《The elemental brawler》 Chapter 1 In the beginning... Elemental brawler Chapter 1: In the beginning ... After several weeks of waiting, the capsule had finally arrived. The game Royal Road, produced by Unicorn, became in the span of two years the gold standard, especially as it was played with a completely new interface, the "capsule". Inside it, it was not just the sight and sound that were stimulated, but also smell, touch and taste. It was even said that if a culinary guide visited the chefs in this world, it would not be surprising that three or four stars restaurants would appear. After the order made three months ago already, Jean-Bernard had to wait, hardly hiding his impatience to walk in this new world. 3 months ... an eternity for this avid MMO''s player. However, it was not a wasted delay. He decided to use this time to collect a maximum of information in order to start his new life in the best conditions possible. One thing especially intrigued him. It was not only the knowledge of a player that could give him an advantage in this new world, but some of his physical abilities. Ohhh, not strength, but some of the skills and talent acquired in the real world. ¡°For once, I will not have to defer to a simple "dice roll" on a competence to decide the success of one action... my efforts and attention to detail will be rewarded.¡± This wait also allowed him to discover some little known elements. Thus, the week IRL, or in game four weeks, during which one could not leave his departure city, it was possible to build on something else than solving utility quests used primarily to prepare a little starting capital or choose a profession. But it is mostly a 10-month old video that had caught his attention. A player, for the 4 weeks of initiation, had pummeled the scarecrows of a training center. Instead of laughing like most of the other people who saw this video, he had sought for any logical reason for this behavior. In fact, he found that although very slowly, physical stats could increase this way, especially as his level was low, the efficiency of this repetitive task remained. Leaving the starting city with a small stats advantage over other avatars, could be a significant advantage not only low at level, but also in the long term. However, JB pushed the reasoning further, extrapolating that stats other than physical could possibly benefit from the same kind of treatment. Why this idea? For JB having decided to start with a character in a magical profession, it was mostly the stats of intelligence, knowledge and wisdom that would benefit to be developed initially. The capsule installed and initialized, JB slipped inside and started the game. At the prompt selection of race, continent, starting city and name, the answers were brief and dry. He already had to wait three months to make his entrance into this world, he would not waste time in "paperwork": "human, western continent, Nivese, Cilerius." The parameters of physical appearance were also shipped quickly: "My appearance! " These formalities set, he was transported to the central square of his new hometown, where appeared all the new avatars that had chosen this city as a starting point. After some moves to ensure control of his body, he immediately went to the library. To the clerk there, he presented himself: "Hello, my name is Cilerius. Frankly, how lucky you are to be as surrounded by the world knowledge. I envy you." Flatter one¡¯s interlocutor, whether it was a player or an AI, it could always facilitate relations. The clerk, Desmond, proud of his position, had a favorable first impression of this young man. After all, anyone who loves books and knowledge can only have a good background. "Indeed. It is a privilege to work here, if I want information, instead of running the world to discover it, a little walk in the aisles is enough for me ... much more efficient." "Certainly, this is exactly why I come to you. I was thinking about trying to educate myself and expand my knowledge, be it only a tenth of yours." "Ohh, you are honoring by modeling from me, but still, I have to admit, at the expense of my modesty, that it is a wise choice. " "So what do you advise me to increase my knowledge, and I must say, to practice a little mental gymnastics? " "Haha! I think this book I''ve just finished could pick your interest. It contains riddles and puzzles bale to exercise your brain while improving your knowledge ... a good start I think. Take it and when you bring it back to me, I will lend what is needed for you to continue your intellectual education." "Thank you 1000 times, I will not fail to come see you again once that sublime book finished." With that, Cilerius left the library clerk and went to the training hall. Once there, he went immediately to one of the farthest scarecrow from the entrance, which he began to temper with, if seen by any observer, would seem a strange hobby. In doing so, he had this internal monologue: ''It''s fine to want to be a nuker, but they have a big problem. In melee situation, they are usually weak and do not survive long. I would be well advised to take advantage of opportunities to partially solve this problem ... even a limited capacity to fight other than from distance will not be superfluous.'' In doing so, he was binding the book got to the library over the scarecrow, open so he could read. His work completed, he began to hit this target with his bare hands, while reading somehow the book. It was after 4 hours of this combined training, that he received a first tribute: * Ding! You have created the stat "Resilience" by dint of hitting your target with your bare hands, your body adapts to withstand damage. You are able to withstand the biggest "hits" without this resulting in increased damage. Your ability to recover increases slightly. Can¡¯t distribute points to this stat. * Ding! You have created the stat "concentration". Your ability to keep track of your thoughts while performing other tasks increases. The more this stat augment, the less external events will have a chance to break your concentration. Can¡¯t distribute points to this stat. * Ding! You have acquired the skill "unarmed combat". Striking a target with bare hands can be effective as long as you know how to do it. "HA! Well, the first effects ... So it works, there are ways to increase the so-called intellectual as well as physical capacities ... and simultaneously ... good, let¡¯s not waste time, to work! " And he continued to hit the scarecrow, while reading the book ... 2 hours later when he ended up solving a riddle proposed in the book: * Ding! You gain 1 point of intelligence. You''ve solved a puzzle, thereby improving your thinking ability. * Ding! You gain 1 point of knowledge. New discoveries and experience of solving a problem, help you improve your knowledge. * Ding! You gain 1 point of dexterity. You improve the accuracy of your actions by repeating them. * Ding! You improve your ability to fight with bare hands, beginner (1) 1.6% "Okay, it''s time to move to the next chapter, and diversify the way I fight." He said with a smirk. He then turned a page and resumed his methodical bombardment of the dummy, now adding elbows, feet, knees strokes and even occasionally headbutt. So 1 hour later: * Ding! You gain 1 point of resilience. * Ding! You gain 1 point of stamina. The practice of physical exercise over a long period improves your endurance to effort. * Ding! You gain 1 point of strength. Repeated practice of physical exertion improves your strength. * Ding! Your skill "unarmed combat" modify into "pankration". You have discovered that the fists are not the only body parts that can inflict damage effectively: beginner pankration (1) 2%. "Ah! This is something that wasn¡¯t noted ... I thought it would change to martial arts ... I guess it is for the profession." And he resumed his efforts, garnering more skills as well as strength, dexterity, endurance, resilience, intelligence, knowledge, concentration and finally, wisdom increases. So that at the end of the day, he was exhausted but satisfied. However, he had one more thing to do before resting, to return to the library to first return this book and take another in anticipation of the next day. There, Desmond was reading under candlelight. "Hey, I see that I have much work to do to reach your level of involvement in the search for knowledge, said JB as he entered. " "Oh oh, back already? Well, it is true that I am so to speak, depending on my books ... This is something that can happen sooner than you might think as long as the passion touches you. So is this book too hard and you come to take another one more simple to start? it wouldn¡¯t be, I must say, surprising." "No, I certainly come to get another one, but because I finished that one. " "You do not say! Did you find it interesting? " "Rewarding. If you can get one another as exciting to keep busy my tomorrow, I''d be very glad." "Hey! I have a feeling that you are on the right track. Try this one," said Desmond, handing him a bigger book and obviously older than the previous one, "you¡¯ll tell me about it. Just be ready for severe headaches. Quantity and quality are waiting for you with that one... and if you get around it quickly, I may try to introduce you to some of my literary treasures." "A thousand thanks. I will certainly remember your words once this magnificent work avidly read. I am, I must say, curious to see your treasures! " "Okay, this is a deal, see you very soon." Being thus discharged, JB went, wearing an enigmatic smile. ''If not mistaken, this could be the beginning of a quest... a stone two birds ... it begin well.'' Such was his thought while walking away. His "day" game over, JB unconnected to go immediately to bed and get a few hour sleep. His first contact with the new world had been successful so far, although tiring. The habit of virtual reality, immersed in a capsule, was not there, but nothing that a few weeks of vacation well planned couldn¡¯t solve. It is after, when he should juggle between his work and Royal Road adventures, that things would get tougher. But by then, he had time to prepare an optimal exit of the city, and his entry into adventures. The next day, JB, after a quick shower and a hearty breakfast, dispatched what cleaning and errands he had to run, then connected. However, he did not rush to the training hall, but began visiting the city. Visit is probably not the right word because actually for visit, it was more a recognition of the land on which he would have to progress for a start. The city Nivese, was not the capital of the kingdom in which it was, but had for quality to be a port and a center of commerce and culture. This city was full of contrasts, astride on a lagoon and a few hills on which all the important buildings were built. Thus, the port and all commercial activities were based on piers spread across the lagoon when the training hall, the various guilds and administrative buildings were built on the heights. Traffic in the city of water was mainly on small boats, dry roads being rare and usually occupied by the all kinds of merchants stalls. Operating these small craft for leisure or business walkers, was one of the small jobs available for beginners. This meant that most avatars starting in this city, came out after four weeks with navigation skills, beginner-level 1 to 5 depending on the time they had spent in this way. This made Nivese a popular base among sailors aspirants, most other port cities not offering naval activities for beginners, but fishing from the docks. This tour of his "homeland" finished, Cilerius went to the training hall to continue his preparation. Navigation could be a useful talent in the future, but for the duration of the four weeks as a recluse in the city, his versatile training was a priority. Once there, Cilerius did over his DIY, even faster than before, demonstrating that the training wasn¡¯t limited only to stats. And the day began with the sounds of wailing and grinding scarecrow, to such an extent that one would have been able to believe they were alive, at least for now. The 2nd book lent by the clerk turned out be a much more difficult challenge than the previous one. Nothing, however, impossible to overcome for Cilerius, or rather JB, that was used to devour books at high speed. The complexity of the proposed reading confirmed his hunch that this could be the beginning of a quest. Another effect related to the increased difficulty, intellectual stats did grow at a faster pace than previously. Latter effect, 2 days were necessary to Cilerius to overcome in a suitable manner, ie by understanding the content and by retaining the essence. Important detail since, no doubt, Desmond would question him about the book, whether to simply decide whether he deserved a book of the same quality, or as a test to start this quest glimpsed in his behavior. On the evening of the third day, Cilerius returned to the library to return the book and take the exam he foresaw. Desmond, seeing him come back visibly exhausted, mistake and said: "Ah, too hard after all? Probably too early. " "We''ll see. I read it, I finished it, I realized it!" Answered Cilerius on the tone of the Caesar " Veni vidi vici ". "Really? I must check that." Taking the book returned by Cilerius, Desmond opened it, flipped a few pages, looking for passages concealing important information. Then he stated: "Northern Empire was buried under the ice. But before that, it had for master a man with a very special profession. What was this empire and this profession." Cilerius, seemed to be thoughtful about ten seconds, then replied: "This is the Harpen empire and the profession was sculptor." At this answer, Desmond opened his eyes more than usual, his mouth for a moment and then let out as a breath: "Ooh! That is well. You did not simply skim this book. You have memorized the information content, it seems." He then asked some more questions which all found satisfactory answers. The clerk seemed pleasantly surprised. "Very well, I''m sure that giving you access to the treasures of our knowledge will be amply justified. To get access I have to give you the reserve key... unfortunately, at a picnic, one of the few times I got out of the city walls, a fox stole me the key ... it shone as if made of gold, I guess that''s what drew it... I saw it running into the bushes and since then, I couldn¡¯t get myself into the reserve for my greatest difficulty. Find the key and you will have unlimited access to the library treasures." * Ding! The clerk charge you to find the golden key. Clue: a fox ran away with in the forest hills that extend near the gates of the city. Difficulty: D Prerequisites: You must have earned the respect of the clerk. Reward: permanent access to library reserves. ''Ah! I thought so ... but completing this task will necessarily await the end of 4 weeks of confinement, since I have to get the key outside of the walls. But it isn¡¯t probably a quest often entrusted, it requires a certain complicity with the clerk that is only acquired by reading a complicated book that give nothing, according to the knowledge of most players. Who knows, this may be a chain quest ... the opportunity is too good to pass up. '' "I''ll find the key! " * You accepted the request of Desmond * "In the meantime, can I borrow another book? " "But of course, make yourself at home, I was able to confirm for myself that my books are not wasting their time in your hands. " * Ding! Your level of complicity with Desmond is such that you can now choose for yourself, without limitation, the books you want. Attention, damaging or losing a book will reduce his esteem. Cilerius went off to browse among the shelves to choose which books would be best able to serve his workout the next day and left with five bulky tomes under his arm. The next morning, he returned to his mixed intellectual-pugilistic activities in the hall. He found out that his repeated presence earned him an approving glance from the hall guardian. The seventh day of his training, that is to say. at a quarter of the confinement, the guard spoke to him in a rather friendly manner: "I see you make proof of endurance. But your diet is perhaps not the most suitable one for this constant physical effort." "Yes, but the rye bread is all I currently have." "Ah, of course. But come share my pittance. I prepared enough to satisfy an ogre." "Oh, thank you very much, but I don¡¯t want to abuse." "Please, the sweat you pour every day is a good enough payment. It is so rare these days to see someone as applied in his physical exercises." "If you insist, I can only accept, with all my thanks." And so, from this 7th day, Cilerius could eat something else than tasteless rye bread and most importantly, he was running out of the allocated stock at the character creation. He added little variations in his method, now hitting the dummies with firstly, 2 hand staff, then with 2 short staffs. Thus, he created the corresponding skills and parallel to the pankration, he did raise them alternately. This course was designed to allow optimal use of the weapon of the magic classes, staff, for close-combat purpose if it came to that. Improving the chances of survival at all costs, seemed to be the keyword of Cilerius in his preparation. The 30th day, at the end of the period of reclusion, nothing happened meaning the end of the basic training. He then decided to continue his efforts. And it¡¯s at the 37th day that the event he expected occurred. * Ding! You gain 1 point of strength * Ding! you gain 1 intelligence * Ding! you earn 20 celebrity * Ding! you earn 20 celebrity * Ding! you earn 100 points of life * Ding! you gain 100 mana. * Ding! You have completed the basic training. You are eligible to attempt the beginner training. * Ding! You have completed the basic intellectual apprenticeship. You are eligible for the beginner intellectual training. ''What¡¯s that? There is an intellectual equivalent of basic training? This need some research. It could be something very useful'', was thinking Cilerius after reading the last message. Then, having reached the end of his training, Cilerius consulted the final result: "Window stats:¡± Avatar: Cilerius Type: Neutral Level: 1 Class: no Title: None Fame: 0 Life: 650 Mana: 610 STR: 40 DEX: 42 VIT: 45 Resilience: 44 Stamina: 46 WIS: 41 INT: 40 concentration: 45 Leadership: 0 Luck: 0 Offense: 3 Defense: 0 Magic Resistance: None skills: Pankration: beginner (3) 54% 2 hand staff fighting: beginner (2) 67% 1 hand staff fighting: beginner (2) 71% ambidexterity: beginner (2) 25% He had still acquired one more skill in the systematic dummy bombardment; ambidexterity. Indeed, the use and the strong side and low side at the same time, had developed this ability, which when increasing, raised the low side damages and accuracy to the level of the strong side. His training had taken longer than originally planned, but as a result, he earned a little more vitality. He could also be assume that the basic requirement to complete the training was acquiring through it at least 30 bonus points in the two corresponding stats, Strength and Dexterity for physical training, intelligence and wisdom for intellectual learning . Was the equivalent of four weeks of strikes on dummies or in the library reading books added? Possible, but for now, the result was what that mattered. The hall guardian then came to him: "Congratulations! You have completed the basic training within a very short time and in addition, in a way few used. You''ve earned a reward." He said, handing him a package. "Thank you. I will miss our conversation over a good meal." Answered Cilerius, receiving the package. He then proceeded to open it and found inside two reinforced gloves. Fighting gloves obviously. They were padded on top, wrists, knuckles and even the base of the palm. There was also a fittings on the joints between the fingers and hand. He saw too of on each glove, the inside of the forearm part, five small gaps that seemed ready for something, maybe gems. "This is the first time I hand over these gloves. Usually, it is rather a sword. I do not know all their qualities, but I am certain that you will discover and enjoy them." "Certainly. Thank you for this wonderful present. Out of curiosity, how many people have completed the basic training? " "5214 to date in different the training halls. But on all continents, are, to my knowledge, only 27 people have completed it empty handed. And you''re the first to do it by reading books. This is a vision that will stay with me all my life. I think, I will in the future, be proud of that you have spent your basic training in my hall." "It''s too much honor! It is me who is grateful for having attended this hall. But tell me, where can I find the beginner training hall? " "This, I can¡¯t answer. They are located in different places of our continents and each must find his on his own." "Well, it will therefore be one of my goals. Thank you again for everything you have done for me during these four weeks. It was a pleasure to meet you and I hope to repeat in the future." And with that, Cilerius took leave and went to the Academy of Magical Arts, examining gloves on the way: Pugilist combat gloves. Black leather gloves perfectly suited for combat. Durability : 80/80 Defense: 5 Damage 3-6 For: 20 Dex: 20 Vit: 20 Durability: 100/100 Special property: Unidentified Special property: Unidentified Prerequisites: Str 40, Dex 40, pankration skill or known associate skill. "Hmmm, interesting. I just met the conditions. But these special properties, I''m curious ... well, I''ll see later." The magic academy was a grand building, built atop the highest hill in the city. It included everything that was related directly or indirectly with magic. Thus, one could find there the wizard guild as well than the Elementalist guild and even craft guilds related to magic, like enchanting or scribe guilds. The building itself was made of a circular enclosure of smooth white stone, one might almost say of marble. Four towers were erected around the perimeter of the wall, each with a different but recognizable style. Indeed, each representing one of the major schools, fire, water, air and earth, witchcraft. Out of their appearance, a difference in the condition and maintenance was visible, those of fire and water glistening as if just built, those of air and earth pretenses less maintained. This showed no doubt, the power and thus the popularity of the different schools. At the center of the building was a fifth tower, round, much larger than the other four, more grandiose too. At its peak lived and ministered the guild master. It is also up there that wizards aspirants should climb to apply and therefore receive the quest for access to the profession of wizard. So this is the tower Cilerius began to climb. 444 steps to the top. A nice warm-up exercise for one not accustomed to physical exertion. Nothing too terrible for Cilerius who did go for one month, to sweat blood and tears in the training hall. Throughout the climb, he met numbers of men and women, players or NPCs, coming back down. None, by cons, exceeded him on the way up. Reaching the top, it led to a large room where the activity was a reminiscent of a beehive, with people going from office to office, but all in silence and coordination that seemed quite strange. Cilerius noticed a small desk with a sign marked information and did go there. Were waiting in line in front of him, five other people. When finally his turn came, he asked the person sat on the other side, a small man with a balding barely hidden by his hat and big glasses resting low on his nose: "Hello, I would like to know the formalities for admission to the guild of magic." "Hmmm? "Was the first response of the little man, as he seemed to inspect from top to bottom, the appearance of the newcomer. "Are you sure you are in the right place? You seem more aware of the lowly physical efforts than of the noble mental gymnastics. Oh well, we see everything nowadays. Well, for admission, the first thing is a meeting with the guild master. Go to the bench there and wait for the time that they call you! In this regard, your name is? " The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident."Cilerius" The little man scratched a scroll with his pen, slowly stating, "Cilerius" "Now give me room, go wait on the bench for the pleasure of the master! " Cilerius therefore went to the bench and sat down, thinking: ''Here is at least one individual that I have trouble coaxing. The perfect little civil servant.'' The bench was placed against a wall of the room, which was bathed in the light falling from the large canopy cut in the roof. In fact, Cilerius seen, while hours of waiting, that the bench was always in the light, either directly or by mirror sets, making this location, a place more unpleasant function the waiting time, by the permanent dazzle and heat. Cilerius thought: ¡®no doubt that this is a designed test. Let¡¯s try to win it''. It is only at falling night that he finally heard: "Aspirant Cilerius, introduce yourself to the great master!" Cilerius looked up from one of the books he had with him and allowed him to spend time in a less boring than it was to be expected. The thousand and one mazes of the world, their keepers and treasures, was the name of the book. Additionally to practical knowledge he gained 1 point of wisdom and 1 of intelligence while reading. However, Cilerius did not seem satisfied. Indeed, when he had read it with no other activity, he hardly received the equivalent of what he earned during his training. In fact, the limits of the opportunities to earn points in this way, seemed close. Wasn¡¯t this the case, it is certain that at least one player would have tried to raise his stats indefinitely in this manner while still being lvl 1. Cilerius appeared before the ornate door of the Grand Master, which was ajar, and then crossed the doorway, walked a few steps in the room where everything was organized and tidy to reflect the power of its occupant. In his office, the guild master, Bragarton was hunched over a manuscript. After some minutes, he looked up at the newcomer and then turned to his right, looking at a sheet, then looked back on the man in front of him. "Cilerius, this is your name? " "Yes master" "Um ... well ... at least you are concise ... it partly compensates for this basely physical appearance. So you want to learn the noble art of magic." "Yes, it is my dearest wish" "It wasn¡¯t a question, but a statement!" Retorted the Grand Master with a slight wrinkling of the nose. "Know that this noble art is restricted to persons of mind. Magic is elegancy made art. I disapprove of letting access to some first-come with half-baked mind," he continued. "You will have to prove that you''re not just a farm boy for whom magic is limited to the farts of the pigs he¡¯s guarding¡±. "Put me to the test," said Cilerius. "Silence! here it is I who decides!" thundered Bragarton. "Of course I''ll try you. Let''s see ... um ... I know, for such a boor as you, I have exactly what is needed. You will bring this book to Desmond, the vile rat serving as librarian. In return, you bring me those on this list." He said with a wry smile. * Ding! Bragarton, the Grand Master of the magic academy, assign you a mission with the librarian. You must return a book and bring back the 10 required on the list. Time: undefined. Reward: wizard guild membership. "Well, I''m on it immediatly," You have accepted the quest. And Cilerius, pocketing the list and taking the book to return, left, hurtling down the stairs 4 by 4, just to stretch his legs after the long forced inactivity. "Ahaha!" A mocking laughter rang through the room Cilerius had left a few seconds earlier. "The return of the book overdue for more than a month and the complex list, it¡¯ll take a long time to decide that mule, Desmond, to leave him browse the shelves in search of what I asked." And he went back to his reading with a satisfied air. Meanwhile, Cilerius had reached the foot of the tower and headed to a building he knew well, having visited it many times during the past month, the library. Along the way, he thought: ''There is one word to describe Bragarton: haughty! It will be difficult to deal with him. I''m pretty sure I would get more cooperation from a bear from I would have snatched honey than with him. I better get my membership to the guild as soon as possible and have the least to do with him. Moreover, his character seems to rub off on the rest of the staff. Finally, at first glance, the list does not seem too hard to satisfy. I''ve read 9 of the 10 books requested, so I know where to find them. He must have wanted to trick me, but luckily my previous month seem even more profitable than I thought.'' On these estimations, he came to the library, that although the time was late, was always open, his keeper always faithful to his position, true to his books should we rather say. "Hello Desmond, always enriching your mind to what I see." "But who do I see? My most faithful visitor. What can I do for you?" "Well, first, I come to return the books I borrowed. Then, I went to the magic academy and the Grandmaster asked me to return this book and take some others." "The Grandmaster, an old owl imbued with himself! AH! I''m sorry, I should have guessed that you would go there and warn you of what you would find. Let me see this book." And Desmond took the book, examining it a moment before saying: "Well, at least he doesn¡¯t damage them ... but one month late, it is to believe that this old fogy can¡¯t read or he does it on purpose. Would have been it someone else, I probably would have spent my wrath and would have sent them the four corners of the city works to recover books before leaving them take a book for this plucked phoenix. But for you, I will not do that. Especially since I''m sure that was the goal sought by this hypocrite. So go get the books required. Sure he will rage if you bring them so quickly." "Thank you Desmond, I appreciate" and Cilerius moved through the shelves, here and there, taking a book from the list. Indeed, only the 10th presented a little difficult to find, but it still took only 5 minutes. Just before he left, Desmond called out: "Cilerius! I see that you have completed the basic intellectual apprenticeship. Congratulations! This is the first time I witnessed it. It is with great emotion that I will for the first time, give this" he said, handing him a small case. "Thank you. I''m the first here you say? And elsewhere? " "In fact, to my knowledge, this is the first time that this item is delivered, in any library" "And are there places to keep learning? " "But of course. The acquisition of knowledge is a quest that doesn¡¯t end so simply. However, these places are kept secret." "Very well, thank you for those information." Opening the case, Cilerius see window information display: Gamocell¨¨s Heritage Continue Gamocell¨¨s, the first scribe, research. Discover the key of knowledge. Difficulty: d can not be refused You have accepted the quest. * Ding! New Skill: Calligraphy. The artistic writing used for all official and sacred tasks. As mastery increases, the use of calligraphy will lead to new opportunities. Writing new knowledge in a grimoire can enrich you intellectually. Additional effects on intellectual skills. * Ding! New Skill: handicraft. Additional effects on a variety of production skills and your combat skills. Even without the profession, an opportunity to learn the production skills if certain prerequisites are met. Inside the case was a feather. Cilerius examined: Garuda Feather A feather allowing an elegant writing Durability: 1000/1000 Unknown property Unknown property +2 levels of calligraphy This pen holds many secrets ''Hmmm, another unknown skill. If it has similar effects on spells than handicraft has on combat, these 37 days have been really beneficial. And besides I am, so far, the only one to have completed the intellectual apprenticeship, a big advantage.'' Thought Cilerius. Then at his librarian friend: "Thank you again for all your help and the present, but now to climb the tower with those 10 books, it will be a good exercise after that day still." Cilerius said. "Well in that case, good climb," answered Desmond "and do not hesitate to visit my treasures, you''re welcome, always." "Thank you, I will not fail to do so." And Cilerius went back to the academy of magic. The climb, with the 10 books on the arms, proved refreshing to Cilerius. To not move for hours had been an ordeal for him who, during one month, had exercised was so much that it had become the same as breathing habit. At the summit, he told the little bald man "Hello, I bring the books requested by the master, if you would kindly tell him I¡¯m here? " This personification of the petty official looked up and recognized the person in front of him, opened eyes showing big surprise, then regaining his senses, replied in a dry and cold: "I''ll convey." Cilerius stood still in front of the desk, signaling his intention not to move until the message was send. Visibly annoyed, the little man rose from his seat and knocked at the door of the Grandmaster, then opened and on a response went inside, a few seconds later heard a loud "WHAT!" Followed other indistinct shouting. After a few minutes, the little man came out and called: "Aspiring Cilerius, the Grandmaster will receive you." "Ok, I¡¯m coming" and he went to the door and entered the room where he could foresee that, with great difficulty, the Grandmaster had recovered his hat and smoothed his robe which in the previous concussion had been disturbed, which seemed to annoy him as much as the fact that this little aspirant was already here. "Show me that! you brought me exactly what I asked? Not some book taken at random?" Cilerius put the books on the desk and stepped back one step. Bragarton looked at the books, their cover first then inside to check their authenticity, then said: "I dare not ask what medium you used to corrupt the rat, Desmond, but the fact is, you have completed the mission entrusted" * Ding! you have completed the mission successfully. Lvl up! Lvl up! Class Change: The profession wizard is offered, would you accept? "Yes, I want to be a wizard. " "Well, since fate afflicts us with your presence in our noble institution, you can¡¯t move around in tatters, here is a voucher for a novice robe, a staff and the novices spell book to withdraw at the quartermaster. Do not stay with him too long, he might rub off on you. He was brilliant at his beginning, but his inelegant behavior, unworthy of our profession earned him to only serve as quartermaster. Let this be a warning. Go now, your presence will end up giving me a headache." You receive the blessing of the magic academy. +25 Int (related to the profession) +25 Wis (related to the profession) New Skill: Magic mastery New Skill: Mana preservation New Skill: Magic amplification New Skill: Fire elemental mastery New Skill: Ice elemental mastery New Skill: Earth elemental mastery New Skill: Air elemental mastery On this very undiplomatic leave, Cilerius departed, pausing for a moment at the office of the little bald man to ask for directions to the quartermaster, then immediately headed there. He wasn¡¯t sorry to leave this so little nice company. ''If the quartermaster is so little considered up there, he can only be a good man.'' Was thinking Cilerius going down. He had, in fact to get down even lower than the foot of the tower, the quartermaster being relegated in the basement of the building. He came to a counter behind which a person held a radiant bonhomie and started first the conversation: "Welcome, what can I do for you? " "Hello, thank you for your warm welcome, it changes from the blizzard-like that runs up there," said Cilerius, pointing to the direction of the top of the tower. "Hehe, I understand you well, these uptight only have appearances in mind, they forgets efficiency" Cilerius observed a moment the quartermaster, a man somewhere in his 40th, with a little overweight and a conquering gray mane. Even if he had flunked here at the stewardship, he seemed to have lost nothing from his gaiety. Apart from this apparent over-weight, he seemed physically well trained and in any case, well build. According to the criteria of the Grandmaster, he was indeed out of place. "My name is Cilerius, I was sent to you to get the different items in this list. Would you be kind enough to provide them, please. " "But of course. It is politely asked, it changes from the boor they usually send me. My name is Sigismund, delighted to make your acquaintance " "All the pleasure is mine" "But tell me, I see that you are quite well trained." Indeed, the appearance of Cilerius almost 1.8M for 58cm shoulder width, was quite impressive. JB, IRL, had been a first line of rugby at the university. And not tender. Add to that the one month training at the hall, this reflected on Cilerius appearance. A tough guy. "I can guess that your interview with Bragarton was really dry. I think he feeds a complex against people with a well-trained physique. For this idiot only appearances matter. What a fool, what elegance has a cadaver. It is better to be realistic for combat. Idealism brings only bumps and bruises, to say the least. " "I can only agree with you. Efficiency is my course of action." "In this case, we are made to understand each other. By cons, beware of the old owl, and especially of his clique. To please him, they are willing to report any breach of elegance. " Sigismund uttered that last sentence, and especially the last word with undisguised disgust. "I myself have suffered from their persiflage. I was master of the Earth school, but the way I was fighting didn¡¯t had the good fortune to please. Too messy! A wizard does not directly touch his targets! Among other nonsense they have told me. And during that time, how many wizards have gone to death, their robes stained with their blood instead of the monsters. Pfffft ... in the meantime, I am still alive and I have killed a lot of monsters by myself. " "I agree with you. Better being able to strike them if they approach us." "Absolutely! it is just as you say. " * Ding! Your complicity with Sigismund increases significantly. Criticizing common enemies and sharing the same views can seal friendships. "Hold, here''s the dress and stick already" said Sigismund, handing him the two objects. "I''ll get the novice magic book". Cilerius received his firsts equipment, but before wearing, he examined them: Robe of the novitiate wizard. A blue robe of raw linen embroidered with some runes. Defense: 10 Durability: 50/50 Int: 5 Wis: 5 Prerequisites: Wizard profession, lvl3 minimum, intelligence and wisdom 15. Ash staff of the novice. A staff of carved ash wood with a crystal encrusted. Damage: 2-4 Durability: 60/60 Int: 5 Wis: 5 Prerequisites: minimum lvl3, intelligence and wisdom 15. Sigismund returned and then giving him the book told him in a low voice: "This is an old edition, it contains more than the new and most importantly, you will find spells of the two minor schools, while in the new edition, they finesse, as well as one additional general spell. It¡¯s to believe they are trying to make them disappear." "Thank you, I will try to take advantage of this fine book that you give me." Then, Cilerius examined the book: Basic spell book of the beginner. Rarity: D Contains two specific spells per magic school and 4 spells or general competence. Compared with the usual book that was graded rarity E, it was already a nice advantage. He gained so five spells. Remained to know their usefulness. He began then reading and learning the spells and competences: Meditation: common general competence. Increases the mana regeneration depending on the degree of expertise of the user. Identification: common general competence. Allows the user to identify an object hidden characteristics. The level of expertise of the user determines through what level of difficulty he can identify an object. Magical Restriction: common general spell. Allows to immobilize a target. The strength and duration of immobilization depends on the level of expertise of the caster. Each attack can break the spell. Magic Missile: unusual general spell. Low powered magic attack showing as a missile of pure energy. The expertise helping, the caster can guide more precisely after the missile launch and its damage may increase. Fire Finger: common fire spell. Unguided launched attack that takes the form of a fireball that inflicts, in addition of direct damage, increasing burning damage till the flame fade. The expertise of the caster can naturally evolve the spell up to a phenomenal power. Fire Walk: uncommon fire spell. Area of effect. Flames arise under caster steps and remain some time. The strength of the flames, their scope and duration depend on the expertise of the caster. Palm Ice: common water spell. Unguided attack. Takes the form of a palm of ice that in addition to direct damage, inflict restriction of movement of the target, dependent on the spell power. A persistent effect may also impose a cold on target. The expertise of the caster can naturally evolve the spell up to a phenomenal power. Ice Shield: uncommon water spell. Defensive spell that weaken, stop or even reflect enemy attacks. The shield remains in place until exhausted or withdraw by the caster. Resistance and effect of the shield depends on the expertise of the caster. Zephyr of restriction: common air spell. Spell restricting the target movements. Homing spell. Better than magical restriction. Force, duration of the restriction and number of possible target depend on the degree of expertise of the caster. Only the most powerful attacks may break the spell. Wind Walk: uncommon air spell. Can be cast on yourself or others. Allows the caster to walk on air. The number of steps possible depends on the expertise of the user. Mineral needles: common earth spell. Spell cast on a targeted area where mineral needles will spring from the ground more or less vertically. In addition to direct damages, victims suffer impalement damage until their release. The power of the attack depends on the expertise of the caster and soil quality in the targeted area. Alteration of soil: uncommon earth spell. Spell cast on a targeted zone which will have a liquefying or hardening effect. An earthy area will be transformed into mud, a sandy area into rocks. The affected area and depth depend on the expertise of the caster. Casting the spell on the same area will reverse the effect. After finishing learning spells and skills, Cilerius promised to return to Sigismund, but before he left, the latter noticed: "I see you happen to have a very rare skill, calligraphy ... I think we can help each other. Here is an ink stone and a stock of scrolls. They¡¯re yours if you can give me thirty copies of this parchment." * Ding! Sigismund entrust you a mission: to provide thirty copies of a parchment. Prerequisite: calligraphy competence and at least neutral relationship with Sigismund. Reward: the equipment surplus and reputation gain with the elemental mages friendship. Cilerius could only find benefits to this proposal. He wondered, however: "What¡¯s the elemental mages friendship? " "This is an informal group of mages who exchange information and services out of the academy shackles. " "Very well, I will provide these copies." You have accepted the mission. You get 50 scrolls and an ink stone. Cilerius advised a table and a chair near, under an oil lamp and laid there the parchment. He sat down, used the ink stone and then pulled out his pen. He dipped the tip of his pen in the ink and began to trace the letters with the greatest possible application. The bonus of the pen, +2 calligraphy level, helped a lot, but the first parchment was not a resounding success. Despite his best efforts, it was obvious that this tedious work couldn¡¯t be perfect immediately. However this served him to train, so his second parchment, though it was still not a success, was considered a deserving work since a system window appeared: You gain a little experience in calligraphy. Calligraphy beginner level 1 (3.4%) You gain a little experience in handicraft. Handicraft beginner level 1 (2.3%) Encouraged by this result, Cilerius went back to work with even more application, so that after 2 hours, 7 scrolls used including 5 for a correct result and the last considered very good, he gained a level in calligraphy . Some scrolls later, this is the handicraft skill that gained a level. It is finally, after 9 hours of work that he could provide thirty scrolls of the required quality. At that time, he had reached Level 3 (45%) in calligraphy and Level 2 (78%) in handicraft. He handed the parchments to Sigismund: "Here, I''ve done my best, I think they should satisfy you. " "Thank you. I''ll check them", he replied, taking the outstretched scrolls. He examined them carefully and then continued: "Very good, these are of sufficient quality." * Ding! you have completed the mission entrusted by Sigismund. You gain complicity with elemental mages friendship. (+50) "For each additional copy of the same type that you provide me, I will give you two blank scrolls. And we will be grateful." The proposal was still interesting, the wasted parchments now being at 1 on 3 and could only decrease with practice. "Very well, I will produce some more". And Cilerius took up his pen and began anew his task. 2 more hours and he could provide 13 scrolls, for three failures, including one of exceptional quality. Upon completion of the latter, he saw the display windows system to gain level in calligraphy, with a significant increase, level 4 (24%) and handicraft level 3 (2.3%). It was pleasing him. * Ding! gain level of handicraft (3) Learning cooking and sewing is possible. Increases melee and projectile weapons attack power (+3% attack) Increases attack power with bare hands (5% attack) ''Wow! it''s great!'' Exclaimed inwardly Cilerius. ''I think I''ll practice crafts diligently. It will pay off." In addition, Art attribute was created with one point gain on completion of the exceptional quality parchment. He then gave the scrolls to quartermaster for which he received 26 blank scrolls, 70 points of complicity and one silver coin. The high quality parchment was paid double the complicity and even earned him the coin. This done, Cilerius decided it was time for him to venture outside the city walls and therefore took leave of Sigismund then rose to the surface and headed for the artisans district. He still had one thing to do before venturing outside the walls. He stopped at a shop that sold food ready-to-eat, products to prepare, cooking utensils and condiments. With a few pieces of money received by having completed basic training and completion of the mission of the Grandmaster, he bought basic condiments and some basic utensils, skewer, pan, knife, spatula, bottles, which cost him almost all of his money. However, he would be able to live on the nature and most importantly, not just on rye bread. To do this, he still had to do a little formality, learn the cooking skill. To do that, a quick discussion with the merchant on the interest he took in cooking, was sufficient, as he was proud of his work and thrilled that others had the same interest. This was only possible since Cilerius had and handicraft skill at level 3. This done, Cilerius headed for the gates of the city. Just before leaving the city, he disconnected of the game to take care of the few necessities of real life he might have after a very long day and before a night even longer. to root menu to chapter 2 Chapter 2: First hunt Elemental brawler Chapter 2: first hunt part 1 JB came out of the capsule and went to prepare his meals. Once swallowed, he did his housework then go in the shower. He practiced some physical exercises and stretching and then returned to the capsule. He entered it, closed the access, then launched the connection. Cilerius reappeared near one of the gates of the city. He thought for a moment to verify if he forgot anything, then walked with a firm step towards the outside. This city of the West continent was for the most part, the playground of a multitude of small Western guilds. Therefore, there was no big Guild ruling on the region and therefore no tolls charged. It was a big advantage for beginners, but ultimately it was to be feared that this lack of organization would be fatal in the event of invasion. But in the immediate future, Cilerius had to appreciate the situation. He would not have to reserve, for guild taxes, part of his booty. Once the door passed, he was able to discover the prairie which stretched between the wooded hills outside the walls. He could see the numerous groups of 3 to 6 per-sons in general who hunted. He noticed an area where there seemed to be no one in particular and walked to it. There, he thought: ''Well, now, it is necessary for me to try and train my new magical talents.'' In this mindset, he targeted a rabbit at a short distance and recited: ¡°ethers cripple my prey: magical Restriction!¡± The rabbit was locked. Then Cilerius, toward the area where his prey was blocked, continued: "From the Earth to mud, sand to stone and vice versa: alteration of soil!¡± A small area, 50 cm in diameter, of prairie liquefied and rabbit sank a little in the mud. Satisfied with his essays, he continued: "my feet are as light as the feather in the wind: wind walk." This spell had no real use for this fight, but Cilerius wanted to both test and exercise it. Get to know oneself, there began the road to success. Then, he waited while walking in circles to time the duration of action of the various spells. Two steep in suspension were just what the wind walk allowed him for the first test. He immediately renewed the spell again and again, each time that the effect was waning. After 30 seconds, the rabbit began to move and attempted to emerge from the mud where he was entangled. Memorizing this result, Cilerius repeated the spell and the rabbit ceased to struggle. Whenever the restriction mustered, he renewed it. At the same time, he found no change on the altered ground and thus confirmed that the effect lasted for a very long time or until the cast of the same spell on the same area, thing he did and immediately, the mud froze, trapping the legs of the rabbit in the now dry land. Cilerius continued this repetition of three spells on the same rabbit, taking care, when finally he used nearly all of his mana, to block the rabbit in the earth before meditation. After an hour of this routine, he reached level 2 of each used spells, as well as in magic mastery, air and land elemental mastery, preservation of mana and meditation. This done, he decided to finish his Guinea pig: ¡°ether arrows pierce my enemy: Magic Missile!¡± The tip of his index flashed and a little ball of light focused there, then it launched, in the form of a short ray of light, in the direction of the rabbit. Stuck, it could not but be struck without hope of escape. Normally, a wizard at this level ought to repeat 2 or 3 times this spell to kill a rabbit. However, the stats of Cilerius provided a surplus of damage which ended by a 1-shoot. Cilerius had a satisfied smile then targeted an-other rabbit who ran at short distance and repeated the same process as for the first. And even then. And again after, until he reached the beginner level 5 for the 7 used skills. He earned little experience and loot, but for now, his concern was to improve the mastery of basic spells. He took the time to cook the obtained rabbit meat, then, the night coming, braced for a much faster hunt. It was time to bump up mastery for other more offensive spells. He threw a stone in the direction of a rabbit to get its attention, that com quickly, and he cast: "the earth awakens and demands its due: mineral needles!¡± aimed at the area where should be the rabbit at the time assumed the spell activation. Obviously, the first test was not that conclusive, missing the target by more than one meter, the rabbit having been faster than expected and making leaps in his race. Cilerius had time to cast: "may winds restrict my prey: Zephyr of restriction!¡± A gust of wind got up and turned into a whirlwind enveloping the rabbit, totally disorienting it and wounding it slightly through particles, sand twigs and other herbs, borne on the wind. Cilerius took then distance between him and the rabbit and prepared to launch again the spell of Earth. The operation was repeated several times, until the estimates and reality meet and that needles touch the rabbit in his race. Only taken by the edge of the zone of action of the spell, it was not killed on the spot and Cilerius decided to finish it using his offensive spell of ice: "cold grabs my prey: glacial Palm!¡± In his palm gathered a hand-like form of icy energy that went in a straight line toward the target. The rabbit, a paw impaled by mineral needles, was hit by the attack, appeared stunned a moment and then collapsed, stiff. Cilerius continued the same pattern a long time, seeking to adapt his estimates to the behaviour of his prey while improving his mastery of the 3 spells. So that, in addition to his growing mastery, a new competence was created: * Ding! your understanding of animal behavior allows you to better anticipate the actions of your prey. Acquisition of competence hunting, beginner 1. Lines of movement will appear in your sight. From expertise, the number of line will decrease and the accuracy of the trace will increase, including the ones responding to external events. To use, this competence drew 6 more or less brilliant golden ribbons from the rabbit that he observed. These ribbons, 5 departing front and one towards the rear, were as brighter that the possibility of the movement of the prey in this path was great. The visible length of the ribbon seemed to indicate the distance which would be covered in a period of time. '' a skill that could be very interesting, but it will need training, otherwise, this assis-tance could be more a handicap, neutralizing my instinct. If I am to systematically rely on the highest probability, I would be tricked by the irrational behaviour and this could be very dangerous.'' Then he resumed his hunt, multiplying the trials and combinations. Thus, he realized that at low level, ice and fire spells married badly with the zephyr''s restriction, because its powerful swirling dispersed their effect. Cilerius imagined, however, that at higher level, the combined effect could however be multiplied. Reluctance towards magic of Earth or air at the Academy of magic, had to come from a lack of diligence in the practice of combined spells. He continued his hunt, using all the spells in his book, even drawing nocturnal inflamed arabesques on the prairie with fire steeps. The performance in experience and loot remained low throughout a week while he only made raise his expertise in various skills. During the day, this resulted in a comical scene. Several groups of players, noticing his behavior and especially the speed to finish the prey once had decided it, were to recruit him: "C''mon, go invite him, we will hunt much faster.¡± ¡°Hurry, I see others who look at him ". "If we make him join, we can expand our hunting area and progress faster than oth-ers.¡± Meanwhile, Cilerius stopped a rabbit and then ran toward to kick it like the clearance from soccer goalkeeper and send the rabbit in the air then targeted it with a spell of fire, burning it in the air. A charred body fell on the ground, while Cilerius burst in a great laugh, which in these circumstances, seemed very cruel. "come back, he must be crazy." "let''s move away, we know not if it is contagious.¡± ¡°This is a psycho, if we associates with him, everyone will avoid us¡± And all those who had seemed interested by him turned away and even wandered to avoid him seeks to join. For Cilerius who did not realize this behavior, this resulted in an expanded hunting area and bias looks when he left his hunting ground or re-turned. "they must wonder how I became so strong" thought Cilerius, without realizing that he was building a bizarre reputation. At evening, he posted himself at the gates of the city and then began to cook the meat that he had received from his hunting day. He obtained the desired effects: while cooking for himself, he attracted the olfactory attention of groups returning from their day of hunting. When a fair number of players had been thus baited, he began to shout: "for a honest compensation, I cook your meat. Don''t just eat rye bread. Sell no more your meat to then buy expensive bland rations. Benefit the fruit of your work and enjoy the product of your hunt! ¡° The assembled players looked at each other, wondering who would be the first to talk, then one of them decided: "what is an honest compensation? '''' "the cost of seasoning, meaning two copper coins for the preparation that I propose, as well as one copper coins for the labor provided." "it seems indeed honest, but what tells me that you''re not going to just take my meat?'''' "this could be a risk, but what use for such low income, to ruin my reputation? '''' "it''s not wrong... here, cook me that, please" he said giving him a piece of rabbit and 3 copper coins. Cilerius took it and put it in a pot, added a little bit of seasoning, then put all to heat. Finished, he gave the result to his first customer: ¡°bon appetit¡±. ¡°thank you¡±, and the player tasted the received stew. After a first cautious and curi-ous bite, he continued engulfing the rest as if he had not eaten anything for days. Having finished his stew, under the eyes of assistance, he opened his bag and asked: "can you prepare me these pieces of meat?'''' "of course, there is for 5 servings, this will do so 15 copper coins. ¡°here¡±, hastened to answer the client by drawing into his purse. Assistance observed the scene with interest and then someone asked: "was it so good? '''' "I would not say it was a 4 stars meal, but frankly, there is no photo with rye bread!¡± And the rest of the players began to ready meat and copper coins, awaiting their turn. Thus, Cilerius gathered a customer pool for his trade that, while failing to be very profitable, allowed him to slowly but surely increase competence of cooking. This first evening, it took him 3 hours to satisfy all present customers. Tidying up his material, he cried: ¡°my shop will open every evening from 7 till 9, see you tomorrow¡± He didn''t intend to do only that and in addition, it ensured so to have during this limited time slice, a maximum of work and thus to improve his competence fast. And indeed, every evening at the opening of his shop, a host of players was present to have their meat prepared. The increase in the number of clients and the compression in time to perform the work allowed him to increase his competence throughout the days. So after 2 weeks, it reached level 3 in cooking and 5 in handicraft. As a bonus, he acquired the ability to distill liquors, something that he immediately put into practice. All these activities, did little to gain experience, so that after 4 weeks of all these activities combined Cilerius was still only lvl5. It was frankly very low if you only thought in terms of level, but it was ignoring the tedious work provided to increase his skills. Indeed, since long ago, Cilerius had found that one of the big problems of the moo''s was that progression on low level was so fast that it was usually not possible to raise quickly enough the skills and that one reached high lvl, with skills of limited effectiveness compared to the then confronted opponents. Having spells that fizzled at high lvl, it was like to invite Death to have a drink. In fact, often, it was far more complicated to raise skills at higher level than if it had been gradually made so. The reverse was also true. Skills more proefficient than normal, gave at any level, advantages far from negligible. The few people who bothered to prepare so, were often confused with cheaters, because their powers were far more destructive in comparison with the other players of the same level. Knowing this basic principle, it was not so amazing that JB, lover of effectiveness that he was, made Cilerius a perfectionist in all areas where he could. That said, at lvl5, rabbits and other rodents did not result in effective skills raises anymore. He therefore sought prey from a higher level, the foxes. He observed a moment their behaviour, both when calm or in combat with players, and then, when he thought to have sufficiently learned their habits, he targeted one and began his usual assault, hold then targeting with his various offensive spells. All this while using the ¡°utilities¡± spells and meditating. Foxes, or rabbits before them, never posed a serious problem to Cilerius. His mastery in the spells increasing, the destructive power of those increased and fights shortened, this even while he was taking his time. He also continued his habit of targeting in their race his future victims. In doing so, he further increased his hunting competence. So that upon reaching level 4 thereof, he received in addition a secondary skill: track. Track: your knowledge of the prey now allows you to recognize and follow in, the footsteps of potential prey. Increased competence will let you track traces older and on less suitable grounds. One more utilitarian skill, which properly used, could prove to be very interesting. Hunting day and night, cooking at evening and sleeping in the morning, Cilerius quietly reached the lvl10 in 2 more weeks. Above all, he managed to reach level 10 in each of his magical mastery, transforming them into intermediate level 1, winning numerous small improvements in each of the competences. The more obvious was a marked improvement in the destructive power of the spells and their differentiation. For exemple, the arrow of ether could now be multiple, up to one by finger and be guided more precisely, until an equivalent at a right angle trajectory correction. His finger of fire him became a fireball that exploded on impact, adding further damage. Late at night, when nobody was hunting nearby anymore, he tried yet variants, at-tracting his target by groups, circling them in the flames with his fire steep, then fin-ished them according to his inspiration, with one or other of his spells. He subsequently attacked the wolves who learned quickly that it wasn''t because he was alone that Cilerius was a prey for them. It was the opposite, they were prey hunted without any mercy by a man who left nothing to chance. The level of these monsters in the direct vicinity of the city, not presenting a real challenge anymore, Cilerius approached the edge of the forest and began to attract some of its monsters. When he reached lvl15, he decided it was time to get looking for the golden key. His prey observation in general, of foxes in particular, proved so an asset because he could discern the behaviour of these when they succeeded in stealing an object. Indeed, instead of returning to the area in which they patrolled before, they fled into the forest. Cilerius then used track competence, following the trace of foxes to the forest then inside it. All tracks joined in one and headed off to the heart of the forest. Cautiously, Cilerius continued to follow the trail, attentive to his environment. He did not doubt that searching for the key would necessarily lead to face dangers probably otherwise more important than those encountered previously. He wasn''t complaining, assuming that the quality of the reward depended on the difficulty of a quest. The trail led him to a small clearing in the center of which it ended. At this point, other tracks converged and signs of battle remained. Cilerius stationed at the edge of the clearing, near which did not pass any track and he put himself on the lookout, hidden in a bush. It was finally after a wait of 3 hours that a fox exited the runway and came to stand in the center of the clearing. At this time, a noise came from the opposite side to where it was posted. The fox stood on his feet, a worried look on his face, but had no time to react when a gnoll arise. Gnolls are ferocious humanoids hyenas knowing how to fight with weapons. They are sometimes equipped with pieces of armor. The one running at this moment to the fox, wielding a club and was labeled: *young gnoll *. The fox could only oppose symbolic resistance to the onslaught of the gnoll. At the fight ends, the *young gnoll* picked up its loots, including the object previously sto-len and carried by the fox, then turned heel and ran back from where it had come. Cilerius spend a few minutes waiting as a precaution, then exited his bush. ¡®This *young gnoll * must be approximately lvl20, seeing how he massacred the Fox. One would pose no problem, I think, but if I stumble on a pack or a more mature gnoll, this could be risky. For now, I will follow the trail and see where it leads me.¡¯ This monologue completed, Cilerius began to stalk the young gnoll. Carefully, he followed the trail left by the gnoll and after one hour of careful stalking, arrived near a burrow. Cilerius could spot the entrance at a distance of 100 m. Post-ed on both side of the entrance, 2 *gnolls guard*, apparently wearing a chainmail and armed with war-spears. It wasn¡¯t possible to assess accurately their level, the only clue being that the level required to wear these chainmail, was 25. Carefully observing the surroundings, Cilerius eventually spotted several *gnoll scout*, dressed in leather tunics and armed with hunting-spears. These were posted between 50 and 150 m from the burrow entrance, more or less hidden, on the lookout. Cilerius counted 13 of them visible in the vicinity, but it was likely that they were on the entire area surrounding the burrow and near side entrances. So he set out to find additional sentries. It took him 2 hours to locate all of them as well as 2 secondary access, each of them guarded by a single *gnoll guard*. Having pointed the exact locations of every gnoll, be it static or on patrol, Cilerius could plan his assault. Not knowing the exact capabilities of his opponents, he had to make sure to fight only one at a time. The fact that no information was available on these creatures was both a problem and a happy surprise. A problem because obviously, he would have to tackle mon-sters which he knew none capabilities. A happy surprise, because this meant that almost nobody had fought them and that certain benefits linked to their discovery could provide additional reward. Not to mention the value of this information if he unveiled it. He knew about the dark gamers system because of his preparatory re-search, therefore, he knew that information was a popular currency among them. Cilerius selected for first prey, the *scout gnoll* both farthest from the other and nearest of the path by which he arrived. In the case of emergency, it was better to prepare an ¡°exit door¡±. He waited then that patrollers themselves were all sufficiently distant and launched his attack. First of all, attract prey away from others, to avoid the proxy agro during the fight. From the maximum distance, Cilerius casted: ¡°ether arrows pierce my enemy: Magic Missile!¡± From each hand, 3 magic missiles left and went to pierce the *scout gnoll* who lost about a quarter of his life on this attack. It began to run towards its attacker but he was waiting for him. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.¡°the Earth awakens and demands its due: mineral needles!¡± The legs impaled by mineral needles, the *scout gnoll* let out a roar, was stopped and lost a further third of its life. This first target was to serve as a guinea pig to test the possible elemental resistanc-es. Cilerius used so his 2 other offensive spells in attempt to finish it: "Cold grabs my prey: Glacial Palm!¡± But then, the *scout gnoll* life decreased only imperceptibly. ¡®strong resistance to ice magic, good to know. May be due to its hard leather and fur¡¯. In addition to not having done significant damages, the spell of ice had released the *scout gnoll*, which now pressed forward on Cilerius, the lance in front. With a stroke of his staff, Cilerius deflected the spear and then struck his assailant to the throat, half knocking him out, interrupting its breathing and stopping it completely in its assault. At point-blank range, he recited: ¡°the purifying fire burns my enemy: fire finger, double.¡± Two flames appeared at the end of his first and middle fingers and then, Cilerius reached out violently in the face of the gnoll shouting: "fire fork fingers in the eyes!" and indeed, the *scout gnoll* was struck in the eyes by 2 burning fingers and was totally blind, losing even a quarter of his life, either that gnolls are particularly susceptible to fire or that the blow to the eyes was considered very harmful. !Ding! you performed a special move. Do you want to register it as a new skill? ¡°Not yet¡± rapidly answered Cilerius, busy with his opponent and unsure of the benefit of a new skill for a special move. His prey blinded, Cilerius finished it with his fists. When the *scout gnoll* collapsed an informative window popped: !Ding! you killed a gnoll of the Pride Blood pack. Number of Pride Blood gnoll killed: 1 It was therefore a first, at least for this particular pack of monsters. His prey had dropped a patched leather tunic and a hunting-spear. He picked up his loots, put them aside and then observed his environment to verify if the fight had attracted attention. On the negative, he approached and waited for a patrol to arrive to lure and kill it. ¡°Ether arrows pierce my enemy: Magic Missile!¡± Again, the target lost about a quarter of his life and rushed at his assailant time, Cilerius waited it without launching another long range attack. This did not mean, however, that he was staying idle. "May the mermaids protect me: Ice Shield" and a silver glow wrapped him. When the *gnoll scout* was at no more than 3 meters, he cast: ¡°The purifying fire burns my enemy: Fireball.¡± He caught with his left hand, the spear that was going to impale him, deflected it while pulling backward, attracting nearer his target, and then violently threw his full palm of fire to its throat. The * scout gnoll * was hit fatally, his throat exploding and losing all what it had left of life. End bearing and well-targeted, his action had been devastating. However, he had to take the precaution to protect himself to both prepare the prospective of the gnoll shots and especially damage induced by the close explosion of the fireball. For a first, the experience was conclusive. The combination of a point-blank spell, preventing any form of dodge, and the aiming of a specific vulnerable part of the body, had produced phenomenal damage. Cilerius picked up his loots and continued to kill in this same way the *gnoll scout*¡¯s remaining. Time to massacre all of them, he won 3 level. Now only the *gnoll guard*''s were left, before he could access the burrow. He walked to one of the secondary entrances where only a gnoll was on guard and attacked cautiously. Good thinking, because actually, the * gnoll guard * seemed about lvl30. It took him 5 fireballs to eventually finish it, not to mention damage caused by mineral needles he used once in the guise of immobilization. This single kill earned him 25% of his level xp. The level difference was sufficient for four of these monsters kills to raise a level. He approached the position of 2nd solo guard and attacked it in the same way as the first, killing him and collecting also a quarter of level. Now came the pair of *gnoll guard*¡¯s posted on both side of the main entrance. After making sure that there were no other gnolls in close proximity, including in the burrow, Cilerius targeted gnoll on the right side and whispered: "Earth awakens and demands its due: Mineral Needles!¡± And then targeting the one on the left who was pressing forward towards him: "May winds restrict my prey: Zephyr of Restriction!¡± He continued on the same target with a ball of fire. But rather than the vortex of wind dissipating the spell of fire as was the case previously, it turned into a tornado of flames, inflicting enormous damage to the prisoner gnoll at its center. When he pulled away, it had lost the 2 thirds of his life. A burst of magic missiles and a point-blank fireball finished the gnoll. Remained one, who still impaled by the soil, was quickly shot down. Thus, Cilerius reached the lvl19. He took his loots and then slipped into the burrow. !Ding! you are the first to enter the Lair of the Pride Blood gnolls. Twice the xp and the loots for a week. Each first kill of a monster will give one of the rarer loot it carry. It was confirmation that Cilerius was the first to enter this dungeon. Until then, Cilerius had been able to fight one opponent at a time and his expertise in certain competence as well as substantially higher than normal stats had allowed him to compete favorably with monsters up to 10 level higher than him. In a dungeon, it was common that monsters cam in groups and that in addition, trigger agro if fighting were not well carried out. It is therefore with great circumscription that he went forth in the burrow, controlling his steeps to do the least possible noise, sliding a look in the corners before committing further. He eventually lead to a widening of the corridor in which 4 gnolls were posted. There were a *gnoll guard*, a *gnoll shaman*, a *gnoll evoker* and a *young gnoll*. The combination was dangerous and required to shoot targets with speed and in a specific order. Cilerius thoroughly established the sequence of his actions. An accurate preparation could often prevent a chaotic situation. Fortunately, the 4 gnolls were quite close to each other and could all be targeted simultaneously by mineral needles given his actual mastery for this spell. In addition to restrict the move of the target, the zephyr''s restriction also strongly inhibited its motion, a small non-trivial benefit compared to the magical restriction, because this could greatly impede casts of spells for one who was stuck inside. Cilerius still threw a quick glance to make sure the position of every gnoll, took a deep breath then overstepping the corner of the corridor began to chant, targeting the center of the area where were the 4 gnolls: "Earth awakens and demands its due: Mineral Needles!¡± His 4 targets had been impaled, but the *gnoll guard* had only a single leg pierced by a needle and already began to break free. Time was pressing. "May winds restrict my prey: Zephyr of Restriction!¡± The *gnoll evoker* was the first targeted, because his spells may be really devastating if it was not partly neutralized. "May winds restrict my prey: Zephyr of Restriction!¡± In turn, the *gnoll shaman* was targeted. Cilerius continued on the same gnoll: ¡°The purifying fire burns my enemy: Fireball.¡± Then advising that the *gnoll guard* finally broke free: "From Earth to mud, sand to stone and vice versa: Alteration of Soil!¡± On the area between the prey and him. The *gnoll guard*, free at last, began to move in his direction but sank into quicksand that came to form and could no longer move but only very slowly. Cilerius returned his attention to the *gnoll shaman* and casted a second time his fire spell. From the first swirl, he saw coming in his direction, an ice spell. Despite an attempt to dodge, he was hit on the left arm, losing 5% of his life and feeling numbness invade the affected limb. "May the mermaids protect me: Ice Shield" It was to prevent the risks associated with other spells that the *gnoll evoker* may happen to cast in its situation. A golden glow shone inside the other whirl. The *gnoll shaman* was clearly trying to heal itself. Cilerius casted a 3rd ball of fire on him then renewed his zephyr, which rekindled the tornado of fire. The *gnoll shaman* finally collapsed, defeated. Other spells emerged from the first tourbillon, coming sometimes bounce on his spell of reflection, sometimes damages being only reduced. He casted a ball of fire on the *gnoll evoker* then renewed the zephyr, amplifying there also, the effects of the fire tornado. Meanwhile, the *young gnoll* had also broke free from the needles and was bypassing the sandy area. The *gnoll guard* was at no more than 5 m of our wizard explorer. Cilerius, not letting himself distracted by the 2 melee gnolls that were closing to him, focused to finish the *gnoll evoker*, something he secured with 2 additional fire balls, just at the moment when the *gnoll guard*, arrived within reach, attempted to strike with its war-spear. Busy to finish the previous monster, Cilerius could only imperfectly prevent the strike and suffered a slash on the left flank. Cumulative damage caused him to lose 25% of his life up to now, but he now had to deal with 2 gnolls. It was now hand-to-hand combat, he would be able to judge the effectiveness of his preparation at the training hall. Taking advantage of his physical strength, Cilerius tackled the *gnoll guard* manag-ing to topple it to the ground. He put himself in mounted position to immobilize it and struck it with all his strength. The gnoll, on the ground could no longer use his weapon or strength, but scratched, hit and tried to bite. Cilerius decided to finish his opponent and casting his protection spell then the fireball, thump it on the *gnoll guard*, powerless to avoid it in the position where it was. Its head exploded. Cilerius had still lost 45% of life into this fray, a lesser evil given his blatant disadvantage in this figure case, if one only look to his profession. Remained to manage the *young gnoll* who in the meantime had arrived, wielding his club. Standing in one movement, Cilerius escape without problems the vertical movement of his enemy and used his unfair fighting technique, "fire fingers fork", blinding the gnoll. He had then only to hit as if it were a scarecrow, the gnoll could only try to hit randomly. It was so molested that it was reduced to the status of a mass of sores and bumps. Cumulated xp made him gain another level and a half, passing to level 21 and 15% in this one. He picked up his loots and then sat down, pulling his bandages from his bag, undertook to treat his wounds. While he was grooming himself, he reflected on his previous fight. It was perilous, very acute... as long as one of his spells had missed, it would have been probably compelled him to 24 hours of pause, not to mention the loss of lvl and expertise in skills. Obviously, it would not be possible to continue this way. He should wait to be higher level, which would be wasting time and therefore the opportunity to take advantage of the bonus of discovering the dun-geon, or recruiting assistance, which would require him to share the fruits of his dis-covery and to lose the exclusivity on the information he had collected. As often with JB, it was facing that kind of dilemma that he showed the most creative. Reflecting on the behavior of monsters, to his environment, he sought a solution when he noticed the area that he had transformed rock in sand previously. A plan began to sprout in his mind, pushing him to form a Machiavellian smile. Sadistic, that one word could describe what was Cilerius thoughts at this time. From the plan to the execution, there were a lot of preparations. Having recovered all his life, he headed for the exit, checked that the gnolls were not yet reappeared, then left quickly in the direction of the city. There, he quickly sold his minor loots and then went and bought some supplies. He purchased additional bottles, oil, rope, a shovel and a pickaxe. He also made a tour to the tailor stall, where, thanks to his high handicraft competence, he could learn basic tailoring skill. This done, he bought needles and thread in quantity. His purchases completed and evening arriving, he walked to the forest where he spotted many conifers. He practiced in diagonal notches on their trunks, which joined all at a point where he fixed bottles with drain that ranged from the trees cuts to the bottles neck. This DIY finished on around 20 trees, he returned to the gates of the city where, as every evening, he was expected. He installed his skewer, since he could now decently roast meats, prepared his fire and put in place a collecting dish for the fat that would discharge its contents in a bottle. The crowd surrounding did not lent attention to this last detail, rejoicing already for the grilled meat that they were going to enjoy. His installation done, he cried: "tonight, roasted and grilled meat, seasoning 3 copper coin and preparation 2 copper coins, take advantage of new flavors!¡± This slight inflation did not interfere with the regulars who thought first and foremost with their stomach. And during 2 hours, he prepared the meat from hundreds of players. So that when the closing of his improvised rotisserie cam, clients were satisfied and him the same, having made a little more important profit than previous days and as a bonus, he filled out 25 bottles of melted animal fat. He ended up packing his material and then left, as each evening, to his hunting area. However, after checking several times if he was followed, he veered off towards the forest. He recovered the bottles that he had set up on the trunks of conifers, now full of resin and replaced them. He then began to cut branches of conifers and other hardwood. Each had its own usefulness in his plan. Then he tanned the skins that he had collected during his first hunts and stitched several together to make a large surface. This work made him only marginally gain expertise in tailoring skill, but that wasn''t the goal for now. These preparations completed, he walked to the entrance of the gnolls burrow. Stopping at reasonable distance, he was able to find that all gnolls, scouts and guards, were returned. He thought about he would he have to establish the time of re-spawn in the future, in order to not be taken aback. He did again a thorough cleaning of the surroundings of the burrow, both to break a passage and for the experience and loots these monsters meant. So upon entering the burrow for the 2nd time, he had won 2 more level, reaching the lvl23 and 52%. Cilerius penetrated in the burrow, without hesitation toward the position of the first group of gnolls. However, he stopped at a certain distance and began to apply what he had planned. In a narrowing of the corridor, he targeted the central area of the ground and chanted: "From earth to mud, sand to stone and vice versa: Alteration of Soil!¡± The floor of the tar-geted area had become sand. He took his shovel and started to dig, removing sand from the area and pile it on the sides, where the ground had not been transmuted. After emptying from its sand the bowl 30cm deep thus formed, he got out and, target-ing the same area, then repeated the same spell and began to shovel again. Be-tween 2 operations of digging, he targeted the pile of sand on the sides and using his spell, the re-turned into rocks. Thus, it reduced the width of the corridor space in which he dug his pit. Because it was a trench he was digging. At the 4th time he repeated his operation, the pit reached 1 m 50 deep. Before continuing, he made, using rope and branches of hardwood trees, a ladder in order to get out the next time. It would have been silly to remain stuck to the bottom of the pit. This was 2 hours that he was shoveling when 3 events occured almost simultaneously. The first 2 were not surprising: ! ding! You earn 1 point of strength. The constant physical work you did trained your strength. ! ding! You earn 1 point of endurance. Constant efforts improves your endurance to the effort. The 3rd was more surprising: ! ding! New skill, mining: digging soil allows you access to the minerals it contain. The expertise increasing, you can discover rare ores and dig more effectively. It was still an unexpected benefit. Certainly, Royal Road well incorporated the princi-ple of: it is by forging that one becomes a blacksmith. In other words, practice make the skill. Anyone who started in a manual activity, as long as some prerequisites are fulfilled, could develop a competence which he did not necessarily had access ac-cording to his profession. At the end of 4 hour work, he managed to create a pit 3 m 50 deep. He coated the bottom with branches of conifers and then went up. On the sides of the pit, at ground height and on the exterior side of the burrow , he practiced 2 small holes. Then, he took a long hardwood branch and wedged it across the pit in the 2 holes made previously. He set then, perpendicular, other branches that he cut to make just the width of the pit. He consolidated this structure with some transversal and diagonal branches, then got the great skin that he had made earlier and the set it on this structure. On the unstuck side, he set a rope on each side in order to move this structure. He did go back on the interior side of the burrow, and prepared several points of support which should be able to withstand a little bit more than the weight of the structure, which indeed proved to be a hatch. With the ropes, he did tip the hatch to him and laid it in place. Then, he spread a thin layer of sand, that he had taken care to keep in anticipation, on the hatch to hide it. When he had finished his work, an event window is opened: ! ding! New skill, trap manufacturing: by your careful preparation, you learned to cre-ate traps. The expertise increasing, you can prepare more complicated and more efficient traps and faster. Prerequisites: skills hunting and stalking. Cilerius hesitated between smile and wince. Indeed, he rejoiced to learn new and with interesting potential skills, but he also imagined the efforts that he would have to bear in order to raise them at a level that would make them effective. Many skills to advance, he would have to plan for everything. His trap completed, he found himself on the wrong side. He just had to test the meth-od that he intended to use later: "My feet are as light as the feather in the wind: Wind Walk." and he walked on the hatch whitch didn¡¯t yield under his steps as light as a feather as long as the spell was ac-tive. Without additional charge, he could now do a thousand steps in this manner before the spell fades. Being ensured that it would work as expected, he walked away on tiptoe to the first group of gnolls. Its composition was identical to the first time and would therefore put as much problem as before if he had attacked conventionally. Taking advantage that they all turned their backs, he stepped a little beyond the corner to see what there was further. He saw another group of 6 gnolls approximately 100 m further than the first. In addition to the 50 m that separated him from the first group, they were just in range with his current expertise. He reflected a moment on how to attract them all, but especially in group. Then he decided to try a method. "May the mermaids protect me: Ice Shield", he took the precaution to protect himselve before attacking this time. chapter 3: Books and bumps The Elemental Brawler Chapter 3 : Books and bumps Part 1: As he climbed the stair, bent under his load, Cilerius breathed heavily. He didn¡¯t know yet what Bragarthon could want. Probably to scold him for something, but anyway, to climb like that, was already a punishment. Reaching the summit, Cilerius did have a nice surprise: !Ding! stamina +1, resilience +1 A long climb with an heavy load proved to be a good physical exercise. ''well, at least I will not have done that for nothing''. ¡°wait here, I''m telling the Grandmaster you''re here.¡± ¡°ok...¡±. And the man who did catch him at his entrance in the city, left him there standing while going to the Grandmaster office door. Other peoples around were whispering, looking at the assistant with envy and at him with scorn. That made Cilerius wonder what was going around, but he didn''t get the time to think about, since the assistant was already coming back. ¡°com with me now, the Grandmaster expect you immediately!¡± ¡°ok...¡± Cilerius was puzzled by everyone actions and couldn''t think of better answers than the shortest one, for now. He headed to the door, knocked on it and got in as soon he heard a loud ¡°Yes! Com here right now¡±. Inside the office, nothing changed since the last time he was here, when he got his class changed to wizard. Bragarthon was behind his desk, turning his back to the entrance. He stood like that while addressing him: ¡°so, I heard you did perform well in the plains around the city... you even ventured in the forest and found a gnoll nest?¡± ¡°yes, I did my best to eradicate a maximum of beast around here and, yes, I did discover the gnoll burrow deep in the forest. I''m pretty sure I did my best to improve the wizards standing in the city, since I whipped out the gnoll nest¡±. ¡°Your best, hu? Yes, i''m pretty sure too, you did your best¡±. Then Bragarthon rotated to face Cilerius, who for the first time since his arrival, got to look at the Grandmaster face. And it wasn''t pretty... he seemed at least annoyed, maybe even angry. ¡°seeing you, I can only acknowledge what was reported to me...¡± At those words, Cilerius began to worry a little and noted for himself that he would have to look for those who reported so well to the Grandmaster. ¡°Yes... you did your best to desecrate your honorable profession, to wrestle with beast, to, let''s say it, shame us all in front of those plebeians playing with sword!¡± Each words came out louder than the previous one. And he continued: ¡°just look at yourself! Are those rags your robe? I''m almost wondering if by mistake, they let an hobo enter our prestigious tower! Didn''t I tell you about elegance? Wasn''t I crystal clear about the noblesse of our profession?¡± *twitch* A vein popping out, Cilerius tried to retort: ¡°well, I sure did have some rough fights and may even had to resort to non-magical means sometimes, but the result is here, the beast are no more and everyone will soon know that a wizard annihilated the gnolls that were a pending threat for Nivese¡±. ¡°OH! I''m sure they soon will know about yours fights... but they will not know about a wizard disgracing himself by brawling in the mud with beast. No, they will not. No, you will not shame us!¡± *twitch, twitch* ¡°what do you mean?¡± ¡°what I mean? WHAT I MEAN? I mean I will not let you drag us in the mire! I mean I ban you from the wizard guild!¡± !ding! You are banned from the wizard guild. Familiarity with Nivese wizard guild: -200. You no longer have the magic academy blessing Int: -25 Wis: -25 ¡°and now, get out! Don''t afflict us anymore with your presence and go to the quartermaster to return your staff and what''s left of your robe. Fail to do so and fear the wrath of the guild!¡± *twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch* ¡°What the F... !!¡± Eyes almost bursting out, forehead studded with veins, Cilerius let out that single outburst, clenching his fists, then glaring at the Grandmaster: ¡°Ok... so you do play it like that? So be it... ¡° ''I don''t know how long it will take, but he''s so dead!'' Never ever make JB angry and if you still do, hope for a quick retaliation... the longer it take to com, the deadliest it is... you can be his enemy, he accept it and it''s fair play, but never stab him in the back, he never forget... and obviously, that apply even more to his character, Cilerius, who don''t even have the civilization shackles to restrain him... Storming out of the office, even forgetting the weight of his load, Cilerius did look around and could only see hilarious faces, derisive fingers and patronizing eyes. ''scratch that, not he, they... they''re all so dead''! He took note of each face assembled here, their attire, their mimicry and twitch, everything that could help to recognize them later even without knowing their names. Then, he headed to the stairs and moved down to the quartermaster office. On the way, he checked his status: ¡°Information window¡±! A system window appeared in from of him, the first time since a while because he didn''t check it a lot while he was hunting. Avatar name: Cilerius Type: neutral Level: 56 Class: none Title: Scourge of the Pride Blood Pack Fame: 1512 Infamy: 202 Life: 6650 (7297) Mana: 7160 (7675) STR: 95 (125) DEX: 90 (120) VIT: 95 (125) Stamina: 65 (75) Resilience: 52 (62) INT: 152 (165) WIS: 146 (161) Concentration: 66 (76) Knowledge: 55 (65) Art: 5 (15) Fighting spirit: 5 (15) Leadership: 0 Luck: 10 ''hu? Fighting spirit? 10 points in luck? I missed those ones... I guess I got it in the fight with Iron Jaw, systems windows flashed a lot at the time. Ok, I already lost the blessing, that''s minus 25 INT and WIS, since i''m not wizard anymore, the robe bonus doesn''t apply so that''s minus 5 INT and WIS... that''s the actual situation... and I will lose 5 additional INT and WIS with the staff removed, so 160 INT and 156 WIS... I better check what I can wear soon. And damn... did someone already died in a trap? Useless bastard!'' In his mood, Cilerius wasn''t really forgiving for people dying due to his traps. Yes, they were his traps, but peoples had eyes... He then proceeded down, underground. There, Sigismond saw him com happily at first, then noticing his mood, grow affected. ¡°I''d like to say I''m happy to see you again, but you seem annoyed, for the least.¡± ¡°I''m sorry Sigismond, nothing to do with you, I am happy to see you too, but well, up there was aggravating¡±. ¡°damn, sorry I notice it so late... you''re not a wizard anymore? What happened?¡± ¡°well, long story short, let''s say I was being efficient and it didn''t please the Grandmaster... I suspect some of the assistant to have reported my way to fight in the worse words available. And this shithead did seem all too happy to ban me of the wizard guild. So here I am to return the equipment you graved me with.¡± ¡°what the hell? They''re still so dumb to expel ones who may prove their best asset? But tell me more about your adventures since the last time I saw you.¡± ¡°ok... to you I can detail, I guess¡±. ¡°please do so¡± And Cilerius began to recount what happened since his departure almost 5 weeks ago. When he was done, Sigismond was facing him silently. Then he told him: ¡°Wow... just wow... now that was epic... and some creative ways to use combined magics and other skills... damn... if I was still Master of the earth school, i''d be delighted to have you around... seriously, I can''t imagine what they''re thinking up there to cut a so promising student... I know it''s insufficient, be let me apologize for the wizardom. Not everyone in the magic profession is so obtuse. Please don''t bag us all as the same.¡± ¡°don''t worry about it... I may hold grudges, but only on those who wronged me. And you''re far from having done that.¡± ¡°I''m glad you''re not resenting the whole wizard community for the actions of few¡±. ¡°well, like I said, I''m here to return the stuff I got with my wizard promotion, since I got expelled and Bragarthon want it back...¡± And Cilerius unequipped the ragged robe and his stuff, turning them back on the desk. ¡°thank you... did you think about what you will do after that?¡± ¡°not really yet... I must confess I was taken aback a little by these events.¡± ¡°yes, that''s something natural... listen, even if the Nivese wizard guild banned you, you still can join another city wizard guild if you want, given you hold a neutral of better reputation. I even may give you an introduction letter for some the Grandmaster I''m in contact with, if you want.¡± ¡°thank you, but I may want to test something else. Close and personal doesn''t leave a bad after taste.¡± ¡°hu hu... I understand... then, go return all those objects you collected and finish your assignment with the library cleric, then come back, I''ll try to contact some peoples who may offer you alternative opportunities.¡± ¡°sure. I''m already in your debt Sigismond, so if you get me something interesting, count on my eternal gratitude.¡± ¡°that''s nothing much. A helping hand to a promising guy, it''s always a good deal with the future.¡± ¡°Right. Then it''s a deal, I''ll com back later, once I''m done with my mission. See you later, Sigismond.¡± ¡°see you, Cilerius.¡± And Cilerius left the magic academy compound, with angry gaze directed up the tower and gratitude for the one guy underground. After leaving the quartermaster, he headed into the city, seeking a quiet place for what he had to do next. A narrow dead-end alley he found, was the perfect place. Quiet, nobody to disturb him right now, when he was on a short temper moment. There, he unpacked all the loots he got from the boss treasure stash. One by one, he took each object and identified them, getting their owner name and slowly but surely raising his identifying skill. When he was done, his skill had reached beginner 7 and 76% and he had more than one hundred items to return to diverse possessor around the city. Some were for merchants, others for craftsman or guild members and even a few for prominent peoples of the city. With his ¡°shopping list¡± completed, he headed to the nearest on the list. There, at a bakery stall, he asked the guy standing: ¡°hi, do you happen to be mister Rolfu or do you know him?¡± ¡°I''m Rolfu, do we know each other?¡± ¡°not yet... pleased to meet you.¡± ¡°so, we don''t know each other but you know my name... this isn''t fair...¡± ¡°sorry, my mistake... these few weeks alone in the wild fighting beast surely made me forget a little of the common courtesy. My name is Cilerius.¡± A hint about the difficulties he had to endure was like preparing the stage to show how hard he had to work for his interlocutor. ¡°Cilerius? Hum... and what can I do for you?¡± ¡°well, it''s me who can do something for you. I happen to have found this rolling pin in a den I was exploring and I noticed this little label that seemed to indicate you were its owner. So, even if I had to deviate from my way, I felt obliged to com and return it to you.¡± Add a hint about how it was detour to increase the worth of his action. ¡°let me see that. Oh, yes, of course, this is mine... I lost it almost three month ago. Since this is a memento for my family, I was really worried. I thank you for taking the time to pick it up and returning it to me. Can I do something to repay you?¡± ¡°no, your happiness and earnest thank is enough. I like to say: a good deed lighten one''s soul.¡± ¡°what a gentleman! I insist, I''d like to repay you.¡± ¡°no, no, seriously, it wasn''t much¡± ¡°listen, do you happen to like cake?¡± ¡°uh yes, of course, like every sane guy, why?¡± ¡°please, do me the favor to take this one. It''s my specialty¡± !ding! Rolfu hand you and a ¡°Religieuse¡±. This pastry give a taste of even. !ding! +50 familiarity with Rolfu, +10 familiarity with the Nivese baking guild. ¡°oh, magnificent... I dreamed to eat one of those... I heard tales about the pleasure you were dealing to the connoisseurs. Some people were even saying it was like a legal drug, less the bad effects.¡± ¡°oh oh oh... you flatter me. But for sure I''m proud of my trade. Hey, don''t repeat that to anyone, but since you''re a gourmet and I''m in your dept, com back everyday if you fell like it, I''ll give you another one. But don''t speak about it, a lot of my customers dream of this kind of service and I''d have hard time to say no...¡± ¡°I''ll try not to impose myself too often... I thank you for your kindness. Have a nice day and Freya bless you.¡± ¡°See you again. Freya bless you too.¡± No doubt Cilerius crafty talk increased the reward and the familiarity obtained. A few chosen words were enough to increase the effect of an action. Cilerius was about to head to his next ¡°customer¡± when a vigorous hand caught his shoulder, words following. It was the baker who did that, worrying Cilerius about some misconduct he may have done. ¡°excuse me, but do you happen to be a calligrapher? I noticed your pen...¡± ¡°yes, I fancy this trade, why?¡± ¡°I fell bad to ask someone who already helped me, but... may you write a new menu for the shop? I did this old one but my writing has far less elegancy than my pastry skill. I always felt it was lessening my product.¡± !ding! Rolfu ask you to make his new shop''s menu. Prerequisite: calligraphy skill and familiarity with the shop owner. Difficulty: E Reward: Rolfu''s secret pastry. ''oh, a quest... seem to be easy and perfect to raise my skill...'' ¡°sure, let me see what you want on your menu¡± You have accepted the quest. ¡°here is the list of the pastries, cakes and breads I''d like on the menu¡± answered Rolfu, handing him a list writed with a crude style. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.¡°Ok, so, you want it on this sign?¡± ¡°yes please.¡± ¡°ok, I''m starting on it immediately¡± Equipping his pen, soaking it in ink, Cilerius began to write with the highest care. It took him 20 minutes to finish, since he did use extra care. Upon completion, a system window appeared: !ding! A fine work. The work of a talented calligrapher. Special effect apply on the sign write with talent. Effect: add extra appeal to the shop. Increase the customer willingness to pay for their order. The shopkeeper may slightly increase the price of his products without bad effect. For completing a fine work, you gain +1 Dex, Concentration, Knowledge, INT, WIS. +5 Art. Your calligraphy skill raise. Calligraphy beginner level 4 (79%) Your handicraft skill raise moderately. Handicraft beginner level 6 (65%) Cilerius had already raised his handicraft skill with all his cooking and trap factoring and gained a whole 15% with this, and 55% raise for his calligraphy. ¡°Perfect... what an artwork... you really did me a favor with this one. I fell almost ashamed to display that outside.¡± ¡°Now you flatter me, pleased to have done a good work¡± ¡°here, take this... this is my special secret pastry. Only the Doge get these... and even him only on special occasion like his election or on new year eve.¡± You gain experience. You get a legendary pastry, the Eden''s kiss. Due your special work, Rolfu reward you with additional money: you receive 5 gold. ¡°many thanks, I''ll be sure to savor this dearly. Ask for me if you happen to need for my help.¡± ¡°I will not fail to do so. Once again, may Freya bless you.¡± ¡°and you too, good bye.¡± And Cilerius headed to his next target, enjoying himself. ''Not a bad skill... and it did go better than expected. You can''t underestimate the power of trade skills. Let''s see those pastries.'' Religieuse: a rare pastry holding some power. ¡°identify: Religieuse!¡± Religieuse: this pastry was made by a talented baker. Upon consumption, one will gain awareness of evenly taste. Effect: raise satiety to the maximum. Mana and health regeneration +10% for the duration of the effect. INT, WIS, STA, VIT +15 for the duration of the effect. Permanently raise INT, WIS, STA, VIT +2 on first consumption. Permanently raise Mana and Health regeneration +1% on first consumption. ¡°jackpot! The so called hidden effects of trade skills.¡± '' now, what about the secret one?'' Eden''s kiss: a very rare pastry holding big power. ¡°identify: Eden''s kiss!¡± !Fail! ¡°identify: Eden''s kiss!¡± !Fail! ''damn... it does resist... ok, third time the charm!'' ¡°identify: Eden''s kiss!¡± Eden''s kiss: this pastry was made by a legendary baker. Upon consumption, one will gain awareness of godly taste. Effect: raise satiety to the maximum. Mana and health regeneration +20% for the duration of the effect. INT, WIS, STA, VIT +35 for the duration of the effect. Permanently raise all stats +5. Permanently raise Mana and Health regeneration +4%. Identifying successfully a rare product raise your identifying skill significantly. Identify: beginner level 9 (13%) ¡°WOOT! Mega jackpot!¡± he shouted in middle of the street, causing passer-by to look at him with unwanted curiosity. ''oups, I better get out of here...'' and he nimbly sneaked between peoples and headed in a narrow passage. ''a whopping 137% raise for the skill? The possibility for permanent stats raise? Now that''s what I call rewarding hard work.'' ''now, better remorse than regrets. I may be able to sell those for good money, but I''m sure the effects will better on me... long term planning.'' And he began to eat the Eden''s kiss. !Your satiety raise to the maximum. Mana and health regeneration +20% for the duration of the effect. INT, WIS, STA, VIT +35 for the duration of the effect. Permanently raise all stats +5. Permanently raise Mana and Health regeneration +4%. ¡°delicious!¡± ''now, let''s try the Religieuse.'' !Your satiety raise to the maximum. Mana and health regeneration +10% for the duration of the effect. INT, WIS, STA, VIT +15 for the duration of the effect. Permanently raise INT, WIS, STA, VIT +2. Permanently raise Mana and Health regeneration +1%. ¡°succulent!¡± '' I wonder how many players did try one of those... few I guess. I didn''t even see the price for the Religieuse on the list he made me write... let alone the Eden''s kiss. Ok, let''s carry on... others owners may propose alike deals...'' And with a totally switched mood from when he left the magic academy, Cilerius proceeded to the next name on his list. Two days after, he only had left the key to return. Two days returning miscellaneous objects after crafty conversation, then completing various quest, mostly involving calligraphy, good for his skill and getting rewards. Some of the place he visited offered him to learn skills related to his current knowledge, but since he was for now class-less, he couldn¡¯t learn any more skill, having already exceeded the 15 skills limit. Instead, he received vouchers for future skills learning lessons. For example, due to his reputation already acquired with the thief guild and with the additional familiarity for returning some objects and the related skill, trap building, he was invited to come again later to learn basic exploration skills available, sneak and later, hide. Likewise, the assassin guild was ready to teach him about poisons and some other tricks like fire grenade, a alchemist to teach him a little of his trade and the blacksmith also. 3 restaurants also proposed him a training course to teach him uncommon recipes. Evidently, it was only because he already had some required skills, first of all, handicraft, or the minimum stats needed, at least 50 DEX to learn sneak for example. At some other places, he received money or goods. The liquor merchant was very happy to get back his late wife ring, so he rewarded him with a rare vial of Freya¡¯s tears, that Cilerius identified as soon he was alone in an alley, then drank it seeing the effects, same as those from the Eden¡¯s kiss. Being done with returning the items, he unpacked the other loots, sorting the ones that would immediately be sold to some merchant, those for trade with other players and the few rares ones that he intended to keep for himself. For trade, he had 3 rusted chainmails, 2 pairs of leather boots, 3 pairs of leather glove, 4 tattered cloaks and many hunting and war lances, wooden clubs or rusty swords. From the nameds ones, he had looted some equipment he could use. From Iron Jaw, a studded leather tunic and the staff it was using. From *The gnoll Oracle*, leather greaves and a cloak. From *The gnoll archmage*, an earring and a ring. From *The gnoll High Priest*, another earring and a cap. All those seemed of good quality and Cilerius fitted the requirements to wear them. He already had good gloves but could use a better belt and boots of greater quality than those he had looted. Hence, he settled on the marketplace, looking at how other were doing business and once he got the gist of it, began to shout: ¡°for trade or sale, chainmails, leather boots, leather gloves, cloaks, hunting lances, war lances, clubs. Perfect fit for lvl25 and higher. Want to trade for lvl50+ belt, lvl50+ boots or good money. Come see my haul!¡± Few peoples first cam then more as the message was repeated and rumor of these good newbies equipment were available. For players who wanted to gear-up their friends or guild members to help for a fast leveling, gear like that was really useful. Limited amount and many customers, was the setting for good trades for the provider, Cilerius. Hence, once done with the sale, he got 250 golds, a good leather belt and even a rare item, leather spartan sandals, perfect for him since they were fit for someone who fight with his feet and the seller had hard time to trade for them. In addition, he got a 25% weight reduction gigantic leather bag that he would put to good use, no doubts. Done with his trades and errands, he finally took time to inspect his future gear with more attention: ¡°Identify: leather belt!¡± Explorer leather belt. A belt made to facilitate explorer job. Durability: 45/60 Defense: 5 Level 50 minimum STA: +5 FOR: +5 2 pouch attached on the side for fast inventory 1 idem space on the inside perfect to hide small items or the smallest kinds of weapon. Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (21%) ¡°Identify: Oracle cloak!¡± fail! Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (22%) ¡°Identify: Oracle cloak!¡± fail! Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (23%) ¡°Identify: Oracle cloak!¡± Oracle spirit cloak. A leather cloak imbued with the spirit power. Durability: 57/80 Defense: 10 Lvl40 minimum DEX: +5 All resists: +1% Hiding skill: +1lvl Special property: Unidentified Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (28%) ''hmmm, still can''t reveal everything. I''ll have to try again once i reach intermediate level''. ¡°identify High Priest cap!¡± fail! Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (29%) ¡°damn!¡± ¡°identify High Priest cap!¡± fail! Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (30%) ¡°seriously?¡± ¡°identify High Priest cap!¡± Leather cap of the healer. A cap imbued with the healing power. Durability: 49/75 Defense: 5 Lvl 45v minimum WIS: +5 INT: +5 Concentration: +5 All resists: +1% All healing skills: level +5% All healing effects: +5% Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (39%) ¡°ahhh, finally!¡± ... ''hmmm, that''s a good one if I ever learn healing spells... even bandaging seem to be affected. Good catch. Ok, next one'' ¡°identify oracle greaves!¡± Greaves of the blood pact. Leather greaves imbued with mysterious power. Durability: 85/100 Defense: 25 Level 55 minimum. FOR: +5 DEX: +5 STA: +5 Resilience: +5 All resist: +1% Special property: Unidentified Special property: Unidentified Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (48%) ''they''re ok... i wonder what are the unidentified effects...'' ¡°identify high priest earring!¡± fail! Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (49%) ''I can keep at it longer than the IA... it''s just a matter of mana remaining...'' ¡°identify high priest earing!¡± Earring of the dark light. Earring imbued with the power of the dark gods. Durability: 55/60 Lvl 50 minimum INT: +10 WIS: +10 Concentration: +10 Resist dark magic: +10% Resist poison: +10% All dark magic effects: +10% Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (55%) ''oooookay... awesome but useless effect I don''t have dark magic... good resists and stats bonus thought''. ¡°identify archmage earring!¡± fail! Identifying skill raise a little: identify beginner 9 (56%) ¡°identify archmage earring!¡± !system window! Not enough mana to cast this spell! ¡°arf... ¡° ''ok... let''s meditate to refill my mana... still need to identify 5 items...'' Cilerius sat cross-legged and activated the skill: ¡°meditate!¡± You enter a state of meditation. Meditate skill: beginner 9 (51%) Accordingly to your skill, mana regeneration is increased by 45%. A few minutes later, Cilerius mana was at its fullest and he could resume, alternating fails and success with his identifying skill, finally reaching identify level beginner 9 (91%) and meditate level intermediate 1 (25%) once he was done. The results were: Earring of elemental channeling. An earring imbued with elemental power. Durability 55/60 Level 50 minimum. INT: +10 WIS: +10 Concentration: +10 resist elemental magic (fire, water, earth, air): +10% All elemental magic: -10% mana cost to cast. All elemental magic: +10% effect. Ring of the fire mastery. A ring imbued with fire power. Durability: 56/60 Level 50 minimum. INT: +10 WIS: +10 Resist fire: +10% All fire skills: +1 lvl All fire skills: +10% effect. Spartan sandals. A pair of leather sandals fit for fighters. Durability: 80/80 Defense: 5 Level 50 minimum. STA: +5 Resilience: +5 All foot fighting skills: +10% damage. Stamina consumption: -20% Studded leather tunic of the blood pact. A studded tunic imbued with a mysterious power. Durability 81/100 Defense: 35 Level 55 minimum. FOR: +5 DEX: +5 STA: +5 Resilience: +5 All resist: +2% Special property: Unidentified Special property: Unidentified Reinforced bones staff of the blood pact. A bones staff reinforced by blood hardened steel, imbued with a mysterious power. Durability 89/100 damages: 20-30 Level 55 minimum. FOR: +5 DEX: +5 STA: +5 Resilience: +5 All resist: +2% Special property: Unidentified Special property: Unidentified. Done with checking his equipment, for the part he could identify with his current skill, he equipped all the armor parts while keeping the staff in his inventory, since his main melee skill didn''t need weapon but only his gloves. He then headed to the library to report his little key seeking trip to his friend, Desmond. chapter 4: Underground Road The Elemental Brawler Chapter 4 : Underground Road Part 1 as JB got to the agreed place, he was welcomed by a guy a little taller than him. "hey, David. Got any sleep last night?" "hi JB. I bet i got more than you" "probably true. So, is the gang here?" "yeh, only Stephane isn''t here yet." "as usual... let''s get in for the drink, he''ll catch up with us". "yep, it''s 12, so if he''s late, too bad for him." And they both went in and headed for the booked tables. Not like they really had to book them, since they were them in all but in name. The owner would give those table to other customers only if he was sure the gang wasn''t coming. They were pretty famous around here. All with their own specialty, each a kind of original but with just money enough to make people around think their way was the way. Only that wouldn''t give them the right for their own table. But there was JB. As usual, he sat back to the wall on the chair that allowed him to see the whole room. In some movies, you could identify this kind of guy as a mob boss. In reality, JB was just extending his professional trade on his off time. And the restaurant owner could only be glad, since that meant his others customers could eat free of worries. JB, at work, was doing security in a department store that in one building had everything from clothes to perfumes and of course, snacks and bars. And usually, the customers in those were the targets of the pick-pocket. Usually, since the store reputation wasn''t kind with the thieves. Even if some were not caught on the moment, JB was always able to get some record of a camera to make a pic for himself or the cops and catch them later. When he was in the restaurant, even while eating, he would gaze around and check on the room, eventually noticing suspects and going to catch them if they used their skills. Since his friends were usually helping him in those cases and were, let''s say rough, that made the reputation of this restaurant, bad for the thieves, so they were avoiding it and the owner was an happy man. At the table, were already siting 6 persons, 2 guys and 4 girls. "Oh! Miracle! The bear got out of his cave!" shouted Isabelle when seeing JB coming along David. "yeh! Truly a miracle." added the 3 others girls, Selene, Magalie and Nicole, in unison. "yeh, yeh... You all know gatherings aren''t my thing. I guess that make my appearances all the more worthwhile. And I''m here regularly." To that, Fabrice, one of the guys already sated, answered: "And each time I still wonder how he move through the door with a head that big." *everyone laughing* "true... I''ll have to ask the owner to enlarge the door." retorted JB. "well, let''s ask for our drinks while we wait for Stephane." said David. "sure... he will be 5 to 10 minutes late, as usual... just what we need to enjoy a fine alcohol." Selene added. On that note, the waiter took their order and came back a few minute later with each personal favorite drink. As they were savoring their drinks, Stephane finally arrived. "and here com our resident tardy!" shouted everyone as they saw him pass the door. "well, sorry, I was farming for a quest." "as usual... but you could make an effort... even JB got here on time." "even him? Damn, must really correct myself then." "HEY!" shouted JB at this jab. Stephane sat and finally, everyone could pass their order to the waiter. As they were eating their dish, the conversation turned to the main subject, RR. (JB) "so, how is everyone faring yet?" on those words, David pulled a little device from a bag and put it on the table. It was a small glass-like cylinder, 10cm height and 5cm wide. (David) "starting sequence!" "...*bzzzt* .... hello master, what can I do for your pleasure today?" answered the device with an anime-like voice. (Dav) "open RR files 1.05, voice recognition protocol, collect data and arrange them by owner." (device) "yes master." (Nicole) "you watched really too many anime and developed strange fetish, I see..." (Dav) "like you all can talk..." (everyone else) "true... but at least we didn''t made an AI slave" (Dav) "well, the personality I programed is one thing, private. What matter is her efficiency." (Daniel) "tsss, I bet you make her research kinky stuff on the web..." (Magalie) "make a girl look around the web for his porn? How hentai!" she said with an exaggerated disgust tone. (Dav) "what do you think, I''m perfectly capable to look for porn myself if I need to!" (device) "master, should I record that as your new preference on my web browsing?" (everyone but Dav) "ewwwwwwwwww" And everyone burst in laugh. (JB) "ok, let''s get back on the subject... Magalie, how that is for you?" (Mag) "well... I''m currently lvl45 and I''m in the middle of my specialization quest to become a fire wizard." (JB) "good... how''s the leveling?" (Mag) "better than expected... as soon as I login, I get group invites all around." (JB) "told you so... being an attractive girl and a wizard, you will easily get groups." (Mag) "yes... hey wait... what''s this macho comment?" (JB) "simply the truth... you''re are attractive so many guys will want you close to them... and since you''re a feeble wizard, they will protect you while you deal tremendous damages." (Mag, with an unconvinced tone) "hum... yes... you pass... for this time... (JB) "okay... Isabelle?" (Isa) "archer lvl32... I''m still looking for the place where I can finish my quest for the bow... that hold me back a little..." (JB) " ''k, I''ll look into it and send you the info I''ll find." (Isa) "thanks, I appreciate it." (JB) "no problem, either way, we will have to wait on each other once we reach lvl120, so we better help you if you''re stuck for lack of info. Fabrice?" (Fab) "I currently try to complete the conditions to learn a new skill, feign death, so I can''t hunt as much as before, but I finished my second grade monk apprenticeship and I''m lvl42" (JB) "feign death? Going to be useful this one if you train it''s mastery... Daniel?" (Dan) "lvl52 warrior... but I have to upgrade my armor for an expedition I got mandatory enlisted to as part of the warrior guild." (JB) "well, equipment upgrade is the permanent downside of the warrior. This expedition, you''re stuck with for how long?" (Dan) "we have to travel for 1 week in-game (IG) and then scout the area and suppress the forces there, so I guess 3 weeks IG and then have to travel back. I estimate I can gain something like 15 to 20 level in the process and some gear upgrade if I''m lucky enough." (JB) "Okay, keep us informed of your status. I''ll try to hold on some warrior equipment the next time I find some." (Dan) "thanks, but should be lvl50+" (JB) "that shouldn''t be a problem. David?" (Dav) "well, I graduated from squire to knight last week, but if the earl provide an upgraded gear, I too am stuck with some mandatory quest... I expect to be busy with it for 2 weeks at least and then maybe a second part for 2 others weeks, but that should allow me to raise about 20ish level. I''m currently lvl55." (JB) "same as above, I''ll try to save some suitable gear for you if I find some. Keep us informed of your status and when you can leave your earl." (Dav) "gotcha!" (JB) "Selene?" (Sel) "as for me, I finished my quest and I reached lvl42 as from now on, an enchantress." (JB) "we never doubted that our little moon was an enchantress." (Sel) "arrrrgh stop it, if you don''t plan to invite me for a date, stop with the sweet words!" she answered with an increasing blush rising on her face." (JB) " okay okay... less sweet words more dates for Selene... noted." (Sel, with and embarrassed tone) "T...Th...That wasn''t as if I asked you for a date! Through, if you ask me for one, I may be able to free a little time, an hour, or two... or a whole evening..." she continued with decreasing volume and increasing red on her face. (Dav, with a low voice to JB but so low as everyone couldn''t still listen) "I''ll send you a reminder note about that... recurring" *everyone but Sel and JB snickering* (JB) "or you could let us deal with that ourselves and date your IA?" * everyone laughing * (JB) " Okay, Stephane... gulp that pizza part down and tell us about you." * gulping hastily then drinking his glass of water because he was smothering himself * (Steph) " teu euh heu... excuse me.... arrrh.... okay theuuu.... I''m...reuhhh, I''m wandering on the dark path... " (JB) "ooookay... so you''re what? An assassin?" (Steph) "yes... but as you know, apparently the necromancer class may be unlocked soon?" (JB) "what... do you intend to reroll? Surely you don''t mean to convert to necromancer from assassin... your Int and Wis will be too lacking... and here I wonder if it''s only IG..." (Steph) " no no... I just figured that if the necromancer path was to open, maybe some secret class would too... I look for some kind of shadowknight class..." (JB) "ok, let me guess... your pseudo is Thanatoceles, again?" (It mean something like death surveyor, but you would have to ask Stephane for the exact meaning) (Steph) "How did you guess..." (JB) "how couldn''t I? You''re lucky only your friends know you so well... well, what''s your current level?" (Steph) "61... I think i beat you all..." (JB) "we''ll see... but good job... now... Nicole, what about you?" (Nic) "I''m lvl38, priest..." (JB) "lvl38 only? What happened? And don''t you mean priestess? (Nic) " no no, I''m a priest for ... some reasons... I got delayed..." (JB) "okay, I understand the delay... but what about your genre?" (Nic) "it''s a complicated story... not interesting enough to bore you with it..." (Isa, chuckling) "heheheh... it isn''t boring... that''s funny stuff..." (Nic, angry tone) "shut up Isa!" (JB, nosy tone) "now I''m intrigued... tell me more..." (Nic, shy) "but, it isn''t interesting at all..." (JB, inquisitive) "Nicole... to plan for the future, I have to know what keep you down..." (Nic, stubborn) "I will not say!" (JB, turning to Isa) "Isa, explain please..." Isa glanced at Nicole and seeing her resigned, answered. (Isa) "well, as you know, she''s as pretty as she''s shy..." (everyone) "yeh, we know that... that''s a shame through..." (Isa) "well... she created her avatar using her appearance... and got swarmed by guys... and couldn''t make one step without being accompanied by them... so she rerolled as a guy..." (JB) "okay... that explain the delay and her genre IG... no big deal..." (Isa, chuckling even more) "well, she created her male avatar from her appearance... and since she was being nice to the girls, now they warm her as she was a bishounen..." (JB, chuckling) "now, that''s funny, but she can repel them by being a little macho, no?" (Isa, totally bursting) "that''s the thing!... she did so, she got mean with some of those drone... and... they were like: *he''s soooo manly ... kyaaaaaaa*. So now she''s got a whole swarm of fangirls following her around... and she can''t say she''s a girl too, she fear to attract unwanted attention from some girls!" (everyone but Nic, laughing madly) "that''s too much! muahahaha" (JB, evil schemer tone and grin) "hmm hmmm... keep your slave-to-be army around, we may get some use for some peons, mainly if there are some crafter in the lot" (Mag, annoyed) "humf... of course you would want to keep a harem around!" (JB, falsely apologizing) "nooooo... just thinking ahead... what good use we could have for a myriad of servant" (Mag, furious) "That''s what you take female for? For your servant??" (JB, chuckling) "seriously, you can''t hear a joke?" (Mag, furious then embarrassed) "Are you joking with female dignity? A joke? A JOKE!? Damn you, we can never know when your serious..." (JB, teasing) "that''s you who can''t recognize when I''m joking... and as for Nicole, I''m pretty sure that once we head all together to some high level places, the drones will have to let their queen bee, I mean their bumblebee, go..." (Nic) "geeeez... do you really have to tease me like that?" (JB, sarcastic) "hey, NicolAS, now that you''re a guy, grow a pair and be more aggressive!" (Nic, sulky) "not funny!" (everyone but Nic) "hahahaha" After everyone calmed, Fabrice asked: "so, your turn, JB, how does that go your plan to make a melee wizard?" (JB, embarrassed) "erm... there is a little setback..." (everyone, very nosy) "uhhhhh? What happened?" "hmmm, the wizard grandmaster was a jerk... apparently, the manner I fight was too messy, so he banned me from the city wizard guild." (everyone) "Hey???????? what are you going to do now?" (JB, open then secretive) "well... I could always try a join a wizard guild in another city, but I have a lead for a new job I need to check first... that make me a non-classed lvl66... sorry Stephane, I beat you." (Steph) "damn you... can''t you take it easy sometimes... wait, lvl66? How did you do that?" (JB) "got two dungeons to clean out, solo and as discoverer." (everyone) "wtf / so lucky / always him who get the fun stuff / solo, of course, you bear!" On those comment, JB laughed and David closed the recording. He was to put all the data in some table and give them to JB. David was the resident computer scientist and as so, was in charge to arrange the data gathered as well as create the group website and other programs needed. He was also training everyone on blade fighting. Fabrice was the group martial art instructor and as so, teach them all kind of weaponless strikes that could prove useful IG. Magalie was the grappling instructor and used her sessions to make the guy remember to be nice with girls... Daniel and Isabelle were in charge of their general physical wellness as they were fitness instructors. Nicole managed everyone menu as a dietician. Stephane was usually the IG guinea pig. He, with Selene, was also managing the group public relations IG. When a strategy needed other people or guild cooperation, they were in charge to make a deal or to recruit. JB, was the data gatherer and the resident strategist. His ability to find information on the web, IRL or IG was astonishing. And his cunning mind always gave birth to clever plans that profited the group. Too bad it sometime involved the downfall of some other groups. Not that he was especially looking for other misfortune, but when he was planning for his allies, he didn''t take into account the well-being of the possible collateral victims. Since he was pretty good at noticing the small advantages, his game play was really powerful. On the downside, as it was stated before, he could be very vindictive with his enemy. On some other games the group played before, he planned strategy that for some coincidental reasons, got some of his personal enemies trampled in the middle of guilds war... that made his allies really eager to have the group on their side, if only to not have them helping the opposing side. The meal finished, the info sharing the same, everyone left after again, promising to gather when they were all lvl120+. The point to do that was to cultivate personal force and not rely on the group power. Playing without your usual group helped to raise your avatar and class control, and so, to be really useful for the group later. And each could make contacts all around the continents that would prove useful later. Done with the socializing ritual, JB headed back to his cave, ermm, I mean his apartment. There, before getting back in his capsule, he checked on his mailbox and connected to a chat-box. As he could see that David was up there too, he called him using a computer phone software. ¡°hi David... got back safely?¡± ¡°yep. I''m currently uploading the data gathered today on the charts.¡± ¡°Good. And on the support side?¡± ¡°It look good, I already recruited five persons from the casual group. They weren''t so hot to be in the support group, but when I did show them the progression chart you planned, they were interested. That was genius to think about making use of the stats they would gain with their craft on a combat job. So, we already have two blacksmith-warrior to be who will rely on hammers for their fights and two tailor-needle assassin. And Cindy seemed really interested in your idea for an alchemist-wizard. But are you sure they will be able to get those secondary jobs?¡± ¡°yep, from the data I could gather, once a blacksmith has reached a certain level of mastery, he can deal a lot of damages with a mace. And they will train their mace fighting mastery even as they make stuff in the forge. And as a bonus, as blacksmith they''ll know the armor weak points just from looking at it. Easier to deal critical damages. Same for the tailors, they can make use of their needles handling agility to get some sort of acupuncture skill and work as assassin. As for the alchemist, the use of accelerant combined even with weak spells will be really efficient. Did you find a sculptor to be?¡± ¡°no luck on this side... they all know by now how much work is needed to be successful in this trade and let¡¯s face it, it isn''t a job for casual gamers.¡± ¡°yep... I guess so. Not like we could be lucky... For the non-mainstream crafts, we''ll have to recruit IG.¡± ¡°well, if we propose them a good deal, we''ll find peoples.¡± ¡°yep... okay, I''m going to see where the lead I did talk about get me.¡± ¡°okay, good game.¡± ¡°the same to you, bro.¡± And on those words, JB closed the call, set his computer to message him IG each hour with the current time and headed to the capsule, curious of what his three npc''s friends had in their bag for him. * * * Loging back in the game, Cilerius pondered a few seconds about who he would go see and as Desmond was the closest and the friendliest to him of all three, he headed there. But as soon he reached the library clerk, he realized on his next words that whoever he would have headed to, it was the same since Desmond told him they were going together get the training hall guard first then Sigismon. And so, 15 minutes later, they were all four walking in the city, getting in streets and then alley more and more narrower. So that they were soon in an blind alley with just a not so engaging door. Sigismon knocked on the door and after a few moment, it partially opened, a really not charming head appearing in the open space, saying a few words so discretely that Cilerius who was 2m away at most, couldn''t hear them. The same, he couldn''t hear what Sigismon answered, but it seemed suitable since the door opened fully and its keeper signaled them to enter. Inside, only a few torches were lighting up the passage and the stairs that were going down. After a 15 minute walk in this tunnel, they got a room that seemed to be an antechamber for bigger spaces. Here, it''s the training hall guard who did go talk to a bulky guy. The guard seemed to point Cilerius, making his interlocutor look at him. As the words: ¡°Are you sure?¡± answered by a nodding sign of the guard, were heard, the discussion seemed to conclude. ¡°so, I hear you may be interested in a special job?¡± asked the bulky guy. ¡°yes, I''m currently looking for a new job that will make use of my physical prowess and my cunning.¡± ¡°that we have... that we have... if you insist, I may introduce you to a new career path.¡± Trusting his three NPC friends, Cilerius was confident: ¡°yes, please, I''d like to engage on a new path.¡± !Ding! Test of the sand arena. You will be tested to see your worth. Difficulty: variable Reward: unlocking a secret job, depending on your worth. Do you accept the test? ¡°yes, of course.¡± Quest accepted! You can''t now reject this quest. You are now to proceed to the arena and fight the opponents that will face you. You are to win at least a fight to unlock a job. ¡°what the hell?!?! hey, guys, what the fuck you got me in?¡± shouted Cilerius turning to see his three friends who just at this moment seemed to register for some bets on a ledger laying on a table. ¡°you will be okay... don''t worry...¡± answered Desmond as he was putting coins on the table. ¡°are you betting on my fight, seriously?¡± ¡°hum... no, it''s just a registration fee so we can watch and cheer for you.¡± ¡°so the cote was 4 to 1, right?¡± that part was addressed to the bulky guy who answered with a nod. ¡°some friends I have here...¡± breathed Cilerius, with a dejected look ¡°so how am I to fight? What are the rules?¡± ¡°in the next room, there is a sand arena, you go there a fight the guy that will come against you. Only one rule: you only fight with what''s in the arena and with this loin cloth on you.¡± ¡°nothing else? You sure?¡± ¡°nothing else.¡± ¡°okay... no rules that mean everything is fair. Going to be fun¡±. ¡°May try to make a profit too... oh, dude... can I bet on myself?¡± ¡°as long you don''t bet against yourself and rig the fight, it''s okay¡± ¡°so here are 137 gold, on me... 4 to 1 that is?¡± Again the guy answered with a nod. And Cilerius, after removing all his equipment and wearing the loin cloth, headed to the next room, who proved to be a very large hall with packed bleachers all around a sand circle. At the sight of his body, that had been sculpted in the training hall and hardened in the gnoll burrow, many spectators cheered and began to argue with their neighbors and then place bets. As a newcomer, his cote was low, but his trained body seemed to foster expectations for a good fight and maybe some gains by betting on the dark horse. As he reached the sand circle, the cheers were at their loudest yet and then everybody shut up. ¡°coming first as a challenger, here is Cilerius, lvl66 non classed.¡± Shouted an announcer. And he go on: ¡°facing him tonight for his first fight, Baldork, lvl72 warrior. You already know him and he come, with his 3 fights, 1 victory 2 defeats record.¡± As the announcer said that, from the opposing side, a big guy was coming down. Big, beefy¡­ really beefy. At his sight, Cilerius immediately formed his fight plan. ¡®this one invested everything in the strength stat. if I stay fast on my feet, I¡¯ll never have to eat one of his punch that would really hurt. It may be a good occasion to try some of Magalie teaching¡­¡¯ he was thinking. When this Baldork arrived in the circle, Cilerius could gauge the difference in size, both in height and width. This guy some 30cm higher and 1m broad. ¡®no way it¡¯s his real body, he really messed with the modification options at the creation of his avatar¡­ that or he abuse steroids in real life (IRL).¡¯ But this kind of body wasn¡¯t bad news for Cilerius, because controlling efficiently an excessively altered frame proved difficult. If one wasn¡¯t too chocked by the appearance, he could deal easily with this kind of opponent. As the announcer finished with his speech by closing the bets, cheers resumed as he left the circle. ¡°No rules, no limits, FIGHT!¡± he shouted even louder as he got away. At this very moment, the warrior used his battle shout skill: ¡°I¡¯ll crush you flat!!!! I¡¯ll make you in pudding! You¡¯re dead!¡± he screamed with a gnarling face. Beside trying to intimidate his opponent, he buffed himself a little while de-buffing Cilerius. !war cry! You are under the effects of an adversary war cry. Physical attributes -10% life point regeneration -10% You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.Your fighting spirit is higher than the opponent and reduce the effect by 50%. ¡®I guess I can¡¯t ignore his professional skills¡­ that going to be a pain if he diligently trained them. But my fighting spirit being higher than his despise how low level it is actually, lessen this worry.¡¯ Baldork charged him while screaming. Cilerius just made a side step, pushing down and away the arm of his aggressor while crocheting his feet, making him sprawl on the ground and eat a mouthful of sand. ¡°You bastard! Fight fair!¡± howled Baldork while spiting sand. ¡°yeh, sure, I¡¯m certain you¡¯d like to turn that to arm wrestling but that¡¯s not my strong point¡­ so come, little one, I¡¯ll teach you.¡± Enraged, Baldork charged again, and again, and again as Cilerius played with him like if he was a torero facing a mad bull, sometimes tripping him, sometimes just dodging. As a last playful move, he used a judo shoulder throw using Baldork charging momentum and projecting him hard on the ground. Baldork was a little knock out from this and he raised difficultly, just to see Cilerius make an astonishing move. Cilerius was jumping at him, legs first. He winded around his arm, using legs as a lever and soon, a big loud crack resounded in the hall, shortly followed Baldork shrieking and the audience cheers and the sight of his released arm hanging, dislocated. From this point, the fight was almost concluded. But Baldork had to either drop out, pass out or die. Cilerius, seeing Baldork stubbornly standing without a hint about resignation, or that he was to groggy to realize the fix he was in, decided to finish him. That, and using more fighting moves would increase his pankration proficiency. That wasn¡¯t a shallow motive, because since the fight opening, his skill already raised a little in 3 occasions, for some of the moves he performed. After a few second pondering how he would perform this feat, he settled for a sleeper hold, using the dislocated arm. And so, he quickly moved behind Baldork, catch the arm with his and used it as if it was a necktie, slowly tightening the hold, making his victim shriek from the pain of his arm, then fall, silent, on the ground, unconscious. Cheers erupted even louder from the bleacher and the announcer came back on the sand. ¡°And we have a winner, Cilerius, after a 5 or so minutes, made Baldork fall in the sand unconscious! A superb performance! Please applaud him, he deserve it.¡± ¡°and now, for the next fight¡­.¡± were the words Cilerius could hear while walking away to his friends. There, he saw them as they were counting stake of gold pieces and welcomed him heartily as he entered the room. Not dupe for the reason of their warm welcome, he turned to the bulky guy who handed him his gains. ¡°so, did I perform with enough worth for the test?¡± Cilerius asked. ¡°of course, it was worthy enough¡­ but do you understand that the reward worth may increase if your worth do too?¡± ¡°what do you mean? Do I have to fight again?¡± ¡°you may collect your reward now, but the more you prove your worth, the higher value the reward you collect will be. Do you want to conclude the test now?¡± Cilerius wavered a few seconds then asked: ¡°if I was to continue, would I lose the previous achievement?¡± ¡°no, what you already accomplished is recorded as a success. Further achievement will only add to that, not negate it.¡± ¡°and how many fights do we talk about?¡± ¡°as long as you win, you can keep fighting again¡­ and there are 9 more possible fights. Evidently, the opponent strength increase as you keep winning.¡± For Cilerius who was far from having exhausted his stamina and used all of his tricks, that wasn¡¯t a bad deal¡­ and the 548 gold pieces newly acquired were weighting heavy both in his pouch and his resolve. ¡°ok, let¡¯s see how far I can go¡­¡± he answered with a sigh, only to see his friends rejoicing and placing more bets. ¡°can I bet again? What¡¯s the rate?¡± ¡°3 to 1 this time. You aren¡¯t nameless any more and more people will bet on you.¡± He answered while rubbing his hands with a satisfied smile that remembered Cilerius of a merchant who had concluded a profitable deal. ¡°ok, banko! I bet those 548 gold.¡± ¡°a pleasure to work with you!¡± said the bulky guy as he received the said amount with a big grin. ¡° your next fight will be happen after the one ongoing and the next one. So you have some time to rest.¡± ¡°thank you. I suppose I can¡¯t have information on my next opponent?¡± Rubbing his hands with a greedy smile, he answered: ¡°information is a currency that worth gold. But I can¡¯t answer immediately since your opponent isn¡¯t decided yet.¡± ¡°so I can go and watch his fight then¡­¡± ¡°of course, if you pay the entrance fee, that is worth much too¡­¡± ¡°of course¡­ never mind, surprise is part of the fun too.¡± He didn¡¯t say it out loud, but paying would spoil all the cheerfulness he had now. And so, he waited while talking with his 3 friends till he was called for his next fight, 15 minutes later. This time, he was the second to come in the circle. Descending there, he could look at his new opponent, who was far from being a beefy guy this time. He was slender but still muscular. Everything in his appearance creamed that he was an agility fighter. Soaked by the rain of cheers coming from the audience, Cilerius walked down to the circle while thinking about how to fight this time. His opponent watched him approach with attention, probably wondering what were his capabilities. The announcer was shouting the slender name at this moment: ¡°here already on the sand, Snake! Lvl71 with an assassin job, 1 victory on his debut fight, facing now Cilerius, lvl66 non classed, 1 victory on his debut fight too.¡± The announcer waited for Cilerius to get in the circle, then go on: ¡°as it¡¯s for both of them, their second fight, we will provide as a reward, two weapons for them to use.¡± On those word, he did throw on the sand two bumbles wrapped in leather. As they hit the ground, they opened, revealing their contents. One, closer of Snake, was 3m long chain with a sickle on one side and a metal weight on the other side. The second, closer to Cilerius, was a pair of clawed knuckles. Cilerius had no clue if this kusarigama was Snake weapon of choice but the knuckles weren¡¯t too far from what he, Cilerius, would use. And since he wasn¡¯t used to the chain weapon, he intended to use the weapon the closest to him, even with their downside, the delay needed to equip them in comparison with the chain that was usable as soon one picked it. ¡°As I announce the fight start, you can begin, either attacking immediately or picking the weapon of your choice. Are you ready?¡± On the agreeing nods from both sides, he shout in the middle of a yell downpour: ¡°No rules, no limits, FIGHT!¡± At this signal, Cilerius dived for the knuckles and could see Snake doing the same for the chain that he equipped fast and was already balancing the weight as Cilerius wasn¡¯t on his feet yet. ¡®Right! If this guy isn¡¯t used to this weapon, he¡¯s a good comedian!¡¯ With the long reach of the weight part when throw, the sickle as a slashing or piercing weapon when in contact and even the chain that could be used to strangle one who came too close, this was, in trained hands, a lethal weapon. The clawed knuckles were only potent as a close combat weapon and eventually as a protection of sort. Cilerius still had some hidden cards up his sleeves, but he clearly would prefer to keep them hidden as long as possible, even more if he was to fight many more time in this arena later. Cilerius was standing and trying to properly equip the knuckles when he saw the weight coming his way, fast and heavy and then, leave the same way as he had dodged the throw. As he had to dodge the weight many more time while finally getting ready himself, he was now sure that if the kusarigama wasn¡¯t Snake main weapon, it was at least one he used often and so, was proficient with. ¡®let¡¯s hope the way to deal with this weapon I saw in a few movie fights, will be efficient here.¡¯ He was thinking. But, from theory to practice, there is a long way. Watching the chain and not only the weight for the first rule. The weight move too fast and can change direction abruptly almost without warning, but his movements are leaded by the chain and the hand handling it. Once he got used to the weight movements and so, was able to dodge with more ease, he started to plan his approach. The fastest way was to stop the weight then to run to its user. To do so, Cilerius did know of two methods. First was to put his foot on the chain and block it on the ground if the weight happened to come low. Second and non-dependent of a restricted trajectory, was to make the chain wrap around his wrist. With the kind of knuckles he was equipped, that were reinforced clawed gauntlets with a little protection on the wrist, it was the method the most viable. And so, watching attentively the chain and dodging the weight, Cilerius waited for the opportunity, IE for when the weight would come from the side on not from the front. To succeed, patience was a must because hurrying the move would both warn the opponent of what he was trying to do, hence allowing him to either use trapping moves or to stop using the catchable throws, and may result in a bad catch with induced damage. Lucky for Cilerius, patience was a quality he didn¡¯t lack. After a few minute of this game, he saw the weight coming from his left and just before the hit, so Snake couldn¡¯t react, in place of dodging, he extended his arm, cutting the trajectory about 30cm behind the weight, he made the chain wind around his wrist and immediately after grasped the chain. Obviously, Snake wasn¡¯t prepared for this move and was shocked. Now, Cilerius had to approach while making sure he never release the chain. Snake did try to make Cilerius let go the chain by pulling suddenly after giving slack, but he was holding to it like there was no tomorrow. Slowly, each time winding the chain a turn around his wrist, he approached, step by step. In fact, this method had a triple advantage. He was neutralizing the weight throws of course, but the chain too as he wrapped it around his own arm, and even lessening the sickle treat as by pulling on the chain, he was hindering the sickle part that was attached to it. Realizing how his weapon was rendered almost useless, Snake let show on his face many emotion, fear and vexation among them. He clearly expected to have the upper hand as soon he spotted this weapon, but was proved wrong and began to fear, since his opponent, Cilerius, had to be fairly skilled to pull a trick like that. And as they came nearer, the claws seemed more and more scarier. As the distance, between the two, shrank to 1m, Snake did try to slash Cilerius, but he was now using his chain wrapped arm as a shield and so, protecting himself efficiently. After a few more failed slashing attempts and the length of the free chain now reduced to 50cm, Snake relinquished the sickle and receded suddenly. 2m away, he took a fighting stance that made his hands seem like they were blades. Seeing that, Cilerius did think that he had some sort of hand to hand fighting skill, probably focused to strike weak points and so, efficient. ¡®must be part of the assassin skill package. Could be fun to test it.¡¯ Was the thought in his mind as he was releasing his arm from the kusarigama chain. Once he was done, he throw away, outside of the circle. Cilerius, in turn, took a fighting stance designed to protect the center vertical line of his body, were the weak points are situated. Crotch, solar plexus, Adam¡¯s apple, chin, base of the nose, nose bridge between the eyes and middle of the forehead. Both his hand on the middle line, like about to claw, the left one in front and a little down and the right one closer to his face, his eyes looking at his adversary torso and not on his eyes, so to see all of his movement with the peripheral vision and not focus on his gaze. From real life situation, Cilerius learned about the power of unfocused peripheral vision that allowed him to react faster than a focused stare. That is because the unfocused vision rely on instinct while the focused stare rely on conscious thought and so, take more time to give a response. As a bonus, an unfocused gaze didn¡¯t give indication on where you plan to strike. The effect of that wasn¡¯t really evident for fights against monsters, but he thought it efficient against player opponent and soon was proved right as Snake, each time he tried to strike, saw his hands intercepted by the knuckled hands, damaging himself in the process. Slowly, exactly like a feline stalking a prey, Cilerius approached the slender guy. And just as Snake withdraw a jab-like strike, Cilerius dived under his now flexing arm and tackled him at the waist, making him tumble down on the ground. In a mounted position, equipped with claws, Cilerius was in an overwhelming advantageous position. Even if his opponent was almost defeated since he couldn¡¯t even properly use his strikes, Cilerius decided, as the fight already was going on for 10 minutes and Snake could have a trump card too, to finish him immediately. And so, Cilerius stroke, slashing with his multiple claws, the throat of his opponent and then, got up and moved away, as blood was springing from the jugulars and blood foam pop out of his mouth. He was three, drowning in blood, dying from the blood loss and his brain cut from all alimentation. Cruel, yes¡­ cruel but efficient. This fight was concluded and as a system window popped, the announcer shout: ¡°and after a 10 minutes fight that finished in a spectacular blood shower, we have a winner: Cilerius obtain his second victory. This feat deserve commendations, please express them while we clear this mess!¡± And Cilerius, while leaving the circle and going back to the waiting room I middle of loud cheers, read the message from the system window: You have gruesomely killed Snake with but one strike. You gain fame +20 for your kill. As the victim is a notorious assassin, listed as criminal, your infamy is reduced by 20. If you report this kill to the officials with a proof (the head could do), you may gain additional reward. You gain much xp. Level Up! After a long observation followed by a lightning like attack, you pulled a crushing victory. Pankration mastery raise: +7% ¡®not much chance to rack the additional reward, it isn¡¯t like they¡¯d let me cut his head¡­ Oh well! It¡¯s already a good deal. Ok, let¡¯s head back to my so called friends¡­ and to my gold¡¯. On this last thought, a big, greedy, grin emerged on Cilerius face. And once again, he was welcomed warmly by his three friends who obviously were happy with the fight ending and had made substantial profits. Gold had the power to hide most of the misdeed and the secrecies made by his friends weren¡¯t different in the face massive gold gains. ¡°here are your gains for this bet¡± told him the bulky guy while handing him multiple stacks of gold amounting to a total of 1644 gold pieces. An amazing fortune for a low level player such as Cilerius. The effect of particular circumstances. He continued: ¡°if you want to continue, your next fight will begin in about 30 minutes, I guess? And the betting rate goes to 2.5 to 1 now¡­¡± That was a good incentive if Cilerius needed one other than trying to get the best reward for his job test. ¡°I¡¯ll try another round, should stay under the gutter when it¡¯s raining luck¡­ and gold.¡± Cilerius was already thinking about the potential gains for the next fight. The next fight was delayed for about the time he told, so he could rest and prepare. This bout opposed him to a well build man. Once again, weapons were throw on the ground. Well, more like, ONE weapon was throw on the ground, a staff. And so, the fight began with furor, as the two battled to grab the staff that would mean a big reach advantage. Finally, after a special strategy that included crushing balls, Cilerius got possession of the staff, only to see his opponent ¡°throw the towel¡± as he was already incapacitated before the staff was put to use. At the peak of his strategy, I mean when he crushed his opponent balls, cheers that were the moment before resounding in the arena, were replaced with a big gasp as everyone hold their breath¡­ this lasted till they saw the unfortunate fighter walk slowly away, knees on the inside, hands on his crotch and bent. Then the cheer resumed. It¡¯s strange how we seem be able share some pains that happen to others. This one is probably the perfect example of the placebo effect: feel the imaginary effect even if the origin didn¡¯t really touch you. Cilirius, he, could feel the real effects of his third win, in the form of 4110 gold pieces. He was informed that a fourth fight would happen soon after and then probably just after, the fifth. Then the night events would stop as the night itself was nearing its end and the spectators had other things to attend to on daytime. And so, the fourth and fifth fight happened, concluded each with a victory and without much to say about it but that his opponents weren''t that skilled and he could only play with them for a short time before his toys broke. That or he was overpowering them with his stats and skills despite a level difference up to 15. Dirty tactics absolutely didn''t matter. No no, I assure you, they didn''t. Surely, his solo adventures in dungeons were good training to adapt fast to a new situation. It seemed that this night was some sort of qualifier to join on the next event and Cilerius emerged crowned of it. His pouch, on its side, was crowned with 12330 gold pieces. Desmond, Sigismon and the training hall guardian were all in very good disposition and ready for more. But they voiced warning to Cilerius about how the next night wouldn¡¯t probably as easy. ¡°tonight was like a warming and the opponents weren¡¯t much to speak of, actually¡­ so we didn¡¯t worry about your wellbeing but next night isn¡¯t going to be as easy. So rest well and maybe, hold on some of your gains.¡± Told him Desmond. ¡°yes, we know you have some trump cards, let¡¯s be frank, your opponents next night are not on the roster without right. They probably all have very special abilities. You better prepare.¡± Added Sigismon. ¡°you already accomplished good feat for the test, but I¡¯m sure you¡¯re able to do even more next. Rock them up!¡± finished the training hall guardian with thumbs up. ¡°this vote of confidence please me, but I¡¯m sure if I watch how you bet, I¡¯ll know your thoughts.¡± ¡°right¡­ a friend is something¡­ gold is another¡­¡± they answered in unison. On those meaningful words, Cilerius parted from them and after spotting the secret arena location and getting the password for the following night, left the city and got to the forest surrounding it. He needed to unleash his magical power to loosen himself as well as to train the skills. Since his return from the gnoll burrow, he almost didn¡¯t use his magical skill and felt a little rusty. His fingers and hands were longing for the magic contact. And once you get the habit to leave ash and desolation in your trail, you become addicted to this power. And so, using trees as targets, Cilerius cast spells, fine tuning his control over their power, his aiming and the trajectories. When he finally left, there was a new clearing created in the dense forest, lined with ash. Cilerius came back to the narrow alley with the entrance to the underground arena and camped there to log out. He was planning to be the closest possible of the place of his night appointment upon reconnecting later. * * * Back to the real world, JB rushed out of his capsule, checked the time and go take a shower then grab some food. He then sat in front of his customized computer and launched the experimental browser, Minerva, that he was currently testing. Even if his computer skills weren''t enough to do programming, his insight and his data gathering skill earned him the attention of the browser developer who hired him for its pre-alpha test to see the improvement to be made and the reliability of the answers. His earning for this work? To be sure he would get the complete software suite free of charge and even more, free of advertisings. In an era when almost all the software were either sold as premium with monthly fee or filed with advertisings, it was a luxury worth more than a salary. Even in the pre-alpha version, the browser was promising even if JB had submitted a few ideas for improvement that were soon included. And so, he imputed his query: ¡°++ Royal Road +underground arena +pvp death-fight¡±. Many answers were provided containing the three key words and he opened a few links before reading their content. JB had set an alarm to warn him when in game, the sun would set and so, it would be time to head to the bloodbath again. Meanwhile, he read the different subjects provided and found what he was looking for. That was an instinctive idea that lead him to make this search and he was right. As he could read, the emergence of the VR lead to changes within the fighting world. Just a few months after RR launch, the then third pro fighting company in term of earning, and that meant it was really far behind the top two, had, under its boss, invested in RR to the point that the real world fights were mostly advertisings and warming before showing death match IG. Since, with VR, one was able to see, hear, smell, taste and touch as if it was real, since they were always peoples avid of brutal fights, since wealthy peoples were always seeking new sensation and since real death match were difficult to organize often, the boss devised to create an underground fighting system that wealthy peoples could enjoy. They were to pay normal fee to come in the real life arena to watch the match IRL then on screens and premium fee to be able to enter the IG arena and watch the fight live. The company even created an IG transportation guild so their guests would be able to move from one city to another fast, for an additional fee. The game permitted to show more extraordinary fights and to satisfy blood thirsty crowd. To not spoil anything, since it was a game, even the losers were able to come back and fight again once the 24h IRL penalty was purged. Even weak fighters were welcome since there were peoples who liked punching-meat (punching bag + meat-bag) take a beating, again and again. As there were also betting, the company also took a little commission on those bets and so, earned even more. All that made this company now the leader in the segment and, to insure a monopoly IG, they paid guilds worldwide to protect their business and destroy IG all competition. The company even paid a salary to the most successful fighters just to keep them underground. ''that could be nice as a side earning. I''ll have to seek more information on the subject later.'' If one was to win often in those fights, he would earn monetary and skills gains. That could be a secret ¡°training hall¡± totally unattached from the IG basic, beginner, intermediate and advanced training hall. That is, if one won constantly and didn''t suffer the dying penalties. JB recorded the data so gathered for further use and then, looking at the time that was getting close of the alarm setting, put it off and headed to his capsule. It was time to once again, show the world that devious minds, free from the real world civilization shackles, were really powerful. * * * edited to correct mistakes reactions, questions, rants... and various stuff so, he i created this 1 message for rant spoiler q/a purpose... but the 1st thing i''ll do, is sharing a little tool i build for myself, could be usefull for other writer who want to keep an accurate track of their character stats... still need some tinkering, particulary to include the stats with minor effect on the HP in the formula... my actual guess is it will be something like that in final: (vit*lvl+fraction1*stat1*lvl+fraction2*stat2*lvl+bonus hp)*hp modificator=HP total where fraction1 and 2 would be between 1/10 and 1/2, stat1 being sustenance/endurence and stat2 being another stat with effect on hp... the same kind of formula exist for mana, def, atk etc etc but it need some more research at least, you could get an idea of what number the hp is close to for your character and calculate with certainity what his stats are at each time... Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.in the table, don''t touch the line in red, that''s where results show and some formula are writed... what you can change is: the name (of course), the lvl (a must to calculate the actual hp/mana) and the events => event modifier (help to keep track of what granted stat), modification (resume the changes that you apply in the line) and the number in the corresponding line for ease purpose, i locked 2 columns and some line so that they alway stay in view. this is a 1st version that could help... and i accept gladly suggestion for tinkering now, here''s the link to dl the table (in odt format = openoffice) http://www.mediafire.com/download/49zen ... nsuite.ods chapter 5: Lets be spirited! The elemental brawler Chapter 5: Let¡¯s be spirited! part 1 You are proposed a new job. Accept: Yes/no ¡°Yes!¡± You have accepted a secret profession, congratulation! !class change! You are now an Elemental* Brawler. STR+20 Agi+20 Wis+20 Int+20 Vit+20 Concentration+20 Endurance(dmg mitigation and boost hp)+20 Sustenance(lessening of stamina consumption)+20 Possibility of spell casting being interrupted while moving or fighting -50% (does not apply to stuns, mute or wavering, be it skills or spells). Effect of resilience and endurance is increased by 25%. Limitations: All combat skills are capped by the skill: brawling. Can''t learn any advanced magic spell either by teaching, spell books or quest reward. All current magic mastery must be at intermediate level before being able to learn a new magic mastery. Before learning a second major magic mastery, the others must be at advanced level. Advantages: Can learn every fighting skills. The more advanced the brawling skill is, the fastest you can learn a new fighting skill. The more fighting skills you already know, the fastest you can learn a new one up to the level of the lowest one. Can learn up to ten "element" magic masteries and their spells up to the intermediate level. Magic mastery not included to this limit. The versatile magical capabilities of the class allow you to create mixed spells form the one already know. Limitation applies. (magic masteries must be at least at intermediate level, source spells must be at intermediate level). Effect of fame on leadership is doubled: As you are known for your fighting prowess, individuals are more prone to follow you in combat. Each winning pvp fight may present reward in the form of stats increase. Each losing pvp fight may cost you in the form of stats decrease. !New skill: Brawling "Element" magic mastery already learned: Fire mastery: intermediate 2 (29%) Ice/water mastery: intermediate 1 (51%) Wind/air mastery: intermediate 1 (17%) Earth mastery: intermediate 1 (84%) "skill information: brawling." !brawling: the aptitude to fight with whatever mean available. Everything can be used as a weapon. This skill enable you to use all fighting skills. All fighting skills are capped by the brawling skill. Skill already learned stop rising till brawling skill catch to them. All new fighting skills are easier to learn and rise. Brawling skill only rise when fighting other brawlers. The rise is slow against npc brawlers and fast against pvp brawler. All pvp fights are considered brawl for your class. As long a pvp fight is mutual and not a one sided murder, killing another player doesn''t earn you the murder mark. As long as you fight when another player attack you, if he kill you, he doesn''t earn the murder mark. The same rules apply to npc''s attacking you without aggression. If you attack a ¡°city npc¡±, even if he fight back, you will earn the murder mark. In all cases, arena fights don''t earn anybody a murder mark. Brawling: beginner 1 (0%) taking in account previous recent pvp fights and know fighting¡¯s skills: brawling skill rise dramatically. Brawling: beginner 5 (98%) After carefully reading everything in the information windows that popped, Cilerius, who had let some wince show on is face while reading, asked: "System call: elemental* magic mastery list." Another window opened and ten entries were listed. -Mineral/metal magic -Fire magic -Ice/water magic -Wind/air magic -Earth magic -Life/blood magic -Light magic -Dark magic -Nature magic -Spirit Magic Reading that, Cilerius had to ask for more information: "system call: mineral, light, dark, spirit, nature and life magic information." !mineral magic: one of the major magic, governing over fire, water, air and earth magic. Reign over all the mineral/no life magic. Allow metal magic. !light magic: one of the life magic. Allow blessing, heals and buffs. Based on the holly sacred arts and linked to the Gods. Usually mastered by priests. !Dark magic: one of the life magic. Allow curses and unholy manipulations such as undead summoning and demons pacts. Usually mastered by necromancers and warlocks. !Spirit magic: one of the life magic. Allow to tap in the spirit realm to enhances, cure and heal. Can call spirits to aid. Usually mastered by Shamans. !Nature magic: one of the life magic. Allow seek the nature aid. Another line of buffs, cures and heals. Can call to living realm for aid. Usually mastered by Druids. !Life magic: one of the major magic, governing over light, dark, nature and spirit magic¡¯s. reign over all the life magic. Allow blood magic. As he was reading that, Cilerius was deep in his thoughts. ''a lot of possibilities but that call for a lot of work if I want to be efficient.'' "us!" ''I don''t want to be just another Jack of all trade master of none... that would suck for the group... and to endure their scoff.'' "lerius!" ''And the fighting skills... damn... I''m caught between the magic and the melee realm. if I don''t gain bonus stats one way or another, no way I will be able to stay level with specialized professions.'' "Cilerius!" "uh? hu? what?" "You''re some damn deep in your own thoughts that you didn''t answer us for over ten minutes." that was Desmond talking. "We thought you were so amazed by our gift that you were out." added Sigismund. "gift? hell! All you did is take me there to bet on my fights!" retorted Cilerius faking anger. "no, seriously, I was wondering how I would manage with this class. It''s interesting, but the work needed to make it efficient will be extensive. And how will I find someone to teach me other magic masteries?" Continued Cilerius. "we know you''re a hard worker." Answered first Figras. "as for magic masteries, you seem to forget something, Cilerius." answered Sigismund. "I''m part of the of the elemental mages friendship and yourself made some work for us. I could guide you to one of my fellow member who could train you in his trade." "oh... right! the elemental mages friendship... but... I already know the four elements." "don''t take the word "element" too literally in our association name. Elements are all kind of magic." "so... you will introduce me to some of your friends who could teach me the others elemental magic?" "yes, of course... but the decision to teach you remain theirs. And I can only think of one right now. Lucky for you, he reside on the way you have to head next." "the way I have to head next? Ah, yes... damn, I almost forgot that part. I have to show in two month time in Hartburg. Well, at least there will be occasion to train my new annoying skill." Cilerius thought of the brawling skill as annoying, since its proficiency capped the other fighting skills. "yes, Hartburg... too bad, we will not be able to accompany you there to support you. But I''ll give you a letter for a friend who live on the way there." "supporting me? You mean bet on my fights." "well, if we bet on you, it''s all the same as supporting you!" exclaimed the three friends at the same moment. "hmmmf... if you say so" answered Cilerius, unconvinced. At least, he wasn''t trapped in a dead end. You could even say, to progress further, he had to live like he did up to now. Just, this lifestyle was now mandatory if he wanted to become efficient. "Listen, you have a two months limit to show there. I need to contact my acquaintance so you don''t show there unannounced. He''s a bit associable so he might welcome you with scary stuff, else." "ok... so, how long?" "let''s say 1 month... that will leave you 1 month to travel, knowing the travel to Hartburg require 10 days. The travel to my friend place require 5 days. Expect 5 days there to learn the ropes of his specialty if everything goes well. If not, well... just be sure to show to Hartburg in time." "If everything goes well? Damn, Sigismund, You are really reassuring. And you seriously think I could learn your friend magic in just 5 days?" "no, but as I told you, he can teach you the ropes. And you can train on the way. I know you can do it. Hell, you did the same for 4 elements at the same time." "this is this and that''s that... ok... now to find something to do for 1 month." "Here I can help you, Cilerius" said Figras. "I figure you need to do some more physical training with your new class." "well, yes, that''s a given. I was thinking about it, but the city doesn''t have mines. I figured that would be the best place to train my body." "Sure, the city doesn''t have mines, but we have something better, our harbor. They''re always hiring strong men to load and unload the freight." "Dockers? that could do it." With his immediate concerns resolved, Cilerius took his leave from the three friends and teachers after agreeing of a meeting date with Sigismund. He still had to do some things before going to the harbor. Searching in his bags, he got was he was seeking. Checking the vouchers he had in hands and a map, he planned the visits he has to do. At the different places he show, he could learn some skills and due to his new reputation, more than what was promised at first. At the thieves guild, he learned the sneak skill, that, they assured him, would allow him to walk egg shells, without even a noise once the skill was enough. He even could ask them for another training and got to learn the basics of the disarm skill. Knowing how to disarm an opponent was an usefull skill. At the assassins guild, as promised, he was taught more about traps making and the counterpart, trap disarming. They showed him how to apply poisons on weapons and gave him a poisons recipe book. Then, figuring that was the best place to do so, he asked to be taught how to fight with daggers. The assassins were happy to oblige and made a display of their skill for him. The alchemist, as promised, taught him the basics of his trade and, because it would be a necessity, the skill to detect herbs and gather them. He was given a book with the basics of both and told that if he wanted to know more, he had to be of use with the alchemist community, as he wasn''t one. At the warrior guild, he learned both one and two handed sword skill, the use of shield and even of maces and hammers. As he was about to leave, a thought came to him and asked the trainer if there was a skill to provoke the enemy. At that, the old warrior facing him looked at him with wide open eyes. "Of course... but to do so, you need an open mind and extensive vocabulary." Cilerius soon learned that in fact, he needed to be proficient in throwing profanities at the face of an opponent, to taunt him. "easy enough, I guess" The last place in his list for fighting¡¯s skills, was the knights barrack. Since he had a dubious reputation, he wasn''t warmly welcomed, but he still had a voucher so they were obliged by their honor to teach him something. Of course they didn''t present him with more than what was promised, so he left the barracks after learning the polearm skill. Done with all the fighting¡¯s guilds that were indebted with him, he headed to the restaurants and there, learned some rare recipes that he couldn''t even cook yet with his skill, but that would be nice later. More useful, he was taught how to recognize edible food in the wild and how to cook it efficiently. That was a little perk of the herb gathering he learned just before and the fact that one of the cooks had an adventuring life in his young days. He was especially warned about poison mushrooms. If you think about it the other way, he was taught how to recognize poison mushrooms and their dangerousness. That knowledge would go hand in hand with poison making. Cilerius had used the whole night and half of the next day to complete the favors reclaims. He then headed to the docks. There, he looked for the foreman who was indeed, constantly in need of capable men to do hard work. In fact, he was giving repetitive quests to load or unload some ship. The quest difficulty was stated E with really low cash compensation and an unknown reward. Cilerius wasn''t in for the money gain but to train. The game mechanics were well set and once one knew them, he could always use them to rise some stats, the same as he did at the training hall. In this case, the work was to carry huge hessian bags or roll barrels. Since he had to walk on narrow plank to get on and out of boat, he had to concentrate and make use of all his balance. As a result of this hard work, his endurance and sustenance raised, slowly but surely. Sometimes, in rare occurrence, he even gained 1 point in str or dex. When done loading the first boat, he returned to the foreman to conclude the quest and received minor xp, 1 silver piece and here was the perk of this unexplored work, 1 point gain in either str, dex or vit, alternatively. Clearly, not many people knew of this reward or the foreman wouldn''t have problem to get workers. Maybe many tried to do this quest, but few finished it and knew of the reward because they grow tired too fast. And the few in the know didn''t divulge this trick. Doing his part, Cilerius needed half a day to carry the freight of one boat. He could so do the repeat quest three times a day, only keeping half a night to rest. At first, that was really tiring, but the efforts, the pain and even the exhaustion were becoming addictive in some way and he could carry on. As his strength grow, he was able to carry more weight and finish his work even earlier. He had to carry more weight, since else, he wouldn''t get the endurance or sustenance gain. The gains are closely related to the difficulty of the task. When 50kg become easy to carry, you will not gain as much endurance as when it was hard to do. At the end of the month, he had done the quest 93 times, raised his endurance and sustenance a lot and even gained 10 additional str and dex while working. He also increase his fortune by a whole 93 silver pieces... not even 1 gold piece. That would be laughable if he only looked at the monetary gain but he was here for the side gains. On his stay at the docks, he could see many times other players, low or high level, getting the quest and drudge under their load, only to throw the towel when, tired, they saw the meager 1 silver piece rewarded to Cilerius by the foreman, as he finished earlier than them. Of course, most noticed an endurance or a sustenance gain, maybe even, some noticed the strength gain, but they discarded this way to raise their stats and preferred to head out of the city, kill some mobs, gain xp and rise level, so allocating 5 points in their stats. That was a lot easier. Looking at Cilerius, most thought or spoke one to another along the line: "what a fool... is he a masochist to keep doing that work for only 1 silver piece? Maybe he has secret class, slave..." Looking at them, Cilerius thought: ''the fools, they don''t even think about the future but only on immediate gain... the way I am and I''m doing, I''ll have soon almost and advantage equivalent of 40 levels on them if I count the training hall gains. If I keep doing that, I won''t have to worry about how to allocate my level-up stats points.'' Cilerius was driven by the Need, with a big N, to have physical and intellectual balanced stats. Doing that with only the level-up stats points would mean soon lagging behind the specialized classes. Cilerius wanted to be a complete character, but not only with wide area of expertise and balanced stats. He wanted to be at the top. That was maybe the only place where his ambition show openly. He didn''t tell his gang what he was up to, even what he became, wanting to shock them when they would gather. JB and the gang only shared information¡¯s on their current level or advices to resolve some quests. As promised, the month passed, he headed to see Sigismund. They had planned to meet at the library since Cilerius was far from welcome at the magician building. Getting there, Cilerius could see Desmond as his usual place, the desk at the entrance. They exchanged greeting and Cilerius told him what he did at the docks this whole month. "I can see the results. You could carry the whole encyclopedia Versaillis in one go, with muscles like those." "I fear the weight wouldn''t pose problem, but the volume to carry... I''d have to carry the shelf at the same time to do that Hahaha." "Yes, indeed, you would have to do that. So, Cilerius, did you think about the next step on your way to knowledge?" "Only a little... but I think I may have an idea of "Where" to look. By the way, since Sigismund isn''t here yet, I will go to the reserve, read a little and retrieve something." "Do that... I''ll call you when he come." At this reply, Cilerius headed to the door and using his key, opened "his" reserve. What a change since the last time he came here. Books were tidied on their shelves, not moving. Calm... that''s the word describing this place now. The atmosphere was now worthy of a library. Cilerius walked past the first three rooms and could see in the fourth, the door to the little office open. As he walked in, he could hear a strange sound, like if someone was sawing wood. That was a snore. on the table, a very thick book was laying on some sort of fabric, its cover slowly rising and lowering and emitting the snore. Folding his arms, Cilerius stood for a little while, observing the scene then, as the book didn''t seem to react to his presence, shout: "Bok!" At this cry, the book suddenly opened wide and hurriedly raised in the air, hovering while mumbling: "uh? what? no, no, I wasn''t drinking the ink and I for sure didn''t break the pen!!" "Bok... is that the way you pass your time? Don''t you like knowledge? Why don''t you read some other books to educate yourself?" "oh!!! Master! welcome home. No, reading other books will do me no good. I can only learn new things if it''s written in my blank pages." "Is that so? okay... are you at least capable to tell me if you already know about something?" "of course, Master. What are you looking in my immense knowledge for?" "well... at first I would ask if you know the meaning of modesty but that''s not really what I''m looking for. Do you know about the class "elemental* brawler"?" "euuuuhhhh, no I never heard of this class." "what about the elemental magic¡¯s, not restricted to the actuals classics four elements?" "Ah, on those I have information, though they''re basics for some and I would love precisions on the subject." "okay... that will be done in time. Hmmm, what about the gnolls?" "the gnolls are usually a secretive race. Few information¡¯s are known as for now. Though, some of their tribes are known to carry and spread diseases." "Do you know about the clan living close of this city?" "there is one? no, I don''t know about it. But if that''s true, it may be dangerous. the city could be in danger." "no... they''ve been taken care of, for now. And they didn''t seem to carry diseases, those ones. Okay, lay on the table, I have new knowledge to write." "sure thing, Master. I love knowledge." And Bok landed on the table, fully open to a blank page. We talk about "sweet tooth" for peoples who like sweet things, but what could we call someone who love letters, words and knowledge? Ink addict? Well, you see the point. Bok was a maniac when knowledge was concerned. the "taming" process couldn''t fully explain how he was so obedient right now. He was looking for that part and didn''t feel oppressed at this moment. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.Cilerius sat on the chair, got his material out and prepared the ink. Ready, he began to write some words with the best writing he could. That was the title: On the "Pride Blood pack", their settlement and force and their fall to the status of "Pack of the Westerner gnolls". Done with the title, Cilerius began to write on the page, everything he could remember of those gnolls. The different kind, their level and equipment, how they were packed. He listed the spells and skills each used. For each kind, he draw how they were looking. He even draw a map of the region locating where the burrow was and then, another describing the burrow itself. Just as he finished the last picture, a system window opened, warning about his learning of a new skill. !ding! You have acquired the skill painting through your efforts to draw an accurate representation of yours thoughts. ''oooookay... and yet another skill. I hope it will have an use.'' As he was done writing, another system window opened. !ding! Bok has leveled up. The extensive information gained allow him to reach the next level of knowledge. For writing previously unknown information¡¯s, you gain +3 Wis, +3 Int, +3 Concentration and +3 insight. The beautiful writing style is a work of art and testament of your skill. A fine work. Calligraphy skill rise significantly. +2 Dex +10 Art. Just as he closed the popped windows, he could see the text he just wrote, move on the external side of the pages, ink letters sliding. He followed their movement through the book and could see his text settle in the race part, at the letter G. Bok, once new knowledge acquired, arranged it for practical use. ''nice, this book is nice. I can work on my skill and gain stats at the same time. I like that. I just need to be sure to keep him close.'' Looking at the time, Cilerius figured Sigismund wouldn''t be long now. He packed his writing tools then, told Bok: "Bok, You will come with me to explore the world. But as I don''t have, yet, a proper protection and since kids would probably throw stones at a flying book, you will enter my bag. I''ll look for something more practical later." "Okay master... I always wanted to see the world. But child are indeed scary creatures. I''ll enter your bag." And he did so. Cilerius had his own version of what practical device he would make, but he didn''t share his thoughts with Bok, as he would have been then reluctant to enter the bag and go to the open world with his Master. As Cilerius exited the reserve and approached Desmond desk, Sigismund came in. "Cilerius! I''m happy to see you." "Sigismund, I''m delighted to see you. So, were you able to contact your acquaintance?" "yes, of course. He was even happy to hear of me, since he''d like some furniture¡¯s delivered." "I suppose I could do that, since it''s on my way." "yes, and that will make him in good disposition when he welcome you. But you will need a cart." "is that so..." Cilerius thought he may need a horse too but on the upside, he could rest in the cart whenever exhausted after exercising. "by the way, I didn''t ask before, but what is his "element"?" "spirits... the guy is a shaman and deal with the olds spirits. That''s why he live alone and far from habitations. Normal peoples don''t usually like when spirits wander too close." "spirits? okay... that could be a good option for now." "yes... hazard deal you a good hand in this case." "so, when am I supposed to leave?" "as soon as possible. I already wrote the introduction letter, here, take it. And here is the list of the furniture¡¯s he ask for." Sigismund presented him with a paper scroll, that, at the moment he opened it, popped a quest window: !ding! You are asked to collect the furniture¡¯s on the list under and deliver them to the lone spirit master in the forest 5 days to the east. Difficulty: E Reward: rise of reputation with the elemental mages friendship. Small monetary reward. "I''ll do the delivery." You have accepted the delivery quest. Time limit to completion: 10 days. Cilerius answer was obvious. he didn''t think that would be a quest, but knowing the game mechanics, that wasn''t unexpected. The time limit could have been tricky if he wasn''t prepared to leave. There were quite a few items listed on the paper. And Cilerius had to pay for them so he was lucky to have earned much money so early in the game. Of course, what he had before the bets would have sufficed, but only because he cleared a dungeon solo and so could amass a nice savings. It was just after noon, so Cilerius bid his two present friends farewell and left to go see the different merchants he needed to visit to get the items on the list. At the same time, He did buy in bulk, furniture¡¯s for himself. Things such as spices for his cooking, ropes or clothes. When he was done gathering everything, the amount of freight was enough to fill a full cart. Cilerius asked the merchants to hold his buying and he headed to a horse merchant to buy one. He chose a sturdy horse called a percheron, as he needed at least that to pull the heavily loaded cart. A cart he buy just next door, as the two merchants deemed useful to be close one of the other. Now with his cart and horse and lighter by 100 gold pieces, he headed to each merchant and slowly, filled the cart. At the end of the day, his cart full, one could have think he was a merchant ready for a trade trip. As Cilerius made his cart move through the streets of the Nivese, heading to the east gates, some npc''s saluted him. He was, since both the lost object retrieval and the arena event, well appreciated by all the city peoples... that is if you exclude the mage guild and the knights. The mage guild, we know why. The knight guild... well, knights despise anyone who has even a bit of infamy. Were they not indebted to him for objects he retrieved for them, he couldn''t even have walked a step in their barracks. The sun was setting as he crossed the east gate, saluted by the soldiers on guard duty. Just like that, Cilerius left his starting city. One could think he was leaving late, since his level was 71, but as he did find ways to level-up in or near the city, it wasn''t that late. ''Okay, even with the sun set, I still have enough light to advance for 1 or 2 hours. And the moon will be full in 2 nights, so that mean I can advance days and nights.'' His original purpose was to shorten the time needed to get to the shaman''s house, since that would mean more time to work on the magic learned there. In addition, very few humanoids were out at night and monsters usually didn''t come too close of the road. As he planned, Cilerius used the traveling time to work on his skills and spells. Constantly using the wind walk and even the fire steps, he was casting every now and then, the other spells, targeting roadsides, rocks or trees. When he was low on mana, he would train his skills, slashing or piercing at a log he had attached to the cart, with low level sword, dagger, lance, mace and other weapons. He had buy those debutant weapon from player coming back from hunt. they were happy since he was paying more than the npc merchants, but he was too since the price was lower than what he would pay to a merchant. Progress were slow, of course, but way faster than usual, thanks to his class specificities. He had buy 5 of each because he knew their durability would fall fast, given his strength. Even with 5 of each, he was soon left with weapon almost broken. That was a good time to use a skill he didn''t use up to now, since he didn''t have time and need. Climbing on the cart, he set the weapons on one side and a "portable" anvil on his front. He had specifically buy a large cart to have space left. By doing so, he could manage a king of blacksmithing workshop. Of course, only small work could be done with the tools he had. But, thanks to his fires spells, he didn''t need much to heat the metal in the furnace. All set, he took the first weapon, freed the blade from the handle and put it in the furnace. He then casted a fireball to ignite a small amount of coal, then more to heat at very high temperature. In this case, the coal was only used as an agent, the main heat coming from his magic. Once the blade turned from dark red to a yellowish, he picked it up with a pliers and set it on the anvil. He then took the hammer and started the work needed to repair the blade. When done with the hammering, as coolant, he was using a water bucket where he put his hand with the ice palm spell. He planned to use the spell directly on the heated metal when he would feel more confident about it. Burning his hand wasn''t a good way to improve one¡¯s fighting abilities. The first and even the second try weren''t very successful, but his skill still raised a little. With the knowledge of experience, his next attempts were more resulted. To repair all the weapons, it took him one hour and he reached beginner 2 (15%). Done with this work, he got down of the cart and resumed the abuse on the log. And the travel proceeded the same, day and night while he was awake. Spell casting, fighting skill rising against an innocent log and weapon repair. This way, even without rest time, he was replenishing stamina while spell casting and mana while exercising fighting skills and using moderately both while repairing. On the third day, at noon, Cilerius saw a little track going from the way he was traveling, into the forest. From Sigismund explications, he understood that it was the track he had to continue on to get to the shaman house. He was just done with repairs, once again and decided to pack for now. The uneven and narrow path wasn''t adequate for those activities. In three days, he had gained even more sustenance and endurance, thanks to his hard work, both while exercising and while repairing, 2 points of strength, 1 of Int and 5, good surprise, of concentration, as casting from a tossed cart wasn''t really stable and so, needed more attention. The repair skill raised to beginner 4 (56%) and he raised the fighting¡¯s skills in a balanced manner, to beginner 4 (90%) each. Rising even more those skills proved hard if by only hitting a log. On the magic part, he was at intermediate 3 (10%) at least for all, the higher being his fire finger spell at 30% because of the intensive use for repair. After 1 hour advancing on this side path, he arrived at a clearing where, clearly, spirits gathered. Already on the path, some crossed the road from one side to the other, exiting and entering the surrounding forest. In middle of the clearing, a low house was there. Its door seemed half buried but when looking more closely, Cilerius could see steps that were going down and explained that. In front of the house, there was a pyre. On one side, a bog while on the other, a pond. On the roof, a mast with many mobile parts. There was, in the back, some kind of... a cemetery? Many small pits, with apparent bones, were dig there. Stopping his horse, Cilerius waited, still, for a moment and when he saw no reaction, he climbed down the cart and walked to the door. He walked climbed down the steps and, facing the door, knocked it. Nothing. The silence... He knocked again. Then some noise could be heard. The noise grow, slowly. That could mean something was coming closer. The noise was now coming from right behind the door. Then a huge voice resounded: "I don''t want to subscribe to the Versaille gazette nor to get an insurance contract. Go away!" "uhm... errr, mister, I''m send by Sigismund". At those words, the lock made a opening sound and the door opened slightly. "Sigismund send you?" "Yes. I have some furnitures you asked for and a letter." The door opened wide. Facing Cilerius was a big man, both in height and width. He was probably 2m high for 160kg. Dressed in brown tunic and pant with some sort of rope as belt. His face was accorded to the rest of his body, big. Big mouth, big nose, bigs eyes overcome by bushy eyebrow. His hairs, same as his beard, were long, wavy and matted, with a grey color that showed evolve to the white. This big guy was apparently in his 60¡¯s, even if his body condition could be of a 40¡¯s man. "hmmmf... let''s see if you have everything." he told Cilerius, first looking at him from toes to hairs then behind, to the cart. "So, according to the list, here are 3 barrels of molasses, 5 bag of rice ... " Cilerius was indicating items in the cart as he was reading the list. "hmmm... okay... you did good. Everything is here and i was expecting you at least 2 days later. How much do I own you for the purchases?" Cilerius told him the right price, without adding a commission fee. "you are a honest fellow... thank you for your work." Said the man facing him. !ding!, delivery is completed in time. Quest completed. You gain 1 gold piece for your work. You gain some xp. Your reputation with the elemental mages friendship increase. Your Intimacy with Gurdianson raise. As you didn''t try to rip him off, your intimacy with him raise. You are now in good terms with Gurdianson. Level-up Cilerius, given the 93 quest he did at the harbor, even with the very little xp it rewarded, was close to raise a level. The little push from this quest was enough to get to level 72. "My name is Gurdianson... here are the buying cost I own you." he continued while giving Cilerius a little pouch. "you told me you had a letter from Sigismund for me?" "yes. Here it is." Answered Cilerius while taking out the letter from inside in tunic and reaching out to the shaman. He took it, watched the seal as to verify its autenticity and if it was intact, then broke it and opened the letter. While reading, his eyebrows raised a few times and he even looked at the occasional postman facing him. "hmmm... it seem Sigismund like you. That speak great length about you. And you displeased Bragarthon? Even better. So... Sigismund write me you''d like to learn a little about the spirit realm? Do you intend to become a shaman? I certainly could train you." "To be perfectly honest, even if the spirit realm seem to be of a formidable interest, I can''t only focus on it. I don''t know how Sigismund described it, but I learned some spells from the mage academy, but now, I need to look for many other kind of magic. So, if it isn''t too much pain, I''d like you to teach me as much as you can to an "outsider"." "honest... good... spirits usually dislike shroud persons. That''s a start... and he tell me you''re a hard worker. That could do... I may accept to teach you a little of my art. But first, I must see if you''re worthy of it. Show me your what''s your made of." That was an npc way to ask to show the status windows. "status window, open look for Gurdianson." Said Cilerius, and his status window opened, apparent for him and his interlocutor. Name: Cilerius Level: 72 Class: Elemental* Brawler Title: Scourge of the westerner gnolls HP: 15391 Mana: 18372 Fame: 1601 Infamy: 202 Str: 253 Dex: 233 Vit: 183 Int: 255 Wis: 251 Concentration: 126 Endurance: 192 Sustenance: 157 Insight: 10 Art: 35 Luck: 20 Leadership: 20 Resist: Fire: 24 Light: 4 Ice: 14 Dark: 14 Earth: 14 Poison: 14 Air: 14 Disease: 4 Spirit: 4 Magic mastery: I3 (25%) Magical restriction: I3 (11%) Magic missile: I3 (12%) Mana preservation: I3 (17%) Meditation: I3 (12%) Identification: I1 (%) Fire mastery: I3 (25%) Fire finger: I3 (31%) Fire walk: I3 (10%) Ice mastery: I3 (19%) Ice palm: I3 (23%) Ice shield: I3 (13%) Earth mastery: I3 (12%) Mineral needles: I3 (17%) Soil alteration: I3 (12%) Wind mastery: I3 (11%) Zephyr restriction: I3 (12%) Wind walk: I3 (11%) Brawling: B5 (98%) Pankration: B7 (35%) 1H blunt: B6 (23%) 2H blunt: B6 (20%) Piercing: B4 (90%) 1H slash: B4 (90%) 2H slash: B4 (90%) Polearm: B4 (90%) 1H mace: B4 (90%) 2H mace: B4 (90%) Dodging: B7 (88%) Disarm: B1 (5%) Tracking: B3 (34%) Hunting: B4 (21%) Trapping: B4 (67%) Cooking: B4 (12%) Tailoring: B3 (2%) Mining: B2 (89%) Repair: B4 (56%) Throwing: B1 (1%) Trap disarm: B1 (1%) Calligraphy: B6 (67%)Drawing: B1 ( 78%) Apply poison: B1 (1%) Alchemy: B1 (1%) Herbalism: B1 (1%) Foraging: B1 (1%) Taunt: B1 (1%) Sneak: B1 (1%) Shield use: B1 (1%) Ambidexterity: B9(89%) Handicraft B7 (42%) (B=beginner, I=intermediate, A=advanced, M=master, GM= grand master) ¡°hmmm, that¡¯s quite the extensive collection of skills. And some are¡­ nice.¡± Gurdianson said with an appreciative look. ¡°Sigismund wasn¡¯t lying when he wrote you were an hard worker. Those stats, for your level. Mark me impressed. Listen, I now understand what you told me and that you can¡¯t concentrate on only one element. Seeing how you worked with the hand dealt to you, I really feel like teaching you. But nothing can exempt you from the test each and every of my apprentice candidates must pass. Do you want to try the test?¡± Cilerius didn¡¯t answer immediately, Not that he hesitated, but an immediate and rash decision wasn¡¯t probably what this shaman wanted. Shamans must take time to consult the spirits. ¡°yes, I want to try and pass your test.¡± ¡°good¡­ may you not regret this decision.¡± Cilerius was already prepared for a tough test. The way Sigismund spoke about his friend and from what he saw since his arrival, Gurdianson wasn¡¯t one to let just anyone pass. One would have to convince him of his worth, whatever that meant. ¡°For now, come inside and undress. Just keep a loin cloth.¡± And Cilerius did so, getting in the same attire he had in the arena. ¡°drink that and eat those.¡± added Gurdianson, presenting him with a sticky liquid in a cup and a plate with dessicated mushrooms. Taking a sip of the drink and a bite of the mushrooms, Cilerius asked: ¡°what are those for?¡± ¡°anyone who want to deal with the spirits must open some gates in his mind. Sometimes, it does happen naturally or by accident. Else, you need to set some condition for the same result.¡± Nodding in agreement, Cilerius gulped down the rest of the drink then the remaining mushrooms and waited for Gurdianson next direction. ¡°come with me.¡± He said while opening the way for Cilerius down some stairs leading to a cave. The cave was excavated in the rock and on the walls, primitives drawings represented many animals and some other things not immediately discernable. Even less by Cilerius who¡¯s mind and eyes were becoming cloudy. ¡°here, sit down in the middle of the stone room. Open your mind as much as you can. Your potential at shamanic magic will be decided by how many spirits will come to visit you and may decide to stay.¡± Chapter 6: Safe? house The elemental brawler Chapter 6: Safe? house. Part 1 As Cilerius drove his cart to the city gates, he thought again about what happened the day before, with the brigands. That earned him many benefits. Level up, spirit intimacy increase and, the most important with his new class, brawling skill increase. ¡®That was nice. But I can¡¯t expect morons to run at me each time I may need them to. I¡¯ll have to find ways to provoke somes. That could be fun¡­ but even without the red mark, I¡¯ll build a reputation. That could prove a problem. And there is the arena thing. I can¡¯t stay shackled to it.¡¯ ¡°Damn!¡± he shouted, deep in his thoughts as he was almost at the gate. At this exclamation, the guards standing there looked up to see the origin of this ruckus. They saw a man on the bench of his cart, that seemed annoyed for some reasons. ¡°Halt! What¡¯s your business here?¡± Shouted one of the guards. As if waking up from a dream, Cilerius, at his turn, looked up too and saw the two guards there, then realised that he had sweared aloud. ¡°Hi, officer¡­ I¡¯m just a traveler coming from Nivese.¡± ¡°I¡¯m no officer¡­ don¡¯t try to flatter me. What¡¯s in the cart?¡± ¡°well, hmmm, some goods I¡¯m carrying from a friend.¡± ¡°Ah ah¡­ Are you a merchant?¡± ¡°uhhhh nope¡­ can¡¯t say I am¡­ It¡¯s just an occasional transport.¡± ¡°What goods are they? Nothing prohibited?¡± ¡°No clues what the goods are. I just know who I have to carry that to. Let me look for the names, I have a scroll with the list in my bag.¡± As he was saying that and beginning to rummage in his bag, a soldier climbed on the back of the cart and opened one of the barrels then exclaimed: ¡°By Freya sake! What¡¯s that?¡± Turning his head to the back, Cilerius could see what was inside the barrel for the first time. There was a slimy, smelly green substance that bubbled. At the guard exclamation and seeing jump from the cart and fumbling to pull his sword out of its scabbard, the two other guards now pointed their lance toward Cilerius, threatening. After a short moment of surprise, he looked at them and said: ¡°Easy¡­ easy now¡­ I¡¯m gonna pull this scroll from my bag as I told you and hand it to you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t make no funny stuff. Pull the scroll with two finger and don¡¯t try to unroll it or read it!¡± Shouted one of the guard with an air of scared character in a violent movie. If that was a player, he for sure had seen too many movies. If that was a NPC, it was well programmed to give a living feel. Slowly, to not induce bad response, Cilerius pulled the scroll to the guard who seemed in charge and asked: ¡°Now, read by yourself who are the people I¡¯m running this errand for and go ask them if there is any problem.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t tell me what to do.¡± Answered the soldier as he began to read the scroll. The color of his face gradually faded as his mouth gaped down. ¡°ermmm, hmmm¡­ how to say that that. That¡¯s quite the list you have here. And you say those goods are for them?¡± ¡°well, yes, of course. I have no idea who they are nor what this stuff is. I just was asked to deliver it to them, safely and untouched. I got through some brigands yesterday, I wonder if I¡¯ll have to tell the ¡°customers¡± that was guards that delayed or docked their shipment.¡± Answered Cilerius, pointing with his thumb the back of his cart and getting assurance as he had seen the guard losing his. The ¡°customers¡± must have been some big shoot in the city if the guard was about to cry. ¡°okay¡­ move on, don¡¯t be late!!! wait a sec¡­ did you say brigands?¡± ¡°yes, a day ago down the road. They tried to ambush me but proved lacking in their robbing skills.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s true, welcome in Hartburg. Brigands are a problem we like to be relieved of. Go and see our guard captain at the watch office later. There may have been some price on their heads.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do that, thanks soldier.¡± And he drove his cart through the gates. ¡®I don¡¯t know what¡¯s this stuff is, but at least those ¡°customers¡± mean something here.¡¯ And, slowly, he headed for the central place of the city, where he could look its map. There, he looked around a located the plan. From the scroll, he read the first two name and their address just to see they were in opposed places of the city. Cilerius could already figure that none of them would be close of the other. And with a single look at the map, he saw that the city had a complex topography. Sure, some streets were well orderly, but for the most part, it was a maze. From this point, Cilerius only one course of obvious action open to him. He pulled a big blank piece of paper, his pen and the ink. Then he began to draw, copying the outline to the city plan. It was hard and tedious work, but with the original to look at, it was easier. As he was done, the familiar ring of system windows popping up was heard but he dismissed them immediately as he could figure what they were about. His calligraphy and drawing skills had gone up due to the success of a difficult work. Raising his head once his work done, Cilerius then realised that many peoples were around, looking at what he was doing. He was packing up his tools when a human, dressed in a robe, asked: ¡°by any chance, were you drawing the map of the city?¡± ¡°yes, why?¡± ¡°errrrr, could you do it again? I¡¯d pay one gold piece for a map.¡± ¡°Hey! Don¡¯t listen to him. I¡¯ll pay two golds.¡± ¡°Me two and ten silvers!¡± Shouts were coming from all around and Cilerius was confused. ¡°Why are you all wanting to buy a map from me?¡± The shouts recessed and after looking left and right, the first man to spoke before answered: ¡°Well¡­ the city is literally a maze, yes? They don¡¯t sell maps anywhere. If we want to get somewhere, we have to use the guide¡­ and they charge us with ten silvers a tour. And there are many quest that require running around here. We can¡¯t just let the possibility to get credential pass. We¡¯re willing to pay for your work, pay well. Would you do that for us, please? We all would be very grateful.¡± For one second, Cilerius contemplated the power he wielded here. Then, after weighting the pros and cons, he answered: ¡°Listen! That¡¯s not something I can do right here and right now. I have some business to attend.¡± Boo retended and some even said, loud enough for Cilerius to hear, as it was intended: ¡°damn that greedy bastard¡­ he want to charge us more now that he know we¡¯re in need¡­ or does he want to keep this advantage for himself?¡± ¡°I heard that¡­¡± ¡°shaddup, you moron¡­ what if he decide to not help us because of you!¡± ¡°Listen¡­ I said right here and right now¡­ Like I said, I have some business to attend and it can¡¯t wait. Once I¡¯m done with that, I¡¯ll draw some more of those maps. And I¡¯ll charge you only two gold each for the first batch I do. That will be a lot of work, at least at the beginning. Later, when I can produce them more easily and faster, I¡¯ll charge less. If you want to be served on the first batch, be here tomorrow at¡­ let¡¯s say at the sun set.¡± Murmures still echoed on the place but peoples didn¡¯t shout anymore. They understood who holded the power right now and their need. Cilerius, he, had seized the opportunity that presented itself. That was like looking in a river and finding a gold nugget then, instead of running to exchange it and claiming everywhere his luck, keeping to himself and looking for more. Here, he could make a lot of money, raise his skills and make connections. Well, a lot of money if you forget that he had made a lot more in bettings. But for someone under level 100, that was a lot. Few tradeskill could earn him that. His map in hands, Cilerius climbed on the bench of his cart and headed to the first point of the delivery route he had devised. Some peoples were still following him, till they saw him get near the gates of some wealthy house and in, after a short talk to the guards. A few were still following him when he exited and headed for the next point, but then, they stopped, wondering how this guy was entering the households of some of the mens that were the most hard to approach. Cilerius, not paying attention to his followers, arrived to the first house and at the question of the guards, answered he had a delivery for the master of this household. The guards were about to send him back when he precised that was a delivery from Gurdianson. At this name, the guards bowed and apologized profusely for holding someone who their master waited on so much. Inside the house court, He was told to wait for them to go inform their master. Who came off fast. ¡°I¡¯m told you were sent by Gurdianson?¡± ¡°yes, he asked me to make some delivery and, I have something for you.¡± Answered Cilerius as he looked for something in the cart, one eye at a second scroll he had. ¡°Here it is¡­ this is the bag addressed to you.¡± He said, handing a bag to the master of the house. The man received it with excitation, opened it a little to look inside then closing it with a big grin on his face, said: ¡°thank you for the delivery. Here, catch this purse. It will cover the fare.¡± ¡°oh! thanks, that too much.¡± ¡°no, no. I¡¯m grateful of you for this quick delivery.¡± ¡°that was no problem, sir. Only a few brigands on the way, just enough to relieve me from the boredom.¡± ¡°Brigands? And you protected the cargo? Good¡­ even better. Be advised that if you ever need something, you be at least welcome here to ask. Now, be on you way, and stay safe.¡± !Ding! Familiarity with the Everthop household raise by 50. ¡°Thank you. Stay safe too.¡± More than the money compensation, that was what he was after. Credentials with some of influential NPC¡¯s was a more valuable asset than gold, sometimes. Cilerius Drove his cart out of the house court then to the next point of his delivery route, noticing fewer peoples following him. He passed the rest of the day to make his deliveries, garnering credentials and purses as he did so. At the sun set, he was done and the cart was almost empty, but for his own bagages. Figuring he would need a place to rest, he headed to an inn but, as he was about to climb down the cart, he reconsidered and headed for the watch office. There, he asked for the guard captain. Since he didn¡¯t have familiarity with the guards yet, the captain came a long moment later and asked, almost scornfully: ¡°what do you want from me¡­ I was eating such a succulent dinner.¡± ¡°Please excuse me then for the derangement, I was told to come and report to you some encounter I made on my way here from Nivese.¡± ¡°Encounter? Do I have a look to care about the squirrels that crossed the route on your way here?¡± ¡°Squirrels? Hahahah¡­ that¡¯s funny¡­ No, of course I wouldn¡¯t trouble you for that. But what about brigands?¡± ¡°Brigands? We did receive reports of brigands lurking around the city, yes¡­ but if it¡¯s to report a robbery, you can see with the attendant, there, at the desk¡­¡± he was about turn and head back in his office when Cilerius continued: ¡°I¡¯m not reporting a robbery¡­ I¡¯m reporting the disposal of the said brigands¡­¡± The captain stopped his walk away, tuned on himself again and for the first time, examined carefully the adventurer facing him. ¡°Disposal? Do you mean you disposed of them?¡± ¡°yes, I would come to report for anything less¡­¡± ¡°Do you have any proof of your claim.¡± asked the captain, now interested. ¡°Well, of course I didn¡¯t cut heads to show off, I¡¯m civilized. But they all had those badges.¡± said Cilerius, handing one of the badges he had collected in the loots without paying attention at the time. ¡°Oh, yes¡­ I see, those are the the badges of the wolves of the red forest. I heard those brigands changed their leader some times ago. They weren¡¯t there when we headed in their hide-out to capture them. So they were in the forest around the road from Nivese?¡± ¡°I suppose, yes. At least, that¡¯s where they tried to ambush me.¡± ¡°Okay¡­ the badges are legit. 15 badges¡­ good work man¡­¡± Now, the captain was more friendly and, as proof of that, a system window flashed: !Ding! Familiarity with the Hartburg guard raise significantly. +150. ¡®Good, that was 10 points a head.¡¯ ¡°here, catch this¡­¡± Said the captain, throwing him a purse. ¡°They were small time offender so, the reward is ¡­ small.¡± ¡°That¡¯s more than enough. But in fact, I would be delighted with another reward¡­¡± ¡°what¡­?¡± asked the captain with a frown drawing on his face. ¡°Nothing important¡­ just a piece of information.¡± ¡°Ask and, if it¡¯s in my power, I¡¯ll answer.¡± ¡°That should be. Here, you see, earlier, I was looking for a room to rent at an inn, then I figured I could try to rent a little house. So, I was wondering if you could advise me on where to look or with who to talk¡­¡± The captain face loosened a little hearing the request, as it wasn¡¯t something abusive. ¡°I see¡­ so you want a house in this fine city. I can understand why you ask me that. seeing how this city is a maze. Well¡­ depending your budget, there are three kinds of houses availables, and three different men to see. If you ever want to buy or rent a mansion, go to the Marble Hand near the central place. It¡¯s expensive but worth it. If you want a normal house, near the marketplace, go see the Stone Hand. If your budget doesn¡¯t allow you the first two places, in the slum, you can look for the Beggar Hand. Well, this one isn¡¯t in building, his office is a table in an alley at the south entrance of the slum.¡± ¡°I see¡­ thank you captain. I¡¯ll go and check those offices. Have a good night.¡± ¡°Good bye. And stay away from the slum at night. It¡¯ more healthy.¡± On those words, Cilerius left and as he was driving his cart away, marked down on his map, the three locations explained by the guard captain. He headed to the second location, as, if he guessed he had enough to buy a mansion, he didn¡¯t need to for the use he planned for it. At the marketplace, the merchants were starting to pack their displays. He looked around and spotted the building with signboard marked Stone Hand. Climbing down his cart, he tied his percheron to a post, picked his bags from the cart and crossed the place to the office. He entered and could see at a desk, a woman dive nodding, sign of a long work day without much activity. He approached the desk and stood there, waiting for the woman to react. After half a minute, as she didn¡¯t, he tried to attract her awareness. ¡°hmmm¡± No reaction¡­ ¡°HMMM Hmmm!¡± Still no reaction¡­ ¡°Excuse me!¡± She was still dive nodding¡­ Cilerius noticed a book on the desk, took it and slammed it on the table, producing a really loud sound and shaking the desk at the same time. This time, the woman reacted: ¡°AHHHHHHH!?!? What is it? no, no¡­ I wasn¡¯t sleeping. Absolutely not!¡± ¡°Hi¡­ could you please advise me on property acquisition?¡± The woman, in her mid 30ties, still had clouded eyes and a little slobber at the corner of her mouth. regaining her senses, she whipped her mouth with her sleeve in mouvement showing practice and focused on the man facing her. ¡°Hi, what can I do for you?¡± ¡°errr, like I said, I¡¯d like counseling on property acquisition.¡± She raised from her chair and as if she was scanning him, looked at him from head to toes and seemed to make a conclusion of that. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re here to look for a future home, I can of course advise you. But the day is nearing its end and I¡¯m closing soon.¡± From his look, she rightly deemed Cilerius under level 100 and guessed he couldn¡¯t possibly afford to buy or even rent one the house or flat she could propose. And she didn¡¯t feel like making effort for someone who wouldn¡¯t pay today. ¡°Then I¡¯ll be brief. I¡¯m looking for an at least two rooms lodging, nothing too grand but good enough. What would be the monthly rent and the buyout price for something like that?¡± Since the question was precise enough and he didn¡¯t seem to plan some window shopping, she thought for a few second and answered: ¡°Depending the location and the size, you would need from 5 golds a month to 40 for rent, or 600 golds to about 5000 golds to buy it.¡± Cilerius made a quick calculation in his head and concluded: ¡°So the buyout is worth about 10 years on rent.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s about it.¡± ¡°Okay¡­ then, I¡¯d like to see what you have to propose for¡­ let¡¯s say, 1000 golds.¡± He said, opening a pouch full of gold in front of the woman. Then, for a whole minute, she could only loot alternately at him and the pouch, with her mouth gaping wide and a unique sound coming out: ¡°Heeeeeee?¡± Then she regained her thoughts began to act as the realtor she was. ¡°So, estimmed customer, do you intend to buy a house? I have the perfect one, not too close to the market but on main street. Of course, it would cost you a little more than 1000 golds.¡± She now was trying to sell something more expensive since her cut was 25% on the base price. ¡°No¡­ the main street would be too noisy and I¡¯d like to stay a little away of the busiest parts of the city.¡± She keep trying to propose houses or flats that were over 1000 golds, then she gave up and concentrated on what he was really looking for. ¡°So, let¡¯s resume. Not too big, not upstanding, at least two rooms, away from the busiest part of the city¡­ I may have that, but you have to come with me to look if it suit you.¡± She said, taking a key with her and inviting him to follow. She closed the office door behind her and lead the way to a three floor house. ¡°See, this house is divided in three parts. Two flats and a place for either a shop or a workshop on main floor. The access to the flats is made by those stairs outside. Would the location suit you?¡± ¡°That seem correct. Can I take a look inside?¡± ¡°Of course, that¡¯s why I took the key with me. The flats up for sale is the once just under the roof.¡± She climbed the stairs up to the second floor, followed by Cilerius who was looking around. She opened the door and entered, continuing to make a sale speech. Basically, that was a three rooms flats, with an entrance by the stairs, two windows in this room and a door leading to the second room. That one had also two window, looking to the roof of the house next to this one and another door leading to the third room. The last room was a blind room. No windows, only the door that permitted to enter it. That was a little room, almost like a closet, just a little wider. ¡°So, what do you think about this flat?¡± ¡°hmmm¡­ the location is good and the arrangement of the flat itself could suit my needs. How much?¡± ¡°This one would be 950 golds.¡± ¡°Hmmm¡­ that seem a little expensive for this location and the size.¡± Cilerius was loaded, but that didn¡¯t mean he would throw gold like that. ¡°Of course, I didn¡¯t deduct the usual discount, so that would be 900 golds.¡± ¡°It seem empty since a long time¡­¡± ¡°And as the actual owner would like to sell it, we are able the cut the price a little more to 850 golds.¡± ¡°Really empty¡­ no furnitures, nothing¡­¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, I forgot about that¡­ what about a discount of 20 golds?¡± ¡°And it need renovation¡­ the floor crack a lot¡­¡± Now, the woman was desperate. She needed to sell this flat to increase her accounting skill but her cut was reducing to a trickle. ¡°Listen, about that, I can only add a discount of 10 golds and refer you to a good craftsman.¡± ¡°820 golds then? hmmm¡­ ¡° Cilerius still affected to show hesitation but he was already ready to buy. He just needed to make her think he was doing her a favor. ¡°Okay then for 820 golds.¡± He said as if with reluctance, subtracting some pieces from the pouch then giving it to her. In return, he received the flat¡¯s key from a smiling woman who thought she had made a good sale with an exigent customer. She gave him as promised, the referrals to the craftsman and left, sure she was the winning one in the deal. Of course, Cilerius thought of it differently since he made a nice saving with tactful negotiation. ¡®That seem perfect¡­ the main door in front, two windows that lead to the roof of the house next door and a blind room. Good.¡¯ Of course, he could have look for a flat to rent, since on short term, it would cost him less, but he was one to like owning things. And this way, he was sure no landlord would come in. With a quick look around, he assessed what furnitures he needed and left after marking his map with the location of his house. The city was made so that without a map of a guide, you could walk near the place you were looking for and still miss it. He exited the place, locked the door and climbed down the stairs. Then he walked toward the marketplace, according to the map, then to a shop. That was a general store with all kinds of goods for sale. He bought what he needed immediately and ordered for some furnitures he needed. The merchant told him to come back the next day after noon for it and he left. He still had one thing to do and headed to his cart, untied the reins and lead it toward a stable. There, he negociate with the groom and paid kim for taking care of his sturdy horse and storing the cart. Cilerius wasn¡¯t sure he would need them again, but thought it was likely and best to keep a know horse and cart instead of selling them with a discount just to have to buy them again later. Also, the pension wasn¡¯t expensive so¡­ As he exited the stable, he noticed a shadow quickly removing itself from view, behind a corner two streets down. Not too worried but careful enough, he walked away, took a turn then ran till the next corner and took another sharp turn. Then, melting himself in the shadow of the street, waited. Soon after, without a sound announcing it, a shadow in the form a person, walked fast past the street, looking right and left, then, as if not noticing Cilerius, walked further. But Cilerius had noticed a the very little hesitation at the moment the shadow saw him. ¡®sneak skill, some sort of track probably. What does he want with me? I¡¯m alone here, nobody to help in case¡­ if that was an assassin or a thief, he could have made his strike just now. Speaking of track¡­¡¯ Next, Cilerius whispered: ¡°Track!¡± And immediately, the trail of his stalker highlighted and he could see it lead further then turn at a corner. Passing the intersection without real head movement, he checked with only the corner of his eyes and could see the trail leading in a shadow of the street. Cilerius couldn¡¯t stop a little grin to show on his face, but with the poor light, it wouldn¡¯t be seen. He couldn¡¯t almost notice the shadow melted in the shadow, only helped by the hunting skill that gave him a little passive buff to spot hidden live beings. Now sure he was the target of this track, Cilerius began to plan a way to first lose his follower, then to know what he wanted. ¡®Apparently, he isn¡¯t a hunter or ranger¡­ so his track skill shouldn¡¯t be the same as mine¡­ I have some convenient skills to use for that¡­ I just need a diversion.¡¯ He then checked his map for something and headed for the place he was looking for. There, he entered a little shop, luckily still open despite the late hour. The light was too dim for the signboard to be readable, but the inside didn¡¯t let any doubts of what was being sold here. That was an alchemy shop. Cilerius asked the merchant for a few products, paid for them and then left and headed for the slums. On his way, he mixed some ingredients in three different pouches. Soon, he was near the slums, as the populace roaming around was a clue. Many not so engaging faces were there, some men using a dagger to clean their nails or juggling with. For anyone not ready enough, this was suicide to enter the slum like that, alone. For Cilerius, that wasn¡¯t a real problem. Whatever happening now would be to his benefit. If someone attacked him, it would benefit his brawling skill. They would also hinder the moves of his stalker. The only risk was the presence of a high level malicious thug. But his research about this city, on the net, didn¡¯t hint about this case. So Cilerius was feeling safe. Once in the slum, some other peoples followed him for a while but lost interest as he was walking around without goal, seeming to be lost, tacking many times the same way after turning again and again at each corners. That was to make his tracks mixed again and again, so the latest couldn¡¯t be told from the oldest. At the same time, he was looking for a good spot where to use his diversion. He finally found what he wanted and once again, passed and passed again on the same track near the chosen spot. Still having his own track engaged on his stalker, he discreetly checked on his actual position and took the three pouches out. He stopped where he had planned and after untying the pouches a little, whispered: ¡°Fire coating!¡± targeting the pouches. With the properties of this spell, the pouches were safe, but not their contents if it was touched by the flames. Then, with the burning pouches in hands, he turned, looked at the place his stalker was, made an exaggerated wink then, throw one pouch in his direction, one in the opposing direction and the last where he was standing. Upon hitting the ground, the pouches all opened and their contents exploded as it wath licked by the fire. The explosion wasn¡¯t violent, just loud and produced thick colored smoke. This done, Cilerius proceeded with the rest of his plan and ran to one of the alley where he didn¡¯t create a smoke screen and hide where he planned. On his first passage here, he had noticed on the side, all the wastes, including a cover. He didn¡¯t create smoke here, where he was planning to hide, for two reasons. One, misleading the stalker. It was natural to think the prey would use the smoke to cover his escape and the stalker would run through the smoke, ignoring the side alleys without smokes. Second, he needed a clear view to check on his stalker position when he would pass the crossroad. ¡®and I succeeded in creating smoke bombs¡­ easy enough if you get black powder and some coloring agents. I even got the recipe registered and a nice raise of alchemy skill¡­ but next, I must learn to make black powder myself¡­ it¡¯s expensive to buy.¡¯ The shadow, still sneaking but not silencious since he was profusely cussing, passed through the crossroad without a look on the side. He was running his head down, looking at the ground, trying to pick a fresh trail. Cilerius stayed lying a long moment, waiting for his stalker to pass and pass again, to finally look on the sides but walk next to his hiding place without any clues. After 10 minutes, the guy finally throw the towel and seemed to contact someone using the friend list. Cilerius couldn¡¯t of course hear what was said, but at the expressions show on his face, he could understand that it wasn¡¯t plaisant. ¡®Ok¡­ that¡¯s not an individual but a group that check on me¡­ now, to know who they are...¡¯ Cilerius waited for the stalker to finish his conversation then move away. He waited a little more, then, activating his own sneak skill, got out of his hiding place and carefully headed for the crossroad, checking for his trail. With great care, he then walked, almost hugging the walls and followed this trail, leaving space between his old stalker and now prey, and him. The trail lead to a mansion. Of course, he didn¡¯t follow up to the doors, but stopped as soon he knew what building it was. In this city, only some wealthy NPC¡¯s and guild possessed mansions. And that wasn¡¯t a NPC mansion. ¡®Now¡­ what would a guild want with me who only came in town today? Is it about the maps? Noooo¡­ they wouldn¡¯t bother when they could buy them all tomorrow¡­ what then? Only one solution to know. I have to go and spy¡­ ninja time...¡¯ He chuckled a little at this thought and then prepared to enter the mansion. He first checked the surroundings for an access, then when he found one, looked for escape routes. ¡®Going in is usually easy enough. The problem is always when you have to run out with possible pursuers.¡¯ Using the shadows and the side alleys, he approached his entrance point, a wall on the back, totally in darkness. Now, he had to climb or find another way. Lucky for him, he had another way. A trick he used for offensive purpose before. Now, he needed to adapt it for this purpose. In a whisper, he said in sequence: This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Ice shield, Wind walk.¡± Then, lowering his power to the minimum and targeting the area just under him: ¡°Earth needles¡±. The result? Remember how the guy was throw up in the arena? Well, that¡¯s the same process, but for the lower power so he wouldn¡¯t fly too high. ¡®Nice to have a trick like that. I¡¯m sure many who would sell a kidney for it.¡¯ Wizards could get the levitate spell when reaching the intermediate level in the wind mastery. But there was a quest involved and regent used, costly regent. Some other class had trick too, to climb a wall or something alike. But this trick didn¡¯t need regent nor tools. Just basics spells and imagination. Even with lowering the power of the earth needle, he was throw 2 meters higher than the wall but was safe thanks to the wind walk that allowed him to land safely on top of the wall. He released the spell then, using sneak, walked to a point where the mansion roof was close to the wall. A jump and he landed on it. He then looked around for an entrance and noticed a fanlight he opened with care and slided through. He was in the attic. With a lot of care, because sneak doesn¡¯t resolve everything, even more with a skill low as his, he walked near the edge of the attic floor then crouched and crawled till he could see and hear what was going down in the hall. Down there, many peoples were assembled. Dressed in all kind of attire, spellcasters, heavy melee or nimble types were discussing, loudly. Obviously, they weren¡¯t happy and a man on the side, dressed in black, was the target of many angry glances. ¡°damnit! They asked us¡­ I mean commanded us to keep an eye on him and we lost him? How do you want me to report that? They fund us to keep order in this city and sometime run errands for them. What if they decide the switch the supported guild? We would lose funds and position.¡± ¡°yes¡­ but who the f..k is this guy. They ask us to watch his every moves, to protect him in case of problems with another player, but everything while staying in the shadow. And he could lose him like that? What level is he?¡± Here, the man suffering the anger of everyone spoke: ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure. But according his gear, I would say between level 50 and 80. Not higher. He noticed me when he got out of the stable, so we could keep watch there too, not only at his flat.¡± ¡°yeh¡­ we will do that. Did he do anything else noticeable?¡± ¡°He probably has many skills. He used some alchemy trick to create a thick smoke to lose me. His build is athletic but he seem to use magic.¡± ¡°what a fucked of character. Though I¡¯d like this smoke screen trick.¡± ¡°yeh, but that¡¯s not the point here. If we don¡¯t find him before they ask for a report or if something happen to him, we¡¯re fucked!¡± ¡°okay, you, you and you, go on the lookout at the designated places. We will send relieving each 2 hours to be certain we have alert peoples on watch duty. You, go in the slum and see if he¡¯s still around.¡± At those words, four peoples left in hurry. ¡°now, you, did you check the non smocked alley?¡± ¡°not immediately. I assumed he used the smoke to escape so I ran through. Then when I looked for his trail, everything was mixed up.¡± ¡°later, in the side non smocked alleys, did you check if he was hiding there?¡± A long silence was the only answer. ¡°damn¡­ at least learn from your mistakes. This guy is smart. He applied real life trick with the game possibilities. From now on, when dealing with him, keep thinking of the most devious move he could use. The probability it¡¯s the one he will use is high.¡± At that, everyone shouted a loud yes, then as if this was their dismissal, they scattered in small groups, exited or simply disappeared, loging out. ¡®ok¡­ I know enough for now and it¡¯s not like they will expose their plans in the open for me to see. I better leave before someone notice me.¡¯ On this thought, Cilerius crawled back from the floor edge, then raised and walked to the fanlight and slipped out. The rest was easier, he just had to jump to the wall and down in the dark alley. That done, he headed back in the direction of the slum, using side alley and keeping watch of move around. From what he heard, if those players were even only half intelligent, they wouldn¡¯t lose his trail that easily anymore. He headed for the slum because he figured that would be the place where it would be the easiest to lose a stalker again. That and since he heard they knew about his flat, he figured he needed an alternate place, unknow of them and where they couldn¡¯t find him easily. Arrived at the edge of the slum, from an alley, he looked around to see if there was any spotter. On the negative and after a long wait, he moved to a guy sat behind a table. ¡°Is it the Beggar Hand office?¡± ¡°yes.. it is indeed¡­ what can I do for you?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to buy a little house, two rooms or more, in the slum¡­ away from preying eyes.¡± ¡°Hmmm¡­ that I could get you¡­ that I could have¡­ but do you have the money for it?¡± ¡°Speak your price.¡± ¡°If you want to buy it, that would cost you 300 golds. Discretion is an additional 100 gold¡­¡± ¡®Crap¡­ I let my need show and now he¡¯s taking advantage... but I better don¡¯t start to bargain now, with someone unwanted who could show up anytime.¡¯ ¡°okay for the buyout price and your silence price.¡± Answered dryly Cilerius, throwing a purse to the man. He was caught cold as he expected him to try and bargain, then he could have raised the price again since there was a need¡­ but this guy facing him didn¡¯t try to bargain. The shack he was selling him was overpriced by 50%. His so called silence was expensive, but it was as if this guy guessed what would happen in case of bargain. The beggar Hand tenant pulled a key and gave it to Cilerius, saying the address of the shack sold at a so high price. ¡°maybe you want someone to guide you there? That would cost you only one gold.¡± ¡°No, thanks¡­ if the address is correct, I will find my way alone.¡± ¡°As you wish¡­ but rescue in the slum if you¡¯re lost will cost you 10 times more.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind and take care of not losing my way. Thank you.¡± Thanks were the last thing he wanted to give that common thief, but to create a commotion here and now wouldn¡¯t be smart. Putting the key in his belt hidden pocket and the map in hand, he dive in the slum, heading toward the address pointed on the map. Once he spotted the said shack, he walked past it and around a few time, looking for all the surroundings, for escape routes or preying eyes. When sure he was here alone, he headed for the door, pulled the key and opened his new home. Once inside, Cilerius almost let a cussing shout out as the shack seemed to be composed of only one room. He was about to throw all discretion and go gibe a lesson to this damn thief, when he saw a trap on the ground. He raised it and could see stairs leading down to a door. ¡®Well, I didn¡¯t say how I wanted the rooms set...¡¯ He climbed down and opened the door that was currently unlocked. Beside this door, there was no other access. With preparation, he could hide the trap and so, the stair and the second room. ¡°perfect¡­¡± ¡®this thief probably doesn¡¯t know he sold me exactly what I needed...¡¯ He climbed back to the main floor, closed the door then descended in the cave after shutting the trap, then the door behind him. Then, he did what he planned by buying this house. He pulled his golden key, the key of knowledge, from his bag and, used it in the lock of the door. The expected effect happened. The lock flashed with light and the around of the door as well. Cilerius removed the key from the lock, then opened the door, that revealed this blue smoky light through which he could see his library reserve office. He walked through. On the other side, things were as he had let them. Only the carrier of the key could enter this reserve. Since he had to wait for one hour before the passage closed and he could move from this room, he pulled paper, ink and his pen, then using the first map he had draw as reference, began to make a copy. That was easier and faster now, since that was a work he already completed once with success. It had took him 45 minutes to complete the first map, from the original. But he had, at the time, to scale down everything. Now, with a better knowledge of the city and of the map, without having to scale it down again, he could draw it faster. This first copy was done in 30 minutes. As soon it was completed, he started with a second copy and increased his drawing speed again, managing to finish it in 25 minutes. He was getting the hang of it. Now, the waiting time was almost over and so, Cilerius prepared to leave this room. But he wasn¡¯t planning to return just now to his Hartburg shack. Since he had the money for and he was aware of some unwanted attention, he planned to buy a flat here in Nivese too, as well as another poor house in some remote location of the harbor city. Since he was loaded, he was intending to make full use of this incredible item, the key of knowledge, and create a network of teleport gates with the library reserve office acting as the hub. With this intention, as soon the doorway was free for the smoky light, he entered the reserve itself then exiting it, entered the library. He walked toward the exit, just to find Desmond at his desk, as always. Upon seeing Cilerius in front of him, he was surprised. ¡°Wh¡­ where did you come from???¡± Feeling like teasing him a little, Cilerius answered: ¡°Well, from the inner library, of course, as you can see¡­ didn¡¯t you see me come in?¡± ¡°uhhhh? No, I didn¡¯t see you come. That¡¯s impossible¡­¡± ¡°hehe, don¡¯t worry, Desmond. I came from the reserve.¡± ¡°From the reserve?... Ohhhhh yes¡­ from the reserve, of course! Useful, aren¡¯t they?¡± ¡°Yes, you can that. The ways of knowledge are full of surprise.¡± ¡°Yes, yes¡­ but what are you doing here?¡± ¡°Well, I thought I could make use of a home here, in Nivese. So I came to buy one.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good idea. Do you know who to ask for this?¡± ¡°No, but I have a guess, you, you know who.¡± ¡°yes, here, take this note and go see the man at this address. The note will give you diligence and discretion from him.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say I needed discretion¡­¡± ¡°Well, even if you didn¡¯t say it, from the way you used to come here and how some guys asked for you shortly after you left, I thought you wouldn¡¯t mind discretion.¡± ¡°Desmond, you really are a wisdom well. Thank you for the introduction note.¡± ¡°That¡¯s nothing¡­ by the way¡­ when are you fighting again?¡± ¡°Tss tss tss¡­ Desmond, take care, betting may become an addiction¡­¡± ¡°No! Honest! I just wanted to see you fight again¡­¡± ¡°Yeh, sure, of course. Okay, See you later, maybe.¡± ¡°See you, and stay safe.¡± ¡°Always, friend, always¡­¡± On those last words, Cilerius left and headed to the address Desmond gave him. On the way, he took care to make tour and detour to check if someone was following him. It was late and but for dumb luck, peoples who thought him gone wouldn¡¯t encounter him like that. Sure he wasn¡¯t stalked, he knocked at the door and waited. Soon after, the door partially opened and a grumpy voice what he wanted so late. Cilerius, as a silent answer to that question, handed him the note. ¡°A friend of Desmond, uh? Okay, what do you want? He asked me to help you to the best of my capacities.¡± He said, opening fully the door and inviting his newfound guest inside. ¡°I heard from him that you were the man to see if I wanted to buy a housing.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. I probably have the most possibilities of housing in this city, with a great variety of locations.¡± ¡°Then you are the man of the situation. I¡¯d like to buy two. First, either a flat or a house with at least two rooms, one being blind. The location doesn¡¯t matter, but nothing too ostentatious nor luxurious. Second, a poor housing, same as before, two rooms, one being blind, in a remote location.¡± ¡°okay¡­ for the first one, it¡¯s easy and I can think of many possibilities. For the second, I may have something.¡± ¡°I would also like utmost discretion regarding the second one. And if there are good escape ways, for both, it would be perfect.¡± ¡°If you weren¡¯t send by Desmond, I¡¯d wonder what evil plan you have¡­ but since he gave you referrals.¡± ¡°I just like discretion¡­ and in this world, many want to deprive you of it.¡± ¡°So, for the second one, its entrance is in dark alley and close by the sewers entrance. You could move through them if you really want to and if you don¡¯t fear for your smell sense. For the first one, that should do too.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s perfect¡­ the last thing we have to do is talk about a price.¡± ¡°I¡¯d say¡­ 1200 gold for the first one¡­¡± ¡°1200? isn¡¯t it a little expensive?¡± ¡°Let me finish¡­ for the second, nothing¡­ You told me you wanted discretion, right? I have some paperwork to do in case of sale¡­ so, if you want discretion about the second one, that wouldn¡¯t do it, yes?¡± ¡°No, that wouldn¡¯t do, so?¡± ¡°So I charge you for the first with the cost of both together and for some reason, I will have lost both the property paper and the key of the second and you were lucky to find them.¡± ¡°Clever¡­ okay, then here are the 1200 golds.¡± Said Cilerius, handing this man a purse heavy with gold pieces. ¡°If there are inquiries, you can talk about the first one, it¡¯s no problem, but keep the second secret, okay?¡± ¡°Of course, that was crystal clear the moment we agreed on the process and the price.¡± ¡°Then I thank you and hope your business prosper.¡± Finished Cilerius, taking the keys and owning papers the man facing him was handing. ¡°Thank you and stay safe¡­ and hidden¡­¡± answered this man, with a knowing smile. Cilerius left this house and immediately got in the shadow of an alley and stood there, checking his surroundings. Nothing seemed strange so, he took the opportunity to think a little, about which house he would connect first to his ¡°network¡±. He came to the conclusion that the longer he stayed outside, the more probable it was someone concerned would see him and report to those investigating him or even follow him himself. The best course of action was to go now add this secret housing then proceed with the not so secret. And so, Cilerius, with care of his own discretion, using sneak skill all the way, headed for the place that was located near the sewers entrance. With the address, he found it somewhat easily and first checked his surroundings again in search of a possible tail, then for the escape routes. Once done, he got to the alley that was really dark and there, found a stair going down to a door in a building that seemed totally anonymous. He used the given key and opened the door. The inside was really common and without any special feature. There was another door leading to an 20m long hallway and another door. he opened this one too, to find himself in a blind room. ¡®No clue what this was used for, but it¡¯s perfect. The long hallway would be easy to defend. I even could plant traps...¡¯ He closed the door, then pulled his precious key and used it, creating yet another gate to his reserve office. He crossed the doorway and was, again in his office. As if it was now a habit, he pulled for his bag, papers, ink and the pen and resumed with his maps drawing. ¡®I¡¯ll have to think about good light sources if I want to work in all those blind rooms. Adding that to the to do list.¡¯ It was a fact that his actuals light sources were lacking for the work he was doing, and adding fatigue to his eyes. He was halfway done with w third map in a row when the refresh time of the door was here. Now, he had two possibilities. He could set the access of the other flat in Nivese or go and do the same but in Hartburg. Following the same logic as before, he decided to first do with the one where nobody was looking for him yet then proceed with the Hartburg flat. Since he was in the same city, since it wouldn¡¯t wise to be seen coming from the hidden housing, he exited the normal way his office and the library, saluting yet again Desmond on the way and thanking him for the referral to the realtor. Next was now a drilled habit. Sneak, move in the shadows¡­ ¡®I wonder if I missed my career path¡­ maybe thief or assassin would have suited me as a profession.¡¯ He thought with a smirk. The diversity of his possible actions was something he liked a lot. There was no place for humdrum if you looked hard enough in this game. He soon got to the new bought flat, which was at the third floor of a building and that you could access by an outdoor stair. There were two flats on this floor, one with windows facing the street and his facing the back, another smaller building. Here too, he could escape by the roofs if needed. He entered and found an ordinary interior consisting a big occupying three quarter of the flat, the last quarter being a room in the back right, he could access by a door. Satisfied with his lodging, he didn¡¯t drag and got in the secondary room and repeated for the third time that night, the same action leading to the creation of a gate to his office. There, he continued the unfished map and had the time to draw two more and even begin a third one, just enough to do the main lines. Then, he opened the gate to his shack in Hartburg and continued there his work, till he could exit the cave. On the main floor, he looked through the windows a moment, to see if there was any suspect activity and, was about to leave when he thought about something. ¡°Sylphea?¡± ¡°Yes, master¡­ I¡¯m so happy you¡¯re calling me¡­ did you miss me?¡± ¡°Yes, of course¡­ I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t play with you four lately. I was a little busy¡­ Listen, I¡¯m playing some kind of hide and seek with other peoples. Could you go and take a look around, if there are suspicious peoples around. Wait¡­ that isn¡¯t the right word¡­ If you see peoples on the lookout, please tell me where.¡± ¡°Do you want to cheat? And yes, there is a suspicious person close by¡­ he¡¯s just facing me. Hihihi¡­¡± ¡°Funny, you little prankster¡­ so, could you do that for me?¡± ¡°Yes, but cheating is bad, master.¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t a real game, Sylphea¡­ It¡¯s more like those people are looking for me and I don¡¯t want them to find me.¡± ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll be right back.¡± Ten minutes after, she came back and told him: ¡°I locked around everywhere at a distance of 500m. There are 10 thieves waiting for prey, 25 beggars and one assassin.¡± ¡°Where the assassin is?¡± ¡°To the north.¡± ¡°Thank you. You can stay with me if you want, but be like a breeze, almost unnoticeable.¡± ¡°I get to play with you? Yes yes yes!!!¡± ¡°Be quiet now¡­ tsss¡± ¡°Sorry master.¡± And she shut up. Now sure of the state of his immediate surrounding, Cilerius got out of his shack, closed the door, then headed to the south. The probability that this assassin was the one looking for was high. Turning again and again, he progressed to the edge of the slum while avoiding the waiting thieves. They could have been a good way for him to increase his brawling skill, but right now, he was seeking discretion, not the ruckus a fight would cause. Since he didn¡¯t know where the other stalkers were, around his flat, he decided to be prudent and approach it from a different direction than he was coming effectively. To do so, he got to the south wall then followed it till he reached the west city gate, from which he first entered the city earlier the day before. From there, he headed straight to his flat without taking any precaution, just asking Sylphea to watch and report him after, where peoples were on the lookout. Additionally to the three he could see himself, on the way there, she reported another eight. As he pointed their locations on his map, he could see how their deployment was and guess that there probably were five more spy. They were on two circles of eight sentry, centered on his flat, one with a radius of 100m and the second 200m, with their watchpoint alternating. This was designed to efficiently cover the area. The rest, depended on their discretion, that most of them laked. or at least, it was short for a guy with a hunting skill, even at low level and even more for an elemental air spirit. ¡®full grade for their deployment strategy but non passing grade for using it with mediocre men.¡¯ Even when if they were his opponent, Cilerius always analyzed used tactics and strategies. That was the way to learn more, imagine counters and improvements for his own use. Of course, a cool mind was necessary for this kind of feat. That¡¯s probably why most of the guild leaders weren¡¯t melee class but staying in the back, where they weren¡¯t intoxicated by the heat of the fight. ¡®Their leader must be good, and he know it, that would explain his anger before, at the mansion.¡¯ Even a good artisan, with poor material, will only produce mediocre result. Of course, the effort invested in the work could improve it, but not so much. He could see most of them moving now, closing to his position as he was himself closing to his flat. ¡®I¡¯d have much to tell them if they were my men...¡¯ He still had to climb the stairs and enter his housing, but they didn¡¯t make contact. ¡®At least they follow orders.¡¯ Now in his flat, he relaxed since he only had one easy task to perform for the night, setting the last gate to his office. Since his office was better equipped than all of his new housings, he stayed there after going through the gate and settled to draw more maps. ¡®Sentry in a city, for a non moving target¡­ now that¡¯s a job that I would hate.¡¯ He thought, after he completed his tenth map in a row. He was now able to draw three and half a map an hour and was doing so with application. In result, both his calligraphy and drawing skill were growing steadily. Additionally, the handicraft was too, at a smaller rate but still, it was raising. Of course, Cilerius knew that from a certain level of skill, repetitive task like that wouldn¡¯t help much to increase to skill level, but he could think about it when the time came. ¡®too bad, drawing and calligraphy are artistic skills, I can¡¯t use real life knowledge for a shortcut to success¡­ but I will have to study chemistry a little, for alchemy skill purpose.¡¯ For some of the production skills, real life recipes were used in the game mechanics, in the earlier stages of the skill mastery at least. So knowing about how the real life recipe were and adapting them for the game purpose would help a lot at the beginning. For the artistics skills, those shortcuts were fewer and you had to rely on the hard work and application in game. ¡®but since the grow is harder, the benefits should be higher too, with an high mastery.¡¯ Upon learning and raising those skills, Cilerius bet on the future and the fortune that may come. With this kind of thoughts, it wasn¡¯t that hard to keep doing this repetitive work, drawing continuously the same map, writing its captions. Subtracting the time lost in travel between each of his houses and his spying expedition at the guild mansion, since the end of his delivery tour the day before, he could work on his map making for 21h. If he could only complete two maps in the first hour, he gradually speed up the process and was able to draw almost four an hour at the end. He finished his 74th one then, since he had to take in consideration the one hour refresh and it was little more than one hour before the sun set, he opened the gate to his flat crossed it. There, he pulled every maps from his bag, set them on the side and pulled clothes he got from the loots on his hunts. Using tailoring skill, he just dismantled them to obtain fabrics. He then cut those fabrics in ribbons. When he finished to do so with the fabrics he had yet, he had around 100 ribbons of different colors. He then took a map and rolled it up. He was about to just use the ribbon to tie the map when a thought came to him. He searched his bag again, till he found what he was looking for. He still had some candle he bought back in Nivese. He made the wax melt in a bowl and mixed in it some of the red colored powder he still had. Thus, he obtained red wax. He then took the rolled map, put the ribbon on the verso edge then let a drop a wx fix it. He then rolled the ribbon around the scroll he used a little more wax to seal it. Upon completing this task, he got the window message stating that he had completed a fine work. He was happy to note a raise in both his skills and even got the surprise to see a new one, like a specialization, be created. !Ding! new skill: mapmaking. You are now able to create maps from either an existing one or from observation of your surroundings. The higher the skill, the better you will be able to convey your observation in your drawing. The completion of more maps will now raise this skill in priority and the drawing and calligraphy skill secondarily. That wasn¡¯t too bad, since his skill raise already slowed a lot now. And the benefit to be able to make a map on the spot, from what he could see, or maybe hear from others, was big. Mapmaking was one of the skills thought to be monopolized by the adventurer class. ¡®So, there was this way to learn it¡­ good.¡¯ Then he resumed his work, sealing each map with ribbons and wax. Each time one was completed, he got the skills raise notification. The waiting hour was almost up when he finished. At the end, his calligraphy skill was at B9 (98%), just short of graduating to the intermediate level and, his drawing skill was at B8 (56%). The mapmaking skill raised up to B5 (12%) in a short time, thanks to the completion of that many maps. Apparently, he could now convey the exact distance or the angles of the way, on the spot, as he would travel. He packed the completed maps and, as soon the door wasn¡¯t occupied by a blueish smoke anymore, he exited his room then his flat and headed for the central place where many peoples were waiting on him. When he arrived there, many were those who let expectating sighs out. But they were all behaving. No riot like the previous day. ¡°Okay, hello everyone¡­ so, I¡¯m here like I promised. I have, in the meantime, completed 74 maps for sale¡­¡± ¡°Only?¡± ¡°So few¡­¡± Many disappointment reactions could be heard, but they stopped fast as peoples came to the realisation that it was, in fact much. They had see him draw a part of the first map and saw that the process was slow, at the time. ¡°Sorry, I could have made a few more but I was disturbed by some pest on my way home, last night.¡± ¡°Who?¡± ¡°What the bastard come in the way of your work and our easier life?¡± Indignant shouts raised from the crowd. Someone was hindering their hope for and easiest life in the city. That couldn¡¯t be forgiven. ¡°No clue, but some peoples kept following me around last evening and they were even waiting for me to appear near my house late at night after I lost them¡­ Well, whatever, I have 74 maps for sale today. As I said yesterday, I will charge 2 golds for each. Only one per person to be fair.¡± He had throw a little jab to the interested peoples, that obviously were around and even in the crowd since some would try to buy a map too. That was to make them aware he know perfectly about them and it annoyed him. A crowd like this one could easily be transformed into a mob if a target to hate was given. As a testament to his obvious threat, he could see some faces grow uneasy among the assembled peoples. He then began the sale of the maps and that was, as one could expect, an instant success. From what he could see, he had work for days and even weeks if he kept at it. Of course, he wasn¡¯t planning to be a cartographer, so he would make maps for some more days then return to his own activities. ¡°Okay, tomorrow, same time, I¡¯ll have more. Don¡¯t lose your way.¡± ¡°We won¡¯t, thanks to you.¡± Answered some of the lucky one¡¯s who had bought the map already. chapter 7: A goblin war The elemental brawler Chapter 7: A goblin war Part 1 What was offered to his sight, below him, was a scene of desolation. There was forest everywhere around, but here, in the middle of it, below the mine entrance, there was a clearing. Nothing ordened. Trees had been cut to make room and in place, there were shanties, training grounds, wells and piles of wastes. Thick black smoke was rising from all those and covering the place and more with a dirty cloud that let fall a fog of black dust. ¡®That¡¯s a perfect rip-off of what became of Isengard in this old book they made a movie of many years ago.¡¯ Running everywhere or standings still in groups on the training grounds, were thousands of goblins in arms, overseen by hobgoblins. Pairs of half ogres were used as drudges to pull heavy carts, wheeled towers and siege weapons. There was even, in a pit, 5 cave trolls. The hobgoblins howled orders and theirs soldiers were moving almost in unison, running around the training ground or taking fighting stances or even, mimicking a charge, their spears pointing forward and hiding behind a wooden shield. They were obviously preparing something big. !Ding! Event: you have witnessed the goblins war preparations. !Ding! New quest: a goblin war. Part 1: warning the city. As you have witnessed the goblin preparations for war, you can warn the city of the danger. Report what you have seen to a city official. Delay for the report, 12h. Difficulty: D Fail if killed or caught. Reward: significative increase of familiarity with all the city factions. ¡®Oooookay¡­ a multiple steps quest. That may be nice. But 3h only to complete it, that¡¯s harsh. I better hurry¡¯ Cilerius was already thinking of a plan to get back to the mine a climb the remainings floors as fast as he could and was turning to head back in the tunnel when he saw. Near the guard house, was a goblin, unbuttoned pants at its ankle and taking a leak on the wall, its head turned in his direction, its wide open eyes fixing him with surprise and its mouth gaping wider and wider. Its eyes moved slowly from him to a place at his left. Cilerius followed its gaze and saw the gong. Both had their gaze back at each other at the same time, resolution forming on their face. The goblin pulled up its pants fast then began to run to the gong. Cilerius, who was further from the gong but didn¡¯t have pants down, was already running in its direction. ¡®Fast! Faster! Run like the wind. Like a cheetah.¡¯ !Ding! new skill: cheetah dash. You can now use really fast dash on short distance. As the skill mastery raise, the speed and the distance on which it can be used increase. Upon receiving this skill, his dash became faster than previously. He was kicking the ground with more strength, gaining more momentum each time. His speed was so great that, even being a lot further from the gong than the goblin, he could intercept it at the moment its hand touched the mallet handle and before it could raise it. Cilerius didn¡¯t have time for an elegant way to stop the goblin. He did a tackle, a really violent one, his shoulder hitting the goblin abdomen at full speed. He would have been send it flying if it wasn¡¯t for the fact that his tackle was a rugby one, his arms embracing the goblin at the moment of the impact. Nevertheless, the shock had been enough to stop its breath and make it groggy. The momentum had also been enough to have both of them flying near the guardhouse door. They both landed on the floor, the goblin first with its back, serving as a cushion for Cilerius onto it. From both the initial impact and the landing one, the goblin was pretty much incapacitated and couldn¡¯t oppose resistance what came next. It died, its throat frozen. The whole action hadn¡¯t been quiet at all. As Cilerius stood up, the guard house door opened and a goblin was standing in the doorway, holding a sword. Behind it, two other goblin and a hobgoblin were ready to rush out once the doorway would be freed. For Cilerius, now even more than before, it was a matter of fast actions or he would be doomed. He had but one way to deal with many targets, packed together, in one swoop. ¡°Flamethrower!¡± Targeting the goblin standing in the doorway, then with a spanning mouvement, he torched the guardhouse, hearing the shrieks of its burning occupants. The hobgoblin, thanks to the hazard or mostly by design, was the most in the back and shielded from the first flammes by the three goblins standing before it. Upon seeing the fate of its companions, it jumped head first through the window and after a roll, stood and brandished his sword. It looked behind Cilerius, toward the gong and crouched to pick a stone. Cilerius, still torching the three other goblins, caught this gaze and could figure what the hobgoblin was up to. The three burning creatures weren¡¯t a danger to him anymore, if not already reduced to ashes. The urgency was now to deal with the hobgoblin, as it was about to throw the stone. ¡°Zephyr of restriction!¡± The most urgent threat was dealt with. The Hobgoblin couldn¡¯t throw its stone anymore, but now, Cilerius had to kill it fast and quietly. While the goblins had loud shrieks, he had found that the hobgoblins had powerful howls. In a cave where the noise of the pickaxes were loud, that didn¡¯t matter, but here, the tunnel could act like a sounding and the army outside wouldn¡¯t need the gong to react. ¡°Glacial palm!¡± Using ice instead of fire was, the best move he could think of. Cold would numb the body and reduce both the movements and its capacity to howl. That was the plan and that was almost what happened. Almost because, as strong as the wind spell was, it was only designed to restrict moves in a certain spot, to bind the target there. The movements limitation was a byproduct. An useful one but only a byproduct. It wasn¡¯t totally stopping the movements, so, seeing the stone flying out of this ice tornado wasn¡¯t a big surprise. But luck wasn¡¯t on the side of the hobgoblin and the stone, if it flew toward the tunnel exit, landed far from the gong. Cilerius was beginning to relax a little, waiting on his foe to pass out, when another object flew from the tornado like a silver flash, toward the gong. Only by a reflex, at the moment it was upon him, Cilerius used his hand to deflect this object a little, as it was, this time, flying toward the gong. As a result, the trajectory was more upward and this object crashed in the tunnel ceiling, just above the gong but didn¡¯t fall after. Gravels and little stones fell, making the gong clinking a little, but the object remained planted in the ceiling. Planted, because the object was a sword. The hobgoblin had tried to use its sword to sound the gong. It had almost succeeded. If not for Cilerius reflex, it would have. Cold sweat was dripping in his back as he was breathing a sigh of relief. ¡®Note for myself, never relax before you have confirmed the end.¡¯ According to this policy, he renewed the wind and ice spells, resolute to finish his prey. The combined effect of cold and ice shards was producing a good result and when the wind stopped, the creature standing there was wearing numerous cuts with trails of blood originating from them. Frozen blood, as was the creature itself. It was standing like a statue. Cilerius let a satisfied grin draw on his face and was obviously relieved. What would have happened if the gong sounded? He was glad he didn¡¯t have to find about it. ¡°clink, clink¡­ clink¡­¡± Upon hearing those sounded, he turned his head and could see that gravels were still falling from the place where the sword was stuck. But suddenly, Cilerius realized it wouldn¡¯t stay stuck that long. He just had began to walk toward it when the sense of urgency increased. He could see the sword shake a little. He was now running, trying to get there in time. But he wasn¡¯t. He saw the sword slowly begin to fall. There wasn¡¯t anything he could do to prevent it falling, he was too far. Even casting ether arrow would take too long. In slowed time, he could see the sword falling, its blade hitting the gong support, then spinning all the way to the ground without hitting the gong. Another sigh of relief, another disillusion. The point where the blade had hit the support was where the rope holding the gong was fixed. The blade had cut a part of the rope and now, the rest of it was fraying. Still running in this slowed time, Cilerius could see more a more threads snap. the last few snapped suddenly and he could do nothing but watch as the gong began to fall. As a last resort, he targeted the place where the gong was about to fall and shout: ¡°Alteration of the soil!¡± If he could stop the gong from falling, maybe he could make the ground soft to prevent the gong from sounding. That was well thought and it happened so. The gong fell in the sand, its side stuck in it, but then, it began to tip toward the tunnel wall. As the gong hit the wall in a loud noise, Cilerius exclaimed: ¡°Ohhhhh crap!¡± ¡®Damn, if that was a normal game, I could guess it was scripted to happen. In this case, I suppose it¡¯s just my bad luck.¡¯ After hitting the wall, the gong fell on the floor and was producing more noise. Now, since the deed was done, Cilerius ran toward the tunnel exit to look outside if there was any reaction. Reaction there were. A group of 10 or so goblins was already running up the hill to reach the tunnel. Further, another goblin was raising a war horn, ready to blow. All around the training places, agitation was show and was a testimony that everyone was aware of the gong sounding. Seeing the situation, Cilerius had no doubt that he couldn¡¯t escape sneakily anymore. He had to flee, fast. One could think that taking his stand here would be glorious, but for Cilerius, it would be ridiculous. What would be the gain? Was there any chance to win in this situation? Could he warn the city and complete the quest in this situation? The answer was simple and short: NO WAY! He had to escape whatever the mean used. ¡®Think, fast! By the tunnel? No, I would only get back in the mine with many goblins and hobgoblins between me and the exit, with an army behind. Even if I could manage to pass through, it would only be to lead the army in the middle of an unaware city. No, I have to get out of the tunnel and manage to pass through the enemies lines and toward the city. From what I could gather while in the mine and the tunnel and from the position of the sun, I¡¯m about 10km to the north-east of the city.When looking out of the tunnel, the city should be in my back.¡¯ To decide for an escape direction was easy and fast. To plan how to do it was another matter. He didn¡¯t have much time, as the goblin group was already half way here. If he had a slight chance to pass through, it was before he would have to deal with this group. ¡®Okay, no time to plan here, let¡¯s play it by instinct and hope for luck.¡¯ As soon he had made his decision, he acted fast. First, he renewed his spirit buffs. He needed all the help he could get if he was to outrun a goblin army. Then, he casted the wind walk. ¡®I better be ready to not leave a trail for them to track me.¡¯ That done, he readied himself for a long run. There was still two options. He could exit the tunnel and run up the hill, use the shortest way to the city. Or he could run to either side, around the hill and to the forest. Both options had their pros and cons. Running up the hill would be making distance between him and probable pursuers and use the shortest way to the city, but it was also a good way to deplete his stamina and with no clue about what could wait for him after the summit. There could be a guard camp there. It would be logical even for goblins, to set a watch on high position. Running to a side, around the hill and toward the forest, was less stamina taxing and a sure way to get cover fast, but at a risk. He would run on the border of the army camp and have them close on his heels. ¡®Known risks against unknowns¡­ the answer is obvious.¡¯ You can take chances in a risky situation if you know the dangers. Taking chance without the danger knowledge would be like playing russian roulette without even knowing how many bullets there are in the pistol. There wasn¡¯t time anymore. He had to go, now. He emerged from the tunnel and immediately, began to run to the side. Since it was the late afternoon, the sun was low in the sky in the west direction. That¡¯s why Cilerius had chosen to run to the left while exiting the tunnel, toward the setting sun. He would be, for his pursuer, till he reached the forest, against the light and even this small advantage would be valuable. Even if the group coming near could see him clearly, the army down the hill would have more difficulties to see and understand what happened. As soon he was out of the tunnel and not hiding anymore, he activated the new skill he got before: ¡°Cheetah dash!¡± With the help of this skill, he could sprint and outrun the incoming group and get some distance before they could react. If he was able to reach the forest with some advance, everything was possible. With the surprise and the skill, Cilerius was able to gain a hundred meter and half lead before the skill wore off. The refresh for this skill was one minute and the stamina consumption equivalent to 5% of his stamina. To compare, normal running, even at full speed, was using only 1% of his stamina per minute. This skill was useful for a quick burst, but really inefficient on the long run. That is, at least for now, with mastery of a debutant. With this lead on the climbing group, Cilerius could have hope for his survivability. They were obviously surprised but reacted fast and gave chase to the fleeing man that exited the tunnel like a missile, while one of them raised his horn and blowed in to warn the camp. The result was as expected. All the goblins raised their head to look in direction of the horn call and saw the flag signal that followed, indicating a menace in the west direction. Many of the goblin centuries began to run in this direction before even knowing what was the threat. Their training on this subject was obviously well learned. Their commanders, the hobgoblins, stood, looking at the rest of the flag signals. With complex moves of a flag, the bearer could communicate informations even from a distance voices couldn¡¯t reach. From this, the hobgoblins could understand the threat and began their own call, howling orders. As a result, some goblins ran to an enclosure were huge wolves were waiting, already excited by the howlings and expecting blood. The goblin riders harnessed their mounts as fast as they could and soon, were able to give pursuit to the prey that had now entered the forest. Some other goblins had run in what seemed to be a mine well but Cilerius couldn¡¯t see what they were doing there as he entered the forest before anything got out of this well. He wasn¡¯t about to wait for something to happen just to give to his curiosity. As soon he had reached the first line of trees, he activated his sneak skill. Leaving no trail nor making sounds, he had a possibility to increase his lead as soon as the pursuers would lose sight of him. He ran straight in the direction he entered the forest for one minute, then, after a quick glance behind to see if the pursuers were in sight, he took a hard turn to the right, going north from what he could imagine. He was taking a bet on the goblin thinking. Once they would realize they had lost him, before the wargs were here to pick a scent, they would fan in the general direction he had before, with an inclination to the city. Turning to the north was going away of the city and even if that meant lengthening his travel, it was probably safer in near future. Set on this new direction, to be sure of being away enough so the pursuers wouldn¡¯t see him, he used the cheetah dash again and was in fact just out of their sights when they passed the point where he turned. From the sounds of the chase, he could understand that they were, for now, still heading in the general direction he had when they lost sight of him. Cilerius keep on running north for five minute then slowly, turned to the east, like 10¡ã every 100m. He planned to run around the camp and get to the city by the other side of the hill. They would surely not even think he would do that. Still, they would probably set a big searching net between him and the city once they would realize they had lost him. 12h was plenty for a 10km run, even in the forest, but if he had to make a big circle around the searching net, it was short. ¡®My best bet is first, to lose them completely, circle around the camp, the hill, then head straight for the city. I will have plenty of time to watch how they did fan and were to pass through the net sneakily. Trying to pass through a side of their net would only lengthen the distance to run with goblins that could cut my way there.¡¯ As he was thinking about that, he had another thought upon hearing the wargs far in his back. ¡®Nice side effect! Since I walk on air, I don¡¯t leave a scent trail on the ground. If I take care of not touching the trees too much, they won¡¯t have a scent trail at all¡­ and¡­ yes! good idea!¡¯ He then whispered cautiously while still running: ¡°Sylphea!¡± ¡°Yes master! hihihi! Do you play hide and seek?¡± She answered normally. ¡°Yes¡­ but please, lower your voice.¡± His answer was still a whisper.¡± ¡°Okay master¡­ I¡¯ll speak like you.¡± Her voice was now a whisper too. ¡°Listen. Can you manipulate the wind shield to make me avoid all touch with my surroundings?¡± ¡°Of course master. The wind shield will stop all contacts from objects coming at you. Of course the objects you run into will be deflected too.¡± ¡°Good girl. Thank you!¡± ¡°Hihihi! Anything for you master.¡± With his wind walk to run in the air, the wind shield that would carefully deflect the trees branches and even trap his scent in the middle of its vortex, with the sneak skill to move silently, it would take a master tracker to follow him. ¡®Now, I just need the hide skill in addition and that will be perfect. I better try and get it as soon as possible when I get back to the city, since I have the required level with the sneak skill. But first, I must escape this army...¡¯ While running in the forest, he could hear the tremor of the searching parties far behind him now. It had been now 1h since he received the quest and he finished to get around the camp and was now heading to the south south west, still slowly incurving his path the most direct one to reach the city. He was all ears, attentive to all sounds. In this thick forest, sounds were a lot more reliable to detect something early than sight. Now, the sounds of the chasing parties were ahead of him. He could distinctly hear far away in front, the wargs roars, the hobgoblins howls and the goblins squeaks. As he came nearer of the origin of those sounds, he slowed his run and began to pay even more attention to detect nearby enemies. It wasn¡¯t a time for fight, it was a time for stealth. He had not a snowball in hell chance to survive if he tried to pass through using force. Soon, he came near places were goblins were standing on guard. Some alone, some in little groups, some with wargs. From this moment, Cilerius only walked, moving out of sight of those sentinels alway using sneak. His moving speed dropped drastically but he still could advance and had a little more than half the time allocated remaining, for about half the distance to the city to go. While cautiously moving around the sentinels, he could sometime hear sound coming from above the tree caps. He couldn¡¯t see what was happening there, but still was each time stopping his movements and hugging trees trunks. Even without the hiding skill, there were ways to diminish the probability of being seen. When he came near a clearing, he understood what it was. Some goblins were riding giant bats to patrol from the air. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.¡®Ok, that what was in the mine weel. Even my curiosity is satisfied now. But that could be dangerous. They¡¯re fast moving and can patrol a lot of ground. But mostly, bats are using sonar to detect their surrounding, either animated or not. And they seem to use this clearing to enter under the trees caps.¡¯ Just when things seemed to go well, another problem appeared. Cilerius moved around the clearing, with even more care than he used before. Understanding that now, even his presence could be detected, either his moves by the bats, or his sight by the riders if stopped without a place to hide in, he had to do something at least for the last part. He couldn¡¯t stop the sonar, but he could manage to reduce the probability of the rider to see him. After looking for something in his bag, he took off his cap and cloak, then emptied the content of the bottle he got from his bag, on them. A thick and tacky liquid covered those cloths and once that done, he picked leaves and twigs and covered the cloth with. He then did the same with the back of his pants and sandals. That done, if he was to be lying immobile on the ground, without proper inspection, he could escape detection. !ding! New skill: camouflage. The ability to use materials to melt yourself in your surrounding. With proper preparation, you can hide your presence in the surrounding. Less efficient than the hiding skill, but add a bonus to it if you were to learn it. Prerequisite: hunting skill. As the skill mastery increase, you can make the preparation faster and can use it in more exposed surroundings. Must have the required materials to succeed. ¡®Nice one¡­ must make sure to plan for the materials for many situations.¡¯ So dressed in leaves and twigs, he moved again, alway aware of the sounds to react fast. If a bat came, he had to either hug a tree or drop face 1st on the ground, stop the wind walk and shield stop all movements. As soon as he could, he had the reactivate the wind spells to stop his scent trail. The problem being that he would now leave spots were his scent could be picked by the wargs. The worse would be if a bat and a warg happened to be near him at the same time. If he was at this time, up the wind for the warg, he would be most probably detected. All he could do is make sure to detect the wargs early and move around them to be down the wind at all time. Now, his progression speed was really slow with all the stops and detours he had to do each time he came near sentinels or patrols. ¡®whatever I do, the last part of the run to the city will be with enemies on my tail. At least as soon I get out of the forest, I will be detected. The latter I get out, the more likely I will have the rising morning sun in my back. In addition to put a big light on me, the city guards will be against the light and won¡¯t see my pursuers for a moment. The probability of a tightened net as I approach the forest border is high. I must plan a run from inside the forest, even before they detect me.¡¯ With these thoughts, Cilerius kept moving toward his goal. He was like a snake twisting between obstacles. From times to times, he checked both the remaining time and his approximate position to know if he had spare time or if he had to pick up the speed. Since it was at night and he didn¡¯t have a light source, he had to move really carefully. With so many creatures of the wild around, he couldn¡¯t use his elementals spirits as scout. They would be detected, at least by the bats or wargs and even by some goblins with sorcerer of shamanic abilities. The result was a slow progression punctuated with sudden stops when he could hear a bat approaching. His only advantage was that the goblins weren¡¯t keeping a strict silence and he could hear them from far enough to get around them quietly. After 3h of crawling like that in the darkness, his estimation was he had only progressed by 2km. Added to his progression when there was still light, he was probably still 1km away from the forest border and then 2 more km away of the city, in the open. The time left before the limit was now 2h30. In 1h, the sun would begin to rise, he would then be able to move faster than before. The goblins could probably lose some attention too, due to the fatigue. Whatever could happen, he had to continue moving just to increase his chance of being in time to deliver this crucial information. 30 minutes later, he could finally see, far away behind many trunks, some lights. Those were in heights, probably in the towers of the city walls. Now was the most dangerous part. If there were intelligent enough goblins in the lot, they would be hidden here, in the last part of the forest, waiting for the intruder to pass near them. It was a chance to take. Cilerius could wait till dawn to have enough light to hope see silent sentinels, but he knew he had to take some risk if he wanted to be in time. One step after the other, he moved toward the forest border, the more silently he could, his sense of hearing in full awareness. Was he lucky? Were the goblins too tired to keep strict guard? Maybe intelligent goblins were a myth? The fact remain that he reached the last hundred meter before the border without alarming any goblin sentinel. But it wasn¡¯t the moment to let his guard down. Now, he had the most dangerous part of his escape to resolve. Dawn was almost here, the sun would rise in his back and he had to run this last part in the open. Since he still had a few moments of darkness before light would illuminate his back once out of the forest, he fastly took a last decision. He would try to move out of the forest quietly and hope he could get a substantial lead before he was detected. Any lead was a good thing, since the enemy was mounted and even airborne. After one last try to detect possible sentinels near him, he exited the forest and moved silently toward the city. 5 minutes later, he was 400m closer of his destination and had, subsequently, a 400m lead on the goblins, when the sun began to rise and the shadows of the trees were shrinking fast. Just a few second and he wasn¡¯t in the darkness anymore. Every eyes looking toward the city from the forest could see him as clear as the nose on the face. As soon this happened, he didn¡¯t wait for a reaction. Cilerius activated his cheetah dash and began to run as fast as he could. Behind him, just as he started to sprint, many eyes saw him, as expected. Just a handful of seconds after, 3 goblins on wargs gushed from the forest toward their prey, from three point of the forest border. One was coming from maybe 50m away of Cilerius exit point, while the other two came from about 200m left and right of this same position. For one minute, Cilerius could hold this 400m lead thanks to his skill. Then, the wargs began to reduce it. Even without the dash skill, Cilerius was running at full speed, so the lead wasn¡¯t shrinking too fast. But he couldn¡¯t hold this speed for another kilometer. That was about the distance he had to progress before the city guards could be of help to him. Progressively, he slowed his speed to not fail his escape by having lost all of his stamina due to an excessive effort. He was still only 500m away from the city gates and was already basking, when he heard a sound that, when in the forest, meant he had to stop and blend with his surrounding. Here, that only meant that enemies fasters than the wargs were approaching. In the open like that, there was no point to stop all moves. Even if the bats would lose his presence, their riders wouldn¡¯t. He probably wouldn¡¯t die from one or two of their javelin throws, but he could suffer injuries and most of all, be delayed. From a strategical point of view, one decision was imposing itself. He had to deal with the bats now, when they were alone and before the wargs could reach him and join the fray. He remembered something at this moment. Due to their characteristics, bats were able to avoid pretty much all the attacks coming from their front. Most of his spells were useless in this particular case. Most but not all. He still had a spell that perfectly matched his needs. One that was fast, that he could alter the course after the launch. Renewing his defensives spells and buffs while still on the run, he stopped and turned to face them just when he felt the bats arriving upon him. Four bats were now reaching him and some more seemed to come from the forest, as well as some other wargs. He had to deal with his immediate concern, the four bats and their riders. He raised his hands, all fingers pointing forward and waited, waited some more. One could think he was sitting duck here while the riders were about to throw their javelins, but he needed to do that in order to both, esquive their throw then cast his spell in good conditions. Yes, his mastery on this spell allowed him change their aiming much after the cast, but to insure the result, he needed to conserve most of this capacity to aim precisely to the needed point from somewhere that their front. The javelins flew and thanks to a few nimble moves, Cilerius avoided them all and was able to shout, as the bats were now above him: ¡°Magic missile!¡± Ten rays of light departed from his fingers points and got on the bats chase. Sure, he could try and aim for some of their vital parts, but anatomy being what it is, he couldn¡¯t be sure their heart was located exactly where he thought of. What he could aim for were visible parts that once hit, would handicap the bat enough to make land, or more precisely, crash. Ten rays of light, four bats, eight target. That meant two spare rays. What he was aiming for was the bat¡¯s wing¡¯s joints. A fragile and visible part. One that compromised integrity would cripple beyond hope of recovery. For a human, the equivalent would be the knee. Just imagine trying to fight with a broken knee, let alone both. Pain, immobilisation, disturbing effect. It¡¯s really effective. Those shots coming from behind, the bats had no ways to detect them and the goblins didn¡¯t have the skill to drive their mounts for effective evasion. There were hits, shrill shrieks then the sound of crash and then, a lot of dust raising. No bats were flying anymore. On the ground, two goblins were struggling to break free from under the crippled body of their mounts while the other two weren¡¯t moving at all. ¡®Two goblin armed with javelin to deal with, before the wargs get here.¡¯ The equation was easy. Those enemies, for the sake of reducing their weight for the ability to flight on bats, had only clothes, no armor of any kind. In this situation, even a single empty handed strike from a seasoned hand to hand fighter, could be considered almost overkill. Their pain didn¡¯t last as they couldn¡¯t properly defend themselves while still partly constrained by their mount and Cilerius was in a hurry to reduce the potential opponents. A quick look informed him of the lead he still had and he turned to run toward the city gates. Of course he couldn¡¯t outrun the wargs now, but each meter closer to the city was added distance relative to the second wave of pursuers. If the wargs were more dangerous opponents than the bats, as were their riders geared with armor and heavy lances, they were a lot louder too. Cilerius didn¡¯t have to look to know their position. That meant he could run longer and move further toward the city before having to deal with them. At the moment he felt the first one right on his heels, Cilerius rotated, his hands already joined and chanting a spell. ¡°Flame thrower!¡± His aim was moving as he rotated, but already pointed up since he expected the warg to jump for the last part and throw him on the ground while landing. That was well expected and indeed, it happened like that. As it was in the air, helpless to change direction and esquive, the warg was bathed in the flames cone of its prey spell. Looking at the warg landing, its fur on fire and rider panicked, Cilerius couldn¡¯t hold himself anymore and shouted: ¡°If you know others and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles, art of war.¡± Even if it was an advantage for him, he couldn¡¯t believe how stupids were some npc¡¯s. That riled him, not because of the actual situation, but because that meant, at the time he would have to rely on npc¡¯s, he should expect a lot of basic mistake. ¡®Let¡¯s just hope the efficiency of the IA will increase with the level of the npc¡¯s. Fighting monsters with stupid behaviors would become boring on the long run.¡¯ Since Cilerius was still under lvl100, he couldn¡¯t know that his expectations were right and that the stupidity was essentially kept on purpose for the low level monsters, so the noobs could learn first their own capabilities before having to face more intelligent monsters. Of course, for players like Cilerius who were fast to adapt to the game mecaniques, that was boring a lot faster than for what¡¯s called ¡°casual players¡±. Experimented players referred to the first hundred levels as the tutorial. Since those players didn¡¯t usually bother to share their experiences on low levels, each was making this discovery by himself. And Cilerius didn¡¯t research the casuals players guides. At the time he would realise his mistake, it wouldn¡¯t be important anymore and he would be enjoying the real game. For now, the monster was rolling on the ground, trying to extinguish the flames. One fast glance and Cilerius saw he could move toward the city for another hundred meter before the two other wargs would be on him. Once again, he began to run. It wasn¡¯t a time to farm experiences and drops, it was a time to complete a mission the fastest he could. Upon hearing the other two wargs right on his heels, he rotated just as he stopped and was almost happy to see that they had learn from their camarade pain. They weren¡¯t jumping but coming right at him. Of course, That didn¡¯t mean they had an advantage but only that Cilerius needed to use another tactic. ¡°Mineral needles!¡± He shouted, targeting the area right in front of him, that the wargs were reaching. Grinning, once again he turned and ran toward the city that was only 300m far now. The goblins reinforcements wouldn¡¯t catch on him before he would reach the gates and the guards stationed there. Even a kamikaze attack wouldn¡¯t be a problem from the moment he would be there. Only a high leveled casters could be a threat, but obviously, there were none in the immediate pursuers. The guards had seen part of the scene, his escape, his fight with the bats and the wargs and were in combat position as he ran between them. Out of breath, he told them: ¡°Hold the position, there are many more in the forest. I have to go and tell something about them to the guard captain. take care of yourself!¡± That was fast and concise, but enough, given what they had seen. ¡°No problem, we will hold the position. No filthy goblin will enter the city while we guard the gate.¡± Cilerius almost didn¡¯t hear this reply as he was already running toward the guard office where he had meet the captain some days before. Many players saw him run at full speed in the city and were wondering what was happening. Some even began to follow him out of curiosity. A few followed him out of duty. Those were the member of the guild that had for mission to watch him and, since a few days ago, they had lost track of him. Their guild master had throw a fit and everyone in the guild had looked everywhere in the city without any success. Now he was running on one of the main streets without a worry about who might look. The guild members weren¡¯t about to lose him again, in plain light. Just a few minutes after entering the city, Cilerius had the guard office in sight. His speed in the morning crowd was a wonder. Those on ground level just thought that someone in hurry almost smashed in them, but those who had the chance to see the scene from high ground, were able to understand the high skill of this running player. He was at each time moving through the best open space in the crowd. Cilerius finally reached the guard house and asked the guard on duty: ¡°Is the captain here, please? I have informations of the utmost importance.¡± The guard had already seen this guy a few days earlier and remembered that the captain had been friendly with him. ¡°Yes, the captain is here. Do you want me to announce you?¡± ¡°Yes please. It¡¯s really important I see him as fast as possible.¡± ¡°Got it. Wait here while I call the captain.¡± The guard then turned and entered the office. The wait was short but welcome for a Cilerius out of breath. 2 minutes after, the guard captain was in the doorway, looking at him with an interrogative glance. Cilerius outfit was enough to show that he had come through the wild as fast as he could. Dust and leaves were covering him. A few cuts on his skin and cloth were telling a story to the eyes of the guard captain. Realising the urgency and importance of what this visitor had to tell him, he said: ¡°Come in. Too many onlookers outside.¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m right behind you.¡± Cilerius followed the captain inside the office. Just 2 minutes after, four guards exited the office at full speed, each heading toward one of the four city gates. Then a few minutes later, some more were running toward many places of the city. Another few minutes later, a guard was coming back from the north gate and entered the office, running. All this morning activity spiced the ambience of the waking city. Players were becoming more curious at the sight of each guard running. Rumors soon began to spread and a few groups headed toward the city gates, to check on what was happening. A few events happened all this while and before they could give any report of the situation outside the city. For Cilerius, it was an expected event. !Ding! You have successfully conveyed your observation of the goblin war camp to an official of the city in the imparted delay. You gain much xp. Level up! Level up! Your familiarity with all the city factions increase greatly. As this personal quest window was fading, another popped. !Ding! A goblin war. The goblins seem to plan to attack the city. The teleport rings will soon have a discontinued service. Once the city is fully under siege, only by fighting one will be able to escape the city. The city siege will be completed in two hours. The city officials are looking for adventurers to help them in the city protection. Many related quests are now available from the city inhabitants. That window was showing to each and every players in the city. Soon, many were those speaking to the npc¡¯s, looking for the related quests. Some merchants were asking for protection of their stalls against the looter who could profit from the confusion. The guards were sending peoples toward their lieutenants to enlist for the city defense. Some noble were hiring mercenaries to fight under their colors. Cilerius didn¡¯t have to go and look for quests, as a window popped for him only. !Ding! The guard captain ask you to gather a platoon to help with the city defense. You can enlist city guards or private guards in you squad. Each guard require 10 familiarity points to enlist. A lieutenant require 20. You can enlist private guards from the friendly noble houses. Each private guard can be enlisted for 15 familiarity point of the corresponding noble house. You will be able to regain the used familiarity upon the return of the hired guards. Depending the gained experience and accomplishments, a reward will be calculated. Quest fail if killed, captured or if the city fall. Do you wish to defend the city? That was a no brainer for him. He had means to escape the city if needed, but he still had some missions to accomplish here first and the fall of the city would mean a loss he couldn¡¯t resign himself to suffer. ¡°Yes, I will defend the city.¡± That was also the perfect stage to test his abilities in large scale confrontation. Chapter 8: to break a siege The elemental brawler Chapter 8: To break a siege Part 1 Like an unstoppable wave, the human centuria was coming. The few goblins that noticed their coming quick enough, tried to assemble to fight back the assailing force but they were too few, not equipped and trying to stop an avalanche. To have had a chance at succeeding in this fight, they would have needed twice the fighters with the proper gear and discipline. The sheer momentum of 128 charging soldiers made the flashing sword blades superfluous. These goblins were tumbled aside then trampled to death by the 16 row of this creature solely created to kill, an organised and disciplined centuria. While launched at great speed, using in full their advantage, the human squad killed at least fifty goblins with ridiculous ease. They were motivated, they were drilled, they were sure of their justice. Nothing could stop them until all the goblins died. On the goblin side, the few hobgoblins present, acting as officers, tried to rally their troops but without a sufficient result to oppose a real defense to these invaders. In fact, their try to rally goblins to fight back immediately, turned to be a blessing for the humans. Their enemies were coming at them by groups of 10, 30 or 50 and were easy to destroy with the help of momentum. A strategist would pull back and rally away from the immediate fight to gather a force strong enough, then go and mount an adequate defense. At least that¡¯s what Cilerius was thinking as he saw the goblins being slaughtered one little group after another. ¡®But if goblins of this level were capables of such feat, inexperienced players would have a hard time on this ¡°tutorial¡± part of the game. I guess their commanding officers will be a lot better in the latter levels.¡¯ As a result of these accumulated advantages, the momentum, the equipment, the training and discipline, the the lack of the same in the goblin forces, the battle shortly resulted in a complete victory. It was even made easier as Cilerius carefully sniped the commanding officers with his various spells or weakened the largest groups with his shamanics curses. He couldn¡¯t kill any goblin on his own given how fast everything was happening and that he wasn¡¯t powerful enough to one-shoot them, but dealt damages to many and so, received lots of xp increase notice. Of course, his men witnessed the efficiency of his actions and were impressed. So he gained even more trust from them. Be clear when you explain a strategy, make it successful, be helpful on the whole and claim victory. No soldiers could mistrust a commander after that. After the charge, no goblin was left standing, but in the pit, basically a four meter deep hole in the ground with steep walls and the paddock, a corral 20 meter diameter wide with wood fences. There, some monsters still remained, excited by the fight and the smells of blood, death and humans. In the pit, there were 3 cave trolls remaining. Those weren¡¯t a problem for now as they couldn¡¯t climb the pit walls without help. They could be left for the moment and dealt with after a more pressing threat was resolved. The paddock was made of logs and never designed to stop for long furious demi-ogres. They were domesticated by goblins and calm enough as long they were feed, but they hate humans.. Even if they were mostly used as drudges by the goblins, an enraged demi-ogre is nothing to underestimate. Let alone thirteen of them ready to kill those who had killed their masters. You can think of it as the loyalty of the stomach. Demi-ogres are mass of bones, muscles and fat with an enduring skin. Their stupidity make them easy to deal with by other humano?des but their visceral hate of humans make them an absolute threat until they¡¯re dead. Even without without weapons, their fists and their teeths are dangerous enough. For a creature that large, logs become handy clubs. There are numerous ways to deal with them but most of them rely on heavy infantry, fortifications, traps or swarming them with cannon fodder. The first three weren¡¯t available for Cilerius at the moment and he wasn¡¯t even about to rely on the fourth possibility, given the losses that would mean. Loss in reputation with the different city factions, loss of the future occasions to gain xp after they were done with those and even, loss of the time he invested to nurture such an efficient troup. As usual, Cilerius had to rely on something else, his creativity and fast thinking. "lines 1 to 12, hold the fence and make lot of noise. Lure those beast to gather them in one place. The rest, go and assemble wood, lots of wood. Tear down the barracks if needed. Quickly. Those holding the fence will appreciate it." "Yes, chief!" Soon, three out every four men braced themselves against the wooden fence to hold it against the furious pushes of the demi-ogres inside. The soldier''s shouts were deemed useless as them being here was sufficient to lure all the beasts right on the other side of the paddock wall. As the other quarter of his men were gathering wood, Cilerius quietly walked along the fence to not attract the beasts attention. He couldn''t do anything about his scent, but his sneaking skill came in handy. He found a suitable spot and climbed the fence to take a look beyond. The 13 demi-ogres were there, 20 meters away, all trying to tear down the obstacle that prevented them from killing those hateful humans. Cilerius checked the advancement of the wood collect and, as it was progressing well, decided to act now, to lessen the burden of his other men who were holding the full strength of the enraged demi-ogres. In a low tone, to not attract the monster''s attention and targeting the whole area where they were standing and more , he chanted: "Earth awakens and demands its due: Mineral Needles!¡± He was used of the effects of this spell and that he expected. More efficient than a root spell, dealing damages and not dispelling due to ulterior damages, that was so far, at least in Cilerius opinion, the best way to immobilize an opponent from which you didn¡¯t have to fear ranged damages. From his experience, only by enduring horrible pain to remove the multiples stones pikes impaling them, a monster could get free. Of course, beasts like demi-ogre were perfectly capable to achieve that, but Cilerius had a counter ready. He just had to cast this same spell many time to impale the monsters from opposing directions and negate any of their attempts to free themselves. Even incapacitated like that, those beasts were dangerous and too resistant for Cilerius to just kill them using his spells. He could do it, but that would take too long. In the same situation, a real wizard would rejoice and train his spells, meditating then casting again, but Cilerius had a schedule and he couldn¡¯t just take a whole afternoon to kill them. Even with the help of his soldiers, it would take too long. They were guards, not used to bows and those availables were goblins bows with poor performance. In this condition, Cilerius had thought of an alternate that should prove efficient, even if at the cost of the total obliteration of the mobs and their possessions. Since those were demi-ogres with worse equipment than even the goblins, that didn¡¯t matter. After one more look toward the monsters to check if their restraints were holding and, the use of his spirits to curse them, he climbed down the fence and returned to the place where his soldiers were bracing against the wall. ¡°It¡¯s okay now, you can stop holding the fence, they¡¯re somehow immobilized. Take some of the wood your colleagues have gathered and put it against the fence until it reach two third of its height. After that, set yourself as a chain to transport the rest of it beyond the fence.¡± ¡°Beyond the fence? But chief, that will be easy game for the demi-ogres to kill us if we get on the other side.¡± Their fear was understandable. No sane man would go in the lion cage. ¡°Have you so little faith in me? Fear not. Once you see what¡¯s the situation on the other side, you will understand.¡± After listening to that, a soldier more courageous, or crazier than the other, moved on the side a little then climbed on the wall. His comrade expected him to either jump suddenly or be pulled on the other side. Instead, he was sitting, one leg on each side, wide-eyed and let a whistle through his lips. ¡°It¡¯s okay guys, the way they¡¯re right now, if we climb over the fence from where I am, we don¡¯t risk anything.¡± More soldiers climbed and at the view of the situation, climbed down inside the paddock and set the chain their commander had asked for. They didn¡¯t understand how Cilerius obtained this result but were glad nonetheless. A little moment after, the stack of wood was completed on the outside and wood was accumulating inside. Cilerius did tell them to stack the wood around the beasts but he didn¡¯t have to explain. They now understood how they would kill the demi-ogres. What they were building was a pyre all around the beasts, at most one meter away of their reach. They couldn¡¯t take the risk of giving them something to serve as projectile. One more time, Cilerius cursed the monsters and then, with a fireball, ignited the pyre. The day was sunny and hot. The wood was dry. All good reasons for the pyre to get ablaze quickly. The rest is just a matter of time and wood supplying. With hellish fire on all the sides, the beasts were like in a oven and passed quickly. The flaming wood of the fence falling down on them was the last nail in their coffin. !Ding! You have been part of the demi-ogres slaughter. You gain much experience. Level up. You have earned the title: Member of the Hell Squad Fame +100 Fire resist +5 Fire affinity +20 All activities with fire, including spells or skills, are now easier for you. Given the damages of this hellish fire, only bones will remain after the fire pass. Others loots have burned. This fight had been successfully concluded and even with the many participants, the experience reward had been enough for Cilerius to level up. ¡®Hmmmm, so this method exists to get element affinity. There may be a way to exploit that.¡¯ His men were all looking at each others with grins. There was the pride of having killed dangerous beasts. That''s a story worth many free drinks in any tavern. The battle of the camp was almost concluded. Only the cave trolls trapped in their pit remained. The same method could be used but Cilerius had another trick to test. Also, trolls Trolls are too precious and too rarely encountered to simply burn them. Their blood was a delicacy for alchemy. Their skin made an excellent leather. A certain part was even bought at high price by npc¡¯s. Something about the testicles being a cure for impotence.Cilerius checked his bag to see if he had enough material and then smiled. ¡°Everyone, I¡¯ll show you another method to kill beasts. This one can only work when they¡¯re trapped in a pit like now. You will see, it¡¯s interesting. As we played with fire before, we will play with another element now. I bet you will like it.¡± At their interrogative gaze, he lead them toward the camp sawmill. There, a watermill was using the stream to action the saws inside. For Cilerius, that meant something else. ¡°We will form two teams. One to create a wood duct that will get the water from the dam to the second part of our scheme. 10 peoples will be enough to make that. The other, take the pickaxes and the shovels we can see everywhere around and, begin to carve a ditch from here to the pit.¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.¡°Will we drown them, commander?¡± ¡°Oh, I''ve got something even better planned. Now, get to work.¡± To show is better than simply telling. He took a shovel and headed toward the place he had marked as the start of the ditch. There, he realised something and added toward the men that were about the dig. ¡°I will make this easier. No need for pickaxe, just all take shovels.¡± Now, his men were dumbfounded. Looking at the place where he planned to dig, he then chanted a spell: "From Earth to mud, sand to stone and vice versa: Alteration of Soil!¡± On a strip of soil 1 meter large, 3 meters long and 30 centimeter deep, the rocks were changed in sand. ¡°Ok, begin to remove all the sand in this part while I soften the ground further.¡± !Ding! By using an ingenious method, you gain more respect from the soldier: intimacy +20. ¡®It would have been a waste in time and effort to just dig the ground. And like that, I even train my earth spell too.¡¯ ¡°Once all the sand is removed, don¡¯t dig deeper.¡± ¡°Yes, chief!¡± He altered the soil all the way to the pit and got back to where his men were digging and began to work too. Given the softened soil and their number, they finished quickly. Less than an hour later, they were done, even before the first team had completed the wood duct. ¡®Ok, I¡¯d better make sure this ditch is as water-tight as possible. Don''t want this to take forever after all.¡¯ Cilerius then targeted the same strip of ground as before but just a little larger and deeper and, chanted his spell, not once but twice for each part. Doing so, the ground was first altered into sand then into rock. ¡®That way, it will be as we had carved the channel in one block of stone.¡¯ That was when the first team announced the completion of their own work. ¡°Ok, you see, we needed a duct to get more water to come in our chanel. If we just had digged the channel from the water stream, as the ground is level, few would have come. With the duct, water come with momentum directly from the dam and in the channel with only one way to go.¡± He said that to his soldiers as an explanation of the additional work they had to do. ¡°Now, put it in place and be ready to see trolls their first bath in many years. Also, be ready to stop the water when I say it.¡± ¡°Yes, chief!¡± The duct was put in place and soon, water wasn¡¯t powering the mill¡¯s wheel anymore, but flowing into the ditch they all had dig and then, 300 meters further, in the troll¡¯s pit. Trolls don¡¯t like water. That¡¯s a common knowledge. But now, the soldiers had the proof of that. The pit was slowly filled with water and the troll¡¯s shriek increased with the water level. Trolls don¡¯t like water and, and therefore avoid it as much as possible. As a result, they never have an opportunity to learn how to swim. So the trolls were now standing or jumping, helpless to do anything else to keep their heads out of the water. But that alone wasn¡¯t enough. Cilerius had already stated that he would do something else than just drown them. As soon as the water reached chin level on the trolls, he ordered for the water to be stopped. A specialised class like the enchanter could use this moment to try and charm this beast to use them as own minions, but that wasn¡¯t one of Cilerius talents. ¡°Now, I¡¯ll show you how to cool their ardors.¡± That being said, Cilerius began to chant a new spell: "Cold grabs my prey: Glacial Palm!¡± At his intermediate level, and glacial bolt was forming in his hand. He thrown it into the water and chanted anew. After a few repetitions of this spell, the water surface was now covered with many blocks of ice. Cooling this amount of water was an immense task, but Cilerius knew that the reward was worth it. He was targeting all around the pit, cooling the water the most evently he could while not giving the trolls, an ice platform to climb on. The soldiers were now understanding what their commander had in mind and were grinning while exchanging jokes about troll popsicles. As ice blocks were now covering almost the full surface of water, it was now time for the final touch.Cilerius concentrated and cast the up to now biggest ice bolt he had and, targeted the immediate surrounding of a troll. For what he had in mind, he had to not hit the troll head itself but froze the whole area around. And that¡¯s what happened. It¡¯s head and arms out, the troll was now imprisoned in a block of ice. That way, the troll was left alive but totally incapacitated. Cilerius repeated the same action with the other trolls then, began to fill the water space between them with ice too. Now, he could climb down in the pit and walk on the ice. He added a final touch by casting a few more ice bolts, especially on the surroundings of the troll to insure their immobility. By throwing water and casting the ice spell immediately after, he could also encase all but their wrists in ice. Now, everything was ready for his main goal. The trolls have a huge regenerative capacity that make them formidable foes. But for Cilerius that meant something else. If he slowly enough drained them of their blood, it would regen and he could get more. From his bag, he pulled the bottles he had once used to collect grease or resin and, placing them under the troll¡¯s wrist with funnel to collect all the blood, he sliced a suitble vein at their wrist and contemplated his work. Now the truly difficult part, subtly misleading his soldiers. ¡°And now, let¡¯s go loot the camp. Take care to not pick useless heavy items as we still have to fight later. Everyone take what he can, but no disputes. Try to get useful things for you. Cut their ears, the city officials are offering a reward for each pair.¡± ¡°Of course chief! We already know. We have cut those in the mine before.¡± The victors get the spoils of battle, that¡¯s a general rule of war. Cilerius already had marked a barrack that wasn¡¯t an armory. He had lead the soldiers toward valuable loot but had done so to keep them away from the best loot of all. While his men were distracted by their looting, he went straight to a small but closely guarded shed. By the time he reached it, he could see that all his men were totally concerned with only the content of the armories and trading items among themselves, armor for weapon, weapon for armor, depending what one had found and was seeking. Given that, nobody noticed Cilerius as he entered the warehouse. He was now inside and could see he had guessed right. This is where the mine product was stored before being send wherever it had to or processed in the smithy. There were many huge bags, some open, containing titan fossilized bones, either as powder or as block. On a table, there were many little bags filled with red stones that weren¡¯t rubies but bloodstones. There was a lot more than Cilerius could take in his bag or even carry. But a lot less than you could expect from a so huge mine. ¡®They probably send the product somewhere else. Now, how do I deal with what¡¯s here?¡¯ The value of these gems and ores was only in their rarity. If even a single soldier filled their bags with this, the price would crash and a mining rush would start. In addition, he would lose his hold on the old blacksmith, if the NPC could simply buy his coveted ore in the market. So obviously the best course of action would be to hide the gems and ores. Quick thinking was a talent JB mastered IRL. He couldn¡¯t carry everything, he had to hide it here, in the warehouse. He had the solution. Luckily he had the perfect spell for this "Alteration of the Soil". He had to work fast. The soldiers wouldn¡¯t stay occupied with looting forever. There were 23 big bags and 13 little to hide. As he was shoveling, he could see some information windows pop-up: !Ding! The constant practice of shovelling increase your mining skill; +3% !Ding! Due to the heavy work, your strength, stamina and patience raise; Strength +1, stamina +1, patience +5. That was the result of the accumulated work. In mere minutes, the trench was ready. He pulled the big bags and throw them in the pit. He then added the little bags. Then, he used the tables where the little bags had been stored, broke their legs and covered his spoil. He had of course pocketed some of it for immediate use with the old blacksmith. It was obvious that that much wouldn¡¯t be enough to hide the bags, but it was only the first step. He then filled the remaining height of the pit with sand until the ground was even, then chanted his spell another time to return the soil to its original status. Since there was still sand in the shed and the soldiers had seen him use his power to alter the soil, he guessed that some men, less dumb than the others, would wonder if there was something here that their commander could have hidden. So, to complete the camouflage, Cilerius filled a few empty bags with sand, as well as a few buckets, some standing others reversed and, after a quick look outside to see if there was anyone around, exited the warehouse with a bucket that he let just on the door side. ¡®Hehe. Now, that¡¯s a magnificent sand storage we have here. If one of the soldiers see through my camouflage, he deserves his share.¡¯ Done with his little deception, he headed toward the barracks, picking some weapons on his way and walked toward his little army. They saw him coming and were all smiling. Their impression was that they had been lucky and seeing their commander coming back with some weapons in hands but nothing really valuable, they all thought they had the more valuable loot. ¡°Found anything worth the search, commander?¡± Asked a soldier, visibly looking for a hint of happiness in his reaction. ¡°Nothing extravagant. Some blades, some armors, but Goblin equipment is crap! I guess I''ll have to melt it down and sell it for scrap.¡± ¡°Sorry for you. We weren¡¯t that lucky either.¡± The soldier answer was made with a forced sorry face, as to show their worry for their commander, but without much success, since Cilerius knew perfectly well that every man here had just tripled his monthly pay. It didn¡¯t bother Cilerius at all, since he knew the truth on the luck of everyone, but still appreciated the efforts made by his men. That was a testimony of the intimacy he had gained with them. ¡°Ok, one last look in the camp to see if something worthy escaped our first search, then we head to war. The city is waiting on us.¡± Leting the soldiers search, he headed toward the troll¡¯s pit where he picked the bottles now filled with troll blood and exchanged them for empty ones, after refreshing the cut on their wrists. He did drain his mana casting as many more ice bolts as he could to ensure the ice would last as long as possible, stored some empty bottles near the ones already collecting, then joined his men who were waiting. Their last search had concluded without much luck obviously, since he couldn¡¯t see the faces of anyone who would have won the lottery jackpot. ¡°Braves! We have completed with success two thirds of our plan. Its time to carve your glory in in the memory of your fellow citizens. Let¡¯s head toward the city. Let¡¯s go to make goblin¡¯s blood flow. Let¡¯s go to war!¡± Harangued Cilerius. ¡°Yehhhhh!¡± ¡°To war!¡± ¡°The goblins will pay for their boldness!¡± ¡°Hartburg is immortal. No disgusting goblin will smear our city with its foul presence!¡± Cilerius was now mastering the art of leading soldier and, it was show in numerical value, as, as a testimony of it: !Ding! Appropriate leading of your men is acknowledged. Leadership +3. Chapter 9: raising the spirit(s) The Elemental Brawler Chapter 9: Raising the spirit(s) Part 1 The next day, when JB came back from work, the first thing he did was to login on the gang private server to update his information. He hadn¡¯t done it for a long time and it was overdue. The ¡°gang¡± used this server so each could keep track of the progress of the others while they were scattered all around the Royal Road world. A server could be seen as overkill but it was the server they used for their previous games and it was used to manage their guild when they had one. And, now, a server was something easy to setup and cheap to own, unlike in the early internet age. They had agreed to improve their own character solo up to level 120 then gather and start on quests and powering as a group. His last update was from their dinner when he said he was level 66 and jobless. From his perspective, he thought he was still probably higher level than the other since most of them had some setback or quests to resolve. He had to check the situation of everyone and let them know of his own, to know the lead he had and so, how long he could stop from purely leveling. In his mind, a plan had been set in motion a few days ago and to not harvest its benefit would be an error, no, worse¡­ a fault. And so, he logged on the server and began to update his info. Name: Cilerius Level: 83 Class: Elemental* Brawler Title: Scourge of the westerner gnolls HP: 19034 Mana: 22793 Fame: 1821 Infamy: 202 Str: 264 Dex: 53 Vit: 198 Int: 285 Wis: 271 Concentration: 126 Endurance: 192 Sustenance: 158 Insight: 15 Art: 55 Luck: 20 Leadership: 73 Resist: Fire: 29 Light: 4 Ice: 14 Dark: 14 Earth: 14 Poison: 14 Air: 14 Disease: 4 Spirit: 4 Done with that, he had a smirk at the thought of his friends when they would see his character info. ¡®They will stop and wonder a long time how I got there.¡¯ JB was far from being the luckiest one of the ¡°gang¡±, but he was the best at taking advantage of each little things. The luckiest one was Stephane, who for some reasons, was always stumbling on rare quests or equipments in the middle of nowhere. ¡®Sometime, I wonder if his innate luck stat is translated in the game datas.¡¯ But being too lucky had also its problem. Stephane didn¡¯t learn how to make the best of his opportunities. So, in the end, JB was usually taking the lead. ¡®Ok, now that¡¯s done, let¡¯s go and do what¡¯s needed for the plan to proceed.¡¯ JB was ready for a late night play session, having already dealt with all the things that were needed in the real world. He entered the capsule and started the login process. * * * Popping back in his lodging, Cilerius pulled some items from his bag. They were the items he couldn¡¯t identify totally he had looted back during his exploration of the gnoll burrow. There were apparently additional effects on some of them. That could prove to be a bonus or a penalty. For example, what if the gnoll bone staff had another detrimental effect in addition to the initial HP drain? Up to now, Cilerius only had used in two occasions but only for a short duration. He didn¡¯t notice anything obvious, but the ¡°what if¡± was a problem. And the problem could be worse if he was wearing all the items of the blood gnoll set. Some sets were known to provide additional effect when many parts were used at the same moment. With his identifying skill at intermediate level, it was now time to check those items for the surprises, be them good or bad. Facing four items disposed on a table, Cilerius first checked the Oracle cloak. ¡°Identify: Oracle cloak!¡± Oracle spirit cloak. A leather cloak imbued with the spirit power. Durability: 57/80 Defense: 10 Lvl40 minimum DEX: +5 All resists: +1% Hiding skill: +1lvl Special property: Oracle vision: provide 1 level increase in the spirit arts. ! Identifying skill raise. ¡®So, this is perfect for a young shaman. Lucky me. Next, the Blood pact gear.¡¯ ¡°Identify: Greaves of the Blood pact!¡± Greaves of the blood pact. Leather greaves imbued with mysterious power. Durability: 85/100 Defense: 25 Level 55 minimum. FOR: +5 DEX: +5 STA: +5 Resilience: +5 All resist: +1% Special property: Blood offering: greave''s defense increase when bathed in the user''s blood. A 10% of max hp offering provide 5% increase of defense for one hour. Special property: Blood transmutation: 10% of the blood bathing the greaves is transmuted in mana. ! Identifying skill raise. ¡®Hmmm, interesting¡­ and apparently, it doesn¡¯t matter whose blood bathe the greaves for the transmutation. Too bad they¡¯re low level.¡¯ ¡°Identify: Studded leather tunic of the blood pact!¡± Studded leather tunic of the blood pact. A studded tunic imbued with a mysterious power. Durability 81/100 Defense: 35 Level 55 minimum. FOR: +5 DEX: +5 STA: +5 Resilience: +5 All resist: +2% Special property: Blood magic affinity: when wearing this tunic, the user benefit of an increase of 15% of all the effects of blood magic he use. Special property: Blood frenzy: when drenched in blood, the user lose all sense of fatigue until his stamina run to zero. ! Identifying skill raise. ¡®Likewise, this one doesn¡¯t specify either that the blood must be the user blood. Even without set bonus, the combo of wearing all the pieces at the same time can be useful. Especially if the user know blood magic. Now let¡¯s verify the staff, even if the effect seem obvious by using it.¡¯ ¡°Identify: Reinforced bones staff of the blood pact! A bones staff reinforced by blood hardened steel, imbued with a mysterious power. Durability 89/100 damages: 20-30 Level 55 minimum. FOR: +5 DEX: +5 STA: +5 Resilience: +5 All resist: +2% Special property: Blood sacrifice: upon equip the staff, the user lose half of his HP, then 1% each minute until unequip.) Special property: Lesser vampiric effect: when fighting with the staff, one third of all damages dealt with it are providing regeneration to the user. ! Identifying skill raise. ¡®So, if I were to equip the tree part of the blood pact set, I virtually could fight indefinitely. The staff, at the initial cost of 50% of my HP and then 1% per minute, can regen me as long as I fight. My blood can increase my defense, any blood can regen my mana. I just lack a way to regen the stamina. More or less, this is perfect for a berzerker. One that can use magic in fight. Even for me, its really good. Too bad the set level is low.¡¯ Equipment with good effects weren¡¯t that rare at low level, but their limitation for defense and stats bonus made them almost useless on the long run. ¡®But I think I did read something about salvaging the power of some armors or weapons to imbue it on others. No doubt it require some special conditions, but that¡¯s worth checking.¡¯ In fact, like JB would discover later, by using the experimental search engine outside of the game, that it was possible to salvage effects or stats bonus on an equipment. But a combination of factor was needed. First, an enchanter was needed both to extract the power on the equipment and to imbue it. Of course, a high level was mandatory. Second, a catalyst was needed for the operation. The strongest the effect, the highest quality needed. Those catalyst were alchemy products. To create them, the skill needed was dependent of the quality required, high or very high, most likely and, the basic material was of course scarce and, expensive. Given those requirements and how those professions lacked attractivity, few were the occasions to salvage and imbue effects. Because users favor some classes when gathering a group, classes for which the lack of knowledge on their potential were ostracized and in reaction, few users chose them. Seriously, what¡¯s the use of a sculptor in a group? Replace sculptor by any other non mainstream profession and that¡¯s the common thought process among players. ¡®Lucky me, I have an enchantress in my acquaintances. I just must make sure Selene is motivated to improve. I guess, the fact that this could turn to a very profitable job should help. And if I ask nicely, as a personal favor, she will do it. As for alchemy, I learned some, but I¡¯ll have to work hard to master this skill or look for an alternative.¡¯ ¡®Now, the last but most important item to check.¡¯ ¡°Identity: Pugilist combat gloves!¡± !Pugilist combat gloves. Black leather gloves perfectly suited for combat. Durability : 80/80 Defense: 5 Damage 3-6 For: 20 Dex: 20 Vit: 20 Durability: 100/100 Special property: Can be imbued with elemental gem to support the user magic. 0/10 slot currently used. Special property: Grow. The user get the possibility to make his gloves evolves in certain occasions. The range of growth depend on the xp the user hoarded while using the gloves when the occasion to evolve arise. Prerequisites: Str 40, Dex 40, pankration skill or known associate skill. ¡®Uh? A growing item? Jackpot! But what are the occasions? And that does mean I must wear those gloves even if I find better ones, to maximise their grow when the moment come. As for the elemental gems, why do I guess that there will be quests linked to that. But it¡¯s as if this item was tailored for my job. Or did the fact I own this item, impact on the job proposal? I can¡¯t dismiss the possibility.¡¯ To get the best result, Cilerius would have to use those gloves even if they were to be outclassed by his own growth. But the reward would probably be worth it. The unknown parameters were how to find the elemental gems and what was the occasion to evolve the gloves. Up to date with his items, he thought about what was left and what he could to do before the tournament. It had been postponed due to the goblin attack and the city isolation caused, but he had received a message about this event happening one week from now. The venue address was also included. ¡®I should try and think for new tricks to use. No doubts my previous performance has been analysed and counters thought of. Thinking of new moves isn¡¯t a waste of my time for the PvE either. My clearing of the mine proved the efficiency of those tricks when used wisely. And not to forget, in addition to the last time, I have the spirits at my side now.¡¯ Since his first tournament participation, Cilerius had gained power and new weapons. Even if his future opponents had prepared for him according to his previous record, he was ready to surprise them once again. Of course, he had to expect, and he did, that those opponents would be also more powerful and tricky. At home, Cilerius had many others things to do. Of course, he still had to practice his calligraphy, as it promised great prospects. But he had even more need to look in another subject. He had reached the required familiarity level with all the non elemental spirits to get a spell. As seen with the elemental spirits, those spells could be great or small additions to his arsenal, but even small addition, namely the water spring spell, could be really useful if used wisely. There was also another bonus for him to reach the next level of familiarity. If he was to learn spells related to the spirits, be them curses or heals or any others, they would now benefit from the spirit presence in the form of a percentage increase of their raw potency. Due to his already high familiarity with the elements at the time when he visited the spiritual plane, he came back with the ability to see the elemental spirits and so, to use their full potential. Now, he had to visit, once again, the spiritual plane to get the others spirits to walk with him in the material plane. To walk with him is a figure of speech, since only him or other trained shamans could see the spirits. Spirits summoned by a shaman, were able to interact with the material plane, like kicking a troll head or carrying blood vials, but untrained and ungifted creatures couldn¡¯t see them till it was in the power and the will of the summoning shaman. That explain why sometimes, peoples or creature could trip with no reason or why a perfectly stable water bucket suddenly toppled, just at the perfect moment to wet someone. That¡¯s a fact, some spirits are jesters. The time was the beginning of the evening. Cilerius still had time to move without creating too much inconvenience for his future guest. He got into the inner room of his lodging, closed the door and then, took the key and opened the door with. The portal to the office in his library appeared and he moved through. Used to the process, he had taken paper to exercise his skill while waiting for the portal refresh. One hour later, he could open open the portal to his shamanism master house. As the portal opened and after he walked through, he could hear many noises coming from what he assumed was the bedroom. There were whisperings and sounds of someone getting up hurriedly, followed by others that could be interpreted as the person putting on clothes. Cilerius, as he was coming unreported, did wait exactly where he had walked first after going through the gate. Shortly after, Gurdianson exited his bedroom and came to him. ¡°Hello Gurdianson, sorry to intrude. I hope I¡¯m not a bother.¡± ¡°Hey, Cilerius. Not at all, not at all.¡± He answered while obviously hiding something. He was clothed but minute details could tell tales. He had put on his clothes in a hurry for some reason and that was showing. ¡°Just when I thought it was about time for you to maybe come and see me. How do you do?¡± ¡°I¡¯m doing fine, friend. Really fine I think. And you, how do you do?¡± ¡°As usual, I¡¯m fine. So, what happened to you since your last visit?¡± At this, Cilerius began to tell the tale of his adventure, including the whole story, unedited, of his meddling with the goblins. ¡°Hmmm, I know of Gunthar. He¡¯s tricky and would search for any reason to break his agreement with you if you¡¯re only ¡°slightly¡± related. But if he come to see you as a legitimate student, he will be faithful and unrestricted in partaking his knowledge.¡± ¡°I sure hope so. This mineral has the potential to be worth more than its weight in gold. Becoming able to work it will be very profitable, both for wealth reason and for my own use.¡± ¡°That¡¯s for sure. Also, did you realise this was a massive tomb? Basically, that¡¯s the same as why I created to act as a medium to reach the spiritual plane. Titans were living creatures at a time. No reason for their spirits to have vanished.¡± ¡°Damn, how did I miss that. I must try to contact them. Spirits so old and originating from legendary creatures must be darn powerful.¡± ¡°Good thing you missed that then. Power mean difficulty to ¡°harness¡± it. Beware not to try a feat like that before being ready and prepared for. Spirits from legendary beings are for late advanced level shaman to contract. And a fail in doing so can mean your death. Material and spiritual death. Of course, the reward for a success is so huge that many shamans tried to cut corners, failed and lost their live.¡± ¡®Translated, failing may mean the loss of my life, not so bad considering I would revive 24h later, but also the end of my connection to the spirits. Now that would be bad. I better plan this encounter for when I¡¯m certain or at least pretty damn confident, to succeed in contracting them.¡¯ ¡°I understand, master, I will postpone a contact with them till you deem me to be ready.¡± ¡°Ohohoh¡­ that may never happen, I hope you understand that.¡± ¡°If my master and friend say I¡¯m not ready, who am I to refute his opinion.¡± ¡°What a faithful student do I have here. Have no fear, I will train you for this objective. By the way, to contact them now, if you¡¯re ¡°polite¡± isn¡¯t a problem. It¡¯s even a given for a shaman to at least say hello to your, let¡¯s say ¡°landlord¡±, when you¡¯re around. It¡¯s for the contracting portion that you need to wait till the spirit deem you ready.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s the spirit that have to accept me? I guess I should take measures so it doesn¡¯t irritate it that we exploit its material remains.¡± ¡°That may be wise. I¡¯m sure, with the proper preparation, the change of tenant will surely please it much. I will teach about the way to not irritate your ¡°landlord¡± as you called it¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think it would be hard. Goblins are poors tenant to be guest for.¡± ¡°Ahahah, that¡¯s for sure.¡± After that, they both prepared for a walk in the spiritual plane. For reason unsaid beforehand, Gurdianson would accompany him for this walk. At his question for a reason, Gurdianson had answered with cryptic: ¡°You¡¯ll see, it¡¯ll be useful at a point.¡± And so, they both started to meditate and then, dived in the dream to reach the spiritual plane gate. They entered and Cilerius sat, waiting for his spirits to come. They weren¡¯t long to do so, since they were familiar with him. After some small talk, they recognized him once again as their contractor and granted him a gift that consisted of a spell that didn¡¯t need their mediation to work. Before leaving the plane, Gurdianson intervened and talked to the owl spirit. He asked it to grant him a link with his apprentice through the spiritual plan. The answer was positive and that last point done, Gurdianson and Cilerius left for the material plane. ¡°What was that, master?¡± Asked Cilerius as they both woke up. ¡°That, apprentice, is a mean for both of us to contact each other through the spirits. Much like you adventurers can, for some reason, contact each others from far away once you accepted an acquaintance.¡± ¡°Oh, I see. That may turn to be useful, alright. I will be able to ask you questions from without a need to meet in person and also warn you of my coming before opening a portal.¡± ¡°Exactly, that¡¯s the weakness in your portal system. You move in without care at the risk of¡­ awkward encounter.¡± ¡°Oups¡­ did I interrupt something earlier?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s not talk about it, appart from the fact that it¡¯s a good thing that your portal doesn¡¯t open right through my bedroom door.¡± ¡°Oups. Again, I¡¯m really sorry for intruding. I promise I will call you before coming next time.¡± ¡°Yes, please do that.¡± That whole talk meant that Gurdianson was maybe almost an hermit, probably celibate but certainly not abstinent. After a little more small talk, Cilerius took his leave and opened the portal. As he walked through, he heard a female voice: ¡°Is he gone? Come back to bed, Gurdianinou!¡± The answer wasn¡¯t heard as he was now in his office. ¡°Right¡­ that was awkward. I better never forget to call him before dropping by.¡± Some more calligraphy practice later, he was back in Hartburg. There, he thought and looked in the details of the gifts he got from the spirits. The snake had granted him the spell: small cleansing. ¡°Skill information: small cleansing.¡± ! Small cleansing: a spell that heal and cure small injuries, diseases, poisons and curses on a single target. Casting cost: 400 mana. With practice, the potency of the spell will increase and its mana cost decrease. ¡®hmm, nice one. I can picture this spell as a favorite in a short delay.¡¯ The bat had presented him with the spell: cursed vines. ¡°Skill information: cursed vines.¡± ! Cursed vines: a spell that summon invisible vines that cling on the target. The vines will slow the movements of the target while sucking its vitality. Casting cost: 500 mana. With practice, the potency of the spell will increase and its mana cost decrease. ¡®Very nice this one. That may help for crowd control.¡¯ From the rat, he got : suffocating cloud. ¡°Skill information: suffocating cloud.¡± ! Suffocating cloud: a spell that conjure a cloud of low potency disease agents. While the lasting effect on ones health is small, its concentration will reduce the breathing capacity of those in the targeted area, increasing greatly their stamina use proportionally to their physical efforts. Casting cost: 500 mana. The size, concentration and movement control of the cloud will increase with the raise of the caster expertise. The last of his offensive spirit, the scorpion, gave him: painful sting. ¡°Skill information: painful sting.¡± ! Painful sting: a spell that deal no real lasting damages but induce intolerable pain that will radiate from the targeted area in all the body. This excruciating pain will impede the focusing of the target, resulting in fizzling spells and failed precision tasks. Casting cost: 600 mana. As the expertise of the caster raise, the pain strength and duration will increase. ¡®Ok, now that¡¯s spell tailored for use against casters. I will have to focus on this one.¡¯ His other spirits all granted him with lesser buff spells of their respective forte. Cilerius was now able to increase some stats. Not by much, given those were lesser buffs, but a 5% increase of one strength could prove very nice in many situations. Also, he didn¡¯t miss the fact that those were the first of their spell line. As he kept increasing his intimacy with the spirits, he would be granted more spells. Having the spirits walking by his side also meant a permanent buff, as the elemental spirits provided him already in their respective forte. Earlier, Gurdianson had given him an advice and, he wasn¡¯t one to simply ignore it. Cilerius walked toward his mansion, then entered. He got in the building and descended in the mine. The ropes he had used last time with his ¡°army¡± were still there, so he didn¡¯t have any difficulties. He even attached a rope ladder that would make climbing back easier. Now standing on the highest platform of the well mine, He climbed down the stairs, looking for something, his senses, even more so his spiritual sensibility, open to the surroundings. After a while, he found a place he deemed suitable. Here, he stacked some rocks and stones to build a makeshift shrine. Gurdianson had told him that it didn¡¯t need to be luxurious nor even very elaborate at first, but built with conviction and reverence. He could make a more suitable shrine later. He just had to make sure any of the mine visitors paid respect to the spirits inside. Spirits weren¡¯t usually jealous of their remains, save for some special cases, if only those who salvaged them were showing proper deference. Done with his construction, he sat down and started his dive into the spirit world. After the usual flight through the bright and colored world, he pushed the doors, sat and waited, his full attention turned toward the faraway. He had been warned about them, so he didn¡¯t try actively to draw the titan spirits. He just sat, in spiritual form and, sort of paid his respect to the inhabitants of this gigantic tomb. At first, he felt a oppressive atmosphere, but slowly, as if the spirits wandering the place were beginning to accept him, the pressure lightened. He formulated thoughts, about their resting place and their remains, about how he had eradicated the filthy goblins that roamed the mine before and how he wanted to honor them by using their remain in a noble way. His thoughts about Gunthar and his passion for the titanium helped a lot. After a long meditation, he raised and after a last thought about how he would come back to show them his advancements, left the spiritual world. When he emerged from this dive, more time had passed than he expected. It was past midnight. Cilerius climbed up back to the last platform then up the rope ladder. Out of the mine, he then left the mansion after closing the doors, and headed toward his flat. On his way back to his flat, he thought about what was to come. ¡®Tomorrow, I¡¯ll have to enter the underground fight tournament. I better prepare for it.¡¯ Preparations were indeed needed. Not as much for the fights than for the negotiations he planned to have with the management. ¡®Like in judo. If the opponent is strong, I just have to move him until he overhang. Timely attack at the right moment and he fall.¡¯ Just like that, he thought of the movements he could use and the responses and then, what he could do next, and so, and so. He wasn¡¯t a very good chess player, but in regard to moves in real life, he was experienced enough to plan ahead.
Part 2 The following day passed with him testing his shamanic spells on some unfortunate mobs in the forest outside oft he city. Then, the promised night came. He headed to a back alley where bouncers were guarding a door. That was the same as in Nivese with only minute details different. He did show the paper that was his summoning as well as the instruction for direction and, they let him pass through their checkpoint. After the walk through the now usual long hallway, he reached a room with four entrances. The one he came by, another one facing it and leading to stairs with a curtain hiding it more or less and, two others, one on each side, that probably lead to the fighters waiting rooms. In the room, a man was waiting. That was a bulky guy. In fact, that was the same guy as in Nivese. He seemed to move with the circus. Recognizing him, Cilerius called: ¡°Hey, Lazyo! You¡¯re in charge again?¡± This man who was apparently an overseer, gazed at Cilerius and answered. ¡°Humf! Of course I am. Who know what troublesome peoples like you would do if I wasn¡¯t here.¡± Cilerius tried to recall if he had caused troubles before but without success. ¡°So, I guess you¡¯re in charge of the roll call and the bets.¡± A little more than two months had passed since the previous meeting, so Lazyo wasn¡¯t aware of Cilerius¡¯s actual strength but recalled perfectly how this classless guy, with lower level than all his opponents, had won against all odds. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m in charge. Do you want to bet on yourself again?¡± ¡°Ahahahah¡­ of course I want to. But what are the odds?¡± ¡°Show me your strength so I can estimate it.¡± At this request, Cilerius opened his status window for this npc to see and waited for the result. ¡°Hmmm, you didn¡¯t level much since the last time. And is that your fighting equipment?¡± That was new to Cilerius. From here and on, contestants were to fight with their own gear. ¡°Well, yes, mostly.¡± ¡°So, that make you level 86 with a level 50 gear¡­ the odds should be high, despite your victory in the Nivese preliminaries.¡± ¡°What level are the others as an average?¡± ¡°The average is 105. And they have a gear up to date.¡± ¡°So, the audience should think they have an overwhelming advantage on me.¡± ¡°They should, yes. Of course, some have seen you fight in Nivese and may think you can do it. So, don¡¯t expect a 1:10 odd.¡± ¡°Whatever. Just tell me where is my waiting room and come back later with the odds so I can register my bet.¡± Cilerius walked away in the direction he was given. Of course, being underestimated was working in his favor in this case, but it still hurt his pride. In the waiting room, he sat down and began to think about strategies. There were two opposing desired results. One was to keep the odds high the longest time possible so he could win big. The second was aiming at efficiency. Winning with a big move to make sure of the victory. But ultimately, both way had to get the same place. For his plan to work, he had to show his overwhelming power before the final. ¡®The bettors must be convinced of my capacities before placing their money for the final. That way and that way only, I will have a pull on the promoter.¡¯ A few minutes later, Lazyo came to tell him the odds and take the bet. Cilerius took a look at his remaining money and placed a 10kGP bet on himself at the 5:1 odds. 150000GP, that¡¯s what he had left from the wealth he had amassed in Nivese underground arena. One could say he was still rich, but most of it was to be invested in operations that would take time to be ripe for the harvest. He was planning to build an industrial empire with a large income potential, but he knew that was dreams build on sand for now. Everything could fall into pieces if bad circumstances were to pill up. ¡®I better earn the most I can here, just in case, but I can¡¯t risk to lose everything.¡¯ With that decision, he had to seal the flashy moves that were also those with the less risk for him. To show himself struggling, he had, in fact, to struggle by holding the sure win techniques hidden. ¡®That mean I won¡¯t be able to use most of my magic. Let¡¯s hope there isn¡¯t a close and personal specialist in the roster.¡¯ Techniques sealed, equipment lacking, fighting trained opponents with adequate gear wasn¡¯t without risk. His only ace was they probably weren¡¯t ready for someone who would come close and stick to them. ¡®Tch¡­ this is going to be tiresome.¡¯ While thinking that, Cilerius was selecting the skills he could use. Soon after, Lazyo came back to call him for his first fight. He lead him to the room he was before and pointing at the curtain, said: ¡°You know the drill. Go down the stair and up the arena, wait for the annoncer to finish the introduction speech and then¡­ well, toor a new one to your opponent, I guess.¡± ¡°Well¡­ I didn¡¯t get hit too much on the head lately, so I remember how this does work, thanks. Hmmm, by the way, will the owner of this venue be here?¡± ¡°He¡¯s supposed to show up for the demi and final. Why?¡± ¡°Curiosity, only simple curiosity.¡± ¡®Negotiations will be easier easier this way. Now, let¡¯s show them a performance.¡¯ To better stage his act, Cilerius had removed his leather tunic and only had a white shirt. There was a point in doing so. He descended the stairs then climbed on the sand circle that was the usual fighting ground. All the while of his descent, he could see his opponent and tune up his strategy. ¡®Hmm, given his weapon, coming without the tunic is a lucky move.¡¯ His opponent was a barbarian with a gigantic two handed axe. He was currently juggling with it as a show for the audience. ¡®If I want to act as if I¡¯m struggling before this guy, I can¡¯t just let myself hit by this axe. That look painful. And the tunic would take a lot of damages. Right, they will see blood but not at the expense of my life.¡¯ Cilerius was blessed with an high agility due to his training and had, of course, called upon the spirit for some more buffing. With that and, looking at his opponent, he was pretty confident he could do what he had planned. He was facing the muscular archetype, who would swing his axe with strength and speed but only minimal control. Given that and Cilerius¡¯s high agility, avoiding the strikes wasn¡¯t too hard a task. The annoncer was finishing his intro. Supposedly, the barbarian was the champion of one of the northern cities of the western continent, a level 110 axe dancer, from what Cilerius could hear. He was himself introduced as the champion of Nivese, a level 86 brawler that had won the city title against all odds. At the mention of his level and class, the audience let out surprised exclamations and showed obvious lack of interest. In their mind, this was going to be a one sided massacre that wouldn¡¯t entertain them much. ¡®Not like I can blame them. Brawler class is almost unknown and lack shine. Had to that my level that is low. Only the craziest bettor, or one who already know of me, would think I have a chance. I better keep them in this mind state a little if I want to fill up my chests a little.¡¯ The announcer left the ring and then, sounded the beginning of the fight. Immediately, Cilerius retreated on the furthest side of the ring, away from this barbarian with his gigantic axe. At this action, his opponent laughed openly and the audience was balanced between booing and understanding comments. ¡°Me too I would cower in front of this axe, ahaha. Hang in there!¡± ¡°This is going to be a slaughter. It will go down as the most gore fights ever.¡± ¡°Hey man! Do you want some help down there?¡± ¡°The only challenging bet we can do here, is about how long he will survive.¡± ¡°Did he already raise the white flag?¡± Amidst this clamor, the barbarian was now swinging his axe while moving forward. In response, Cilerius choose a direction and began to slide on the border of the ring. His opponent moved closer and closer and his swings started to aim at him. Cilerius, at a swing even closer than the previous one, did show hesitation in his reaction and leaned backward enough to let about 20cm between the weapon and his chest. While the momentum of this swing moved the the axe further, he then ducked, dashed and did strike three time at the barbarian abdomen. He didn¡¯t show any discomfort and Cilerius let his disappointment show on his face while rolling past his opponent as he was about to launch a kick. He renewed the same serie a few times without any more success. Instead, the axe was now grazing his chest and his dodges were more and more a kind of last minute save. The northman was grinning while balancing his axe, sure of a promised victory. Cilerius¡¯s strike were for him, more annoyances than real damages. His axe was now shaving closer and closer of the insect that was facing him. And what everyone expected happened. The axe cut the shirt and the flesh. Soon, the white shirt was colored in red along a line barring Cilerius¡¯s torso. He raised his hand to his chest and looked and when his head faced the barbarian again, panic was reflected on it. The audience cheered at the blood sight. The expected scenario was followed and soon would be slaughtering time. The same effect repeated more times, with resulting wounds appearing at Cilerius¡¯s abdomen and shoulders. Then the axe didn¡¯t touch the flesh anymore. Was it the target getting instinct reactions thanks to the fear? Who know. But after a few minutes, the northman began to lose his patience and moved forward with more will than before. Just as he stepped forward and doing so, included the Nivese¡¯ s champion in his striking zone, Cilerius moved forward as well, as he was doing to repeat his serie and, with a raising palm, striked the hands holding the axe, upward. The barbarian, suddenly suffering a strong hit on his hands, saw his horizontal movement change in a vertical one and couldn¡¯t hold his weapon anymore. The axe flew high, rotating at an high speed. As if losing his balance, Cilerius leaned toward the northman, his leg crooking the barbarian¡¯s and his open palm now falling toward the northman face. Gradouble, the barbarian, was arm raised, saw the palm coming at his face and felt his leg crooked. Still surprised by the loss of his weapon and sure of his superiority, he didn¡¯t react in time to protect his face. All the audience could see was, a sudden uppercut that by luck hit the hands, an axe fly high, then the underdog falling forward, his leg crocheting the barbarian¡¯s one and, in the same movement, Cilerius¡¯s hand coming down at his opponent face. Arms up, leaning a little backward due to the momentum, his leg crooked, Gradouble had almost no balance remaining. And the slap came. With a very loud sound, the palm striked his nose, the fingers covering his eyes. The strike was strong, heavy. Heavier than anything he could expect from the insect he was facing. His nose brook. He felt himself fall backward fast. His head hit the ground with force. Such force that he almost lost conscience. And the nose pain came. Tears filled his eyes. And blood flowed from the nose and came in the eyes also. He felt his opponent moving away and was glad. He could wipe his eyes to see. He would make the insect pay. He would crush it! He heard scream from the audience. His forearm moving away after wiping his eyes, he saw. After falling, his leg entwined with his opponent, his palm on his face, Cilerius looked up, saw something, repressed a vicious grin and moved away from the barbarian on all four. The spectators had seen the fall and saw Cilerius covering and moving away fast. Then their eyes caught a glimpse of reflected light coming from height. He saw. But he didn¡¯t move. He couldn¡¯t move. His head had hit the floor with violence. He probably suffered from the concussion effects. And he saw. It was coming. Cilerius, now away of his opponent, looked up and watched it fall. It was still rotating at a high pace. He saw the barbarian not moving. ¡®Not like you can defend well against blunt trauma.¡¯ He was thinking that and waiting for the inevitable to happen. The audience, after the previous scream, had like one man, hold its breath. They couldn¡¯t understand why Gradouble wasn¡¯t moving. They couldn¡¯t figure what dumb luck made the axe flaw high, the northman fall so hard that he was out of it and the falling axe coming right at him. Less than one second now and he would be hit by his own weapon. And that happened. Until the end, he didn¡¯t move. The axe still rotating, stroke him with lethal force, creating a vertical section of his abdomen. It was as if legs were originating from his rib cage. Just like that, the barbarian died, not even understanding what had happened. The annoncer was still outside of the ring, looking at the unbelievable scene that happened. Cilerius was showing an naive and happy face that screamed ¡°Lucky!¡±. Regaining his wits, the annoncer climbed on the ring, looked a few seconds at Gradouble body then, took Cilerius¡¯s wrist and raised it. ¡°And with this, I guess we have our winner. That was sure a strange conclusion but let¡¯s applaud the one that luck favor.¡± This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Silence subsided a moment then applauses came. The spectators still didn¡¯t understand everything that had lead to this conclusion, but victory had been decided. They had seen blood so they were happy despite the strange ending. Cilerius left the ring and climbed toward the hall then walked to his waiting room. Only when he got there and closed the door, he let his face show his real thoughts. ¡®Yes! Everything went perfectly. I¡¯m lucky this guy was so simple he didn¡¯t knew to change his pace even a little.¡¯ Then looking at his chest, abdomen and shoulder: ¡®Still, that sting. That was hard to stay just at the range limit to allow the blade to cut my skin.¡¯ He was about to make use of his healing spell when decided against it and in place, used bandages. He wrapped his body with linen fabric, just enough to keep the injuries close, but not enough to activate the skill and heal himself. ¡®After all, looking at my damaged body, they will not get their hopes high for me later on.¡¯ Then, he took a look at the multiple information windows resulting of his fight that he had discarded previously. !You have slain a powerful opponent that was much higher level. XP raise greatly. Level up! !You have won in a PvP fight against a powerful opponent. Brawling skill +35%. !For enduring damages willingly, your endurance raise. Endurance +1. !For avoiding powerful strikes with the minimal margin, your agility raise. Agility +1. !You have improved your dodging skill. Dodging +10%. Lazyo came a few minutes later with his betting gains. 50k GP. ¡°Ahahaha! That was a good performence down there. I bet even among those who saw you fight in Nivese, few corrected their feeling of you.¡± ¡°Ah! Don¡¯t you go and spoil it.¡± Cilerius didn¡¯t try to deny it against the guy that had given him his new job. He was too knowledgeable to be fooled. ¡°Of course I won¡¯t. That¡¯s not my place to give those insights¡­ for free. And no one, not even your next opponent, will pay to know after the show you did earlier. If you don¡¯t succeed in your venture, I know a few peoples in shady business that would welcome your talents.¡± ¡°Hahaha. Thanks but no thanks. If I can¡¯t succeed in my current profession, I doubt there won¡®t be better than me in the underground. Now, let¡¯s stop with the pleasantries and tell me. What are the odds for the next fight?¡± ¡°As expected, they did lower. Few have placed their hope on you, but adding those who now remember your feats in Nivese and the ones who expect a result from a crazy bet on the underdog, that enough to get you at 2.5:1. Still a good odd if you like to take a risk for a big gain. Don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°I think so. I feel like making a crazy bet.¡± ¡°50k GP I presume?¡± ¡°Yep, that should do it.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll pray for your success.¡± ¡°I bet you do. I don¡¯t even want to guess how much are your gains when I fight.¡± ¡°Enough to make us happy and keep needless knowledge to be disclosed.¡± He answered with a grin. On those words, the underground clerk left and Cilerius was once again alone, free to think about his next fight. ¡®I can fool them maybe once or twice more, but not much longer. Dumb luck can¡¯t explain everything on the long run.¡¯ He would have loved to keep the charade up for four or five fights, but the limit was probably three. ¡®After that, they would bet on the dumb luck. And I will probably run out of schemes to make it look like accidents.¡¯ There is only so much situations that will result in fatalities after successive coincidences. The law of Murphy isn¡¯t provoqued. It happen. Moments later, he was called for his second fight. Like before, he didn¡¯t equip the leather tunic and he just got there with his bloodstained shirt covering his bandages. The audience reaction was as expected. They, in large majority, saw a guy that had escaped from russian roulette with 5 out of 6 chambers loaded, come for another round. Facing him was a lean guy with a foil in hand. He was looking at him with curiosity and even talked to him. ¡°I guess I should thank you for removing the muscle mountain before. My foil would have been ruined if I had to thrust in all that flesh again and again.¡± Cilerius was a little surprised but answered. ¡°It was a pleasure to help. I hope I will be lucky enough to see what destiny hold for you.¡± This time, it was Espadon, the foil user, turn to be surprised at this many meanings phrase. With grace, he smiled and bowed his head. Espadon was a lean man, as was said before. But that doesn¡¯t mean he was stunted. This was the body of someone who honed it in search of the perfect stance for a mean. He was only equipped with leather protection that didn¡¯t hinder his movements. His face was gentle and he was smiling. He had a neat mustache with whirling ends. In fact, this guy had a look that Cilerius had seen in many capes and sword movies. It was a picture of a musketeer. He probably just lacked the musket to roleplay at the perfection. At the annoncer signal, he even performed a salute with his foil, with three words in french but with an accent. ¡°En garde, monsieur.¡± The common start for swordfighter as a sport. As one who spoke this language originally, Cilerius answered without accent and with a bow: ¡°je vous en prie.¡± And just like that, the fight started. Given the weapon, a foil, almost all the strikes were thrusts, with few turning to slashes as Cilerius retreated from Espadon range. This time, it was an agility and speed fight. Of course, it proved even more difficult for Cilerius to control the flow. At first, he avoided the blade by large margins since he didn¡¯t know the skill level of his opponent. Then he let it come closer and closer with each thrust. His aim was to test the real striking range of the man he faced. It would be deadly to take it certain that the range he was displaying was his ultimate one. He had, of course, to keep some card up his sleeve. Also, he didn¡¯t let himself be lead like the barbarian in the previous fight. He was patient and slowly reducing the distance without leaving himself open for a counter. ¡®This one is going to be a difficult customer. If I try and miss, he wont let himself be caught in my scheme a second time.¡¯ One try, that was all Cilerius had to make this fight another ¡°chance victory¡±. If missed this one opportunity, he would have to use his real skills and drop the mask. That would mean that this fight would be the last with favorable betting odds. ¡®I can¡¯t have that. I¡¯d really like to refill my chests a little more, just in case I have to invest more than planned.¡¯ And so, he let his opponent close the distance and thrust his foil while he avoided and launched some punches that didn¡¯t hit. ¡®Well, no other way, I¡¯ll have to bleed again.¡¯ His bandages were covered by the bloodstained shirt. For a good effect, he had to make it so the shirt would be torn. The perfect thrust came, just enough to pierce the fabric of the shirt but too far for the flesh to be touched. This strike, as expected, turned immediately in a slash that cut the fabric. With a wide cut, the shirt was almost useless and let everyone see the bandages under. Exclamations resounded. ¡°Hey, he didn¡¯t even get properly healed?¡± ¡°What the¡­ they send damaged products fight here. Is it a slaughterhouse or an arena?¡± ¡°Well, whatever it is, it alway turn in a slaughterhouse. That¡¯s exactly why we come, no?¡± ¡°True.¡± It was exactly what Cilerius was looking for. To be seen as weak. Espadon, after this slash, let a smile show on his face and said: ¡°Sorry for your shirt. I hope you have others to wear. I¡¯d hate to let you leave this place dead AND half naked.¡± ¡°No problem. I¡¯m sure I can mend it.¡± Espadon didn¡¯t seem to let himself get over optimistic. Again, Cilerius was reminded that he wasn¡¯t facing a hot head anymore. During this short talk, both fighters didn¡¯t stop moving. It wasn¡¯t a break. They were both circling around each other, looking for an opening. From this moment, the thrusts came even closer to Cilerius¡¯s body and he seemed to have lost all means to escape in the long term. And soon, the flesh was touched and blood flow. This was just a little puncture in the upper arm, but it meant for everyone that Cilerius wouldn¡¯t escape for long. As he had experienced before, letting himself be lightly hit was harder than avoiding a strike. Accordingly, since he was letting himself hit on purpose but only lightly, his endurance and sustenance stats benefited, as an information window popped to inform him. Surprisingly, he also gained a little experience in the esquive skill. It may seem counter intuitive, but apparently, countering the skill effect and being hit on purpose was also a way to raise it. Of course, that meant one had to plan for that, not simply stay put and be hit. This unexpected benefit was welcome, but it came at the expense of exhausting concentration. It wasn¡¯t a method fit for extended use. ¡®I guess that¡¯s what call learning by suffering. But those informations windows are sure distracting in a PvP fight.¡¯ This combat was now reaching its peak. Two of three thrusts were now touching the flesh and Cilerius seemed doomed to finish as a sieve. Seeing the opportunity, the previously prudent and methodic fencer added more strength and was more pressing in his strikes. ¡®Now is the occasion.¡¯ Cilerius, in reaction readied himself to enact his plan. He had to select the perfect thrust and strike immediately. Soon, it came. The spectators were looking at the ring and were excited, expecting the conclusion to happen soon. The Nivese¡¯s brawler was outclassed and didn¡¯t achieve any meaningful result since the start. Nones of his punches had landed as he was being kept at bay by the foil reach. And then, it happened. The conclusive strike happened. Espadon launched a powerful thrust with his whole body following, as Cilerius had retreated one moment too late after the previous strike. Unable to esquive this time, Cilerius was seen raising his hand in front of him in a desperate effort to parry the foil. And then, they were both on the ground, Espadon laying on Cilerius, blood gushing forth from the melee. Cheers were louder than an instant before but then, a scream was heard, louder than the cheers, and the the audience noticed the strangeness. The foil was pointing upward. After, on purpose, delaying his retreat on a strike, Cilerius saw coming the next strike. It was heavy. It was perfect. He raised his hands as for parrying the foil but instead, caught it at the base of the blade with one hand and the wrist with the other. Then, he pulled and twisted. He pulled the wrist to him and twisted the blade up. He let himself fall, backward, on the ground, driving Espadon along who couldn¡¯t do anything but fall forward on him. With his strength, he overpowered the fencer and made the foil point toward him as he was falling. Gravity and his foot blocking the fencer ones, made the rest. Espadon was laying on Cilerius, his foil entering his mouth and exiting from his neck. He had stabbed himself as he tried to conclude the fight. That¡¯s how the audience saw it. As Cilerius broke away, Espadon was laying prone, blood flowing from his mouth and gushing from his neck. Cilerius looked at his opponent, dumbfounded. Then he raised, whipped his brow with his forearm in a gesture that signified that he had a narrow escape. For a vigilant observer, this could seem forced, but the audience was too shocked to judge an acting performance at the moment. The announcer finally climbed on the ring, looked at Espadon and, raised Cilerius¡¯s hand, proclaiming his victory. As the Nivese¡¯s brawler walked away, in an effort to play down, he joked about how Cilerius should play in the lottery with his luck. Back in his waiting room, Cilerius leaned backward on the wall and let himself fall. It had been tiring, both physicaly and mentaly. There were many punctures in his body, for whose he applied the smallest healing before wrapping himself in bandages. Lazyo came with his gains and the news for the next fight. ¡°And here are your 125k golds. For the next fight, the odds have fallen to 1.5:1, only. Your performance was apparently enough to fool some of the audience. But those who won their bet and some others who have seen the gains, have bet on you again. Your next fight should be in 30 minutes. Are you sure you don¡¯t want to buy informations on your next opponent?¡± ¡°No, thanks. That would be expensive, I suppose. Very expensive. Surprises are welcome sometimes. So, as usual, I bet the whole sum on myself.¡± Cilerius wanted to keep the exchange short to rest. ¡°Understood. 125k at 1.5:1. For your information, your opponent paid for informations.¡± ¡°Hmmm. What did he want to know?¡± ¡°Everything, but he¡¯s cheap, so he only paid the minimal amount and got basics informations. Nothing he wouldn¡¯t know by just looking and listening attentively.¡± ¡°So, my level and equipment.¡± ¡°That¡¯s about it. And some basics on the brawler class. Like how you can use anything as a weapon with a skill much different than a beginner.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s all, it will mislead him.¡± ¡°Yes. Not like I can disclose the secrets of your particular profession. That would go against even my deontology.¡± ¡°If you say so. I¡¯ll wait for your call on the next fight.¡± Cilerius ended the talk here, wondering how the developers had programed the personality of this npc. He was holding the path to an hidden class, yet ready to sell informations. ¡®Balancing the secrecy side and the divulging side must have been difficult.¡¯ JB couldn¡¯t have know that it was the work of an AI, the goddess Versaille, and not of humans. Later, when the time came for the next fight, Lazyo notified him and Cilerius moved toward the arena. There, he was welcomed by silence and scorn. Most of the audience had lost their bets in a surprising way. It wasn¡¯t strange for them to be resentful toward the man who only had won thanks to dumb luck. In the ring, his opponent was waiting. It was a short creature with most of its appearance concealed under a wide cloak. He was croaked and his face was covered with pustules. At this look, Cilerius immediately sensed a threat. ¡®He can conceal anything under that cloak. No way to know how he fight. I better stay on guard.¡¯ At the starting signal, Cilerius immediately retreated and took a defensive stance. His opponent, Maniak, leaned forward, his hands still concealed by his cloak and began to move on the ring. This statu quo couldn¡¯t remain for long and Maniak attacked. He ran toward Cilerius, hands still concealed. Then, as he approached, there was a sudden movement of his arm throwing something then retreating under the cloak. On guard, Cilerius dodged the object coming with a jump sideway. A jump, because the object was coming at his feet and instinct dictated to take move away. The object fell on the sandy ground and shattered. A liquid splashed. Where the liquid touched, bubbles and smoke appeared. ¡®Ouch, corrosive liquid. I better don¡¯t be touched. Now, that¡¯s a worrisome opponent. But surely interesting.¡¯ Facing someone using this kind of weapon was new for Cilerius. He himself made use of smoke screen, but he was now facing someone who pushed the use of chemicals further. Interesting but dangerous. The diversity of means and effects was potentially huge. And Maniak dropped the mask and let a weapon show. This was a weight at the end of a chain. he started to move it like a pendulum then made it swing, faster and faster. Cilerius planned to grab the chain and block this weapon, but as he thought about it, he saw droplets coming from it and decided against. Landing on the ground, the droplets also induced smoke. ¡°AHAHAHAHA! If you thought about grabbing my chain, you¡¯re welcome. But be advised it¡¯s deadly. The chain itself is very cutting and it was soaked in a mix of my composition. AHAHAHAH. Come on, come on!¡± This Maniak was acting like a psycho and had seen Cilerius¡¯s little movement forward then retreat. Droplets were also hitting him sometimes but his cloak was probably specialized to counter poisons and acids, as a green glow appeared on the part touched and there were no other reactions. As Cilerius thought that it would be a troublesome fight, Maniak yet took the next step. Still swinging his chain with one hand, with the other, he launched another vial in Cilerius direction. The target dodged again but before the vial could hit the ground, it was hit by the chain and the liquid inside splashed toward Cilerius who couldn¡¯t then esquive the toxic rain coming his way. !You have been hit by acid. Corrosive damages cause immediate loss of 1342 HP. Until you wash away the acid, 349 damages per 5 seconds will be added. !Poison hit your wound and enter your bloodstream. 200 direct damages. Until a cure is applied, cumulative damages will stack, doubling each 5 seconds. !You have been poisoned. A 20% slowing effect will remain until you cure it. Just for a few droplets, Cilerius suffered more damages than he had in the previous fights. Maniak let a sadistic smirk show on his face as the audience hold its breath. Cilerius retreated away then, took a decision. ¡°Ok, no more games. I don¡¯t have the means to deal lightly with you and seriously, you annoy me.¡± Both his opponent and the spectators thought that as empty threat and bragging, but Cilerius was really annoyed. As he said, he didn¡¯t see a way to deal with this combo without his weapons and while concealing his most efficient skills. ¡°Oh well. Not like I could keep it a secret way longer.¡± After this second line, Cilerius removed his shirt, then the bandages. Not even fully closed wounds were show and smoke was coming from the place where the droplets had touched his skin. Straightening his body while facing his opponent, he whispered a few words. ¡°May the blessing of the snake protect me: Small cleansing.¡± At his actions, everyone had a surprised look. The Nivese¡¯s brawler was pretending to use magic? But the result displayed the reality. It wasn¡¯t a pretense. The wounds closed, the smoke subsided and the green glow of his skin, the showing effect of the poisoning, dimed then vanished. Maniak was shaken by this development but soon regained his confidence and shouted: ¡°AH! If you think some healing magic will save you and win the fight, you¡¯re wrong!¡± ¡°Of course, healing magic will not win the fight. But do you really think it¡¯s all I have?¡± Cilerius had retorted. Since it came to this, he wouldn¡¯t limit himself. It was time to show to the spectators who he was. It was time to reverse totally the image they had of him. Time to carve in their mind that he was strong, probably the strongest fighter present in the arena tonight. Maniak was now hesitating to approach and Cilerius had all the time he needed to think about a method to destroy this opponent. Killing monsters or each other, he was okay with it, but taking pleasure in the pain inflicted, he abhorred it. At least when he was the target. ¡°I¡¯m sure you will do perfectly as a guinea pig to test something new I learned not long ago.¡± Cilerius thought this was the occasion for a live test of his newly learned spells, when applied on player opponent. The cleansing had already proven efficient. Now was the moment to test his offensive spells. Raising his arm and pointing the finger toward his opponent head, Cilerius recited his spell: ¡°May the scorpion punish you: painful sting!¡± From his finger toward his opponent, a black thread appeared. The target was one of Maniak¡¯s eyes. At this sight, he tried to dodge and to block the luminous thread, but it was too late. At the moment the finger was pointed, a target designed and the spell chanted, it was finished. For a fraction of second, Maniak thought he had blocked it or that it misfired, but then, he released his chain, dropped on his knee and screamed while holding his face in his hands. The pain was everything he could think of. Nothing did matter anymore but this intolerable pain in the eye. There was almost no damage, but the effect was something beyond numerical value, even more since the targeted area was something unprotected and untrained. ¡°Test 1, successful.¡± Cilerius was now walking without care on the ring, around his opponent. ¡°The curse of the crow take its root and bind you: cursed vines.¡± Maniak, who was kneeling, suddenly crouched like if he was roped and pulled. The vines were only visible to Cilerius, as well as the red flux that was coming from their prey and going to their roots. Maniak was visibly losing vitality. An informative window displayed to Cilerius the HP sucked by the vines. ¡°Test 2, successful.¡± The HP tapping effect was low but enough for an extra to the rooting effect. ¡°May the plague of the rat take you: suffocating cloud.¡± A purple cloud formed where Maniak was crouching and screaming. Soon, his screams became more and more hoarse and he coughed as he was about to spit his lungs. The resulting effects were, once again, displayed for Cilerius as he watched the scene. ¡°Test 3, successful, I guess.¡± The results of his testings were good enough for a first. ¡°Now, to put an end to your miseries, sort of¡­ May winds restrict my prey: Zephyr of Restriction¡­¡± There wasn¡¯t a need to stop his opponent movements as the cursed vines were still in effect, but it was a part of one of his combos. ¡°The purifying fire burns my enemy: fire finger.¡± The wind tornado that had enveloped Maniak just before, was strike by fire balls and came ablaze. Inside, Maniak now could forget about the pain in his eye, as the one from burning replaced it. Trapped, he couldn¡¯t do anything. Worse, the flames got under his cloak and touched vials and pouches he hided there. One must have contained black powder as a big explosion happened, even blowing out the burning tornado. After the blast, only a smoking mass of flesh remained. The victory was overwhelming and the spectators knew it. They cheered and had forgotten Cilerius¡¯s previous fights. It was not a matter of luck, it was total domination. Annihilation of his opponent. One man here still remembered what happened before and was reflecting. The announcer climbed on the ring and proclaimed the victory of Cilerius, as if it wasn¡¯t an evidence, and as the Nivese¡¯s brawler was walking away, commented on this fight and how the previous ones were not, in the end, resulting of dumb luck. He even called for replays of those fights and along his listeners, analysed what had really happened then. Accordingly, when Lazyo came with the gains for the next round, he also reported the new odds. It had fallen to 1.2:1. Cilerius thought it was about right for the moment. One fight using a fraction of his real potential and they understood. No more a dark horse nor even a challenger. He was a serious contender for the final victory. There were two fights remaining before the finale. Cilerius got to the arena and finished his opponent in a very short time and showy manner. His gains after the demi finale only amounted to 247.5K golds due to the odds lowering to 1.1:1. The spectators were sure of his victory now, with the show he had displayed. And now, for the final, Lazyo had told him the odds were at 1.05:1. ¡®Well, I have already replenished my chests. Now, let¡¯s prepare for the meeting with the boss.¡¯ Just before Lazyo left, he had requested to meet with this underground fighting organisation boss. He was told that the request would be forwarded, then Lazyo had come back to tell him he was to expect the boss in a few minutes, before the final as requested. Cilerius was waiting with expectations. He had one card to play in the negotiation. A few moment later, Lazyo came again but he was leading the way for someone else. An elegant man entered the room and spoke. ¡°Hello. It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you. I¡¯m The Boss.¡± And in fact, his name was on display above his head: The Boss. Cilerius snickered at this but regained his composure and answered. ¡°Pleasure to meet you. I¡¯m Cilerius.¡± Lazyo left the room and closed the door. ¡°I understand that you requested this meeting. Not that it pose a problem. I like to meet my best fighters. So, what have you to tell me.¡± ¡°Hmmm, how to say it? Well, since you¡¯re forthright, I will try to do the same. The spectators expect to see my victory and their bets are now massively in my favor. This is a pull I intend to use in our talk right now.¡± The Boss frowned at this declaration and asqued: ¡°Must I take it as you intend to threaten me with the menace to go in the arena and lose on purpose?¡± ¡°Worse, I guess. I could go in the arena and shout that I will lose on purpose.¡± The Boss, at this answer, displayed now a very serious face. ¡°I don¡¯t have for habit to negotiate under duress.¡± ¡°Then you understand my feeling when I¡¯m told that my involvement in the fight is mandatory else I would regret it dearly.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°...¡± A long silence followed as The Boss heard that and understood what Cilerius aimed for. After a long sigh, he asked: ¡°What are your demands?¡± ¡°Not much. I don¡¯t want to be bound by some obligations with you. I¡¯m not a fighting dog. I¡¯m an adventurer. I don¡¯t want to cut all contacts but I expect the freedom to choose when I fight. I guess you can understand that I can¡¯t rush back for some fight while I¡¯m in the middle of a quest. In fact, the status of free agent would be perfect. Even your advertising department could make use of it. Special guest or wild card or something alike.¡± The elegant man facing him was listening what he had to say with attention. He didn¡¯t like to be threatened, but in case Cilerius acted as he said, the loss of money due to the bettors reclamations and more important, the loss of his reputation and credibility would be disastrous. That was a very strong pull. And the fact that he was himself under threat was also true. The Boss could understand that. His closed face relaxed as he heard the demands. It wasn¡¯t abusive. They could come to terms. That¡¯s what he truly thought. ¡°Those are demands you could have made without taking this very tournament hostage.¡± ¡°Probably, but since I¡¯d really like to get what I want and this was the best occasion, I acted.¡± ¡°...¡± Another long silence. The Boss was coming to a decision. ¡°Your demands are acceptables. What we would lose on exposure could be largely compensated by expectation. But what would be acceptable on your side regarding the frequency of your participation?¡± ¡°Seriously, as adventures and quest goes, I have no clue. A solution could be that, you message me to ask if I¡¯m available for a said date and I answer, accordingly to what I do at the moment.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a lot of freedom, but with some serious planification ahead, this is acceptable. But since you¡¯re a ¡°free agent¡± from now on, our protection will not be extended to you anymore.¡± ¡°Protection? Ah, you mean that¡¯s what this guild was trying to do by following me?¡± ¡°Oh, you did notice?¡± ¡°Well, they are not bad, but my skill set is good enough to notice this kind of things.¡± ¡°Is that so? Hmmm, it¡¯s true we don¡¯t know much about you.¡± ¡°And I intent to keep it that way. But don¡¯t be too hard on your employee in this city. It isn¡¯t like there are many with better skills here.¡± ¡°You care about them? AHAHAH! I don¡¯t know why you care but don¡¯t worry. Like you said, it isn¡¯t like we have much choice around here.¡± ¡°Not that I care. But don¡¯t go and take them responsible for my own skills. Not like I needed protection either.¡± ¡°Well, you sure are more powerful than a common level 80 or so, that¡¯s for sure. The guy¡¯s you faced in the arena are a testimony to that.¡± ¡°Good, if we reached a common ground, I guess I should get ready to go and please your customers.¡± ¡°Just do that. Be showy. The more the better.¡± The Boss left Cilerius alone in the room. While walking away, he thought: ¡®Too bad he isn¡¯t on our payroll. But the agreement isn¡¯t bad. We could even propose the same arrangement to some other fighters. The terms are not bad and we even could make use of those free agent to set spot tournament instead of the current. But this guy, if he were to settle for business management, he would be ruthless.¡¯ Little he knew that Cilerius already had planned to establish his own line of business. It was still virtual, but who know how things develop. Cilerius was called a few minutes later to attend for the next and final fight. As he was approaching the ring, bathed in the cheers of the spectators, he saw his new opponent. It was a knight. A fully armored knight, with a tower shield and an heavy morning star. At the aspect of his armor, no error could be made. It was a complete set of the knight order of some kingdom. To complete the set at early level 100 was no small feat. ¡®This one is going to be troublesome. How do you defeat a tortoise?¡¯ Cilerius wondered by which side he should start to peel this guy. Climbing on the ring, he looked puzzled at his opponent, his head tilted on a side. Then as the annoncer stopped talking and was leaving the stage for the two performers, he shouted: ¡°Does someone have a can opener to lend me? This one is going to be difficult to eat if I can¡¯t open the shell.¡± His words had a joking tone and the audience took it likewise and erupted in laughs. Even the armored knight couldn¡¯t hold a smile behind his full face covering visor. Then, now looking at the knight, Cilerius asked loud enough for everyone to hear: ¡°Won¡¯t you make it easy for both of us and drop the towel, will you? No? I thought so. Too bad. Well, let¡¯s get on with this then.¡± And just like that, without the signal of the annoncer, they started the bout, circling the ring. The armored knight, his name was Meiolan, was obviously planning on a defensive tactic, his morning star ready to strike if his opponent was to come close enough. Given his presence at the final, this seemed to have been successful up to now. To prob this defense, Cilerius launched his magic missiles and even tried the earth needles, without visible effect. The missiles just crashed on the armors and dispersed, as the rock needles broke in contact of the legs armor. This made it obvious that this armor defensive effect was tremendous for the level of the fighters. It was also probably the effect of the set being complete. Additional bonus are given in most case. Here, apparently, the magic defense was boosted and the defense high enough to make rock shatter against the metal. A proof was the absence of even dents where the needles had touched the legs. ¡°I need a can opener, indeed.¡± Cilerius commented the results of his probing. ¡°But then, I better try to heat it before eating.¡± At those words, Meiolan raised his shield and crouched behind, waiting for the attack. He was not stupid and had seen reports of the flame tornado that had been used by Cilerius. ¡°First, let¡¯s heat it slowly.¡± Cilerius then cast the zephir of restriction and launched many fireballs. When the tornado vanished, the knight was still standing and even banging his shield with his weapon as a demonstration of his vitality. ¡°Hmmm, this can is resistant¡­ let¡¯s try an higher temperature.¡± Cilerius raised both his arms and pointed his palms toward the tortoise. ¡°Flamethrower!¡± That was a spell he never used yet with audience but his targets or the npc soldiers that had come with him on the siege breaking mission. That was a very graphic offensive spell. As a result, the spectators cheered even louder than before. A stream of flames befall on the tower shield and enveloped Meiolan. Cilerius kept the spell running, providing as much mana as was needed. With effort, he even tried to concentrate the stream, reducing the angle of the cone in which the flames were bursting. The more he concentrated the stream, then more the heat raised at the impact point. But that wasn¡¯t enough. The shield was glowing red but resisted. ¡®I guess that¡¯s the limit with my present skill. I¡¯ll have to train more. This kind of defense will be defeated with an even higher heat.¡¯ Cilerius pictured in his mind, a plasma torch, then a plasma beam. But that was for a far away future. ¡®If heat didn¡¯t work, let¡¯s try cold.¡¯ The knight armor was red hot but Meiolan was still alive inside. He was about to turn in some kind of charcoal but alive and showed so by again, striking his shield with his morning star. He thought the worst was behind him and now, he could as always, slowly wear down his opponent and pound him. But Cilerius had other plans. In the aftermath of this attempted barbecue, he called forth the spell granted by one of his elementals. ¡°May the undines bless us with fresh water stream.¡± This spell would be deemed useless in combat by many, but here yet another way Cilerius made use of it. Water appeared on Meiolan armor. Water poured on an extremely hot armor. The result was as expected, an huge and thick cloud of steam. He made use of it to move stealthily behind the knight and whispered: "Cold grabs my prey: Glacial Palm!¡± Since the armor had been cooled by water, the effect wasn¡¯t lessened. Since water was still pouring on the said armor, ice formed easily on the whole surface, then even invaded the inside. It was a multi pronged attack. On the ring, when steam dissipated, the audience could see something they didn¡¯t expect so soon after a flaming inferno. An ice statue was there. Inside a big chunk of ice was the armored knight, still crouched behind his tower shield in his defensive stance. With only one glance, Cilerius confirmed that his opponent was still alive. ¡®I could hold him inside this ice coffin and make him suffocate, but it lack the flashiness needed for a good ending worth of the final.¡¯ When one work in the show business, he must think of the customer service. And virtual ultimate fighting is one kind of show business. Just like is catch in the real world. Focusing his whole strength in his fist, Cilerius launched a strike against the frozen shield. He had focused a lot of power in his icing before. The result would show now. Under normal conditions, this shield would be very durable. But after an extreme heating followed by the sudden cooling to a temperature far below 0¡ãC, it was weakened. Metal tend to be easier to break when extremely cooled. The result was as Cilerius expected. He did hurt his fist. Well, try to strike a concrete wall and say you¡¯re fine afterward. But also, the ice fissured from the impact point and part of the shield with it. Pleased with the result, Cilerius then launched more strikes, targeting the limbs of Meiolan. The cracks followed the easiest line and cut between the armor joints. Soon, the ice statue was laying on the floor in five parts. The limbs and the torso with the head. Looking at the result that was already signaling his win, Cilerius thought a few seconds for a suitable ending and smiled. He grabbed the iced torso and making use of his full strength, he did throw it up toward the ceiling. The fall would be an end as it would shatter on impact, but that wasn¡¯t enough. As the ice block started to fall, he jumped with the full extend of his strength toward it. Halfway from the highest it had reached, he meet it with his fist. The result was a hail of ice fragments. He landed then in the middle of the ring, looked around at the remains of the armored knight, bowed facing the four corners of the arena then shouted in a loud voice: ¡°Please, a round of applause for my valorous opponent, who to the end, never lost his cool.¡± Cheers had been present for the whole fight, but it was now pandemonium. The spectators were ecstatics while applauding. ¡®I suppose that the management will find this show proper. I did my part, so they shouldn¡¯t have anything to say.¡¯ To please the customer and the employer. That¡¯s one of the basics in work. His show finished, Cilerius climbed the stairs to go back to his waiting room. He still had to collect his gains. Lazyo came to him as he had in Nivese a little more than 2 months ago, pulling a cart loaded with chests full of golds. He first presented Cilerius with his betting gains. It didn¡¯t grow much with the low odds, but the final result was 259875 GP. If he was to add what he didn¡¯t bet, he was at more or less 400k GP. ¡°And with that, I bailed my chests.¡± In addition, Lazyo presented him with a choice. ¡°As a reward for your victories, you can either take the cumulated diamonds I have here in this bag, or discard them for an unknown item. What will you choose?¡± Asked the attendant, rubbing his hands. He was displaying a mischievous face, obviously taunting Cilerius. This was another bet. The cumulated diamonds won this time could be moneyed for almost 20k golds. On the other hand, he had no informations on any alternative reward. ¡®Damn, he got me here. I didn¡¯t research the rewards awarded in those fights. I assumed it would be golds or gems but now there is that?¡¯ With no lead on what it could be, any fighter would select the sure gain, that is, if he didn¡¯t already win big by betting on his fights. Cilerius had won big. He could take the risk. ¡°Then I¡¯ll take the unknown item.¡± Lazyo didn¡¯t flinch at all. Be it the good or the wrong move, he didn¡¯t let it show. ¡°Then take this casket.¡± He handed Cilerius a wooden case with a peculiar lock. Looking at this lock, Cilerius couldn¡¯t see any keyhole. ¡°Identify: casket!¡± !Casket of the unknown reward. A level of 100 is required to open its sensitive lock. You can¡¯t open the casket now as you aren¡¯t high level enough. At this result, Cilerius frowned and said: ¡°You are really a jester. Not only the item was unknown, but it¡¯s in a case I can¡¯t open before training more. Nice going here.¡± ¡°Why, thank you. Always a pleasure to make someone happy.¡± Did he take it at first degree on purpose while ignoring any irony? Probably. But Cilerius had made the choice and the level restriction was his own fault. The average level of the combatants this time was 105. This reward was something that any other fighter could have opened if he had choose to discard the sure golds gain for a mysterious award. Cilerius was done in this place. He left the room and the underground arena after being added to the friend list of one of the freedmen acting as managing staff. That was so they could contact him with the propositions to participate in another tournament. Cilerius walked back home at dawn. The event had lasted the whole night. He was tired and had to sleep in the real world as it was late and had to head to work. Accordingly, he pushed to his next gaming session his actions in regard to the mine. There had been no incident up to now, so he wasn¡¯t worried. At his apartment, he organised his inventory, putting the mysterious casket in the bottom of his bag, to collect dust until he was eligible to open it. Then, Cilerius disconnected from the game. This chapter, that I release for my 41th birthday, was part of a much longer one. On the advice of my PR, I did cut it in at least 2 parts (we¡¯ll see if the remaining of the huge chapter make one or more chapters) and rearrange it since the parts from this were all over the huge chapter. As for when the next one come¡­ that depend on my readings. With the many novels that I actually read, either the translated one or their GT¡¯ed chapters, I find it time consuming and of course, my writing time is reduced. Add to that, that I started another project, but in french¡­ well, expect months hiatus between my releases. btw, plz take a moment to write a review and give some cookies ;p to root menu