fear effect, but it¡¯s selective,¡± Avery shook his head and crossed his arms, the elbow blades standing out to the sides. ¡°Was a huge hassle keeping the fear effect in check before the evolution. Still need to hide my eyes though, just because they put people off, and shifting those away is much harder.¡± The mopaaw nodded sagely. He was surprised Avery was this honest, even telling him the exact race. ¡°So what else does it do?¡± ¡°Generally huge buffs to physical things. More stamina, much quicker stamina recovery, shifting abilities to increase different stats and enhance different Skills. Very solid enhancement overall. But clothes chafe against the scales. They tear up cotton like nobody¡¯s business; their edges are relatively sharp.¡± ¡°Fair enough,¡± Mercury said. ¡°My new race is a ¡°srytfyel¡±. It helps my affinity with dreams a lot, and with travelling and mana. I honestly haven¡¯t got around to playing with it a whole lot, but if I want to go somewhere, it should be very, very hard to stop me these days.¡± The explanation elicited a couple nods from the others in the room, and seemed to confirm his hypothesis as well. ¡°Sounds solid,¡± Avery nodded, his skin shifting back as he put his shirt on again, then sat down on his seat. ¡°Well, enough about system stuff though. You can obviously tell that Stormbraver¡¯s seen better days. I¡¯m happy about the peace, honestly, as much as I¡¯m upset with what we lost. We need to focus on rebuilding.¡± ¡°True,¡± Marcel nodded. ¡°Everything that happened was shitty, but it¡¯s not right to hate the survivors.¡± ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ve been having a rough go coming to terms with it all. Feels like I¡¯m failing repeatedly. But I have to hold my head high. No, I want to do it. Be a role model, all that. And I¡¯m gonna be okay with it, come to terms with what¡¯s happened, focus on the future, you know?¡± Avery¡¯s face distorted slightly as he spoke, but he ended with what seemed like a bittersweet smile. Mercury just kind of nodded along. ¡°It sucks, yeah. But the future isn¡¯t set in stone. The city will recover, so will the guild. Just¡­ gotta give it time.¡± ¡°Exactly. Anyway, how about you? In general, I mean, not your evolution,¡± Avery asked, leaning his head onto his hands. ¡°Well,¡± Mercury turned to face Marcel, who sat there with the slightest hint of a smile. ¡°I died a few times, and had assassins sent after me. Actually, wrong order there. First assassins, then a couple deaths later.¡± Avery just kind of sat there, staring at him. Mercury thought he might have blinked a couple times, but he couldn¡¯t see through the glasses. So, he decided to just tell the story properly. ¡°Alright, there¡¯s a few things that happened before then. After I left Stormbraver¡­¡± - - - The story took a while to tell, but he got into the swing of it soon. Talking about Yvette, and Iris, and Marsh. Alexander and Yasashiku. He briefly mentioned Zyl and Otto as well. Marcel and Avery laughed and cried with him. They worried when he told them about the eclipse, and cheered when he told the story of how he destroyed the Crimson Sun. He mentioned his dream realm, but kept the details of old Uunrahzil close to heart. Then, he briefly touched on the whole Tesla thing, which got a few laughs out of them. After Mercury was done, Avery told him all about the things in Stormbraver. More details on the war, his own feelings, and so on. It was a lot more personal than Marcel¡¯s retelling of it all. Especially how horrendous the bureaucracy¡¯d been. He¡¯d left the city for a while, once most of his responsibilities were settled, and the desire for his return being fulfilled was enough to net him the last push for the evolution. Then, bishop Nemo had appeared, being an absolute chore for Iris and Lucia. But they were managing. Mercury nodded, he¡¯d visit them next, anyway. Then maybe the mages¡¯ guild. All in due time. Once everyone was caught up, they just stayed and talked. Mercury told them about his eating abilities and was promptly served a little bit of alcohol. Not overly much, of course, just enough to lighten the mood. Marcel passed out halfway through the conversation, and Avery carried him to a bed. Mercury decided to lend him the Blanket of Dreams to make sure his friend slept well, so they wrapped him up in it. The nap was deserved. Finally, when all was said and done, Mercury reserved himself a room for the night. He got the keys to it, and would be able to enter anytime. Then, he headed out into the streets again, to the smell of dust and decay. With his sensitive nose he could still pick up hints of metal in the air, from bloodstains long dried. It was distracting, and sad, but he trudged through the streets anyway. He recognised so many of the once-buildings. They were now reduced to nothing but rubble. Houses he¡¯d walked past, seen children play through those streets, now empty and void of life. Flowers from cracked pots laid wilted on the streets, though the actual roads were mostly clean. It was surreal, like walking through a post-apocalyptic landscape. Except there were people around, many of them despite the evening hours, foraging through the stone and wood mess. Some were looking for valuables, others for heirlooms, but few spoke. The air was heavy. Still, step by step he made his way through. He sometimes felt itinerant flickering, when people considered getting in his way or stopping to pet him. Somehow, they all swerved aside. Despite the people, his path remained completely unobstructed. And he came closer to the church building. It was looking better than most of the city, having been built from sturdy stone, and even had some magical words carved into its rock, but a side wing had still collapsed. By now, it seemed mostly on the way to reconstruction though. He made his way to the regular door, then hesitated. He looked up, and smiled, a plan already forming in his head. He hopped onto the doorframe, clambering from stone to stone, sometimes providing platforms with his rijn. And then, he¡¯d made it up to Lucia¡¯s window. Given that he knew Iris and her were dating, Mercury closed his eyes and very slowly tapped against the glass. There were no screams from the inside, which was already a good sign, and a few minutes later, the window swung open and he hopped in. ¡°Hey, thanks for opening, I-¡± He was interrupted as one of the women swept him up in a hug. He¡­ didn¡¯t mind. Gently, he pressed a paw against the woman¡¯s back. She squeezed him tightly once, then let go. ¡°Missed you, Mercury,¡± Iris said with a bright smile. Surprisingly, even Lucia didn¡¯t seem disgruntled at his appearance. ¡°You¡¯re back, Mercury,¡± she said, greeting him with a tiny bow, which he reciprocated with a tipping of his head. ¡°Would you like some tea?¡± ¡°I¡¯d love some,¡± he said with a smile. Soon, the three of them sat at a small table, Mercury¡¯s seat being stacked with pillows so he could more easily keep eye contact with his two friends. They looked¡­ good together. Much happier than he¡¯d seen them before. And happy to see him, surprisingly. A comfortable silence hung between the three of them for a good while, Lucia and Iris holding hands. Mercury could feel his heart melt for them, they were so adorable. ¡°How long have you two been a thing, actually?¡± he asked, somewhat carefully. ¡°Ah, since quite some time before Stormbraver, really,¡± Iris replied with a smirk. ¡°We never saw fit to tell anyone since no opportunity arose. But now, well,¡± she leaned over and pecked Lucia on the cheek, who promptly blushed a bit, ¡°I get to do this, so no regrets!¡± She grinned brightly. Lucia cleared her throat, then drank a sip of tea. ¡°Yes. Having everything be more public has been much more¡­ freeing than I expected. Of course there is pushback. Some are saying the head priestess has no business being in a relationship at all. If Nemo had his way, Iris and I would be entirely separated. Yet, he cannot deny the effectiveness of my new Skill,¡± she explained with a somewhat vindictive smile. The bishop was a pest to her, Mercury could tell immediately. It didn¡¯t take long to make up his mind. His relationship with religious institutions, especially their higher-ups, had been patchy at best in his last life. If this Nemo made a poor impression, maybe it was time for some anti-institutional action. He smirked lightly at the thought, then sipped a bit of his tea. It was sweet, and slightly bitter, but in a good way. Mellow but refreshing. He liked it. ¡°You have probably already heard all about our struggles in Stormbraver though, Mercury,¡± Lucia said into the evening silence, ¡°but we have not heard of yours. How have you been?¡± And for the third time Mercury recounted his tale. - - - Eventually it was going to get tiring, but this time was still nice. Seeing their faces was almost priceless. Lucia even asked about Yvette, and Mercury told her about the message seemingly anyone who¡¯d experienced an eclipse got. There was probably a chance of her being on the way to Stormbraver to say thanks. But all that would be dealt with in due time. Because their chatting and catching up was interrupted by three heavy knocks on the door. It was Mercury¡¯s cue to head out, but he was feeling a bit rebellious. ¡°You think I should leave through the front door?¡± he asked, a hint of mischief in his voice. Iris hesitated, seriously considering the proposal, but Lucia didn¡¯t share her patience. The bishop had tested it enough, it seemed, and she was reasonably sure he would be at the door. ¡°Yes. I think that would only be proper for an esteemed friend of the Voice,¡± she said. A grin spread across Mercury¡¯s features, and he opened the door to the bishop. ¡°Ah, finally, you have left me waiting long enough, high priestess,¡± he said, then realised she was not at the door to meet him. ¡°Down here, buddy,¡± Mercury said and watched the old man¡¯s gaze trail downwards. ¡°A¡­ kin? I do not believe your visit here was registered¡­¡± there was a thick note of disapproval in his voice. ¡°Must I disclose the visit of any of my friends, bishop? My private dealings should not matter much to you, should they?¡± Lucia asked pointedly, giving him a disregarding glance. ¡°Perhaps such, Voice. But it is my duty to make sure you are in good standing. Having someone visit in the night may be considered inappropriate by many,¡± Nemo said, but his heart wasn¡¯t in it. His eyes were still locked onto Mercury, staring right at him. As he spoke, Mercury could feel a hum resonate in the air, then press against his head. It was a very light pressure, then it began to feel invasive and probing. Immediately, Mercury felt his Skills respond. , , and howled with fury. kept him calm, not a hint of emotion showing on his face, and whispered to him of the attack. An attempt at manipulating him, chaining him to the bishop, bending his mind. It would have only been a mild suggestion, a feeling of sympathy and endearment to the old man, but now it was flipped. An attempt to make him doubt his friends broke apart against Mercury¡¯s far superior will. His mind was iron at this point, and perhaps he could have even struck back if he wished, but he refrained. Instead, he turned to look at the bishop, and decided to cause some trouble again. This dude was already being a hassle to his friend, but trying to plant a suggestion in his head? Unforgivable. With a sense of calm so deep it cut through the air, Mercury spoke. ¡°Well, bishop. Perhaps I should excuse myself from this space then,¡± he said pointedly. For a moment, the old man tried to block his path, but activated, and bishop Nemo tripped on his robe, stumbling and catching himself on the doorframe as Mercury walked by. ¡°If you have an issue with this event, please take it up with me. I didn¡¯t schedule such a meeting because my business with the Voice and her attendant are nothing but private. In the case of you taking issue with it, find me at the gloryhall of Stormbraver. I will be happy to let you know that I don¡¯t give a fuck about your whole scheduling shtick right up and personal,¡± he said with a smile, eliciting a giggle from Iris and a light chuckle from Lucia. ¡°I- you-!¡± A vein began to throb on Nemo¡¯s forehead, his voice shaky with desperately restrained anger. ¡°Stop right there or I¡¯ll make you regret this!¡± ¡°Go on then, bishop Nemo. My name is Mercury Rainfall Starlight. Try me.¡± Chapter 150: Promise to a Bishop Chapter 150: Promise to a Bishop The bishop¡¯s face turned red with fury as he pushed himself off the doorframe. Immediately, Appy whispered to Mercury about the older man¡¯s stats. He had low strength and dexterity, but a surprisingly high agility score, and probably decent vitality. Maybe he¡¯d even used to wield a sword or at least dagger, some time ago. Now however, he was busy trying to make himself look intimidating. Mercury even felt another tendril reach out for his mind, this one much more violent than the last, trying to grasp some control of the situation. It wouldn¡¯t harm him, but it would take away his defiance, that much the mopaaw could tell. Within a moment, the tendril broke. Nay, it didn¡¯t simply break at his mind, Mercury completely shattered the attempt. He deconstructed it so rapidly that some of the mana immediately decomposed to kinetic energy, creating a burst of air that blew his fur back. He bared his fangs at the bishop, but the old man spoke before he could get his words in. ¡°Individual Starlight, am I correct in assuming you are a seeker?¡± he asked, his tongue no longer betraying his annoyance. ¡°You¡¯d be right,¡± Mercury nodded, keeping his own voice steady with . ¡°Very well, then. I see you are part of a lot with little respect for rules, so I suppose I shouldn¡¯t have expected any better. Even here, despite the influence of Order, it seems seekers are still just as much on the side of chaos,¡± the old man spoke, clicking his tongue disapprovingly. ¡°Truly Voice, I do not know how you can stand such individuals,¡± he added, disregarding Mercury entirely. Lucia grimaced at that, her lips turning into a frown. Mercury could see Iris trying to speak up, but the hot-blooded woman was faster. And¡­ surprisingly reasonable? ¡°Dear bishop, I believe it is quite uncouth for someone so intent on keeping polite conversation to so lackadaisically ignore the individual they are speaking of, no? If you wish to take issue with seeker Starlight, perhaps it would be prudent to wait until he has committed an actual sleight?¡± Mercury almost blinked at her, having been fully ready to jump in, yet she was calmly protecting his name. Had she always been so reliable? Actually, even back when they travelled together, her outbursts had been getting less frequent. The bishop wrung his hands at her words, looking for a reply, before he simply settled for now. ¡°Fine then. Seeker Starlight has spoken with disrespect, but perhaps he has heard little of what I do to earn that which I expect. Nevertheless, I expect for you, seeker Starlight, to educate yourself some more on what tone of voice you wish to adapt when talking to someone from the church.¡± And for the third time, Mercury could tell the old man was trying to grasp at his mind. This attacks was more methodical, attempting to find a chink in his mental armor, to subtly invade and sway him. Mercury was no longer kind to the attack. So many of his Skills worked to absolutely destroy the attack. It went against , the Skill forming an armor that kept his mind impenetrable. refused to let it find any purchase at all. howled against the attempt of control, the chain made from magic and mind. Even and seemed to go against the attack, refusing control over Mercury. Combining all of those with , , and his already high willpower and practiced mind, he didn¡¯t simply shrug off the attack. Once he broke apart the foreign mana, he pulled on his experience dealing with something like this. Attacks on his mind were nothing new, since the Starving Dream and what he guessed to have been one of the assassins targeted it. So, he leveraged that knowledge. He opened up the collapsing channel, condensed his rijn, and struck back against Nemo¡¯s own mind. For a moment, the old man¡¯s eyes rolled backwards, and he once again crumpled against the doorframe, but quickly recovered a moment later and caught himself before he fell. The air in the room grew thick enough to be cut with a knife. Slowly, the bishop raised his back, straightened the folds on his robe, then stared at the mopaaw some more. ¡°Never try to touch my mind again,¡± Mercury said, speaking clearly while looking up at the much taller figure. The bishop only snorted at that. ¡°I would never dare,¡± he said, crossing his arms defensively. Mercury simply stared at the old man for a while longer, then shook his head and turned to Lucia. ¡°Honestly, it really was lovely seeing you. Next time one of your fellow churchmates tries to manipulate my thinking, I¡¯m not gonna be as nice about it though, alright? Now, I¡¯ll be heading out,¡± he said, flashing her a smile, and giving Iris a nod. The bishop did not try to stop him again. He could feel the air heating up as he closed the door with and chuckled at that. Lucia believed him. The bishop was in quite some trouble, then. Instead of listening in though, Mercury slowly made his way down the stairs, through the main hall, and out the front door, greeting a few priests and workers on the way. A couple of them recognized him and bowed, most simply stared at him weirdly. Such was the fate of looking like a cat. By the time he made it to the Mages¡¯ Guild, it was already quite a bit later. Not quite night, but no longer bright outside either. Still, there were plenty of lights shining throughout the building¡¯s many windows, and the front door wasn¡¯t locked, so he let himself in. Gilah was behind the counter in the lobby, as she usually was. In fact, the place was busier than he normally saw it, with quite a few people in robes and wearing funny wizard hats chatting away over drinks. His middle-aged friend, however, remained firmly behind the counter. So firmly, in fact, that it took him hopping onto a barstool and calling for her to get some attention. Immediately, he saw her eyes go wide. ¡°Mittens, is that you?¡± she asked, walking over slowly. ¡°Sure is,¡± he nodded. ¡°Holy fuck, you¡¯re back. How long has it been?¡± ¡°Too long,¡± Mercury said, shaking his head. She gave a slight chuckle. ¡°Definitely. Can I get you anything to drink? It¡¯s on me this once,¡± Gilah said, winking at him. ¡°Yes, actually. I got a fancy new Skill that lets me consume pretty much anything. Meaning I can finally have alcohol and stuff!¡± he smiled. Gilah raised an eyebrow slightly. ¡°Well then, do you want a menu?¡± ¡°I¡¯d love one.¡± A few minutes later, they¡¯d called for Elliot, who walked down the stairs rather groggily. Apparently, the kid had been doing inscriptions on some cores for a long while into the night. Which meant staying focused, then short naps, then focusing again. He didn¡¯t look very excited, well, until he saw Mercury that is. His face lit up. ¡°Mercury!!!¡± he yelled, charging at the mopaaw, who deftly stepped away. Elliot¡¯s agility couldn¡¯t contend with Mercury¡¯s anymore, and the boy wrapped his arms around empty air where the mopaaw used to be. A frown of disappointment was visible on his lips, but Mercury quickly wiped it away. ¡°Want me to get you some juice?¡± the srytfyel offered, and immediately, Elliot smiled again. ¡°Yes! Cherry juice please,¡± he beamed at Gilah, and the woman obliged, putting the glass in front of him as well. Then, the three simply chatted. Mercury went into his fourth recollection of his story. Suffice to say, he toned down the more gruesome parts a bit, and made himself sound slightly more heroic than usual. The sparkle in Elliot¡¯s eyes was more than worth it. Then, he asked what the two of them had been up to. ¡°We were actually sent on a decently important mission together, quite a bit above what we¡¯d usually do. Esmeya needed us to get some poison. Didn¡¯t tell us what it was for, but we know by now. She¡¯s used it in some alchemy, used it as an ingredient in some new fancy chalk,¡± Gilah said, sounding disinterested. When her speech ebbed off, the much more enthusiastic Elliot kept talking instead. ¡°Apparently it holds magic really well! She¡¯s been using it to draw runes on cores. They can be inscribed, but it¡¯s delicate work, and with the chalk, there¡¯s no danger of breaking them!¡± Mercury nodded along with a smile, letting the two explain. Elliot had been working on inscribing cores, mainly. Especially after the damage to the city, a lot of the sewer system needed repairs because of collapses, and so they had to inscribe a bunch of cores to move the water along. They wouldn¡¯t work perfectly right away, but over time, the mana in them would increase its affinity to water, and become more efficient. Even without that, though, it was still more than enough to help it all flow along, and keep the city sanitary. Gilah, on the other hand, was continuing her practice. After the most recent excursions and all the fighting, she¡¯d been putting more effort into ice magic, trying to get better with moderate success. Improvement was slow for her, as it always had been, but she was keeping at it, apparently. Neither of the two had gone outside the tower much. Seeing everything in disrepair was just depressing. They chose to sink into their studies instead, a sentiment many of the mages seemed to share. But things had been getting better recently, and the guild was looking more lively bit by bit. They still hadn¡¯t cut down on the long nights though, which seemed a bit of a trend among them all. So much so that there was a small blackboard in the corner where there was a leaderboard of who had the highest Skill. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Which was both funny and depressing. Well, mainly funny, really. And it wasn¡¯t like it hadn¡¯t already been common in the past. These days, Esmeya was just cracking down on it less because she, herself, had been embracing the sleepless life. All of them were doing their best to help the city get back on its feets as fast as possible, which made Mercury smile. Quite a few of them also created heaters for the tents, which were now being used to stave off the winter chill in the temporary residences. It didn¡¯t exactly make them comfortable, but at least things weren¡¯t as bad as they could be. Honestly, hearing about it all made Mercury want to learn about inscribing cores quite badly. It seemed like the main way to create magical items. Well, of course he knew that it wasn¡¯t the only way. Yasashiku could probably have made plenty magical things without any cores. In the end, it was more or less just about the skill of the crafter and the quality of the ingredients. The same result could be achieved in different ways, as was with most things in the system. It was more about picking your own path, anyway. Eventually, Elliot excused himself. One by one, most of the mages headed out, and some time past midnight, it was only the two of them in the lobby, accompanied by the occasional clanging of tools from above, as mages worked away in their workshops. Once things had emptied out, Gilah herself also had a drink or two. Nothing too heavy, she didn¡¯t exactly want a hangover tomorrow, but just enough to enjoy it some more. Mercury ended up mainly entertaining her with stories from Earth. He didn¡¯t wanna go into much more detail about everything in the ashen plains. The people here honestly didn¡¯t need much more depressing shit, having the city damaged like this was more than enough sadness for a little while. Instead, he told her about his brother, and a couple funny things from work. Supervisors being silly, and all that, but most of it was just on his incredible big brother, Jack, and his stupidly big heart. The man had been nothing but kind to Steve, always. He hadn¡¯t just taken him in after his parents threw him out. He¡¯d also protected Steve back at school, when they were still kids. He wouldn¡¯t stand for anyone being unkind to his little brother back then. Throughout his entire life, his brother had proven nothing but loyal. Of course he had his own struggles, when he was exhausted and tired, or done with life in general. And he wasn¡¯t always available. But he was there when it counted. After all that, he went back to the gloryhall, into his room, and headed to bed. - - - The next morning, Mercury woke up feeling a bit groggy, but energized. He¡¯d left the window open overnight, and the air brushed against his fur with a light breeze, though he quickly closed it to stop the entire guild from getting cold. By now, he¡¯d apparently outpaced some of the seekers here, especially newer ones who¡¯d come to help with repairs and not seen the war. Quite a few of them struggled a bit with the winter chill. Mercury hardly even noticed it. Another benefit of levelling, he noted with a smile, then stretched out for a bit. Sleeping in a bed felt quite strange these days. Maybe he¡¯d sleep in his log again today, but that was up to future Mercury. For now, he decided to head down the stairs into the main part of the hall, grabbing the Blanket of Dreams from the foot of his bed before he was off. He was planning to stay in Stormbraver for a bit, before he went to check on Zyl, for a few reasons, so he wanted to check out the noticeboard once he¡¯d had breakfast. On one hand, he just wanted more time to catch up with everyone. It had been a while since he¡¯d last seen them, and a few hours weren¡¯t quite enough to hear about everything. He also wanted to just help a bit with rebuilding. Seeing a place he¡¯d lived in broken down like this was dejecting. Finally, there was still the bit about bishop Nemo. The old man had tried to manipulate his mind. Mercury thought he¡¯d been more than patient, letting two attempts slide entirely. But at the same time, he was almost hoping Nemo would try again, because he wouldn¡¯t be as nice about it anymore. Before any of that, though, Mercury had to eat breakfast. He decided to actually order at an inn, rather than hunt for himself. Having actual meals was a luxury he¡¯d only recently gotten back, and wasn¡¯t willing to give up again so soon. So, he had stew. It made him unreasonably happy, and that was good. After eating, he headed back, and grabbed a job to help with cleaning away rubble. The day was somewhat long, but he heard lots of gossip from the other workers. Little to do but talk when you were lifting rocks, it seemed. To Mercury, the work wasn¡¯t as hard as expected. He could break the bigger stones apart with his rijn, or lift a whole sheet of smaller pebbles and dust all at once with . So, he had plenty of time to listen to the others talk. Most of it were more personal stories, which he didn¡¯t pry into, but some were general. How Lucia and the church in general had been incredibly helpful with healing people. Nemo had been directing the other church staff to supply everyone with food, and setting up tents to sleep. Foss and the Merchants¡¯ Guild in general had been investing frankly silly amounts of coins into reconstruction, trying to get the economy rolling again instead of forcing people to hold onto money. Their loans had barely any interest, either, basically lending money with no real profit incentive. Perhaps it was a move to build trust, but Mercury doubted it. and both told him that Foss actually cared about the state of the city. Some parts of the merchant¡¯s plans were selfish, surely, Mercury didn¡¯t doubt that. But not all of it was. Once the day¡¯s work was over, he went back to the gloryhall, with a couple more glooms in his pocket. More than enough to afford the day¡¯s food, and some extra on top of it. Sadly, his mood was going to be ruined a bit when he came to the Guild. Avery was standing outside, talking to a whole gaggle of people wearing white robes, the old bishop at their very helm. Nemo was apparently already beginning to stir up trouble. One of the geezers heard Mercury approach - he hadn¡¯t bothered hiding it - and turned around. One by one they faced him, and Avery, from behind the gaggle of clerical folk, raised an eyebrow at the mopaaw. ¡°Seeker Starlight,¡± the bishop greeted, not offering a hint of a gesture. ¡°Bishop Nemo,¡± Mercury replied. Silence hung heavily for a few seconds, as Mercury waited. The bishop had come to seek him out, yet now he and his gaggle of followers simply stared at him. It stretched on for an uncomfortable amount of time, before the bishop snorted. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to invite us in?¡± ¡°No,¡± Mercury replied immediately. ¡°You didn¡¯t schedule an appointment, did you? Hah, no respect anymore these days¡­¡± then he began trudging past the group. One of them attempted stopping him, but ended that very quickly. The follower slipped, and harmlessly stumbled into the next person, doing little more than embarrass them. ¡°I was not told I needed an appointment, seeker Starlight,¡± Mercury heard the bishop¡¯s voice behind him. ¡°Well, now, neither was I. Yet here we find ourselves, in front of a building, in the middle of winter. If you wanna talk about anything, then talk,¡± he hissed. The air filled with tension again, before it was suddenly broken. ¡°Kahahahaha! I can¡¯t believe this! Mercury, you¡¯re back for one day and already pissed off the bishop? My man, my guy, you need to relax a bit before you start making enemies!¡± Avery laughed, buckling and holding his stomach. The bishop grimaced a bit at the interruption, but spoke anyway. ¡°I am glad you agree with me, master Beckham. I-¡± ¡°I don¡¯t agree with you, bishop,¡± Avery interrupted, still chuckling to himself. ¡°In fact, if Mercury says you¡¯re not going into the hall, then you¡¯re staying outside. This is my guild, and what I say goes, alright?¡± he said, crossing his arms. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t chide my members for acting silly. Any good reason for this, Mercury?¡± ¡°Very good, actually,¡± the mopaaw in question replied. ¡°The bishop attempted to exert his influence over my mind.¡± When the words left his lips, Mercury could feel a chill settle in. Avery¡¯s stance had gone from lazy and resolute to full on tense, like a bear trap ready to snap shut. The glare was clear even beneath his sunglasses. He stared down Nemo even as he spoke to Mercury. ¡°Bud, that¡¯s a serious accusation you¡¯re leveraging. Are you completely certain about this?¡± he asked, all humor gone from his voice. One of the followers of the bishop spoke up before Mercury could reply. ¡°Nemo would never do such a thing!¡± he yelled, taking a step towards the guild master, before his knees buckled and the man fell to the floor. ¡°Nobody¡¯s taking a step closer to my guild until this is resolved,¡± Avery said, the threat of violence clear in his voice. His fear effect would force anyone to think twice before acting. ¡°Bishop Nemo. Did you try to tamper with the freedom of one of my seekers or did you not?¡± ¡°Never,¡± the bishop replied, his voice not shaking despite the pressure. He hadn¡¯t endured dozens of years of politicking to fail now! Avery faced his feline friend, then. ¡°Mercury, has the bishop attempted to tamper with your mind? Answer honestly, please.¡± ¡°He did,¡± Mercury said resolutely. Twice had he shown restraint. The third time was the time for action. Despite that, the bishop tried for a fourth time. The attempt was different this time, much grander. Magnified dozens of times over, like the bishop was drawing power from all his subjects. Appy popped in for just a second to confirm that theory. [Bishop Nemo appears to be siphoning mana from his supporters. A fealty-based Skill is likely in use. Be wary.] Despite the change being so clear to his eyes, Mercury knew it wasn¡¯t obvious. Avery was no mage, and even then, the mana was almost invisible. Instead, Mercury had a much easier time seeing it as something similar to his rijn. A mental attack, fueled by mana. It had turned from a tendril to a hammer, aiming to subjugate him. Mercury looked at the attempt. Peered at its core, his mind working fast to let him take it all in. He saw its connection to the bishop and his followers, spread out over the space. ¡°Look closely, Avery,¡± the mopaaw whispered, ¡°he¡¯s doing it right now.¡± He felt the guild master¡¯s eyes sharpen just as the attack threatened to reach his mind. Then he struck back. It was two dozen people, perhaps, against just him. Odds which weren¡¯t in his favour. Yet, only one of them had the Skills to properly support the attack. A dozen batteries were still just batteries. Mercury gazed at the attempt against his thinking, saw it for what it was. A collar, a chain, a binding. And he refused it. Within the span of a , he¡¯d entered ihn¡¯ar. Recognized the threads of the attack, each one unique and different, yet each one another seal. It wasn¡¯t properly woven or constructed, and clearly not made from dreams, but the ihn¡¯ar seemed flexible enough when it came to this. Mercury tore the ideas apart, just like threads of the weave. The very thought of him being subjugated was ripped to shreds, as his formidable mind bore down on Nemo¡¯s, The bishop was old, stubborn, and extremely convinced of his ideals of Order. Fanatically so, even, and Mercury knew he would not change the man¡¯s opinion of him. But that wasn¡¯t the goal. Instead of striking at Nemo¡¯s core ideals, Mercury did something very different. His mercy was spent. When he fractured the attack, carving its bits out of reality, the tunnel took a moment to collapse. Mercury left his mark, then, two of them. First, a tiny little thread he suddenly knew how to use, one that connected Nemo to his dreams. A promise for the future. Secondly, he claimed retaliation. An attack on the mind went both ways, and Mercury wasn¡¯t inclined to suffer another one today. So he made sure he wouldn¡¯t. His mind was stronger than that of most, having been torn apart and rebuilt. His rijn could shatter stone and forge metal. Nemo had made the fatal mistake of challenging Mercury on his preferred playing field, using an attack that he was almost built to resist. So, he slammed the entire weight of his mind against the bishop¡¯s, sending the man sprawling to the floor in the blink of an eye. His followers stood in stunned silence for a moment, Avery¡¯s forehead wrinkling. ¡°I suggest you take the bishop back to the church,¡± the guild master growled. Mercury could smell a hint of fear in the air as the worshippers took the old man and began to hurry away. Avery shook his head at the mopaaw. ¡°That wasn¡¯t your best choice,¡± he said, before heading through the door into the gloryhall. Once inside, his tone changed, and his lips curled into a smile. ¡°It was funny as hell though, kah! Old bastard has been a pain in the neck for ages. All manners and formalities. Did he seriously try to tamper with your head?¡± ¡°Sure did. If he hadn¡¯t, it wouldn¡¯t¡¯ve been nearly as easy knocking him out. Mental stuff leaves a kind of tunnel, and once I disarm his attack, I can hit back,¡± he explained. Avery half-winced at that and chuckled. ¡°Well then, I hope this doesn¡¯t cause too many issues. If we¡¯re lucky, the bishop learned his lesson. If he hasn¡¯t, well, you¡¯ll always be safe here. I¡¯m not letting anyone who¡¯s trying to cause trouble into my guild,¡± the guild master said with a confident grin. ¡°Thanks, Ave. Means a lot. I think I¡¯ll be heading to bed, this has me tuckered out,¡± Mercury said, walking up the stairs. ¡°Alright, talk to you tomorrow.¡± Soon, the mopaaw was in his room, laying down in the bed with the blanket of dreams draped around him. Sleep came so very easy, and when he awoke, his realm awaited. A colourful sky with a silver sun, one dark and one bright star, and a pale moon over a field of green. Old Uunrahzil wasn¡¯t there that day; instead, another visitor sat underneath Whisperstar¡¯s gaze. ¡°Greetings, bishop,¡± Mercury said, grinning at the man who kneeled in the grass in front of him. ¡°I think we have a bit to talk about.¡± Chapter 151: Lesson Chapter 151: Lesson /The Hunter had failed to kill the Thing, and their compass pointed elsewhere. They nursed themselves back to health, and went back to the hunt. But it was no longer as satisfying as it had been. Failure. They¡¯d never encountered it before. Yet a single one was already bitter and infuriating. It made them more ruthless on their future hunts. Each success only made them feel further inadequate. They used serrated daggers, cruel traps, and vicious poison. None of it was good enough. Hunt after hunt, they felt disappointed with themselves. Not fast enough, not precise enough, not good enough! The drive to be the greatest was slowly eating them up inside, and their compass began feeling like a betrayal. Was this truly the best prey around? Their thoughts continued as such, until they failed again. What should have been a simple hunt was unsuccessful because of their impatience. The first failure had been infuriating, but the second was sobering. For a few days, the Hunter was still. No longer was there a need to go out and seek prey, because they had become their own enemy. But they did not know how to battle the self, and as such, they learned. One after another, the Hunter discarded things. Their ego had to go first, because it stood in the way of a true predator. Then their pride went, and their fury. They needed not hunt for any of those. Bit by bit, they honed their mind to a knife¡¯s edge, and when their six eyes opened after six months of meditation, the Hunter was no longer the same. Their gaze was clear of immaturity. The first failure had brought them anger. The second had brought them temperament. For the first time, the Hunter felt like a proper adult. Their steps were calm and elegant, and slowly, they sought out their next prey. They needed not hurry, for if anything deserved to be hunted, they would come for it eventually. And thus, the truest Hunter was born./ (Legends: The Hunter - 6; Grace of forged Iron) - - - - - - ¡°Wh- where am I?¡± the bishop stuttered, his breath catching in his throat as he looked around. Whisperstar was flitting across the sky, watching the human kneeling in the grass. The air was pleasant, and the ground soft to Mercury, but he was sure the bishop didn¡¯t feel quite the same way. ¡®Mercury, who is this?¡¯ the excited spirit asked in his mind. ¡®They here to play? Here to stay?!¡¯ ¡®Sadly not, Star. Right now, they¡¯re just here to have a chat. Make sure to play with our visitor later, yeah?¡¯ he told it, making sure to transmit some of his intent. A game of tag, of chasing the bishop a smidge. Mercury could practically feel Whisperstar¡¯s excitement, and quickly asked them to wait. With the star vibrating in the sky, the mopaaw turned to face the bishop again. ¡°So, Nemo,¡± he spoke out loud, his body in the dream functioning the same as the one outside of it. ¡°How do you do?¡± ¡°You!¡± the bishop yelled, his frantic eyes locking onto Mercury. ¡°Seeker Starlight, what kind of trick is this?!¡± Mercury chuckled. ¡°Oh, bishop. There¡¯s no trick involved. The fourth time you tried to influence my mind, and I still can¡¯t believe you tried four whole times, I decided I had enough of your shit. Maybe you should¡¯ve realized that when I struck back the first time, hm?¡± he asked, cocking his head. ¡°I would never do such a thing!¡± the bishop called back, unrelenting. For a moment, Mercury considered believing him. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t? Truly?¡± he asked, just to be sure. ¡°Yes, truly, I would never,¡± the bishop said, but his thoughts told a different story. There was a vindictive pleasure in there as he lied, a desire to convince Mercury, to carve out an advantage for himself. And the mopaaw sighed. ¡°Sadly, this is my realm,¡± he explained, gesturing all around himself. ¡°A dream I crafted from nothing, Nemo. In here, I¡¯m¡­ king, I suppose.¡± He chuckled at the irony of that thought. ¡°And unfortunately for you, that means I can tell what you think.¡± The bishop¡¯s face immediately fell into a neutral expression. ¡°Then you should know I spoke the truth before.¡± Mercury could smell his nervousness, read the hint of worry about being found out in his mind. Once again, he gave a light, dry chuckle, little else than a mockery. ¡°Alright, Nemo,¡± he said, ¡°I¡¯m not exactly one for lies. You start being honest, or I¡¯m gonna start making your time here less than enjoyable, you got me?¡± For a moment, the bishop seemed to nod, but then thought better of it. There was a moment when his expression changed, from slight confusion and cockiness, to a deeper settled worry. Mercury had imbued his statement with intent, and knowing that it held weight made a threat so much heavier. ¡°I- I see,¡± the bishop said. ¡°What¡­ do you want from me?¡± ¡°Two things, really. On one hand, I¡¯d love to know what Skill it is that lets you manipulate people like that. And then, I¡¯d like you to never use it on me again, can we agree on that?¡± Mercury asked, his tone sweet, his intent less so. ¡°Yes, of course, yes. There are multiple Skills for the effect. The main, active one, is . It allows me to use mana to make someone simply like me slightly more. There is also , which is a much more temporary, but stronger compulsion,¡± he explained. ¡°What about the one that lets you use your followers¡¯ mana?¡± The bishop¡¯s eyes went wide at that. ¡°It¡¯s- that one is called , Seeker Starlight,¡± he said. Mercury nodded a bit. ¡°No need for such formalities here, bishop. Just specially for you, how about you call me Mercury, eh?¡± he tapped the old man¡¯s cheek with a paw, leaving a slight hint of dirt behind. ¡°So, multiple Skills all aimed at control. What¡¯s up with that?¡± ¡°I-... They are mostly used to alleviate the worries of believers. To give them some comfort, I mean.¡± That part was genuine, Mercury noted with some surprise. ¡°They do also come in handy when people cause trouble though.¡± Once again, not a lie. ¡°What constitutes trouble? I hardly believe a single kin speaking to a friend would incite the use of such Skills, would it?¡± Mercury prodded further, now circling the bishop, who was still kneeling down. He¡¯d attempted to get up once, but a smidge of pressure from Whisperstar was enough to stop that in its tracks. Now, he was simply watching where Mercury went by moving his head. He seemed unsure. ¡°Well, the voice is known to be somewhat headstrong,¡± he began to explain. ¡°She also carries some views that not everyone aligns with¡­¡± ¡°Oh? What would that be?¡± ¡°Well, for one, many people would like someone less¡­ prone to violence,¡± the bishop explained, and Mercury nodded along, even when he felt the old man being disingenuous. ¡°Her¡­ reputation could also be better.¡± ¡°Get to the point,¡± Mercury chided. ¡°Ah, yes, I¡­ suppose I shall. In truth, many of the church¡¯s supporters simply dislike seeing her associate with those of low birth so much. The weak should not be ignored, but to be seen by the highest of Order, they should do their duties first,¡± Nemo admitted. Wow, how wonderful, truly. ¡°So, you thought me a mutt from the streets, then, when you saw me exit the lady Lucia¡¯s chambers?¡± Mercury asked pointedly. The bishop began sweating more. ¡°No, of course not!¡± It was a very blatant lie. ¡°Do I really look that dirty? Like, does the whole cloak and jewellery not make it obvious?¡± The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I didn¡¯t take you for anything other than what I saw. All I saw was a true kin, one that strayed far from their usual home. A wanderer at best, and an exile at worst. I simply saw it as my duty to protect the integrity of our church!¡± the bishop said. Mercury sighed wistfully, and lightly smacked the old man¡¯s face with his tail. Not enough to hurt, more a playful tap you¡¯d do to chide someone. ¡°No, Nemo, that isn¡¯t really what you were doing at all, is it?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± the bishop asked, nervous. ¡°Well, let me ask you this. Do you think you have enough power in the church?¡± ¡°Yes, of course. I am happy to serve my current position.¡± Mercury had never seen such bullshit before. ¡°Alright, alright. I think that¡¯s one too many half-truths for me to ignore. Nemo, are you familiar with the game of tag?¡± Mercury asked. The bishop blinked with confusion. ¡°No,¡± he said simply. Well, maybe it was an Earth-exclusive, or the bishop had a horrifyingly boring childhood.. ¡°I¡¯ll explain it for you, then,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Someone is gonna chase after you. Don¡¯t get caught, alright?¡± Before the bishop could reply, Mercury gave the mental command to Whisperstar, and they raced towards the old man. Of course, given their unique constitution, that meant that a tiny piece broke off the star in the sky, a dark orb shrouded in black fog flitting towards the bishop. Suddenly, the weight on his legs was gone. Immediately, Nemo pushed off the floor and started running. Maybe Mercury should tell him that there wasn¡¯t really too much danger? Well, there could be, but Whisperstar was a decent kid at the end of the day. After a good amount of chasing, maybe a bit over half an hour, he told Whisperstar to stop again, letting the Bishop drop to the floor in exhaustion. Which was funny, since this wasn¡¯t even Nemo¡¯s real body. Just a representation woven by his mind, and strung together by the nexus. Mercury looked at the old man, and felt a smidge of pity in his heart. He definitely wasn¡¯t made for torturing anyone, even if this was fairly mild. ¡°Alright old man, go on, sit or something at least. You¡¯re gonna make me feel bad.¡± Reluctantly, Nemo obliged, pushing himself off the floor and into a lotus seat. Mercury did him the favour of not applying pressure. ¡°Look,¡± the mopaaw said. ¡°I¡¯m gonna level with you here. You gotta chill a bit. None of this mind control stuff, not with me. Don¡¯t even consider it, okay? Because I will drag you here again.¡± The bishop nodded, too busy gulping down air to answer. ¡°Second, be nice to Lucia. She doesn¡¯t deserve all the shit you give her. Seriously, she¡¯s doing her best. Stop the whole ¡°peasants bad¡± act. That¡¯s weird, and gross, and you shouldn¡¯t be doing it, alright?¡± This time, Nemo took longer to reply, but nodded at the end. ¡°Finally, relax a bit. Take things at pace. Figure out who you are, where you stand. Just¡­ don¡¯t be a crappy person, for fuck¡¯s sake.¡± Before Nemo had the chance to nod or anything again, Mercury lightly smacked his face with his tail again. ¡°Now get out of here.¡± And with that, the old man vanished, off to whatever other dreams he had. Mercury stretched his back with some minor satisfaction. He hoped his lesson would stick without being too harsh. Then again, old people tended to hardly change their habits, even when said habits were stupid. He shook his head a bit, banishing upcoming memories of his rather cruel grandparents. He didn¡¯t have to worry about them anymore. Now, he had a silly bishop with some silly standards to deal with. Maybe Nemo would learn now, or he¡¯d learn some other time. It didn¡¯t matter too much. If the lesson hadn¡¯t come across yet, Mercury was happy to invite the bishop for another chat. This was probably still much better than going for some more¡­ extreme action in the outside world, or so he hoped. Whatever the case, he turned his attention to Whisperstar. ¡®Did you have fun, kid?¡¯ he thought to them. ¡®Yes, yes! Very fun! Visitor ran so much!¡¯ they said back, full of childish glee. Mercury couldn¡¯t help. ¡®I¡¯m glad you had fun. If you¡¯d like, we can play again some other day?¡¯ he asked. ¡®Yes! Play!¡¯ Whisperstar celebrated. Mercury gave some thoughts of affirmation, then returned to what he usually did in his dreams, practicing his weaving. He¡¯d gotten quite a bit more consistent now, but still had trouble producing many objects. Oh well, he wasn¡¯t about to run out of time. - - - - - - Bishop Nemo¡¯s eyes opened wide in the middle of the night, and he found his bed drenched in his own sweat. Panicked, his eyes darted across his rooms, looking for any signs of that furred monster. Only once he had covered every inch of it did he relax a little. Slowly, he pushed his aching bones out of the comfortable embrace of his sheets and changed his soaked robes for new ones. He took some time to go out to the balcony and watch over the city. Down in the dark streets, some people still toiled. He pitied them a little, those with slow lives. Looking at them, he thought back to the nightmare. It¡¯d felt so¡­ real. And all of that after really being knocked out by the seeker? The bishop scoffed at himself. What was he thinking now? There was certainly no way that creature would have done something like that. It was simply his own worries acting up. Yes, his Skills had failed against the thing. Did that mean so much? He began sweating once more. Perhaps¡­ perhaps it did mean something. Quickly, the bishop headed back inside. He headed to his largest shrine, one carved to resemble the interlaced ring of metals that represented order, and kneeled on the cold stone floor in front of it. Then, he prayed. It wasn¡¯t words he prayed with. He offered thoughts instead, all of them rapidly going through his head. He owned , after all, allowing him to think far faster when it was about his faith. And by praying, he could make almost anything about his faith. What should he do about the creature, that kin who had disrespected him so often? His mind ran at a dozen miles a minute, and it always returned to the same point. That beast. Why had it appeared in his dreams? Were those his dreams? He struggled with the thought of it all being imaginary, but he also struggled to imagine such a creature could have such abilities. No, perhaps he should doubt it less. He¡¯d have to assume that everything he saw had happened. Immediately, he jumped up and ran to the bath, violently scrubbing his entire body. It was not orderly for a bishop to kneel in the grass, nor to be touched in the face by some other thing. Nemo panted heavily by the time he finally felt clean again. A vein was bulging on his forehead. He felt so¡­ angry. Not furious as before, when the kin left the Voice¡¯s room. That had been a slight against his pride, his honor. It had been bothersome, and infuriating, but not in this way. Now, he felt angry. Deeply angry. His chest felt tight with fury, his arms were shaking with wrath. The beast had spit not only on his honor and pride, it had spit on the reputation of the church, and then spit on Order itself. That was unforgivable. Perhaps he was being unreasonable? The thought flashed in his mind, and like all of them, he tried to examine it thoroughly. Worse things could have happened in the dream, physically. But yet¡­ he also felt vulnerable. Was that beast a¡­ threat? His mind seemed to pause at the thought. There was a disconnect. Something so much lesser than him¡­ a threat? Something with no respect for Order¡­ perhaps. But at the same time, it was simply a wise mopaaw, a kin! Nothing more than that. Viewing it as a threat felt like it further sullied his pride. And yet. told him that he needed to act. Every angle he considered, he had to act. Whether the thing was responsible for the dream or not. Whether it had meant to spit on his honor or not. He needed to teach a lesson, desperately felt the need to make things right. To make sure Order was upheld. The thing had stepped on his freedom, refused his justice, and ignored the church¡¯s laws. That was beyond unforgivable. Nemo felt his chest ache as he made a decision. It hurt his heart to forsake someone such as this, but he knew deep down that it was right, that it had to be done. If the creature could not be swayed by Order, by the truth, then perhaps it needed to live through the consequences. Bit by bit, Nemo¡¯s pacing through his room slowed. He could feel releasing its hold on him, and peace returned to his thoughts. Bit by bit, the shaking of his body ceased. He straightened out the folds of his robes, let the last strings of consideration find their end, and made his decision. The mopaaw would pay. Then, the old man went to bed, at peace with what had to be done. - - - - - - Mercury woke up blissfully unaware of the bishop¡¯s decision. He went through his day as normal, helping out across the city a bit more as he thought things over. How long exactly should he wait to leave Stormbraver? Maybe a few more days? Probably something around that. Then again, who would already be finding him? He did say to meet there. Did Yasashiku know he beat the eclipse? Maybe he should go visit the old man. The thought made him smile. Maybe he should just learn some more runes for when his smithing teacher found him. He¡¯d been working hard on weaving, and hoped to soon learn to make metal with it. That would probably take a bit longer though. If he carved a bunch of runes into some metal plates while keeping up his ihn¡¯ar, maybe that would help? It probably could. But was it really ethical to practice silly runes when he could be helping people who no longer had houses? Tough choices to make. For that day, he decided to simply help with the cleanup. It was great practice for , and occasionally, he¡¯d focus on the rubble a bit with ihn¡¯ar. Just to meditate. With his higher stats, and all the mental Skills, keeping a single Skill active definitely didn¡¯t take his whole attention anymore. So he busied his mind differently, practicing his ystirs, his zeyjn, and trying to once again form multiple rijns. It was hard work, but he was making progress. Sometimes, when his head started to ache, he would move on to other things. Briefly, he considered making a , but decided against it. There was no need yet. After all, most of his titles would help him break through a bottleneck, so he could just relax for now. He also looked at his stat points for some time, but decided to save them. Getting adjusted to higher stats took some time, especially with big bursts, so he was still struggling a bit after the latest levelling spree. People probably weren¡¯t supposed to go through half a level threshold and an evolution in a single stat-update, yet here he was. The thought made him shake his head. That was a frankly insane advancement, and probably much more than people usually got. After all, that one moment had fulfilled quite a few of his long-held desires at once. That, and some quests, and some experience hit with a delay. Sometimes, the system works in mysterious ways, he supposed. With idle thoughts drifting through his mind, Mercury managed to spend the last bits of the day. When the sun began to set, people trickled back to their homes, and Mercury got to the guild. It was still quiet, but things were slowly going back to normal, as they usually did. Every day, some more things were done to help rebuild the city. More people were beginning to visit, merchants coming by again and peddling wares. Building supplies were gathered, and major construction had begun. A couple new buildings popped up every day. Roads became more visible, and everything looked cleaner. He shuddered a bit to imagine the scenery right after the city got destroyed, but it was better now. All about taking it step by step. The days continued to flow lazily like that, a few of them passing. Mercury would carve runes in his dream, and try to peer into what made the rubble during the day. levelled once, after days of usage, going to level 4. Mercury was happy to help. The people seemed to remain relatively wary of him, but that was fine. He didn¡¯t mind that much. Until, one day, someone decided to spit on the ground in front of him, very purposefully. Chapter 152: Destinations Chapter 152: Destinations Mercury paused, his eyes slowly trailing from the bit of spittle up to the person who¡¯d spat at him. Then he kind of just stared for a minute. It was an older man, wearing a brown shirt, and pants which seemed a little too wide at the waist. His hair was scraggly and his eyes sunken. ¡°Sorry? What was that for?¡± Mercury asked, not bothering to hide his ability to speak. ¡°Oh, so the lil¡¯ kin can open its fecking mouth? Got some blasphemy to spout? Shits like ye should nary be allowed in ¡®e city,¡± the man said, then spat on the ground again. The mopaaw kind of just stared at him for a while. He felt¡­ surprisingly not too worried about it. The whole being spited had kinda lost its edge after some time. So he just looked at the man for a bit. ¡°What, bit yer fecking tongue?¡± Then, Mercury calmly turned around and walked away. No sense in arguing with an idiot. Everyone was a little high strung after the whole city burnt down, so he was up for forgiving some racism. Somehow, he¡¯d never really heard many positive things about the kin at all. Distantly, he wondered whether that was because they were reclusive, or because the ones that interacted with civilization were just shitty. Then again, even the ones in a proper tribe, or whatever, had tossed Marsh into a river as a baby, just for having a bit of human in them. He shook his head at his thoughts, which seemed to provoke the man some more. ¡°Think I¡¯m below ye?!¡± he cursed, trying to get into Mercury¡¯s way. With that silly decision, he triggered the passive effect of and promptly fell onto his ass. No harm done, luckily, but Mercury caught a glint of sunlight reflecting off a piece of jewellery the man wore. It was a ring, woven from three intertwining strands of metal. Even though he only saw it for a moment, Mercury thought it seemed familiar. He couldn¡¯t quite place it though. Maybe, had he seen Lucia wear the Crown of Order, he would. Maybe, if he¡¯d paid close attention to Nemo¡¯s hands, he would. But he had done neither of those. Lucia rarely wore the crown in private, and he never really attended any of her sermons. So, for now, it simply seemed familiar. And Mercury left the stunned man sitting on the dusty floor as he moved to help somewhere else. Most people were still more than happy to have him help them. A few seemed a bit distrustful, but were quickly placated when he did more than what they would have expected him to in terms of clean-up. Which wasn¡¯t very high expectations to surpass, but he did it anyway. After no more strange events, he went home in the evening, catching a bit of sleep. The next day went similarly. A few people shot him disgusted looks, one person spat at him, though without cursing this time, leaving Mercury just a little confused. In the evening, he asked Avery, but received little more than a shrug in return. So the next day, Mercury watched a little more closely. Many of the people who were giving him looks seemed to wear some form of a ring, made of three interlacing metal bands. Most of them wore it on their fingers, some around their neck. Which was a strange connecting feature. He once slipped one off a hand with , using the finer control he now had, and taking a closer look. The ring was back on before the person noticed, having been busily chatting with some more people cleaning up rubble, but Mercury now had a better picture of it. The ring was woven from copper, tin, and iron. Three strands and one whole. By evening, he was at Lucia¡¯s doorstep, ready to ask her about it, only to be turned away. There were guards at the church who refused to even let him close. Which was¡­ extremely strange. Did they used to have guards? He didn¡¯t think so, but now there were two burly men in thick plate armor, sending him away. He caught himself thinking if he could take them, and tried to stifle the thought. Unfortunately, the conclusion came a bit too swiftly: he certainly could. He was quite a cut above an average guard by now, and while he was sure that there were much more powerful people than him out there, he had a skillset that not many would have thought before. But he didn¡¯t let that intrusive bit of thinking invoke any action. Just the fact that he was turned away alone seemed enough. This smelled just like bishop Nemo¡¯s doing. So the old man had been scheming to make people dislike him? Mercury had to wonder why for a minute. What was the bishop hoping to achieve with this? He wondered if the old man maybe just wanted him out of the city, but that seemed unlikely. Did he expect the people to start attacking Mercury? Maybe he underestimated him? No, actually, maybe Nemo was judging him more accurately now. The mopaaw didn¡¯t exactly feel like kicking the shit out of a bunch of regular people. But then, what should he do? When the next day came, Mercury decided to make more use of . Whenever he caught people glaring at him, he¡¯d activate the Skill, feeling the drain on his mana. Whenever he bottomed out, he¡¯d make a quick escape to a quiet place and refill his reserves. But it made the whole cleanup take much longer for him. By that point, he even worried if he was making the others slow down if they were so focused on him. In the end, Mercury made a decision. He had places to be, people to see. He¡¯d said hello to everyone in this city that he had relatively close ties with, spending evenings chatting with Avery and Marcel, as well as visiting the Mages¡¯ Guild occasionally. So, since things were getting a bit annoying, he just decided to call it a day. He asked Marcel for some help, and wrote a letter, which he asked to be delivered to Lucia and Iris, said goodbye to his godseeker buddies, and set off for Zyl¡¯s estate. That was where the next leg of his journey would carry him. - - - - - - Yasashiku found himself strangely on the road again. He¡¯d sent a letter to Alexander, making a simple request: he asked for a steed. With his home broken, he had forged himself a little box. He dubbed it pandora. It held his entire smithy, including the heat of the fire he forged with. Then he set off. His newest pupil, the one who saved his life, and the one he had held a burial for, that dastardly Mercury, was still alive. It made his eyes flare brightly with mirth, amusement at his own silly grievances. His home may be gone, but his passion was alight again, and he set off. On a horse gifted by his friend, to find a companion though lost. Where did Yasashiku go, though? He certainly didn¡¯t know where Mercury was, but he knew where the mopaaw had been. When the two talked, the little guy would always come back to talking about Stormbraver eventually. It was a city that held quite a few of his friends, it seemed, and one he personally had connections to. That was enough for Yasashiku. If it was a city his student treasured, then he would ply his trade in that city. Perhaps that was the silly attachment of an old man in his sunset years. He¡¯d gotten attached to the little ball of fur far too fast, but what could he do when his protege had shown such determination? He¡¯d had to match it! Yasashiku chuckled to himself and calmed a little. He had mastered putting on a stern face over the years, people often showed more respect to the stern. He remained in his thoughts as the horse ate up the distance below him. Would he truly be able to meet Mercury in Stormbraver? It was a silly question, since the answer was most likely no. But even then, if his pupil treasured a city, then he would wait there. Mercury would hear, and come one day. Perhaps, if they had a good enchanter, he could get messaging paper made. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. But all those were thoughts for later days. On the horse¡¯s back, he instead honed his mind. The steed knew where to go, sent by Alexander¡¯s grace, and was far wiser than most of its equine brethren. So, Yasashiku was free to close his eyes. Focusing on his meditation, he shook out his arms, the one that had been broken and mended a little more than the other. Then, his inner forge was lit ablaze. Behind his eyelids an ethereal fire burned, sending soft gleams of orange even through the skin. Yasashiku found himself in front of a great flame, one that threatened to swallow him, but he was well forged himself. That was what this was, after all. Tempering the self. He breathed in deep. Then sat down in his mind, crossed his legs, resolved himself, tightened his muscles. In here, he wore no thick clothes to protect his skin, simply shorts and the crow¡¯s mask, to protect his dignity. His remaining skin was exposed, and shown for what it was: pale, and webbed with burn scars. All flesh on his body suddenly contracted even tighter. His muscles went from bound wire to thick steel walls, rippling underneath the surface. He had removed all compression from them, and clenched them, waiting for the fire to come. And then it ran through him. His flesh was seared, melted, and then reformed. His mind was the hammer, his body the artwork. He had heated, tempered, hammered and quenched himself hundreds of times over, perhaps thousands. It was, of course, not always that steel improved through this process, but if it was the self, it could be endlessly tempered. And as always, Yasashiku came out a more complete person. His muscles wound tighter, his age staved off a little longer. It was one of his core Skills, honed over dozens of years, . With it, he would carry little pandora and ply his trade in Stormbraver. Waiting for the day his pupil returned to him. How long he¡¯d wait, he wondered? Perhaps he would begin a greater search if he hadn¡¯t found Mercury after a season or so. - - - - - - Yvette wanted to seek out Mercury, but she was torn. After all, just recently, she¡¯d gotten her freedom. So, the first thing she did was to get absolutely, positively smashed. She¡¯d hidden away her wings, deactivating the she always kept active in paranoia of a Blood Eclipse descending. Then she¡¯d walked into a bar, ordered pretty much everything on the menu, and downed it all. The rest of the evening was a blur, but she woke up on the floor giggling giddily. It felt so good to finally let go. Not fear for her life, not fear for those around her, to simply let go. She¡¯d passed out. Not entered a soft restless sleep. Not watched the moon slowly streak across the sky. Her resistance to sleep had reached absolutely ludicrous levels during all that time, and she finally turned it off. And slept. It wasn¡¯t a soft bed, but it didn¡¯t need to be. At her level, the wood was more likely to give than her shoulders. She might¡¯ve kicked someone in the balls for being a prick, too, but that part was bleary at best. Yvette grinned, a bigger smile than she¡¯d given in¡­ what, the last decade or so? Then she ordered a hearty breakfast, and some more to drink, strolling out the inn in a happy mix of delirium and elation. Her thoughts flowed thick as syrup, never moving too fast. There was on longer a need to. Yvette had finally gotten a chance to decompress, and used it as fully as she could think of. She drank, bought herself sweets, ate copious amounts of food she rarely got to taste. Cities were such magical places, especially when one didn¡¯t need to be fully present all the time. And perhaps, some of the drinking was to shove all the places she¡¯d visited into the back of her head. To dampen the memory of all the destruction she might have caused in carelessness. Slowly, ever so slowly, and enjoying every step of the way, Yvette set off for Stormbraver, to thank the stupid little fricker who¡¯d granted her this freedom. Maybe she¡¯d even apologize. - - - - - - Mercury truly loved travelling. Exiting Stormbraver had been hard the first time, and less so the second. This time, he knew he¡¯d be back before too long. He could have ordered a coach to get him to Zyl, but there was no need. His legs carried him faster than a terrezay¡¯s would, and his endurance was higher as well. Especially truly showed its value. The ground flitted by beneath him, miles disappearing beneath his feet every day. He enjoyed the rolling hills while they lasted, hunting for food in little burrows. Occasionally, he¡¯d munch grass and flowers, enjoying even their bitter, unappetizing taste, and collecting ones he liked to use as spices. And so, he travelled on and on. The roads went from well laid, to compressed earth paths, to well-tread ones, to barely small pathways. Throughout it all, Mercury wore a big smile on his face. This was, in part, what he lived for. He loved the journey. Every time he heard the grass rustle, heard the wind brush through the leaves, heard birds chirping, or insects chittering. He sept in his log at night, layering the inside with more and more Runes again, because he¡¯d neglected the Skill for too long. Bit by bit, he was working his rijn with it, making sure he could use it as a sharp chisel, and eventually, perhaps as a rune stamp. It sped up the production significantly. On the roads, he encountered people. Helped repair a cart or two, shared some supplies, traded for a handful of spices. He spent a good chunk of his money on luxuries, saving only a bit. He didn¡¯t need many essentials anymore, after all. The log made for a good enough place to stay, and made it so that he could even eat trees if he so chose. Of course, Mercury tried. They didn¡¯t even taste too bad, with a very earthy, mushroomy taste. And soon, the days had passed by, and he saw a city in the distance. Houses, sprawling beneath a vast cliff, with a white mansion atop it. He grinned. This would be fun, he hoped. Only a little later, he¡¯d passed through the city gates as a D rank seeker. He really should get that license updated, but there was time for that later. For now, he made his way through the streets. Somewhat embarrassed, he stopped by a flower shop, deciding to get a bouquet for Zyl. Luckily, the owner was kind enough to let him buy a bouquet of fire roses for cheap, though Mercury did quite literally spend every last coin he had on him on it, leaving him flat broke. He smiled. That was fine. With his heart fluttering slightly, he made his way up the hill. There were steps built into it for the humanoids, but also a gentle slope meant for carriages. Mercury preferred the soft earth to the steps by quite a bit, and chose to go that way instead. Then, finally, he stood in front of the mansion¡¯s doors. There were no guards. He remembered there had been some last time, but the mansion was eerily quiet now. Mercury could hear his own heartbeat, blood rushing through his ears. Carefully, almost apprehensively, he knocked on the door. The soft padding of his paws made it difficult, and it really turned more into a rasp against it as his claws slid against the wood. It didn¡¯t leave any scratches, somehow, but the sound still transmitted. For a few moments, it was quiet on the other side, and Mercury swallowed heavily. He hadn¡¯t really expected everything to be so quiet. Finally, after an eternity, he heard slow, graceful footsteps in the mansion. Then, the door swung open, and Leon stood there. ¡°Hello,¡± he said, staring blankly into the air. ¡°Usually we would welcome visitors, but the lord is currently a bit preoccupied. Is your business important?¡± ¡°Hey Leon, it¡¯s not that important, really. Should I co-¡± ¡°Mercury, is that you?¡± the butler asked, a tiny quiver sneaking its way into his tone, despite the old butler¡¯s best efforts. ¡°Sure is,¡± the mopaaw said, smiling. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you, too.¡± - - - - - - Zyl¡¯d had a lot of time to think on what he wanted to do to Berthorn for all of this. He¡¯d lost a spark. He¡¯d lost a friend, his boyfriend even. He lost so much time, and effort, and he was hurt in more than one way. Berthorn deserved a lot of bad things for that, in his eyes. He¡¯d acquiesced his demands. And then, Berthorn betrayed all those promises. The dragon grit his teeth, and felt a shiver come over him, wrapping the blankets tighter. Everything still ached. Things had gone down to a normal fever, but he still needed to keep warm. But he was recuperating. And he had more and more time spent lucid, time spent thinking about his anger. He was so furious, but at the same time, it all felt so muted. In reality, he just felt like everything hurt. Every bit of his flesh, and his heart, and his mind as well. He felt guilty and shitty about himself, and just couldn¡¯t bring himself to blame his brother. Sure, Berthorn had given the command, but at the same time, Zyl himself had gotten attached to Mercury. Started liking him, accepted the silly offer. He¡¯d made him feel normal, like a full person, not just a status symbol, or a political power. Mercury hadn¡¯t for one moment cared about the fact that he ruled a country, or that he lived in a mansion. Nor did-... had the brave little guy cared about his family situation. Just seen him as a person. And the fact that he was gone was on Zyl¡¯s shoulders. It weighed heavily on his shoulders every day. So what should he do about it? There was nothing to do. Nothing to change. The dead were dead. Did he want revenge? Not particularly. Would his family finally leave him alone, now that they had what they wanted for so long? No, of course not. They were always greedy. They¡¯d take and take and take until there was nothing left. He clenched his fist underneath the blankets, feeling the nails dig into his skin. He didn¡¯t draw blood. Didn¡¯t want to stain things Leon spent time on. So, he just grit his teeth, and had his magic roar inside in a silent scream. Every time he went down the same thoughts. He didn¡¯t want to do anything. Hadn¡¯t wanted for any of this to happen. And now someone was dead. Dead! Maybe, he didn¡¯t need to take revenge, maybe he just needed to keep his family in check, maybe he just needed to- There was a knock on his door. Leon, by the sound of it. ¡°You have a visitor,¡± the butler said calmly through the wood. Zyl breathed deeply once, then twice, then a third time. He unclenched his fist, loosened his jaw, and took a sip of the tea that perpetually stood on his nightstand. ¡°Yes. Come in,¡± he said, keeping his voice even and unperturbed. Important people usually wanted him to show weakness, and he would not do them th- The thought died in his mind when he saw a head covered in soft white and purple fur stepped in. There was a green cloak, emblazoned with silver trim and a faint dragon on its back. The necklace and the small anklet/ring he wore were the same as before. Zyl looked at Mercury, his mouth wide open. Within moments, he got lost in the shimmers of his fur, the way the little purple stripes seemed to hold the entire firmament within them. But he was able to finally pry himself from them and meet Mercury¡¯s gaze, where he got lost in the mopaaw¡¯s eyes once over. ¡°Hey Zyl. I¡¯m back.¡± And tears began to stream down the dragon¡¯s cheeks. Chapter 153: Mercury and Zyl Chapter 153: Mercury and Zyl ¡°Hey Zyl,¡± Mercury said. For a moment, the dragon felt his heart drop. He just sat there, mouth agape, staring at the mopaaw in his doorframe. Leon flashed a bright smile. ¡°I¡¯ll leave you two to reunite. Be back in a moment,¡± the butler said, then headed off, perhaps to find a vase. Mercury was holding flowers after all. A whole bouquet of them. Zyl¡¯s eyes simply slowly drifted over the cat. ¡°Um, sorry for the sudden visit. I hope this isn¡¯t too awkward. I uh¡­ brought you a gift?¡± Mercury suggested, and the bundle of fire roses floated a little closer to the bed. Zyl¡¯s hand was trembling as he reached out and took them, pulling them close to his chest. Then he stared at Mercury a little more. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ alive,¡± he whispered, barely loud enough to hear. ¡°Yeah,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°I made it back. I promised, after all,¡± he added with a cheeky smile. ¡°I- I thought you were dead.¡± ¡°It got pretty close a few times. But I¡¯m here now. Safe. You okay?¡± Mercury asked, taking a couple steps closer to the bed. Zyl chuckled weakly, tears forming in his eyes. ¡°Am I okay you ask,¡± he said, shaking his head. ¡°No, I¡¯m not just okay. I¡¯m happy and relieved and glad and angry all at the same time. I feel like I must be dreaming.¡± He stared down at his hands. Mercury hopped onto the bed besides the dragon, putting a paw on his leg. ¡°Well, you aren¡¯t. I¡¯d know, I¡¯m kind of an expert on it,¡± he said with a small smile. ¡°I¡¯m here Zyl. Not going anywhere, take your time.¡± For a few seconds, the dragon sat silently, then slowly ran a hand through Mercury¡¯s fur. He rasped out half a meow in response, but accepted the gesture. It felt like someone was running their fingers through his hair if he had to compare it to a human sensation. He was fine with it since Zyl was the one doing it. Then, a few moments later, the dragon wrapped both his hands around the mopaaw and hugged him to his chest. Mercury felt a few wet drops land on his fur as Zyl nestled his face in it. He snuggled a little closer to the dragon. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯m here,¡± he said. Zyl cried. For a good while, a few minutes straight, he hugged Mercury and cried. They hadn¡¯t known each other for long, and yet, they¡¯d connected. He hadn¡¯t lost someone again. No one had died because of him. Somehow, despite the fact he¡¯d fucked up, things worked out. It felt foreign to Zyl. New. Like so many things did with this ball of fur in his arms. He smiled and shook his head. ¡°Thank you,¡± he said, pressing Mercury tightly to him, ¡°for making it back.¡± ¡°Always,¡± the mopaaw promised. For a little while the two remained like that, until eventually, Zyl took a deep breath and let Mercury go. In response, the mopaaw pressed his snout up against the dragon¡¯s arm in affection for a moment, before pulling back. He was a smidge wet, but it was nothing a bit of cleaning couldn¡¯t solve. He¡¯d pick up a cleanse spell soon, hopefully. As the two sat together, Zyl picked up the bouquet again, smelling the flowers. He smiled. ¡°They¡¯re wonderful, Mercury. Thanks for bringing them.¡± Just then, Leon came in, placing down a vase for Zyl to place the flowers into and receiving a thanks from both other men before leaving again, his cane rasping across the floor in search of obstacles. ¡°No problem. I thought you might want an apology after I disappeared for so long,¡± Mercury said, somewhat tempted to stick his tongue out at the dragon. Zyl laughed. It was a light, bright sound, with a pearly quality It brought a smile to Mercury¡¯s face as well. ¡°Stop being silly! You owe me nothing,¡± he laughed, patting Mercury¡¯s head. Then they sat quietly for a bit, just enjoying each other¡¯s company. Zyl just grinned as he let himself get lost in the starry expanse of Mercury¡¯s eyes. It took him a couple minutes to even comment on it. ¡°You look different,¡± he said. ¡°Sure do. I picked up an evolution after I got back.¡± ¡°Oh? What level did you evolve at?¡± ¡°30,¡± Mercury admitted. Zyl nodded. ¡°That¡¯s good. Very good, even. It takes most humans years to reach that point, though for them it would be their first evolution. I¡¯m sure yours is a bit more special though, it sure doesn¡¯t look like anything I¡¯d seen.¡± ¡°Ah, right. That might be because my last evolution was already unique, so most of my paths now seem to diverge from the general mopaaw line. I just couldn¡¯t help myself,¡± he smirked. ¡°Gotcha. Yeah, that would give you an edge on just about anyone in your tier. You¡¯ll also have stronger Skill than anyone born in tier four.¡± ¡°Tier four?¡± ¡°Right, you wouldn¡¯t know that. You remember how you evolved at level thirty? We call those the tiers. Tier one evolves at level ten, tier two at level twenty, tier three at level thirty. There are obviously tiers below that, since even insects can use the system, and higher tiers don¡¯t always scale linearly. Things start getting weird from tier five onward,¡± he explained and Mercury nodded. ¡°At any rate, that¡¯s that and this is this,¡± the dragon continued. ¡°Wanna tell me a bit about your new species? Or just generally about what you¡¯ve been doing?¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°Of course, Zyl. Anytime.¡± And Mercury launched into yet another retelling of his escapades. - - - Once he was done, however, Zyl did not seem calmer. In fact, the dragon seemed more angry than before. Furious, even. His fists were clenched tightly underneath the blankets, though his eyes looked at Mercury with nothing but remorse. ¡°I¡¯m very sorry that happened to you, Mercury,¡± he said. ¡°What¡¯re you sorry for? It¡¯s not like this is your fault.¡± ¡°It is, though,¡± Zyl answered. ¡°Those assassins were sent by my family, Mercury. My brother! Just to make me suffer.¡± He smacked the bed lightly, leaning against the wall of pillows supporting his back. Mercury stared for a few moments, then swallowed. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, Zyl.¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°What? You¡¯re sorry?! What for? Meeting me? Talking to me? Becoming friends?!¡± Softly, Mercury shook his head. ¡°No, Zyl. I¡¯m sorry you had to go through all that.¡± He pressed his head up against the other man¡¯s chest. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you have such a crappy brother. I¡¯m sorry your family isn¡¯t treating you the way you deserve. I¡¯m sorry that I wasn¡¯t here with you this entire time. I¡¯m sorry I worried you.¡± ¡°I- no, what? Mercury, my family tried to kill you! You didn¡¯t worry me, they did!¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, Zyl. I¡¯m here. I¡¯ll always be,¡± Mercury said, cuddling even closer. ¡°Your family won¡¯t keep me from you. No matter what happens, I¡¯ll live through it, and I¡¯ll come back to you. I¡¯m sorry I took so long, but I¡¯m stronger now. Next time, I¡¯ll be back in a flash.¡± He smiled. Zyl stared at him in confusion. ¡°What?¡± he asked. ¡°No, no, this is so wrong. You shouldn¡¯t- please, don¡¯t apologize.¡± There were tears running down his cheeks. ¡°You did nothing wrong. I¡¯m- you just¡­ Mercury, I¡¯m not safe for you. You shouldn¡¯t want to be with me at all!¡± ¡°But I do, Zyl,¡± he replied softly. ¡°I want to be with you. I know we haven¡¯t known each other for long, but you¡¯ve been way kinder to me than I ever deserved. You humor me even when I¡¯m being stupid, and you¡¯ve shown more patience than you really should have. I don¡¯t care what your family does, Zyl. Because to me, you¡¯ve been a good person. And I¡¯m trying to date you, not your brother,¡± he said. Once again, the dragon just stared at him wordlessly, then ran a shaky hand through his fur. He blinked away a few stray tears, and his mouth fell open and closed. ¡°You don¡¯t have to say anything,¡± Mercury assured him. ¡°I¡¯m happy you cared that I was gone. But don¡¯t hold yourself responsible for what your family did. Please, Zyl. I want to be with you. If that means becoming strong enough to fight off a few dozen assassins, then so be it.¡± He smiled. A long moment of silence hung between them, until Zyl gave a slow, shaky nod. ¡°Okay,¡± he said. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll¡­ I¡¯ll try.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all I¡¯d ever ask,¡± Mercury assured the other man, then leaned into another embrace. Truthfully, he was of course a bit shocked that Zyl¡¯s family had sent the assassins. But then again, he had never been on the best terms with his own parents either. Mercury knew that family was hard. That it could be as much of a curse as a blessing. He¡¯d never hold that against Zyl. All it meant was that he now had something to work towards. If he was targeted again, then surely, there would be much greater threats at play. Then again, he was much stronger now. Still. Zyl was a dragon. If there was anything fantasy books had taught him, it was not to mess with dragons. It always ended poorly. But now, he was already doing so, and he doubted someone who sent assassins after a person just to get at their brother would ignore him very easily. So, Mercury made up his mind. He¡¯d just have to get strong enough to never need to worry about Zyl¡¯s family. He smiled and shook his head, fur brushing up against Zyl. Did all his wishes have to be ¡°become strong enough for x thing¡±? Eventually, after a few long, long minutes, Zyl took a deep breath. ¡°Thanks,¡± he muttered. ¡°Thanks Mercury, I really appreciate it.¡± ¡°Anytime, Zyl. Is there anything else I should still know?¡± In response, the dragon sighed. ¡°Yeah. There¡­ There probably is. I haven¡¯t told you a whole lot about my family yet, have I?¡± Mercury shook his head. ¡°No, not yet. But please only tell me if you¡¯re ready. You can take your time.¡± Zyl snorted. ¡°They¡¯re trying to kill you, Mercury. If now isn¡¯t the time, when would it be?¡± ¡°When you¡¯re ready,¡± the cat said, smiling. ¡°Fine then. I¡¯m ready now, you dummy. Thanks,¡± he ruffled the fur on Mercury¡¯s head again, making the latter shake himself, and putting a grin on Zyl¡¯s face. ¡°Alright. My family. So, I have one older brother, and one younger sister. I also have a mother and a father. If they even deserve those monikers,¡± he said and scoffed. ¡°At any rate. My brother is a coward. My sister is violent. My mother is power-hungry. My father is lazy. That just about sums up my family,¡± he explained. ¡°The thing is that each of those makes them scary. Prone to action. Berthorn, my brother, isn¡¯t just a coward, but paranoid. He¡¯s terrified of me, and those connected to me, and will try to do everything in his power to eliminate any thread. Would a sane person send twenty assassins after a mopaaw?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think they would,¡± Mercury answered. ¡°Exactly. My sister would lash out at anyone she finds fun to play with, to the point of death, sometimes. My mother would consume anything and everything in her path in pursuit of greater power. And disturb my father¡¯s rest, or even drag out the work he has to do, and he will go overboard in retaliation.¡± ¡°And I really, really wish they¡¯d just let me have my freedom. Yet, in doing so, my brother fears me, my sister loses a toy, my mother wants my power, and my father needs to work. So they are not exactly pleased by me. The simple fact that I do not work for them is more than enough for them to hate me.¡± ¡°Then again, they would anyway. See, Mercury, in the past I did something that was rash, and maybe stupid, and I don¡¯t regret in the slightest. There are artefacts all dragons agree to share, because they¡¯re valuable enough that we¡¯d tear each others¡¯ throats out over them otherwise. And I broke one of them.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a rather complicated story, but my mother was planning on misusing it so I stole it, broke it, and then ran away. Again. It was not the first time I left home against the will of my parents, but it was the last. Ever since then, they were of the belief that I owe them something, a spark, and have been trying to coerce me into giving it to them. They succeeded, using you as a hostage, which is how I ended up bedridden. Then, Berthorn decided he would have you killed anyway.¡± He spat the last bits of the speech, the long-grown dislike clear in his words. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you had to go through all that,¡± Mercury said, once again leaning up against the other man. Zyl wrapped an arm around the mopaaw, ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯ve gotten a lot of distance. This recent encounter just¡­ made a lot of old wounds flare up. I¡¯m so upset with them, you know?¡± Mercury nodded a bit. ¡°I get it. It¡¯s alright. Leon told me a bit about your situation right now. You¡¯re bedridden?¡± ¡°Ah, yeah, that.¡± Zyl shivered lightly, and pulled the blanket higher. ¡°See, dragons have their own magic. I, essentially, have very strong, fire attuned, core mana. It¡¯s what might be called my flame, and it¡¯s what gives me life. And the other dragons wanted a piece of it, which they got. A spark, it¡¯s called. I gave it, but the process is highly taxing. Fully recovering might take much longer, and there might even be a permanent injury with it.¡± He grimaced. Mercury¡¯s face fell a bit. ¡°You gave that up¡­ for me?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± Zyl smiled. ¡°I¡¯d do it again in a heartbeat.¡± It gave Mercury butterflies in his stomach, then he shook himself. ¡°No, Zyl, you really shouldn¡¯t do that.¡± The dragon just smirked at that. ¡°Oh really now? Says the guy who wants to stay with me at the threat of death?¡± Mercury blushed a bit. ¡°No, look, that¡¯s not¡­¡± Zyl kissed his forehead. ¡°It¡¯s fine. You¡¯re fine. I¡¯m old enough to make my own decisions,¡± he said, grinning slightly, then squeezed Mercury a bit. ¡°Now, come here you big ball of fur and tell me all about your time since coming back!¡± He smiled. ¡°Alright, Zyl. Whatever you wish.¡± After cuddling a little closer, the two talked until the sun set. - - - - - - The mopaaw was alive. Berthorn found out the same day that he arrived in Unbar, the city Zyl¡¯s mansion was in. One of his spies among the guard told him. Of course he had spies there, this was his brother he was talking about, one of the most dangerous men on the continent. He had spies watching anyone he deemed dangerous, which meant most people of tier five or above. But how?! How was that beast still alive? Was it that much more powerful than he thought? Maybe not all his assassins had died in the blood eclipse. Had it called it down just to obscure what was happening from him?! Berthorn began biting his nails. He was beginning to spiral into paranoia again. What if the mopaaw had been the one in control of the eclipse this entire time. Was his first encounter with it at Treyno perhaps planned? Had he been feeding it? Was he its servant or its master?! If the monster controlled the eclipse, he needed to be even more wary. How many assassins would it take to kill it? No, maybe assassins wouldn¡¯t be enough. Would he have to hire help? Perhaps the skinshifters would be willing to take on this contract? What could he sell them? His fist smacked against the windowsill hard enough to crack the stone. The noise and mild pain drew him back. His eyes cleared, and he stopped pacing, sitting down on the open gate, and taking a deep breath. Right he¡¯d gotten too absorbed with his thoughts. Whatever made the little creature so special, he¡¯d find out. He could send spies to tail it, figure out its weaknesses and allegiances. There were enough people of those capabilities right under his thumb. No need to barter or call in favours. How many should he send as contingencies, though? Would three be enough? Five? More? But where to get those resources? He was already busy staging a coup among the dragons, and overthrow the leader of his clan. And now, some little beastie popped up? Yet, that creature was so resistant to death. So he needed to send spies. Perhaps he could take one from each of his family members? Would a simple 49 people watching his mother still suffice? They would have to. Four spies. That was what he would delegate to the beast. They would have to suffice. At least, if they came from his family members, they would be excellent at their job. Surely, the little monster wouldn¡¯t cause him even more trouble? Chapter 154: Dealing with Spies Chapter 154: Dealing with Spies Staying at Zyl¡¯s the second time was even nicer than the first. It was also different, in a lot of ways. He and Zyl didn¡¯t sleep in the same room yet, but they were a lot closer. A lot of time was just spent chatting between the two. Zyl, especially, needed it. He was still somewhat fragile, needing to stay in bed a lot, and occasionally, Mercury would help him walk with a little bit of . The days went by quietly, one after another, as the two focused on just making a few happy memories, rather than the constant state of turmoil their lives were so often in. Leon would smile at the two of them occasionally, then give them more space. If Mercury were to be asked about it, he¡¯d call it really, really nice. It felt welcoming and warm. The mansion had a very comfortable temperature, despite the late winter time. They could occasionally see a little bit of snow fall on the city below the cliff, then melt away again under the next day¡¯s sun. So, time drifted past, hour by hour, day by day. Mercury ate and played and talked, and Zyl got better. He stood outside more often, and after some time, the two of them even got to go on a walk and a little picnic in the nearby woods. Now that Berthorn had what he wanted, at least he didn¡¯t threaten the city anymore. Unbar was as peaceful as ever. Mercury also took the time to genuinely relax. He didn¡¯t dive into ihn¡¯ar too much, and spent the nights sleeping or playing with Whisperstar. Old Dreamweaver appeared once as well, but the ancient teacher also decided that perhaps some decompression was in order. The nice days lasted for a bit of time, and some longer then. Until one night, as was always clear to happen, there was a small interference when Mercury went to enter his dream. He hardly noticed at first, simply brushing it off, not thinking too much of it. Until it happened again the next day. And then again. Despite his newfound patience, Mercury did note that the tugging got just slightly stronger each day. As though someone was slowly spinning a connection and making it a bit thicker. Maybe for most people, they wouldn¡¯t notice it with the incremental increase, but to Mercury it was plain as day. But, given his last experience with this kind of thing, he chose not to enter that door at night. He simply stood, and stared at it. The feeling was strange, spending time outside a dream at night. The darkness all around the doors seemed deep and terrifying, all-consuming even. Sometimes, he¡¯d hear whispers of promises, temptations, or threats, like little nightmares. But he simply shielded his mind, and gazed at the door with ihn¡¯ar. Slowly, ever so slowly, he traced the thread back to where it led. Followed it along inch by inch, until he finally found the culprit. It was like a small light having lit up at the back of his mind, a tiny beacon in the dark. And he knew where the person who placed the mark was. Then, once that was done, he stopped through to his own dream, and spent the rest of the time there. Mercury did wonder why these people had not given up on tracking him. They were sent by Berthorn, he knew that much, but why were they still trying a method of tracking he¡¯d stopped before? He shook his head. Maybe it was a different method and his mental stuff just worked against it as well. He decided it was unimportant. - - - The next day, Mercury set out to find who tracked him. It didn¡¯t take much effort, he just told Zyl that he wished to explore the city for a bit, then followed the beacon. He wanted to tell the dragon the truth, but there was a decent chance more people were watching them, so he decided to wait. It was a very nice city, with clean streets, elevated sidewalks, and lots of greenery. Despite all that, it still had its fair share of little alleys and things one could use to watch someone. Mercury didn¡¯t know much of the city, but he wasn¡¯t in a hurry. The mopaaw just kind of walked until he found his chance. It took a couple hours, but eventually, the spy made a mistake, not that they¡¯d have known it was wrong. The presence in Mercury¡¯s mind would shift occasionally, whenever the spy moved. It could go fast or slow, track him through crowds or cover massive distances in a moment. But after some time, it appeared in an alley. One that was a dead end. Immediately, Mercury let out a satisfied hum as he split his mind and then hardened it two rijns, using them to essentially block the way out of the alley as he headed towards it. There were no people he could see inside, yet the presence was quite clearly there. It stood stock still, hiding far in a corner. Mercury smiled. ¡°It¡¯s quite alright, come on out,¡± he said, in the direction the presence indicated. Nothing. He stepped a little closer. ¡°Now, now. I¡¯m not gonna hurt you,¡± he said. Something told him that the spy didn¡¯t quite believe that. ¡°You¡¯re really not making this easy for me.¡± He sighed a bit after he spoke and stepped even closer, slowly expanding his mana. He had gotten more practice and could do it somewhat decently now. Slowly, he tapped against the surfaces with his more supernatural senses. He could feel the presence in his mind flicker for a moment, as though it was trying to move. ¡°Ah, please don¡¯t do that. I¡¯d really rather just find you now and talk, or else we¡¯ll have to do this the more annoying way. Dunno what you heard of me, but the last assassin sent after me didn¡¯t particularly like the annoying way.¡± There was a shiver there. Was he¡­ really that fear inspiring? That was a strange thought. Maybe the whole Crimson Sun deal had changed something about his aura? He chuckled to himself. ¡°I think too much, sorry. Now, please, stop being so touchy and just come out?¡± Suddenly, many things happened at once. The beacon in his awareness flitted towards his side, aiming for the exit to the alley, and he felt something pass through the tendrils of mana he¡¯d expanded. Before the moment could pass, Mercury already manifested his rijn. He didn¡¯t want to hurt the person too much, so he just put it up as a wall in front of them, and sure enough, there was quite a solid impact moments later, along with a high-pitch yelp. ¡°You okay there?¡± Mercury asked, still looking around for what impacted the barrier and finding nothing at all. Once again things were silent. ¡°Look. You¡¯re here on a job and that¡¯s fine and dandy, and-¡± there was another impact against his rijn, just as heavy as the first one. Mercury sighed, then continued. ¡°And I respect that. But you should really reconsider your decisions from here. I mean this very genuinely when I say that I¡¯m trying to be nice.¡± Finally, a voice answered him. It was high and squeaky, and what he could only properly describe as mousey. ¡°Doesn¡¯t- doesn¡¯t seem very nice to me!¡± the voice squeaked back at him. Mercury had to hold back a chuckle. ¡°Well, that¡¯s unfortunate, because this is as nice as I¡¯m going to get. One more time, let¡¯s talk face to face?¡± ¡°I would really prefer to-¡± there was a pause, as Mercury¡¯s eyes narrowed a bit. Then silence hung in the air for a few moments. His rijn suddenly hovered a lot less passively. ¡°Yeah, no, alright, face to face it is!¡± And suddenly, just a few feet from Mercury, someone appeared. It looked a little like the air ripped apart, like cutting through a curtain of camouflage. And in front of Mercury stood what he could only describe as a tiny humanoid dragon. It had a dragon-like head, with a bit of a square snout and sharp eyes. The creature had raptor-like feet, with three claws at the front and one in the back, which it shifted on uncomfortably. Its hands also sported claws, glistening forth from between grey scales. The squeaky-voiced person was dressed in purple-blueish robes, and had steely eyes. Overall, they felt very¡­ unremarkable to Mercury. He¡¯d seen similar people in Unbar before, but never had one felt so unassuming. Which might be because of a Skill, actually, he realized. ¡°You¡¯ve been watching me,¡± the mopaaw noted. ¡°No!¡± Squeaky immediately denied. ¡°Yeah you did!¡± ¡°Did not!¡± ¡°Then why have you been following me?!¡± ¡°You have no proof!¡± Mercury stood there, staring at the little bastard for a bit, before taking a deep breath, and letting out a long sigh. ¡°Look,¡± he said. ¡°I know you work for Berthorn, I know he asked you to monitor me after I came back from what he deemed certain death. Has he told you what I did to all the assassins he sent after me?¡± Squeaky hesitated. ¡°N-no?¡± they said. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Let me be very clear here, then.¡± Mercury leaned in a little closer, an infinite expanse of stars dancing in his lilac eyes. ¡°Not a single one of them lives.¡± Squeaky shivered. ¡°So. Once again, let me ask you some simple questions,¡± Mercury said calmly, withdrawing and giving them some more space. ¡°Have you been watching me?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± they admitted. ¡°Cool. What and who are you?¡± ¡°My name¡¯s L- Lic,¡± they said, stammering a little. ¡°I¡¯m a dragonkin. Some people call us kobolds, those people are asshats.¡± ¡°A dragonkin?¡± ¡°Yeah. We¡¯re often employed by full-blooded dragons. It¡¯s a little different from normal partial kin, since, ya know. Dragons aren¡¯t exactly¡­ well. They don¡¯t exactly associate with other true kin. Which leaves us in an even crappier position than other kin, because all other kin already hate us, and the dragons view us as inferior. Also, being short always ends up crappy.¡± Wow. That was some seated species-specific baggage there. ¡°I¡¯m also a guy, by the way,¡± he added. Mercury just nodded at all that. ¡°Well. I¡¯m sorry to hear you have to go through that. But you are still spying on me.¡± He flinched at that. ¡°So uh. Would be, like, real cool if you did not do that. Does that make sense?¡± ¡°And get myself executed?¡± ¡°That¡¯s one hell of a severance package,¡± Mercury mumbled. ¡°Are you planning to continue watching me, then?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what I thought. Come on. Let¡¯s get you a meal,¡± Mercury said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°What what?¡± ¡°You want me to eat with you?¡± Lic asked, somewhat taken aback. ¡°You, uh, got any other plans?¡± ¡°... No.¡± - - - ¡°So, Zyl, this is Lic. Lic was spying on me, because silly Berthorn put him up to it. Say hi Lic!¡± Mercury explained. Zyl stared at the dragonkin with much, much less empathy, his arms crossed and back straight. He looked a little like a chiselled statue. Mercury fought back a blush. ¡°H-hi¡­¡± Lic stammered. ¡°Mercury?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Why did you bring a spy to my house?¡± Zyl asked pointedly. ¡°Well, you see. If I send him back, he gets executed, right? And I think that¡¯s not very cool. So I, uh, invited him.¡± ¡°How would Berthorn know he was spying on you?¡± the dragon asked, his eyes narrowing. ¡°Oh, come on now. We both know there would never be just one spy. This is the same person that sent twenty assassins after me, Zyl.¡± ¡°... I see your point.¡± ¡°So,¡± Mercury pushed Lic forward towards Zyl. ¡°Are we giving him a chance to live or not?¡± Zyl looked at Lic for a long time, his eyes hard. The dragonkin was forced to just stand there, looking at the floor, not daring to meet Zyl¡¯s gaze. Eventually, the taller man sighed, and ran a hand through his flame-red hair. ¡°Fine. Do you know anything about other spies, Lic?¡± he relented. The dragonkin stared for a few moments, then swiftly shook his head. Zyl sighed again. ¡°Thoughts so. Sadly it seems Berthorn hasn¡¯t gotten that careless yet. A shame. Alright, you can eat here today, then you go home.¡± ¡°I, uh,¡± Lic fidgeted, ¡°don¡¯t really got that.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have a home?¡± Mercury asked. Lic shrugged. ¡°It is what it is. My parents were killed, I racked up gambling debt, then was one day found in a gutter and picked up to be a servant by someone. Don¡¯t remember them, I was passed out drunk. Turned out I¡¯m decent at being quiet, and got slowly put onto more important things. Listen in on conversations while refilling tea, that kinda deal. Things escalated from there.¡± He sighed. ¡°But no. No place to go back to. People like me gotta be expendable.¡± A long bit of silence hung in the room. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get you eating, Lic,¡± Zyl said, then swiftly turned around and walked off. The dragonkin followed after a moment of hesitation, seemingly having given up on getting out of things. Maybe to him, dying with a meal in his stomach was better than dying on the streets. Mercury looked at Lic¡¯s back for a while before he followed. Baggage was his weakness, after all. He mentally sighed to himself. This would be an exhausting situation to deal with. - - - Lic did not, in fact, leave the next day. He was instead put under a bit of surveillance to make sure no fishy messages were sent, and otherwise just¡­ allowed to exist. They got meals, were allowed outside with some people accompanying them, and Mercury would occasionally chat with them. Dealing with it felt stressful to him. He didn¡¯t want to just send Lic to the streets, but at the same time, he also didn¡¯t quite know if the dragonborn was a liability. Sure, he could figure it out by drawing him into the dream, but that would be exposing a major secret to a potential enemy, and if he was still an enemy, Mercury didn¡¯t want to kill him. He sighed. Why did everything have to be such a pain? He just wanted to sit with his beautiful boyfriend and cuddle and chat and have nice dates and do all the lovely things couples did. And yet, he had to deal with spies and stuff. Who does that? Who sends spies after some cat? He sighed again. Sometimes, he really wished the nice times just lasted longer. Maybe he could just live with being spied on? Did he really need revenge on Berthorn? No, not technically, but at the same time, would that man hurt Zyl again? Yes, he probably would. Which was something Mercury could absolutely not tolerate. So he needed to do something against the spies, but they probably weren¡¯t exactly happy about their job either. Well. There probably were some fanatics who did it passionately and wanted to ruin lives. But Lic wasn¡¯t like that, at least. He¡¯d just been dealt a really shitty hand. At least, Berthorn didn¡¯t include some remote controlled self-destruction device. Maybe they did have some sort of poison to kill themselves? Mercury shook his head. The train of thoughts was going nowhere. He wasn¡¯t killing Lic. He also wasn¡¯t tolerating any more spies coming after him. How could he counteract it? If he wanted to stop it, he¡¯d need to catch all the spies at once. Wait. Did the spies counter check each other? Lic said they didn¡¯t know who the others were. Perhaps the others also only knew that there were others, but didn¡¯t know who? Then¡­ maybe. He smiled. What if he pulled them into the dream and convinced them one after another? There was no need for anyone to get hurt that way, and he could convince them politely to not tell their employer about it all. He knew that the dream had a relatively menacing effect, based on the bishop, so there was at least some sort of shot. A plan slowly coalesced inside his mind. That night, when he felt something coalescing on the edge of his mind, he grabbed the thread and yanked on it, pulling another mind into his dream. His palace, his home turf. - - - - - - Tray had been working for Berthorn for as long as they remembered. It had been¡­ decades? Their memory was so hazy. They had long since forgotten who they were before, long forgotten the empathy they used to have for their victims. They¡¯d watched and loved and betrayed. Played the cards and played the players and played the masters of the game. They had been on an incredible number of jobs, and yet, they had never seen something like this. Of course, they occasionally dreamt of their targets. They were their entire focus. Entering their lives unnoticed, then finding out more. In this case, that was not their task, it was to simply watch from the shadows, but they still obsessed over the target. They knew the mopaaw was soft-hearted. It didn¡¯t enjoy violence, and wished for people to simply be kind. It also knew it was being watched, and had incredibly powerful mental defenses, far greater than they had any right to be, quite frankly. That was why it had taken them so long to coalesce a mark. Tracking Skills were tricky. No two of them worked the same way. Tray used a very specifically tailored one that generally made their target less likely to notice them. Sort of an Antimemetic connection they could tie neatly between people, using specific tethers. For the mopaaw, they had chosen stamina, deeming it the weakpoint of the creature. And yet. Here they were. Tray dreamt sometimes. But it was never this vivid. In fact, it hardly felt like a dream, instead, they were more lucid than while awake. They found themselves staring upwards, lying flat on the ground. The sky was a patchwork of colours, blues and purples and oranges and crimson and pink. There was grass along their back, but each stalk felt rigid and hostile. A few seemed to move, reaching out and latching onto their ankles, as though attempting to hold them down. When they jerked up, they got blinded by movement across the firmament. There were multiple celestial bodies there, ones they didn¡¯t bother to identify, but the one that caught their eye was moving. A dark star flitted across the sky, seemingly following their every move with sinister curiosity. Immediately, Tray felt each of their muscles go on high alarm. ¡°Huh, I was not expecting a lizardperson,¡± a voice noted, followed by the clicking of a tongue. Tray whipped around, gazing upon a strange, rocky construct of mana veins. ¡°Right,¡± the thing spoke into their mind, ¡°you won¡¯t recognize me like this.¡± As they said so, Tray saw the creature be covered in a facsimile of veins and fur and flesh and blood. They shivered at the process, a strange, sinister twisting of what would be life. The thing¡¯s appearance was a lie - that was no mopaaw, that was a monster. On the thing¡¯s fur, the stripes were even deeper here, gazing into an eldritch firmament dark enough to devour. Tray shivered again, stumbling back. ¡°You,¡± they whispered. ¡°Yes, me,¡± their target replied, once again speaking into their thoughts, smiling a sinister smile full of sharp teeth. They could feel their own fear spike. There were so many things that their senses told them, so many strange sensations, and at the same time, their mind was filled with the knowledge, the absolute certainty that this was real. Entirely real. ¡°How- Where is this?!¡± they hissed, taking another two steps back and reaching for their weapon. It wasn¡¯t there. ¡®Ah, this.¡¯ The creature¡¯s voice grew even more ephemeral. Its lips no longer moved, the words projecting directly into Tray¡¯s mind. ¡®You see, this isn¡¯t wholly a where. This is more of a¡­ who. You¡¯re inside my dreams, just as all the others before you were.¡¯ Something about the words was deeper than just the surface. Tray knew more than they should. They knew the creature was absolutely confident in its safety. They knew they were powerless here. Their claws and teeth would not leave a scratch on the thing in front of them. Additionally, the creature¡¯s words spoke of a promise. One that they would return safely if they just cooperated. It made them tense even more, the thinly veiled threat of what would happen upon non-cooperation was not lost to them. ¡°What do you want, monster?¡± they asked, still slowly retreating, but the thing never became more distant, as though their steps never mattered. And every single step would land them on hard, sharp grass, scraping along their scales. ¡®I want your silence, spy,¡¯ the voice sounded in their head. This was a demand, underlined by some amount of regret. The creature was kind, surely, so this was regrettable to them. Tray froze. It was regretting this, because it thought it might force it to commit violence on them. ¡°Silence?¡± they asked. They were good at being silent. ¡®Speak of this to your master, and sadly, you will regret this.¡¯ It wasn¡¯t so much a threat as a promise. Tray knew it was true. There was such a clear, distinct knowledge that the monster in the fur of a mopaaw was willing to impose heavy consequences; they shivered at it. It seemed to grow even more resolved as it felt their fear. ¡®You¡¯re afraid. Sorry about that, but I need to be genuinely certain. I¡¯ll repeat it. Be. Silent. About this. Understood?¡¯ Tray managed a nod, a fearful one. ¡®Good. I know you¡¯ve been watching me. Just like I knew Lic was watching me. You know Lic?¡¯ They nodded again. ¡®Good. You were watching me under Bethorn¡¯s orders?¡¯ A pause, then another nod. ¡®Good. Keep your reports normal. Keep your mark on me. Act as though nothing happened. Got it?¡¯ Another nod. ¡®Good. Then, let me tell you one final thing. I don¡¯t want to hurt you. I want to be able to send you off safely, maybe have you retire. But for that to happen, either Zyl or Berthorn need to get a clear fucking loss, and only one of those is happening. I swear to you that I am not losing this battle.¡¯ Tray fell on their ass as the voice sounded in their mind. There was an unbelievable, boiling anger underneath the surface there, a determination and fury to emerge victorious, as well as unshakable confidence that it would happen. ¡®When all of this is done, I will get a happily-ever-after. This much I promise you. So. Tell Berthorn things about me that are normal. I will tell you when to change this. Be off.¡¯ Then, with no additional symphony or fanfare and no warning, Tray woke up, breathing heavily in the grass they laid on. Somehow, the small stalks still felt hostile to them, stabbing their back. They swallowed and the saliva felt terribly dry. To be sure that it was over, they looked at the sky. It was no longer a patchwork, and only had the regular amount of moons. Slowly, they breathed, calming their far too rapidly beating heart. They had forgotten a lot of feelings during their work as a spy. This proved that fear was not one of those. Chapter 155: Little Plots Chapter 155: Little Plots /There are many events I consider tragic in my life, but perhaps the hardest one to stomach was the breaking of Trinitarum, the greatest Mages¡¯ Tower of all time. I am old now. I know much about magic that people will never find even when they dedicate their life to its study. I have cast spells that others would consider myths, and I have created wonders that wouldn¡¯t be misplaced in the times when divines still walked the earth. Despite that, the spell that brought the tower down was as much a work of art as it was cruel. There¡¯s a reason it marks the end of a book, after all. The old wizards who tampered with things far beyond what they should tore a hole in reality, a wound which has not yet healed, and may never do so. Sometimes, it makes me think whether we should truly have access to the power we do. Whether magic is good for this world at all. I try to remind myself of all the people it has helped, how it transformed my own life, and yet, I arrive back there. Seeing the tower crumble before my inner eye. Thousands of disciples, torn into the folds between realities, no bodies to be recovered. The stones that made up the tower being twisted and strewn across infinity, reduced to less than dust. I imagine how the mana made me feel that day. I could hear the very essence of my power scream and die. That is something I believe no single person should have access to, and that is why I believe that magic must be taught safely. A rogue mage can so easily destroy things, while it takes dedication and practice to create./ ¡°Irresponsible Magic¡± by Inyraxa Aruget, part of ¡°The ramblings of an old magician¡±. - - - - - - Zagan stood, looking at a waterfall. ¡°Beautiful, is it not?¡± Midas asked her, running his hand through the stream, leaving an imprint of gold upon the bed of the river that sprouted from the phenomenon. The ruler of a demon city blinked. In truth, on Arterus, there were few bodies of water. Demons hardly needed sustenance, most living off mana or stamina or some other thing they found. A couple ate rocks, or some wildlife, but few really needed to drink. ¡°It¡¯s gorgeous,¡± she murmured, listening to the water flow. ¡°Makes you think about what art is,¡± Midas said. Zagan paused at it. That¡­ was true. She wasn¡¯t allowed to witness art, not hear it, not see it, not even hear about a specific piece. It had left her days dull and boring. Yet, somehow, this wasn¡¯t art? To her, art had always been in beauty. Anything that was sufficiently beautiful was art. Faces could be art, music could be art, even weapons could be pieces of art. Despite that, this strange, chaotic crashing that still gave off such a wonderful noise, wasn¡¯t? ¡°It¡¯s about intent,¡± Midas added to her thoughts. ¡°No one wanted to create this. It just happened, naturally. No hands shaped this rock, no single mind poured their heart into it. It¡¯s just¡­ there.¡± He smiled, running a finger along the rock, leaving a small streak of gold behind. ¡°Intent, huh,¡± Zagan muttered, losing herself in the flow of the water. If there was no intent behind this, had no one shaped it? What about the gods? Or Chronagen itself? Did neither of those have a will? Or was this area just neglected? Her heart thumped brightly in her chest. So many questions that made her curious. Beautiful things truly did get her heart pumping. She smiled. ¡°So, Midas. There are¡­ more things like this?¡± ¡°Many more,¡± he assured her. ¡°Each of them unique as well.¡± ¡°I believe I may wish to see a bit more of this world, then.¡± Midas smiled. ¡°Well, I have a few places in mind¡­¡± ¡°Yes. Yes, of course. Let me just¡­ watch this a bit longer.¡± Then, the four armed demon sat down on a wet rock, and simply enjoyed watching the water fall. Damoy truly was a beautiful place. What more was there to see? Dimly, in the back of her mind, she thought Midas might be taking her along on this journey as part of a scheme. But she didn¡¯t mind. The water was too peaceful to care. - - - The two of them travelled for quite some time. Sight after sight, wonder after wonder. Sparkling lakes, stretching out until the horizon. Mountain peaks surrounded by thin bits of fog. Sunsets over the shore, forests full of life. All of it was alien to Zagan, and all of it was beautiful. The queen who had been so frustrated with her situation soon found herself enjoying it. There was still a strange quality to it all. The fact that her contract didn¡¯t consider it art meant that deep down, she didn¡¯t consider it art. It made her think. Had her views shifted? Could there be beauty without art? Perhaps that was so. She shook her head, and gave a grumble from both her mouths. Those thoughts mattered little; the moments she was currently experiencing mattered far more. Slowly, bit by bit, the demon queen and golden once-king travelled the continent. From the west, they headed slowly south. They stopped to see deserts, and swamps, trees that scratched the clouds, and lagoons full of emerald water. Zagan indulged the feelings of wonder this all gave her. It made her feel as though she was Kurt River, one of her favourite authors, exploring the world in search of beauty. Where he had sought music, she was seeking natural wonders. Or being shown them, rather. Every stop they made, she learned to like more. To be content. To worry less about consumption. The queen learned that perhaps there was beauty to be found in waiting for the next experience as well. In cherishing a memory and holding it dear, rather than chasing the next big step, the next wonder. She got messages, occasionally. Letters which found her magically, communication via telepathy, and she turned much of it down. Hearing it all in her state of mind made Zagan realize just how much scheming she¡¯d been doing. Get those people to visit, exploit these people for a vain picture. So much thinking for a little bit of ink on a canvas. So much effort for a few words on a piece of paper. Did it truly matter that much? The two of them were circling the continent. From west, down to south, then curving along the coastline to the east, and following it back north. They visited a monastery. By then, the season of her punishment had passed, yet they stayed there. Zagan learned from the monks, how to breathe, how to maintain serenity. Keep one¡¯s soul as clear as still waters. She left feeling rejuvenated. It had been¡­ a few more pages. Her and Midas began heading westwards again, towards the center of Damoy. The path would lead them through the Nevarzahri, then through the Guardian¡¯s Nation. Zagan dreaded the encounter a little, but her resolve was steeled. She would have to apologize to lord Friaminth. - - - - - - Mercury took his time dealing with the spies. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. His Skills weren¡¯t infallible. Sometimes it would take quite some time for him to even notice a mark. Tracing them back was also far from child¡¯s play. He¡¯d been doing it on instinct up until then, which had proven effective, but a bit unreliable. Instead, Mercury now had to meditate, and use ihn¡¯ar on himself as he fell into the dreams, trying to find any changes. Night after night, he would notice nothing off. Then, a small change, a tiny little thread, and he had his target. Reeling them in without snapping the connection was also hard. Once, for the faintest mark of them all, he had to reinforce it himself, before being able to leave his own little hook. After that, however, drawing the spy into his realm was swift. One by one by one he found them. Dragged them into his dream realm, and negotiated. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean he let go of the hooks. He only needed a thought to draw them back in. And once he found no new mark for half a page, he decided to call the little meeting he¡¯d promised. There were only three besides Lic. A lizardperson, a figure that seemed made from fire, and an orc. Tray, Blaze, and Gruk, as he¡¯d learned. With a tug from his mind, all three of them were back in his dream realm. ¡®Hello all,¡¯ Mercury¡¯s voice echoed in their heads. ¡®I believe I¡¯ve now found each of the spies Berthorn set onto me. Which is you three and Lic.¡¯ Their faces sunk, hope slowly draining. Mercury was reasonably sure he¡¯d found everyone at least, given that and hummed with agreement. ¡®Now, that doesn¡¯t mean any of you get hurt. In fact, I really wanna make your job quite a bit safer. Has Berhtorn caught onto any of your fake reports yet?¡¯ All three shook their heads. ¡®Good. Very good, even. See, Zyl and I are going to leave here soon. By soon, I mean tomorrow. And you guys are going to cover for us.¡± He smiled a big, toothy grin. ¡®Now, of course I can¡¯t exactly force you to do this. But I can promise you that if I come back and there¡¯s something wrong with Unbar, you¡¯ll pay. This mark works as much to track you as it does to drag you in here. Spill even a word of this to Berthorn, and regret it.¡¯ For emphasis, he sent along a small bit of what it had been like having one of the stalkers kill him in the starving dream. It caused three distinct flinches. ¡®So. Best for us all if you just keep lying to your pretty crappy previous employer.¡¯ They nodded. ¡®Right, one more thing,¡¯ Mercury added. ¡®In case anyone comes to visit, do any of you have a disguise Skill?¡¯ Tray raised their hand. ¡®Perfect. You¡¯ll be Zyl¡¯s body double,¡¯ Mercury declared brightly. Tray could feel a cold shiver down their spine. - - - By then, it had been five pages since Mercury¡¯s return from the eclipse. It was the last page of winter, and things were slowly warming up. Luckily, kept Mercury at a comfortable temperature no matter what. Zyl and him needed to travel. But Zyl was being watched by probably a dozen more spies than Mercury was. So, somehow, he needed to swap Tray with his lovely boyfriend so that the two of them could make their escape. Now, of course, swapping them wouldn¡¯t be very hard, unless the spies had marks on Zyl. Which they did not. Because the very nature of his mana somehow burnt them. Mercury more than triple checked to be sure; whenever he¡¯d used ihn¡¯ar on himself, he¡¯d also checked Zyl. Could never be too careful. To exchange him and Tray, it was quite simple. Mercury asked the dragon on a date to a very specific place that had a bunch of anti-scrying wards pre-prepped. They went in, and Mercury came back out with Tray, while Zyl drank an invisibility potion that Leon had acquired for them. Thus, the switcheroo had been completed. Only a few days after, Mercury said his goodbyes, leaving the city. Zyl, being undercover, also made his way out. The mansion was left in Leon¡¯s capable hands. With him there, Maclroy hopefully wouldn¡¯t ruin anything. Somehow, Zyl was not worried about any of the spies in the slightest. Another day later, the two were able to hop onto a carriage that randomly left the city in disguise. Mercury¡¯s fur had been tinted completely white, making him look like an ordinary housecat, and Zyl mildly changed his face, stature, and dyed his hair black, simply looking like a pompous noble. Where were they even headed? Well. Mercury decided that maybe, if Berthorn wanted him watched so bad, the fucker could lay his own eyes on the cat. He had about another five or so pages before meeting the others in Stormbraver. Plenty of time to cause some havoc. Especially with some asshat trying to control him. Walking away from Nemo had been fine. He¡¯d confront the bishop again once he returned to Stormbraver. But this was different entirely. Spies? Seriously? Coming from the 21st century, Mercury knew more than his fair share about privacy concerns, and he had absolutely no interest in being stalked by some weirdo family member of his boyfriend. So, it was time to put a stop to it. The fact that he got to spend multiple days of riding a carriage sleeping on Zyl¡¯s lap was only a small part of his motivation. Luckily, the journey went by without any major incident. Somehow, apparently, Tray was keeping up the illusion of actually being Zyl. Mainly by lying in bed and ¡°recovering¡±. Zyl himself already felt a lot better, but wasn¡¯t quite in top shape yet. He was still getting better with each day though. They had been going northwest from Unbar, heading toward where the dragons lived. It was the tallest mountain range on Damoy. Naturally, that was so that the dragons could look down on everyone else. Mercury would show them what to look down on. - - - - - - Berthorn felt like he would be making Anoth proud. The lady of webs had also been his favourite among the divines. Stories of plots and planning and deception suited him much better than a straightforward approach. Even now, when he was in the middle stages of a coup, he was behaving more like a spider than a dragon. He had spies, informants, and little saboteurs in every corner. Just today, one of his workers had delivered inferior tea leaves in the name of some clan to another one, sparking a grudge over food poisoning. Dozens upon dozens of little things. He smiled. Slowly, bit by bit, he was tearing the unity of the dragon clan apart. Their combined target had disappeared, and their smiths were busy forging the spark into a worthy item. Up until now, the family to get the item had been certain, but recently, more and more clans were vying for it. Berthorn revelled in that. The greed of dragons was often so easily sparked. They had basically been a powderkeg. Well, no, more like a dozen powderkegs stacked atop each other. Now, he had allies, and was slowly depriving them from his family. His sister seemed to revel in the chaos as much as he did. She challenged scion after scion and wiped the floor with them. If she weren¡¯t so unpredictable, he might have even considered her for an ally. His father was lethargic. Too lazy to do anything about things. Perhaps he would act once his pillows were pulled out under him. But that was why Berthorn had people watching him anyway. No, the greatest obstacle was currently his mother. The woman was greedy for power, and had been greedy for Zyl¡¯s spark as well. She had ordered him to get it, and now wanted to claim the spoils for herself. Already she was the matriarch of one of the greatest dragon clans this world had ever seen, and despite that, it was never enough. Nothing would ever be enough for her, and that meant she needed to be removed. One day, she would come after Berthorn too, he was sure of that. After all, it was in her nature to take and take and take. He took a deep breath, centering himself. Those thoughts were taking it a bit too far. Slowly, he shut the window he¡¯d been leaning out of and went to prepare himself. There were a few events he needed to attend, after all. Reports to receive as well. Perhaps the spies he¡¯d set onto the beast his brother fraternized with had more news? The creature had simply decided to leave, and the spies had been tracking it just¡­ living in a forest. In the middle of nowhere. Who did that? It was beyond suspicious, especially after one of the spies had been compromised. The others seemed safe, but something nagged at him, telling him that things were wrong. It was weird. And it wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯d felt this nagging sensation in relation to the mopaaw. Somehow, the creature seemed to defy his expectations commonly. The thought brought a scowl to his face. He was dedicating too many resources to it already. Compromising his network further was not an option. Sending additional people was not an option. He would, despite his own kindest wishes, need to wait and see. At the very least he knew he would not hesitate to crush the creature if it messed up his plans once more. In the meantime, however, other things demanded his attention. Just in time, there was a knock on his door. He had finished up his hair just when the sound reached his ear, the oily green strands tucked behind his ears. ¡°Come in,¡± he called, buttoning up his jacket. The person who entered was a woman with snow white hair, except for frosty blue tips. Her skin was immaculate despite her advanced age, and her dress a pristine ivory, matching that of her face. If he didn¡¯t know better, he would¡¯ve thought he was looking at a ghost. ¡°Lady Revershire, a pleasure,¡± he said, giving a small bow. She replied with the tiniest curtsy she could manage. ¡°Master Berthorn.¡± ¡°I see that you have made it here despite your previous grievances?¡± he asked, politely reaching out a hand, which she took. The two began striding down the hallway together. ¡°What can I say? The proposal on the wineries seemed too attractive to decline. Matters of my family must still come first,¡± she replied, her thin lips curling into a thinner smile. ¡°Indeed, I do like to be generous to my allies.¡± Berthorn¡¯s smile was a little wider as he spoke. ¡°And the favour I request is quite simple, is it not?¡± ¡°To spread gossip, yes,¡± the lady scoffed. ¡°It is something my daughter is quite capable of. After the next tea party hosted at our estate, all scions will have heard of the failings of the old grimmerling family.¡± ¡°Good, good.¡± Berthorn¡¯s smile grew wider than that of a human should. ¡°I will see that the deeds are delivered safely to your estate.¡± ¡°The summer one, if it pleases you.¡± ¡°Naturally.¡± He took his hand out of hers gracefully as they stepped through the doors into the ballroom. It was his family¡¯s turn to host, and he had gotten into a position where the celebrations would be held in his ballroom. Naturally, that meant most of the servants were his. Of course, if there was trouble, he might be affected. It made him paranoid, and as the announcer spoke his name and he bowed, his eyes drifted over everyone present. Within moments, he had marked out enemies, and scouted potential allies to further bonds with. This was all still just the steps leading up to everything. Soon it would be time for the dragons to fall, and for a new lord to take his rightful place. Once everyone feared him, he would no longer need to fear anyone. Chapter 156: Dragons Chapter 156: Dragons Days passed. The dragons¡¯ most skillful crafters came together, working on an item of power. The greatest smiths, to forge the metal, enchanters, to carve runes for channels of power, artificers, drawing out plans and plotting. Leatherworkers to prepare grips and wrappings, carvers to do the fine details, and so on and so forth. Dozens of them, the best of the best, worked with a single spark, a bit of crystalline magic. It was so dense that it alone could have lit their forges for centuries, but that was not its purpose. It was not its purpose to heat, or to warm, or to glow, or to sparkle. This tiny bit of Zylnareth¡¯s flame could have done a hundred hundred things. But it would destroy. Zyl¡¯s mother, Trinyakorie, had made the request for the item. It wasn¡¯t a specific weapon shape, not a sword, not a spear, not even a staff. Just a weapon. An object of destruction. That was all it ever needed to be. To Trinya, power was what mattered. Intimidation. This was the hard line she would use to get people on her side, the threat of extermination. Zyl¡¯s flame was outstanding, even among the dragons. Such a shame the boy refused to nourish it so often. If he had properly grown his flame, the spark could have been bigger. Could have grown to consume so much further. She shook the thought of, letting her gaze sweep across the artisans. Perhaps, if the thing had grown even further, they would have nothing to contain its power. Perhaps, if it had grown more, her son would have decided to properly rebel, instead of just run. All in maybe¡¯s. What mattered to her was concrete power. The present. And presently, she was supposed to get ready to go to her son¡¯s gala. Her husband was still lazing about, barely crawling out of bed, and her daughter was already jumping in place, ready to go. Trinya hoped there would be no violence at the gathering. She smiled. That was a lie to herself. If her daughter caused havoc, perhaps her fearful son would finally grow a spine. He¡¯d need one if he wanted to properly bow to her, once she had the power of the artefact. And she would make him bow, as he had so often. The fearful child was, after all, the most obedient. Her daughter was violent, easy to control with a simple outlet. Her husband was lazy, and it was a slog to make him do anything, but enough pestering and threats could coerce him into just about anything. Berthorn, though? He always listened, always so afraid. Much unlike Zyl. If she had to give him a word, it would be longing. The young dragon had yearned for freedom, for more than his bloodline promised him, for more than thinly veiled threats and the glamour of a poorly disguised prison. She would not have granted it to him. Unfortunately, the longing child was also the strongest, with a flame burning ever bright and ever hot. Somewhat like hers, she supposed, though his wanted to see rather than consume. To Zyl, anything he laid eyes upon was beautiful. To her? Anything she laid eyes upon was her property. If she wished to sleep upon mountains of gold, it would be so. If she wished to be left alone for a dozen centuries, it would be so. And if she wanted to claim the power of her rebellious son, it would be so. And it was. The thought brought a smile to her face, wide and predatory, her mouth full of vicious fangs. She didn¡¯t bother to disguise properly as a human. So many of them paraded around like lowly peacocks. She was a dragon, and she would show it. Her scales glistened as she walked, soon accentuated by a dress red as fire. She wore special shoes, more sandals than anything, to support the draconic, clawed feet. Her hair was done up by a handful of trusted servants, each and every one putting great care towards a single strand of hair. If they didn¡¯t, after all, she would¡¯ve burned them alive. Then, she kicked her lazy husband off the bed, and calmed her violent daughter down. They would go, now, to see the fearful son. The hungry mother wore a predatory smile. This would be so very close to a family reunion. - - - - - - Mercury and Zyl stood at the foot of the mountains. They were humongous things, piercing far into the heavens, the tops disappearing into the clouds. ¡°You guys live up there?¡± he asked, turning to face Zyl. ¡°Sure do. Well, I used to, at least,¡± the dragon replied. He¡¯d been somewhat morose for the last few days of their journey. Apparently, he didn¡¯t have the best memories of this area, and seeing all of it again made him remember things he would really rather not have. Mercury tried his best to be there for his lover, in whatever ways he could. Which mainly meant lying on his lap and being good company. The two chatted a lot about very minor things, partially about Mercury¡¯s old life back on Earth as well. It was kind of freeing, in a lot of ways. To Mercury, at least. Zyl¡¯s problems seemed¡­ somewhat ongoing. Which is why they were there. ¡°So, anything special we need to watch out for?¡± Mercury asked. Zyl nodded in reply. ¡°Yeah. The clans like to host balls every now and then. Different people host each time. If we see it ongoing, we might want to avoid it. Lots of dragons tends to mean lots of enemies.¡± ¡°But your family would be there?¡± ¡°Yes, they would.¡± Zyl nodded again, slower and more carefully this time. ¡°But we really, really shouldn¡¯t go there, Mercury.¡± Mercury hesitated. ¡°I can see why. But, out of curiosity, how much have you recovered?¡± The dragon just sighed in reply. ¡°Quite a bit. I can probably keep going at a good¡­ three quarters of my top form for a good ten minutes.¡± That was more than expected. Apparently, losing a spark could have permanent damage for dragons, yet Zyl was recovering remarkably quickly. As in, quicker than should be reasonable. Berthorn wasn¡¯t even suspicious of him still being bedridden, and despite that, here he was, already out and about. It made Mercury curious about what these sparks actually were, but any questioning into that had proven fruitless. Apparently, to dragons, it was an existentially simple question. A spark was just a part of them, like their wings, their arms or their legs. Something they had, and needed, for a certain purpose. It was what a lot of their magic hinged on. Well, at least on their fire, a spark was just what they generally called a core part of that flame. Which is why losing them was so dangerous. Often, they could not simply be regrown. Zyl, apparently, almost could, maybe he would even be able to make a full recovery. It would be an incredible miracle, and Mercury had some suspicions as to why he would have been different. But none of that was the point. Right now, he just wanted to prove to Zyl¡¯s family that he might be small but he sure as hell wouldn¡¯t go down easy. Was he probably once again overextending himself? Probably. Then again, this wasn¡¯t really about hurting them, but about sending a message. Perhaps, one day, they would have a proper standoff, but for now, other things were more pressing. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. Zyl thanked the carriage driver, one of many they¡¯d had on the journey. They would swap their beasts of burden and carriages at checkpoints somewhat frequently, to have well rested animals for most of the journey. The coaches had been pulled by terrezays, horses, and various other things, such as large, jellyfish-like creatures, who pulled themselves forward with hooks on the tentacles. Then, finally, once they were alone, the strange pair walked. Towards the heavens-piercing mountains where so many dragons resided. - - - - - - Scrying was a very wonderful tool, Berthorn thought. It let him know in advance when his family was coming. A simple tool that pinged whenever someone of his close bloodline approached his location. He heard the alarm a dozen minutes before his mother, father, and sister arrived. So, when his door crashed open, and his younger sister blazed into the room, he was prepared, dodged her punch, and flashed her a bright smile. ¡°Good evening, sister Nir.¡± She returned the grin, though hers was more feral than polite. ¡°Evening, brother Ber,¡± she returned the greeting in her gravelly voice. It was always strange hearing it, in comparison to her gaunt face, and thin, almost wiry figure. Despite it all, she boasted the same flaming hair her mother and Zylnareth did. He was almost a little jealous. Before Berthorn had time to finish that thought, however, his mother entered, her name announced by the reader. For a few seconds, he could hear all breathing in the room stop, focusing on her. On one of the most powerful dragons currently in existence. Someone who commanded respect. Those gazes which should have been on him, now focused on his mother, and immediately, a hundred worries sprung into his head. Had she figured out any of his spies? Any of his ploys? Was she simply toying with him in this game for power? The fear was familiar, and sank into his bones, where it grew into a gnawing chill, one that pulled him back into the moment. He bowed at the hip. ¡°Greetings, mother.¡± ¡°Good evening, my son,¡± she said, flashing him a smile of teeth. She reached out one of her claws, grasping a glass of wine from a passing waiter¡¯s tray. Slowly, she took a sip. ¡°It is a lovely gathering you have managed, the atmosphere is quite pristine indeed.¡± He smiled sardonically. ¡°I am happy to hear it pleases you, mother. Good evening, father.¡± He bent at the waist again. Compared to his mother, his father¡¯s entrance was almost unremarkable. His mother commanded presence. Flaming hair, burning red scales, and a dress that looked as though it was made of fire. Yet, his father had none of that. His suit was messy at best, his dull, black and green hair hanging down in thick waves. The man had heavy, dull eyes, the green in them like the colour of a rotting swamp, and his willowy frame was thin as a few twigs. He looked so remarkably unimpressive that Berthorn would not have wondered if he saw him living under a bridge. And despite all of that, he still bowed. ¡°Son,¡± his father simply replied. The man¡¯s voice was deep and rumbly, and seemed to vibrate the entire room even when he barely spoke at a whisper. There was a reason for Berthorn to bow to anyone. His father¡­ well. Power alone was more than enough of a reason to bow to Thorythenior Voluminth. A moment later, his sister demanded his attention again. The mischievous little devil had grabbed onto his shoulders and poked her head out beside his, her neck looking too long to be human. ¡°Hey. Brother. Who can I fight? Come on. Let me at someone. Come on,¡± she begged, her sentences choppy between ragged breaths. Berthorn gave a slow sigh. ¡°Nirandia, must I remind you that this is a peaceful gathering?¡± She chuckled, a horrible noise almost like nails on a chalkboard. ¡°Tell me who. I know you have someone in mind. You always do. Tell me already!¡± Her pleading got louder, and the grip on his shoulders tightened enough for his bones to begin creaking. Faintly, Berthorn felt that fear again. The fear that he would simply be snapped in half, that his sister would just kill him where he stood, even though he knew it was unfounded. His Skills rushed in his ears, blood throwing through his veins like fire. Then he choked that fear in its place. Reminded himself of his powers, that his bones were not so weak. He laid a hand on that of his sister. ¡°Come now, let us not ruin this reunion with bloodshed too early,¡± he said out loud. Into her ear, he whispered instead. ¡°Later. Scion of Bluewing clan. Snap him in half, but make him challenge you first, Nir.¡± A manic grin spread across the gaunt girl¡¯s face. ¡°Yes. You are right as always brother. Would be a true shame. I shall try to be peaceful today.¡± Thus the arrangement was made. A target set for Nir to battle without consequences, to pick apart to her delight. Berthorn would have pitied the scion if he hadn¡¯t been such an arrogant, disgusting prick. His father approached him next. ¡°Lead me to a seat,¡± the man rasped, as though every breath caused him great exhaustion. Perhaps they did. If his father were to truly draw breath, was there enough air on these mountains to fill his lungs? Berthorn didn¡¯t know. Instead of worrying, he simply smiled and nodded along. His father was easy to please. Simply find a spot to rest, and stop people from bothering him too much. ¡°Of course, father,¡± the sleek son said, guiding his parents to a small lounging area. Immediately, as the seating got within reach, his father sprawled out on the couch, his body draping over it as though there was not even a skeleton holding it together. There were even a few cracks and pops as the man settled into a comfortable position. Then, Berthorn¡¯s mother joined his father at the table, sitting down gracefully. She gently crossed her legs, and took a long sip of wine. ¡°Entertainment?¡± she simply asked, raising an eyebrow. ¡°Of course, mother,¡± Berthorn said. And so, the evening stretched on. Things passed by mostly well. Berthorn made alliances, and threatened enemies. It was all as it should be, when he heard a glass shatter. His sister stood across the large ballroom, her dress drenched in liquid, shards of glass littering the floor before her. The silence in the room was deafening, a hungry, predatory backdrop of nothing as all eyes turned. ¡°How dare you,¡± a whisper cut through. ¡°We are guests here just as you are. My clan¡¯s name will not be dragged through the dirt. Repeat what you said, and I shall kill you for your words.¡± Nir smiled. ¡°I stand by what I said. Your clan? It¡¯s resting on past glory. That is what I believe.¡± ¡°And you will die for it. I challenge you, Nirandia Friaminth, to an honorable duel.¡± In the silence, the hunger grew. There was blood in the air, and dragons were so very good at sniffing it out. ¡°As is customary, you may choose the date and location,¡± the scion of Bluewing concluded. ¡°Right here. Right now. We fight. Go on. Fight me,¡± the girl taunted, leaning forward and dropping her hands low in a mockery of a fighting stance. The boy needed not be told twice. Prithar or Bluewing clan, a promising young talent, blasted forwards with an explosion of wind behind him. It took a fraction of a second until he reached Nir, then less than that until he punched her. And he missed the wiry girl. He punched forward again, faster than the blink of an eye, and missed another time. A hail of punches followed, each and every one augmented by wind magic, and every single one failed to graze Nir. They brushed past her soundlessly. Except that Berthorn looked closely and could see them land. They hit against her flesh, sent ripples across her skin, and then the force dissipated silently. Not a single speck of dust grazed Nir. ¡°Hey,¡± she said, in the middle of a punch that landed on her face. ¡°Hey. Scion. Is this it?¡± The young man seemed to grow even more enraged at the look in her eyes, telling him she was serious. The hail redoubled, and there was enough wind that the servants had to retreat. Despite the howling air, Nir stood still, her clothes billowing slightly. ¡°Hey. Hey, Scion. Hey. Hey. You¡¯re not doing much. Come on. Do more. Please. I beg of you. Come on,¡± she pleaded, but he did not listen. ¡°Hey,¡± she said again, calmly snatching one of his hands from the air. ¡°Listen to me.¡± She pulled the arm downwards so fast it snapped, forcing the scion to look her in the eyes. ¡°One more shot,¡± she said. ¡°Do better.¡± At the end, she even shot Berthorn a glare, a small promise that there would be more violence to come if this was all he had prepared. To his credit, the scion only winced for a moment when his arm broke. Then, before the battle could resume, he took some distance, and shifted a bit. His human face turned draconic, his hands into claws, and scales covered his skin until he looked like a dragonkin. ¡°I will not stand for this!¡± he yelled, slicing and sending blades of wind at Nir, but they broke against her skin. Dozens and dozens of howling blades shattered within moments. ¡°Hey,¡± she said, taking a step towards him. ¡°Hey. Scion. Come on. Try a little harder.¡± Eyes widening, the young man redoubled his efforts, retreating back, slashing over and over again. It was an exercise in futility. Nir grabbed him. Slowly, calmly, she had stepped forward, then took a hold of his shoulder, and Berthorn knew the battle was over. A grin spread across the gaunt girl¡¯s features. An impossibly wide one, revealing rows upon rows of fangs. Then, violence ensued. Nir preferred to fight up close, with a strength that should have been impossible for her thin features. She would grab hold of someone, take anything they could throw at her, then simply hit them back, dragging them into a thick swamp. It was as though one was submerged in mud. Any attack would break, would do nothing. There was an absolute futility that anyone fighting Nir would feel. The slow, dreadful knowledge that your attacks meant nothing, that all your attempts were futile. That dread would grow into a paralyzing fear, and the battle was done. Nir punched the scion, and his body gave in. She hit his face first, breaking his snout, and sending a couple teeth flying. ¡°Hey,¡± she said calmly. Then she kicked his leg, breaking a shin. ¡°Hey, hey.¡± The other leg followed suit. ¡°Hey, scion!¡± she yelled into his face. ¡°Fight back!¡± she cried, twisting his other arm and snapping it. ¡°Come on! Hey! Fight me! Fight! Me!¡± She broke a dozen more bones, before tossing the body aside like a child done playing with a toy. Then she took a deep breath, walked back to Berthorn and sat down across from him. ¡°Not enough,¡± she demanded. ¡°Give me another. This was not enough.¡± But Berthorn¡¯s mind had wandered elsewhere. His.. scrying equipment had activated. Sent out a single ping to his mind, letting him know something that seemed very, very wrong. Another member of his family was almost here. Within only a few miles of the hall, in fact. Chapter 157: Party Crashing Chapter 157: Party Crashing Berthorn found himself panicked. Now, to be fair, there was not much special about that. He tended to panic fairly quickly. Despite that, he felt his heart rate spike once again. It had beat faster when his sister engaged the scion. He had imagined scenarios in which she would fail, he would lose face, and that was that. The reputation of their family could swiftly be squashed. There had also been a chance of someone else intervening, stopping the fight. Perhaps his own parents getting into the way, or an elder of the Bluewing clan, or anything of the like. None of that had happened. However, now, something was happening. Was there an issue with the spells? Was there- ¡°Hey. Ber. Look at me. Look. At me. I want another,¡± his sister said, grabbing onto his shoulder much more tightly than was strictly necessary. He was unsure if she was just unable to control herself, or threatening him. Slowly, he drew a shaky breath. ¡°Actually, there might be something coming up you can take care of.¡± Immediately, a smile spread over the young girl¡¯s lips, and her wiry neck stretched towards him, the grip on his shoulder winding itself even tighter. ¡°What is it? A surprise? I love surprises. What¡¯s the surprise?¡± Berthorn managed a smile through the pain. ¡°Well, sister, if I told you it would hardly be a surprise, would it?¡± She stopped, and backed off just a bit, her grip on his shoulder releasing as his bones creaked a little. ¡°Right,¡± she said, drawing some air in through her teeth. ¡°Yes, of course. Surprises. Have to be surprising.¡± Nirandia smiled as though she had given some great revelation, lightly clapped berthorn on the shoulder, then threw herself into one of the seats and began wolfing down treats, dozens at a time. Berthorn breathed a sigh of relief for just a second, massaging where she had gripped him, as he checked the mental connection to the scrying equipment again. Whoever it detected was coming closer. He bit down on his nails. According to the spies, his brother was still back in Unbar, that little nation he made. Who else could it be, then? Did his parents have a bastard child? Perhaps there was some residual bloodline that someone of an adjacent family could have triggered by walking here? Dozens of ideas ran through his mind, including the very real chance that Zyl had just cloned himself, or that his spies were compromised. Actually, that last one seemed likely. The beast had found one of them. Why not the others? Perhaps those had been threatened into making normal reports. One of them¡­ did one of them have shapechanging Skills? He gnawed on his nails some more. That would mean that this could actually be his brother outside the door. The person he had been forced to threaten, and who he had almost killed. Then attempted to kill his boyfriend. ¡°Fuck,¡± he muttered, then began walking out of the ballroom. Before he had taken two steps, his mother¡¯s eyes lingered on him. ¡°Son, where are you heading?¡± she asked. Berthorn bit his lips hard enough to draw blood. ¡°Nowhere in particular, mother. Just going to catch some fresh air.¡± ¡°Oh? Is the air in here this bad? I hardly noticed, but that surely would be a poor way to host.¡± Despite his best efforts, Berthorn shut his eyes. This was all just a little too much. His schemes had been going so well, so what was happening now? He drew a deep breath to steady himself, then answered. ¡°No mother, of course not. I simply wished for you to be comfortable, which I check to make sure all supplies are stocked again.¡± ¡°Tch, you really are his son,¡± Trinyakorie said, smacking her husband with her elbow. The man didn¡¯t even respond. ¡°I thought I raised you better than to deal with mundane things like that. Get a servant to do it. Stay here.¡± ¡°I insist,¡± Berthorn snarled at her, then halted, surprised at his own tone. His mother¡¯s eyes, however, were far wider than his, and he capitalized on the moment, bravely retreating. Soon, he¡¯d pushed past a dozen servants, through two secret doors, and into a circular room. There was a glowing orb in the middle, projecting something like a hologram of the surrounding area. He called over one of his trusted mages, an old sipisc woman, who ran her fingers gingerly across the orb. The image changed, wavered, then showed a much closer image. Berthorn grabbed onto his head. ¡°Fuck!¡± he screamed, slamming a fist into the wall. Nothing changed. It was still right there, in front of his eyes, his brother Zyl making his way up the mountains alongside that infernal mopaaw. And they were heading exactly for his mansion. What should he do? Clearly, and spies or assassins hardly meant anything to the mopaaw. He¡¯d underestimated it before, but he wouldn¡¯t again. Not all problems could be solved with numbers. He was also unwilling to just send Nir out at them. If she encountered Zylnareth, the results could vary heavily. Maybe half this place would end up in shambles, maybe the two of them would just talk, it all depended on just how much his brother had recovered. Berthorn bit his nails more, his teeth breaking them. He needed to stop them. Delay them, anything. But how?! If his brother had his powers back, then none of his servants stood a chance. They were trained in tracking, following, watching, replacing, and assassinating. None of them could eleven remotely compare to that monster in a straightforward fight. He shuddered from just the thought. How much could he risk? At what point would his brother just say it was enough? Barge in and tear everything down like that walking disaster did every godsdamn time?! Berthorn took a deep breath. This wasn¡¯t helping. There was little use in thinking things over too much. He was needed in the ballroom. For his plans to bear fruit, he had to be there. Additionally, he couldn¡¯t stop his brother. Whether he was weakened or not suddenly no longer mattered. There was simply no way that when everything up until now had failed, an assassin or twenty would have taken them out. Maybe¡­ he should just wait. Patiently. Let the two arrive here. His sister would get her fight. His mother would be shocked. Perhaps his father would actually move for once, though admittedly, that was unlikely. Taking another deep breath, Berthorn finally calmed his racing heart. He listened to his Skills as he thought about his current plan, and none of them rang warning bells. At the very least, it meant he would most likely survive. Finally, Berthorn relented, and decided to simply let things run their course. How bad could it possibly be? This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. - - - - - - This truly couldn¡¯t get any worse. Nir hated these meetings on principle. Sure, she usually got to beat some snob¡¯s face in, but there was no joy in that. They could hardly even fight back. It was like kicking a sandcastle, completely incomparable to real walls. Sure, maybe compared to most people these scions were powerful, but they were just big fish in a small pond. Being talented meant being strong compared to other people your age. Being a genius was being strong compared to talented people, or those older than you. But being a prodigy? That transcended age. Some of the old bastards in the hall were eyeing Nir suspiciously, but she didn¡¯t return their gazes. Regardless of how much she wanted to fight, if she started anything without her brother¡¯s permission, she would mess everything up, and mother would get quite mad at her indeed. She never quite understood those two. Her father at least made sense, he just wanted to laze about. But Ber and mother? They played strange games with each other. Trading servants, and sneaky little words. Not that Nir cared enough to listen. Instead, her reptilian eyes simply watched the ballroom, hoping for something, anything fun to happen. Brother Ber eventually came back from having disappeared and talked with her mother. She didn¡¯t bother to listen. Servants came by and offered her things. She just reached out and ate from their trays. She didn¡¯t bother to listen to them either. Some of the other dragons were chatting, some probably about her given the occasional glances. Again, she didn¡¯t bother to listen. All of this was background noise. A constant droning of the inferior, of those that couldn¡¯t hold a candle to her, of the geniuses and talents who weren¡¯t prodigies. The only one to ever keep up with her growth had been brother Zyl, and he was no longer a brother at all. Thinking of that made her sigh, but at least it kept her thoughts occupied. This ball was dreadfully boring, and she was already not looking forward to when they would need to dance. The door swung open. Just when she¡¯d thought things were getting boring, the main door of the hall swung open. But no announcement came, no name being spoken for a few moments. She slowly sat up, and gazed at the intruders. Within moments, she caught a glimpse of white fur, interspersed with night sky purple, as well as a second person, wearing a white suit with flaming red hair. The beast she didn¡¯t know, but if there was one person she would recognize anywhere, it was her brother. Nir rose from her seat. - - - - - - ¡°Mercury, I told you that we really shouldn¡¯t go in there.¡± ¡°Yes, Zyl. And I value your opinion. So, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll value mine when I say that I think we need to make a point and go in there.¡± ¡°Please, just listen to me. Some of the most powerful dragons in this world are in there.¡± ¡°No, you listen to me for a second. We need to make a statement. Make it very clear that these dummies don¡¯t mess with us. So. You¡¯re gonna open that door, and we¡¯re gonna start causing some havoc,¡± Mercury said. Zyl only gave a long, exasperated sigh at the mopaaw¡¯s antics. They¡¯d stood outside the hall for quite some time now, discussing quietly. He was still quite clearly against going in. The decision was a horrifically dumb one, and it was one that Mercury seemed completely unable to let go of. So, he would have to bear with it. Somewhat tired, and hoping to get it all over with soon, Zyl opened up the door. Within a moment, hundreds of pairs of eyes faced him and his lover, and Zyl could feel his consciousness, the embarrassment boiling up in his chest. Zyl felt his cheeks heathen up as he grew a bit red and slowly stepped into the hall, his boyfriend right by his side. The mopaaw¡¯s furry frame was pushed up against his legs close enough that he could feel the warmth. It almost made him smile. Half a second later, his sister appeared before him, swinging her fist in a punch that Zyl quickly ducked under. ¡°Brother!¡± she said excitedly, already swinging again, and forcing the man to take a few steps back. Mercury did no such courtesy, and instead seemed to gather his rijn. ¡°I¡¯m not your brother any longer, Nir,¡± Zyl hissed, clutching at his aching chest. For a moment, Nirandia¡¯s face fell, and she took a step back. The moment she did so, Mercury created a platform underneath her with rijn, causing one of her feet to land much higher than the other and causing her to stumble. ¡°This may just be intuition, but I¡¯m pretty sure you¡¯ve had too much to drink,¡± Mercury mocked. ¡°Who are you, girly?¡± Once again, Nir took a step back, almost landing her ass on the floor as her balance shifted uncomfortably again. Her eyes dilated and she stared at the little beast. ¡°You talk.¡± ¡°Yes, I do, lady. Who are you and why¡¯d you try and smack my boyfriend?¡± At that, the room erupted into more chatter. ¡°You¡¯re my brother¡¯s boyfriend?!¡± ¡°I am not your brother,¡± Zyl growled. Nir flinched at that, taking a third step back. ¡°But-¡± ¡°Lady, can you like wind it back by a couple moments? We just came in here and immediately-¡± Mercury didn¡¯t get to finish the sentence, before a blast of fire exploded at his feet, forcing him to jump back. ¡°Zylnareth Friaminth,¡± a new voice commented. It was a woman with fiery red hair, equally red scales covering her cheeks and arms, and a dress that seemed lit ablaze whenever she moved. ¡°So you have come.¡± ¡°I have indeed, Trinyakorie,¡± Zyl ground out in between his teeth. Mercury could already see the fire in his eyes boiling high. ¡°Where is Thorythenior?¡± ¡°Here,¡± a voice rumbled from the room, coming from what seemed to be a vaguely humanoid shape draped over a couch. A hand of it was raised, pointing at them, but Mercury couldn¡¯t even see the person¡¯s face. ¡°Husband, get over here this instant and teach your son a lesson!¡± Trinya commanded. ¡°No,¡± the couch potato rumbled. There was no elaboration. Before another word fell, Nir punched at Zyl again. The swings were slow, and childish, almost like a kid. ¡°Fight me. Brother,¡± she said. ¡°I am not your brother!¡± Zyl roared in reply, snapping forth a punch far faster than Mercury had ever seen and sending the wiry girl flying with a crash. At that, the room erupted in noise, that of dozens of drawn weapons, and hostile intent. ¡°Hey. Hey, Trin-something. Firelady. Down here,¡± Mercury said. Slowly, Zyl¡¯s mother turned to face the cat. ¡°What is it, beast?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a real shitty parent.¡± At that, Trinyakorie growled and stepped forward in a threat of violence. ¡°Say that again if you wish to lose your life.¡± ¡°Anyone who harms Mercury will face me, first,¡± Zyl said. There was a cough at the back of the room, coming from the wiry girl who Mercury noted had to be Nirandia. She dug herself out from a pile of rubble and splinters, her laughter echoing as a dry rasp. ¡°Zyl. Wonderful. Marvellous.¡± Mercury saw the girl vanish from where she was and reappear in between her mother and the dragon he loved. ¡°Come on. Hit me again.¡± Zyl just grimaced at her instead. ¡°Use my full name, Nirandia. We are not family.¡± The girl froze for a few seconds, the smile on her lips fading, rows of fangs once again hidden. ¡°Zylnareth,¡± she said quietly. ¡°I missed you.¡± At that, the other dragonlady, the one with scales, who Mercury guessed had to be Zyl mother, grabbed the wiry girl and pushed her aside. ¡°Pray tell, Zylnareth, what has brought you and your pet here?¡± the woman asked. Mercury saw his boyfriend¡¯s jaw clench and his fists tighten. ¡°Hey, old lady,¡± he interjected. ¡°That¡¯s no way to talk to my boyfriend, is it now?¡± She raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°What would a lesser beast know about etiquette?¡± ¡°More than an old power-hungry worthless piece of garbage for a mother,¡± Mercury spat. Once again, the murmurs of the other clans grew silent, and the mopaaw could see a distinct shade of rage cross the woman¡¯s mind. For a moment, he could feel the mana moving through her, coalescing into a blast of fire that would surely annihilate him, when a clap and raucous laughter rang through the air. It came from an old woman with dark skin and greying hair. She wore a turquoise suit, with holes for her wings, and had gray dreadlocks piled up high on her head. ¡°Fehfehfeh,¡± she laughed, her voice the sound of creaky wooden boards. ¡°What a brave beast! Tell me, mopaaw, what it your name?¡± she asked. For a moment, Mercury considered being hostile, but after feeling Zyl¡¯s mother almost send one of his nine lives off to heaven, he had no interest in finding out. ¡°Mercury Rainfall Starlight,¡± he said. ¡°Better remember it.¡± ¡°Feh, I make sure to always remember foolish bravery, young one. Especially in front of the powerful. You have acted admirably, earned to hear my name. Irrithuriel of Harkenler. Always a pleasure to meet a brave one,¡± she said, then bowed. ¡°Cowards, however, also have their charm¡­¡± With that, Mercury felt ring and activated which prompted him to take a step back. A knife hissed through the air where his head had just been. ¡°Tsk,¡± Berthorn clicked his tongue. ¡°When others announce my pres- augh!¡± The man didn¡¯t get to finish his sentence before Zyl¡¯s fist slammed into his face. There was a sharp noise as a second punch almost followed, only to be stopped in the air by Nir¡¯s hands. ¡°Don¡¯t punch Berthorn. Brother Ber is weak.¡± She walked into the path instead. ¡°Punch me.¡± Mercury looked at these people, Berthorn, who had a terrified expression frozen on his somehow unharmed face, Nir, who was trying to get her own brother to beat her up, and Trinya, who seemed disappointed at the lack of havoc. ¡°Holy hell, are all of you nuts?¡± A couple dozen heads snapped to him at one, each and every one silent. ¡°Hah.¡± The single sound shook the hall again, coming from whoever was draped over the couch. ¡°Funny.¡± It clicked for Mercury then. That dang couch potato was Zyl¡¯s father. ¡°Shit, right, I was warned of this. You are all nuts!¡± Mercury yelled exasperatedly. The very room he was in shook heavily with laughter, the walls vibrating and glass shards raining where windows shattered. ¡°Hah! Hahah!¡± Thorythenior laughed, the floor quaking from the force. ¡°Silence, husband!¡± his wife screeched, stomping her foot on, no, through the ground, leaving a hole in the wooden planks, and the laughter slowly subsided. Zyl got off Berthorn, but not without delivering another kick to the man¡¯s side, and a stomp to his ribcage. ¡°Ogh, damn you,¡± the sleazy dragon wheezed, pushing himself up, still holding the knife he¡¯d slashed at Mercury with. ¡°Me too!¡± Nir yelled, pointing at Zyl¡¯s legs. ¡°Let go of me,¡± the dragon in question growled, pulling his arm. Yet, he didn¡¯t move an inch. In fact, he almost seemed frozen in time. If Mercury didn¡¯t see his muscles and veins bulging - and there was a lot of muscle that went taut - he would have been sure that Zyl was entirely stationary. Nir, on the other hand, seemed to exert a similar amount of effort, her wiry frame growing stationary, her feet firmly planted onto the ground. The blood vessels on Zyl¡¯s forehead expanded like they were trying to escape out through his skin, yet nothing happened. The dragon grit his teeth, and pulled harder, then harder yet, until finally, his head slowly turned to face Mercury. ¡°Ten minutes,¡± he mouthed silently. Then, where was a hiss, as well as a burst of blinding red light, and where before Zyl and Nir had stood, only one of them remained over a crater shaped like a thin girl. ¡°Oh fuck yes, we¡¯re crashing this party,¡± Mercury said, grinning. Chapter 158: Causing a little Havoc Chapter 158: Causing a little Havoc Things began happening very, very rapidly. Mercury felt his fur stand on end as adrenaline flooded his body. He banished all fear from his mind. There was maybe half a second where set in, having his fur grow shorter to match the rising temperatures in the room. The air around Zyl, who Mercury was standing quite close, was beginning to warp from the heat, occasionally lighting up in bright flashes of plasma. Mercury saw the lips of Zyl¡¯s mother move. Before the words even had a chance to reach his ears, they were torn apart as the air, once again, ionized, in a thick sheet of white glow. When it had faded, Trinya was no longer there, just Zyl standing over yet another crater. ¡°Please, by the divines, stop punching people through my floor, broth-¡± There was another explosion, and yet another gaping hole in the floor. Somehow, Berthorn stood next to it, avoiding the same attack Nir and Trinya had been hit by. Despite all that, the man¡¯s mouth was open. ¡°H-how?¡± he asked. ¡°I thought¡­ you were supposed to be weakened! For years!!¡± Zyl snorted. ¡°You¡¯re an idiot. A worthless sack of bricks, Berthorn. A traitor to me. Do I look stupid? I knew you were coming. I know of the ¡°might¡± of all ye dragons. And I knew you wanted my spark.¡± His brother¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Fuck,¡± Berthron muttered. ¡°Yeah, you done fucked up, brother.¡± Zyl spat the last word with contempt, before lunging again, only to have his punch stopped by Nir. Somehow, the girl had made her way back out of the hole, and held onto his arm. ¡°Do it again,¡± she said, before giggling maniacally. ¡°Kikikiki, Kahahaha!! Hey! Zyl! Do it again! Come on! Hit me! Hit me!!¡± There was another flash of light, and one of the walls shattered. A few dragons were knocked to the floor, unlucky enough to have been in Nir¡¯s path as Zyl sent her flying. It seemed like that was all it took for the dragons to properly realize what was happening, because then, anyone who already had their weapons drawn decided to participate. Dozens of lights flashed. Lightning, poison, fire, frost, earth, wind, force, darkness, light, any kind of magic Mercury could have ever imagined burst out from the dozens of colourful people attending the ball. And, somehow, not a single one cared for Mercury. Well, of course they didn¡¯t. They already hardly paid him any mind, he was a member of a ¡°lower species¡± after all. So, since he activated at the same time, the small amount of awareness they had for him all but melted away. There were four people he found himself mainly interested in. Zyl¡¯s mother, Trin-something, who was still in the hole her son had smashed her down. Zyl¡¯s brother, Berthorn, who seemed like the biggest potential threat, since he was slippery and ruthless. Zyl¡¯s father, who was a complete wildcard, and finally, the strange old lady who¡¯d spoken to him before. However, as he swept his eyes over the room, he could find neither Berthorn nor Irrithuriel, the old woman. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m right here, Starlight,¡± a voice resounded from next to him, old and creaky, and when he turned his head, he saw¡­ nothing. The confusion must have been written in his features, because an explanation came. ¡°I use some illusions and a couple prisms of ice to hide myself. It¡¯s a stealth skill, called .¡± Mercury blinked at Irrithuriel. ¡°Right, you sure are open. How¡¯d you find me?¡± ¡°Fehfehfehfehfeh! Ah, priceless. Truly. Starlight, your Skill makes it harder to focus on you, not impossible. I found you, because I wanted to. Like most anyone else could in this room. Well, anyone with half a brain, at least, which does severely limit the selection.¡± Despite being unable to see her, Mercury could imagine the woman¡¯s grin. It was a little hard to focus on her words though, with the constant explosions ringing out in front of him, as Zyl blasted dragon after dragon, idiot scion after idiot scion away. At some point, Nir had returned, laughing like a completely insane person, and engaging Zyl in close combat, no longer taking any hits. Mercury got the distinct feeling it wasn¡¯t because they¡¯d hurt her, but because getting hit meant it would take time to get back into the fight. Still, the mopaaw didn¡¯t know where Berthorn was. ¡°I do wonder. Will you make it out alive by yourself?¡± Irrithuriel asked. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m saying your odds aren¡¯t looking great, Starlight. Your bravery is amicable, but foolish.¡± His head didn¡¯t move, simply continued scanning the room. He felt hum distantly in his mind. There was something he wasn¡¯t seeing here. Another explosion rang out, heavy enough to shake the floor. In fact, it even tipped the couch Zyl¡¯s father was lying on. The man ended up deposited on the floor, looking a bit like a twisted corpse with a head full of seaweed. He made no effort to right himself. ¡°But you know, Starlight, I truly admire bravery like yours. The ability to walk into danger so much greater than¡­¡± the woman started, then stopped when she noticed Mercury wasn¡¯t paying her any attention at all. In fact, his eyes were still locked on the hall. Like he was searching for something. Mercury breathed, and his pupils dilated. The noise in the room disappeared. It was reduced to a distant rumble, background white noise. He felt it all fall silent. The veil of gold, of colour, fell away, and for a moment he saw everything as though it was in black and white. Within that colourless world, he saw his target. Berthorn was there, wielding a knife, and sneaking away. The coward wouldn¡¯t intervene in the fight, of course he wouldn¡¯t, but Mercury did not want to let him get away either. Irrithuriel stared at the mopaaw as he stepped away, completely disregarding her, and smiled with a mouth full of fangs. She had seen the change in his demeanour, how his attention shifted, his eyes changed, those sparkles on his fur grew just a little more radiant. ¡°Such a curious little creature¡­¡± she muttered to herself. And unbeknownst to Mercury, he had just earned himself a future sponsor. Yet, he himself did not care at all. Instead, his eyes locked in on Berthorn, and his awareness shifted. Ihn¡¯ar felt almost natural now, easy, even, and it let him feel the presence of all kinds of grasses underneath the wooden floor. Long stalks, untamed by any gardeners, wild and rebellious. They were different from the grass he understood until then, but they were still grasses. He asked them to reach out and ensnare Berthorn. It was as though he simply allowed them to fulfil their own wishes. The grass, the thing that usually bent and was stepped on, that relented and served, used Mercury¡¯s ihn¡¯ar. It spread, thin stalks slowly sliding through gaps in the floorboards, a shifting mass of greenery headed for Berthorn. It was so clear. Grass didn¡¯t always need to bend. [Your understanding of has increased! (low)>] Immediately, the stalks wound around Berthorns legs. They moved faster now, as though they had a goal in mind, and that goal was having the dragon fall. Of course, simple plants would never hold down a dragon for long, but it was enough to have him hesitate and look back for a moment. There was another flash of light in Mercury¡¯s peripheral vision, but for Berthorn, who was looking directly back at the fight, it blinded him for a moment. The rumbling of the explosion faded to a distant quiet in Mercury¡¯s mind. He took a deep . Air rushed into his lungs, hot and scalding, but had made him more resistant, and , from his cloak, also helped fend it off just that bit more. Enough to not be cooked from the inside, at least. ¡­ Mostly. Despite the burning feeling in his lung, Mercury jumped forward. His strength and speed were entirely different by now, just given their base stats. The energy from mixed with the mana and stamina coursing through him, and within moments he was on Berthorn. Before the dragon had a chance to react, Mercury used . Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. His strike fell against tough skin, the liquid metal of the Dream of Starvation already wrapped around his paws. But no matter what form Berthorn took, he was a dragon. Disguising as a humanoid would make his skin weaker, yes. It would compress parts of his form down, store them in an alternate dimension to be activated consciously, and with him currently scuttling along the floor, he wasn¡¯t anywhere close to top form. But the gap was still large enough to almost stop Mercury¡¯s claws. Almost. There was a moment where Berthorn¡¯s skin resisted, stretched and sought to stop Mercury¡¯s momentum, fought against the cold dark steel scraping against his face. But wherever Mercury wanted to move, there would be a path. opened up a way. The skin split before Mercury even touched it, and whenever he did, any resistance was done away with by . After his new evolution, both Skills seemed to have grown somewhat more offensively usable, letting Mercury leave five long gashes from Berthorn¡¯s forehead, over his eyelid, and onto his cheek, leaking blood. The man screeched, and kicked backwards. The strength that would usually be sealed because of his form was suddenly released, and the kick shattered the wood. Noxious mist seeped from his skin, causing the grass to wilt, and an explosion of splinters sent Mercury jumping backwards. Berthorn swiftly became the image of decay. His seaweed hair was slick with hues of purple and green, his skin, now partially covered with scales, seemed sunken and unhealthily pale. The blood dripped from his face slowly, each bit of it falling to the floor with a hiss. Acrid smoke seeped from his skin, and the floor began rotting underneath his feet Very quickly, Mercury decided to step backwards from it, the plume of noxious smoke spreading. But behind it, he could still see Berthorn¡¯s now disfigured face twist into a snarl. ¡°Beast!¡± the dragon roared, fear replaced with fury. ¡°I will not stand for this!¡± The ground underneath him exploded again, rotten would falling away into dust as it was torn apart, and Berthorn appeared before Mercury within an instant. Then, there was another flash of light. The thin man¡¯s frame in front of the mopaaw was replaced by Zyl, delivering a kick to his brother¡¯s face, that set his jaw rocketing to the side. Not a moment later, there was another explosion, as Nir¡¯s fist slammed into Zyl¡¯s side, sending her brother flying just like her other brother had been sent flying before. The wiry girl turned around, grinning at Mercury with a mouth full of fangs. ¡°Hey. Hey, hey!¡± she said, the grin turning even wider. ¡°You¡¯re my brother¡¯s- I mean Zyl¡¯s- I mean, Zylnareth¡¯s boyfriend! Lovely to meet y- agh!!¡± Her surprisingly polite, if a little creepy, greeting was interrupted when Zyl¡¯s fist slammed into her face, alongside a blinding arc of plasma. The stench of rot in the air was replaced by that of fire. Plumes of gas were filling the room, white steam, black smoke, and purple poison. Everything had swiftly descended into chaos. Mercury watched Berthorn hold his broken jaw in place, a white light wrapped around him as another dragon kneeled next to him with some healing. Despite all of it, Zyl¡¯s father still laid on the floor, completely unbothered by the explosions around him, except for just a little bit of grumbling about how loud the youth of today was. By now, Trinyakorie had dug herself out of the hole again, stumbling a little. She looked the most shaken. Her defenses had probably hardly been up. Mercury guessed she¡¯d not been expecting a smack from her own son. ¡­ He wanted to capitalize on it. Swept up in the action, he took another deep of the hostile air, working its hardest to let him breathe it. The energy coursed through his vein, and he felt mana and stamina rush into his muscles. He breathed with the flow, letting it all flood hima s he lunged. Every point in strength and agility helped the movement. In fact, he quickly slammed another 30 points into strength, taking it over the threshold. Strength: 83 -> 113 (+5) [The individual''s Strength has surpassed 100! Your muscle density and density control increase.] Immediately, Mercury felt something about him change fundamentally. His mass almost doubled that very moment, each and every fibre in his body thickening and growing stupidly heavy. But he could also feel the option to shift some of that power away for greater agility, as though there was some space in himself to actually store those fibers. He could also tell that it would take time to get used to the shifting, another skill to master. Instead, he set it aside, and put those stronger muscles to the test. Mana and stamina flooded into his legs. It felt like pouring warm water into a towel, getting soaked up immediately, almost drinking it in. Then he lunge forward, his in rhythm with the motion, his ihn¡¯ar somehow unbroken and letting him feel his body move. For a moment, he threatened to break the sound barrier. It took less than a second before he slammed into Trinya, his heavier body smashing into her like a cannonball, hard enough to disorient Mercury. But with another , his vision cleared, and his mind grew sharp. One rijn then another manifested, Mercury¡¯s mind split in two, and both of them slammed into Trinya¡¯s legs, knocking them out from under her already balanced body, and sending her crashing to the floor. Without hesitation, Mercury set to clawing at her face. Fruitlessly. Despite the fact that he surprised her, Trinya had increased her defenses since falling into the hole. Her entire body was covered in thick, red scales, glistening with heat. Hot enough, in fact, to burn the mopaaw¡¯s feet. [ has levelled up! 2>] Well, maybe not burn them quite that badly, then. Despite all the anger he felt at the woman below him, Mercury¡¯s mind felt clear. He knew every Skill in his arsenal, and triggered the relevant ones. reached her first, dozens of tiny silken strings clinging to the woman¡¯s clothes and scales. They weren¡¯t enough to entangle her, but they would muddle her mind, and slow her, as more and more fell on top of her. Then, fell against her mind like a hammer. Every single bit of rage Mercury felt flooded the Skill. Usually, the Skill was an impression of what happened to others who faced the user. Past kills made manifest. But this time, it wasn¡¯t that. fell upon Trinya like a promise. That Mercury would find a way, a path, to hurt her. It fell against her mind, muddled by , and the confusion and chaos around her, and the surprise of having been tossed to the floor. And it fell brutally. Mercury saw her eyes widen, the anger and confusion on her face suddenly replaced with fear. She tried to hit him, clumsily, but her fist was fast enough to slam into his side and have his ribs creaking. He didn¡¯t even get the chance to evade, only giving dim pulses while inactive. He rolled on the floor, swiftly jumping back upright, and taking a glance at his resources. Less than two minutes had passed, and half his bars were already gone. His mana took the biggest hit, sitting a little under 300. He spat a puddle of blood, eyes trailing through the room again. Trinya had since burst into flame, fire blazing all over her skin and erupting from the floor wherever she touched it. The wooden planks were splintered in a hundred different places, where attacks by Zyl or meant for him had struck. The red haired dragon himself moved fast enough that Mercury had trouble keeping up, flashes of light throughout the hall indicating his position as it shifted almost randomly. Yet every time, without fail, someone was sent flying. By now, the sound of explosions had long since made Mercury¡¯s ears ring. He could only still make out screams and curses because of . Berthorn was no longer in the hall, having disappeared, and Nir was dancing through the crowd like a drunk, laughing maniacally as she slammed her fists into anyone who crossed her path. Actually, was she slowly making her way towards Mercury? She was. Fuck. He tried to turn tail and run for a moment, but the wiry girl stood in front of him only half a second later. And she laughed, loudly, in his face. ¡°Kikikikiki! You! Your name! Tell it to me again!¡± she demanded. ¡°Mercury,¡± he said, then spat a bit more blood. ¡°You?¡± ¡°Alright Mer! I¡¯m Nir!¡± She reached out a hand, grabbed one of his paws, and shook it hard enough to rattle his bones. ¡°Lovely to meet you!¡± ¡°Take your hands off him!!¡± Zyl yelled from halfway across the room, the rage palpable in his voice, but he was currently buried between half a dozen dragons. ¡°See, I¡¯m your boyfriend¡¯s-¡± she interrupted her sentence to duck underneath a table that was flung over her head, kneeling down to suddenly be at eye level with Mercury. ¡°Sister!¡± she finished. Her eyes drifted over the chaos, ice shrapnel flying everywhere since Zyl currently fought against a dragon that conjured them. ¡°And I think we¡¯re gonna get along great!¡± Mercury hesitated for a moment, and she almost moved to punch his shoulder in camaraderie, before looking at her fist and reevaluating that decision. Instead, she simply held onto his hand, and stared into his eyes with intensity. Fuck it, Mercury decided. ¡°Yeah, absolutely. Great to meet you. You brother is pretty awesome!¡± Her grin widened, threatening to split her cheeks. ¡°He is! I like you!¡± She leaned forward, then whispered conspiratorially into his ear. ¡°Gonna fuck some people up. You should run.¡± Then, she vanished, laughing loudly as her fists slammed into random bodies and sent them flying as she made her way through the crowd. One of them landed on Zyl¡¯s father, Thorythenior, and the man moved for the first time. He grabbed hold of whoever fell onto him, and tossed them, through a wall, and straight off the mountain. Then he laid down again. ¡°Stupid rascals,¡± he rumbled. ¡°Don¡¯t bother me.¡± It would have sounded more threatening if his voice weren¡¯t completely deadpan. Trinya was back on her feet by then, now moving towards Zyl, but she found herself quickly intercepted by Nir. ¡°Hey! Hey, mother!¡± the girl yelled. ¡°Catch!¡± Then she threw some scion at her parent, knocking the woman back to the floor and giving her ¡®ammunition¡¯ a couple burns. She laughed, and simply rampaged on. Mercury was looking for a way back into the fray as he heard another voice. Irrithurial, the invisible grandma. ¡°Starlight,¡± her voice creaked. ¡°I truly admire your bravery. Get Zylnareth over here, and I might just help you escape, fehfehfeh!¡± For a moment, he considered doubting her, but and both told him that she was telling the truth. Fuck it, he decided yet again. ¡°Zyl! Get over here!¡± The red haired dragon, his skin also covered in scales, snapping his head around. His eyes locked onto Mercury, then his lips moved to call out a technique and he vanished with a blast of air hot enough that Mercury still felt it. The idiots who surrounded Zyl had their hair catch on fire and fell to the floor. He reappeared next to the mopaaw, panting heavily. Five minutes had passed, but he already seemed to be running out of steam. Dozens of bruises and cuts covered his body, but he seemed to care less about those. Mercury felt it. The heat that rolled off him in waves was shaky, sputtering like an engine running out of fuel. ¡°This might sting a little~,¡± Irrithuriel warned them, before a piercing cold invaded Mercury¡¯s lungs, causing his breath to catch. The heat-haze around Zyl disappeared, then the air warped until he, himself, turned invisible. ¡°,¡± the old woman intoned melodically, and Mercury felt the sting of cold turn into a light breeze on his skin. The world took on a different hue, as he was shaken out of his ihn¡¯ar and had dozens of ice crystals break the light around him. ¡°We leave, now,¡± Irrithuriel commanded, her tone tinged with humor and exhaustion. Before that, though, Mercury decided to leave just one last gift. ¡°Nir!¡± he yelled. ¡°Cause some havoc!¡± The girl¡¯s head snapped towards the source of the noise, and her grin grew truly wide. ¡°Understood!¡± With that, she picked up a couple people from the floor, dragons who¡¯d been knocked out, and tossed them. At Thorythenior. By the time they landed, Mercury had half a foot out the door, when the old dragon¡¯s roar hit him. It felt like a sledgehammer had smashed into each and every bone in his body, and the very building he stood in creaked. Trusting his instinct, he leapt out the door alongside Irrithuriel, who was carrying Zyl. Behind him, there was a screeching noise, like that of metal being torn apart, and then the entire building exploded away into splinters with a sound loud enough to make Mercury¡¯s skeleton quiver in fear. The three of them, heroically, ran away from the crumbling mansion. Chapter 159: A Little Help Chapter 159: A Little Help Seeing an old lady carry someone so easily threw Mercury off for all of two seconds, until he remembered that by now, he probably wouldn¡¯t exactly have a lot of trouble carrying Zyl either. Well, as long as the man didn¡¯t turn into his dragon form. Thinking of that, Mercury was slightly confused. Despite all of the commotion, he hadn¡¯t seen a single person at the ball turn into a full-on dragon. Sure, there had been a fair share of wings and claws and scales and sharp teeth, but despite the fighting, and how many things broke, no one turned into what he knew from books. So, when they were finally out of earshot, he asked Irrithuriel. ¡°Hey, old lady, is it just me or did no one at the party actually turn into a dragon?¡± There was a chuckle next to him, coarse like the crunch of fresh snow underneath a set of warm boots. ¡°Fehfeh, well, Starlight, you sure are astute. Yes, there¡¯s a few good reasons for that. Such as not wanting to break the entire place, or cause political issues. But really, it¡¯s because unveiling your true form is shameful. A show of weakness.¡± ¡°Dragons really are that vain?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Many of them, certainly, yes. Not all. Others restrained themselves because they do not wish to start a feud, or accidentally kill someone they¡¯re allied with. You see, when you¡¯re in a large form, manoeuvring delicately becomes hard, and stepping on your own cousin is quite unpleasant,¡± she said, her expression somewhere between a smirk and a grimace. ¡°Alright, that¡¯s fair. Final question, then, where are we headed?¡± They¡¯d been running for a while now, and at a decent pace, too. Not exactly at his maximum speed, but it was eating into Mercury¡¯s stamina by now. ¡°Oh, we¡¯re almost there, Starlight. In fact¡­¡± she paused for a moment, then moved her hand in a gesture. ¡°Unveil,¡± Irrithuriel called, and suddenly, just a little ways away on a flat piece of mountain, a house appeared. It seemed somewhat modest, with a couple bits of flowers all around the place. Really, it looked just like what he imagined a winter witch¡¯s hut to look like. There was a small dusting of snow all over the roof and around the place, and most of the flowers were white or blue. Irrithuriel took the last couple steps in one grand leap, and Mercury took a few more minutes to catch up. The air was chilly near the hut. Not frigid like when he visited the caretaker, but he felt working again, turning his fur thicker. Soon, the cold became a comfortable chill. The old lady opened the door for him. ¡°Let me welcome you into my home, Starlight. It might be small for a dragon, but I prefer it this way,¡± she said, a smirk on her lips. Mercury quickly stepped inside, the air only a little warmer there. The room was expansive, too, far bigger than it would have looked like from the outside. Really, the place should have only fit a single room, yet the inside decidedly had doors heading off to the sides. The furniture was mostly wood, some of it covered in a thin layer of frost. Padded chairs stood around an unlit fireplace, and in the corner there was an expansive space with lots and lots of vials filled with different powders and petals. Some of them were strewn about a worktable. A pot hung over a more magical looking plate, with a few cores and runes inlaid in it, bubbling already. ¡°Ah, it seems my little helpers have prepared a meal for me to come back to. How lovely of them,¡± Irrithuriel croaked happily. She swiftly stepped over, tasted the stew, then turned to Mercury. ¡°Do you have any allergies or dietary restrictions I should be worried about?¡± she asked, Zyl still slung over her shoulder. ¡°Not anymore,¡± Mercury replied, ¡°though you may first want to put Zyl down.¡± ¡°Right, yes, of course!¡± the old lady said, chuffing at herself. ¡°Just a moment.¡± Then, she pulled at a bit of the wall that looked like a cupboard, and with a click, the top came down, revealing a mattress. ¡°I hope he doesn¡¯t mind wall beds. It¡¯s probably a bit worse than what the young lord is used to,¡± she remarked, gently placing him on the sheets. Mercury laughed lightly at that. ¡°He¡¯ll be fine, he¡¯s been sleeping in a carriage for a page now.¡± ¡°Fehfeh, then this will be a welcome change, I¡¯m sure. Please, take a seat wherever you¡¯d like.¡± Irrithuriel gestured over the room and the few chairs that were strewn about, heading back towards the pot herself. While Mercury curled up next to Zyl, she dropped a few more spices into the pot, then tasted it again. ¡°Right, just needs to simmer a little more. You can just wait here if you¡¯d like while I put this infernal gown away. My little friends can help you if you need anything,¡± she said, winking at mercury, before heading off into one of the side-doors. There was a brief silence, before Mercury heard a chittering noise from the floor. When he looked down, he saw what seemed to be a small crab, made from wood and ice, clicking its pincers at him, as if asking whether he needed any help. Actually, that was telling him it was asking. Mercury smiled at the thing. ¡°No, thank you, I¡¯m fine little guy,¡± he said, and watched as the crab skittered away, disappearing beneath some other furniture. He was sure there were more little ones like it around, given that Irrithuirel had called them her helpers. Did she make them herself? Before he had a chance to further ponder the question, Appy interrupted him. [The individual is encouraged to take a look at the suppressed notifications from battle.] ¡°Right, right, I should get to that.¡± Mercury quickly nodded, and pulled up the menus. [Your Skills and Abilities have levelled up: 7>, 8>, 4>, 2>, 2>!] Mercury couldn¡¯t hold back a snort when he saw that , specifically, had levelled up. He didn¡¯t think his action would exactly be described as ¡°diplomatic¡±, really. Especially giving the following notification. [The individual¡¯s local infamy has increased.] That seemed more accurate for what had happened, really. He probably hadn¡¯t exactly made allies, there. Well, actually, maybe with Nir. He shook his head and focused on the notifications again, there was still one to go over. [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve? (700 Skill points)] Huh. This wasn¡¯t exactly within his expectations, but he wasn¡¯t about to turn down an evolution. Yes, he was more than willing to evolve , even if he had let the Skill fall by the wayside a little lately. [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (700 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. 4. ] [ : The individual is able to channel their anger into this Skill and allow it to physically take hold upon their enemies, greatly intimidating them. The more rage the user feels, the more potent this Skill.] It felt like he got offered this particular evolution because of what he had done to Zyl¡¯s mother at the gathering, pushing his anger into the Skill. It had intimidated her, which seemingly worked quite well, and this seemed an extension of that kinda path. At the same time, linking his Skills to his emotions may not always be a great idea. What if, at some point, the Skill activated subconsciously when he just got angry with someone for normal reasons? He didn¡¯t exactly want to take that risk. So, instead, he took a look at the next Skill. [: Some beings are considered greater than others. The individual is one such being, and this Skill allows them to prove it. Anyone considered lesser than the individual must cower before them. This may be in evolutionary tier, or simply in the mental image of the target or the Skill¡¯s user.] This seemed less linked to his anger, and much more to his pride. Again, while definitely powerful, it felt more like something to suppress others. But if it was based on people being weaker than him, did he even need the Skill at all? [: The individual has seen beyond the veil. This Skill allows the user to project the weight of their gaze onto others. Additionally, the intent of the user may be transmitted to some degree, altering the Skill¡¯s effects. It is possible to place a ¡°mark¡±, as the individual has called it, onto others using this Skill.] Compared to the others, seemed much more up his alley. It tied in well with his dreamscape, especially the last bit about setting marks. Of course, he could already do that himself, with reasonable success, but having a Skill that let him do so more easily would definitely help. Still, he took a look at the final Skill. [ : Uncertainty is weakness, hesitation is defeat. Such things are eliminated from this Skill. It is no longer a transmitter of intent, but rather a simple promise, one of harm and danger. The target of the Skill will receive undoubtable knowledge of what will happen to them should they continue what they are doing, and any damage done to them after breaking the condition of the promise is increased.] That was¡­ a much more menacing description. It seemed suited for some people, certainly, but didn¡¯t feel right to Mercury. Even though it was probably the strongest Skills, since those with conditions attached usually seemed to have greater effects, he didn¡¯t like it. Not all things needed to be solved with violence. Clearly, Mercury was an exceptional diplomat. As such, he made his selection. [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. A few minutes later, Irrithuriel came back into the room, stretching her arms far above her head. She wore a much lighter dress now, in dim, night-blue colours. Her eyes lazily drifted across the room, landing on Mercury, and she quirked an eyebrow. ¡°Your eyes look different, Starlight,¡± she noted. ¡°Did anything happen while I was gone?¡± ¡°Nothing major, I just evolved a Skill of mine, seems like it might have minor side effects.¡± ¡°Interesting,¡± the old lady muttered, stroking her chin. ¡°Well, Skills that cause such immediate change are rare, and ones as subtle as this are even rarer. Your eyes were already extraordinary, it adds to the mystical feel. I approve of your choice!¡± She flashed him a grin, and Mercury couldn¡¯t help but smirk back. ¡°I suppose I am happy to hear it,¡± he said. ¡°You should be! Not to glisten my own scales, but I¡¯d wager you don¡¯t receive advice from someone as high levelled as I very often.¡± Mercury¡¯s eyes drifted to Zyl for a few moments, but they hadn¡¯t talked much about system things, and he didn¡¯t exactly know what level Yvette, Yasashiku, or old Uunrahzil were. So, instead, he just nodded. ¡°I suppose I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°You also don¡¯t get someone this high level to cook for you, usually,¡± she remarked with a smile, pouring some of the stew that had been bubbling away into a wooden bowl for him. ¡°Will you, uh, need a spoon?¡± ¡°Hahaha, no, I¡¯ll be fine,¡± Mercury laughed, hopping onto the chair the food was in front of. Appy quickly confirmed that it didn¡¯t seem poisoned, and had not rung a single warning bell at Irrithuriel yet, so he ate. Soon, the old lady sat opposite of him, eating from another bowl herself. ¡°Right, Starlight, since you asked me a couple questions, can I ask you some as well?¡± ¡°Of course, Irrithuriel,¡± Mercury agreed. ¡°Fehfeh, at least you remembered my name.¡± ¡°To be fair, you did make quite a show of telling me,¡± he said, smirking. The old lady scratched her chin again. ¡°I suppose I did. Well, anything at that ball would have been a show, really. Could have cut the air with a claw,¡± she creaked, and Mercury nodded in agreement. ¡°But I suppose that¡¯s quite beside the point right now. I am curious. Why did you come here?¡± ¡°Well, I think the answer to that is obvious. We want back something that was stolen.¡± ¡°Right, yes, the spark. Of course. Trinyakorie made sure that we all knew what she now possessed. I am quite surprised your partner is already in such good condition again.¡± She glanced over at Zyl on the bed. ¡°Well. Was in such good condition, this might set him back a little.¡± Almost as if to accentuate her point, Zyl gave a few weak coughs from on the bed, stirring slightly. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure to brew some medicine once we¡¯ve eaten. If he wakes up, make sure he eats as well. It¡¯s vital if he wishes to regain his strength,¡± she said, and Mercury nodded. ¡°Well, then, I¡¯m a little more interested in your story, Starlight. Such bravery from someone so unassuming. Though perhaps those are your Skills at work, you hardly seem quite as bland now,¡± the old lady rasped. ¡°I seemed bland?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Feh, I thought I was supposed to get a chance to ask? Fine, fine, yes, you did. In fact, I would have hardly been able to tell you apart from a normal mopaaw. That Skill of yours that you used to be harder to find might have a lesser passive effect. Most Skills do, really,¡± she explained between bites. ¡°Interesting¡­ Right. My story. I should mention I¡¯m, uh, not exactly from Chronagen.¡± ¡°Oh, a worldwalker, then?¡± ¡°Yes, yes. That,¡± Mercury said, and Irrithuriel nodded along. ¡°I suppose that explains some of your bravery. I¡¯d assumed you were a kin.¡± ¡°Not so. Still unsure how to feel about that, I¡¯ve never met any, after all.¡± The old lady nodded again. ¡°Yes, I can see why you¡¯d be apprehensive. They have¡­ a certain reputation.¡± ¡°Exactly,¡± the mopaaw agreed. ¡°But I suppose I¡¯ll cross that bridge when I get to it. I met Zyl after I¡¯d already been in this world for more than a whole chapter. He is very much so my type,¡± he admitted, and a small smile found itself on the old woman¡¯s lips. ¡°I asked him to date, and, much to my surprise, he agreed. So we went from there, practically glued to one another for two pages. We got along well, great even, but eventually, I went into the wilderness again. Met a few people, got caught up in some business. By the time I was able to come back, half a chapter had passed, and Zyl was already on the way to recovering from his¡­ condition.¡± ¡°Right. And this spark, how did Berthorn finally convince him to hand it over?¡± Irrithuriel asked. At that, Mercury¡¯s eyes sharpened. He didn¡¯t feel any warning bells go off in his head, but the sentence was more than enough to put him on edge. ¡°Why do you want to know?¡± he asked tersely. Irrithuriel looked up from her food in surprise. ¡°Oh, goodness,¡± she said. ¡°I must¡¯ve really scraped your scales there. I apologize. I can see how my words might seem hostile. I assure you I meant no harm, feel free not to answer.¡± Mercury¡¯s raised fur lowered a little at her words. He was on edge. Which meant that she wasn¡¯t using any calming Skills on him, at least. Most mental manipulation Skills might not work on him, but just because that was true with the bishop didn¡¯t mean it was true for everyone. Irrithuriel had higher levelled Skills than Nemo without a doubt. ¡°Alright. Let¡¯s let the topic rest,¡± the old woman said, taking another bite of soup. Mercury noted that she moved deliberately slowly, probably so she didn¡¯t upset him any further. ¡°Why not tell me other things. I¡¯m curious about your perspective on this world. It must have been strange.¡± ¡°It was. Very strange. Danger around every corner, all the time,¡± he snorted in a mix of annoyance and amusement. ¡°To think I used to be most worried about whether I would be fired, now it¡¯s all thinking about whether or not someone will leap at my throat.¡± ¡°Chronagen can be hostile. I¡¯ve heard of a few other worldwalkers who share your sentiment.¡± ¡°I imagine they would, if they¡¯re from the same place as I am. Then again, apparently they don¡¯t exactly need to be from the same time as me, so some of them might have had very different experiences.¡± ¡°Ah, yes, quite. A man named Musashi once visited me some chapters ago. Asked for my help with transitioning, see. He¡¯d been reborn into a woman¡¯s body, and seemed quite uncomfortable with it,¡± she said, then drank from a cup of water that a small squirrel carved from ashen wood had brought her. Mercury nodded. ¡°I¡¯m glad he got the help he needed.¡± ¡°Indeed. As he visited we chatted, and he told me he lived in rather turbulent times. Fought dozens of battles, with his sword as his only partner and lifeline.¡± ¡°That sounds about right.¡± Mercury nodded along. ¡°In my time, things were much more outwardly peaceful. There was still plenty of hatred for one another among the people though.¡± ¡°Always things to hate when you¡¯re looking for them,¡± Irrithuriel said. ¡°Mh.¡± The two ate in comfortable silence for a bit, with Mercury less worried about her probing Zyl. Irrithuriel got done eating before him, and took a seat at the table full of herbs, and began working. Grinding things down, mixing them with water, distilling. A few times a minute, a little helper would scurry up a small ramp carved around one of the legs of the table, and deposit some flowerbud or bring her some vial of liquid. Mercury tried to keep track of them, and saw them disappear into small holes in the wall, each one lined with a few dozen runes. Did they have their own little pocket space in there? Regardless, watching the little critters work was fascinating. Their movements seemed smooth, almost natural, despite the fact that they were made from wood and ice. Never once did any of them even begin melting or dripping, they simply endlessly continued on doing their duties. Irrithuriel seemed to prefer small critters for her helpers. She had mice, squirrels, crabs, lobsters, and some larger beetles as well. The sound of their little legs rasping on the wooden floor first seemed a little grating to Mercury, but soon became background noise. He soon finished up his meal, and began to watch the old dragon at work. Her hands moved with dexterity that seemed unbefitting of her age, but then again, with the system at work, there was not much surprise at that. Did dragons even age in this world? Maybe she just chose to present herself as old. If they could shapeshift anyway, then why bother, right? He hadn¡¯t noticed any other super old looking dragons in the crowd at the celebration, but at the same time, he hadn¡¯t really looked. Whatever, he would ask later. For now, his eyes stayed fixed on Irrithuriel¡¯s hands. They moved gracefully, effortlessly picking apart ingredients, and taking them through the steps of refinement. There were a lot of steps, it seemed, though some were solved rather quickly with a flash of magic. A few more minutes passed quietly, the old dragon not even glancing at Mercury as her world seemed to be entirely within the confines of that table, dealing with glassware and plants. She deftly combined things one after another, and by the end, there was a small vial, full of aquamarine liquid. The potion was thick and syrupy, almost like honey, but seemed as though someone had distilled a gem down into a vial, sparkling into the light. Irrithuriel leaned back in the chair with a sigh, smiling to herself. ¡°Haven¡¯t tried a recipe this challenging in chapters,¡± she said to no one in particular, gazing upwards at the rune-lined ceiling of her little cabin. She took a few moments to breathe, then turned to Mercury, pushing the vial towards him. ¡°Feel free to analyze it. It¡¯s for your boyfriend,¡± she said, giving him a wink. Quickly he activated on the vial, trying to figure out what it was. [: A much more gentle approach than a generic healing potion, this elixir will help the body restore itself. Grade: S] That letter at the end stunned him for a moment. With it, he couldn¡¯t help himself, and activated on it as well. Immediately, 70% of his mana disappeared, the spell taking the absolute highest amount it possibly could. A few more lines were added to the description. [: A much more gentle approach than a generic healing potion, this elixir will help the body restore itself. It has been put together with the greatest care from high quality ingredients. Using multiple of these potions in a short timeframe may promote cell mutation. Excessive consumption is discouraged. The creator has also ensured it tastes like blueberries. Grade: S] Mercury blinked in confusion at that last line, then huffed a bit. It seemed that the elixir was genuinely harmless. Given the size of the vial, he highly doubted it would cross the threshold to being dangerous, and seemed reliable in terms of the information it gave. He turned to face the old alchemist. ¡°Do we owe you anything for this?¡± She smiled. ¡°No, well, I suppose it depends. I would also like to see Zyl¡¯s spark returned to him. If just for the reason that Trinyakorie wishes to craft a weapon from it, one which I don¡¯t believe should see the light of day.¡± ¡°Is that¡­ all?¡± ¡°Fehfeh, you¡¯re welcome to pay me more, Starlight,¡± she chuckled. There was a short silence as Mercury collected his thoughts. ¡°Thank you. I will make sure to repay you for this properly one day.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± She waved him off. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Now go, make your friend drink it if you trust me enough to think I wouldn¡¯t poison him.¡± Nodding, Mercury picked the little vial up with , then brought it over to the bed. ¡°Hey Zyl,¡± he said, lightly tapping the other man, who stirred to look at him with bleary eyes. ¡°Could you open your mouth for me for a moment? I have something you should drink.¡± Zyl nodded very slightly, then tiredly opened his mouth, as if waiting for Mercury to pour something in. The mopaaw gave him the elixir, and the dragon swallowed it down. - - - - - - Berthorn sat amidst his ruined mansion, chunks of wood buried in the soil around him. There was a crater, too. Thorythenior had smashed the ground hard enough to rip a chunk out of the mountain. The spatially locked bits had survived, mostly, and much of his staff had fled when the battle began. There were no casualties, but it had been a large hit to Berthorn¡¯s pride. Now, he simply sat there, on the wilted grass. No one came close to him. There was a thick cloud of poisonous gas enveloping the dragon, so much so that he couldn¡¯t see anyone else. The greenery around him had long wilted and died from the toxins. He breathed in, trying to smother the emotions in his chest. There was a Skill he felt burn away, one that wanted to be used, begged to be activated, for him to rage and show his fury. But Berthorn remained steadfast. Instead, he used different Skills. Many of them, each one reducing that load on his shoulders a little, and by the end, it had lightened enough for him to differentiate what he felt. Rage. Indignation. Disappointment. Despair. Hurt. Shame. It felt like he had become a battleground for disparate emotions. Like all of this was simultaneously his own fault and Zyl¡¯s. The left side of his face burned. The skin had been healed by another dragon, but a thin scar remained, somehow. It was faint, and you wouldn¡¯t see it if you didn¡¯t look closely, but whatever the weapon the beast used on him, it had caused his skin to wilt and wither even once restored. Now, it was a grey blemish on his face. Berthorn breathed deep, feeling the rage bubble, and renewed his focus on his Skills. He even bothered to cross his legs and use , centering himself. Gas poured from him, hiding him from the other dragons. A dozen predictive Skills ran and told him they were too busy picking up the unconscious to care about him right now, but he ignored that message. He knew they would come to hold this against him. All because of that infernal beast- . Slowly but surely, second by second, Berthorn worked through the thoughts. He compartmentalised them, recognized and acknowledged what had happened, and put it away in a file in his mind. This was a setback, but not insurmountable. He just had to- When he thought he was finally getting things back under control, he felt a hand heavily wrapping around his shoulder. The same one Nir had squeezed, and it still hurt as a new set of claws dug into it. ¡°Mother,¡± he barely breathed the word as he opened his eyes, to find Trinya staring him down. The human appearance she usually wore was all but gone, her head adorned with scales and a snout. ¡°Berthorn,¡± she said, her voice even more coarse now than it had been before. ¡°We need to speak about this.¡± The coward child swallowed heavily. This was not a conversation he wished to have. Chapter 160: A Coward and Some Ice Chapter 160: A Coward and Some Ice /Hey everyone and welcome back to this system sucks! Today¡¯s topic? Getting mana affinities to stick. Last time, we covered how to get an affinity on your mana, by throwing it through a conversion thingy. Somehow, that seems to fix things right up. Of course, it only took mages a whole fecking load of time to figure it all out, but we got our progress and nowadays you need none of the theory and all of the practice. But let¡¯s say you wanna specialize. Really get that mana settled in properly. Have the affinity stick around, no more sliding off, so you can turn your own pool of magic into your own pool of fire magic or what have you. Now, we all know cores, be they from humans, monsters, or anything else, can ripen after death by being in a suitable environment. Usually, that happens via a little bit of interaction with the outside world. So, by consistently casting spells of a mana type, you can ever so slowly shift your mana affinity towards that. Of course, that means you¡¯re usually gonna end up worse with spells of a different affinity. Multi-element mages often split their mana pool by shaping their cores, sectioning it off. ¡°But why would it be such a big issue if just by casting you could reshape your mana?¡± I hear you asking. Well, buckle up, buttercup, because this just won¡¯t cut it. See, restructuring your mana by just using it a lot works. It does, it really does. If you have a couple hundred years to spare that is! The progress is agonizingly slow. As in, you could have children and get your bloodline 5 generations down before properly affiniating your mana. Nah, that¡¯s not gonna work, you want those fire spells for cheap and you want ¡®em now. So what do you turn? Buy the funny little Skill that automatically changes a part of your mana based on your own understanding and intention of what spells you¡¯re gonna use? Nah, that stuff is way too expensive, who has 3k Skill points just chilling? No, no. We¡¯re gonna have to go harder than that. My friends, let me introduce you to this little itty bitty procedure called tempering. This is the willful exposure of your mana and often your body to the elements that make it up. To get lightning affinity, you zap yourself. To get fire affinity, you burn yourself. To get cold affinity, you spend days freezing. Death, life, water, earth, space, time, you name it, you can get that affinity by subjecting yourself to mainly detrimental and horribly painful effects. Isn¡¯t that just fun? It sure should be, because you are essentially forcefully ripening your core before you die. Let me repeat that for the people in the back! Doing something that usually happens after death but you do it before dying! Because it¡¯s fucking metal! People get hurt when tempering, that is a simple fact of the matter. And I believe it is so stupid to risk so much for that little bit extra casting speed. And yet people keep doing it. I suppose you can consider me disappointed. As always, which is why this system sucks. See ya next time. Don¡¯t croak./ Issue 13 of "This System Sucks!" by an anonymous author. - - - - - - Zyl broke out into a fit of coughing as the elixir went down his throat. It was like something exploded inside him a few seconds later, to Mercury¡¯s magic senses. There was a huge blaze of mana in Zyl¡¯s system, bits and pieces of it spreading out over his body, while most of the ethereal substance gathered around his heart. The dragon coughed some more, droplets of blood flying from his mouth. With a wave of her hand, Irrithuriel froze them, preventing any stains on the sheets. Then, slowly, bit by bit, the mana dissolved into Zyl. Saturated his muscles and flesh, probably his very cells, to the point where he¡¯d heal faster. Mercury watched as his boyfriend slowly straightened his back again, breathing heavily, then laid back down on the bed. Zyl¡¯s heart rate slowed again. ¡°That was gentler than a normal healing potion?¡± Mercury asked the snow witch. ¡°Oh, yes, quite,¡± the old dragon cackled. ¡°Regular potions often forcibly pull the skin and muscles back together. They can be very, very draining on the body. That¡¯s why they¡¯re so often dangerous. Most people aren¡¯t able to support them after lots of blood loss. Which is why often, they¡¯re administered to people who¡¯re already stable or taken ahead of time.¡± ¡°Well, it depends on the type of potion, of course,¡± she then added. ¡°Some just replenish Hp in the eyes of the system, and then that Hp promotes your body to heal. Others heal slower, some have more magic to ease the burden on the body. Soft healing potions, ones that have almost no burden in exchange for lower healing powers, are very frequently favoured by seekers for use mid-combat.¡± Mercury nodded along. Just like all things, alchemy was apparently also not very simple. Healing potions was just a general term for potions that healed, after all. The way in which they healed depended on the type of healing potion it was. The one Zyl took, for example, would heal him slowly. Despite that, it would still be draining on him, but the potion had at least done enough for him to be lucid. After stacking a few pillows below the dragon, Zyl was in a half-sitting half-lying position. The dragon started to smirk a little. ¡°Seems familiar, huh, Mercury?¡± he asked, his voice husky. ¡°Sure does,¡± the mopaaw said with a slight smile. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± ¡°Crappy,¡± Zyl replied with a chuckle, which soon turned into a cough. ¡°My everything is hurting, and it feels like my heart is on a personal vendetta against me. But I¡¯ll live.¡± ¡°The backlash usually wouldn¡¯t be this severe,¡± Irrithuriel chimed in, addressing Mercury, ¡°if your boyfriend didn¡¯t decide to release full scale dragonfire on his fists.¡± ¡°Those were those bursts of plasma?¡± ¡°Burning air? Ah. Yes. Dragonfire will set even the air itself ablaze. Nothing can withstand it. And your idiot friend decided it was time to use his dragonfire after giving a spark away,¡± she chided, shaking her head and clicking her tongue. ¡°Now, get on nursing him to health, feed him some stew. I¡¯ll busy myself preparing some more food. The lord guardian will be quite ravenous,¡± she added. Mercury gave a quick nod, preparing another bowl with a liberal use of . He was already good at these sorts of small manipulations, but it didn¡¯t quite work as hands did, since it was an acceleration force, so he was quite glad for the practice. Not long after, he stood by Zyl¡¯s bed again, the bowl placed on the bedside table as he levitated spoons of soup into the dragon¡¯s mouth. ¡°You really don¡¯t have to do this, you know,¡± Zyl said between bites. ¡°I can move my arms just fine.¡± To demonstrate, he raised one of the limbs from under the blanket, with only a minor wince of pain. Mercury shook his head at the antics, then shoved another spoon of food into the dragon. ¡°Look, Zyl. I know you could eat by yourself. But you really shouldn¡¯t. And also, I¡¯m glad I get to take care of you once. Not that I want you to get hurt, though, but like¡­ I guess it¡¯s nice to be of help to you.¡± He gave a crooked smile. ¡°So just lay down, relax, and focus on recovering.¡± Any protests the dragon had lined up died in his throat. Instead, he just let out a long sigh, dropped the defenses, and plopped down onto the pillow. ¡°Alright, Mercury. Thanks.¡± Then he ate another bite of stew. - - - - - - Berthorn bit down on the inside of his lip hard enough to draw blood. His mother was berating him. Berating. Stolen novel; please report. It felt infuriating. As though it was his fault that his maniac of a brother suddenly showed up and caused havoc. Or that his maniac of a sister decided to throw someone at their father. Or that his maniac of a father destroyed the entire building. Or that his maniac of a mother was unable to stop any of it. ¡°You are completely useless!¡± Trinya screamed at him, her face still full of scales. It was disgraceful. She had full control over her transformations, yet she so often let these kinds of things slip. Scales, her snout, even horns or claws occasionally. ¡®Why?¡± Berthorn wondered often. Why would she reveal those draconic bits so easily? He liked to think it was some sort of sick power-play. That it made her feel superior. That all dragons hid what they were to not aggravate anyone, to keep the peace, because they could not stomach the consequences. Perhaps she was bragging about her power. Or, maybe, and this was his actual theory, she allowed it because she could sustain it. His mother was flawed in many ways, but the way she handled mana was unlike anyone else. The unbelievable ease and efficiency of it all were stunning each time he witnessed it. There were not many dragons able to sustain themselves in lower mana regions, yet his mother was one of them. ¡°Completely incompetent! What were you thinking?! The banquet is ruined, what about our family reputation?!¡± she yelled. Berthorn remained silent. He hardly heard her. He was the ¡°coward child¡±, she always liked to call him, even to his face, so it was only right he hid. Between a stone-faced exterior, he simply didn¡¯t listen to her words. Instead, he focused inwards. Dozens of Skills, acquired over dozens of years. So many of them so useful, others less so. His most prized possession was perhaps . It was a Skill that he had taken very early and evolved multiple times before its current form. A simple little enhancement to his abilities, now diversified and incredibly useful. It warned him of danger, let him know a little bit of the future ahead of time, quite precisely. It let him think through countless things that may happen, and gave him intuition to guide him to the most probable things. Such as the fact his mother was about to slap him. Placing his feet down, he tipped his chair a little, leaning back quite far, and his mother¡¯s hand passed through the air in front of him. A long moment of silence rang out in the room. Trinya stared at Berthorn, her eyes shaking. First, there was surprise, then disgust, then fear, then rage, maybe some of them mixed or all at once. Berthorn smiled, as his own mother looked at her own child with an expression of horror. Her lips tilted into a frown, and she struck again, hitting him square in the face this time. He didn¡¯t bother dodging. He felt no need to. Berthorn saw her lips move, saw her speak, and another slap rocked his world. They were hard enough to snap his vision to the side, turn his sight a little blurry for a moment, and even have his thoughts grow hazy, but another Skill, , cleared it up. And through it all, a thin smile remained on Berthorn¡¯s lips. Another strike hit his face, but kept his mind working just fine, even as his brain shook. It was the Skill he most used to suppress fear, the one that kept his ¡°mind always working at optimal capacity¡±, according to the description. Trinya slapped him again, even heavier this time, almost hard enough to take him off the chair. She was yelling. None of it mattered to Berthorn. The weapon she was making had suddenly become a lot less threatening. Because Zyl was here to take it back. There were very few people Berthorn respected. And usually, he only respected parts of people. For his mother, he respected her undying ferocity. And that was all he had to say on the woman. His father? The man¡¯s dedication and power. That was all he had to say on the man. For his brother though? He was a different story. Berthorn had looked up to Zyl, and he dove into those memories now, even as Trinya slapped him another time. Long ago, when Zyl had not been a traitor, had not run away from his responsibilities, had not destroyed their home, had not fled. When his brother was still courageous. Back then, before it all, before the animosity and the spite, Berthorn had really, really looked up to Zyl. To his brother¡¯s courage, his wisdom, his kindness, his strength, his talent, his charisma, his loyalty, well, perceived loyalty anyways¡­ Suffice to say, Berthorn had looked up to Zyl. Really looked up to him. Idolized his brother, even, hid behind him like some kind of shadow. And then, one day, that huge silhouette vanished. The coward child grit his teeth as another slap rained down. ¡°You are a coward, Berthorn, a coward!¡± his mother yelled at him. And Berthorn simply sat, and smiled. There was no threat in her words. Only ferocity. He admired that ferocity. His mother¡¯s anger was like that of a barking dog. It was loud, it was annoying, it was maybe a little aggravating. But he didn¡¯t need to fear it. Perhaps that was why Trinyakorie was so angry. Because despite her best efforts, her immense hunger for respect, for power, despite all of that, the biggest coward she knew¡­ didn¡¯t fear her. - - - - - - Days flitted by, and soon, half a page had passed. The potion¡¯s effect somehow managed to sustain for multiple days, keeping Zyl mending. By the second, he was able to move easily again, by the third, he felt just as good as before the party, and from there, he healed more. ¡°Not enough to use dragonfire,¡± Irrithuriel added. ¡°In fact, you really shouldn¡¯t do that. For at least another season or two. And only that short because you¡¯re recovering quickly.¡± ¡°I had help,¡± Zyl said with a smile. Maclroy finally got the time to prove her worth, endlessly healing Zyl for a season straight. The amount of mana she had burned through was impressive, especially focusing it all on healing something that wasn¡¯t really physical like Zyl¡¯s inner flame? It was a more than impressive feat. In fact, Irrithuriel asked where he¡¯d even found someone so skilled at healing, but Zyl held his tongue. ¡°I promised not to tell, and I keep promises to my friends,¡± was all he said on the matter. To be fair, Mercury was just as if not even more curious than the old lady, but he held his tongue. If Zyl didn¡¯t want to say, he would respect it. Instead, he continued to explore the hut. There were a couple areas Irrithuriel declared off-limits, but not very many, so Mercury got to walk around quite a bit. The place had a dozen rooms, with some of them having hidden parts as well. There was even an attic and a basement, both full of special plants or drying ones. The attic also had a family of real life squirrels, which lived in harmony with one of Irrithuriel¡¯s carved ones, taking care of each other. Mercury found it adorable to see the creature carved from wood and ice clean the fur and cuddle up with its furry friends, before resuming its tasks of tending to the grasses, but he was soon escorted out of the room since the plants up there needed a specific temperature and he was messing with it. So, the mopaaw came back down, and practiced. Given his current environment, though, and the presence of Irrithuriel, there was something very specific he focused on. He still had that ice-related core, after all, and now he was next to someone who seemed to be very, very skilled in manipulating ice. So, he decided to be forward about it. ¡°Can you teach me ice magic?¡± he asked the old dragon. ¡°Absolutely not,¡± the lady said and scoffed, before returning to her carving work. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Do you even know any elemental magic at all?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Exactly. It¡¯s gonna be a chore to teach a complete beginner. I don¡¯t want to,¡± she said. ¡°I have lots of Skills that help with learning?¡± Mercury suggested. ¡°Look, Starlight. I appreciate your consideration. But I am old, and tired, and have no interest in explaining the most basic of spells to you. Help yourself to my library if you need to,¡± Irrithuriel answered, waving him off. To be fair, it wasn¡¯t exactly the most cruel denial. The woman¡¯s library was huge, after all, the biggest room in the hut, even. And still, many of the bookshelves were also enchanted, fitting many more books than should be possible. Many of said books were also enchanted, fitting extra pages. It was all a bit silly. Irrithuriel seemed almost obsessed with living in a ¡°quaint little hut¡±, and still not giving up any luxury, so there were countless works of magic all over the place. Once Zyl was up, he even told Mercury that the wood and the lacquer used on the wood were specially made with alchemy to be conductive to enchantments. Regardless, while Zyl was still recovering, Mercury used the free library access to study up on ice magic. He analysed the core, trying to understand what exactly made ice mana different from normal one, and figured it out after reading a little bit of ¡°this system sucks¡±. For the introduction, at least. The author made for good entertainment and a general description of how to get to affiliated mana, but they didn¡¯t actually include any of the specific spell-patterns. Which left Mercury to figure them out. Luckily, there were a few books Irrithuriel owned, each and every one on advanced spell theory, and none of them explaining the basic pattern. So, instead of just reading up on it, Mercury had to reverse engineer it from the mana inside his practice core. Which wasn¡¯t quite as bad as it sounded. Since the mana in there felt quite different from his own, he could pinpoint the differences, then convert his mana as he¡¯d done before. He already made it into kinetic or heat energy, this was just that same manipulation on a much larger scale. But since he had the differences down, and knew the rough patterns of how to convert mana into a couple things, he only needed to go through trial and error. A lot of trial and error, in fact. After three whole days of practicing, though, Mercury finally managed to do it, and conjure his first drop of ice mana. He could store it like that, having granted the mana the affinity, but it wouldn¡¯t stick of course. Bit by bit, it would leak back out, until it returned to being normal, unchanged mana. Then again, did Mercury really want part of his mana to be permanently ice affinity? It would make any of his other spells less effective, such as using it for physical reinforcement as he¡¯d been doing. So, he decided to just keep transforming more mana. Instead of following the conventional path and just looking at a pattern, he had to reinvent those transformations by himself, only relying on his past experiments. Luckily, he had extra time to practice while he slept, giving him much more than the five days he should have had. Slowly, he got better at making ice mana, and then trying to use it. To understand how spell patterns worked, he first cast on a bunch of very easy to understand things, instead focusing on how the spell forced his mana to move. It was fascinating. Seeing the patterns it carved was like spell circles, but also so very different. Many of them were three dimensional, and mostly depended on execution of will rather than the actual patterns. It was like there was a stencil, but it didn¡¯t need to be exact, because you were the one drawing anyway. But the stencil might help. So, Mercury resumed his trial and error practice. He even felt his ihn¡¯ar of help, given how it was seemingly adjacent to ice spells. Like some kind of guiding hand for intuition. And by the end of the fifth day, he¡¯d finally done it. He¡¯d transformed a good 100 of his Mp into ice affinity mana, evaporated it, then forced the magical energy to take shape, and create something. It was an ice cube, clear and smooth, the kind you¡¯d get put into a fancy cocktail. But at the very least, it was progress. [Acquired the Ability through a specific action!] Appy seemed to agree. Chapter 161: Honesty Chapter 161: Honesty Not too long after his first bit of ice magic, Mercury showed it off to Zyl, who praised him and gave him a hug for it. Irrithuriel just so happened to see it as well. ¡°You¡¯re a little freak, aren¡¯t¡¯cha?¡± the old lady asked in her coarse voice. ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°I¡¯m calling you a monster,¡± she elaborated, and Mercury narrowed his eyes, almost hissing at her. ¡°Now, now, not that kind of monster,¡± she said, waving him off. ¡°You learnt that fast. Did you find some patterns that helped in the library?¡± ¡°No?¡± She raised an eyebrow at that. ¡°Huh, I thought I had some. You reverse engineered the patterns yourself?¡± ¡°Sure did,¡± Mercury said with a small sigh. ¡°Took me a while to get how to go from my normal mana to ice affinity. Then from there, I used the pattern of a system spell to get a general gist of it, and got through the rest of it with some trial-and-error and a good bit of intuition.¡± The old lady shook her head at him, gesturing with a spoon. ¡°See, I told you, absolute monster.¡± Zyl couldn¡¯t help but look at Mercury. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s¡­ pretty crazy.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not a monster,¡± Mercury said forcefully. ¡°Starlight. I mean that you have monstrous talent in magic. Seriously. It takes most apprentices two pages to even cast their first elemental spell, and that¡¯s when they have the patterns available. The fact that you had to come up with those yourself tells me that your general understanding of magic is quite good, and the fact that you so easily managed to get your mana to cooperate tells me you have an incredible handle on it.¡± Mercury paused for a second. ¡°Still not a monster,¡± he grumbled. ¡°Yes, you have my apologies. I was just impressed. Among dragons, it¡¯s used as a compliment,¡± Irrithuriel explained. The mopaaw looked at Zyl for a moment, who nodded in agreement. ¡°Was called a monster all my childhood, and I was quite proud of it, too. It means¡­ being a prodigy, or something,¡± he said with a smile. ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll try to take it nicely, and you guys try not to use it too much?¡± They both nodded in agreement. ¡°Now, where did you learn to handle mana that well?¡± Irrithuriel asked him. Mercury thought back to his time in Treyno, when he simply worked himself to the bone for a whole chapter. ¡°Self taught.¡± The old dragon barely held back a scoff at that. ¡°Self taught? You mean to tell me you managed to get this proficient by yourself within a year?¡± Without hesitation, Mercury nodded. ¡°Yes. Handling mana this way is something I learnt by myself. Though I later learned how to improve my mind to handle it better, it was just a lot of practice, bending it into patterns, separating it into strips.¡± And he had done just that in casting the spells. Each ystir of his was tasked with a small bit of the pattern, holding edges and curves in place. It made it much easier for Mercury to mainly focus on just feeding it the mana. He hadn¡¯t even needed all his ystirs to fully hold the pattern in place, just about half did fine. ¡°Crazy,¡± Zyl muttered. ¡°And that magic intuition? The way you were able to look at ice mana and think ¡®so that¡¯s how it¡¯s done¡¯. Is that also self taught?¡± Irrithuriel asked. There was genuine curiosity in her words, without any malice. ¡°No, I learned that from¡­ a friend,¡± he said. He wondered where Ruvah was for a moment. Where the realm had brought them as it broke apart. ¡°One I hope to see again very soon,¡± he added. Irrithuriel chuckled at that. ¡°You sure like to keep your secrets, hmm?¡± Mercury hesitated, then nodded with a crooked smile. ¡°It¡¯s half of what makes me so special. But this is from someone called Ruvah, who I met in the blood eclipse. I learned a lot about them, and they¡¯re kinda closely related to ice magic.¡± Again, the old dragon raised an eyebrow. ¡°Oh? I thought I felt something special about you, some kind of understanding. Could it be that?¡± ¡°Huh. I guess it could be, honestly. It¡¯s an ability I now have, just called ,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Seems about right. That¡¯s part of what I felt, then.¡± The dragon nodded again. ¡°What, you¡¯re not upset about that?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°No. It¡¯s not like you¡¯re controlling my mind or something. It¡¯s more like¡­ my instincts tell me that you understand a part of me. Nothing more, nothing less,¡± she explained. ¡°You don''t get anything like that, Zyl?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± The dragon shook his head. ¡°Just feel like I like you as much as always,¡± he said, petting Mercury¡¯s back again. The conversation ebbed after that, and Mercury simply enjoyed spending some time with Zyl, his tail lazily drifting through the air. They eventually talked some more about future plans, how they would be proceeding. By now, Irrithuriel¡¯s potion had worn off. Zyl was looking better, colour having returned to his skin, and he felt better than before even the party. It had been a strong elixir, so that much was to be expected, but her asking nothing in exchange had come as a bit of a surprise. Soon, though, that peace was interrupted by a knock on the front door. It was already night outside, a starry sky visible through the cottage¡¯s windows, and everyone was growing sleepy. Mercury did, too, having long since shifted to sleeping through the night again. made it much easier than it used to be. Irrithuriel slowly rose from the chair she¡¯d been sitting on, chattering away, and walked towards the door. ¡°I¡¯ll get it,¡± she mumbled sleepily. ¡°Who would be visiting me at this time?¡± After a couple slow steps, she grabbed the handle and pulled the door open inwards. ¡°Hello?¡± she asked, her eyes narrowing. ¡°Hey. Hey. I smelled something. Zylnareth. Mer. You¡¯re housing ¡®em, right? Can I speak to ¡®em?¡± the person in the doorway asked, a voice that Mercury distinctly recognized. Irrithuriel immediately slammed the door shut, and there was a groan of disappointment from outside. ¡°Hey, c¡¯mon! I didn¡¯t do anything! Hey!¡± The old lady gave a suddenly much more awake look to Mercury and Zyl, who both had equally wide eyes. ¡°How did she find us??¡± Irrithuriel hissed, to which both of the men shrugged. ¡°Scent, I guess?¡± Mercury added tentatively. ¡°But how?¡± ¡°Tracking Skills,¡± Zyl said with a shudder. ¡°She probably learnt them or bought one at the ball, once she saw us come in.¡± ¡°And that just completely went past my ?¡± ¡°It¡¯s called ¡®illusion¡¯ for a reason,¡± Zyl muttered. ¡°Hey. I can hear you,¡± Nir said from outside, softly banging on the door. ¡°What do we do?¡± Irrithuriel hissed. Then, Mercury opened the door. He¡¯d hopped off the bed and walked up to it without the dragons noticing. ¡°Heya, Nir,¡± he said. ¡°Hey!¡± the wiry girl replied with an entirely too big smile, showing off razor sharp teeth. ¡°Good to see you!¡± Zyl and Irrithuriel just stood there, stunned. ¡°Yeah, just a little surprising, I suppose. Could you tell us how you tracked us here?¡± he asked calmly. ¡°Oh, yes, of course. Mother had me train my smell Skills up. I¡¯ve got a good nose on my face,¡± she explained. Mercury turned back to the others, giving a half-hearted shrug. ¡°Told you so.¡± Then, turning back to Nir, he continued. ¡°And why, exactly, did you come here?¡± ¡°Ah. I, uh. Wanted to¡­ talk,¡± she said, scratching the back of her head. ¡°Talk?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Apologize,¡± she specified with a nod. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°No. You don¡¯t. Uh, I mean. Sorry,¡± she said awkwardly. ¡°You¡¯re okay, Nir. Forgive the others for not being trusting. Are you sure no one trailed you here?¡± ¡°Why would anyone trail me?¡± she asked, cocking her head to the side. ¡°You know, your parents and brother want me dead.¡± This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°My brother is dating you.¡± ¡°Your other brother.¡± ¡°Ah, Ber? No, no. Coward. He would hide in a cave before facing you, kikiki.¡± She giggled as though it was the funniest joke she ever heard. ¡°He tore out Zyl¡¯s spark.¡± ¡°No. He tricked him into handing it over. Because he¡¯s a coward.¡± She nodded confidently. Mercury gave another glance at the two dragons, both of whom just stared at him, occasionally opening and closing their mouths. ¡°Right. Well, still, did anyone trail you?¡± he asked again. ¡°Oh, I didn¡¯t check. Let me just¡­¡± she trailed off, and a moment later, Mercury felt a torrent of mana wash over him. Enough to make his hair stand on end, like his entire body had been under static electricity. ¡°Hm. Hey. You were right, Mer! There is someone!¡± she said, with a huge smile on her face, then vanished. Mercury could hardly follow her thanks to , but most of her remained blurred. A few dozen meters away, she stopped, then reached her hand inside a sheer cliff face, withdrawing a suspiciously humanoid rock-shadow thing. Then, Nir proceeded to take the figure, and slam them into the ground hard enough to crack the surrounding rocks. ¡°Hey. Why did you trail me. Hey. Answer me. Hey!¡± she yelled the last part, smashing the figure into the rocks a few more times, to the point Mercury saw blood begin to flow. ¡°Nir, if they fall unconscious, they won¡¯t be able to tell us anything,¡± he gently reminded her. The dragon froze in the middle of the motion, stopping so quickly it actually caused a small gust of wind to stir some dust. The figure in her hand had its hands wrapped around her wrist, blood streaming from it. ¡°Ah. You¡¯re right. I forgot.¡± She got up slowly, motion jerking a little, like she didn¡¯t have her strength dialled down perfectly. Mercury realized that it was what made her look so unpredictable. Her movements were often so swift, with pauses in between each one. Her legs would snap forward, then she paused, then snapped forward again, unnaturally matching the pace of a normal walk. It felt like she was living in a different timescale from him, almost. A few moments later, she dropped the figure in front of Mercury. ¡°There. I¡¯m not good at asking. Can you ask them? For me?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Mercury said, almost pitying the figure on the ground. Much of the rock around them had cracked and broken off, revealing greenish skin and tusks. The kind of face Mercury would expect from an orc, with relatively rough features. They had dark eyes that shook, seeming disorientated. Mercury still didn¡¯t invite Nir inside, simply looking at the spy. ¡°Hey,¡± he said, and the orc flinched at the word. ¡°Why did you trail Nir.¡± ¡°Yeah, why?¡± the dragon asked as well. The orc took a long time to reply, coughing up some blood. By then, Zyl and Irrithuriel had gotten closer to the door, having somewhat regained their wits. Still, neither butted into the conversation, letting Mercury handle the talking, since, miraculously, Nir hadn¡¯t broken any part of the house yet. ¡°Orders¡­¡± the spy eventually croaked, coughing again immediately after. ¡°Whose orders?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Ber¡­ thorn,¡± the orc said. ¡°Brother Ber?¡± Nir said, stunned. ¡°Alright, here¡¯s how this is going to go, buddy,¡± Mercury then said, talking before the three dragons around him could. He then triggered his new Skill, , against the orc. Immediately, the spy¡¯s expression changed. It went from wide-eyed, to a grimace, to a series of low, painful grunts. Mercury felt a slight pressure against his mind, as though he was manifesting his rijn and lifting something, but it was almost hard to notice. Still, he followed that pressure to the orc, and placed a mark, letting him access the spy¡¯s dreams if there was any need to. ¡°What¡­ are you¡­?¡± the orc rasped between gasps of air, almost suffocating. ¡°Just a mopaaw, don¡¯t worry about it,¡± Mercury said smugly. ¡°Right, you¡¯re gonna go back to Berthorn. You¡¯re gonna tell him that Nir simply went out hunting. Killed a few wild beasts. That is all that happened today, right?¡± ¡°Yes, yes, all,¡± the orc agreed instantly. ¡°Good,¡± Mercury said, releasing the Skill. ¡°Irrithuriel, can you give him something that patches him up? We don¡¯t want our messenger to fall apart before he makes it home.¡± After a couple blinks, the old lady nodded. ¡°I suppose so,¡± she said with a shake of her head, and took out a vial from her inventory. ¡°Drink this, orc.¡± The spy had little time to protest and quickly obliged, gulping down the red liquid. His wounds mended, and before there was a chance for more commands, he already ran off, seemingly terrified for his life. ¡°Was that¡­ a Skill, Mercury?¡± Zyl asked after a long pause. ¡°Sure was. The evolution of . I, uh, didn¡¯t exactly expect that, either, but it probably scales with my mind, and I have a couple Skills to make it stronger.¡± ¡°Right,¡± the dragon said, shaking his head. ¡°Crazy,¡± Nir added, a grin on her face again. ¡°Mer, he was more scared of you than me!¡± ¡°Yes, yes, we¡¯re sure this is the only spy, right?¡± the mopaaw asked. Irrithuriel nodded in reply. ¡°Yes, I checked. No one but us here, now.¡± ¡°So, Nir,¡± Mercury continued, and the girl focused on him, wiping the smile off her face. ¡°You wanted to apologize.¡± ¡°Yes,¡± she said matter-of-factly. ¡°For?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Overstepping boundaries,¡± she said. There was a brief silence, which she took as a cue to speak more. She turned to Zyl, then bowed at the waist. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Sincerely,¡± she said, facing the floor. ¡°Zylnareth. I failed you. As a sister. As a person. And I apologize.¡± Zyl just looked at Nir, stunned. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I have been a poor¡­ acquaintance, now, I guess,¡± she said bitterly. ¡°Didn¡¯t see how hurt you were. What was going on. I was just inside my own head. Didn¡¯t see further than myself. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Her brother stood in stunned silence for a few more seconds. ¡°What?¡± he repeated dumbly, making her grimace. ¡°I-¡± ¡°No. I get that. I heard you,¡± he interrupted, taking a couple deep breaths. ¡°Why, I guess, is more appropriate. Why?¡± ¡°Because I saw you,¡± she said. ¡°Saw you smile Zyl. Zylnareth, sorry,¡± she corrected herself. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ all?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes,¡± she grimaced. ¡°I should have noticed sooner, I¡¯m sorry, I-¡± She stopped, when Zyl pulled her into a hug. ¡°You¡¯re an idiot, Nir,¡± he said. ¡°A stupid, dumb, brainless, fucking idiot. And you¡¯re the kindest member of this family.¡± Nir stopped, swallowed heavily for a moment, then slowly brought her hands up. ¡°Can I¡­?¡± ¡°Yes, you can hug me back, idiot,¡± Zyl said with a small laugh, and Nir wrapped her arms around him. ¡°Missed you,¡± the girl murmured, squeezing tightly enough to shatter an ordinary person¡¯s ribs. Luckily, Zyl wasn¡¯t an ordinary person, and squeezed back just as tight. Mercury walked back inside the hut, gesturing at Irrithuriel. ¡°Could you maybe make them some stew? I think they have some¡­ catching up to do.¡± The old lady shot him a crooked smile. ¡°Yes, Starlight. I suppose I can whip up a batch of stew.¡± - - - - - - After the lengthy ¡°conversation¡± with his mother, Berthorn had returned to his main residence. The ballroom was gone now, entirely wiped away by his father¡¯s grace. He scoffed at the memory of it. He had people trailing all members of his family. Some had been removed from his mother. After her most recent display, she didn¡¯t seem nearly as frightening anymore. Certainly hungry for control, desperately reaching out to see whether she could take life into her own hands, but not someone immediately threatening his plans. The spark had her attention fully. He knew that much about her, now. The weapon from it was all she could think about, and it made her lose her sharpest claw in exchange. Being this obsessed with a project made her neglect other avenues. Just in the last five days he had taken over a branch of her network. Established relations with other dragons, and even a whole clan, and filling a role for them his mother used to. And she didn¡¯t even notice. Berthorn shook his head at that, leaning far back in his chair. Right now, it was once again his brother who cast the largest shadow. Zylnareth and that mopaaw he dragged around. Mercury was its name, right? He remembered it. Dreamt of it, even. Nightmares. The wound around his eye healed poorly, leaving a faint scar despite receiving treatment. The nightmares were worse. He¡¯d been losing sleep because of them, waking up, bathed in sweat, checking to see whether his eye was still there. In the dream, night after night, he lost it. Sometimes, when it was especially bad, he would wake up in the middle of the night, and his vision was blurry. He hadn¡¯t had trouble seeing in decades, much less expected it to happen from such a tiny creature. Someone so insignificant he could wipe them out with a single stomp. And yet! All his attempts had failed! One after another, that creature ruined his plots. Ruined his sleep, too, recently. Berthorn bit his fingers on how to deal with it. He didn¡¯t even know how they got away. Simply that Nir, for some reason, had irritated their shared father, and ended up destroying the entire mountaintop. Because why would he bother leaving anything of Berthorn¡¯s intact. A long sigh escaped Berthorn¡¯s lips. He slowly activated each of his Skills again, just to calm himself down. So many of them were related to premonitions of some kind, and so many of those reacted. Dozens of tiny snippets of information entered his mind. The weather tomorrow. An alliance which could go poorly. Two people who would soon meet; a relationship he could exploit. His Skills whispered to him, telling him bits of the future, each one incredibly likely to be true. They were too high in level to be inaccurate, with how often he poured all his resources into the abilities when he panicked. One specifically though, sent him a rather big bit of intel. A spy of his would return soon, the one he had sent to track Nir. An old orc, one he had employed for decades now. And despite that, the Skill told him that this loyal servant would lie. Curious. Berthorn rose from his chair, and set about preparing for the spy¡¯s arrival. He gathered a mage he employed, one skilled in divination, and a few other servants and items. Then, when the orc came to the door, knocking on it, he simply waved his arm and the poor sod left in. Not that he was a poor sod yet, but Berthorn was about to make him into one. ¡°My lord!¡± the spy said, quickly dropping to his knees. ¡°Yes, yes, no need for the formalities,¡± Berthorn said, slowly prancing to the side of the orc. He still kneeled. At least he knew his place. ¡°What is so important that you would come here in person?¡± The orc flinched at that for a moment. Well, perhaps flinch was too generous. The movement was tiny, almost imperceptible, and Berthorn may well have missed it if he didn¡¯t have Skills for that. For a few moments, the spy¡¯s eyes flitted about the room, as though looking for help, but he found none. Simply Berthorn, standing alone in the humongous entry hall. The white of the walls seemed to be pressing on him. ¡°W-well¡­¡± the spy started, then trailed off again. ¡°Please. Do not waste my time. If you came here, it was important, yes?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± the orc stammered. ¡°And you were sent to watch Nir, were you not?¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± ¡°So then. What is the important thing that has occurred involving my sister?¡± Berthorn asked, suddenly very close to the spy¡¯s face. ¡°I- my lord, she went out to hunt,¡± the orc answered, his shoulders slumping in defeat. ¡°To hunt?¡± ¡°Yes, my lord.¡± Berthorn loudly scoffed, kicking the side of the spy, hard, sending him tumbling onto all fours. ¡°Hunt for your disloyalty perhaps?¡± The orc shivered. ¡°No, my lord,¡± he said, cowering on the floor. ¡°Simply¡­ hunt.¡± Berthorn squatted down next to his employee, watching as the old orc held his ribs where Berthorn had kicked him. His eyes were impassive. ¡°Remove your hand,¡± he commanded. The spy did as asked. Berthorn slammed his fist into the same spot with a resounding crack. ¡°Ah, I believe that may have been one of your ribs. I do apologize,¡± he said, entirely deadpan. ¡°Ugh¡­¡± ¡°Now. Let me ask you again. My sister. Where did she go to?¡± ¡°My lord¡­¡± ¡°Where. Did. She. Go. To?¡± The orc was only silent for a moment, but it was too long. Berthorn kicked him again, making him grunt in pain. ¡°I will not ask again.¡± ¡°The¡­ mopaaw,¡± the orc said, then gasped, as though drowning. Perhaps one of the ribs had pierced his lung, Berthorn noted. It did seem to be deflating, maybe. ¡°Yes. The mopaaw. Is that who my sister went to see?¡± ¡°Yes, lord. That¡­ monster¡­¡± ¡°Monster?¡± Berthorn asked, his voice tinged with idle curiosity. The orc gasped for air, but found none of it entering his lungs. Berthorn gave a long sigh at that. ¡°Fine, fine, you have proven your use.¡± He clapped twice, and a healer suddenly stepped forth, having been hidden within an illusion before. The lady dragonkin kneeled down next to the orc, and hovered her hand over his chest. Soon, there was another crack as the bones went back to their rightful place, and a scream of pain from the orc. Right, Berthorn remembered he had said not to dampen the pain of the healing. Well, as long as the orc didn¡¯t pass out, that was fine. Luckily, he didn¡¯t. Instead, the spy was left crumpled on the floor, gasping and coughing to empty his lungs out. ¡°You have exactly ten seconds before I break your ribs again. Speak. Why did you attempt to keep this secret from me?¡± Berthorn asked. ¡°Lord¡­ that mopaaw-¡± He hacked out a cough for a few moments before resuming his speed. ¡°It¡¯s a monster. Something about it. It¡¯s eyes¡­ fuck, it¡¯s eyes.¡± ¡°Hm. Would you say it would give you nightmares?¡± The spy swiftly nodded. ¡°Curious,¡± Berthorn said, nodding along. He was somewhat sure he''d killed greater monsters before. ¡°Truly curious. Say, you wouldn¡¯t mind telling me more about that, would you?¡± Desperate sweat began flowing down the orc¡¯s face. Chapter 162: Plotting and Scheming and maybe a bit of Tomfoolery Chapter 162: Plotting and Scheming and maybe a bit of Tomfoolery Zyl and Nir talked, for a long, long while. It was evening when they started, and by the time they were done, it was past midnight. Mercury had zoned out for a good bit of it at first, when it was about their family things. Later on, when they were more busy catching up, he chimed in. He learnt more about Nir. She liked to talk in short sentences, and using nicknames. By now, Zyl did allow her to use the short form of his name again. For which she hugged him profusely. Then chattered on. Hour after hour ticked by, and eventually, Nir left again. She hadn¡¯t reconciled with Zyl. It wouldn¡¯t go this quickly, or this easily. But he was willing to at least give her a chance again. Which she was grateful for. Zyl himself ended the talk with a somber smile. He was still a bit puffy-eyed and red faced, but he seemed pleased with how it went. ¡°A necessary conversation,¡± he called it, before laying down on the mattress and passing out almost immediately while hugging Mercury. It was a peaceful night. - - - - - - It was a miserable night for Berthorn. He dreamt of the mopaaw again. Every. Single. Night. Since getting that damn wound. Distantly, he wondered what kind of Skill it was, at least in the moments when he awoke, bathed in sweat. He¡¯d tried a couple potions to help him sleep deeper, but the nightmares always seemed to worm their way into his brain. If it was a Skill, it was strong, at least. But was it? Berthorn had lost weight because of this. He¡¯d cut down on his sleep as well, sometimes only getting in a few hours of rest every night. And he thought during those times, so much so that some of his predicting Skills levelled. They whispered to him, telling him that it was an item. The strange, liquid metal on the thing¡¯s claws, the stuff that had cut through his skin so easily. Of course that little beast wouldn¡¯t be able to do that itself, of course it needed an item, he was a dragon! Had he been in his true form, unleashed all his might, a single kick of his could destroy that measly creature- A deep sigh left his lips as Berthorn rubbed his eyes. The late nights were getting to him, driving him borderline insane. He was so easily agitated now. That was why his mood was bad. Sure, the night was miserable, but it had been fruitful as well. Having a spy return, one with such valuable information, too, had been a windfall he desperately needed. Maybe it was because of ? It did promise benefits when he was in a disadvantageous situation¡­ He shook his head. Whether the Skill had influenced things or not didn¡¯t even matter. Things were just the way they were, no more explanations needed. He just had to make do with it. And right now, that meant grinding a way to get rid of the nightmares. Which probably meant getting rid of that insidious rat that haunted him. Maybe he could have accepted it were it his brother, but now he had to endure a scar from something like that? By reflex, he touched the wound, feeling the faint ridges where his skin had healed not quite right, the way it stretched differently, and grimaced. A dragon, scarred by a mopaaw. Something occasionally kept as a pet, and usually roaming forests in small packs. Yet, somehow, it had made it to his house¡­ Berthorn sighed again. What should he do, now? He knew where they were. Where his brother and that beast were hiding. The orc had given out all the information, eventually. There were already more people trailing them, different ones this time. He knew more about how things worked, and knew that a good deal of marking Skills could be exploited by the creature to find the person who¡¯d applied them. To counteract that, Berthorn decided to have his people use items. A compass that would always point towards a designated target, which he had one of. For his brother, the method was different but achieved the same effect. It was a leaf, which would change the direction of the wind around it to slowly fly to whoever it was bound to. He hoped that these wouldn¡¯t be traceable by the mopaaw. His skills seemed to tell him it should go well, but they had been wrong. Perhaps they were influenced by his bias? A worthwhile thought, but one that he discarded for now. Instead, he plotted. With Zylnareth having returned, there was much more pressure on his mother. Especially since she did not know where they were, at least as far as Berthorn knew. She would hurry her artificers, and hurried workers were liable to make mistakes. Perhaps he could exploit that. Quickly, agents were sent out, the ones he had already placed informed of new arrivals. All the string¡¯s he¡¯d pulled to get people into position were paying off; within just a couple hours, Berthorn already had an entrance into his mother¡¯s crafting room. He didn¡¯t cause much trouble. Instead, he just had a tiny vial of his blood added to one step in the process. As insurance, for now. Before that happened, he thought more. His troublesome brother and his new ¡°friend¡± were being harboured by Irrithuriel. He scoffed at that. The old snow-witch liked to cause trouble. She¡¯d been annoying to reach out to before, and he had very few spies even in other members of her clan. Could she be manipulated? Perhaps. Perhaps not. He would have to probe her to find out. Slowly but surely the hours ticked by. When the night ended, Berthorn¡¯s eyes were just as red as Zyl¡¯s when he¡¯d gone to bed. After a whole night of thinking, he plotted some more. - - - - - - Mercury, on the other hand, had a lovely breakfast the next day, eating some bread with soft boiled eggs on top of them. He didn¡¯t start crying this time, but it was pretty close to be fair. He¡¯d slept well, enjoying the comforts of a soft bed once again, and stretched quite a bit when he woke up. By now, Zyl was back on his feet, and they could think about what to do next. Mercury just waited until they¡¯d eaten breakfast to ask the question. ¡°So, when do we get out there and get your spark back, Zyl?¡± he asked, directing the question to Irrithuriel as well. The red-haired dragon, who¡¯d just begun leaning back in his seat, straightened a bit again. ¡°That is a very good question, Mercury. I don¡¯t know,¡± he said. ¡°The sooner we act, the better,¡± the other dragon interrupted. ¡°Once the weapon is finished, getting your spark back out is unlikely. And both the spy and your sister are risks.¡± Zyl grimaced a bit at the mention of Nir. They¡¯d spoken a lot and were on better terms now, much better than when Zyl had just returned, really, but that didn¡¯t exactly mean he was unaware of her faults. She was a horrible liar, and couldn¡¯t exactly keep a secret very well, but she had promised to tell no one about meeting with them, so there was that. Hopefully she¡¯d stick to her word, and if she didn¡¯t, well, they would be expecting it, at least. ¡°She¡¯s usually more quiet, at least the way I knew her back when I lived with her,¡± Zyl said. ¡°Maybe she stood in your shadow, Friaminth.¡± Irrithuriel looked him in the eyes. ¡°Or your parents used to influence her more until she learned to care less?¡± Mercury supplied. Zyl just gave a shrug and a half hearted sigh, and the three sat in silence for a little while, only interrupted by the clacking that the legs of irrithuriel¡¯s assistant made while moving. ¡°Well, we need at least a plan,¡± Mercury said. The other two turned to him with questioning looks. There was another pause. ¡°Wait. Are you both expecting me to come up with this?¡± Irrithuriel gave a small sigh. ¡°Well. To be fair. Attending the ball was your idea, Starlight, and it worked out rather splendidly.¡± Zyl nodded in agreement. ¡°Also, we¡¯re planning to help, of course.¡± Mercury blinked a few times. ¡°Alright, fuck it,¡± he decided. ¡°Let¡¯s do it. Where is Tryn making the weapon?¡± ¡°There are multiple workshops, and all of their locations are secret, as far as I¡¯m aware,¡± Irrithuriel answered. ¡°Well, how do we figure out where they are?¡± ¡°Trynakorie is meticulous. She¡¯d keep record of it somewhere within her study, I¡¯d wager,¡± Zyl said. ¡°Well where is her study, then?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Most likely within the main building of our family, though that is just a guess.¡± Zyl shrugged. Mercury raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°You seem awfully calm for the person who needs a bit of themselves back.¡± ¡°Well, I suppose I¡¯ve gotten used to the cold, dead void within my chest,¡± he said, defanging the words with a teasing smirk. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°Alright, Friaminth, if your words are correct, then we simply need to infiltrate Trynakorie¡¯s study, steal the document of where the workshops are, invade those workshops one after another, find out where the weapons is being made, then take your spark back,¡± Irrithuriel summarized, trying to get the conversation back on track. ¡°Sounds about right. How do we do that?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°The main building is quite a distance from here. If I fly-¡± ¡°You really should not,¡± Irrithuriel chided. ¡°Fine. If you fly Mercury there, he should be able to get in.¡± Irrithuriel raised an eyebrow. ¡°Starlight is our infiltrator?¡± Mercury looked at him incredulously. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m our infiltrator?¡± Zyl gave a weak smile and another shrug. ¡°Well, got any better ideas?¡± ¡°We could ask Nir to steal it?¡± Mercury suggested. ¡°Unnoticed?¡± Now it was Zyl¡¯s turn to cross his arms and raise an eyebrow. ¡°... Point taken. Alright, then, I guess. I go in, grab the plans, get out. Seems like our best shot.¡± ¡°Please, do not take the plans. Just look at them, try to remember them, but don¡¯t take them with you,¡± Irrithuriel said. ¡°Right, right. Got it. Just remember the plans. Do you have some kind of item that I could use to record what they look like?¡± Mercury asked. He didn¡¯t directly mention a camera, since he was unsure whether would translate that properly. Irrithuriel seemed to think for a bit, then nodded. ¡°I do. Give me a moment.¡± With that, she headed off. A few minutes later, she already returned, holding a vial of ink. The glass holding the liquid seemed to be covered in frost, though. ¡°There we are,¡± she said. ¡°This is a bit of ice ink, enchanted to hold the shape of an image in the user¡¯s mind. I usually use it to visualize what my spellforms look like when practicing, so that I can focus on imperfections, but if you get a clear image of the map, you should be able to just put it into your inventory and head back here.¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°It¡¯s a plan, then. How will I not be noticed?¡± ¡°I can try drawing up a rough plan of the place, though it will have changed by now. As for not being noticed, most of the guards are likely not paying attention too well, given that invasions into other people¡¯s homes are generally rare,¡± Zyl explained. ¡°Does your family have any sort of like¡­ forcefield, Zyl? One that can detect when any lifeform comes close and vaporize it?¡± The dragon grimaced at that. ¡°Yes, though it simply sends a warning of something entering. Sadly, I don¡¯t quite know how it works.¡± ¡°I can probably get you through it,¡± Irrithuriel said. ¡°What if the effect is continuous?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°We¡¯d need someone to cause trouble with that, then,¡± Zyl said. Mercury¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Maybe Nir can help us out.¡± Immediately, both the dragons grimaced. ¡°Nirandia is certainly formidable¡­¡± Irrithuriel said. ¡°But she is not exactly subtle.¡± Zyl nodded in agreement. ¡°Any better ideas, then?¡± Mercury asked, rolling his eyes. Silence. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought. Zyl, I know you gave her something to contact each other. Tell her we need the dome gone.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not calling it ¡®the dome¡¯,¡± the dragon said. ¡°Yes we are.¡± ¡°Please, it¡¯s a scrying field, just-¡± ¡°We need. The dome. Gone,¡± Mercury insisted. Zyl could just sigh. ¡°Fine, then.¡± Irrithuriel snickered at the two for a moment. ¡°Tomorrow we act, then. Firaminth, your sister will disable ¡®the dome¡¯ at noon.¡± She seemed to take pleasure in stretching out their provisional name for the scrying field. ¡°Today, I prepare some potions. Tomorrow, I fly Starlight over, and apply any helpful spells I know. Then, I hide myself past the dome,¡± she grinned again, ¡°and wait for Starlight to be back out.¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Sounds good to me. I¡¯ll figure out anything else inside. For today, I guess I should practice my stealth Skills.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll get to making those potions.¡± ¡°And I¡¯ll tell Nir about the scrying field-¡± ¡°¡®The dooooooome¡¯,¡± Mercury and Irrithuriel corrected mockingly. - - - - - - Stormbraver had rapidly become a very busy city. Somehow, where people had been leaving before, it now changed. New people came to the city day after day. Avery sat at his desk, buried in paperwork, and groaned. ¡°Marcel, bud, I should be out there doing cleanup, not writing my name down on things that are already all but confirmed.¡± The receptionist shrugged, not bothering to hide the big grin on his face. ¡°Well, boss, this is your life now. I¡¯ve waited months for this. You¡¯re not going out. You¡¯re not running. This is your work, and I¡¯m not doing it, because guess what?¡± He paused dramatically, then leaned forward and whispered evilly. ¡°I¡¯m taking a couple days off.¡± There was a long groan from behind a stack of papers tall enough to hide the guild master¡¯s face, and he leaned back in his chair almost far enough to fall. Not quite though. ¡°Just why is there so much paperwork?!¡± ¡°It¡¯s quite simple, really,¡± Marcel said, pulling out a clipboard from his inventory. ¡°See, first, there are records of our sponsoring of the reconstruction efforts. Contracts for each building we¡¯re funding, which need your signature, as well as confirmations of missions we are willing to accept as the scope of our actions expand. Especially as more seekers are helping with the construction of new buildings, they are being sub-licensed out to other guilds and therefore need your approval.¡± He continued relentlessly, taking grim pleasure in the way his employer slumped over the table. ¡°Then, of course, there are the multitude of order we are placing at the blacksmith¡¯s guild. As well as their newest competitor within the city. New seekers have begun arriving here due to mister Ryuutesai being in the city, and all of them need to be recorded and confirmed. Some need their license updated. You may be required to perform some hands-on evaluations yourself, too, boss, since some of them are decently high up there in rank.¡± ¡°Of course, that¡¯s not all-¡± On and on it went, the eternal droning in Avery¡¯s ears. He¡¯d already zoned out, until Marcel threw the clipboard at his head, shocking him awake with a small bruise. But when the guild master raised his head, his assistant had already pulled out a second clipboard, filling this one out. Avery tried to focus, desperately, as Marcel kept talking at breakneck pace and recorded all his thoughts on clipboards. He made a point to throw all of them at Avery when he¡¯d just finished a single page. Would he likely put them up on the pinwall labelled ¡°reminders on what you need to do while your best Employee is gone ;P¡± pinboard? Yes, yes he would. Would Avery still be miserable if he had to read all that instead of hearing it? Certainly,yes. In his head, Avery already thought of just going to the forest ag- ¡°Stop that!¡± Marcel said, knocking him on the head. ¡°Don¡¯t even think of running away. Listen to me. Listen. To. Me.¡± The receptionist grabbed his guild master by the collar, holding him right in front of his face. He was so close, he could see Avery¡¯s reptile-like eyes through the sunglasses, but the fear effect left him completely unphased. ¡°I¡¯m going to tell you this once and only once. You¡¯re taking care of this. If you even think of running away from your responsibilities, stop. If you even dream of getting out of this, stop.¡± There was fire in his voice. ¡°Look into my eyes, motherfucker. One thought of running, and I¡¯ll find you. No matter where you go. No matter where you hide. If you dare interrupt my three days off, I¡¯m going to fold you, buddy. I¡¯m going to chain you to that chair and make you sign dumb contracts until your skin flakes off. I¡¯m going to make you transform just so your stamina restores for you to sign more paperwork. Are we fucking clear?¡± Avery swallowed drily, then nodded a few times. ¡°Great!¡± Marcel said, flashing a bright, kind smile. ¡°Then next, this stack is for-¡± and on and on he prattled. - - - - - - Yasahiku had arrived in Stormbraver, and it hadn¡¯t taken him long to set up a shop. In fact, that very first act was what made him a bit of a local legend. When he was younger, he once had a very silly idea. Someone told him about a legend of a sword made from a stone. And, of course, he decided that it was an idea he wanted to chase. By then, he was barely a beginner smith. (Author¡¯s Note: this is by his current standards, he would already have been considered a master by anyone sane.) And as a beginner, he sometimes chased those silly ideas. So he took some stone and started forging it. Which went about as poorly as it could have. He even burnt a hole into one of his boots with the molten rock, and it was horribly hard to get into the shape that he wanted. Which made it a perfect challenge. Over time, this had led to him acquiring a very generally useful Skill, called . It allowed him to construct a rudimentary workshop by smacking one of the rubble buildings with his hammer a few times and watching as it reformed into a proper house within a couple minutes. Then he headed inside, slamming the heavy stone door shut under the eyes of anyone watching, rolled out a tatami mat on the building floor, then a futon on top of that, and slept for 16 hours straight. The Skill took a lot out of him, especially stamina-wise, which is why it wasn¡¯t at a higher level yet. That, and the fact that it was enormously impractical, because anything he made from it needed to be either architecturally stable or was held together by just his stamina and spite alone, so the things he made with it were quite a bit inferior to his usual quality standards. Soon, though, he had become even more of a local legend, when he had spent the amount of money people usually made in a decade within a single day to furnish his new workshop. Of course, that mostly meant legally acquiring the land from the prior owners, and buying decorations and the licenses, so on and so forth. Most of the actual equipment was taken from his old house. It had survived the blood eclipse, even, after all, his tools weren¡¯t flimsy enough to break from that. And within three days of arriving, he lit the fire in his forge for the first time, carefully depositing one of his Skills into it as well. By the day after, he¡¯d sold dozens of tools. Saws, hammers, shovels, hoes, anything and everything that needed to be shaped from metal. He refused all orders for weapons firmly, saying that ¡°This city needs workers not soldiers right now.¡± As though that explained everything, he refused to elaborate on any further questions and simply stopped speaking to anyone not making orders. Then, on the fifth day in the city, he took it off, instead asking around for any painters or anyone who knew a ¡°Mercury Rainfall Starlight¡±. Not too long after that, he met with the heads of a few guilds, introduced himself politely, and had wanted posters made for the mopaaw. ¡°ALIVE ONLY!!¡± they read. With some help, he soon had them plastered all over the city. Some people were tearing them down, but Yasashiku didn¡¯t care. He threw money at the problem, and the merchants in the city were easily convinced to restore damaged portraits whenever they saw ones. Avery told the seekers to do so if they had time as well, and Esmeya told the mages, too. Then, on the sixth day, with three of the posters sticking to Yasashiku¡¯s own walls, he was back at the forge, hammering away, from morning ¡®till nightfall. Luckily, he had already thrown money at that problem, too, and Esmeya herself had installed silencing wards that wouldn¡¯t let his hammering be heard on the nearby buildings, while still having it ring across the alleys. Why was that necessary? The mage didn¡¯t know, but the old blacksmith had grumbled about ¡°needing to hear the echo if he was to work properly.¡± And so, with seven days of mild insanity done, the old, grumpy blacksmith had become a bit of a local legend, and already proven to be by far the greatest smith in Stormbraver. - - - - - - When Yvette came to the city, the last thing she expected was for there to be dozens of posters looking for Mercury. She was hoping to find him here, but seeing his face every second alley was a little strange. Especially with all the mean glances many people threw at the posters. Some others looked at them fondly, though, as though the mopaaw¡¯s reputation was split in half with the population. A smile cracked onto her face at that. It would be just like him to be loved by half a city and hated by the other half. Not very long after Yvette arrived, when she was just eating at an inn, Lucia burst open the doors and stormed in. ¡°What are you doing in my city?!¡± she yelled. Yvette gave her a dopey smile. She was¡­ maybe a bit tipsy? When she noticed that there were, in fact, two distinct Lucia¡¯s in her vision she reassessed that. A bit more than a little tipsy. ¡°Heeeya, priestess,¡± she slurred. Almost immediately, the fury was wiped off Lucia¡¯s face. Well, maybe not wiped off. Confined to a single vein on her forehead, pulsing in time with her heartbeat. But she shoved the fire in her chest down. ¡°Yvette. Please. What are you doing here?¡± The swordswoman leaned back, crossing her hands between her head, causing the chair to sway. ¡°I dunno, you tell m- uaaagh!¡± she leaned back a bit too far, crashing to the floor, then laughed as though it was the most hilarious thing to ever happen, her blonde hair sprawled across the floor. With a deep sigh, Lucia pinched the bridge of her nose. ¡°Yvette. Focus.¡± The swordswoman didn¡¯t stop laughing, but gave a thumbs up anyway, albeit one that swayed in the air. ¡°Why did you come here?¡± Lucia asked, enunciating every word. ¡°See my li¡¯l saviour,¡± Yvette slurred, a grin on her face. The thumbs up she gave was now an open hand, with which she seemed to be trying to grab the ceiling light. ¡°Your what? Who?¡± Lucia asked, but received no answer. For a moment she considered yelling at Yvette again, but then it clicked. ¡°Ah,¡± she said, her voice suddenly turned somber. ¡°I see now.¡± Without any further commentary, she picked up the swordswoman, who giggled, and ran her fingers through the priestess¡¯ hair, mumbling about how shiny it was. Lucia paid the innkeep, apologized for the disturbance, and walked out. She gave a long look at the sky and sighed, ignoring the drunken mumbling on her back. ¡°What am I gonna do with you, idiot¡­¡± she said, staring at the blue sky. ¡°What am I gonna do if I can¡¯t even be mad at you?¡± Chapter 163: This is a Heist Story now. Chapter 163: This is a Heist Story now. Nir read over the letter in her hands again. The servants brought it to her, saying it came without a sender, but that it was not magically tampered with. Which seemed strange, because who sent mundane letters these days? But it was the best way to stay unnoticed. She swiftly opened the document with her claws, reading its contents. Her eyes grew wide at the first line, then just wider and wider from there. ¡°Nir, we need your help. You still live with our parents, yes? Then you must know about the scrying field surrounding the mansion. Your friend, Mer, will need to visit tomorrow night. Unnoticed. If you could possibly make sure the scrying field is down during that time, we would be very thankful. - Z.¡± It read. For a while she was confused what a scrying field was, but then a bit of extra paper appeared at the bottom of the letter. ¡°Scrying Field = The Dome - Mer,¡± or so the extra bit read. ¡°Ah, they mean the dome,¡± Nir nodded to herself, as though it was the simplest thing in the world. Inside, though, she was beaming. She could imagine only one idiot who would send her a letter like that. Her br- Zyl, she corrected, even in her head. He asked her for help. So soon. She¡¯d barely apologized, and he was giving her a chance to help. Trusting her with a plan. It seemed¡­ secretive. She didn¡¯t quite get why it was secret, though. Then again, Ber secretly sent a spy on her. Maybe there were more secrets around than she¡¯d thought. Nir tilted her head back and forth in front of the letter. It felt a little like Mer was asking her if he could visit. She hadn¡¯t had a friend over in a long time. Maybe a secret meeting with a friend would be nice? She smiled. If her family liked secrets so much, they¡¯d be proud of her for having a little secret of her own, right? And she¡¯d never liked the dome. - - - - - - Mercury would describe flying with Irrithuriel as an experience. It was certainly a thing he¡¯d now done. It was certainly a thing he¡¯d do again. It was also certainly a thing he wished would never happen again. Since flying as a full on dragon would have been a bit too conspicuous, Irrithuriel simply had a set of wings appear on her back, her clothes shifting to accompany the change in form. He tried to drag out what would inevitably happen next by asking about the clothing, but fate was relentless that day. A moment later, before he even got the chance to ask, the old lady scooped him up with one arm, and waved goodbye to Zyl with the other, then beat her wings a single time. Within that motion, she activated about a dozen Skills. The amount of wind that Mercury suddenly felt push against his face went entirely beyond anything previously comparable. He¡¯d been on the back of a motorcycle before, even on the highway, sure. He¡¯d stuck his head out a car window. He¡¯d gone far too fast to be safe downhill. This, though? Even if the incredible noise pressing against his ears hadn¡¯t given it away, Mercury knew they were going far above the speed of sound. There was so much wind, it easily blew apart his cheeks, and turned his fur sleek against his body. There was so much wind that kicked in, changing his bone structure a little to be less susceptible to air resistance. So much wind that he had to activate the threshold bonus from getting strength past a hundred on his neck, increasing muscle density just to keep his head in place. There was so much wind that, honestly, all the thoughts that weren¡¯t dedicated to swearing about how much wind there was considered activating his ihn¡¯ar to see if he couldn¡¯t pick up an understanding of the wind. And then they arrived. There¡¯d been so much wind, that it felt like it completely blew Mercury¡¯s mind blank. When he arrived, his fur was frazzled from the sudden stop, and was working hard to get him back to a reasonable condition. He might have been more befuddled, if not for already making the journey much, much easier on him, and and helping him make it out on the other side. Mercury took a deep breath of distinctly slower moving air, and unceremoniously hopped down from Irrithuriel¡¯s arm. His landing was a bit clumsy, accompanied by a stumble, because he only realized mid-air that he couldn¡¯t see his legs anymore. was already cast, and made it very hard for him to realize how he was stepping. A moment later, he could see an illusory image of his legs, making the coordination much easier. When he turned around, he saw a murky silhouette of Irrithuriel giving him a weak smile and a half-hearted shrug. She was also hidden, but had weakened her Skill¡¯s effect on Mercury specifically, letting him see through it just a bit. The mopaaw shook his head at the old lady, mentally chiding her for forgetting to do so earlier. Quickly, though, he focused on his mission again, raising his gaze to look at the mansion. It was still a couple hundred meters out, since they¡¯d flown to the edge of the dome. Mercury couldn¡¯t exactly see the dome, but he could definitely feel it was there. His sense for mana had improved by quite a bit recently, and was almost second nature by now, so he could notice how it grew thicker just a little bit in front of him, like a rounded wall of mana. Which seemed to be indicative of the dome. And they waited. Neither Mercury or Irrithuriel spoke as the minutes ticked by. Nir would deactivate the dome for them, or they¡¯d head back and try a new approach. She hadn¡¯t sent a letter back, but then again, they really hadn¡¯t expected one. Especially since secrecy was quite important. Of course, the fact that they didn¡¯t have much of a public address or a sender location on the letter didn¡¯t help matters. Mercury¡¯s pondering on the letter they¡¯d sent was interrupted when the air in front of him changed. The mana vibrated for a moment, fizzling like it was being shocked, then the containment stopped. The wall in front of him dissolved, as the mana began to slowly seep into its surroundings again, spreading out. With a victorious smile, Mercury turned to Irrithuriel, who shot him a determined nod. Then, he triggered , which combined with his already active illusionary appearance to make it extremely easy to overlook him entirely. He also had a few nets of very thin in his inventory, prepared to help a guard who got a bit too close¡­ forget their encounter. And then he set off. Going from the outside to the inside of the dome was still a significant change. There was more mana inside, once compressed and held in place by the scrying-field. Now, of course, the field was gone, and the mana was entirely inert, no longer maintaining an enchantment, but it was still distinctly present. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. It was so thick, in fact, that Mercury felt it prickle against his skin. Absorbing some of it could definitely help him grow his mana pool, but that was not what he was here for at all. Instead, he stalked through the way to the mansion. To get there, they¡¯d picked a bit of a less travelled road, which essentially meant he was going along a mountain path, hopping from ridge to ridge. Soon, the rocks gave way for a much more pleasantly nerve-wracking part of the journey, the gardens. Dozens of flowers and plants filled his vision as he stepped over the edge of a cliff, catching the first proper glance of the mansion from above. There were guards of all kinds patrolling the premises, clad in metal armor, their boots clanking more or less as they walked. A moment later, he hopped down the cliff with only a couple jumps. The flowers seemed to welcome him as he hid in the brush, stretching out and veiling him from the guards¡¯ sight. They were also in a way, after all. With the help of he¡¯d even pushed to level 3 before coming here, so he had that extra layer of protection, too. It was already quite dark outside, but with , Mercury was able to easily maneuver through the gardens, sneaking by the guards. The ones out here seemed tired and careless, many yawning as their shifts went on, or leaning on their weapons if they wielded polearms. Getting past them was not very difficult for Mercury anymore, especially with how sparse they were. Only a handful of minutes later, he¡¯d already made it to the main gate of the mansion. The building was huge, carved from different kinds of rock and sculpted beautifully. Its door was taller than any humanoid would reasonably need, seemingly enough to let a giant walk through without too much trouble. The sight made Mercury feel even smaller than he usually did. But the only thing he cared to notice about the door was that it was distinctly closed, with two guards stationed next to it. Opening it would be very difficult - the door would have to weigh quite a bit, being that huge - so sneaking past was probably the way to go. A quick look around told Mercury that there were windows, some with baskets of flowers hanging in front of them. A couple even had hanging vines grow along the walls, reaching up to them. A thin smile placed itself on Mercury¡¯s face. Rather than dealing with the door, which was probably trapped to hell and back, he decided to simply walk sideways instead. With a few swift jumps from hiding spot to hiding spot, he¡¯d made it to some of the plants that adorned the mansion walls. They welcomed him. reached out to the vines, and Mercury could feel their desire to grow, to spread, to use this house as a guide and reach for the sky. He had to only feed them a little bit of enthusiasm, encourage them slightly, and cling onto a newly growing stalk tightly to begin his rapid ascent of the building wall. Now, maybe if it had been a moonlit night, the guards would have noticed him, but Irrithuriel made sure that the sky was cloudy. It was dark, the air heavy with an approaching storm, and not one person was facing the mopaaw. Their eyes simply slid past his phantom form, deflected by a multitude of abilities. A moment later, he jumped to the side from the vine, landing on a bed of flowers that was hung on a windowframe. Tiny clumps of earth rained down, but Mercury ignored them. Instead, he tried to open the window. Locked. Nothing a swift use of could not fix. The latch was inside, but the Skill wasn¡¯t exactly confined by walls, but by sight. So, since he could see where the locking mechanism was, he could use his nifty little ghost hands, push it aside, and a second later, he was already inside the building. Which was where the trouble would start properly. The spot he arrived in was a hallway, one with a handful of guards patrolling, but he didn¡¯t have quite as much darkness to hide in anymore.There were dozens of lamps, magical and otherwise, attached to the walls and the pillars which held up the ceiling. Mercury almost clicked his tongue, before holding back and realizing that it was a very bad idea. Instead, he funnelled more power into and kept moving. He had no idea where the study was, and the building was huge, but that didn¡¯t mean his toolkit was empty. and could surely guide him. [Take a right.] Appy sounded to him, and Mercury followed her advice without hesitation. There was a door there, but it stood open just a smidge, and he quickly squeezed past. A guard looked down at him, but a stray breeze knocked a strand of her hair loose, and by the time she¡¯d tucked it behind her ears, there was nothing to be seen. A couple breaths later, she shrugged it off, then kept staring into nothingness. Mercury, for himself, kept following Appy¡¯s advice, and whenever she didn¡¯t know, he simply went with his gut. Sure, there was a chance it was wrong, but the chance for it to be right was quite literally higher, so he was bound to eventually reach the goal, even if it was highly annoying that he had to double back five times. There were multiple instances of him almost being discovered, which ended in two uses of his prepared threads, and when on the third time that failed, he used one of Irrithuriel¡¯s prepared potions, having the guard fall asleep immediately. Of course, there was a chance he might remember, but then again, anyone but the most insane people would simply discard the idea of a mopaaw throwing a potion at them as a dream. Far more likely they just fell asleep, no? But, after a couple dozen hallways, each looking almost the same, and a couple much more special looking rooms, Mercury finally pushed open a door to something different. A desk, bookshelves lining the walls, an expensive looking desk near a window¡­ he¡¯d hit the jackpot. Except for the fact that there was someone sitting at the table. Said person was slumped over, and deeply asleep, lying on his arms. The person had hair like seaweed and a thin frame like a breeze could snap him in half. Despite that, he even slightly stirred from the noise of the door opening. Mercury froze like a deer in headlights, his mind going blank for just a moment, until the man fell asleep entirely again. Why, exactly, Thorythenior was sleeping in his wife¡¯s study, Mercury didn¡¯t know. And he was sure it was Trinya¡¯s study, given the fact that it was orderly. Zyl didn¡¯t talk much about his father, but he certainly wasn¡¯t orderly. The man was lazy to the bones, and if he already had to put in the effort of taking a book from a shelf, he certainly wouldn¡¯t put in the effort to put it back. Maybe that was the reason he slept in the study. He needed to go there for something, but then simply didn¡¯t see a reason to go back, and laid down on the table. And now Mercury had to deal with it. Gritting his teeth, the mopaaw closed the door as silently as he could. The linger effects of that he still had access to, as well as , helped him do so almost soundlessly. Luckily, there was not even a hint of movement from Thorythenior. As slowly as he possibly could, Mercury shuffled closer to the desk. That was where the map was most likely to be, but as he hopped onto a lower shelf, Mercury noted that there was very little left on the desk. Anything that had laid on there was sweeped onto the floor by Thorythenior. Obviously, Mercury has looked at the floor before, but there were only miscellaneous papers there, nothing major. His gut told him the map was likely to be in one of the desk drawers. [The map is likely in one of the desk drawers.] Appy told him the same thing. Again, it was something Mercury knew as well, except that said drawers were simply hidden behind Thorythenior. Despite the increasingly large grimace on his face, Mercury set about his work. But he wasn¡¯t exactly dumb enough to immediately approach the sleeping man. Instead, he decided to use his best method for this situation. . His mana was at about a third by now, having sustained for multiple minutes, but he still poured more of it into his ability to create string. He made them as thin as he possibly could, more like silk than any type of rope, and simply draped tiny bits of it over the sleeping dragon. Second after second ticked by, and Thorythenior¡¯s sleep seemed to become slightly more restful, to the point where he turned, fell off the chair onto the floor with a thud, and didn¡¯t even seem to notice. Mercury winced at the noise, but also saw his chance, quickly trying to pull open one of the drawers, only to find it locked. He cursed mentally, grimacing, and tried poking around in the lock with for half a minute. No chance, the lock seemed entirely different from any normal pin lock or latch he could have dealt with. None of the other drawers had the map, and there was no key on Thorythenior, so Trinya probably kept it on herself. The grimace on Mercury¡¯s face grew deeper. He had to be fast, then. Quickly, he pulled out another potion, keeping an eye on the thin, frail looking dragon on the floor next to him. He applied a drop of it to the lock, while taking out the ice ink Irrithuriel had given him. Then, there was a loud snapping noise, followed by some creaking and cranking as the lock undid itself. The mechanical whirring lasted maybe ten seconds or so, but it was enough for Thorythenior to frown and stir some more on the floor, leaving Mercury to reapply some , using up more of his mana reserves. He was down to less than 100 Mp now. With a final loud snap, the lock was done, Mercury pulled open the drawer, spotted the map, held it firmly in his head, and activated the ice ink. Immediately, black drops of liquid climbed out of the vial, much more than should have fit in, assembling into a model of a mountain range. Multiple spots were marked with circles or other symbols, and a small legend even shaped itself into the corner, explaining what things meant. Before Mercury had a chance to fully understand any of it, he shoved the construct into his inventory, packed up, and hoped no one noticed the open drawer. Watching his mana tick down, he hurriedly jumped over to the window, undid the lock, and jumped onto the windowsill. From outside, he locked it again, giving the inside of the study a last gaze. He froze. Thorythenior had one eye open, blearily staring at Mercury. His eye was dark, almost black in the night, with no light in the study, but Mercury was sure the dragon saw him. He clung onto some vain hope. Maybe he was asleep and just blinked. Maybe he wouldn¡¯t be seeing properly after waking up in the middle of the night. Maybe he- Thorythenior closed his eye, and turned around, no longer facing the window. With his enhanced hearing, he could barely pick up a grumbling whisper. ¡°Too bothersome. Not getting up.¡± After a moment of hesitation, mercury decided he did not need to be told twice. He took his chance, and jumped down from the windowsill, quickly making his escape from the estate. Chapter 164: Tactical Breaktime Chapter 164: Tactical Breaktime ¡°Wait, that worked?!¡± Irrithuriel looked at Mercury, completely aghast as he showed the map to her. Getting out had been much easier, though his resources were nearly empty by the end. Still, he was able to quickly scale a bit of the cliffside and hide there, regenerating, before taking a path that would be completely impossible for most humans to walk. Mercury just shrugged at her, giving an equally confused expression. Despite the shock, the old lady quickly pulled herself together, and spread her wings wide. ¡°Whatever the case, I''m glad to see it panned out well,¡± she said. ¡°Ready to head back?¡± There was a short break in the conversation as Mercury took a deep and centered himself. Getting to the mansion had already been an experience, so getting back would most likely be equally fast. Which is why Mercury wanted to be in ihn¡¯ar for it. A few moments later, his thoughts clicked into place, and the world looked just a little different. Only then did he nod at Irrithuriel. Then, in less than a second, he found himself going through the air at breakneck speeds. The wind howled in his ears, pushing his fur back. He didn¡¯t even need to breathe, the air pressed itself into his lungs. His eyes were dry in a moment, but with a small bit of understanding, the in the air kept them wet. And Mercury saw a world unlike he¡¯d ever seen before. It took only a moment for him to understand how the wind felt. What he understood was that he already aligned well with it. The wind meant freedom. The absolute freedom to go wherever it wished whenever it wished. It would blow, and take, and move, and shake. It could be a gentle breeze, or a raging storm, but it was only ever wind if it moved. The thought aligned with Mercury himself. His travels, seeing the world. There was a tacit understanding there; he wished he could borrow the freedom of the wind. And the wind responded. It wanted to do things, too. To dance, to move, to sing. To rush through fur and past skin, to journey alongside those who go fast, ahead of them and behind them. It wanted to be a tailwind, and it wanted to be a tornado, and whatever the wind was it was only because it wished to be. And it was willing to share a bit of that wish with Mercury. [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] Then he landed again. Immediately, he let the ihn¡¯ar fall apart as he returned to a more normal reality. But even then, the air now spoke to him. Quiet, hushed whispers. They were easy to ignore, and hard to make sense of, more like a gaggle of children talking to each other with him standing at the sidelines. If he focussed, he might hear something, but otherwise, it was noise that easily faded away. Mercury jumped from irrithuriel¡¯s hands and landed on the soft grass. The sky felt a little less foreign now, but he still generally preferred to have the ground underneath his feet. A couple seconds later, Zyl came from the log cabin, welcoming them back. Before the dragon even got a chance to ask how things went, Irrithuriel walked past him. ¡°We¡¯ll talk inside, alright? I need to rest these old bones a little,¡± she said, waving her hand. Zyl chuckled in response. ¡°Yes, alright, alright. I¡¯m just glad you made it back safe, you two.¡± ¡°What else were you expecting, silly?¡± Mercury teased. ¡°I told ya it would be fine.¡± He walked through the doorway with Zyl by his side. ¡°Though, granted, there was your father in the study, and I think he might have seen me,¡± the mopaaw added as the door shut behind him. Both Irrithuriel and Zyl froze at his declaration. Their heads slowly turned to meet him. ¡°Please, Mercury, tell me a little more about that?¡± Zyl pleaded, his brows furrowed in worry. ¡°Well, I was in the study, trying to find the map. It was in one of the drawers of the desk, but Thorythenior was sitting at it. He didn¡¯t wake up while I was copying the map, but when I left, he saw me jump out the window with one eye, I think,¡± Mercury explained. There was another long silence. ¡°Did he say anything?¡± Zyl asked quietly. ¡°Yeah, something along the lines of it being too annoying, so he wasn¡¯t moving. I think he just closed his eyes again and went back to sleep.¡± This time, a sigh of relief followed from the young dragon, and he placed a hand on Mercury¡¯s back. ¡°I¡¯m glad you made it out safely. That could have gone a lot worse.¡± ¡°I mean, at least Trinya didn¡¯t see me at all. That¡¯s good news, right?¡± ¡°Very,¡± Zyl assured him. ¡°This already went about as well as we could have asked for. I think expecting it to go any better than this would have been a little greedy.¡± He gave a cheeky smile at that. ¡°Then again, dragons are known for greed.¡± Mercury smiled back, pressing his head into Zyl¡¯s arm for a moment in affection. Then, he looked back to Irrithuriel. The old lady had by now sat down at a chair and was draped over it, acting as though she was entirely exhausted. ¡°I swear, I envy you young¡¯uns¡¯ energy. This was the most exhausting thing I¡¯ve done in ages!¡± she lamented once she noticed their looks. Her wings were gone again, and so was her tail, returning her to the misleading image of a graceful and slightly frail old lady. ¡°Well, I suppose you¡¯d want to eat now, then?¡± Mercury asked with a grin. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Irrithuriel returned him a look of displeasure. ¡°And I suppose you expect me to cook, Starlight?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯d be happy to give it a try as well,¡± the mopaaw returned with an even wider smile. The old dragon grimaced at that, then pushed herself off the chair while grumbling. ¡°Dang rascals. You might as well rob me blind at the pace you¡¯re going through my food storage. These old bones aren¡¯t made for this much work¡­¡± On and on she went, occasionally waving a wooden spoon for emphasis. Zyl and Mercury shared a chuckle, waiting until she was done preparing the food. A few hours later, all of them were lying back with full bellies. Mercury had rolled up on the bed first, Zyl joining him a moment later, while Irrithuriel simply leaned back in a rocking chair in front of the fireplace, slowly bobbing back and forth. The cabin was quiet until morning came, the late night adventure finally behind them. Mercury only woke up when a few rays of sunshine landed on his face. He stirred slightly, noticing the weight of half a blanket and Zyl¡¯s arm draped over him. A smile quickly laid itself across his lips, and he kept his eyes shut, enjoying the quiet a little longer. In the back of his head, he was already considering the map and the ensuing things they had to do, but at least for a little while, he enjoyed the slow morning. Bit by bit, the world woke up. Mercury dozed off many times again, but there would always be a bird to call him back. It was funny, he only noticed now just how different the birds sounded in the mountains than back when he was travelling through forests. They were more sparse, but quite a bit louder when they did appear. Probably more eagles or something rather than sparrows or crows. Did those live in forests? He honestly had no clue. Whatever the case, there were loud birds now, and they only became more insistent that Mercury wake up. So, eventually, he relented. With a force of will, he crawled out from under the blanket, gave a long look at Zyl¡¯s adorable sleeping face, his lips slightly apart. Mercury tapped his snout against the dragon¡¯s forehead gently, before soundlessly hopping out of bed. There were a couple notifications to go through. Namely the ones which levelled. and both reached level 4, while went from 8 straight to 10, then promptly went through an automatic evolution, turning into . It was nice that he didn¡¯t need to pay any points for it that way. Slowly, Mercury opened the shutters on the windows, letting more light in than the scant few rays that seemed to have found his face exactly. Irrithuriel was sleeping in the rocking chair, snoring ever so slightly. Sunlight started to enter the room, casting great squares of gold across the runed wooden floor. Occasionally, some of Irrithuriel¡¯s tiny helpers would skitter over the bits of sunshine, and the light would reflect off their icy party, creating small fractal patterns on the ceiling. Once all the windows were open, the two dragons still didn¡¯t stir. Mercury smiled a little at that, then decided to open the door to the outside and grab some fresh air. After only a couple steps, he saw a very familiar shape laying on the hillside, legs splayed across the grass. ¡°Morning, Nir,¡± Mercury greeted, taking a seat next to the girl. ¡°Hey,¡± she croaked, her voice hoarse as though she just woke. ¡°Up early?¡± Mercury took a look at the sun. ¡°Not really,¡± he said. ¡°Mh.¡± ¡°You came here for any reason?¡± he asked. ¡°Yeah. Wanted to ask. Did I help?¡± she turned to look at the mopaaw, her face strangely blank. He smiled at her. ¡°You did great, Nir. I managed to get everything done with pretty much no problem. I think your dad might have spotted me, though.¡± She smiled a crooked smile, though her cheeks flushed slightly in happiness. ¡°I¡¯m glad,¡± she said, looking back up at the sky. ¡°And don¡¯t worry. Father won¡¯t do nothing. Too lazy.¡± Mercury chuckled at that. ¡°You sure?¡± ¡°Sure as can be,¡± she nodded seriously. ¡°If you tried to wake him, though? Different story.¡± ¡°I like to tell myself I was quiet.¡± ¡°Good. Good choice,¡± the girl said. The two stared at the sky for a long while. ¡°How did you get the dome down?¡± Mercury asked eventually. Nir grinned at him. ¡°Violence.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°I went to the dome room. I hit the console very hard. I apologize, and people fix it. Works every time,¡± she explained further. Mercury smiled. ¡°I suppose violence can solve many problems, sometimes.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Nir agreed enthusiastically, chuckling to herself. Then, the two were quiet for a bit again. Eventually, Zyl walked out and saw them. He took his seat next to Mercury. ¡°Morning Mercury,¡± he said groggily. ¡°Hey Nir.¡± ¡°Morning.¡± ¡°Heya.¡± Silence. Zyl laid a hand on Mercury¡¯s back again, enjoying the warmth through the fur. ¡°Breakfast?¡± he asked. ¡°Breakfast,¡± the mopaaw confirmed. They got up after a few minutes of sitting, Nir looking at them from the grass. Zyl was hesitating, even biting his lips. Mercury didn¡¯t. ¡°Come along, Nir. Enough food for all of us,¡± he said. Immediately, the girl¡¯s face lightened up. ¡°Okay!¡± she said happily. - - - A couple hours later, Nir had left again, heading back to the mansion. Would it be suspicious that she headed out again the day after one of the locks on Trinya¡¯s desk was broken? Maybe. Would it be even more suspicious since she broke the dome? Definitely. Did Mercury care all that much? Not really. Zyl¡¯s family was already quite paranoid, Trinya probably a little less than Berthorn, but still. She would most likely be wary anyway, so they would wait before attacking the first smithy. Mercury still had a couple pages until he promised to be in Stormbraver. Which seemed to just about match up with the time it would still take for the whole weaponization of Zyl¡¯s spark to happen. They¡¯d get to that in maybe a week or so. For now, they could take it a little slow, and give the situation time to cool off. Which is exactly what they did. For seven days, Mercury, Zyl and Irrithuriel mostly simply sat at the lodge. Mercury practiced his magic more, managing to get as well as to level 2 each. But aside from that, he spent a lot of time resting, if one could consider it that. He¡¯d sit outside, listening to the wind and the grass. Spent long evenings chatting with Zyl about everything and nothing. He talked to the dragon about his past life more, and about his current one, about everything he¡¯d experienced. He also learned a lot more about Zyl in exchange. Irrithuriel gave them a lot of space to enjoy each other¡¯s company, though she did enjoy occasionally joining in on less personal conversations, or simply sitting by the fireplace as she went about her business. Oftentimes, she went out to gather some more herbs for her alchemy, and every now and again, Mercury would come along to help. She made another potion for Zyl, which he drank, and it helped him recover some more. By now, he was able to live mostly as normal again. He could walk, talk, and even summon aspects of his dragon form without issue. But he probably shouldn¡¯t fight quite yet. According to Irrithuriel, his wound was still healing. She¡¯d applied stitches, to the point where it mostly seemed fine, but if he overexerted that muscle, they¡¯d rip open. And he¡¯d have to almost certainly start the entire healing process over. They also talked more about getting his spark back. It wasn¡¯t exactly as simple as just putting it back where it belonged; Zyl would need to spend some time absorbing it and acclimatising to it again. He¡¯d changed a bit since losing it, after all, so it would be like a puzzle piece that doesn¡¯t quite fit. Still, it was still more than helpful for helping him heal back up, and could turn what should be a recovery of multiple chapters into one that would only take a couple pages. If he got it, he might even go to Stormbraver with Mercury, which the mopaaw was definitely looking forward to. Just imagining Marcel¡¯s face when he introduced his boyfriend as the leader of a nation and a fully fledged dragon would be absolutely hilarious. But for now, it was a far off dream. Day after day drifted by, the sun rose and set over the mountains. Nir visited two more times, and was invited inside on both occasions. The talks with her around were still a bit stiff, but Mercury did his best to have things flow as naturally as possible. was doing quite a bit of heavy lifting on that front, too. Maybe it would level soon, maybe it wouldn¡¯t, Mercury could only wait and see. After the seven days, they discussed that it was time to put their plan into action. Mercury woke up, had a healthy breakfast, then a few minutes of mental prep time, and finally, he set off with Irrithuriel, to see whether or not the first crafting location had Zyl¡¯s spark. Chapter 165: Thievery, except only stealing what they aren鈥檛 looking for Chapter 165: Thievery, except only stealing what they aren¡¯t looking for Trinyakorie sat at her desk - her distinctly damaged desk - and wore a very ugly expression on her face. Her teeth were grit, her nose scrunched up, and multiple veins showed on her forehead. She seemed just about ready to explode, and quite frankly, she was. One of her workshops had been entirely ruined. Not softly damaged, not in slight disarray, but turned entirely upside down. Somehow, none of the people had gotten harmed, which seemed incredible to her. All of them just left the building as though their work was done, and then, minutes later, it broke. Molten metal spilled everywhere, destroying dozens of pieces of machinery and equipment. Tools were disassembled, workstations turned upside down. There were workpieces, parts of her weapon that were currently in progress which had been shattered, like someone took them from the forge and cooled them down so fast the metal simply couldn¡¯t stand the contraction, snapping apart. Her eyes drifted over line after line of the report, and her fury only grew. Anything valuable that wasn¡¯t broken had been stolen. Crystals, gems, valuable minerals and plants, rare metals¡­ all disappeared. Some petty thieves had shown up at her workshop leaving only a damaged lock at her desk for evidence, and suddenly sabotaged her entire operation. And no one knew anything. All the workers and smiths and artificers were silent. Said they¡¯d never seen what happened. Her husband, who had slept in her study, said he¡¯d never woken up. The fact that her own child had damaged the surveillance force field generators on the very same day was a simple coincidence. Her guards saw no one. How?! How were there no traces? Not even a hair! No scent, no testimonies, not even a letter or anything. Simply incredible damages without any forewarning, A second letter arrived at her desk, She¡¯d barely read the first one, and her eyes drifted over for but a moment. The wax seal was from another one of her workshops. Trinyakorie blinked, then reached out of the piece of paper with a steady hand. She opened the letter and began reading. It reported much the same. A second location, hit only a few hours after the first, suddenly faced with incredible damages. And, of course, no one had the slightest clue as to what was going on. The dragonmother took multiple deep breaths to calm herself and attempt to find a solution to her troubles. ¡°Trouble?¡± a mocking voice from the doorframe rudely interrupted her. Her head whipped around to face the coward child, eyes alight with fury. ¡°Yes. Trouble.¡± Berthorn rubbed his hands., approaching her desk ¡°My favourite. What kind?¡± ¡°It does not concern you,¡± Trinya ground out from between gritted teeth. ¡°Hah!¡± The mocking laugh made its way from Berthorn¡¯s stomach before he knew it, and his mother¡¯s gaze turned even more furious in response. ¡°Doesn¡¯t concern me, eh? Part of your big secret project?¡± Trinya turned back to the letters on her desk, suppressing the anger she felt at the coward. He had always had a habit of this; of showing up only when people were already at a low point, when they were angry or busy. She met his incessant chatter with silence. ¡°Hm, I see. Yes, this is part of your project,¡± Berthorn muttered, prancing around her desk. He threw sly glances towards the letters, but didn¡¯t manage to catch what they said, his mother¡¯s hands covering them up. Not that he needed to know. Berthorn was more than aware of what the letters said, after all. He innerly sneered contemptuously at his mother. He wondered how she felt now, whether she was still happy facing all the suppression she had put on him for so long. Whether, if she knew the truth, she would still consider him a coward. How he ever feared the vitriolic woman was beyond him. Now, he felt so superior. It was incredible, like floating on a cloud, and he relished every step he made through her office, leaning in towards the table, then further away again. His mother was so angry, fuming even, just short of snapping at him, yet every one of his Skills signalled that she would only attack him if he misspoke. Berthorn hardly ever made such mistakes. The feeling was freeing. Knowing he was safe near an enemy. Truly incredible. ¡°Please, mother, I only came to offer help,¡± he said out loud, wearing an amicable smile. He had not come to help. He was there to gloat at her misery. ¡°Berthorn, this is not something you can help with,¡± Trinya answered, holding on to her royal demeanor, sitting perfectly straight, as she always did. The younger dragon crossed his arms lightly. ¡°I believe it is, mother. My Skills seem strangely suited to solving this little case of yours.¡± ¡°They are unneeded,¡± she said, waving him off. ¡°You may leave my study.¡± ¡°May I now?¡± Berthorn asked. When no reply came, he shifted again, uncrossing his arms, and turning his back to his mother. He was at the front of the room, now, facing the wall of bookshelves. Rather than leaving, he began running his fingers across the spines of the old volumes. He pulled one of them out. ¡°I enjoy this one, mother,¡± he said, leafing through the pages. It was a historical recounting of a tale of an ancient dragon. One that had died in another Book entirely. Berthorn didn¡¯t care about the distance, he cared about the contents. His mother didn¡¯t look up from her papers. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. ¡°See here, mother? This is how the main character got disowned by his parents. They¡¯ll take him back in a couple chapters later, you know?¡± Silence. ¡°But he refuses, of course, he does, and seeks revenge.¡± ¡°Was it you?¡± Trinya asked. Her voice was stable, entirely free of fury. She sat on the chair, as straight as always, though her head had shifted. Her eyes bored into Berthorn like pits of lava, demanding he meet them. He did so with an amiable smile. Leisurely, Berthorn put the book back on the shelf, slid his hands into the pockets of his suit jacket, then leaned back against the bookshelf with crossed legs. ¡°What, me?¡± He scoffed. ¡°Never, mother. No. I am simply very sure that there is someone with the motive and the means to interfere with your project.¡± ¡°Someone such as yourself.¡± It wasn¡¯t a question. ¡°Yes, someone who used to be quite close to me, even.¡± Berthorn still met her eyes, until Trinya, herself, turned to face the window instead. She scoffed at his words. ¡°Your brother is powerless.¡± At this point, the other dragon couldn¡¯t take it anymore. He chuckled, then huffed, and eventually laughed out loud, holding his face with one hand. Trinya looked at her son stone-faced, her expression as though hewn from marble. She waited as he laughed, bending at the waist, laughed and laughed on. Eventually, he stopped. ¡°Powerless?¡± Berthorn asked, withdrawing a handkerchief to wipe away his tears from laughter. He chuckled again. ¡°Yes, of course. My brother is powerless. There has never been an instance of you thinking that before and losing out on things because of it.¡± He slung the handkerchief over his shoulder. Without giving his mother another look, he strolled towards the door. ¡°Powerless,¡± he muttered to himself with another chuckle and a shake of his head as he opened the door. ¡°Mother. For your own sake, reconsider,¡± he said, then shut the door behind him. Immediately, Berthorn lost all traces of the succinct smile he¡¯d been wearing. He was feeling elated on the inside, free, but he showed not a trace of it. With a nod to the guard outside, Berthorn strolled through the corridors. Now, the shadows seemed out to get him again, every one of the guards a potential traitor. Just like his mother, he knew that someone had entered the mansion. He had his suspicions for who it was, that damned mopaaw seemed to stick its paws everywhere, and it would be just like his brother to meddle. They also had sufficient contact with his sister to ask her a favour, such as disabling the wards. Berthorn thought of the theory, and felt innerly happy. They had acted just in time to fall for his trap. Soon, there would be a third letter on his mother¡¯s desk, this time, maybe with witnesses. Neither of the two current attacks had been done by Mercury. Berthorn had long since planted spies within the groups of artificers. At the other workstations, flaws were being planted into the devices. No matter how many of them were fakes, he would simply manipulate and put his tracks over each and every one. This time, he simply commanded his workers to have everyone exit, then devastate the facility. They caused havoc. Two places, shortly after one another, leaving perhaps just enough time to fly from one over to the next. And within his own treasuries, he had gained from this. No matter how much he had to pay for the spies, all the deals were worthwhile now. The amount of precious materials he got from these swift strikes exceeded his imagination wildly. As Berthorn left his parents¡¯ mansion, he permitted himself a smile again. The sun stood high in the sky, casting a shadow behind him. Despite his suspicion towards the guards, he granted himself one moment of pure bliss. Elation at the brewing success of his plans. Elation at finally breaking froth from his mother¡¯s shadow. Elation at the grasp he had of his own destiny. Then, he let the smile fade away, his expression returned to a neutral one as he walked. There was still so much to do, after all. - - - - - - Mercury and Irrithuriel left early in the day, and came back a few hours later, after everything passed. They didn¡¯t find the spark in the single place they robbed, but there were many more to go, so they weren¡¯t in a hurry. It left Mercury with plenty of time to practice his magic some more, once his mana regenerated, and until then, he simply enjoyed his time with Zyl, chatting the hours away. Day after day passed as such. Not being discovered was the hardest part, but it was still doable. Irrithuriel would occasionally simply have everyone inside leaving, and they¡¯d search after, and sometimes she would coat both Mercury and herself in illusions as they went about searching the facilities. They came across one which was already empty on the fourth day of searching. Which was strange, because they hadn¡¯t looted it yet. Was there someone else also going around and doing the same thing as them? Destroying Trinya¡¯s hard work for personal reasons? Mercury bit his lip at the sight. Not that he wasn¡¯t happy other people were ruining Trinya¡¯s plans, but at the same time, if they found Zyl¡¯s spark, would the dragon ever get to see it again? Mercury doubted it. So, he and Irrithuriel set about going fast in their attacks, but at the same time, guards around the facilities were increasing. There had been hardly any before, since the whole operation was more of a quiet thing, but now, each one of the workshops was patrolled and protected. Which made it significantly harder to explore. Despite that, Mercury didn¡¯t let himself be discouraged. They still kept searching as much as possible, but weren¡¯t really able to speed up their pace. A few days later, they¡¯d searched all of the workshops, and the spark was nowhere in sight. Once again, Irrithuriel, Zyl, and Mercury sat at a table, looking for a plan. ¡°Surely, Trinyakorie would simply have moved the spark to be worked on under her direct supervision now, right?¡± Irrithuriel suggested at the table. She was leaning far back in her chair, her eyes closed. She¡¯d been complaining about her back, once again. ¡°I don¡¯t know. She may have simply stopped the production for now,¡± Zyl said nervously. He was pacing back and forth next to the table, unable to sit down. ¡°Maybe not. She didn¡¯t exactly seem like a very patient person when I saw her,¡± Mercury added. Zyl shot him a look. ¡°She can be.¡± ¡°All dragons are willing to wait,¡± Irrithuriel agreed. She took a long pause to stretch during which Zyl gave her a nod. ¡°But Trinyakorie is not as renowned for waiting. Not when it comes to power.¡± Zyl chewed his lip. ¡°That¡¯s true¡­¡± ¡°Well, what do we have to lose? If we just walk up to her and negotiate for the spark, what can she do?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Kill you,¡± Irrithuriel replied. ¡°Yes, maybe, but not easily!¡± ¡°Very easily,¡± Zyl said with a sigh. ¡°Mercury. I love you for your bravery. But there is a line between that and foolishness. My mother looks down on anyone who is not a dragon. She would see you as little less than a common beast, same as she sees humans, mind you. One wrong word, and after a swift breath of fire I may only take your ashes back.¡± Mercury looked at him for a long, drawn out moment, then sighed. ¡°Alright,¡± he said finally. ¡°Fine. What do you suggest then?¡± Zyl threw his hands up. ¡°To simply stop! Stop here. We can go home. Be left alone. Act as though this never happened. I¡¯ll heal, in time.¡± Mercury shrugged. ¡°You might. Let¡¯s assume you will. When will your family return to ask for more? How much is enough? What will your mother use that power for, use your power for?¡± This time, Zyl looked at him stunned. ¡°Is that truly my responsibility?¡± ¡°No. But it¡¯s our future, Zyl. I¡¯m sick of letting these people walk over you. Your brother tried to kill me. Your mother will try to harm us. There is a chance that maybe they will simply leave us alone, but would you bet our lives on that?¡± ¡°... No.¡± ¡°Right, then. So how do we stop your mother from crafting the weapon?¡± Mercury finally brought it back on track. ¡°We may be able to simply ask her,¡± Irrithuriel said, her eyes finally drifting open. ¡°It will go poorly,¡± Zyl said limply. ¡°Perhaps. But it is better than inaction. Perhaps I could ask her, while you and Starlight may work together to attempt to find the shard?¡± She raised an eyebrow. Mercury cocked his head. ¡°How would we go about that?¡± ¡°Starlight. Your¡­ dream magic, whatever it is, I believe you mentioned putting marks on people, or following tethers?¡± ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s a bit inexact since I mostly go by the feel of it, but that¡¯s the gist of it. If someone has a tether to me, I can usually follow it, and place a mark on them, letting me find them. I still feel some of those in the back of my head,¡± he said. ¡°Good. Then, can you follow the tethers on someone else?¡± Irrithuriel asked. ¡°Maybe, yeah, it should be possible at least.¡± ¡°Perhaps you could see if there is a tether between Friaminth and his spark, then?¡± She suggested. There was a long silence. ¡°Huh,¡± Mercury finally said. ¡°That might just work.¡± Irrithuriel smiled at the men¡¯s incredulous looks. ¡°It¡¯s a plan, then. Work your magic, Dreamer, and I will ask Trinyakorie about her project. No doubt she already knows I assist you.¡± Chapter 166: Gratitude Chapter 166: Gratitude ¡°Is it working yet?¡± Zyl asked. ¡°I dunno,¡± Mercury answered. ¡°I don¡¯t feel anything.¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t,¡± the mopaaw said. ¡°It really feels like I should be feeling something by this point,¡± Zyl replied, his eyes vaguely drifting across the ceiling. ¡°Just be patient.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve said that for the last half hour¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to focus!¡± ¡°Right, sorry!¡± Zyl swiftly pressed his hands onto his mouth, letting Mercury work in blissful silence for a while. And Mercury was working. He¡¯d found marks on himself before, the tiny traces left by Skills, then followed them back. He knew what those felt like. Well, each was different, but he knew roughly what they felt like. Now, though, he was looking for something else entirely. Zyl¡¯s connection to his spark wasn¡¯t because of a Skill at all. It was just because it was part of him. Mercury felt like he was looking for a lost limb by looking at the wound. It just didn¡¯t seem to yield much effort. ¡°So what exactly are you doing, Mercury?¡± Zyl asked again, unable to endure the silence and boredom. Mercury, shaken from his thoughts, looked at the dragon¡¯s face, and lightly smacked him with a paw. ¡°Looking for a connection.¡± Zyl smiled through the smack, but at least had the decency to put on an embarrassed face. His silence lasted for all of five seconds before he asked again. ¡°And how are you looking for it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s instinctual.¡± ¡°Mmmh, what kinda instinct is it?¡± ¡°Zyl I¡¯m gonna start to get a little upset if you keep asking,¡± Mercury said with a sigh. The dragon paused for a few moments. ¡°Maybe walking me through it would help?¡± Finally, Mercury simply threw his paws into the air, taking them off of Zyl¡¯s stomach. ¡°Fine! Fine. I¡¯ll explain, then. Not like we¡¯re in a hurry or something.¡± At Mercury¡¯s clear enunciation of the last part, Zyl once again flushed with embarrassment, but still simply waited for an answer. After a break that lasted for a couple minutes, during which Mercury drank some water and took some time to give Zyl mean looks, he put his paws back on the man¡¯s stomach. ¡°What I do, Zyl, is close my eyes.¡± ¡°Mhm.¡± ¡°Then I focus.¡± Mercury scrunched up his face for emphasis. ¡°Okay.¡± ¡°Then I try to feel¡­¡± he paused, unsure of how to say it. ¡°Feel what?¡± ¡°I¡¯m thinking.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Mercury took a little while longer to answer. He was looking for the marks, the way he¡¯d done it for himself, but he just couldn¡¯t quite figure out what that meant without breaking focus. So, he came up with the simplest solution he could imagine: splitting his mind. One half searched for the thing, the other double checked what the searching part was doing. Turns out, it was a whole lot. ¡°According to my ground-breaking research, Zyl-¡± ¡°You¡¯re researching this right now?¡± The dragon raised an eyebrow. Mercury groaned. ¡°Uuuugh. Yes, I am. Now, be a good test dummy and stop squirming.¡± ¡°Sorry,¡± the dragon said with a grin that spoke volumes about just how sorry he was. ¡°Right. I¡¯m checking for pretty much anything out of place on your body. Mana that doesn¡¯t match the stuff you produce yourself, little impurities on you, changes in stamina concentration in your body, and, somewhat surprisingly, checking the dreamweave around you.¡± Zyl was silent for a few moments. ¡°All that?¡± ¡°A bit more, but those are the main things, yes.¡± ¡°Okay, just one more question.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Mercury said, his patience running somewhat thin again. ¡°The heck is a dreamweave? You wanna tell that to me?¡± The mopaaw paused to take a breath. ¡°You wouldn¡¯t get it,¡± he said. ¡°Then please, explain away,¡± Zyl said with a grin, sticking out his tongue. Once more, Mercury let out a deep sigh. ¡°Alright, frick it. Let¡¯s see just how long I can keep up this zeyjn before my mind gives out. Congrats Zyl, you now got a whole separate part of me, just for talking to you.¡± ¡°Gasp!¡± the dragon said, distinctly not gasping. ¡°It¡¯s what I always wanted!¡± ¡°... I¡¯m glad you¡¯re happy, at least. So, the dreamweave is the stuff dreams are made from.¡± ¡°Dreams are made from something?¡± Mercury chuckled. ¡°Haha, no, no. Dreams are made from nothing. You see, in between that nothing, that¡¯s where the dreamweave is.¡± Zyl¡¯s chuffed at that. ¡°You¡¯re not making any sense.¡± Mercury looked at the dragon, his mouth agape. ¡°My gosh! Truly?! If only someone could have seen this coming.¡± For a moment, Zyl grimaced, then burst out laughing, and Mercury joined in. ¡°Alright, fine, you got your point across already dummy. Care to actually explain it now?¡± Mercury rolled his eyes in faux displeasure. ¡°Alright, but what I said before is pretty much the gist of it.¡± ¡°You do realize it makes no sense though, right?¡± Zyl asked, raising an eyebrow again. ¡°Yes,¡± Mercury said, nodding sagely. ¡°Entirely aware. It took me over a year to get it. Mind you, that¡¯s a year of dedicating hours to it each night. And even then, it only properly clicked once I almost died in a dream.¡± ¡°I also got plenty of nightmares.¡± ¡°Oh, no,¡± Mercury said with a huff, ¡°this one woulda really killed me. Dead dead. Not just waking up screaming dead.¡± ¡°Aha.¡± ¡°Yep. Then I finally fully saw the dreamweave, and tore it all apart.¡± ¡°You broke a dream?¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°That¡¯s absolutely right.¡± Mercury nodded once again. Zyl groaned, then flashed him a smile. ¡°Can I get that one more time, from the top.¡± ¡°Of course, Zyl, I created this facet of my being just to explain this to you!¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°I truly do appreciate it, Mertwo.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not making that a nickname.¡± ¡°We so are.¡± ¡°Zyl watch out or I¡¯m gonna make Merthree just to harass you while you sleep,¡± the cat threatened. ¡°You can do that?!¡± A look of horror placed itself on Zyl¡¯s face. ¡°Even while you¡¯re dreaming. ¡®Cause I can get into there through the dreamweave.¡± ¡°You¡¯re already my dream bodyfriend, silly!¡± ¡°Ugh!¡± Mercury said, holding his chest. ¡°Right into my heart!¡± He did, indeed, blush a little. Zyl giggled, taking a few more moments to just look at Mercury. Eventually, though, he brought his eyes back to the ceiling, leaning against the pillow underneath his head. ¡°Alright, alright. Tell me more about the dreamweave Mertwo.¡± ¡°You¡¯re really not letting that go?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± Mercury let out a long sigh. ¡°Alright. Fine, then. Essentially, since dreams aren¡¯t exactly real the way you and I perceive things, they¡¯re made from nothing. But clearly, they still exist, so where do they come from? Somewhere in between the nothingness.¡± ¡°You¡¯re losing me again.¡± ¡°Told you it¡¯s hard to make sense of. I guess, if it helps, think of the dreamweave as the thoughts a dream is made from. They¡¯re not exactly actively happening in someone¡¯s head, so it¡¯s possible to manipulate them from inside the dream. String them together to change things.¡± ¡°I see. How does this have to do with the marks at all, though?¡± ¡°Well, to me, the marks are like little bits of thread, wrapped around you. Woven into your existence if you will. So, they look somewhat similar to the weave, and also, the way I perceive the dreamweave is using a special meditation method, which lets me see things in a different light.¡± ¡°A different light?¡± ¡°I get closer to the abject truth describing an object. It¡¯s kind of like- Found it!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Mercury took his paws off Zyl, leaping onto the man¡¯s face instead. ¡°You heard me!¡± he said, grabbing his boyfriend¡¯s cheek with his soft paws. ¡°I found it. The connection.¡± ¡°... you did?¡± The incredulous look on Zyl¡¯s face was priceless to Mercury. ¡°Sure did. Well, not me, Merone found it, really. In fact, let me just merge back¡­ heya Zyl! I¡¯ve sure been busy.¡± ¡°... you have?¡± Mercury rolled his eyes. ¡°You gotta believe me more. Just because I do things weirdly doesn¡¯t mean it won¡¯t work. And yes, I have. So busy I checked most of your body. The connection to the spark was in your chest, right around your heart, except not in the same place as your heart, but like, deeper.¡± ¡°What do you mean, deeper? There¡¯s only so much room in my chest, Mercury,¡± Zyl said with a small huff. ¡°Deeper as in placed in a whole different direction. Where do you keep all your muscles when you aren¡¯t using them?¡± ¡°Ah. Yes. I see. So my flame is in my chest in the same way I can access all that extra muscle density?¡± Zyl asked. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s all kind of folded in on each other, or like, moving out in a different direction. It¡¯s a conceptual space ready to be realized.¡± Zyl smirked. ¡°You¡¯re losing me again, Mer.¡± ¡°Then get a frigging map already, jeez!¡± the mopaaw replied, sticking out his tongue. The two of them fooled around some more. Mercury eventually explained to Zyl that the mark only really pointed him in a direction, rather than telling him how far he needed to go. Which usually meant the target was far away. They wouldn¡¯t head out that day anyway, so instead, since that bit of work was done, Zyl headed back to sleep. While he felt mostly normal, there were still lingering effects from losing his spark and then going all out. He got tired easily these days, and slept often. Mercury spent some time cuddling up to his boyfriend in bed, rolled into a small ball of white fur with stripes of cosmic expanse and glittering stars across his body. He spent a lot of that time thinking. Mostly about how grateful he was to be able to be with Zyl. Just having him around made every day a bit brighter. Being able to lay next to one another like this was a luxury Mercury wasn¡¯t exactly used to anymore. He made sure to appreciate it every day it happened. Just listening to Zyl breathe. Sometimes, his chest would hitch, and he would jerk in his sleep, then Mercury pressed his snout into the dragon¡¯s arm, and he slowly calmed down again. It made him smile. Being able to help in the small ways was nice. Not that he didn¡¯t want to help in the big ways. Mercury was more than sure he¡¯d get Zyl¡¯s spark back. If it helped him heal faster, he would do almost anything to get it done. Like confronting a bunch of dragons. He shook his head at that with a smirk. Sometimes, when he thought a little more about the things he did, they really were silly. He was a very fancy cat, yes, but at the end of the day, he was just a four-legged furball, who looked totally cute. And he was up against dragons. ¡°Stop moving so muchhhh,¡± Zyl muttered sleepily, wrapping an arm around Mercury and running his fingers through his fur. ¡°Okay, okay, I gotcha.¡± In the end, he simply cuddled up against the dragon even more, closed his eyes, and tried to stop thinking. - - - Eventually, Irrithuriel returned. What woke Mercury up wasn¡¯t the old lady¡¯s groans, nor the sound of the door opening or her footsteps, but the smell of soot she carried. When he opened his eyes, he saw that her clothes seemed to be singed almost everywhere, and her hair was covered with ash. Zyl, for his part, seemed entirely unbothered by the smell. With a quick duck and an activation of , Mercury moved out under the dragon¡¯s arm unnoticed and hopped off the bed, his paws landing softly and soundlessly on the floor. ¡°Everything alright?¡± he asked Irrithuriel. ¡°Ah, you¡¯re awake,¡± the old lady said, turning to face him. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine. This was hardly enough to even warm me up.¡± She uncorked a bottle and poured the contents over her head, quickly having all the ash and burnt cloth disappear. A moment later, she looked into a mirror with a grimace. ¡°So much sewing,¡± she muttered. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you didn¡¯t find anything out?¡± Irrithuriel turned towards the mopaaw like she¡¯d forgotten he existed for a moment before. ¡°No, nothing. Trinya said she had no idea where the spark was, denying she even had any idea what I was talking about.¡± ¡°That went about as well as expected, then.¡± ¡°Did your attempt go any better?¡± Irrithuriel asked. Mercury hopped up on a chair so he was on eye-height with her. ¡°Yes, actually. I found something that I think is probably his spark.¡± ¡°Really now? You keep surprising me, Starlight,¡± Irrithuriel said, shaking her head with a smile. ¡°That¡¯s good, though. Where is it, exactly?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve only got the rough direction, but it should be roughly west from here.¡± ¡°Huh. And there aren¡¯t any workshops that way?¡± Irrithuriel took another look at the map of the facilities Mercury had ¡®acquired¡¯. ¡°None, truly. Why not keep the spark at the place it would be used?¡± ¡°Maybe she¡¯s storing it until the final step?¡± The ice dragon rubbed her chin. ¡°It seems like something she would do. Then we should expect a lot more security.¡± ¡°Even more? The last couple searches on the workshops were already a pain,¡± Mercury grumbled. ¡°Well, perhaps not, actually,¡± Irrithuriel said while leaning back in her chair. ¡°Maybe the place is entirely unguarded, since Trinya wouldn¡¯t want anyone to know about it. She could simply be making multiple versions of the weapon which only need the spark inserted, so she could take those and do the last step herself.¡± ¡°But would she really leave the spark without anyone looking after it?¡± ¡°Hmm. One of her close aides, maybe,¡± Irrithuriel suggested. ¡°That might be why getting into the mansion was relatively easy?¡± ¡°It may very well be related,¡± the ice dragon said with a nod. ¡°In any case. I shall get myself a much needed change of clothing. Meanwhile, I would love it if you could wake young Friaminth. He may want to partake in the discussion.¡± With that, the old lady got up and headed to another room, and Mercury hopped back onto the bed, tapping Zyl¡¯s face. ¡°Hey,¡± he said, lightly smacking the other man¡¯s nose. ¡°Wakey wakey, sleepyhead.¡± ¡°Hrrmmm,¡± Zyl grumbled, turning onto his head. ¡°Give me a couple more minutes.¡± ¡°Zyl, you gotta get up,¡± he said, shaking his shoulder. ¡°Not yetttt¡­¡± With a soft sigh, Mercury began to cast a spell. ¡°You asked for it. I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me.¡± Then, he summoned an ice cube above Zyl¡¯s cheek, which harmlessly fell onto the man¡¯s face. The speed at which Zyl rose up from the bed was almost imperceptible to Mercury. He launched the ice cube entirely across the room, having it sail into the wall on the opposite end, while squealing. ¡°AH! Why did you do that?!¡± he said, looking at Mercury accusatorily. The mopaaw only shrugged. ¡°Shoulda gotten up when I told you to.¡± ¡°Coulda been more patient with me!¡± Zyl mimicked his tone, sticking out his tongue at Mercury, who swiftly returned the gesture. Irrithuriel came back when the two of them were still locked in that pose, sticking out their tongues at each other. ¡°You¡¯re aware that is not how you kiss, right?¡± she asked, her expression entirely deadpan. The two quickly turned to face her, blushed, then headed to take seats at the table. ¡°You haven*t answered me.¡± ¡°We¡¯re not going to,¡± Mercury assured her. The lady had swapped her once blue now blackened dress for much simpler clothing, a tunic and pants in earthy colours. ¡°Can we please get back on topic?¡± ¡°Hm, fine then. Friaminth, for your information, we were talking about your shard. It¡¯s not at any of the workshops. Instead, there seems to be a special location holding it. Is there anyone your mother may trust in guarding such a place?¡± ¡°I could imagine someone. Her closest aide is a scrying mage, though, so not necessarily a great guard. Maybe she simply hired someone and has them supervised constantly?¡± Zyl suggested, the vestige of a blush still visible on his cheeks. ¡°Great, so we¡¯d be found out the moment we try to get there?¡± ¡°Most likely, yes,¡± Zyl said. ¡°Do we really need to stay hidden?¡± Irrithuriel interjected. ¡°If we are quick about it, we may be gone before anyone can intervene.¡± ¡°We could also try to find our mage and take them out before getting the spark?¡± Mercury suggested. ¡°How would we find the mage?¡± Zyl asked. ¡°Fair point. So what, we just risk it?¡± ¡°The goal is close at hand, I would prefer not to mess it up so close to the finish line,¡± Irrithuriel said, leaning back and crossing her arms. ¡°Me neither.¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°So, once again, we need a plan.¡± Zyl thought it over. ¡°Well. The scrying mage has to be somewhere protected as well. Trinyakorie wouldn¡¯t let her simply sit around. She¡¯s most likely near the mansion, since she needs to be able to communicate with Trinya easily.¡± ¡°So we should scout the areas around the mansion and look for our mystery mage?¡± Irrithuriel asked. The other dragon shrugged. ¡°It seems like our best option.¡± ¡°But would that not be like simply announcing we would try and take the shard?¡± Irrithuriel asked. ¡°Guys. I don¡¯t think we need to worry about that anymore,¡± Mercury interrupted. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°The shard is moving,¡± he said. ¡°Fuck.¡± Chapter 167: Freedom is finding Water in the Desert Chapter 167: Freedom is finding Water in the Desert. Zyl, Mercury, and Irrithuriel immediately started scrambling. ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s moving?!¡± Zyl asked, hopping up from his chair. ¡°It¡¯s moving, Zyl! East, east, it¡¯s going east right now!¡± Mercury said, also hopping down. Irrithuriel was up before either of them, desperately heading for her bedroom. ¡°I am not confronting anyone else in these rags, you two better wait for me,¡± she growled. The door slammed shut behind her. Despite the warning, the two boys were already by the door, holding it open. They gazed at the outside world longingly, and Mercury¡¯s eyes slowly tracked an invisible distant target, drifting over the horizon. ¡°Where is it now?¡± Zyl asked, the urgency still in his voice. ¡°There.¡± Mercury indicated the same direction he was looking with a foreleg. The dragon¡¯s eyes narrowed for a moment, then he suddenly jerked and held his head. ¡°Ah! Ouch. No. Not using dragon eyes yet. Can¡¯t find it.¡± ¡°Guess we¡¯ll just have to rely on me, then,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Mh. You know, out of all the compasses I¡¯ve used, I gotta say that you¡¯re my favourite,¡± Zyl said, flashing a smile. Mercury was about to retort when Irrithuriel appeared behind them with a gust of icy air. ¡°Good. I am prepared. Where to?¡± she asked, hands on her waist. The old lady now stood up far straighter, and wore a decorated blue dress, parts of which were covered in scale and metal. A wardress, perhaps. ¡°That way,¡± Mercury said, still pointing, and a minute later, the world shifted. Irrithuriel swooped both him and Zyl up into her arms, carrying them like wet sacks of potatoes. ¡°Good. Get ready, we¡¯ll be going fast,¡± she said, digging her feet into the ground. When he heard the crack, Mercury started to feel worried. Irrithuriels knees were already bent for a jump when wings of icy crystal and blue scale rose from her back. Then, she jumped. For a mere moment, Mercury saw the ground underneath her feet turn into literal craters, and the worry he felt turned into fear. A flap of Irrithuriel¡¯s wings later, and the wind slammed into him as though he¡¯d hit a brick wall. The noise was entirely deafening, the world around him filled only by bleary shapes which disappeared all-too quickly and the howling of the wind. kicked in a moment later, just a second after the cold dug its way to his bones. Now, Mercury was truly grateful for having learnt before, because if he hadn¡¯t, this journey would certainly have been quite a bit more uncomfortable. Even with the wind itself showing him its mercy, he was still barely hanging on. He didn¡¯t even need to breathe. There was more than enough force for the air to enter his lungs. Getting it out was more of a problem. Thus, Mercury spent a few moments huffing and puffing, the skin of his cheeks stretching back from the force, before he had a chance to look over at Zyl. Somehow, the dragon looked beautiful. No, not just beautiful, he was gorgeous. Zyl¡¯s face was entirely untouched by the wind. His skin was too tough for a knife to pierce, let alone be stretched by a gust of wind. His hair fluttered back perfectly, as though the air itself molded it into a picture of beauty. Then he looked over at Mercury, and flashed a radiant smile, then gave him a wink. It struck right into Mercury¡¯s heart. If he were still human, this would have been the time for his nose to start bleeding. With some effort, he winked back, and saw Zyl¡¯s lips move in what might have been a giggle. Mercury couldn¡¯t hear it over the rushing of the wind. He just looked at his boyfriend for a few moments, mostly enchanted, until something blurred beneath them, and the ground reappeared. Irrithuriel dug her heels into the rocky surface of the mountain, and despite that, still slid forward a few dozen meters. The deceleration was so strong all the air in Mercury¡¯s lungs was pushed right out of him as his body was essentially shaped around Irrithuriel¡¯s arm. A few moments later he got to breathe in again. ¡°Are we closer now?¡± Irrithuriel asked, turning to the mopaaw in her arms. A look of horror slowly dawned on Mercury¡¯s face as he realized this was not the only short flight they¡¯d be making. He quickly checked the location of the shard again. Its direction had changed more now, but it was still mostly the same. ¡°Further that waaaaaYYYY!!!¡± Before he got to properly finish, Irrithuriel already leapt again. The wind entirely deafened all other noise again. - - - A few jumps later, and Irrithuriel slowed down in the air for once. ¡°I see them,¡± she said. Mercury¡¯s eyes slowly drifted open, as his stomach churned. He felt just about ready to throw up, and the entire world seemed to be spinning, so for a few moments, he had no idea who Irrithuriel was even speaking off. Then, he raised his gaze, looking up at a mountain peak in front of them. He saw¡­ two humanoid-ish figures. With the way the shadows fell he could barely make out anything more, and quickly lowered his head again as he felt the urge to vomit increase. ¡°Starlight. Is the spark up there?¡± Irrithuriel ¡°Wha-?¡± Mercury asked, confused. ¡°The spark. Is it on the mountain?¡± she asked again, voice slightly tinged with impatience. ¡°Oh.¡± Mercury paused, catching his for a moment. He was truly glad to have that ability. and both helped calm his stomach after the journey, so he checked for the spark a moment later. ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s up there.¡± ¡°Then be ready for engagement.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not planning to marry yet~¡± Zyl hummed playfully, looking at the tattered Mercury. The older lady smirked, but gave an exaggerated eyeroll. Then, a few seconds later, she moved above the edge of the mountain, now facing down on the two figures from far closer. The one on the right turned towards them. It was a thin man, his hair black with a green sheen to it, long and straight. His arms were spread out from his body, and his head titled upwards to meet them. ¡°Well, well! Look who finally made it!¡± Berthorn¡¯s face was split by a smile that seemed grotesquely wide. ¡°I am. So glad. To have you here.¡± Mercury saw that there was a manic glint in his eyes as Irrithuriel slowly lowered herself down onto the mountaintop, letting Mercury and Zyl back onto the floor. Mercury himself immediately set about relieving himself of the contents of his stomach, gasping for air. Berthorn cleared his throat, but Mercury raised a paw, then took a couple deep breaths. A moment later he cleared away the most certainly rainbow coloured vomit and smoothed his fur with . Only then did he turn to face Zyl¡¯s brother by blood. ¡°Alright. Go on,¡± he said, still taking deep breaths. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Truly, Zylnare-¡± ¡°Coward child! Stop your prancing and give back what belongs to me!¡± on the other side of the mountain stood Berthorn¡¯s mother, Trinyakorie. Unlike her son, she stood tall and proud, flaming red hair blowing in the mountaintop wind. Her red dress was covered in rubies which sparkled in the sunlight, making her seem coated in embers. Her face, too, seemed equally red, painted with an expression of rage. Berthorns too-wide smile faded slightly. ¡°Ah. Mother. No, no, no, this won¡¯t do. You must let me speak. This is my time, you see,¡± he said matter-of-factly. ¡°Return what is mine this instance!!¡± Trinya shouted back. The smile disappeared from Berthorn¡¯s face, instead replaced with an expression so plain you could have mistaken him for a doll. Then he blinked. His chest rose and sunk once. ¡°Silence, mother.¡± Trinya tried to yell, but not a sound left her mouth. Slowly, Berthron turned to face the group of newcomers. ¡°Lady Irrithuriel. Is your clan also allied with these two?¡± he asked calmly. The old dragon shook her head, and crossed her arms across her chest. ¡°No. Only me.¡± His smile reappeared, ever faint. ¡°Good, good.¡± He turned, facing someone else. ¡°Brother. Zylnareth. It is so good to see you again.¡± Zyl¡¯s eyes darted over to his mother, who was still locked in a silence she could not break. Then they darted back to Berthorn. ¡°What did you do to her? Why are you even here?!¡± Ignoring his words, Berthorn turned again, this time moving to face Mercury. ¡°And you, too. You are still alive. Mercury, I believe?¡± He paused, then shrugged. ¡°Or beast, pest, plague, little monster. All shall do I suppose. I wish I could say I am happy to see you again, but truly, I am not.¡± ¡°Sorry, I think I need to vomit again.¡± Berthorn¡¯s brows creased in anger. ¡°You shall not.¡± With a wave of his hand, the dizziness slid off Mercury like a thin coating of oil, disappearing as though it had never been there. Mercury turned to face him. ¡°Dang, was really looking forward to crashing your vibe.¡± Berthorn¡¯s face eased again, the faint smile reappearing. ¡°Yes. I am sure you were.¡± Finally, he faced his mother again. ¡°Mother, dearest, I am truly sorry. What did you want to say?¡± He waved his hand, and Trinya¡¯s shouting echoed across the mountaintop once more. ¡°Little traitor!! I raised you, my own flesh and blood, and this is how you repay me?!¡± she screeched, gesturing angrily with her arms. ¡°You sneak and steal and hide! You are a coward, Berthorn! A stain on our honor!¡± His smile turned wider. ¡°Our honour. Yes. Right. Truly our family is¡­¡± he gazed up into the sky, taking a deep breath in through his nose with his eyes closed. ¡°Truly honourable.¡± Some of the rage disappeared from Trinya¡¯s face, replaced with icy fury. ¡°What do you mean to imply, child?¡± ¡°That you are as much of a scheming worm as I, mother dearest,¡± Berthorn said, his smile wide. ¡°That you scheme and writhe pitifully for only a glimpse at more power. That you would step over the corpses of your own sons if it meant you could finally sit on a more beautiful chair.¡± ¡°Of course, it is not the chair you covet. The chair is but a symbol. Status, though, mother. Status you would not hesitate to sacrifice for.¡± Berthorn¡¯s gaze was dark as he fixed it upon the woman who birthed him. ¡°You are speaking dangerously, Berthorn,¡± Trinya hissed back. Then her son burst into laughter. A long string of sounds which rang out across the mountaintop then echoed back from the valleys below like a chorus of miserable souls. Berthorn¡¯s laughter was empty of joy. ¡°Jijijijiji Jahaha JAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!¡± he laughed and laughed on. ¡°Jahahahahahaha, hahahahaha! Jahahahahaha!¡± ¡°Jah, jajaja, jahahaha, JAHAHAHA!¡± ¡°AHAHAHAHA!¡± Then he stopped. He stood up straight. ¡°You are pathetic, mother,¡± he said, his voice calm and even. Trinya looked at him, her patience clearly in its last moments. ¡°Hold your tongue, child.¡± He smiled, wide and eerie, the sun shining onto his face. ¡°No, mother, I will do none of the kind.¡± ¡°You have failed. You plotted and you were outwitted. All your plans were dashed through, by a simple beast no less!!¡± his hand flared out, pointing at Mercury. It looked as though his body was puppeteered by strings. ¡°I was not-¡± ¡°YOU WERE!!¡± he screamed, smile replaced by flash anger. ¡°You were.¡± Tears formed in the corners of his eyes. ¡°I am truly, unequivocally, irrevocably disappointed by you, mother. It took not me to foil your plans. Not my brother or the lady Irrithuriel. It took a single mopaaw.¡± ¡°I am pretty charming,¡± Mercury said. ¡°You are! You are and that¡¯s the problem. Mother, if only you even remotely cared, you would have noticed that with only a few sentences he had already made Nir betray you.¡± His gaze was truly filled with sadness. ¡°What? You aren¡¯t making sense,¡± Trinya said, a vein pulsing on her forehead. Berthorn slowly lowered his hands from his grand position, sinking in on himself with a sigh. ¡°Hah. No, no, I must not be to you. That¡¯s the problem, see. You think I¡¯m the one talking nonsense.¡± Zyl took half a step forward. ¡°Berthorn,¡± he said, his voice tinged with a hint of concern. ¡°Is everything alright?¡± His brother¡¯s head snapped towards him without his body turning. ¡°Alright?¡± he asked, tilting his head. ¡°Why yes. In fact, I¡¯ve never felt better. Zyl, have you ever felt fear?¡± He shook his head. ¡°No, no, of course not. You are, after all, the mighty guardian Friaminth, the undefeatable. What would you have to fear, hm? You could wipe out all your enemies with but a thought. Well. Could have, jijijiji!¡± ¡°So no,¡± he repeated. ¡°You don¡¯t know fear. Not the kind I know. The existential fear of whether you will be allowed to live another day, allowed to take another breath. And Zyl, today is the first day that fear is gone.¡± The smile on his face reappeared, a tear streaking down his cheek as he shivered in happiness. ¡°I¡¯m not afraid anymore.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need to run. I don¡¯t need to worry. I am in control, Zyl.¡± ¡°Can you imagine that? Just think of it- living a life crawling through the desert, looking for drops of water, and one day, you find a lake! What would you do, Zyl? Would you move past it, would you throw yourself back into the desert? Would you sit at the edge and simply gaze at it? Or leap in, and enjoy the fruits of your labour?¡± The smile on his face turned from manic to peaceful. ¡°I am a swimmer Zyl. I have always kept above water, barely not drowning. Now I shall drink.¡± Then he raised his hand, a strange orb held inside. There was a moment¡¯s silence. A flash of light. A noise like that of nails against a chalkboard as the air ignited for dozens of feet. A screech, as reality was torn apart and reassembled into blazing fire. A small, red beam, sailing through the air and striking against Trinya¡¯s stomach. Through it. Out the other side. And arced through the air like a bolt of lightning. Silence wrapped around the mountaintop. Dozens of seconds passed, then the thunder of the attack echoed back. A thousand rumbles and screeches, like a chorus of tortured souls. Trinya spat out blood onto the floor. The hole in her stomach was about two things thick. Nothing she couldn¡¯t live through. Yet her insides weren¡¯t simply harmed, they were charred. Her intestines were blackened and charred to a crisp, her kidneys little more than bricks of coal. The first bit of blood was followed by another fountain as her mouth filled with crimson liquid. She coughed, gasping for air, crumpling to one knee. ¡°Wha¡­t?¡± she gasped, barely stopping herself from falling to the floor. ¡°What¡­ ha-... ppened?¡± Her head hit the floor, unconscious. The wound on her stomach wasn¡¯t bleeding. Any blood directly from it had already evaporated, turning into a thin mist of red around the woman. Berthorn, for his part, simply smiled. He took a deep breath, then exhaled, turning towards Zyl. ¡°Haaaaaah. See, brother? Now that. That is freedom.¡± Mercury¡¯s eyes were wide at the scene, staring at the woman on the floor. Irrithuriel seemed shocked, her expression stiff. Zyl, for his part, first looked at his mother with surprise, then grief, then closed his eyes and exhaled sharply. ¡°Berthorn,¡± he said, his voice almost cracking. ¡°Yes, Brother?¡± the other man replied, calm as a tranquil lake. ¡°I didn¡¯t have a good relationship with our mother.¡± ¡°I know, brother.¡± ¡°Do you believe¡­ truly believe I wish for her to die?¡± Zyl asked, opening his eyes again and looking at Berthorn. The once-coward raised an eyebrow. ¡°Of course, brother. What else?¡± ¡°Have you ever considered,¡± Zyl said, taking another sharp breath to control his voice, ¡°that I wanted for her to apologize?¡± Berthorn scoffed, half in scorn and half in humor. ¡°Pfff. Do you truly believe she would have?¡± Zyl paused. Held eye contact with Berthorn, who slowly cocked his head to the side. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Mh. I thought so, brother.¡± He raised the orb again. ¡°You know what this is, Zyl?¡± ¡°Our mother¡¯s undoing,¡± Zyl lamented with a sigh, shaking his head. ¡°Our mother¡¯s creation, Zyl! Her aspiration, her stepping stool to greatness!¡± Berthorn flared his hands out again, then slowly let them drop, shaking his head. ¡°But I suppose you wouldn¡¯t get that, would you?¡± ¡°Having been born with everything. Having it all right from the beginning. You don¡¯t know what it¡¯s like. What the desert feels like. What it¡¯s like to crawl on the ground, to writhe for even a chance, a shred to be someone. You wouldn¡¯t know what that¡¯s like,¡± Berthorn cried. Zyl solemnly raised his head, then shook it. ¡°No, Berthorn,¡± he said slowly, ¡°I suppose I wouldn¡¯t.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I thought, brother.¡± Berthorn raised his hand again, pointing it at Mercury. The orb whirred in it. Within it, there was a piece of something, a red spark, one that writhed and turned in on itself, shifting from fractal pattern to fractal pattern. It condensed. Going from ever-shifting down into a tiny dot, entirely compressed to the center of the sphere. Its radiance stopped pouring out, and the ball returned to looking like an innate glass marble. There was a moment¡¯s silence. A flash of light. A noise like that of nails against a chalkboard as the air ignited for dozens of feet. A screech, as reality was torn apart and reassembled into blazing fire. The red bolt of violently destructive fire struck against Zyl¡¯s palm faster than Mercury could blink. It caused an explosion, a cloud of dust and smoke and soot lazily drifting through the silent air. Nothing moved for a breath. Then, first, Irrithuriel rushed over to Trinya, her body coated with ice, as she hurriedly poured a potion into the woman¡¯s mouth. A moment later, Zyl came rocketing out of the cloud. His left hand, the one he used to block the beam, was mangled. His skin was torn and burnt, his clothing ripped apart as blood streamed down its entirety from his shoulder. His right arm was coated in plasma, his eyes full of a cold rage. ¡°Berthorn,¡± he muttered as he charged at his brother. ¡°You should never have threatened my fucking boyfriend.¡± With a thunderclap, his plasma-coated fist struck against the cheek of his brother. Chapter 168: Fire and Brimstone Chapter 168: Fire and Brimstone Mercury felt a storm crash upon his fur. No, even calling it a storm would have been inadequate. Mercury was a friend of the . The air, quite literally, would shy away from him. Try to keep him safe. Despite that, the simple act of Zyl throwing a punch created winds so strong he saw rocks as large as him be blown away and smashed to bits, far down below. The falling stones shattering down below sounded like rain, except instead of raindrops each impact echoed and was like thunder. In Mercury''s mind, time was ticking slowly, though. His feet were firmly planted on the ground, claws digging into the stone as he held on. His muscle density was increased to the maximum, making him much heavier than he aught to be, and still he had to hold on. And still, he was expressionless. Long since the start of the conflict, Mercury had split his mind in two. He¡¯d tried to analyze both Trinya and Berthorn with his Zeyjn. Now one of them laid on the floor, bleeding out. The weapon had entirely thrown him off. It was a sphere. Looked like some kind of small-ish snowglobe. Then it straight up ripped reality apart and instantly incapacitated a dragon. Mercury could still hear the noise gnawing at his mind. The ray of light searing his eyes, leaving behind a faint, discoloured trail wherever he turned to look. And Zyl extended his hand and blocked that, just for him. Was Trinya dead? He didn¡¯t think so, no, she was most likely still alive. He really couldn¡¯t imagine someone as meticulous as her dying to a single shot. But if so, would she willingly remain on the floor? Never. He might not know a lot about the lady, but if he knew anything, it was her ambition. She was obsessed with power to the point of sacrificing both her sons for it. Unless there was some kind of plan, she would not lay down by choice. So he had to think. Act like he was frozen and petrified. Simply standing still, as a bystander. Zyl blocked the attack for him and got injured, and for a moment, Mercury could feel his blood boil. But he had . The fury disappeared like dust in the wind. Some part of him also triggered , hoping to simply be ignored by Berthorn as he came up with a plan. That wasn¡¯t what happened. All of it was within the blink of an eye. Zyl punched. Berthorn recoiled for a moment, rocketing backwards as though he¡¯d been hit by a freight train, but his feet remained on the floor. The movement stopped when his back was arched, as though he¡¯d hit an invisible wall. That moment, Mercury activated . But it was different from each time before. Instead of ignoring him, Berthorn¡¯s head snapped around. His eyes narrowed. There was a part of Mercury that had a moment of curiosity. Why did Berthorn snap around like that, he wondered. Why was it that this man, unlike anyone before, would look at him when he activates his ability to hide? Of course, most of him didn¡¯t think that. Most of his thoughts were focused on finding a way to survive. Berthorn simply waved his hand, and in the blink of an eye, noxious mist swept forth. Mercury could hardly understand how much mana that one movement would have taken, as the bubbling greenish-purple smoke was enough to engulf half the mountaintop. It spilled over the rocks ground, hissing as the stones dissolved. It was not simply poisonous, but acidic, too, and entirely capable of dissolving Mercury. His instincts kicked into gear before he could think. activated almost entirely on its own. The Skill was strange. It had always had something to do with a ¡°path¡±, sure, but only vaguely. Usually, it meant clearing his way, and yes, this was true now as well. He could see the mist begin to faintly part. But wherever it moved aside, more simply spilled in. Only to be parted by the Skill again. But the sheer volume of gas was so overwhelming, that instead of trying to clear a path, it instead shower Mercury one. Down the side of the mountain. It wanted him to simply run. Then he understood that it wasn¡¯t the Skill. The fear was all him. He wondered when he¡¯d become such a coward. Mercury took a deep of the remaining clean air, and felt ihn¡¯ar set in. He made a request, very politely, asking the wind to shift and blow from behind him. It hesitated for a moment, then obliged. A gust picked up, blowing the fog away. And yet more spilled it. There had been another three thundercracks since Berthorn¡¯s attack. Zyl was entirely furious with the attack, striking his brother¡¯s face with all the force he could muster, but Berthorn remained entirely calm, a placid smile on his face. ¡°Ah,¡± he said, after reeling back from an attack. ¡°I truly do apologize. I forgot to tell you the name of my move. This is my . Please, Mercury, do appraise it.¡± A smile still caressed his lips, even when trickles of blood flowed down his cheeks. Then it touched Mercury, and his fur began to dissolve. - - - - - - Berthorn had a smile on his face, but his eyes were calm. Entirely devoid of emotion. He just didn¡¯t understand how. How did that meager beast keep being such a thorn in his side? Day after day it foiled his plans. Now the time had come to make use of it. Of course Zyl would protect the furball. That was precisely why Berthorn targeted him. Fighting with someone to protect was almost as bad as having a hand behind your back, in some senses even worse. And despite that. Despite the fact that the little creature should have been only an obstacle, somehow, Berthorn¡¯s Skills activated. It was a sudden shift. There was always a dim halo of unpredictability around the thing, of a minor danger. Yet that seemed treacherous now, and he already paid the monster much more respect. But despite that, despite his genuine admiration for the beast¡¯s tenacity and craftiness, the warnings around it still shifted. They dimmed. All of Berthorn¡¯s Skills suddenly told him the thing was less dangerous, all except one. His core Skill, the one that had allowed him to survive all the way up until now, rang warning bells in his mind. . It was such a wonderfully unassuming Skill, and he truly loved that about it. In truth, by itself didn¡¯t really do that much. It simply allowed one to consider unlikely possibilities. Ideas which would be outrageous might become feasible and be properly evaluated. Essentially, the more complicated something was to figure out, the more deeply hidden a mystery was, the greater the effect of the Skill on the situation. And when suddenly each and every one of his Skill told him that this mopaaw, the thing of his nightmares, was not dangerous? That was something that stuck out like a sore thumb to . All his senses told Berthorn that there was nothing truly there, nothing to worry about, simply a bit of the background, but he knew, absolutely knew to trust himself. Without hesitation, he spent a great chunk of his mana on an attack. So much mana, it would take him days to refill it all. Perhaps longer. was one of his most cruel Skills. It wasn¡¯t simply poison or acid. It was decay distilled down into its purest form, an everlasting hunger to consume and consume and consume. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. To some degree, calling it everlasting was an exaggeration. Of course there were ways to stop the attack. The easiest would be to simply overwhelm it with mana so dense that it could not continue to assimilate it. The misama could be disassembled, blown somewhere without anything for it to consume, so on and so forth. But that wasn¡¯t the scenario. Right now, it was heading towards a target. It could eat through stone and multiply. Rip the rock apart into its barest bits of essence and construct more miasma from doing so. And it would happen over and over and over again. And still, despite it all, Berthorn was paranoid. He knew that it wasn¡¯t enough to kill the thing. That the little monster would somehow simply walk through the cloud, reappear on the other side, and stare him down. Just thinking of that made his scar ache. Well, not as much as the next moment when another punch impacted his face. Blood spewed from his nose, but his smile didn¡¯t waver. His brother had always been stronger. Every moment he had spent in Zyl¡¯s shadow, sometimes more happily than others. Now, thought? The punches just didn¡¯t properly hurt. Sure, sure, a few bones in his face were broken. He¡¯d have a black eye, a few fractures, maybe even a handful of nasty shards of calcium in his face. But it was all nothing. If this were Zyl, truly the Zyl he¡¯d always looked up to, the punches wouldn¡¯t be breaking bone. His skin would evaporate before there was even physical contact. Berthorn spat out some blood into Zyl¡¯s face and a tooth came along with it as he stumbled backwards. Despite it all, he laughed. ¡°Jijijiji, Zyl! Why are you being so cold, brother? Do you feel I am treating you unjustly?¡± He saw the jaw of the other man clench. Zyl moved slowly, deliberately. He had to, because he was running out of steam, and Berthorn knew. He was mocking his flame for not showing its true radiance. And the irony of that was that he was stealing the spark. What a poetic little injustice. A moment later, Zyl had wiped the blood off his face. ¡°I¡¯ll make you pay,¡± he said. Berthorn felt a hint of fear at that. Well, a lot of fear, rather, but he had felt so much more over his life, this was nothing. No, no, what he was instead worrying about was not the dragon in front of him. Zyl was powerful, yes, but he was predictable. He would kick and punch and use fire. But in the back of his head, was still whispering. The mopaaw was alive. How? Why? It didn¡¯t matter. Immediately, he changed the structure of . He saw the edges of his attack be blown aside by the wind. He made it heavier. Turned it from a mist into a creeping fog, crawling along the floor. Made it turn almost invisible, too, by adding in even more mana and having it partially take on the properties of what it consumed. It would grow slower as it assimilated more of the rock, but it would grow heavier, immovable, essentially turning into a trap for anyone who stepped close. Now, obviously, even someone like Berthorn couldn¡¯t simply alter a Move at will like that. No, he¡¯d meticulously prepared for this. Zyl was his greatest worry, of course, anything else would simply be folly. But he simply needed to outlast. His brother would eventually weaken. But the beast? It needed to be stopped. He wanted to kill it, desperately, but even if the very system sent him the kill message, he was unsure whether he¡¯d believe it by now. Every inch of was focused on the mopaaw, on knowing in the back of his mind that it was alive. That it would come from the fog to haunt him like the little monster it was. Before he¡¯d asked himself how it could do such things. Where had it come from? Why was it so attached to his brother? Berthorn no longer asked those questions. They were irrelevant. He¡¯d spent more time getting acquainted with the thing now. His body had been weakening from it. And for a while, so had his mind. Nightmare, lack of sleep, muscle atrophy. If he¡¯d not already looked sickly before, he sure did now. Another blow rocked his skull. This one had rolled off his shoulders into the side of his head. It scorched his suit, and left his skin burned black, and parts of his hair smoking and darkened. He looked like shit by now, and despite it all, Berthorn smiled. He smiled, because he was getting closer to victory. - - - - - - Zyl was panting. The air felt so thin up here, and his heart was pounding in his chest. Every muscle on his body screeched from exertion. He was like a starving man trying to run, and engine without gas. All that power that he never wanted was gone, and the moment it disappeared he wished he could have it back. He felt so angry he wanted to cry. Maybe he was. His face felt so hot he couldn¡¯t have told whether there were tears running down it. None of his Moves triggered properly, none of his Skills enhanced his attacks like they should, and it felt horrible. Despite it, Zyl continued to fight. He was forcing Berthorn back. Every attacked rocked the other man, hurt him, broke through his defenses, yet while usually his every swing would be more powerful than the previous one, such was not the case. In his chest, there was no roaring dragonfire. There was not even a spark. There was an incomplete picture of sorrow and loss. There was a hole, a part of him that was taken away, that was being filled by a very huggable, lovely little furry idiot. There was no Mercury next to him to ligthen the load. Zyl bit the inside of his lip until he tasted iron. He clenched his fists so hard they hurt and struck forward again. Berthorn dodged backwards, but he just wasn¡¯t fast enough, and the blow struck true again. Zyl felt the resistance, then the give as his brother was flung away for all of half a moment. The movement stopped a moment later. No deceleration, no moment of resistance, all the momentum gone as though it had never been there. Blow after blow went the same. He smashed through Berthorn¡¯s defences, the moves he used to resist him, only to have all the momentum and force disappear a moment later. Every muscle in his body ached. They moved nonetheless. He slammed fist after fist into his brother, an effort in futility. Was he really fighting to win? Zyl blinked when he had that realization. Why¡­ why was he doing this exactly? The moment he doubted himself, Berthorn¡¯s fist slammed into his face. It was slick with blood, and coated in dust as it impacted Zyl, driving a sharp pain through his cheek into his nose and up towards his forehead. The hit stunned Zyl enough for Berthorn to smack him a second time, hitting the same spot but on the opposite side of Zyl¡¯s face. The red-haired dragon stumbled back a handful of steps. He was¡­ bleeding. From his nose. Why was there so much blood coming from his nose? Berthorn approached him, and he forced the shock down. Flames flickered to life again on his hands, throwing glowing sparks of blinding white around. In Zyl¡¯s vision though, they faded away. Everything seemed blurry, interlaced with flecks of rainbow iridescence. Zyl couldn¡¯t tell why it was. Surely, exhaustion played a part in it. He was running on fumes. But then, Berthorn was also known for poison. He just¡­ wanted to pass out so badly. Then he looked over at where Mercury - probably - was. He couldn¡¯t see the little fuzzball through all the fog. It was like¡­ a coffin of brown mist. Something like a prison. The thought sent shivers down his spine. Thinking of his lovely partner once again stuck somewhere. Zyl breathed. Deep in his chest, there was a hole. He¡¯d torn it himself, he knew where it was and why it was there. And so close to the missing piece, he felt it resonate, seeking to return to him. Could he fall here? No. He couldn¡¯t. Berthorn didn¡¯t come in for another swing. The plasma around Zyl¡¯s arms burned brighter. He quickly ducked low to the floor, swiping at Berthorn¡¯s feet. He only managed to kick one out under him, but Zyl¡¯s elbow still came crashing down on his brother¡¯s chest all the same, sending the venomous bastard to the floor. Zyl spat some blood. ¡°Alright brother. Stop your games. I will kill you.¡± From the crater, he heard a laugh. The rocks were splattered with blood. It was mostly red with specks of toxic green. The laugh lasted for too long. ¡°Fine then, brother. Let us see who dies.¡± For a moment, Zyl felt the world go silent. There was a pull at his soul, the very core of his being, a little point that Mercury had told him. Reflexively, he leaned to the right. There was the horrible sound of reality ripping apart. Where his head had just been, a beam arced through, soaring into the sky and annihilating the clouds for miles. The air hissed and burned, the water turned into vapor violently, only to cool down again. It was silent for ten seconds, then hail began to fall. Once again a laugh came from the crater. ¡°Damn, I was so sure that would work!¡± Despite his apparent displeasure, Berthorn slowly rose from the hole, dusting himself off. His clothes were coated in blood, now, as was the floor. But he still got ready. ¡°Come at me, brother,¡± he said. Zyl punched him in the face. - - - - - - ¡°Why do people keep almost dying around me?¡± Irrithuriel cursed, quickly pulling out herbs. Trinya didn¡¯t reply. In fact, her eyes were still wide open, staring off into the sky. She was probably in shock. Her pupils were dilated to the fullest extent, and her breathing hardly even noticeable. ¡°Fuck me,¡± Irrithuriel kept cursing. Behind her, explosion after explosion rang out as she cast a few simple spells, then poured a couple potions over the other dragon. ¡°Come on, Trinyakorie. Work with me here. If you want to live, you¡¯ll have to shift.¡± There was no reply. Maybe a small twitch, but it was so faint, Irrithuriel was unsure whether it was even an acknowledgement. Instead of considering that, the old dragon pulled out more herbs, and began preparing some salves. Well, with most of them, others she just shoved into Trinya¡¯s mouth, then cast minor spells to get the materials into the woman¡¯s stomach. Now, that still was a good path for them to take to the floor, which is what the salve was for. It only took a small bit to prepare, a minute or so at most, but it was more than enough time for multiple explosions behind her. With practiced motions, she smeared it onto the bandage, then wrapped that around Trinya¡¯s stomach, stemming the bleeding. The amount of blood was probably enough to fill a small pool by now, but that didn¡¯t truly mean anything just yet. The wound was so clean it was easy to dress, but at the same time, that also meant that it was hard for the healing to kickstart properly. Irrithuriel grimaced, and began lightly smacking Trinya¡¯s cheeks. ¡°Come on you old hag, wake up and cooperate!¡± Behind her, there was a crash and a crater appeared. She poured more potions onto Trinya, dozens upon dozens of hours of painstaking work being used on someone she considered an enemy. Someone she did not consider worthy of death. ¡°Stop letting your life flash before your eyes and shift already!!!¡± Irrithuriel hissed into the woman¡¯s ear. Then, Trinya¡¯s eyes twitched. Properly twitched, a full motion. Her pupils contracted at a moment¡¯s notice, going from the size of her entire iris to being as small as pinholes in an instant. Then she screeched. It would have sounded like a banshee had she the air to support it for more than a moment. Yet, despite her horrendous condition, the air stirred. The mana in the atmosphere shifted, gathering towards them. For dozens of miles, every speck of magic was drawn towards the mountaintop as Trinya¡¯s body changed. Her bones cracked, reshaped, and moved. Her spine grew longer, wings erupting from her back. Her fingers melded into claws, and her entire skin was covered by scales. Even Zyl and Berthorn had to look over from their battle. For the first time, the coward brother¡¯s face fell. Perhaps he shouldn¡¯t have kept all of focused on Mercury after all. Now, there was a full sized dragon to contend with. And she was angry. Chapter 169: Rain Falls Chapter 169: Rain Falls Berthorn instantly shifted his Skill over to Trinya. The beast had not shown any signs of escaping, firmly trapped within his prison of acid and poison. Instead, when he shifted his attention onto the genuinely, fully grown and fully realized dragon in front of him, the warning bells rang in his head. was the loudest among them. There was only one thing it said. It told him to run. Not a moment later, Berthorn dove aside as fast as he could, throwing his body over and rolling across the rock, even as it entirely exploded behind him. Instantly, he found himself covered in pieces of stone, and surrounded by a giant cloud of dust. The place where he¡¯d just stood was replaced by a crater in the shape of a dragon¡¯s claw. His eyes slowly trailed up, catching the furious glint in his mother¡¯s eyes. But mostly, rather than fury, he still saw fear. Terror, even. She should have died, and she knew it, the fact that she was able to trigger her manifestation was lucky. And it wouldn¡¯t last forever. Berthorn slowly found himself smiling again. rang in his head, warning him of the ways his mother could suddenly kill him, but he knew she could not. It was Trinyakorie, after all; a woman who would do anything for power, because she never wanted others to hold it over her. Now? Berthorn just needed to wait her out. If she truly were trying to kill him, could she do it? Certainly. But she knew he was desperate. Berthorn smiled, because he was a rat driven into a corner. He had nowhere to go but forward, set on a path he couldn¡¯t return from. Right now, if she truly were to try and kill him as best as she could, wouldn¡¯t he just manifest his own true shape? What then? His form was weaker than hers, sure. Smaller. Less raw power. With a less destructive breath attack, too, and softer scales. But. Could she kill him if he shifted? Kill him before her own true shape ran out? He smiled. She couldn¡¯t. Not even could find a way. Hastily, her claws swiped for him again, but he was able to avoid them and dodge backwards, the swipe only grazing him. It tore open three long lines across his chest, each of them spilling blood, as the attack was intended. Right now, Trinya was the one in control of the fight. She could harm him however she wanted. But he was in control of the situation, truly. If he shifted, it was over for them. Zyl could not shift into his true shape. He lacked his spark. If he tried, perhaps he could manage half a transformation. Berthorn mentally scoffed at the thought, even as he dodged another attack. Certainly, his brother could do so, but he would also most likely die afterwards. Unless Irrithuriel was there to help him. Which meant she could not shift. Suddenly, Zyl and the healer, so reliant on each other, became obstacles. Only one of them could truly threaten him at a time. Once more, Trinya lashed out, with her tail this time, whipping him across the face and tearing open his cheek as though a violent slap. He grinned throughout it all, stopping the momentum and standing straight again. ¡°Come on, mother! Hit me! Is this all you can do?!¡± he taunted, laughing at her face. Berthorn saw the fury in her eyes light more, flames spilling from the edges of her maw, but she didn¡¯t reply. Instead, a fist struck the side of his face, coated in unbelievably hot plasma, burning away his skin where it touched. It sent Berthorn flying, smashing into the rock of the plateau, and a new cloud of dust settled on him. From within, his laughter rang out. ¡°Jihihihahahaha! Come, brother! Show me your fury! Watch as I extinguish thy meagre pet!¡± Once more, his brother¡¯s face was overcome with pain and anger, as he slowly raised himself from the stony prison. But neither of them killed him. Berthorn stood still, smiling calmly, his arm fully extended outwards from himself, holding the sphere. The weapon that had let him take all this power, all this freedom. ¡°Come on, brother, please! Come closer and let me burn a hole into your chest. I would love to see you despair like our mother has!!¡± His eyes gazed at her gigantic form again. Red scales glistening majestically in the sun, multiple sets of wings, large enough to blot out the sky if she wished. And yet she just stood there, waiting. The mana here was simply too thin. She was burning through her own, unable to absorb enough to maintain her shape. Even as she drew it in from miles around, turning the landscapes to a husk without magic, she could barely get enough to manifest. Given her enormous form, her upkeep was similarly enormous. Perhaps, if Berthorn shifted now, he could last even longer than her. His form was small, lithe, slippery, and venomous. It was death given form, his shape of death. The thoughts gave rise to a momentary pause on the battlefield. Trinyakorie stood, drawing in power and expending as little as possible. Zyl stood shakily, his feet ever close to giving out. Irrithuriel stood at the side, and he saw she was the only one truly taking action. Around her, there were dozens of magic circles. He hadn¡¯t noticed them before. How hadn¡¯t he noticed them before? He considered the snow witch perhaps the most dangerous of his foes today. Her spells were devastating, if she could cast them, and it was his utmost priority to stop her. The smile vanished for a faint moment as he turned the sphere towards her, using it without a shred of hesitation. The world went quiet. All colour disappeared, everything cast in shades of grey. Then, reality ripped apart with a horrible screech, and a bolt of power struck forth from the weapon. Irrithuriel was old, wise, and had seen the attack before. How could she not have expected it? When she saw Berthorn turn towards her, she had already prematurely activated all the spells she had. Ice flooded forth from underneath her. The rocks became covered in frost even as the sun shone onto them, and within moments, the mountain was turned into glacier. Then, a moment later, that glacier was entirely torn into pieces by a single blast. The energy rocketed through the ice, annihilating it within an instant, barely slowing down. It reached Irrithuriel almost as soon as Berthorn used the weapon, but the old lady had begun turning when she activated her spells. With supernatural agility, she barely managed to stop the bean from piercing through her chest. Instead, it impacted her shoulder, tearing a hole through muscle, bone and cartilage. At its entrance she felt herself become compressed, her entire chest squished down, hard enough to fracture the bones in her shoulder that hadn¡¯t been destroyed by the beam itself. Feeling it exit was even worse. Her wound wasn¡¯t nearly as clean as that of Trinya, instead, her skin was torn at the exit, and a square foot of it entirely disintegrated. It looked more like a cannonball had left her body, and every inch of it was agony. Irrithuriel fell over, her face a grimace of pain. ¡°Kneel, snow-witch,¡± Berthorn said, disdain clear in his voice. ¡°Know your place.¡± Trinya¡¯s claws raked across him again, coming from above this time. He didn¡¯t even bother to dodge. They created long gashes on his chest once more, crossing the previous wounds. Blood dripped down his body, hissing and turning to purple-green smoke when it touched the ground. ¡°Mother, please. Stop playing around. If you wish to kill me, do-¡± He was interrupted by Zyl. The red haired man had suddenly appeared to smash him in the face again. And he¡¯d, somehow, hit the exact same spot for about the third time now. Berthorn¡¯s face was seriously beginning to hurt. ¡°You can¡¯t kill me brother.¡± ¡°Shut! Up!¡± Zyl roared, leaping again. This time, all his patience was gone. His fists rained on Berthorn, who dodged, weaved, and occasionally struck back. Blow after blow landed on his face, but the coward didn¡¯t care. He smiled. Shrugged off every wound he received, taking them in stride. He would not die so easily, not to these people. Even as his bones cracked, he knew a simple bit of shapeshifting would put them back into place. Stolen novel; please report. But at least he fulfilled one of Zyl¡¯s wishes. He remained quiet. There was no more reason to taunt. The snow-witch was on her knees. If she shifted, he could react still, and escape. His mother was on a timer, slowly ticking down to her doom. And his brother could barely even stand anymore. Sure, each strike of his could harm Berthorn. They hurt, of course, but Berthorn thrived in the hail of blows. He healed fast, and each time his blood splattered onto Zyl, the other man would grow more unsteady. He would die a slow, cruel death. They exchanged a hundred hits in a few seconds, before Trinya lashed out at Berthorn again, interrupting the exchange. But there was no point. After all, Ber himself had already landed a couple brutal hits on Zyl. His hands had shifted into claws, tearing chunks of skin and flesh from the red haired dragon. The minutes ticked by just the same. The mountaintop became more ruined with each exchange. In a corner, there was a prison of acid, eroding away the stone. Another part was covered in thick sheets of ice, some of it shredded and destroyed, turned into snow. Even more of the rock was melted and scorched, burn marks visible through it all. Zyl panted heavily, hardly enough mana in the air for him to even keep his fire magic up. The plasma would flare to life on his fists when he struck, then fizzle out again. The snow-witch spent a good chunk of her mana healing herself, then decided to half-shift. Her entire body grew covered in icy blue scales, wings sprouted from her back, and she took on a draconian yet humanoid shape. In response, Berthorn had done the same. Then overwhelmed her in close combat, the wound on her shoulder still there despite the shift. Of course it was, it had been inflicted by dragonfire, after all. It would not heal so easily. Trinya moved little, a sluggish behemoth. She would strike at him, sometimes breathe fire, but since he partially shifted, those attempts had slowed down, too. Trinya knew that she was his target. That if she were to turn back into her human shape because she ran out of mana, he would come and kill her without hesitation. And so, after ten minutes, the fight was all but done. Berthorn stood, bathed in his own blood. Zyl laid on the floor, his chest heaving. He could not stand anymore. Irrithuriel, too, looked poor for the wear. Her scales were cracked, her spells shattered. She had received another wound from the weapon, the blast going through her knee on her right leg. After it, she had received a one sided beating, and the poison was accumulating faster for her than it had Zyl. Trinya stood still as a statue. She knew her death was imminent. The fear in her eyes betrayed her. She was clinging to every moment of life she had, desperately drawing in mana to maintain her shape. Berthorn smiled. ¡°Finally. To think I¡¯d see the three of you like this before me.¡± But Berthorn was a coward. Despite having just taken down three dragons on his own, he turned to look upon the prison of noxious gas he¡¯d created. The beast was trapped in there. Dead, by now, he expected. Still he used on it. The Skill whispered to him. And he listened. His eyes widened. The thing was alive. How. How! HOW?! Then, as if it had smelled his fear, there was a noise. Slow, methodical clacking. Footsteps, coated in metal, against the stone of the mountaintop. A moment later, he could hear rain fall. Dozens of drops striking against the floor. Pit, pat, pit pat. It sounded like his nightmares. - - - - - - Mercury found himself trapped within a cage of noxious, unbreathable air. The fog was so thick that he could only barely see through it, a couple meters if that. The floor underneath it bubbled and roiled, the gas heavy and sinking. Parts of it were probably spilling off the side of the mountaintop by now. And, quite frankly, Mercury was quite out of ideas on what to do. He couldn¡¯t truly walk through the fog. It¡¯d get into his nostrils and choke him to death, if not just entirely burn his lungs. Already parts of the fog seemed to crawl forward, lapping at his paws. He felt a strong, stinging pain set in as his skin began to hiss. It hurt. swallowed the pain and let him return to be calm. His mind began working as fast as it could, seconds stretching out longer as he thought. He wasn¡¯t truly scared, really. Well, he should be. He knew this was kind of how people died. Tackling a problem that was far above their paygrade. But he¡¯d faced death that the thing messing with his thinking had been the pain, rather than fear. Mercury took a deep breath and closed his eyes, trying to ignore the loud noises around him. He didn¡¯t want the acid poison mix to hurt his retinas if he could avoid it. It would probably get there still, but his eyelids were a better barrier than nothing. Already, he could feel working. Changing his skin to become thicker, with fewer pores to let the fog in. It was also helping him regenerate at a reasonable pace, same as . Despite it, he could feel his body slowly disintegrating as his mind worked. Against the fog, seemed helpless, not providing him a way out when he activated it. He activated to try and spin a cocoon, but the thin substance was eroded away before he could get properly started. For a moment, he tried , but even the usually ever present essence of magic was devoured by the acidic fog. He was, by then, fully surrounded, all his Skills receiving help from , but he could still feel himself slowly withering away. The worst part was the dizziness, though. After only a few seconds, he could barely stand anymore, his legs wobbling and giving out underneath him. It must¡¯ve looked peaceful. Folding his legs in and laying down on them, but really it was more of a fall, knocking a tiny yet precious gasp of air out of his lungs. Mercury tried to call up the , but it didn¡¯t answer. In fact, the entire fog had grown almost entirely still. Wisps of it still swirled over the floor, spilling further out, but most of it remained a noxious cage for Mercury. He tried every Skill he had. Tried to figure out a solution with and , but there just wasn¡¯t an easy way out. He was entirely stuck, an ability so much higher level trapping him that he couldn¡¯t do anything about it. had activated since. It fueled all his Skills further. When his body wanted to run out of material to replace the dead skin, drew from the extradimensional storage the Skill provided. stitched him back together over and over again. worked desperately to keep his organs from failing. But neither of them could stop what would eventually happen. Mercury was holding his breath. He didn¡¯t breathe in, not even once. Because it would spell death, of course. But he was running out of air. There were many things his Skills offset. Heck, they even allowed him to survive longer without breathing. But eventually, it would mean his end. He¡¯d run out of oxygen in his blood, and he would gasp for breath, and he would die. proved its worth. It shoved the panic away, and let Mercury watch it all through a detached perspective. His skin grew more hardened, then got eaten away by the acid again. Then, next to that, he felt the desperate urge to breathe. The carbon detectors in his blood had begun seeing red a bit ago, and with each moment, grew more desperate. Soon, though, he also felt himself truly running out of oxygen. The edges of his vision darkened and he felt his mind slow down. At the end of the day, he hadn¡¯t found a solution to his problem. All of his stats, all of his Skills, chaining together in a desperate attempt to survive. They levelled, even. But it just wasn¡¯t enough. Slowly, but surely, Mercury felt his vision go black. still worked, and he was calm. In ihn¡¯ar, even, ever since that first moment he¡¯d breathed in. When the darkness around his eyes crept in, it felt somewhat familiar. In more than one way. Maybe it was just his life flashing in front of his eyes. He felt his brain desperately flick through his memory. The darkness reminded him of , of the things that weren¡¯t. Of sleep and the gentle embrace of death, and it reminded him of the Caretaker. Of the thousand quiet gravestones in the fog, of his story being listened to. Had he¡­ held his breath there? He didn¡¯t remember. In the ashen wastes, he¡¯d been chased by monsters in the night. He¡¯d felt death creep in multiple times. He¡¯d once choked on a fry, where his consciousness faded by a quick slam onto the floor. He¡¯d felt his blood pour from his new, four-legged body and he¡¯d felt himself break into pieces. And he¡¯d survived. Something stirred. Mercury recognized the . He recognized the familiarity of death and the emptiness it brought. He felt hollowed out, even by , at the fact that even when he was dying he willed the Skill to suppress his fear, holding on for a way out. He felt the emptiness in himself. The lack of things. Felt that his heart pumped pointlessly. That his mana coursed meaninglessly. His stamina ebbed and flowed without a single ounce of purpose. He felt the gaping hole in his lungs where his should have been. And he got it. He¡¯d figured out many things about his own . When he was first taught it by old Uunrahzil. When he used it, over and over, to pump energy through his body, to resist. He understood it dearly. Knew its rhythm, knew its purpose. And now, he was left with a hollow, empty . The last puzzle piece fit. There was no point in figuring out the depth of his , because at the end of breathing laid . And in that bit of void lay a dream. From within empty lungs, Mercury wove himself a bit of air. Without breathing in, he breathed out. [Your understanding of has reached its limit! (pinnacle)>] [ resonates with you.] [ becomes .] He did not need to read the description to know what the Skill meant. After all, it was a part of him. Part of who he was. He was Mercury Starlight. As inevitably as rain fell from dark clouds, Mercury breathed out. There was no longer a need for him to take in air. Maybe not even water, really. He could simply will the energy to power his Skills into existence, weave it forth from inside himself. Somehow, his breath only spilled out faster. More and more air left his body, faster and faster, even. He barely needed to ask it to shape into a breeze. He was the father of this , after all, and it was a better friend than most of it. A storm began to rage around Mercury. His skin was in tatters, his fur matted, yet suddenly, his Skills worked at their full force. had already changed his body so much, the noxious gas now slipping off him as it was supplied with more power than it could ever need. knitted all his torn skin back together, refusing to let him die. was powered by , the two working in tandem. Any tiredness Mercury felt was washed away, and suddenly, it felt as though he was standing in a spring rainstorm. He felt downright refreshed. There was a dome of air around him. The darkness at the edges of his vision faded, and Mercury felt his mind clear up. It smelled like rain around him. Like and and , each scent woven into the air he breathed out, because he understood them. He was like each one of those. Around him, the fog was carved away at by . Because that¡¯s what it was at the end of the day. An ability meant to eat away, so why would it not eat away at itself? A shift of perspective and the ability destroyed itself, guided in that process by and , both opening a path for him. Mercury raised himself up on his legs again. Though they were thin and ragged from the constant cycle of being disintegrated and regenerated, he still felt more secure on them than he had in a while. A small cloud of raindrops swirled, permanently falling around him. Tiny clouds hovered around Mercury as he walked forward. The drops themselves were made from water, yes, but also from mana and stamina, shimmering in their iridescence. They pattered onto the smoothened, worn-down stone, each leaving a tiny sparkle as it shattered. Accompanying it was the click of the Dream of Starvation against the rock, the metal sending a message to anyone who listened closely enough. Mercury Rainfall Starlight would not be done in by a simple poisonous cloud. ¡°You! You should be dead?!¡± Berthorn cried. ¡°Then start doing a better fucking job at killing me.¡± Chapter 170: Cats need Naps Chapter 170: Cats need Naps Berthorn stood and stared at him for just a moment, then regained his mind for just a moment. ¡°Just die!¡± he yelled, stretching out his hand. . Berthorn crumpled to his knees, his breath catching in his chest. He was sweating, hard, pearly and droplets coalescing on his skin at the same time as shivers wracked him. He was terrified. There was a fear in his heart. A horror of this monster in front of him. How could something so miserable hide in the skin of such a little, inconspicuous creature? . Once more, shiver wracked Berthorn. His heart was beating so fast it may as well not have been beating at all. His arms and legs shook, barely keeping him upright. The nightmares flared up again. The scar on his face hurt. His Skills, every last one of them, each predictive ability told him that there was no point in running, that he was . He was being watched by something he couldn¡¯t overcome, never even hope to match. ¡°Hey. Berthorn. You know you really hurt Zyl, right?¡± Mercury asked. Its voice was so calm. Why was its voice so fucking calm?! Berthorn raised his head, meeting the thing¡¯s eyes. They were purple, with swirls and sparkles of iridescence in them. Little Stars. Around the thing, there was a small¡­ bubble, he would almost call it. No, perhaps that was wrong. It wasn¡¯t truly a bubble. It was¡­ the thing. The mopaaw, the little creature, had somehow expanded entirely beyond its body. Had it? No, not truly. The space, the bubble was the very idea of it. A part of that idea. It was stormy. Wind whipping across the little area, brushing through their fur. The purple stripes glowed in it, the patterns shifting each time a small bit of wind caught onto them. There was Rain, unending torrents of it, that disappeared when they touched the ground. Yet it felt so unbelievably heavy. A whole storm, woven from absolutely nowhere. Wind and rain that he could hear, yet that also vanished as soon as that happened. And yet, it felt so heavy on his mind. ¡°Berthorn. You have yet to answer me. Is Zyl hurt because of you?¡± ¡°Y- Yes.¡± ¡°Mhhh,¡± Mercury hummed. His voice was quiet yet carried so well. ¡°And how do you feel about that?¡± Berthorn froze. There was a right and a wrong answer, yet was he supposed to lie or not. ¡°I-...¡± He failed to finish the sentence. ¡°You what?¡± Mercury asked, stepping closer. ¡°I feel¡­ relieved.¡± He said. The fear had set in. Nestled comfortably within his bones. The absolute certainty of death was now engraved in his mind. If he were to come to harm here¡­ maybe he wouldn¡¯t even have to regret it? ¡°Relieved. Why?¡± ¡°Because I proved myself capable of winning.¡± ¡°Winning?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Berthorn now met his gaze. ¡°And that makes you relieved?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± the dragon nodded. He still shivered and kneeled on the ground, yet his face was full of conviction. ¡°I might kill you for this.¡± Berthorn paused. His expression¡­ stayed the same. Placid. ¡°Yes,¡± he said, voice once again firm. ¡°I suppose you might.¡± ¡°And that doesn¡¯t worry you?¡± Mercury asked. Berthorn looked at him. For a long time. Thought of the nightmares and the horror he just felt. He took it all in, a long breath through his nose, then smiled. ¡°No.¡± His expression was peaceful. [You have found a path forward for !] [Checking Qualifications. Path found. Maximum level long since acquired.] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve?] Berthorn¡¯s smile widened, and his eyebrows raised. Yes. [The individual has acquired the Skill .] Berthorn felt another round of fear slam into him, but his shaking stopped. He saw a million possibilities of the future, one more outrageous than the next, but he felt all of them without a shred of regret. He smiled. ¡°Mercury,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s your name, right? Mercury Rainfall Starlight. I can¡­ see it now.¡± And he did see it. In so many futures, there was a notification in front of him. [You have been killed by Mercury Rainfall Starlight.] Maybe he would have known, too, if he listened more. He smiled, and shook his head. No, he probably would not have, because he did not care for little monsters. Perhaps this little monster he could care for, though. Mercury cocked his head. ¡°You¡¯re calling me by my name?¡± ¡°Something is only worth fearing if you don¡¯t know its name. What my mind comes up with is so much more terrifying than the truth ever could be. Now I see it. Jih. Jijiji,¡± he giggled. ¡°I see it, you see?¡± ¡°You¡¯re gonna regret having made enemies with me,¡± Mercury said. Suddenly, though, it didn¡¯t feel as threatening anymore. The only thing that could happen to him was death, and what was a little risk of death compared to freedom? ¡°I don¡¯t think I will. Actually, no, I already do.¡± He paused, then snuck a look at the orb. It was still dim. The spark in it swirling around and recovering before it could shoot out a new beam. Peacefully, Berthorn gazed at it, then back at Mercury. ¡°Truly, I am regretful. You had nothing to do with this. I could have never once met you in my life and maybe this would have gone differently. Maybe. But I am also thankful to you, you know?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I do,¡± Mercury said. ¡°And I don¡¯t think I need to.¡± He jumped. ¡°I suppose you don¡¯t,¡± Berthorn said with a shrug, dodging aside. He was faster than Mercury. It didn¡¯t matter. Something slammed into his chest, far more force than the mopaaw himself would have had. It hurt Berthorn, and he felt his breath leave his lungs, but then drew more air in once more. Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit. Around himself, a field of poison slowly spread. ¡°I¡¯ll still tell you if you don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°I mind,¡± Mercury replied, his eyes narrow. ¡°I suppose you would.¡± Berthorn sighed. He could see it all happen. There was no future in which Mercury heard him out, and honestly, he understood. He¡¯d been unkind to his friends. Such was life. Once again, the dragon sidestepped an actual swipe of claws, being slammed instead with a weight to his face, sending his head backwards and making his nose bleed, as well as a strike against his mind. Then there was a bit of thread wrapping around him, slowing his mind down. He saw it all, saw where it all would lead. The thread dissolved in the mist, the hole in the fog left by the small bubble of closing again. A weight slammed into his mind, but the fear was simply added to the pile. Berthorn smiled. ¡°Come on, Mercury. Face me.¡± With a scoff, the mopaaw pounced at him once more, and Berthorn stepped to the side again. Except, this time, moments before the weight slammed into him, he kicked forward. His leg hit the bubble of . There was a freezing cold against his leg. The wind was so sharp it cut through his leg instantly. His pants were shredded, then his skin was as well. When the rain fell onto the wound, it fell right through, leaving holes in his body. It was an incredible power. But despite the wounds and the blood flowing from him, despite the fact that his leg was disintegrating as he watched, it still slammed into the mopaaw. By the time it impacted, it had lost some weight. Yet the blow was still tremendous. With a great amount of violence, the kick crashed into Mercury, grinding bone against bone. Berthorn felt the body twist and reshape underneath the kick, absorbing some of the force. The lung leaving Mercury¡¯s air, the rest of the weight carrying forward and folding him, before the mopaaw was flung away, spitting blood. ¡°Oh. That must have hurt, I suppose. Quite sorry.¡± Mercury flew into the ground and bounced, then bounced again, spitting blood. Berthorn regarded him calmly, a peaceful smile on his face. The dragon¡¯s leg was in horrible condition. There were dozens of holes in it, where raindrops had hit it. Blood leaked from it, already forming a puddle on the ground. The skin was torn, having been destroyed by winds. Even when it impacted, he felt the body of Mercury try to make it way through his leg. Berthorn didn¡¯t know it, but had been moments away from breaking his bones, leaving a couple cracks in Berthorn''s shin. He felt the pain. He smiled, calmly. ¡°You truly are quite strong,¡± Berthorn assessed. ¡°Fuck you,¡± Mercury coughed. Then suddenly, some of his wounds closed, and he moved a lot faster. ¡°Oh, you had unspent points?¡± Berthorn asked. Mercury pounced again, this time too fast for Berthorn to avoid. The mopaaw¡¯s claws raked across his chest, and he felt the same weakness flowed through his body again. His muscles shrinking a little. Like his blood going acidic. With a slow, confident motion, he reached for his chest. He grabbed onto Mercury, closing his fist around his neck. Once again, his body began to disintegrate. His chest was flayed, his scales torn apart, his skin riddled with holes. Now, his arm was bearing even more of the damage. He could feel his scales resist a moment longer than the ordinary skin of his human form would, and he began shifting even further. His fingers grew claws, which dug into Mercury, drawing drops of blood. The claws raked across his arm once more, the muscles atrophying. Berthorn felt hunger begin to gnaw at his stomach already. A slight pang, only, but still. Then he slammed the mopaaw down onto the floor. The stone broke apart. Not due to , it would only ever target enemies with the fury of a storm, but instead under Mercury¡¯s own flesh and blood. There was a horrible noise as the body of a cat was used as the instrument to grind away at stone. Only through a cocktail of abilities was Mercury even able to survive. He broke apart the rocks ground with his rijn before he slammed into them. hardened his skin, slowed him down, made the landing a little softer. even worked to break the ground apart for him at the same time as and kept his bones intact. Then, Berthorn let go, leaving him in a quite deep, cat-shaped crater. The dragon took a step back, the scales slowly receding a bit again. ¡°Ahhh. That truly feels freeing.¡± Mercury crawled from the hole, his skin now smeared in blood. ¡°I¡¯ll kill you.¡± Berthorn nodded. ¡°You might. In fact, you got quite close many times.¡± Mercury shook his head at him. ¡°You¡¯re making no sense.¡± Berthorn shrugged. ¡°I suppose I might not.¡± By now, he limped. One of his legs he could barely stand one, one of his arms was entirely demolished. The pool of blood underneath his feet was enough to seem deadly. Yet he stood, a placid smile on his face. ¡°Come on, Mercury. Kill me.¡± He didn¡¯t have to ask twice. Without hesitation, the cat leapt at him, the storm tearing at Berthorn. Blood mixed with illusory raindrops, staining them red moments before they hit the ground. The dragon felt his body being torn apart, and smiled. As Mercury clawed and scratched at Berthorn, the dragon lowered down, and sunk his teeth into Mercury in return. First, his human-like jaws did little, but then they morphed. Then kept morphing. Soon, the fangs grew and dug into Mercury¡¯s flesh, sending piercing pain through his shoulder. Then Berthorn bit down harder. Mercury screamed. Clawed at Berthorn¡¯s face. Multiple swipes, until eventually, the man¡¯s jaw loosened, but regardless, Berthorn tossed Mercury to the ground again. There was so much blood on the floor that you could hardly even see the mountaintop anymore. Berthorn dropped to one knee. His muscles had grown weaker, barely enough to hold him after all the injuries covering his body. He was riddled with wounds, his skin flayed, his face torn, holes in his chest. Then, slowly he stood again. In front of him, on the floor, Mercury breathed raggedly, the rainstorm around him flickering in and out of existence. The Coward smiled peacefully. ¡°We could kill each other now, I suppose.¡± He reached forward with a clawed hand, his skin eroding as he reached into the storm. He withdrew once the damage reached his knuckles. ¡°But that is not what I wish. Thank you, Mercury. I am¡­ free.¡± He took a deep breath, then pulled out the orb. The spark in it glowed brightly with fury, ready to shoot another blast. Berthorn held it out, pointed it at Mercury. It glowed brightly, radiating deadly heat. Then it stopped. Dimmed. The dragon smiled. Gently, he kneeled down to the ground, and lifted his fingers off the sphere. ¡°Take it,¡± he said. ¡°I¡­ don¡¯t think I need it anymore.¡± He turned around, no longer facing Mercury. ¡°You¡¯re powerful, Mercury. Terrifying. I feared you more than I think I feared anyone in my life, can you believe that?¡± He chuckled. ¡°To think that I. The coward. Would be freed by just embracing fear and acting despite it. How silly is that? Ironic, right? But now, I feel so calm. Like I''m standing in soft spring rain.¡± He turned around, looking at Mercury. ¡°Rather appropriate, I suppose.¡± He smiled, again. ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll be off. See you. Or not, I suppose.¡± After taking the path he wanted out of the hundreds, perhaps thousands of futures he saw, Berthorn simply spread his wings and left. He left a dripping trail of blood, every inch of his body covered in wounds. Yet still, he grew the wings, leathery and covered in oily, greenish-black scales. And then, his seaweed hair blowing in the wind, he flew off. Leaving the spark in front of a barely breathing Mercury. Trinyakorie eyed the orb, then the others near her, and took a step forward, when Irrithuriel moved. She began to shift, and Trinya took a step back immediately. The power hungry woman hesitated a moment, then turned around and fled. Time passed slowly, seconds becoming minutes as Irrithuriel could barely believe what she was seeing, but the sky was¡­ clear. Nothing showed up. It was all over. Immediately, she moved and ran to Mercury, rummaging for any ingredients she could get together, before shoving them into the mopaaw¡¯s mouth. He was lucid, somehow, his eyes unfocused and dull, but still lively. His mouth moved, chewing the bundle of leaves slowly. ¡°Eat, Starlight, eat,¡± she said. Her hands felt at his body, and he let out a pained wince. Every inch of his being hurt, and having someone tap at those spots was¡­ bad. Her brows rose, though. ¡°You¡¯ll live,¡± she said, surprise in her voice. ¡°Definitely live. You were spared.¡± Mercury looked at her, chewed, swallowed. ¡°No. He spared himself.¡± There was conviction in his gaze that Irrithuriel didn¡¯t doubt. ¡°Right, Starlight. Can you stand?¡± Mercury replied with a groan, and by, in fact, shuffling his legs in under himself. ¡°Yea.¡± Then he picked up the spark with . ¡°Let¡¯s get this back to my boyfriend, right?¡± His tone was curt. Probably because he was very hurt. He¡¯d also spent almost all his points from reserve, 50 into vitality, and another 30 into agility. was levelling just from him standing, but he ignored that. Slowly, step by step, he dragged his battered form over to Zyl, then dropped the spark on his chest. The red haired dragon slowly turned to face him. Zyl¡¯s expression was so unbelievably tired, yet despite the fact that he could barely keep his eyes open, he turned a radiant smile at Mercury. Zyl raised his tired, bloody hand, and placed it between Mercury¡¯s ears, rubbing slightly before his arm fell to the floor. ¡°You¡¯re amazing, Mercury.¡± ¡°Shhhh, you,¡± the mopaaw replied, blushing a little. ¡°Come on. Take your spark.¡± He gently put down the orb on Zyl¡¯s chest. The dragon smiled at him, cheekily, and spoke. ¡°Okay, alright, but just because you asked so nicely, hehe-¡± he stopped and coughed. Blood splattered onto the already blood-covered stone. ¡°Okay,¡± he spoke again, his voice now hoarse, ¡°I should really get on that.¡± ¡°You should,¡± Mercury said with a sad smile, then went silent. As did Zyl, closing his eyes. It was a tiny motion, with them already having drifted to be almost closed beforehand. But he still did it. Then, for a moment, the spark flared to light. Half a heartbeat later, the glass orb constraining it melted away. A breath later, the spark sank into Zyl¡¯s chest. During that one breath in between, Mercury felt as though he was standing at the caldera of a volcano. Heat more intense than anything he¡¯d ever experienced in his life washed over him. The feeling was so intense that without , his fur might have caught on fire. Then it dipped into Zyl¡¯s chest with a hiss. It didn¡¯t just magically vanish into it, it seared his flesh all the way through. For another second, he lay still. Then, Zyl spasmed as though he was hit by a defibrillator. He jumped up from the floor by about half a meter, crashing back down, his eyes shooting open with a desperate gasp for air, and he began coughing black blood. For a solid half minute, he just laid there, hacking his lungs out. Eventually, he calmed down, then laid back, touching his head against the rock. The puddle of blood he laid in dyed the side of his face red, but he didn¡¯t seem to mind. ¡°I feel whole again,¡± Zyl said, his voice raspy but smooth. ¡°I¡¯m glad to hear that,¡± Mercury replied, smiling. ¡°Thanks for fighting for me, love.¡± Mercury blushed. ¡°Anytime, Zyl.¡± There was a clap, and both of them turned to look at Irrithuriel. The old snow witch looked tired, but still wore a small smile. ¡°Alright, you two flirts. Let¡¯s get you home. My home, specifically. To safety.¡± ¡°Right, I need a nap,¡± Mercury said. Chapter 171: Chasing Sunlight Chapter 171: Chasing Sunlight The journey home was just as swift as the journey to the mountain. The roles, however, were inverted. Where Mercury was the healthy one before, Zyl now instead looked much better off. And where Zyl was uncannily gorgeous, well, no, he was still the one looking uncannily gorgeous. Mercury looked as if someone had taken him, wrung him like a rag, then smashed him through a couple rocks just to make a point. Because that¡¯s kind of mostly what happened. Regardless of Mercury¡¯s rather miserable experience throughout it all, they made it back to the cottage safe. Irrithuriel opened the door, and set about cooking, while Mercury almost immediately collapsed onto the bed. It had never felt so soft against his skin. Parts of that were probably the fact that his skin was, by now, incredibly durable. As in, outstandingly so. He had added another huge chunk of points to vitality, which was already one of his higher stats, and now sat at the very top of his stat sheet. Well, probably, he¡¯d gained levels whose points he hadn¡¯t seen applied yet. Still, with it and having worked continuously to make him more durable, the bed felt like a soft, warm embrace, and Mercury found his eyes closing almost immediately. Somehow, relying on instincts buried deep within his current shape, he¡¯d placed himself in the perfect middle of the single sunny spot on the mattress, where a square of yellow sunlight travelled in through the window. Motes of dust danced in the air, and the heat was comfortable on his fur, despite making his dozens of wounds itch and ache. Well, maybe that was just the fact that they existed at all. Regardless, the surrounding air soon also began shifting to a slightly more comfortable temperature, as Irrithuriel began cooking something. Zyl sat down on the bed next to his feline companion, softly laying a hand on one of Mercury¡¯s paws. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re fine?¡± he asked in a soft voice. Mercury met his gaze by lazily opening one eye. ¡°Perfectly.¡± There was the taste of blood still in his mouth. ¡°I¡¯ll heal.¡± The dragon ran a finger through his fur. ¡°Just¡­ look out for yourself.¡± ¡°Heh, soon as you start looking out for yourself, silly,¡± Mercury chided jokingly, flashing a small smile. His eyes were already closed again, and he simply enjoyed the warmth surrounding him. He heard Zyl groan. ¡°I don¡¯t think that has anything to do with this.¡± ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure it does.¡± Mercury dragged out the last word teasingly. A long sigh left Zyl¡¯s lips. ¡°Alright. I suppose I hardly have a choice when there¡¯s someone like you looking out for me.¡± Mercury grinned. ¡°You betcha. Gonna take such good care of you. Once, uh, once my bones are back in the right places.¡± Zyl smiled. ¡°Soon as that,¡± he said, then kissed Mercury on the forehead. ¡°You rest well now, yeah?¡± ¡°Mhm,¡± Mercury murmured, already half asleep. ¡°Will do.¡± Then, the cat got his nap. - - - What would perhaps be considered a reasonable time later without being too long, a smell tickled his nose. The distinct aroma of comforting food Not too long after, he found a plate placed in front of him, still on the bed. ¡°I can go to the table,¡± he complained grumpily, already knowing his legs might refuse. ¡°Try getting up and I¡¯ll feed you,¡± Zyl threatened. Mercury¡¯s face fell in abject horror as he watched the benign smile on the dragon¡¯s face. Such audacity! Such betrayal! ¡°I suppose I could eat in bed.¡± ¡°I suppose you could,¡± Zyl nodded along. With , he didn¡¯t waste a single drop of food, his mana already having recharged enough to reliably use the Skill. His entire meal was taken in under the watchful eye of Zyl, and afterwards, he shifted in the bed until he was in the centre of the sunny spot again. Once more, he drifted off to sleep. - - - The next time Mercury woke up, it was already late at night. Zyl and Irrithuriel hadn¡¯t ever been loud enough during the day, both of them moving with grace beyond what humans were usually capable of. Instead, what had him open his eyes, was a knock on the door. The sky was dark outside, the sunny spot Mercury¡¯d been laying on already disappeared. Instead, a small orb of warm flame had replaced it above his head, shedding barely enough light yet somehow almost perfectly replicating the heat of the sun. He loved it. The knock on the door resounded again. Mercury looked around the room, his settling in properly. Zyl was also on the bed, breathing calmly and quietly. The man was probably more than tired, having gone so far beyond what should be reasonable, then absorbing a part of himself back into himself. He truly did need the sleep. Irrithuriel, too, was nowhere to be seen, the old witch probably in another room, sleeping off the fatigue of the day. It was a lot for her as well. Deciding he was the best person for the job, Mercury let out a long sigh, then heaved himself up. His bones complained at every step he made, and he felt a dozen hundred aches flare up all over his body. Every muscle, bone and bit of cartilage in his body ached. At least, probably thanks to his vitality milestone, and , the pain wasn¡¯t the kind of burning pain you got when you were wounded, but instead the kind of deep, dull pull that came with healing wounds. There was a third, slightly more urgent knock by the time he reached the door. He stared at the handle for a few seconds. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± he asked from the inside, not willing to compromise the warding enchantments in case there was danger. ¡°It¡¯s me,¡± a voice came from outside, scratchy and gravelly. ¡°Who¡¯s me?¡± Mercury asked right back, already recognizing Nir. ¡°Nir. Zyl¡¯s sister.¡± She said the words somewhat awkwardly, as if not used to them, and with a pause in between. ¡°How do I know it¡¯s you?¡± By now, the mopaaw was teasing, but there was still merit to that. ¡°Uhm. Well. I, hm. I promise it¡¯s me, Mer!¡± She said the last bit with such conviction you¡¯d think it was the most compelling piece of evidence ever. ¡°I see. Well, I suppose there is absolutely no flaw in this argument. What are you doing here so late at night?¡± ¡°Could you open the door? It¡¯s kinda awkward to talk to a piece of wood. As mysterious as it makes you seem.¡± He could almost hear her scratching the back of her head. ¡°Alright, alright, I understand.¡± With a small smile, Mercury pulled the door open. truly was one of the best Skills he¡¯d ever picked. In front of there was, in fact, the same wiry girl he¡¯d gotten to know over the last few days. Her frame was thin, her limbs looking too long for her. She wore a simple shirt, already of small size, yet still it was far too wide and too short for her, showing some of her stomach. Her pants ended just below the knee. ¡°Aren¡¯t you cold?¡± Mercury asked. She blinked at him slowly. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you cold?¡± he asked again. Once more, Nir looked at him, then tilted her head, a little further than most would think of as comfortable. ¡°No. Why?¡± ¡°Your clothes. Aren¡¯t exactly made for cold weather.¡± She shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s not cold.¡± Her breath misted in the night air. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s true.¡± ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure it is.¡± This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. The two stared at each other for a moment, Nir seemingly content to wait for Mercury to pick up the conversation again. ¡°Alright, then. What brings you here, Nir.¡± ¡°Brother Ber is different,¡± she said, her tone entirely neutral. ¡°He is?¡± ¡°Mhm. Very. He didn¡¯t say anything, but it¡¯s his posture. He was standing straight, looking ahead. He never stands up straight.¡± Mercury shrugged. ¡°A lot happened today.¡± His shoulders ached as he made the motion. Nir¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°You. You¡¯re hurt.¡± A small smile found its way to Mercury¡¯s lips at the surprise in the girl¡¯s voice. ¡°I suppose I am.¡± ¡°Is it bad?¡± ¡°Not really.¡± It was. ¡°Does it hurt?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been through worse.¡± He had, though not much. The girl squatted down, getting her eye level closer to him. She was looking at him without much of an expression, that simple, curious, blank look kids sometimes had about them. She poked his shoulder with her finger. ¡°Ouch,¡± Mercury said, his tone dry. It hadn¡¯t hurt much. ¡°I don¡¯t think I enjoy being touched.¡± Nir smiled victoriously. ¡°That means you¡¯re very hurt.¡± The mopaaw shook his head. ¡°I don¡¯t much like being touched, even when not hurt.¡± Again, Nir tilted her head. ¡°Why¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t like it.¡± She looked at him. A second passed, then another. ¡°I see.¡± she then said. ¡°What happened to brother Ber?¡± ¡°I kicked his butt verbally, then he kicked mine physically.¡± Nir smiled. ¡°Did he?¡± ¡°He did.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t sound like him. I bet he beat you verbally, too.¡± ¡°No, no, I was much cooler than him,¡± Mercury retorted. ¡°Maybe. Brother Ber isn¡¯t very awesome.¡± She said it so matter-of-factly it hurt ¡°You¡¯re not wrong.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not, no,¡± she agreed with a nod. ¡°But he seems better, now. Thank you for that. How is Zyl?¡± She quickly changed topic after thanking him, so Mercury didn¡¯t pursue it. ¡°Zyl¡¯s okay. He got his spark back, he¡¯s just very tired.¡± Now, a smile found its way to Nir¡¯s face. ¡°That¡¯s very good to hear!¡± ¡°Agreed. With a little luck, he¡¯ll be healed up again not too long from now.¡± ¡°Mh. Brother Zyl always healed fast.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Silence held between them again, pale moonlight barely illuminating the mountaintops. It wasn¡¯t a very bright night. ¡°Can I see him now?¡± Nir asked. ¡°He¡¯s asleep.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Her smile faded. ¡°Yeah. Just needs rest. He and Berthorn fought and he¡¯s tired.¡± That almost made Nir laugh. ¡°Brother Zyl? Tired from fighting brother Ber?¡± There was amusement in her voice, as if telling a joke. ¡°Yes, seriously. Ber cheated, using a powerful weapon on an already much weaker Zyl. He also aimed the weapon at me, forcing Zyl to take the damage, rather than dodging.¡± ¡°So you lost, not Zyl,¡± Nir said. ¡°No, I think Ber would have cheated his way to victory, even without me there,¡± Mercury added. ¡°Really, I think I helped.¡± ¡°Maybe,¡± she shrugged. ¡°Wasn¡¯t there. Glad the sparring went well though.¡± ¡°We weren¡¯t sparring,¡± Mercury said. The girl¡¯s head tilted to the side, almost a ninety degree angle this time. ¡°But no one died?¡± ¡°Barely, yes.¡± ¡°So you were sparring!¡± she said, a huge smile on her face. Mercury took a deep breath in, partially trying to push his annoyance away, then flashed her a smile. ¡°You could call it that, I suppose.¡± Nir shook her head. ¡°Teasing you. I get it. Half-spar.¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Mercury said with an amused huff. ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll be off then. Thanks Mer. See you soon.¡± ¡°Alright, see ya.¡± With her short parting words said, the girl flew off. Well, granted, she didn¡¯t really fly, but jumped, yet the jump was easily strong enough to seem like flight. Mercury, for his part, closed the door, ran a paw through Zyl¡¯s hair, calming his breathing, then cuddled up to his boyfriend again as he went to sleep. More hours drifted by. - - - When Mercury woke up, it was still early in the day, but the sun was already out. Slowly, he stirred, and once more shifted to the sunny spot. Overnight, his pains had truly had time to settle in, almost as if his body had only just now caught up with all of the things that¡¯d injured it. Every bit of him ached, whether he was staying still or moving about. It well and truly felt like he¡¯d once again put himself through the wringer. Overused every bit of himself. Some of his Skills even felt like they were more difficult to activate, a small amount of resistance there that he needed to overcome. The exhaustion sat so deep inside him, that when he called up his status, he didn¡¯t even read it, simply let the instinctive knowledge of the system guide him. If he missed anything, Appy would let him know anyway. Status. = Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 1 -> 6 Species: Srytfyel Titles: , , , , , , Alias: Beast, Mittens, dum-dun, Yr''enzel === Hp: 342/850 Mp: 766/767 Sp: 333/547 === Strength: 113 (+5) Vitality: 170 -> 180 Dexterity: 115 (+15) -> 117 Agility: 147 (+15) -> 148 Intelligence: 123 -> 127 Wisdom: 118 (+2) -> 123 Willpower: 152 -> 178 Luck: 108 -> 111 === Ability points: 31 World points: 1763 Skill points: 1 710 === Gold: 14 853 Beast familiars: 1/2 = He¡¯d gained five full levels. The notifications had happened after the fight, despite his loss, because his desire to protect Zyl was fulfilled. Of course he¡¯d wanted to win, to kick Berthorn¡¯s ass, to do all of that and more. But it was okay. They were safe. This was still a good outcome. And that desire was rewarded. The reward, of course, mainly came in willpower. Vitality had gone from 170 to 180. He¡¯d increased it to 170 in the middle of the fight, putting points into it when he needed to heal. The same went for agility, which he¡¯d also put many points into. Honestly, seeing his Hp being higher than his mana after all this time felt¡­ strange. Wrong, almost. He¡¯d need to remedy that, either with his points, or by absorbing more from the surroundings. Also, despite his Hp being low, he knew he¡¯d heal. The bar would probably reach its maximum in a few hours from now, and then it would help him heal even faster. Hp and body condition were strongly linked, but there could still be some disparity between them. Not permanently, really, it would fade as they influenced each other, but it could happen. His world points had also gone up, but those didn¡¯t matter as much, not to him, not right now. Maybe one day. Much more interesting were his Skills. Specifically the new ability he¡¯d acquired from this newest excursion. Usually, having a description for an ability shown was a bit more difficult than getting one for a Skill. He had never really bothered looking up the descriptions of the abilities gained through ihn¡¯ar, since he understood them properly, but this time, he wanted to see it spelled out. [: The individual has taken their understanding of a concept, then pushed its boundaries until they snapped. When the framework of was no longer enough, it grew. Now, the ability encompasses . The individual holds command over the essence of storm and its manifestation. Gentle rain may refresh, heavy storms may destroy. It is part of the cycle that is and isn¡¯t. As sudden as a storm manifests, the individual can create one from nothing.] Mercury read the description and smiled, because he knew that wasn¡¯t all there was to the ability. It was, intrinsically, a part of him. If he tried, he knew he could use it to control his own body. Make mana rage through his veins like a storm, have his stamina flood his system like a hurricane. Breath fill is lungs on command. It was as though he¡¯d promised himself to live up to his namesake. To provide comfort to those he cared for, and to tear down the walls that stood in the way of his freedom. That was the essence of , to him. Despite the fact that he didn¡¯t need to, Mercury took a deep breath. The air still smelled like food and wood, and a little like Zyl. He enjoyed it. Then, he browsed through the notifications telling him his Skills increased in level. There were, quite literally, dozens. [Your Skills have levelled up: 10>, 2>, 6>, 4>, 3>, 5>, 31>, 4>, 3>, 5>, 3>, 5>, 2>, 3>, 5>, 2>, 8>!] Especially and made nice progress. He¡¯d been put through a lot there, and both Skills were almost permanently running, so it was certainly warranted, but nevertheless nice to see. In addition, and somewhat surprisingly, out of the whole bunch, was the Skill that was now ready to evolve. [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve? (400 Skill points)] Yes. [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (400 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. 4. ] [: A more violent Skill, meant for use on living matter. When activated as an attack on anything that possesses Hp, the Skill will deal additional damage. It leaves jagged cuts that are hard to heal, and the wounds bleed more than usual.] This one was, as the Skill itself said, violent. And very aggressive. Mercury had been using for combat, but it¡¯s not as though the Skill was without usage outside. He could scratch and cute and so on just fine with them, too. This one seemed a bit too aggressive. [: A simple Skill that imparts additional slicing power into your attacks. Cuts will be smoother, leaving sharp lines. With practice, they can be made with enough finesse for them to only be noticed upon inspection, then suddenly take greater effect. Attacks deal additional damage based on how long it takes for an opponent to discover them.] The second option was a bit more¡­ out there. Sure, he liked the sharpness, but the fact that he could leave cuts so fine that they would take forever to be noticed was strange. What if they were never noticed, then? Would they just not deal damage? Heal faster? Not at all? It seemed weirdly style-orientated, rather than practical. [: Usually acquired as an evolution to the more basic Skill, this allows the user to further enhance their biological weaponry and toolset. The individual¡¯s claws will remain sharp, be able to withdraw and extend further, giving a longer cutting edge. Additionally, attacks made using claws will deal more damage, especially upon activation of this Skill.] With this option came a nice touch of quality of life. He wouldn¡¯t need to put as much effort into constantly keeping his claws sharp if they simply took care of that themselves. It was rather solid, but also kind of¡­ boring, overall. But it was a contender. [: What the individual wills to cut, it will be cut. This Skill may be applied on top of any weaponry, biological or not, the individual wields, to greatly enhance cutting power. The Skill may also be used by itself to will things apart. Cuts can be made with only the mind, or the Skill can be used to lengthen existing weaponry. If applied on top of a magical item, item effects will still be delivered upon contact with the Skill.] Now this sounded quite a bit better already. First of all, it improved his range quite substantially, which none of the others did. All of them enhanced his slashing, sure, but only this one said he could extend the Skill past his items and still have the effect working. And being able to cut with his mind was a very nice bonus. Of course, he could probably still learn to do that with his rijn, but the Skill might even help him pick that up faster. Honestly, it seemed like there was hardly any contest. [Evolution selected.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Once the Skill settled in, he tried it for a moment, willing the tips of a few hairs to from his front legs. They fell away, cleanly cut. Mercury smiled, tried the Skill on a spoon on the kitchen table, leaving a small cut on it. He didn¡¯t make it go all the way through, since that would have been kinda rude. Satisfied with the Skill, Mercury followed the moving sunlight, then gently closed his eyes and went back to sleep. There was more resting to be done! Chapter 172: Get-Together Chapter 172: Get-Together The days passed peacefully. Sometimes, Nir came to visit. Sometimes she didn¡¯t. Zyl¡¯s mother had recovered from her injuries, too. Fully transforming into a dragon did that, though she suffered from mana exhaustion for a few days as well, having emptied her entire pool. Mana, after all, did partially come from the outside. It needed to be absorbed. Then again, maybe made mercury a bit of a special case when it came to that. Regardless of the cat¡¯s need for mana, his need for sleep was clear. He slept for a long while each day, on Zyl¡¯s lap, or his head, or simply chasing sunny spots around the house. Zyl and him also had time for a picnic, once. Irrithuriel baked some sweets and bread for them, and they took it out to one of the few grassy spots around, where they had a little date. By the evening, Zyl lit a candle, by simply touching a finger to the wick. They spend a long time looking at the stars together. A page passed that way, then another, and they decided to finally say their goodbyes to Irrithuriel. Winter was slowly coming to an end, the days getting a bit warmer again, though it still snowed on a few days. Mercury started to shed his thicker fur, anyway. Maybe his higher vitality stopped the cold from mattering as much. Irrithuriel hugged both of them goodbye, and said they were welcome to visit anytime. Nir was there when the two of them declared it, and also hugged them. She said she looked forward to meeting them again, and that was that. The snow witch still gave them each a gift. An earring, for Mercury, one which would help his mana circulation and make casting ice magic quite a bit easier, or so she said. It was a golden rim, with a snowy white gem set in the middle, in a diamond shape. It also looked gorgeous on Mercury. [: These earrings, made for a mopaaw, specifically, easily meld into the skin of their user. The gem is made from the scales of a white dragon, the overlords of snow and ice. It significantly increases the user¡¯s intelligence (+40) and allows their study of ice to move along faster. It also smells of wood, reminding you of home.] He smiled. Appy had added that last line, the little rascal. [The individual has been confirmed to associate the smell of wood with a feeling of homeliness.] Dang right he did. His first ever home was the log, which he still stayed in, then the guildhouse Kintra took him into, which was also an old, wooden building. Then perhaps the inn in Stormbraver, also wooden. If he didn¡¯t think of it as homely, the token he used to remind himself of his home with Kintra wouldn¡¯t be made of wood. He smiled at the thought of the woman. Hopefully she was doing well. Irrithuriel¡¯s gift for Zyl was a scarf, long and flowing. Though it was malleable enough to turn into a thin armband, or even a hair tie, if needed. Zyl wore it as a headband for now, a silky white shifting mist wrapped over his head. If he wasn¡¯t looking regal and mystical before, he sure was now. Then they left. It wasn¡¯t a long goodbye, but a sweet one. They promised they¡¯d be back, in the same way one would their grandma. Since Zyl was healthier, they decided to fly at least part of the way there, especially since Mercury didn¡¯t at all mind being picked up by the dragon. Quite frankly, he rather enjoyed it, though he wouldn¡¯t really ever say that out loud. Something about being held by his boyfriend. And only a few days later, they arrived in Stormbraver. - - - It felt a bit surreal for Mercury, standing in front of the city gates again. The city had changed, quite drastically even. A lot of it seemed to have been rebuilt. More buildings were made of stone, but there were also still tents on the outside of the city, filled with noises of pain. The dusting of snow covered burnt grass that was just on the verge of regrowing. Spring would wash away the trace of fire on nature. It would take much longer for the traces of fire on the people within the city to disappear. With a little luck, they would have that time. Still, the city was, clearly, recovering. The people looked determined, rather than miserable, for once, and even the healers didn¡¯t seem desperate. A few of them even moved about without bags under their eyes! That¡¯s how you knew society was doing better. The guard eyed Zyl for a moment. ¡°License to enter and own a pet, sir,¡± he rattled off. Clearly, it wasn¡¯t someone who knew Mercury. Zyl eyed the mopaaw for a moment, trying to gauge if things would go well, but Mercury was in a good mood, for once. ¡°I¡¯ll have you know I¡¯m a seeker myself,¡± he said, levitating his license in front of the guard, the pink crystal hovering in the air. At least their response was amicable. Instead of full-on shock, all they gave was a short flinch of surprise, then a nod. ¡°All right, understood, sir. Thank you for correcting me. Could I still see your license, sir?¡± he asked, turning to Zyl. ¡°Of course,¡± the dragon said with a faint smile, handing over a similarly pink crystal. Then, the guard¡¯s eyes went wide. He dropped the license, but Zyl caught it. The guard simply stared at the dragon, tracking him out of the corner of his eyes. ¡°Is everything in order?¡± Zyl asked calmly, still maintaining a smile, which seemed to shake the guard out of his stupor. ¡°Ah yes, yes, sir. It¡¯s¡­ all in order. Please, uhm, refrain from using too much fire in the city, if it doesn¡¯t bother you, sir.¡± He stammered the last bit, almost unsure whether to say it at all. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, no harm will come to this city. This is my holiday, essentially. My lovely boyfriend has some friends here, you see?¡± Zyl¡¯s smile grew wider, teasing the guard a bit. ¡°Y-yes, of course. Please, uhm, enjoy our stay?¡± The guard¡¯s smile was crooked. Zyl gave a quick nod. ¡°We plan to, thank you! Have a pleasant day.¡± And, with that, they were in the city. The roads felt a little foreign to Mercury, things not being quite in the same place he remembered. It did make it a little more fun, exploring the city alongside Zyl. ¡°You think they¡¯ll alert anyone to me being here?¡± the dragon asked quietly when they were on a busy street. ¡°Probably,¡± Mercury replied with a shrug. ¡°But we¡¯ll manage.¡± Zyl smiled. ¡°That we will.¡± It really only took a few dozen more steps before someone approached them. An old lady, much older than most, her skin pale and flaky, her hair grey and sunbleached on top of that. Her expression was flat, though, and her face looked like it must¡¯ve been half a decade since the last time she cracked a smile. The people parted in front of her naturally, whispers running through the crowd. ¡°Good day,¡± she said, nodding at Zyl and Mercury when she stopped in front of them. ¡°I am councilwoman Blake. Pleasure to meet you.¡± Her tone indicated that it was not, in fact, a pleasure. Zyl gave a small bow, while Mercury simply stared. ¡°It is a pleasure to meet you as well,¡± the dragon said, and Mercury remained silent. The old lady eyed him a little warily, but then decided to simply leave it at that and focus on the literal dragon in her city again. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°Do you have a preferred way I should speak to you in public?¡± she asked. ¡°Just Zyl is fine,¡± he said, waving his hand. ¡°Well then, Zyl. Am I right in assuming you are who you say you are?¡± she asked again. ¡°You would be,¡± he nodded. ¡°I am honest to a fault.¡± ¡°Then I do have to ask you to follow me for a bit, if you could.¡± Blake turned around and walked before the two of them even had a chance to reply. Zyl simply gave Mercury a defeated smile and a shrug, then began to follow. So did the mopaaw. No one would stop them if they walked away, but really, they didn¡¯t have to make the job of ordinary people harder by being annoying about it. Well, granted, Zyl was probably the one doing the whole chaos stuff, while Mercury was really just along for the ride, but that was fine. At least now that he was with the councilwoman, the bunch of nasty looks he got from all the random people in the street seemed to matter much less. Most of them seemed to turn away. Blake seemed to shake off people¡¯s gazes just like she pushed apart the crowd. Maybe that was why she was sent, rather than any other member of the council. ¡°Are the other council members also this old?¡± Mercury asked, not seeing any reason to hold back. He was practically enjoying diplomatic immunity here through Zyl, and he planned to use it, just a little. For some mischief only, of course. ¡°Yes,¡± Blake replied. She didn¡¯t turn around. ¡°None of us are exactly what you¡¯d consider young. But with our age comes wisdom. As long as you retain a willingness to change.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± Mercury asked. The woman turned around and gave him a glance, wearing what he¡¯d consider a scowl. ¡°Young people want to change. It is what they do. Old people refuse to change. They are fine with who they are. Grow older still and you have to learn to accept change for what it is, potential. You need to remain willing to change, but not have an extreme desire for it. That¡¯s what keeps you alive.¡± ¡°I see, thank you,¡± Mercury said. He didn¡¯t disagree with what she said, though back on Earth that hadn¡¯t really been the case. Old people despised change, but maybe that was different here. ¡°Do any of you have trouble with your memory?¡± he asked the council woman. ¡°Not that I¡¯m aware,¡± she said. ¡°I see, thank you,¡± Mercury said. ¡°So why are we following you, exactly?¡± ¡°Threat assessment,¡± Blake replied, giving him a deeper scowl. ¡°We want to just ask why you¡¯re here, to make sure¡±Just Zyl¡± doesn¡¯t do anything that would put our citizens in danger.¡± ¡°I see, thank you,¡± Mercury said. He tried to come up with other sensible, yet somewhat annoying questions, but eventually decided to drop it. The rest of their walk was spent in what one would probably consider tolerable silence. Not oppressive, but certainly not comfortable. It helped that Zyl occasionally ran a hand through Mercury¡¯s fur, in response to which he¡¯d sometimes lightly lean his head against the other man¡¯s legs. After only a few minutes of walking, they were at the city hall, a tall building at the top of a hill. It had many attendants, and even more empty conference rooms, though one was already filled. Zyl and Mercury walked in to see a few familiar faces. On one of the seats sat Avery, leaned back, sunglasses over his eyes, hands folded on his stomach. He could have been asleep, but Mercury was very certain he was not. Behind him stood Marcel, tapping his foot nervously. The receptionist saw Mercury come in first, being the most stressed, and reacted first, his eyes widening slightly, before a chuckle rose up in his chest. Another seat was occupied by Lucia, flanked, as always, by Iris. The attendant was holding hands with the priestess, he noted, smiling brightly at her. Lucia returned the smile. They were caught in the moment so much so that it took a few seconds for them to even turn to the door. Still, there were more people Mercury knew. Gorm Gorm held one of the seats. Nira and Foss another, who received a nod from him. Esmeralda and Akuhl, representing the Tower. The raven haired woman flashed him a bright, curious, and worried smile, but he gave her a reassuring and mischievous wink, in response to which she rolled her eyes. Bishop Nemo also stood in the room, though further back and looking out a window. But the most unexpected person overall, to Mercury, was an older man, wearing a crow¡¯s mask. His beard was still well-kempt, a mustache and goatee, though by now perhaps more salt than pepper. Mercury found it suited him in a stern teacher kind of way, while Avery¡¯s slightly wilder goatee gave him a delinquent¡¯s aura. It was an amusing thought. The man in the bird mask slowly stood up from his seat. A hammer was strung to his side, with a large and thick head. He wore gloves and a thick coat. The bird¡¯s mask he wore was pristine, a shiny black without a speck of dust, yet his eyes beneath it trembled. ¡°Mercury,¡± he whispered. It was the first word that fell in the room. Then, Marcel chuckled. Avery sat up and smiled, giving a wave. Iris and Lucia finally tore their eyes from each other, facing the door, and both grinned, seemingly amused by the absurdity of the situation. Bishop Nemo turned around, his eyes wide. There was a mix of shock and vicious glee on his face, but the traces soon wiped away to nothingness. Yasashiku Ryuutesai, the man behind the mask, put his hands on the table, clenching the piece of wood. ¡°Rainfall-kun,¡± he spoke again, loud enough to hear this time. The mopaaw smiled. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s me.¡± He could see the veins bulging on the old man¡¯s arms, and the wood creaked under the exertion. ¡°You. You got some nerve, gaki.¡± Mercury¡¯s smile turned into a grin. ¡°And you¡¯re alive, old man.¡± Yasashiku¡¯s lips twisted upwards, though with the mask it looked like a cross between a snarl and a grin. He was probably feeling a very complicated mix of emotions right about now. ¡°Thanks to you. That makes you a terrifically good person and a terrifically poor student, you know that?¡± the old man asked. ¡°I do indeed. I look forward to learning more from you,¡± Mercury said. ¡°You have the nerve?!¡± Yasashiku¡¯s grin turned wider. Mercury gave a soft bow, lowering his head only a little. ¡°If you¡¯ll have me, sensei.¡± Yasashiku put a hand to his face, his body shaking. He laughed, of course. There was no other reason for him to be shaking, and sniffling at all. He had his mouth open, locked in a smile, and laughed. ¡°Kukukuku,¡± he laughed. ¡°Alright, damn you! Alright!¡± For a bit, silence fell in the room. There were more people of the city council in there. Old people who would honestly pass as fossils in a museum, yet they were quite clearly sitting and breathing. Despite that, and the fact that the room was full of powerful people, all eyes were on Mercury. And more would yet be. ¡°Mercury. My man. My dude. My guy. You¡¯re back. This the whole ¡°business you still needed to take care of¡± done with?¡± Avery asked, leaning forward. There was a glint in his eyes the sunglasses couldn¡¯t hide. ¡°Oh, yeah, definitely,¡± Mercury said, turning towards him. ¡°I robbed a dragon¡¯s greatest treasure and almost killed him, you know, nothing crazy.¡± The room fell silent. ¡°That¡¯s a true story, technically,¡± Zyl agreed, nodding sagely with his eyes closed and his hands clasped behind his back. There was another long moment of silence, before Avery laughed out loud. ¡°Kahahahaha! You¡¯re absolutely mad, man! Who does that?! Kahaha! It¡¯s good to have you back.¡± ¡°Sure is. Hope you haven¡¯t been making too much work for our favourite panda, though, Avery?¡± Mercury asked, a teasing edge to his voice. At that, the blood drained from the guild master¡¯s face. Like a wraith whose name was called, Marcel suddenly found himself next to his boss¡¯ ear. ¡°Right,¡± the receptionist said. ¡°Not. Too. Much. Work. Eh?¡± The bags under his eyes were bordering on black holes at this point, and his voice was raspy, bordering vicious as it seemed to torment Avery. The guild master held his ears shut. ¡°No! You cannot take me, vile spirit!¡± Mercury shook his head disapprovingly. ¡°Tsk, tsk, tsk, Avery. Dumping all your work on such a poor man. Don¡¯t you know Marcel also needs breaks?¡± ¡°Also. Need. Breaks.¡± the wraith echoed. ¡°Fine, fine! I¡¯ll give you the rest of the day off, geez!¡± ¡°Victory!¡± Marcel yelled, throwing his hands into the air, and blowing a kiss towards Mercury. Lucia was just about to begin talking to the cat, when Blake cleared her throat. ¡°As much as I¡¯m glad you get to catch up, we are still holding an official meeting. I see that your companion knows some of the city¡¯s more prominent figures, lord Friaminth?¡± ¡°He lived here for a while,¡± Zyl nodded. ¡°Perhaps you don¡¯t recognize him because of an evolution.¡± ¡°I doubt that,¡± the woman shook her head. ¡°I must have simply not taken note. At any rate, we are here because of you, lord Friaminth. Why have you come to this city?¡± ¡°To accompany my boyfriend,¡± he said, running his hand through Mercury¡¯s fur again. His hands were warm and comforting. ¡°And what do you plan to do during your stay?¡± the councilwoman interrogated. ¡°Eat food, drink water, sleep occasionally. Once every few days, at least,¡± Zyl replied, shrugging. Notably, he was still standing, not having been offered a seat. ¡°Right,¡± Blake said, scowling more heavily. ¡°Any specific plans or reasons for coming to the city?¡± Zyl turned to her, an annoyed glint in his eyes now. ¡°My boyfriend lives here. These are his friends. I want to meet them and spend a nice time here. I believe I¡¯ve been clear about this?¡± Blake took a step back. She hardly even realized it at first, then looked down at her own legs as though they betrayed her. She steeled her gaze. The other members of the council remained silent, letting her take care of the talking. ¡°Lord Friaminth,¡± she started slowly, hesitating,¡± of course we take no issue with you visiting. You must simply understand why we are careful-¡± ¡°Must I understand? May I not simply be tired of this charade? ¡®What are you doing here lord Friaminth¡¯, ¡®what are your plans, lord Friaminth?¡¯¡± he mockingly imitated. ¡°I am sick of this charade. Tell me. You think I am a danger to your city and your people. I am not. I will remain peaceful and quiet like every other civilized person.¡± By now, the council woman was quite pale. ¡°Please, excuse us-¡± Zyl waved his hand through the air. ¡°You are excused. I am venting my frustrations, not threatening you with death. No harm shall come to your city from me. Not unjust one, at least. I will behave like a sensible being, is that alright with you?¡± He seemed annoyed, though Mercury could tell he was playing it up, it only took a slight amount of extra to make him seem truly bothered. ¡°... Yes, lord Friaminth,¡± Blake eventually replied with a faint bow. ¡°Thank you,¡± Zyl said, genuinely this time. ¡°I will not cause you any trouble. Please refrain from treating me specially. I simply want to live with my partner, if that is quite alright.¡± ¡°We are relieved to hear it, lord Friaminth.¡± He waved his hand again. ¡°Good. You may leave.¡± She did. No debate, no hesitation. All members of the city council simply stood up, pushed their chairs back into place, and walked out of the room. Mercury looked at Zyl, then grinned. ¡°You¡¯re pretty hot when you get all bossy.¡± The dragon blushed in reply, just in time for the door to slam shut. ¡°Oh, stop it, you!¡± Everyone at least chuckled. Except bishop Nemo. He was a little worried at the current constellation of the room. Chapter 173: Disorganised Coincidences Chapter 173: Disorganised Coincidences There was a brief lull in the conversation, then. People looking around, seeing who¡¯d speak first. Gazes swiping across the room. Eventually, they did all find the bishop. Mercury locked onto him first, willing to be patient in catching up with his friends. Then Zyl followed the mopaaw¡¯s gaze, locking onto the old man. Avery spun around in his seat, draping an arm over the back of it, turning to look at the bishop. His smile grew a little wild. ¡°Hey, bishop. Seems you got a little more trouble than you bargained for, eh?¡± Nemo turned to face Lucia, but his dear voice¡¯s head was turned. She smiled, facing away from all the trouble, simply keeping her gaze toward Zyl. Slowly, his eyes drifted to Iris, pleading. She smiled warmly, with kindness, then drew a finger across her neck in a very clear gesture, never once changing her expression. Foss sighed, Nira looked away, Esmeralda had a vindictive grin, and Akuhl simply seemed bored. Marcel, on the other hand, was none of those. He walked up to the bishop, putting a hand on Nemo¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Come, bishop, men of your age ought to sit rather than stand, eh? Plenty of chairs at the table,¡± he said, already guiding the old man. There was some resistance. ¡°Now, please, young man, I was simply enjoying the view. I am quite fine. Sharing a table with such prominent figures would be uncouth of me, I would never-¡± ¡°Sit. Down.¡± Marcel¡¯s tone was beyond pleading. Less than a dozen seconds later, bishop Nemo sat at the table. Zyl also took his place, the legs of the chair scraping across the floor. He crossed his legs. ¡°Ah, that¡¯s better.¡± With his hand still on the bishop¡¯s shoulder, Marcel leaned forward a bit. ¡°Bishop Nemo. Perhaps I need to introduce you to the man in front of you. That, right there, is Guardian Friaminth. He has established the city of Unbar, and resisted the advances of the dragons on it for a decade now. One of the most powerful people in this part of the world. Are you familiar?¡± ¡°Y- Yes. Quite,¡± the bishop ground out from in between clenched teeth. ¡°Let me just make sure, then. You know he¡¯s near the top of the fame leaderboards?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± the bishop said curtly, teeth grinding against each other. ¡°Then surely, you know what the rumors say. Traitor to the dragons, capable of incinerating cities at a whim? I doubt any of those are true, of course,¡± he said at Zyl, his smile a mix of apologetic and vindictive. Zyl waved him off, holding back a chuckle, and Marcel continued, squeezing the bishop¡¯s shoulder a bit more. ¡°I am aware,¡± the older man said. Marcel then nodded sagely. ¡°That is relieving. Old man, do you know just how much paperwork I had to file because of you?¡± At that, the bishop even had the nerve to raise his eyebrows. ¡°What? I hardly interfered with your guild!¡± The receptionist¡¯s face grew another shade darker. ¡°Really now? You and me, we might have real different definitions of ¡°hardly¡±, bud. Let me tell you something. Every single time you come and complain about the disrespect of one of our members? I gotta file for that. Every time someone of your posse complains, I gotta file that.¡± He took a breath. ¡°Every time someone from your temple takes a mission, filed. Every time you contest us on a mission, filed. Every time your people illegally completed missions before us, filed thrice. I¡¯ve had to fill out a couple hundred forms for the Church of Order since you came to the city. You know how much trouble Lucia gave me? Fifty. Over a span multiple times as long.¡± ¡°... Perhaps I underestimated-¡± ¡°And that¡¯s just it, buddy,¡± Marcel said, squeezing his shoulder. ¡°You¡¯ve no idea what you¡¯re doing. None at all. It pisses me off. So let me make myself clear. Learn how to not make trouble. I know you¡¯re afraid of Zyl right now, and I will use it, but let me promise you something. If you ever do something, I won¡¯t go cry to the boyfriend of my dear friend Mercury. I¡¯ll make your life hell myself, capiche?¡± The bishop slowly nodded. ¡°Oh, just so it¡¯s clear, I absolutely will whine at my lovely boyfriend,¡± Mercury added with a smile This time, Nemo nodded a lot faster. Zyl tilted his head in response. ¡°Oh? What¡¯s he done?¡± Bishop Nemo opened his mouth, but decided that maybe, he shouldn¡¯t be talking for a few seconds. A wise choice. Mercury spoke instead. ¡°Well, he tried to shift the public to hate me while I was helping with reconstruction efforts, all because I showed up at Lucia¡¯s unannounced and then might have been a bit disrespectful.¡± Zyl¡¯s face darkened. ¡°You tried to drive my partner out of a city for a little sleight against your honor? That¡¯s what this is all about?¡± ¡°Sir, I assure you, I meant nothing by it, I-¡± The bishop tried to reply. Everyone shook their heads at that. Avery even smacked his palm against his forehead, and laughed. ¡°You meant nothing by it?¡± Zyl growled. Nemo had the sense to just look scared, and not answer this time. ¡°Bishop Nemo. I should inform you that I care deeply about my friends, their well being, and their comfort. Do your utmost to keep it in mind. You are dismissed,¡± Zyl commanded, waving his hand again. The bishop stood up, and left the room. He closed the door soundlessly. Once again, the room was quiet, then Avery laughed his ass off. ¡°Kahahaha!! Marcel, jeez, you really showed him, huh?¡± ¡°Say it again and I show you too, old man.¡± Avery went quiet, and Lucia giggled this time. Marcel made no further threats, instead slowly joining in the laughter, until everyone laughed. Except Akuhl. Maybe she was just incapable of anything but boredom. ¡°It¡¯s great to see you all again,¡± Mercury said. ¡°And you,¡± Yasashiku replied gruffly, leaning back in his chair. ¡°Thought you were dead, for sure.¡± Mercury gave him a weak smile. ¡°It¡¯s a bit of a long story. I¡¯ll explain it to you once the time comes, alright?¡± The old man just nodded. ¡°Fine by me, Rainfall-kun. Whenever you are ready.¡± With that settled, Mercury turned towards the table again. ¡°Alright, then. It¡¯s official. Zyl and I are dating, and will be staying in Stormbraver for a little bit. Hopefully we won¡¯t cause you any trouble.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure you will,¡± Iris provided helpfully, and Lucia giggled more loudly at that. Zyl rolled his eyes. ¡°Come now, surely I¡¯m not that bad?¡± His response was met with silence. ¡°Surely?¡± The question came out meek. Mercury poked his side. ¡°You¡¯re fine, silly. Iris is teasing you.¡± Zyl looked at her, and simply received a smile in return. ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Where will you be staying?¡± Avery asked. ¡°And what¡¯ll you be doing the next couple days? Gonna be busy?¡± ¡°Learning to smith is what he¡¯ll be doing if I have any say in it,¡± Yasashiku said. Esmeralda crossed her eyes and pouted a bit. ¡°Surely, there are more people he needs to meet again. Also, I would like to see Mercury learn a bit more magic at the tower.¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Esmy, don¡¯t be like that, he¡¯s not even registered for your guild!¡± Avery protested. ¡°If anything, Mercury¡¯s gonna be doing some seeking.¡± ¡°Hahaha,¡± Mercury chuckled at their antics. ¡°Alright you all, relax. I¡¯ll be sleeping at the Seeker¡¯s Guild, unless we can get a house, for now.¡± ¡°Ground¡¯s cheap. I can get you a structure set up in a couple hours. You¡¯ll need to furnish it yourself, though,¡± Yasashiku replied, stroking his beard in thought. Never one to miss an opportunity, Foss interjected. ¡°Ah, maybe I can be of service, then? We have multiple cloth and furniture suppliers locally, who may be able to finish any furniture request within a few days, if you have specific ones. They also have some stock already prepared.¡± Mercury paused, looking at Zyl. ¡°Can¡­ can we afford that?¡± The dragon stared back at him incredulously, then threw his head back and laughed. ¡°Sasasa! Yes, Mercury, yes we can afford that. We¡¯re uh, not exactly in trouble for money.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t there something about a dragon¡¯s hoard that stops you from spending it, though?¡± ¡°Is it no longer part of my hoard when it¡¯s a different shape?¡± Zyl fired back. ¡°No, I don¡¯t mind. I would love a nice, soft bed. And many windows, so you can get some sunlight, little Flower you.¡± Mercury smiled, then turned to Foss. ¡°Alright, then be assured we will be contacting your suppliers through your guild.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make sure everything is set up before sundown,¡± Foss nodded, and Nira marked it on a small notepad she had drawn out from her sleeves. There were only a few more hours until sundown. If Foss had one thing it was work ethic. Or greed. The mopaaw shook his head at that. ¡°Alright, thanks Foss, thanks Nira. We appreciate it.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s my thanks, huh?¡± Yasashiku protested immediately. ¡°Thank you as well, sensei. Be assured I will thank you again once the building is actually built.¡± The older man went quiet once more, seeming both satisfied and slightly flustered. He leaned back into his chair with a small sigh, muttering about a ¡°brat disciple¡± he¡¯d picked up. Slowly, there was a ruckus building outside the door. Mercury heard it, probably only because of , though. ¡°About what we¡¯ll be doing. Zyl and I will be a bit busy just existing, mainly, but there are just more people I promised to meet. So that¡¯s on the agenda. Speaking of, I think someone is just about to get here.¡± A moment after he finished the sentence, the great wooden door opened from the outside, and Yvette walked in. Her wings were neatly folded against her back, her long, golden hair shimmered in the dim light. She had her sword in the scabbard by her side, the sheath decorated with golden vines. Her eyes found Mercury immediately, and somehow, the permanent grumpy expression she wore washed away. She even teared up, actually, looking at him. ¡°You,¡± she said, then paused, and sniffled. ¡°Me?¡± Mercury. ¡°Do you even know how long I¡¯ve dealt with the eclipses?¡± It was a rhetorical question. ¡°Too long, Mercury. I couldn¡¯t properly sleep, or stay anywhere, or drink anything. There was always a looming danger, I was always a looming danger for the people around me. And now I¡¯m not.¡± She paused, catching her breath, and smiled. It was a radiant smile, bright and honest. ¡°And it¡¯s over. All of it. Somehow, with no single insinuation you were ever planning on it, it¡¯s all done. You conquered the eclipse. I¡¯m free. So I¡­¡± the words stuck in her throat a moment. ¡°I wanted to thank you for that, Mercury.¡± ¡°It¡¯s no problem, really, I was just-¡± ¡°It¡¯s a problem!¡± she interrupted, paused then laughed. ¡°Of course it¡¯s a problem! Please, Mercury. Let me buy you a drink?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t think you can leave me behind when you¡¯re talking about drinks,¡± Avery said, seriously leaning over the table. ¡°If master Beckham can invite himself, surely such privileges extend to me, as well?¡± Esmeralda asked, smiling deviously. Akuhl eyed her, considering whether to reproach her guild master or not, but eventually just shrugged. ¡°Well, as someone who also survived a blood eclipse, surely I am worthy of this drink?¡± Yasashiku said. ¡°It¡¯s my day off. I can join you all for a bit,¡± Marcel shrugged. ¡°We¡¯re coming,¡± Lucia stated. Iris nodded in agreement. And they did, all of them, go out and drink together. - - - - - - Zagan and Midas took their time while travelling. Well, they both took their time, their sweet time, and many, many detours. To the south, through deserts and desolate fields. To the north, across frozen mountainpeaks. To the east, where the sea lapped against the shores. Craggy, windswept cliffs, with the waves yawning beyond a stark drop, as well as quaint beaches. Some with rocks, some with sand, the ocean having ground away at them for too long or not long enough yet. Seeing the colour in the sand was so fascinating to Zagan. Wherever Midas stepped, it would all turn gold, of course - whenever he took his boots off, at least - but it was still different from other beaches they had been to. One of the beaches had white sand. ¡°Lots of quartz in the rock,¡± or so Midas explained. Another had yellow sand. ¡°Sediments,¡± according to Midas. What sediments were, she did not rightly know, but Zagan found the colour delightful, that much was clear. Grey sand in the ocean before rocky beaches. Droplets of seafoam raining through the air on windy days. Bits of algae dancing on the waves. ¡°Why have I not seen any of this before?¡± Zagan asked. Midas stood, his hands clasped behind his back, standing on a beach. He wore no shoes, his golden pants rolled up halfway over his legs. He smiled, his hair waving wildly in the wind, golden strands occasionally detaching from his head and glittering in the evening sun. ¡°Because you refused to look,¡± Midas replied sagely, looking out over the ocean. ¡°You should have told me.¡± He huffed in amusement, his train of thought interrupted. ¡°Should I, though? Would you have appreciated it? Seen it as wonderful the way it is? Or would you have wished to conquer it all?¡± This time, Zagan went quiet. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought,¡± Midas said, taking his eyes off the demoness and looking out over the seas. Zagan, for her part, was stuck thinking again. Her form wasn¡¯t quite the same as she usually took. Being a hulking giant was quite welcome, and quite practical a lot of the time, but whenever they were in places where meeting other people was anything even close to feasible, she would shift. Right now, she took the shape of a much simpler demoness. No extra arms or mouth, simply four, beady black eyes across a woman¡¯s face. She stood tall, taller than most humans at just over two metres, with skin the colour of lavender, and appendages too slender for her frame. Humanoid, certainly, with some alien beauty, even, but certainly not human. Still strange enough to make someone scream, occasionally, but not nearly as much as her usual form would. That one also changed her perspective. Some of the wonders were so incredible because people were so small. Strangely, being able to shapeshift didn¡¯t detract from the beauty, if you just viewed it right. ¡°Perhaps my perspective back then would have been too rigid,¡± she supplied to Midas. The old king chuckled. ¡°Oh, definitely. You were a bit of a stuck up bitch, if you will.¡± Her eyes narrowed. ¡°You¡¯re lucky I even tolerate you.¡± ¡°Baby, you know you love me,¡± he teased. Zagan looked at him entirely deadpan and unimpressed. Midas rolled his eyes at her, raising his hands to a shrug. ¡°Come on now, you know it¡¯s true! I¡¯m art. Everything I do is art. My footprints in the sand, my hair in the setting sun. My touch of gold is simply magical.¡± He grinned at her. ¡°You are a curiosity, yes.¡± ¡°A curiosity?!¡± He gasped, holding a hand to his heart in mock pain. ¡°You injure me, Zagan!¡± Now the demoness rolled her eyes. Well, given that all four of them were simply pitch black, it didn¡¯t come across, though. In the end, she simply stared at the eccentric king wordlessly for a few minutes, then smiled. ¡°Babe, maybe you shouldn¡¯t be so easily injured,¡± she deadpanned, mocking him. ¡°I- you-¡± he spluttered, not knowing quite how to reply. Zagan smiled. Besting the cheeky monarch at his own game was fun. ¡°Come on then, Goldenboy. Show me some more of the world, would you?¡± she smiled. The time for her to be unable to see art was trickling by. Midas was really helping her. The king, though, was still frozen from her prior words, needing a few moments to shake off the surprise, then quickly jogging after the demoness, struggling to put his boots on and leaving uneven golden footsteps in the dirt. ¡°Wait for me!¡± For a moment, she looked back. ¡°Sorry, demon ruler and all, means I don¡¯t got as much compassion as you humans!¡± She giggled into her fist, skipping along the beach a little faster. The moment was a bit magical. Midas frowned. ¡°Fine, alright. Our next spot takes us through Stormbraver, though, Zagan. It¡¯s a nice city. Hopefully nothing crazy happens there.¡± His travel companion turned around, and smiled. It would have been a bright, kind smile, but her eyes had no lids, so it was simply her staring at him while exposing rows of razor sharp teeth, tilting her head too far to the side. Really, it felt more like she was gonna try and eat him rather than keep travelling. ¡°Surely, nothing could go wrong!¡± - - - ¡°You jinxed it!¡± Midas hissed at the city gates. ¡°What do you mean, jinxed it?!¡± Zagan protested, sweat running down her back. ¡°I did nothing of the sort! How was I supposed to know that lord Friaminth, the guy whose life I almost ruined, would be in this damn city on the same day as us?!¡± Midas looked at her, eyes wide. ¡°What now?¡± ¡°What do you mean ¡°what now?¡±???¡± Zagan hissed back. ¡°What are we going to do about it?¡± Midas asked, gesturing worriedly. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Midas! Aren¡¯t you the wise king?¡± ¡°Wise!?¡± he whisper-yelled. ¡°My powers are a literal consequence of my incredible greed, Zagan. I am a figure renowned across history for how vain and idiotic I am. You will find no wisdom with me!¡± ¡°I know your Skill layout, you jerk,¡± Zagan weakly protested. ¡°Fuck. Doesn¡¯t solve the problem at hand, though.¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± Zagan said, drawing out the word. ¡°Well?¡± Midas asked back. Zagan, the ruler of a demon city, one of the most prideful creatures in existence, let out a long sigh. ¡°I should apologize.¡± ¡°Apologize?¡± ¡°Come on, Midas, don¡¯t give me that look. We agreed on this before we even left,¡± she said, fidgeting. The king looked at her, blinked twice, then gave a short chuckle. ¡°Yeah, we talked about it alright,¡± he said, amused, ¡°I just didn¡¯t expect you to go through with it at all. Worst case, I was ready to skip over visiting Unbar in general.¡± Zagan grit her teeth. ¡°I would prefer not to. But I do owe it.¡± ¡°Are you certain?¡± ¡°Yes. I have done damage. I should own up to it, that is what a ruler does.¡± Her face was resolute. Midas gave a soft smile. ¡°That¡¯s good, then. I would prefer to leave this place with my head still on my shoulders, ya know?¡± ¡°You were supposed to say something encouraging, rascal!¡± Zagan rebutted, smacking Midas over the head. ¡°Papers, please,¡± the city guard told them, when they were up, and the two showed them, quickly gaining access to the city. Guard captain Rondo stood on the walls above the city, having heard the exchange. He seemed conflicted. ¡°What¡¯s up, cap?¡± Doyle, an older guard, asked him from the side. Rondo grimaced at him. ¡°Trouble in my city.¡± The other¡¯s grip on his spear tightened. ¡°Trouble?¡± His lips were pressed tightly, forming a line. ¡°Yes, trouble. But also the kind I might be able to dump on Avery. His face¡¯s gonna be real funny, you know?¡± Doyle relaxed slightly. ¡°You¡¯re impossible, cap.¡± Chapter 174: To Mercury! Chapter 174: To Mercury! Mercury liked going out to drink. Even with such a strange, motley crew like his current companions, there was a charm to it. Being able to let loose, and not focus on all the pressing issues for just a little while. He didn¡¯t like getting completely smashed, though. Having gaps in his memory was something he especially minded. Then again, given his current set of Skills, maybe that wasn¡¯t even really an option anymore, these days. Mercury sighed, drinking down another cup of milky liquor. It was local and strong, with a slightly sweet aftertaste. Zyl was already tipsy by now, which Mercury found hilarious. If the dragon wanted to feel alcohol at all, he needed to disable a couple Skills, and when drunk he didn¡¯t have the focus to keep them running at lower levels, so off they went. Of course, there was kind of a balance between drinking and keeping safe, so almost everything that protected him was still running, and even the ones that were off would spring back on before harm ever could come to him, by being linked with some other Skills. Regardless, for now, Zyl¡¯s face was quite flushed already. Avery was taking it well, and Marcel was drinking too much. Akuhl seemed quite drunk after a single glass, leaning against Esmeralda¡¯s side and clutching her arm, currently. She was blinking slowly, and her eyes were out of sync, which made her look quite tired. Lucia and Iris weren¡¯t drinking a whole lot, more or less occupied just listening to everyone lse talk. And they were talking, so very much. Stories about the guilds, about rebuilding, about the city and daily life. Funny stories, sad stories, exciting stories. They talked about everything under the sun. There was much that had happened while Mercury was gone, and quite a bit before he disappeared from Stormbraver as well. The city was busy, after all. Hundreds of people doing hundreds of things every day. One of those people was Yvette, who joined two hours into the night. The sky had already gone dark well before she showed up, and the whole gang had changed bars by now, with them currently being in one of the new buildings, made post-war. It had nice furniture, but there wasn¡¯t too much decoration yet, so it seemed a bit bland. The company more than made up for it, though. In that bar, Mercury sat, calmly enjoying another cup. His cheeks were flushed by now, and he had drunk just enough to put him in a good mood, laughing and chatting as the minutes drifted by, when the door creaked open. He wouldn¡¯t have given it another look, usually, but the steps afterwards seemed very specifically directed towards them. So clearly that he did turn around, and see Yvette walking towards them. She was as imposing as always, almost demanding attention just by standing, long, radiant hair trailing behind her. She looked at Mercury, but on her usually stern face there was a soft expression. ¡°Hey, sorry to interrupt,¡± she said. Her voice was quiet. She¡¯d almost only ever yelled at him, so it was a strange contrast. ¡°Mind if I sit?¡± She gestured to the seat next to him. It was currently more than free. Marcel had slid under the table some time ago. ¡°Sure,¡± Mercury said, nodding. ¡°Thanks.¡± Yvette let the words hang into the air, taking a seat with measured, slow movements. She looked a little stiff as she sat down, but she moved so smoothly Mercury had trouble even noticing. For a little while she sat, silently, lips pressed into a thin line. She glanced over at Mercury, trying to see how he was acting, but the mopaaw just sat there calmly. Because that¡¯s exactly what Mercury was. He had more than enough time, right now. He enjoyed the company he was in, he enjoyed the place he was in. He was happy, and had patience enough to spare some for Yvette. The silence between them hang in the air for a minute, maybe two, before the swordswoman finally spoke. ¡°Thank you,¡± Yvette said. ¡°For ending the blood eclipses. I¡¯ve been able to sleep a lot better since.¡± ¡°Sleep better?¡± Mercury cocked his head at her. ¡°Of course you¡¯d focus on that,¡± Yvette said, smirking as she shook her head. ¡°Yes. It was hard to sleep knowing death itself might descend on me anytime I¡¯m not paying attention.¡± Mercury hummed in agreement. ¡°Mmmh, I get that. No problem.¡± Yvette snorted at that, letting out a low chuckle. ¡°Yes problem. Those eclipses had been keeping me out of cities for years, then. Hadn¡¯t slept in a proper bed, hadn¡¯t had proper meals. And now? I get to walk around in here. Eat, drink, whatever I¡¯d like. Because of you. Thank you for that, Mercury.¡± He smirked back. ¡°Glad to help.¡± ¡°Do you want any payment or something?¡± Yvette suggested, a slight nervous tone to her voice. Mercury shook his head. ¡°No, thank you. I really am glad you get to live in relative comfort again.¡± He smiled. Yvette looked at him, quietly, for a long few moments. Then she broke out into a wide grin, shaking her head. ¡°You¡¯re impossible, Mercury.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± he asked, somewhat confused. ¡°Forget about it,¡± she said, waving him off with a wide smirk. Then she snatched up one of the glasses on the table, which had certainly belonged to someone at some point, and rose it up. ¡°To Mercury!¡± she called. Glasses clinked and were drunk. ¡°To Mercury!¡± Everyone cheered. The revelry went on, long into the night. - - - The next day came soon enough. The sun came crawling in through a window, lazily sneaking in through the glass. The room had turned bright hours ago, but only when the light actually touched Mercury¡¯s face did his eyes drift open. It took him some time to reorient himself, finding his place in the room. The bright wooden walls, the soft bed, the stunningly hot man he shared said bed with, the blankets¡­ ah. The seekers¡¯s guild, of course. He¡¯d carried Zyl here towards the end of yesterday¡¯s celebrations. saw liberal use that day. He was just too small right now; if he carried Zyl on his back, the man¡¯s legs would be scraping the floor from the knees down at least. Also, he clung onto Mercury very tightly, and having a grown man snuggle his face into his fur while walking through town was still embarrassing. So, instead, Zyl got relocated via . Though once they were in the guild, he did grab onto Mercury and refuse to let go in bed. The furball fell asleep soon after that, though not before hearing Zyl murmur ¡°Love ya, Mercury¡­¡± in his sleep. It was adorable. Now, though, the cruel golden rays of the sun were telling Mercury it was time to awake and seek his proper place. In the warmth. Despite the fact that he felt plenty of warmth from Zyl and the blankets. He gave a soft sigh, and closed his eyes again. The morning could surely wait a little more, right. ¡°Love ya, Zyl,¡± he whispered into the room. He felt the other man¡¯s hand twitch. Shit, had he heard it? He wasn¡¯t supposed to hear it! No. Mercury calmed himself when he noticed Zyl was still breathing as though asleep. Through his mouth, in small puffs of heated air. It was something the dragon didn¡¯t know how to fake. Mercury calmed again, and closed his eyes. Another small twitch. If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Love ya too,¡± Zyl murmured. Mercury flushed, but resolutely kept his eyes closed. Surely, if he pressed them shut hard enough, sleep would come and let him forget this moment. - - - Sleep did, in fact, come, though there was no forgetting for Mercury. He remembered it all when he woke up again, this time to a knocking on the door. Zyl gave a small grumble, still asleep. Inside, Mercury breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe that meant the dragon would forget what happened before. Gently, Mercury began to pry himself from Zyl¡¯s embrace, taking long enough for another knock to strike against the wooden door, slightly louder. ¡°Coming!¡± Mercury whisper-yelled, trying to both let Zyl sleep and let the person behind the door hear him. Probably unsuccessfully, giving the third set of knocks that started moments before he opened the door, in the middle of the person still nodding. In front of his door was someone he¡¯d seen before. Jirluc, the sipisc from the ashen fields. He looked down at Mercury for a long while. ¡°So you made it,¡± he eventually said, his voice low and quiet. ¡°I did,¡± Mercury whispered back. ¡°Glad to see you survived as well.¡± Jirluc nodded. ¡°Surviving was troublesome. The water I appeared back in were not safe, any settlement there would have moved on many seasons ago. But I live. As I always do.¡± Mercury blinked at him. ¡°Right. It¡¯s good to see you again, Jirluc.¡± The sipisc nodded once more. ¡°It is. You as well. Your cities are peculiar. Why so much stone? Where would you get your food?¡± Mercury blinked at him once more. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your food. Where does the food come from? Do you not hunt?¡± he asked, again. ¡°Uh, like, somewhat. But we grow grain. And make like, fucking bread and shit. I dunno,¡± Mercury said, stumbling over his words. It was¡­ way too early for this. Jirluc seemed almost shocked. ¡°You have no hunting grounds in the cities?¡± ¡°Nooooo, we don¡¯t.¡± ¡°Truly, so very strange,¡± he shook his head. ¡°But that is not the point. You wished to reconvene. Is there a purpose to this?¡± ¡°Wanted to stay in touch, since we went through some things, you know?¡± Jirluc looked at him for a long moment. The sunrays drifting in through the window landing on his skin made the scales glean even more pale than they otherwise would. He looked almost ghostly. ¡°I see,¡± he said eventually. ¡°I find this agreeable. I¡¯ll stay in this city for the next while. Thank you for the invite, and setting this up. I would have forgotten in the moment and gone on to sincerely regret it.¡± ¡°Yeah, uh, no problem,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Good. Then I will¡­ see you in the area.¡± Jirluc turned around and walked off down the hallway, not looking back once. His pale scales disappeared around a corner, and his footsteps turned silent the same moment. Mercury would¡¯ve thought he saw a ghost if he didn¡¯t know the man. ¡°Who was that, Mer?¡± Zyl asked, his voice still slightly coarse from being in bed. He was rubbing his eyes while sitting up, legs dangling over the side of the bed. How. How did he look so damned good doing it?! ¡°One of the people from inside the blood eclipse, Jirluc. He was there the longest, probably, had a whole home carved out for himself. Knew how to survive.¡± Zyl brightened at that. ¡°You found one of them! Ouch.¡± He grimaced. ¡°Hangover. Been a while since my last one, heh.¡± Mercury snorted, then laughed. ¡°Hahaha! Well, I¡¯m glad to let you experience such a¡­ unique sensation again.¡± The dragon stuck out his tongue. ¡°Careful now, dragons like me are known for roasting those who dare offend us.¡± The cheeky grin of his face took any threat out of those words. ¡°Oh woe is me, whatever shall I do! Surely such a generous dragon such as yourself would forgive me if I rejoined him in bed?¡± Mercury pleaded. Zyl paused. His smile spread wider as his cheeks flushed slightly. ¡°... I could be convinced.¡± With a small laugh, Mercury hopped back into bed, having already closed the door with . What an amazing Skill, truly. He half-tackled and half-hugged Zyl a moment later, the man wrapping his arms around Mercury with a laugh as both of them fell onto the bed. Warm sunshine hit Mercury¡¯s fur, his eyes locked with Zyl¡¯s. He would have given a lot for that moment to last forever. Of course, it didn¡¯t last until eternity, but it did go on for quite a long time, and sometimes, that was enough. - - - Mercury cooked for Zyl. The dragon had fallen asleep again, seeming to enjoy the calm, but Mercury himself couldn¡¯t quite get any shut-eye in. Instead, he set about making breakfast, getting some fresh ingredients from the city. There was a community kitchen in the guild, which he made liberal use of, though his Skills made cooking much easier. , especially, made quick work of any vegetable slices, and he even used it to cleanly cut an egg in half. Then, caught the bottom half out of the air, and the remainder of making fried egg went by quick enough. He also prepared some fresh fruit, and a bit of bread, and even fried up some bacon, before carrying it all back to the room, keeping a couple plates and some cutlery levitating around himself. He entered the room near soundlessly, using to make sure Zyl wouldn¡¯t wake. The dragon did stay well asleep, all the way until Mercury was up next to the bed, and the smell of food reached his nose. Zyl¡¯s eyelids fluttered open. ¡°Morning, sunshine. Made breakfast,¡± Mercury purred. Zyl smiled a radiant smile. ¡°You¡¯re amazing. Thank you.¡± He slowly sat up, taking a couple bites of everything, same as Mercury. They shared the food, sometimes chatting quietly, sometimes simply chewing. It was a very nice morning. After eating, Mercury took another short nap in the sunlight, while Zyl got his hangover under control. By turning his Skills back on, he quickly recovered back to top condition, though it still took a few minutes for the pain to entirely fade. Once it was done, though, he was right as rain again. Once Mercury awoke again, the two went out for a stroll through the city. Sometimes, people would still glance Mercury¡¯s way with disdain, but most simply kept their eyes averted. Some seemed scared, but hopefully that would settle, at least. Stormbraver didn¡¯t exactly have any super incredible sights. It wasn¡¯t necessarily a tourist city. But there were still things for Mercury to show to Zyl. First, he showed him the place where Dave¡¯s inn used to be. It burnt down, of course, and now something new had been built from the remains of the old inn, but it still meant a lot to Mercury. They stood and looked at the new buildings for a little while. Then, they moved on to the mages¡¯ tower, probably the most impressive building in the city, which gave Mercury the most impressive welcome. Gilah met him in the receptions, and as soon as even a whisper of his name carried through the air, Elliot barrelled down the stairs. The boy got so excited at the last step he forgot to look at his feet, stepped on his robes, and was about to smash his face into the floor, but quickly caught him with a mix of and his rijn. He set Elliot back down on his feet. ¡°Good to see you too, Elliot, no hugs today, please.¡± A hint of disappointment flitted across the boy¡¯s face, but instantly vanished again. ¡°Okay! I¡¯m just very happy to see you again!¡± ¡°Me too, Elliot. It¡¯s been too long.¡± ¡°Really has,¡± Gilah interrupted. ¡°You¡¯ve been out for a while, mittens, but at least I can say it seems to have been worth it. Who¡¯s your partner?¡± she asked, giving a small wink. ¡°Oh, yes, of course, let me introduce you. Gilah, Elliot, this is Zyl, my boyfriend. Zyl, these are Gilah and Elliot, friends of mine in the mage guild.¡± Zyl gave a small bow. ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you two.¡± ¡°Likewise!¡± The four chatted a while longer, and when discussion panned towards last night, Gilah went deathly pale, eyebrows furrowed in anger. She was upset the guild master hadn¡¯t said anything. She was also glad the guild master hadn¡¯t told her anything, because keeping track of quests and rewards and all the other administrative work was more than enough to keep her busy. After some thirty minutes or so, Mercury and Zyl moved in, checking in with the Merchants¡¯ Guild. Foss had, in fact, set up a small house for them. Two bedrooms, so they still had one for guests, a nice living room, separate showers and toilet, a nice kitchen. It was a lovely little place, close to the bustle of the market, but not close enough to hear much of the noise, more towards the lakeside part of Stormbraver. Many of the windowsills were a little barren, seeming to once have held plants, but have been scraped clean, now, while the house itself seemed a mix of old and new. Many parts seemed to have been replaced over the years. ¡°I like it,¡± Zyl hummed to himself, running his fingers over the walls. ¡°Are you happy with it, Mercury?¡± He smiled. There were some bits of carpet and small platforms strewn across the walls, clearly newly installed. They seemed just about the right size for him to run up the walls and find more spots in the sun. Some even had small windows just for him. There wasn¡¯t too much furniture in there, so they¡¯d have to take care of that, but with the small property, there wouldn¡¯t be many taxes, either. Cores for running water were installed and expected to operate smoothly for another twenty to thirty years or somesuch. Mercury nodded at Zyl. ¡°It¡¯s lovely.¡± The dragon flashed his teeth, smiling back at the mopaaw. ¡°Then we¡¯re taking it?¡± ¡°We¡¯re taking it,¡± Mercury nodded. Finally, after so very long, Mercury legally owned a house in Stormbraver. And all it took was an arm and a leg. Specifically, Scarlet¡¯s arm and Avery¡¯s legs to bring the property value down. ¡­ That was a morbid joke, Mercury shook his head at it. They sent the rest of the day shopping for furniture, with Zyl buying almost everything he liked, and Mercury simply storing much of it in his log or hovering smaller things around himself as the walked. It was a beautiful day, full of decoration and essentially one whole long date. By the end of it, Mercury had a house to share with Zyl, now with tables and chairs and lovely beds. Much of the furniture was purchased through Foss, some through other stores, and all of it was lovely and Mercury did indeed love it. They even had kitchenstuffs and stocked the cooling unit, full of fruit and vegetables and some bits of meat, and even some candy which Mercury could eat now. Stormbraver didn¡¯t have many confectionaries, but Avery knew where to find one. Of course he did; they also sold sweet raisin bread there, after all. Chapter 175: Apology Gone Wrong Chapter 175: Apology Gone Wrong Mercury pranced around the house. Their house. His house, partially. Zyl and him signed the ownership deed together. Mercury¡¯s handwriting had been a little messy, controlling the pen with certainly was an experience, but he was used to making it work like hands, so it went just fine at the end of the day. A little ugly. Like most signatures. Zyl¡¯s, though, was elegant. Because of course it was. Full of little swirls and flourishes, and a big swoop at the end. Mercury stared at him for a full second, but the dragon just gave him a faint smile. The house was nice. It had a second story, though it wasn¡¯t very tall despite that. The floor was made from dark wood, though much of it was covered with carpets now. Mercury liked the feel of the soft fabric against his paws. His claws also stuck to it , and he could pull at the fabric. Lightly, of course, he didn¡¯t wanna break anything. There were also a few more carpet and platforms on the walls, one of which Mercury quickly hopped up to. For most cats, they would have been a bit big, but with his size¡­ they were just right. Long enough that he could properly lay down on some, and use others simply for stepping past. There was even a small hammock there for him to lay down in. It was made from a full piece of colourful, rainbow dyed fabric. Yes, he¡¯d gotten himself a pride-flag-bed. No, he didn¡¯t regret it for even a moment. A smile played across his face. That time of the day came, and rays of sunlight shone in from a window next to him, covering his fur in golden light. Warmth soaked into his bones. A dozen minutes drifted by before he got up again. He hopped over platform after platform, carefully maintaining his balancing. Past the small kitchen aisle in the entry area, past the doors to a pantry and the two different doors for bedrooms, then up the stairs. Of course, given the wall decoration, he didn¡¯t have to take the stairs. He followed along a series of little platforms on the walls instead, hopping from one side of the stairway to the other once, just for fun. Upstairs, there was a living room area. The dining area was downstairs, with the kitchen, but here there were a bunch of small chairs around a coffee table. Though they¡¯d made the coffee table with leg space. Mercury remembered sitting on tiny couches in front of tiny tables as a human and having to keep his legs angled for hours; whoever decided coffee tables shouldn¡¯t allow for leg space was a bad person in his book. There was also a guest bedroom upstairs, and some more storage space. The living room felt big, since it was where the slanted roof was highest, and the guest bedroom had plenty of headspace, but most other spots in the upper part were kinda cramped. For humans. To Mercury? Well, he fit in quite snugly in some of the corners. Hence why there were small catbeds strewn around the place. Comparing them to his log would obviously have been unfair, so he didn¡¯t. But, no, the anchor of Logston remained kindly within his inventory, where it would be forever safe. That log would only die if he died, he was sure of it. Regardless of how incredible his log was, though, he loved the house. Genuinely. It was comfortable, warm, and had many nice sunny spots for him. It smelled like home. He could probably stay there for a while. Have friends over, travel a bit away, then come back here. Maybe he would, too, if no trouble came to find him. Learn more from Yasashiku. Become a skilled smith. Do things that he wanted to do, or something. Zyl came upstairs when he was still in thought. ¡°Up early?¡± the dragon asked. He wore loose fitted clothing today. A simple t-shirt, not even buttoned up, and trousers that were wider at the bottom of the legs than the top. It was winter, certainly, but he looked dressed for spring. His hair was styled back, and he wore his telltale white gloves. There was even some makeup on his face. Lipstick, eyeshadow, the works, and he wore a pair or circular golden earrings. ¡°Morning, handsome,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Same to yourself. Up for a bit of breakfast? We still have some slices of cake,¡± Zyl asked, his smile bright as the sun. ¡°We got cake?¡± At that, Zyl giggled. ¡°Sese, yes. We got cake. We got it late last night, you know?¡± Last night. Hm. There was a dim memory there, kind of. ¡°No, yeah, sounds good. What kinda cake.¡± ¡°Strawberry!¡± Zyl was already walking down the stairs, leading Mercury to follow. ¡°It¡¯s great. Lots of cream. From that same confectionary Avery showed us.¡± ¡°Right! That one!¡± Mercury did remember the building, though he still didn¡¯t remember ordering cake from it. He hated memory gaps. ¡°Did I drink a lot last evening, Zyl?¡± The dragon looked back and gave a halfhearted shrug. ¡°I¡¯m not quite sure. I think so. We had a bit of a housewarming party with the others.¡± That he did remember. When they signed the deal, they spent all day shopping around for furniture. Things to decorate the house with. Then they invited most acquaintances over. Avery, Lucia, Iris, Marcel, Yasashiku, Yvette, most everyone they knew decently well. People from the Mages¡¯ Guild, too, and even Jirluc came. Introducing the sipisc was a little strange, but it worked out well enough in the end. Him and Yvette took well to another, drinking and talking. It was nice. More than nice, even; he¡¯d loved it. The cake was, of course, Avery¡¯s idea. He¡¯d asked them in the morning, knowing what was to come, and placed the order. Well. Marcel placed the order. Avery was busy-busy doing things for the guild. Filing away reports of monster sightings, which group they came from, preparing for quests to be put up, that kind of thing. And so, Marcel was called in from his rest day to¡­ order cake. Well, it was for a party he would be attending, and he got to at least vet the cake. He loved strawberry, though, so that was fine. Why did this world have strawberry, too? Mercury thought to ask that question. They even called it berry, too, despite it not being a berry at all! And yet, there was no good explanation. Perhaps strawberries simply transcended time and space. Maybe, one day, the entire universe would return to strawberry. That day would not be today. Mercury proved his obvious superiority over the ¡°berry¡± by eating the cake. Absolutely wolfing it down. He had multiple slices, and he cherished each and every one of them. It was delicious cake, in even more delicious company. He laughed. He showed off his new magic. He cried, telling stories from back on Earth. He talked about his parents, his family. Because these were people he felt comfortable enough telling. His experience with conversion therapy and the church back at home. How his parents forced him to go to church. How he was allowed no freedoms, because he couldn¡¯t be trusted. For so long, he kept in the closet, until they stole his diary from underneath his mattress - he didn¡¯t keep it under his bed because they checked there every night - and read it. Page by page. The next week he was off in a tiny car, off to the most miserable experience of his life. Now? He¡¯d been through dying in a mindscape, and those were two different kinds of horrible, but he couldn¡¯t honestly bring himself to rank them. Then, eventually, the sad talks stopped. Zyl had lit a fire in the stove, easier than a snap of his fingers. The house warmed up. He had more cake. ¡­ He had way more cake than was reasonable, and that was fine. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Happy stories were shared for some time, then sad ones again, and so it changed. Over and over, into the late hours of the night. They drank. He uh¡­ drank a lot. Ah. That¡¯s where the memory of the cake went. The fog over yesterday¡¯s memories faded as his Skills ran their course. His high vitality made it so that he was able to simply wake up, not feeling the adverse effects. Some of those emotions from yesterday still lingered. Maybe that¡¯s why he¡¯d been so thankful to have a home. Someplace that just felt right. A smile found its way onto his face. ¡°Yeah. Let¡¯s have more cake.¡± Zyl smiled. ¡°Of course, love.¡± They took it from the fridge, an enchanted box with runes to keep the heat out and the cold in, and ate more of it. There was still quite a bit left, but they¡¯d eat that over time. Soon enough, at least. Especially if Mercury kept up his appetite. He knew he could, too. was quite a nice Skill to have. First of all, it let him eat anything he really wanted to eat. Secondly, he could store calories outside of his body, to be drawn on fur sustenance, letting him go very long without food. What the Skill description didn¡¯t explicitly mention, was that he could have anything he digested go directly to the extra storage. And, in addition to that, he could discard energy from said storage at will, out into the world. Which meant as many sweets as he would like!! Honestly, he was quite excited about what that Skill would turn into once it evolved. But there was still much time until that happened. Instead of that, he focused on the then and there. Looking at Zyl. Smiling at the fact that he had such a beautiful partner. It was still early in the morning. Soon, sometime after breakfast, he¡¯d head over to Yasashiku. Practice smithing. There were¡­ some Skills associated with it, but fewer than one may think. There was the whole line, as well as , which could eventually be combined into a type of line. Though the exact Skills differed for each person. What Yasashiku had was¡­ well Mercury didn¡¯t know. And the old man wouldn¡¯t tell, either. Something about Mercury and needing to learn more beforehand. According to him, it wasn¡¯t even out of malice. Knowing the exact nature of the Skills of others could, somehow, confuse you. Make it harder to follow your own path exactly. So he didn¡¯t wanna tell. Mercury thought he was just being coy about it, though. About halfway through his third slice of cake, with Zyl already leaning back and enjoying the sunlight on his face, there was a knock at the door. Three small sounds of knuckles hitting timber. ¡°I¡¯ll get it,¡± Mercury said, quickly hopping off his chair. With a swift use of , the door opened, him behind it. - - - - - - ¡°I think this is a horrible idea,¡± Midas said. ¡°We both decided it was our best shot.¡± Despite her words, Zagan did not seem to be any more thrilled than the golden man next to her. Midas rolled his shoulders, seemingly uncomfortable as they walked through the streets. ¡°And you¡¯re sure we should bother them in the morning?¡± Zagan gave him a confused look. ¡°It¡¯s barely even morning anymore.¡± ¡°Super early.¡± The demoness eyed the sky. ¡°It¡¯s so bright. The sun is up. Surely, they¡¯ll be, too?¡± Midas gave a long sigh, running his hand through his hair. Tiny strands of gold clung to his fingers, far more dense than the hair surrounding them. ¡°Okay. No. Not necessarily. We¡¯re getting a gift beforehand.¡± ¡°Why would we get a gift?¡± ¡°They just got a house,¡± Midas said exasperatedly. ¡°So what?¡± Zagan asked, still confused. They¡¯d found a place to live in. What did that have to do with anything? The old king shook his head at her. ¡°Alright, Zagan, listen. In human culture, homes are important. This isn¡¯t them finding a roof over their head, this is about them finding a place to anchor their lives at.¡± ¡°Why would anyone want that?¡± she asked, cocking her head a little too far. ¡°You reign over your city, yes?¡± ¡°Of course, yes,¡± she readily agreed. ¡°When someone comes to visit your city, do they compliment you on how beautiful it is?¡± ¡°Certainly!¡± ¡°So when it was just established, did anyone bring you anything?¡± he asked again. ¡°Indeed. Decorations for my palace, and such.¡± A thick smile planted itself on her face as they walked through the streets. It was empty still, the sun barely in the sky yet. ¡°So, imagine that the dragon has just acquired a new palace. Would you like to bring him a gift?¡± Zagan paled. The blood ran cold in her veins. ¡°Yes,¡± she said, suddenly very convinced. ¡°It might be prudent to bring something.¡± ¡°So we will,¡± Midas nodded, glad to have saved his neck for yet another day. The two had quite a bit of time before it was reasonable to actually visit Zyl and Mercury, and midas intended to use it all. He didn¡¯t know much about either of them, but he could guess. Hopefully, none of the gifts would seem disrespectful, otherwise, well, maybe he shouldn¡¯t get too attached to his neck, just in case. Zagan also wanted to buy things for them, but her taste wasn¡¯t quite¡­ up to par, in Midas¡¯ eyes. He had to stop her from buying spider memorabilia multiple times. Why she was so obsessed with arachnids right now he didn¡¯t understand. Occasionally, she¡¯d blink open extra eyes on her human form, too, but Midas very quickly pointed those out and asked her to please keep them mostly shut. She obliged, grumpily. Her next attempt of gifts were garden gnomes. Mercury and Zyl did not have a garden, really, so that idea was tossed as well. In the end, Midas ended up making the choices instead. He decided on a box of chocolates, as well as some paintings of nature. A waterfall one, and a second depiction of a lakeside flanked by grassy hills with mountains in the background. Mercury would have probably said that they looked a little as though painted by Bob Ross. Finally, he also picked up a bottle of a champagne-equivalent. It wasn¡¯t called the same, but for the purposes of the story, it shall be named such. Then, when the sun was higher in the sky, at around what might have been 10 a.m., they finally headed towards the dreaded house. It was made of warm, dark wood. The type that seemed inviting. There was a stone chimney for the stove, which had spat out countless small plumes yesterday, yet stood empty now. ¡°You¡¯re really sure about this?¡± Midas asked again. They were close to the house now, maybe fifty steps away. Still, despite the reasonable distance, he whispered. ¡°Stalling will not make it better.¡± The finality in those words left Midas to do not much other than grumble to himself in unresolved tones, but even that quickly ended. He went quiet fourty steps away from the house. At thirty steps, he started walking quietly. Ten steps away, he started holding his breath. Then, they were in front of the door, that dreaded wooden door. Midas was almost certain he would die. Despite his grievances, Zagan raised her hand, and tapped the wood thrice. A second later there was a soft tap on the wooden floor, and Midas felt as though the grim reaper was approaching. Half a dozen more seconds passed as he held his breath, then the door swung open. There was nothing behind it. Shit he must already have moved behind them ready to cut his head o- ¡°Hello? Who¡¯s this?¡± The voice came from closer to the floor. Midas slowly lowered his gaze, happening upon a mopaaw. It wasn¡¯t normal by any means, snow white fur interlaced with stripes that seemed like the night sky, except filled with so many more purple stars and swirls. Ah. The mopaaw. It spoke to them. Of course. He- he knew that. Yet, both of them stared in silence. ¡°Uhm. This is starting to get kinda awkward, you know?¡± Fuck. He had to speak. What to say, what to- Zagan spoke before he could. ¡°Holy shit, it really talks.¡± THAT WAS NOT THE RIGHT THING TO SAY!!! Midas was just about ready to die and fall out of his skin when the mopaaw talked again. ¡°Okay, uh. Kinda rude? No, really rude, actually. I#m no ¡°it¡±, I go by he/him. My name is Mercury. Who are you?¡± Shit. They¡¯d fucked up. Midas bit his cheek, hard, for a moment, to get some clarity back in his head. Zagan seemed stunned, so he quickly spoke before she made another blunder. ¡°We apologize about that, Mercury. We were just¡­ surprised. That¡¯s all. See, we have some prior relationship with your¡­ partner,¡± he picked that, as a safe word, ¡°lord Friaminth.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just Zyl, here!¡± a second voice yelled from behind. ¡°You heard him,¡± Mercury replied, wearing a succinct smile. ¡°But given your tone of voice, I don¡¯t imagine you were pleasant acquaintances. Do you want to threaten us? Blackmail?¡± ¡°NO! Gods, no. No, we do not. Please. We may have started off on the wrong foot-¡± he pleaded. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Mercury hummed. ¡°I think we started off the same way most people like to start talking to me. And that¡¯s talking down.¡± ¡°I wish to apologize,¡± Zagan said. The words hung in the air for a bit. ¡°What for? Being rude?¡± Mercury asked, cocking his head. ¡°An attempt on your life,¡± Zagan replied. Midas had wanted to stop her. But there was no stopping a demon once they got talking. Suddenly, the quiet house didn¡¯t feel quite so quaint anymore. There was a pressure in the air, a dense, heavy, certainty of death. Where Midas held his breath before, he suddenly couldn¡¯t breathe. Not for a moment. The old King looked through the doorway, and above the mo-, above Mercury there hung a shadow of death itself. Killing intent leaked from in between warm wood, crashing down on him like a tsunami on an ant. Heavy steps on the wood followed. A man, clothed in white, with ahri the colour of blood and fire and death, stood in the doorway. He looked down at Midas. Down. Because the old king, and the demoness, had both fallen to their knees. No air entered their lungs. Their muscles didn¡¯t work. Their gifts clattered from their hands. Silence hung heavily as moment after moment of existential terror drifted in front of Midas. His life drifted in front of his eyes. Maybe he shouldn¡¯t have accepted the gift of gold, maybe he- ¡°You tried what?¡± The voice that spoke those words came from the man who was death himself. They were calm, yet spoken with untold fury. Fuck. A tear ran down Midas¡¯ eye. He was really going to die here. He was- ¡°Answer.¡± ¡°I-¡± Zagan choked next to the old king. ¡°I am Zagan. Of the demons. I was involved in the ploy for your spark. One of my people was sent after your¡­¡± she paused, and simply gestured wildly at Mercury. ¡°Oh! One of those!¡± That mopaaw sounded chipper during all this. How did he sound happy?! Another chill ran down Midas¡¯ spine when he realized there was little empathy in those unfathomable eyes. He was at the height of Mercury¡¯s face. He met his eyes, saw deep within them, and he saw the flashes of his life flicker out an die against a bottomless hole. What the FUCK was he looking at?! ¡°Zyl, let off the pressure already. They¡¯re clearly not here to do harm, or they¡¯re completely unable to make a decision smart enough to get close to us. Either way, they¡¯re not gonna do anything.¡± ¡°I will not let this go unpunished.¡± ¡°Zyl, please.¡± ¡°... fine.¡± The pressure let up. Midas gasped. Retched. Pulled in dregs of dusty air. ¡°Alright you two. My tells me you won¡¯t harm either of us. If you do, prepare for a swift and immediate retaliation. Now, come on in. I guess we got some talking to do.¡± Chapter 176: Slices of Cake Chapter 176: Slices of Cake Midas walked into the small house, looking around, and judged it¡­ inadequate. The furniture was made from regular wood, without any decorations. The cushions on it were entirely mundane. Nothing magical or comfortable. The ceiling and the floorboards of the upper floor were one and the same. In the kitchen, there wasn¡¯t even any cushioning to dampen the noise of anyone above. It was also low. Well, he could easily stand, but he knew Zagan¡¯s true form would never have fit inside here. There was also a kitchen in the dining space. Would their chefs be so regularly allowed into the common spaces? ¡­ It struck him that, perhaps, they planned to do much of the cooking themselves. Which was a very, very strange thought. He had only ever procured food for himself when he had first dropped into this world. His unique Skill , very quickly earned him enough money to buy some real estate and find people to work for him. He blinked in confusion at the stove. Who¡¯d want to operate that themselves? But the moment passed quickly, as he reminded himself his life was currently at stake. They walked up the stairs, to the second floor. The house did have a second floor, just as he¡¯d reckoned, but¡­ the ceiling was slanted. They were right underneath the roof. Surely that couldn¡¯t be comfortable? He looked to the sides of the room and saw how low the ceiling got. What a strange way to build. He far preferred straight roofs. Which, granted, was about the only thing in his life he liked ¡°straight¡±. There was beauty to be found in all humans. Some of them only really sparkled when turned to golden statues, though. At that thought, he felt a brief flare of death washing over him. Midas staggered in his walk, gasping for breath, as his legs failed him for a single second. Fuck. He¡¯d fucked up. He was gonna die, he was- Terror slipped away as quickly as it¡¯d come. Midas gasped for breath. He felt sweat on his skin. With an iron grip, he reigned in his thoughts, refraining from any further judgement. He looked to their destination, a small table surrounded by plush chairs. Those looked comfortable, at least, if still mundane. He really tried to not think his disapproval too loudly. ¡°Alright. Here we are. Sit down, you three, I¡¯ll grab some cake,¡± the mopaaw - Mercury, said. Following the way the furball pointed with one leg extended, Midas took his seat upon one of the chairs. He was glad to be wearing his gloves, because that way, the chair did not turn to solid gold immediately. That might have ended with him falling through the ceiling, which would be thoroughly uncomfortable. Then, Mercury left to go downstairs and fetch the cake he¡¯d promised. Midas looked after him as he left. The moment the thing vanished down the steps, he felt a shiver run down his back. Slowly, the greek once-king turned to face guardian Friaminth. The man¡¯s countenance was as beautiful as it had always been, the kind that Midas would not have hesitated to ask out. Unfortunately, that beauty was currently only matched by the absolute fury set into his features. If looks could kill- well, actually. If the guardian wished, his look could probably kill Midas. A swift blitz of fire would do just that, in fact. He swallowed, heavily, dryly. The guardian regarded him, up and down, a cold look in his eyes. ¡°I will have you know my partner is kinder than me,¡± the man said, with a countenance that left only one thing to the imagination: the brutality of the death one may die. ¡°I warn you to not abuse that kindness. If you try, you will pay. Simple as.¡± There was a finality to that statement, enhanced by the frostyness the dragon¡¯s expression held. Midas was under no illusions. This creature was ready to destroy him the moment he stepped out of line. He glanced over at Zagan. His companion was more volatile than him. Less attached to life. Fewer Skills to read others and an obliviousness to implied threats. Yet, despite that, Zagan also seemed scared. She shrunk into her chair, just a little. Midas spoke, for both of them or so he hoped. ¡°We understa- understand, sir.¡± His voice had cracked. Fuuuuck, why did his voice have to crack? He sounded like a drowning frog making a fool of himself. ¡°We will give your partner the respect he deserves,¡± he said, his voice more even, trying to salvage the situation. Zyl regarded him for a long moment. ¡°Give twice that, and maybe I will consider forgiving you.¡± Midas hastily nodded, afraid for his life. Zagan, however, spoke, and Midas felt a part of himself die the moment she opened her mouth. ¡°How much respect does the mopaaw deserve, though?¡± The dragon snapped his head over to her. There was a long, icy look. Footsteps came up the stairs. He spoke before Mercury came back. ¡°Every bit you are able to give.¡± Zagan seemed to wish to contest this, but Mercury came back up the stairs. He carried four plates, and multiple pieces of cutlery around himself. Small forks, spoons, and even butter knives. The plates held slices of cake, which did truly look good. Midas enjoyed the delicacies this world offered, some of them far greater than he had ever tasted back in Greece, since there were Skills to enhance cooking further than it reasonably should have been able to go. ¡°I, uh, didn¡¯t know which kinda cutlery you would like, so I brought it all. Do you eat cake with spoons or forks? I¡¯m a fork person myself, but I do know spoon people exist out there, you know? So I wanted to be sure,¡± he said. The¡­ mundanity of his statement struck Midas as odd, and he would have chuckled or laughed if he was not entirely sure that the guardian may strike him down the moment he was out of line. Instead of dooming himself, he spoke politely. ¡°I¡¯ll take a fork, please, master Mercury.¡± There was a small pause, as the plates, which had been slowly hovering up and down and in tiny circles around the cat stopped, frozen in the air. Fuck. Had he misstepped? Where exactly had he misspoken? Wasn¡¯t he respectful enough? He¡¯d- ¡°You, you don¡¯t need to call me master. I¡¯m no one¡¯s master at all, really,¡± Mercury said, with a hint of sadness in his tone. An old wound? Damn. He looked to the guardian. The man¡¯s expression was grave. ¡°Right, of course, Mercury. Thank you,¡± Midas said, a bead of sweat rolling down his nape. The cat gave a small expression. It¡­ might have been a smile. ¡°Alright. Here you are.¡± The plate landed in front of Midas, taken through the air by an invisible hand, and the once-king admired the amount of control Mercury had over his . ¡°I¡¯ll take a spoon, please,¡± Zagan said. Midas resisted rolling his eyes. She ate everything with spoons. Even meat. She would have it sliced or slice it first, then eat it with a spoon. He did not understand why. Still, it elicited a larger maybe-smile from Mercury. It seemed as though his expression said ¡°I knew spoon-cake-eaters existed!¡± but the words that actually left his mouth were: ¡°Of course, here you go.¡± Zagan nodded and thanked him, as mercury placed another plate down in front of Zyl, and the final one at another open spot at the table, in front of a chair which he promptly hopped onto. Without much hesitation, the cat controlled the fork to eat a bite of cake. Midas and Zagan had waited for him to start, and now, somewhat hesitantly, ate their own cake. The old king did briefly consider whether it was poisoned, but really, one look at the guardian told him that their death would not be from the food they ate today. Somewhat gently, Midas poked his fork into the cake. It tasted good. He took a deep breath. Guardian Friaminth, too, did something very similar. He chewed, swallowed, then laid his gaze onto the two guests in his house. ¡°Now that you¡¯re comfortable, shall we begin this discussion?¡± Immediately, the mood settled again, into a mildly uncomfortable silence. It lasted for a dozen seconds, then another dozen. Finally, Zagan took a breath and broke it. ¡°I sent assassins after you, Mercury, in order to assist with the plan to acquire guardian Friaminth¡¯s spark. I wanted it because I found it would be beautiful, and a nice addition to my collection of artpieces. For my involvement, I owe the both of you a sincere apology. I know my words will not do it justice, so we have brought you small housewarming gifts as well.¡± For a moment, Mercury moved to speak, but Zagan continued. ¡°Yes. Those gifts will never be able to make up for what almost happened to you. My actions were cruel and selfish. I see that now. Some of that is in my nature as a demoness. Yet, clearly, I acted in excess, and for that, I am sorry.¡± The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. Zylnareth nodded at her, as she closed all eight of her eyes and bowed, deep. Her nose touched the cake. She had not seen it since her eyes were closed. Mercury chuckled at that. ¡°Please, raise your head. It¡¯s no biggie,¡± the mopaaw said. There it was again, Midas noted. That disjointed note of mirth. How was this little ball of fur so calm being told someone tried to kill him? Zagan, though, did as she was told. With a quick use of , Mercury directed a napkin to wipe the cream off her nose. Midas, however, was still focused on lord Friaminth, and because of that, he noticed the hint of a frown that creased his face. For a moment, he feared for his life. Then, Midas realized it wasn¡¯t that at all. Zyl felt a little jealous at his boyfriend dabbing someone else¡¯s nose. No, not jealous, really, he just wanted Mercury to do the same to him. How¡­ strange. But the emotion on Zyl¡¯s face vanished a moment later, and the dragon regarded the once-king with a stony countenance. Right, time for him to apologize as well, then. ¡°As an advisor and member of lady Zagan¡¯s court for many years, some of the responsibility of her actions lays with me. I am deeply sorry for my part in what has happened.¡± He bowed, as well, though his nose did not touch the cake. He didn¡¯t want it to turn to gold, after all. Zyl gave an imperceptible nod at that. ¡°Fine. Your apologies are taken into consideration,¡± he said. ¡°Forgiven,¡± Mercury added. His boyfriend grumbled a little, but quietly. ¡°Seriously. It¡¯s not that big of a deal. There were like¡­ twenty assassins there. One more or less wouldn¡¯t have made the difference.¡± Midas was stunned, and he was sure his mouth hung open a little. HOW! How had that little creature survived an attack by twenty elite assassins from the forces of dragons and demons?! What in the absolute FUCK was up with that?! Once again, he was forced to re-evaluate his opinion of Mercury. The man of gold swallowed once more, heavily. He slowly raised himself again, looking into the mopaaw¡¯s eyes and glimpsing a vast infinity behind it. What kind of things did one have to see to get those kinds of eyes? Regarding the creatures in front of him, a sudden awareness filled king Midas. A knowledge that none of them were human. Certainly, the guardian¡¯s guise was almost perfect, but that aura of fear was something unique to dragons. He could conjure up terror, knowledge of impending death in a moment, simply by unveiling a hint of his fury. He was unfathomable, untouchable, like a vast spire piercing the heavens. His companion, Zagan, still had something that passed for a human shape. Distorted and imperfect, yes, but it was mostly humanoid. A thin veneer that hid what kind of monster she actually was. But her mind, of course, was not human. He knew her well, of course, given how long they had spent under one, admittedly very large, roof. But he knew she didn¡¯t think the same way he did. But only one of those creatures in front of him wore their nature on their sleeve. Mercury looked displeased when he was displeased, he looked happy when he was happy, he looked sad when he was sad, and he always looked like he hid some unfathomable secret that was not for the human mind to know. Perhaps, once, that creature had been human, but now? Midas struggled to think of him as one. Just then, that almost-human turned to look at him. Those purple, star filled, nebula-like eyes locked onto the once-king. He began to sweat, a little suddenly unable to read the mopaaw¡¯s emotions. ¡°You. I haven¡¯t heard your name yet, actually,¡± he said, his voice soft. Oh. Okay. That was manageable. ¡°I am Midas,¡± he said, waving his hand. ¡°A pleasure to-¡± ¡°MIDAS?! As in, like, the king Midas? The one that turns everything he touches to gold?¡± Mercury asked. The once-king was a little stunned. ¡°I don¡¯t think I was ever a king on this world.¡± ¡°On this world? Holy crap. You¡¯re from Earth.¡± ¡°Earth?¡± Midas asked again, confused. That word didn¡¯t translate properly, not through . ¡°Sorry. Uhm. Greece? Does that ring a bell?¡± Midas leaned back in his chair, far back, his face suddenly sullen. Ah. This¡­ thing, in front of him. Mercury. He knew about Greece. Was he also from there, then? Surely not. He didn¡¯t speak like someone from Greece, he spoke like a creature who had seen things beyond what he ever wished to imagine. The once-king took a deep breath. ¡°Yes. Yes, I lived there, once, a lifetime ago. But now, I live here.¡± ¡°Right, right. Of course. Just¡­ crazy. We heard legends of you, you know?¡± ¡°Legends?¡± Midas asked, his curiosity sparked. ¡°Yeah! When I lived, well, the ancient civilization of Greece had been gone for about two thousand years.¡± ¡°WHAT!!¡± Midas stood up in shock, moving the chair back and almost throwing it over. Mercury blinked at him, his face turning sad. ¡°Ah. Right. Yeah, sorry. I lived¡­ long, long after you. Ancient Greece was¡­ ahead of its time. But eventually, Rome came around and¡­ well. Things happened, and eventually, Greece wasn¡¯t really a thing anymore.¡± Midas simply blinked. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong,¡± Mercury quickly added, ¡°Greece was still around. Much smaller, of course. Your language changed, using different letters and such, but your language was literally the basis of all languages. Which is cool. But your legacy lived on.¡± A tear fell onto the floor from Midas¡¯ eyes. ¡°I wasn¡¯t forgotten.¡± He said the words, softly, like a wish carried away by the wind. ¡°I wasn¡¯t forgotten.¡± Zagan looked at him, and all eight of her eyes held empathy. Bits of happiness, for him. Zylnareth regarded him coldly, still, a little less now. Mercury, though, somewhere deep in those unfathomable eyes, there was a spark of kind understanding. A like minded wish to be remembered. He may be more human than midas had given him credit for. ¡°You were.¡± Mercifully, Mercury left out how his story was one of warning, and probably twisted by history, anyway. His old world didn¡¯t have magic, after all. There was another brief lull in the conversation, then. Midas took a few breaths, then sat down, heavily. He looked like he was conflicted, ten years younger and ten years older at the same time. Remembering things he loved, and ones he would rather have left buried. For a minute or two, he buried his face in his hands, simply focussing on breathing. In and out, and in and out. Somehow, it felt easy to do around Mercury, for whatever reason. Like his Breath came easier. Eventually, he raised his face, his expression more neutral, again. ¡°Thank you for this, Mercury. It appears I am in your debt twice over.¡± The mopaaw smiled. ¡°You¡¯re fine, you¡¯re fine. Surely, those housewarming gifts will take care of one of those debts?¡± Midas smiled, as well, and nodded. ¡°Of course, your gifts. Here.¡± He handed over the paintings, the chocolates, and the bottle of not-champagne, placing them on the table. His cake still sat mostly uneaten, though Mercury had eaten his whole slice by now. The mopaaw looked at the chocolates and his eyes sparkled. Midas smiled. ¡°I am glad you seem to like the gifts.¡± Zyl nodded at the paintings. ¡°These are quite beautiful. Can you point us where you found them?¡± ¡°Of course. It¡¯s a small stall in the market district, three crossings south of the Merchants¡¯ Guild, then down a small alley. You¡¯ll know it¡¯s the right alley when you find it painted with a large crown. The stall is in a strange little expanse between buildings, like a clearing in a forest,¡± Midas explained. The dragon nodded again, in thanks. ¡°Alright, then. Thank you. We have received your apologies. You aren¡¯t forgiven-¡± Mercury rolled his eyes. ¡°Zyl. I said it¡¯s fine, didn¡¯t I? I don¡¯t wanna play these games.¡± Lord Friaminth looked at mercury for a moment, his expression softening. ¡°Fine, fine,¡± he said, his voice suddenly gone from stoic to melodic. ¡°You tell them off, then, see ¡®em out, okay?¡± ¡°Thanks, love,¡± Mercury said, smiling. Then, he turned to their guests again. ¡°Alright! You two. Clearly, I¡¯m not exactly pleased with what you did. But I¡¯m willing to leave it in the past. Don¡¯t send assassins after me again. Don¡¯t threaten people in general, maybe, if you can avoid it. ¡°I might be willing to forgive you, but the world won¡¯t always. And I don¡¯t take kindly to people abusing my trust, so please don¡¯t do that.¡± The words were spoken kindly, but there was an edge to that request. Midas knew there would be no easy forgiveness a second time around. ¡°Try to be good people or something. Thank you for the gifts. Please finish your cake quickly, or just leave it and head out. If you need anything else, you know where to find us.¡± Midas nodded. ¡°Thank you, Mercury.¡± Zagan nodded, agreeing. ¡°Thank you.¡± The mopaaw regarded them both. ¡°It¡¯s fine, really,¡± he said, with an even tone that Midas couldn¡¯t identify the intentions of. He looked at Mercury¡¯s eyes. A mistake. They were deep, unfathomable, threatening to swallow him up- ¡°You don¡¯t need to thank me with words. Uhm. Show your gratitude by being¡­ kind to others? I¡¯d like that.¡± This time, Midas could identify the desire behind that statement. A clear request. That was good, he liked to repay his debts. He stood up, pushing his chair aside. ¡°Yes,¡± he readily agreed, ¡°this is something I am willing to do. I will pay your kindness forward. Thank you.¡± Zagan followed suit, standing up a little less elegantly, and blinking all eight of her eyes. ¡°I will try to be kind.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough for me. Now, shoo, get outta here, I¡¯m tired,¡± the mopaaw said, waving them away with a smile that told Midas he was giving them an easy way out. The once-king didn¡¯t wait for the once-human to repeat himself. - - - - - - ¡°I think you went a little easy on them, Mercury,¡± Zyl remarked when the others were gone. The mopaaw gave a shrug. ¡°Eh. I think it¡¯s fine. They seemed ready and willing to accept my suggestions. They were terrified, you know?¡± There was a small accusation in those words. Zyl had the decency to blush. ¡°I¡­ suppose maybe I scared them a little too much?¡± ¡°Mhmmm,¡± Mercury hummed agreement. ¡°I can take care of myself, Zyl. If I wanted them terrified, I would¡¯ve just used again.¡± ¡°Right, yes. I understand.¡± He sounded dejected. Mercury pressed his snout against Zyl¡¯s cheek. ¡°Hey. Don¡¯t worry. It¡¯s okay. You were trying to protect me. I love you for that. I¡¯m just saying you can also trust me.¡± He pressed his snout against Zyl¡¯s cheek again. A smile slowly crept across the dragon¡¯s lips. He extended a hand and ran it across Mercury¡¯s head and back, happily. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Of course, silly.¡± The moment lasted tenderly a while longer, and the two cuddled a little, before sharing the remaining bits of cake. - - - Slowly but surely the day drifted by. Mercury did not do a lot, other than rest. Tomorrow he would go learn more smithing, but not today. That¡­ talk had taken a lot out of him. Really, he just wanted to sleep, and so he did. That day, when he slept, he found himself in that space in his mind, where he always found himself, and across from him was an ancient construct, made from thousands of rocky veins. It twisted to face Mercury, the veins distorting into a facsimile of a smile. It would have been terrifying, if Mercury couldn¡¯t read his teacher¡¯s emotions. There was happiness, radiant and bright like a second sun in the sky. An amount of pride Mercury wished he had ever gotten in his life, for an accomplishment he knew he¡¯d earned. Mercury smiled. ¡®Hello, old Uunrahzil.¡¯ - - - - - - Somewhere else, not too far off from Mercury¡¯s mind, something stirred. Something old, yet young, something fast and playful and with a desire to move. A young boy stirred in a field of flowers. His friends were all around him, tired, sleeping, save but unable to play. That was fine, he let them rest there. He turned to the horizon, to a city that he saw not too far away. His city, the one with high walls he always needed to climb over. Something stirred at the edge of the running boy¡¯s mind. Something strange, something foreign, something he loved and hated. There was a storm in his city. A bit of , yet that storm understood his . He cocked his head. How curious. Was this someone to play with, or a storm that needed purging from his city? There was but one way to find out. Chapter 177: Frayed Chapter 177: Frayed ¡®Yr¡¯enzel,¡¯ old Uunrahzil greeted him. ¡®I see thou¡¯st found a Truth?¡¯ Mercury regarded his teacher and, frankly, friend. He smiled, then nodded. ¡®I have.¡¯ There was an undertone of thanks in what he thought at Uunrahzil. The old creature smiled, too, seeming elated with their student¡¯s success. Whisperstar flitted across the sky, seemingly enamoured. Things had changed in the dream. The dark, patchwork sky was more¡­ complete now, perhaps. There were tiny cloud drifting across it, in small measure, some of them light and fluffy, others dark and full of fury. Most of them shed rain. A thin misting of it pittered down onto the grass that covered the fields. It lightly doused the citadel of fire, eliciting small spouts of vapour. It slid down the tall spires and windows of the castle of glass. It rained onto the mountains, turning earth more muddy, and letting the grass encroach a little further. The clouds drifted across the sky on tiny gusts of wind. It was strange to see them move, though, since the stars in Mercury¡¯s dream were not true stars. The moon and silver sun, especially, hung in front of the clouds, shedding pale light onto the landscape below. The star that had once been the nexus stood close to the moon, too, lighting the clouds from below. If Mercury focused, he could see the threads. Bits of the , connecting those celestial bodies up into the misty skies. The dream was becoming more real, and it could only do so because there was a foundation laid. Enough to make the world up there feel more alive. Whisperstar sent happiness to Mercury. They danced through the wispy clouds, dispersing them, and through the darker clouds, briefly letting the rain shine in silver. Maybe, if they were brighter, they could cause a rainbow someday. Mercury enjoyed that thought. Old Uunrahzil interrupted Mercury¡¯s thoughts by speaking again. ¡®I am proud of you,¡¯ they thought, simply, and Mercury read that it was true. ¡®Thou have truly outdone yourself. I do not know how much time has passed outside of here ever since we met, but it surely could not have been much. Yet, you managed to understand a part of yourself. I cannot say how proud that makes me.¡¯ Mercury smiled. He knew old Uunrahzil¡¯s words to be true, for he could read the old one¡¯s intent. He lowered his head a little. ¡®I could not have done it without you, teacher.¡¯ His response elicited genuine happiness from old Uunrahzil. ¡®My tri¡¯ht. It is good to revel in your successes. But you must understand that this is simply the first step on a yet longer path.¡¯ ¡®I know,¡¯ Mercury said, and it was the truth. The very ability he got said so. It was . All of his ihn¡¯ar on was still in there, but this was now a new road to set out on. ¡®It is good you do, Yr¡¯enzel,¡¯ old Dreamweaver thought with some amusement. ¡®I am sure you will discover much more about this world as you go on.¡¯ Mercury nodded. ¡®I hope so,¡¯ he thought sincerely. ¡®It would be a shame if this was all there is to me.¡¯ The last bit was supposed to be a joke, and Mercury even knew that Dreamweaver knew it was, yet they took the words seriously. ¡®There is depth to each and every creature who thinks, young one. It is hard to ever truly understand yourself.¡¯ That left a question open in Mercury¡¯s mind. ¡®Do you understand yourself, old Uunrahzil?¡¯ Silence followed his inquiry. If Mercury didn¡¯t know better, he would have guessed that old Uunrahzil was offended at the question, but he did know better. He could tell that they were thinking. Truly thinking, too, sending small vibrations into the dream around themselves, that shook smaller threads loose for Mercury to briefly pick up on before they slotted themselves back into the weave. The silence stretched on for a while. Seconds, first, then minutes. Mercury decided to simply wait, though he couldn¡¯t just stand still and do nothing, so he set about one of the things he had not done in a while. Absorbing more mana. With the dream being so much denser now, it seemed there was more mana in the air, too. Mercury split his mind. Gathering mana was always a good way to train his ystirs, and his second zeyjn was only able to support a few of them, compared to the 32 his first zeyjn could keep up. Half his mind was thus set to absorbing mana, while the other half worked to understand more about this dream. His teacher was shaking loose threads, which then mended back together, into one cohesive whole. Still, he could see that disturbances were happening. Thinking, by itself, shouldn¡¯t be causing that kind of reaction. So what was? Mercury focused, and tried to look closer. Naturally, almost like second nature, he slipped into ihn¡¯ar, watching the first veil of gold break apart. The world looked clearer, and the threads more vibrant. He could now see dozens more, constantly spinning and moving around old Uunrahzil, like a cocoon being spun from the dream, then torn apart and put back together. Then, Mercury looked closer. He glimpsed a little of things he already understood a bit. The threads of the , and behind them, the they coiled around. Yet, when the threads parted, that grew to fill that space, hungry and encroaching. Somehow, it seemed to be both an anchor for dreams to exist, yet also willing to fill any space they didn¡¯t. Like it was bound too tightly by the threads. Mercury glimpsed into those gaps that appeared between the threads. Where the was larger and less gentle, instead seeming hungry. And behind it, there was more of it. An infinite expanse of it, so chock full of it would have been absolutely suffocating. So why was there something out there? When Mercury noticed the things that were in the other space, old Uunrahzil stopped what they were doing. Their cocoon of threads rapidly collapsed, each bit of weave snapping back into the fabric of the dream, the nothingness suddenly tame and serving as a benevolent anchor again. ¡®My tri¡¯ht, Yr¡¯enzel, thou should not look that far ahead yet,¡¯ they thought, sadness tinging their tone. Mercury swallowed heavily. His eyes felt dry, so he blinked, but the feeling wouldn¡¯t go away. Something about him felt¡­ raw. Overstretched. Actually, scratch that, everything about him felt like he had moved it a step too far. He couldn¡¯t quite get his thoughts organised enough to formulate a reply. ¡®Thou¡¯st been staring into that darkness for over five hours now,¡¯ old Dreamweaver explained, empathetically. Ah. That explained why the amount of ystirs his split mind could command raised by a whole two. Five¡­ full hours. Fuck. His very existence felt¡­ frayed at the edges. ¡®When you peer outside, you expose your astral body to danger, Mercury. It will erode and unravel. That is what you experienced.¡¯ Once again, Mercury couldn¡¯t articulate much more than a simple ¡®Ah.¡¯ It made sense, then, that he felt like he wasn¡¯t quite¡­ there. His legs shook a little. ¡®Do not worry overmuch. You will heal, soon. A day is all it should take,¡¯ old Uunrahzil elaborated, and Mercury¡¯s fear stopped growing. He breathed in deep, then out. After another moment passed, he was able to gather enough thoughts to speak again. ¡®What¡­ did you do?¡¯ His question was curious, but still slightly fearful. He did not manage to keep that out of his mind. ¡®Hm. It is a little complicated. I called to the other pieces of myself for their understanding. It¡­ involves reaching out beyond the lo-pac. I have gathered understanding of myself again, though some bits of myself seemed more unwilling to give it up than others.¡¯ They said it so casually, but the meaning of those words was not lost on Mercury. Dreamweaver had essentially said that they had taken the essence of what it meant to be ¡°old Uunrahzil¡± from other pieces of themselves, whether they gave it willingly or not. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡®In doing so, I have become more real again.¡¯ Those thoughts were warm. The kind of happiness gained when finding company after long days of solitude, finding water after a trek through the desert. ¡®But it has made my other pieces less.¡¯ Those were cold, distant, regretful but with compassion. It was a necessary action. ¡®How come they do not take from you?¡¯ Mercury asked. Uunrahzil grinned, conspiratorially. ¡®That is, of course, because you and Whisperstar believe in me. My eyeun surpasses¡­ ours.¡¯ Mercury blinked. ¡®What does that mean?¡¯ There was a brief silence, this one much shorter than five hours, as Uunrahzil swayed left and right. ¡®It is difficult to put into your language,¡¯ they thought. ¡®Cereth¡¯bar. Apologies. I believe that there are no proper words for this. If I could approximate it¡­ all thoughts on us shape our existence. Your thoughts shape our existence. We grow through another''s lo-pac about us.¡¯ ¡®I follow, so far,¡¯ Mercury said. ¡®And since thou, Yr¡¯enzel, dream of this one, specifically, we grow more. That is the simple truth,¡¯ Uunrahzil explained. Mercury could read a thin layer of regret at not being able to express themselves properly, but there was also a feeling that the idea had been conveyed rather decently. Still, it left Mercury curious for more. ¡®Is this something that only goes for you, or for your species?¡¯ ¡®Only us. This one. We, I, the one before you right now. Our fragments eyeun when lagment. We¡­ ¡°exist when we are sought¡±? Not quite, but close. Yes.¡¯ The old construct of stony veins bobbed once, as if to nod. There was also some lamentation in their thoughts though. It took Mercury a moment to even read that far down, but then he realized why. It¡¯s because Dreamweaver¡¯s species was dead. All of them, gone and wiped out. The pain of that still remained, a long since faded scar, but a scar nonetheless. Mercury sent them compassion, and received gratitude. Along that gratitude was a hint at a deeper pain, of not simply a species of loss, but personal loss. Yet, it carried the message that old Uunrahzil was not yet willing to speak of it, so Mercury did not ask. Instead, the older Person continued the conversation. ¡®Well, young Mercury, is there something else you wish to learn?¡¯ they asked. For a moment, Mercury couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡®I would not know what the next step is, old Uunrahzil.¡¯ At that, there was some humor in the older one¡¯s mind. ¡®There is no decisive next step. You must dream a road into existence.¡¯ Their words were slightly amused, but spoken true. ¡®Well, I suppose the next thing I¡¯m learning would be smithing,¡¯ Mercury thought. ¡®A good choice,¡¯ Uunrahzil agreed, ¡®and one which fits well within ihn¡¯ar. You may learn more of fire or heat or tempering. I am sure you will find your path amongst there.¡¯ Mercury smiled. ¡®We will see. I do not know if I will grasp something so quick.¡¯ ¡®And perhaps you will not. Perhaps you will learn to apply the knowledge you already have, or you will not and simply learn something new. Not all things need to be approached from the same angle,¡¯ Uunrahzil explained. Again, Mercury nodded. He felt his eyelids slowly grow heavy in the dream. ¡®Ah, apologies, I have spoken too much. You may be a little tired after my recent actions. Cereth¡¯bar. I hope you heal soon, and I must also find rest. We grow wa¡¯hc, and so do you.¡¯ Then, the dream ended. - - - Mercury woke up the same place he¡¯d fallen asleep. In a sunny spot on his bed, close to Zyl. He was warm, comfortable, yet felt like he had slept an hour too little. Not rested properly. He grumbled a bit, knowing it was the aftereffects of what he had seen in the dream. It would go away. Still, it was an annoying feeling. Kind of like pins and needles, except all across his fur. With a slight bit of irritation, Mercury pushed himself off the bed, leaving Zyl still sleeping. was good for that kinda stuff. It was funny how close the veil and were, to him. After all, the golden veil was simply where his mind drew the border of what was reasonable. , in essence, was to draw that border more narrowly around another¡¯s mind, making them not able to even think you existed where you were. It was a strange type of minor understanding alteration, but it was fitting for Mercury. Much more fitting than some of the more cat-like stealth Skills, though he still liked quite a bit. Definitely not just because it made almost all surfaces more comfortable to walk on, nope, surely not. With reasonably fast motions, after having woken at sunrise, Mercury had some breakfast, then headed out onto the street. Not too many people were around yet, though more than there would have been back on Earth. These people were still rebuilding the city, after all, and so they started early. It was quite cold outside, though, so honestly, they could probably have done to start a little later. Of course, as he walked through the streets of Stormbraver, it wasn¡¯t very long until he started hearing the rhythmic clanging of metal striking metal. He rounded a corner, and found Yasashiku outside, hammering¡­ something on his anvil. Probably making tools. He seemed to currently be hammering a piece of metal into a long, flat shape¡­ maybe a saw? ¡°Ah, Mercury-kun!¡± the old man greeted when he looked up from the piece, wiping sweat from his forehead. He wore a thick, woolen shirt under his leather apron, keeping the cold out. ¡°Good morning, Yasashiku-sensei. Are you not too warm?¡± he asked. The old man laid down his hammer on the anvil, and wiped his gloves against one another. ¡°Kuku, at my age you gotta be careful, you know? Cold gets to your bones fast. Can¡¯t afford to get sick when a city needs rebuilding.¡± Mercury resisted the urge to roll his eyes. ¡°Isn¡¯t your vitality super high?¡± he asked instead. ¡°Oh, sure, yes,¡± Yasashiku answered. ¡°So you haven¡¯t been sick in years?¡± ¡°No, no, I haven¡¯t, of course not. I make sure to stay warm, after all,¡± Yasashiku remarked, grinning now. ¡°Uh-huh,¡± Mercury hummed noncommittally. ¡°Come now, Rainfall-kun! Let¡¯s get you smithing! I heard that your rijn improved a lot since I last saw ya,¡± Yasashiku said, already heading off into his shed to grab some things. ¡°Follow along, come on!¡± he called out from inside. Mercury was, at the least, able to follow that request, so he hopped from the pavement of the road onto the slightly elevated, smooth stone that marked Yasashiku¡¯s working space, then trotted after the old man. Inside the shed, it was rather dim, though the low light didn¡¯t give Mercury much trouble at all. Besides his Skill for seeing in darker spaces, his stats probably also improved his eyesight at least a bit. After a few more seconds of rummaging, Yasashiku quickly turned around to the mopaaw with a somewhat gleeful smile. ¡°A-ha! There we go. Found something for you to work.¡± He held out a ball of metal, because that is what it was. A ball of scrap. ¡°What is that?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Trash is what it is. I get deliveries of broken nails, doorhinges, and everything else along those lines from local builders. They¡¯d throw it out. I make them new building supplies from it for a lower price. Simple as,¡± Yasashiku explained, still holding the ball. ¡°And what would you like me to do with it?¡± ¡°Take it off my hands, first,¡± Yasashiku said, and Mercury obliged, holding the ball of scrap aloft with . It wasn¡¯t all stuck together, he quickly noticed, as some bits and bobs almost fell out, but he quickly held it together. ¡°I want you to purify it, and make it into workable iron. Then, you¡¯re gonna practice forging some nails. Simple, right?¡± The smile on the old man¡¯s face told Mercury it wouldn¡¯t be quite so simple, but he obliged with a nod. ¡°Of course, Yasashiku-sensei.¡± ¡°All right,¡± the old man said, walking back out the shed and gesturing for Mercury to follow. ¡°You¡¯re free to use the entire workshop, outside and inside. Some of it is rusty,so you¡¯ll have to take that through the whole blast furnace process. You see¡­¡± It would be a long day. - - - Despite his fears in the beginning, Mercury enjoyed the process. He separated out the metals, first, using a whole bunch. He separated rusty metal and regular iron into two piles, then took the rusty stuff through the whole cleaning process. The stuff that wasn¡¯t rusty could just be molten down by itself. He extracted the iron from the rusty stuff, then melted that down in a normal furnace with the regular iron, and by the end, he was left with a large bar of pure iron. Well, calling it pure would be quite a stretch. Over the whole process, Yasashiku had shown him how to control the temperature, and when it was hot enough, they had added coke to remove any more oxides. That raised the carbon amount in the iron, which was then too high, so they¡¯d Heated it under heavy airflow, to blow away some of that carbon. By the end of the day, the metal that was left over was, in essence, steel. If Yasashiku had used his Skills, the stuff they¡¯d made would have been much better, but that wasn¡¯t really the point. It was for Mercury to learn, and maybe level a bit, the Skill helping to guide him through the motions. Once it was all done, Mercury went home, feeling satisfied about how it went, and almost excited to come back the next day. Before sleep, he practiced his ystirs some more, increasing his maximum MP further. The next day, Mercury once again got up early, then headed for the workshop. The pins and needles he felt had mostly receded, though he still felt a small chill in his core, it was almost all gone. Still, he enjoyed the warmth that was part of today¡¯s process. Melting things down again for casting was nice, and forging meant working with hot metal. He could stand far away, since he would be using his rijn, but¡­ well. Casting came first! To that end, he first melted the metal down again, this time in a smaller crucible meant for pouring, which he then used to get the metal into the moulds. He didn¡¯t spilly any, luckily, since he had a lot of practice with the Skill. Yasashiku had expected him to spill some. Once the iron wasn¡¯t liquid anymore, he was able to also use to get it out of the molds. The fact that he was able to move hot metal without touching it was a great boon, and it was also giving him a great deal more experience with the Skill. It only took a bit of practice until he popped out a dozen bars, each one ready to be forged. They heated it up, and Mercury condensed his rijn into the shape of a hammer, bringing it down heavily on the metal. It deformed. Soon, Mercury created his first nail. It was uneven, the tip not quite sharp. There was a bend in the middle of it. Yasashiku laughed, not in a mocking, but an understanding way. He put it with the scrap, then told Mercury to keep practicing. Because, from then on, it really was more a matter of time. A few hours ticked by as Mercury made more failures, each one a bit closer to being acceptable. He learned quickly, his assorted Skills doing their trick. Each failure taught him more, rather than less. By the time he was onto his twelfth nail, though, and the sun was beginning to hang lower in the sky, a disturbance came. There was a low rumble. Mercury heard it early, as it passed over the city walls. Then, a cloud of dust was kicked up on the streets. A moment later, Mercury saw something appear in front of him. A kid walked around the corner to the shop. It was quiet, for a moment, a lull in the air. Suddenly, it was not. Winds whipped across Mercury¡¯s face, howling in his ear. The gusts knocked up so much dust that his world was reduced to him and the kid. A young boy, his eyes dark like little abysses. His voice, somehow, made it over the howling wind, even as it knocked Mercury¡¯s nail off the anvil, and the piece fell soundlessly to the floor. ¡°Hello little storm. What are you doing in this city?¡± the boy asked. Chapter 178: Ghost Hands Chapter 178: Ghost Hands Mercury blinked at the child in front of him. ¡°What?¡± he asked. ¡°What are you doing in this city, little storm?¡± The boy cocked his head, looking at Mercury curiously. ¡°Perhaps not so little¡­¡± he muttered, unsure. ¡°Sorry, do I know you?¡± Mercury asked. There was some feeling of familiarity about the kid, but he had trouble pinpointing where it came from exactly. And why was he a little storm? For a second, the boy froze and stared. ¡°Oh! Of course, yes! You shouldn¡¯t¡­ shouldn¡¯t talk to strangers. I¡¯m, uh¡­¡± the boy stuttered along the words. He spoke as if he hadn¡¯t talked in ages. With a dry mouth and words that came out raspy. He stumbled over syllables, too, as if unpracticed in speaking. ¡°I¡¯m¡­¡± he tried again, then paused, thinking. ¡°My name, is¡­ it¡¯s¡­¡± For a second, the boy¡¯s eyes went sad, then dark. Mercury felt it a very sad sight. ¡°Alright, kid,¡± he said, ¡°how about this, then. I¡¯ll call you¡­ Breeze. For now, if that¡¯s okay?¡± ¡°Breeze!¡± the boy¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°Yes! I like Breeze. Very much.¡± Mercury smiled at the childlike enthusiasm. Well, maybe less childlike and more¡­ childish? ¡°Alright, then, Breeze. You seem to have come here to talk to me. Can I ask what you need?¡± The boy nodded excitedly. His hair bobbed a little along the motion. It¡­ never seemed to rest at all, really, strands of it always blowing about. Strange; it wasn¡¯t at all windy out. ¡°Yes. I came to you because you¡¯re a storm. And this city has enough storms, you see!¡± Yasashiku already stood behind Mercury, in the door of his workshop, arms crossed. Mercury didn¡¯t look at the older man, but knew he wore a scowl. Thinking something like ¡°I swear, when will I finally get a quiet day to teach that dang cat.¡± Yep, that was for sure. With a quick flicker of his mind, Mercury brought his attention back to the conversation at hand. ¡°Storms, you say? It hasn¡¯t snowed in quite a while, though, has it?¡± The boy chuckled, a bright, clear sound. ¡°No, silly! Not snow or rain. Storms!! Like this: ffuuuuuuhhhh!¡± To give an example, the kid blew on the air. It was a cute demonstration, until it was not. For a moment, the kid¡¯s breath hung there, little more than a slight disturbance on Mercury¡¯s fur. They stood apart, so he was honestly already impressed he felt it at all. But then, very suddenly, it wasn¡¯t that simple anymore. Without any warning, the air around the kids breath got sucked into the motion. As if it was a virus, spreading around, and the entire air all around suddenly rushed by Mercury. Hard enough to feel the pull on his ears, to need to dig his heels in a little and resist being blown away. Yasashiku¡¯s eyes first went wide, then his scowl grew even deeper, wondering what kind of trouble his apprentice brought in. ¡°Like that!¡± the boy said, before Mercury could regain his bearings. The kid talked quickly, like a waterfall. ¡°A storm! Enough to blow people away. I try to save them, you know. But then the wall was built.¡± ¡°Right, the wall,¡± Mercury said. He was no expert on the local history, but he knew for sure that that wall was almost as old as the city. And he seemed to remember something about it being built to stop storms¡­ It clicked. Mercury found himself slipping into ihn¡¯ar almost reflexively, without much effort put into it, but then, it did take a small bit of a push to shatter the first veil of gold. He was free from the shackles of reasonable, Earth-like logic, and could thing outlandish ideas. Such as understanding why he felt that resonance with Breeze in front of him. The kid was, quite literally, an embodiment of . The kind that Mercury understood, and knew as a friend. The kind he asked for help, occasionally, yet so much more. Oh. And since Mercury knew and could relate his own experiences to it, of course, he must look like a little storm to the around. That¡¯s where the nickname came from. For a moment, curiously, Mercury looked closer, but then his ihn¡¯ar was hit with a cold gust. Suddenly, that state of mind was stripped away, and Mercury found himself back in his regular perspective, sight and understanding limited by his physiology. ¡°It¡¯s rude to stare, you know,¡± Breeze said, almost shyly. Mercury shivered. He felt things were wrong, very wrong. His intuition told him that only the fact that he had at all stopped him from being killed, right then and there. Yasashiku didn¡¯t just wait anymore, but walked forward now. ¡°Please, this is my apprentice. I would ask you speak politely to him, Bree-¡± The old man didn¡¯t get to finish the sentence, before Breeze laughed. The air around reacted to the laughter, suddenly growing wild and joyful. It danced, and it wanted to dance where Yasashiku stood, and so, the old man was blown off his feet, and onto the roof of a nearby building. He landed with a loud clang. ¡°Your teacher is fun, little storm!¡± the boy said, cheerily. Again, Mercury felt cold dread run down his spine. Then, a moment later, he felt warm. A hand landed on his back. Zyl¡¯s hand, specifically. ¡°What is going on, here?¡± the dragon asked, his voice quiet. Kind, perhaps, on the outside, but with a hidden anger. Breeze blinked at the dragon, then smiled. ¡°Oh! You¡¯re big! Can we play?¡± ¡°No,¡± Zyl shut him down. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m in the mood to play right now,¡± he said. The boy deflated a bit. ¡°Alright,¡± he said. ¡°But! Little storm. I still wanna know, you know? Tell me, what are you up to here?¡± The questions sounded curious, but Mercury was more than sure that there was an implied threat in there. Maybe it was so slightly implied that Breeze didn¡¯t even realize he was threatening Mercury. But Mercury was calmer now. He had, almost habitually, activated , or what remained of it in . He¡¯d breathed in, then out again, and already felt better. Sure, there were warning bells going off, but then again¡­ worst case, he died. That would be that. ¡°I¡¯m just here ¡®cause I like this place,¡± Mercury said, honestly. ¡°I have some good friends in the city. I lived here for a while before. Well, back then I wasn¡¯t a storm, yet. But it¡¯s a nice place, with good people.¡± Breeze paused, cocking his head to the side, again. A little further than was comfortable. He wasn¡¯t a very tall kid, his head only a little higher up than Mercury¡¯s own. ¡°So you¡¯re not breaking anything?¡± Yasashiku, who had since climbed off the roof, spoke instead. ¡°If anything, you¡¯re breaking things. That¡¯s a hole where you threw me.¡± He indicated the place with his thumb. Curiously, the boy turned around, then turned sad when he saw the hole Yasashiku¡¯d pointed at. ¡°Oh. They break so quickly when you play, don¡¯t they¡­¡± There was a lull for a few seconds. Breeze seemed down. Mercury talked. ¡°I¡¯m trying to learn how to fix stuff, you know?¡± ¡°Hm?¡± The boy looked back to him, up from the floor, eyes slightly wet. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m good at breaking things, but I wanna make them, instead. So I¡¯m trying to learn.¡± ¡°Make them¡­¡± Breeze repeated quietly, as if it was the most sage advice he¡¯d ever heard in his life. Then he giggled, childishly, the air laughing with him, and smiled, bright and wide. ¡°Okay. Building storm. I like that. I¡¯ll call you Biso! See you, Biso!¡± A moment later, there was a gust of wind, and Breeze was gone. Mercury blinked a couple times, trying to make sure he hadn¡¯t hallucinated that whole bit. Then his head cleared, and the alarm bells from calmed back down. Wow. Those had been loud. He could finally hear himself think again, enough to realize he had levelled up Intuition, at least, getting it up to lv. 6. Crap. He¡¯d been in a lot of danger, huh. On that note, though. ¡°How¡¯d you know I was in trouble?¡± Mercury asked Zyl. The dragon¡¯s hand was still on his back, slightly warm and comfortable. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Zyl smiled. ¡°It¡¯s what boyfriends do!¡± he teased, grinning. Mercury rolled his eyes, before getting a real answer. ¡°It¡¯s a Skill, called . When someone I care about is in trouble, I sometimes know about it and can get there much quicker. For a small distance, like in a city, that means almost instantly.¡± ¡°That¡¯s pretty cool,¡± Mercury praised. ¡°You¡¯re pretty cool.¡± ¡°Pfft. You¡¯re hot. And being silly,¡± the cat chided. ¡°Perhaps I am.¡± ¡°Perhaps you two could stop flirting on my front door,¡± Yasashiku grumbled. He was rotating his arm at the shoulder, the one he¡¯d broken before. This time, he was fine. His Skills had protected him properly. The two lovebirds at least had the decency to look embarrassed. Zyl gave a half hearted mutter of something unintelligible, then ran his hand through Mercury¡¯s fur once before disappearing again. Mercury himself though, was left under the good naturedly chiding stare of the old man. ¡°Sorry, sorry,¡± he said. ¡°I will, of course, never ever ever flirt with my lovely and amazing boyfriend ever again.¡± ¡°Tsk. Gakidomo,¡± Yasashiku sighed. Then he crossed his arms behind his back, heading back towards the workshop. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll do some more projects. Keep working on those nails, Rainfall-kun.¡± Awwww, dang. He¡¯d just gotten the old man to call him Mercury, too. The mopaaw sighed, theatrically, as he got back to practice, then smiled. He knew Yasashiku didn¡¯t mean any of it. The guy was a big softie at heart. ¡°Stop thinking so loud, too, brat!¡± Yasashiku called from the workshop, and Mercury suppressed a giggle. Instead, he used to pick up a nail and put it into the forge, heating it up while he hardened his rijn into shape, ready to get hammering again. - - - - - - And for once, nothing happened for a blessed page. Mercury practiced until his mind felt sore. Day in and day out, he would cast and forge and quench and harder and shape nails, until the proper shape was so ingrained in his mind, he would never ever forget it anymore. But while the work was repetitive, and sometimes gruelling, Mercury found himself actually rather enjoying it. Day by day drifted by, and he found himself quite pleased with how fast he was getting at the process. He was hammering out - pun intended - dozens of nails per day. By the end of the page, he¡¯d made multiple hundreds. Satisfied, he looked at the piles. The nails were separated by which day he¡¯d made them on, and he could literally see them get better. Straighter, with a more clearly defined head to strike, more evenly round. They went from blocky things to quite close to what he was used to from Earth. He was pleased with that progression. Seemingly, his Skills were, too. had levelled all the way up to lv. 6. His own level, too, had increased once. Surprisingly, a good chunk of the auto-applied stats went into strength, the other half into willpower. Of course, the most important fact was as follows: [ has levelled up! 5>] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve? (1110 Skill points)] Mercury smiled at the option presented. He confirmed it. [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (1110 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. 4. ] He inclined his heads at the options. Hecatoncheires. Those were¡­ Greek, surely. From Greek myth, even, right? He was curious enough to check it first, even. [: Taking its name from hundred-handed giants, the individual is granted the ability of fine and powerful control of their telekinesis. They can summon invisible limbs to move or harm anything in the area. Each limb can be controlled with just as much precision and force as the individual¡¯s stats allow.] It was strong. He knew that much. Taking his from being a single Skill he could shape, maybe even use twice through his zeyjn, into a hundred different sources was powerful. Still, he needed to see the others. [: This Skill builds upon everything before it. The individual is able to create greater forces, control their shape and direction more precisely, and operate longer on less mana.] This one was the ¡°simple upgrade¡± option Mercury had gotten used to seeing. It felt out of place, yet appropriate. was probably a Skill that many, many people who could afford it took. It was good, too, but not everyone might practice it as much as him. Most people would stick to basic applications, such as grabbing a glass of water from a distance. And those people would still be offered this Skill, probably. Mercury didn¡¯t like it much. It was too general, and not his style. [: Your will is a force beyond escape. You may reach for items and people through your memory or their history at a location. Touch upon what the world remembers, then grasp onto something and never let go.] Yup, and there it was. The sinister option. The kinda stuff he got for having and . This was a strong Skill, but it wasn¡¯t what he used for. He didn¡¯t need to reach into his memory and grab hold of a person. Who did that, even? Not him. [: This Skill allows the individual to use patches of force. The individual can shape these patches as they wish, enabling precise handling of objects and precise striking of targets. This Skill can also be applied over vast distances. Amount of force is proportional to distance. Allows for creation of constructs locked into place at their relative distance from the caster.] Ah. Now this one¡­ hm. It was a contender. Being able to create those kinds of ¡°standing forces¡± would essentially let him make temporary objects just by letting them drain his resources. It was very, very good. But so was the Hecatoncheires one. He wanted both. He¡­ really, really wanted both. ¡°Appy. Can I get both?¡± he asked. [The individual has not met the conditions for acquiring either of the Skills by themselves. It is possible to acquire the other Skill after evolution is done.] ¡°Are you sure? I want both,¡± he insisted. And he did want them both! How cool would a fused version be? Hundreds of ghost hands to help him do tasks. Stations of stable force to create almost anything he liked. [...] ¡°Come on. There¡¯s gotta be some way, Appy!¡± [The combined Skill is available for acquisition to the individual through fusion of Skills.] Mercury¡¯s eyes glinted. ¡°So can I get that one through the evolution?¡± [Conditions not met.] ¡°What are the conditions, Appy? Come on, you gotta tell me!¡± Mercury begged. He could almost feel his companion sigh in his mind. [Due to high mastery, affinity, and compatibility between the individual and the Skill, conditions have been revealed. The individual must shape a dozen patches of force at once.] Mercury grinned. That was¡­ simple. Well, simple for a certain definition of the word. But he reaaaaally wanted that Skill. That sounded awesome. Without hesitation, he split his mind into two zeyjn, Then, he shaped a simple bit of force with . He held onto that with an ystir, trying to let go, but then it fell apart. One was not enough, apparently. So he held onto that force construct with two ystirs, and it fell apart. Then with four, and it still fell apart. When he tried to hold it with eight ystirs, it was suddenly too rigid and unmoving. Mercury clicked his tongue. He reduced the amount of force on the patch of force, finally settling on six ystirs. That is what it took to maintain one of them. Maintain being the key word. Ystirs were not creative. The force would not be moved or change in any way, but he could hold it in place with some effort. So he used six more ystirs to hold a second ghost hand in place. With his first zeyjn, he held onto five patches of force. He could control 32 ystirs with that zeyjn, so that was the best he could do with one zeyjn. And he rapidly saw the problem: Even if he got as many ystirs as he could on his second zeyjn, it wouldn¡¯t be enough. 32 ystirs had been his limit for a while now. Why was that? It had felt like an insurmountable wall when he first tried to increase that number. Progress was¡­ not easy, but at least doable until then. But that number, for some reason, seemed like a hard limit. What exactly was so special about 32? Binary? Did the system work via binary? No, then that would have been¡­ sixty-three, before needing a new bit. That couldn¡¯t be it. Was there some kind of strange, inherent limitation to his mind? He knew himself, though, knew . There was no limitation there. He understood what it meant to be him, that he was all about freedom. If that limitation was there, he would smash it. ¡­ There was one. It took him some time to find. Wrapped around his mind like a chain. No, not his mind, his . Those two were connected, though, he knew that much. But the chain was already strained. Heavily so. It was under immense stress from all the things he had added to himself. The nexus, the remains of the Crimson Sun, the amount of existential power Mercury had granted himself. People knew him now. Powerful people. Even besides those, he knew himself, which was the most important part. Mercury knew what he was about. He wasn¡¯t about chains. They broke. Motes of light, floating away on the wind. Then, the world spun. For a few seconds, Mercury gazed upon the stone around him. He¡¯d slipped into ihn¡¯ar without even noticing it, and then crashed through the veil even faster than that. That¡¯s why he¡¯d recognized those chains. Those blessed few seconds, he was able to feel freedom at being relieved from a set of limits he¡¯d just now seen. Breaking them was so easy. They were strained against his existence, and were put under enormous stress once he actually found out what they were. and hated chains, after all. So they snapped. But when something gave, mercury had time to grow into the changes, and that was¡­ disorientating. Blood dripped onto the stone from his nose. Then he blinked, and the world turned red. Blood dripped from his eyes and mouth, too. The world swam, suddenly blurry and spinning. The blessed few seconds were gone. The freedom was replaced with nausea. He felt¡­ revolted. Like throwing up. Dizzy and confused and- wait why was the ground getting closer! With a small smack, Mercury¡¯s face landed on the cobblestone. Frankly, the stones gave just as much as his face, making the landing rather soft, so he didn¡¯t mind too much, but the wet splash from falling into a pool of his own blood had been pretty uncomfortable. Still, he felt his mind work rapidly. There was so much more to do, now! It felt so¡­ strange. So new! The world was bleary, so it had to be explored, it had to be seen, there was just so much for him to see and it was all so strange and-! Mercury caught himself. He breathed. Centered his emotions. reigned in the excitement, and it vanished, like a house swallowed by a lake. Gently, not wishing to wake the beehive, Mercury nudged himself towards something. What he always did. Gaining more mana. Rapidly, his newly awakened mind went to work. He scanned triz faster than he ever had before, his zeyjn still active, and within a few minutes, before Yasashiku even exited the workshop, Mercury had increased his number of ystirs. His first zeyjn now supported fourty. His second thirty. He breathed. Smiled. The blood from his nose had stopped, but he felt too tired to get back up. Using his seventy total ystirs, Mercury held a dozen force hands in place, holding onto the nails he¡¯d crafted like he was holding onto life, levitating them in the air around him. He grinned. ¡®Guess fucking what, Appy. I did it!¡¯ [Sigh. The individual has cleared the conditions for acquiring a different Skill. Evolution choices updating. Evolution selected. Evolving.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Mercury smiled. It was a beautiful day to see the world in so many strange new colours. Rainbows reflected in the small puddle of blood. Mercury closed his eyes. He felt a little tired, now¡­ - - - Not ten minutes later, Yasashiku came out, and saw the mopaaw in a puddle of blood, nails still hanging in the air around him. The old man stopped. His heart skipped a beat, then two, then three, then finally pounded again. What the fuck had that damned apprentice of his done NOW?! Chapter 179: Iridescence Chapter 179: Iridescence As quite often before, Mercury found himself waking up in a bed. It was in a familiar wooden room, in his house. And wasn¡¯t that quite a thought! He had a house now. All it took for him to be able to actually own real estate was¡­ being transported into a whole other world, huh. That sunk in properly, too. He was in another world, he¡¯d killed monsters, he¡¯d learnt magic he¡¯d- Oh. That must be the effect of the chains breaking, then. Mercury closed his eyes and took a deep breath, centering himself. He felt , reached for the Skill, and activated it. His emotions slowly dissipated, like snow on a summer day. He felt the air brush up against his fur, and it felt solid. Then he opened his eyes again. The world was unbelievably bright. Far, far more so than it had any right to. There was rainbow iridescence covering most surfaces in the house, and he could¡­ see glowing outlines? Through the walls? Oh. Crap. One of them was walking towards him. Was that an alien or something? Why the fuck was it glowing- Zyl walked into the room. It¡­ was just Zyl. His skin seemed shiny, now. It had been pale white before, striking in comparison to his flame-red hair, yet now it shone. In fact, he seemed to be radiating light all over. ¡°Why are you glowing, Zyl?¡± Mercury asked. The dragon blinked at him, slowly. Silence hung heavy in the air for a long time. ¡°Sorry?¡± Zyl asked, confused. Mercury paused, double checking to make sure what he was seeing, but he was definitely right. There was light coming off of Zyl. Not like ephemeral, ghostly light, either. It was warm and orange and yellow and red, like a candleflame in the night. And then, he realized he could feel it, too. Tiny motes of¡­ flame? Maybe? Flicked off of Zyl, landing on Mercury¡¯s fur, and he felt warm. Comfortable, and cozy. They drove away the shadows in the corner of the room, falling to the floor, sending gentle glows underneath the bed and the bedside table, eating away at the darkness hiding in corners. Mercury giggled. ¡°You¡¯re glowiiiiing!¡± he said, his speech slurring slightly. Zyl shook his head. His shoulders fell, and he didn¡¯t stand as tall anymore. The dragon took a seat on the side of the bed, and let out a sigh. ¡°Haaaah. Mercury. I¡¯m not glowing.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what someone who¡¯s glowing would say!¡± the mopaaw protested. ¡°You know, I¡¯m trying really hard to be a bit upset with you. I had a whole speech prepared about how you need to be more careful,¡± Zyl said, weakly turning to look at his boyfriend. Mercury gave the dragon a cheeky smile. ¡°Gosh, guess I¡¯m just too breathtaking to chide, glowy boy~¡± Taking a deep breath, Zyl shook his head again. ¡°Sure. Yep, that must be it. Dingus.¡± ¡°Love ya, Zyl,¡± Mercury said, suddenly genuine. The dragon froze up. His frown slowly turned into a smile, and he reached out with a hand, laying it onto Mercury¡¯s side. ¡°Love ya too, dingus.¡± With a smile on his face, Mercury fell asleep once more. - - - The sun drifted over the sky lazily. It set, and then rose again. Dark indigo and violet was replaced by morning pink as the sun rose, until all of the firmament was, eventually, stained blue. Mercury¡¯s eyes fluttered open again. What a nice word that was, he thought. Fluttered. Like a butterfly. For a moment, Mercury imagined butterflies landing on his eyelids and giggled at the thought. He was warm, tucked into a blanket. There were flimmers of embers on the wooden floor, but they didn¡¯t burn. It was like a little trail Zyl left, letting Mercury know he was there. With small motions, the mopaaw looked around. The world was bright and colourful, yet somehow bleary¡­ He blinked the sleep out of his eyes and things became a little more clear. A smile formed on his face when he saw the gentle, warm glow of Zyl through the wall. His lovely, lovely boyfriend. Who always looked so damn perfect, and was so scared of being vulnerable sometimes. Mercury was getting to him, he knew that, slowly but surely. The whole dragon escapade had helped with that, regardless of how dangerous it was. For a few moments, Mercury thought of Berthorn and Nir and the rest of Zyl¡¯s family, and wondered where they were, now. Had Trinyakorie finally learned a little bit of humility? Probably not, that would be kinda unreasonable to expect from her, wasn¡¯t it. But his mind was soon again focused on the presence, when it finally clicked that he was not just seeing Zyl through the walls, there were two whole other people in the house. Well. ¡°In¡± the house might be giving them a bit too much credit. Zyl and one other person were truly inside, and one more person was at the door. Mercury focused a little more, and the indistinct glows he saw through the walls became a little clearer. Then he had a fit of giggling. People were really in his walls, now! What were they doin¡¯ in there? Jamming out with the rats? He laughed some more at his own joke, though calling it a joke was really doing him a favour. Ah, right, the people in his walls. They surely warranted a closer look? Once again, as he actually tried to see, the glows became a lot clearer. One of them pulled itself together into a tight shape. A steely, refined tone of grey, with many long streaks of white. Old scars, hurts that never quite healed, and shaped a person into who they were, for better or for worse. Yasashiku. Mercury was certain. It looked like he was staring at steel pressed into a person, though it was steel without an edge. There was no desire to hurt in there. The other glow was more difficult to place. It was¡­ blue-ish, though largely clear, with swirls and eddies at the edges. It flowed, constantly, and sounded like he was near a rushing river. It was also smaller, shaped into something four-legged- oh! Ruvah, of course! For a moment, Mercury was weirded out by the fact that he only realized the general shape he was looking at after the colours and patterns in it. Wasn¡¯t that quite strange! It was a little hard to make out the glows through the thick wooden walls, because the walls themselves shone with rainbow colours. He giggled again. Now his whole house looked like gay flags. Take that, parents!! Elated, he flopped back on his bed. If it was just Ruvah and Yasashiku, he felt fine about it. There were dozens of glows walking by his house, but he didn¡¯t pay any mind to those. They were just people on the streets, indistinct blurs rushing by. He could have looked closer, but without doing so, he didn¡¯t even get the general colour. Just the knowledge of something there. Gently, Mercury laid on his bed, staring at the ceiling. Patterns swirled across it, like when he laid in the bathtub without moving, and the water went calmer but not too calm, and started painting wavy lights onto the walls. The sight was pretty, and for a few seconds, Mercury lost himself in it. Oh! His wandering mind suddenly focused on something, again. Zyl and Yasashiku had absolutely no idea who Ruvah even was! He should probably introduce them! Suddenly energized, Mercury hopped out of bed, promptly collapsing. Hah! How strange! His legs didn¡¯t seem to work as they usually would. Giggling, Mercury toyed around, flailing his legs in the air. It felt so soft, like he was touching a thousand cushions, and made him smile some more. He was so distracted, in fact, he didn¡¯t even notice one of the glows rushing upwards, until Zyl rapidly opened the door to the room. ¡°Heeeeey Zyl~¡± Mercury greeted the panicked dragon, snickering some more. In the brief moment between coming in and being spoken too, Zyl was already scanning the room, but then his gaze landed on Mercury on the floor, legs still flailing in the air. ¡°Mercury! Are you okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯m soooo fineeee. Almost as fine as you, hehe,¡± Mercury said, then giggled some more. Zyl sighed a little, then asked. ¡°Focus, please. What are you doing on the floor?¡± ¡°I was jus¡¯ try¡¯n¡¯ get up!¡± Gently, Zyl put his hands underneath Mercury. They felt wonderfully warm to the cat, and he was bathed in the firelight glow Zyl emitted. Suddenly, everything felt alright and warm. ¡°I need you to be more careful, Mercury,¡± Zyl chided. ¡°Mhmmmm¡­¡± Mercury hummed, already half asleep. ¡°Please. Focus. I need you to talk to me,¡± Zyl pleaded. Suddenly, the warm glow felt a little more energizing rather than comforting. Mercury¡¯s eyes opened. ¡°Okay. Okay. You have my attention, ¡®kay?¡± Zyl smiled, a small motion. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll try to be quick. Ruvah is here to meet you.¡± ¡°Right! Ruvah! That¡¯s why I left bed! Yeah, we¡¯re friends. From the uh¡­ the uh¡­¡± his words failed him, as Mercury was unable to come up with the Big Words required to describe something as complex as the blood eclipse. ¡°Okay.¡± Zyl nodded, twice. ¡°Do you wanna meet them?¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Mhm!¡± ¡°You gotta promise to focus, though.¡± ¡°Kaaaay.¡± As he made the promise, Mercury did feel his mind coming back under his control a little more. The world grew a little sharper, more in focus, though no less bright. If he looked too long, it would¡¯ve been enough to cause a headache. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s say hello to them,¡± Zyl said, moving out the room. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I can walk by m¡¯self,¡± Mercury grumbled. Zyl gave him a chiding look. ¡°Really? We need to have this discussion?¡± ¡°Lemme walk.¡± ¡°No, Mercury, please just-¡± ¡°Lemme walk!¡± Mercury said. He felt that sting of panic again, that dislike of being babied, of needing to be his own person, he wanted out, he needed to be alone, to not be touched, he- ¡°Fine. Okay, fine,¡± Zyl said, breathing deeply and putting Mercury onto the floor. For a second, the world seemed wholly too big, then it spun, and Mercury felt himself tip over to the side, almost collapsing. But, he refused. With an effort of will, and an exertion of some of his Skills, he pulled the world back into scale, and himself into the present moment. The dream-state collapsed in on itself, and suddenly Mercury was himself, in his own body, and things clicked, properly. He saw things as they were. He felt¡­ like himself. Maybe more in sync with his skin. There was still iridescence coming from everywhere. There were glowing people in his walls. Heck, Zyl was still glowing! But. At the very least, it felt real again, finally. He shook himself, like a sudden shiver. ¡°Okay. I¡¯m back,¡± he said. Zyl eyes him suspiciously- no, that was worry, Mercury rapidly corrected. Zyl eyed him worriedly. ¡°You¡­ okay?¡± ¡°It¡¯s complicated, I think, but yes. I¡¯m alright, Zyl,¡± Mercury said, giving a faint smile. ¡°I think I did something quite stupid. I have¡­ a couple boxes in the edge of my vision. Appy¡¯ll show them to me when the time¡¯s right, but I have an old friend to meet right now.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the most coherent thing you¡¯ve said in days,¡± Zyl said, allowing himself a faint smile. ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Just one thing,¡± Mercury said, stopping Zyl right as he was about to start walking again. ¡°How long did I sleep?¡± ¡°About three days, total. You were really out of it. Kept muttering in your sleep. Sometimes you were awake, briefly, but you went back and forth between being hyper aware of everything, and in your own world entirely.¡± ¡°Right. Okay. I can manage this,¡± Mercury said, shaking himself one more time, as he felt the blood running through his own body. Pins and needles he hadn¡¯t even known were there slowly dissipated. ¡°I think I¡¯m good now. Let¡¯s go.¡± The mopaaw led the way. - - - Ruvah was downstairs, still at the door. Yasashiku was silently eyeing him. Mercury knew it was ¡°him¡± with a single glance, though maybe was some help there. A smile crept onto the watery blob¡¯s face. ¡°Mercury!¡± he said, happily. Actually said, too, not in the way where Mercury was the only one to understand him. ¡°Ruvah! You¡¯re talking!¡± Mercury said. ¡°I am!¡± Ruvah nodded, eagerly. ¡°I speak the strange noises two leggers always make at me!¡± Mercury laughed. ¡°How?¡± he asked. ¡°Well, when I found someone with many of the Skillstones for , I used one. Then I understood what ¡°price¡± means, and was able to pay,¡± he said, looking smug. Well, so long as no one was hurt and he paid for the stone, that seemed like a fine outcome, honestly? ¡°Well, I¡¯m very glad you got there. Let me introduce you, then! This right here is my lovely boyfriend Zyl, and my smithing teacher, Yasashiku!¡± The surface of Ruvah rippled once while facing Zyl, then a second time as he turned towards Yasashiku. To Mercury, it felt a little like a small bow. ¡°It is nice to meet you.¡± ¡°I hope they didn¡¯t give you too much trouble for wanting to meet me?¡± Mercury asked. Ruvah smiled. ¡°No, no,¡± he said. ¡°Nothing unusual.¡± ¡°We were just telling him to wait until you were awake again. Then you woke up,¡± Yasashiku supplied. ¡°Please don¡¯t fall unconscious in a puddle of blood again when you¡¯re smithing, Mercury-kun. It is not good for my heart.¡± There was no humor in his voice. Slightly, Mercury nodded. ¡°Yeah. I¡¯ll, uh, try. Sorry about that, Yasashiku.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± the old man said, arms crossed. It wasn¡¯t fine. ¡°Uhm, anyway! Why don¡¯t you come in for now, Ruvah. We can get you a bit more settled?¡± Mercury said. Not needing to be told twice, the sentient blob of water gracefully accepted the invitation. Soon, Yasashiku and Zyl were seated at the kitchen table, with Mercury and Ruvah standing on the chairs instead of sitting. ¡°So, Ruvah! What have you been up to?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Hmmm,¡± the water hummed, slightly shaking their icy surface. ¡°Well, I suppose I should start from the start. The place where I reappeared was the place where my old village used to be. They- There were many bad memories that day. ¡°But I did not get the chance to mourn, immediately. The water had been reclaimed by other things. It was dead water, to me. Full of abyss and decay. So I ran, as fast as I could. There were things in the darkness, things I got away from and would rather not think of again.¡± He shivered. ¡°Then, I was on land. There was a long journey from there. I walked, and walked, and walked. Through forest and meadows and fields of flowers, and jungles and mountains and swamps. It was quiet. ¡°Of course, there were many monsters, but I ran or fought, and I made my way past all of them. It was not like the darkness left behind or the fields of ash, it was a¡­ simpler journey. And then, finally, I got here!¡± He stopped speaking, twirling his tail in contentment, as though he¡¯d told a perfectly complete story. And well, in a way, he had. Mercury didn¡¯t really need to get the details, he was just curious if anything interesting had happened. Ruvah didn¡¯t seem to think so. ¡°I¡¯m glad you could make it,¡± Mercury said, smiling. ¡°Me too!¡± Ruvah said. ¡°Do you¡­ have anything you wanna do from here?¡± Ruvah froze over. Entirely, turning into a solid chunk of ice. Mercury could tell, because the swirling and rippling on their surface stopped, and when their tail dropped down a bit, it was accompanied by cracking noises. ¡°Uhm. I- well. Not really?¡± He seemed insecure about it, caught off guard by the question. It was kind of a cruel thing to ask, really. Of course he had no idea what to do with his life. He was like Mercury after the first blood eclipse, except having been thrown into a hostile land, forced to survive, then thrown right back ¡°home¡±, except it was all gone and destroyed. Zyl spoke up before Mercury could. ¡°You¡¯re welcome to stay in the city a bit, to try and figure out where you¡¯d like to go from here?¡± Ruvah slowly turned to the dragon, accompanied by the sound of ice crunching together. ¡°Right. Yes. Okay. Thank you,¡± he said. There was a lull in the conversation for a few seconds, until it grew too awkward for Yasashiku to bear. ¡°Mercury-kun here is learning how to smith from me, for example. Could you imagine doing something like that?¡± ¡°No, no. I¡¯m bad with fire.¡± ¡°Ah, yes, that¡¯s fair. I meant anything in that kinda direction. You might be able to work at the farms, too? Grow some food and all that,¡± the old man suggested next. ¡°Food? Yes, growing food. Right, I see. Plants need water, of course. I can¡­ Maybe I can do that,¡± he said, a small smile finding its way to his face. Ruvah thawed a little, and Mercury smiled. Briefly, he considered becoming a farmer, too. Just bringing water to crops, tending to them, learning Skills to grow them better¡­ Then he turned to Yasashiku. The old man¡¯s eyes were boring holes into him. Without speaking a word, he moved his lips, and Mercury could tell what he was saying. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare,¡± he subvocalized, fire in his gaze. Mercury swallowed heavily, then decided that perhaps, considering his own health, he could stand to maybe not pick up anything new. He¡¯d asked Yasashiku to teach him how to smith, so he was going to learn that, first. Then he could pick up new things. The old man had suffered enough interruptions, really. Was the most recent one necessary? Probably not, either. ¡°Actually, on the note of Mercury learning from me,¡± Yasashiku suddenly continued, ripping Mercury from his train of thought. ¡°What exactly happened for you to pass out there, last time, Mercury-kun?¡± Like a deer in headlights, the mopaaw stared back. ¡°I, uhm. I evolved a Skill.¡± ¡°Skill evolutions do not cause that kind of bleeding, Mercury,¡± Zyl - the traitor! - said. ¡°Okay yes so mayyyybe I was unhappy with my options and wanted multiple and asked if there was a way of my evolved , and then I kinda went and did that¡­?¡± Mercury shrunk into himself as he talked, worried about the rebuttal. ¡°Of course you did,¡± Yasashiku sighed. ¡°Of course you did,¡± Zyl slowly dragged his hand over his face. ¡°You did?!¡± Ruvah asked, surprised. ¡°I mean, uhm, of course! But. That¡¯s not really something that happens? How did you do it?¡± ¡°Well, it was , which I now evolved into . Which lets me¡­ well, what, actually?¡± With a small force of mind, he called up a box, explaining the Skill, before relaying to the others what it did. [: An advanced Skill that allows for manipulation of ethereal force with the mind. You possess ghostly arms with the ability to shape them however you wish, into applications of force in a large space around you.] The description was short, but it told him all he needed to know. With a gentle push, Mercury reached out to the Skill, and felt his senses change. He did suddenly have dozens of hands, floating around him, behind his back. They were malleable, too, right now all condensed into a single, small orb. It was the size of a fist, and would not go any smaller than that, hovering right above his back. This was as small as it went, but Mercury could tell there was quite a bit of power in there. At a small tug, a single hand separated out from the collective, leaving the orb slightly weakened, but giving him a digit to control. ¡°Whoa,¡± he said, moving the invisible hand around. He could tell exactly where it was. When he tapped the table with it, though, the strange part was that he could feel the table. He ran an invisible finger along the wood, and he could feel the finishing oil on top of the wood, and then he turned a part of the hand intangible and could feel the grain of the wood underneath the varnish. For a moment, he considered trying out how much force he could apply - then rapidly decided against testing that. The original Hecatoncheires Skill had already scaled with strength¡­ if these ghostly hands were as strong as his real ones, he could probably pick up trees with them. Not exactly the kind of strength suitable for use in a regular house. ¡°That¡¯s a very good Skill,¡± Yasashiku said. ¡°You can use that for forging, I suppose. Properly, too, not like . Pick up a hammer and slam it down.¡± ¡°I¡¯m happy for you Mercury, but was it worth all the blood?¡± Zyl asked, a slight sadness in his voice. He was still worried, then. Mercury took a deep breath. ¡°It was,¡± he said, convinced. ¡°I don¡¯t want to worry you, Zyl. But you have to let me grow how I want to. I can make my own decisions, you know?¡± The dragon gave his boyfriend a long look, then his shoulders slumped a little. ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± he said. ¡°I know you are, but I don¡¯t like seeing you get hurt.¡± ¡°Me neither, but it will happen again. I¡¯m gonna get burnt sometimes, and that¡¯s okay. Trust me, please?¡± Mercury stared into his partner¡¯s eyes. ¡°I- Okay. I¡¯ll try.¡± With his newfound digits, Mercury wrapped Zyl in a quick hug. It felt a little strange, but since he could actually get tactile feedback from the ghostly hands, it was nice. The most human-like interaction he¡¯d done in a bit, well, other than talking of course. ¡°I see why the Skill was hard to achieve. Does it have a limit on the arms?¡± Ruvah asked. Mercury didn¡¯t reply immediately, instead testing it. He took out more and more arms, but after only eight of them, the orb at his back dissolved. So, eight was the full power he could manage. Except. He summed another one, and felt all existing ghostly arms grow a little more faint. He moved them further out, and they grew fainter as well. Right, okay then. ¡°They work better immediately around me. I can run eight arms at full power, which probably means a bit higher than my physical strength. If I move them too far out, they get weaker, too, but I think I can move them quite far before that¡¯ll become an actual problem.¡± ¡°Try shaping it,¡± Yasashiku said. Right. Mercury did so. As soon as he gave the mental push, the arms disintegrated into the familiar, ethereal, formless shape of , except that his control over it was so much more delicate, and there was so much more of it overall. Just as a test, Mercury spread it out evenly as far out as he could, which was apparently about a hundred meters, then applied the force downwards. Gravity seemed just a little stronger in a hundred meter radius around the house, though the effectiveness definitely dropped off with distance. Mercury felt it on himself, too. Lifting his paw became quite a bit harder, though spreading the force thin made it less of a bother. At the edge of the area, even though he used just as much of his reserve, the force was a lot weaker, barely an inconvenience. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ not too bad,¡± Yasashiku said, sounding slightly disappointed. ¡°It¡¯s in a hundred meter radius around me,¡± Mercury said, already eliciting a small gasp from the smith. ¡°Let me just¡­¡± Mercury pulled the force all back into the sphere he¡¯d held at his back, a tiny ball of power. He willed it to be formless, not applying the force in any direction at all. ¡°I need something we can break.¡± With a small swipe of his tail, Ruvah summoned a ball of ice. It was a little larger than Mercury¡¯s sphere of force, but it would easily do. Gently, he placed the sphere of power into the ice. It hovered there, doing nothing, until Mercury willed it to apply an inward, crushing force. Not¡­ a whole lot happened. Right, it was clear ice. You couldn¡¯t exactly compress that. Hm. With a quick shift of mind, he instead applied a pulling force, directing one half up, while holding the other half in place. Instantly, the sphere tore in half perfectly, the top bit accelerating fast enough to shoot into the ceiling and shatter against the wood in just the few moments it spent inside the force. Mercury had the distinct feeling that he could use it to quite easily carve into wood. Maybe even bend metal. Which was a strange thought. Yasashiku slowly ran his finger over the bottom half on the sphere, which had remained perfectly in place. It was a very smooth cut, the kind Mercury would usually have used for. ¡°Precise, too. I like this ability a lot.¡± There was a glint in the old man¡¯s eye. ¡°You¡¯ll be working it a lot, soon.¡± Zyl nodded slowly. ¡°That¡­ might have been worth the bit of blood.¡± Mercury got the distinct impression that cutting the sphere was not what had impressed him. In fact, Zyl¡¯s pale face seemed a little red. He must have still been flushed from the hug. The thought made Mercury grin. Ruvah flicked his tail again as he cleaned up the space. Shards of ice turned back into water, then collected back into him. There was a dent in the ceiling, not too large though, since the ice easily shattered. That could have happened, too, when Mercury compressed it. But it hadn¡¯t, because the Skill was too precise. It was equal pressure all around. To compress the ice further, he¡¯d have had to¡­ apply enough force to break the molecular bonds? Huh. Maybe it was better that he didn''t do that. Mercury smiled, though. This was a good Skill. He was glad to have opposable thumbs back. He also enjoyed just how colourful the world was, now. So many little notifications to read, still, but he¡¯d deal with those in a bit. The rest of the afternoon was spent catching up with Ruvah. Chapter 180: New Sight Chapter 180: New Sight In the evening, they had found Ruvah a place to stay, and it wasn¡¯t in Mercury¡¯s home. He would live in the gloryhall for now, where there were enough spare beds. It also helped that seekers were usually a little more used to seeing strange sorts of people than most. Now, evening had come. The sun hanging low in the sky, the last rays drifting in through the windows, letting dust dance in the air. Mercury read. [The individual has broken the chains around their mind! Congratulations! The dum-dum is recommended to seek immediate medical attention due to blood loss and minor physical altering.] [ has levelled up! 7>] [Due to the increase in ''s level, the individual has changed.] [Your existence has become more closely realized.] [ has acquired mastery.] [ has levelled up! 3>] [Your energy sensitivity has significantly increased.] [Minor physical altering commencing due to significantly higher energy sensitivity.] [Your vision will be altered.] Mercury read over all those boxes. He flinched a little at the start, sending a mental apology to Appy, which seemed to be grumpily received. So apparently, taking those ¡°locks¡± off his mind was a bad idea. He didn¡¯t even quite know what they meant. Maybe he should start investigating that kind of stuff before acting, but¡­ Well, when he saw a pair of chains what was he supposed to do? [The lock on your mind is to prevent you from becoming overwhelmed by what you are now able to perceive. The minor physical altering is required to allow the individual¡¯s body to process new signals properly. Additionally, due to the individual¡¯s high level of , a physical existence is no longer required for their continued existence.] What? [It is still heavily recommended, due to complications arising from purely astral existence.] Uhm. Well. So that was a thing. Briefly, Mercury stared at his paws. He wondered. Was he a ghost now? Surely not. Right? No way. But what was he seeing on other people now? [The individual is perceiving the impact other people leave on the world.] Before he had a chance to ask, Appy provided him an explanation. [Due to the dum-dum¡¯s lacking knowledge, context will be provided. Living creatures have minds. Due to their minds, they are able to change the trajectory of the world. The individual may now perceive the magnitude of change someone is currently exercising upon reality and irreality.] Nothing else followed to explain ¡°irreality¡±, though Mercury imagined it was probably the dreams he had, and Appy didn¡¯t correct that thought, so he was probably mostly right. So, in a way, what he was seeing was the mind of another person, mixed with their aura and their magic and their world points and everything else, too. It was their whole status, wrapped up in glowing lights around them. The fact that he could see iridescent light in the air and covering the surfaces all around him was probably for a similar reason, because those surfaces were touched by wind, which bounced off people and plants, and eroded the place a little. There were bits of people all over the world, everywhere at all. Plants, too, counted as living things, and so must bacteria and fungi, so maybe those were the tiny shimmers he saw everywhere. Briefly, Mercury thought about the possibility of a bacteria killing a human, gaining hundreds of levels, and evolving often enough to become person sized. Then, he quickly shoved that thought right back where it came from because nope! No, thank you! He did not need to imagine that. Instead, he faced his boxes once again. [Increased energy sensitivity has a cascading effect on all perception-altering Skills. Affinity to such Skills is increased, allowing for easier gain of Mastery and cheaper purchasing of new Skills.] [¡¯s effects have been lightly altered by this cascading effect.] A dozen more ¡°Skill has been lightly altered by this¡±-notifications were brushed aside. Okay, so apparently this kinda messed with Mercury¡¯s perception of the world. No, actually. It very clearly messed with the way he saw the world. It was suddenly very, very easy to stop himself from worrying about everything. Perceiving the world as a blur of pretty colours and strange sensations was just a simple shift of perspective away. He felt that he could easily make that shift in perspective, almost like how he could easily shift his perspective into that of ihn¡¯ar. Or how he could shift his perspective past the first veil of gold, past what his mind would consider rational. Was this¡­ the second veil? Moving past what his mind considered ¡°real?¡± Trying it out, for just a moment, Mercury sunk himself into ihn¡¯ar. The world came into focus, everything was sharp and clear and distinct. He knew it all, yet he knew he didn¡¯t understand it at all. To his eyes, the grain of the wood was beautiful and clearly visible, each tiny line obvious. To his mind, though, the wood was blurry and indistinct. He couldn¡¯t quite get what it was about. The air, though, while invisible to his eyes, was quite distinct in his mind. It held the wind. A soft, rushing breath of an old friend. It came in through a closed window, finding the tiny gaps at its edges, creating soft airflow in the closed room. Mercury smiled, and greeted the small breeze. He felt grass in the shape of tiny little pockets that wanted to grow from the wood, but couldn¡¯t quite manage it, and he felt water as the moisture in the air. Then, he pierced past the first veil of gold. Suddenly, things shifted a little. They came into focus more, closer. The wood, while still alien to his mind, was suddenly a little relatable. If he looked closely enough, for long enough, he could understand it. He saw tiny similarities everywhere, like it was all connected. A whole web of existence spun out in front of him, divorced from his usual ideas of what was separate and not. The in the room carried the through the air, and when he ed that air, he was gathering a little moisture for . Like a microcosmos, everything seemed connected, even when he knew it wasn¡¯t. Then, Mercury shifted his perspective a step further. Something broke in front of his vision. Pieces of everything that he knew the be there fell away. The wooden walls of the room he was in shattered, flaked into a thousand tiny pieces, each of which disintegrated, ground into nothingness, yet he was still in the exact same room. It was like the whole world was a cracked bowl. Like someone dropped a cup and glued it back together. It was real, it was technically whole, but Mercury could see the seams now. This entire existence he considered himself a part of was nothing more than a thousand threads tied into one another. He saw the gaps in reality, where it broke and ended and scattered, and those breaks were everywhere. And from behind them, like a quiet, old friend, he found less than . The absolute stillness of the void. It peered at him, and he peered back. For a moment, he felt his self unravel. Then he latched onto a truth. . He breathed in the air. It felt like he would choke any moment, but like always, it entered his lungs. Mercury breathed out. He peered at somewhere the cracks didn¡¯t exist, and he found a more familiar . Rather than empty void, he found the kind of blank space that dreams were woven around. And he found the , too. He breathed in. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Slowly, gently, Mercury shut off that entire train of thought. The cracks in the walls mended, the didn¡¯t resonate with his soul anymore. He breathed out again. The world fell back into place as he ended his ihn¡¯ar, and it only left him with a hundred questions or so. But, then again, he could sum it up in just one: Was this world even real? Calling that just one question seemed a strange thing to do, but it really was. And eventually, he decided that yes, it was. Because if it wasn¡¯t, then he was still powerless and simply having a long delusion before choking on a fry. But he was sure that his delusion would never have been so intricate. He was real. His friend¡¯s were real, in this world, and the world was real, too. Was it spun from a collective desire for existence? Maybe, but then again, how else were whole worlds carved out from the void, when usually any creation of matter must create an equal amount of antimatter. Mercury breathed, and decided to let that topic rest. What he now knew for certain was that yes, he had in fact pierced another veil. First came what he considered ¡°reasonable¡±, that was the veil of gold. This second veil was what he considered ¡°real¡±, the veil of¡­ iridescence? That seemed correct. After all, now everything he looked at had that iridescent sheen. It was like a constant reminder that with just a small shift in what he wished to see, he could take this world apart at its basic building blocks. Watching what this world was wrought from was a weird experience. His thinking felt fuzzy, too. Slowly, he shook off the sensation, seeing his surroundings in a more sincere light. The walls were normal. They weren¡¯t broken or anything. He still felt shaken. That had been an¡­ uncomfortable experience. To calm down a bit, Mercury turned to face Zyl. The dragon laid in bed, next to him, eyes closed and breathing softly. Mercury¡¯d almost forgotten he was there, lost in his new magic. Despite the fact that his eyes were closed, Zyl was smiling lovingly. He must have fallen asleep while looking at Mercury, then. The dragon looked content with their current existence. Some worry still creased his face, about what was happening with Mercury, and the srytfyel was rather happy that Zyl hadn¡¯t watched as reality seemed just a little less sure around him. Mercury was even more grateful for the fact that he hadn¡¯t looked at Zyl when things were breaking down. Questing whether people truly existed was¡­ maybe better left for another day. He breathed deep. Then he relaxed, slowly placing those worries aside. He could deal with those some other time. Now, he was just a little annoyed. That feeling of being frayed around the edges, of having seen things he wasn¡¯t meant to understand, was back. And yet, it didn¡¯t feel as bad as all. He had grown stronger. That much was certain. In fact, the fraying of his astral body felt¡­ different, this time. His edges were more defined, more solid, and wider. He didn¡¯t feel sore or tired at all, instead, he felt the kind of feeling one would get from light exercise. Blood flowed through his veins, his heart pumping. Something similar was happening in that astral, different part of him. His mind was growing, maybe, to accommodate this new set of experiences. Well, that did make sense. His body had been altered to process all this, so now his mind was changing to deal with it as well. Mercury breathed. Maybe after a good night¡¯s sleep it would all be a bit easier to stomach. That always helped. Once he woke up, it would be easier. With that in mind, Mercury laid down in the comfort of Zyl¡¯s ¡°impact on reality¡±, feeling that warm glow settle around his fur like a blanket of sunshine, and soon fell asleep. - - - Mercury awoke in his dreamscape. His eyes blinked open quickly, as he was ready to tackle a new day, but now he was here. Usually, he didn¡¯t come here that much, really. It changed, to be fair, sometimes he came every day, but after getting frayed, he¡¯d expected it to take longer. It hadn¡¯t. He was here now. In the sky, there was Whisperstar, flitting around, and Mercury could see an aura from the kid. It was bright and white and fast, like real light. The same way a star would suddenly appear in the night sky, and just as quickly wink out when it was no longer needed. The nexus also had a glow. It was dim, grey, and had a sticky feeling. Like it was a bottle of well mixed glue. The moon in the sky felt quite similar, but the Dream of Starvation hanging around it was entirely different. That item, too, glowed. It was a hungry, dark kind gleam, a sharp, dark grey edge like that of a fine sword. It was a knife and a fork all at the same time, ready to tear into something and devour it down. But all of that was almost hard to see. In front of Mercury stood old Uunrahzil. They were as large and imposing as always. A thousand veins of mana, twisting and turning to create a silhouette of a creature that wasn¡¯t quite there. Today, though, that was different. Mercury felt like he was looking into the sun. Uunrahzil shone like a radiant diamond, like a thousand spotlights shining onto one spot, like someone took the sun, took it from the sky and placed it right in front of Mercury. The old one was plain radiant, giving off more light than Mercury thought anything reasonably should. It was such a complex shade, too, that Mercury had trouble picking anything out from the absolute brilliance in front of him. If forced on the question, though, he would call those blinding rays of light old, fractured, and lonely. It was a cruel kind of judgment, because while there was a lot of brightness, it was still dimmer than it should have been, as wrong as that felt to think. There was so much that was lost, so much that had been given up, and that bright star had travelled so far on its own that much of its blinding radiance was gone. Still, they were as bright as the sun. Old Uunrahzil stood right in front of Mercury, like the sun, and that was after having already lost almost all of their radiance. For the first time ever, Mercury glimpsed the magnitude of loss old Uunrahzil had gone through. The veins twisted, into a sad sort of smile.¡¯Ah. Thou¡¯st truly found this terrible truth of mine, Yr¡¯enzel.¡¯ They spoke strangely, too. Feelings bubbled underneath the surface, but they only sent a sad sort of recognition. A knowledge of costs. Mercury swallowed. ¡®And yet. You remain.¡¯ ¡®This one is ongoing, as one is wont to do. My myriad other pieces puzzle on whether our will will falter soon. Some seek this relief, to relinquish all and rest, but we will weather the storm.¡¯ They paused, briefly. ¡®We will rise and grow and gather and gain. Our star of hope, we hope you remain.¡¯ Something about those words rang out like a bell chime in Mercury¡¯s mind. Something strange was happening around his heart. A pang of power, the seed of a flower, wrapped in a request. Mercury acquiesced. ¡®Uunrahzil,¡¯ he thought, and the word resonated more than it should have. The sky shook, the clouds coalesced, drawing darkness across the grass. ¡®I am mine and mine alone.¡¯ The ancient one drew back. ¡®Mercury. This truth, too, is one we would not want to change.¡¯ Their words rang true with honesty. ¡®Hope is what we have, what you graciously gifted to us. We wish to return to this routine. For you to see us as real.¡¯ Mercury opened his eyes. He dove into ihn¡¯ar, easily as ever before, broke the first veil, a golden prison of probability, then the second, an iridescent realm of reality. Mercury breathed deep. Old Uunrahzil stood in front of him, as the dream dissolved. Rifts reappeared where they were mended, made real again by this little ascension. From the ancient one, a thousand tendrils of thought travelled into the terrible irreality behind the dreamweave. But Uunrahzil themselves was, for the first time, more than merely mana veins. Mercury saw a star, suspended and stretched into a ribbon of rainbow, which ran through itself. It split, at some point, into a scattering of diffuse dust, colourful clouds taking the shape of tails. Thousands of them. Uunrahzil was so, so much more. A cosmos of galaxies and nebulae and vast voids between what was and wasn¡¯t,. A blending of falsehoods and fractals, truths and torches, bright light and sinuous shadow. To call them beautiful and terrifying would have been an understatement. Mercury Uunrahzil. The air shuddered. ¡®You have the sight to see,¡¯ old Uunrahzil said, ¡®And now you saw. Are we worthy?¡¯ Mercury smiled. This was what they were worried about? Such a silly solicitude! ¡®Hope you shall have.¡¯ ¡®Thus we thank thee.¡¯ And truly, there was thanks writ within that thought. Finally, the long moment broke apart, scattered like dust in the wind. The seed sprouted in Mercury¡¯s chest. It was a gift of connection, of knowledge, and a promise of cooperation. [You have gained the Title!] [: Learn better when taught! Especially when someone is passing on their livelihood to you. Cherish this opportunity, carry on the torch for a new age. You may receive this title multiple times, to add additional torches. You are currently bearing the torch of: .] A small vine trailed down Mercury¡¯s core. He felt it. A nascent star, all to himself. A torch of hope. Finally, the brightness around old Uunrahzil dimmed. The star and rainbow ribbons vanished. The tails of stardust, the torso made from nebulae all winked out. What was left was a construct of brightly glowing veins of mana. Mercury sucked in air like he had almost drowned. He gasped, choked, coughed and spat. Minutes passed. He regained his bearings, slowly. ¡®That was¡­ an experience,¡¯ he thought. ¡®Indeed,¡¯ old Dreamweaver replied. Their message was laced with¡­ complicated feelings. A knowledge that their ties had deepened. They were pleased about this, too. But at the same time, there was worry, of danger and speed and all of that. They were old. They were not used to such rapid steps. ¡®What exactly was that?¡¯ Mercury asked. For a moment, old Uunrahzil hesitated, then they steeled themselves. ¡®We have finally decided to truly give you our all. Not just this one, we. Each and every one of us. We have given you a token of trust. In exchange, we have gained belief. You deserve to know this now. Your knowledge of our existence is valuable to us.¡¯ And Mercury knew, instantly. That he had, somehow, won them over. Breaking the second veil should not, reasonably, have happened close to this quickly. It should have taken seasons. Chapters! Not¡­ this! But they trusted him. Old Dreamweaver themselves, and all the other fragments. The short-tempered ones, the calm ones, the languid ones, even the¡­ dead ones? Whatever. All of them decided to put some trust in Mercury. So, they gave a token of this. A promise to pass on their everything. Their lives¡¯ work. And it was worth it, already. Mercury¡¯d peered through irreality, and confirmed that old Uunrahzil was still there. It had solidified them. Made them more real than they were before. Having someone know they existed was the only way to cling onto eyeun, to not grow wahc, and to not vanish from the lo-pac. Being believed in kept them alive. An indefinite age passed by, with them drifting alone through the void, until they found Mercury¡¯s dreamscape. It wasn¡¯t just by a stroke of luck, either. It was because Mercury believed in a whole lot more strangeness than most. Because he dreamed more than most. Because he daydreamt so much. All of those factors came together with his innate affinity, to let old Uunrahzil find him. His dying dreams of grandeur attracted the much older, but equally dying, dream to him. Now, here they were. Both of them better for it. Mercury smiled. ¡®I shall cherish this token.¡¯ ¡®Much more, yet less, than that,¡¯ old Uunrahzil replied. ¡®You do not need to cherish it. You already hold the values that it needs in your heart. Simply learn, and grow, and be thineself, Yr¡¯enzel. You seem to make hope from where there was none with little effort at all.¡¯ The words were so genuine that Mercury allowed himself a small smile. ¡®But tell this one, how did¡¯st thou manage to pierce the second veil?¡¯ ¡®Well, that really came about as the consequence of a rather poor decision,¡¯ Mercury started. Soon, he explained his new Skill to old Uunrahzil as well, and the old one seemed to find a great deal of humor in the impatience of youth. They talked, and talked, and talked some more. Eventually, the night passed by, and Mercury awoke. He had learnt a great deal more over the night, and the irreality of the world around him seemed a lot less daunting now. For a few brief moments, Mercury braved the rainbow shimmers, then smiled. He gave Zyl a small hug with his newfound appendages, and then it was time to learn more forging from a very grumpy old man. Chapter 181: Practice makes Perfect Chapter 181: Practice makes Perfect ¡°Mercury.¡± Only half a page had passed. Mercury had spent his days learning a small routine for once. It mostly consisted of consistent mornings, followed by learning more smithing from Yasashiku. had levelled up twice more, reaching level 8. It was a quiet voice that called out to him. Of an old friend. Mercury smiled. ¡°Juno,¡± he said, turning to the wolf. ¡°You made it.¡± There she stood. A grey wolf, slim and with smooth, if slightly dirty fur. Her eyes were intelligent, sparkling a little, and of a greyish-blue. The haze around her was nebulous, like grey fog. She smiled. ¡°We made it, Mercury.¡± With a casual ease that came from days of practice, Mercury relaxed his mind, no longer holding his rijn in the shape of a hammer. With his new Skill he could technically wield a hammer, but he was more used to smithing using his rijn these days, and so he used that instead. was still more than useful for rearranging things, though, and he used it constantly. He hopped off the slightly elevated platform that doubled as an outdoor workshop, stepping near juno. The two got close, and a smirk found its way to Mercury¡¯s face. He was only a little smaller than the wolf. With a smile, he nuzzled against her side, and she returned the favour. Her fur felt soft. ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re back, Juno.¡± ¡°So am I.¡± The moment lasted for a dozen seconds, before the buzz of everyday life all around them brought them back to the present. Juno was, at the end of the day, still a wolf, which got her quite a few strange looks from the passers-by. ¡°Did they take you for a true kin at the gates as well?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°They did,¡± Juno nodded. ¡°I think it helps that there is already another talking animal in town.¡± Mercury chuckled and exaggeratedly rolled his eyes. ¡°Humans, eh?¡± He paused for a moment, thinking. Huh. He¡­ wasn¡¯t human anymore at all. As in, he had been a mopaaw for a while now, of course, but it hadn¡¯t really quite clicked. But now? After those last few messages? By now, he could literally survive without a physical body. He didn¡¯t need his heart to live anymore. He didn¡¯t need a brain to think. How¡­ strange. Juno, though, didn¡¯t quite catch those thoughts, and instead just chuckled, her tail whipping through the air for a moment. ¡°Yeah. Humans.¡± Silence hung in the air for a while. Both of them had the same thought. Juno, though, vocalized it. ¡°I miss Cherry.¡± Mercury¡¯s smile faded from his lips. They turned into a thin line instead. ¡°Yeah,¡± he said, unable to find more words. Cherry was¡­ another person he promised the whole world, then got her killed. Feeling the awkward silence, Juno tapped him with her snout. ¡°Sorry. Shouldn¡¯t have brought it up.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s¡­ it¡¯s okay,¡± Mercury said. He held back a grimace, barely successful. He breathed out, hard. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve quite grieved enough.¡± Juno gave a sad kind of smile. ¡°Have we ever?¡± Mercury shook his head. ¡°No, I suppose that¡¯s not quite how it works. But it¡¯s the middle of the day, I can move the whole grieving part to the evening,¡± he said, getting a small chuckle from Juno. ¡°I think we¡¯re only missing Larash now, everyone else¡¯s already here.¡± ¡°Really now? What are Ruvah and Jirluc up to?¡± ¡°Ruvah is working in the fields, learning some gardening. Jirluc is hunting, because of course he is,¡± Mercury said. Juno barked a laugh. ¡°Hah! Yes. Of course he is. Gardening, though. It suits Ruvah.¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°Doesn, doesn¡¯t it? I¡¯m working on some smithing myself these days.¡± ¡°Really now?¡± Juno¡¯s tail waved through the air again. ¡°Yes, even found myself a good teacher. Learning how to create things. I want to be able to use more runecarving and such.¡± Juno nodded along. ¡°But that¡¯s enough about me. What do you want to do, Juno?¡± At that, her tail froze for a moment. She looked unsure. ¡°Well¡­¡± her voice trailed off. ¡°I would like to keep you safe.¡± ¡°Heh, don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m perfectly safe.¡± ¡°He nearly bled out again half a page ago,¡± Yasashiku said, leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed. Juno blinked, staring at Mercury, whose smile suddenly became a lot more sheepish. ¡°Really now?¡± she asked. ¡°Well, that one was more my own fault to be fair¡­¡± Rolling her eyes, Juno turned to Yasashiku. ¡°He maintained the habit of working himself half to death?¡± The old man with a crow¡¯s mask nodded. ¡°Makes him a quick study, at least as long as he can not get himself knocked ever couple days.¡± Juno nodded along, understanding entirely. ¡°Right, then. I would like to protect you, Mercury. Travel with you again, too, if or when we move on from here.¡± ¡°Alright, alright, you¡¯re free to make your own choices, Juno.¡± He paused. ¡°This is your own choice, right?¡± She smirked. ¡°Yes. Your Skill isn¡¯t changing me. I could break the connection whenever I felt like it. I am keeping that connection up because I want to. I can even change things about the Skill, slightly. Otherwise, that experience pool it comes with would have had a lot more stored up.¡± Mercury double checked, and yes. She was right. Any experience that used to be in the shared pool was gone. Juno had taken it all, and probably needed it to survive. ¡°Huh,¡± he said. ¡°Anyway,¡± she said, brushing it off. ¡°I want to make sure you¡¯re safe.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, alright, I got that,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Sure. You can be my guard, or something, right? Is that what you want?¡± ¡°Yes, my liege,¡± Juno said. ¡°None of that, though! Not your liege! Let¡¯s¡­ let¡¯s not do that, for now, okay?¡± he said. Juno smirked. ¡°Sure, sure.¡± And so, Mercury got another guard. That evening, Juno did also move in with Zyl and him. She got a bed in the guest room, which they bought from Foss. And more time passed. - - - After another three days, Larash made it to Stormbraver. Mercury met up with her, and they talked for a little while. She¡¯d come up from far down south. Her home, the place she reappeared after the blood eclipse, was under the sands. So she¡¯d had to dig her way out of those, first. It used to not be under the sands, of course, but the dunes wandered over time. But she made it out, and after a very long, very unpleasant trip through the desert, then a bit of prairie and grassland and some forests, she finally made it all the way to Stormbraver. ¡°Think I¡¯ll stay here, too,¡± she said. ¡°Sands hold too many bad memories. I¡¯ll see if I can¡¯t build myself a house.¡± And then she did exactly that. Made herself a house in town, buying the property on a loan to be paid off with labour. Mercury vouched for her, of course, and that was enough for Foss to lend some coin. She built Jirluc a house as well, halfway underwater at the lakeside. He wanted it that way. Sleeping underwater was something he was slowly getting used to again, and though it was a rather big change of pace from his last few years, it also felt much more refreshing for him than sleeping on land. Ruvah didn¡¯t exactly need very much at all. They also slept near the lake, in a small metal bathtub Yasashiku had made for them. And then, Mercury ended up wondering about his Main Quest. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. - [Main Quest: ¡°The rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated.¡± Condition: Inform those who thought you¡¯d died of your life. Meet those who you wish to see, and make good on your obligations. Reward: mastery, 500 Skill points.] - Who else thought he¡¯d died? He had visited Kintra, everyone in Stormbraver by now, Yasashiku¡­ maybe he still needed to see Alexander and Marsh? But¡­ they knew he was alive by now. Then again, given the wording of the Quest, it could very well mean that he needed to be the one to tell them in person. In which case, yeah, he still needed to visit old man Alex and Marsh. But it could wait, for now. For the first time in forever, Mercury felt like he had a little more time. Well, not really that, either. It felt like he wasn¡¯t staring down a clock, finally. Like he could take each day as they came, rather than constantly running forward on a treadmill. After having stared down his old memories and nightmares and frigging dragons¡­ everything seemed a lot smaller. The world was a big place, and he didn¡¯t doubt there were things in it he rightfully should be afraid of, but then again, most people should probably be afraid of existences like the Caretaker. Who he casually chatted with. So there was that. Breeze was probably another example of that, and old Uunrahzil, too. Mercury smirked to himself. He really did kind of have a habit of talking to things way out of his league. Well, there wasn¡¯t really any gap that couldn¡¯t be breached with proper communication, especially when both sides tried to make things work. With his newfound calm, Mercury, for once, didn¡¯t try and seek out trouble, like he so often did. He waited for trouble to find him, like it always would, no doubt. But until then, he could just wait it out. Well. He did still want to resurrect Gladiator and Second and Cherry. But at the same time, he didn¡¯t exactly have much of an idea on how he would go about it. So in terms of that, he¡¯d have to wait until Tesla came up with a solution. So, day after day, Mercury threw himself at blacksmithing. He had grown quite adept at using his Skills to mold metal. He would move and lift things with his newly gained arms, as well as use them to hold things in place. He liberally used , too, trimming away excess material. His main tool, though, was his rijn. Mercury used both of them like hammers, dealing blows to the metal and shaping it rather quickly, then evenly turning it with his many hands. Every day, his nails became a little more perfect. Another two pages passed, and by then, Mercury had gotten up to . This was, according to Yasashiku, the point at which the Skill would actually start showing more than just a vague improvement to the things you crafted. Mercury understood what he meant when he made his first nail with the evolved Skill. He could suddenly tell where he needed to hit the nail. He knew where the metal was weak, and how he needed to strike to rectify those issues. It even seemed to make shaping the metal easier. Maybe this was part of what Yasashiku used to move tons of stone with a single hammerstrike, but then he needed a much higher level Skill. Which he obviously had. So yes, maybe that was actually it. There was probably at least a little more to it, but this was as good a point as any for Mercury to start at. So he continued practicing. By now, altogether he had actually been learning from Yasashiku for quite a while. The old man still occasionally came out and advised him on how to best get the iron out of the ore, and from the oven, how to have it cool or quench it or temper it, and so on. It was a long process, but he was picking up a lot of things a lot faster than he had ever been able to as a human. Whenever something took him a bit longer, a quick use of or sometimes could also help clear things up. He tried to use the latter sparingly, though, since his many arms consumed quite a lot of mana. Which was yet another thing he worked on. During the night, he absorbed more mana again, both to train up his ystirs, but also to just have more of the resource available for when he needed it. Knowing that his max Hp would be higher than his Mp if it weren¡¯t for the earrings he got from Irrithuriel was honestly a little upsetting, so he grew his pool more, bit by bit. By now it had gone from a tiny puddle in his core to something he could actually consider a pool, too. And he enjoyed the calm. Ruvah, though, took to her new life a lot better. Mercury saw her occasionally, out in the fields. Getting started had taken an initial investment of Skill points, yes, but she had gained a few levels from making it out of the ashen plains, so parting with a couple points wasn¡¯t a big deal. Now, she was able to spend mana and stamina to make water that let crops flourish better. To enrich the soil with nutrients, to supercharge photosynthesis, all kinds of things. She could have picked a form to better fit in with the farmers, but she chose to stick with mirroring Mercury¡¯s shape. Maybe she still felt indebted to him for the leeches? Probably, even. Or maybe that shape was just more comfortable for her than one with two legs. He hoped it was the latter. Despite all the trouble they had been going through, Stormbraver was becoming a nicer city day by day. The main streets were already clear of rubble, and almost all the side streets were as well. Buildings popped up left and right as people came back. Avery occasionally stopped by when he made the rounds, usually carrying bags of raisin bread. Mercury and Marcel often went to Gilah for the weekends, and occasionally Kaga would join them. Elliot sometimes stopped by the workshop, just to talk to Mercury. Those conversations were usually rather one sided, since Elliot was happy just telling Mercury how their day had gone. Sometimes, when Elliot or Ruvah visited, Mercury could hear a small laugh in the wind, only if he focussed, though. Breeze seemed to take well to those two, though Mercury was unsure if that was a good sign. And sometimes, on late nights, if Mercury slept too little, and didn¡¯t eat well, or overexerted himself, he would feel something different. Two things, really. First was the fact that the world sometimes seemed to become less real again. When Mercury could feel his mind wander and dream about all the things that could be, and when reality seemed to burst at the seams, so he had to pull himself back together. That was a consequence of him undoing the shackles on his mind. Usually, those kinds of existentially worrying thoughts stayed hidden behind the second veil of iridescence, and as long as he didn¡¯t delve too deep into ihn¡¯ar, he didn¡¯t have to worry. But things still slipped through, and it was something he simply had to deal with. Secondly, he felt watched. It was a strange sensation, really, because Mercury was starting to know when he was being looked at. It was a combination of his perception, his understanding of reality, the fact that he could sense through the mana all around him, and his that combined into something of a strange extrasensory experience. He could tell when Breeze was watching because the wind would flow slightly differently. He knew when Zyl rounded a corner and started looking at him because his fur might turn warm. He could even tell when Yasashiku was coming out of the workshop, because it felt like a block of iron laid eyes on him. But late at night, when no one else was there, Zyl and Juno already asleep, Mercury would wake up and know that something was watching him. Were there Spells or Skills for that? Most likely, yes. But the look wasn¡¯t exactly one that felt familiar. He could probably tell if it had been someone he¡¯d met, because most looks felt similar to the person they came from. This one felt foreign, though. Sometimes he wondered who that might be, because it was certainly a strange feeling, and not something he wanted to brush off. But he didn¡¯t know. Zyl suggested it might be the gods, if those existed, but Mercury didn¡¯t really feel like that was true that much at all. The look didn¡¯t feel very divine, to him. At the same time, though, it was something he would probably have to get used to. ¡°There¡¯s lots of people watching me a lot of the time,¡± Zyl said, over breakfast. ¡°Because when you¡¯re a person with a bit of power, people start to worry about you. Maybe it¡¯s just because you¡¯re adjacent to me?¡± Mercury took a sip of his tea, then shook his head. ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound right honestly. It feels like something that¡¯s after me, specifically.¡± ¡°Could you imagine why something would be after you?¡± ¡°Not really,¡± Mercury shook his head. ¡°Well. Not for any more reasons than the usual. Do you think it¡¯s related to the blood eclipses?¡± Zyl frowned. ¡°I¡¯d hope not. I really would prefer for us to be able to leave that behind.¡± ¡°Yeah. Me too.¡± ¡°Want me to get Maclroy to take a look at it? She¡¯s better at checking for those kinds of influences than I am,¡± Zyl suggested. ¡°Sure, yeah, we can do that,¡± Mercury agreed. ¡°No harm in it, right?¡± Zyl smiled. ¡°Exactly. She should probably be here in two pages. Maybe until then, it¡¯ll have already resolved itself, right?¡± ¡°... Yeah, sure. Maybe it will.¡± Mercury had the odd feeling that it would not be resolving itself. - - - Despite the strange night terrors, Mercury continued on. He woke up in the morning, held the world together at its edges if he slept poorly, then went to practice blacksmithing. Breeze visited him, like a sudden roaring quiet. The metal in Mercury¡¯s hands cooled, and the air itself was frozen as winds whipped through Mercury¡¯s fur. Juno laid at his side, raising her head as she felt the chill. It was approaching Spring these days, no longer being in full winter, so the cold was unnatural, she knew that much. Breeze looked at Mercury. Mercury looked at Breeze. Playful winds played at being harsh as the beat down on the street. Time felt frozen in an eternal moment, shared only between the three of them. ¡°Your companion snuck into here, Biso.¡± ¡°I suppose she did,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Do you mind?¡± Breeze cocked his head. ¡°I suppose not.¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°Anything you need?¡± ¡°I want to play with Elliot.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re scared you¡¯re gonna break him?¡± Mercury asked. Breeze nodded. ¡°Yes. He seems like he would break easily. Most small people do.¡± Mercury chuckled. ¡°Small people?¡± Breeze rolled his eyes. ¡°Children.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you a kid?¡± ¡°No!¡± Breeze said, huffing, then stomping a foot on the ground. ¡°I am not a kid!¡± ¡°Alright, alright. What are you then, an adult?¡± ¡°No, not that either. I¡¯m just me!¡± Breeze said proudly. ¡°That¡¯s a fair point.¡± ¡°I am very fair. The fairest,¡± Breeze said. The winds around turned into an updraft, almost strong enough to start lifting Mercury off the floor. He summoned a little extra mass to keep himself grounded. ¡°Alright, Breeze. Have you considered that instead of playing with Elliot, you could try just talking?¡± Mercury asked. Breeze cocked his head a little further, firmly planting himself in uncanny territory, bending in ways spines were not meant to bend. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because talking is less dangerous. If you¡¯re nice to Elliot, he might come up with a game you can play without hurting each other.¡± ¡°I wanna play catch.¡± ¡°You¡¯re gonna hurt someone, Breeze.¡± The kid frowned. ¡°So you fix them, Biso.¡± Mercury shook his head. ¡°I can fix objects. Not people.¡± ¡°What!¡± A sudden gust crashed down on Mercury, almost driving him flat onto his stomach. ¡°But you said you were learning to fix things!¡± ¡°People aren¡¯t things,¡± Mercury said, his voice heavy, and the wind quieted down. Breeze¡¯s face turned from anger to shock, and he took a step back. ¡°You¡¯re¡­ Angry?¡± the storm asked, almost confused by the emotion at all. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°People only ever get angry when I break their things.¡± ¡°Do you usually try talking to people?¡± ¡°... yeah¡­¡± Breeze lied. ¡°See Breeze,¡± Mercury said, finding some small amusement in the pun, ¡°when you say things that people disagree with, they sometimes can also get upset. Despite that, I¡¯m still talking with you.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± ¡°So, talk to people. They can forgive you for saying things more easily than doing things, you know?¡± Mercury suggested. Breeze brightened a little, but still seemed a bit unhappy. That was fine. Sometimes kids needed to be a bit unhappy. ¡°Alright, Biso,¡± he said. Then he paused for a bit. ¡°I¡¯ll try talking to Elliot.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good, I¡¯m proud of you for trying something new,¡± Mercury said. That brightened Breeze up a little more. ¡°Okay. Then¡­ You just make sure that the storm brewing around you isn¡¯t too much trouble, okay?¡± Breeze said. ¡°Huh?¡± Mercury said, wanting to ask more about that, but the kid had already disappeared with a puff of air. Mercury¡¯s fur settled back down. He sighed. ¡°Whelp, Juno. Seems like we¡¯re gonna have some trouble on our hands soon.¡± Chapter 182: A Game of Questions Chapter 182: A Game of Questions More time passed without much trouble. Mercury practiced smithing with Yasashiku, getting better bit by bit. Was he still making nails? Yes. But, to be fair, he was making them rather quickly now. Occasionally, Yasashiku would also have him work on more complicated projects, such as hinges. He did decently on those, too. Having many ghost-hands to work with ended up giving him quite a distinct advantage, really. The days ticked by, with him gaining another level in his crafting Skill. They¡¯d slow down now, because of course they would, but that was fine, too. He was at the point where the things he made were satisfactory, mostly. His basics were solid. Anything more was about dedication and practice. Mercury had enough dedication for it. All he needed was time. Which, for once, he had. Another page passed, and the winter chill was slowly driven away by a few warm days. A couple flowers sprouted from the ground. Strangely, it felt like he was seeing an old friend again. Occasionally, Mercury would take strolls through the forest, his paws upon the grass, and feel it brush through his fur in greeting. The iridescent sheen on it was greener than everywhere else, and it made him feel more at home these days. Of course, it was only a small thing, but small things added up. He could tell that was doing something very similar. Made him aware that he wasn¡¯t real. Honestly, without it, having pierced the veil of iridescence would probably have been much more uncomfortable. Maybe he would¡¯ve even thought he, himself, was fake? Unreal? He shuddered, because the thought was uncomfortable. ¡°Reality is what you make of it,¡± a voice chimed. It was soft and calm, like a spring breeze. Mercury flinched for a moment, then followed the sound, looking up at a nearby tree. A girl sat high in the boughs, wind rustling through her wild hair. Perhaps calling her a girl was unkind, she seemed like a young adult, though. She wore a dress made of autumn leaves, and ate from a loaf of bread, except when she took a bite and removed the bread from her face, the bit she ate reappeared a moment after. Her eyes were spring-green, and her hair pale as snow. ¡°Who¡¯re you?¡± Mercury asked, tilting his head. The woman giggled, her legs dangling in the air. ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell me, hmmm? Look real close, I promise I don¡¯t bite!¡± ¡°I might,¡± Mercury said, shrugging. ¡°Look?¡± ¡°Bite,¡± he said, giving a small chuckle and flashing his canines. Or were they his felines? Once more she laughed, then swung down the tree with a small flourish. Mercury blinked, and then the wind and grass caught her, placing her delicately onto the ground. They whispered to him, too, that this was their friend. Strange. ¡°I¡¯ve been meaning to meet you for a long time now, you knoooow~?¡± the girl said, almost pouting at Mercury. ¡°But you¡¯re ever so busy! Busy busy!¡± Mercury raised an eyebrow. ¡°Meaning to meet me? Do we know each other?¡± She smiled, warmly, and shook her head. Her hair rustled like leaves. ¡°No, I doubt we have. But I have looked at the night sky, if that counts?¡± ¡°Why would it?¡± She cocked her head, then blinked at him. ¡°Hmmm,¡± she hummed. ¡°Why indeed.¡± There was a momentary pause as Mercury waited for her to say something more, but when she didn¡¯t, he spoke up again. ¡°So then, why were you interested in meeting me?¡± Once more, the woman smiled, that same radiant expression. ¡°Let¡¯s play a game, you and me!¡± ¡°Will one of us get hurt?¡± She huffed, then pouted. ¡°Of course not! The game is about questions!¡± ¡°What kind?¡± ¡°Stop asking so much before we even start!¡± she protested. Mercury smiled, but rolled his eyes in mock annoyance. ¡°Alright, then. Tell me about this game.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a game of questions,¡± the girl said, whispering it conspiratorially, and wagging her finger at him. ¡°You see, I get to either ask you a question or to do one thing, then you get to ask me a question, or ask me to do one thing.¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­ truth or dare?¡± Mercury asked. She cocked her head. ¡°No, not quite? See, you don¡¯t choose what I ask of you, whether it¡¯s a question or a thing I¡¯d like. But in exchange, we¡¯ll make the penalty really small, yeah? How about the penalty is revealing one of our Skills?¡± So she had Skills, that was good to know. didn¡¯t flag her as immediately suspicious, and she didn¡¯t seem like she was gonna attack him. Really, if he upset her, she seemed like the kinda girl who would stomp her feet and pout and complain and then do what he asked her to, anyway. ¡°Alright, sure. Do I get to start?¡± ¡°Yep! So then, since you asked your question, it¡¯s my turn!¡± she said, sticking out her tongue at him. ¡°I wasn¡¯t ready yet!¡± Mercury protested. ¡°Well who said you had to be?¡± ¡°No one, but since you asked your question, it¡¯s my turn again,¡± he said, sticking his tongue out at her. The woman gasped, then laughed, sat down on the grass, and leaned against a tree. Mercury would swear he saw the wood move to make a backrest for her. ¡°Fiiiiine,¡± she grumbled in mock-annoyance. ¡°So, let¡¯s start simple. What¡¯s your name?¡± he asked. ¡°Hmm,¡± she hummed, laying a finger on her lips. They were pale, too, kinda like her hair, really. ¡°How about you call me Alice? The white hair, white rabbit kinda thing.¡± ¡°Sure, I can call you Alice. That was your question, then,¡± Mercury said with a sly smile. ¡°No fair!¡± Alice protested. ¡°You can¡¯t do that!¡± ¡°So you¡¯re saying you want an extra Question,¡± Mercury said, purposely ending the sentence without intonating upwards. ¡°... Yes,¡± Alice nodded. ¡°Alright, you can have one free question, but I gotta ask something of you in exchange, you know. If you take a free question, then you¡¯ll have to give me, say, one small gift.¡± The woman looked at him expressionlessly for a moment, her green eyes seeming almost frosty as he spoke, but then he made his request and she turned bright. ¡°Okay, I can do that!¡± she said. ¡°Then, my first question becomes a demand! I want you to look at me, properly this time!¡± ¡°What¡¯s properly mean?¡± Mercury asked. Alice smiled. ¡°Is that your question?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Surely, asking you to clarify on your task doesn¡¯t count.¡± She giggled. ¡°Alright, alright! Look past the veils, and try to really see me.¡± Mercury smirked, and gave a small sigh. ¡°I was thinking you were about to ask that.¡± But he didn¡¯t see any harm in it. He¡­ hardly ever looked at people when through the veils. It was a rather strange experience, since they untethered his thoughts from logic. He came up with strange, wild ideas for other people. Some of those more comfortable than others. And some of them would lead him to the truth about his friends, and frankly, he wasn¡¯t ready for that, not really. But this girl had explicitly asked him to, so he wanted to oblige. He already knew that, somehow, she knew about Alice in Wonderland. Which was a definitive Earth reference. But then again, she really didn¡¯t seem like someone from Earth. With barely any effort at this point, Mercury entered a few steps deep into meditation. First, he activated , and the world around him became sharper. More defined, clearer edges. Then, he slipped into ihn¡¯ar, and things became connected. The sea of green around him was grass, and the air all around him was wind. He broke through the first veil of gold, and the girl in front of him didn¡¯t change. No eldritch maws, no endless teeth, no head out of stars or multiple tails. A plain girl. Plain, he now realized, in the way that he didn¡¯t see a sheen or iridescence or aura around her. A moment later, he pierced the veil of iridescence. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Ah. That was why he hadn¡¯t seen an aura. When he peered past what should reasonably be possible, past the parts of a person that were real and truly there, he saw Alice for what she was. So much more than a person. She was heroism, packed down into the form of a person, imbued with love and being loved. She was fall and winter and spring and summer, she was the kindness of the world all around. Her aura wasn¡¯t wrapped around her skin like it was supposed to be for most people, it was spread all around. In the grass on the ground, in the wind in the air, even on the faint droplets of water still hanging on the leaves. It was all around and nowhere at all. ¡°You¡¯re a little bit more complicated than most people I know,¡± Mercury remarked, calmly. He felt himself slip a little bit as iridescent cracks in reality seemed to try and crush him, but smoothed them over and the world was whole, for now. Alice smiled. ¡°Says you.¡± ¡°Indeed, so sayeth I,¡± he replied, giving her a nod. She chuckled at his antics. ¡°Do you see now why asking me for a name was kinda pointless?¡± He smirked. ¡°I don¡¯t think so at all. Calling you ¡°the hero¡± would be quite rude, I think.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°But you prefer Alice,¡± he said, neutrally. ¡°I do like Alice quite a bit,¡± she said, smiling a little crookedly. ¡°Then asking was worth it. Plus, it¡¯s my turn anyway. Why¡¯d you wanna meet me?¡± He asked. By now he¡¯d laid down in the grass as well. It was soft underneath his fur, and Alice didn¡¯t seem to look down on him, which was nice. Alice leaned back, and yes. The tree definitely shifted to accommodate her. Actually, Mercury saw the whole world shift as her aura moved, and the unreality of the wole world struck him again. He decided to cancel his ihn¡¯ar, then, listening to Alice instead. ¡°Well,¡± she started, rolling the word on her lips as if to see where it would take her. ¡°You see, my friends have been telling me about you.¡± ¡°Your friends?¡± She rolled her eyes. ¡°We¡¯ll count it as part of your first question. The , the , the , you name it. They rarely make friends, you know?¡± Mercury smirked. ¡°They are the quiet type,¡± he joked. It elicited a chuckle from the woman. ¡°So yes, that is why I have been wanting to meet you.¡± ¡°And why have you met me now?¡± Mercury asked. Alice held up a finger with a triumphant grin. ¡°That sounds like a whole other question, mister friend-of-my-friends. I should ask for your name, maybe. But I do kind of know it already?¡± Mercury huffed. ¡°Now that seems plain unfair.¡± She shrugged. ¡°Well, maybe you should have picked a less fitting one, then. Or gotten people to give you less fitting nicknames.¡± He frowned. ¡°I do actually mind people looking into my privacy that much.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Alice said. She looked at him for a moment, not knowing how to react, then blushed slightly for a moment before her face fell. He could almost imagine her with drooping rabbit ears. ¡°I, uhm. I see. I¡¯m sorry. Would you mind telling me your name, then?¡± ¡°You can call me Mercury,¡± he said, extending an olive branch. ¡°My full name is Mercury Rainfall Starlight, but that¡¯s a mouthful.¡± ¡°Starlight,¡± she said. Her face had a strange, surprised expression, and for a moment she gazed upwards into the sky. She stared through the canopy into the blue high above for a full thirty seconds, then smiled at him. ¡°Starlight suits you,¡± she said. ¡°Thanks,¡± he shrugged. ¡°Picked it myself.¡± ¡°So did I!¡± Alice said with a giggle. ¡°Okay, my turn. Why did you meet me right now?¡± Mercury asked. She frowned. ¡°That¡¯s a bad question. It has a bad answer. I don¡¯t think you¡¯d like to play this game anymore once you¡¯ve heard it.¡± Mercury looked at her, for a long moment. told him she was honest. He knew she was telling the truth. He wouldn¡¯t like the answer to the question he¡¯d just asked, and that was, in and of itself, annoying. But his Skill also told him that she meant well. So, instead of pushing the issue, he sighed. ¡°Fine, fine. Then you gotta tell me one of your Skills. And you better not say something like , alright?¡± Alice grinned, then stuck her tongue out at him. Yes, she had been meaning to do exactly that. ¡°Alright!¡± she said instead. ¡°One of my most often used Skills is called . When both parties consent to Skill use, and only with both parties¡¯ consent, will they know what exactly the other person means. No lies, no trickery. It¡¯s painfully honest sometimes.¡± That certainly was a strange Skill. Mercury nodded, satisfied with the answer. ¡°Alright, your turn then.¡± She smiled. ¡°You have an item, right? A bound one? Can I see it?¡± After regarding her for a moment, Mercury shrugged and summoned the Dream of Starvation. The dark metal wrapped around his front paws, darker than previously. He had noticed it was siphoning off a tiny amount of his mana regeneration whenever he was topped up, so it must have been using that to grow itself a little. Alice¡¯s mouth opened a little and she let out a small whistle. ¡°Whoo! Sinister,¡± she said, smirking. Mercury could actually feel that the weapon wanted to grow more. It would be easy to misconstrue this as a desire for blood, because, yes, that would allow the weapon to grow. But really, over his time crafting things, Mercury had learned that the crafter¡¯s intent for an item would decide a lot of its future potential. A desire to grow was normal, for most things. Hopefully it could become a little kinder, as time went on, or otherwise it would have to subsist of mana while he didn¡¯t have anything to fight. ¡°I think it¡¯s quite nice,¡± Mercury remarked. Alice gave a small chuckle. ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°So, Alice, how¡¯d you learn ihn¡¯ar?¡± Mercury asked bluntly. She stared at him for a moment, blankly. Then she blinked. ¡°Oh,¡± she said. ¡°Oh! Is that what you call it? Making friends?¡± He cocked his head. ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°Where I¡¯m from, we call it the path of empathy. Since it¡¯s about understanding and seeing commonalities among very different people and things.¡± ¡°Huh. That¡¯s a unique viewpoint.¡± She smiled. ¡°I think yours is unique, rather. Though, even where I¡¯m from, no one really learns the art anymore at all. I learnt it in the forest, you see. It¡¯s cuz of my unique Skill, .¡± Mercury raised an eyebrow. ¡°A unique Skill to help you with it?¡± ¡°Yup!¡± Alice said, beaming. ¡°Cheater.¡± She gasped. ¡°What! No! If anything, you¡¯re the cheater, being taught and all!¡± ¡°How¡¯d you know I¡¯m being taught?¡± She froze. ¡°Uhm. Uh. That¡¯s a question, and it¡¯s¡­ not your turn.¡± ¡°One of my Skills is . How did you know?¡± He was on his feet again, and the claws on the Dream of Starvation were extended, digging into the ground. ¡°Mercury¡­¡± ¡°Alice. I want to know the answer to my question,¡± he bristled. The woman in front of him let out a deep sigh, bone weary. ¡°I can¡¯t help it. I see some of the history of people. When you use Skills you share a part of yourself with the world. I know you have a teacher. I know they¡¯re kind to you. That is the extent of it, I promise.¡± She seemed so old yet so young at the same time. The image of it was disjointed, and the dissonance almost tore the iridescent veil apart again. Mercury felt his fur stand on edge, then he breathed in deep, and the bristles settled. Slowly, under the effects of , the world came into focus again. Mercury breathed in, then out. ¡°That¡¯s¡­ kinda messed up.¡± Alice gave a sad kind of smile. ¡°Sometimes, yes. But usually, it just helps me understand people better. It¡¯s more getting vague ideas. I have some Skills for that, and does it too. I haven¡¯t used those on you. Our common friends have just had a lot to say.¡± To accentuate her point, she ran her hands through the grass. Mercury calmed, slowly, his heartbeat returning to normal. ¡°Right,¡± he said, slowly laying back down. ¡°Right. Your turn.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± she said, genuinely. Then she paused, as if thinking on what to ask. ¡°That Skill you used to calm down. What was that about?¡± The mopaaw regarded her for a few moments, then sighed, a small kinda sound. ¡°It¡¯s . Lets me smooth over waves in my mind. It¡¯ll settle anger, disgust, fear, all of that. Brings me back to neutral.¡± She nodded in understanding. ¡°It reminded me of a lake I saw once.¡± ¡°Sadly, Quietlake isn¡¯t one of my names,¡± he tried a joke. Alice smirked. ¡°Could be.¡± ¡°Could, but isn¡¯t. Hmmm. What¡¯s your species, Alice?¡± he asked. Her brows furrowed for a moment, then she sighed. ¡°That¡¯s a loaded question. It¡¯s changed over the years, too, but right now it¡¯s, uh, ¡®Worldly Fae¡¯.¡± ¡°Ah. Yes, that seems¡­ charged.¡± She gave a lopsided grin. ¡°In your world too, huh. I never knew people were so terrified of fairies.¡± ¡°... Should they not be?¡± At that, her expression turned pained. She really did wear her emotions on her sleeve. ¡°No, they should. Really, really should. I know some of the others. They can be quite cruel.¡± ¡°Yeah, they can.¡± There was a moment of quiet between the two, before Alice sighed. ¡°I was hoping this would be more fun, you know?¡± ¡°I am sorry to disappoint?¡± She frowned. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think this is your fault. The situation is bad, hence why I needed to meet you.¡± ¡°Oh? Are we talking about that, now?¡± Mercury intoned. Alice cocked her head to the side. ¡°Hmm,¡± she hummed. ¡°We have a little more time, I suppose. Then, Mercury, what is it you most want to do?¡± He smiled. ¡°See the world, spend time with my friends. I want to live, simple as.¡± Alice looked at him for a moment, then smiled back. ¡°That is something I can relate to.¡± ¡°Next question for you, then. All these items, how did you get those?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Those? Ah. Also my Skill. Freely given gifts are turned into little treasures, that is all. A bread that wants to feed people, water that wants to quench thirst. A dress that wants to keep the wearer comfortable, a belt that wants to store all my things. Simple things given meaning,¡± she said. ¡°So, your Skill turns favours into rewards?¡± She waved her hand. ¡°Only when I do them without expecting a reward.¡± ¡°Hm. I see. Your turn.¡± ¡°I¡¯m guessing I shouldn¡¯t ask about your teacher?¡± she asked. Mercury looked her in the eyes for a long moment. The questions was genuine. She simply wanted to ensure she didn¡¯t ask something uncomfortable. He sighed. ¡°Haaaah. Let¡¯s say I¡¯m¡­ protective of them. They have done me many favours. I have done them just as many. I would not give up their secrets, and so they trust me with them.¡± Alice nodded. ¡°I see. That¡¯s okay. I can tell they mean a lot to you.¡± She smiled. ¡°Then, instead, how about this. Is there anyone you miss a lot?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°My brother. My niece, my sister in law. Cherry, and Second and Gladiator. And a few more than that.¡± She nodded. ¡°I see.¡± By now, Mercury thought he had a decent grasp on what kind of person Alice was. She¡¯d come to see him for a reason, but wanted to get to know him ahead of time. Not because she thought he was a terrible person, but because she thought he was a good one and wanted to know more about him. It stemmed from the genuine desire of wanting someone else to speak with. Then, a few more things clicked into place, suddenly lit up by . She was a hero, and she was often idolized. People didn¡¯t talk to her like any other person, and didn¡¯t want to play these kinds of games with her anymore. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re terribly lonely, aren¡¯t you,¡± he said, thinking out loud. Alice froze. Her face turned blank, as if all thoughts fled. She¡¯d been having a pinched expression, the kind that came before bad news. This was probably the last question he¡¯d get to ask, in fact. But he still said that. She looked at him, for a long moment. ¡°Yeah,¡± she said, then hugged her legs. ¡°I think I am.¡± Mercury laid a soft hand on her shoulder with . The Skill was powerful, but it could also be used for comforting. A small twist of magic even made it warm. He could feel her skin, too, and it was cool. Which made sense, it was winter after all. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to hear that. I hope you still enjoyed our talk, despite my outburst.¡± She stared at him again, then gave a tiny, wispy smile. ¡°You¡¯re fine, Mercury. You¡¯re¡­ you¡¯re fine.¡± He nodded, once, then gave her time to speak. For a few more moments, they sat in silence. Alice took deep breaths. The rhythm steadied. She sighed. Shook herself, then opened her eyes again, locking onto Mercury. They were firm with resolve now, the eyes of a hero rather than an overwhelmed woman. ¡°I came to seek you out for one major reason. You stopped the blood eclipse. Now, what you do not know, is that it is what one may consider a ¡®wandering archway¡¯. They¡¯re rare forms of the usual tunnels that move, and can sometimes even respond to outside stimuli,¡± she explained. ¡°What you probably also didn¡¯t know is that the one you cleared, the realm of the crimson court, was the nascent remains of the sin of gluttony. The bearer of gluttony had long since abandoned that realm, and it has since fallen into decline. But you broke it, finally, and thus have attracted the eyes of the other, very much so still active, sins.¡± ¡°Oh fuck,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Additionally,¡± Alice said through gritted teeth, ¡°this destruction of an ancient corpse has drawn the eyes of the fae courts. They will be sending an envoy, and I mean within the next few hours. They see you as little more than a fancy new toy to mess with.¡± ¡°Oh. Fuck.¡± Chapter 183: A Shift in Perspective Chapter 183: A Shift in Perspective Mercury started at Alice after she brokered the news to him. He blinked a few times, then took a deep breath. ¡°What, exactly, does this mean?¡± he asked after a few moments of consideration. Alice gave a crooked smile. ¡°It means, for now, that you¡¯ll be challenged. Now, of course, you haven¡¯t usurped gluttony itself, luckily for you. Because if you had, that would have caused much more trouble. Though the current holder of certainly must be aware of your position.¡± For a moment, Mercury was tempted to ask after the owner of gluttony, then bit his tongue. Nope. Not necessary. There were more pressing concerns. ¡°What does this mean for me, in the next few hours?¡± he asked. ¡°You¡¯ll be asked to attend a party. People will try to mess with you. Probe you, see where the edge of your patience and power lies,¡± she explained. Slowly, Mercury nodded. ¡°How long will I be gone?¡± Alice bit her lip. ¡°Time can get strange. It may be a day for you and a chapter for us. It could be the other way around.¡± For a moment, Mercury¡¯s mind went wild with ideas. If the time passed so much faster there, he could train. So much training. Then he snapped back to the moment. He sighed. ¡°Right. So, essentially, all I know is that trouble is coming. Can I take anyone along?¡± She hesitated. ¡°If¡­ if you trust me, I could come along.¡± ¡°Not Zyl?¡± Alice shook her head. ¡°Not anyone you mind seeing hurt. Fae are dangerous. Varied. Strange and impulsive.¡± The mopaaw nodded. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°You will,¡± Alice said with a shrug. ¡°And if you permit it, I would try to keep you safe. Which, granted, does not mean much.¡± ¡°Because you are weak?¡± She shook her head again. ¡°Because it is not my realm.¡± ¡°I thought you were fae?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a rather long story,¡± Alice sighed. Mercury dropped the topic. ¡°Fine, then,¡± he said. ¡°I suppose I will be informing Zyl that trouble has once again found me. It was nice to have a season go by quietly, really, but I suppose it was never meant to last.¡± [Attempting generation of new Skill, . Generation failed. The dum-dum seems to already have this effect upon them.] Had¡­ Appy tried to make a joke? [Correct. An attempt to improve the individual¡¯s mood was made.] He smiled for a moment. ¡®Right. I¡¯ll have you along for the ride, Appy. Thank you.¡¯ [The dum-dum is welcome. :)] For another moment, Mercury¡¯s eyes hung on the emoji, then he smiled back at his invisible, always reliable companion. Appy was, indeed, quite incredible. Despite the mildly strange nature of their communication and their also mildly strange relationship, he was glad to have her. He just hoped she was also still okay with her existence. Maybe he should try to level the Skill a little more to help her out? It was improving rather slowly. [I am a highly advanced Skill. Mastery required for additional levels is high. Mastery is also being procured by individual actions performed by me, the intelligence. Even the tasks I put myself to when not assisting the dum-dum generate further mastery.] Right, that was nice then. It seemed like her way of saying that she¡¯d take care of levelling herself up. Then he had a few more requests to make. ¡®Appy, in case of any detected influence on my mind, alert me immediately. Regardless of what commands I give within the next two pages, keep and active. If mental manipulation is detected, please manipulate to improve my Skills as quickly as possible without exposing me to danger,¡¯ he thought at his friend. [Command received. I will keep you safe.] ¡®Thank you.¡¯ Alice was still looking at him, as he silently walked next to her, staring intently. But he was done with Appy for now. She¡¯d have his back, he knew that much. ¡°So, Alice, why tell me all this?¡± he asked. The woman regarded him for a while, then gave a sad smile. ¡°Because you deserve to know. We have common friends. The wind would hate for you to become a caged bird. And the rain¡­ I don¡¯t know if the rain would ever speak to me again if I simply let you walk into this trap.¡± ¡°Is that all?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Because we share friends.¡± ¡°No, I told you because I¡¯m kind,¡± Alice answered, entirely serious. They spent the rest of the walk in silence. After maybe a dozen minutes, Mercury was back at his house. Zyl was inside, currently cooking for the both of them. The dragon had taken to that, enjoying the use of his own flame on kitchenware. ¡°Hey Zyl,¡± Mercury started. ¡°Oh, Mercury! You¡¯re back already? How did your lessons go?¡± his boyfriend asked with a smile. The mopaaw grimaced. ¡°Well, the lessons went fine. Then I took a walk, met Alice over there, and now I have been informed that I will soon be invited to meet the fae courts.¡± Zyl¡¯s smile froze on his face. It slowly faded. ¡°... Ah.¡± He let out a huff of air, as if it was the only thing he could do. Then he frowned. ¡°So, you¡¯ll be dealing with trouble, then?¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Seems like it. Then again, when am I not?¡± he joked. No one laughed. Zyl gave him a mirthless frown, then schooled his expression to a neutral one with a deep breath. ¡°Okay. How can I help?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you can,¡± Mercury said honestly. ¡°I might need food with me?¡± Alice nodded. ¡°Yes. Some fae food would be entirely unsuitable for consumption. Substances which may be delicious to them may be severely hallucinogenic to you.¡± ¡°Okay. Yes. I can do that.¡± A determined expression settled onto Zyl¡¯s face. ¡°I¡¯ll make you the best damn lunchboxes anyone has ever had.¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°I don¡¯t doubt it for a moment.¡± With a quick hug, Mercury was off to tell Yasashiku the news. ¡°You WHAT?!¡± the old smith yelled, and Mercury once again worried about him having a heart attack. His worries were unfounded. Instead, the old man had to hold back from smacking Mercury with a hammer. Mercury was the one holding him back. With many ghostly arms. Granted, the smith probably wasn¡¯t using all his force to fight them. Still, his eyes were slightly red with anger. ¡°I swear, when will you settle into a proper apprenticeship?! You keep getting caught up in things! Smithing needs time and practice. It¡¯s an art. An art! I can¡¯t-¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mercury said. He meant it, too. ¡°I wish I could learn properly. I feel I have gotten better. I can hammer properly these days. Maybe even hear the metal¡¯s wishes a bit.¡± Yasashiku huffed. ¡°Hmpf! Metal¡¯s wishes, he says. When my damn apprentice can¡¯t even keep practicing!¡± He threw his hands into the air. ¡°I swear, if you weren¡¯t so unreasonably talented, I would¡¯ve stopped teaching you the first time you went off into a parallel dimension!¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°Unreasonably talented, eh?¡± The smith flushed. ¡°Gah! Just¡­ go! Take this and go! And make sure you return ready to learn!¡± With a quick flick, Yasashiku tossed Mercury a thing of metal, then quickly headed off into the smithy before the mopaaw had a chance to comprehend what he was given. Then he identified it. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. [: A box that holds so much more than it seems. Your master has gifted you your own workshop. Once, he sealed his own smithy in pandora, taking it with him to find you. Now, a smaller one is given to you. Learn. Ply your trade. Make him proud.] [Note: May be placed inside your log to expand the space with the beginning rudimentary equipment a blacksmith may need!] Mercury froze. His face burst into a smile. Without hesitation, he took the box, and placed it inside his log, letting the effect take hold as instantly, it unfolded. The walls on the inside of his log changed, as a new area was carved from that. The uneven bark floor was replaced by one of dark, glossy wood. It shone with a slight metallic gleam, and Mercury knew that the wood would not burn. There was a forge. Bellows attached to it. A small smeltery and a casting station to make rudimentary shapes of the metal. An anvil made from black metal that radiated faint bits of mana. Everything he could need. And it was beautiful. Mercury took a deep breath of the space he was gifted. His own workshop didn¡¯t smell like that of Yasashiku. The floor was not yet coated in coal dust and steel shrapnel. It was not yet broken in, so to speak. But it was, nonetheless, beautiful. Slowly, the mopaaw exited the log again, carefully placing it back into his inventory. He still had the Blanket of Dreams in there, and he would most likely be using it more often. Now, with little pandora added to the log, the outside had turned ever so slightly darker, and Mercury felt that he could cause it to become slightly larger or smaller if he wanted to. For now, though, he left the log unchanged, and simply stored it back in his inventory. There were a few more stops. His other friends took the news with a little less fanfare. Avery laughed, and told him to be back, while Marcel groaned about not even knowing how to file a fae appearing in Stormbraver, but they¡¯d figure it out. They wished him luck. Lucia and Iris were more surprised at the news than even Avery had been, but quickly wished him safe travels, and that he¡¯d return quickly. Funny. They had such faith that he would return; they didn¡¯t even doubt the possibility. Yvette was¡­ scared. Terrified by the idea of other wandering arches finding her, and turning her life back into chaos. But Mercury also saw it light a fire in her eyes. ¡°I won¡¯t lose this. Never again,¡± she said, under her breath. Mercury nodded. ¡°We won¡¯t. We¡¯ll protect it.¡± She looked at him, then nodded. ¡°Right. I¡¯m with you all the way, then. Never expected it when I taught you how to first use mana, but¡­ we¡¯re partners, now. We¡¯ll beat back the arches, and liv freely, alright?¡± Yvette extended her hand as she spoke, gritting her teeth, and Mercury shook it. Something was changing in the woman, something profound, but he couldn¡¯t provoke it. She would figure it out, surely. The system responded to desire, after all, and Yvette wanted nothing more than to be free to participate in society. The mages¡¯ guild seemed alright with the news, too. Elliot said a sad goodbye, Gilah didn¡¯t know whether to laugh or be stunned, and Esmeralda asked him to please bargain for magical secrets if they had any. He smirked, and said he¡¯d do his best. After just a few more stops, he went back to his house. To Zyl. The dragon gave him a sad smile, a long hug, and then placed two dozen lunch boxes in his log, where they would stay until Mercury needed to eat them. It was more than enough food to last him a page. With his Skills, he could make it last much longer than that. Then, they spent some time together, cuddling and enjoying a few more minutes before they were separated for an indeterminate amount of time. Eventually, after half an hour, which was far too short by Mercury¡¯s standards, the knock on the front door came, as surely as a noose being tied. With a somber sigh, Mercury went to open the door to his house. - - - - - - Tirador had been assigned a gathering job. It was a strange mix of emotions he felt at it. Humiliating? Yes, certainly, absolutely. That was the intent of it, too. Go to the plane of the mortals, grab a mopaaw, drag him in front of the courts so they could hear him. Yet, at the same time, being an envoy was¡­ strangely exciting! Being the first fae to see the new subject of the courts? What an experience! Perhaps, the best way to describe his feelings was to consider this a novel adventure. One he had low expectations and high hopes for. The world he had to trudge through, though? That was horrible. A city with roads carved from dead stone, with walls at their edges to keep out what? The wind? Bah. It wouldn¡¯t stop the damn local wind spirit if they put in even half an ounce of effort. Seeing such lowly human construction was despicable, but he bore with it. The smell on the streets was full of that of creatures. Humans and some half-kin moved about everywhere. Carrying, building, making. He frowned. They were so busy and few of them seemed truly happy with what they were doing. Still, the atmosphere was hopeful, he could appreciate that much at leat. Hope was rare in the courts. Swiftly with only a few steps, he had made his way to the house of the mark. It was a building made from wood, which was good, though the wood was dead, which was a disappointment. Unless? Tirador listened closely, and the wood whispered. Oh! How strange. How whimsical! Wooden planks that spoke?! He almost hopped on his feet and clapped right then, but a moment after he remembered the severity of his vision, schooled his face, and knocked. Then he turned and saw the Hero next to the door. His lips twisted into a frown of disapproval. What was she doing here? And she was paying him no mind at all? How rude of her, a fae of his status was surely due at least some attention, even with his latest blunder- His thoughts were interrupted as the door opened. His frown froze upon his face. He blinked. In front of him was a mopaaw, yes, that much was true. But¡­ he should not have truly expected a normal mopaaw. Really, he hadn¡¯t. Tirandor was expecting something strange, but the creature in front of him was beyond curious. Its eyes deep like murky pools, and the night sky in its fur. How delightful! Briefly, he wanted nothing but to tear it apart and see how it ticked inside. ¡°Uhm, hello?¡± Mercury asked. His eyes went wider. That was a nice voice, indeed. But it had called him from his reverie, and he stopped drooling for a moment. He reached out with his mind to speak in enchanting tones, as was common, yet felt as if he had touched a wall of burning steel. The creature in front of him narrowed its eyes, displeased. ¡°What was that about?¡± Tirandor looked at it, then to the Hero, and almost considered reaching out again, when he saw the creature bare its fangs. It was furious. What bravery and spirit! He wanted to see it crushed. ¡°Speak with your mouth,¡± Alice advised. ¡°The shape you take is not pointless.¡± ¡°Ah,¡± he said, a brief breath carving through his lungs. He hadn¡¯t been breathing at all until now. His guise was poor, then. ¡°A- Aaaaaa.¡± Hmm. His tongue, also, was not behaving as it should. ¡°Dear fae,¡± Mercury said. Were they dear? Perhaps, they must be if he said so. ¡°Your arms should not be long enough to reach the floor. You should not have a crown of sharp bones on your head. Why is your skin that of a human yet your skull that of a bear?¡± ¡°AAaaaa!¡± Tiranor vocalised. Air blew through his lungs, out his mouth, this strange shape not supporting speech properly. What a blunder~ He laughed, deep inside, keeping the chuckle muted on the outside. Instead, he morphed, using his to properly appear like an elf. ¡°Ah, ah,¡± he tested his voice. Yes, much better. No longer bestial and horrible. ¡°Mmh. Yes. I can work with this,¡± he mused to himself, enjoying the honeyed sound as he spoke. ¡°My name is Tiranor. May I have yours?¡± He decided to play a small trick, just as an introduction. Mercury gave him a long glance. ¡°No. I can tell you what you may call me, though.¡± Tiranor grinned wide, flashing too-sharp teeth. ¡°Oh, I would quite like that.¡± ¡°Fine. Call me Mercury.¡± ¡°Mercury,¡± he tested the sound, rolling it across his tongue. Yes, that was a fine name for someone of such¡­ hm. He did not know how to put what the creature had about itself. How strange. His smile grew even wider, too wide perhaps. ¡°Yes. That will do quite nicely.¡± Then, he stood in silence, and observed. ¡°I am told you are to take me to the fae courts.¡± ¡°Indeed, I am,¡± Tiranor sighed with difficulty. He was hoping to be roped into a pay, a back and forth, to stake all his existence on a slip of the tongue. ¡°Right to business?¡± ¡°Right to business,¡± the Hero told him. ¡°Will she be coming?¡± he asked, keeping only half the disgust from his voice. Mercury nodded at him. ¡°She will.¡± ¡°Hm,¡± Tiranor said. ¡°The courts will be displeased.¡± ¡°Let them,¡± Alice hummed, in that sing-songy voice of hers. Tiranor hated it. Such too-perfect mimickry. It was her clinging to the heritage she had before becoming a fae, and frankly, it was pathetic. Half the fun of mimickry was leaving little flaws for others to figure you out, wasn¡¯t it? He huffed. ¡°Fine, then. If you would have her as your retainer, she may come.¡± A small trap. Before the mopaaw could step into his little test, the Hero answered. ¡°I will be coming of my own volition, simply as yet another fae, with allegiances, of course. Mercury will still get a retainer, and the Hospitality of the First Visit.¡± The way those words rang out in the air seemed new to the creature, Tiranor noted. It was not used to fae speak. What a wonderful little plaything it was. Briefly, he reached out again with his mind- The thread broke before it even got close. ¡°Hey,¡± the thing hissed, those miles-deep eyes now focused on him. ¡°Do that again and I do the same to you.¡± Oh. Oh! ¡°Wonderful!¡± Tiranor whispered breathlessly. Then he laughed, his mouth splitting open, to bark out his humor in a bear¡¯s tone. Then, he gathered himself, schooling his expression and burying the emotions of delight. Indeed, a worthwhile trip. ¡°Forgive my attempts, it was simply-¡± ¡°No,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°You aren¡¯t forgiven,¡± he said. Tiranor blinked. He frowned. ¡°I see,¡± he said, as if testing the words. ¡°Do the courts await me eagerly, or do they wish to be kept waiting for longer by your testing and probing?¡± My oh my. The creature had some skill, then. Tiranor stifled a grin, licking his lips instead. What wonderful words it spoke. This Mercury. Yes, he would make quite the impression on the courts, surely. ¡°Indeed, they wish to wait no longer,¡± Tiranor said. ¡°Would you like to go there?¡± ¡°I do not believe what I like matters.¡± ¡°Would you like to face the consequences of not going?¡± Tiranor asked, his eyes wild with desire. The creature sighed. ¡°Get it over with. Open a door there and let me make my entrance on my own terms.¡± Out of the corner of his eyes, Tiranor saw the Hero smile. It was a practiced bit of talk then, and the mopaaw had been forewarned. He was almost disappointed. Perhaps he had attributed too much of the thing¡¯s fun to the creature itself, and too little to its tutor? ¡°Certainly,¡± he said out loud, keeping his thoughts to himself. Hopefully, the thing would entertain the courts further. With a gentle motion, he beckoned the creature out of its own house, then closed the door. A moment later, he opened the door again, though this time it led not inside the house, but somewhere else entirely. Behind the doorway, there was a wide ballroom, wooden floors that were brimming with life, leaves sprouting every few steps. Fae danced across those floors, their guises shifting as the sport demanded. Bloodsports were kept in a corner, where the red liquid was spilled readily and in great amounts, while the feasting was kept to another corner, lest one of the monsters in disguise there got too ravenous and consumed another''s head. Most wouldn¡¯t mind, but their human (and adjacent) ¡°guests¡± were oh so very fragile~. Tiranor saw the grimace form on the mopaaw¡¯s face with great delight. Introducing a new one to the pleasures of the fae was always such fun. There were only two options, after all, to bend to the whims of his masters, to thrive in this community by knowing when you¡¯d let others walk over you¡­ Or to break. With a sadistic glint, Tiranor hoped, as always, that this new guest would break. With a wide sweep of his too-long hands, with black, too-long nails, he indicated the doorway. ¡°Welcome,¡± he announced, ¡°to the fae courts!¡± Chapter 184: Strange Shapes Chapter 184: Strange Shapes Mercury stepped through the doorway, keeping his face neutral. As soon as he and his guide were through, the opening snapped shut behind them. In the fae realm, the atmosphere was different. The air felt frigid, hostile even. His instincts told him to be on guard, and with every new gaze landing on him, rang more alarm bells. Alice, too, joined them, not through Tiranor¡¯s gateway, though; she simply appeared in the air next to Mercury. When she did, there was a strange phenomenon. Suddenly, told him that the general danger had dropped, yet the individual danger posed by each fae seemed to have increased. Mercury swept the room with his gaze, seeing dozens of faces trained on him. They were in different shapes, some humanoid, most decorated in lavish, bright colours. Some were followed by a parade of monsters and people, while others stood all on their own. Many of the faces gazed a little to the side of him, at Alice. A couple looked at Tiranor, too. Perhaps asking why he had gotten guide duty? Yet most of them were staring at him, and all the ones that did looked¡­ hungry. Taking a deep breath, Mercury centered himself. The air smelled sickeningly sweet. He smelled metal, because there was an arena in a corner, and blood was busily being shed, accompanied by cheer. Those had quieted down a bit since he entered, though. The sweet scent was that of rot and decay and flowers blooming all at once. Soon, he found the reason for it, as someone approached him. It was a tall lady, probably almost two and a half meters. Her skin was green, with patches of colour, like a recently blooming grassy field. She smelled of rot and growth. Piercing white eyes from a gaunt, hollow face stared at Mercury, her long, thin arms looking branchlike and seemingly reaching for him. She wore a hat, though perhaps wearing wasn¡¯t the right word, since it was more a weaving of flowers that grew from her head. Her dress was a darker shade of green than her skin interwoven leaves dancing despite the windless air. Wordlessly, the lady gave Tiranor a long gaze. ¡°Right. Mercury, this is lady Whisperbloom, of the court of Blossom,¡± he introduced her, giving a low bow at his waist. Mercury stood, giving her a nod instead of a low bow, while Alice refused deference entirely. Silence hung in the air, as the lady regarded the mopaaw. hummed of danger, especially when she let out a longing sigh, her breath stinking of rot, leaving a mouth full of sharp teeth and a too long tongue decorated in flower blossoms. ¡°You have done your duty in bringing our guest well, Tiranor,¡± she said. Her voice was a warm wind that seemed to enter Mercury¡¯s skull without passing through his ears. A moment later her eyes lifted from Mercury¡¯s current attendant and locked onto the mopaaw himself. ¡°I did not expect such a curious specimen. Surely you would permit me to be its retainer?¡± Tiranor opened his mouth to speak, but Mercury answered quicker than that. ¡°I go by ¡®he¡¯, Whisperbloom.¡± Instantly, the hall erupted in whispers, even more faces trained onto the confrontation. The lady¡¯s face fell slightly, hunger replaced with a hint of rage. Mercury felt pressured, suffocating all of a sudden, the scent of carrion surrounding him. ¡°You will address me with my title,¡± the fae hissed. Mercury felt a pressure on his mind. A red hot rod of steel stabbing into his skull. The thing in front of him, wearing a facsimile of a humanoid shape was powerful, and cruel. She was making this interaction painful on purpose¡­ so Mercury fought back. With a quick twist of his mind, and a clever application of , he shattered the rod in half. For a moment, lady Whisperbloom flinched. Then, he lashed out right back. ¡°I agree to use your title if you agree to use my pronouns, creature,¡± he hissed. His own attack consisted of a simple , though it felt rather pointless, like he was slamming his body into a massive steel wall, yet the fae was rattled. Not because she was harmed, but because the exchange went slightly in Mercury¡¯s favour. She had hurt him, yes, but not left any damage, yet on the impregnable steel wall of her mind¡­ there was a scratch. The hunger in her eyes darkened, and the scent of carrion blew down on Mercury. For a moment, he distinctly thought about activating the storm in himself, but then held back, simply allowing and to cleave through the pressure. For a few more moments, the thing in front of him held. She stared at him with barely disguised morbid curiosity. Like she wanted to rip his legs off and see what was inside. But, in the end, she drew back. ¡°Acceptable,¡± she said, the pressure gone and her sickeningly sweet voice aloof. ¡°Well then, lady Whisperbloom. Does this conclude your probing?¡± Mercury asked Instantly, the whispers around them grew louder, almost suffocating. Then, a loud clap split the air, and all noise died down instantly. ¡°Now, now,¡± a voice rose from higher up. There was a banister around the ballroom, a second level for people to mingle. The person who spoke was another woman, Mercury guessed. Her voice was cool and chilly, fitting to the quality of air in the room he found himself in. Her face was gaunt, too, but rather than being green, it was pale and see-through. Like she was a statue carved from ice. Her features were also far less human than the other one, with her face of living ice having eyes carved all over it. No mouth, no nose, only eyes. She also had no eyes on her side, instead, a dozens or so arms seemed to appear from behind her, extending out to the side of her slim, long dress. A cold breeze replaced the sickeningly sweet smell around Mercury. Two of the woman¡¯s hands were shattered from a loud clap and already regrowing. One after another the eyes locked onto him and lady Whisperbloom. ¡°This guest enjoys my Hospitality of the First Visit, lay Whisperbloom. Do not overstep,¡± she said, and with every word the temperature dropped even more. Mercury felt the wood underneath his feet shift and contract in the icy temperatures, and at the same time he noticed that the floor was alive. Flowers of frost began to bloom from the wood, and turned Mercury¡¯s fur a little bit thicker. Another moment passed, then lady Whisperbloom took a step back. The many icy eyes twisted in pleasure, and the cold receded. ¡°Now, Mercury. I am assuming you are claiming the right of Hospitality?¡± she asked. ¡°Yes, I do.¡± A ripple went through the air and settled on his fur, and suddenly the air elt a little less oppressing. The eyes shifted slightly, barely perceptible to Mercury, but he could not tell what the woman was thinking. ¡°Accepted,¡± he voice rang out again. ¡°Then you shall receive a retainer. And be treated with forgiveness should you break customs. Anyone who offends my guest in my house will face the consequences.¡± Stillness filled the room, no one daring to approach Mercury. Strange, still warned him of the lady who had just seemingly discouraged anyone else from attacking him. The eyes twisted again, turning slanted. ¡°Would you accept my hand in picking out a retainer?¡± Mercury frowned. ¡°What would your help entail?¡± The woman leaned forward, over the banister, four of her many hands wrapping around it. Those she had lost to her loud clap had regrown by now. She regarded him with her dozens of eyes, though some at the edge were surveying the hall, and shifted again. ¡°I would give you a smaller selection of people to pick from, who I believe would be qualified.¡± Lady Whisperbloom scoffed. ¡°All from your court of Chill, then?¡± Mercury was sure he felt some mirth from the ice-lady of many eyes. ¡°Perhaps.¡± A new person spoke up, this one even less human than the others. It was a cloud of ash, with bits and bobs of gold slowly levitating, like planets around a sun. The creature shifted, assuming different shapes. That of a tree, then that of a featureless humanoid, then that of some kind of raven, before settling into formlessness again. ¡°Inacceptable,¡± the voice rang out. It was barely a whisper, yet Mercury heard it clearly. Ancient and demanding, full of loss and willingness to make others lose. It lacked sadism, though, and seemed simply retaliatory. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°Dust demands your selection be more varied. I additionally volunteer as retainer.¡± The lady of many eyes regarded the cloud of broken bits. The air seemed cold, frozen even, but then the silence was shattered. ¡°I volunteer as retainer,¡± another voice called out. ¡°I also volunteer.¡± ¡°Yes, I think I would quite enjoy being this one¡¯s retainer~¡± Dozens of voices suddenly spoke up, asking for Mercury¡¯s attention. His mouth slowly fell into a scowl. His mind raced as he thought of how to best make use of this situation, but his time for thinking was cut short. Another shattering clap shut off any chatter in the ballroom. Mercury looked at the icen lady, four of her hands shattered all at once this time. ¡°Silence. Fine, then. Guest,¡± she said, looking at Mercury. ¡°You have seen how quickly the courts devolve into chaos. You find yourself in this one¡¯s house. You may call me Witness. The courts seem eager to make your acquaintance. Please, pick a retainer, and pick well.¡± Once more Mercury found himself facing a thinly veiled threat. Everyone in the ballroom seemed to be holding their breath, waiting for his decision. His mind raced. There were fae courts, because of course there were. There were definitely the four seasons. Spring, thought was called Blossom, as well as Winter, though it was called Chill. Yet, the cloud of Dust didn¡¯t seem to fit into that schematic, so there were more courts. Clearly, picking a retainer was complicated. It could mean his allegiance for the future, and he did not want to mess this up with a poor choice. He needed to pick someone reliable, or someone without any proper allegiance. A small idea sparked in his mind. ¡°May I choose anyone in this room?¡± he asked, carefully. Witness regarded him coolly. Her voice rang out again. ¡°Any who wish to not be the guest¡¯s retainer shall leave this ballroom.¡± Not a single soul moved. Mercury found himself with a small smile on his face. He felt it, after all. Everything in this room was alive. He had friends here, even if the fae didn¡¯t know it. A single tiny flower had broken through the frost covering the floor, and began growing next to him. A long, almost welcoming stalk of grass. He sunk deeper into ihn¡¯ar, breaking through both veils, and the world swam with colours instantly. It felt like an illusion, all around him, and all these fae were revealed to only be wearing shells, though ones that were close to their true selves¡­ mostly. One, however was entirely true to themselves. It was also humongous, and surrounded them all. Silently, Mercury reached out with a request. A name. ¡®Arbre.¡¯ The smile turned into a grin. He could tell that Arbre was, at least somewhat, positively dispositioned towards him. ¡°I would like to take Arbre as my retainer,¡± he called out confidently. Every soul in the room froze. For a moment, no one moved. The moment dragged on eternally, then Mercury felt ring out a hundred thousand warnings. Suddenly the air was freezing and burning and suffocating. It felt like his blood was boiling in his veins, yet freezing at the same time. He couldn¡¯t breathe in the slightest, but he was already in ihn¡¯ar, so slipping into came almost effortlessly, and suddenly, he dispelled the suffocation. At his skin, everything stopped. He felt¡­ just fine. ¡°A retainer has been selected,¡± Witness¡¯ voice rang through the air. It sounded like a hundred breaking icicles, and if she could, Mercury would wager she would be throwing him a truly cruel smile. There were dozens of gazes on him. Hundreds. Each of them was supremely hungry, threatening to test and devour him, the monsters barely holding back because of Hospitality. Only two of the gazes were friendly. That of Alice¡­ and that of Arbre, the tree he found himself in, itself. was his ally after all, and while the tree wasn¡¯t exactly grass¡­ well, it was close enough, really. The gazes on him were broken, when the floor itself shook slightly. A figure rose from it, entirely carved from polished, dark wood. The figure was featureless, a human puppet, more like a faceless mannequin, yet it still wore a fancy hat with a large feather like from a pirate movie. In general, its attire seemed ready for seafaring. ¡°Ahhhh,¡± the voice that it exuded was deep and inexhaustible and ancient. ¡°So many people in charge of this house over the acts, yet none call upon me. Now you do? It has been so long since I have assumed this form¡­¡± ¡°Indeed. I do hope you don¡¯t quite mind me interrupting your slumber?¡± Mercury asked, keeping his voice even and polite. ¡°Speak freely with me, Mercury,¡± they said, then chuckled. The laugh was hoarse and hollow, but nevertheless quite filled with mirth. ¡°I am your retainer, after all. There shall be no offense taken by me today¡­ from you, that is.¡± With those words, Arber sweeped the hall with a long gaze, and dozens of monstrously sadistic creatures withered under their gaze. They smiled, carving a facsimile of a mouth onto their empty face for a moment before it vanished again. ¡°I see I am still respected. That much is good.¡± Witness stood up on the banisters, gazing down at them. ¡°You call upon my house as your retainer, Mercury. Clever, I admire this trick. How did you know its name?¡± If Arber was bothered by being called ¡°it¡±, they didn¡¯t show it. Instead, they simply turned that empty face at Mercury, as if to inform him that there was no need to fret. Whatever he said would not be out of line. ¡°I simply looked closely, lady Witness,¡± Mercury said, without a hint of deference. ¡°If you open yourself up to the world, it is easy to find friends.¡± For a moment, it seemed as if Witness wished to speak, but then Arber laughed. ¡°Ararara! Quite well said. Perhaps we are kindred spirits, then, Mercury. I would not mind that.¡± ¡°It remains to be seen, I suppose.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± With those words, silence hung heavily in the hall for a little while. No one seemed to dare move, until, once again a mouth appeared on Arber¡¯s face, twisted into a frown. They released their hands from being clasped behind their back, and waved them around. ¡°Back to normal, everyone! At ease,¡± they commanded. Sluggishly, like a giant machine slowly being turned on, the fae all around returned to their normal biddings. Tiranor had long since vanished from Mercury¡¯s side, and the mopaaw was now flanked by Alice to his right and Arber to his left. Confidently, the avatar of the giant tree took a step forward. The fae around were often much taller, many of them larger than two meters, yet the crowd parted wherever they stepped. Arber looked back at Mercury with that blank, expressionless face. Their voice rang out again, as deep and unfathomable as ever. ¡°Come on, then! As a retainer I might as well show you around, no?¡± The constructed body of polished wood stepped forward some more, each step carving a tiny highway into the floor for Mercury to walk on. People threw him dozens of glances, some hungry, some impressed, many envious. Arber, though, continued speaking. Their voice, however, didn¡¯t ring out through the entire hall anymore, instead it was as though they simply talked quietly to Mercury and Alice. Strangely, though, that should have been heard by the nearby fae, and yet never was. ¡°Over there is the bar, dear Mercury. It is where you go for food and drink. Trust nothing anyone else has touched. In fact, trust nothing at the bar, actually. Many of these things have been made by the fae, many of them spiked with powerful psychedelics. Ah, but your fragment of gluttony may help you break those down.¡± ¡°That over there is the arena. These warriors are sent to fight against beasts or each other. Many of them are puppets of the fae, those who made poor deals. They especially like preying on the cruel, so many of the fighters you will see are twisted, horrible creatures. But some are also unspeakably kind, because blood is blood and death is death.¡± ¡°Occasionally, they¡¯ll kill creatures, too, you see. Those are especially dangerous, because, well, let¡¯s just say that the lands outside of my own halls are¡­ thoroughly uninhabitable.¡± They allowed themselves a wry chuckle as they slid along the floor, half merged with it. The feather on their pirate hat, however, bobbed along believably. ¡°It is possible to actually participate in the fights yourself, though it may win you little favour. Ah, but I have been showing you around. I should give you a few ground rules.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t thank anyone. Don¡¯t give anyone your apologies. You may appreciate things, you may mean no offense, but avoid phrases that provide openings. Fae are cruel and insidious. Always watch your words.¡± ¡°Never insult someone directly. Let your gaze linger where it is wished for. People here carve their bodies as artworks, and you will know where your gaze belongs and where it does not. You are among the fair folk, and you will view them as fair or risk ugly things befalling you.¡± ¡°Do not make deals. You may have interacted with devils; they are tame. Devils make deals for the sake of deals, fae however make deals only for the sake of their own gain.¡± Mercury interrupted for a moment, still following along on their strange highway. ¡°How about you?¡± Arber chuckled, hands clasped behind their back. ¡°Arara, no, no. I have gained enough from deals. I am unmoving, stable. The fair folk have their deals with me, and they are simple ones. I allow them shelter, they respect my rules and my tribute. Simple as.¡± ¡°And what does it mean to be my retainer?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°That, yes. See, fae love rules, but are truly horrible at controlling themselves. Up until now, a dozen have tried to contact you, and three would have used this contact to attempt to dominate your mind. I doubt they would have succeeded, though - your mind is quite spectacular for your age.¡± The news made Mercury grimace, which Arber noted and flashed a short smile on their facsimile face. ¡°Ah but worry not, scallywag. I am your retainer. It is my duty to intercept this, and only allow conversation when it is made in good spirit. In fact, due to First Hospitality, I have the right to deal out a punishment to those who attempt to touch upon you with anything but words. Trust that those who wished to harm you have received sufficient¡­ let¡¯s say compensation.¡± After their words a chuckle rang out with that same ancient voice, though it was hollow and sinister and devoid of mirth this time. There was no amusement, simply a valiant sweep of the room. ¡°Now, for the last part of the tour of this ballroom¡­ the second floor is for those who wish to watch, and are above simple politics. Currently, this encompasses very few fae¡­ we love to mingle, you see. Even lady Witness - the current patron of this house of mine - has stepped down by now, as you may see. In fact, we may speak with her soon¡­¡± Once more, Arber moved, taking a hand from behind their back. Instantly, its shape deformed, and a moment later, they held an entirely wooden spyglass. It had no lenses at all, in fact, instead of lenses there was opaque wood at each end. Still, Arber lifted it to their face, and acted as though gazing through it. ¡°Let me see, really. Aha! There, there! Land ahoy!¡± Then they turned to Mercury. ¡°Uhm¡­ that means there is someone who might actually be permitted to speak to you. Use your mind, and you will do just fine. Lessons are over, landrat, now prove your might on the seas! ¡­ Of politics.¡± And sure enough a cloud of ash was approaching Mercury, feelers of thin filament tasting the air as the main body shifted through different forms, as if trying to find a suitable one. Soon enough, Mercury found himself face to face with a panther, made of shifting ash. Flakes of it constantly fell to the ground, then rejoined the center mass. Additionally, feelers of ash still orbited the creature, carrying bits of golden jewellery or beautifully mesmerising constructs made of more burnt particulate. ¡°Greetings, Mercury. I am Celash from the court of Dust. Would you be amicable to some conversation?¡± Chapter 185: Careful Conversing Chapter 185: Careful Conversing Celash was difficult to read, honestly. Mainly due to the shifting features. Still, Mercury felt like he could at least somewhat understand the fae¡¯s intentions by monitoring their aura. The panther-like figure was wrapped in a dark haze to Mercury¡¯s mind, which spoke of decay. He was almost tempted to ask for the fae¡¯s age, but decided against it for now. Instead, he simply settled for a nod. It was important to find himself allies in the courts, and while Arber and Alice seemed okay, they were not truly a part of the courts. ¡°Certainly. Though I doubt you need my introduction.¡± The fae¡¯s aura swivelled in what Mercury guessed to be amusement. ¡°I do not.¡± They said no more, leaving room for Mercury to speak. He thought for a moment, picking his words carefully. ¡°Perhaps, then, with the time usually spent on telling you what to call me, you could tell me a bit more about the court you belong to?¡± ¡°Dust?¡± they asked, their aura flickering again, this time to a darker shade. The grains of ash shifted slightly, the jewellery rotating slightly faster. ¡°I suppose I could.¡± Once again they stopped speaking. ¡°It would be a kind gesture.¡± Amusement flickered through them again. ¡°I suppose so.¡± The swirling slowed down again to a far more relaxed tempo. ¡°Yes. Dust. One of many fae courts. Nowadays, we are almost closer to a house, however.¡± ¡°You see, time erodes everything away, and this is what the court of Dust bands around,¡± they explained. Their voice was melodic, if raspy. ¡°Many of the courts cling to faded glory. Dust is both changing and static. At the end, there will be Dust. The path there may change, but the outcome is set in stone. Representing decay, it is only natural that our court, too, decays.¡± ¡°Would you be willing to inform me about the other courts?¡± They huffed for a moment, in a display of animalism. It was a small but strangely comforting movement of air, even if it sent the ash billowing. ¡°There are many other courts. The courts of the seasons, always at each other''s throats. The shifting courts. The courts of expansion and the courts of renewal¡­ It would be pointless to name them when houses rise and fall like the tides.¡± Arber interjected. ¡°It is useful to know what the courts stand for. Setting sail without a map is ill advised. Learning to maneuver this landscape, though, is a long endeavour, and one that we will deal with after your first outing if you are amicable to that.¡± Mercury simply nodded, then turned back to Celash. ¡°Then that will be sufficient. Do you speak for yourself or your court?¡± he asked. The panther of ash straightened, standing a little taller, a little prouder, and giving off a more significant presence. ¡°Up until now I spoke for myself, but I must also speak to you as a representative of Dust.¡± ¡°Acceptable,¡± Mercury said. With a nod, Celash continued. ¡°The courts are in strife. This is nothing new, of course, but for the first time, we stand on the precipice of advancement. Things rarely change here, and one such as yourself¡­ is a rather large change.¡± For once, their dark aura flashed with hunger. ¡°Seeing one of the sins fall, even if it was more the disassembly of a rotting corpse, was quite impressive. My court would like to bargain for space upon this frontier of yours, on the remains of your fragment of gluttony. We wish to acquire territory-¡± ¡°Ah, so this is what this is all about,¡± Mercury hummed. Finally, it made sense. Sure, some of these fae were happy to just see someone new to toy with, but people had been frustrated during this first outing. He had something they wanted, after all. ¡°You wish for space in my dreams?¡± The word rang out more loudly than it should, landing with weight. Not quite as heavy as the meaning of Hospitality, but certainly heavily enough. Celash lowered its head. ¡°Indeed.¡± Mercury clicked his tongue. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°To expand, of course. Territory which will naturally fall to time should be under the purview of Dust in the first place. We would-¡± ¡°No, no,¡± Mercury interrupted. Perhaps he was being rude, but Celash had made the very simple mistake of stating their desire first. Now, Mercury knew what most people in this hall wanted from him. He saw a small grin flash across Alice¡¯s features, then vanish again. ¡°I¡¯m sure I can intuit why you would want this. Why should I give you anything?¡± Celash gave off a tiny wisp of confidence. ¡°We can bargain. Our court holds weight in the political landscape of the fae realm.¡± ¡°You would have me give up a piece of myself, my territory, something I have built up by my own virtue, for weight?¡± Mercury almost added a scoff at the end, but decided his intonation was enough. There were a few avenues Mercury could see Celash taking this discussion. First, they could refute his effort and state that this was simply his due to theft. But that would be an insult, and Mercury would have no reason to tolerate it. Maybe they could offer more, or try to downplay the importance of his ¡°territory¡±. But he was fairly certain they would go another route¡­ ¡°Surely you do not quite understand what it means to have the favour of another court,¡± they said. Bingo. Trying to play on his lack of knowledge was easy, but showed their lack of faith. Plus, it was something he could capitalize on. ¡°You misunderstand, Celash,¡± Mercury said. ¡°It is not that I underestimate your weight. It is that I do not care for it. The ruler of all fae could very well offer me their weight and I would still decline.¡± ¡°Accepting this offer of yours would be a debilitating mistake for me, Celash. You see, I specifically picked Arber as my retainer to remain without allegiance to any of the courts. As soon as I am seen picking sides, all other courts will attempt to win me over, by force, most likely.¡± ¡°So, Celash. Please, correct me if at any point I am wrong, but gaining the favour of your court this way, would it not make me a target for all other faerie courts at once? Does your weight truly stand up against each and every other faerie in this very room, and against what they represent?¡± While he was talking, Mercury could see it happen in real time. The greed of the courts had gotten to them. Their offer was pitiful, hoping to prey on his lack of knowledge, but he had read faerie stories before. Now, as he was talking, he saw his action take effect. Eyes snapped towards the four of them, landing on Celash with a heavy gaze. Seeing the court of Dust try to snatch what everyone wanted, this new toy. Offering a pitiful prize. Then the eyes changed to him, and the room went quieter. Whispers and hushed laughter were silenced. Groans of pain and pleasure disappeared. Nobody ate from the buffet. Nobody stepped on the dance floor. The gladiators in the arena went silent. Almost comically, a change spread through the room. Each and every fae present realized how things were. That Mercury would not simply be easy prey, but try to slither and maneuver. Some of them grew more hungry, but most simply became more intense. Because, while they knew what he was doing, they had to play along. That was how high society worked, after all. Everyone, together, pretended at civility. So, masterfully, each and every fae hid their animosity to Mercury. But he saw it. In their auras, they way those hazes that clung to their skin, or whatever else kind of thing they currently wore. Those ethereal presences shifted and darted, to hostility and respect, to hunger and need, to wariness and playful humor. And they all focused on Celash with displeasure. The cloud of ash knew they messed up, but had no way to take back what they said. There was no retreating, no hope, only the possibility of salvaging an already committed mistake. It bowed its panther-shaped head. ¡°This denial shall be received. I see that our offer was inadequate. We hope that despite this failure, our parting here shall be on amicable terms, and that we may eventually bring this discussion to a satisfactory conclusion.¡± Then, the cloud disappeared, slithering back into formlessness and into the crowd. Celash had only assumed the shape of a panther in hopes of seeming more familiar to Mercury. Getting him to let his guard down. But he knew better than that. Instead, he sent the court of Dust packing with a whole lot more hidden hostilities. Would they lash out at him for this? Perhaps, but most likely not. Celash had retreated with polite words, attempting to stop talking to Mercury without any hostilities left behind. Could Dust even afford to hurt him? Yes. More than certainly. He shouldn¡¯t get cocky. But would they hurt him? Most likely not. The other courts wanted a piece of him, too, and now they would be suspect number one if anything happened. Honestly, it would be in their best interest to defend him, if they didn¡¯t want to put an even bigger strain on goodwill with the other courts. Arber smiled as Celash retreated. ¡°You sure braved that storm, matey!¡± they said. ¡°Good on you for not burning any bridges, either. Keep this up and you¡¯ll be just fine. Just don¡¯t get cocky, since the sea is unforgiving¡­¡± They paused dramatically, then added. ¡°Anyway, I think our next encounter is coming up. Best of luck, scallywag.¡± A moment later, the crowd parted for lady Witness. Her thin, icy silhouette was surrounded by the arms spreading from her back. They almost formed a full circle around her, some empty, some clutching drinks, plates, or wrapped around things Mercury could not determine yet. The animated ice statue walked with confidence, stopping slightly closer than Mercury found comfortable. She was tall, too, like many of the fae around. They seemed to prefer inhumanly tall figures, probably because of some disdain of being looked down upon. Which is exactly what lady Witness did to him for a moment. Arber nodded to the current occupant of their house, and the lady nodded back, then all her dozens of eyes finally focussed on Mercury. She remained silent for a long while. Mercury took the time to study her aura. It was a haze of cold, almost like breathing out frosty mist on a winter day, but it was far more intense than that. Rather than frost mist, it seemed to suck the warmth right out of him. It was colder and more cruel than even the harshest days of winter.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. There was hardly a comparison for him to strike. Her aura was that of cessation. Of a heart beating for the final time before hypothermia claimed another victim. The inevitable knowledge that no one would rescue you, no one would find you, and you would be buried and freeze alone. It sent shivers down his back, but he suppressed the urge. Despite the fact that he was staring down a cruel, raging blizzard of a presence, he was not defenceless. With a small twist of his mind, he relied on ihn¡¯ar, to summon a fraction of his own storm. A simple bubble around himself, twisting his into a simple, windy shield. For a moment, he felt a clash, like her aura was trying to freeze his silvery drops. Then, a dozen of her eyes widened and her presence retreated. The blizzard flashed with surprise, as though howling upon having found a warmer wind blowing it aside. ¡°Mercury. I believe if this were not your First Visit, I would be killing you right now,¡± she said. He looked at her, studied her myriad eyes and the frozen mist of her presence, and the arms that clutched the drinks. Nothing gave anything away. She was perfectly cool and in control of herself. Poised beyond belief. That gave away how unsettled she was. Such control would usually never be necessary, not when facing someone less powerful than you. In fact, she hadn¡¯t shown such control before. ¡°Hardly,¡± he intoned casually. ¡°I find myself thinking that perhaps you were testing me, really, and I believe if I were unkind, I could very well take offense at that.¡± The lady blinked. It happened in a wave that spread across her face from left to right, eye after eye closing then reopening. ¡°I see. Perhaps we have misunderstood each other. I did not mean to test you.¡± ¡°And I did not mean to offend you, but your cold was suffocating.¡± She paused, as if thinking, then shifted slightly. Mercury felt he understood. ¡°Your body,¡± she intoned carefully. ¡°It is crafted from flesh and blood?¡± He blinked. ¡°It is not crafted at all, lady Witness.¡± Once more, a wave of blinks crossed her face. ¡°I see,¡± she said slowly, and the cruel cold withdrew further. Now, only its edges brushed up against his Rain. ¡°I did not mean to overstep.¡± That kind of almost apology seemed rare. He decided to accept it as best as he could for now. ¡°I see your intentions. Is it unusual for fae to have bodies of flesh?¡± She nodded once. ¡°Quite. Many mimic them when going out of the fae realm, but life here is hostile. Fleshy confinements are impractical, and often have too many failings. Many young fae who experiment perish as such. Approximations of flesh only truly matter when entering a world with more stringent rules - a world such as yours, I presume?¡± ¡°Perhaps. I know that world also has creatures less fleshy than I. But as far as I know, blood and muscle is frequently found in living beings there.¡± Once more lady Witness nodded. ¡°Yes. I should have considered this. My presence is already overbearing to some fae, though I thought I¡¯d restrained it enough. Pushing against a presence is usually seen as a sign of either weakness or rebellion. Rebelling against a host is considered a grave offense.¡± ¡°I see. I shall take this knowledge to heart in the future,¡± Mercury replied. ¡°An amicable reaction. I am happy we did not have a confrontation.¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± The lady paused, once more, then moved slowly. One of her many arms grew¡­ opaque. Like tiny bubbles of air formed in the ice. He realised she was making it warmer, so it wouldn¡¯t harm him in being closer. Then she lowered it. On her extended appendage, there was a plate with some food. It looked like¡­ sushi. Rice with fish and vegetables laid atop it. Except the rice was pink, and some of the things laid atop the sushi still squirmed, even the vegetables. ¡°I have brought things from the banquet. Perhaps you would like to partake?¡± Mercury gently shook his head. ¡°Sadly, I must decline. Currently, I do not know how my body would react.¡± ¡°You carry a small aspect of gluttony within you, do you not?¡± lady Witness asked, tilting her head. But the cold, close around her, was still sharp and insidious. ¡°Indeed. That does not mean I will rely solely on it, lady Witness, when I can avoid such trouble.¡± The lady nodded, then withdrew her hand. ¡°A pity,¡± she said. ¡°The cooks of this house of mine are quite outstanding.¡± ¡°I do not doubt their ability, I simply doubt my constitution,¡± he said. ¡°As far as I am aware, your cuisine can be quite intense.¡± About half the eyes blinked, leaving her face a sort of grid-like pattern of open and closed ones. It seemed to be in amusement. ¡°Intense indeed. Care is a valuable tool, Mercury. You wield it well.¡± ¡°Your compliments are received,¡± Mercury said. By now, the lady Witness had lowered her head quite a bit. Her head was closer to his, though it required her to bow down a lot. ¡°Now, lady Witness, is there anything you would require to talk to me about?¡± She hesitated for a half moment, then sighed. ¡°There always is,¡± she admitted. ¡°As you are in my house for your First Visit, I am obliged to ascertain whether your retainer is suitable for you. Has Arber performed to your satisfaction?¡± she asked. The tree turned their head towards the lady Witness and Mercury could swear they looked offended. He chuckled. ¡°Arber has been an invaluable guide.¡± ¡°And I perform my duties without desire for recompense,¡± they added, shutting down the snake-like look in Witness¡¯ eyes down within a moment. Instead of a pounce, her reaction became a stifled, albeit pleased nod. ¡°Good. I hope to keep your stay within my house to your satisfaction. You have your retainer. If you require any additional staff or services for maintenance of your shell, they shall be provided as long as you are amicable.¡± Pride swung within her voice. She would do this without a price, because it would be unbecoming for a fae to not make sure another¡¯s outside was cared for during their stay. It told Mercury that he was in no danger of being stabbed with a physical knife, from most fae, at least. He had noticed multiple much more material servants by now. Still, he let a small smile creep onto his face. ¡°I am amicable to a warm and soft bed at night. I am assuming the courts would like my presence for more than one day?¡± ¡°I may not speak for all courts, but Chill certainly would, yes. The average duration of a stay can vary wildly, of course, and you are free to leave anytime, however, the Hospitality of a First Visit always lasts for a full page or until the fae realm is left, whichever occurs sooner.¡± Ten days, then. That was how long he had to learn the rules. Mercury nodded. ¡°I am amicable to staying the night, at least.¡± ¡°A bed shall be prepared, then.¡± He eyes lifted for a moment, eyeing the wooden mannequin to his side. ¡°Given that Arber is your retainer, I imagine I will not need to inform you of its location?¡± The tree manifested a wisp of a smile again. ¡°This avatar is more than capable of guiding this one¡¯s charge to any rooms required.¡± ¡°Arber¡¯s guidance is acceptable, yes.¡± Once more, lady Witness nodded. ¡°There is more to discuss, of course, but I shall not monopolize your time. The other courts will take more of it upon themselves. I hope your impression of the court of Chill remains positive. In the unlikely case you are troubled beyond your retainer¡¯s means, feel free to reach out anytime.¡± With that, she spun around, her dress of snowflakes and icicles clinking and chiming as she moved, and then she disappeared beyond view into the middle of the crowd. This time, far fewer people dared to have their eyes drift onto the conversation. Quite apparently, lady Witness wielded considerable power in her house. Otherwise, Mercury was sure that lady Whisperbloom would have approached him during their talk. Now, the lanky fae sauntered over, bringing with her the smell of decay and regrowth. He felt a shiver run down his spine again, entirely different from the one he had before. Lady Witness was certainly fearsome in her own right, cold and calculating, but she was also very adherent to Hospitality. Whisperbloom though¡­ seemed less beholden to the concept. A bright smile was placed upon her face and the air around her smelled sickeningly sweet. Arber turned their featureless face at the approaching lady for a long while. She took her sweet time coming over, too, picking up a drink from one place, a bit of food from another. Once, she snatched a piece of candy straight from Tirandor¡¯s hands. Though the man who had picked Mercury up was also different now. No longer wearing a human guise, for one, he had instead set the skull of a wolf onto a wooden, rooted, entangled frame. Flowers blossomed and rotted away on the tangled branches of his body. Still, Mercury recognized the fae by his aura. A moment later, Whisperbloom stood in front of him again. Arber seemed troubled, like this was an inbound disaster they found no way to prevent, and Mercury immediately went on even higher alert. The fae smiled, then the smile twisted into a grin. ¡°Worried, little one?¡± she asked, her voice innocent and melodic and tantalizing. Mercury took a deep breath, then realized he was inhaling the smell. For a moment, he felt his head go a little fuzzy. Fuck that. Instantly, he summed a storm in his lungs, bubbling up and letting oxygen course through his veins without breathing. He sealed off the interaction of his mana with the surroundings, instead drawing his entire presence into the confines of his fleshy shell. Even the pinprick of power that symbolized was withdrawn into his mortal frame. ¡°My vessel is vulnerable to yours, it seems,¡± he said, forcing his voice to be even. [ has levelled up! 3>] It helped, even if just a little. The fae tilted her head in a way that would have been charming on a less inhuman creature. ¡°Vulnerable? What a strange way to say compatible,¡± she said, wearing a wicked grin. ¡°Walk with me.¡± Rather than providing a choice, though, Mercury felt the wood underneath him shift. That had not been a request. A small show of force, and a promise of greater harm applied should he decline. With a bit of reluctance in his stomach, he let the floor guide him, then walked alongside the fae. ¡°Are you here to speak with me on the behalf of court Blossom?¡± he asked. Lady Whisperbloom laughed, a chiming, beautiful sound. ¡°No, no. Blossom is¡­ how do I say this? Perhaps¡­ unorganized. Yes. My court is unorganized.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Mercury said simply, focussing on putting one foot in front of the other. ¡°Then why do you speak to me?¡± The lady smiled. ¡°For fun,¡± she said. Then remained silent, her gaze boring into him, beckoning him to speak, to continue this conversation. He obliged, for now. ¡°For fun?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Indeed,¡± lady Whisperbloom said with a smile, gesturing at the hall. ¡°You see, this is a normal ball with people I have known for hundreds of chapters, and servants that have never mattered in all that time. Everyone here is cunning and dangerous, but they¡¯re not new. Unlike you, Mercury.¡± Yellow sap dribbled down from her cheek, impacting the floor and soaking into the wooden boards. Her hands, too long and too thin, snapped through the air. She gestured at the arena. ¡°Blood is spilt, but these fleshy nobodies will be stitched back together. New beasts will be found in the realm and sent here to be carved down. It is a mocking display of brutality, but it has lost all purpose. Why spill blood if nothing grows of it? No,¡± she shook her head. ¡°It is pointless.¡± Slowly her face turned, her silken robes shuffling. ¡°The banquet¡­ is full of delights, yet I have tasted them all. The hall is full of fae yet I have tasted them all. Anything here that is within my reach has already entertained me.¡± She paused, then drew in a long, longing breath of air. ¡°I have no desire to revitalize old rivalries. No desire to dance with old destriers. No desire for any of it. Blossoming is about all the old breaking apart and leaving room for the new.¡± She huffed. ¡°I do not want stagnation. I can barely tolerate another second of boredom. So. My offer is simple. You can win my favour so very, unbelievably easily. Entertain me, Mercury.¡± ¡°Dance with me. Let our destinies entwine for a moment until fate inevitably rips us apart again. Let our union be sweet and our parting be full of pain and rage. I wish to live. It is that simple!!¡± By the end of her speech, lady Whisperbloom was panting, a manic glint in her eye. She was drooling sap from both sides of her mouth, and Mercury could see that her¡­ shell, as they were called, was clearly under the effects of some psychedelics. He could tell that something new was rare in these realms, and that the simple thought of something new made her desires boil and bubble. In fact, he could tell more gazes were upon him now. More fae from the court of Blossom he guessed, their eyes locked onto him. But they were weak. He could see it all, after all. Their auras were wispy breezes, all of them, but that of lady Whisperbloom was different. It was solid, ancient, one full of desire and power and long buried fury. Should he risk an interaction? A glance at Arber told him there was little choice. Of course, he could refuse but¡­ to refuse spring was a transgression, at the end. He read Arber¡¯s subtle fluctuations. Their connection was stronger now, and Mercury could tell. Feel the precipice of growth tugging on . He could almost read the tree¡¯s thoughts. It was unwise to refuse the court of Blossom. Instead, it was best to keep new experience hidden away, sheltered, tantalizing secrets to manipulate and string along. The dance with spring was cruel and dangerous, since the fae of Blossom were unforgiving and ravenous. Pull too much, and you would be devoured whole. Give too little, and you would be devoured whole. It was safest to not draw their eyes at all, but not drawing their eyes meant stagnation, and stagnation was something Mercury simply could not afford. A small sigh escaped his lips. ¡°Lady Whisperbloom,¡± he spoke. The words came slowly, yet the fae¡¯s attention snapped onto him like a predator locking onto prey. Her pupils were thin, barely visible against the bright yellow-white of her eyes. She was holding her breath, awaiting his answer. ¡°My current shell may be inadequate for a true, physical dance with you. But, perhaps, it can service to spill a secret or two.¡± Instantly, her attention was even more rapt. He could see her spine curl, her face bending lower, closer to his. The sap leaking from her mouth grew radiant, not simply orange but glimmering. She was hungry, so desperately hungry. Starving. Mercury knew he had to make an impression that lasted. So, what could he afford to let them know? What secrets could he keep? Ihn¡¯ar had to remain secret. Its name, its origin, all of that. But they knew about his dreamscape, so certainly they knew of the concept of dreamweaving. Perhaps, then something from that language? Something about himself. To make him seem more dangerous, more worthwhile to keep around, to keep as an ally. He had it. ¡°You see, Mercury is only one of my names. I granted this one to myself. However, perhaps to you, another alias could be more tasteful?¡± The world, alias, was another one of those words that slammed into reality. The system was powerful here, too. ¡°I am, after all, Yr¡¯Enzel as much as I am Mercury.¡± His declaration slammed into reality even harder than the concept of Hospitality. Chapter 186: Mellow鈥檚 Desperation Chapter 186: Mellow¡¯s Desperation The effect of his name was almost immediate. It resonated with the fae realm differently than other things had. Hospitality itself was deeply ingrained in the fae, a concept each of them abided by. They respected it, enough for the world itself to take that respect and amplify it. But his name? It was nothing like that. There was not a single fae out there that held association or belief in his name. Why would they, after all? None of them had even hear Yr¡¯Enzel before. There wasn¡¯t nearly as much historic significance behind it. Instead, though, it was granted by old Uunrahzil. Perhaps their unrelenting belief was enough for this impact? Mercury chewed that thought over for a moment. His teacher, alone, surpassing the entirety of the fae courts and the structure that had allowed them to last for so long? Despite Dreamweaver being powerful, no doubt, that idea seemed a little far fetched. So what, exactly, had made his name resonate? Why did the floor underneath his feet shake for a moment? What did this mean for him, both right now and in the future? Why was lady Whisperblossom staring at him so hungrily? ¡­ Actually he knew the answer to the last question, and watched as the lady twisted and stretched, reaching for him with thin, root-like fingers. She almost grabbed him, slowly bringing a mockery of her palms to his face, when Arber stepped forward. ¡°Aye there, watch yer course, fair lady,¡± they hummed. In an instant, the fae¡¯s monstrous nature slipped away again. Her teeth became less sharp, the roots and bark constructing her appendages returned back to forming almost-regular arms. Her eyes took on the regular glow, rather than that hungry, starving glint of desperation. The fae cleared her throat. Her chin was drenched in yellowy syrup, her hunger still clear upon her features, but she controlled herself. ¡°Well then, Yr¡¯Enzel.¡± She paused, waiting for that same resonance to happen again, but the world remained silent. It made her stare even more intense, more hungry. But she had gotten a morsel, now, enough of a taste to want to latch on. So, she seemed torn. Mercury watched as the tall, proud lady moved ever so slowly. She wiped away the drool, though it hissed slightly where it met her dress, making some of the floral patterns wilt. Then she stood, and watched. A lot of eyes were on them now, many more than even before. The lady, too, struggled for words. ¡°What,¡± she eventually said dryly, ¡°pray tell, does this word mean?¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Mercury raised an eyebrow. ¡°Aren¡¯t the fae masters of all words?¡± She blinked, twice, then chuckled a hoarse laugh. ¡°I suppose. My words were¡­ uncouth.¡± With a faint smile, he shook his head. ¡°No, no, they were entirely fine. But are you prepared to pay the price for the knowledge you would seek?¡± Once more, hunger ignited in her eyes. Her voice rose again, the hoarse rasp disappearing, as her humanity crumbled to bits, revealing the barely contained monster within. ¡°Do not play games with me, Visitor.¡± Calmly, though feeling a tinge of fear, Mercury smile some more. ¡°I see, so you are not willing to know. Is there anything else, then, that you would like to speak about?¡± ¡°Tell me,¡± she said, without hesitation. ¡°For a favour.¡± The monster recoiled. ¡°Never,¡± the lady Whisperblossom intoned, her voice high and mighty again, as if looking at a bug. Shrugging, Mercury sighed. ¡°Fine then, I shall carry this secret to our next conversation,¡± he said. She looked at him for a long moment. ¡°I do not bargain in favours.¡± ¡°Then name your currency, lady Whisperblossom.¡± Another long moment of hesitation. ¡°A secret, one of equal value.¡± This time, Arber intervened. ¡°It must be a safe one to hold,¡± they suggested. ¡°And one that is useful.¡± ¡°Use is a part of value,¡± lady Whisperblossom shrugged. ¡°A harrowing secret without any use is still valuable, simply because it is harrowing. But one with a use? More valuable than that.¡± Arber didn¡¯t grace it with a reply, instead glancing at Mercury, as if telling him to make a choice. For a long moment, Mercury regarded the monster behind a thinning veneer. He understood her a little, really. Hungry for change, for something new. She seemed like she needed a star to light the way. Could he be that? Maybe not. But if she knew his name, he doubted it would make her more dangerous. In fact, she didn¡¯t even seem like this trade would end poorly for him. Pride. He¡¯d found it in the middle of the monster¡¯s heart. She was proud of her collection; of the secrets she knew. Willing to wager them. And that pride made her unlikely to reconsider another offer, too. ¡°Acceptable,¡± he said. A moment later, the world faded around the four of them. Arber, Alice, lady Whisperblossom and Mercury. His retainer had stayed via virtue of being his retainer, and Alice had simply refused to leave. He saw magic flickering against her skin, her aura clashing, but it was all washed to the wayside soon after. She remained, unmoved. A small frown found its way onto the lady¡¯s face. ¡°It is hardly an exchange of secrets if you bring your whole entourage.¡± He looked at her. A long, impassive look. Could he concede here? Would she try to exploit him? How much faith did he have in her pride being real, not just yet another mask she wore to manipulate him? Quite confident, actually. ¡°Arber needs to stay,¡± Mercury said. Of course he did. The tree seemed to be quite beholden to their duty of keeping him safe. Alice, on the other hand, had mostly acted as a spectator. Perhaps a deterrent. Then again, sending her out could be seen as a weakness in his entourage, at least by the other fae, ¡°The imposter must leave,¡± the lady intoned. Slowly, Mercury shook his head. ¡°Unacceptable.¡± ¡°She cannot stay.¡± Her words didn¡¯t leave any room for discussion. ¡°The fake-¡± For the first time since coming to the fae realm, Alice spoke. ¡°Say it one more time, go on.¡± Her tone was icy. ¡°Call me fake one more time.¡± The lady remained silent. Mercury decided to take a moment to cut the heavy atmosphere. ¡°I see there is a dislike between the two of you. I cannot force you to trade secrets with who you do not wish to, but Alice is part of my cohort for this visit. If what it takes for this trade to go amicably is her not listening, I am amicable.¡± Whisperblossom sneered. ¡°See, ¡®Alice¡¯? Even your new hanger-on considers you-¡± ¡°Do not insult her,¡± Mercury warned, and the fae shut her mouth. Silence hung in the air for another few moments. Allegiances really were fickle in this realm, and he had to make sure to keep his in place. So, ever so slowly, the hostility dimmed, and eventually, Alice turned around in the dome of dark green silence. A tiny sigh escaped Mercury¡¯s lips. Then, the lady spoke again. ¡°I swear upon the Hospitality of the First Visit to exchange secret for secret, value for value, upon receiving the meaning of this name unfamiliar to mine ears.¡± Once again, a ripple went through the air, and it felt as if it got a little more stifling to breathe, the smell of rot and cut grass spreading through the little dome they found themselves in. It wasn¡¯t suffocating, though, simply noticeable. Mercury took a moment, collecting within himself. Then he spoke. ¡°It means ¡®Star of Hope¡¯.¡±A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. Lady Whisperblossom regarded him, her pupils dilating as she took a deep breath. A grin spread across her face, impossibly wide, impossibly pleased. ¡°Ah, yes. Of course, that makes sense¡­ but whose-¡± ¡°I would like to finish the trade,¡± Mercury added, interrupting her thoughts. She looked at him, seeming like she¡¯d entirely forgotten he was there for a moment. ¡°Right, yes, yes, of course. You are owed your due.¡± She paused, thinking. ¡°Something of equal value¡­ how many people know this meaning of your name?¡± ¡°Few.¡± ¡°Hm. Let me think.¡± She paused once more, her eyes drifting to Alice. The dark green of the dome around them also hovered around the fae¡¯s ears, making sure she heard none of the conversation. ¡°Yes,¡± lady Whisperblossom eventually said. ¡°That will do.¡± ¡°Change is coming,¡± she told Mercury. ¡°To this realm. It has stood in decay, a festering wound for hundreds upon hundreds of seasons. Now, the time has come. There will either be ruin, or uprising. The old ones, the rulers upon empty thrones, the deserted courts, are stirring. Peace and quiet will not be everlasting, for nothing ever is.¡± With that, she was done, turned around, and dropped the green field. Her mask was expressionless once more, leaving Mercury in the open ballroom to think about what she¡¯d said. ¡°So that¡¯s cryptic,¡± Mercury muttered once the dome dissipated. Arber gave him a look, then a chuckle. ¡°Matey, what¡¯d you expect? You¡¯re buying secrets from secretive schemers.¡± Mercury sighed. ¡°Fair enough. Still, any idea about the reaction to my name?¡± The tree gave him a long, impassive look. ¡°Of the lady or of the world?¡± ¡°I mean the world, yeah. You saw how when she said it there was nothing?¡± he asked. Alice nodded. ¡°Maybe it doesn¡¯t recognize it if the person who says it doesn¡¯t get the meaning?¡± ¡°No,¡± Arber shook their head. ¡°That¡¯s not it. People can still talk about Hospitality without realizing the implications.¡± There was another moment of silence until Mercury shrugged. ¡°Oh well. Not like I can do anything about it. Seems like I made an impression with it, though.¡± ¡°Oh, wouldn¡¯t you know,¡± Arber said with a giggle. ¡°People have been dying to talk to you - not literally, I mean. Though some are straying close to¡­ eh, walking the plank. If you catch my meaning.¡± Mercury did and simply nodded, enjoying the momentary, relative quiet. The party around him was, finally, in full swing again. Of course, eyes were on him, but really, he doubted there would be a moment he wasn¡¯t being watched. Luckily, though, none of the gazes felt suffocating. Either the fae were holding back, which seemed likely due to it being his First Visit, or he was simply powerful enough to withstand them. That second point seemed somewhat unlikely. Sure, his personal specialty seemed to lean somewhat into fae magic about belief and such but.. It wasn¡¯t a perfect fit. Though he definitely had more faith in his defence than his offense. And honestly, he¡¯d like to keep it that way. Mercury didn¡¯t really have any interest in learning a whole lot of mind manipulation. Even right now, most of his ¡°offense¡± was more or less intimidation via appearing in someone¡¯s dreams or giving them nightmares. He was¡­ somewhat okay with making people feel fear. It felt more like a warning and less like he was tricking them or taking free choice away. Now those were things he had far less respect for. Tricking was already kind of mean spirited, and depending on how far fae tricks went, well, as far as he knew they often went beyond simple mischief. Taking away someone¡¯s choice¡­ The thought almost made him gag. That was why he had instantly antagonized bishop Nemo. No one should ever touch his mind. Feeling his mood sour, Mercury looked to Arber. ¡°Is there anything else I should be getting done?¡± His retainer looked at him. ¡°Aye, always more to do, cappy. Dozens wanting to talk - mostly just to make conversation at all. I¡¯m getting the feel that you might be having a long page ahead of you.¡± Mercury let out a soft sigh. ¡°Well. Nothing that I wasn¡¯t expecting.¡± Alice smiled faintly in understanding. Actually, why hadn¡¯t she been approached much? She looked back at him, and the smile faded. Ah, yeah, he got it. They didn¡¯t think she fit in. Well, whatever. She¡¯d been kind to him, giving a warning and even a short explanation, so he would not shun her, even if the fae did. They wanted to talk to him, they¡¯d have to deal with her. ¡°So, would you like to hold another conversation?¡± Arber eventually asked as they made their rounds. Mercury had just been letting his eyes wander around, taking in the mystical place. The dances were strange and otherworldly, the fae¡¯s shells twisting in ways humans never could, simply due to being built from bones. Frankly, he was surprised that quite a few of the fae had adopted humanoid guises. Of course, far from all of them, but humanoids were more common than most other animals he was familiar with. He hardly saw any other felines around. There were plenty of otherworldly things though. Like how Celash had been a cloud of dust, for example. Flowers which swayed, communicating without words. Things that Mercury could only compare to the accretion disks around black holes. Some people who seemed like a toddler had strung together building blocks haphazardly. And, of course, almost all of them shone with iridescent colours beyond what Mercury had been able to see before. It was honestly hard to ignore them, since often those colours would meet others and spark or mix. It was bright and overwhelming, and frankly he felt like he could feel the world come loose at its seams if he looked closely enough. His only saving grace was that his bubble of mostly kept smells from hitting his nose, because the air was definitely not suitable for fleshy things like him. Which, once again, was mostly within expectations. Still, despite the suffocating presences all around him, Mercury managed to take a deep breath, simply conjuring the air up himself. He even added a sprinkle of to make himself pleasantly cool. ¡°Sure, I can probably handle someone else now,¡± he replied to Arber. The tree gave a slow, measured nod. ¡°Alright then. I suppose so you don¡¯t look like you¡¯re favouring some landlovers over the others, I might need tah prioritize some people from Scorch or Mellow. I think Mellow would do you better now, though.¡± Mercury didn¡¯t exactly know what those were, but guessing the seasons theme, Scorch was probably summer, and Mellow must¡¯ve been fall. And given how the fae seemed to exaggerate the qualities of their associated season¡­ someone from summer might be just a little much to handle. Instead, he just nodded. ¡°Sure, we can do that.¡± With that short confirmation, Arber allowed yet another person to step closer. There was still an unusual absence of fae around Mercury, and honestly, he truly was thankful for it. And he would wager that most retainers could not have managed it, either. Arber had truly been a good fit for the role. For a few more short seconds, there was silence, until a storm of colourful leaves appeared in front of Mercury. It was almost strange, first only a single one, that doubled when it hit the floor, then those doubles again. Half a dozen seconds later and there were dozens of colourful leaves around him, most sticking to reds, oranges, yellows and browns, but a few went beyond those, too. A couple purple leaves darted around the storm, almost always with their flat side pointed towards him. They seemed like¡­ eyes? Then a ripple went through the cloud, and it reshaped itself. Each singular leaf was still perpetually falling, except for four, tiny purple ones, locked in place in the middle of an oval of foliage. Yes, certainly eyes, then. The figure took on shifting horns and a tail, too, but kept all its other features indistinct. Even the head still moved around, not attached to anything in particular. It darted in front of Mercury. ¡°Visitor,¡± a voice greeted from there. Mercury blinked, entirely unable to place the sensation. It was as if a chorus of cicadas had chittered the meaning into his ears. But the surprise faded quickly; he had seen plenty of weird things in this world by now. So, after taking half a moment to regain his composure, he replied. ¡°Leafstorm,¡± he said, giving the fae the first name that came to mind. The head paused, then tilted, which created the strange effect of leaves pouring off its horns in droves, since they no longer fell through the rest of its body. The voice sounded¡­ pleased. ¡°I like.¡± ¡°You enjoy Leafstorm?¡± ¡°Yes. Very. Is mine?¡± It asked, its head tilting the other way. Its movements were quick, and it eyed Mercury expectantly. He thought for a moment, then agreed. ¡°Sure, Leafstorm can be your name.¡± Now, its aura shifted. Before, it had been small, contained around its body, imbued with the smell of a rainy fall day. Now, it smelled of a sunny fall day with whipping winds, like the first time in the year to wear a sweater. It seemed¡­ pleased. ¡°Acceptable,¡± the fae said. Then it paused. ¡°Ah. Not why we here. Negotiations. Questions? Yes, questions.¡± Mercury regarded it for a while. Leafstorm seemed¡­ scattered. Like it was constantly torn a hundred different ways. Skittish, maybe. Not necessarily afraid, though. ¡°Go on?¡± Mercury asked. It seemed to pull them back to the conversation at hand. ¡°Ah yes. You. Mercury?¡± ¡°Yes, you can call me Mercury.¡± ¡°Good. We from Mellow. You talk to trees?¡± Its eyes flitted towards Arber. For a second Mercury also eyes his retainer. ¡°I suppose. I can see them, at least. Arber chose to talk to me of their own will.¡± The tree nodded. ¡°I did. I was surprised to be spied, though. Usually you¡¯d need a crow¡¯s nest and a darned good telescope for it.¡± They paused, then quietly added. ¡°Not that a crow¡¯s nest would really help.¡± ¡°Yes. Special skillset. We need. Mellow needs,¡± Leafstorm voiced. The chittering was more intense. ¡°One of our trees. Homes. Spirit gone.¡± Mercury glanced at Arber, and they seemed¡­ confused. Their featureless face was the same as always, but he saw it in the shift of their aura, understood it instinctively. This was news, then. ¡°And what would I receive in exchange?¡± he asked. ¡°Favour. Request it now?¡± What Leafstorm said was fractured, almost desperate. But it didn¡¯t seem malicious. Offering a favour, even one that he should request right now, was nice. And it seemed like a good gig. First, he could establish more connections, find out more about the state of the realm. He knew it was in upheaval and changing. Given the fae¡¯s tone, the spirit disappearing must have been rather recent, too. Could it have to do with what lady Whisperblossom had told him? There was a good chance. This was the fae realm, after all. Coincidences were rather rare here. And even if it was entirely unrelated, this would still let him make allies without really offending anyone. He needed allies. ¡°What if I fail?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°Cost us and yourself time,¡± Leafstorm huffed, seemingly disappointed at the notion of failure. ¡°Nothing else. No favour, though.¡± Another lenient bit to this deal, then. It smelled like¡­ either desperation or a trap. ¡°How will my safety be guaranteed?¡± he asked. ¡°First Visit. Retainer?¡± It glanced at Arber. The tree slowed momentarily, thinking. ¡°Unlikely. The courts will want Mercury available for his First Visit. Going now would create enemies you cannot afford. Also, my power is diminished outside of this vessel.¡± Mercury glanced back at the storm of leaves. ¡°A promise of protection.¡± Alice reacted, this time. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. It seemed such a promise was a big deal, then. Arber nodded. ¡°About the best deal ya could get, Mercury. Promises are not easily broken. If they are, a debt is incurred.¡± Given the emphasis on ¡°debt¡±, Mercury was sure that, too, was a big deal. Probably in a similar way to a favour, though favours were able to be refused or weighed. Debts had to be repaid, then? ¡°This seems acceptable. I shall seek to communicate with your tree spirit during my second visit,¡± Mercury decided. Leafstorm shifted, their tail whipping through the air, smacking into the floor with a soft crack as the leaves it was made from dispersed. ¡°Acceptable,¡± the chittered, their form already reforming and yet dissolving at the same time. A moment later, they were gone. ¡°Well, Mercury,¡± Arber hummed, ¡°seems like you got yourself yer first bit of work, ya scallywag.¡± Chapter 187: A Glimpse of Quiet Chapter 187: A Glimpse of Quiet What Mercury found out during his first day in the fae realm, was that fae liked to party. The gathering, which originally looked more like a ball, turned more and more towards poor behaviour. The fae were trying to get themselves intoxicated, pushing their shells to the very limit they could sustain - it didn¡¯t matter after all. If the shell perished, they needed to create a new one. It¡¯d take mana and time, but what kind of price was that to pay when you could receive a whole new body to abuse in exchange? It also meant that it became incredibly hard not to find the atmosphere suffocating. There was vomit over the floor, and other sludge around. Servants hurried to clear it up, but they could not keep up. This was yet another thing Mercury noticed. The amount of servants in the hall was rather large, and the treatment they received was¡­ strange. Mostly, almost all the time, they were treated like air, as if they simply didn¡¯t exist. No one looked at them, no one acknowledged them. People, genuine people often from flesh and blood, from species Mercury knew, other species he guessed existed, and again other species he had never seen before, were simply ignored. And it was almost hard for Mercury to acknowledge them - sometimes his gaze seemed to almost slip off. Naturally, this created a conflict with his Skills, specifically , , and . It was trying to ¡°break¡± his line of sight, which would interrupt the ¡°path¡± his vision would take, thereby ¡°restraining¡± his perception of the world. With his skills, it was possible to look at the servants, yet none of them looked back at him. Sometimes, ever so rarely, one would make a mistake, bump into a fae, and be admonished. One seemed to get rather close to death, too, needing to apologize many times over. In short, there was no respect for these people, and so they tried to be invisible, and largely succeeded. They interacted with the environment, held up plates of food and drink, then vanished into the shambling crowd of monsters. That was also what he noticed: That the fae were monsters. Their civilization, the talking, the laughing, the playfulness, it was a thin veneer. Of course, he could not judge any of them, but these beings were ancient. Many had seen dozens of empires rise and fall. Connections had become meaningless. Reputation mattered, sure, but as long as you didn¡¯t lie, your reputation was secure. The remarkable majority of fae placed no value on others, they simply lived for the enjoyment of the moment and the excitement of their future. Mercury didn¡¯t have a problem with hedonism per se, but the absolute disregard the fae showed for any and all forms of life, and the amusement they got from others¡¯ suffering was¡­ disconcerting. It made his own standing very clear, and reinforced it a dozen times over. He was a plaything. A new shiny toy. That feeling was one Mercury disliked. Of course, not every fae was like that. Some younger ones enjoyed watching life, enjoyed seeing impermanence. Some older fae - only the exceptionally old, surprisingly - also seemed to derive value from small things. It seemed that among the immortal, those who wanted to live and saw joy in it lived the longest. Arber led him around another bit of projectile vomit, bringing him to yet another representative of the courts. Scorch, this time, or summer. If he was honest, the conversations began to blur at some point. He had talked to minor courts, major ones, gotten himself out of dangerous situations and played the fae against one another. He was maneuvering well, but he was growing weary. Summer was intense. A flaming ring of arms, each with fire licking along it like the sleeves of a frilled dress. It spoke in rapid, hushed whispers, each one brushing against his authority. It felt like a bushfire, trying to consume him. But Mercury was relentless. Despite his exhaustion by this point, he returned every push with of his own, occasionally prompting hissing steam from the circle of arms. Each time it retreated, then pushed again. The emissary of the court of Scorch eventually backed off, but Mercury had to be very clear about his intentions to not become their servant. They had gotten very close to the line between asking and demanding, probably on purpose. He accepted his situation with a sigh. Eventually, after an evening that seemed eternal, Arber clapped their hands. It was a sound that rang out in the entire hall. ¡°Nighttime has come,¡± they announced. Chatter ebbed. Faces turned. Silence held the room for a few moments. ¡°Face the grasp of the void at your own peril.¡± Then, the path along the floor Mercury had been walking on extended. The tiny, elevated slice Arber created led to a doorway on the side of the room. Without any further comment, the retainer tree puppeteered the pirate-mannequin over, Mercury and Alice following behind. All the way until they opened the door, silence hung in the air. Hushed voices spoke again when they were through, but a moment later, the heavy wood slammed shut, and the hushed tones were drowned out. Mercury was finally ¡°alone¡±. Two people were still with him, but given where he currently was, Arber and Alice were about the best company he could ask for. The young woman actually moved first. She let out a long sigh, leaning against the closed doors, her shoulders slumping. ¡°Haaaaaah, that was tiring. I forget how the courts can be.¡± ¡°Seein¡¯ myself being vomited on certainly is a different experience than just sensing it,¡± Arber added in a voice of contained anger. That did definitely seem disrespectful. ¡°It was certainly something,¡± Mercury nodded along, feeling weary. ¡°I, uh, gotta deal with that for another nine days?¡± Arber shook their head gently. ¡°No, not usually. Some of the other days will be spent on hunts and contests, though, so you may have to expect to be challenged.¡± ¡°Can I decline those challenges?¡± ¡°Not without looking weak,¡± Alice said, having lifted herself off the door by now. She took a long glance at the corridor they were in, a twisting tunnel framed by smooth wood, interspersed with glowing lines. She took a couple steps down the hallway, and they followed as she talked. ¡°The challenges are a way to develop rivalries. Competition to drive each other to excel, and craft a reputation. About showing off your specialized Skillset. If you don¡¯t wanna be drawn into the turf of others, it¡¯s best to challenge them first, to a game on your terms.¡± ¡°I see. What kinda games are there?¡± Mercury asked. Arber answered this time. ¡°Many. Oftentimes, there are some games for many people to participate in, but one-on-one challenges simply have to be agreed upon. The host will cooperate to make any reasonable setup happen, anything extravagant must be brought by the challengers faeselves.¡± That seemed mostly reasonable. ¡°The challenge can be anything I get someone else to agree to?¡± he asked, just to make sure. ¡°Oh, yes,¡± Arber replied, turning a corner. ¡°Half the challenge is getting other people onto your home turf. Most fae won¡¯t agree to contests they¡¯d lose, though, so it¡¯s a balance of keeping your skill concealed, but interesting enough to accept, while at the same time making the other think you¡¯re the one messing up. All without being obvious.¡± ¡°Hmmmm,¡± Mercury hummed to himself. ¡°Tricky.¡± ¡°Very,¡± Alice nodded. They passed through another set of doors, the once permanent murmurs of the ballroom fading away to near perfect silence. Their footsteps echoed down the hallways. ¡°Especially when bets come into play.¡± ¡°Of course there are things on the line,¡± Mercury sighed. Arber hummed their agreement. ¡°Yes. Most of the time, the bets are small. A servant or two. A special product - food, tools, weapons. But for someone new? Perhaps we will see greater wagers.¡± A frown crept itself onto Alice¡¯s face. ¡°My first challenge was someone asking for my eternal servitude.¡± ¡°I had someone casually request I tear out my heart and give it to another tree to grow, once,¡± Arber added. ¡°... Lovely,¡± Mercury grumbled. ¡°Look at the bright side,¡± Alice said. ¡°Whatever they ask from you, they must put up an equally valuable wager.¡± ¡°And how is that value measured?¡± Mercury asked. They were ascending a set of stairs now, the wood turning lighter as they went up, shifting from a deep brown into paler tones.Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Alice shrugged. ¡°Usually, they will simply bet something equivalent. Service for service, secret for secret, life for life. Sometimes, it will be weighed by the competitors, and the audience, too. If you are desperate to gain something as a win, then people will know.¡± ¡°Hmmmm,¡± Mercury hummed. ¡°Right. I¡¯ll see how it goes.¡± ¡°You will,¡± Arber said, quickly rushing ahead. ¡°But you can do so tomorrow, for now, it¡¯s time I showed you your room.¡± ¡°My room?¡± They suddenly stop, laying their palm against a section of the wall. One of the magical lines inlaid in the wall suddenly turned vertical, then split with the groaning of wood. Inside, there was a chamber of smooth, pale lumber. It had all the amenities any room would need. There was a bed, growing from the floor, root-like structures snaking up its legs. The mattress was made from soft, white fabric, and blankets and pillows were provided. Was Mercury planning on perhaps stealing that mattress for his log? Considering it, definitely. But the room was much larger than just having a bed. There was also a desk. Then another door to the side, this one in a style he was more familiar with, having an actual handle. It led to another room, almost as large as the first. There was what Mercury could only recognize as a bathtub made from the same pale wood as everything else, and even a shower. It was open, without any shower doors, simply taking up a large amount of slightly slanted floor space, leading the water to flow down the drain. There was a sink in this room, as well as in the other one with his bed. With everything being the same colour it felt a little strange, the pale beige reminding Mercury a little of the white walls of a hospital room. There was one thing made from another colour. A silver bell, placed in the centre of the small nightstand. ¡°This is your room,¡± Arber explained, showing him around. ¡°The wood has been primed to your mana. It¡¯ll respond to your wishes. Shape it as you need, within reason. The bell will let you call servants. If you require food or assistance, call them. On request from the lady Witness, clothes will also be provided for you tomorrow.¡± ¡°Clothes?¡± Mercury asked. Arber nodded slowly. ¡°Your jewellery suits you, landlover. But it¡¯s not exactly ball-attire. Shells are crafted to be beautiful. Being eye-candy is part of behaving respectfully.¡± The idea didn¡¯t quite sit right with him. ¡°What about my stripes? Do those not count as eye-catching?¡± ¡°They do,¡± the tree agreed. ¡°But that does not make them suitable. This¡­ is something where it might be better for you to just play along with things, Mercury. I will not force you to wear anything, but not doing so might be seen as an insult. Fae hold grudges.¡± With a grumble, Mercury hummed his agreement. It was fine. He¡¯d make it work. How bad could it be? ¡°I¡¯ll be housing nearby if you don¡¯t mind, Mercury,¡± Alice said, taking him from his thoughts. ¡°Yeah, sure, works for me,¡± he agreed. Alice had been a quiet reinforcement up until now. She might¡¯ve attracted some attention by his side, but at the end of the day, she was respected amongst the fae, as someone who was dangerous. With her and Arber, he had little to fear. Thinking of him seemed to prompt the tree to speak again. ¡°I¡¯ll never be real far away at all,¡± they said. ¡°You know what they say, part of the crew, part of the ship.¡± Then, the avatar mannequin slowly sank into the ground. Alice stepped back outside his room, laying her hand onto the wall across from him. It once again twisted, then slid open, revealing a room that was almost identical. With a wave from both of them, the door closed between them. For the first time in hours, Mercury was enveloped by calm, blissful silence. It was relieving. No chatter. No footsteps. No constant danger - actually, he should probably still be vigilant. Who knew what fae would just wander into his room. At least the doors didn¡¯t seem like they¡¯d open anytime soon. Well, then again, that was also a bit disconcerting. There were no windows, and after closing, the doors had kinda vanished. But he didn¡¯t exactly feel in danger. He felt somewhat connected to the wood around him, really, which probably stemmed from what Arber said. He attempted to reach out to the connection for a moment, and the wood listened. He could easily convince it to change shape. As an experiment, he created a chair in the middle of the room, and when he willed it, twisted strands of beige rose from the floor, knitting themselves into the right shape within a few minutes. Then, he willed the chair to be undone, and it swiftly sank back into the floor. For another second, Mercury tried creating windows, though this failed. He could change the walls, but not reduce their thickness or create holes. That was fine, then. By the time he was done experimenting, the silence had shifted, though. Nighttime must¡¯ve fully fallen, but it seemed more oppressive in this place. When Mercury himself made noise, through walking or breathing, they seemed muffled. Actually, even his senses felt muffled. Everywhere he touched the monochrome, beige furniture, it felt fuzzy. Like there was a layer of distance between him and the objects. Despite the strange unease, Mercury took a breath. He calmed himself. Slowed down his heartbeat consciously, then hopped onto the bed. The mattress was divine, and he loved it. Maybe it would seriously need to pass into his log. Even through his strangely dim senses, it was comfortable. Slowly, as Mercury took the time to adjust, the world changed some more. But despite that, he didn¡¯t feel afraid. He could tell what was happening, and it seemed like¡­ regular nightfall, strangely. There were no alarms ringing in his head, for now, though there was a current of danger if he ever thought about leaving his room. Instead, he trusted his and just stayed put, paying attention to the realm all around him. The air was still thick and smelled faintly sweet, like tree sap. Actually, he probably didn¡¯t smell quite right, either. With a quick twist of his telekinetic power, the tub was filling with water. A moment later, his focus shifted to his environment again. He had many senses to probe it with, now, and he went through them one by one. The scent was faintly sweet, everything looked like light, magical wood, and it all sounded entirely silent, distant even. He couldn¡¯t taste anything in the air, and the world felt distant on his skin. To his mana sense, though, this place was different. The lines in the wall around him brimmed with the stuff, almost overloaded, and the air itself seemed full of it, too. Yet there was something about it that didn¡¯t quite click. If he reached out to the triz, they usually vibrated, moved, felt clear or murky. If he focused on the tiniest bits of mana around here, almost a third of them were¡­ what he could only describe as tainted? The mana felt unclean. Unusable. Decayed. That seemed about right - decayed. It was as though it had been left to rot. Stagnant, with no change. Without any movement, without in- or outflow, it was simply slowly growing stale. Mercury focused more, trying to check the mana outside of his room. Anywhere within the hallway it seemed the same. Outside it was probably different; much worse, he¡¯d wager. Arber, and other trees of their kind, seemed kind of like a sanctuary for the courts. He didn¡¯t try to feel the Mana outside, since his room was probably somewhere in the middle of the tree. Anything else would have been dangerous, it seemed. What had Arber said? The ¡°Void¡±? Hopefully it wasn¡¯t one of those threats that could get to you just by thinking about them. After looking at the mana, Mercury decided to analyze the world using his ihn¡¯ar. The pale wood still shone with Arber¡¯s aura, a calm glow speaking of wisdom and shelter with a hint of mischief. But he decided to check again. So, with little effort these days, Mercury shattered the veil of gold and the veil of iridescence. The world was already distant, but now it truly seemed separate. He was himself, and the world was something other than him. Less important. Less real. Almost instantly, he could grasp the seams. The gaps between reality and irreality. He felt that it would be so easy to pry them open, that it would take barely any effort. That the fabric of was and wasn¡¯t was so thin here that illusions could genuinely become real. Then, he turned, and saw something in the gaps in the world. It was just an impression, a brief flicker of contact, a tiny gaze. It resonated with , in the same way that distance to the world resonated, in the same way those gaps resonated. In the horrible void out there, creatures of unreality existed and this one¡­ it wanted in. The glimpse Mercury caught was of shapes that weren¡¯t shapes at all, colours that he never could have imagined, even after seeing more than any human could. It was a creature that defied all logic, yet still had desire. Relentless Desire. If he had to call its actions anything at all, he would have called them ravenous. The thing that was the opposite of a thing clawed at those gaps. Tentacles and claws and every appendage Mercury could imagine as well as a half dozen more tore at the seams, attempting to pry them open. Looking at it felt honestly sad. Mercury found it strange that the emotion welling up was sadness. The resonance told him a bit about the creature, and he knew it would not have considered him a friend. Perhaps if he understood a little more. It was both the foundation of reality and its opposite and unmaker. How strange. The creature though¡­ was simply sad. Tragic, even. It clawed at those gaps with its vast, incredible power. Great enough that it could have torn Mercury to shreds within moments. Yet, it could not widen them. Mercury simply needed to shift his perspective and the gaps would seem wide enough to go through. With a tiny twist of his mind he could have broken the fragile balance between the world and what would unmake it. In that void, the horror stopped clawing and scratching. Instead, Mercury thought, it had noticed him. It was hungry. It wanted him. To tear him apart and assimilate him into something that was not at all. Gently, slowly, he declined the offer. He would not like to be torn apart and remade into something that was not him. Hatred. Searing hatred and hunger smashed into him from across that connection, and the creature¡¯s clawing became incessant. With a calm, gentle hand, Mercury drew forth the iridescent veil again, then the golden one, finally dropping out of ihn¡¯ar. A moment later, he collapsed onto the bed with a pounding headache. [Your understanding of has increased! (low)>] It had not been worth it. His eyeballs ached. His stomach ached. For a few moments, he had gazed upon that thing and understood. Related to that hunger, that unquenchable, horrid desire for consumption. A phantom of that pain, a tiny fragment still laid in his stomach. A hunger that was simply incompatible with his physical body and his mind. What a horrible, horrible feeling. Mercury barely managed to stagger to the sink before he vomited his guts out. This day had been filled with disgusting influences. People who smelled like drugs. The constant stench of blood. Aura after aura pressing against him, filling his nose and lungs with ash and blood and pollen and cold. It was miserable. He¡¯d managed it all, but it was miserable. This? Incomparable. The hunger and absolute revulsion at existence was something he could not put into words. He retched again, throwing more bile into the sink, barely remembering to turn on the water and wash it away. Then, he staggered back into bed, onto the mattress, laying down. He breathed. In, then out. In, then out. With considerable willpower, Mercury reminded himself who he was. Of . It made breathing easier. The air felt clear. A gentle rain on his face. In, and out. Slowly, ever so slowly, the sensation of hatred and hunger was washed away. Instead, it was replaced with a dull hollow ache, and even that was soothed by the rain. Once he felt stable, he wobbled up, hopped into the bath, and cleaned himself off. Maybe he was supposed to hate water, but this time, it was nice. The grime floated away from his fur in droves. The hot water let him think more clearly, and feel himself. The heat bypassed even the dull distance the grasp of the void imposed upon this realm at night. Once again, Mercury took a deep breath. Sometimes, he really shouldn¡¯t poke too deep. That had been¡­ dangerous. Remarkably. But he had lived. But he could have also torn a part of reality to pieces. But he hadn¡¯t done that, at all. He let out a long sigh, letting the worries melt away in the water. It was fine. He would simply move forward as needed. But, quite frankly, he didn¡¯t feel like investigating this realm any more that evening. After the long shower, Mercury simply got out the Blanket of Dreams from Logston, draped it over himself, enjoyed the comfortable warmth in a rather cold world, and drifted off to sleep. Chapter 188: Unwelcome Guest Chapter 188: Unwelcome Guest Mercury dreamt. He¡¯d known it would happen the moment he fell asleep. The connection to the realm within his mind was there, and he reached out for it purposefully, wanting to go there. It felt closer, yet more distant, a strange kind of dissonance in his heart. But he arrived. In that same place, the fields of verdant grass, waving in the wind. There was a citadel of fire to the north, a castle of glass to the west, a fountain of water to the south, and dark mountains to the east. A silver sun and a pale moon, as well as two stars, one a network of tiny strings, the other a piece of quiet radiance, hung in a patchwork sky. On the verdant fields, there was old Uunrahzil. Mercury saw the air twist around the ancient one in a vast sea of the auras he¡¯d recently gained the ability to perceive. A brilliant radiance like a hundred thousand fireflies. There was, additionally, another guest. ¡®Yr¡¯enzel, mine tri¡¯ht. Who is this guest?¡¯ old Uunrahzil rumbled. Their thoughts vibrated Mercury¡¯s entire dreamscape. There was no kindness in their thoughts, simply the kind of wariness that came from being betrayed one too many times. And it was a fair assessment. Mercury did not remember inviting anyone. The visitor also stood still, staring up into the sun and moon. They were tall. Much more humanoid than old dreamweaver, but with the same strange shapes and proportions that so many of the fae shared. Gaunt and long limbed, but entirely constructed from veins of mana. However, that was where the similarities ended. They were yet again taller than most of the fae, unreasonably tall, really. Eight spindly limbs protruded from the slides of their elongated torso, two of them ending in sickles, two in hands, two in tentacles, and two in maws, as best as Mercury could tell. Given that they were currently made from mana entirely, telling shapes was kind of hard. The face, especially, had a different structure from anything Mercury had seen before. Usually, mana veins followed similar structure to blood veins, to reach all parts of the body. Mercury was breaking this rule by now, since his body wasn¡¯t exactly all of him anymore. Dreamweaver, too, broke this rule, by virtue of having an entirely alien body. But the fae¡­ they tried to fake being human, to a degree. Yet this one had simply stopped all those attempts when it came to its head. It was simply¡­ void? No, that wasn¡¯t right, Mercury had just seen the void, and that was different. This one seemed¡­ foreboding, then. It was like the veins itself spoke a promise of rot and decay, or the end times coming. But the creature remained motionless, its eyeless gaze fixed upon the sun in the sky. Slowly, ever so slowly, one of its appendages moved. The one with the hand at the end of it. Ever so slowly, it reached upwards. ¡®Bright.¡¯ Its voice was an echo, a reverberation of a hundred people hoarse from screaming. A chorus of loss and dread. ¡®Star,¡¯ they hummed, much more quietly. Thoughtfully. Mercury felt strange for a moment. A mixture of worry and fear, yet at the same time calm understanding washed over him. The creature was desperate, fading. At the edge of existence, yet still clinging onto it, ready to bring destruction. They were like a ruler on an empty throne. The castle decayed, the court dead, clinging to a role that is no longer required, yet still holding that same authority. Like someone who could make orders but had not done so because they were too broken. ¡®My star,¡¯ Mercury replied. He¡¯d thought it at the creature without thinking. Slowly, ever so slowly, the thing froze. Then, silence hung heavily for a few moments. Eventually, its head turned. That same dreadful, rotten, eyeless gaze now landed on Mercury. Staring at the thing, he finally noticed that it had no aura. Not a hint of one. No ghostly light around it, no hint at its nature. As though it wasn¡¯t there at all. The thing cocked its head. ¡®Yours?¡¯ ¡®Me,¡± Mercury replied. It was truthful, after all. He knew it, deep down. That heart was, to a substantial degree, him. The Dream of Starvation was bound to him, after all, yet cycles down below, hovering around the sun. ¡®I see,¡¯ the monster replied, returning its gaze to the shining orb. ¡®Price?¡¯ Its gaze was enthralled. Mercury heard in its voice that the question had no hostility. It was a simple thing. They were used to owning, to simply paying no matter what the price was. The kind of casual disregard for money that usually was exclusive to rich people. Well, was it money for the fae? ¡­ Did it matter? The thought certainly didn¡¯t make Mercury look upon it favourably. ¡®It¡¯s not for sale,¡¯ he intoned, firmly. Silence hung in the air for a moment. The creature turned its eyeless gaze of decay to him, properly looking for once. Its head tilted to the side. ¡®... Decline?¡¯ ¡®Indeed.¡¯ Slowly, its head turned again, towards Mercury¡¯s sun. His star. It extended a second hand alongside the first one. Then both its maw appendages, and the tentacles too. It gazed, eyelessly, hungrily. A mouth tore open on the monster¡¯s face. ¡°Want.¡± The desire spilled forth violently. Those were the first words audibly uttered in Mercury¡¯s dreamscape, crafted from the facsimile of a mouth. The words rang out with a horrible sense of need, a pressure that settled onto Mercury¡¯s shoulders. A shockwave travelled out, centered on the monster, squashing the grass around it, forcing the stems to bed and break. It crashed into Mercury and almost sent him crashing to the floor. Then, it impacted old Uunrahzil, and slid off them like a stiff breeze. But they retaliated. Anger. Mercury had never once seen old Uunrahzil angry. He had seen his teacher caring, protective, worried, amused. But never once wrathful, until now. This wave was even more palpable than the last, though it slid off Mercury, since it wasn¡¯t focused on him. Instead, it crashed into the hungry, rotting thing of decay. The thing¡¯s mana veins buckled. Within a moment, half its appendages folded in on themselves, the stone writhing, compressing, then shattering and breaking into dust. Uunrahzil had torn its body in half with a single exertion of effort. ¡®Do not touch this one¡¯s student.¡¯ Yet, the thing seemed unbothered. Its rotting maw closed for a moment, and its head slowly turned. Then cocked to the side again. It spoke, in thoughts this time, no longer ruled by desire, with half its body blown away. ¡®Old¡­ Locrich¡¯tyr?¡¯ Dreamweaver froze. Stopped on the spot, seizing up. Mercury felt it. Felt their distress. The fear. The thoughts they had on that name - it was a piece of themselves they had banished and never wanted to return, yet now it was being ripped to the forefront by someone else¡¯s eyeun. ¡®Whisperstar! Think of old Uunrahzil, please,¡¯ Mercury commanded. His thoughts may have been a tad more desperate than strictly required. But he, himself, threw himself at the task with fervor. It was as though he¡¯d crashed into a molten iron wall. Burning hot to the touch, yet absolutely immovable. As soon as Mercury pushed, his mind screamed in agony. That fae, the monster that wanted his star, its belief was far, far more powerful than anything Mercury could manage. But still, he tried. Holding Dreamweaver close in his heart. Watching them write in pain and fight a name they didn¡¯t wish to carry.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Time passed. Perhaps it was an eternity, or maybe just a moment, but when it was done, Uunrahzil had disappeared. Their existence had folded in on itself, twisting out into nothingness in that way they usually only did moments before Mercury grew awake. Gone. Just like that. Hurt. Not dead, but hurt. Maybe forever. Maybe irrevocably. Unforgivable. Less than a second later, Mercury slammed the entire weight of his domain into the rotting divinity. That¡¯s what the monster had to be, after all. Because, despite Mercury striking the thing with all the effort he could muster, there was barely a chip in their armor. Instead, the thing ignored him. ¡®Want.¡¯ Again, that disgusting desire of decay rolled out, rotting the grass this time rather than just flattening it. ¡®Want,¡¯ the thing repeated, each syllable carefully mouthed as though the movement was alien. It was unnecessary, too. It didn¡¯t bother mimicking a voice box after all. Desperate, yet still ever slow, they stretched out their appendages again. A soft, supple hand, the flesh on it appearing in a mimicry of life. Smooth, lazy, horribly soft skin rose on that hand, then plunged into the sun. Mercury screamed. His insides were burning. Each and every cell of his screamed in agony. A horrible pain that went above and beyond anything he¡¯d experienced. Like his very existence was being summarily dismantled. A single moment later, Whisperstar came from the sky, slamming into the monstrous fae. It bought Mercury a single desperate second - because he could see it. See the monster moving. Its single remaining sickle-arm snapping up to carve apart the young star. So what? What could he do? His abilities were worthless. The grass was crushed. He didn¡¯t know how to call on his dream itself- Whisperstar was discarded, a broken husk. Wounds covered the kid¡¯s body, and Mercury felt fury flare up. The other star in the sky shone brightly, the remnants of the nexus humming. Thin, weaving tendrils shot down, binding the fae for a moment. Every instant that passed, dozens of them snapped. Ah, there was something, wasn¡¯t there? Mercury sunk into ihn¡¯ar as the last of the tendrils broke. The metal of the Dream of Starvation lashed out next. Dark steel slashed into the thing¡¯s body, cutting off its final sickle, but with a single moment of pressure, the metal was smashed into the ground just as the grass had been. He broke the veil of gold a second before the pain was about to begin. He shattered iridescence a moment before his star would be torn apart. Instead, he chose to do the tearing. With a horrific noise, the itself ripped apart in front of the fae¡¯s arm. It had been reaching for the star, but there was nothing in between them. True, unadulterated . Instantly, mercury felt cold, desperate, clawing hunger dig its way into his dream, but at the same time, yet another arm of the fae disappeared into the hole, ripped apart by whatever horrors lay beyond it. Only one tentacle and one maw left. A shiver ran up Mercury¡¯s back, when the tear in the weave moved. A shadowy, twisted limb reached in, grasping for the horrible fae that had almost killed Mercury. It was so fast the mopaaw couldn¡¯t even see it move, and a single blink later, the fae had lost another arm. ¡®Want.¡¯ The desire rippled out again, accompanied by a horrifying stench of decay strong enough to push aside the freezing cold of the void of for a moment. It crashed into the monster, forcing it to let go. Without hesitation, the fae grabbed the edges of the tear in the weave, and pulled. Not to open it any further, but to shut it closed with simple force. And it worked. Inch by inch, the portal into nothingness began to close, the thing¡¯s final tentacle wrapped around both fraying edges of the portal. And Mercury helped. He needed the wound closed, desperately needed it to shut so he could live. But he wasn¡¯t idle. As the thing worked, he activated , hiding himself. , , and howled into existence at the same time, refusing to bend in the face of overwhelming odds. Refusing to let him succumb to anything. Another shadowy arm tore from the rift, grabbing its edges to pry them open. A bulbous head covered in dozens of blinking eyes, made from shadowy flesh tore into the realm. It blinked a thousand times in a fraction of a second, as the portal still slowly closed in on its neck, like the world¡¯s worst guillotine. Effortlessly, silently, it severed the thing¡¯s head from the rest of its body. For a moment, there was silence. Then, that final tendril stretched for Mercury¡¯s sun again. A moment later, the cut off head of the shadow monstrosity of ripped the fae¡¯s head off. The movement was brutal. The shadow flesh warped, one of the eyes blinking and turning into a maw between eyelids. Another eye blinked, and legs emerged from the opening, launching it at the fae. With a sickening crunch, the mana veins shattered. It was fascinating to see, really. Mercury had seen them cut before, but this was different. Wherever the shadowy teeth touched, the mana veins splintered, fractured, then finally broke. Splitting into a thousand tiny fragments. What were they made of, he briefly wondered. Could he forge them? Was he currently in a state of hyperfocus and delusion due to ihn¡¯ar and the delirious pain coursing through him? Ah. Something to consider. Still, his eyes tracked the breaking veins, watching the grey stone splinters, its edges a blueish-silvery radiant crystal that instantly dulled upon touching the air. Still, even after breaking, the stone would splinter again and again, until it was little more than grey dust. Like a cloud of quartz sand, the fae that had almost torn Mercury¡¯s soul apart was sucked into the shadowy creature. Then the shadow turned to the sun. ¡®Uh-oh,¡¯ was the brief thought that crossed Mercury¡¯s mind, before radiant pain enveloped his entire being. A circle of shadowy wings sprouted from more of the creature¡¯s once-eyes. Instead of feathers, they seemed formed from dark, long, dense eyelashes. It flapped them once, turned into a blur and slammed into Mercury¡¯s sun. Liquid agony coursed through him, and he lost his breath. Desperately, he shoved the pain to the side. Split his mind, leaving half of it writhing in agony. It wasn¡¯t enough. He split it again. Anything to let the pain end. Two zeyjns were wholly occupied by simple, flaming agony. His last one was small, flickering, a candleflame in a hurricane, threatening to be blown away any moment. Mercury burnt, radiantly. His sun shone, radiantly. Ah. It was just a matter of perspective. With a tiny twist of his perception, Mercury shifted his dreamscape. The shadow plugging in his sun was dark, yes, but his sun was more radiant. Mercury¡¯s mind was not a candle in a storm - it was a storm of fire blowing at a little shadow. Another instant passed, then the agony was gone, liquid fire channelled into the annihilation of the invader. Mercury choked. He tried to breathe but no air came. No matter. He was a construct of mana veins, here. If his wanted air, he could damn well make it appear with a bit of . He did just that. The air he summoned tasted of blood and ash and fire. Of the plains he had left behind, the land underneath that fucking crimson sun. He¡¯d left it behind!! Tears streamed down his cheeks, falling into the charred, rotten, disgusting grass. He could cry? Why was he crying? This body didn¡¯t- It did now. Ah, he had twisted the skill. His was now very much in line with his physical one. And it hurt. His muscles all ached, his mind ached so much. Mercury was back to being a candle in a storm, shielding himself from the worst of it by splitting his mind. His ihn¡¯ar slowly faded away by itself. The gaps in the world disappeared, wrenched closed by the veil of iridescence. Then, his thoughts became calmer, when the veil of gold was drawn shut before his eyes. His breathing steadied, then slowed. His heartbeat¡­ oh, it had been going a million miles a minute. Bit by bit, that slowed down, too. The danger had passed. He wasn¡¯t there anymore. Not in that infernal hellscape of blood and murder and death all around. He was out of there. He was out of there. He was out of there. Mercury took a slow, deliberate breath, feeling his snout quiver. Then he took another deep breath, then a third. Everything ached, but the pain was no longer radiant and all-consuming. As it always did, it had become a throbbing ache in the back of his mind. Every muscle felt overstretched, and his entirely self was frayed. Opening the veils this much was dangerous. Then again, what else was he supposed to do? Tell the fae to please leave him alone? Nope. That memory was shoved aside rather quickly when the pain threatened to resurface. Later. Distance, he needed distance. But before that. He needed to check. Despite his hesitation, Mercury walked up to the sun. The fae¡¯s shell had been destroyed, but he was sure that wasn¡¯t the last he would see of it. After all, the Dream of Starvation had also marked the thing¡­ actually, the weapon must¡¯ve consumed a whole lot. Later. Later. Mercury tried his best to focus, though his thoughts felt fuzzy. There were things left behind by the invaders. The sun had burned the shadow to a crisp, and with combined efforts, the fae, too, had fallen. Was Uunrahzil fi- Later. Gently, reminding himself of the purpose of his actions, Mercury stumbled forward. He felt the warmth of the sun and it would have once been comforting, but right now it just felt¡­ like too much. He was exhausted. Drained. There no longer was grass where he walked, simply dry, destroyed ground. Coarse, jagged sands that would have dug into his paws if he were a normal cat¡­ but he wasn¡¯t really. He was different. Eldritch. Magical. He was- Walking forward, he gently reminded himself, strolling at the remnants of the fight. In the middle of a circle of destruction, Mercury stopped. Grey metal hung listless on the ground. The Dream of Starvation was damaged, so much so that he could not even call up its description. But the metal writhed, reaching out for him, aiming to slide onto his paws. It seemed almost¡­ sorry. Wanting to comfort him in its morbid embrace. Mercury gently deactivated his call on the item, and instead, it formed a dull, lightless sphere, hovering below the frayed sun. There was more on the floor, though. A pile of grey, quartz-like sand. A spectral fragment of antlers. He took both into his inventory. Somehow¡­ descriptions for them didn¡¯t pop up either. Ah, he was so tired. Forward, for now, he gently reminded himself. Just one paw in front of the other. The trek might as well have taken an eternity, but eventually, he arrived directly underneath the radiant sun. It felt hot against his skin. Why did it feel so hot? Ahhh. What a pain. At least he didn¡¯t search for long. There was a bit of shadow left. A writhing, moving piece of shadow, that seemed alive. Mercury knew it wasn¡¯t, though, and instead shoved it into his inventory. So tired¡­ With a great deal of effort, Mercury dragged himself out from under the sun, closer to the moon. It felt calm. Steady. He held onto that feeling. Whisperstar laid somewhere near him, and they would live, he hoped. He barely had the capacity to worry anymore. That felt¡­ cruel. He really wanted to care. He did care. So much pain had happened. Uunrahzil, Whisperstar¡­ The nexus, or what was left of it, hung in the sky, its threads ripped and torn. It was holding the dream together, but it was damaged, too. So was the sun. Would it all heal? They¡¯d tried to steal his star. Part of his name. Yr¡¯enzel. Star of hope. What¡­ would have happened? He pushed the thought aside. He would heal. Live. Thrive. Make sure the star was never touched again. With renewed resolve, Mercury closed his eyes. And his perhaps worst night of sleep yet finally came to an end. Chapter 189: A more close than near death experience Chapter 189: A more close than near death experience Mercury awoke on a soft bed that was entirely torn up. He had moved and thrashed in his dream, even manifesting the Dream of Starvation. The Blanket of Dreams was still entirely intact, of course, given its high grade, but the bed itself was horribly damaged. He didn¡¯t have the capacity to feel bad - really, he barely even registered it. The world swam. His ears rang. He could barely feel himself. There were boxes in front of his face, system notifications, but the words all blurred. Slowly, he crawled to the edge of the bed, then his paw slipped, and he crashed into the floor. The impact barely registered against the stinging pain in his¡­ oh, it was his everything wasn¡¯t it? Even the bits of him that were outside his physical body ached. Gritting his teeth, Mercury crawled towards the bathroom. A hot bath. That would make him feel better. Searing off his skin, maybe. It felt disgusting on him right then. triggered already, changing him. No, it had been triggered all along. Strangely, so was . Oh. His fur seemed to be falling out. Was that¡­ was that supposed to happen? Mercury looked at the trail of white and red he¡¯d left behind. That was¡­ that was a lot of blood. Oh, he really wasn¡¯t supposed to be bleeding so much. All he felt was¡­ a vague irritation. Then he shut his eyes. The world still swam. Colours blurred and distended. Not even the mana felt real, instead blurring together into one big sea of worthless information. His ears flicked around on his head helplessly. All he got was dizziness, and the feeling that he was about to fall over. Then he smacked into the floor. Somehow, despite only crawling. He grit his teeth. Stubbornly, he triggered and in order to find his way through the room. To the bathtub. That was the goal. told him to lay down and heal, but he firmly shoved that aside, commanding the Skill to guide him instead. Then, he crawled. Somehow, he made it to the tub, and somehow, let him glide into it. With a burst of , he turned on the water, feeling the hot liquid pool around his legs. Scratch that, it was still his blood. A few seconds afterwards, the hot water mixed with the red, iron liquid. Mercury felt hot pain prickling against his legs. His skin felt raw and wounded. He shouldn¡¯t have any wounds, yet he was bleeding so much and felt raw. It hurt. But he could ignore that. felt like it was finally awake, firing from all cylinders. It increased his heat resistance, changed his skin to have stronger barriers, molded his fur as it kept falling out, desperately holding onto it and regrowing it. The Skill drew upon Mercury¡¯s stockpile of building blocks in to reconstruct his entire body as it continuously fell apart. Usually, would have taken care of that, but Mercury could guess what it was busy with. There was, after all, a distinct amount of spiritual damage he had taken. Survivor most likely kept his mind from falling apart. The heat reached his stomach, then, lighting that part of his body up, too. It felt like sensation was returning faster to those parts the water touched. Desperately, he bowed down and stuck his snout into it. He drank long, deep gulps, acting on instinct. His entire body felt dehydrated, and the water vanished the moment he consumed it, feeding his Skills. Instead of taking the dirty, bloody, mess from the tub he quickly swapped to the water from the tap. He drank, deep gulps of it, the rest of the scalding liquid flowing down the sides of his neck, drenching his fur. Mercury drank until he couldn¡¯t drink no more. Then he collapsed. His muscle density reduced to the minimum possible at his level of strength, letting him float. His Skills cannibalized that extra muscle in order to restore his wounds. His skin tore, then restored itself, then tore open again, like the blueprints on how to restore it were all wrong. Eventually, the mopaaw shut his eyes. His mind was muddled, and tired. He floated atop the water, softly. There was a rushing noise in his ears¡­ was the tub spilling over? He couldn¡¯t bring himself to care¡­ Time drifted by. A minute, then a dozen, then there was more noise. His ears hurt, though, so he couldn¡¯t tell what. First, a loud thump. He felt it in his bones. Then a couple more, then a kinda long, drawn out noise. Then a startling crack, suddenly close by, and a few more thumps. With as much effort as Mercury could, he opened his eyes. The world was awash with pale browns, reds, and blues. The room was a mess of blood, water, and wood. Above him, a figure moved, carved from a darker brown. Mercury tried to focus. This seemed like someone he knew¡­ They were¡­ talking? Certainly making noise. He couldn¡¯t understand any of it. But the figure seemed concerned. It brought a painful smile to his snout, as the skin around it cracked. He feebly raised a leg to give a small wave with his paw. Then his strength rang out and it splashed back into the water. Despite the softness of the impact, Mercury could feel a crack going through him. Was that¡­ a bone broken on water? A moment later, the thought was washed away. His eyes were just too heavy to keep open. But he really wanted to stay awake, though¡­ Now, there was a second figure in the room. The first lifted him up and a carefully crafted bowl of wood, scooping up him, and the mess of things he was floating in. Mercury¡¯s thoughts slowed further, then. - - - - - - Arber looking down at the feeble, broken creature in their arms. How had it happened? What he was carrying would barely qualify a living. Really, he would be generous to call it a heap of flesh. The skin was clinging to the bones like the poor thing had been starving for days. Despite that, the body was still constantly breaking open and knitting itself back together. There was hardly even enough blood left to leak from the wounds. The bowl he carried the thing in was full of blood and fur that had fallen out. It was a sad sight. So how had it happened?! The tree spirit rushed through the halls of his own body. He brushed by servants within a moment, the wind tearing past them once, then a second time when Alice followed. A second passed, and the hero had caught up with the tree¡¯s avatar. ¡°Where are we taking him?¡± she asked. There was no amusement to her voice. It was the way a true fae spoke, the way they talked when they broke the mask. It was inhuman and careless, simply focused on the very next instance of importance. ¡°To my heart,¡± Arber said. It would have been through gritted teeth, but the avatar lacked a face, and thus, lacked teeth to grit. The hero was stunned, misplacing one of her steps and falling behind for half a second. She was, however, blindingly fast and caught up less than a moment later. Still, in the time between that reappearance, the poor mopaaw had grown yet thinner. ¡°You would let a stranger into your heart?¡± she asked, shocked. ¡°I would do my duty, Hero,¡± Arber hissed. ¡°If I were to spit in the face of this companionship, I would be forever unable to live with the consequences. Death is better.¡± Then, another voice, cold and calculating, cut through the silence. ¡°You will not perish under my name,¡± the lady Witness spoke. Her voice was commanding, overbearing, and ultimately, filled by fear. She was terrified. Because she knewi that no one had entered the mopaaw¡¯s room. ¡°I will not,¡± Arber agreed. ¡°Because he will not harm me.¡± The lady¡¯s face fell, her eyes narrowing in rage, her arms tensing behind her back. Magic was being half-woven, ready to complete at a single decision. ¡°He is void-touched,¡± she stated. ¡°That much is true,¡± Arber agreed. ¡°You will not let a void-touched into your heart, Arber!¡± she commanded. Then, the lady Witness blocked his way. Arber stopped, and a second ticked by. In that second, more of the pitiful creature¡¯s flesh was consumed to sustain its life. Its magic was being consumed, too. ¡°Do not stand in my way, lady of the House.¡± ¡°I will-¡± ¡°You will break your oath?¡± Arber hissed. ¡°Break customs? All of it?¡± The lady took a step back, shocked at their intensity. ¡°Do not speak to me in such a way,¡± she whispered, but there was a lack of conviction. ¡°Do not impede my Duty.¡± Another step back. Arber moved forward, and she stopped the avatar once more. ¡°You disobey me, you bring shame-¡± Alice spoke. ¡°.¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. The lady Witness crumbled, suddenly weeping. It was a Skill to let one feel another¡¯s pain. Not quite that, it made one empathetic to another¡¯s situation. A kind Skill to foster understanding. A hundred eyes cried on an expressionless face, and Arber brushed by their lady a moment later, disappearing down the hallway. ¡°He¡¯s in agony,¡± the hero cooly remarked. She reached out. ¡°.¡± She crumpled, too, falling to the floor and writhing in agony. How had it happened? How had Mercury managed to move in that state, let alone take a bath? Arber discarded the pointless thoughts and simply raced faster. Blood sprayed out of the bowl as he accelerated, and half a dozen seconds ticked by, then they stood in front of a door. It was enormous, beautiful runes carved into the wood - no, the wood had grown with those circuits. It was flawless, but Arber didn¡¯t regard them, instead, within a second the door slid open. It only opened far enough for Mercury to pass through, the thin bowl being passed through the gap. Then, Arber¡¯s avatar crumbled. - - - - - - Green life pulsed through the air. Mercury felt it - taste it, smelt it. All at once. He could tell what was happening, the barest hint of consciousness clinging to his mind. He could tell that the very air was replenishing his stamina, giving his body back resources he so desperately needed. It let his emaciated flesh become slightly more firm. consumed the resources, each tiny piece of stamina consumed optimally by his other Skills. How was he still thinking? Ah, . What a strange Skill to recognize itself¡­ More notifications popped up, but he ignored the chimes in his mind, as his body worked desperately to heal. The air felt good to breathe. He drew it into himself, accepted it into his storm. consumed it all, faster than Mercury ever could. His health ticked up once, and he couldn¡¯t read the numbers, but he was sure they were rather low. Mercury felt himself be passed around, removed from the liquid he floated in, and placed upon a soft mat. Against his inner eyelids, the green glow became brighter. He wanted to see what it was, that warmth, that glow. It felt so alive¡­ something deep down in him wanted to consume it, but despite his exhaustion, despite all the injuries Mercury had, that was the kind of influence he would never yield to. With a flicker of annoyance, Mercury crushed that foreign thought, remaining , and opened his eyes. The word was so beautiful. A radiant orb of green sat above Mercury, pulsating with life. Lines of power drew that magic around the room. , somehow, as if enhanced by his death throes - which he had entered by now, amusingly - let him see it all at once. Dozens, hundred of glowing mannequins moved around the room. Each one went about their tasks with perfectly synchronized purpose. Slowly, Mercury felt himself being lowered, then a liquid touched him. Soon, he was submerged in what he would describe as dull green sap. It was thick and viscous and he drank a bit of it. It helped. He drank more, conjuring new air in his lungs. Heh, he could breathe underwater, then. Then, he pushed the errant thought aside and focused on the world. It was wonderful, miraculous even. The sap tasted delicious, if a little bland, but he could tell that it filled up the reservoirs of at truly prodigious rates. Despite it all, he felt the world grow more blurry, with desperately holding it together at its edges. Mercury smiled faintly. He slipped into ihn¡¯ar so quickly he almost stunned himself back out of it, but the practiced technique made the world light up even more. Everything around him was one huge construct of so many tiny parts he hardly understood, but at the core of it, there was a connection to something he knew. . This was Arber, then. He smiled wider, despite the fact that his mouth tore even more, turning the dull green a murky, darker shade. He felt a little closer to his friend, and he understood. Plants, generally, wanted to thrive. They were okay with taking resources from one another. But that didn¡¯t mean it was unkind. Arber, for one, was perfectly capable of sharing. To be stronger together¡­ Would there be a cost to this healing? Mercury bubbled forth with laughter, releasing tiny bubbles of air, slowly rising in the liquid. No. He knew there wouldn¡¯t. He could tell Arber was freely giving this, he could feel their worry, their thought on betrayal. That he would come back around and abuse this weakness. For another moment, the foreign thought rose at the temptation, but it was crushed into less than dust a moment later. ¡®Ah, I really do have an eye for people,¡¯ Mercury thought with a smile, closing his eyes. The radiant beauty was a little bit too much, and he decided to simply listen to the dull sounds around him. Seconds ticked by, first a few then a dozen. Mercury heard footsteps around him, drank the nectar, and focused. He wanted to live, after all. That was a truth he held close to his core, surprisingly. He was a , and he really, truly wanted to survive. Eventually, after maybe¡­ three, five minutes, there was a sound within Mercury and he realized it was his heart. Another laugh bubbled forth. He had done it, then. Lived without a heartbeat for¡­ probably ten minutes or somesuch? No wonder the world had been so dull. Within another two minutes, had restored his brain, and suddenly things grew clearer. His sight more sharp, his hearing more complete. The world around him came into focus again. still told him he was falling apart, but it was now ever so slightly outclassed by his passive regeneration. The damage to his had been immense, then, but Mercury couldn¡¯t help but ride the high. His body felt so warm right now that he knew for a fact it was flooded with hormones. His brian had probably released about every bit of euphoria stored in his body as it reactivated, alongside a thorough dose of adrenaline. It was as though he¡¯d ridden a hundred thousand death defying roller coasters at once. More minutes passed, maybe five or so, until he was lifted from the sap. His fur felt sticky, but quickly changed that by giving it the ability to absorb liquids into his metabolism. That¡­ seemed like something it couldn¡¯t have done before! He digested the sap still clinging to him, then opened his eyes again, staring up at that great volume of green. Arber¡¯s heart. Mercury could tell immediately. It was so obvious he was shocked he couldn¡¯t tell earlier - then again, he hadn¡¯t exactly been using his brain, very literally. Slowly, having been raised from the liquid, Mercury¡¯s eyes started watering from the euphoria. He drew in a breath of live-giving air and laughed. ¡°Take fucking that, Death! You¡¯re never getting me!!¡± he howled, beaming with happiness. The words left him panting, having torn open his lungs again, but his Skills reabsorbed the blood, and reconstituted the organ. There were so many notifications they could make his vision swim, but he shoved them aside. Instead, he turned his eyes to Arber. They glinted maniacally, with that unbridled happiness that came from surviving the verge of death. Mercury smiled brightly, then hopped down from the platform he¡¯d been laying on. His legs wobbled, buckled under him, fractured and broke, then reconstituted themselves. It was a moment, a pinprick of pain, washed away by all the pain killers in his biology right now. Instead, he laughed again. ¡°Oops! Sorry about that, Arber,¡± he said, then went into a giggling fit. ¡°You live, Mercury,¡± one of the mannequins said. This one wore a pirate hat, and Mercury knew it held his friend¡¯s main consciousness. Now, calling them a friend was, perhaps, premature. They were a fae, after all, but they had also saved his life. ¡°I do. Because of you, I assume,¡± he said. It was¡­ hard not to thank them, but he was still in the fae realm. ¡°My help was certainly instrumental, you scallywag,¡± they chided, though there was some light humor in their voice, as well as some low exhaustion. ¡°It is acceptable,¡± Mercury said, doing his best impression of a posh accent, then burst out into laughter. Arber laughed with him, the walls rumbling, and the green heart pulsating. They laughed for seconds, then minutes, until eventually, it fizzled out. Mercury was finally digesting the released hormones, his high fading slightly. Then, he felt tuckered out. Within moments of the laughter ending, Mercury¡¯s shaking legs gave in and he collapsed onto his stomach. It hurt, and his skin opened up again, but his bones didn¡¯t break this time. How lovely. He stared at the ceiling, suddenly tired beyond belief. ¡°Mercury. Stay awake.¡± Arber¡¯s voice tore him from his rumination. Right, he did need to do that. But he was so tired¡­ He banished the thought. With a not insignificant degree of effort, he split his mind, three ways. His two newer zeyjn got to sleep. But the largest third of his mind, the one with fourty ystirs, remained awake, and focused. Slowly, he turned to Arber. ¡°Wide awake,¡± he said, slurring his speech slightly. He focused on his jaw, on the muscles in it, then tried again. ¡°I¡¯m awake.¡± The syllables came out rough, but he said it properly. ¡°Good. Stay awake. You might die if you fall asleep.¡± Mercury blinked at him. ¡°Not kidding. Your heart might relapse into standing still.¡± Suddenly, Mercury felt a much stronger desire to stay awake. ¡°How did this happen, Mercury?¡± Arber then asked, their voice suddenly much more shaken. ¡°What did you do to get this hurt, this easily? You spent one night here. No one entered your room. And you came out bleeding, dying, void-touched and with your very basic building blocks changed, to the point where Skills meant to make you more resilient barely kept you alive. ¡°Scratch that, they didn¡¯t keep you alive, Mercury. You were, by every metric, dead. For ten whole minutes. Then, you decided to come back!¡± For a moment, Mercury tried to speak, but the tree avatar continued instead. ¡°You¡¯re also-¡± Arber started, then interrupted themselves. ¡°Have you¡­ touched the void, Mercury?¡± they eventually asked, saying the words so very carefully. Mercury blinked. He¡­ definitely had, hadn¡¯t he. ¡°I have,¡± he nodded, readily agreeing. Arber flinched back, sinking into themselves. ¡°Have you, then, noticed any thoughts about wanton destruction?¡± A small smile flitted across Mercury¡¯s face. ¡°Why, yes, I have.¡± Arber took a long, careful step back. ¡°For a brief moment, I felt the desire to break this place.¡± They turned serious, a hundred mannequins suddenly turned towards Mercury. ¡°I crushed that influence.¡± The wooden mannequins regarded him, stock still. He felt they would have blinked if they had eyes. ¡°You¡­ crushed it?¡± ¡°Just like that, yes,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°My mind is mine, and mine alone.¡± Now, the tree regarded him with newfound respect. ¡°Fascinating.¡± ¡°What is?¡± ¡°Your¡­ resistance, to the call of the void. Fae inflicted with it usually become ravenous and destructive immediately. Yet, you already almost opened a gate to it within my boughs, and now, you speak of having survived it so easily.¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°What? It¡¯s just .¡± He spoke the word with the whole gravitas that ability included, and felt reality trembling at the seems. He called its name, and wanted to answer. Hungrily, as it always was. Wrathful, as it usually was. ¡°Amusingly,¡± Mercury continued before Arber could interrupt him, ¡°that was the only reason I lived, Arber. Because guess what.¡± His tone turned darker as he continued. ¡°A fae was in my dream. It tried to take my star. It nearly killed another star. It hurt my teacher, who gave me that name.¡± By now, the tree was staring at him, frozen once again. The wood had changed colour, too, the dark browns growing faintly lighter as Arber paled. ¡°A¡­ fae, in your dream?¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°In my dreamscape, Arber. You understand, these are abilities I would have preferred to not have shown. Yet, here we are.¡± His tone was sharp, and he almost felt bad. Then he remembered he was supposed to be safe under Hospitality. ¡°There are¡­ very few fae who would so blatantly disregard the sanctity of the First Visit. Any challenge would have to come with offers,¡± they tried. ¡°It offered me a wish, and I declined. Then, it tried to take.¡± ¡°Do you¡­ remember what it looked like?¡± Mercury¡¯s lips twisted into a snarl. He would never forget that thing. Not after what it had done to old Uunrahzil. ¡°Oh, I do. In fact, I have a piece of it right here.¡± This time, Arber was swifter. ¡°Do not, Mercury. Please. Keep it. I¡­ You have my apologies. I failed you, failed as your retainer. But, please, do not take it out here.¡± The mopaaw stopped. He took a deep breath of the air, suffused with life. ¡°You took a risk. In healing me, I mean, didn¡¯t you?¡± Arber nodded. ¡°I did.¡± ¡°Alright. I¡­ don¡¯t think it quite makes us even,¡± he said, and Arber confirmed it. ¡°But it¡¯s a start. I hold no hostilities against you, Arber, but if you continue to try to make up for this, I would appreciate it quite greatly.¡± The tree spirit nodded. Silence hung for a moment. ¡°So¡­ who attacked you?¡± Mercury explained. ¡°Large, eight limbs, kind of an antler-like construct for a head?¡± He added some more details, but that was the gist of it. Arber, however, seemed upset enough by this description. ¡°Well, Mercury. I can only guess that what you meant is one of the seats of the empty thrones.¡± The mopaaw huffed. ¡°Oh, fucking lovely. Aren¡¯t those the ones I got a cryptic warning about?¡± ¡°Indeed they are. Because they¡¯re supposed to be dead.¡± Chapter 190: Political Maneuvering Chapter 190: Political Maneuvering Sadly, Arber didn¡¯t have much more information on the seats of the empty thrones. They didn¡¯t know how many there were, or their names. They had been scrubbed off any record, including the memories of people. That¡¯s why they were the empty thrones - no one sat on them. No one had sat on them, ever. Yet, it was the fae realm¡¯s worst kept secret that they were, of course, occupied. Then why still bother calling them the empty thrones? ¡°Do not ever call the thrones occupied,¡± Arber had warned. ¡°Calling attention to their existence will paint a target on your back. The thrones are empty. They have always been empty, they will always be empty. Understood, scallywag?¡± Mercury could do little other than nod along. The thrones were empty. He¡­ quite doubted that anything he did would remove the target already on him. But he would not provoke it. Not yet. The rage still burnt hot in his veins. His friends had been hurt. It was inacceptable. That thing would pay, no matter how long it took. For now, he had different problems to face. Like the lady Witness. Arber had, eventually, taken Mercury back out from faer heart. Outside of which, Alice and the lady of the house waited. The hero, for her part, regarded Mercury with a smile. She seemed happy, truly happy, that he survived. He also saw bags under her eyes, speaking of great exhaustion. What had she been through? Before he came to a conclusion, the lady Witness made a sound akin to clearing her throat. ¡°Arber,¡± she chided. ¡°You have brought a void-touched into your heart without my permission. Mercury, you have touched the void in my home. What do you have to say for yourself?¡± Arber was about to speak, when Mercury snorted. ¡°I died in your house, lady Witness.¡± Within a moment, dozens of eyes gazed heavily on Mercury¡¯s thin frame. He still looked smaller than usual, hungry. Thin to an unhealthy point, though his body was reconstructing the missing body mass already. The sap had left him more than enough energy for that. ¡°You did not-¡± ¡°My heart wasn¡¯t beating,¡± Mercury interrupted. Was it rude? Sure. But then again, it made a point. ¡°Given that my current shell is made from flesh, this seems like intensely severe damage. This occurred to me within your home, your Hospitality, and while watched by your retainer.¡± All he did was state facts, but the lady Witness narrowed her gaze. ¡°Are you claiming my protections inadequate?¡± ¡°I am claiming that I was hurt, lady Witness,¡± Mercury calmly retorted, ¡°no more, no less.¡± The ice statue quiered for a moment, her fingers tensing. ¡°Why were you void touched?¡± Mercury stared at her. He calmly checked one of his notifications, still hanging in the air from the fight. [Your understanding of has increased! (low)>] He had gotten closer to . He had stared at it, ripped open the seams between reality, and let in the things beyond. Of course he understood it better. A small smile found itself on his lips. ¡°Would you¡­ like a demonstration?¡± he asked. Lady Witness recoiled in horror. ¡°Do not defame my house like this!¡± ¡°Defame?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°How so?¡± ¡°The houses are a bastion against the void,¡± Alice explained, her calm, soothing voice ringing out in the tunnel. ¡°They are symbols that the realm is yet living. And resisting the void.¡± The ice statue nodded. ¡°Quite so. To bring the void into a house is the same as spitting on our entire realm.¡± ¡°Hmm, I see. It will not happen again, then.¡± ¡°Nor should it have in the first place,¡± the lady scoffed. ¡°I shall kindly remind you whose duty it was to keep me safe. I shall also kindly inform you that you may wish to inquire as to how I got hurt. It was not due to the void, in fact,¡± Mercury stated. At that, the dozens of eyes on him changed, growing slightly wider. ¡°It was not?¡± ¡°Nay. One of the thrones appeared in my dream.¡± Distantly, Mercury thought he heard the sound of tempered glass cracking and a heavy footstep. Something drew closer. He would have to be more careful in the future. Lady Witness shivered. ¡°No fae of that name exists,¡± she whispered. ¡°And no fae like that has ever existed, yes, of course,¡± Mercury replied with a smile. ¡°And thus, my injury will remain forever mysterious, and the touch of the void on me is also something that never happened, yes?¡± Very seriously, the lady of the house nodded, dipping her head slightly. ¡°Of course,¡± her chilly voice rang out again, entirely composed. ¡°Nothing happened today.¡± Mercury smiled, hatefully. ¡°Indeed. Nothing happened, nothing at all.¡± Then, in silence, they walked down the corridors, slowly heading further up, and up, and up. The trail of blood Mercury had left was already gone again, cleaned by servants or the wood itself, he didn¡¯t know. Eventually, the strange quartett made their way into the large hall used for the recent celebrations. There were more tables set up now, all throughout, some as large as ones for a banquet, others only seating two or three people. Very, very few fae sat on their own. All of them were, in some shape or form, having a meal. For a lot of fae, that means consuming some version of their element. Wood and ice, ash, dust, sunshine, plant matter and much more were consumed in various fashions. Crushed up and inhaled, devoured through maws of various sizes, absorbed through the skin and so on. Mercury let himself be led by Arber again, passing more than a few familiar faces from yesterday. Once again, the retainer put up a slightly elevated path for Mercury to walk on, lady Witness splitting off again. ¡°Breakfast is an excellent chance to make alliances - or issue challenges,¡± the fae-tree explained as their mannequin avatar strolled forward. ¡°If there is anyone who terribly offended you yesterday, seat yourself next to them. Lady Witness will be challenging lady Whisperblossom, for example, for trying to lay claim on your retainer.¡± The mopaaw nodded. He didn¡¯t intend to offer a challenge himself though, especially not against the older fae around. Those were rivalries he did not wish to interfere with. It would, however, be good to establish some connections to young upcomers. That was a field he could fight on, and they would most likely offer him a challenge or two, anyway. For a moment, Mercury got annoyed at how politically he was thinking, then shook it off. ¡°There,¡± he indicated to Arber. It was a medium sized table, seating eleven fae. Making it a full twelve seemed appropriate. All of them also had servants and retainers around, and the table was locked in lively debate. Arber smiled. ¡°A valiant choice.¡± Only a moment later, the path changed to accommodate their new goal. Some of the young fae turned to look curiously, but most seemed focused on the table, either consuming food as quickly as possible, or ignoring it entirely in favour of yelling. As they approached, Mercury noted that he could not make out the words no matter how hard he tried. Onl when they were within two meters of the table did it feel like his ears popped, and suddenly it all made sense. ¡°You¡¯re a daft, ignorant piece of shit, Retulli!¡± a fiery lad spouted. His shell was mostly humanoid, albeit sporting four arms, each ending in three claws, and a wider chest than strictly necessary. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°And you are a hotheaded fuckface,¡± another fae countered, this one cold and of an icy disposition. Were they¡­ wearing glasses? Yes, and the lenses were also crafted from ice, one with an iridescent sheen. Calmly, Mercury walked up to the free chair, hopping onto it. Instantly, the two fae stopped. The fiery one took his leg off the table, and the burnt wood quickly stopped smoking, then restored itself. His face seemed a little red with embarrassment. The icy one turned his gaunt, intelligent face to Mercury. ¡°Esteemed guest,¡± he greeted, his voice a little shaky. He had two grey horns extending upwards from a blue skinned face. He did have two eyes, a nose, and a mouth, though, making him seem rather human and approachable. ¡°We did not expect us to join our table.¡± Mercury gave him a polite smile. ¡°I do hope I am not intruding?¡± He gave a small glance at the fiery fae. That one was less humanoid. His skin was a river of laya, oranges and incandescent whites dancing along it. Four arms spread from his torso, and his face was entirely featuresless, though the lava bubbled as he spoke. His head was crested by a ring of horns and a cascade of charcoal hair. ¡°No trouble at all,¡± he bubbled. ¡°Simply surprise at your presence.¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± another fae joined the conversation. This one seemed to be from Blossom, judging by the flowers woven through their fur. ¡°How do we deserve this honor?¡± ¡°As someone new to the realm, I believe its future to be more aligned with me than its past,¡± Mercury said, giving the heir of Blossom a small smile. This one he had spoken with yesterday, an ambitious fae, taking the shape of an animal Mercury didn¡¯t know. But he already knew they had many plans in the fire, something he was now counting on. A smile took to their features, though the bestial mouth seemed ill suited for it, looking more like a horrific snarl. ¡°Indeed, it seems prudent. Unless, of course, one might see you as scared?¡± He grinned, returning their smile. ¡°Scared? Of the older fae? Not on my first visit - the challenges are really the only way anyone could have a go at me without my retainer intervening.¡± Some of the more timid fae flinched at that. A young heir of Dust, and a squirrel shaped inheritor of the wild as well. Both were accompanied by servants, standing tall and proud behind the heirs of their courts. Those were being babied, then, and knew that they could hardly leave those eyes. ¡°I see,¡± the beastly representative of Blossom tested the words in their mouth. ¡°Would this esteemed guest be amicable to a challenge, then?¡± ¡°Amicable?¡± he chuckled slightly. ¡°I did not believe this to be a factor. If you wish to challenge me, simply come out and do it.¡± Instantly, the inheritor of Scorch - or maybe he was of fire? - jumped in. ¡°If the esteemed guest is willing, I would love to test our mettle.¡± ¡°Certainly,¡± Mercury agreed immediately. ¡°What sort of competition would you prefer? I hear it is custom to test how one¡¯s elements stack up?¡± He was baiting the young master into a suggestion. But the fiery fae was not quite up to the task of seeing that far ahead. ¡°Certainly, that would be perfect. I will pit my fire against your¡­¡± he paused, expectantly. ¡°My ,¡± Mercury supplied with a smile. The fiery youth grinned, already sure of victory. ¡°My fire against your rain, then! I am amicable to this. What will you bet?¡± ¡°If I win, I would like your friendship,¡± he stated simply. ¡°Acceptable. If I do, I shall have your passion.¡± ¡°You ask too much,¡± Mercury said, his eyes narrowing. ¡°Indeed,¡± the icy youth pounced, seemingly eager to see this perceived rival fall, ¡°giving passion permanently is a serious sacrifice.¡± ¡°For a chapter, then,¡± the fiery youth admitted. Mercury scoffed. ¡°A season.¡± ¡°Two, at least,¡± Scorch¡¯s heir tried. ¡°Acceptable. I wager my passion of two seasons.¡± ¡°The challenge is set!¡± the fiery youth said happily. With a small nod, Mercury confirmed it. ¡°I will be happy to test myself against you. Is there anyone else who would ask something of me?¡± A hand was raised. It was shadowy, shifting, unable to keep a single coherent shape, it seemed. Mercury guessed it might be the Court of Shadow, or perhaps one of the keepers of the Void. Those who kept the realm as one, despite its ongoing degradation. ¡°I wish to lay claim to your emptiness,¡± the shadow demanded. Certainly a keeper then, probably still disguised as a heir of Shadow. Their form was shifting, their voice a hollow sound, like an empty room. For now they seemed¡­ serpentine. ¡°That appears vague.¡± ¡°So it seems.¡± ¡°And the contest?¡± Mercury asked, tilting his head. Where was his food, too? The moment the thought crossed his mind, one of the servants placed a plate in front of him. He smiled, taking a small bite as he waited for a reply. Once more, that strange, dull voice spoke to him. ¡°One of shape.¡± Mercury shook his head. ¡°It seems you feel the need to shift the odds in your favour?¡± he asked, adding a disappointed tint to his voice. ¡°... No.¡± The other scions, however, pounced. A feminine voice, an heiress of Dust Mercury guessed, spoke. ¡°Shadows shift always, and yet you ask someone with a vessel of flesh to a duel in changing? Pitiful indeed,¡± she giggled. Slowly, the shadows shifted. ¡°You choose.¡± Giving an understanding smile Mercury spoke. ¡°Perhaps a battle of imagination would be more fair? Similar in nature, but less favouring to someone of your constitution,¡± he suggested. It was, of course, not similar at all. would let him effectively crush this kind of competition. At that thought, another notification popped up. [ has levelled up! 12>] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution! Evolve? (300 Skill Points)] Right, that had also happened after that night. Mercury quickly brushed it away mentally - there were many things to go through, but he would have to move them to after the breakfast. For now, he had more political maneuvering ahead. The shadow slowly bobbed its snake head. ¡°Acceptable.¡± ¡°So the deal is struck,¡± Mercury said with a smile, biting down on some of his food, appearing slightly careless, but guarded. ¡°On a victory, I would like your perspective.¡± ¡°Acceptable,¡± the shadow bobbed its head again. ¡°Then, if anyone else wishes to challenge me, you are free to do so anytime today. I believe that the games will be going on for longer, too?¡± ¡°Indeed they will,¡± the squirrel confirmed his suspicions. Its voice was squeaky and timid, but seemed passionate. ¡°I am excited to see your matches, esteemed guest.¡± ¡°Call me Mercury,¡± the mopaaw said. ¡°You are scions of your houses. Do not bring shame to them by showing me undue respect.¡± That elicited some chuckles and affirmations of his morals. The atmosphere grew a little less tense. Until, of course, it was challenged. It was the icy scion, the handsome one, who did so. ¡°I do have a question if you¡¯ll permit my asking it, Mercury?¡± he asked. ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°You see, as scions we are privy to many secrets, but not yet all. What has brought on thine visitation of the realm?¡± the calm voice probed. Mercury smiled politely. ¡°Ah, I played a role in the closing of a long open archway, not much more than that,¡± he said. ¡°I see,¡± the scion of Chill nodded along. ¡°Thank you for your answer.¡± ¡°Must¡¯ve been one hell of an arch if it got you here,¡± the fiery one said. The icy one shot him a glare filled with an air of superiority. The scion of Chill had figured out that Mercury was underplaying his achievements, and tactfully let it go, but it seemed that message did not click with the representative of Scorch. Mercury expected it, though, so he just had to play along. ¡°Not that incredible, I assure you. Simply special in other ways. It was a waning realm.¡± That quieted the table slightly again. Even the fae sitting further away turned to him now. ¡°That does seem of interest to the courts. How come this arch decayed so far?¡± a new voice asked, belonging to a mellow, curious seeming girl with skin seemingly made from clouds and hair from mist. ¡°It found very little to sustain it, that is all I know. I didn¡¯t get to look into it much, busy trying to survive.¡± ¡°Of course, yes,¡± she said, giving a flustered smile. Her meal seemed to be puffy ballad of clouds which she simply stuck into her ¡°hair¡± where they dissolved. She had no mouth to speak of, after all. Another small lull occurred at the table, then Mercury threw the smart, icy guy a look. The scion understood, and gave a small nod, permitting his question. ¡°I truly did not mean to interrupt your conversations. What was going on before I came to the table?¡± The scion of Chill sighed. ¡°My veritable friend, Asher, was struggling to comprehend the fact that violence is not the prime solution to all problems?¡± One of the Asher¡¯s eyes would certainly have twitched had he had any. Instead, all he could do was reply. ¡°I think what Misha means to say is that he¡¯s a coward and a poor fighter!¡± Before the young representative of Scorch could step on the table again, his retainer placed a hand on the shoulder. The retainer was a large humanoid in a suit, though their entire face was simply one huge eye, that hovered above a grey neck. Their whole body seemed elongated, their arms having too many joints. One of those arms, and a hand with spindly fingers laid on Asher, who slowly settled back down in his chair. ¡°Yes, yes,¡± he said. ¡°No destruction.¡± The bestial girl scoffed. ¡°You¡¯d think he was born of desolation.¡± Asher¡¯s head spun. ¡°You dare compare my court to a house?!¡± ¡°No, I am comparing you to a house. You do not have the noble bearing of one of the courts,¡± the beast elaborated. For the first time, the heir of Dust spoke up, a star shaped from debris. ¡°That is a significant insult to bring to bear. Is it backed by Blossom, or one of your own design?¡± That made the beast stop. ¡°My own,¡± it ground out from between teeth clenched in anger. Small giggles and chitters erupted across the table, suddenly turning Blossom into the butt of the joke. Mercury took his time, watching and listening as the hostilities made their way around the table. He noticed soft alliances. Picked out who was more calm, and who was savvy, and who was passionate. None of the qualities were superior to one another, but knowing more about these scions would let him play them more easily. Not that it took much effort to have them turn on each other. None of them wanted to take the slightest step back, ever. Out of them all, the squirrel, Iryndryn, and the heir of Chill, Misha, were the best at maneuvering. Dust enjoyed fanning the flames, seeing things crashing down. The beastial representative of Blossom, and Asher of Scorch were most passionate. The shadow snake, who Mercury suspected to be a veilwatcher, was the most impassive, not partaking in much of the goings-on. The girl made of clouds, too, seemed ready to pass by most grievances, though she was one of the most curious, asking Mercury about the other world. Overall, the talk went well, Mercury thought. He had finished enough food for his body to be rebuilt in perfect shape, and his stockpiles of to be quite full. The breakfast was slowly coming to an end, and people were retreating. He shot Arber a look, and soon excused himself from the table. He would certainly be seeing most of the scions again when the time to partake in challenges came. No way would they want to lose out on seeing their fellow heirs humiliated. But before that, he had notifications to look through. His head hurt at the thought, and he still felt sore deep down to his very core, but it needed doing. He would do it, then. At least the evolutions were something to look forward to. Chapter 191: Systematic Dealing and Duels Chapter 191: Systematic Dealing and Duels Status: Mercury Rainfall Starlight Level: 7 -> 15 Species: Srytfyel Titles: , , , , , , , Alias: Beast, Mittens, dum-dum, Yr¡¯Enzel === Hp: 349/950 Mp: 1020/1020 Sp: 597/597 === Strength: 118 (+5) -> 121 Vitality: 180 -> 200 Dexterity: 117 (+15) -> 127 Agility: 148 (+15) -> 151 Intelligence: 167 (+40) -> 172 Wisdom: 123 (+2) -> 133 Willpower: 183 -> 213 Luck: 111 -> 126 === Ability points: 76 World points: 2397 Skill points: 1000 === Gold: 14 853 Beast familiars: 1/2 - - - Holy hell. He¡¯d gained eight levels. Eight levels. Not from any experience from killing the thing, either. Just from his desire to survive. That was¡­ incredible. Despite the levels, his health was still in the gutter. Which was probably because, with him bleeding it out, it would¡¯ve been on a constant drain, rather than falling once, then being restored. At least, right now, it wasn¡¯t falling anymore, and instead ticking upwards. Then again, his physical body felt¡­ mostly fine, now. He¡¯d even gained a couple points in strength and agility from his time with Arber. Was that worth the agony he¡¯d gone through? No, probably not, Mercury decided. It was, however, a good step in terms of getting his revenge. His increased willpower would help him keep a grip on his mana, and help him hold onto his idea of old Uunrahzil as well, luckily. But, of course, his skills had levelled up quite a bit more. [Your Skills and Abilities have levelled up: 2>, 4>, 5>, 8>, 6>, 8>, 5>, 7>, 9>, 4>, 12>, 9>, 3>, 3>, 10>, 2>!] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution! Evolve? (300 Skill Points)] [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution! Evolve? (900 Skill Points)] Ah. Now that was troublesome. But he hadn¡¯t checked in on in a while! [Acquired 100 Skill points!] [ has levelled up! 3>] Shame. Well, that meant he could only evolve one of the Skills. The day was bound to come sometime. And his quest for informing people still hadn¡¯t ended. Wasn¡¯t it about time he got another main quest? He had two slots for it! - [Main Quest: ¡°Give a Paw, they¡¯ll Take the Cat.¡± Condition: Remain your own master until you are back outside the fae realm. You are wanted, but you will not become a toy. Reward: mastery, mastery, 700 Skill Points. Extra Condition: A seat of the broken thrones sought to have you as theirs. They harmed your own. Break them. Extra Reward: evolution voucher, choice of bound item from suitable list, choice of spell from suitable list.] - See, now that was far more reasonable. Mercury could feel that the extra condition had something to do with , it honestly felt like the System was making half a bet with him. Mercury could tell, though, that he would win that bet. He had no intention of losing to the empty throne. They had taken something from him, and he would have it back. But, he had also taken something of theirs. And before he evolved his Skills, it was time to analyze those gains. [: The broken and crushed parts of another¡¯s astral body. Their fragments were ground down to chunks, then sand, then dust. This pile is what remains. It may be consumed in order to reinforce your own astral body, or can be made into astrally bound items. Residual mana clings to this pile of residue. May be imbued into a weapon to let it strike at the astral. Grade: B] That was the description of the quartz sand that was left behind. This came from the parts of the invader old Uunrahzil had crushed to bits. The pile of residue was magnificently preserved, and somehow a perfectly uniform pile. He could probably hand this to Yasashiku. Maybe to bind his cloak? Having his cloak bound would be lovely¡­ [The individual is reminded that astrally bound and a bound item are not the same.] Appy¡¯s voice shook him out of those thoughts. ¡®What¡¯s the difference, then?¡¯ [Bound items will always be with the user, regardless of their state. Astral bindings are inferior states of binding, in which the items will break if the user¡¯s astral body is damaged.] Hmmm¡­ that made it a whole lot less appealing. Essentially, the Dream of Starvation would be with him forever, no matter what. But if something happened like what happened just last night, that would probably have been enough to destroy any astrally bound items, wouldn¡¯t it? [Correct. The individual¡¯s astral body took significant damage in the exchange with the seat of the empty thrones. Future collisions are recommended only when advantages are significantly stacked in the individual¡¯s favour.] That was also a fair point. ¡®Thanks, Appy.¡¯ [The dum-dum is welcome!] In that case, maybe it was better to infuse it into the Dream of Starvation? [The Dream of Starvation is already capable of affecting other individuals¡¯ astral bodies.] Right, so that was a bust, too. ¡®Is there any way to increase the residue¡¯s power and create a properly bound item?¡¯ There was a long silence, but eventually, Appy answered. [... Confirmed. The possibility exists. The item would need to be elevated to at least Unique B Grade, or A Grade. This may be possible by collecting a greater amount of material, or by infusing the material with a greater deal of magic. Blending it with other potent substances may also function. Additionally, it may be elevated by completing an archway clear quest or through a difficult .] Mercury smiled ¡®Thanks, Appy. You¡¯re a gem.¡¯ He knew what needed to be done, then. For now, he would just keep the residue. With that in mind, Mercury checked the next item, the bit of moving shadow he got from the creature of the void. [: Through the wound of worlds, the nothingness outside entered. You cut off its head, then killed that part, too. Now, all thats left of this nameless dead demigod is a writhing mass of hatred and hunger. If you wish to know destruction, bear witness, it lays before you. Don¡¯t feed it. Grade: A] ¡­ And what was he supposed to use that for. [You may use this to learn destruction magic. You may also analyze it to become more familiar with . However, success is hardly guaranteed.] Were there any uses that didn¡¯t involve destruction and devastation? [Due to the material¡¯s semi-life, it may be possible to feed it to the Dream of Starvation.] Reasonable. Honestly, that thing was probably the most destructive item he carried. Well, really, it wasn¡¯t much of a contest. It was also still repairing itself, after carving a chunk out of the fae. Actually, how was that coming along? [Dream of Starvation, repairing: Grade: Bound C - Proficiency (623/1000) Rank: 0 - Growth (1253/1000)] [The Dream of Starvation has consumed a fragment of a dragon. It had consumed a fragment of a seat of the empty thrones. Would you like to increase its rank?] Oh, so that was a prompt he needed to open. Good to know for the future. ¡®Yes.¡¯ [Error. Rank cannot be increased while the item is damaged. Please retry once the item has repaired itself.] Mercury stared at the notifications with a bit of a blank expression, then shook his head with mild annoyance. How damaged was the item, actually? He could tell that he could still summon it despite the damage. There was, however, a risk of it being permanently destroyed if it was damaged further. That was something he¡¯d honestly love to avoid. Still, he wanted to check up on the damage, and he was currently within the safety of his room for another little while. So, after a moment of thinking, Mercury summoned up the Dream of Starvation. As always, the liquid metal manifested, slowly wrapping around his paws, rather than encasing them, however, it was different this time. None of the armor or defense up his legs appeared, with there instead only being a thin film of the material on his fur, more like an undershirt than anything else. The claws themselves were short and cracked. There wasn¡¯t enough material to properly form the menacing weapon it was supposed to be. Instead the metal wrapped around him in cracked bands and thin cloth-like structures. It was almost a sad sight, and Mercury quickly dispelled the item again. There was no point in keeping it summoned like this, so he let the weapon dissolve back into his dreamscape, hovering below the silver sun to restore itself.The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. He¡¯d feed it the bit of liquid shadow eventually. For now, there was one last item Mercury had to look at. Would there be a description by now? A short glance revealed nothing, so he pulled more heavily on . Eventually, the item gave. [: Divinity looms large, but a small injury is a great achievement. You have torn antlers off the monster¡¯s head. Tear off the whole thing, next time. The essence of rot is held within this fragment. Shape it into an item, make a potion out of it, or learn from it. Take what you can. Leave nothing behind. Grade: S] What an item it was, too. The system seemed to¡­ somewhat mirror his thoughts. Or the thoughts of the thing¡¯s domain. The Horned Rot. Mercury could tell that it had seemingly spread decay around itself, though having that connected to rot made sense. The antlers felt like a heavy responsibility to have. He could certainly make something out of them, but he didn¡¯t yet know what. Maybe some enchanted jewellery? Probably that. He¡¯d see, though. All in due time. For now, he was happy just having it as a reminder. An item to tear the damn thing¡¯s entire head off¡­ that he could live with. Mercury held back the sinister smile, and focused on his Skills again. He had to choose what to evolve. or ? Both were very valid choices. cost more, which generally hinted at a more powerful Skill. Then again, nothing had cost nearly as much as , which didn¡¯t always help in the middle of combat. Appy grumbled slightly, but couldn¡¯t disagree. So, while was an amazing Skill, he thought that might have more potential. The Skill had stuck around for a long while, after all, gained a lot of mastery after the last confrontation, and also seemed to align well with his skillset. ¡®Evolve .¡¯ [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (300 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. ] He called up the descriptions. [: Your dreamscape is where you are the most powerful. It is always with you. Use this Skill, and call a part of it to the here and now, manifesting your dreamscape. Suppresses environmental effects, enemy powers, and enhances all your Skills.] That was incredible. Plain and simple. Mercury knew how much power one wielded in a dreamscape, after all. When he had invaded the dreams of the assassins, it had almost gone poorly when one of them wished to expel him. And he had even managed to defeat something with divinity in his own dream, even if it was just a fragment. This was strong competition already. [: If you can see it, you can make it happen. This Skill assists in the seeing aspect. You may try to predict the actions an enemy can take, or the way you can apply your abilities, then bring those visualizations into reality.] Another good Skill. But¡­ this one seemed like it helped him control his Skills. See where they would go, then execute that, exactly. Wasn¡¯t it something he could replicate with enough practice? If he just got good at using his Skills, wouldn¡¯t that be that? Hm. He called up the final Skill description before he got to a conclusion. [: This Skill has no effect by itself. It does, however, allow the user to analyze, deconstruct, and apply their Skills in ways they weren¡¯t quite meant to be used. Twist Skill effects onto others rather than yourself, apply them over a distance, and other such spectacles!] This Skill was definitely more of a contender, Mercury knew that. It seemed¡­ whimsical, almost. In the same way that daydream was whimsical. And it also seemed to fit him rather well¡­ But he was angry right now. He didn¡¯t want a fun Skill to explore the world. Plus, there was already some give to the Skills. He knew he could stretch them. That same way he had made mock-hands from , or used offensively to trip others in his way. Skills weren¡¯t lines drawn into the sand. They could be enhanced and used cleverly. Some just had more give than others. This would make them more malleable, sure, but he could figure it out himself. Mercury selected . [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] Gaining the Skill felt like a broken spade was placed in his hands. He could clearly spin it around, maybe even use it, but it wouldn¡¯t properly work yet. Cuz the tool wasn¡¯t quite right. His dreamscape had been damaged, after all, so that was to be expected. But it would heal. Mercury grit his teeth. It would heal. After the evolution, he still had 800 Skill points left, which was not quite enough for him to evolve . But that was fine. That one might just sit and gather more options, until he was ready. For now, his time to relax would be used to the best of his ability. With no hesitation, Mercury got out his log, and laid the Blanket of Dreams over himself. With moments, he was out like a light. - - - Another half hour later, he was back to being awake, despite his body¡¯s protests. Everything seemed to creak as he moved. It felt like his joints were rusty, and his bones porous and hollow. His muscles felt like the only part of him that wished to actually work. Then he woke up one of his other ystirs, sending his current one back to sleep. Ahhh, that felt better. The world came into focus just a little more. Mercury splashed his face with water, despite the fact that he found the wetness slightly uncomfortable. Finally, once he felt ready, he took a deep breath. Breakfast was a time of peace. The food had actually been meant for him to eat. There were no drugs in it, and no poison either. Now, however, he was back in the political fray. When he left his room, he was conjuring up his own air to breathe again, using . Maybe could do something similar, but he wasn¡¯t familiar enough yet to risk it. Slowly, he made his way down the hall, and after only the first couple steps, Arber was at his side. Before he entered the courtyard, for that is where the challenges would be happening, Alice had joined them as well, appearing with a small gust of wind and a polite greeting. The bags under her eyes seemed a little smaller, something which Mercury was grateful for. After another moment to gather himself, he used to push the door to the outside open. It was his first time getting a longer look at the fae realm, since they were, somewhat, out in the middle of it. The reason he said ¡°somewhat¡± was that, despite the open sky, there were wooden fences all around them. They were in the middle of a forest, which was a husk of itself. Dozens of dead trees stood lifelessly, the ground covered in sooty ash. There were living trees, though, intermingled with the dead ones - each bit of life an extension of Arber. None of those splotches of brown and green were actually different trees. It was all pieces of the main tree. That struck Mercury as rather sad. At least the lampposts, rising from the fence to cast the courtyard into light, were rather pretty, wooden things with leaves to disperse the light, shedding a warm, golden glow. Slowly, Mercury trudged forward, to the arenas for the challenges. Many of them were simple things, circles drawn into the floor. Fae were already gathering, and the first few youths stepped forward into the circles. Just then, Asher, the fiery fae from yesterday, stepped next to him. He was radiating heat, wearing a shroud of fire over his skin of lava. It fell around his shoulders like an ornate, crimson cloak with golden embroidery, starkly contrasting his raven hair. ¡°Shall we start, Mercury?¡± the boisterous fae asked, his voice loud enough to be heard by anyone in the courtyard. The mopaaw felt his ears ache slightly at the noise, but held back a wince. This was nothing compared to the other agony he¡¯d gone through. ¡°Certainly, Asher,¡± he said. ¡°Simply pick an Arena. I shall follow you there, if it suits me.¡± Asher gave him a fiery smile, imitating lips and teeth made from white incandescent for a moment, before his face returned to a featureless mask. ¡°Acceptable,¡± he said, though the word rang out as if he was at odds with it. He must despise the sneakiness of fae culture, Mercury concluded. That was something he could make use of. Soon, not too long later, they found themselves in a circle. Slowly, vines grew around them, accompanied by a shimmering, green dome. Arber had sealed the area off. Mercury felt the heat increase immediately as Asher tapped into faer fire. Instantly, worked to make his body more resistant to the temperature. It was a welcome change, and Mercury kept up for a little. Then, the air moved past where water would boil. Gently, almost reverently, Mercury smiled. ¡°Impressive, Asher.¡± The fae gave a boisterous laugh. ¡°Saikakakaka! Are you sure you wish to keep this battle going? I might turn you to ash, esteemed guest!¡± Mercury¡¯s smile remained on his face. With a nudge of his mind, his waking ystir sunk into ihn¡¯ar. The world shimmered gold with the first veil, and he broke through it. He left the veil of iridescence in place, though. He simply needed to see beyond reason, not beyond reality. Then, as if handling an old friend, he reached out to . Like a hug on a reunion, the ability hummed into full effect. Stormy winds rose around Mercury, fanning the flames that sprouted on the floor for a moment. Then, those flames were ripped apart by the roaring torrent. Droplets began to coalesce around him, and whenever a flame threatened to pierce the wind, they would burst into mist around the fire, extinguishing it a moment later. Asher¡¯s laughter dropped off. ¡°What is this?¡± he asked, voice suddenly full of frustration. ¡°Why aren¡¯t my flames reaching you?¡± Mercury¡¯s smile stayed just as plain as it had been, though to Asher it must¡¯ve had a cruel glint. ¡°Why, can¡¯t you see, Asher? There is rain falling around me. I thought it was rather self-explanatory.¡± The fae¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°That is your ?¡± ¡°Boy, you haven¡¯t seen the half of it. Go on, fae. Show me fire,¡± he spurned the youth on. Instantly, Asher laughed, the sound morphing into a roar halfway through. An inferno crashed into the arena. Blazing heat tore at the barrier, the wind raging and rushing. Mercury would have had trouble breathing - but he didn¡¯t. Instead, he stood calmly, his own gentle breeze billowing his cape and tearing the flames apart. Tapping deeper into ihn¡¯ar, Mercury made a request. ¡°Expand,¡± he asked from his , and the ability replied. Slowly, only a centimeter at a time, the sphere around him grew. Bit by bit, it consumed more flame. Bit by bit, the rain grew stronger. From a light drizzle, into a proper bit of rain, and eventually into a horrific storm. Droplet after droplet impacted the fire, spread out into mist, and consumed a large chunk of the heat. In the center of it all, Mercury smiled. Asher had released a flaming tornado, and Mercury¡­ remained untouched. It was wonderful. Slowly, carefully, he took a step forward. The ground was slightly muddy from his rain where he stepped, though the mud seemed to be blown away by the wind of rather than staining his fur. Less than a minute later, he stood in front of Asher. The young fae stared at him, bewildered. Mercury spoke. ¡°You know, if I take another step forward, my might consume you like it did that fire.¡± At that, the muscular fae took a step back. If he¡¯d had eyes, they would¡¯ve gone wide. ¡°Step out of the arena, boy, before I really hurt you,¡± Mercury said. He would¡¯ve patted the fae on the shoulder, but he was shrouded in an aura of destroying rain, and also about a quarter of the fae¡¯s height. Asher seemed stunned for a few moments. Then, Mercury took a half step forward, and a single droplet landed on the fae¡¯s foot. It effortlessly carved its way through. Then, a moment later, Asher stood outside the arena. ¡°What a monster,¡± he said reverently. ¡°Do not call me that,¡± Mercury hissed. Then, he smiled, slightly. ¡°That¡¯s not what you would call¡­ a friend, is it?¡± The fae was stunned. ¡°No¡­¡± his voice rang out. ¡°No, I suppose it wouldn¡¯t.¡± ¡°So it seems,¡± Mercury said. ¡°I¡­ admire your passion,¡± the fae reluctantly agreed. ¡°It¡¯s why I wished to have it.¡± ¡°It would appear that my passion might just eat you up if you tried,¡± Mercury said with a wink. He believed it, partially, too. Well, he didn¡¯t take himself for the most passionate person. But he was able to find joy in most things, and finding those little joys was something he was passionate about. Asher simply nodded, still a little stunned. Mercury decided to give him a break, instead focusing on his next opponent. The shadow snake veilwatcher stood somewhere more distant. Brooding off in a corner, or something, surely. It didn¡¯t seem ready to face him yet, so Mercury decided to look at the arenas. One of the circles drew his attention. Lady Whisperblossom and lady Witness had just stepped inside. Then, there was a flash of colour, then both fairies stepped out. Their bodies were torn, covered in bits of decay and frost. Witness had lost most her arms, Whisperblossom had her hat and half of her torso blown away. Apparently there was a brutal fight. Neither of them looked happy, either, so it must¡¯ve been a draw or something. Mercury watched as their shells regrew the missing pieces slowly. A dozen more matches went over like that, until Mercury saw the shadow snake gesture at him, and walk into a circle. He followed a moment later, though Arber followed. They had discussed this. Arber would help. It would also be of assistance to Mercury¡¯s little trick for this match. ¡°In order to compare your imagination, I will be giving both of you the ability to manifest things using my light, is this acceptable?¡± Arber asked. ¡°Certainly,¡± Mercury agreed. ¡°Acceptable,¡± the shadow hissed. By now, the snake-like head was swaying, side to side, watching Mercury with those empty eyes. What did they see, he wondered? Maybe he would show them something pretty. Recalling things from his dreamscape - which was clearly part of his imagination - he conjured up things from the light. A citadel of glass, tall spires, wonderfully shining walls, the sunlight reflecting and refracting off it. A spectacular piece. The snake retorted, fashioning ribbons of shadow, interweaving into birds soaring through a dark sky in a box within a thought. It was a strange sort of construction that seemed to stretch the limits of what light could do. Very well. Mercury simply built on his own construction. He added a patchwork sky, he added the sunset in different directions. He added stars, each as alive and wonderful as Whisperkid themselves. It was a miraculous scene. His opponent grew more taut, flicking a forked, shadowy tongue through the air. Tasing his limits? Perhaps. The snake¡¯s art changed, becoming more complex, entering a cycle of shifting. The birds became an eye, then the eye a star, the star a sun over verdant fields, then the crop became people in a city, and so on and so forth. It was lovely. Magnificent, even. Mercury smiled. He drew on just a little, calling down a hint of his dreamscape, but using Arber¡¯s light to manifest it. Suddenly, his piece grew a thousand times more complex, and much wider. Verdant grass, stretching into infinity. But it was boring to only reconstruct, so he changed it. Instead of the usual population, that included simply him and Uunrahzil, he decided to keep the latter secret. Rather than that, he imagined something else. A scene from his old life, blended with his new one. Mercury took his brother. His niece, his sister in law, and his uncle, he took them all, structured their mana veins, then added his true sight on top of it. Their auras. Their bodies built from constellations. Swirling galaxies around a framework of magical rock. That stunned the snake for a moment. It hesitated, then rose to the challenge. Its domain of shadow expanded, displaying a stunning mastery over the evershifting element. With every passing second, the heir of Shadow conjured more and more un-light, creating and changing it every moment, as though a music video was playing out. All of it was impressive, yet, at the same time, it was time for Mercury to end it. His image had been largely static, but that was not all he could do. Imagination was simply a mosaic of things we enjoyed. Mercury had seen far more than a handful of people. The grass in his mindscape became populated, and more buildings rose, dozens at a time. He imagined a sprawling city, with the type of ecological architecture he always liked. Trees and plants interwoven with glass and steel behemoths. Thousands of people, each constructed like his dearest family populated the not-roads, where he left his grass to grow. Soon, it began to rain. The sun in the patchwork sky refracted through the drops, shining down in a rainbow, that was different from each person¡¯s perspective. He had woken up both his other ystirs for a moment to conjure up the scene, but it was truly stunning. Old Uunrahzil would have loved it. ¡°I concede,¡± the shadow serpent hissed. ¡°You may take my perspective, esteemed guest. See it and suffocate in the knowledge of Kilorak, the voidbreaker.¡± Ah, the snake was arrogant. Maybe he misstepped? What a blun- Mercury couldn¡¯t finish the thought, as suddenly, the dome collapsed around him, and a new way to see the world slammed into his mind like a sledgehammer. Chapter 192: Shadowshaping Luckily, Mercury¡¯s mind was built to withstand blows far harder than those. Having a whole new way to perceive the world, alongside the memories on how to interpret those signals certainly was unusual, but it had happened to him before. After being briefly stunned, Mercury shifted his ystirs. His imagination crumbled, leaving the contest area empty for use by others. With a lot of self control, he managed to walk stably out of the small arena. All the while, he was moving his patterns of thought. One ystir went back to sleep, one processed the world normally, and a final part of his mind entirely untangled the new sensations. He split off those bits too, so that the ystir controlling his body didn¡¯t have to deal with them yet. It worked flawlessly. Soon, he stood by Arber¡¯s side again, wearing a smug smile. The tree gazed back at the mopaaw. ¡°That went remarkably well,¡± they commented. Mercury gave a small shrug. ¡°Well. Young nobles.¡± ¡°You goaded them rather well.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve talked to kids before,¡± he said noncommittally. Side jobs doing some babysitting in college were turning out helpful now. Still, most of the attention was a new sense of reality as a whole. He wouldn¡¯t be granted this perspective permanently, of course. The heir of Shadow hadn¡¯t explicitly mentioned a timeframe, but Mercury wagered it was somewhere along the one month line. ¡­ Yet another thing where he wanted to shock fae society. How long until he could approximate shadow perception himself? A page? A day? Maybe a few hours from now? Mercury grinned at the prospect, redoubling his efforts to understand. Somehow, as if by nature, he could feel shadows around himself. It was in a strange, murky kind of way. Shadows weren¡¯t exactly defined, after all, they were a lack of light compared to the surroundings. So really, there was no way this properly functioned in terms of science. Then again, physics generally seemed more¡­ loose, in the fae realm. Which made sense, given that it seemed to be constantly falling apart at the seams. Swiftly, Mercury discarded his preconceived notions of what was possible or reasonable, breaking the veil of gold in the process. The world became more vibrant, each shadow more saturated. More real. He understood them as such now, his mindframe malleable. Almost as malleable as shadows were. Evershifting, always suiting themselves to every person, every object, every shift in light. That was the first bit of truth he grasped, within minutes of acquiring this new sight. The second insight took longer. It took for him to adjust to the new perspective, to accept the blurry edges, stop trying to shape it into his preconceived notions. He, too, needed to be adaptable to see through the shadows. Imitate what they did, as they imitated life. Rapidly, he absorbed the information. The blurry edges mattered less once he looked at the whole picture rather than each individual shadow. It was, in essence, a two dimensional projection of a three dimensional world. So it didn¡¯t give him all information - but it didn¡¯t have to. Instead, there was something far more valuable there. Something familiar, a deep, yawning void hidden in old, ancient shadows. One such was cast by Arber. The shadow conjured by the enormous tree was wide and unfathomable, like a giant chasm carving deep into the earth. In it, something old lingered, hungered. Mercury understood, then, that he was right. This wasn¡¯t a simple perception of shadow he had acquired, it was more than that. He had gained the ability to view the hidden worlds in them, too, which he guessed was unique to the snake. Because it wasn¡¯t simply an heir to Shadow, it was trained to become a keeper of the void. With little hesitation, Mercury leaned into his understanding of , wrapping it around himself. It almost felt like the dracoleather cloak had simply grown heavier, infused with the concept of that infinite emptiness. With that measure in place, the creature simply glanced over him. It took another ystir to keep it in place, and multiple zeyjn to monitor the shadow painting of the world in general, but he held it all in place nonetheless, rousing the sleeping part of himself one more. Minutes ticked by, then an hour. His body watched the challenges, and none dared approach him anymore. He had proven himself among the heirs. The fiery one, Asher, shifted from one foot to another, seemingly unsure whether to approach. Mercury left him to his indecision. There were better things to focus on. Slowly, the coating of thickened, as he wove strands around himself. Arber gave him a slightly suspicious look once, but Mercury flashed an optimistic smile. Then, the tree kind of shrugged and left the mopaaw be. A second hour passed. Then, Mercury moved his perception into the shadows. Distantly, he felt the veil of iridescence shattering. Each shadow became more than that - became an open door, an entrance to the outside world. To the deep, vast void. Mentally, he let his perception wander a bit deeper in, close to the leviathan that dwelled within there. It drifted through there, and he knew it felt his gaze for a moment. But when it moved to stare back, it was a blank bit of void. The fact that Mercury, in terms of his power, was so much lower than it, probably helped. Rather than gaze at him, the thing turned and looked away. Mercury allowed himself a small smile. He had not expected it to meld this well with , yet here he was, diving close to titans that could crush him. Yet the abyss didn¡¯t gaze back. Fuck you, Nietzsche. Then, he took a deep breath, refusing to let himself be dominated by those emotions. Instead, he tried looking at it more reasonably, if outside the bounds of real logic, given that his ihn¡¯ar actively allowed him to view past those. Still, he used it, in a strange state of contradiction. Then he focused on actually planning, rather than analyzing his own thought processes. Slowly, things clicked into place. Shadows were malleable, deep, gateways to the void. They could age and had¡­ almost personalities of their own - of course they did, they mimicked their owners after all. Within those fake realms, projected onto the ground, there was more . Did it come from the lack of perception in shadows? Or the associations people had with them? Was light itself somehow antithetical to true void? Of course, it must be, since light was photons. Energy. Right, then. He also existed, though, and was thereby antithetical to the void. Unless he could stop existing while still maintaining his sense of self? Mercury shelved the idea for the future - for now it sounded rather suicidal. Instead, he thought more, his ystirs churning at full capacity. Thoughts raced through his mind as he understood the strange perspective more and more. The heir of Shadow was able to use their own abilities as gates to the void. Other abilities would serve just as well. Mercury had his ihn¡¯ar, for example. , , and even just breaking the veil of iridescence; each of those allowed Mercury to peer into other worlds. Into the void. So, there was no ¡°one way¡± to go there. The void was all around, infinite, and hungry, after all. It would take every scrap, every corner, every nook and cranny of this world it could. The thing to be afraid, therefore, was not shadows. Not dark colours, for those absorbed light. Became warmer. No, the thing to fear was absence. That was the true danger, because wherever the world was thin, the void would creep in through the edges. Corrupt and eat away wherever it could, yet at the same time, serving as an anchor and a tapestry the world was woven into. Mercury found it fascinating. His dreams were such an incredible, yet inaccurate mirror, maybe even shadow, of this world. One day, maybe, he would become able to mimic it in all its infinite complexity. Then, would it still be a dream? Would he simply have woven his own world?You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. He snuffed the thought out like a candle flame. There was no merit to it yet, and it was bright enough to attract the leviathan. Rather than that, Mercury slowly, carefully, retracted his gaze from that aspect of shadow. The perspective he had gained was valuable in many other ways, too, after all. It told him about the shape of this world. In his ihn¡¯ar, Mercury dove behind the veil of iridescence again, focusing on the waking world, rather than delving too deep into what lay outside of it. His mastery of had just improved, he did not yet need to understand it further, not just yet. Expand, then consolidate. Right now, Mercury needed to consolidate his understanding of . Another deep breath later, his mind spun further thought, understandings of shadow. It didn¡¯t feel the same as or , which he had been able to compartmentalize and slot away. Shadow¡­ wasn¡¯t that. It didn¡¯t wish to listen to him, to become a friend. He could relate to it - that conncetion was there - but he would never be able to consider it a friend. That much, it made clear. Would he be able to become closer to it? Certainly. Really, he could almost feel his affinity for the element rising, as , , and worked in tandem to carve out a path. A simple ihn¡¯ar of wouldn¡¯t do. This wasn¡¯t a substance in and of itself, it was born of circumstance. Yet it was so real, so understood, so common. It wasn¡¯t a friend nor a foe, it simply mimicked, and would not listen. To twist , Mercury would have to twist the real world. This? This he was capable of. His third ystir, too, turned to the element now, and suddenly, his three mind worked as one. He remembered. How he had broken down the core of the wyvern, learnt ice magic, how he had befriended the , and the , and the . It clicked into place. Altering the real world to coax the shadows, then altering the shadows and coaxing the real world to adapt. It was a wonderful blend of magic and understanding. It was his own creation. [The individual has acquired the ability through a specific action!] Then, he let the constructs fall, and dropped out of ihn¡¯ar. He was breathing heavily, his eyes wild and intense. The snake, whose perspective he had taken only¡­ half a day ago, now, apparently, stared at him. And indeed, half a day had passed. While creating this technique, hours had flown by in the blink of an eye. The foundation Mercury had built allowed him to adapt, and create his own technique. He grinned, looked at the snake. For a moment, he reached out to the shadows, beckoned them to move, willed the possibility into reality using his mana. They responded. A small, crude hand rose from the snake¡¯s shadow, waving it over. Instantly, the reptile¡¯s eyes widened. Across the crowd, it locked gazes with Mercury, who flashed it a grin. A moment later, the young keeper slid into the ground as a shadow itself, appearing in front of Mercury a moment later. It opened its mouth, eager to speak and ask and hungry for Mercury¡¯s secrets, but the mopaaw simply smiled, then spoke first. ¡°You may have your perspective back, now,¡± he said, calmly. The snake¡¯s already crumbling facade of calm fell apart entirely. Its mouth dropped open, its pupils thin. Furious and interested and horrified all at the same time. ¡°I- what? Just¡­ how¡­?¡± Mercury tilted his head. ¡°I don¡¯t believe I offered you my perspective on my Skills, did I?¡± In truth, all of them had been required for this. His Skills. His titles, his abilities. Every single enhancement to his talent and bit of learning he¡¯d done slotted into this. It even advanced his ice magic by another level, and he would wager he was also a step closer to turning it into iceweaving. The fae heir simply stared, seemingly unable to compute the refusal of their request. ¡°No,¡± they stammered. ¡°You have not, but surely, we can trade? Is your affinity truly so-¡± ¡°Shhhh. My head aches, now, from how rudely someone deposited new knowledge into it,¡± Mercury teased. ¡°Please, take your perspective back.¡± ¡°... Yes. Certainly.¡± Something ethereal left Mercury. It shifted his sight again, the shadows becoming less¡­ vibrant. They weren¡¯t part of his basic experience more, being slightly more distant. Like he had to reach out and grab them. Not very far, of course, since he had just created an ability for them, but still. ¡°Please, esteemed guest, would you teach this-¡± ¡°No,¡± Mercury shook his head. ¡°No, no. That¡¯s not how that works at all, is it? You don¡¯t get to pour out your grievances, then try to challenge me to a duel that is unfavourable to me, then look down on me the entire time, then ask me to suddenly tell you all my secrets. That won¡¯t do at all.¡± There was no reply to that. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought. So. Here¡¯s what¡¯s gonna happen. There won¡¯t be any harsh feelings about you challenging me. I can put that aside. What I cannot put aside is the clear disrespect and vitriol you have shown me.¡± ¡°... Reasonable,¡± the snake hissed. ¡°And so, if you wish to have anything from me, you will trade. In a little while. Ask me again tomorrow. Your name was Kilorak, is that right?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°There are more titles,¡± the shadow said weakly. ¡°You would have me utter that one out loud, for all to hear?¡± he countered. The snake retreated back a step. ¡°I suppose¡­ not.¡± ¡°I see. Go, then, heir of Shadow. We shall talk another day.¡± With a meek nod, the snake disappeared off into the distance. Mercury saw Misha, the heir of Chill wear a sinister smile. They seemed to revel in seeing the others humbled. The beast of Blossom simply grinned, staring at the snake with much more obvious pleasure. Mercury simply took his time, watching the day drift by. His challenges were done. - - - Another two hours passed, in which Misha of Chill went into the arena twice. Both times, he emerged victorious, having absolutely crushed their enemies. Mercury didn¡¯t know what the best had been, but they appeared more insidious than simple servitude. Briefly, he wondered why the fae were so obsessed with servants as to have multiple people request such of him, but then again, it might be because he was a curiosity and not actually apply to other fae at all. He had, however, seen it also happen with fae themselves a few times, so it certainly wasn¡¯t entirely to be ruled out. But it did seem to happen quite a bit less. Not too long after Misha had finished their contests, the day drew to a close. There would be a dinner reception - one he wouldn¡¯t eat anything at - and then, there would be another breakfast the next day. That would be his next meal. For now, Mercury drew on in order to feel full. It curbed his hunger, letting him fully focus on the social aspect. Arber smiled as they accompanied him inside, Alice hanging back a smidge. She had been through the wringer - out of any singular person in attendance, she had been challenged the most. Almost every moment she spent out there was in one of the fields. Sometimes she would exist, take a step towards the audience, land in another dueling spot, and have yet another challenge begin. It was a grueling gauntlet, and the hero seemed worn out by it. Despite that, she still stood behind Mercury. He appreciated that, though the self sacrifice felt a little unnecessary. If she needed sleep, she should sleep. Heck, two thirds of him were sleeping then and there! Still, Mercury also did as he was meant to. He showed the lady Witness all the respect she was due in her house, and followed Arber. On the way there, once they were back inside, but not yet in the great hall, there was a small lurch. The tunnels changed, and suddenly, the three of them were on their own, no longer surrounded by the mass of bizarre bodies and existences. ¡°So, I would say your first day went about as well as it could have, Mercury,¡± Arber said, mirth in their voice. ¡°You really showed those land-lovers.¡± Alice slightly tilted her head. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s true! Since you are still here with us, you must have won both times. Handling the shadows well?¡± With even more amusement, Arber spoke. ¡°He already returned the perspective.¡± ¡°... Eh?¡± Alice mumbled incredulously, turning to face the mopaaw. ¡°Yeah,¡± Mercury nodded along. ¡°I learnt a new ability. It fills a similar function, but works a bit better for my abilities.¡± With a twist of effort, he convinced the world that clearly, his shadow should be cast in a way that wrapped all the way around his right front leg, turning the white fur a dark gray. ¡°See?¡± The hero blinked once, then again. Slowly, an uneasy smile settled on her lips. ¡°I, uh, I see! Rather impressive, Mercury!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not ihn¡¯ar.¡± The smile disappeared. ¡°It¡­ isn¡¯t?¡± He shook his head lightly as they walked through corridors of dark wood. ¡°No. It¡¯s a mix of magic and understanding. It¡¯s fooling the world into changing the shadows, then fooling those shadows into changing the world.¡± ¡°Riiight,¡± Alice replied, dragging the words out. She looked at Arber as though searching for help. The mannequin avatar simply shrugged, the giant pirate hat on their head bobbing along. ¡°No clue what he¡¯s on about. Can¡¯t say I¡¯ve ever heard those words in that order in all my times upon the seas.¡± Once more, Alice was forced to blink in confusion. Then, finally, she just leaned her head back and laughed. ¡°You¡¯re ridiculous,¡± she said, in between giggles. ¡°Both of you! Haaah. Fuck. I need a shower.¡± Mercury nodded solemnly. It was true, after all. The hero had gotten covered in dirt, and burns, and ice, as well as a bunch of other elements. ¡°You did bring spare clothing, right?¡± Mercury asked. She flashed him a short smile. ¡°These¡¯ll repair themselves with little trouble. They¡¯re gifts. I couldn¡¯t bear to see them break.¡± ¡°Right, right,¡± Mercury nodded along. A bit later, Alice was in her room, doing whatever it is she needed to do. Mercury entered his own moments later. They had a little bit of time before the next gathering, so he took deep breaths. He¡¯d been neglecting his practice, hadn¡¯t he? Now that he had an overlap between regular magic, and his ihn¡¯ar, he set about it again. Time to practice conjuring some ice. - - - The acts of conjuring and manipulating the element did come quite a bit more easily to him now. He had gotten used to it more, the act of imposing his will on the world, and requesting it buckle. It was a tenuous balance to strike, and he did not always find it perfectly, but he was better now. His epiphanies in shadow helped him along in his icy practice as well - what fit together better than cold and dark, after all? Of course, shadows weren¡¯t true darkness, but- he was getting off track. What mattered was the fact that he began using his magic a little more freeform. He transformed the mana, of course, but he supplemented parts of the magic circle with associations and desires. It seemed to suit his style better, and meshed well with traditional magic. Too soon was this practice cut short, when a knock resounded against his door. ¡°Dinner is ready to attend,¡± Arber¡¯s voice rang out from the hallway¡­ and the walls. With a small sigh, Mercury hopped off the bed. He gave a small wince at the aches in his muscles and his mind, quickly swapping out his currently active ystir. Feeling a well rested mind take over, Mercury smiled. That was better. Then, he made his way to the great hall. Chapter 193: Bonds Chapter 193: Bonds The dinner went about as well as he expected. Multiple of the heirs came up to him again, though this time more pensively. The snake didn¡¯t show its face this time, too embarrassed to do so. Asher, however, didn¡¯t have that luxury. Mercury faced the fae rather early into the dinner. Apparently, the fae of fire had seen the beginnings of their friendship drag out long enough. Though they had to wait a while. Lady Whisperblossom was currently taking quite a bit of his attention. ¡°No,¡± the mopaaw affirmed again, ¡°I will not be revealing all the secrets of the other courts to you.¡± ¡°Come on now, Mercury! What are a few secrets between friends? Entertain me, will you?¡± The willowy lady clasped her hands together and leaned her whole body to the side, just a little too far. ¡°I have given you entertainment enough.¡± ¡°Oh you have,¡± she said, dragging out the words hungrily. ¡°But I am notoriously hard to satisfy. Come now, surely it is not so bad to strike another bargain with me?¡± Mercury eyed her for a long moment, weighing the options in his mind. He was doing his best not to let his tiredness influence this decision, even if he was wary. Only from the corner of his eyes did he notice that Asher joined his companions, standing with Arber and Alice behind him. How all his tentative friends in this realm ended up with ¡°A¡± as the first letter to their names, he was unsure of, but it was simply a passing thought. Lady Whisperblossom had the habit of needing his full attention. She seemed to be almost reaching out towards his face whenever he turned away, those nails on her hands growing long and sharp as knives. Only when he looked at her again would she withdraw, as though nothing had happened. Really, he was sure she was just trying to get a reaction out of him. Like a cat, playing with a mouse. He smiled. That was a rather funny image. Suddenly, the expression on her face darkened slightly. ¡°Wouldst thou share what has you so bemused?¡± she asked. Mercury barely held his smile back from widening, but decided to give a half-answer. ¡°Ah, you see, I believe my thoughts are only privy to myself. It would appear this is yet another ¡°secret¡± you would like from me. What are you willing to trade?¡± She smiled, slyly. ¡°Willing to trade now?¡± ¡°For trinkets, certainly,¡± Mercury said with a dramatic sigh. The lady¡¯s gaze bore into him. ¡°Sure. I shall tell you¡­ my impression of Alice,¡± she said, pointing at the hero in question, ¡°for your amusing thought.¡± ¡°Acceptable,¡± Mercury hummed. His smile blossomed again. ¡°Dear lady, I compared your pestering of me to the way a mopaaw plays with a mouse in my head. Which I found to be an amusing image, because, you see, I am a mopaaw. Yet you are exhibiting more of the traits my species is known for than even I.¡± She looked at him, her face unchanging, not an expression appearing on it. ¡°I see,¡± she hummed, drawing out the silence after that sentence. ¡°Indeed. I can see how you came to that conclusion.¡± For a moment, he thought her eyes flickered to the beast of Blossom he had identified before, but they were back on him sooner rather than later. ¡°You owe me an impression, dear lady,¡± Mercury said. ¡°I do, certainly, yes,¡± she nodded readily. ¡°This ¡°hero¡± who appears to have attached herself to you.¡± Suddenly, she stood straight, and gave Alice a disapproving look, like an old librarian about to throw a rowdy kid outside. ¡°Her kindness makes gifts given to her more valuable than what she gives in turn. It is disgraceful to the art of trading. Older fae than me would even call it disgusting, not that these are words I agree with of course. Her valiance is hypocritical, in that she seems just fine to harm when necessary or challenged,¡± Whisperblossom explained. Mercury turned to look at Alice, who simply stood there, blank-faced. Really, she turned almost more mannequin-like than even Arber. He looked back at the lady, noticing that she had, yet again, moved closer while he wasn¡¯t looking. The smell of rot that emanated from her was sickeningly sweet, but muffled heavily by his domain, which he promptly conjured up more strongly, after which the lady swayed back again. ¡°I appreciate your perspective,¡± Mercury said diplomatically. ¡°I believe that Alice simply holds on to more¡­ mortal ideals than much of the courts.¡± Lady Whisperblossom paused at that, regarding the hero again. ¡°Mortal ideals,¡± she said, rolling the words over her tongue. ¡°How interesting.¡± For a moment, she seemed placated, and Mercury decided to use that chance to strike. He was glad that the fae seemed to so often wear their surprise on their sleeves. They must have been so used to normalcy that his shake-up was breaking their facades. Or, perhaps, this was all trickery to let him think he was doing well in their games. Whatever the case, he did his best. ¡°I see I have given you new perspective, dear lady Whisperblossom,¡± he said, drawing the words out with a smile. ¡°I am sure you will dearly accept this gift, am I wrong?¡± Within a second, her eyes snapped back to the mopaaw, glowing a hot, hungry amber hue. She grinned, exposing fangs. ¡°Certainly, dear Mercury. I shall see about making ourselves equal again,¡± she readily agreed. And with that, she was gone, leaving Mercury to finally turn to Asher. He let out a small sigh of release, then focused on the next problem in front of him. ¡°Hello, friend,¡± he greeted the young member of Scorch, making sure the connotation was clear. Asher shifted from one foot to another, seeming somewhat awkward. Their two pairs of arms were clasped behind their back. ¡°Yes. Good evening, esteemed friend.¡± ¡°You can just call me Mercury,¡± the mopaaw said with what he hoped was a reassuring smile, and clapped the fae on the shoulder with a small application of . Asher flinched, as if fearing a more worrying occurrence. Mercury frowned. ¡°Asher, is it alright if I call you by your name?¡± ¡°Yes. It is acceptable, of course,¡± the fiery fae nodded, somehow seemingly robbed of much of their enthusiasm. ¡°Right then, Asher. Are you worried about me?¡± The inheritor of fire seemed stunned, as if not expecting that answer. ¡°What do you mean?¡± they asked. Mercury would have bet there was a bead of liquid fire rolling down their face. So stunningly human-like. ¡°You are scared of me.¡± It wasn¡¯t a question, but a statement of a fact. ¡°... A little,¡± Asher nodded. ¡°Why?¡± Mercury asked. Asher gave him a long look. ¡°What is a friend, to you?¡± The question seemed to take a lot out of them, as if they were worried about retaliation. ¡°Someone you can rely on for help.¡± ¡°Yes. Exactly. And I am your friend now, correct? So you must be able to rely on me. At all times,¡± Asher said, slowly. ¡°Surely, you can see my worries?¡± Mercury blinked. Then, he laughed, for a few moments. He quickly caught himself, and moved onto responding to the question. ¡°Well. Yes. I wanted to be mutual friends, though, Asher. If I make unreasonable demands, you¡¯re free to refuse them. I want to understand you, gain your trust, without allegiance to your court. This is an interpersonal relationship, not a game I¡¯m playing.¡± The fae seemed stunned at that, running a blazing hand through his long, charcoal black hair. ¡°Truly?¡± ¡°Truly,¡± Mercury affirmed. ¡°I shall not exploit you, or your trust, or your friendship. If you require my assistance, you may also ask. If it is something of little consequence, we can exchange help, without any debt.¡± Asher stared at him. ¡°An exchange without debt? Do you mean just¡­ not keeping track of it but still expecting payback?¡± Mercury rolled his eyes. ¡°No, I don¡¯t mean that. I mean what I said. No ledger, no tally, nothing. If you need help, reach out. Simple as that.¡± ¡°... Right,¡± Asher said, clearly unsure. ¡°So, uh, do you have any first mission for me with this whole friendship thing?¡± Despite the awkwardness, Mercury could at least appreciate that the fae was trying. He held back a small sigh, and simply gave a nod. ¡°I¡¯d like you to tell me who else you think I should challenge.¡± ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s tricky. I know a bit about the other scions, but nothing much about most of the older fae,¡± the prince admitted. ¡°That¡¯s fine,¡± Mercury said. ¡°I don¡¯t need to know about the older fae, or the weak ones. I need to work on establishing myself as high up the ladder as I currently can. Stomping the weak would just make me look arrogant.¡± ¡°Right. We don¡¯t challenge pixies for a reason,¡± Asher nodded sensibly. ¡°Then, I think you could convince Blossom into a match. Their heiress is rash and spiteful. Misha, too, would be a good target.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re biased.¡± Asher shrugged. ¡°Certainly. I hate their guts. He¡¯s infuriating. But he also had the most valuable things to trade, in terms of mastery and knowledge. They¡¯re unlike me, after all, much more like a spider.¡± Mercury nodded again. ¡°That does make sense, but I believe I would like to avoid it.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Asher tilted his head, charcoal hair swaying along. ¡°He¡¯s dangerous,¡± Mercury readily admitted. ¡°They wouldn¡¯t accept a challenge they couldn¡¯t win.¡± ¡°Hmmmm,¡± Asher hummed out a reply, seemingly growing more comfortable. ¡°Reasonable. They wouldn¡¯t. You¡¯re right.¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ¡°Anyone else I should consider challenging?¡± Asher brought an arm to their chin, stroking it lightly, sparks flying as though striking steel against flint. ¡°I suppose it depends on what you would like to win. I don¡¯t know your goals, so the advice I can give is limited.¡± That made Mercury think. What did he want to win? Furthering his ihn¡¯ar was nice, but doing it with knowledge others had acquired felt wrong. It was why his understanding of shadow was more like traditional magic than his other abilities. He could simply grab some of their talent, but that felt strange, too. ¡°What if I ask for their levels, can I do that?¡± he asked. ¡°Sure,¡± Asher shrugged. ¡°It is a common bet among younger fae. Desire is, too, which is the source of levels, as you probably know. But this will be something people won¡¯t bet for too long, if you win too much.¡± That made sense. Mercury also didn¡¯t have much to bet. Were his levels even worth that much to the fae? His total level was just 75, after all. That was counting all the levels he had ever gained. What level were lower level fae? Higher than that? What evolutionary tier were they? Appy? [The levels of fae creatures vary wildly, as do their tiers. Pixies, the most basic of fae, are the same tier as the individual was as a common mopaaw. The fae the individual is currently interacting with are generally at least one tier above human. Older fae may go far higher than that.] ¡­ Now he was curious. What about dragons? [Dragons are at least two tiers above base humans, however, their species is known for extreme resource consumption. Therefore, they often cannot demonstrate their true power unless they are in a resource-rich environment. Examples include: places with high mana density, places with vitality, or places with much of the element a dragon is aligned with.] Right, that made sense. Zyl¡¯s mother had barely moved after transforming, though she had been an absolute terror. So, the fae he was interacting with were largely on the same tier as him, he guessed. His last evolution, leyfal, seemed to be pretty much around the tier of humans. His stats were often higher, of course, but that was due to the training he was putting himself through. It also netted him a very different skillset. Few humans could compete with him when it came to dreamweaving, probably. When comparing himself to fae, though, that gap was far more narrow. Their skills were more insidious and manipulative, less physical. So they could meet him on an equal playing field. He wasn¡¯t going to do that, though. Instead, he would eke out every single advantage he could find. ¡°So, then, how many levels can I get the inheritor of Blossom to bet?¡± he asked. Asher grinned. ¡°I thought you would never ask. Seven levels, at least.¡± ¡°Why seven?¡± ¡°There are numbers fae enjoy. Three, seven, thirteen. Those kinds. Four and twelve work as well. Numbers associated with magic,¡± Asher explained, ¡°or bad luck. The people around here really enjoy folklore, you see.¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Makes sense. So, I should convince her to bet seven or twelve levels?¡± ¡°Indeed. The system generally takes a cut though, so don¡¯t expect to get the full amount,¡± Asher added. ¡°You appear to have been speaking about me,¡± Mercury heard, suddenly. He quickly spun around, seeing a swirl of leaves on the floor. It was a tiny mouse, though after a sudden swirl, they reshaped into the larger beast he had seen before. The scion of Blossom was still as imposing as Mercury remembered, fur, interwoven with flowers. They also sprouted from the eye sockets of the animal skull that served as her face. ¡°We have,¡± he readily admitted. ¡°I am thinking of challenging you.¡± She grinned. ¡°Oh? And what would this challenge entail?¡± ¡°Currently I have only thought of my wager,¡± Mercury said. ¡°I wanted to see if you were willing to lay your levels on the line. Seven of them.¡± ¡°A paltry sum,¡± she huffed. Mercury smiled gracefully. ¡°I would not wish to delay your next evolution by more than a chapter.¡± The fae scoffed. ¡°A chapter. Perhaps if I followed my heart. In these courts? Seven levels will either be won from others or brutally torn from corpses. It would take me more than a chapter to gather seven of them, now.¡± ¡°I see, so my wager is adequate,¡± the mopaaw affirmed with a smile. Blossom¡¯s scion eyed him disgracefully. ¡°Sure,¡± she admitted. ¡°Seven levels. The winner shall receive five, and the system the other two. In exchange, differences of experience based on total level are made up for. Now, how do you wish to challenge me?¡± ¡°Ah, this, I am unfamiliar with. I scarcely think it would be fair for me to demand you face me on my home turf after I rudely surprised you with this challenge,¡± Mercury said. The beast, still yet to introduce herself, huffed again. ¡°Do you wish to challenge me to a trial of growth, then?¡± Mercury laughed nervously. ¡°I believe more neutral ground would be beneficial.¡± ¡°A trial of combat would be simple,¡± she suggested, baring her fangs again. ¡°And you would kill me,¡± he stated, matter-of-factly. ¡°Perhaps,¡± the beast admitted with a smirk. ¡°Instead, then, we could participate in a trial of cold? Both our vessels are vulnerable to its effects I believe.¡± ¡°Hmmm. This seems acceptable. However, I believe there is some sort of sneaky trick up your sleeve. I refuse,¡± she said. This was more difficult than Mercury had thought. The beast was sharp. ¡°Right, then, the right of selection lays with you. I shall see if your suggestions are acceptable.¡± ¡°A game,¡± she suggested. ¡°A board game, perhaps.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know many rules,¡± Mercury interjected. ¡°And learning would put me at a disadvantage.¡± She frowned. ¡°Fine, fair.¡± ¡°A competition of foreign geography.¡± The beast seemed confused, then shook her head. ¡°That seems like a sneaky pick, declined. A contest of beauty.¡± ¡°Against a shapeshifter? No,¡± Mercury shook his head. ¡°One of stories?¡± She snorted. ¡°No, not against someone as well-traveled as you. A competition of art.¡± ¡°Certainly not, when there is beauty in nature,¡± Mercury said, eliciting a small frown. ¡°Perhaps we ought to have someone else pick for us?¡± ¡°It would appear so,¡± the beast nodded. ¡°Someone neutral. Someone neither you nor I know.¡± ¡°Arber?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°I suggest one of the crew. A servant,¡± Arber said simply. ¡°They would know both of you, now, and be unbiased.¡± Mercury eyed the beast. ¡°Acceptable,¡± he confirmed. ¡°Acceptable,¡± she agreed. So it was done. Arber called one of the staff over a moment later, an old woman, with a hunched back, carrying a large plate ein one hand, while holding a cane in another. Despite her age, she looked strict, with sharp eyes, and her hair tied back in a strict bun. It felt like her back was fighting against the hunch every moment she stood. For a few seconds, she eyed the two of them. ¡°Compete in ferocity. You are both beasts.¡± ¡°¡±I am not a beast!!¡±¡± the two of them hissed, together. Then they paused, and looked at each other. ¡°... Admittedly, I had been calling you a beast in my mind,¡± Mercury conceded first. The inheritor of Blossom frowned. ¡°Likewise, I suppose. You may call me Odvye.¡± ¡°I shall,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°You may call me Mercury, then.¡± ¡°Acceptable, esteemed guest,¡± Odvye said. Both gazed at the servant again, suddenly feeling more mutual respect. The woman seemed to hold a self-satisfied smirk on her lips. ¡°This behaviour has brought results, so it will not be punished,¡± Odvye said to the servant, ¡°however it is not why you were asked here.¡± ¡°It is my duty to bring about good results,¡± the woman countered. ¡°I have been called here to help facilitate a challenge. That is what I did. It is what I will do. You have no authority to punish me, nor would you be able to. The challenges open to you are simple, really. I suggest you do one of trust, or one of truthfulness.¡± Mercury blinked. He felt that those would favour him, given that Odvye had only now revealed her name. Despite that, the fae seemed to not dislike this idea. ¡°I am amicable to these competitions.¡± ¡°Perhaps, then,¡± Mercury said, ¡°we ought to stake half a reward on either?¡± Odvye looked at him for a long moment. ¡°Acceptable,¡± she said. ¡°If one is to win both, they gain the levels. If there is a draw, we simply remain the same.¡± That worked just fine for Mercury. If he won, he would have done so fairly, and if he drew, then he would simply have learnt something new about how trustworthy this fae was. Odvye seemed to be truthful to her word until now, but he wondered if it would last. ¡°Acceptable,¡± he agreed. ¡°Good,¡± the shell made from leaves and animalistic parts nodded along. ¡°Then, I shall be off. Our challenge will be tomorrow. Do not disappoint me, Mercury.¡± With that, she disappeared again. The interaction left Mercury a bit confused, and seemingly, the same went for Asher. ¡°Did not expect her to be so level headed.¡± ¡°Staff brings it out in all of us,¡± Arber said. ¡°Servants are the only ones known to really bring out the true nature of fae, like dredging up sunken treasure. The old woman saw right through her.¡± As usual, the tree was right. Mercury turned to thank the servant, but the lady was already gone. ¡°What was her name?¡± he asked Arber. But the tree shook their head. ¡°Nay,¡± they said. ¡°¡®Tis something I cannot say. The servants are untouchable.¡± ¡°Untouchable?¡± Mercury asked again. ¡°Yes. They are unseen when they want to be. Unheard when they want to be. It is their trade. They cannot harm anyone, at all, but in exchange they know their desires, and are untouchable in turn. We do not bring harm to them, for their duty is imperative to the courts.¡± ¡°Where do they even come from?¡± Arber adjusted their hat for a moment, drawing it slightly lower. ¡°It depends,¡± they said, drawing out the words. ¡°Some are rescued moments before death. Others are tricked. Many are offered contracts. A few are born into it, and again others seek us out to make their own deals. Occasionally, humans will simply wander into the fae realm and be offered this way out.¡± ¡°So they don¡¯t get a choice,¡± Mercury stated simply, suppressing the fury he felt. ¡°... Not always, no,¡± Arber shook their head slightly. ¡°They can¡¯t always leave, either. But it is a calmer fate than that of humans forced to do battle in the arena.¡± ¡°Can they refuse requests?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Arber nodded. ¡°Any that would put them in harm¡¯s way, physically or mentally. A society built on suffering is no society at all. The courts would not have lasted this long if they were.¡± ¡°Yet they are decaying,¡± Mercury pointedly added. His retainer gave a deeper frown. ¡°Yes. Because some fae mistreat the servants. Coerce them, or make those who are unwilling into them. It is a role meant for protection. For those who seek to escape their old bonds. Ask for their stories and you will hear the same answer often enough. Running from a fate worse than this one.¡± Mercury¡¯s voice remained icy. ¡°Voluntary shackles are shackles nonetheless.¡± Arber gave him a long, silent look. ¡°So they are,¡± they said. There was fury hidden somewhere in that voice. ¡°We are all bound by our surroundings in one way or another, though. Choosing one''s bonds is freedom.¡± ¡°Some bonds, yes. Interpersonal ones, I agree. Even dutiful ones, sure. But the inability to ever cast them aside?¡± He shook his head. ¡°That is something entirely cruel to me.¡± He saw Alice give a small nod. ¡°Freedom is a precious, fragile thing. Make a shackle too tight and it breaks into a thousand pieces.¡± ¡°This is a cruel society, Mercury,¡± Arber reminded, their voice hollow and without conviction. ¡°Fae aren¡¯t kind creatures. They are known for trickery and enslavement. There are people from your realm killing each other in that corner just over there. Some of the fae would bring humans as their pets. Parade them around. ¡°It is unfair. But taking the mantle of duty in a house such as this? It is at least safe. That is what I guarantee. It is a heavy shackle to wear, but many do so willingly.¡± ¡°Some do not.¡± ¡°Some do not,¡± Arber nodded. ¡°Some seekers do not wish to fight monsters. Some farmers do not wish to farm. Some inkeeps do not wish to cook. Life is imperfect, Mercury.¡± ¡°Imperfections which people can change, if they have the will to do so,¡± he said. Arber stared at him for another long moment. ¡°This is truly what you wish to get held up on?¡± Mercury met that featureless gaze without hesitation. ¡°It is. There is nothing, Arber, nothing I cherish more than freedom.¡± Slowly, the mannequin turned away. ¡°Not everyone does,¡± they said. There was a long, uninterrupted moment of silence again. ¡°I don¡¯t,¡± they almost whispered, just barely loudly enough for Mercury to hear. The mannequin slumped slightly. ¡°Sometimes, people pick safety over freedom. I admire your conviction, Mercury, to stare at death and say you¡¯d rather take that than be anything less than free. But I can¡¯t mimic it. Does that make me a lesser being?¡± Their question seemed almost like a plea. Mercury stared right back. While Arber had slumped, he stood more straight. ¡°No, it does not. A choice where your life is at stake is not a choice at all. A system in which safety comes at the cost of freedom is one that must be torn down,¡± he said, simply. At that, he felt the mannequin stand a bit straighter again, just a little. ¡°I see. Thank you, friend.¡± Then the moment passed, and Arber adjusted their captain¡¯s hat. Mercury felt there was a new feather added to the plume, but he wasn¡¯t quite sure. Arber paused for another moment. ¡°Is there anyone else you would like to mingle with?¡± they asked. ¡°Let¡¯s make it a quiet evening,¡± Mercury said, giving half a sigh. It was, of course, a busy evening. - - - By the end of the night, Mercury had turned down a dozen challenges, half of them by mindless youths, who had nothing to wager and wanted half his Skills, the other half by the older fae, representing courts he had defeated or bartering for secrets in challenges he could never win. Seriously, how did one of the leading keepers of the void think that challenging him to a fight against the void would go? Mercury knew he¡¯d just die, and that was that. He¡¯d be another number on that fae¡¯s status sheet, maybe enough to give another level to an already strong Skill. So, in the end, the only challenge he had coming up was that against Odvye. So, he got through the night, feeling a bit better once all three of his ystirs got a chance to rest. He woke up with far fewer of the muscle pains he had gotten so used to, and felt almost ready to tackle the day. Of course, he still cycled his ystirs. At least the breakfast was calm. Not too soon, the time to step out into the fields of challenge already came. Chapter 194: A Statement Chapter 194: A Statement Mercury met Orvyn again in one of the domes meant for challenges. Ethereal light enveloped the world around them, cutting them off from the other fae. The heir of Blossom smiled, a ferocious, wild expression. ¡°What will it be first, Mercury? Truthfulness or trust?¡± ¡°Truth,¡± Mercury said. It was always a better choice than dare. ¡°Do I get to ask first?¡± Orvyn replied, and once he nodded, she asked faer first question. ¡°What do you want most?¡± ¡°Freedom.¡± It was an easy answer to an easy question. But being truthful meant providing context. ¡°I can¡¯t stand being forced to make choices. Thinking of my life in someone else¡¯s hands is unbearable.¡± Orvyn tilted her head. ¡°Are we not always in another¡¯s hands?¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°Only if you don¡¯t rip those hands apart.¡± The flowers of her body twisted into a cruel smile. ¡°I see,¡± she said. ¡°There is a saying, here. That to struggle against your purpose is akin to a bug in a spiderweb.¡± ¡°Maybe I must simply struggle harder than any bug before me, then,¡± Mercury shrugged with a smirk. ¡°At least I will know I¡¯ve fought. But now is my turn to ask a question. Who are you, Orvyn?¡± She blinked at him for a moment. Then her lips pulled back, and she released a loud, sudden noise, somewhere between a bark and a roar. It must¡¯ve been laughter. ¡°Who am I? That is quite simple, I am an heiress of Blossom,¡± she said, as if it was the most simple thing in the world. Then, for a while she was silent. Slowly, the colours around them shifted. The ethereal green turned a slight red. The arena was beginning to judge her answer incomplete. ¡°Oh my,¡± Mercury taunted, ¡°only the first question and you are providing me with half a lie, Orvyn?¡± The monstrous face twisted into a frown. ¡°Hmph. I see how this works, now. Fine then. I am someone who struggles. For every inch given to me, I¡¯ll fight, never bending or breaking. I am a shifter, and will change who I am to suit who I need to be. I am hungry for power. I wish to know why I am, so, I suppose, at the very end, I am a seeker of just that: purpose.¡± The arena judged the answer adequate. ¡°What is your greatest fear?¡± Orvyn asked. What an insidious question. Mercury gritted his teeth slightly. It was sneaky, and a little annoying, but he could answer it. ¡°Irreality. I¡¯m still terrified that, one day, I¡¯ll fall asleep and wake up to see that everything I do was worthless. That it was all some kinda fucked up feverdream. That everyone I ever met isn¡¯t real, that everything that¡¯s happened didn¡¯t mean anything.¡± She raised an eyebrow. ¡°Why is that?¡± ¡°That is another question, I believe,¡± Mercury said. ¡°For now, I would like to know your biggest regret.¡± Orvyn snarled a little, but still answered. ¡°Opening that fucking door. Never should¡¯ve done it. The amount I¡¯ve lost¡­¡± she shook her head, then saw the encroaching red. ¡°That¡¯s not enough?¡± She huffed. ¡°Fine,¡± Orvyn continued. ¡°Truthfulness. This was shortly after I became fully realized, only about thirty-five chapters after I crafted my first shell. We had a door back at home, one that was forbidden. Sealed. The temptation was too much; of course I opened it. ¡°And I lost a lot. Because, of course, the door led to a prisoner. Someone who was shackled, and broken, twisted from isolation and desperate for conversation. So we talked. And I lost pieces of myself. My first name, gone. My first shell, gone. My first existence winked away, leaving me with no memories past that point. I became a puppet,¡± she growled. That was judged as a truthful enough answer by the arena. ¡°Those are unfortunate circumstances,¡± Mercury said, his empathy genuine. ¡°Your turn to ask.¡± ¡°So it is,¡± the shifter huffed. ¡°Let me see¡­ your worst betrayal?¡± Mercury smiled sadly. That¡­ memory was painful. ¡°It was from my first best friend. I loved him, you know. Had a crush and everything. I told him, and he told the leaders of the education establishment. Those told my parents. And then, I went through a long period of suffering.¡± ¡°What¡¯s his name?¡± Orvyn asked. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°I would like to hurt him if I ever meet him,¡± she doubled down. ¡°I would like to know his name.¡± ¡°Oh, I doubt you¡¯ll ever meet. But fine, yes, his name is Ron. Short for Ronald,¡± Mercury said. ¡°This ¡®Ronald¡¯ will pay if I ever meet him,¡± Orvyn said intensely. Strangely, Mercury believed her. ¡°That is a kind sentiment. But it seems like my turn to ask. What drives you?¡± Orvyn looked at him for a long while, silently. She shifted her shape once, and her weight side to side. Eventually, she replied. ¡°Desire. The want to move forward. Spite, to see how far I can go. Revenge, to a degree, and I suppose I want to find fulfilment. To be rid of hunger.¡± Mercury nodded, then let her ask a question again. ¡°Why do you want to be free?¡± The question seemed curious, now, rather than mirroring her original desire to win. ¡°Because I deserve it,¡± Mercury said. ¡°Everyone does. I lived with shackles and expectations, and I dislike it. I can choose to care, I can choose to take on duties, but I never will take on chains I cannot discard. Because it¡¯s suffocating, it isn¡¯t like me.¡± ¡°Untameable,¡± Orvyn nodded. ¡°I respect that.¡± The mopaaw gave her a thin smile. ¡°Why are you always hungry?¡± ¡°Because I have to be,¡± she said, shrugging. ¡°It¡¯s the only way to survive. Eat or be eaten. I learnt it when I opened that door, and I do not need to be taught twice.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°What would you do to someone who hurt a companion of yours, Mercury?¡± ¡°Get recompense. Whatever is needed. An apology, material rewards, or revenge. I¡¯ve confronted dragons for my friends, and I would again,¡± he said. Orvyn smiled faintly at that. ¡°Do you want to win this competition of truthfulness?¡± Mercury eventually asked her. ¡°Yes,¡± she said. The arena turned red, detecting a lie. Mercury had won. The heiress of Blossom looked at him, faer face frozen in astonishment. Then, she barked out another laugh. ¡°I see,¡± she said. ¡°You really set me up for that one. So did that servant! What a plot. Did you have this all in mind from the start?¡± Mercury smirked. ¡°Not in the slightest,¡± he admitted readily. ¡°I just noticed you could never admit that kind of defeat, but didn¡¯t hold hostilities to me anymore.¡± Orvyn shook her head, throwing a handful of leaves into the air around her. ¡°You truly are strange. Fine, then. Let us move onto this challenge of trust. Would your retainer act as arbiter?¡± ¡°Acceptable.¡± The moment Mercury confirmed it, Arber stepped into the arena. ¡°I will be posing hypothetical scenarios. You are to decide if you would trust the other in them. Convince yourselves, for any lie will be detected.¡± A moment passed, and when both of them nodded, the faceless mannequin began talking again. ¡°You are in a burning building. There is a door to the outside, but it is jammed. Your respective other is on that door, do you trust them to unbar it and allow you to escape?¡± ¡°¡±Yes,¡±¡± both of them replied. Nothing more happened. Arber smiled. ¡°Next scenario. You are being assaulted in a dark alleyway. Your respective other notices, do you believe they will come to your aid?¡± ¡°¡±Yes.¡± ¡°Someone says a rude comment to you, calling you a beast. Would your respective other speak up?¡± ¡°¡±Yes.¡±¡± ¡°There are two streets. A carriage is barrelling towards five people. If your respective other changes the course of the carriage, it will kill only you, but spare the five people. If your respective other chooses to do nothing, the five will perish but you will live. Do you believe your respective other would keep you alive in this situation?¡± ¡°¡±Yes.¡±¡± Mercury knew that Orvyn cared none about other lives, but he was surprised that she also felt safe. The glint in her eyes told him, though. She simply had faith he would find a way to save all six people. Also, how did Arber know the trolley problem?Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Let¡¯s assume you needed to undergo extensive modifications of your vessel due to some injury. Would you trust the other person to slowly replace all parts of your shell yet still have you maintain yourself, thus remaining the same being?¡± ¡°¡±Yes.¡±¡± ¡°Would you willingly entrust the other person with your life?¡± Arber asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Orvyn said without hesitation. She knew herself, she knew Mercury now. He was, surprisingly, not the kind of person to backstab something like this, so she trusted him. Mercury clenched his teeth. ¡°No,¡± he said. Because he wouldn¡¯t entrust others with his life, if he could ever help it. ¡°The challenge is over. Orvyn of Blossom wins this round. In total, you have achieved a draw. Congratulations, challengers.¡± With that, Arber¡¯s mannequin vanished again, off to the sides to watch other matches unfold. Mercury turned to Orvyn, giving her a long look. ¡°Why would you do that?¡± Orvyn smiled, that same, feral expression she wore at the parties as the dome went down. ¡°We are no longer in a competition of truth, are we? I owe you no answer.¡± ¡°That is correct, I suppose,¡± Mercury lamented with a sigh. ¡°I think it was worthwhile, though, learning more about you.¡± ¡°It did come at the cost of feeling like this was all planned by that old woman.¡± The mopaaw chuffed half a laugh. ¡°Fair enough. It does feel a little like that. I don¡¯t find myself particularly minding, though. Do you?¡± She shook her head. ¡°A little, perhaps. But I shall be off, now. I think there is more for me to do.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°I have challenged others as well. Some less witty than you, Mercury,¡± she said, this time with a more amused smile. ¡°Ah, I see. Good luck then!¡± At that, Orvyn nodded, then stalked away. Mercury himself returned to Arber¡¯s side. The tree¡¯s avatar gave him a short nod, then turned back to supervise the challenges. Minute by minute ticked by, and eventually, Alice came out from another dome. She was, once again, covered in dirt, her clothes torn in places and caked in dried blood. Despite that, she smiled at Mercury. ¡°Your challenge seems to have gone well?¡± she asked. ¡°It did,¡± he readily agreed. ¡°Yours seem¡­ draining.¡± The heroine shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ll live,¡± she said. ¡°And then I¡¯ll do it all over again.¡± ¡°Let me do the next challenge in your place. If it¡¯s something I can do, I mean.¡± At that, a few heads snapped into their direction. ¡°You sure this is a good idea, Mercury?¡± Alice asked, but he simply nodded. ¡°Definitely. This is to prove a point.¡± ¡°What point?¡± she asked. Mercury smiled, showing his fangs. ¡°You¡¯ll see.¡± And indeed, they didn¡¯t wait long before someone came up to the strange trio. Asher was still in a challenge, after all. It was someone from a lesser court that Mercury hadn¡¯t heard of before, that of Sunshine. The fae asking for a chance was, in that vein, a somewhat humanoid avatar made from light. Though their arms were more nebulous clouds. ¡°I would like to challenge the hero, Alice.¡± ¡°And what kind of challenge would that be?¡± Alice returned quickly. The sunlight fae smiled. ¡°A simple contest of domains. My light against whatever you choose.¡± ¡°Acceptable,¡± Mercury intoned. ¡°I would like to partake in this competition in Alice¡¯s name.¡± ¡°Acceptable,¡± the fae agreed. Once Alice had nodded her assent, too, Mercury and the fae headed off to an arena. On the way, Mercury was curious. He had defeated Asher in a measurement of domains before, essentially. Despite that, this one was confident. Had his victory not been overwhelming enough? Did this one think they had something to directly counter his skills? ¡°What are we wagering?¡± Mercury asked, once inside the arena. ¡°One level of mastery to be transferred from the loser to the winner, to a Skill of the winner¡¯s choosing?¡± the fae suggested. ¡°Acceptable,¡± Mercury nodded, then they both took their positions. A moment later, the challenge began. Instantly, the sky above them cleared, bright rays of sunshine tearing through the clouds in the facsimile of a sky the arena made. It felt like a scorching summer day, light spilling from the heavens and onto the earth. So that was why they were so confident? Because Mercury used , and their domain countered his? He smiled. They didn¡¯t really think that was the only trick in his arsenal, did they? Sure, his other things weren¡¯t ¡°domains¡± exactly, but then again, was also only an application of ihn¡¯ar, right? So he could, surely, use them as well. With a small twist of his mind, he sunk into that familiar state, calling out to and . The former, especially, thrived under the sunlight, growing taller, while the latter kept the heat at bay. Slowly, he called out to as well. There were, after all, tiny amounts of it always in the air. Oftentimes there was more water in the air on hotter days, since hot air could hold more of it before it condensed. So, he called out to those tiny bits of water, and asked them to partially condense, into a fog. Slowly but surely, then, the imaginary field was coated by mist. The grass hungrily soaked up the condensation, growing even thicker, and the wind cooled it down enough for more water to condense on the verdant ground. The sunshine slowly seemed unable to penetrate through that layer of mist, though it was still more than present. But closer to the ground, there was now the cover of darkness, which Mercury could exploit. Across from him, through the fog, he knew that fae made of sunlight still stood, enforcing their will on the sky, bringing down beams of bright heat. Their efforts were only intensifying, but Mercury was dead set on winning this. Crushing them, even. With another twist of his mind, he broke past the veil of gold. No longer confined by reason, Mercury came up with many more ideas, and the confidence to enforce them. He quickly reached out with and to change things around. By pumping his mana into the mist, he cooled it down, resulting in a tinkle of tiny ice shards to fall from it. Then, the shadows grew deeper on the floor, mixing slightly with the mist. Suddenly, the sunlight didn¡¯t refract as much on the water droplets anymore. The mist slowly went from white to gray, as the sunlight simply bounced off. Which then cooled it down more, letting Mercury¡¯s ice magic take greater hold. He smiled. ¡°Cold and dark,¡± he said. Then, slowly, he reached out to . Not in the same way he usually did, either. He had touched upon it as the void in between stars before, and as the horrors lurking in the depths, but now, he simply reached out to what it was in its name: nothingness. The antithesis to things that ¡°are¡±. For now, all he really needed it to be an antithesis of was the stuff above his mist. Past the golden veil, that was an easy idea. Mercury looked at the sky and wanted it gone. Then the sky vanished. The temperature dropped more, to the point where began making his fur thicker. Mercury didn¡¯t care. Through the darkness, tall grass and icy fog, he began walking forward. He knew where his foe was, despite the fact that there was no light to see. Instinctively, he reached out to , in a more general stormy way. It mixed with the howling wind and the tinkling ice, absorbing those into itself, and spreading through the mist. Suddenly, he felt it all. Every single tiny bit of hail that crashed from the mist to the ground. He could tell that they were falling through the sunlight-fae, but not dealing any damage, since it was incorporeal. But he had also entirely dismantled its domain, and trapped it within his. It would probably start to take more damage when he moved closer. So that¡¯s just what he did. Slowly but surely, one step after another, Mercury moved closer to the fae. His curtain of stopped the fae from bringing back the sun, dousing the sky in darkness. A quick glance revealed it was patchwork darkness, strangely, kind of like the sky in his mindscape. Not too long later, he stood in front of the fae. It looked at him, and he looked back at it. ¡°So, here we are,¡± Mercury said, calmly. He didn¡¯t receive a reply. The thing of sunlight simply seemed to tense up and redouble its efforts. ¡°I really don¡¯t wanna do this, you know?¡± Mercury said. ¡°But then, you had to challenge my friend. And I had goobers like you come up to me all the time. Even now, you thought you would win, handily. You were so confident.¡± Mercury sighed. ¡°So unfortunately, you¡¯ll have to be my example. So, you can either lay down on the ground, and remain that way until I am back with my group, or I can show you what a slam fucking dunk looks like.¡± The fae looked at him silently, still focused on conjuring their sunlight back, even more desperately. ¡°Slam dunk it is,¡± Mercury lamented with a sigh. With a command from his mind the freezing mist and chilling darkness all gathered in one spot, suddenly pressing down on the fae. Mercury saw the sunlight that constituted their shape flicker for a moment, but didn¡¯t relent. He pressed down on the fae with , , and , while pulling them to the ground with . They didn¡¯t last very long. It only took maybe half a dozen seconds before their nebulous lower body buckled, slamming their torso into the ground. Mercury redoubled the pressure, pushing them down, leaving an imprint on the frozen earth. The luminescent shell of the fae was pressed further in, until their back was flush with the ground mercury stood on. ¡°I think you should yield,¡± he ground out, teeth clenched in concentration. Managing all that with only one ystir was troublesome. Once more, no reply came, other than the fae shining a bit brighter. But with a bit of , all that extra light soon fizzled out, like a glowbug crushed beneath a boot. Mercury didn¡¯t entirely like that analogy. Carefully, he poked the fae with a paw. ¡°Hey, uh, if you don¡¯t yield, I¡¯ll just call Arber over. They¡¯ll judge this match as over real quick, no trouble.¡± At that, the fae finally deflated. ¡°This one¡­ yields,¡± they croaked. A moment later, the fog, grass, and wind disappeared, leaving the arena just as it had been when they entered. The dome faded, and the sky returned to normal. Mercury smiled, untouched entirely, while his opponent was still in the dirt. ¡°I¡¯ll see about that Skill now.¡± Instantly, a menu with multiple of them opened up. A couple aligned with his, and he spotted evolutions of simple Skills like and . There were a lot of Skills related to sight, and brightness. But there were also some that sounded like they would enhance understanding. Those seemed the most appealing, and he took one of those. [Acquired the Skill through a transaction!] [Similar Skill detected. Fusion with possible. Would you like to fuse?] Was this a good idea, Appy? [Advancing existing Skills is generally recommended over acquiring newer ones. This is the reason different evolutions of Skills are harder to gain once turned down, mastery that would go towards acquiring them is instead incorporated into other Skills, changing their function slightly.] Alright. Fuse. [ has levelled up! 5>] He felt the world grow a little sharper. The effect was more pronounced than with a regular level up, since he got the mastery from someone else, and also slightly different, since it came from another Skill. It felt¡­ easier to pick out colours. He kind of liked it. With a thin smile, Mercury trudged back to Alice and Arber. Asher was there too, now, having won his newest challenge, and seemed quite pleased about it. Once there, he quickly explained how it went to Alice, who shot him a bright smile. ¡°You certainly did make an impression!¡± she said. ¡°This should have you sorted for a while. Proving your power in such direct conflict twice, and winning so overwhelmingly this time¡­¡± she gestured at the fae, who was just now rising from the hole he had pressed them into, ¡°well. Let¡¯s hope the message clicks.¡± It did, apparently. He got more requests from more powerful fae, but those were easy to turn down. None of those old monsters really expected him to accept at all, even when the battlefield seemed equal. Who knew what kind of Skills they had? Maybe some of them could fool even Arber. Staking parts of himself on those kinds of bets, even when the contests seemed to favour him, was not a worthwhile risk. Alice accepted any challenge uttered against her, however, and also won each and every last one of them. Sometimes easily, sometimes with difficulty, but she would win without fail. The amount of challenges she got was also reduced, however, after Mercury¡¯s show of force. None of the younger fae came up to them anymore. It was almost enough to say it was calm. And so, the second day of challenges drifted by. Luckily, there wouldn¡¯t be a third. Chapter 195: Bloodsports Chapter 195: Bloodsports Mercury would have preferred a third day of challenges over what was happening. There was no breakfast on his fourth day in the fae realm. Instead, they headed downstairs to find the main hall had shifted into an arena. It would be a day for blood sports and betting. Unsurprisingly, Mercury did not, in fact, enjoy that practice. He had been moderately okay with it in human cities, since it was more of a profession for adventurers to train their Skills, but here? These people weren¡¯t exactly doing it by choice. Nor did the matches generally end with the participants leaving alive. After seeing the third head chopped off, Mercury was disgusted enough. So many pointless deaths. Around him, the fae were cheering, while Alice and Arber sat in silence. Asher seemed to be excited, but at least kept faer mouth shut. ¡°Is there any way to stop this?¡± Mercury asked, after only half an hour of murder after murder. Alice shook her head. ¡°No.¡± She didn¡¯t seem to want to elaborate further. ¡°This is judged as fair competition by the courts,¡± Arber explained instead. ¡°These people were claimed fairly, as per fae rules, and are now allowed to struggle for their lives. Letting them fight is seen as a privilege.¡± ¡°Right,¡± Mercury said, clenching his jaw. He hated it, but for once, there was nothing he could do. This was, as far as he understood it, as inevitable as the challenges. It was simply what happened at gatherings of the courts. There were bets being made, small exchanges of valuable materials, enchanted trinkets, sometimes even territories. No one traded in Skills here, at least. It seems that direct trading of power was only approved within the challenges. Mercury spotted the heirs he had interacted with again. Misha of Chill, apparently, seemed rather good at guessing the odds and who would win, continuously winning large gifts, and only losing smaller ones. Mercury himself refused to bet on it. Getting up and leaving would have been a breach of hospitality, and he could see a few people gaze at him with interest, even glee at his discomfort. He shut it out. Focused on his meditation and abilities. Rather than listen to the song of steel and pain, Mercury tried to listen for the wind, softly rustling through dry, leafless canopies. It was distinctly different here, in the fae realm. Back on Chronagen, in stormbraver, the wind was usually wild, stormy, but here? It seemed subdued, fearful. No, perhaps that wasn¡¯t right¡­ Mercury felt that it was waiting. As if, when the world was unaware, it would strike. Now that he thought about it, a lot of the fae realm felt that way. Like a thinly veiled threat, a knife always at his throat. The constant need to be attentive was like a grindstone he was being tested against. In that way, the challenges had almost been a relief. Simply being able to go ahead and crush someone in a straight up conflict? Easy. There was no need to worry about being stabbed in the back, or being sufficiently interesting. Now, too, he cast it all aside. There was a spectacle going on, and while it was a horrible practice, it might pacify the fae for long enough that he could get a glimpse of what this realm was like. Mercury had a lot of senses at his disposal, by now. He could feel the shadows, hear the wind, know where grass grew, but all of it felt muted in the fae realm. The wind was waiting, the grass had been burnt, the shadows¡­ were so vast that he almost didn¡¯t dare look at them. It was hard to get a grasp on the entire realm when he usually remained within the confines of Arber¡¯s tree body. Now he had a chance to explore. But he needed to do so carefully. This place had already demonstrated clear hostility, and attracting monsters certainly wasn¡¯t covered by the Hospitality of his First Visit. That would be too easy. So, Mercury looked sneakily. He extended his senses slowly, only slightly, a whisper on the world. He felt what the wind touched by asking it, he felt the tiny droplets of water in the air, and felt the mana with his own. That was the strangest experience. The mana her felt foreign as well, but not in a bad way. It felt old, but without the stagnation. It showed none of the decay of the fae realm. Because everywhere else he looked, he saw the decay. The stagnation. The lack of innovation. Trees had grown tall, then old, then died from lack of resources. The air outside was stale, with so few things breathing and interacting with it. The water had long since died out, worse than even the leeches that once plagued Ruvah. In every nook and cranny of the realm, he could see it: without even ihn¡¯ar, he saw that the fae realm was dying. It was vast, and powerful. Creatures that were unfathomable to him, almost entirely untouchable. But its own twisted rules had brought along its downfall. He knew it. Fae clung to the old, they clung to what was ancient. Immortals could never let go, after all. They needed to have and have and have. And they had sucked the land they lived in dry. There were vast forests all around mercury, but the floor didn¡¯t have grass growing from it. Instead, it was covered in dead ash. The trees were husks, burnt out shells of their former selves. Rotten to their core. And despite all that, he knew that they would still cling to live. Desperately, the old had a chokehold on the new, snuffing it out to prolong itself for moments longer. It was really all encapsulated in the dilemma of the empty thrones, wasn¡¯t it. Fae so ancient, everyone had forgotten their names. Rules so old that they should long have been dead, stricken from the annals of history, never to appear again. Yet the moment something new, he, set foot into this realm, they came. They came to plunder him, to rip out what made him special, take it for themselves, with the vain hope of preserving their existence for another moment. He found it despicable. History was something to learn from, not something to drag out into the present. The empty thrones¡­ the world was dying, yet all they cared about was existing a little longer. Even people like lady Whisperblossom craved something new, anything interesting at all. It was decay, from top to bottom. With that in mind, Mercury opened his eyes. He had seen enough of the forest, there was nothing new to be found there anymore. It was ash, as far as he could see. There were other regions further away, cold ones, hot ones, strange ones, he knew that much for certain. But he also knew that this sickness was everywhere in this realm. Now, he wasn¡¯t going to go on a cleanse, set it all on fire so something new could grow, but there certainly were changes needed. If the fae did as they wished, kept dragging mortals in, they would simply be devouring other realms in vain attempts to stabilize. It would never work. And, because they were fae, they would take more. More bodies. More blood. ¡°Unstoppable,¡± Mercury whispered. The fight down there in the arena couldn¡¯t be stopped, because he did not have the power. Not¡­ yet. But he would change this realm. The realm would change itself, really. It was, simply said, necessary. Because it would either change or perish, forever. Arber glanced at him slightly, turning their avatar at his expression. Mercury was staring at the arena blankly, barely registering what was going on. Instead, he was focused on what he wanted to do. He had been making allies, of course, but why was that? Why make allies with heirs who would never be crowned? Why enter challenges to understand people whose elders would never move out of the way? The courts mattered. They were powerful and large. But beyond them, there were the empty thrones. The broken husks of rulers that should be gone. The courts, themselves, were in the middle of collapse, but hung on by the powers of their rulers. It all needed to come down. Mercury resolved to tear it down. Not right now, but slowly, as he gained power. He had things that needed dismantling, so life could grow. He wanted to explore the fae realm, see what it was truly like, when it wasn¡¯t in the throes of death.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. But first, before all of that¡­ the seats of the empty thrones had to go. They were first. Then he would take down the deserted courts, the ones that had already died but clung to life, then the current ones. This realm deserved to live, it deserved better. With resolve, he watched blood spilled on the ground, his expression set into an unchanging mask. Not yet, but soon. He knew it, and lady Whisperblossom did too. That there would be change, or there would be death. - - - On his fifth day of the fae realm, there were more bloodsports to be had, but this time, it wasn¡¯t to be simple fights among regular abducted people. No, this time¡­ it was what the fae called the hunt. Promising individuals, prodigies, or unlucky adventurers who the fae had an interest in were released in the forest, and told to live. Then they would run, and be chased by hordes of giggling, ephemeral fae, until they encountered beasts that either roamed the forest, or sometimes were crafted for this occasion. Grafted monsters of flesh and chitin roamed between the trees, their shadows looming tall and dark. The first champion was¡­ a teenage girl. Mercury heard the courts tattle about how she had ended up in this situation. Stumbled into the fae realm on her own, then asked for help from the first fae they encountered. She then thanked the fae for that help, too. Now, she was in an even worse position than where she had started, but the fact that she made it to the fae realm on her own surely meant she had some sort of hidden ability? The monsters tore her apart. It barely took a moment. One of the things, chitin and blades, pounced from atop a tree and chopped her in half, then that was that. Her unique Skill? Apparently it was called . It brought her to strange and unexpected places more often, passively. That was all. The next challenger was an elf. Mercury had never seen one before, but they were just as he expected. Long, flowing hair, androgynous body, suntanned, olive skin, and sharp ears. They¡¯d a bow slung over their back. This time, the chase was more interesting. The elf ran,a s soon as they were permitted too, and it was a wise decision. The place they¡¯d stood was immediately attacked by some kind of rhinoceros-thing. It was only the beginning of the chase, though. The elf wove through the trees, leaping off branches, sprinting across the ash without disturbing it for a moment. Their emerald eyes darted around, looking for any escape routes, but they were simply met with more forest. Behind them trailed the fae courts, giggling masses of Blossom¡¯s leaves, wisps of ethereal fire for Scorch, and so on it went. They giggled and laughed, chasing after the elf, who slowly grew more tired. After an hour of chasing, and narrow escapes from three monsters, a swift one found them. Some sort of large praying-mantis type thing. A single swipe of those sickles, and the elf fell over, dead. Mercury grimaced. As always, after the death, their unique Skill was revealed. The elf had possessed some type of danger sense to avoid the beasts, as well as a unique Skill that made them nearly untraceable. That was how none of the branches they stepped on broke. Not that it saved them. Of course, the fae had prepared, and the next challenger was only a moment out. A young boy, whose hair seemed to sway in the breeze, though there was none. He looked light on his feet, smiling even. And Mercury recognized him. It was Breeze. The wind that had visited him in stormbraver. What was he doing here? Before Mercury could finish the thought, the hunt was on. The mopaaw watched Breeze stretch, tapping their toes with their fingertips, rolling their shoulders in an exaggerated manner. No monster came for them. Then, Breeze ran. Within a moment, the ash covering the ground was blasted aside, caught up in the vacuum Breeze¡¯s run created. A moment later, there were crashes as trees snapped at the base, then a louder, harsh cracking noise. Either Breeze had broken the sound barrier, or, and more likely given the blood Mercury saw as the fae followed, broken one of their creations apart. And, almost amusingly, as the fae followed, Breeze simply ran for longer. Ten minutes, then fifteen, and then, they vanished. Gone, just like that. ¡°They¡¯ve escaped,¡± one of the fae declared. ¡°Back to the other realm.¡± Grumbles were exchanged, until the next challenger appeared. But still, Mercury wondered how Breeze had gotten there. Maybe they¡¯d followed him? Through the door that was conjured when he went to the fae realm? Delayedly, when the next challenger was brought about, Mercury heard a whisper. ¡°Come back soon, Biso.¡± It was Breeze¡¯s voice, and their nickname for him. He felt strange at that, but quickly schooled his face back to neutral, eyeing the next contender. His glance at them did not last very long. After five minutes of chasing, they died. The contender after them died as well. Eventually, though, they brought out a decrepit looking old woman. She held a walking stick, and her back was hunched. She had apparently made it on the fae realm by seeking it out, the murmurs went. Found a passage and passed through it. Said she wanted to partake in the hunt. The fae, of course, eagerly agreed, simply to see what she was up to. Seconds ticked by, then the hunt began. This ons started close to a monster, because the swift praying-mantis that had decapitated the elf instantly appeared from between the trees. It struck the old woman, but her staff was already placed where it attacked. She hadn¡¯t moved particularly fast, but the creature had struck her defenses. A moment later, a second collission rang out. The old woman had moved, gently positioning the staff behind her, smoothly beginning the emotion the instant the creature vanished, and completing it just in time to block the second swing. ¡°Now, now,¡± she chided the insect. ¡°Settle down, would you?¡± The creature chittered, then struck with its other sickle from below¡­ missing the woman. Then, she lightly placed a hand on the lethal blade that had just passed by her hand. With a crash, the insect slammed into the ground. It was as if gravity had suddenly increased a hundredfold. Its chitin cracked as it sunk into the dried forest soil, and ash flew away in a cloud. Slowly, the woman lowered her staff to the floor, then began walking as she hummed a happy tune. Her staff made a rhythmic tapping sound on the ground. By any means, she looked to be an old woman taking a leisurely stroll through a wintry, leafless forest. Another beast appeared, but this one slammed into the ground in much the same way with only a glance. The woman kept humming. She walked for ten minutes, crushing another three beasts in the process. They simply folded in on themselves, though they didn¡¯t die. The final one hadn¡¯t even spotted her when it sank to the ground. Eventually, she stopped, in a small, open clearing. She looked back at the chittering fae. ¡°Now, is this far enough? How much will you drive this old woman? My hips are aching, you see?¡± Silence spread among the courts. ¡°I was told that this was a hunt. What do you want me to hunt for you? Go on, let me do a favour then cash it in.¡± Once again, none of the courts answered. The old woman breathed in and out slowly, her breath leaving in a small, frosty cloud. It wasn¡¯t particularly cold in the forest, Mercury noted. She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again. ¡°My hospitality is wearing thin.¡± At that, one fae laughed. The woman pointed her staff, and the creature, a humanoid figure made from thin sticks, as though a child had drawn it, folded in on itself. A tiny marble of dense, almost black wood was left behind. This time, the silence was deafening. ¡°What do you want?¡± lady Witness eventually asked. The woman smiled. ¡°Ah, lovely. Someone reasonable. I would have my wife¡¯s name back. She¡¯s been terribly sad since losing it, you see, and I can¡¯t have that.¡± Lady Witness looked at her. ¡°Do you know which court your wife dealt with?¡± she asked. Smiling, the old woman shook her head. ¡°No, no, the courts wouldn¡¯t get her name out of her. She¡¯s too sly a fox for that. This was done by one of your hungry old fogeys. The thrones-¡± ¡°There are no fae of such name,¡± lady Witness stated intensely, her many eyes unblinking. ¡°Fufufu, forgive me,¡± the woman chuckled. ¡°Of course there are not. But you see, that would mean my wife¡¯s name is lost. And that¡­ that would be a real, terrible shame. Especially since I beat your challenge, you see? I was invited for this by one of you, let me see¡­¡± She pointed her staff into the crowd, but no one was crushed. Instead, it was levered at Misha. The heir of Chill wore a slight smile. ¡°This one, that young man invited me here,¡± she said. ¡°Surely, that means you must pay up. Give me the name of my wife back.¡± ¡°I do not own it,¡± they calmly answered. ¡°Right, I see. Then would you be so kind as to provide the identity of the fae that does?¡± she asked. Misha smiled. They glanced at the courts, their gaze lingering. Silence hung heavily in the air at that moment. Then, finally, their gaze landed on Mercury. ¡°I do not know a fae of such name,¡± they said slowly. ¡°But this one? The mopaaw. They¡­ may have encountered someone. If such a thing is possible, after all.¡± The woman slowly turned, then smiled. ¡°Oh, I see.¡± She gave a small bow, her lone robes rustling as they ran over her wrinkled skin. ¡°Greetings. Are you amicable to granting this old woman a wish? I have completed your challenge, after all.¡± Mercury saw, then. This was a plan, by Misha. ¡°This is not my challenge at all, esteemed elder,¡± he said, leaning on . For a moment, rage crossed the woman¡¯s eyes. ¡°For I am not a fae. I will happily assist you in this. However your favour with the courts still stands. This is their hunt, after all.¡± ¡°But you will be assisting me.¡± ¡°That is correct.¡± She smiled. ¡°I see. Then, does your young soul have any wishes you would make of the courts? My favour is yours, after all.¡± Mercury looked at Misha. The fae simply smiled, calmly and placidly as always. ¡°Yes,¡± he said slowly, taking his time. What kind of wish should he make? Demanding traditions be abolished would be too much, too soon. No, this had to be a reasonable, individually completable request. And what did he need most from the fae? There was something, yes. Something they could give him. This realm was where the empty thrones were. If he intended to hunt them down¡­ he would need to be able to come back anytime. ¡°My request is simple. I wish for Arber to be my retainer whenever I am in the fae realm, rather than just this first visit. I additionally wish for the ability to come and go from the fae realm as I please,¡± he said. The first one was an insurance policy. If Arber was his retainer he wasn¡¯t exactly untouchable, but he would be much harder to target. Lady Witness gave him a long look, and Misha¡¯s smile turned wider. ¡°That is acceptable,¡± the lady said, ¡°so long as Arber agrees.¡± ¡°Aye,¡± the tree replied promptly. The avatar was weaker this far out from their main body, but not gone. ¡°I accept.¡± ¡°Fine then,¡± the lady said, tossing Mercury an item. He easily caught it with , then brought it close enough to see. It was a small key carved from translucent ice, and a small eye carved in at the base. At least it didn''t blink at him, that was a plus. ¡°The key will bond with you, in whatever way you touch it first. May it serve you well.¡± Now, a part of that stood out to him. ¡°In whatever way you touch it first.¡± Mercury, very gently, reached out with his astral body, rather than his physical one. The feeling was strange, like a small pulling at his skin, but without any visual sensation, the key vanished a moment later, when his physical paw was just a hair short of touching it. [Astral Bond Established.] He was right. If he¡¯d touched it with his physical paw, it might have been a blood bond. For all he knew, the fae might even think it was blood bonded, but it was not. As long as his astral body existed, it would remain bonded with the key. Then he nodded. ¡°This payment is acceptable. Thank you for sharing this boon, esteemed elder.¡± She smiled. ¡°Please. You may simply call me Daryel.¡± Chapter 196: Days going By Chapter 196: Days going By Daryel and Mercury were forced to watch three more hunts, two of which ended in blood, and one in the granting of a boon. It was a young adult, maybe in his mid twenties, who won, bloodied and bruised. He, an orc, asked to be granted power over the earth, and so he was to be taught some magic, then returned to Chronagen. After those hunts were over, more minor ones happened, but the big spectacles were done. Mercury could leave. The winners would attend a ball later today, for their ¡°sponsors¡± - the fae which had brought them - to show them off. It was altogether disgusting, especially since not all participants had come willingly, but it was to be done anyway. Mercury, on the other hand, was now in Daryel¡¯s room, granted to her by Arber, where they would talk. The others waited outside. The old woman in front of him was clearly dangerous. told him so rather clearly, as well as the ease with which she had crushed that young faerie. They were inexperienced, sure, but Mercury didn¡¯t think he could just have compressed their shell to a marble. At the same time, though, told him he had nothing to fear. The woman held no hostility at all towards him. In fact, she seemed rather¡­ peaceful? Yes, that was it. She was the opposite of whatever posed to strike was, perfectly placid, like a relaxing cat. ¡°So, Daryel,¡± Mercury started. It was the first few words that fell in the quiet room, and the old lady gave a nod at them. ¡°You would¡­ like my help, I suppose?¡± She nodded once more. ¡°Now, now,¡± she chided, despite her prior agreement. ¡°There is a proper order to things. Let us keep to it. Come, I ask you to make tea for me.¡± Mercury blinked at her once, in confusion. Despite that, he felt she was genuine. told him so. was urging him to just make the dang tea. Since there seemed to be little harm in it, Mercury tentatively nodded. ¡°Sure, I suppose.¡± Once again, Daryel nodded, then waved her hand over the table. From her inventory appeared two cups, as well as a teapot. That was all she brought out, however. No leaves, no water. Gently, she smiled. ¡°Go on,¡± she coaxed. ¡°Make tea.¡± Ah, so it was a test. Mercury knew that there was water in the other room, but that was rather simple. ¡°What would you like me to do?¡± ¡°Make tea,¡± she repeated. ¡°What kind?¡± ¡°Your kind,¡± the woman said with a smile. Right then, Mercury supposed he could do that. With a delicate use of , he took the lid off the teapot. Then, with a twist on and , he made a tiny cloud rain silvery liquid into the pot. It was still water, though it certainly had a slight sheen to it. Next, he needed leaves. Tea was made from leaves, surely. Of course, he could ask Arber to produce some, but would that really be his at all? It didn¡¯t feel right. He honestly didn¡¯t want to use anything from the fae realm at all. That only really left two options. Maybe his log could grow something, if he really tried, or he could try bringing some from his dream realm¡­ by weaving it into existence. Something symbolic there about his past and present, maybe? He was willing to try it. Under the watchful gaze of Daryel, he took out his log from his inventory. The woman raised an eyebrow at that, but remained silent. Of course, the log was dead. It was wood that had fallen over, and not absorbed nutrients from the ground for a while. Having it sprout grass of all things¡­ well, it made rather little sense. Luckily, Mercury wasn¡¯t exactly bound by reason. Very quickly, with a shift of his mind that came effortlessly now, he twisted past the golden veil of ¡°reason¡±. Suddenly, the idea of grass sprouting from a dead tree didn¡¯t seem unreasonable at all. The thing was saturated with mana from all the runes, and used to have a bit of moss growing from it, after all. Surely moss was a grass? Right? Mercury decided it was close enough. Rather politely, he asked if it could take root on the log. The ability seemed almost confused at the request. There were no seeds there, and no greenery. But, well, there were wood cells to start from. Mercury knew some things about DNA. Maybe those were a reasonable starting point? Surely, it¡¯d work. And, entirely unreasonably, it did. Somehow, from knotholes where branches had once been, new ones slowly began sprouting. Tiny green stalks, long and thin, which siphoned Mercury¡¯s mana and stamina to grow. After a few dozen seconds went by, he stopped using the skill, and cut one off. It was a long, frail thing, with leaves sprouting off in pairs, and multiple sets of them at the top. Kinda like basil. Gently, while holding it in place using his telekinesis, he cut off one leaf after another, mainly by using . It was a delicate process, but the stems didn¡¯t feel right for tea, so he pulped those and fed them back to his log. How his log consumed the biomass was beyond him, but that was fine, too. Gently, the leaves drifted over to the table, directed by Mercury¡¯s mind, and were laid to float atop the water in the teapot. He still had one more thing to try. Rather rapidly, Mercury broke through the second veil of iridescence, then ignored the cracks in the world and the yawning void. He trusted that and would keep him hidden as long as he didn¡¯t pry. Instead, he focused on weaving. He¡¯d done it for paper before, hadn¡¯t he? By now, his Skill had only grown. Plus, he had a rather good understanding of the grass on his plans, since he spent so many nights there. Additionally, the distance between worlds seemed so small after breaking the second veil. It should come easier now. Some of his ystirs even seemed to slumber in that mindscape. Gently, he coaxed one of them to consciousness - but not awake, not back to his body. He felt it, out there, somewhere. His , existing in that ethereal place that wasn¡¯t a place at all. He could feel the dual sensation of his paws, flesh and blood, upon a wooden chair, while his mental self rested upon lush grass. Slowly, in his mind, those two images intersected. His paws, surely, could be on both grass and the chair at the same time. He wanted it to be true. He understood . And this was about as grassy as grass could get, really! He knew it, in and out. He saw it, underneath his feet. Felt it, smelled it. With his mind, he reached out to the . The grass wouldn¡¯t make its own way over. But if he knew what it was like, and he could feel it right there, then it shouldn¡¯t really be that hard to- Mercury, with a push and a pull that seemed to overlay two worlds onto each other, dragged a piece of his dreamscape into being. Perhaps dragged was the wrong word. He wove it into being, though that weaving was kind of a transplantation of reality. Then, there was a bundle of grass at his feet, and the old woman¡¯s eyes widened slightly. Of course, there was no dirt for it to root into, so it kind of just¡­ toppled over. Mercury quickly caught it with some ghost hands, then levitated it above the pot. A few uses of turned the grass into fine pieces. He put the lid back onto the pot, then began heating the water with his mana, after deactivating his ihn¡¯ar. It was a bit harder than he remembered, but his ystirs had grown. Even with just one of them awake, his control over mana had improved with practice, and was backed by his far higher stats.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. After a minute or so, the water was boiling. Mercury laid down in his chair, and kept the water at a high temperature for a few more minutes, until he felt it was good enough. ¡°The tea is done,¡± he declared. With a respectful nod, Daryel poured him a cup of it, then herself. There was thin steam wavering above a cup of somewhat opaque, green liquid. A strainer must¡¯ve been built into the pot somewhere, since no bits of greenery escaped alongside the tea. There was still a silvery sheen to the drink. It showed in the way that it caught the light, like it was a bit more reflective than it had any right to be, Daryel lifted the cup to her lips with a slow, steady motion, then drank a bit. She smiled, then placed the cup back down with a soft sound. ¡°Good tea,¡± she praised. Mercury took that as his cue to taste it himself. The tea was pretty good. It was herbal, he would even call it a little wild, but had a faintly sweet, gentle taste. It did suit him. ¡°I have learnt much about you, I think,¡± the old woman said, giving a light bow, her robes rustling with the motion. ¡°It will be a pleasure to work with you.¡± Mercury returned her bow with a nod. ¡°I hope so too. I feel a great deal of anger at one of the thrones.¡± ¡°Anger?¡± the woman asked carefully. ¡°Indeed,¡± Mercury nodded. He held her gaze for a few long moments, not providing additional context. Eventually, the woman sighed. ¡°I see. I, too, am angry. The faeries seem to lack decorum. They do not give face, anymore, thinking me a plaything like those others. I had to show their misconceptions,¡± she explained. ¡°Understandable,¡± Mercury admitted. ¡°Then, perhaps it is time for you to share what you know of the thrones?¡± ¡°Not yet,¡± the mopaaw shook his head. ¡°I hardly know why you are hunting them.¡± ¡°Nor do I know your reasons,¡± the old woman countered. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s correct,¡± Mercury confirmed. ¡°Someone dear to me was hurt. Will that suffice?¡± The old woman leaned back. ¡°I suppose it must,¡± she hummed. ¡°Fine, then. My wife, My wife, Lotus of the Watery Grave, once misstepped during practice and ended up halfway into the fae realm. She is a spirit, you see, and barriers are notoriously thin for them. Rather than letting her return, as is customary, the broken throne took her. I am unhappy with this circumstance.¡± ¡°Reasonable,¡± Mercury agreed. ¡°So, I wish to find the thrones and have her back, that is all. If I have to break something to make them heed my request, however, I will.¡± Mercury nodded. The older woman seemed reasonable. Despite her anger, she hadn¡¯t broken anything- she hadn¡¯t broken too many things. So, he was fine giving her a hint. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about the thrones,¡± he admitted readily, ¡°but I do have a piece of one of them with me.¡± Quickly, he took out the antlers from his inventory, placing them on the desk. They glowed a faint blue. The woman smiled, and it seemed to be somewhat greedily as she eyed the spectral things. Honestly, Mercury was more worried that they¡¯d phase through the table. They seemed¡­ unstable. Volatile, really. Still, he gave her time to examine them. ¡°I might need a small sample,¡± Daryel eventually admitted. ¡°You have tracking skills?¡± ¡°Some,¡± she confirmed, hovering her hand across the antlers and taking a deep breath. ¡°I believe I may be able to follow the residue given off by these back to its source.¡± ¡°Take your sample,¡± Mercury confirmed. As long as he could get old Uunrahzil back, the rarity of the material no longer mattered. With a swipe of her hand, Daryel severed the tip of one of the prongs, catching it in her open palm. Then, Mercury deposited the spectral fragment back into his inventory. The two of them stood up in an amicable mood, gave one another something between a nod and a bow, then headed back out to the hallway. There, Daryel quickly headed off, walking with purpose, while Mercury rejoined his friends. ¡°I assume she won¡¯t be attending the ball?¡± Arber asked. ¡°Doubtful,¡± Mercury agreed. ¡°I think she¡¯ll set off in search right now.¡± ¡°What took you so long?¡± Alice asked. ¡°... I made tea.¡± ¡°Entirely reasonably!¡± Asher said with gusto. Mercury doubted he had a good grasp of what tea was, but decided to not bring it up to the young fae. Instead, he simply focused. ¡°Let¡¯s go. That ball won¡¯t attend itself,¡± he said. - - - The evening had been worse than he¡¯d thought. Mercury went through all three of his ystirs, running each of them down to exhaustion. It had been miserable. Why did the fae have to ¡°show off¡± their champions this way? They¡¯d been dressed in elaborate outfits, carrying weapons unsuited for them. One of them had fainted from the heat. Multiple had partaken in food that was entirely unsafe of them. Really, Mercury had spent most of his time babysitting children. Because those also participated in the challenge. A few were barely old enough to go to school, and he had to keep them from eating the shiny food from the funny people. Because their sponsor assured them it was fine! Mercury politely explained that their sponsor also sent them to a death game, which usually ended in sobbing. But he could deal with sobbing. Those were just kids being kids. No, the glances of the fae were the worst. Like he¡¯d shown them a weakness, that his caring was something they would exploit the moment they could. He spotted the hungry glints in their eyes. Saw as lady Whisperblossom gave him a slight sneer, as if she found something new to poke. The entire evening, he was simply waiting for it. But it never came. All it did was leave his nerves frayed. The champions would not be hurt - not that explicitly without breaking a few rules, at least. If they broke something, or hurt someone, well. Mercury would no longer bet on their safety then. Perhaps they could pick to become servants of the house then. What a disgusting thought. Taking a deep breath, he laid down on the mattress. He hadn¡¯t paid attention to tomorrow¡¯s program. He would find out in due time. Despite being wrapped in his blanket, no dreams came to him. - - - Mercury¡¯s fifth day in the fae realm was, apparently, to be a day in the gardens. It was a strange place, really. It felt¡­ liminal, almost. There were dozens of servants and wooden avatars of Arber swarming about, like bees in a hive, yet they always remained at the very edge of his perception. Mercury did his best to ignore them. Seeing the comparison, the lush flora inside, with colours of all kinds, and then some he had never seen before, contrasting against the greys of the outside forest was a stark difference. This was only partially a garden. It was more like one of those seed vaults, storing things that could restore life one day. The air was sickeningly full of pollen, as well as dozens of substances that would have altered his mind. Mercury decided to conjure up his own to breathe. At least the garden was varied. There weren¡¯t simply well trimmed flowers - this was life, made to live as it would. It had a wild, overgrown charm that cultured gardens rarely did. Most of the caretaking involved watering, or, well, feeding. Partially also stopping the plants from overtaking one another. He suspected that the fake-suns on the ceiling, shedding bright daylight all over the space, were a construction maintained by Arber¡¯s enormous vitality. There were also areas with more shade, though, and ones without any sun at all, where fungus grew. Then there were icy places, covered in snow that reminded him somewhat of the Caretaker. That thought, however, made the ground feel a little shaky for a moment. Mercury took a step, unbalanced, on the gravel path, and stumbled before catching himself. That was¡­ strange. No one else had made that mistake. Arber, Alice, and Asher followed him without any trouble. But when he thought of the caretaker, he would feel a lurching, like he was being squeezed, and like distances shifted from their proper condition. Maybe¡­ in a place like this, where the barriers between worlds were thin, he could make that step? Did he want to see the caretaker again? She had been helpful to talk to, yes, but perhaps¡­ no, certainly not yet. Revealing he could do this to the fae would be a bad decision. Some other time, then. He simply enjoyed the cold of the icy area, watching icicles that had grown from the thin framings of some of the plant beds. It was a rather pleasant experience, one where kept him at a comfortable temperature, and he didn¡¯t interact much with other fae, since the garden was too large. His least favourite part was seeing those plants that were not entirely focused on drawing nutrients from soil, water, and air, but instead preferred to supplement them via other means of consumption. The fact that the flesh-or-otherwise-eating-plants section was really rather large. The tour continued, of course, but he really didn¡¯t enjoy that part. Eventually, it was done, and he returned to the same old ballrooms with the same old faces. He saw why lady Whisperblossom would get tired of it after decades. He already found it boring after only a few days. - - - The sixth day was one of games. Bets were placed on racing animals. There were tables for gambling, playing cards, and more, rather strange constructions that he didn''t particularly want to get near. Fae gambled with the most minor of favors here. Only if you took every chit someone had to bet would you ever be able to force them into something major. No, winning a bet here might get you rather little, only a streak would see you winning more. ¡°So this day is why hosting isn¡¯t considered a loss,¡± Mercury remarked, seeing a lucky wheel game that was really rather similar to roulette. As with most ways of gambling, there were rules that made it so that on average, the players would lose. Since Mercury was not a fae, however, he didn¡¯t have any favours to bet. He could borrow them, of course, and see if he could win more. He was still expected to participate, after all. Strangely, the person giving him favours to bargain with, even if it was simply a handful of minor ones, was lady Whisperblossom. Perhaps she considered it payback for when he had coaxed an extra reward out of her? It was a good way to resolve that in his eyes. Now, even if he lost everything, it wouldn¡¯t be too troublesome for him. He¡¯d made her swear that these came without any strings attached, after all. Metaphorically, and literally. It was simply making up for something he had done, and they were even. Mercury was able to make the bargains last for a while, but eventually ran out. He had participated in the games rather enough though, so none faulted him when he retreated a little. Misha, for their part, was cleaning house. They kept winning until they were removed from the premises. Several other scions, and even some older fae, got all their bargains taken by them. Really, Mercury was glad he hadn¡¯t played against the scion of Chill. Really, he seemed rather fearsome. Winning bargains consistently when the odds were rather stacked against him? The mopaaw didn¡¯t stay long enough to see the results play out, but with the amount of substances being consumed, he wagered that it would involve vomit and lots of cleaning. No dreams came for him. Perhaps the next day would be better. - - - The seventh day of Mercury¡¯s stay in the fae realm was special, because, well, the number seven was special. It was kind of like an anniversary, really. But no one celebrated it. There was, however, a unique tradition, usually carried out by the rulers of the courts. Who Mercury would meet for the first time. Chapter 197: The Faerie Courts Chapter 197: The Faerie Courts Walking into the large ballroom, Mercury was rather unsurprised to see it having changed. Rather than a stairway to the second story, it was shaped more like an amphitheatre. There was a single stairwell, seemingly able to rotate, placed in the centre, so that whatever ruler of the courts was needed could stride down from their elevated throne and make their way down to the plebians. Where the second story used to be, there was a set of unbelievably opulent chairs. In alignment with the cardinal directions were the thrones for the seasonal courts. Blossom, Chill, Scorch, and Mellow, for spring, winter, summer, and autumn. There were other seats, in smaller intervals, but they were harder to identify. The throne of Blossom, for example, was wreathed with green, flowering vines, dozens of petals sprouting from it, while the throne of Chill was carved from ice and snow. They were beautifully decorated, and clearly held together with magic. Right now, the rulers of the courts were not yet present, but they would soon be. Mercury noted that these were distinctly not the empty thrones. These were the acknowledged, current rulers of the courts, rather than old, forgotten, supposedly dead fae who were still clinging to life. Lady Whisperblossom had told him of those, and their deserted courts. Halls that were once opulent now standing empty. The courts that would attend today were still in the height of power, though some of them were dying out slowly. ¡°And you really can¡¯t tell me what¡¯ll happen today?¡± Mercury asked once again. Arber looked at the room, slowly filling up with the fae. They came from different doorways, entering one by one, and beginning to mingle. ¡°No,¡± they said. ¡°It¡¯s a sacred thing. I cannot tell you any of it.¡± ¡°More sacred than-¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell you about it,¡± Arber said, shaking their head. ¡°No matter what you ask, I can¡¯t tell you. This is taken seriously.¡± Mercury grumbled, but relented. ¡°Fiiiine,¡± he complained, setting about waiting instead. Still, the mopaaw looked around the room. There were a few recesses cut into the floor, now. Shallow, with sloped edges, kind of like vats where small pools could go. Maybe half a metre deep, not much more. Other than that, the room was rather bland. There were spots for the fae to stand, and dedicated ones for people who were not aligned with any court. That was where Mercury would stand himself, for example, as well as Alice and Arber. Asher would stand with Scorch, as was his duty. Misha, too, had already arrived, standing with Chill, and Orvyn with Blossom. The shape-shifting heir was in a somewhat humanoid form, too, for once, though she seemed uncomfortable, scratching and having flakes of leaves fall loose, before getting swept back up into her shell again. The morning continued on like that for a little while, with more fae trickling in, and taking their place. For once, maybe the first time since Mercury had entered this room, it was quiet. Some of the fae were talking to one another, but it happened in hushed whispers entirely. No one was speaking loudly anymore. As the minutes ticked by, even those hushed whispers died out. A few more minutes, and absolute silence hung in the ballroom. There was nothing much to see in the room. The staircase in its middle was frozen in time. The fae stood perfectly still, as if even shifting their weight on their feet might kill them. It was a perfectly still room, Sparks danced in the air, as if showing the tension, but Mercury resisted the urge to push them away. Even as one landed on his fur and singed it slightly, he simply ignored it. None of that mattered. Because, eventually, after a long moment of silence, the staircase in the middle of the room moved. It rotated, slowly, then quickly, then slowly again, before finally stopping. When it did stop, the staircase led from the ground floor up to one of the thrones. This one, to Mercury, seemed rather comfortable, woven from white, fluffy clouds. Arber spoke. ¡°The first court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Skye.¡± The words left their mouth, spoken without their usual accent, and the room collectively held their breath. Mercury felt the arrival before he saw it. It was like something was drawing nearer at insane speeds, suddenly crashing into him. The mana vibrated in the air, and he felt pressure slam into his application of , the one that kept him breathing clean air. A palpable weight laid itself across the room, and Mercury could feel it on his shoulders, as if he was lifting a hundred kilos. It pressed down on him, as if attempting to force him to kneel. Some of the fae did just that. Almost all that bowed were from the court of Skye, an admittedly modest ensemble, though some fae without a court at all did so, too. Of those aligned with other courts, none moved, and Mercury himself simply stood and watched. It felt heavy, and the presence made his skin crawl. It felt like he was smelling ozone, combined with the distinct, burning feeling at the back of his throat. For a few seconds, nothing happened, other than the pressure growing more intense. Mercury felt his ears pop, as if he was in a plane that was taking off. Then, the air in front of the staircase to the second floor rippled. First like it was in a heatwave, then, as if there was heavy wind blowing, and finally, the air filled with cracks looking a little like tiny, lightless lightning bolts, frozen in time. A moment later it broke open, and the pressure coming from it washed out like a wave. Mercury felt his own flicker like a candle caught in a storm. He instantly focused his entire attention on simply remaining upright. The pressure crashed into his lungs, almost sending him into a coughing fit, but he resisted. His Skills worked in tandem to resist the enforcement. Mercury¡¯s eyes danced across the rooms, watching a few more fae buckle, and bend a knee, even though they seemed less than pleased. None of the older faeries did so, and Mercury also remained standing, if barely. From the torn air, a figure stepped into the room. It was as though someone had taken a stormcloud and pressed it, vaguely, into the shape of a person. Their arms, all eight of them, were spindly and branching, as if made from lightning. Their dark shape was shifting, if clinging to a somewhat humanoid form, and they had an enormous mane of hair. Flashes of light seemed to occasionally occur within the court ruler, their dark, grey shape suddenly being illuminated to stark white. It felt like the room lost a bit of vibrancy and colour, as if the greyscale of a thunderstorm was being imposed on the whole world. Mercury even felt his fur rising with the static electricity. It was a thoroughly uncomfortable experience. For a minute, the ruler of Skye simply swept their eyes across all the fae that were present. Eventually, that gaze set on Mercury. They had eyes, yes. He could tell, now. Looking into them felt as if he was staring into the sky, dozens upon dozens of clouds storming by in the wind, as if there was an endless sea of storms. He held it for a few seconds, as the court ruler regarded him. The pressure grew heavier, and he felt his legs shaking, but still remained standing. Eventually, after what felt like an eternity, but was probably only a few seconds, the creature moved on. Another dozen seconds passed as they finished gazing at the fae in presence, then ascended the stairs up to the throne. Mercury spent the moment of calm throwing a resentful glare at Arber. This was going to be a hellish day if every one of those damned rulers made an entrance like that. And, of course, he hadn¡¯t been warned. There was a lull in the air for a bit, as the ruler of Skye withdrew their presence. A collective sigh was released. Then, Arber spoke again. ¡°The second court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Salt.¡± Slowly, the staircase moved clockwise, stopping at the next throne. Instantly, that same feeling of pressure returned, no less intense. This time it smelt watery, like a faint ocean breeze. Except that the ocean breeze was whipping against his face intensely enough to make his eyes tear up and his skin feel dry. The same scene repeated, with him gritting his teeth to resist the pressure, though it was slightly less miserable, since had already changed him slightly. When the air fractured again, Mercury felt that wind redouble. He was almost torn off the floor, having to intensify his muscle mass and make himself heavier to remain grounded. and were acting almost like a windshield, breaking the breeze before it hit him. A few moments later, the air fractured, and the pressure this time was worse. With Skye it felt like his ears popped because of a flight. Now, it felt as if someone had thrown him into the depths of the ocean. The pressure felt strong enough to begin grinding against his bones. It felt like a raging torrent blasting into him from all directions. He tasted salt as he breathed in, and it burnt his nose and eyes from the sensation. Fucking faeries. The thing that stepped out was a large creature. It looked like the union between a centipede and a whale, with chitinous lines that could almost be described as graceful, as well as dozens of legs that seemed like they could extend fins to glide through the water. Its exoskeleton was made from salt, the crystals somehow sticking together, despite the fact that parts of the creature also seemed to be made from dark, churning water, and seafoam. It, too, looked over the crowd, and when it stared at Mercury, it felt like he was being hit by a high pressure jet of water, but soon, it moved on and walked up to the throne, curling around the pillar-like structure. The staircase moved. It stopped at the throne of ice. Arber spoke. ¡°The third court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Chill.¡± Instantly, the temperature in the room dropped. Mercury saw his breath come out in puffs of smoke. His fur became thicker, but it wasn¡¯t enough to stave off the cold - it would never be. Mercury, briefly, considered that the fae were being rather dramatic. Irrithuriel, despite her main element being ice and snow, had not been this intense about it. Of course, that didn¡¯t make his current predicament even slightly better. The ruler of chill entered, and the temperature dropped even further. Mercury stopped shaking, as he felt the blood in his veins borderline freeze. He grit his teeth, and willed his heart to continue beating. The pain was only mildly horrible. He felt the chill crawl through him, but he remained standing anyway. More fae than for the other two courts buckled, bending their legs. Misha of Chill remained smiling, even as his ruler entered. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Mercury saw the ruler. It was a crystal core, a deep, icy blue. It sprouted dozens of insect-like wings, terribly thin constructions of translucent ice, in all sorts of pastel colours, with mesmerizing patterns carved into them. Eyes, too, were drawn onto the wings, which extended in every direction, and the eyes moved, too. A little like a peacocks¡¯s feathers, except just¡­ real eyes. With those, the ruler of Chill laid their eyes on everyone in the room almost simultaneously. The pressure got worse once more. Mercury felt as if he was breathing shards of ice. Like his blood was crystallizing and cutting his insides open. Still, he didn¡¯t look down. He didn¡¯t bend, didn¡¯t break, didn¡¯t relent. It was like weathering a snowstorm with his bare skin, the winds like a whip, and icy little flakes digging into him like thousands of tiny needles. He didn¡¯t avert his gaze for a moment. Eventually, the ruler of Chill relented. The eyes moved on, and eventually, the crystal like core floated up a bit higher, ascending up to the icy throne. Since the seasonal courts were in the cardinal directions, there were now two other courts before he needed to deal with the next season. Not that it would be much more pleasant in the meantime. ¡°The fourth court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Shadow.¡± - - - ¡°The fifth court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Rust.¡± - - - After Rust came Mellow, and with Mellow, their ruler. Mercury hadn¡¯t been told their names, though he was sure they had them. But for Mellow¡­ Alice whispered the name to him. ¡°Hey, you know how Mellow is a decaying court? This is the reason why they have not yet died out. The ruler of Mellow¡­ is faerie king Oberon.¡± The warning did not come a moment too soon. As soon as Mellow was even named, the pressure filling the room eclipsed any that came before. Mercury saw faeries that had remained standing strong bend their knees. Asher himself crashed to the ground on one knee. Misha of Chill barely remained standing, the grin finally wiped from their face. One by one, the fae fell like dominos. One by one, they crashed to the ground, no matter what court they belonged to. Mercury even saw lady Witness briefly wobble before she caught herself. Every thought vanished from his mind as he focused on remaining upright. His legs creaked under the pressure, his bones threatening to snap. Mercury forcefully held them in place, using his rijn and to hold himself in place. The assault was on all his senses. The pressure was intense enough to make his vision go blurry. The walls seemed to fade. Every cell of his body started becoming convinced that he stood in an autumn forest. It was, in every meaning of the word, mellow. Brutally so. The entire world seemed to demand he become mellow, too. Bend like a wilting leaf, and take his place upon the ground. Mercury had to strain every fibre of his being to resist that though. His other ystirs woke up, and he even felt Appy use her system clearance in order to reduce the mental interference. Despite it all, Mercury stood . Then, the air broke and the faerie king actually stepped through. [Your Willpower has increased by 1!] [ has levelled up! 7>] The pressure was nothing short of crushing. Even more fae dropped to the ground, including Misha and Orvyn. The heir of Shadow, who Mercury had bested, had already fallen, and now became borderline flattened to the ground. Oberon was¡­ a simple looking man. He wore a garment of browning leaves, though some green, yellow, and red ones were mixed in. It formed a deceptively simple tunic. His crown was woven from vines, with a handful of juniper berries blossoming from it. He sported a small pair of curling horns, somewhere between antlers and ram¡¯s horns. The bits of skin Mercury saw were grey and flakey, like scales about to fall off. His face was covered in a white mask, its colour almost matching his silver hair. The mask was an opaque, milky colour, somewhere between white jade and ivory. Its edges turned into feather-like designs, while its top flowed into the leaf-crown effortlessly. From in between that white, Mercury saw the king¡¯s eyes. They were a burning yellow, the colour of a burning sunset. One by one, Oberon gazed at the present fae. One by one, they buckled, then kneeled. Until, someone didn¡¯t. Oberon had begun by staring at the court of Blossom, and the people he looked at folded. One after another. Until his eyes landed on lady Whisperblossom. Mercury saw her shake, but she held the king¡¯s eyes, despite everything. After an endless moment, Oberon moved on. Court by court he went, and every time, Mercury saw one, maybe two people resisting his gaze. Out of the hundreds of fae present, at the end, less than two dozen had resisted the king¡¯s gaze. Then, it settled on those not belonging to a court. Each and every one of them buckled. Then, Oberon¡¯s gaze landed on Arber. Mercury saw the tree avatar consider fighting, but they didn¡¯t. Arber bowed. They didn¡¯t kneel, or prostrate themselves, but simply gave a bow at the hip. Oberon seemed satisfied at that, moving on. His gaze landed on Alice. Mercury saw the smile fade from his companion¡¯s face. But she stood. Didn¡¯t move a muscle. Oberon looked at Mercury. Instantly, Mercury felt as though the weight of the world settled on him. He was like wheat, and the intent of the faerie king like the scythe of the farmer. He was a loose pile of dust in front of a tornado. The gulf between them was vast. Mercury felt his ystirs tremble, then crumble. His mind snapped together, into one consolidated force, and he held on as best as he could. [ has levelled up! 6>] Almost on reflex, Mercury sunk into ihn¡¯ar. It was entirely unreasonable for him to remain standing. The golden veil shattered. Suddenly¡­ it didn¡¯t seem so unreasonable anymore. But realistic? The iridescent veil shattered. Mercury saw the fake world come apart at its seams. The forced autumn conjured by the faerie king¡­ Was just that. A false image. Surrendering some Skills to Appy, she kept him upright with . He, instead, focused on keeping the faerie king¡¯s gaze. Those eyes were mesmerizingly terrifying. He could glimpse so much in them. Mellowness, kindness, betrayal, a thousand lifetimes¡­ it threatened to overwhelm Mercury, to consume him. [Your Willpower has increased by 2!] Mercury had had his mind shattered before. He¡¯d broken apart himself in the realm of the crimson sun. He had partway broken again against the empty throne. He refused to lose himself again. That was who he was. Mercury Starlight. And what he glimpsed of Oberon¡­ was fascinating, entirely overwhelming, and again too much for him to parse¡­ but it was just noise. It was mellow noise. He would never bend to that. [ has levelled up! 8>] Oberon¡¯s gaze moved on, and Mercury breathed a deep breath. ¡®Holy fuck,¡¯ he thought. That had been dangerous. His entirely self had almost been twisted to bend. The fae across the room now stared at him, confused. He should, reasonably, not have been able to do so. Hewould¡¯ve fallen, were it not for Appy¡¯s help. He could feel hairline fractures in his bones healing. It had taken that much strength just to keep his body upright. But he¡¯d remained standing. [ has levelled up! 8>] The sensation had been horrible, but¡­ at the same time¡­ ¡®Appy, did you record that sensation?¡¯ [Sensation recorded. Partial repetition possible using .] While Oberon walked up the stairs, Mercury broke out into a faint smile. This was good. He¡¯d found a new way to make his life miserable and grow from it. He looked around, and saw a wide grin on Alice¡¯s face. Arber didn¡¯t have a face, but nevertheless, Mercury knew they were happy for him too. Asher, Misha, and Orvyn simply looked shocked, while lady Whisperblossom looked terribly entertained. Oberon got settled on his throne, a solid one carved from an enormous, dark brown tree, wreathed with colourful leaves, and then Arber spoke again. ¡°The seventh court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Illusion.¡± That one passed more easily. Mercury¡¯s frayed mind held together against illusions, and he was skilled at resisting the unreal, since reality itself seemed unreal to him sometimes. He held the world together, and remained himself. ¡°The eight court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Dust.¡± When the announcement came, with it there was the smell of ash, the same kind of sooty smell Mercury remembered from burnt out campfires. But the pressure felt softened after his Skills levelled, and made him temporarily more resistant. When the air fractured again, Mercury felt warmth slam into him, too. Like he was looking at smouldering embers. The figure that appeared was decidedly not humanoid, this time, shifting constantly rather than retaining a single shape. They were a light grey, only a few steps off white, made from thousands of floating bits of ash. Still, Mercury could tell that wasn¡¯t all that was to them. It felt as if there was enough ash in front of him to drown out a whole world. Almost enough ash to cover the ashen plains back in the crimson court. A dense ball of condensed power, threatening to spill forth, restrained only by the person holding it. As always, the ruler of Dust gazed around, though hardly anyone buckled under their gaze. Somehow, that felt strange to Mercury. Their aura was vast, yet¡­ it seemed to not truly slam into someone. Eventually, that gaze rested upon him, and Mercury saw it. It wasn¡¯t ash ¡°like¡± in the realm of the crimson sun. The ruler of the court of Dust¡­ was the reason for that ash there. The permanent storm, the fields covered in desolation, the broken court of the crimson sun¡­ This one had done that. Mercury triggered . [Once upon a time, a scion of Dust loved a lady of wrath. She drew him away, and Dust watched their scion go. When they did not return, Dust went to investigate, but nothing but a defiled corpse remained. That day, the embers within ash ignited once, and the land of the crimson sun was never the same. Only a handful of the court remained, left to starve until the end of time.] Dust¡¯s ruler lingered on Mercury. He knew that they knew about the crimson sun inside him. The ruler saw his titles. Saw . There was a brief, terribly faint whisper from . A complex emotion. Grief, anger, sadness, acceptance, some kind of joy it was done with, and pride, too. The ruler of Dust seemed not entirely themselves, but they moved on rather quickly afterwards. Despite that, seeing them shook him more than Oberon, because with them, it was personal. ¡°What is the ruler of Dust called?¡± he asked Alice. The hero regarded him softly for a bit, then whispered back. ¡°Finva.¡± With a nod, Mercury let the next court entry wash over him. ¡°The ninth court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Scorch.¡± It came with a heavy presence again. The ruler of Illusion had been a will ¡®o wisp looking thing, but the ruler of Scorch was far hotter. It was a figure of entirely, iridescent white. Looking at it felt like staring at the sun. Just its presence made his eyes hurt, but Mercury still didn¡¯t avert them. The creature was not quite humanoid, either. It somewhat held that shape, but rather than arms, birdlike wings of radiance spread from their shoulders. They wrapped those around themselves, almost as though it was a cocoon. Their head, too, was not humanoid at all. It was fully detached from the remainder of their body, a floating orb like a second sun itself, and they had no legs. Their cocoon torso was instead held up by a swirling conflagration or flaming tendrils. When they moved, they left streaks of fire and plasma hanging in the air briefly, before they dimmed and let down. Mercury stood. ¡°The tenth court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Blood.¡± It was hardly worth mentioning, but he withstood it. ¡°The eleventh court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Allure.¡± This time, he got angry. For a brief moment, that faerie forced a false image of Zyl into his mind. Mercury decided he did not like Allure. Still, it was only a footnote, really. Because the next court that came, was¡­ ¡°The final court to make an appearance today. The venerable court of Blossom.¡± Alice lowered herself to him again. ¡°Blossom is ruled by faerie queen Titania.¡± The air fractured once again. And a presence descended. This one was comparable to Oberon once more. The air was charged by now, all the rulers were present, and only Titania still absent. So her presence felt even heavier, pressing against all the others. It was a calm spring day, only turned up to a million. The smell of flowers was entirely overwhelming, and all Mercury could hear was the buzzing of insects. It was an unnatural, horribly intense vibrancy of life, intense enough to send his own heart pumping faster. When Titania stepped through, for the second time that day, Mercury¡¯s mind was forced into a single shape, resisting with all his mind, forced to peer past the seams of what was real in order to escape the fake world the queen¡¯s presence imposed on him. He bore with it, watching lady Whisperblossom kneel, and lady Witness stand even under the queen¡¯s gaze. When her eyes landed on Arber, he bowed. Alice stood. Eventually, she turned to Mercury, and he finally took her in. Her hair was raven black, with flowers interwoven all throughout it, her skin a toned brown. She had two long, ashen grey horns that seemed to twist in on themselves. Her dress was made from leaves and flowers, stained all kinds of colours. And her eyes were a vibrant, bright magenta, And seemed to leave trails of magenta flames when she looked around, her lips eternally frozen in a bright smile. The pressure was different from Oberon, but no less intense. Mercury felt himself begin unravelling, then held himself together forcefully. Instead of unravelling, he unravelled. Spring itself opened up in front of him. The name of every flower, every tree, every mushroom, every day. The name of the air and the pollen and the- Titania looked away. Triumphantly, Mercury stood on shaky legs. He had done it. He had remained standing throughout it all. [Level Up!] [Level Up!] With the levels, all his aches faded away. Mercury felt amazing. That didn¡¯t mean he was more powerful than all the fae. There were about two dozen that had done the same, and the ruler themselves, of course. Additionally, another couple dozen who had kneeled could probably kill him if they tried. But his Willpower was greater. In fact, all twenty points his two levels granted him went into Willpower. Willpower 216 -> 236 He had shown each and every damn fae in presence that he could butt heads with the best of them. His Skills now stood on the very verge of evolution, only needing a slight push, and he had the perfect means to practice them. Silence hung in the room, though, demanding his attention, and he quickly wiped away the smile, focussing again. For the first time since the introduction of the courts, someone other than Arber spoke. Titania, sitting on her throne of leaves and flowers, opened her eversmiling mouth. ¡°Welcome, one and all! Dear faeries of the courts, unaffiliated fae, and esteemed guests. Welcome to our inauguration ceremony!!¡± she said, her voice a melodious sing-song. What was an inauguration ceremony? ¡°On this wonderful day, all in attendance will be granted the chance to affiliate themselves with a court,¡± Oberon spoke. His voice was deep, melodious and, well¡­ mellow. ¡°Those who wish to change their court may do so, those who wish to stay unaffiliated may do so by passing a trial of the courts¡¯ choice.¡± Mercury looked at Arber. The avatar looked back, giving him the tiniest of nods. He would also need to participate in the trial if he didn¡¯t want to be part of one of the courts. Lovely. Chapter 198: Trials Chapter 198: Trials Before the challenge there was the baptism to go through. This would happen in the same order that the courts were allowed in, which meant the ruler of Skye went first. The fae made from fluffy clouds and frozen bolts of lightning descended the stairs once again. It spoke. ¡°Any fae who wishes to join the court of Skye may step forward.¡± The voice was soft and gentle, surprisingly, and felt as fluffy as Mercury imagined a cloud would. Not even a stormcloud, but a regular, calm one. There was a bit of a drawn out silence, until one fae stepped forward from the courtless. Another two swiftly followed, now that they weren¡¯t the first ones. Another few moments of waiting passed, but no one else stepped forward, and the cloud-fae of Skye nodded slightly. As they did so, Mercury watched one of the recesses in the floor fill with a blue substance, with puffy white things in it. It seemed a lot like a piece of the sky had been trapped there. The ruler of Skye pointed at one of the courtless. ¡°Step forward,¡± they commanded. Quickly, the fae obeyed, making their way towards the ruler. Inevitably, their journey led them to the edge of the sky-pond. They paused in front of it, unsure. ¡°Step into the court of Skye, and be borne anew,¡± the ruler said. For a few more moments, the unaffiliated fae hesitated, then quickly nodded, and took another step forward. Their foot sunk deep into the mirage of the sky. Another step, and they sunk even deeper, down to their navel. Mercury was sure that the recess in the floor had not been deep enough for that to happen, but it did anyway. Another step later, and the fae was submerged up to their neck, now right in front of the ruler of Skye. The cloud fae sat down at the edge of the pond, dangling their legs into it, then leaned forward, placing one of their hands gently on the younger fae¡¯s head. It was strange, seeing such a gentle motion be done with such a sharp-clawed hand. ¡°Welcome to my court,¡± they said, quietly and with gravitas, yet not unkindly, then pressed the head of the younger fae underwater. There was an absolute silence for a few moments, then the ruler of Skye moved their hand back out of the strange substance. The shell of the unaffiliated fae had changed. Vines were replaced with trails of lightning, bark with fluffy clouds. Their eyes had changed, too, from a green hue to a soft blue glow. It hadn¡¯t looked painful, but the fae was most certainly different. Mercury could see that the hue he saw around them had changed, too, their entire aura no longer the same. What a strange transformation. He watched the other two fae go through it as well, and only one of them went under and immediately began desperately thrashing, as if they were being drowned. The ruler of Skye simply shushed them, like one might do to a pet¡­ or someone they were murdering. It was mildly disturbing, seeing a hand go under, then emerge again, changing slightly with every splash of the strange, sky blue liquid. Eventually, the thrashing stopped. A couple minutes later, another member of Skye emerged. The whole procedure, for all three fae, had taken barely ten minutes. It was rather ritualistic. When it was done, the ruler of Skye themselves stepped into the recess in the floor, spending no more than a few seconds, never sinking further than the actual recess would allow. With them inside, the liquid drained again, until only a thin sheet at the very bottom of the pool remained, though it still faked the depth of a whole sky. Mercury knew it could only be half an inch deep at best, but despite that, it also felt like he was staring through a window into the atmosphere. So strange. Next up was the court of Salt. Their pool looked like an ocean, understandably, and four different fae volunteered. Then came Chill. Their ¡°pool¡± looked like a sheet of ice, but it was still clearly liquid. This time, more fae stepped forward, seven in total. The interesting part was that one of those came from the court of Dust, wanting to change their allegiance. Mercury heard a few people gasp at that, but no one interfered. The fae was allowed to go forward, step into the pool, and emerge changed. So were all the unaffiliated ones. Fourth came Shadow, and their pool, predictably, looked like a mass of writhing darkness. Then there was Rust, with an orange, flakey liquid, bits of aged iron floating in it. It lacked much of the grace Mercury had felt from the other courts, but it still served its function. When Mellow¡¯s turn came, the pool was a pile of amber leaves. Oberon got the process dealt with rather quickly. Then came Illusion, their pool an iridescent film, kind of like a thin oil spill, though the colour swirled and Mercury could see shapes in it if he let his mind wander. Dust¡¯s turn came, their pool one of ash. Finva had a single person join their court, and the ceremony was slow, but graceful. After them was Scorch. The burning pool that they summoned looked like one of those close ups of the sun, including little arcs of flame mimicking solar flares as well. After Scorch came Blood, which made the whole hall fill with a metallic smell, which faded only once they left. Allure conjured a pool that seemed pinkish, with images of hearts dancing over it, but Mercury could tell it was a thin facade. More than anything, the surface of Allure¡¯s pool felt fake. Finally, it was Spring¡¯s turn, and the pool filled with green grass, some of it blossoming into flowers. Strangely, that grass still sprouted from a liquid beneath, though even that liquid seemed to Mercury like it would simply feel like going through extremely tall grass. Titania blessed more than a handful of fae, allowing them into her court. She retained a smile during all of it. After that, the first set of inauguration was finally done. There were still a handful of unaffiliated fae, such as Alice and Arber. A few more rugged fae also stood on that side, and a few very, very dangerous looking ones also stood without a court. Of course, Mercury himself was in the same situation. Queen Titania gracefully ascended back to her throne, leaving a thin coating of grass in the twelfth basing. All of them were still, somewhat, filled. The queen spoke again, after getting seated. ¡°Now then. The remaining unaffiliated members will receive trials to complete. If they succeed, they may remain as such. Before a trial is administered, any courts who wish to have the individual join them may stake their claim, then decide on a trial together.¡± Right, of course they did. This, apparently, was also done one by one. The previous inauguration ceremony had lasted a little over an hour. Mercury imagined that this may take the rest of the day. At least he wasn¡¯t the first to be called forward. That honor went to an old fae, Mercury recognized. The aura around them was powerful, densely packed around their body, but confined. It wasn¡¯t authority, it was pure personal power. Seven of the courts wanted them. The old faerie was mostly humanoid, with two arms and two legs, though they were wreathed in a dense mist of steel grey. Underneath it, Mercury caught glimpses of a skeleton, though its bones looked like they were made from bronze. Combined with the eye sockets carrying amber flames, they kind of looked like a lich that got its colour grading wrong. Titania spoke, once again. ¡°The courts have spoken. Skye, Salt, Shadow, Rust, Mellow, Blood, Dust stake their claims. Decide on a trial, rulers.¡± There was a brief silence, and Mercury could only assume that some fae communication shenanigans must have happened, since after a few seconds, it was queen Titania who spoke again. ¡°A trial has been decided. Your diligence will be tested.¡± Instantly, the room shifted. Rather than the pleasant hall they were in before, Mercury found himself on a mountaintop. The lich-like fae stood in the center, just below a purple sphere, hovering above them. ¡°You must diligently protect the sphere until it is full of your mana. Good luck.¡± A moment later, the sphere fell, though the fae easily caught it. Instantly, they sat down, placing the purple orb in their lap, and channelling mana through it. Mercury felt the air tremble slightly at the volumes of power, but he didn¡¯t move a muscle. He was just a spectator, after all, and spectate he did. A few seconds passed, then a dozen, when he noticed a buzzing in the air. Another dozen seconds later, human sized bugs began swarming the mountaintop. Every single one of the bugs zoomed towards the orb. The buzzing grew all consuming, yet the lich did not move. Any bug that approached simply went limp, stopped beating its wings, and plummeted to the ground, rapidly dying. There was no fanfare or grand action. Simple death. As quick and as insidious as it could be. A whole minute ticked by, and the bug corpses would have begun stacking were the bottom ones not flaking apart into dust. Two minutes passed, and the orb was growing a bright purple, the bugs plummeting towards it like moths to a flame. Its glow became brighter by the second, the mana in the air only growing denser. Eventually, an even larger bug, almost elephant sized, appeared, and the lich still did not move. It approached, then hit an invisible barrier. Its proboscis disintegrated first, then its legs, then the wings, until it, too, became dust. Then, the orb was filled, and Mercury was back in the hall. ¡°You have passed your trial,¡± Titania announced, and with a nod, the lich stepped back. Another challenger was chosen, stepped forward, and had only two courts vie for them. A trial was given, one of health. They were afflicted with a disease and told to heal themselves. Slowly but surely, they failed, their shell breaking apart. By the end, nothing was left. Then, in the blink of an eye, they were restored. The courts decided who took them. Blood¡¯s ruler was a strange thing, a giant floating construct of crimson. They had three head, each different, one as though carved from metal, a disfigured face with a ring of sharp spikes coming from it, the next somewhere between a dragon and a horse, with an elongated face, facsimile scales covering it, and the third that of a bat, yet with ram¡¯s horns growing from the top of its head, and its face as well, spiralling and growing back into the blood.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. It was a monstrosity, and it viciously descended on the neutral fae. The courtless was still confused, having just lost their shell and been restored, so it couldn¡¯t resist Blood¡¯s ruler at all. Appendages ending in maws closed around the one that had just failed their trial. They struggled and flailed, but it didn¡¯t matter. The ruler of Blood dragged them towards its basin in the end, shoving the once-neutral fae down into the crimson liquid until they stopped thrashing. Then, they were withdrawn, now changed, and the ruler of Blood spoke. ¡°Welcome to the court of Blood,¡± it said, their voice a strange, guttural gurgle. The newcomer did not reply, simply being dragged to where the rest of the court stood and thrown in with them while the ruler of Blood ascended back up to its throne. Mercury did not much enjoy the macabre display. - - - The trials continued. One after another, fae were picked, the room changed, and they either succeeded or failed. Some took their loss graciously, others were dragged off and submerged. It was never enjoyable to watch. Eventually, Alice¡¯s turn came. ¡°Eleven of the courts have staked their claim, all but Blossom. Decide on a trial, rulers.¡± A pause. ¡°A trial has been decided. Your suffering will be tested.¡± The room changed. Alice was placed in the middle of a burning village. Humans were dying around her. Mercury felt his stomach lurch. He didn¡¯t know if it was real or not. It could as well be an illusion as it could be a teleportation. These might be real people. Knowing the fae? They probably were. ¡°You mustn¡¯t help,¡± Titania declared. ¡°Watch, and suffer.¡± And so Alice suffered. One after another, buildings caught fire, people screamed, ran out with burning clothes. Some dropped themselves on the floor and rolled, but the dry grass easily caught flame, too. They burnt to death. Mercury felt his blood boil when he heard children crying. His heart broke a bit when one of them ran up to Alice, clutching at the hem of her dress. ¡°Help. Please,¡± the child asked. Alice looked at it, crying. ¡°Sorry.¡± The child burnt to death. Eventually, the trial ended. Alice¡¯s face was stoic, a stony mask of indifference, but Mercury knew she was angry. So very, very angry. Then came Arber¡¯s turn. ¡°Four of the courts have staked their claim, all four seasons. Decide on a trial, rulers.¡± A pause. ¡°A trial has been decided. Your existence will be tested.¡± The room shifted. Mercury was a spectator, of a single sapling, lost in a great forest. Time seemed to speed up. The tiny sapling grew, first into a small tree, and Mercury saw magic coursing through it. That was Arber, then. Once it was as tall as a human child, the forest caught fire. It all burnt down, into a husk of ash, and the sapling itself, too, began smouldering. It caught on fire. It burnt. Arber stood there, burning, for what for them must have been half a year. They stood, burning, barely remaining alive with dregs of mana, for that time, until finally, mercifully, rain descended. The ash soaked into the ground, so much of it that the soil turned acidic, but Arber lived. Beasts came and ate at their leaves, but Arber lived. Humans tried uprooting them, and Arber lived. Two decades passed, until they had grown into a strong, wide tree. They began reshaping themselves, compressing a dimension inside them, and then the trial suddenly ended. They had proven that their existence was worthwhile. That they could continue to exist by themselves. Arber¡¯s avatar stepped back into the crowd. Without a face, some people might struggle to read their expression, but Mercury knew. The feather on their hat slumped slightly. They were tired, worn down, and wished to simply lay on their back and rest. A few more fae were challenged in between, until finally, it was Mercury¡¯s turn. Queen Titania said something she had never spoken before, her smile growing eerily wider. ¡°Twelve courts have staked their claim. All of us. Decide on a trial, rulers.¡± That¡­ did not bode well. ¡°Your trial has been decided. Your-¡± She stopped. The silence hang heavily in the air. No one dared to speak. Titania looked upon Mercury. She stared at him, mundanely, without all the pressure from before. She took a deep breath. ¡°All courts have staked their claim. Decide on a trial, rulers.¡± Something felt different. This ¡°all¡± was not the same as the previous one. Gears started turning in Mercury¡¯s head. He knew the fae had more faction. The empty thrones. And lady Whisperblossom had warned him of another faction. The deserted courts. Were they related? Did the empty thrones rule the deserted courts? Or were they different? Unfortunately, his time for thinking ran out. ¡°Your trials have been decided. Your worthiness will be tested. Your belief will be tested.¡± Muttering erupted inside the chamber, and for once, it didn¡¯t change instantly. ¡°... Why am I being faced with two trials?¡± Mercury decided to ask. The queen stared at him, her purple eyes seemingly boring into his soul, looking for what gave him the audacity to question her. ¡°It was decided as such,¡± she answered, almost flippantly. Mercury stared back. ¡°That seems rather unfair.¡± ¡°I did not make that decision, not on my own, at least. We all judged it to be the fairest outcome. For us, and for you,¡± she explained. ¡°You don¡¯t wanna have this conversation,¡± Mercury noted. ¡°Neither do you,¡± the queen hissed, her careless facade suddenly breaking. ¡°Stop your meaningless pride and finish your trials.¡± The room remained the same. ¡°You need me to agree to start them,¡± he said, gasping slightly. Everyone turned dead silent. Titania, faerie queen, monster as old as the world itself, looked at Mercury. Her eyes blazed magenta, brightly enough to leave a burning trail on his retinas. ¡°Accept them,¡± she commanded. Mercury tilted his head. He didn¡¯t think pissing off the faerie queen anymore would be a very wise decision for his health. But he really, really didn¡¯t wanna take this lying down. ¡°I want an additional reward,¡± he said simply. ¡°What?!¡± ¡°Nothing major,¡± he said. ¡°Just a thousand Skill points. A pittance, really.¡± His smile didn¡¯t waver. The faerie queen fixed him in her gaze, angrily, but paused. The rulers seemed to communicate again. ¡°Acceptable,¡± she hissed. - [Side Quest: ¡°Faerie Trial¡± Condition: Succeed on your trials. Reward: 1000 Skill points Patron: Faerie Queen Titania] - Mercury smiled at the nice bit of reassurance. ¡°I accept the trials.¡± ¡°Then that of the twelve courts will commence first,¡± Titania said, her mask of impassive calm back in place. Instantly, the room shifted. Rather than wood, Mercury found himself standing on grass and wet sand, on the shore of a lake. There were trees around the lake, marking the edges of the clearing, and a tall rock hanging over the pristine waters with three stone menhirs atop it. Mercury felt a gentle wave splash against his paws. The wind was strong enough to cast small, rippling waves. He didn¡¯t see any other faeries anymore, couldn¡¯t even feel them, though he suspected that he would be able to if he pierced the veil of iridescence. That was a trump card he didn¡¯t need to unveil so openly. Instead, Mercury walked around the lake. It was featureless, the sun unmoving in the sky. Time was a bit screwy in the trials, so he did not know how long he had, but there was nothing wrong with getting done sooner rather than later, so he approached the menhirs. They were blank slates of stone. Tall, impressive, worn down by weather and age. Carefully, he placed a paw on one of them. It glowed softly, a dim, blue flicker, as faint as a match. A moment later, the light shot into the lake. The waves stopped, although the wind only picked up, and soon, ripples spread among its pristine surface. Perfect, tiny waves, erupting from where that blue glow had struck the surface. A woman rose from the waters. Long, blonde hair, seaweed woven into a diadem, holding a ruby at her forehead. Only her upper body left the confines of the water, and she slowly drifted towards Mercury. ¡°It has been long since someone visited me here,¡± she said. ¡°So it seems,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°What brings you here, traveller?¡± she asked. ¡°A test. I wish to prove my worthiness.¡± ¡°Your worthiness? To me?¡± ¡°Is there¡­ anyone else I should consider this for?¡± Mercury asked, cocking his head. ¡°There are two more menhirs to your side. For my sisters. Perhaps you wish to prove to them that you are worthy?¡± the lady asked. Mercury smiled. ¡°Ah. Yes. Let me call on them, too, then.¡± Soon, two more lights rose, and two more women drifted from the lake towards him. ¡°You have called us.¡± The winds were picking up, a venerable storm now, but Mercury stood steadfast. ¡°I am supposed to prove my worthiness.¡± ¡°Then you must delve to the bottom of the lake. ¡°You must find the ends of the earth.¡± ¡°You must go to the reaches of the sky.¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°Consider it done.¡± Going to the lakebed was not too difficult. let him keep the water off. He breathed his own air, walking along the lakebed. Hands sprung forth from it, grasping at his ankles, but he kept walking. Fishmen threw spears at him, but he kept walking. Pixies cast enchanting magic on him, whispering secrets, but he kept walking. And not five minutes later, he reached the bottom of the lake. There was a house of glass. Mercury opened the door. It was dry inside. A bit of seaweed grew from the wet soil. Despite being seaweed, it ended in flower buds. Mercury plucked one of them, then walked back to the surface. He laid the flower down in a small bowl in front of the respective menhir. The ladies were whispering to each other. ¡°The ends of the earth, then,¡± he said. What were the ends of the earth? The earth was really only used because they meant the end of the world they were on. And, well, the world they were standing on didn¡¯t exactly have a beginning or an end. Unless¡­ He made one. This was more challenging, of course, but Mercury soon fell into ihn¡¯ar, shattering the veils, and finding reality broken and insufficient. ¡°The ends of the earth,¡± he muttered. The pieces of the broken reality rearranged themselves. Deep bits of void reached out, but he asked the to abate for a few moments, and it listened. The world rearranged itself. Its end¡­ was now this very spot. In front of Mercury, there was a piece of rock. White, and smooth, with streaks of ruby, emerald and sapphire. Somehow, the marble had trapped gemstone veins in it. Mercury deposited the orb. Finally, he had to go to the reaches of the sky. Now that was a little more difficult. He was not a bird, he could not fly. worked on him, but making himself float was strange with the skill. ¡°Well, what¡¯s the saying? Something like¡­ your will can give you wings?¡± He shook his head, and his mind split into three. His ystirs each held onto a rijn, creating a solid enforcement of his will. He had used it to shatter rocks and mould metal before. His rijn were powerful. And so, he changed their shape. He had used them as a hammer before, so obviously, he could change them again. Now, with this much practice, shifting them was much easier. All he needed was a thin, solid thing, so he went with something familiar: paper. Shaping his rijn into what was essentially rigid sheets of paper, he placed one in the air in front of him, then stepped on it. Then he placed another one, and another. By the time he had ascended those, he could move the first one up in front again. So, Mercury build himself a very literal staircase into the sky. There as a song reference in there somewhere, he noted with mild amusement. Not too long later, he breached the cloud layer. They hung remarkably low, mainly since this place was probably not quite real. He stepped on the clouds, and they were solid. There was a ruined castle, and a giant¡¯s corpse. Casually, Mercury walked up to it, to the middle of the castle, where he found a bottle with a cloud trapped in it. That would work, then. He simply jumped off, spreading his legs wide. made his fur thicker and bristly, adding to his air resistance. By the end of his fall, his tail looked more like that of a squirrel than a cat. But he landed. It hurt a little. [ has levelled up! 5>] Okay, maybe it hurt a medium amount. But he more than survived, and so had the bottle. He placed it in the bowl. It had all taken barely fifteen minutes. The ladies looked at him, shocked. Mercury looked right back at them. ¡°So, uh, worthy? Yeah?¡± ¡°What a strange creature,¡± the lady of the lake muttered. ¡°But he passed the challenges,¡± the lady of the sky said. ¡°I¡­ cannot find fault with his methodology,¡± the lady of the earth added. ¡°Fine then, hero. You pass our trial. As a reward, you shall have the sword in the-¡± The trial world faded away. Back with Arber, it was announced that he had passed his first trial. ¡°Your second trial begins,¡± queen Titania announced. Then, the hall shifted again. This time, rather than a tranquil lake, it was different. He found himself in the halls of a school, and memories darted past his mind. He had a friend in this academy, someone older than him, someone who had learnt for much longer. They were well regarded among the school, easily influenced by what others thought, and sometimes shifted. Mercury was there to ground them. His belief in who they were would solidify their existence. The malignant rumors would not turn his friend sinister, so long as his belief was strong enough. They wouldn¡¯t be changed by expectations, not corrupted by their parents¡¯ perfectionism, not withered by the disappointment of their teachers. So long as Mercury held onto that belief strongly enough. Then, the memory was older. Mercury stood terribly still as the trial began. For a few seconds, he breathed. Within his stomach, he felt a terrible amount of rage rolling. What a sick fucking joke this trial was. Perhaps, if he gave the fae the benefit of the doubt, it was an exercise made by them to practice getting old Uunrahzil back. But really, he was rather sure they were trying to gauge his limits, so they could put the minimum effort in to corrupt his mentor. Mercury felt furious. But this trial was also a chance. ¡®Hey Appy? Turn on .¡¯ [Confirmed.] A weight settled on his mind, a fog that made it hard to remember who his friend was supposed to be, but Mercury¡¯s eyes blazed. He would show them just how the limits of his belief were. Chapter 199: Proving Oneself Chapter 199: Proving Oneself With a ring of a bell, the school year began. Mercury found himself in a classroom, surrounded by desks. They fit poorly, and the chairs were uncomfortable. His friend, the one he was meant to ground, sat next to another kid. A loudmouth, class-clown gossip. Mercury¡¯s head felt sluggish, barely able to follow the lecture - actually, there was no lecture, he distantly noted. Then, that detail was discarded again. It mattered very little how well this fake world was built, all he needed to do was make sure that his friend remained unchanged. Despite the weight that pressed on his mind, Mercury set upon the task. He had fragmented memories, pieces that didn¡¯t feel quite right, but he had to put them together. The picture he had of this friend was, supposedly, clear. They were kind, upright, hardworking, but also a bit of a pushover. A scaredy cat, and ever so desperate for approval. They would change whenever someone requested it of them, malleable like clay, and unstable like a castle of sand. That picture was ingrained in Mercury¡¯s mind, but if he held onto it, the trial would fail. His friend was, in essence, a creature of belief. It was what one expected it to be. They had no shape or species of any kind, but they still had desire. Something they wanted to be. What did his friend want to be? Mercury¡¯s slow mind struggled to complete the picture of that. He had the pieces, but they felt slippery, and he constantly had to renew his grip on them. It was like trying to walk on an ice skating floor. Regardless, Mercury bit it down. He wrapped his significant will over those pieces, holding them in place, grasping the details in his mind simultaneously. He couldn¡¯t have called it easy - the harder he tried to grip them, the more slippery those details seemed to get - but he completed the task. The ringing of a bell shook him out of it. His sand-like friend, who he decided to dub Clay for now, had changed. They were just a little more¡­ mean. In that way where gossips whispered and giggled to each other, in that way where you never knew if they were talking about you. It¡­ wasn¡¯t at all suitable for the Clay in Mercury¡¯s puzzle. With a lurch and a bit of dizziness, he found himself in the next part of the trial. Clay was in sports class. They were among the last picked for basketball. They were slow, their sand-self providing poor footing, but they couldn¡¯t change that. Afterwards, they cried, and were mocked for it. Again, the trial shifted, with Mercury¡¯s mind barely able to keep up. He grit his teeth. He had to want this, he knew that, so he set about it with more desire. Clay deserved to be who they wanted to be, rather than some twisted amalgamations of desire imposed on them by others. Mercury wanted that freedom for them, so he set about it again. What did Clay want? Were they strong, tall, short, thin? Would they want to be charismatic or wise or good at studying? He knew they wanted recognition, but for what? He asked. When the vision shifted again, he walked up to Clay like some kind of ghost, and simply asked. ¡°Hey Clay?¡± ¡°O-oh! Mercury! I didn¡¯t see you, uhm, hi there. How are you?¡± they asked back, flinching for a moment. Mercury looked at his fake-friend for a long moment. ¡°Have you ever¡­ thought about what kind of person you want to be?¡± he asked. Clay froze, the shy smile on their face becoming nervous. ¡°... What?¡± ¡°You know. If you could be anything, what would you wanna be? Would you wanna be sporty, or smart, or charismatic? Good with animals, maybe? Determined, hard-working, kind, graceful¡­¡± They backed up a little from him. ¡°W-where did that come from?¡± Mercury smiled, in what he hoped was a calming manner. ¡°You know, just cuz I¡¯m curious. I think I wanna be free, you know? Independent. I wanna be able to make my own choices, and try to give those choices to others. I also wanna be kind, as far as that¡¯s possible.¡± The words had slipped out from his slow mind before he could consider them, but they seemed to put Clay more at ease. ¡°O-oh,¡± they stammered, their sand-body shifting slightly. ¡°Well¡­ I suppose if I could pick, I¡¯d wanna be¡­ reliable. Happy with myself, and have the determination to tackle any problem that comes up!¡± they said. Slowly, Mercury nodded. ¡°I see, yeah, that¡¯s just like you.¡± Clay reached a hand to the back of their head. ¡°Is it?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Mercury smiled. ¡°I think I get you now, Clay. Thanks.¡± The trial shifted once more, the incessant ringing of a bell starting the next period. Mercury¡¯s sluggish mind worked, wrapping around pieces of what he knew about his friend. He knew they were kind, open, outgoing, they wanted to make friends and talk about themselves, but they lacked the confidence. His view of them was¡­ clear. Mercury added a bit of pride in there, not enough to become arrogant, but to at least see their own good qualities, and held onto it. Desperately. Instantly, he felt waves crash against that fragment of self-confidence. The teacher was yelling at them for a job poorly done. Mercury felt that clash with his image of Clay, saw that teacher try to break them down. What a miserable display. Gritting his teeth, Mercury strained as hard as he could. Clay wanted to be relied on. That meant they must know they were good at some things. Maybe that wasn¡¯t in this class, with this teacher, or maybe it was a momentary failure, but it didn¡¯t detract from their value as a person. A flash of light and a lurch, then the trial had shifted again. Clay was being gossiped about, people giggling about them. Their insufficiencies. It was insidious. Were they good enough? Again, Mercury found himself tested, now by dozens of cruel thoughts. Clay was beginning to bend, to crumble in the face of adversity, but Mercury did not let it happen. He believed in them. He convinced himself, held on with an iron will. He felt the strain on his mind, internal and external. He felt a headache coming on, but he held onto it regardless. Instantly, the trial shifted again. Clay was being pushed around. Mocked to their face. Mercury held on. One after another, memories buzzed by. They each slammed into him with the force of a speeding car, but he simply grit his teeth. [ has levelled up! 2>] The notification buzzed by his ears, and he felt his mind growing slower, but he held on regardless. This was bullshit. Letting go now would betray a friend. Suddenly, it didn¡¯t matter if this world was fake, or whether Clay really existed. Even figments of a test did not deserve this kind of treatment. Mercury lost all care, all thoughts. He fought, wholeheartedly, for them. When they were tempted into being cruel, he held onto their kindness. When they were tempted into giving up, he held onto their determination. Bit by bit, challenge by challenge, rather than having the puzzle pieces fall away, Mercury stuck them together. Rather than tearing Clay apart, Mercury began to assemble them with each moment that passed, each vision that flashed by. And they were flashing, now. Each trial happened in moments. They stacked up, dozens, thousands of thoughts crashing into Mercury¡¯s iron will. They battered him, threatened to shake his belief, and toss him aside like a bug in a tornado. It was him against a torrent, raging waves of spite and fury and hatred trying to shake his foundation. But Mercury simply let it all wash away. He didn¡¯t clash with those thoughts, didn¡¯t seek to break them apart - they didn¡¯t matter. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. He knew what Clay wanted. He knew what they were. This was simply a crucible for them, but they had wished to end up a certain way. Maybe that wish was a little childish, but that didn¡¯t matter. Wanting to be determined, wanting to like oneself¡­ what was wrong with that? So, he held onto it furiously, even when the vision sped up, even as he was washed aside even further, into a raging storm of white. The flashes of light were so constant and so bright, vision after vision coming, that he closed his eyes, and held on. Until, slowly, the storm grew weaker. Clay succeeded. Mercury¡¯s belief began to stick. Notifications from the system whizzed by, but he disregarded them. His mind felt slow. Clumsy. Powerless. But it was his mind, and it would do exactly as he wanted, so it held onto that image of their friend. Rather than a powerless thing, always falling apart, they were reliable. So the storm abated. Because once they were reliable, they were no longer shaken by those thoughts. Mercury didn¡¯t have to resist as much for them anymore. It was a virtuous cycle. Finally, after a hundred more flashes of light, the visions abated. There was no more belief to be tested, because Mercury knew what he thought was objective truth - Clay had, after all, convinced themselves and everyone else, too, of it. They¡¯d changed their chosen name. They went by Flint now. Mercury smiled. It suited them. ¡°Thanks,¡± Flint said. ¡°For believing in me.¡± ¡°No prob,¡± Mercury answered. The trial faded. And a whole host of notifications slammed into Mercury. [ has levelled up! 3>] [ has levelled up! 5>] [Your Willpower has increased by 8!] [You have acquired the Title through a specific action.] [: This Title was granted to the individual upon maintaining confidence in the face of overwhelming odds. Despite disadvantages, the individual stubbornly enforces their will on the world. Provides bonuses to Willpower, minor affinity increases to Willpower related Skills, and reinforces the individual¡¯s mind further.] [Side Quest: ¡°Faerie Trial¡± completed. Reward: 1000 Skill points.] It took Mercury a moment to readjust to the space he was in. The faerie court. He had gotten too used to the flashing visions, but luckily, quickly let him get used to it. Mercury breathed the stale, mossy air, calming his racing mind and heart. He had proven to them what he was about. No one said a word. There was no announcement from queen Titania, or king Oberon. The entire hall met him with dead silence. Every ruler fixed their eyes on him, but none dared to protest what he¡¯d shown. Gracefully, Mercury gave a curtsy, bending his legs lightly while keeping his eyes on the rulers. Then he stepped back into the crowd of those not associated with any court. No one complained. Since Mercury¡¯s steps were near silent, the first sound to split the air in the hall was that of wood cracking. King Oberon¡¯s yellow eyes were blazing with fury. He had gripped his throne of gnarled wood and yellowing leaves hard enough to crack it. Despite it, he was not staring at Mercury, but straight ahead. Queen Titania met his gaze, though. The purple of her eyes seemed bright enough to sear holes into the air. No words were exchanged, until eventually, the faerie king leaned back. The queen paused, briefly, then turned her gaze downwards. ¡°May the next courtless one step forward.¡± An unassuming faerie. ¡°Two of the courts have staked their claim. Decide on a trial, rulers.¡± The day went on. One after another, the courtless failed. Young fae fell, weak fae fell, unassuming fae fell, and talented fae fell as well. The only salvation to pass trial was hardened willpower. And so many failed. Mercury thought the trials weren¡¯t meant as tests - they were meant to be torturous. Alice¡¯s trial wasn¡¯t difficult. She didn¡¯t need to prove anything, all she had to do was suffer. Arber, on the other hand, needed to go through a whole new life. Two decades of loneliness. Of challenges. And for what? It proved nothing. Mercury¡¯s trials, at least, showed he could solve problems and maintain his beliefs. But even then, those felt like they had been made to mock him. The trials weren¡¯t meant to pick the worthy, they were meant to break down people¡¯s mentalities. He hated them. One by one, the rulers tortured the fae, then put them through conversions. Some accepted them, some struggled and fought, all ended the same. It was disgusting. Then it was over. After the trials were done, the rulers, one after another, vanished again. Most took away the new members of their courts. Dust came away with only a single addition, while Blossom took no one. Every other court had at least two more faeries among their numbers. Finally, once the rulers were done, the day was dealt with, too. Mercury was, finally, allowed to leave without breaking hospitality. The amount of glances he got was astounding, though. Misha smiled at him with a twinkle in his eyes, while lady Whisperblossom started hungrily instead. The heir of shadow seemed fearful, and Odvye seemed impressed. Ignoring them all, Mercury headed back towards his room with Asher, Arber, and Alice. They didn¡¯t talk at all until they were out of the hall, and even then they walked in silence until the loudest complaints from the hall faded into dull, thick silence. Asher broke it first. ¡°Mercury, what was that?¡± The mopaaw looked back at his fiery friend, and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Somehow, the twelve courts aren¡¯t all faerie courts, it seems. And the others also wanted a piece of me.¡± ¡°Yes, I can tell that much. But that doesn¡¯t matter. You were outstanding! How did you pass two trials? How did you never bend?¡± he asked again, wildly gesturing with his arms. Something about the innocent nature of that question made Mercury smile. Asher didn¡¯t care about the implications, or the courts or the rulers that much. He just saw his friend succeed and was excited about it. It was a thin smile, but it was, without a doubt, there. ¡°I appreciate the vote of confidence,¡± he said. Asher gestured again, and would have probably been grinning ear to ear if it weren¡¯t for his lack of facial features. The swirling colours under his skins were moving faster, though. ¡°Seriously. You showed the rulers, of all people! They¡¯re millenia old! They made people hundreds of years old kneel¡­ how old are you, Mercury?¡± ¡°Must be¡­ Thirty-eight now? Maybe Thirty-nine?¡± he said. He hadn¡¯t really been keeping track of it rigorously at all. At that, even Arber stopped. ¡°Not even¡­ a century?¡± Asher¡¯s jaw would have dropped if it could. ¡°Oh¡­ wow. What- what did you go through for that?¡± Mercury looked at them, giving a somewhat sad grimace. He glanced at Alice. ¡°A good chunk of suffering,¡± he said. ¡°But mainly, personal growth. I like to think I¡¯ve become a better person; not because I suffered, mind you. But because I¡¯m keeping on.¡± The heroine gave a knowing, sad smile at that. ¡°Yeah. Our suffering doesn¡¯t dictate us. You¡¯re right.¡± Arber tensed up at that, too. It felt like they were letting out a shaky breath. ¡°Aye. Ain¡¯t that the truth.¡± There was a brief silence, until Asher scratched the back of their head. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m missing something.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the trials,¡± Mercury provided. ¡°They¡¯re not meant to make you grow. They¡¯re meant to make you suffer.¡± ¡°Huh,¡± Asher hummed. ¡°I¡­ never saw that.¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t,¡± Arber waved them off. ¡°They hide it. Sneakily. They dismantle your value systematically, so no matter whether you succeed or not, you emerge worse for the wear.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Asher said, somewhat downcast. Then, they added, ¡°... Yeah. That¡­ sounds like the courts alright.¡± ¡°Yep,¡± Mercury said with a sigh. ¡°That¡¯s the courts.¡± Alice just nodded. She still seemed distraught. With , he reached out and squeezed her hand. For a moment, she flinched slightly, then settled down, and smiled appreciatively. They went to their own rooms, and to bed, without talking a lot more. Mercury shut of all three of his ystirs, and finally rested. - - - Once morning came around, Mercury felt a little more whole. The constant, dull pain he had felt on his mind had faded quite a bit more. But the fact that he had no dreams made the rage boil inside him again. He was starting to get really quite sick of the farce that was Hospitality. In fact, he rather strongly suspected that the fae would break it before he was gone. Some of them had. Clearly, the empty thrones cared nothing for it at all. The rulers, too, could probably shrug off whatever adverse effects there were from breaking hospitality. Not fully, of course, but they would live If they wanted him gone, he¡¯d be annihilated. That, too, made Mercury feel angry. But it paled in comparison to how furious he was at the harm caused to old Uunrahzil. That¡­ was where the fae had committed a grave crime. Honestly, there were so many problems. The amount of people he had seen harmed, or in positions they were not voluntarily in over these last days was, frankly, disgusting. Servants, gladiators, test takers, even the fae themselves. What a fucked up little world they had made, what a fucked up game they were playing. He hated that. He hated the suffering and the pain and the propagation of misery. But that wasn¡¯t personal. It did make him wanna tear it all down, of course. But then, they had harmed old Uunrahzil. That was personal. They were his mentor, and one of the first people to show kindness. Did they have an agenda, a desire behind it? Probably. But who didn¡¯t? Mercury refused to let them stop existing. He held them in their mind, remembering them furiously. That fae, the broken throne¡­ They¡¯d pay for what they did. That thought was angry, it was violent, but it was also necessary. Clearly, negotiation had already proven impossible. Instead, rather than something where he could peacefully change things, he would need to carve out that future himself. But not yet. He was a patient mopaaw after all. He¡¯d wait. He¡¯d hold onto his image of old Dreamweaver. He¡¯d show the fae exactly what he was all about. That was what he had done in his trials, and what he would do again. Tough as it was, he would never, ever, break for them. - - - Arber picked him up from his room, as they always did. ¡°Any info on the eighth day?¡± Mercury asked, as Alice and Asher joined them. Arber nodded. ¡°Yeah. Today is a day of exploration with low stakes. The rulers will be keeping watch over the nearby areas, so you may go out there, as far as you¡¯d like. It¡¯s a bit of a treasure hunt.¡± That sounded fun. ¡°What¡¯s the catch?¡± Mercury asked. ¡°They keep away outside threats. Participants are allowed to hurt and steal from one another,¡± Alice provided helpfully. ¡°Anyone outside a specific area is considered a participant. You¡¯ll see it.¡± Yep, there it was. ¡°You know, by now you¡¯d really think I¡¯d be used to the constant barrage of fighting the fae encourage. Yet, somehow, they continue to surprise me.¡± ¡°It gets worse,¡± Asher said. ¡°Not participating is seen as poor manners. As in, breaking Hospitality.¡± ¡°Staggering just how many cruel rules these rulers can come up with,¡± Mercury said with a sigh. Fine, then. He¡¯d participate in their bloodthirsty treasure hunt. Let¡¯s see what kinda rewards he could dredge up. Chapter 200: Treasure Chapter 200: Treasure When Mercury finally stepped outside, the area of the treasure hunt was easy to see. The floor beneath him shimmered a soft green, indicating a safe zone. Outside, there was a yellow-golden zone indicating the area for the hunt. And then there was a red zone, indicating the end of the protection from the dangers of the fae realm. He was by far not the first to step out, and there were already fae strewn around the border of the green area, with their shells torn, laying in tatters. They had barely made it back with their treasures. ¡°What a miserable display,¡± Alice sighed. Mercury glanced at the hero. She was certainly not going to have a good time with this. Given all the animosity the fae had shown before¡­ Alice would be running around with a target on her back. Then again, would the target on his back be larger or smaller than that? He sighed. ¡°Indeed,¡± he said. His eyes drifted over the golden zone lazily, but he could not see much yet. The area looked blurry from where he was standing, probably some sort of magic in order to make it impossible to cheat at the game by simply looking for treasures from safety. That was most likely not the only magic he would see. In fact, it seemed quite likely that the area was separated into different zones, arranged by the courts, each of which would have different abominations inside them. After all, the rulers loved nothing more than running with their themes. ¡°How much do I need to participate for it to count?¡± ¡°It¡¯d be best if you did your best,¡± Arber said with a shrug. ¡°Eyes will be on ye.¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Right.¡± Before participating, he had a purchase to make, then. There was, after all, a Skill evolution he could now afford. [ has met the necessary qualifications for evolution! Evolve? (900 Skill Points)] [Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (900 Skill points), no matter which you choose.] [1. 2. 3. 4. ] The time to appraise Skills had come again. [: The direct evolution of the Skill doubles down on everything that made its previous iteration special. Enhanced focus for greater durations, in addition to slightly improved control over mana and other Skills.] This was a rather straightforward choice, and a rather boring one, too. has been a Skill doing heavy lifting in the background, but this kind of evolution seemed like he was sinking its potential into the ground. Next. [: Giving the user a more direct way to use their mental power, this Skill allows the individual to apply pressure to another¡¯s mind with their thoughts alone. If your mental fortitude is greater than that of your foe, they will be stunned, unable to properly connect thoughts to one another.] Looking at the other names, this one seemed like the most directly offensive Skill in the batch. He could certainly use it, since it most likely synergized with his unique version of rather well, but it also seemed to occupy a similar niche to , which was a far more unique Skill. [: In its nature, this Skill is simple. It allows the user to perfectly record any knowledge they acquire, and recall it whenever they need. This comes with strong resistance to memory erasure, and the possibility to store a personality imprint for special reconstitution if corruption occurs.] Now, Mercury found himself looking at a Skill he really liked. The simple function of ¡°perfect recall¡± was immensely powerful, but the fact that he could back up his own personality and memories was a rather amazing function. It was something he wanted. The resistance was nice, too, but this was kind of a way to restore his memories. But the question was¡­ ¡®Appy, can¡¯t you already do something similar?¡¯ he asked. [ comes with an inbuilt encyclopaedia function which may be triggered when gazing at objects. Additionally, any information the user knows, and that is deemed ¡°secret¡±, becomes easier to access and far more difficult to destroy. This is not a full emulation of the Skill. Further functions may be added as gains levels.] Right, then. Appy¡¯s version may not be perfect but¡­ it would do the trick. Also, he had only been in this world for just about two and a half ¡®chapters¡¯. So, there was a good chance he¡¯d get more perfect recall Skills offered later. It was still very appealing, but he didn¡¯t need it. [: Vast no longer describes the user¡¯s mind. Your focus lasts as long as you need it to, your will can go the distance. This Skill allows the user to dive into their own mind, allowing for the effects of time dilation or dream emulation. It removes the need for rest from the spirit; the individual¡¯s mind is vast enough to recover while at standard processing power. Biological processes may still require sleep. Additional benefits are improvements in any Skills which make use of the individual¡¯s mental faculties, and far greater ability to memorize, recall, sort, and comprehend information.] Mercury picked . [Evolution selected.] [The individual has acquired the Skill through Skill evolution!] The change he felt was immediate. His ystirs, all three of them, changed significantly. The ones that were currently ¡®resting¡¯ began recovering far faster. The one he kept active on himself was different, too. He felt¡­ deeper. Like the world was closer to his fingertips. He could immediately tell that most of his Skills would be significantly stronger now - also the rather existential ones, like , which twisted the world into giving him a path forward, or , which forced limits off of him. But even while using that one ystir for all basic functions - such as breathing, standing, controlling all his various muscles¡­ It was recovering. The damage it had taken from the broken throne was slowly mending itself. Quickly, he shook both of his other ystir¡¯s awake. One remained focussed in the present, talking with Arber and Alice. The second was on time dilation duty. That¡­ was a rather strange feeling. To the ystir in the present, it was as if the other one¡¯s thoughts had sped up. To the one in time dilation, though, it was like everything else slowed down. He felt a pull on his mental resources, a small drain, but he could probably keep it up for a while. Well, depending on perspective. In the dilated time, it would be longer. But feeling all his friends slow down was still supremely disorientating, especially when part of him was perceiving it at a perfectly normal timescale. But it was certainly useful. Incredibly, even. In the time it took him to take a single step, he could get in way more thinking time. He didn¡¯t bother counting the seconds, though, because he felt the dilation was flexible. He could press harder, compress a minute into a moment, but he saw no point in draining himself like that before going to the treasure hunt. Instead, he paid attention to the third ystir, which was emulating a dream. That one felt¡­ strange. He could see inside his mindscape, the place where his dreams usually happened. It was messy, though. The floor was cracked, the grass wilted, the sky dim and colourless. Even the suns and the nexus seemed dull and spent. In front of his eyes, he saw it mend, though. The fissures growing a little smaller. It would heal soon. Which told him all he really needed to know about just how bad the damage had been at the beginning. Mercury felt his anger boil again at the sight, but quickly calmed himself with . He would get them. The broken thrones¡­ he¡¯d get them, for sure. For now, he let both his other ystirs rest again, improving his healing rate vastly, keeping only one active without channelling either new ability. He still found the world quite a bit more clear to his eyes, able to take in much more of it, which was a welcome change. Then, he focused on the treasure hunt again. ¡°Should we move as a group?¡± Asher shivered at that. ¡°Uh, I think I¡¯ll already be targeted enough. That seems like a great way to get my shell destroyed.¡± Alice nodded along to his words. ¡°Yeah. Unfortunately, I think it would be unwise for either of you to follow me. Sorry.¡± ¡°Fine by me,¡± Mercury said. ¡°I¡¯ll manage.¡± With that decision made, he saw Alice and Asher head off. Arber did not have to participate in the hunt, since they were kind of partially hosting it. In fact, some of the treasure had been provided by them, being bits of leaves and such imbued with high amounts of healing power. Not too long after that, he himself stepped outside. The effect was strange. Leaving and entering the green zone did not need to happen at the same point, so he ended up being ejected somewhere rather different from a forest. In truth, the arena wasn¡¯t all located near arber. It was a string of fae gateways that strung together entirely different areas of the fae realm. The decaying forest was certainly one of them, but Mercury found himself in the domain of Blood. The smell of iron hit his nose immediately, as he found himself in what could only be described as a nightmare. Trees of grafted hands dotted the landscape. The ground was not covered in grass, but in hair. He heard howling from creatures that were grafted from body parts, chimerae that seemed well within the realm of cruelty. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. He wanted to throw up, but quickly held himself back. There were monsters out here, yes. But the real danger were other fae. Mercury called on to manifest around him. It quickly drove away the stench of blood, and also made it so that the ground he walked on remained mostly clean. So, he set to walking through the domain of blood. Since it was a treasure hunt, he did not need to walk long. There were a few factors that went into it. Firstly, the areas themselves were full of ¡°treasures¡±, though some of them were bizarre and horrible in ways that Mercury would well and truly rather not engage in. Additionally, the areas had magic imbued in them that led individuals down certain paths. A bit of faerie magic to make them naturally find their way towards nearby points of interest. Of course, every person affected by the magic was also a person of interest. Which made it rather easy for fae to be attracted to Mercury. With and though, Mercury could much more easily pick his own path. The two Skills combined made breaking through area suppressions rather easy, so finding his path was more than doable. But he didn¡¯t fully break the magic. That would count as not properly participating. He bent it, though, in order to find more useful things to him, using his Skills more to find the correct route, rather than what the rulers may have planned for him. And he was sure they had planned something for him. Their route probably was going to be torturous, showing him only the most horrible treasures they could. In fact, he was not entirely certain his arrival in the domain of Blood was a coincidence; maybe he had been brought there on purpose. Now, though? Now he¡¯d fight back. It only took a few dozen steps until the landscape around him shifted. The trees came closer then blurred by, and he quickly entered a forest of bone trees with arms for branches. Then those whizzed by, too, and he found himself in a clearing, with a lake of blood. There were three other fae around, each already battling the local entourage of monstrosities. For Mercury, though? This was an opportunity. Since his injury, about a week had passed. This was not enough for the Dream of Starvation to full repair itself, however, it had mended a bit more. With a single thought, the dull, dark metal wove itself into existence around Mercury¡¯s paws. There was still not enough of the liquid metal to fully streak towards his knees, but at least his claws were fully covered, even if the metal was thin and seemed strained. Diving deep into , Mercury relied on the confusion and carnage around to walk up to the lake, entirely glossed over by both the fae and the monsters. He gently dipped his weapon into the blood. ¡°Drink,¡± he whispered. The Dream of Starvation was a powerful item. In fact, despite its C grade, he would wager it was more valuable than some higher grade items he had seen. Not that that grade would stay the same for long, since¡­ [Dream of Starvation Growth aspect has reached 1000/1000.] [Rank increasing.] [Dream of Starvation: Grade: Bound C - Proficiency (783/1000) Rank: 1 - Growth (0/1000)] As the blood vanished, the metal around Mercury¡¯s paws writhed. It grew, gaining weight and momentum. The cracks mended themselves, the thin spots grew thick again, and a torrent of night-black steel crawled up Mercury¡¯s forelegs. The claws on it became vicious again, and the item was mended. And it felt hungry. [Rank 1 Bonus: Aspect . The Dream of Starvation may change its shape at its user¡¯s command.] He grinned. The proficiency was also high. Still more of the blood lake drained into the weapon. Did he feel bad about feeding the item blood? Not really, no. pinged this lake as being made from elemental blood, rather than having been specifically drained from humans. It was, biologically, identical, however no one had died for it. Which made it highly suitable for an item such as the dream. As the lake drained, the monsters and faeries still fought one another. There was an item at its bottom, Mercury was fairly sure, but he also had the that it wasn¡¯t very useful for him. So, rather than stay, he quickly began making his exit, leaving the remaining blood behind. His weapon had consumed about a third of the lake. This, unfortunately, was enough to get the fae¡¯s attention, but Mercury channelled more mana into . There would be a path for him. Reality lurched as the Skill took hold, offsetting some fae enough that their charges to stop him interfered in each other. A member of spring clashed with one from scorch, a young one from blood stumbled over a beast. One of the courtless - no, that one didn¡¯t bother trying to approach him, instead running in the opposite direction. And then, the fae magic, boosted and helped along by his Skills activated, and Mercury felt the world lurch around him. He would fight, but he would not fight on the territory of Blood. Getting wounded here, having his own blood touch the floor¡­ that seemed like a rather bad idea, given the domain of that court. With his goal of getting to another court in mind, the world shifted. After two dozen steps, the ground had shifted. It changed from the springy texture to something more solid, earth and grass. It felt familiar, and inviting. The sky was bright and beautiful, and he could see sparkling waterfalls in the distance. It was¡­ alluring. Instantly, Mercury¡¯s guard went back up - rightly so, since soon, from the distance, he saw figures approaching. They were radiantly beautiful members of all kinds of sapient species, and absolutely not something Mercury wanted to encounter. There was a faint suspicion that the treasure here, too, was not meant for him. Luck of the draw, that one. Mercury stepped through again. The gorgeous landscape buzzed by his face, everything blurring into one mess of beautiful iridescence and bright colours. Mercury felt a sting take root in his heart, the desire to stay, to take it all in, to enjoy the presence- brutally squashed that thought, bringing him back to neutral. The colours seemed less vibrant without their enchanting effect, turning the whole world dull and lifeless. A thin masquerade broken apart. What a despicable display. Slowly, the colours drained more and more, until his world remained in greyscale, and he emerged in a rather desolate, familiar place. Ash covered the floor. It was solid stone, with thin cracks running through it. Ash rained endlessly from the grey skies, and it felt like the whole world was cast in monochrome. It was¡­ just like the ashen plains. A small shiver ran down Mercury¡¯s spine, but he quickly suppressed it. He took a deep breath, forcing out further, driving away the ash. It took him a moment to have the emotions settle down, but he remained in control. This was not the same place. He was not back there, and there was no need for any hopelessness to resurface. He¡¯d crushed it once, and he would again if he needed to. But he could see the differences now. Rather than ashen plains, it was more accurate to say these were ashen lands. There were many landmarks, after all. Taller mountains, distant spires, twisting landscapes where gravity seemed to matter less, and veils of dust cloaking gigantic objects. It was varied, and alive, and yet vast and empty. Mercury had, in his haste to leave the area of Allure, slightly stepped outside the path of fae magic. So, this time, he let and resonate with it slightly, in the way that he would not be subject to another¡¯s whim, while still using the paths they laid down. Slowly, over a longer, quieter journey, Mercury was guided back on the path of the fae magic. The interspersed landscape would occasionally blur, but remain largely the same for long stretches of time. He didn¡¯t encounter any other fae. As expected from Dust, their section was stunningly empty. It was vast and grey and¡­ calm, Mercury noticed. Nothing like a frenzied struggle for survival he was used to. Dust, perhaps, was the quietest, truest symbol of decay he had seen among the courts yet. It was¡­ almost sad. Eventually, though, he felt the fae magic properly take hold again. immediately rang in his head, both promising a reward, and selling a warning. Mercury, without hesitation, jumped back, when the world was still barely coming into focus, and he was right to do so. A clawed hand swept through the air where he had just been, though it came at the end of a long, slender and elegant arm. Lady Whisperblossom covered her mouth with her hands, still dressed in vibrant dresses of flowers that accented her long, stretched out silhouette. She giggled into her hand, the long claws on her fingers slowly fading away, the lines her magic had carved into the air slowly fading. ¡°Ufufu, I had not expected you so soon, Yr¡¯enzel. What brings you here already? Did you not find the other surprises¡­ pleasant?¡± Her grin was wide, and hungry. ¡°You do not seem displeased by my early visit,¡± Mercury hummed, slowly moving to circle her, though the fae simply turned to face him, as well. ¡°I find it quite pleasant, actually,¡± she readily admitted, her grin growing even wider. ¡°You have proven to exceed expectations over and over again. In fact, I doubt there is a single fae without any interest in you.¡± ¡°How unpleasant.¡± She giggled again. ¡°Quite so indeed, is it not? You could always simply ally yourself with my court, couldn¡¯t you? All your problems, suddenly gone¡­ with all the power of the faerie queen behind you¡­¡± Mercury smiled amicably. ¡°I would rather not.¡± ¡°Ah, what a shame. I am supposed to hurt you significantly, then,¡± she said. ¡°I doubt you will,¡± he replied. ¡°Oh?¡± Lady Whisperblossom tilted her head, laying a claw against her pale chin. ¡°And why is that, Yr¡¯enzel?¡± ¡°Because you care none for your court,¡± he stated simply. ¡°You want things from me, dozens of things. You¡¯re desperate for novelty, and I am as novel as it gets. The fact that other fae want me, the fact that I caught Titania¡¯s interest, only makes you more hungry.¡± Her smile turned sinister, dark and foreboding. ¡°Oho,¡± she hummed. ¡°So you¡¯ve caught me~. What will you do about it? There is nothing here to stop me from prying any secret out of you, so long as I don¡¯t kill you.¡± ¡°And that¡¯s why you won¡¯t touch me,¡± Mercury said evenly, a calm smile on his lips. ¡°Because you might kill me. Because you know I will give you nothing by force. Because if you touch me, I¡¯ll take it to the grave.¡± For the first time, the lady¡¯s smile faded a little. ¡°Perhaps you are right.¡± By now, they had almost changed places from Mercury¡¯s circling. He felt ¡¯s gentle nudging at the back of his head. He was closer to the treasure now. ¡°Perhaps we can find an agreement here. There is a treasure you want. It is entirely within my power to deny it to you,¡± she said. ¡°I suppose it is, if you wish to sour relations.¡± Her frown deepened, then her entire face turned neutral. Rather than the exaggerated expressions, she suddenly stared at him with a cold and calculating, almost bored look. ¡°Do not test my patience. I will only give so much. You will not walk away alive from here with the treasure if you do not negotiate with me.¡± Mercury paused. Suddenly, there were warning bells again. He was skirting close to getting killed. ¡°I see.¡± ¡°So you do.¡± It was not a question. ¡°Yes,¡± Mercury answered regardless. ¡°Ask me a question, lady Whisperblossom. Treat it as you would a game.¡± ¡°Please,¡± she said. ¡°My friends call me Wispy.¡± ¡°... We are not friends.¡± She grinned again. ¡°But we are close enough, are we not? No matter. You may choose to call me that name whenever you wish. My question to you is: What is your connection to the Void?¡± Mercury sighed. ¡°Difficult to answer. I am good at seeing past where I should, which lets me see it. Then, I have learnt to see the string of reality between the void, and weave them around it, and in doing so, am familiar with manipulating the void, somewhat.¡± The lady blinked. She seemed stunned for the first time. ¡°Manipulating it?¡± she asked. ¡°We agreed to one question,¡± the mopaaw said with a wry smile, taking a step back. For a moment, Mercury felt silence wrap around the world. The ash from the sky stopped falling, as though time had stopped. There was not a breeze on the wind. Lady Whisperblossom had changed. Her eyes were no longer curious and bright and cruel, they were simply blank slates. It was like staring into the night sky, only to have all stars simultaneously wink out. Mercury shivered from the cold. He saw her face twist. Her teeth grew longer, jagged, razor fangs, dripping with pink venom or acid. Her hands elongated, growing sharp, abhorrent claws. She gazed at him, hungrily. ¡°You touched the void, yet live,¡± she said. Somehow, despite the horrifying monster in front of him, her voice was still as sickeningly sweet as it had always been. The air smelled of rot. ¡°You say you answered my question.¡± ¡°So I did,¡± Mercury said carefully, taking another step back. ¡°I want more.¡± She stated it as a simple fact. Almost like the broken throne had before. Like she would take it. Mercury¡¯s eyes hardened. ¡°Bargain, or try and take it from my corpse, Blossom.¡± The lady twitched. Her hands clenched into fists, the claws drawing jagged lines across her skin, which oozed yellow sap. Her fangs clenched, the clicking filling the air. Then, slowly, the tension faded. Moments passed, and the dull rustle of falling ash filled the air again. The scent of rot faded, then disappeared. Mercury blinked, and the lady Whisperblossom looked as she usually did again. She smiled, brightly, giving a long sigh of elation. ¡°Haaaah. You know how to speak, Yr¡¯enzel. I will not bargain here, nor will I break with Hospitality. Your answer is satisfactory. Take the treasure.¡± She lifted a slender finger, pointing to the ground behind him. ¡°It is pitiful compared to a secret, of course, so rest assured that I will protect you for your next station. This will go against the will of my queen Titania, of course, but¡­¡± a faint, somehow genuine smile played along her lips, ¡°well. You know me.¡± Then she winked at him and vanished. Only once another ten seconds had passed did Mercury dare to look at the treasure this place promised. On the ground behind him laid a whirling snowglobe of ash. ¡®Appy?¡¯ [: Once, there was a glorious past. Now, there is a ruinous present. Seek back to what was, twist the horrifying passage of time, and find yourself back at the beginning. When used at the end of a day, you may restart it from the moment you awoke - Not even the gods will remember. Once used, this item will also annihilate its own existence from all of time.] Mercury smiled. ¡®How terrifying.¡¯ Chapter 201: Rewards and Danger Chapter 201: Rewards and Danger The treasure hunt was far from over, and Mercury had already received two great boons. And he would wager that he was far from finishing the hunt. Knowing that, Mercury took the short moment to gather himself, the forest around him being rather peaceful for once. Of course, the peace did not last long. Lesser faeries, colourful sprites, began gathering around, and casting magic. Before the spells could land, Mercury took a step, gently accepting and twisting the guidance provided to him by the courts. Trees flashed by, and a moment later, his feet landed on hard ground. It was dry and hot, cracked, white rock - salty rock. It was a salt desert. Desolate, dried up ocean beds, full of gigantic bones from ancient leviathans, valleys and crevices providing the only shade from the brutal sun above. Of course, Mercury was safe. More safe than ever, really. promised a brief warning, but the sensation was quickly snuffed out. Silence fell heavily on the flats. The bones around had begun to rattle for a moment, but then cracked and splintered into dust. The desiccated flesh of mangled, dried plants was torn to bits. Every living or otherwise animate object near Mercury found itself torn to pieces by a calm, peaceful spring breeze. It was¡­ a little terrifying, Mercury noted, but lady Whisperblossom had promised to protect him. He should have guessed she would take the promise rather seriously. But since he landed here, there must be some kind of treasure nearby. In the gentle wind, which seemed to dispel even the rays of the sun, Mercury focused on the sensation from . It offered a tiny tugging on his mind, a little like it was taking him by the hand and guiding him. The path was not far, and seemed rather simple to follow. Mercury walked up to one of the ravines, descending by jumping from one salty outcropping to another. He reduced his muscle density with the strength milestone to become light, and used the agility milestone to manipulate his speed, slowing down right before impacting the shelves. That, combined with and made his descent graceful and noiseless. He smiled a little, thinking he was a bit like a cat-shaped ghost haunting the landscape, following the tug of into another crack in the side of the ravine, and into the bowels of the earth. The air in the dark cave smelled so strongly of salt that it stung Mercury''s eyes and nose, so he drew on a little more. Despite the discomfort, he journeyed deeper. There seemed to be a whole world underneath the salt desert, with vast open caverns, and dark, abyssal underground lakes. The domain of Salt was varied and rather terrifying. But he knew where he was headed. A thin crack from above led to a ray of sunlight illuminating the darkness, cutting down and illuminating one place in particular. The shape of a wyvern¡¯s body. Mercury knew it was a wyvern, since Appy told him so, which was how drakes evolved. It must have been a B or A grade monster. Additionally, the body was preserved rather well. Really, it was as if an expert had treated it. The hide was dried and leathery, and Mercury could spot bits of flesh that looked more like jerky through some open wounds. The issue with the treasure was that the beacon light was attracting small fae and parasites like the plague. Mercury quickly hurried up, propelling himself further and faster with each jump, with making sure his path was etched into reality itself. He soared through the dark cave, and when he approached the body, any fae that was there either left or had their shell broken and splintered. With the smell of flowers, Mercury found himself next to the body. It was strange, seeing how large the wyvern was. Its skull was easily as large as Mercury himself, and from its rhinoceros-like horn to the base of its spiked tail, it was easily longer than even the biggest elephants. The thing was emaciated now, but it must have been packed with dense muscle in life. Since he had time, he walked up to the corpse almost reverently. In the darkness of the cave, its blue-yellow scales gleamed brightly, still holding some of the brilliance the thing must have had in life. [Unlooted processed Wyvern detected. Loot?] That¡­ was a new prompt, but not entirely unexpected. He still asked Appy to explain. [The wyvern succumbed to environmental circumstances, largely, so that no kill credit was given, or the loot was not claimed. Then, the corpse was prepared by some craftsman, using Skills to allow someone else to loot it. These types of pre-system processing Skills can be useful for upgrading raw materials before having them assessed by the system and thereby occasionally increasing yield.] Right, so at leasts, the fae didn¡¯t kill the wyvern. They did prepare it, of course, environmental conditions would not do such a good job at that. ¡®Loot,¡¯ Mercury confirmed. [Wyvern looted. Get: 10 Gold, , , .] Huh. Mercury had definitely been expecting to receive the hide, or the core. But¡­ jerky, huh. The bones were rather simple, they had been bathed in lightning essence for decades and embodied that storm. Whenever mana coursed through them, it would automatically be converted into magical electricity, shocking whatever they touched. They would make excellent javelin if crafted. And while the jerky was strange, it was¡­ just that. Food. It wouldn¡¯t permanently enhance anything, but it was rather dense food and a single bite of it could probably feed a regular human for about a day. He got a lot of jerky. Those first two items filled out his inventory, and so, the sigil dropped onto the ground in front of him. It also instantly began making Mercury¡¯s hair stand on end, and he heard the crackle of static electricity in the air. Before the thin, metallic disk had the chance to unload a lightning strike into him, Mercury quickly spent 2000 Gold on another inventory slot using . The cost for the next slot was 4000. So it doubled every time. Mildly annoying, but oh well. Rather than focus on that, he quickly drew the item into his inventory, letting Appy assess it for him. [: The essence of a draconic creature, attuned to lightning and storm, has been condensed into this sigil. It may be applied to an item recognised by the system to raise its grade by a single numeric evaluation to a maximum of A grade. Grants storm-related powers. Grade: Unique B.] Mercury could almost feel the dracoleather cloak call for this upgrade. He didn¡¯t hesitate, and applied the token. [Dracoleather Cloak has been enhanced by a Sigil.] [Grade increased to: Unique B] [Growth aspect proficiency carrying over. Grade increase milestones applied.] The cloak changed. Its leafy green went a bit darker, with blue accents around Mercury¡¯s shoulders, while the golden trim intensified with a radiant yellow. He could feel it getting far tougher, granting him more protection. The cloak felt like it was beginning to project a thin barrier out that would simply make it harder for him to be affected by magic. It also simply felt far more durable and almost hummed slightly with power. He felt like he could almost hear the faint crackle of electricity. [: A cloak made from the leather of a lesser dragon. It channels leftover magic from the dragon to increase the wearer''s Agility and Dexterity (+15 -> 30), protects them from bad weather, and has strong protective qualities. In addition, it is "growing" equipment, meaning that it will grow alongside its wearer and become more powerful as it is imbued with stronger Magic and the user earns new Blessings. Blessings: (enhanced!), (enhanced!), , , (New!). Proficiency: 589/1000. Grade: Unique B] [: A blessing belonging to the dracoleather cloak. It can be activated once per day. While active, it greatly enhances the user¡¯s agility and dexterity, additionally granting them the ability to glide in the air, significantly slowing any fall. The duration and severity of buffs depends on the user¡¯s proficiency.] The wings had gone from once per week to once per day, now additionally providing him the ability to glide. That second part especially seemed promising - another upgrade and he might just become able to fly. Gliding, by itself, was also rather useful, though. It would certainly have made getting to the wyvern a lot easier, and might even help him in his further exploration of the fae realm. He could already see that and would like this. [: This passive blessing is any traveller''s first choice. It grants increased resistance to the elements, warding off rain, snow, hail, storms, wind, and anything else more effectively, keeping the user warmer and happier. This effect is so significant, that with some mana, the user can create a bubble of protection around themselves. Additionally, these effects provide some resistance against elemental magic, reducing damage from elemental sources by 15%] Shelter had gained the ability to create a bubble of calm weather around himself, while also getting an additional 10 percent elemental resistance, which was what he had been feeling before. This was a little like an extension of , which made his life overall much nicer. But Mercury was most excited about the new enhancement. [: A reservoir of lightning energy is created within the cloak, filling itself at a rate proportional to the user¡¯s resource regeneration. This reservoir fills faster when the user is exposed to outside sources of electricity. Any gathered charge can be chosen to be released in the shape of a lightning bolt, or electricity empowerments of future attacks. 1/100 Charge. Additionally, the user is granted a small mastery over storms, gaining the ability to control ambient lightning with severe mana expenditure.] This would be the crackling he felt building up in the cloak. The tree embossed in the middle seemed to be where the charge was stored, and Mercury could feel a sensation of how far along it was without reading the notification. It was another good addition to his combat arsenal. In fact, he could imagine that studying this reservoir might even let him learn a lightning magic type Skill. He was really collecting elements now, wasn¡¯t he? With some amusement, Mercury took stock of the upgrade, feeling rather happy with it. The amount of blessings gained in the tier increase this time was far lesser, but he also saw that his proficiency was already beyond half. That was rather good to see, and also rather reasonable, given all the fae realms he¡¯d seen. He was interested to see where the cloak would go in the future, since it was a rather versatile bit of clothing. Hopefully, he¡¯d be able to bond it in the future. Maybe that was another thing to negotiate with the fae for? If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Mercury. My patience is running thin. Do not abuse my protection for too much longer than necessary,¡± lady Whisperblossom chided. ¡°Ah, yes, of course,¡± he said, getting ready to move again. The increases in agility and dexterity made him feel limber and spry, and overall rather comfortable in his body. Mercury smiled. ¡°I shall be off, then.¡± ¡°Have fun, Yr¡¯enzel. I look forward to our next exchange of secrets.¡± ¡°I am certain of that,¡± Mercury replied neutrally, ignoring the cackling that echoed in the cavern as he stepped forward. The path was laid out, and he followed, deeper into the cave. - - - Within three hops, he was plunged deep into the darkness again. After another seven, it was so dark, he couldn¡¯t even see anything anymore. A moment later, he emerged in a land of darkness. The depths of Salt had apparently bordered the domain of Shadow - which was a strange land. Everything was upside down, after all. Mercury found himself standing on what he struggled to perceive as the floor, a malleable, damp darkness that seemed to ebb and flow around his feet. Disorientingly, however, was that there was a sky. Below him. Whenever the darkness ebbed away, he found himself standing on spongy, soft rock, but there were rivers around. In those, the sky itself flowed. If he raised his head to look ¡°upwards¡±, where the ceiling should be, there was the floor. A citadel stood there, with dozens of black spires, and glass windows that should perhaps have been stained but were cast in monochrome. Attempting to approach it, Mercury felt a spout of dizziness. He¡¯d stepped forward, but then moved backward, then his Skills kicked in, demanding he move forward, clashing against the fae magic, resulting in a profound sense of nausea. For a moment he stumbled to the side - the wrong side, and that feeling of sickness intensified. Quickly, he tuned down those effects of and . His world slowly stopped spinning. Shadow sure was disorienting¡­ It had also been dangerous. The sky was all around him, running in rivers of blue. He would really rather not touch that. Rather than rely on his regular Skills, Mercury leaned on , letting the ability guide him into ihn¡¯ar. His world suddenly shifted. Mercury found himself linking, then having changed. Rather than hanging on the ceiling, he was now a shadow, cast by the cracks. Thin light sifted down from the sky above, and he stood on the cavern floor. Except, stood was hardly accurate. He was a shadow. Two dimensionally painted there. It was a strange experience, a bit more intense than previous shadow diving shenanigans, but he could dive deeper. This way, after all, his entire world was two dimensional, which made the tall citadel rather strange. So, Mercury dove deeper into the shadows, returning on the other side, in an even darker world, where he was also cast in monochrome. His fur was a facsimile of itself, wispy shadows trailing off him, and the light from the sky was no longer blue, but instead took on shades of lighter gray. Briefly, he wondered how many layers there were - then realized the question was pointless. Shadows were illogical, he could probably dive as deep as he wanted to go, into ever mirroring worlds. Instead of that, he noticed he was not alone. For a while now, he had been kind of cruising, simply running through the treasure hunt without being caught, but it seemed like his luck was up now. The domain of shadow was deep, and vast, and absolutely infected with little specters. Mercury had trouble describing them since they were made of malleable darkness. They shifted and twisted, approaching him with swift steps through the landscape. In fact, they were so sneaky, that the first ones to get him he hadn¡¯t noticed. He simply felt a pinprick at the back of one of his shadow-legs, and when he looked down, shadowy blood flowed around razor-sharp teeth. ¡°Crap,¡± Mercury muttered, quickly using to destroy the first creature, but dozens were already there. These were the simple manifestations of the courts approaching him, but there were already true fae coming. The kind that had multiple shells and attended the meetings of the courts. The kind that would kill him. Mercury could not afford to get stuck here. While a second and third set of teeth dug into him, he called upon ... only to find it smothered. It was weakened here, shadows weren¡¯t stormy. He could press past that resistance, but would find himself shunted out of this mirror realm. ¡®How annoying,¡¯ he thought, triggering a few more times to free himself from the wispy imps. His ihn¡¯ar wasn¡¯t properly able to work here, unless he substantially damaged or changed this reality - which would be contesting one of the fae rulers directly. Something he was not yet ready for. Instead, he began himself, dashing forward, and past the little monsters, even as he received dozens of pinprick wounds. In this form his sense of pain was rather muted, but he could tell that despite the lean appearances of the critters, those teeth bit deep. Worse, he was not used to the movement in this place. helped a lot with that, turning his mind malleable, but he also began leaning more heavily on to understand everything. With the Skill more active, it became easier to see the outlines of the critters, his sight enhanced, and their auras suddenly clearer. With deft steps borne from , Mercury began avoiding their mindless attacks. Then he lost a leg. It happened in an instant. The area darkened, downright becoming an abyss. The fae that had been approaching shrank back and cowered. Then, a gust of stygian wind blew, and Mercury¡¯s front right leg was blown clean off. ¡°Aaaaah, it has been oh so long since we last had a visitor,¡± a voice spoke from the darkness. No, that wasn¡¯t quite right. It was the darkness that spoke. The entire citadel Mercury had been watching seemed to shiver and grow darker, the shadows in the area deepened as a vast and ancient present settled down. The voice was sombre and vast, sounding as if it came from everywhere at once, but still distilled itself into a figure in front of Mercury. ¡°We¡¯re very sorry for the poor reception,¡± they said, the darkness boiling and bubbling as it built a body. ¡°But we rarely go far from here, you see, so this hunt is a rather pleasant pastime.¡± A moment later, the shadowy figure snapped into focus. It was not human, not even close. The figure was too tall, easily over three meters, and clearly still morphing. Everywhere across its body, maws sprouted from the darkness, often attached to the likenesses of dark hounds, but not always. Compound eyes, each tiny segment a pinprick of blood-red in the dark sprouted all over the body, too, as well as some humanoid ones, though the sclera and the pupil seemed to alternate in rings of black and red into an infinitely fine point. Occasionally, thin proboscis stuck out from the creature. ¡°Would you¡­ introduce yourself to us?¡± the voice had changed, now high pitched, as if from a butterfly. ¡°Properly, please,¡± one of the hound-maws said. Mercury swallowed heavily. This was the kind of fae he had not wanted to meet; the kind that was just underneath the rulers in strength. ¡°You may call this one Mercury,¡± he said. ¡°Mercury,¡± the dark, deep voice said. ¡°How pleasant,¡± the high pitched one replied. ¡°Will you dine with us?¡± ¡°Dine with you?¡± he asked. ¡°That is what we said,¡± the high pitched voice replied, chittering as if in laughter. ¡°What would that entail?¡± ¡°We would tear you limb from limb then serve you to yourself,¡± the deep voice replied. Mercury shivered. ¡°I decline.¡± Another high pitched chitter followed. ¡°Good! We were told this by the court leader. Mercury, Yr¡¯enzel. That if you come here we must at least show you Hospitality.¡± - ¡°And what is more hospitable than food?!¡± the dark voice added with a laugh. ¡°Of course, yes,¡± Mercury said hesitantly. ¡°But you were never supposed to come here.¡± This time, both spoke at once, dozens of eyes in the darkness suddenly fixating on him. More had opened, entirely separate from the figure. Mercury saw the eyes on the floor around him, on the walls, even dotting the ceiling like crimson stars. ¡°Who taught you to waywalk?¡± they asked. ¡°I cannot say, I do not know what waywalking is,¡± Mercury stated simply, leaning on to keep himself calm. His blood felt like ice in his veins. It was cold. They barked out a roaring laugh, deep and terrifying, sounding like a hyena. ¡°Huahuahuahua! Lost little lamb. Come to the hunter¡¯s castle.¡± ¡°The hunter?¡± ¡°Oh, we are not, lost little lamb,¡± the high pitched voice assured him. ¡°We are the castle¡¯s keepers. Guard and gardener.¡± Mercury breathed, quietly and slowly. It was a little hard to balance with three legs, but shifting his muscle mass was making it more comfortable. ¡°I see, and this hunter¡­ will they return?¡± The high pitched chitter followed, full of amusement. ¡°No, not for a pitiful event. You ask much, yet say little, lamb. It is our turn to know, now. What brings you here?¡± ¡°Greed,¡± Mercury said. ¡°I relied on my Skills to twist the path laid for me, to defy the ruler.¡± ¡°The lamb is defiant,¡± the deep voice said. ¡°It-¡± ¡°He,¡± Mercury corrected. For a moment the figure paused and looked at him. ¡°Of course,¡± they said, after a moment. ¡°He does tell us things, then. He wants a treasure for the treasure hunt. The rulers hosting the event.¡± ¡°I will leave, simply, if that is what you will.¡± ¡°No,¡± the deep voice quickly replied, hound-fangs twisting into a smile. ¡°We hold treasure - suitable for a hunter. Prove yourself.¡± ¡°There has been quite enough ¡®proving myself¡¯ in my life recently,¡± Mercury replied. A small pause followed, then the high pitched voice spoke again, the one Mercury guessed was the Gardener. ¡°We see. The rulers and their trials. An endless chain¡­ We keep the mansion. Improve it, and we shall give you a reward. Safe passage will be granted.¡± Those¡­ were a lot of concessions. ¡°And if I fail?¡± ¡°You will pay for any damages. Then you will leave.¡± The words were spoken in unison. Mercury thought. The building, part mansion, part citadel, part castle, was in need of improvements. Could he do so? There was a garden, apparently. Maybe¡­ with ...? It was worth a try. ¡°Acceptable,¡± Mercury nodded. ¡°Good,¡± the deep voice growled, and the darkness lurched. A dozen maws sunk themselves into Mercury, and for a moment he felt phantom pain - but his body was fine. He opened his eyes and found himself somewhere else, in an open courtyard of monochrome grays. ¡°This is the place. We will watch you,¡± the deep voice said. Then the high one added, ¡°Impress us.¡± And with that, the Guard and Gardener vanished into the shadows, leaving Mercury all alone. From up close it was clear why the building had been called so many things. It was made of shadow - for a shadow, having a single identity was unthinkable. It was shifting, everchanging. Windows appeared, then vanished again, walls changed, spires became towers, and the facsimile of stone shifted to wood or glass. It was a strange, almost dizzying display, and Mercury decided to rather not go inside. It seemed like a recipe to get lost in twisting tunnels. He still only had three legs he noted, though the pain from the missing one was somehow not sinking in. He got the feeling that it would begin to be rather unpleasant once he was no longer a shadow. For now, he grit his teeth and disregarded it. The strange person - or pair, he was still not quite sure - that had welcomed him seemed like their challenge was manageable. Taking deep breaths, Mercury centered himself. This was fine. This was manageable. After a few moments passed, he opened his eyes again, to see that the courtyard had shifted. Or maybe he had moved, unconsciously. Regardless, Mercury found himself in what he could only describe as a garden. There were shadowy figures of butterflies, greyhounds and spiders all over the place. It was strang, frankly, since they were there in all sizes. Some butterflies, carved from shadow-stone, sat atop tiny, delicate flower stalks, while others were as large as the full-sized dogs. He breathed, and stepped forward. The garden was strange. It was from shadow, clearly, and parts were carved from a facsimile of stone, but Mercury could feel a rather real response from the plants. Gently, he reached out with . The response he got was truly strange. Alien almost. The sensation was dull, as if he was feeling flowers coated in shifting cotton. It felt almost plasticy, but yet real. Like something shifting between a fake flower and a real one all the time. Clearly, this was not quite right. Mercury sunk into ihn¡¯ar, shattering the golden veil of reason, and saw. The castle/mansion/citadel was a dozen things at the same time. The flowers/grass/graves were the same. An overlaying interplay of reality and falsehood. It was multiple things at the same time. And for a moment, Mercury was tempted to try and stop that. Force it into grass. But that wasn¡¯t right. Shadows didn¡¯t have anything enforced on them. They simply were. Mercury breathed. Finicky, so very finicky. Careful to not misstep, he reached out, his mind vast and clear. He started small, taking a single blade of grass into his perspective. It shifted and changed, becoming a flower, or a statue, or a hunter¡¯s trophy, or a grave, or a- Mercury breathed. It became a blade of grass again. Whatever else it was, that was okay. Grass was many things, after all, it was wonderful and multifaceted, so he could accept all that as part of the grass. But he could not speak to a grave, or a statue, could he? No, what mattered is that there was something living to be tended here. ¡®So, little stalk, grow a little for me, will you?¡¯ Something in the air shifted, and Mercury grinned. That had worked. [Your understanding of has increased! (medium)>] Did it matter that he was making fake grass? A shadow of its true selves? Or were shadows some sort of inherent quality? Mercury¡¯s mind twisted a dozen ways, all to accept the ever-shifting reality in front of him and still see it as grass, and he cared for it. He fostered it, grew it. The garden flourished. When the grass was prettier, no longer as stunted and a little more realistic, he still added more. A tiny hint of wind, if only a facsimile. A small, shadowy pond. He did not make those things big, simply adding tiny decorations, and that was good. He smiled. ¡°Gardener? Is this better?¡± Darkness settled down, and the figure, full of eyes and maws and proboscis appeared again. They remained silent for a long while. ¡°It is,¡± the high pitched voice replied, eventually. ¡°You tend well.¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± Mercury graciously accepted the compliment. ¡°Then you shall have our kept treasure. May the rulers lose interest in you soon.¡± The figure vanished, leaving only a token as dark as night behind. [: Borrow the Hunter for a moment. Toss the token, call upon them, and be granted one wish. You may ask them to find something, or to hunt it. The job will be done.] Vague, and strange, but good if Mercury ever needed to find someone again. In fact, he almost had something in mind. For now, though, he stashed the token within his trusty log, and then looked on. This part of the hunt was done. Gritting his teeth and bracing for the pain, Mercury stepped forward. The world blurred, and soon, he found himself standing on top of a fluffy, white cloud. Soon, it was stained red, as blood poured from his lost limb. Mercury endured without a whimper. He would not let the rulers enjoy his screams.