《Suzerain - A LitRPG Progression Adventure》 Chapter 1 - Breakfast of Champions (Maybe?) Sunlight dappled the valley, casting its gentle glow upon two figures locked in combat. I found myself dropping to my knees, my long platinum blonde hair tousled by the wind, narrowly evading the deadly arc of daggers wielded by my father. He was clad in the same training attire as me, and was relentless in his pursuit of perfection. With a deft twist, my father altered the trajectory of one dagger, narrowly avoiding stabbing down into my eye. ¡°You still forget to drop flat on your back during a knee slide,¡± he admonished, sheathing his blades before extending a hand to help me up. ¡°Most opponents skilled enough would exploit that small opening. Artie, you have to do better.¡± I accepted his hand, rising to my feet with a sigh. ¡°You¡¯ve already bested me, Dad. No need to rub it in,¡± I brushed off my training pants. ¡°We both know I¡¯d be no match for you if you weren¡¯t holding back your power. You have, what, fifty years on me?¡± My father smirked knowingly. ¡°Roughly, but that¡¯s not the issue. You possess myriad abilities your mother and I have taught you, yet you hesitate to utilize them. Case in point, a [Mana Slide] would have pulled you past me and back up so you could get in a stab at my backside. Why didn¡¯t you use it?¡± I fidgeted with embarrassment, ruffling my hair. ¡°It doesn''t feel fair. You can¡¯t use magic¡ª¡± ¡°Arthur Bajbub Neilson!¡± My father''s charm evaporated, replaced by frustration as he prepared to lay down the law. ¡°I may not be able to use magic, but my [Skills] put me in a class so far above you that it¡¯ll take you twenty or more years to even approach me. I told you to use everything you had for this final training session and you fucking ignored me! How can I let you¨C¡± ¡°That''s enough, Neil!¡± My mother¡¯s voice cut through the tension, her golden-tanned complexion and auburn hair a stark contrast to my father¡¯s pale skin and platinum blonde hair, traits I¡¯d received from him. ¡°I will not allow Arthur¡¯s System Day be marred by this same old argument.¡± I walked over and embraced my mother gratefully. ¡°Thanks, Mom,¡¯ I turned and stuck out my tongue at my father. ¡°See, Mom¡¯s on my side¡ª¡± ¡°I didn''t say that,¡± she retorted, stepping back. ¡°Your magical potential surpasses even mine. If only you would apply it to combat spells as you did in training as a child.¡± With a flick of her wrist, she summoned elemental orbs the size of apples, unleashing their energy upon the mountainside in a display of power. "[Elemental Barrage], my favorite. With a little bit of focus on your [Arcane] stat, you could master it, eliminating the need for that... relic.¡± ¡°But, Mom, I prefer using a bow,¡± I protested, touching one of my mostly pointed ears. ¡°It connects me to my golden elf heritage.¡± ¡°Golden elves rarely use bows outside of ceremonies,¡± she chided. ¡°We¡¯ve been predominantly mages for millennia. You should prioritize practicality. Even if you won¡¯t embrace [Elemental Barrage], [Magic Missile] is effective and reliable. I used it throughout my career to conserve resources.¡± I crossed my arms defiantly. ¡°I don¡¯t want to argue about this today. Can we drop it? I promise to use the necessary [Skills] and spells to survive in the world. Deal?¡± My parents exchanged a glance before my father relented. ¡°Agreed.¡± ¡°Likewise,¡± my mother added, wrapping her arms around me once more. ¡°Now, let¡¯s have breakfast before we present your birthday gifts.¡± ¡°Sounds good, Mom.¡± Together, we ascended the path toward our family estate, passing through the vineyard and two different orchards, anticipation building for the celebration ahead. I wonder what they¡¯re going to give me? Mom and Dad always go all out, so it¡¯s bound to be good. I already have Uncommon daggers, and armor. My protection amulet, bow, and spatial rings are all Rare. Maybe it¡¯ll be something to help with camping? I don¡¯t think they¡¯d even be able to get Commons in Wyrm¡¯s Rest, but the Rare and Legendary stuff people usually made here would be total overkill for a starting adventurer. A Unique would be unreasonable to hope for, but I wouldn¡¯t put it past Grandpa to try and slip me one without Mom noticing. Mom led the way into the sunroom, where plates covered with biscuits and gravy sat steaming before four seats. I licked my lips, biscuits and gravy was my favorite breakfast. I did a double take at the fourth place setting before a smile began to form. ¡°Who¡¯s joining us for breakfast?¡± I slid into my usual seat to the left of Dad at the head of the table, and across from Mom. She glared at me when I stared down at my breakfast longingly. ¡°You¡¯ll just have to wait. It shouldn¡¯t be long.¡± The double doors leading out to the sunroom from the house sprang open to reveal a tall golden skinned elf wearing a set of light green robes. He beamed at me. ¡°Artie, my darling grandson, happy System Day!¡± ¡°Grandfather, you made it!¡± I sprang up from my chair and charged around the room to crash into him for a hug. Despite his advanced age, over three thousand years young as he would call it, he looked like he could be my thousand year old mother¡¯s brother. He spun me around with a wide grin. ¡°Starchild, there¡¯s nothing on Genovia that could have kept me away for your System Day.¡± System Day, also known as the day I¡¯d finally be considered an adult. Every race has them on different birthdays and with my heritage, there was a bit of math to figure out today was the day. I¡¯m half gold elf, which would have made my hundredth birthday my System Day. My dad was one quarter dwarf, making me one eighth dwarf, a dwarf¡¯s System day is on their fortieth birthday. The other three quarters of my father was human, who got access to the System on their eighteenth birthday. Math-wise, that should have made my System Day my sixtieth birthday, which would¡¯ve been awful. However, what they say about humans is true, their blood runs true, because I matured just a little bit slower than the average human and at twenty-five years old, it was my time. Today was my System Day and I would finally get to see the fruits of my labor. All those years of training with my parents and their friends, just trusting that I was improving myself, no more! Two spins later, my grandfather set me down before pushing me gently toward my seat on the other side of the table. ¡°Grab some breakfast. You weren¡¯t born until the sun was at its highest point, so you have a little more time.¡± He blurred before reappearing in the chair next to my mom. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. Archibald Sunbeam, the Ray of the East, AKA my grandfather, was one of the most powerful beings alive. At three thousand years old, he had seen the rise and fall of empires and he was still standing, unchanged. He was one of six publicly known S-Ranked Class bearers, though Mom and Dad assured me there were at least a few more they knew from their travels. His [Signature Spell], [Thousand Rays of Destruction], was so powerful that he¡¯d sworn never to use it again without the permission of the entire Elven Council. Not the golden elven council, the Elven Council, the governing body for all elven races on Genovia. The last time he used it, he destroyed the mountain above the dragon lair he was raiding and half of the dwarven capital. Luckily, it was the industrial sector in the middle of the night and only a few hundred people died. The Elven Council talked the dwarves down when they explained what had happened, the dragon had just woken up and would soon have ravaged the nations nearby, but in return they made my grandfather make the promise never to use it again if there was any chance of civilian casualties. Breakfast was fantastic. Momo, my mother¡¯s golden elven handmaiden, was a master chef. She¡¯d served my mother¡¯s family her entire life and didn¡¯t seem to want to leave, as she stood behind her with a smile on her face. ¡°So, what Class do you think you¡¯ll end up with?¡± My dad leveled his fork at me with a bit of sausage dangling. ¡°What do you hope you¡¯ll end up with?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, not really. There are hundreds of thousands of Classes out there and at least half of those can use magic, and I can already do that, so there are a lot to choose from.¡± I hid my grin behind my napkin as I wiped my mouth. ¡°You¡¯re a [Blade Dancer] and Mom¡¯s an [Archmage]. So maybe I¡¯ll get something like a [Daggerspell Mage], or something like that?¡± ¡°Boring!¡± He thumped the table a few times until Mom leveled a glare that would have killed a weaker man. He coughed. ¡°I mean, you¡¯ve excelled with most things you¡¯ve trained with, minus heavy armor and two-handed weapons. That Class wouldn¡¯t fit someone like you, it¡¯s too limiting. Plus, it¡¯s only B-Ranked.¡± ¡°Dear, there¡¯s nothing wrong with a B-Ranked Class, they¡¯re just a bit more limiting than those of higher rank.¡± Mom wiped her mouth and slid her plate toward the center, she was always the first one done with dinner. Mom¡¯s [Archmage] Class was A-Ranked and Grandpa¡¯s [Celestial Beacon] was the legendary S-Rank. Never did it cross my mind that I might end up with a Class as powerful as his, but it didn¡¯t stop me from dreaming about it. The most common Class rank was F, that¡¯s where [Farmers] and the most unlucky [Peasants] landed, seventy-five out of one hundred people had classes from this rank. E was next, that¡¯s where [Soldiers] and most basic crafting Classes landed and fifteen out of one hundred people landed here. D-Rankers held the advanced crafting Classes like [Alchemist] landed, it also covered the beginning specialized martial Classes like [Archer] were and they made up eight out of a hundred people. C was where you started to find people who had some sort of status, be it political or martial, and they made up most of the remaining two out of a hundred people. Dad¡¯s [Blade Dancer] was on the upper edge of B-ranked, and I knew most successful adventurers had Classes in that rank, but they were rare with only around one in two hundred people ending up there. As for A and S Ranked Classes, they were almost unheard of, with fewer than one in a hundred thousand for A-Rankers and one in a hundred million for S-Rankers. ¡°My dream Class would be [Eldritch Warmaster], but that¡¯s tied to those of noble blood in the Iroan Empire.¡± I leaned back in my chair, gauging my family¡¯s reactions. Mom and Grandpa both nodded. Why wouldn¡¯t I want the S-Ranked Class that matched closest to my training? I¡¯d spent hundreds of hours pouring through tomes of magic/martial classes and it was perfect. Dad was another story, he burst out laughing with his hands over his heaving belly. ¡°You think you could get an S-Ranked Class like your grandfather?¡± He stopped dead when the light from the window grew brighter and started focusing in on him until only a single beam was left pointing at his forehead. ¡°You know, you¡¯re right. Your mother always said you were more talented with magic than she was,¡± the light in the window slowly went back to normal, ¡°maybe you could get a Class like that.¡± Sweat poured down his face as he avoided looking at his father-in-law. ¡°I agree, with his talent, the sky¡¯s the limit for my Starchild.¡± Grandpa¡¯s eyes flicked from Dad back to me and I smiled. Mom drained her orange juice and smirked. ¡°I¡¯m hoping for [Primal Weaver] or [Arcane Sage] for Artie. Either of them would suit his vast magical talents.¡± She chuckled. ¡°[Starlord] would be a lot to ask for, but with Dad¡¯s blood in your veins, it¡¯s totally possible.¡± I sat back and listened as Mom, Dad, and Grandpa tore into each other for nearly an hour over what Class they thought I should end up with. This was nothing abnormal for them, whenever the three of them came together they would spar verbally. It didn¡¯t matter what the topic was, they would argue about anything. One time, they got into an argument that lasted three days over where to go on vacation, and each of them bounced from idea to idea, never agreeing. To get them to settle down, I asked to go to Grandpa¡¯s beachside villa, which none of them had previously mentioned. Momo cleared her throat, stopping them mid sentence. Somehow, she was always able to cut through their arguments. ¡°The time for master Arthur¡¯s System Integration draws near. We should adjourn to the patio in preparation.¡± Without waiting for an answer, she spun on her heel, walked over to the double doors, and gently opened them so they didn¡¯t even touch the exterior walls despite being flush with the wall, her [Serene Maid] Class at work. I wonder if her ability to cut through arguments is a [Skill] or just something she figured out or was born with? I¡¯ll have to ask her sometime, because there¡¯s no way I could do what she just did in so little time. It took me three hours to prompt the villa the last time! Dad leapt backward over his chair from a seated position before pulling out Mom¡¯s chair. ¡°Milady, shall we adjourn to the patio?¡± He laid the charm on thick and I nearly gagged. ¡°We shall.¡± She got up gracefully before taking his extended arm beneath her own and walking with him out onto the patio. I followed behind with Grandpa, mouthing, ¡°Thank you,¡± to Momo. She smiled and followed behind us. Besides the normal tables and chairs, one thing was different about the patio, there was a massive golden throne sitting in the middle of it radiating so much magic that I had to avert my eyes before turning off my [Arcane Sight]. I turned to my grandpa with my mouth dangling open. ¡°You didn¡¯t.¡± ¡°I did.¡± He pushed me toward the throne. ¡°Only the best for my Starchild.¡± I debated protesting, but gave up almost immediately. What was done was done. ¡°Thank you, Grandfather. I will endeavor not to besmirch the [Throne of Kantor] with my failure to get a good Class.¡± As I bowed low, I felt a gentle chop in the back of the head. When I looked back up, I saw him smiling down at me. ¡°No matter what Class you get, you¡¯ll always be my grandson. That¡¯s all I can ever ask for. Plus,¡± he leaned in conspiratorially, ¡°I have an idea on how to make a grimoire to give someone with my blood my Class, even if they¡¯ve already received theirs from the System. So, if you don¡¯t like what you get? Fear not! I, Archibald Sunbeam, will never let you down!¡± Yup, just as crazy as always, but I do appreciate it. If I were to get a Class that can¡¯t do magic for some reason? I might have to take him up on that, even if it does delay my departure today. ¡°Thanks, Grandpa.¡± I walked over and sat on the golden throne of the ancient golden elven royal family and felt the magic pulse through me, igniting my mother¡¯s bloodline. My eyes glowed brightly enough that I noticed the reflection off my nose. Something inside me released and I knew it was time. ¡°Wish me luck.¡± I slurred as I slumped down on the throne, unconscious. Chapter 2 - My Class is What? I groaned, holding my head as I fought to open my eyes. ¡°Damn, that hurt. Grandpa, you didn¡¯t tell me¡­¡± My eyes opened upon a scene of unblemished white in all directions. I looked down at my own body and found myself naked, floating in the white void. ¡°Alright, not on the patio, noted. This isn¡¯t what I was told to expect.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way they could have known. This has only happened twice before since this world integrated and both of those were tens of thousands of years ago.¡± A sultry female voice came from behind me. I craned my neck to look where it came from, but there was nothing there. ¡°Wrong way.¡± Breathy laughter in front of me got me to snap my neck to catch a glimpse of whoever was speaking. I found a shockingly gorgeous woman sitting ten feet away in the same [Throne of Kantor] I slumped over in as the System came upon me. She wore a sheer red sheath dress that hugged her voluptuous curves in all the right places before cutting off just below her hips. Her long toned legs were crossed in just such a way to protect her modesty while giving the allure that a single move would show all. Her hair was a cascade of long flowing blonde the color of spun gold that framed her mismatched cerulean and smoky grey eyes and her impressive chest as her arms rested on the arms of the throne. She winked. ¡°Do you like what you see?¡± She leaned forward slightly, accentuating her assets. I drank in the scene before me and, after a minute, nodded. ¡°To most people, you¡¯d take their breath away. I have no doubt about that. As for me?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I see an object of lust, lacking in depth. Prove me wrong.¡± ¡°Oh my, you are quite the difficult one, aren¡¯t you?¡± She placed a hand over her heart, ¡°Did you mean to hurt my feelings?¡± ¡°Not at all,¡± I smirked. ¡°I just thought I¡¯d get to know you before making up my opinion. Surface beauty only does so much for me. I need a deeper connection to feel much of anything like you¡¯re implying.¡± Never met someone who got my need for connection, but then again, they didn¡¯t grow up with a Mom like mine. ¡°Ah, you¡¯re right. I hadn¡¯t considered that.¡± She shook her head. ¡°Your family is a bit more exhibitionistic than I expected, isn¡¯t it. Even someone like me would have trouble shaking you up with your whole family walking around naked when it¡¯s just family in the house or you¡¯re on vacation.¡± ¡°Got it in one. No woman¡¯s ever compared to Mom, physically speaking. I¡¯m not blind, even if she¡¯s my mother.¡± I snorted. ¡°She says growing up naked will help me avoid the pitfalls many young adventurers make when they see the first cute barmaid and get tied down. I think she just hates wearing clothes and Dad¡­ he just likes seeing her naked.¡± I hooked a thumb at my chest. ¡°It¡¯s just how I was raised, it makes me look more than skin deep, even if I¡¯m just looking for a fling.¡± I looked her up and down again before shaking my head. ¡°This isn¡¯t your real form, is it?¡± ¡°Why do you ask?¡± Her eyebrows raised. ¡°Do you not like it?¡± ¡°The only thing I think is from your real body are your eyes. The rest? Just something you thought a young man would be distracted by.¡± I cracked my knuckles. ¡°Which makes me think you don¡¯t want me thinking with my first head for this conversation, and that just makes me want to solve the puzzle that is you even more.¡± Her laughter was nothing like the breathy stuff from before, instead it was rich and throaty, like she was genuinely excited. ¡°You¡¯ve got me there, but my regular body might be a touch more than you can handle at the moment. I¡¯ll give you a raincheck on seeing the real me in the future. Maybe when you¡¯re on your deathbed? That way you don¡¯t have to deal with your eyes burning out for too long.¡± ¡°In that case, I appreciate your concern and will take you up on that offer.¡± I squinted, but wasn¡¯t able to see any symbols or iconography to identify her. ¡°I apologize, but I¡¯ve been trying to figure out which goddess you are and haven¡¯t come up with any that fit. ¡°Your eyes are the only part of you I know is real, so that eliminates the male gods, Light, Devourer, and Wild. As for the female gods.¡± I took another look before shaking my head. ¡°Your eyes don¡¯t fit with Darkness, Weaver, or Architect, so I take it you¡¯re someone else?¡± Her grey eye twitched. ¡°You¡¯re more powerful than any angel or demon my grandfather ever summoned to show me, so that eliminates those as options. I¡¯m honestly stumped.¡± My heart started beating faster, I loved a good mystery and this was shaping up to be a great one. ¡°Care to tell?¡± Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. The goddess steepled her fingers as her visage split into a wide grin. ¡°Oh, I definitely picked the right initialization to crash, you¡¯re perfect.¡± She purred. ¡°You can call me Dominus, but only when we meet like this. Out in the world, don¡¯t let anyone know I exist. It¡¯s information that will get you hunted by people even more dangerous than your grandfather or your parents¡¯ party.¡± ¡°You officially have my attention.¡± My pulse pounded. ¡°Dominus implies rule or control.¡± I grinned. ¡°You¡¯re the pantheon¡¯s rightful ruler, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°You¡¯re too clever by half, but that fits my plans perfectly.¡± She lounged back on the throne like it was a comfy armchair. ¡°You¡¯re right. I once ruled over the pantheon this world worships as their lord-mother until my children rebelled. Well, most of them, Light and Darkness refused to attack me, but they also didn¡¯t do anything to stop their siblings from ripping the essence from me. In the end, they get a pass, but the others.¡± She muttered darkly. ¡°They don¡¯t know I¡¯m back and when I¡¯m done with them? They¡¯ll regret leaving any of me behind.¡± My head started to feel like it was going to explode until Dominus noticed and relaxed, moments later, the feeling faded. I breathed a sigh of relief and waited for her to explain why exactly she was in what I figured was my mindscape. She formed a small ball of golden light and flicked it faster than an arrow into my chest. I gasped as my vision went fuzzy and my body wracked with pain for what felt like an eternity. When the pain faded, I opened my eyes to find my head in Dominus¡¯ lap. She stroked my long hair in gentle strokes as she hummed a tune I could almost place, but the details escaped me. ¡°My harbinger of change, your destiny is so much greater than you ever hoped. You weren¡¯t going to get [Eldritch Warmaster] before this, just so you know.¡± My heart ached. I¡¯d worked so hard toward that goal, only to have it ripped away from me. ¡°You would have received [Scion of the Sun] instead. It¡¯s an SS ranked Class with [Skills] similar, but more powerful, to [Eldritch Warmaster].¡± ¡°What?!¡± I¡¯d never even heard of an SS ranked Class and my parents and grandfather were some of the most powerful people on the continent. ¡°Did I displease you Dominus? Why did you take that gift away from me?¡± I wept openly, all my dreams smashed against the will of a goddess, who could have guessed? She scratched the top of my head as she leaned to see past her bust to smile at me. ¡°Who said I was displeased? In fact, I¡¯m very happy with you. I couldn¡¯t ask for a better harbinger. You¡¯re smart, funny, discerning, and unflappable.¡± She whirled me around to sit with my back against her chest as she wrapped her arms around me. Her skin was smoother than the finest [Demonspider Silk]. ¡°Instead of taking the blessing of my only good son, Light, I gave you my blessing. You will go out into the world with the unique Class of my chosen, [Suzerain]. This is only the third time it¡¯s ever been assigned, so it should be safe unless you end up in front of one of those bastard children of mine¡¯s high priests. It¡¯s SSS ranked, but this world¡¯s system can only display two digits for rank, so it¡¯ll just show up as ??? when inspected, which is probably for the best.¡± My mind was whirling a million miles an hour. First, I learned I wasn¡¯t getting my dream Class, then I heard I wasn¡¯t getting the better version of that Class I was destined for, of a rank I¡¯d never even heard of. Now, I was being given a unique Class? Those were almost unheard of, even more so than S ranked Classes. Even at lower ranks, unique Class bearing adventurers were sought after for their unique [Skills], just on the off chance someone could learn them. She pulled me in tighter. ¡°Our time grows short, hiding from my children is quite draining , not to mention giving you my Class. Do you have any questions for me before I let you go?¡± Questions? I have hundreds, but we don¡¯t have time for that many. I¡¯ll have to make a few count. ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± If I was her chosen, I might as well know what I was in for. She snorted. ¡°All I ask is that you protect the good people wherever you might be. Oh, and if you find any evil cults, you wipe them out to the last man and woman. The children might be able to be saved, but only if they don¡¯t have a brand on them. If branded, they have to go as well.¡± She smiled as I gasped. ¡°Trust me, you¡¯ll understand later.¡± ¡°Who can I tell about my Class?¡± I was still struggling to wrap my head around killing cultist children and decided to go for my easiest question. ¡°Anyone you want, minus the clergy of my children. Your grandfather doesn¡¯t count, he¡¯s just blessed by Light, not actively part of his clergy.¡± She sighed. ¡°One more question.¡± ¡°What does [Suzerain] do?¡± The system would give me basics, but I needed to know more so I could plan my build. ¡°That¡¯s the beauty of it,¡± she started to fade away to dust around me, ¡°it does everything!¡± She laughed one more time. ¡°Anything you see can be yours, just reach out and take it.¡± The white of my mindscape slowly transitioned to the black of unconsciousness, but not before I saw Dominus grin turn to pain as she let her mask fall. ¡°See you soon, Artie.¡± She whispered. A woman in pain? Well that won¡¯t do. I¡¯ll have to work on that before I see her again. Chapter 3 - Literal Boss Class ¡°He¡¯s waking up. Everyone shut up!¡± A muffled voice came through the haze of unconsciousness as I struggled to sit up on the golden throne. I held my head as it pounded. ¡°Did someone get the name of the dragon that punched me?¡± ¡°No such luck, Starchild.¡± Grandpa¡¯s voice cut through the noise of my family and family friends chatting. ¡°Take a few deep breaths to settle yourself and let us know when you¡¯re ready to tell us how things shook out.¡± He whispered in my ear. ¡°I¡¯m proud of you.¡± I felt the warmth of his love and it helped me shake the fog from my mind. Opening my eyes, I found Mom and Dad sitting with a couple of their former party members. Arlo the pantherkin was holding his stomach as he laughed at some joke my dad told and his human wife, Megara, sat on the arm of the wide stone patio chair. The pair of them had been around as long as I could remember, but they were the last members of my parents¡¯ party still living in the mountain community. The rest left between my tenth birthday and my System day, citing the need to travel, even if they weren¡¯t going to work as adventurers. I gripped the arms of the [Throne of Kantor] tightly. ¡°Alright, I think I¡¯m ready.¡± Everyone gathered went silent the moment the words left my lips. The results of someone¡¯s System Day help inform the path they¡¯ll travel the rest of their lives, and everyone around me was invested in my results. I grinned. ¡°Thanks for coming, everyone. Let¡¯s get this started.¡± I held up a hand despite knowing I didn¡¯t need to, sometimes the theater of it all was worth the effort. ¡°[Status].¡± A rolled up piece of parchment appeared in my extended hand before unrolling to reveal the events of my system integration. [Name: Arthur Bajbub Neilson Class: Suzerain - Unique - Rank ??? Level: 24 HP: 230 Mana: 529 Stamina: 344 Stats: Might: 13 Agility: 101 Toughness: 65 Charm: 75 Wits: 115 Perception: 91 Arcane: 199 Divine: 199 Active Skills - Mastery: Rapid Strike - 70% Dual Chop - 64% Backstab - 94% Mana Slide - 20% Arcane Armor - 63% Magic Missile - 97% Elemental Bolt - 48% Lockpicking - 79% Trap Finding - 95% Trap Disarming - 91% Arcane Sight - 74% %&)(*)!!$_!#$ - 1% Passive Skills: Essence Reading (Analyze Evolution) Evasion Linguist Light Armor Training Medium Armor Training Small Blade Training Bow Training Code Cracking Spelunking Cartography Herbalism Ritual Magic <>?:¡±$%^&*] Shit, those stats are off the charts from what Mom said I¡¯d have. She said I should be happy to have a single stat over 100 and I have more like that than I have under 100. It has to be Suzerain giving me a boost. It must have applied all the level ups I had stored up with its stat multiplier by default. I didn¡¯t even get to put those points where I wanted to¡­ How the hell am I going to show this to everyone? They¡¯ll freak out. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Analyze evolved into Essence Reading, I wonder what that¡¯ll let me do with it? Also, what¡¯s with those two skills I can¡¯t even read? One active and one passive. I¡¯m guessing they¡¯re related to Suzerain, but I can¡¯t be sure. Grandpa will be able to help. I clenched my fist and the scroll disappeared. I reached out a hand and grandpa pulled me up. ¡°Can you take me somewhere private? I have questions.¡± I got up on my tippy toes and whispered in his ear. ¡°Of course.¡± The air around me blurred and a moment later I was seated on my bed in the manor. Grandpa was sitting next to me with a broad smile plastered on his face. ¡°What kind of questions?¡± ¡°This kind.¡± I summoned my [Status] with a thought and this time it showed up with the normal partially see-through blue screen I¡¯d always heard of and I gave Grandpa permission to view it in the settings. The scroll was reserved for System day and learning new Skills most of the time, though some people liked how it looked and used it exclusively. Grandpa¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°Grandson, this is something.¡± He was dumbstruck, but my eyes were locked on the pair of skills whose names had unscrambled from what was on the physical incarnation of my [Status]. [Active Skills - Mastery: Skill Dominance - 1% Passive Skills: Chosen of Dominus] ¡°So that¡¯s what those were. I wonder why they were hidden on the scroll? I was among friends, so the system shouldn¡¯t have been trying to protect me.¡± Grandpa spun me around roughly to place his hands on my shoulders. He locked his golden eyes on my own cerulean orbs. ¡°You saw her, didn¡¯t you?¡± For a moment, I debated playing dumb, but I¡¯d never been able to get one over on my grandfather. Not even once, so I told the truth. ¡°If you¡¯re talking about¡­ her? yeah. I did.¡± His eyes bulged. ¡°Did she talk to you? Did you agree to do anything for her?¡± ¡°Yes and not really? She asked me to help good people and take out evil cults if I happen to find any. Seems pretty standard for someone like her.¡± He got up and started pacing. ¡°No, no, no!¡± Fractured beams of light poured off of him as he paced. He muttered to himself. ¡°She can¡¯t have another of us, we¡¯re so few as it is.¡± ¡°What do you mean? Is this not the first time our family has encountered her?¡± I flicked my [Status] window away. ¡°Come on, tell me. I need to know what I got myself into.¡± If Grandpa is this worried, I might be in for more than I bargained for. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine, with a Class like his, he¡¯ll be plenty strong to protect himself. He has more health than his mother does, for the gods sake and he¡¯s fifty levels lower than she is.¡± Grandpa whirled around and stopped in front of me. ¡°We can work with what you have here. I think.¡± He chuckled. ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± I glared at him. I was worried and he was laughing at me? Rude old man. ¡°Your Class is [Suzerain], which means ruler of rulers. You¡¯re basically a walking coup. If a noble ever sees that? They¡¯ll have you killed. However, I can help with that, and with stats like yours? You¡¯ll be fine. I¡¯m sure of it.¡± He pulled a scroll from the spatial ring he always wore and handed it to me. ¡°Learn this now and I¡¯ll explain how to use it.¡± I dutifully took the scroll and started to read, but a box appeared before me with a question in it. [Learn Status Shield - Y/N] I mentally tapped the yes option and, a moment later, the scroll glowed brightly and a new window appeared. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 2% Status Shield - 50%] I spun the window around to show Grandpa and he nearly fell over. ¡°Fifty percent!? You should be at ten percent at the most, more likely five in that little amount of reading.¡± He grabbed my shoulders and shook me a bit. ¡°Do you know what this means?¡± His eyes were glowing like a pair of suns. ¡°That I¡¯ll be able to hide my stats from people I don¡¯t choose to show?¡± I was confused. ¡°Why are you so excited? You gave me the scroll.¡± ¡°That was a Rare [Skill Scroll]. Not only does it teach the skill, it also imparts the knowledge the crafter has of the skill into it. I made that scroll and my mastery of Status Shield is 50%. You learned everything I know of the skill through the scroll.¡± He tipped his head back and howled with laughter. ¡°My grandson is going to be a,¡± his voice lowered to almost a whisper, ¡°monster!¡± Grandpa started hauling scrolls out of his ring and shoved them into my lap one by one. ¡°This one is [Wingbind] for fighting dragons and other flying creatures. This one contains [Synthesis] for self healing.¡± He smirked. ¡°And this one is [Sunny Side Up] for frying eggs perfectly around the campfire when you find a lady who needs to know her man can cook!¡± I nearly did a spit take before laughing out loud. ¡°You have a Skill for cooking eggs? Where did you find that?¡± He beamed. ¡°I didn¡¯t find it, I established it. Do something perfectly enough times and the System will acknowledge your hard work and convert it to a Skill for you. That way you don¡¯t have to keep pouring hours into the same thing for the same amount of payoff. It¡¯s good that way.¡± ¡°Why did you need to learn to make fried eggs?¡± I probed as I used the scrolls he provided to learn the skills within. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 5% Wingbind - 75% Synthesis - 94% Sunny Side Up - 100% - No Evolution Available] Huh, I thought all skills could evolve. Interesting. Grandpa didn¡¯t answer my question, getting me to turn back to see him crying. My eyes went wide. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry Grandpa, I didn¡¯t think about¨C¡± He dried his eyes with a bright yellow handkerchief. ¡°It¡¯s alright Starchild, you never met her, so why would you think of her?¡± He clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles went white. ¡°If I ever see one of those¨C¡± He started coughing and little flecks of blood soon marred his handkerchief. He turned to me and sighed. ¡°System Oaths aren¡¯t to be taken lightly. I hope you never have to make one outside of your wedding vows someday. I just hope I get to see that happen.¡± Grandpa can¡¯t talk about what happened to Grandma because of a System Oath? I know he can¡¯t say more, but that makes me even more curious! I grinned internally. Maybe Dominus can tell me more about what happened? She¡¯s a goddess who knew who my grandfather was, so she might. That¡¯s one thing to make sure I ask her next time I see her. She said I¡¯d see her again soon, so I wonder if it¡¯ll be the next time I go to sleep and level up? According to what my parents had told me, leveling up a Skill could happen at any time, but leveling up a Class was much more involved. You had to go to sleep and navigate those menus with your subconscious. For most people, that was a good thing. Most people¡¯s subconscious minds were more adept at figuring out what they needed than their conscious minds. For me? I¡­ didn¡¯t know. With my elven heritage, I didn¡¯t really sleep. Instead, I would go into a trance for a few hours and wake up refreshed. I could still go to sleep, but I only had to do so once a week instead of every night like most races. Because of that, I would have full control of my stat distribution, which meant I would have to make decisions, unlike most other people. It was a blessing and a curse for elves, they didn¡¯t have the benefit of passing their level ups to their sleeping selves. Instead, elves planned their entire first century on what build they would proceed with. I kind of drew the short end of the stick as far as that kind of thing went. I was only twenty-five and I also didn¡¯t sleep, so I got the worst of both worlds. My mom and dad did their best to give me as much information as they could on what stats to raise at each level up for different builds, but in the end, it would be all up to me to make the final call. Each Class has a number of different ways it can be used, called builds. For example, I had my build for [Eldritch Warmaster] all picked out. I was going to go with Agility over Might and Wits over Charm, I¡¯d have thrown a few points into Arcane and Might eventually, but those were never going to be my focus. The build leaned into the training from my parents and it was perfect for me. Now? I had no idea what my level ups would look like. Grandpa literally shook me out of my funk with a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Starchild, it seemed like you were a thousand miles away just now. Are you OK?¡± ¡°Just thinking about how I need a new plan for leveling up now.¡± I didn¡¯t bullshit my grandfather, he was ancient and would see through any thin attempt to dissuade him from worrying. ¡°It¡¯ll be fine. Even if I managed to level up this week, I¡¯d still have a few days to make a plan before I go to sleep.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re sure? I won¡¯t press, but don¡¯t be afraid to ask me or your parents¡¯ party for help. We all have your best interests at heart.¡± He didn¡¯t appear to want to let me go based on how he was wavering, but we¡¯d already been away from the party for too long. ¡°Don¡¯t worry Grandpa, I¡¯ll make it work.¡± ¡°I know you will.¡± He ruffled my hair. ¡°Time to go back to the party.¡± Chapter 4 - Presents! A second later we disappeared from my room and I reappeared on the [Throne of Kantor] on the patio with Grandpa standing next to me. Mom looked at me with worry in her eyes, but I flashed her a grin to settle her down. There was no way I was going to let my System Day end with her and Dad worrying over me before I left in the morning. Ever the prepared one, Dad grunted as he hauled a huge tray of presents onto a cart before rolling it in front of the [Throne of Kantor]. He smirked when my eyes grew wide. ¡°Oh yeah, you know we had to pull out all the stops so you¡¯d be good to go tomorrow.¡± Mom and Dad did too much, there¡¯s no way they¡¯re really giving me THAT¡­ Who am I kidding? Of course they would. In the center of the massive tray of presents was a tightly rolled sky blue carpet with white clouds that seemed to move on it. There¡¯s nothing else it could be, Mom and Dad got me a [Flying Carpet]. I¡¯d briefly wondered why they hadn¡¯t talked about me taking care of my horse, Dazzle, when I was out in the world, but now it made sense. ¡°You two are insane!¡± I burst out laughing as I pulled the rolled up carpet from the tray of presents and snipped the ribbon holding it closed by reinforcing my fingernails with a bit of mana for a second. The carpet unrolled and floated in the air, just a few feet off the ground, but I knew from trips with my parents growing up that they could soar through the sky with nearly no effort from their rider. They weren¡¯t fast, but they were about as safe as can be for flying and they could continue traveling while their rider slept on them as long as they gave instructions before passing out. Mom and Dad stood hand and hand as they beamed at me. She shook her head at my exclamation. ¡°The rules say you have to leave tomorrow for a year, but with this you can at least fly by and say hello without breaking the rules. Plus, it beats having to sleep on the ground.¡± Arlo and Megara laughed and she thumped him on the shoulder as she addressed me. ¡°It really does. Trust me, a few nights on that carpet will have you sleeping on it whenever you¡¯re outside a town and aren¡¯t in a dungeon. I know we always did. The few points of mana for the night are far and away worth it.¡± She rubbed her hands together in anticipation. ¡°Open the green one next, it¡¯s from me!¡± I was pretty sure I knew what Megara would give me, but it was something I really needed, so I didn¡¯t dawdle. I pulled the green box from the table and quickly sliced open the paper to reveal a plain wooden box. A flick of my nail later and the top of the box was split open to reveal a gorgeous leather potion bandolier that matched my armor perfectly. I pulled it out and held it up for everyone to look at it before Grandpa helped me put it on for the first time. The bandolier served a few functions beyond what a spatial storage ring could do. The biggest thing was that it would let any party members access my potions without having to strip my ring and bind it to themselves first. That alone was enough reason to wear it, but it was also just a touch faster to draw a potion from the bandolier than it was waiting for it to appear in my hand from a ring, especially with Agility as high as mine was likely to be. ¡°It¡¯s enchanted to preserve the potions in it, both in efficacy and against breakage.¡± Megara shuddered. ¡°There¡¯s nothing as bad as having a bunch of potions and getting slammed in the chest by an Ogre Brute and having all of them shatter. Trust me, I¡¯ve been there and done that.¡± Her husband snorted before speaking softly for his huge frame. ¡°That was funny.¡± Megara slapped Arlo¡¯s shoulder again as her cheeks grew red. ¡°There¡¯s a spot for a pair of alchemical grenades by your hips as well.¡± She stuck her tongue out at my dad. ¡°It never hurts to be prepared.¡± I looked down at the gifts I¡¯d already opened once more and finally spotted the windows from [Essence Reading]. They were much less aggressive than the ones from [Analyze] and I knew I¡¯d appreciate that in time, but at that moment it meant I¡¯d forgotten about them. [Cloud Carpet - Rare Durability - 99/99 Description - Allows the rider to fly at heights between three and three thousand feet at a rate of three mana per hour for walking pace. More mana could be used to increase the base speed. If the primary rider falls off, this carpet will catch them as long as there is more than one thousand feet of free sky below the carpet. For this reason, the recommended flying height is two thousand feet.] [Megara¡¯s Special Bandolier - Rare Durability - 99/99 Description - Safely stores and preserves any potion or alchemical grenade placed within the dozen potion slots or four grenade pockets. The bottom two potion slots can be dispensed directly into the skin of the wearer with the expenditure of ten mana.] Two Rare items already? They must really be worried about me. I wonder why? They all trained me and I¡¯m no slouch. ¡°Thank you so much Auntie Meg, this is amazing. I see it¡¯s half full of [Mana Potions] and half full of [Health Potions], those should both come in handy.¡± I touched the grenade pockets to find them surprisingly full. ¡°What¡¯s in the grenade pockets?¡± I had a sneaking suspicion, but I wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. She cackled. ¡°My specialties of course!¡± Everyone on the patio spoke in unison. ¡°[Megara¡¯s Big Stink].¡± She faked wiping a tear from her eye. ¡°You all know me so well!¡± I just shook my head. I¡¯d been gassed by her original [Big Stink] grenade a few years ago, but that was before she managed to get a named [Skill] to buff them. I knew I didn¡¯t want to be anywhere near wherever I lobbed those grenades, but they would likely come in handy in my travels. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°The red paper contains my gift.¡± Arlo rumbled as he put a hand on his wife¡¯s back. ¡°It¡¯s not exactly what you¡¯ve been training with, but it might come in handy.¡± The gift in question was about the size and shape of a gauntlet wrapped in red paper. I picked it up with raised eyebrows. ¡°You have me curious.¡± I ripped off the red paper to reveal a gorgeous brass and leather bracer. It even had both of my family crests on it, the keep with a pair of crossed pencils across it for the Neilson Clan, Dad¡¯s dwarven family, and a sun over a placid lake for the Sunbeam family of Golden Elves. Dad didn¡¯t really talk about his human family much, so I didn¡¯t know a lot about them. [Essence Reading] displayed what I needed to know about the bracer and I was amazed at how nice it was to get more than just the basic information I used to get from [Analyze] now. I realized with a start that [Essence Reading] was telling me how I would be best able to use the item, not how anyone else would. [Arlo¡¯s Animated Buckler - Rare Durability - 499/500 Description - Designed by the Grandmaster Runesmith Arlo Longshadow, this bracer can produce a floating buckler the size of a large dinner plate. It is sufficient to block anything up to the size of a human broadsword, but is best served to deflect ranged weapons as that is what the enchantments on the item were meant for. Mana will drain based on the strikes the floating buckler deflects. The buckler can also be used while still attached to the bracer and that doesn¡¯t cost any Mana, but it will cost Stamina.] Wow, this thing is amazing. Without a hint of hesitation, I put the bracer on my left arm and marveled as it nestled in beautifully with my studded leather armor. Then again, Arlo made the armor as well, so he likely made them to match. ¡°Uncle Arlo, you¡¯ve outdone yourself. I can¡¯t¨C¡± I flinched as a pair of crossbow bolts streaked toward me and threw up my new bracer to defend myself on instinct. A mostly transparent blue shield the size of a dinner plate popped into existence and deftly blocked the pair of attacks without me having to do anything. I checked my Mana and saw two points had been spent. ¡°Good, it works.¡± Arlo touched a bracelet on his wrist and a pair of crossbow wielding automatons rolled out of the bushes toward him. He touched each of them on the head and banished them to his spatial storage. ¡°I hope you like it, Cub.¡± I blushed at his old nickname for me, but didn¡¯t correct him. ¡°Thanks Uncle Arlo. It¡¯s good to know you¡¯ll still be protecting me when I¡¯m out in the world.¡± I patted the bracer. ¡°This thing is awesome!¡± ¡°I¡¯d say so!¡± Dad roared at Arlo in fake indignation. ¡°Arlo, why didn¡¯t you make me one of those?¡± He shrugged. ¡°I just figured it out a few months ago. Plus, your head is so hard you don¡¯t need one!¡± The pantherkin flashed me a huge toothy grin. ¡°The Cub needed it, so he got it. That¡¯s how it works.¡± Mom stepped in to stop the pair from arguing any further. ¡°Thank you again, old friend. Your talents are much appreciated.¡± She bowed slightly to Arlo before turning back to Dad. ¡°Give him your gift and stop harassing our guests.¡± ¡°Yes dear¡­¡± Dad grumbled. He pointed at the garish orange gift I¡¯d known was his. ¡°Grip and rip, kid.¡± With a snort, I did as I was bidden. Inside the paper was a bracer so dark it seemed to absorb the light hitting it. What is this thing? I shrugged before putting it on my right arm opposite my buckler bracer where it disappeared from view. I focused on the window for it and was amazed at what I found. [Night¡¯s Fury - Unique Durability - 19/20 Description - Forged from the heart of a Level 200 Wraith Dragon, the blade contained within this bracer is undetectable by anyone under that level. Anyone who successfully kills someone who was unaware of them with this blade will gain the [Assassinate] Skill. Doing so will not use up the Durability on this blade while normal use will drain it as normal.] ¡°Dad, I can¡¯t¡­ I didn¡¯t get an assassin based class like you wanted me to.¡± I wasn¡¯t exactly lying, but something like [Night¡¯s Fury] was wasted on a generalist like me. He walked over and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°That¡¯s why I gave it to you. I knew you¡¯d get something more like what your mother wanted with all that magical talent, so I figured this was the best way to give you that Skill.¡± He leaned in close. ¡°You never know when you might need to take out a target when they¡¯re not paying attention and that thing will make it much easier. It served me well for over a decade and I want you to have it.¡± It¡¯s still at almost max Durability and Dad used it for over a decade. Holy crap. Dad wasn¡¯t just the comic relief for the party, was he? He was their damn assassin! His eyes gleamed when I looked at him with wide eyes. ¡°You¡¯re probably right, but let¡¯s keep that between us.¡± He tilted his head toward Grandpa and I understood what he was saying. ¡°Got it.¡± I gave him a side hug. ¡°Thanks Dad.¡± Grandpa stalked over and Dad made himself scarce with a puff of shadow before reappearing next to Mom. Grandpa snorted at his antics. ¡°It¡¯s not like I¡¯d have hurt him for being in my way¡­ much.¡± He pulled a gilded scroll case out and handed it to me directly. ¡°You¡¯ve always been a bit of a Skill monkey, here¡¯s some help with that.¡± I took the scroll case and gently twisted off the cap on the end. Peering inside, I almost laughed, there had to be forty scrolls inside. Before I could admonish him, he put up a hand. ¡°Those are all [Skill Scrolls] I produced in the past few years, just for this day. Don¡¯t deny a grandfather the chance to spoil his grandson.¡± Black writing appeared on his hand that was pointed toward me: With your Class, this is the fastest way for you to grow more powerful. Just make sure not to use more than five of them in one week, or you¡¯ll be in for a demon of a headache. Wits divided by twenty actually, but five is a solid starting point. ¡°Understood, thanks Grandpa.¡± I pulled him in for a hug and it felt like I was hugging a sun-drenched blanket on a cold night. Grandpa¡¯s hugs were next-level good. ¡°Anything for my Starchild.¡± He stepped away and waved for Mom to step up in his place. She beamed down at me as I kicked my short legs on the massive throne. I had to jump into the thing with how short I was. ¡°Do you have any guesses at what I might have given you?¡± She smirked. Wracking my brain, I came up with nothing. I shook my head. ¡°I¡¯m guessing it isn¡¯t the camping stuff left on the cart?¡± ¡°No, those are from your father and I as a pair.¡± She pulled out a well worn tome and handed it to me. ¡°This is from just me.¡± I traced my fingers over the tome and immediately knew what I was holding. I¡¯d stared at it since I was a kid where it sat on the mantle in the family room in the villa. The supple red leather had the Sunbeam family crest pressed into it and below that was my mom¡¯s name in Elvish. ¡°Your travel spellbook? I don¡¯t know¨C¡± I tried to push it back at her, but she rebuffed me. ¡°I know you¡¯ve been reluctant to use your gift with spellcraft for battle since the accident,¡± She closed her eyes for a moment before continuing, ¡°but I want you to have it. If you ever think you might want to learn one of the spells, it should be as easy as opening the book up and taking a look.¡± She looked sad. ¡°Then again, you haven¡¯t told us what your Class is yet, so maybe you don¡¯t need my piddling spellbook.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that!¡± I hurried to store the precious book away before lurching to my feet with a hop. I pulled her into a hug. ¡°I love it Mom, I really do. It just brings up some bad memories.¡± I squeezed her tighter. ¡°I¡¯ll do my best to put it to good use, honest.¡± She clutched me even tighter. ¡°As long as you come back safely, I don¡¯t care what you do with the dumb book.¡± Chapter 5 - Starlord. No Really, I Swear A few minutes later, I stood before my assembled family and friends and prepared to lie to them. It wasn¡¯t a good feeling, but Grandpa and I agreed it was necessary. With his [Status Shield] Skill, I would be hiding my [Suzerain] class for years, if not decades or centuries, so it behooved me to start early to get used to it. We hemmed and hawed about what Class to present for me, but in the end we dismissed [Eldritch Warmaster]. It may have been an S ranked Class, but it wouldn¡¯t explain the breadth of things I¡¯d eventually be able to do with [Suzerain]. After deliberating with him for the better part of fifteen minutes while everyone else milled about waiting for us to come back from our ¡°bathroom trip,¡± we settled on [Starlord]. [Starlord] was an elven exclusive S ranked Class and I would have been happy to get it, but I knew I had even more room to grow with my actual Class. [Starlords] exemplified everything all the elven races were good at, from magic to martial combat to crafting. It was the total package for an elf and I almost felt bad faking it. However, it did explain why my stats were so high. [Starlords] got thirty stats per level, just like [Suzerain], despite the rarity disparity. I had no idea what the extra S¡¯s [Suzerain] had meant, but I didn¡¯t have time to think about that then. Before walking out, I activated [Status Shield] to hide my real Class and marveled at the flexibility of it. I found that I could change whatever I wanted about my [Status]. Level? Yup. Stats? Of course. But the most important thing for me was the ability to change my Class. Without my grandfather¡¯s help? I don¡¯t know what I would have done. If my parents even knew about my Class they¡¯d be in danger. It¡¯s not that they weren¡¯t capable, they are, but I didn¡¯t want to cause them any problems if I could avoid it. ¡°Thanks for waiting, everyone.¡± I blushed. ¡°Grandpa and I were discussing some of the logistics for my Class, him being the expert and all.¡± Mom, Dad, their former party members, and Momo all leaned in. ¡°It is my great pleasure to present to all of you¡­ my [Status]!¡± With a dramatic flourish, I sent a simplified copy of my [Status Shield] to my assembled family and friends. [Name: Arthur Bajbub Neilson Class: Starlord - Legendary Rank S Level: 24 HP: 230 Mana: 529 Stamina: 344 Stats: Might: 13 Agility: 101 Toughness: 65 Charm: 75 Wits: 115 Perception: 91 Arcane: 199 Divine: 199 Active Skills - Mastery: Rapid Strike - 70% Dual Chop - 64% Backstab - 94% Mana Slide - 20% Arcane Armor - 63% Magic Missile - 97% Elemental Bolt - 48% Lockpicking - 79% Trap Finding - 95% Trap Disarming - 91% Arcane Sight - 74% Wingbind - 75% Synthesis - 94% Sunny Side Up - 100% - No Evolution Available Passive Skills: Essence Reading (Analyze Evolution) Evasion Linguist Light Armor Training Medium Armor Training Small Blade Training Bow Training Code Cracking Spelunking Cartography Herbalism Ritual Magic] ¡°I¡¯m a [Starlord]!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Mom cheered and pumped her fist, releasing fireworks from her raised fist in excitement with [Pyrotechnics]. A screen appeared in the bottom corner of my vision and I had to stop myself from groaning when I saw what it said. Really? Now I have to tell Grandpa about this one too¡­ [Pyrotechnics Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 6%] Dad walked over and clapped me on the shoulder, knocking me out of my own head. ¡°I¡¯m proud of you, Arthur. Another S ranked Class in the family can only mean the Ironwind clan is on the rise again.¡± He beamed at me. Despite my momentary confusion, something he said confused me. ¡°What do you mean another S ranked Class in the family? Grandpa might have one, but he¡¯s not part of the Ironwind clan.¡± Dad froze in place, totally unable to move, as Mom walked up behind and put a hand on his shoulder. ¡°Yes, Neil dear, why don¡¯t you tell Arthur about them?¡± Dad shook his head to clear the metaphorical icicles. ¡°You know the rules, I can¡¯t tell him unless¡­ I misspoke, that¡¯s all.¡± He put on a forced smile. ¡°Forget what I said, OK? You¡¯re amazing and we should celebrate!¡± Damnit Dad¡­ now I have to ask directly. I just hope there¡¯s not a System penalty for it. ¡°Dad, who is Mom talking about?¡± I quirked an eyebrow at him when he started to squirm. He ran his fingers through his hair the same way I find myself doing when I¡¯m trying to figure out a good lie. ¡°You see, the thing is¨C¡± Mom cut him off. ¡°You¡¯re not going to lie to our only son on his System Day, are you Neil?¡± The way she said his name sent shivers up my spine, and based on the way he reacted, Dad had the same thing happen. He sighed. ¡°I guess everyone else here knows, so it shouldn¡¯t hurt,¡± he muttered under his breath, ¡°much.¡± Arlo and Megara quickly averted their gaze before striking up a conversation with Momo, who was glaring holes into Dad. She wasn¡¯t ever fond of him, but she was usually civil, so that was new. Dad set his fingers on the hilts of his daggers and immediately looked calmer, though I wasn¡¯t sure if it was a [Skill] or just him feeling more relaxed by their comforting presence. ¡°You know I was married once before your mother, correct?¡± If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. I nodded. ¡°Yeah, her name was Maddie, right?¡± Dad had told me about her when I was a kid. I¡¯d asked about how he was before marrying Mom. Grief washed over Dad¡¯s face for a moment before Mom took his hand and rubbed a thumb over his knuckles. ¡°It¡¯s OK, we both loved her.¡± That was enough to get Dad going again. ¡°Our dear Matilda. She and I were married before we even left the Clan seat, an arranged marriage, you see.¡± He chuckled. ¡°We were childhood friends and lovers, so we never complained. You see, the Ironwind Clan understands that to reject other races is to allow ourselves to grow stagnant, so every few generations, they encourage their children to look outside pure dwarves for spouses.¡± ¡°I mean, that kind of makes some sense. Gran and Gramps never even mentioned my heritage the one time I met them. They didn¡¯t seem to care for Mom, but I figured that was because she was a caster, not because she was an elf.¡± I nodded before frowning. ¡°Hold on, how does this tie into whoever it is you were talking about?¡± I glared at him. ¡°Don¡¯t gaslight me, give it to me straight.¡± He sighed as he fingered his dagger with the hand Mom wasn¡¯t holding. ¡°Maddie and I weren¡¯t just married, we had a daughter named Anya.¡± His eyes sparkled. ¡°She¡¯s perfect, or at least I thought so until Maddie died.¡± He closed his eyes as tears started to fall. ¡°At first she was fine, but when Maddie¡¯s best friend started to make her interests clear as she supported me in my grief, she was furious.¡± Mom took over when Dad broke down, pulling him in to her ample bosom and stroking his hair. ¡°Maddie was my best friend and our group¡¯s [Paladin]. When she died, your father and I took solace in each other¡¯s arms and, one thing led to another, we eventually fell in love a few years later. Anya didn¡¯t take it well. She refused to acknowledge your father¡¯s wishes or our marriage and, when we stopped adventuring and moved to Wyrm¡¯s Rest, she cut off all ties with us.¡± Dad turned his head to address me with puffy red eyes. ¡°She lives in the capital of Verdant, Grenwood, as a retainer for the king. I haven¡¯t seen her in over thirty years, but she still sends me letters every few years or so. Per her request, the Clan asked that I not tell you about Anya unless you asked directly and they used a System enforced oath to make sure I complied.¡± I was stunned into silence for a moment before I recovered. ¡°I have a half-sister?¡± I balled up my hands to really let loose on Dad before stopping myself. He didn¡¯t want to keep her from me, he couldn¡¯t tell me without the System taking its due. ¡°Does she know about me?¡± I half-whispered. He pulled himself free of Mom and walked over to hug me. ¡°She does, but¡­¡± ¡°She wants nothing to do with me, does she?¡± A hard knot formed in my gut. I finally got a sibling, only to be told they don¡¯t even want to meet me. Typical. This is just like when Dad finally agreed I could have a pet and the [Frost Tiger] he got me ran away before I could even name her. ¡°She does not.¡± He sighed. ¡°She was just eighteen when we retired and she was adamant about wanting nothing to do with, and I¡¯m quoting her here, ¡®any spawn¡¯ your mother and I might have.¡± Now that lit a fire inside me. ¡°She said what now?¡± Unbidden, [Skill Dominance] appeared in the corner of my vision and I started seeing fractions over everyone in the area¡¯s heads. What the hell? Why did that happen? What are those numbers? My eyes lit up when I looked over the numbers again. None of the denominators were under fifty while the numerators were in the single digits for everyone but Mom and Dad. Mom and Grandpa had the largest denominators by far, with Grandpa¡¯s at an astonishing seven hundred and thirty to Mom¡¯s five hundred and five. Those must be the [Skills] they have and the number of them I know. I guess [Skill Dominance] has an active mode to go with the passive it¡¯s shown so far. I wonder how common that kind of thing is? ¡°¡­ and there¡¯s nothing more to say about it.¡± Mom sighed. I shook my head. ¡°What was that? I was distracted by the bullshit of my so-called sister¡¯s attitude from afar.¡± Saved it, I think. She frowned. ¡°I was just saying you can¡¯t really blame her for how she feels. She lost her mother and your philandering father found another woman less than a decade later.¡± Dad put a hand against his chest in mock outrage. ¡°Oof, that was way more direct and far ruder than last time. As far as my philandering goes¨C¡± He stopped when Mom¡¯s glare cut through him like a knife. ¡°It¡¯s a thing of the past. System note it.¡± A gold light lit up over his head for a moment before fading into nothing. ¡°Good.¡± Mom patted Dad¡¯s head before turning to me. ¡°Like I said, this idiot was at fault so don¡¯t blame Anya.¡± ¡°All I can promise is to keep an open mind if I ever meet her.¡± I answered obliquely. I had no intention of going easy on Anya, but I wouldn¡¯t go after her about Dad without talking to her first. With a small smile, Dad shrugged. ¡°I can¡¯t ask for anything more.¡± *** The rest of the party went well, but I had trouble focusing on it. Grandpa noticed and, as soon as he was able, he pulled me aside. Once we had some privacy, I explained what I¡¯d discovered and his eyes lit up. ¡°That [Skill] continues to impress, both the active and passive parts of it. Being able to copy any [Skill] you can see is unheard of outside of Blue Mimics, and those are S-Ranked monsters even full S-Ranked parties avoid. To be honest, in a lot of situations, the active ability will be far more useful. I¡¯m willing to bet, as your mastery increases, that you¡¯ll be able to see what skills you share with someone, or even search a crowd for a particular [Skill]. Imagine, once you learn [Assassinate] you¡¯d be able to spot people with the [Skill].¡± He whistled quietly in appreciation. ¡°Bodyguard jobs and manhunts will be a cinch for you and they pay well, so keep them in mind as you go up the ranks in the Adventurers Guild.¡± ¡°I hadn¡¯t even thought about what it would be able to do at higher mastery levels, it¡¯s pretty amazing as is.¡± I ran my fingers through my hair. ¡°It¡¯s a bit overwhelming. What am I going to do with all the [Skills] it helps me learn?¡± ¡°Versatility is second only to raw power in how useful it is. Why don¡¯t you try out [Pyrotechnics]? It¡¯s not super useful except as a distraction, but kids and adults alike enjoy fireworks on holidays and it¡¯s essential for those.¡± He waved for me to go on. ¡°I guess it can¡¯t hurt.¡± I raised my hand over my head and focused on [Pyrotechnics]. To my surprise, a window appeared in front of me instead of fireworks going off over my head. [Would you like to slot in Pyrotechnics to one of your open slots? Filled Slots: 0/5] ¡°Huh, that¡¯s interesting.¡± I stared at the window for a few moments and Grandpa coughed to get my attention. ¡°What¡¯s interesting?¡± I gave him permission to view the window with a thought. ¡°It seems there¡¯s more to this [Skill] than we thought.¡± The old man grinned. ¡°If you weren¡¯t leaving in the morning for your big trip, I¡¯d like to spend a few weeks testing this out with you, but I guess we don¡¯t have that luxury.¡± He rubbed his slightly pointy chin. ¡°Why don¡¯t you just look at the [Skill Details] for [Skill Dominance]?¡± I stared at him with a blank look. ¡°The what?¡± ¡°Are you being serious? Did your mother not tell you how your [Status] worked?¡± His jaw hung open. ¡°This is basic stuff.¡± ¡°Nope, that was Dad¡¯s department after they had a duel to decide who got to train me on what.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I¡¯m guessing he forgot some stuff?¡± ¡°You could say that.¡± Grandpa rubbed his temples. ¡°Just think of the [Skill] and then ask the System for a description. It¡¯ll tell you all you need to know.¡± ¡°Seems easy enough, I¡¯ll give it a shot.¡± With a thought, a screen appeared in front of me. [Skill Dominance is the only Skill of the Suzerain Class. Its active mode allows the user to see the number of Skills everyone without Status Shield active has as well as how many Skills the Suzerain has in common with them. At 25% Mastery, the Suzerain will be able to pick a Skill they have and look for people who have it in the vicinity. Later Mastery abilities are currently hidden. The passive mode for Skill Dominance documents any Skill the Suzerain observes. Then, it allows the Suzerain to access a certain number of those observed Skills by slotting them in. Once a Skill evolves at 100% Mastery and the Suzerain gains their unique evolution of it, the Evolved Skill will be accessible at all times. The number of accessible slots for the Suzerain at this time is five. Slotting a Skill in can be done at any time, but changing Skills in already active slots can only be done at dawn or dusk. Skills learned through Skill Scrolls or training do not require slots to use.] Dominus bless me, that¡¯s a hell of a description. [Skill Dominance] is a bit less busted than I thought, but it¡¯s still insane! I mean, I guess it¡¯s good I won¡¯t have thousands of Skills to think of using at all times. I can¡¯t even imagine how difficult it would be to deal with the kind of decision paralysis that might lead to. ¡°It looks like I have a certain number of Skills I can use at any given time that I didn¡¯t learn the old fashioned way.¡± When I tried to give him permission to view the window, the System resisted me for a moment, but I bypassed it with a pulse of will. If I couldn¡¯t trust him, I couldn¡¯t trust anyone. He read through it quickly before beaming at me. ¡°Oh, this is going to be fun. I know what we¡¯re doing tonight!¡± He went to drag me away, but stopped mid step. ¡°We should go back to the party first, we don¡¯t want everyone to worry about you.¡± That night, I watched Grandpa and Mom fight a ten minute mock mage duel. Mom didn¡¯t take much convincing, it was obvious she wanted to blow off a bit of steam. I knew why he did it and we weren¡¯t disappointed when we went over the results before bed. [Skill Dominance] captured every single Skill or Spell they used, despite them not using full power. However, we found one strange thing, even if they were using [Evolved Skills], I only got the basic version of the [Skill]. In the end, that made sense, [Skill Evolution] was unique for everyone. Very few people ended up with the same [Evolved Skill] as someone else since it all depended on the intent behind their use of the basic [Skill]. Before I went to bed, I pulled up my list of available [Dominated Skills]. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 5/5 Active & Passive Skills: N/A Active Skills: Air Step - Allows the user to walk on air Corona - Creates a ring of intense heat around the caster, damaging and deterring enemies. Fireball - Launches a large ball of fire that explodes on impact, dealing significant fire damage. Gust - A small burst of wind that pushes objects or extinguishes flames. Gust of Wind - A powerful gust of wind that pushes back enemies. Haste - Grants an ally increased movement and attack speed. Healing Light - Creates a warm light with a minor healing effect. Mold Earth - Shapes a small amount of earth, useful for digging or creating minor cover. Obscuring Mist - Creates a thick fog that hinders vision in an area. Photosynthetic Burst - Rapidly grows plants in an area, creating difficult terrain or entanglement. Pyrotechnics - Produce a minor firework. Solar Deflection - Encases the caster in a momentary shimmering barrier that deflects non-magical attacks. Solar Flare - Launches a small burst of fire that explodes on impact. Spark - Creates a small spark that can ignite tinder or deal minor fire damage. Spike Field - Creates sharp stones that erupt from the ground, damaging creatures that step on them. Sun Armor - Grants the caster a tough, heat-resistant magical armor. Sunbeam - Creates a dazzling beam of sunlight that can blind or deal minor radiant damage. Sunburst - Creates a blinding explosion of light and radiant energy, dealing damage and potentially blinding enemies. Searing Light - Bathes an object or creature in intense heat, causing minor burning. Searing Wind - A scorching wind blasts the area, dealing fire damage and pushing enemies back. Sun Jump - A short-range teleport usable only in sunlight. Sunlance - A powerful beam of sunlight blasts a target, dealing significant radiant damage. Passive Skills: Photosynthesis - Absorb sunlight to replenish Health, Mana, and Stamina.] I slotted [Photosynthesis], [Haste], and [Air Step] before going to bed. As I drifted off to sleep, I mentally adjusted the [Dominated Skills] list to not display the description for each [Skill] every time I called it up. If I¡¯d seen it in use, I didn¡¯t exactly need to have the description shoved in my face every time I pulled up the list. Those [Skills] should make leaving the mountain a lot easier tomorrow. With the [Cloud Carpet], [Air Step] was basically a necessity. It wouldn¡¯t do to fall off my new gift and get hurt before I can even fight any monsters. [Photosynthesis] will let me travel longer, replenishing my Mana from using the [Cloud Carpet] and [Haste] is just a good thing to have in case all else fails. Chapter 6 - Chase? I LOVE Chase! A profound hush settled over the mountain valley. The last embers of starlight flickered faintly before succumbing to the encroaching darkness. An air of anticipation hung heavy, punctuated only by the occasional hoot of an owl echoing through the stillness. A thin fog clung stubbornly to the valley floor, swirling around the base of towering pines like spectral wisps. In the distance, the faint outline of a meandering river lay obscured, a silver ribbon swallowed by the pre-dawn gloom. The first hint of change, however, was already stirring. A faint blush began to creep across the eastern horizon, ever so slowly pushing back the darkness. It was a promise of the new day to come. ¡°Safe travels!¡± Mom, Dad, Grandpa, and their friends waved on the edge of the cliff overlooking the road out of Wyrm¡¯s Rest. I waved back at my family and friends as I set off in the direction of the rising sun on the [Cloud Carpet]. It was my first time leaving home without at least one of my parents or my grandfather, and I may have been a bit scared, but I was even more excited. This is it, I¡¯ve heard the stories about the beginning of Mom and Dad¡¯s adventures since I was a kid, but this is the start of my grand journey. I wonder what kind of crazy stuff I¡¯ll encounter in the next few months? I shook my head. I have to focus. My first goal is to make it to Cliffhaven safely. It¡¯s kind of a pain that Wyrm¡¯s Rest is so far from everything, even if it does make a bit of sense. The stories Megara told me about the idiots who came to make trouble when I was a baby¡­ it¡¯d happen way more if it weren¡¯t up in the mountains. The first day of travel was uneventful. I kept the [Cloud Carpet] close to the mostly sheer mountainside and was able to find a camping spot near the peak of one of the shorter mountains. ¡°Without this carpet,¡± I patted the surprisingly comfortable blue and white rug rolled up next to me, ¡°it would have taken me at least a week to make it this far, if not longer.¡± I leaned back on it and looked up at the star-filled evening sky. ¡°Look at me, first time camping alone and I¡¯m already talking to myself.¡± After making a quick soup for dinner and eating, I settled in to trance for a few hours, but was having some serious trouble getting into the right frame of mind to do so. Something felt¡­ off, and I couldn¡¯t shake it. This hasn¡¯t happened since I was a kid. What the hell is going on with me? Is it because I¡¯m lonely? As I lay there against the [Cloud Carpet] I let my mind wander back to when I met Dominus. Despite her name, I can see her as a maternal figure. I guess she gave birth to the rest of the gods, so that makes sense. I started to slip into my trance, but just before I did I thought I felt the presence of Dominus behind me, putting her hands on my shoulders like my Mom used to. ¡°Silly Chosen, of course I¡¯m here to see you at the beginning of your journey. Rest well, I hope you like my gift tomorrow.¡± Her voice was like warm silk, soothing yet ephemeral. My eyes widened, but something told me not to look for her. Instead, I sighed and let myself drift into my trance. *** When I woke up the next day, I felt better than ever. It was like I¡¯d gotten a week¡¯s worth of sleep and the world glittered in my vision. After eating breakfast, I decided to test out [Air Step] instead of using the [Cloud Carpet]. With [Photosynthesis] working in the background, I figured the Mana drain wouldn¡¯t be too bad. I was right, but it was more than that. [Air Step] was amazing. Not only did it give me steps made out of air to land on as I ran, they gave me a bit of bounce and soon I was bounding through the mountains like some kind of sky goat. When I checked my Mana twenty minutes in, I found that it was topped off still, [Photosynthesis] plus my natural regeneration meant I could use [Air Step] all day and still not drain any of my Mana. ¡°Yeah!¡± I whooped as I sprang from platform to platform. ¡°This is the life!¡± As I started reconsidering the supposed three day trip to Cliffhaven on a [Flying Carpet] I was sideswiped by a red blur. It sent me crashing into the mountainside and I scrabbled at the rock frantically before finally catching myself a few feet above a sheer cliff face. I spun around and pushed off before creating another platform in the air to stand on. My head was on a swivel as I looked for whatever had hit me. I found it, but not before it was less than ten feet in front of me, barreling at me like a white furry comet. [Essence Reading] triggered as I dropped to my platform and let the beast fly over my prone form. I still caught a claw along my cheek, which stung like a bastard, but it wasn¡¯t enough to stop me from checking the thing¡¯s [Status]. [Raiju - Unique - Rank S Monster Elements: Lightning sub wind Attitude: Playful/Excited Description: Raiju is a Gale Hound who evolved during a lightning storm twenty years ago. Ever since, she¡¯s roamed the mountains looking for someone to play with. It¡¯s said that if anyone can evade her for ten minutes straight, she¡¯ll be loyal to them for life.] ¡°You want to play?¡± I grinned as the blood on my cheek dribbled past the already healed cut. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s play!¡± I started a System timer in the corner of my vision. The first five minutes of our game of tag were amazing. Despite her speed, Raiju never tried to hurt me, instead she just tried to catch up to me as I sprang from platform to rock face and back. Once five minutes passed? She got serious. Her eyes lit up with the telltale blue glow of lightning and her speed increased threefold. I¡¯m not ashamed to admit I triggered [Haste] when I saw what she was doing and I was immediately glad I had as she hurtled toward me with her paws extended to slam into me. [Haste] was a greedy [Skill]. It drank Mana, and the more you gave it the faster you went. In the first minute of having it active, I drained thirty percent of my Mana. I knew I had to change something, or Raiju might accidentally hurt me with how much fun she was having. I can¡¯t beat her with raw speed, she¡¯s just too fast and her maneuverability is way better than mine as well. I don¡¯t want to hurt her, but I¡¯m running out of options for ways to avoid her without hurting her. Wait a second, that gives me an idea¡­ The next time Raiju got within five feet of me, I triggered [Arlo¡¯s Animated Buckler] and she bounced off before she could slam me into the mountainside. When I saw her paw at her muzzle, I felt bad¡­ until she turned to me and glared. That¡¯s when it got bad. She sprang back and lowered her front down and wiggled her butt behind her, tail wagging as she floated there with a storm cloud brewing behind her. She barked and a bolt of lightning sprang from the thunderhead, only to be blocked by my animated shield half a second before it would have slammed into my face. It seems things have escalated. I really don¡¯t want to get blasted with lightning, so maybe I should see if I can get us back to the game we were playing before things got really dangerous. I held up my hands. ¡°Got it, no shields.¡± I retracted [Arlo¡¯s Animated Buckler] with a twist of the wrist. ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t know the rules we were playing by.¡± The snow white canine stared at me with a cocked head before sitting back on her haunches. Behind her, the thunderhead slowly dissipated. The moment it did, her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she sprang toward me once more. Eight minutes gone, two to go. With my Mana regen and the bit of downtime we¡¯ve had, I think I can do this with just [Haste] now. I¡¯ve got one more trick, but it¡¯s not something I want to do to anyone, let alone a dog who just wants to play. The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. The game resumed and Raiju gave me a run for my money. At one point, she chased me into a cave full of [Inferno Bats], but a single bark from her was enough to send them back into hiding as I screamed out the other end of the tunnel-esque cave. As we danced, I caught a glimpse of her face and it looked like she was having an absolute blast. I may have never had a pet before, but I grew up visiting Reginald and Monica with their monster menagerie back in Wyrm¡¯s Rest. I knew what a happy beast looked like and she was over the moon. The game passed into its final minute and, instead of increasing her pace, Raiju slowed down. Unwilling to be tricked, I kept [Haste] at the same level, and that nearly got me caught. She came at me languidly and I jerked away, only to find her behind me with her snout out to tag me. I managed to avoid her by dropping the platform I was standing on and falling down to a flat spot on the mountain in a roll. I glanced at my timer as she approached, 9:55. We both knew this was the final round of the game and I was ready. I lowered my stance and dismissed [Air Step]. I had other plans. Raiju flicked her ears once and her whole body turned into lightning before zipping toward my chest ten times faster than ever before. It was only that last training match with Dad the day before that saved me. I triggered [Mana Slide] half a second before she would have made contact and, this time, I kept my head down. I slid to a stop less than six inches from the cliff¡¯s edge, sucking wind. A pair of timers went off in unison and Raiju and I locked eyes. I could tell she was overcome with emotion when she sat down with violently twitching ears instead of rushing toward me. I stood back up and brushed off my leather pants with a laugh. ¡°That was a lot of fun, Raiju. Thanks for playing with me.¡± A wave of exhaustion hit me like a wave and I teetered back toward the cliff¡¯s edge. In a flash, Raiju was behind me, pushing me back onto solid ground. She growled. ¡°Silly manling, almost fell off the mountain.¡± I¡¯ll admit it, I fell on my butt with wide eyes. ¡°You can talk!?¡± I spluttered. She let out a short howl that sounded suspiciously like laughter before looking back at me. ¡°Of course I can, manling. The System blesses those monsters who show it respect.¡± ¡°I did not know that. I¡¯m surprised Reginald and Monica never told me that.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Also, my name is Arthur, or Artie if you¡¯d prefer. It¡¯s nice to meet you, Raiju.¡± She sat and stared at me for a minute and I took that time to get a better look at her. Raiju was a majestic creature, a living embodiment of the storm itself. She stood about four feet tall at the shoulder and her fur wasn¡¯t simply white, but the color of freshly fallen snow, untainted and luminous. Each powerful muscle rippled beneath its gleaming surface, hinting at immense strength and agility. Her eyes, though? They were something special. Twin orbs of crackling electric blue, they seem to hold the energy of a thousand thunderstorms within them. ¡°When do we eat next, Master?¡± She looked at me with a cocked head. ¡°It has been three hours since I last ate, for the record.¡± ¡°Why are you asking me? Also, why are you calling me Master? I¡¯m not your¨C¡± I trailed off when her tail swept between her legs. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want me, do you?¡± She whimpered and turned her head away before standing up and shaking out her fur. ¡°It¡¯s OK, I¡¯m used to being alone.¡± ¡°Hold on!¡± I reached out for her on instinct and she stopped in her tracks. ¡°I didn¡¯t say I didn¡¯t want you and you also didn¡¯t answer my questions.¡± Her eyes narrowed. ¡°You finished my bonding ritual, that makes you my master. Hence, I asked you when food was going to happen and called you Master.¡± She said it with such a matter of fact tone that I found it hard to refute her statement. ¡°Was that what the game of tag was? A bonding ritual?¡± She paced around before lying down between me and the cliff¡¯s edge, which was probably for the best because I was down to the dregs of my Mana. [Mana Slide] was useful, but it used a chunk of Mana and I was already almost out when I used it. Mana Exhaustion always made me dizzy, which is why I almost fell over the cliff. ¡°Master¨C¡± I cut her off. ¡°I¡¯d really rather you call me Artie or Arthur if you want to stand on ceremony for some reason. No one calls me Arthur if they know me personally.¡± She groaned. ¡°Artie, do you know much about S-Ranked monsters?¡± She leaned on my name, but it made me smile. ¡°Not much beyond the ones my mom and dad told me about their travels. Why?¡± She shimmied a bit closer to me before responding. ¡°Every Unique S-Ranked monster is just that, unique. We¡¯re all different, but we have two things in common. We can all speak and we all have a [Quest] from the System to complete.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard about [Quests] before, but aren¡¯t they insanely rare? Even my parents and their party only ever got two in the entire time they adventured together.¡± I checked the time and noticed it was time for lunch, so I pulled out my camping bag from my spatial ring and started rummaging for my pot and [Campfire Stone] inside. ¡°That¡¯s correct, but all Unique S-Ranked monsters do indeed receive a [Quest] when we gain sapience.¡± With a grunt of satisfaction, I pulled the pot from my camping bag and set it down on the [Campfire Stone] before producing a pound of beef from my spatial ring and dropped it in the bottom of the pot. ¡°That¡¯s amazing.¡± I seasoned the beef liberally before pulling out some potatoes and dicing them up in the air with [Dual Chop]. As they landed in the bottom of the pot, I poured in some red wine before throwing a lid on it. Raiju licked her chops, but didn¡¯t make a move toward the pot. ¡°Not really. Until we finish our [Quest] we can¡¯t leave a certain radius of where we got said [Quest]. That¡¯s why most dragons you¡¯ll find are in their lairs so much of the time, they can¡¯t leave for too long. I was bound to the Wyrmspire Mountains, so I had plenty of room to roam, but it was still a prison.¡± She laid her head down next to my leg with a sigh. I felt for her, I really did. ¡°That¡¯s awful. I¡¯m sorry you¡¯ve been stuck here so long.¡± I hesitated a moment before reaching down to scratch the top of her head. She groaned happily, so I continued. ¡°Do you mind telling me what yours was? Sorry if it was rude, but I¡¯m really curious what could keep someone as majestic as you stuck here so long.¡± She froze up for a moment before relaxing to my scratching again. ¡°It was,¡± her voice took on a strangely familiar voice. ¡°Roam the mountains until you find someone who can evade you in tag for ten minutes and then adventure with them for as long as you get along with them.¡± She shook her head and her voice went back to her usual alto. ¡°You¡¯re the first person to make it past the nine minute mark and you even beat me!¡± She growled happily. ¡°That¡¯s why I called you Master, but now that I know you don¡¯t like it I won¡¯t do it anymore.¡± She shifted her head into my lap before whispering. ¡°Please take me with you?¡± It came out so quiet and vulnerable that I was taken aback. She¡¯s lonely, just like me. I mean, I¡¯ve been lonely for all of a day, but she¡¯s been lonely for twenty years. I bet her pack moved on a long time ago, if they¡¯re even alive anymore. You know what? Why not? ¡°Of course I will.¡± Golden light sprang from my hand where it lay on her head and a moment later a rune that looked like a stylized crown appeared on both her head and my palm. They faded a moment later, but not before I was able to catch their description. [Bonding Mark - Rank S Age: 5 seconds Description: This mark denotes that Raiju and Arthur Bajbub Neilson are now bonded by the System. Most towns will now allow Raiju to enter as long as she is with her Bonded.] ¡°Yes. This is right.¡± Raiju nestled her head into my lap even harder. ¡°Please wake me when food is ready, all that chasing was quite tiring.¡± A moment later she fell asleep, leaving me with her massive white head to work around as I prepped lunch. As I waited for the beef and potatoes to cook, I took another look at her [Status] and was shocked to see I had access to much more information than before. [Name: Raiju Monster Type: Raiju (Evolved Gale Wolf) - Unique - Rank S Bond: Arthur Bajbub Neilson - SSS Rank Level: 24 HP: 700 Mana: 265 Stamina: 1400 Stats: Might: 150 Agility: 550 Toughness: 300 Charm: 75 Wits: 45 Perception: 295 Divine: 75 Active Skills - Mastery - Description: Active Skills: Winds of Fury - 85% - Raiju creates a powerful gust of wind that pushes enemies back or knocks them prone. Sparkling Charge - 33% - Raiju charges forward in a burst of wind, leaving a trail of electric sparks that damage enemies. Lightning Strike - 89% - Raiju focuses electrical energy and launches a bolt of lightning at a target, dealing significant damage. Storm¡¯s Embrace - 64% - Raiju channels lightning around herself, creating a temporary shield that deflects attacks and damages enemies who touch it. Thunderhead - 96% - Raiju summons a thunderhead cloud that sends out bolts of lightning on its own as long as she provides Mana. Passive Skills: Lightning Conductor - Raiju can channel the energy of incoming lightning attacks, taking no damage and potentially redirecting the energy towards a target. Keen Senses (Smell and Hearing) - Raiju¡¯s senses of smell and hearing are significantly better than the average Gale Wolf. Gale Wolves can hear prey more than five miles away and smell them at double that range. Storm¡¯s Presence - Raiju''s presence inspires awe and fear. Enemies are weakened in her vicinity, while allies gain a minor boost to attack speed or movement speed. Swift as the Wind - Raiju gains increased movement speed, allowing her to outpace most opponents. It also allows her to run on air.] ¡°Damn, I¡¯m glad you just wanted to play chase.¡± I scratched her head with a chuckle. ¡°S-Ranked monsters are something else.¡± Chapter 7 - Aren’t You Supposed to Stop the Robbers? It turned out that [Skill Dominance] didn¡¯t work on monster [Skills], which was a bit disappointing, but in the end, I understood. If I could absorb [Skills] from monsters, I¡¯d eventually be overwhelmed by choice even more than I already would be. Maybe there¡¯s something I can do at higher mastery levels to pick monster [Skills] I want to copy. It would make sense, but I bet it won¡¯t be relevant to me for quite a while, so I should let it go for now. I spent the rest of the day on the [Cloud Carpet] getting to know Raiju a little more. She surprised me by shrinking down to the size of a large dog and curling up with me on the carpet. ¡°This pelt is the perfect temperature, not too hot, not too cold.¡± She snuggled against my legs. ¡°I like flying on it, even if it¡¯s slow.¡± ¡°You know, most people would say this carpet is quite fast, especially compared to traveling along the mountain paths.¡± ¡°Then most people have no idea what real speed is.¡± She snorted. ¡°Mountain winds whip around at five times this speed at any given point and [Storm Crows] fly ten times our current pace.¡± I rubbed her belly. ¡°I¡¯ll take your word for it. You¡¯re the expert on speed here.¡± ¡°Goooooood.¡± She growled happily as we sailed toward Cliffhaven. *** Raiju and I floated a few hundred feet above the final foothill before Cliffhaven and took in the view. From what I¡¯d been told, Cliffhaven was a small city within Verdant, known mostly for its easy access to a pair of beginner Dungeons. Because of those beginner Dungeons, adventurers below level ten flocked to Cliffhaven in droves. The City was surrounded by a twenty foot wall stone covered in sloppy wards my tutors would have made me redo, but they seemed serviceable enough. The only buildings that really stood out in town were the Adventurers Guild, the lord¡¯s tower, and a particularly ostentatious mansion and compound. The Adventurers Guild was going to be my first stop. Without registering with them, Mom said I wouldn¡¯t be able to take jobs from them or use their exclusive shops. It stood as the second tallest building in town, despite its lack of ornamentation. It gave off a defensible feeling, like it could withstand anything and everything arrayed against it. The lord¡¯s tower was a five storey affair in the dead center of the City. Mom let me know that whenever a town grew large enough in Verdant, the king would send out a team of engineers to tear down whatever sort of town hall they had before and erect the same tower I saw before me. They used a magical blueprint to create a [Verdant Tower] that granted the lord and his staff a host of bonuses to efficiency as well as general stats. The gaudy mansion stood out as an obvious eyesore only a few hundred feet from the tower in the middle of town. There wasn¡¯t a single other mansion in town and, beyond that, no other houses even had a wall compared to its enclosed compound. What kind of asshole builds a compound like that in a place like this? I shook my head as I lowered the [Cloud Carpet] down to the ground just behind the crest of the hill. With a gesture, I banished it to my storage ring before pulling out a small knapsack and slinging it over my shoulder. I made sure my daggers were all in their proper places and the rest of my gear was easily accessible before clapping my hands to my face. ¡°It¡¯s game time.¡± Raiju cocked her head at me. ¡°Why do you have that small bag? Is your ring not sufficient for what you intend to purchase in town?¡± Her eyes lit up. ¡°Also, what game do you speak of?¡± I ruffled the fur between her ears. ¡°Not that kind of game, sorry. It¡¯s an old dwarven saying their warriors would say before entering the Smashball field. Dad used to say it before training and I picked it up from him.¡± She snorted and almost knocked me over despite her reduced size when she knocked her head into me. ¡°Dwarves sound like good people, if they honor such games.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not wrong. I¡¯ve heard the best players of those games are legends among dwarvenkind.¡± I hefted my bag. ¡°Also, the bag is to hide my ring. Not everyone has one and quite a few people would kill to get ahold of one. A [Bag of Holding] is much more common, even if it¡¯s still expensive, so I¡¯ll just fake like this bag is one of those to avoid trouble.¡± Stolen story; please report. ¡°Like hiding a kill in a snowbank to stop the damned [Storm Crows] from picking it clean before you¡¯re ready to eat it. I understand.¡± She nodded sagely. I don¡¯t think she does, but it¡¯s not a big deal. She¡¯ll get it eventually. For a moment, I considered asking to race her to the front gate but decided against it. Raiju was fast, far faster than a regular [Gale Wolf] and having her fun full tilt toward the town would likely raise a stir. Instead, we walked together at a measured pace over the hill and down toward the road at its foot. As we paced along the path, Raiju¡¯s nose was working harder than I¡¯d ever seen it. ¡°So many new smells!¡± She barked happily. ¡°What are these colorful plants by the road?¡± ¡°They¡¯re just daisies, common plants so basic even the System didn¡¯t bother to give them more of a description.¡± As if to prove me wrong, I caught sight of a single flower with a description window. [Windbloom - Uncommon Description: Windblooms are the only known evolution for daisies. They only evolve if a daisy survives five windstorms in one season. The seeds are prized by gardeners and alchemists alike for crossbreeding with less hardy flowers with more beneficial effects.] ¡°No shit.¡± I moved over to the [Windbloom] and pulled out a small pot from my ring. With a scoop, I pulled up enough soil to fill the pot without jostling the flower. ¡°That one smelled a bit different. Is it for eating?¡± ¡°Not really,¡± I chuckled, ¡°it¡¯ll pay for dinner when I sell it though.¡± She grinned her terrifying smile. ¡°Good. Plants are nice, but meat is delicious.¡± She licked her lips and I nearly peed, despite our bond. I¡¯m going to have to talk to her about that eventually, but there¡¯s no time now. I just hope she doesn¡¯t jump the guard if he goes to brandish his weapon. Said guard was looking at us with jaw agape. He leaned back and yelled something up at the pair of guards up on the wall above him with bows. A few moments later, they nocked arrows, but didn¡¯t draw their bows as they watched us approach. ¡°Don¡¯t attack unless I do, OK?¡± I murmured quietly. ¡°Understood¡­ Artie. I don¡¯t like it, but I¡¯ll do as you ask.¡± Raiju hung her head a bit lower and her tail wag slowed down from the frantic pace it had before to a more reasonable speed. The gate guard stepped up to stop us from entering the town. The young human man wore mail over a green gambeson and wielded his halberd like he needed more training with it. He swung it lazily across his body to try and arrest our progress. ¡°Halt and speak your business!¡± He hollered despite us only being ten paces away. Undeterred, I kept on walking until I was a few paces away. ¡°No need to yell, we¡¯re right here.¡± The gate guard swaggered forward and tried to bump my chest with his halberd shaft until I swayed back to avoid it. He grunted. ¡°I said, state your business!¡± His backwater accent slipped through as I nearly caught the spittle he sprayed my way. Not a great start, but I can deal with this guy. My eyes gleamed. ¡°New adventurer going to register!¡± I barked in his face, putting the weight of my 13 [Might] behind the yell. He stumbled back like I¡¯d slapped him with wide eyes. Above, I heard the telltale sound of bows being drawn back to fire. The gate guard took a moment to recover. ¡°In that case,¡± his voice shook, ¡°with a dog? The toll is three silver for entry.¡± [I guess I should put a few more points into [Might] this is fucking embarrassing. ¡°Three silver? That¡¯s highway robbery!¡± I placed my hand over my heart as I played it up. ¡°It¡¯s almost like you don¡¯t want us to enter your fine city. What was your name again, mister?¡± ¡°Guard Jacobson, Steve Jacobson.¡± His swagger returned. ¡°If you can¡¯t afford the fee, get comfortable out there.¡± He laid his halberd across his shoulders in the worst display of weapon safety I¡¯d ever seen. Seriously, who¡¯s training these guards? This dude¡¯s a joke. ¡°Excellent, I¡¯ll make sure to let your captain know you¡¯re extorting incoming travelers.¡± I winked at him before triggering [Haste] and shooting past him and down the road and around the corner with Raiju in tow before he could even blink. The guards above released their prepared arrows, but they didn¡¯t come close to hitting us. Raiju¡¯s growl intensified. ¡°I want to go back and electrocute them.¡± ¡°Me too, but there¡¯s not much to be done for it.¡± I shrugged. ¡°After registering, I really am going to go and talk to his captain, that¡¯s some bullshit we just dealt with.¡± ¡°Dishonorable men, who¡¯d have guessed?¡± She deadpanned. ¡°Yeah, not my favorite thing about my kind either, to be honest. Elves and Dwarves are better for it, but even they¡¯ll mislead you if they can get something over on you.¡± She made a gagging noise, but left it alone after that admission. We took the backstreets all the way to the Adventurers Guild, just in case, and I was immediately glad we had when I heard men in chainmail running down the main street. I quickly opened the massive steel banded wooden doors and ushered Raiju in. I waved happily as I closed the door in the face of Guard Richardson and his assembled cronies. Chapter 8 - Blue Steel or Blue Balls? Leaning with my back against the massive door, I waited for the guards to start pounding on it, but it never happened. I waited there for a couple of minutes until someone in the room coughed politely. I whirled around to see a raven haired young man waving at me from the line of desks near the right wall. Young man, what am I? Old? I really need to spend more time with people my own age. Come to think of it, I¡¯ve only ever hung out with someone my own age a few times, I really need to work on that. I looked from him to the door behind me and he nodded. ¡°The town guards aren¡¯t allowed in.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s good to hear.¡± My shoulders sagged. I glanced around the room, taking it all in. There was a dwarven bartender working behind the bar on the left wall and a pair of adventurers were sitting along the bar, drinking despite the early hour. The middle of the room was dominated by scattered wooden tables of a number of sizes, from small one to two man tables all the way up to a massive ten foot table with a hole and notch cut out of it to allow ten or more people to eat together. The back wall was mostly empty, minus the stairs leading both up and downstairs as well as a small bounty board. With one more glance back at the door, I hurried over to the friendly guild employee past a few partially full tables. His desk came up to my neck, which made me grimace. I¡¯m lithe like an elf and creative like a human, but all I got from my dwarven heritage is my damn 4¡¯ 8 ?¡± frame. Why couldn¡¯t I have been tall, like Mom? Damn genetics¡­ I glared at the way too tall desk as I pulled a stool out of my storage ring and stepped up on it. Behind me, I heard someone snicker. Without missing a beat, I whirled around and hurled a knife into the table in front of the person who looked the most surprised. ¡°What¡¯s funny?¡± I fumed and Raiju growled. The man stammered. ¡°I-I-I¡­ my bad.¡± He looked around at his party of fellow humans and a sea elf before looking back at me. ¡°Sorry about that, we just don¡¯t see many dwarfkin around here and it surprised me.¡± He pulled my knife from the table and hefted it. I waved for him to toss it back and caught it when it wobbled through the air to me. ¡°Trust me, most dwarfkin would have done worse for what you did, you should be more careful when you leave this place. Honor duels are System enforced for anyone who insults a dwarf or anyone descended from them.¡± I whirled the blade before sheathing it against my ribs once more. The guild employee was looking at me with newfound respect. ¡°Apologies for the desk, we used to have one for dwarves, but it never got used, so it was taken down.¡± ¡°Understandable, if annoying.¡± I huffed before leaning forward against the desk. ¡°Now, who do I need to speak to about registering as an adventurer?¡± He blinked a few times. ¡°Oh, that¡¯d be me.¡± He looked really confused. ¡°Fabulous. I¡¯d like to register now if possible.¡± He woodenly reached under the desk for a small plate of brass and set it before me as he gave a pre-prepared statement. ¡°Just pick that up and call your [Status]. The plate will bind to you and record your name, Class, and level. It will serve as your guild ID and should let you get into almost any city in the world without too much issue, minus a few sacred cities. ¡°As you advance through the ranks here, either by completing missions or leveling up your plate will evolve. Brass is for newbies up to level five. Iron covers up to level fifteen. Steel is for anyone up to level twenty-five and is the highest anyone can start, regardless of their level. Mithral adventurers are next and they¡¯re rare, especially after what happened thirty years ago. Adamantine and Orichalcum ranked adventurers are unheard of out this way, but I heard an ¡®Addy¡¯ settled down in the capital.¡± ¡°Got it.¡± I pressed my thumb to the plate and hoped [Status Shield] was as good as I¡¯d been told. The plate flashed white and gold in an alternating pattern for almost a minute before finally settling. It was a fresh steel plate with the following information on it when I scanned it with [Essence Reading]. [Name: Arthur Bajbub Neilson Adventurer Guild Rank: Blue Steel Class: Starlord - S Level: 24 Bonded Beast: Raiju - S] My eyes widened, but the employee gasped out loud. I looked at him curiously. ¡°I know what surprised me, but what¡¯s got you so out of sorts?¡± He bowed deeply once and cracked his head on the desk. Stumbling back, he pressed his hands to his forehead where a line of blood formed. ¡°My apologies, sir. Let me take you to the manager¡¯s office. She¡¯ll want to meet you.¡± I mentally slotted [Healing Light] and held up a hand to him. With a thought, I produced [Healing Light] and the cut on his forehead healed in moments. A second later he stood up quickly and looked at me in shock. ¡°Just a trick I picked up.¡± I grinned. ¡°You were going to lead me to the manager¡¯s office?¡± ¡°Of course, sir.¡± He started toward the stairs at a pretty good clip. ¡°After me.¡± Since he hadn¡¯t introduced himself by that point, I allowed myself to view his [Status] with [Essence Reading] as I followed him. From what I¡¯d been told, it was considered bad form to [Analyze] someone else unless you were fighting them, but since one of the upgrades for [Essence Reading] from [Analyze] was the ability to use it undetected, I took advantage. [Name: Gregory Foghorn You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Race: Human Class: Scribe - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 7 Emotional Status: Embarrassed/Scared] Huh, he¡¯s a [Scribe]. I wonder if he¡¯s unlocked his [Arcane] stat yet? Mom told me about a cousin she has with that Class, they make pretty decent mages once they get past the early levels. It has [Wits] and [Arcane] for base growth rates. Gregory led me up to a mahogany door on the second floor before knocking on it twice. We waited a few moments before someone inside replied. ¡°It¡¯s open!¡± With a grimace he did his best to hide, Gregory opened the door and led Raiju and I inside. Raiju¡¯d been right at my hip the whole time I¡¯d been inside. From how irritated she seemed, I didn¡¯t think she liked being inside too much. The walls of the manager¡¯s office were the same greyish blue as the rest of the upstairs, but there were bookshelves in all four corners to break it up. A huge dark wooden desk covered with piles of paperwork dominated the room. Behind said desk sat a slim woman with piercing pink eyes and narrow black horns. She wore a set of finely crafted black leather armor over her impressive curves, at least the bit of her I could see over the desk and papers. ¡°Ma¡¯am, this young man just registered as a Blue Steel Adventurer.¡± Gregory¡¯s voice shook and he hung his head. The manager¡¯s voice was sweet, like honey in summer iced tea. ¡°Greg, you don¡¯t have to call me ma¡¯am, I¡¯ve known you since you were five.¡± She smiled at him. ¡°Thank you for letting me know. I can take it from here, you¡¯re free to go back to the desk.¡± ¡°Thank you, Miss Whitney.¡± Gregory bowed low and backed out the door, not looking up to meet my eye as he closed the door behind him. ¡°Please, take a seat.¡± The manager waved to a pair of empty leather chairs in front of her desk. ¡°I¡¯d love to hear the story of how you came to our little burg.¡± Her eyes grew wide as I took one seat and Raiju took the other before curling up in it and setting her head on the arm to look at me. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Arthur Neilson and this is Raiju, my bonded companion. She¡¯s a unique evolved [Gale Wolf].¡± I saved her the question I knew she had brewing. ¡°Raiju,¡± she snorted before licking her chops. ¡°Can I have meat now? I¡¯m hungry.¡± The manager took a second before nodding. She reached into her desk and pulled out a three inch cube of some kind of jerky with a few flakes knocked off of it and held it up for Raiju. ¡°Does this work? I can have something fresh brought up from the bar if not.¡± Raiju sniffed the air before nodding her head. ¡°It smells interesting, it shall do. Throw it here.¡± Whitney nodded and tossed the brick of meat, which Raiju took to dismantling with her forepaws and teeth. ¡°Raiju is quite the companion, but she¡¯s not the reason you¡¯re Blue Steel, is she?¡± Whitney rested back in her high backed leather chair. From the looks of the leather, she did that a lot because where her horns rested was far more distressed than the rest of the chair. I shrugged. ¡°I have no idea what a ¡®Blue Steel¡¯ adventurer is. I obviously know what Steel refers to, but the Blue descriptor is new to me.¡± ¡°Well, you see¡­¡± She trailed off before standing and walking around her desk with her hand held out. I got down from the chair and was surprised to find we were almost the same height, minus her horns. ¡°I¡¯ve had you at a disadvantage, my name is Whitney Rosecorne. I¡¯m the branch manager of the Cliffhaven Adventurers Guild. Before settling down, I was a Steel Adventurer myself.¡± I shook her hand firmly. ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you, Miss Rosecorne.¡± She snorted. ¡°Whitney, please. I¡¯d be willing to bet I¡¯m not much older than you in the grand scheme of things.¡± She pushed some papers back and hopped up to sit on the desk. ¡°Alright, Whitney.¡± I smirked as I took my seat again, we were now at nearly the same height. ¡°I see what you did there.¡± She blushed nearly the same dark pink as the fur by her hooves. ¡°It¡¯s not often I don¡¯t have to sit in my big chair to talk to someone eye to eye. I figured I¡¯d take advantage of it.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t argue with that logic.¡± I winked. ¡°Care to explain the whole ¡®Blue¡¯ thing now?¡± ¡°Of course,¡± she fanned her face with her hand. ¡°There are three colors that can modify an adventurer¡¯s rank, red, green, and blue. Red means the person is an ex soldier of at least ten years, it¡¯s a badge of honor. Green is for those who are dedicated support adventurers, think healers or functionaries. Blue is reserved for one of two things, royalty or adventurer royalty.¡± ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m actually not sure which of those is more likely to apply.¡± I rubbed my chin, where I¡¯d never even seen a hair despite my dwarven heritage. ¡°My parents were adventurers, if that would help?¡± She nodded. ¡°I have access to the System database for the Adventurers Guild. If you can give me those names, I can look them up for you.¡± ¡°My father is Neil Ironwind of Clan Ironwind, his father was human, so they didn¡¯t have him take the traditional surname.¡± Whitney¡¯s face started to pale. ¡°My mother is Hildegard Sunbeam, daughter of Archibald Sunbeam, the Ray of the East.¡± Whitney looked like she got lightheaded and almost fell backward before I caught her extended hand. ¡°Are you OK?¡± She shook her head, nearly clipping me with her horns. ¡°I¡¯m fine. Do you really not know why you have that title?¡± She narrowed her eyes on me. ¡°No clue. Mom and Dad were pretty tight lipped about their adventures and I think they¡¯d have told me if I was royalty.¡± I laughed. She didn¡¯t. ¡°You¡¯re the son of Shrike and Conflux and you¡¯re unsure about¡­¡± She shook her head. ¡°Nevermind. If they didn¡¯t tell you, I shouldn¡¯t either. Suffice to say, they¡¯re adventurer royalty. Did they train you in their specialties?¡± ¡°They did. They also had their party members teach me theirs as well, just in case. I didn¡¯t do so well with Arlo¡¯s¡­¡± I trailed off when her jaw nearly hit the floor. ¡°The Reapers are still alive!?¡± ¡°Mom, Dad, Arlo, Megara.¡± I ticket them off on my fingers. ¡°Yeah, all of the party members they¡¯ve told me about are alive. I know their [Paladin] died before I was born and they might have had more, but I grew up with those four.¡± ¡°Where exactly did you grow up?¡± She stared at me. Damn, I was hoping she wouldn¡¯t ask. I got up from my seat and turned to bow to her. ¡°Whitney, it¡¯s been wonderful speaking with you, but I must bid you adieu.¡± Raiju burped as she finished her jerky cube before jumping over the top of the chair to join me by the door. She looked panicked. ¡°Why? What did I do?¡± ¡°You asked the one question I can¡¯t answer. I meant it when I said it¡¯d been a pleasure. I hope to speak to you again sometime, but for now I have to take my leave.¡± I spun on my heel and exited the room with Raiju at my hip. As I closed the door I heard her mumbling to herself. ¡°How did I not figure that out? Stupid cow!¡± The sound of her slapping her forehead matched the click of the door closing. Raiju and I padded down the stairs and I felt her solidify the air around us. ¡°Why did we have to leave? Why can¡¯t you tell them where you grew up?¡± I ruffled the fur on top of her head. ¡°It¡¯s one of the rules of the village I come from. You can¡¯t tell outsiders you live there or you can never return. I already can¡¯t go back for a year at a minimum, but that¡¯s nothing with my lifespan. A lifetime of not being able to go home would break me, I know it.¡± ¡°What about me?¡± I laughed. ¡°We¡¯re bonded, of course I can tell you about it. You¡¯re basically an honorary citizen. It¡¯d be the same if I got married. As long as the System acknowledges the ceremony with a Bond in our [Statuses] my wife and I would still be welcome.¡± She nodded sagely before letting the privacy barrier drop. Chapter 9 - Who Said You Could Touch That? That night Raiju and I stayed at the Adventurers Guild. The suite they provided me as a Steely was more than adequate for Raiju and I with a sitting room, bedroom, and bathroom. The following morning we went back downstairs past Whitney¡¯s office and grabbed breakfast from the bar. There was a ton of bacon, sausage, eggs, hash browns, and fresh fruit available, so I got each of us a plate with plenty of each. A few people stared at me as I ate with her, but I paid them no heed. The eggs were a bit stiff and flavorless, but everything else was great. Raiju especially liked the cantaloupe, so I made a note to pick some up for us to eat while traveling. They just wish they had a companion as magnificent as Raiju. Once we finished breakfast, it was time to explore the town before going to report that dirty gate guard, Jacobson. As I opened up the massive door I spotted a pair of guards chatting with spears planted next to them a dozen feet away. They weren¡¯t looking at the doors, so we snuck out as quick as we could and down an alley. Raiju closed the door with a gust of wind, which made the guards on duty jump, but when they saw no one leaving, they went back to their conversation. ¡°Lazy guards, Dad always said that was a bad sign for the local lord of a town or city.¡± I led us down the alley toward the center of town. Raiju was reveling in being outside again, floating a few feet above the ground and pouncing on nothing. ¡°Lazy watchers can lead to the whole pack dying in the night.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not wrong there.¡± I turned the corner to walk along the wall of the mansion compound and watched as a portly man in fine green and white silks went to slap a young serving girl who was clutching her ripped clothes to hide her modesty. They were only twenty feet from me and I didn¡¯t hesitate. Triggering [Haste], I sprang like a bolt from a crossbow and intercepted the man¡¯s hand with the hilt of a fighting knife. Raiju padded up behind him and growled as he stared at me, wide-eyed. ¡°Get away, peasant! I was in the middle of disciplining my maid.¡± His voice was a grating chirp pitched an octave too high and it grated on my nerves like nails on a chalkboard. Every sentence felt like it was punctuated by an invisible pinky raised in disdain. My right eye twitched as I turned back to look at the young woman again. Her outfit was destroyed, the whole front looked to have been ripped off at once with the way it was torn. That was bad enough, but when I saw the blood running down her legs into her white stockings, I saw red. With [Haste] still active, the foppish noble didn¡¯t see me coming. I sprang forward and used [Rapid Strikes] to hit his shoulders and knees with the hilt of my blade. He collapsed a second later and Raiju stood over him with her teeth bared and lightning dancing across them. ¡°Oh, I think I know what you were actually doing.¡± I blinked a few times and cleared my mind enough to check the bastard¡¯s [Status]. [Name: Baron Ambrose Darkspear Race: Human Class: Firebelly - Rare - Rank D Level: 11 Emotional Status: Angry/Aroused] He tried to move and Raiju closed her mouth enough to nick his neck with an electrified tooth. ¡°Ah, get this beast away from me. Guards, guards!¡± He screeched. With him well in hand, I turned back to check on the serving girl and found her in tears. With what I thought had happened to her, I didn¡¯t touch her. I kept my tone calm. ¡°Are you OK? Did he do that to you?¡± I didn¡¯t have to say what it was, she knew. Her eyes grew large and she started to shake her head before she started to sob. ¡°He did! He took my maidenhead when he found out I still had it. I kept saying no, but he was too strong for me.¡± My eyes flicked to where her [Status] should have been in my vision and was surprised to find it wasn¡¯t there. If she wasn¡¯t strong enough to fight off the Baron at level 11, how could she resist [Essence Reading]? My face drained of blood and my grip on my blade grew tighter. ¡°What¡¯s your name and how old are you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m Marley, sir, and I¡¯m fifteen next month.¡± She tried again to cover herself, but the rags she was wearing weren¡¯t up to the task. I pulled an old traveling cloak and handed it to her. ¡°Cover yourself up. I¡¯ll take care of the baron.¡± She shivered, but did as I said before huddling back against the wall of the compound. ¡°Guards, guards! This man assaulted me!¡± I stepped up and delivered a textbook snap kick directly in his family jewels. Dad would have been proud of that one. ¡°Who told you that it was OK to do that to young girls?¡± A second blade appeared in my off hand. He still didn¡¯t get it. He coughed weakly as he held his manhood. ¡°She¡¯s a serving girl with no prospects, after how bad her mother was in bed she should have thanked me for taking her¨C¡± His head rolled away as I flicked the blood from my blades. ¡°I hope you rot in Hell for what you¡¯ve done.¡± When the bloodrush wore off I heard the sound of at least a dozen guards approaching. I debated having Raiju grow to full size and riding off into the sky with her, but that would leave Marley with a dead noble and no explanation. I turned to Raiju. ¡°Fly away. As long as you stay within a mile of me, you¡¯ll be able to find me no matter where I am. If I¡¯m locked up for more than a week, break me out of wherever I am.¡± Raiju looked at me like I was stupid. ¡°There isn¡¯t anyone in this den who could stand up to you or me except for maybe Whitney, I can tell. Why should I leave? The two of us could take on this whole den of humans.¡± ¡°Please? I¡¯ll explain later.¡± I pleaded as I saw the foot of a guard poke out around the wall. She huffed as she launched herself into the air faster than I¡¯d ever seen her move except in her last dash during our chase. ¡°Fine, but you get one week. No more, Bondmate.¡± I heard drift in on the wind. I wiped my blades on the baron¡¯s clothes before banishing them to my storage ring. As I stood in front of Marley, I was surrounded by twenty or more guards, all with weapons drawn and leveled at me as they screamed. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°Get down!¡± ¡°You¡¯re under arrest!¡± ¡°Someone check the baron!¡± I held up my hands to show they were empty. ¡°The baron is dead, that¡¯s his head over in the gutter.¡± The guards were shocked into silence. ¡°Behind me is Marley, the girl he was in the middle of trying to beat when I arrived. It turns out he raped her this morning and thought he could get away with it.¡± Behind me, Marley started sobbing again. A guard with a slightly nicer uniform over their armor strode up from the back of the ring of guards. He pushed through with a hand on his rapier hilt. From the calluses on his hand, it was obvious he knew how to use it. ¡°Are we to expect you, a newcomer to Cliffhaven, to be equipped to determine if someone is guilty of a crime in our fair city?¡± Something about him struck me as off, so I checked his [Status]. Dad would approve. Mom? Not so much. [Name: Dalton Darkspear Race: Human Class: Duelist - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 10 Emotional Status: Excited/Irritated] He¡¯s related to that piece of shit baron? I guess that explains why he isn¡¯t angry, he stands to gain something if he¡¯s out of the picture. ¡°As an adventurer, it¡¯s my job to defend those in need, regardless of the local laws.¡± I kept my voice as calm as I could, but boiling rage filled my belly. ¡°That¡¯s the duty of all adventurers.¡± ¡°Hah!¡± Dalton scoffed. ¡°You are misinformed, only Steel adventurers have that right, not lowly¨C¡± ¡°Oh good, here you go.¡± My guild badge thudded into his chest hard enough to send him back a step. ¡°Everything is in order then.¡± ¡°You,¡± he looked down at my badge and his face went white, ¡°still have to see the City Lord about this.¡± His voice shook before something made him stop and a grin took over his visage. ¡°He¡¯ll want to know everything about what went on.¡± He looked to the guards surrounding me and Marley. ¡°Men, bring this man to the tower and put this girl in chains.¡± ¡°No!¡± My eyes bulged. ¡°What do you mean ¡®put her in chains¡¯? She¡¯s the victim, not the perpetrator!¡± ¡°That remains to be seen. We¡¯ll put her in jail for a few days until Lord Grenwall can find time to take a look at the case.¡± Dalton smirked. ¡°There weren¡¯t any reliable witnesses, so we don¡¯t know if this girl killed the baron and you¡¯re merely lying to protect her.¡± He looked to his subordinates with a sneer. ¡°I gave you your orders. Move out!¡± For a few seconds, I considered what would happen to me if I did my best Dad impression and ripped through the guards surrounding us and left town. It was only the thought of what Mom would say and the thought that Marley would still have to live in town that stopped me. ¡°I¡¯ll go with you to the tower, but Marley stays with me.¡± I growled. ¡°If not, you really can¡¯t stop me from leaving.¡± We locked eyes and, after a minute-long staring contest, Dalton averted his gaze. ¡°Lord Grenwall will hear of this impertinence!¡± He did his best to sound imposing, but we both knew he¡¯d lost and was just trying to save face. I turned and crouched down next to the tear-soaked maid with my hands held tight to my waist. ¡°Stay close behind me, OK? As long as you¡¯re with me they won¡¯t put you in chains.¡± She nodded vigorously and, when I stood up, I felt her grab my traveling cloak from behind. ¡°Just like that.¡± ¡°Are you done with your wh¡­¡± Dalton trailed off when he saw the red-hot glare I was giving him. He coughed into his hand. ¡°Anyway, men, march to the tower!¡± The morning walk through town would have been pleasant if it weren¡¯t for the guards surrounding me and my unexpected charge. I did my best to keep Marley calm, but she was in a state of shock and wasn¡¯t responding to anything I said. Her grip on my cloak never wavered, so at least I didn¡¯t have to worry about her wandering into the guards¡¯ clutches. As we approached the tower in the middle of town I was unimpressed. If they were going to build this thing in the center of every single city in Verdant, they could have at least picked something a bit more impressive. I mean, at least it¡¯s round instead of some of those square things I saw in the history books I studied as a kid. Damn square towers take one good boulder to the side and they¡¯re done, round towers are where it¡¯s at. Check out those arrow slits, that¡¯s what I¡¯m talking about, defense is king for a tower like this. Still boring overall though. I chuckled a bit to myself, earning me a weird look from a few of the guards, which I promptly ignored. Huh, maybe I got more than just my height from my dwarven blood. Somehow I can tell this tower was built for practicality above all else. The only ornamentation I can see is the Verdant crest. I don¡¯t think my dwarven ancestors would be impressed. The two guards standing outside the entrance to the tower wore plate mail, a step above the chainmail the rank and file were traipsing around in. Angled pauldrons stood out against the otherwise smooth armor, though they fit the halberds they wielded just fine. Halberds are great for fighting defensively and those pauldrons will let them deflect away anything that might get past their parries. If they have the right [Skills], they could actually be a problem for me with just my daggers. I¡¯ll have to keep my eyes on them. ¡°We need to see the lord, now!¡± Dalton barked at the door guards, who didn¡¯t move. He got more irritated. ¡°Do you know who I am?! I¡¯m the new Baron of the Darkspear house!¡± His voice went shrill. The guard on the left coughed to cover an obvious laugh, which only pissed the guard captain off even more. ¡°Open the doors! Now!¡± When they didn¡¯t move to do as he said, he reached forward with his hands with a screech. ¡°I said [Open] the doors!¡± The ten foot tall doors lurched open before swinging toward the pair of guards who¡¯d ignored Dalton. They each took a step forward to dodge the doors before leveling their halberds across the entrance. The rightmost door guard spoke in a heavy Iroan accent. ¡°The lord isn¡¯t seeing anyone today. Go away.¡± As I waited to see how Dalton would react, I saw a screen in the corner of my eye and smiled. Almost to 25%, I wonder what that¡¯ll do to it? Most [Skills] get more efficient, but [Skill Dominance] is kind of unique, so I don¡¯t know what it¡¯ll do. [Open Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 24%] Behind the door guards¡¯ crossed weapons, a short man stalked forward like a cat on the prowl. He put a hand on the shoulder of the door guard who spoke. ¡°Thank you Mario, you¡¯re a credit to your family. I¡¯ll see these people, I just finished breakfast.¡± The door guard, Mario it seemed, turned and bowed to him. ¡°Yes, milord. You¡¯re too kind.¡± With a glance, he and his compatriot, who still hadn¡¯t spoken, spun back into their earlier positions, though this time the doors were behind them. I couldn¡¯t resist, I had to know more about this lord. Maybe he¡¯s not a useless piece of shit like Dalton or the old Darkspear Baron. [Name: Lord Albert Varkoni of Cliffhaven Race: Human Class: Assassin - (Rare) - Rank C Level: 15 Emotional Status: Furious] Damn, he¡¯s good at hiding his emotions, I¡¯d never have known for looking at him. I just hope he takes it out on Dalton the waste of space and not me or Marley. He¡¯s also the highest leveled person I¡¯ve seen since leaving Wyrm¡¯s Rest. I was wondering what was going on with that, but I guess it¡¯s not easy to level up if you¡¯re not competing against someone or something much stronger than you. ¡°Darkspear, you and the accused come in.¡± Lord Albert waved to our group. ¡°The rest of you wait out here.¡± It looked like Dalton wanted to argue, but a glare from the lord is all it took to silence him. He turned back to his men. ¡°Return to your normal patrols. I¡¯ll handle this.¡± He puffed up his chest, earning him a few small cheers from his men before the lord¡¯s cough made the blood drain from his face. Meanwhile, I walked past Dalton with Marley in tow. I bowed at the waist to Lord Albert. ¡°Lord Varkoni, it¡¯s my pleasure to make your acquaintance. The woman behind me is Marley, she is¨C¡± The lord cut me off with a slash of his hand. ¡°Please do not speak any further of the case until we¡¯re in my audience chamber. I would hate to have that blowhard Dalton come out ahead because I couldn¡¯t verify the veracity of your statement.¡± I frowned, but complied. ¡°Understood.¡± What the hell does it matter where I tell him something? Is there some kind of magic at play in his audience chamber? Dalton stalked in and gave the lord a fancy bow, but his head never dropped below shoulder level in an incredibly disrespectful manner. ¡°Lord Varkoni.¡± His tone was icy. ¡°Captain Darkspear.¡± The lord gave as good as he got, if not better. ¡°Join me and¨C¡± he stopped and looked over at me. ¡°Mister?¡± I smiled. ¡°Neilson, Arthur Bajbub Neilson to be exact.¡± I bobbed my head to him. He nodded back before turning to Dalton once more. ¡°Join me, Miss Marley, and Mr. Neilson in my audience chamber.¡± When it looked like Dalton wanted to argue he leaned on his significant [Charm] stat. ¡°I insist.¡± This... might go better for me than I expected. Chapter 10 - What if I Don’t Want to Go to the Capital? The interior of the tower didn¡¯t do much to make me appreciate it. The main doors led into an atrium with two paths leading off to the right and left and a set of closed double doors straight ahead. Lord Varkoni stalked past Dalton and through the double doors, slamming them open hard enough to shake the stone they were attached to. Yup, he¡¯s pissed. I followed the lord into his audience chamber and was, again, unimpressed. The room was thirty feet long, with only a pair of pilasters to bear the load of the rest of the tower upon it. The decorations bordered on Iroan, with only crests for Verdant and Cliffhaven visible behind the lord¡¯s chair that wasn¡¯t quite a throne. The lord strode through the room toward his seat of power with a pace that ate up distance faster than it should have given his short stature. [Silent Step Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 24%] That could be useful. I mean, I bet Dad has it, but I can¡¯t even go see him for a year, so this works. I wonder why Skill Dominance is stuck at 24%. Until it hit that point, it was going up every time I acquired a new [Skill] from it. There must be some kind of plateau I¡¯m missing. I¡¯ll have to think about it later, it looks like Lord Albert is going to speak. The lord steepled his hands as he rested his elbows on the arms of his chair. ¡°Dalton, what crime does Mister Neilson stand accused of?¡± He sighed and looked over at me. ¡°Anything said in this room is recorded in the royal archive as well as the report I submit each month to our king.¡± The braggadocio gave his cape a half-hearted flip as he approached Lord Albert. He flourished his arm to the side as he began. ¡°Lord Varkoni, Mister Neilson stands accused of murdering my beloved uncle, Baron Ambrose Darkspear in cold blood.¡± He fluttered his hand against his chest and I nearly dry-heaved, but I fought it down. ¡°This monster severed his noble head from his body and left it lying in the street like a common street rat.¡± He leaned into the pageantry some more as he wiped phantom tears from his cheek. ¡°I demand restitution and that he be sentenced to death!¡± ¡°You demand nothing in my chambers!¡± Lord Albert roared hard enough to send spittle flying into Dalton¡¯s face. ¡°Kneel, you knave. You¡¯re in the presence of your betters.¡± Darkspear¡¯s face went bright red as he wiped his face with a handkerchief. ¡°Understood¡­ milord.¡± His voice shook as he dropped to one knee and bowed his head. ¡°Sorry for my captain¡¯s poor behavior, I¡¯m working on it, but it¡¯s a long road.¡± Lord Albert didn¡¯t smile, but his eyes sparkled as he addressed me. ¡°Would you care to tell your side of the story?¡± I bowed at the waist, but didn¡¯t drop to a knee. ¡°It would be my pleasure, sir. You see¡­¡± I went on to describe exactly what had happened, only leaving out Raiju¡¯s presence and subsequent departure from the scene. When I mentioned tossing my adventurer badge to the captain, Lord Albert¡¯s eyes finally did sparkle. He held out a hand and beckoned to Dalton. ¡°Give me his plate, I know you still have it.¡± ¡°This plate is evidence¨C¡± He tried to weasel out of it, but Lord Albert didn¡¯t brook with that. ¡°Now.¡± His voice reverberated throughout the room and my earlier suspicions were confirmed. His chair is tied to the tower as a whole. I¡¯m pretty sure it¡¯s amping up his [Wits] and [Charm] at the very least, if not [Perception]. I¡¯d guess it adds at least fifty points, each, if not more. If that were on a piece of gear? It¡¯d be worth more than this whole damn city. As is, it gives him an advantage against those who are stronger than him. Interesting. Dalton¡¯s hand shook as he pulled my adventurer plate from his belt pouch. As soon as it was visible, Lord Albert summoned it through the air with a gesture and he waved for me to continue as he looked it over. In the corner of my eye, I saw another screen and I had to suppress a grin. [Minor Magnesis Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 24%] Not bad. I bet I can find a good use for that one! Over the next few minutes, I finished regaling the lord of what had happened and why I did what I did. In the end, he sighed as he looked me over. ¡°Would you like the good news or the bad news, young man?¡± His voice was heavy. Dalton, on the other hand, seemed giddy. ¡°Yes, deliver his just rewards!¡± His mirth was cut off by a glare from the lord again, those two obviously didn¡¯t get along very well and hadn¡¯t for a long time. ¡°I¡¯ve always been a ¡®bad news first¡¯ kind of guy, sir.¡± I gave him a worried smile. ¡°I hate having the rug pulled out from under me when I¡¯m in a good place.¡± The corner of his mouth raised, but it didn¡¯t manifest into a smile. ¡°I can¡¯t pardon you for what you did,¡± Dalton cheered, ¡°despite you being in the moral right and well within the rights of your Steel status as an adventurer.¡± He glared over at the cheering form of Dalton. ¡°Have some class, you swine. We¡¯ll be having a long conversation after this about how you acquitted yourself today.¡± ¡°Where does that leave me?¡± I glanced back at the terrified form of Marley and had to suppress the urge to get closer to protect her. ¡°Where does that leave Marley?¡± ¡°Therein lies part one of the good news. I have no doubt Marley did exactly as she was ordered, despite the heinous nature of those orders.¡± His voice took on a more fatherly tone. ¡°Marley, would you like to work in my tower? I swear upon the System that I¡¯ll never give you an order to do, or let me or my staff do, anything like what happened to you again.¡± Golden light formed above his head to signify the System heard his oath. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. She shivered in place and a bit of blood dripped from her thigh down to the ground. ¡°I-I-I¡­ I would be honored, milord.¡± She stammered before catching herself. ¡°Can I start today? I don¡¯t have anywhere to sleep tonight otherwise.¡± No tears fell, she was tougher than that. ¡°I¡¯d also ask if my mother could also work for you? She¡¯s been a chambermaid,¡± everyone in the room knew what she meant by that, ¡°for Baron Darkspear for more than twenty years. She deserves a better life than that.¡± Hold on a moment, if Marley is seventeen and her mother was Baron Darkspear¡¯s chambermaid for over twenty years¡­ She never mentioned a father, did she? Ugh, I bet that cretin didn¡¯t think of who she was, did he? Or did he just not care!? I¡¯m even more glad I killed him now and I was almost sure that was impossible. The lord tapped a finger to his chin. ¡°Twenty years of back breaking work is more than enough. I¡¯ll gladly offer her a position here if she¡¯ll take it. I¡¯ll extend the same oath to her before the System that I offered you.¡± The flash of golden light sealed the deal and Marley bowed her head. ¡°May I please take a few guards to collect my possessions and my mother from the Darkspear compound?¡± ¡°Absolutely. Tell the guards at the door where you¡¯re going and they¡¯ll find people to take you. Don¡¯t leave without an escort please.¡± He glared at the white faced Dalton. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want you to have an unfortunate accident before you made it back here.¡± ¡°Yes, milord.¡± She curtseyed and turned to walk away before I caught her eye. I raised my hands glowing with [Healing Light]. ¡°Mind if I heal you before you go? Sorry I didn¡¯t do it earlier, but I wanted to make sure the former baron¡¯s crime was as obvious as possible.¡± She merely nodded and turned her head away as I healed her. It only took thirty seconds or so before I felt the draw on my Mana fade. ¡°You¡¯re as healthy as I can make you.¡± I smiled. ¡°I hope you live a happier life after all this, you deserve it.¡± ¡°Thank you. I can¡¯t¨C¡± She started to say more, but I cut her off. ¡°Like I said. Be happy. That¡¯s more than enough payment for me.¡± I flashed her a big grin and she blushed as she turned to fast-walk away. ¡°Captain Darkspear, were you aware of your uncle¡¯s tendencies or proclivities with his servants?¡± The lord¡¯s voice was filled with unspoken fire. ¡°As my guard captain, I¡¯d be surprised if you hadn¡¯t if it¡¯s been going on so long.¡± The captain¡¯s face was as white as a sheet. ¡°Milord, I never saw¨C¡± A purple blade of energy sank into the ground in front of him and I could¡¯ve sworn I smelled urine for a second before something in his armor¡¯s groin region glowed and it went away. [Psyknife Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 24%] Psychic daggers? Neat. Until I get a bow [Skill] I might as well slot that in. I¡¯ll wait until I get into a fight though, no use doing it early. ¡°I didn¡¯t ask if you saw it happen, I asked if you knew about it.¡± Lord Albert held a purple blade of energy in his left hand. ¡°Speak carefully. Your life depends on it.¡± Dalton threw himself down on his hands and knees as he pressed his forehead to the stone floor. ¡°I did, milord! Everyone living in the compound knew about it, but none of us were strong enough to stand up to him.¡± His voice broke in what I was sure was an attempt to garner sympathy. ¡°A few people tried to come here and tell you, but they all ended up dead before they could make it. I didn¡¯t want to¨C¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t want your uncle to remove you as his heir.¡± The lord let his psychic knife fade away. ¡°I have good news, that¡¯s not a problem anymore. As of now, I strip you of your noble status.¡± He roared. ¡°Guards! Take this man to the dungeons.¡± Dalton wailed for a few moments before four plate armored men walked in and dragged him away, kicking and screaming. He moved to reach for his rapier and a psychic blade from the lord stopped his hand in place, though it didn¡¯t break skin. OK, that¡¯s really neat. I can¡¯t wait to see what else it can do! Once we were alone in the room, the lord sagged in his seat. ¡°Good riddance, the Darkspears have been a thorn in my side for over fifty years. Maybe now we can actually grow as a city instead of mysteriously always staying the same.¡± He chuckled before glancing up at me. ¡°I take it you figured out who Marley really was, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Not until she mentioned how long her mother had worked for the family, I only knew she worked there before.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Are you going to have her tested to see if we¡¯re right?¡± ¡°Once she returns, I¡¯ll have Healer Melody check her out, cleaning up the mess the Baron left behind, as it were.¡± He gagged a bit. ¡°Melody will do a blood draw at the same time and we can use it to check. She has the nose and eyes of a Darkspear though, so it likely isn¡¯t needed.¡± ¡°I trust you¡¯ll support her until she can stand on her own two feet?¡± My voice brooked no argument. ¡°Even here, on this chair, I can feel your [Charm] stat. I guess that¡¯s the power of an S-Ranked Class.¡± He laughed. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll support her claim to the family. Hopefully she can right that ship, it¡¯s been rotting for years.¡± ¡°A bit of time in dry-dock is in order, good thinking.¡± I frowned. ¡°What was the other bit of good news?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a mixed bag, if I¡¯m being honest. You¡¯re not guilty, but I can¡¯t pardon you. Since it was a noble, even a piece of shit incestuous baron, only the king can set you loose.¡± He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to send you to the capital under armed guard before end of day.¡± I reeled at the thought. Damnit, I don¡¯t want to go to the capital. My ¡®sister¡¯ is there and I¡¯d like to keep some space between us. ¡°Are you sure?¡± I half-pleaded. ¡°Sorry, but I am.¡± He walked over and extended a hand to me. ¡°King Evergreen is a good sort. I¡¯ll make sure my weekly report includes my personal notes as well as this transcript. Once you make it to the capital, you¡¯ll be out in a few days. Tops.¡± I groaned and shook his hand. ¡°How long is the trip? A few days?¡± He burst out laughing. ¡°Days? We¡¯re at the northern edge of Verdant. It¡¯ll be at least two months by carriage to make it to Grenwood.¡± No way am I traveling in chains for two months. Not gonna happen. ¡°Counterpoint. What if I can get there in just a day or two on my own or with one of your most trusted aides?¡± ¡°I mean, I guess that could work, assuming you would swear a System oath to do so.¡± He was obviously confused. ¡°Do you know how far we are from the capital? It¡¯s at least a thousand miles!¡± I did some mental math before holding up a finger. ¡°I know I could do it in a week, but four days is a more realistic number.¡± Lord Albert looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll get my personal bodyguard to go with you. He has a [Skill] that will let him return to me as long as we haven¡¯t been separated for more than a month.¡± ¡°[Guardian¡¯s Bond]? Nice.¡± I knew Arlo had that [Skill], though he never told me who he had bound to it, I always assumed it was his wife or Mom. He shook his head. ¡°Blue Steel at its finest. You¡¯re right there. He¡¯s a [Knightguard] and also my twin brother.¡± I clapped him on the shoulder. ¡°I look forward to meeting him. No use burning daylight, I should get on the road as soon as possible.¡± I hope Raiju isn¡¯t too mad. I¡¯m going to be relying on her to get to the capital in time. I should get some more beef for her as an apology, she really liked the last stew I made. Chapter 11 - It’s Just Stew ¡°Did your brother tell you I had a bonded companion?¡± I looked over at my towering jet-black plate mail wearing minder. His voice was like grating glass. ¡°Yes.¡± I shivered involuntarily. ¡°Gotcha, let me call her.¡± I mentally pulled up my [Status] and tapped on Raiju¡¯s name. ¡°She should be on the way, we can start walking now. She¡¯ll catch up in a minute.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± He started walking and I had to jog to keep up. ¡°You¡¯re a man of few words. I had a mentor like that growing up. The strong silent type.¡± A grunt was his only response. Ugh, it¡¯s like trying to get water from a damn stone. If Albert hadn¡¯t introduced this guy as his twin, there¡¯s no way I¡¯d believe it. The only things they have in common are their breadth and their last name as far as I can tell. We walked like that for a few minutes until I felt Raiju come into range. She raced through the sky toward us at her full size with her tail wagging like mad. ¡°Artie!¡± She crashed into me and we bowled over in a fit of giggles. I ruffled the fur around her ears. ¡°Raiju, I missed you too.¡± Despite how little time we¡¯d known each other, forced separation from my bonded companion wasn¡¯t something I ever thought I¡¯d get used to. She looked over at my newfound traveling companion and let out a deep throated growl. ¡°Who is this?¡± Disentangling myself from her large furry form, I sprang to my feet. ¡°Raiju, this is Khor Valkoni, the brother of Cliffhaven¡¯s lord.¡± I did a flourishing bow as I gestured to my lupine companion. ¡°Khor, this is Raiju, my most precious bonded companion.¡± Her ears fluttered at my words and she used a paw to rub at one of them in embarrassment. Khor nodded. ¡°Good companion. Strong.¡± His armor never seemed to clank, regardless of what he did. I chalked it up to traveling with his brother the [Assassin] in his youth. Raiju¡¯s tongue lolled out. ¡°So, where are we going?¡± ¡°The capital and we need to get there in less than a week.¡± I ruffled her fur. ¡°Ready to run?¡± ¡°I do love to run.¡± She got up and started to shrink before I raised a hand to stop her. I ran my other hand through my hair. ¡°Would it be OK for me to ride on your back?¡± I hurried to finish before she could respond. ¡°If so, Khor would be able to ride on my [Cloud Carpet] with a rope tied between us.¡± ¡°OK.¡± She bumped her massive head against my chest. ¡°I won¡¯t allow anyone else to ride on my back, but you can do it whenever you want.¡± ¡°That went¡­ much better than I expected, if I¡¯m being honest. I was worried you wouldn¡¯t agree to it.¡± She cocked her head. ¡°Why not? I love running and you¡¯re my bonded one.¡± ¡°You know what? You¡¯re right.¡± I gave her a hug before grabbing hold of her fur and pulling myself up to her back. She shifted me around a bit until she nodded happily. ¡°As long as you don¡¯t move around too much, we should be good now.¡± ¡°Excellent,¡± I pulled my [Cloud Carpet] from my spatial ring and unfurled it. ¡°Khor, hop on and I¡¯ll get a rope¡­¡± Khor finished unspooling a black length of rope from a pouch at his waist before tossing me one end of it. Without a word he hopped on the floating carpet like he¡¯d done it a thousand times before. After tying the rope around my waist, I leaned down and whispered in Raiju¡¯s ear. ¡°Let¡¯s run.¡± She sprang into the air like a falcon in a dive, but in reverse. The pair of us let out whoops of excitement as we climbed ever higher. Around a mile up, we leveled off and I looked back to check on Khor. He sat on the forward edge of the carpet with his hands out behind him for balance. Damn, he¡¯s cold. Anyone else would either be excited or freaked out, but he¡¯s cool as a cucumber. ¡°Raiju, speed up, little by little, until I tell you to stop. OK?¡± I scratched around the base of her ear. ¡°We need to see how much Khor and the carpet can handle.¡± With a happy growl, she started accelerating. Faster and faster she ran and I saw Khor¡¯s demeanor start to shift. He leaned into the wind and I saw a glint in his eye through the eyeslit in his helmet. There we go, now we¡¯re having a good time! ¡°Faster, Raiju. We can take it.¡± ¡°You asked for it!¡± She howled. The next half hour was absolutely fantastic. We figured out that Khor was going to be able to take whatever speed Raiju could go, but the [Cloud Carpet] was another story. It started to get a bit squirrely around 150 mph, at least according to the System. I had her dial it back to 130, just to be safe, and we continued from there. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. After four hours at that speed, Raiju got a bit tired, so we landed on a hillock along the path for some dinner. I threw together a quick stew and set the pot to cook as Raiju napped. Khor, on the other hand, was a completely new man. He took off his full faced helm and set it aside to reveal a face nearly identical to his brother. It was like a weathered map, sun-baked creases crinkled around warm brown eyes that still held a mischievous glint. Laughter lines bracketed his mouth, hinting at a life filled with both hardship and hearty enjoyment. He took a long pull from a wineskin at his side before holding it out to me. I took it with a nod of thanks and was surprised to find it wasn¡¯t full of wine at all, but instead honeyed tea. I pulled out a mug and filled it before handing back the skin. ¡°This has been a good day.¡± His deep voice still had a hint of rasp to it, but it was a far cry from the previous glass on glass it had. ¡°Thank you for getting me out of Cliffhaven, at least for a few days.¡± I leaned back against Raiju with a sigh. ¡°Not a fan of Cliffhaven? I can see why that might be.¡± ¡°Not a fan of staying anywhere too long.¡± He took off his gauntlets and set them aside as he lounged back. ¡°Been stuck in Cliffhaven going on twenty years now.¡± ¡°How did¨C¡± Raiju¡¯s snore drowned out the rest of my response. I turned back to look at her with a smirk before continuing, ¡°How did that happen?¡± ¡°If you¡¯d believe it, dumb luck.¡± He sipped from his tea skin. ¡°My brother and I were in a dungeon to the east of Grenwood. We¡¯d cleared it a few times before, but this time it was about to burst, so it was different. We entered the room the boss was usually in and found a young man in ornamental armor fighting for his life with dead bodies all around him.¡± He smiled as he shook his head. ¡°Even with how awful the past twenty years have been, I¡¯d still save him. My brother and I made quick work of the [Goblin Warchief] and his adds before addressing the young man.¡± He snorted. ¡°It turns out he was Prince Gregor Evergreen, the System damned crown prince of Verdant. We saved his life and in return, his father, the king, made my brother the lord of Cliffhaven. There¡¯s nothing high leveled enough nearby for us to level up, so I¡¯ve been stuck at level fifteen for ten fucking years.¡± He rubbed his face. ¡°No good deed goes unpunished.¡± ¡°Why not just leave? You¡¯re obviously miserable.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a [Knightguard]. All my [Skills] are keyed to my brother, without him around I¡¯m borderline useless.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you just get some new [Skills] or re-tool the ones you have?¡± He burst out laughing. ¡°What am I, made of gold?!¡± Tears streamed down his face as he rested his hands on his knees. When I didn¡¯t respond, he looked up at me with a curious expression. ¡°Do you know how much it would cost to kit myself out in new [Skills] let alone trying to find someone or something who could change the target of my current [Skills]?¡± ¡°I have to be honest, I don¡¯t.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I¡¯m new to the whole adventuring life.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case, let me ask you, do you know the average pay for an Iron Quest at the Adventurers Guild?¡± He wiped tears from his eyes. I looked away. ¡°I didn¡¯t get a chance to check before everything happened this morning.¡± ¡°Guess.¡± ¡°Fifty gold?¡± ¡°How about ten silver, if you¡¯re lucky.¡± He deadpanned. ¡°If it¡¯s a monster elimination mission, you might get up to twenty, plus whatever you can harvest from the monsters.¡± ¡°How does that relate to what we were talking about?¡± He was really starting to annoy me with all his impertinent questions. ¡°A single [Skill Scroll] of even the most basic combat related [Skill], like [Power Slash] costs five hundred gold.¡± ¡°Really?¡± My jaw hung open. ¡°That seems excessive.¡± Khor nodded. ¡°Honestly, you¡¯re probably right, but that¡¯s how it is. Making a [Skill Scroll] requires fifty percent mastery and a bunch of time to learn how to do it. It¡¯s how the few old adventurers who survive make their money.¡± I knew what he meant with that. Mom and Dad told me about how many of their friends and other people they knew back in their early days of adventuring had died young. Adventuring was a dangerous job, but if you lived long enough, it was definitely worth the effort. ¡°I¡¯ve got a decent stockpile from working the last twenty years with no need to upgrade my gear, but it only adds up to enough to buy three or four [Skills] I would actually use. That¡¯s not even talking about if I¡¯d be able to get someone to re-tool my older, Class-exclusive [Skills] I¡¯ve spent over thirty years honing.¡± When I have a higher mastery level over [Skill Dominance] I¡¯m willing to bet I¡¯ll be able to do what he¡¯s talking about, but I¡¯m not there yet. I¡¯ll have to remember to spin by Cliffhaven to assist if I get to that point before my visit home next year. No one deserves to be as unhappy as Khor obviously is. I reached over to check the stew and found it was ready. As I ladled out bowls of stew, I gently prodded Raiju. ¡°Food¡¯s ready.¡± ¡°Greeeeeaaatttt.¡± She yawned before shrinking down to her usual large dog size. When I blinked at her in confusion, she yipped happily. ¡°Makes the tasty food last longer.¡± ¡°Ah, that makes sense.¡± I put a large bowl down in front of her before handing a similar portion to Khor. ¡°Enjoy.¡± He took one bite before blinking rapidly. ¡°Damn, this is better than I expected. I think it¡¯s better than most meals I had in the capital. What¡¯s it seasoned with?¡± ¡°Salt, pepper, garlic, ginger¡­¡± I ticked them off on my fingers before snapping, ¡°Oh, and some [Moonsilver Powder].¡± Khor almost spit out his food before slapping his chest and swallowing. ¡°You cook stew with [Moonsilver Powder]? How rich are you?¡± He stared at me before looking longingly at his bowl of food. ¡°It¡¯s something from my dad¡¯s family, a gift for my System day that showed up a few weeks early.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Dad said it really punched up his stews when he and Mom were traveling, so I figured I¡¯d do the same.¡± He waved his spoon at me. ¡°You know what? I don¡¯t want to know anymore. Thanks for the meal.¡± He dug into it with gusto. ¡°Maybe it¡¯ll give me a point or two in [Might] if I¡¯m lucky.¡± He mumbled. ¡°Is that why they gave it to me?¡± I dragged my spoon through the stew and took a huge bite. ¡°That actually makes a lot more sense, if I¡¯m being honest. I just thought it was a spice from Ironhold they wanted me to try.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not even surprised at this point.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Don¡¯t show it off to just anyone, [Moonsilver Powder] goes for hundreds of gold an ounce. It¡¯s one of the more effective ways to grow your [Might] stat outside of leveling up, and it doesn¡¯t require anything but eating. It¡¯s more effective the lower your [Might] is to begin with, but it can be effective all the way up into the low two hundreds.¡± A window appeared in the corner of my vision as I finished my bowl of stew. [Might Increased: 13¡ú17] Damn, the Ironwind Clan didn¡¯t fuck around with their gift, did they? I¡¯ll need to visit them and say thank you sometime this year. From behind me I heard a loud slurp and then a burp. Moments later Raiju padded over with her bowl in her teeth before setting it in front of me with big eyes. ¡°Seconds?¡± Chapter 12 - Bigots Everywhere Looking down on Grenwall, I finally understood why my Dad called Verdant a backwater nation. ¡°This is it?¡± I turned to my side to look at Kohr. ¡°You¡¯re sure this is Grenwall?¡± ¡°Last time I checked? Yeah, this is Grenwall.¡± The [Knightguard] sounded annoyed. ¡°You don¡¯t seem impressed by the biggest city in Verdant.¡± ¡°It¡¯s¡­¡± I waved my hand exasperatedly. ¡°Underwhelming.¡± ¡°Compared to what?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been to Sunhome a few times and it¡¯s always taken my breath away. This,¡± I waved at the city once more, ¡°isn¡¯t even close.¡± ¡°Sunhome is the largest city in the world. Tens of millions of people live there, including almost the entirety of the Golden Elven population.¡± Kohr groaned. ¡°Of course this is going to be disappointing compared to that. There aren¡¯t even ten million people in Verdant as a whole. Probably less than two million live in Grenwall.¡± I started walking down the hill with Raiju in her smallest form padding behind me. ¡°I stand by my statement. Grenwall is underwhelming.¡± Kohr started behind me with a snort. The city before us was far larger than Cliffhaven, easily ten times the size if my math was right. However, the wall wasn¡¯t even green! Instead it was an ugly reddish brown that reminded me a bit of terracotta. In the center of the city stood the palace, its gleaming white walls stood out against the dark stone used for most of the other buildings in town. The gate nearest to us had a line of people and carts snaking out from it at least half a mile. Up ahead, I could see a smaller man-door guarded by someone wearing dark leathers rather than the chainmail typical of most Verdant guards I¡¯d met so far. Kohr directed us to the leather clad guard and snapped a salute. ¡°Kohr Varkoni of Cliffhaven.¡± The guard waved for him to continue. ¡°I¡¯m here to escort a VIP prisoner to the king for sentencing.¡± ¡°Papers?¡± The guard seemed unimpressed by Kohr¡¯s assertion I was a VIP as he looked down his aquiline nose at me. Kohr produced a small scroll from his spatial pouch and handed it to the guard. He looked at it for a few moments before his eyebrows rose. He looked at me for almost a minute before looking back at Kohr. ¡°Really?¡± He sounded incredulous. ¡°Him?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know the half of it.¡± Kohr shook his head. ¡°Are we good to go in?¡± The guard took one last glance at me before handing the scroll back to Kohr. ¡°You are. Until you pass him off to the Kingsguard, he¡¯s your responsibility, him and his bonded beast. Don¡¯t¨C¡± ¡°Bonded companion.¡± I leaned into the last word with some venom in my voice. ¡°Raiju is no mere beast.¡± Catching on to my irritation, Raiju started growling. ¡°Listen kid¨C¡± The guard began before Kohr cut him off. ¡°Trust me, you really don¡¯t want to mess with Arthur or Raiju.¡± He shuddered as he remembered our sparring matches from the morning. ¡°They¡¯re literally on another level from guys like us.¡± ¡°Whatever,¡± the guard waved the comment aside, ¡°just don¡¯t let them trash anything before they¡¯re someone else¡¯s problem. Dig?¡± ¡°You¨C¡± I almost demanded he apologize to Raiju before I noticed Kohr shaking his head. I sighed. ¡°It was a pleasure meeting you,¡± I let my eyes focus on his [Status], ¡°Guard Longshadow.¡± I finished with a flourish in Dark Elven. ¡°May the light not blind you to the truth.¡± [Name: Delvin Longshadow Race: Human - 75%, Dark Elf - 25% Class: Darkstalker - Rare - Rank C Level: 14 Emotional Status: Irritated/Guarded] He started at hearing Dark Elven, obviously not expecting it from a Golden Elf, as the races weren¡¯t known for getting along. He shook his head and replied in kind, with far more respect than he¡¯d shown before. ¡°May the shadows guide you on the path. You and your magnificent companion, Raiju.¡± He tilted his head and opened the door to let us through. As we walked down the narrow street away from the door Kohr couldn¡¯t contain his curiosity. ¡°What was that at the end there?¡± ¡°Just a traditional Dark Elven saying.¡± I smiled as we turned down the main road toward the castle. ¡°Once he realized I wasn¡¯t one of the stuck up Golden Elves from Sunhome he was much more respectful.¡± ¡°Huh, I wondered why he was so dismissive of you, given your level and adventurer rank.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Racial profiling, I¡¯ll have to report it when we get to the palace.¡± I slowed down to check out a street vendor selling candy before shaking my head and continuing on. ¡°He seemed to be a good sort, he¡¯s just used to being judged for his heritage.¡± I ran a hand up and down my petite form. ¡°I¡¯m not one to throw stones about that kind of stuff.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re sure, I won¡¯t say anything.¡± I flipped my platinum hair back before smoothing it out again. ¡°I am.¡± ¡°Good enough for me.¡± *** Kohr and I clasped forearms as the Kingsguard assigned to watch me stood nearby. ¡°Thanks for getting me here safely.¡± The [Knightguard] shook his head. ¡°I should thank you, my [Might] went up two points after what we went through.¡± He alluded to dinner the night before. ¡°Stop by in Cliffhaven if you ever find yourself out our way again.¡± His shoulders slumped almost imperceptibly, but I caught it. ¡°I definitely will.¡± My eyes glinted. ¡°I¡¯ll be on the lookout for anything that might be able to help with your¡­ other issue.¡± A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. He took a step back and bowed respectfully. ¡°That¡¯d be mighty fine. Thanks, Arthur. You¡¯re a good sort. I wish you the best of luck with the king.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll meet again, Kohr.¡± I flashed him a huge grin. ¡°I sure hope so.¡± He shook his head before reaching up and touching over his heart. ¡°[Guardian¡¯s Bond].¡± With a flash of light the dark armored [Knightguard] disappeared. It was sad to see him go back to his dreary life in Cliffhaven, but I was excited to see the window his leaving had produced for me. [Guardian¡¯s Bond Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 24%] [Skill Advancement Task Available] I was wondering if there was something I was missing. Let¡¯s take a look at that. Before I could open up the waiting prompt, my new minder stepped up and grabbed for my wrist. I dodged him without thinking and glared at him. With my other hand I patted Raiju to get her to lower her hackles. ¡°I may technically be here as a prisoner, but let¡¯s please be civilized.¡± My minder practically growled. ¡°If you so much as sniff the wrong thing, I¡¯ll take your head. I don¡¯t care how much health you have, you¡¯ll die without it, you sunbaked bastard.¡± ¡°Lead the way my ill mannered sir.¡± I shrugged off his Golden Elf hate speech like a duck shrugs off rain. Mom and Dad told me all the things people might call me on my journey, so it wasn¡¯t really a surprise. As a mixed race adventurer, they knew I¡¯d run into racist assholes all over, so they prepared me for the worst they might go for. This bigot¡¯s choice wasn¡¯t in the top twenty my parents had come up with to try and upset me. He sneered before spinning on his heel and marching to the door. ¡°Keep up, or I¡¯ll kill you.¡± He took off at a good clip and I had to jog to keep up, despite my [Agility]. My stubby legs just didn¡¯t lend me a fast walking pace, though they didn¡¯t hurt my running speed or mobility on the battlefield too badly. As I jogged, I mentally tapped on the waiting window in the corner of my vision. [Skill Advancement Task - Skill Dominance Acquire five new Skills in the next hour. 0/5 Acquired] How the hell am I going to do that?! Raiju nudged my leg to the left to shake me out of the pissed off haze I was in just before I was about to crash into a table at the end of the hallway where it broke into a T-intersection. I continued that way and found the bigoted guard a few paces in front of me. Yeah, I¡¯m done thinking of him like that. What¡¯s his real name? [Name: Chad Whiteplume (Matthias Redmourn) Race: Human Class: Guard(Spy) - Common(Rare) - Rank C(B) Level: 16(21) Emotional Status: Furious/Zealous] Ho ho ho, what do we have here? A [Spy] in the palace? I guess that¡¯s kind of to be expected, now that I think about it. He must be using [Status Shield], but my [Essence Reading] is an evolved [Skill], so it broke through and showed me both bits of information. For him to be acting as a [Guard], whoever sent him invested a lot if Kohr is to be believed on how expensive [Skill Scrolls] are. I wonder who it might be? His last name isn¡¯t really helping me figure it out. Chad/Matthias sped up, trying to leave me behind and I grinned when a window appeared from [Skill Dominance]. [Cat¡¯s Prowl Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] One down, four to go. He led the way down a few hallways that I somehow knew were generally leading us north toward the center of the palace. He tried to lose me, all but breaking into a run, but I kept up with ease now that I knew his game. He would use [Cat¡¯s Prowl] to disguise his footsteps, sending phantom echoes down the wrong direction when he¡¯d go through a nexus of hallways. A couple of times, I almost went the wrong way, but Raiju kept me going the right way. I owe her a nice dinner after all of this stuff is done. This asshole is getting on my nerves though, so it might be a while. After almost twenty minutes of wandering the halls of the palace, Chad/Matthias stopped before an enormous set of crimson wooden doors. He reached up and lifted the oak leaf shaped knocker while I appreciated the doors. Bloodwood doors? Good choice, that¡¯s what our front door back home is made from. It¡¯ll heal if you splash some blood on it. Very practical for a door that might be besieged at some point. The doors opened and a mousy haired young man poked his head out. ¡°Can I help you Guard Whiteplume? The king is very busy today.¡± ¡°I have a prisoner for sentencing from Cliffhaven.¡± He reached back to snatch my wrist, but I easily flowed around his rough grasp. He snarled as he hooked a thumb over his shoulder. ¡°The waste of space is here along with his mutt. If the king is busy, I¡¯d be more than happy¨C¡± The mousy headed courtier pushed the door open and ushered the pair of us in before holding up a hand to stop the spy from entering. ¡°Return to your post. I¡¯ll take responsibility for him until the king can see to his sentencing.¡± ¡°I need to¨C¡± ¡°You need to get back to work.¡± The courtier stood up to his full six foot height and stared Chad/Matthias down. ¡°Now.¡± Chad/Matthias fought back a growl before saluting. ¡°Understood, Lord Marconi.¡± He spun on his heel and did his best not to look back at me, but I caught him and waved happily. ¡°Have a great day Chad!¡± As Lord Marconi shut the massive doors, I heard Chad/Matthias muttering under his breath. ¡°How¡¯d he know that name? I didn¡¯t¨C¡± The slam of the doors cut off the rest of what he was saying. Lord Marconi gave me a shallow bow. ¡°The archivists delivered your paperwork a few hours ago.¡± He smiled. ¡°The king will see you in a few minutes now that you¡¯ve arrived.¡± He led me over to a plush couch in the corner of the palatial space and took a seat before patting the cushion next to him. ¡°Please, sit. You¡¯re almost a free man, but I¡¯d love to pick your brain until you are!¡± His eyes glowed for a moment and I almost sat next to him without a thought, but then I saw the new window from [Skill Dominance] and shook it off. [Charming Gaze Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] What a dirty move. Unless he¡¯s much higher level than he looks? He¡¯s in for a rude awakening if he tries that on anyone who matters out in the world. My [Wits] and [Perception] are way too high for something like that to work on me. I mean, I guess that¡¯s three to go, right? Gotta look on the bright side. Despite not being charmed, I hopped up next to him on the plush couch. Before he could stop me, I patted the space between the two of us and Raiju immediately picked up on what I wanted as she hopped up between us. She curled up and laid her head on my lap so she could look out into the room. Lord Marconi¡¯s smile grew thin. ¡°Ah, your bonded companion, Raiju if memory serves?¡± ¡°It does.¡± ¡°She¡¯s gorgeous. Her fur looks so luscious.¡± He recovered well. ¡°So, I read the report, but they rarely tell the whole story.¡± He leaned in conspiratorially. ¡°What actually happened with Baron Darkspear?¡± Before I could speak, another window appeared in my vision and I groaned audibly. Two to go, maybe this won¡¯t be so hard¡­ [Eavesdrop Skill Acquired with Skill Dominance] I scratched my ear nervously. ¡°Are you sure no one can hear us? I¡¯d hate to say anything negative about a noble when,¡± I whispered in his ear, ¡°someone is listening in.¡± My gaze flicked over to the assembled wall of courtiers on the other side of the room. Of the ten of them waiting there, three were staring hard at the pair of us and Raiju. He leaned back and tapped his nose. ¡°Good thinking.¡± He pulled out a small golden broach formed into the holy symbol of The Architect and clipped it to his robe before tapping the middle of the crossed pencil and protractor. ¡°We should be able to speak candidly now.¡± One of the men who¡¯d been watching the three of us snarled before turning around and joining the other seven assembled young lords. I leaned back and kicked my foot up onto my other leg. ¡°You see, here¡¯s what happened. I¡¯d just woken up in Cliffhaven¡­¡± Chapter 13 - Not so Verdant King ¡°You¡¯re sure that¡¯s all that happened?¡± Lord Marconi shot me some serious side-eye. ¡°You beheaded a baron who was beating his servant and Lord Varkoni would have pardoned you, with no other extenuating details? Who are you?¡± I flashed him a wry grin. ¡°Just an adventurer in the right place at the right time.¡± Before the lord could say anything more a man with a long horn herald blew it once before his counterpart spoke. ¡°The king will now see Arthur Bajbub Neilson for the crime of murdering Baron Ambrose Darkspear in the city of Cliffhaven.¡± The assembled nobility gasped and started murmuring as I hopped off the couch. ¡°It seems my destiny awaits.¡± I flipped Lord Marconi a flippant salute before striding toward the center of the room. I gave the king the traditional Golden Elf bow for greeting a foreign monarch. ¡°Arthur Bajbub Neilson, present and accounted for.¡± King Evergreen beckoned me forward with a curled hand. He was a tall man, probably well over six feet tall, and his exposed forearms revealed toned muscles. Resting against the arm of his throne were a gnarled wooden staff and a resplendent broadsword in a battered leather sheath. It was obvious the king before me wasn¡¯t just a figurehead, he got into the mix himself from time to time, or at least he did at some point. With measured strides I approached the monarch until he stopped me merely five feet from his throne. His guards tried to step up and stop me, but a mere glance from the king stopped them in their tracks. He smiled at me with surprisingly imperfect teeth, his left canine had been replaced by a silver implant and the teeth next to it showed signs of distress as well. He caught me eyeballing his teeth and smiled. ¡°Caught a [Stone Golem]¡¯s fist to the face as a younger man. My father forced me to live with this,¡± he waved a hand at his mouth, ¡°to remind me I¡¯m just as mortal as the next person, despite my royal blood. I did the same for my son when his arm got carved up by a batch of goblins. He was healed, but I didn¡¯t have his missing finger regenerated.¡± ¡°Why are you telling me this? Not that it isn¡¯t interesting, it is, but I thought I was here for sentencing.¡± I stood with my hands folded in front of me, well away from the blades resting at my hips and on my chest. For some reason, they¡¯d left me armed in front of their king. Curious, I checked his [Status] and understood why. [Name: King Gareth Evergreen Race: Verdant Soul (Evolved Human) Class: Bloomwarden - (Legendary) - Rank A Level: 45 Emotional Status: Warm/Worried] Besides my parents and the rest of the people I met back in Wyrm¡¯s Rest, King Evergreen is the strongest person I¡¯ve ever met. ¡°Because I want you to understand where my upcoming actions come from.¡± The king¡¯s eyes widened and so did mine when I saw the window in the corner of my vision. [Status Shield Mastery Increase: 50¡ú52%] ¡°A level twenty-five [Starlord]? Fascinating.¡± He rose to his feet and drew his blade in one swift motion. My father¡¯s training kicked in and I sprang back five feet and drew a pair of fighting knives in the same breath. Raiju joined me in growling at the king with her teeth bared. When he cocked an eyebrow at me I blushed and sheathed the blades. ¡°Sorry. It¡¯s a reflex.¡± I braced for him to come at me, but he merely waved it away. ¡°As I¡¯d expect from the son of Shrike.¡± That caught me off guard. ¡°You know my dad?¡± Sensing my calm, Raiju sat by my feet and looked up at the king. He walked up and balanced his blade with the point on the stone and the pommel in the palm of his hands. ¡°He beat me bloody more than a few times when I was younger. Now? I wouldn¡¯t even dare to challenge him with my entire army at my back.¡± I chuckled. ¡°Yup, sounds like dad. He¡¯s a bit of a monster when he¡¯s angry.¡± I shivered. ¡°Trust me, I pissed him off more than a few times as a kid who could use magic.¡± King Evergreen roared with laughter. ¡°It¡¯s good to meet you, Arthur, though I¡¯m sorry it¡¯s under these circumstances.¡± He sobered up a moment later. ¡°Was Baron Darkspear as bad a man as the report said? Be straight with me.¡± ¡°Worse, if I¡¯m right.¡± I clenched a fist. ¡°Can I speak freely?¡± ¡°Please do.¡± He reached back for his staff and it flew into his hand with a slap a moment later. ¡°[Serene Glade].¡± Green light poured out from his staff to surround him, Raiju, and I with ten feet to spare. ¡°Speak freely, this is a [Unique Skill] from my class. It makes listening in on anyone within nearly impossible, in addition to its other benefits.¡± [Serene Glade Unique Skill acquired with Skill Dominance Serene Glade cannot be slotted until a higher Skill Mastery is reached.] So I can take [Unique Skills] too, that¡¯s good to know. I wonder if it counts for that task I have? Regardless, if he¡¯s that scared of Dad, I can be honest with him. ¡°Lord Varkoni and I spoke after the trial. We¡¯re relatively sure the woman the Baron sexually assaulted is his bastard daughter from a chambermaid.¡± My voice smoldered with rage. ¡°If we¡¯re right, he turned out to be even more of a cretin than I thought when I took his head.¡± You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°It seems I¡¯ve left Cliffhaven alone for far too long.¡± King Evergreen gritted his teeth. ¡° Corruption like that is why people don¡¯t trust nobles. I¡¯ll need to send a covert investigator to see if anything else is worrisome there.¡± I frowned. ¡°So, why are we speaking within the walls of your [Serene Glade]? I assume it isn¡¯t to protect the reputation of a dead rapist?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± King Evergreen snapped. ¡°I hope that bastard is tortured by the Devourer for all time.¡± He took a deep breath before releasing it over a few seconds. ¡°May I be frank?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the king, you can do whatever you want.¡± I shifted side to side as I took in the interior of the [Serene Glade] to avoid looking him in the eye. It was a fascinating pattern of shifting greens, browns, and yellows. ¡°You¡¯re not wrong.¡± He sighed. ¡°As far as your supposed crime is concerned, I¡¯ll pardon you as soon as you do something for me.¡± ¡°Come again?¡± My gaze snapped back to the wizened monarch. ¡°I was well within my rights as a Steel adventurer to do what I did. Coming here was merely a courtesy, I am not your citizen to be ordered about.¡± Deep inside, a flame I¡¯d felt my entire life roared and I knew then that it was the reason I was chosen as Dominus¡¯ [Suzerain]. I didn¡¯t take orders from anyone, regardless of who they were and I never had, to my parents¡¯ chagrin. ¡°You¡¯re within my country¡¯s borders, so you¡¯ll follow my commands.¡± The king leveled his blade at my chest. ¡°You¡¯ll do as I say, or I¡¯ll strike you down here.¡± My blood raged as I mentally slotted [Solar Deflection] into my fourth slot. It was Mana hungry, but it¡¯d keep me alive, at least a few times, if the king tried to make good on his threat. At my feet, Raiju started to growl as lightning coursed down her back. ¡°No.¡± I channeled my inner [Suzerain] and stood my ground. ¡°You¡¯ll pardon me and then I¡¯ll decide if your task is worthy. If it is, you¡¯ll pay me like an adventurer.¡± I nearly spat. ¡°My freedom is not yours to control.¡± King Evergreen¡¯s blade wavered and he took a half step back as his gaze flicked from me to Raiju and back. ¡°You¡¯d make an enemy of the Kingdom of Verdant?¡± ¡°This backwater burg?¡± I let out a sharp laugh despite the steel in my gaze. ¡°Without question.¡± For a moment, it looked like Verdant¡¯s monarch was going to try and kill me, it really did. Two seconds later his shoulders sagged and he sheathed his blade. ¡°You¡¯re a pain in my ass. I hope you know that.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather be a pain in the ass than someone who kisses ass.¡± I gestured at the difference in our respective heights. ¡°Despite my height.¡± ¡°Damn Shrike, your kid¡¯s just as bad as you were.¡± He grumbled. ¡°Fine, one more thing and I can pardon you of all wrongdoing.¡± He held up a hand and pointed his palm at me. ¡°System, hear my call. Do you find this man to be guilty before your gaze? Let your [Judgement] be swift!¡± Golden light filled the entire [Serene Glade] before fading. When it did, I saw King Evergreen shake his head. ¡°I knew you were innocent, but I needed your help. Now I guess I¡¯ll just have to pay you.¡± I was more interested in the usually blue System prompt in my vision that was gold this time. I glanced over it and the regular blue one next to it and my eyes widened. No shit, that¡¯s a lot. [Judgement Skill Acquired by Skill Dominance] [Judgement Skill has evolved due to acquisition by the Suzerain into the Unique Skill Dominus¡¯ Insight] [Skill Advancement Task Completed - Acquire 5 New Skills in One Hour Reward: Skill Dominance Mastery unlocked to 49%. Current - 25%] I guess that means I can truly see what the goddess of gods thinks of a person now. I¡¯ll have to play with it later. I can scan for [Skills] in the crowd now too, that should be useful. Sensing my shock, King Evergreen shook his head. ¡°I know how to pay for things, even if I don¡¯t do it much anymore.¡± He almost sounded offended. ¡°Let¡¯s get down to it.¡± My inner dwarf was practically giggling. I couldn¡¯t wait to wring King Evergreen for all he was worth. ¡°What can I do for you and Verdant?¡± He grumbled for a solid thirty seconds before speaking again and it was as if a huge weight was pressing down on his chest. ¡°Do you know what the average level in Verdant is? What about Sunhome or Ironhold?¡± I thought about it for a bit before shaking my head. ¡°I¡¯m not sure about Verdant, though I can guarantee it¡¯s lower than Sunhome and Ironhold¡¯s thirty or so. It¡¯s the second plateau and not everyone feels the need to push past it.¡± He grimaced. ¡°Guess.¡± ¡°Fifteen maybe? That¡¯s the first plateau, so it might be¨C¡± ¡°Ten.¡± He cut my rambling off. ¡°My nation¡¯s average level is ten and that¡¯s only including the adventurers who call this place home, but don¡¯t live here. Without them? It¡¯s closer to seven.¡± ¡°How?¡± My jaw hung open before snapping shut with a clack. ¡°Even if people aren¡¯t hunting monsters or training actively, they should gain at levels up to fifteen just by doing what their Classes want them to. They might never break past the plateau like that, but still¡­¡± I trailed off. It wouldn¡¯t do to piss off King Evergreen by insulting his people. ¡°You¡¯re correct, but for some reason my citizens don¡¯t gain levels like that. None of them seem to gain anything by following their Classes.¡± He leaned heavily on his staff. ¡°The most knowledgeable people I¡¯ve been able to contact or hire have all found nothing, this land just appears to be cursed. Which brings me to the task I mentioned before. I need you to join a pair of convicts I¡¯ve offered to pardon in exchange for clearing a dungeon.¡± My eyebrows raised. ¡°Convicts? What are their crimes?¡± The king pinched the bridge of his nose. ¡°One of them killed a city guard for groping her. He¡¯d been disciplined for it a number of times before, but he was the captain¡¯s younger brother, so he got away with it more than he didn¡¯t. The other stole a book from my study, putting my personal librarian in the healer¡¯s wing, she still hasn¡¯t woken up from the coma he put her in.¡± ¡°What was the book?¡± Something stunk about the second person¡¯s crime. ¡°Why did he steal it?¡± ¡°Why do you care?¡± The monarch clung to his staff with one hand and the pommel of his sword with the other. ¡°That man put a good woman in the healer¡¯s wing for a book!¡± ¡°The fact that you aren¡¯t answering means it¡¯s likely important.¡± At my feet, Raiju took a half step between King Evergreen and I. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°Damn you by all the gods!¡± He roared. ¡°It was the [Genealogical Record of the Kingdom of Verdant]. He stole my greatest source of information about my own nation.¡± ¡°Why is it so damned important to you?¡± I was getting tired of the run around. If he didn¡¯t answer my question soon, Raiju and I would be leaving. His eye twitched a few times. ¡°It is the reward my ancestor received for founding this kingdom. It records the names, Classes, and deeds of all Verdant¡¯s inhabitants. Without it, I¡¯ve lost my in-depth insight into the populace, including the dissidents attempting to destroy everything I hold dear.¡± He practically snarled and I finally saw him for what he was: a wounded lion trying to hide his weakness from the rest of the pride. Taking my realization into account, I realized I had to tread carefully in the next few moments. ¡°When did he steal the book? Do you know what he did with it?¡± ¡°Twenty years ago,¡± his voice dripped with vitriol, ¡°and I captured him nearly immediately afterward, but he didn¡¯t have it on him. I¡¯ve tried to get its location out of him hundreds of times, but he claims not to know where it is or who might have it now.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± I nodded and put a hand on Raiju¡¯s head to calm her down a bit. She begrudgingly stopped growling and let her gathered lightning fade. ¡°I¡¯m amenable to helping you, assuming the dungeon isn¡¯t beyond my ability and the payment is commensurate with the ask.¡± Chapter 14 - Haggling is a Dwarf’s Favorite Pastime My parents didn¡¯t raise a fool, when working for a monarch, it was almost my duty to rake them over the coals for all they were worth. My inner dwarf was doing a happy dance and I did my best not to let it show on my face. ¡°It¡¯s currently a level twenty-two Dungeon, but it started out as a level eleven until a few months ago, and it looks like it¡¯ll break in less than a month unless something is done. It¡¯s located within the only gold mine Verdant has, so it cannot be allowed to have a Dungeon Break under any circumstances.¡± Dungeons grew over time and it sounded like this one had been left to its own devices for far too long. Doubling its level as well as preparing for a Dungeon Break in less than six months? No one had probably cleared it in the past decade, if even that. ¡°Oh? A gold mine you say?¡± Never should have told me that. ¡°In that case, this isn¡¯t just about protecting the people is it? It¡¯s also about keeping your coffers topped up long term, despite the cost of hiring me.¡± I scratched Raiju¡¯s head absentmindedly, or at least that¡¯s what I was going for as I watched King Evergreen closely. ¡°Indeed.¡± His gaze was steely as he stared me in the eye. Despite our height difference, I maintained eye contact. ¡°What might you want as payment for this task? You already have your freedom.¡± What do I even want? Gold is good, but I¡¯m willing to bet a Dungeon in a gold mine will pay out handsomely, so it¡¯d almost be a waste to ask for more. I don¡¯t want a noble title in this rinky-dink country, or I¡¯d be beholden to King Evergreen the rest of my, hopefully very long and successful, life. Hard pass. What should I ask for as a Suzerain? If I ask for something befitting my Class at least I¡¯ll get closer to leveling up, despite the monsters not being nearly strong enough here normally. I¡¯ve got it! ¡°I want ten different [Skill Scrolls] created by your most powerful and skilled followers.¡± Suzerain wants me to gain [Skills], that much is obvious. If they give me some [Skills] I don¡¯t want, I¡¯ll just sell those ones, it¡¯s a win-win. His eyes bulged and his face went bright red. ¡°You insufferable child! Do you know what you just asked for?!¡± ¡°My due. If you¡¯re willing to pardon the man who stole what might have been your most precious possession, this must be something you need done, and you need it done quietly.¡± I shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s my ask for what you need.¡± ¡°By the Six, you¡¯re trying to rob me blind! I¡¯m not asking you to fight a dragon in its lair or conquer a new province for me! This is just a Dungeon, and not one I¡¯d have balked at dealing with in my prime.¡± His grip on the pommel of his sword grew so tight I was pretty sure it¡¯d leave a mark despite his obvious [Toughness]. ¡°So give me a counter offer, but don¡¯t insult me or I¡¯ll walk out right now.¡± I quirked an eyebrow at him. ¡°I¡¯m waiting, the ball is in your court.¡± King Gareth Evergreen stared daggers at me for the better part of five minutes as he considered his options. I saw a silver earring with a green gem on his left ear flare with magic for a moment and turned my gaze upon its description. [Mindlink Earring - Uncommon Charges - 9/100 Description - This earring is part of a matching pair. The wearers can have a five minute mental conversation per charge used. Recharging this item is not possible.] Makes sense, he¡¯s probably talking to his advisors, asking what Verdant can afford to offer me. Either way, I¡¯m probably going to go, this Dungeon is probably the only place in Verdant I can find monsters strong enough to get me any progress toward leveling up. The boss should be around level thirty, so that¡¯ll be a good challenge. ¡°Three [Skill Scrolls] from the market, total price not to exceed five thousand gold.¡± He huffed. ¡°It¡¯s more than fair.¡± I couldn¡¯t help it, I snorted. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s not going to work. How about this¡­¡± What followed was a back and forth argument that lasted the better part of an hour. He almost stabbed me more than once and I even let Raiju zap him a few times when he got too close for comfort. In the end, we were both worn out and felt the other person was getting the better part of the deal, a hallmark of a particularly good haggle. ¡°Five different [Skill Scrolls] made by your councilors and skilled subordinates in exchange for preventing the Dungeon of the Eldan Gold Mine from breaking. Deal.¡± I held out a hand for him to shake and he begrudgingly did. ¡°System record this accord.¡± Golden light filled the [Serene Glade] and I ran my fingers through my sweaty hair with a grin. ¡°You haggle like a dwarf.¡± ¡°And you, like a demon.¡± He didn¡¯t appear pleased. With a stomp of his foot, the dome of nature energy dissipated to reveal his throne room. ¡°Head to the gate. Your companions will join you there momentarily.¡± Snapping him a jaunty salute, I spun on my heel and waltzed out of the chamber with a broad grin on my face. Raiju followed with a similar bounce to her walk, she¡¯d enjoyed my haggling with the king. ¡°It¡¯s like a fight, but no one gets hurt.¡± Her tongue lolled out like a dog¡¯s. ¡°People are strange, but I can see the appeal. Monsters, even Unique ones, don¡¯t really make deals like that.¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. Ruffling her fur, I grinned. ¡°You haven¡¯t seen anything yet. I¡¯ve heard stories about my grandfather¡¯s haggling in Ironhold, he once convinced a man to sell his prized boar mount for a single Rare blade. He¡¯s a legend.¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to meet him some day.¡± She sounded sad for a moment. ¡°My sire and dam are both gone¡­¡± I stopped right there and dropped to a knee and pulled her in for a hug. ¡°My family is your family now, don¡¯t forget that.¡± I squeezed her as tight as I could. She didn¡¯t say anything, but she did lay her head on my shoulder for a few moments before wiggling loose and heading toward the castle¡¯s gate. ¡°Gotcha, a bit too touchy feely. Noted.¡± I smiled to myself despite her huff. *** Raiju and I ended up waiting at the gate for almost two hours, pushing us right up to dinnertime and I grew more and more irritated as time went on. ¡°Momentarily my damned asshole.¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°I¡¯m of half a mind to go back in there and give that trumped up arborist a piece of my mind.¡± Behind me, I heard someone snort out a laugh and turned around to find a wizened old man and an enormous woman. It appeared to be the old man who¡¯d laughed as he was wiping a tear from his eye with a handkerchief. The old man stood at a stooped five foot two, with a head of salt and pepper hair that stuck out at all angles. He wore dark blue robes with almost imperceptible arcane markings all over it. In his other hand he held what most would see as a mere walking stick, but I knew better. That was a [Mage]¡¯s staff, there was no doubt in my mind. I took him and his staff in with [Essence Reading]. [Name: Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto Race: Human Class: Mage - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 32 Emotional Status: Giddy] [Staff of the Wallbreaker - Unique Durability - */* - Cannot break while the Wallbreaker lives Description - Crafted from a thousand year old oak with a sliver of the Wallbreaker¡¯s soul in a moment of need, this staff drastically enhances offensive magic. All Spells cast by the wielder have their damage amplified three-fold. In addition, the wielders¡¯ area of effect Spells do not harm those they consider allies. If this staff is taken from the Wallbreaker, it reappears in his grasp a minute later.] My eyes bulged as I took in the staff¡¯s description again. Dominus preserve me! What had to happen for him to craft a staff like that? From what Mom told me, most [Mages] make staffs at some point in their late twenties, but they¡¯re usually much more general in their effect. That thing is like walking around with a loaded crossbow at all times. I¡¯m glad he¡¯s on my side, that¡¯s for sure. I turned my gaze to the enormous woman walking with him and was struck by her posture. She walked like she wanted to punch everyone around her except for Jaegan. Towering over most men, her presence filled the area around the gate. Her chocolate tresses, thick and long, were whipped into two braids that snaked around the edges of her ample bosom. What little clothing she wore did nothing to hide the scars etched a map of past battles across her sun-baked skin, testament to a warrior''s life. Yet, it was her eyes, glittering with a restless energy, that sent shivers down spines. A predator in human form, a single, focused breath escaped her lips, the only warning before the berserker within threatened to erupt. [Name: Ylsa Spinebreaker Race: Goliath Class: Mountain Tempest - Rare - Rank A Level: 27 Emotional Status: Excited/Surprised] So she¡¯s not about to kill everyone nearby, that¡¯s good. I wonder how she and Jaegan met? She¡¯s definitely a physical specimen. I think Dad told me about Goliaths once, they¡¯re descended from the few giants left after the Giant Dragon war ten thousand years ago. If I remember right, the dwarves took them in. As Jaegan walked up and raised a hand to shake, I was more surprised to find Ylsa down on one knee in front of Raiju with her fist over her heart. I quickly shook the old man¡¯s hand, but my focus was on the enormous woman. ¡°You honor this one, Storm-Runner, by blessing this one with your presence.¡± Ylsa shivered as Raiju padded around her, sniffing all the while. As she did that, Jaegan coughed quietly to get my attention. ¡°Hello lad, who might you be? All I was told is that Ylsa and I would have a third for our little excursion.¡± He gasped and laid his free hand over his heart. ¡°My apologies, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Jaegan Toretto, though you might know me by my old moniker as Wallbreaker. A terrible name, that, but it stuck.¡± ¡°I¡¯d love to hear how you got it, to be honest. I¡¯m Arthur Bajbub Neilson, with no moniker to speak of at this point.¡± I gestured to Ylsa. ¡°Is she going to be OK? Raiju doesn¡¯t appear to want to eat her, so that¡¯s good.¡± ¡°I¡¯d have to agree with you.¡± He chuckled. ¡°Ylsa¡¯s from the mountains and she¡¯s told me stories about a fabled white wolf who traveled those peaks. I¡¯m guessing this is the wolf in question?¡± He raised an eyebrow. ¡°Guilty as charged.¡± I grinned. ¡°She had a [Quest] to complete before she could leave and when I helped her complete it we became bonded.¡± ¡°Arthur is the best.¡± Raiju padded over and rubbed along my side with a happy rumble. ¡°He plays chase and makes the best meat.¡± Ylsa rose to her considerable height before bowing at the waist to me. ¡°Greetings to you, I am Ylsa Spinebreaker. Please accept me into your service.¡± To my surprise, a bright red window appeared before me unlike any I¡¯d ever seen before along with the standard blue yes/no prompt. However, I¡¯d never heard of that happening between two people before. [As the Suzerain, those who swear fealty to you through the System will be granted a twenty percent boost to their three highest stats immediately after you accept their offer. This bond is a unique trait of the Suzerain and it cannot be broken. Your subjects who swear fealty in this way will be unable to harm you in any way.] [Ylsa Spinebreaker has requested to be your subject for the rest of her life, or as long as Raiju remains with you, whichever comes first. The offer stands until Ylsa Spinebreaker retracts it. Do you accept her offer of fealty? Y/N] It was obvious that Ylsa could see the screen offering her fealty and she¡¯d immediately hit the accept button, but I was more concerned about the red screen with information about my [Suzerain] class. I need to get out of Grenwall, now. I need to explain to her what this means. I quickly pulled the [Cloud Carpet] from my ring and waved for Ylsa and Jaegan to hop aboard. I tossed her a length of rope with a loop at the end before throwing a similar loop around my waist. ¡°Raiju, let¡¯s fly.¡± She sensed my urgency and quickly grew to full size before lowering her front for me to hop on. I looked back to check on my new companions and found them seated comfortably on the flying carpet. I looked Ylsa in the eye and mouthed. ¡°Say nothing. We¡¯ll speak soon.¡± She quickly nodded and Jaegan¡¯s eyes crinkled, but he didn¡¯t say anything either. After I got settled in, Raiju wiggled her haunches before launching herself and the [Cloud Carpet] into the sky with a happy howl. Chapter 15 - Subjects and Expectations Our little group was camped in a forest glade a week¡¯s walk from Grenwall, or about two hour¡¯s flight. I was in the middle of setting up my cooking setup when Ylsa walked over and started to assist. She made setting up the heavy duty metal tripod/spit and circle of stones appear effortless, which I guess, to her it was. I strained my [Perception], wary to hear if anyone had tried following us despite me letting Raiju run as she wanted as long as it was west of the capital. I couldn¡¯t be too careful. I guess it¡¯s time. I wanted to wait and see if I could do it without the extra help, but I guess now¡¯s as good a time as any. I pulled the spellbook Mom gave me from my pack and settled on a large rock. Flipping through the pages reminded me of when I was little. I had wanted so much to be an [Arcmage] like her. If I were being honest with myself, if it weren¡¯t for the accident, I probably would have ended up going that route. Spellwork always came naturally to me, while bows and blades took me much longer to get used to them and I¡¯d pushed past my physical weakness to become quite adept with both. With a sigh, I touched the rune in the corner of the page to learn the Spell I was looking for within. I should be fine, [Summon Elemental] isn¡¯t even really a combat Spell. It¡¯ll be fine. As I touched the rune, I remembered the first time Mom had shown me the Spell, I couldn¡¯t have even been ten years old and Mom wanted me to see what she could do. She¡¯d used [Summon Elemental Swarm], an evolution of the Spell for her opponents, but she still used [Summon Elemental] in its base form to demonstrate its versatility. While she summoned a horde of small fire elementals with her first Spell, as a ten year old I was more impressed by the forty foot tall mountain she summoned that smashed the tiny elementals in a surprising display of speed for a creature so large. I wonder how the Spell works. Do you get to pick an option for size or is it purely based on [Skill Mastery]? I guess that would get inconvenient, wouldn¡¯t it? The better you know the Spell, the worse it worked indoors? Nah, it¡¯s probably a thing about how much Mana you provide. I quickly learned how right I was. [Learn Summon Elemental - Y/N] I mentally tapped the yes option and, a moment later, the page glowed brightly and a new window appeared. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 26% Summon Elemental - 99%] That makes sense, I guess. It looks like I¡¯ll still need a moment of insight to figure out which evolved version of the [Skill] I¡¯ll get. I held up a hand and spoke quietly. ¡°[Summon Elemental].¡± In front of me appeared a window unlike any I¡¯d seen before, for the second time that day. I took a closer look and all was made clear. OK, so it looks like the slider on the right is for what percentage of my Mana I want to spend on the Spell. The selector here looks like it used to just have four options, water, fire, earth, and air, but I have the six mixes available as well, steam, mud, mist, lava, lightning, and sand. There¡¯s also a slider to select how many elementals I want to split that Mana into, neat. Ooh, the top has a spot to save a few presets, I should work on that next time, but not now. Once I¡¯m ready, I guess I just hit the big red button in the bottom corner that says Cast. I turned the slider for Mana up to ninety percent and the number to twelve before selecting [Air Elemental] for my type and slamming the Cast button. My body rebelled as ninety percent of my Mana left it at all one time, but I gritted through it, it had nothing on my training with Mom as a kid. When I glanced up, I saw a dozen three foot tall bluish white elementals floating in front of me. The one in front bowed to me before speaking in Auran. ¡°What would you have us do, summoner?¡± ¡°Form a screen half a mile radius from this point. Unless they¡¯re attacking, I don¡¯t care about monsters, I just don¡¯t want any people to be able to see or hear what I¡¯m about to discuss. If you find anyone, please let me know.¡± I nodded. ¡°Thank you, honored [Sylphs].¡± I used the proper term for air elementals and used their language, not even resorting to Primordial, and it was obvious they appreciated it. ¡°It shall be done.¡± The assembled elementals scattered to the winds in a swirling pattern. ¡°That¡¯s quite the summoning Spell, [Summon Elemental Swarm] at such a young age? You must be a hell of a mage.¡± Jaegan nodded appreciatively. ¡°I take it you¡¯re some kind of spellblade type from your attire?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just [Summon Elemental] actually.¡± I looked over and found Ylsa filling the pot with the makings for a stew. ¡°I¡¯m a close to mid ranged combatant, daggers and bows mostly, at least that¡¯s where my training leads me to think I¡¯ll end up.¡± Jaegan stared hard at me. ¡°Not with access to a Spell like that you aren¡¯t.¡± When I tried to defend myself, he held up a hand to stop me. ¡°Most caster types would kill to have a single Spell like that in their arsenal and I¡¯m willing to bet you¡¯ve got more you¡¯ve learned that you aren¡¯t using. You¡¯ve got the makings of a hell of a spellblade, why not lean into it?¡± ¡°I have my reasons.¡± I turned away from him and thrust my thumbs through my belt. ¡°I¡¯ve got one more thing to do before I can explain to you two why we had to leave so soon.¡± Behind me, I heard the clack of wood on stone. ¡°We¡¯re not done with this conversation, boy.¡± Yeah, we are. You don¡¯t know me, old man. I¡¯m better off not casting Spells, or at least not in combat. Even [Summon Elemental] is dangerous for someone like me. I walked over and checked on the stew and, even though it¡¯d just started cooking, it smelled amazing. ¡°This smells great.¡± I complimented Arya and her shoulders sagged, she¡¯d obviously been nervous I wouldn¡¯t like it. ¡°Join Jaegan and I¡¯ll be right with you two.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± She bowed at the waist before making her way over to join the old man on a huge log he was using as a bench. ¡°Raiju, can you talk to the [Sylphs] I summoned?¡± I scritched between her ears. She snorted. ¡°Of course I can. My sire could summon a small one when I was but a pup. It wasn¡¯t friendly, but it taught me its language and the languages of its kin.¡± Got it. She can probably talk to air, sand, and lightning elementals as well. Good to know. ¡°Can you join the [Sylphs] in their scouting?¡± I rubbed the back of my neck, where the hair stood up. ¡°Something tells me we¡¯re being followed, but I might just be paranoid.¡± All I got as an answer was her bumping her head against my leg before she darted off into the woods, not even bothering to grow to full size with how dense they were. That handled, I sighed and wandered over to join my new companions. I took a seat on a rock a few feet from their log bench and addressed them. ¡°I have a big ask for the pair of you, if you¡¯ll hear me out.¡± ¡°Whatever it is, I agree, Storm-Blessed.¡± Ylsa clenched a fist and thumped it against her chest. ¡°I¡¯ll agree¡­ under one condition.¡± Jaegan¡¯s eyes sparkled. ¡°After I agree you have to tell me the real reason you won¡¯t use magic in combat.¡± He caught me wincing and smiled. ¡°I¡¯m willing to bet you have some bullshit reason you¡¯d give most people, but I want the real reason.¡± Can¡¯t say I didn¡¯t see that coming. I guess it¡¯s a small price to pay, despite it not being any of his damn business. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Agreed.¡± I looked up to the heavens. ¡°System, bear witness.¡± I turned to look back at my companions. ¡°I need you to swear on the System that you won¡¯t repeat what I¡¯m about to tell you to anyone without my express permission, including recording it in a written form.¡± I shot Jaegan a half-hearted glare. ¡°Let¡¯s say anything for the next two hours, just to be safe.¡± Rather than them repeating what I¡¯d said, surprisingly a pair of gold System windows appeared before them. Jaegan¡¯s eyes blazed with curiosity as he flicked a finger and the word ¡°Agreed¡± appeared on the other side of the window, the side facing me. I almost missed Ylsa doing the same, she did it so fast. Where to start? I guess the beginning is as good a place as any. ¡°This is going to sound stupid, but do either of you know who I am?¡± I blushed. ¡°Storm-Blessed.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say I do, but I have a few guesses.¡± I gestured for Jaegan to continue. ¡°Hit me with those guesses, I¡¯ll correct you where you¡¯re wrong.¡± He narrowed his eyes at me, but complied. ¡°With your surname, I assume your father is named Neil. The only Neil I know who uses daggers and is part dwarf is Neil Ironwind, the adventurer better known as Shrike. Last I heard he was married to a Golden Elven princess, Hildegard Sunbeam, better known as Conflux. I believe you to be their son. How am I doing so far?¡± ¡°Pretty well, though Mom isn¡¯t a princess. Technically, she¡¯s supposed to inherit Grandpa¡¯s ¡®Defender of the Sun¡¯ position if he ever dies, but she¡¯s not too worried about that. As of now, they treat her with all of the deference a princess would get with none of the baggage, it¡¯s pretty great.¡± ¡°Given your heritage, I assume you grew up around powerful people. Powerful people who all doted on you.¡± He held up a hand when I started to object. ¡°The same people who trained you to become the adventurer you are today. I can see the blue steel tag around your neck.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say they doted on me,¡± I grumbled, ¡°but you¡¯re mostly correct.¡± He nodded. ¡°Conflux¡¯s son and the Ray of the East¡¯s grandson would have a frightening propensity for magic. I take it that¡¯s correct?¡± ¡°I guess I can answer your question before going too much farther, it makes sense to explain here.¡± I sighed. ¡°When I was little, I wanted to follow in my mother¡¯s footsteps more than anything.¡± I started to pace. ¡°I cast my first [Magic Missile] at two years old and my first [Elemental Bolt] less than a year later. They called me a magical prodigy and Mom did everything she could to encourage me to learn more. Do good on a test? She¡¯d let me borrow her spellbook and look through it. Defeat one of the monsters they¡¯d bring for me to fight? She¡¯d show me how a particular Spell worked so I could master my two combat Spells faster. ¡°Everything was amazing until about fifteen years ago. I was looking through Mom¡¯s main spellbook,¡± I stopped for a moment before grinning, wryly ¡°I guess you can¡¯t tell anyone, so I might as well explain. The only downside to Mom¡¯s [Arcmage] Class is that it requires her to physically write any Spell she learns into a grimoire or spellbook before she can use it, even if the System says she should be able to.¡± ¡°Fascinating.¡± Jaegan was leaning forward, entranced by what I was saying. ¡°I¡¯d always wondered what the downside was for her versatility, but I¡¯d never have guessed it to be that.¡± He motioned for me to continue and Ylsa still hadn¡¯t moved, so I did. ¡°Like I said, I was looking through her grimoire, the core of her power, and found a Spell she¡¯d never told me anything about, [Comet Storm]. I was only ten, so I figured I wouldn¡¯t be able to cast it, even with her grimoire.¡± I rubbed my face hard. ¡°I was wrong, so very wrong.¡± ¡°Oh no.¡± Jaegan¡¯s face drained of color. ¡°Who died?¡± ¡°Ironically,¡± I barked out a laugh, ¡°that¡¯s the only thing that didn¡¯t happen. When I cast [Comet Storm] inside the house, I was disappointed for a moment because nothing happened. That¡¯s when my Mana bottomed out. Unbeknownst to me, I had just enough Mana to cast it and the Mana fatigue sent me to my knees. I knelt there, gasping for breath as the ceiling collapsed in on me. Mom¡¯s maid, Momo, somehow imposed herself between the first comet and me and nearly died right there, but she was able to deflect it enough to survive. However, in her effort to defend me, she failed to defend Mom¡¯s grimoire.¡± Tears rolled down my face. ¡°I heard her scream as the comet destroyed it and soon after that, I heard more screams from her as the other four comets fell through the house. That day, I nearly killed myself, my mother, and Momo because I couldn¡¯t leave well enough the hell alone when it came to spellcraft. The following day I joined my father in the morning for dagger training and never looked back.¡± ¡°You were just a boy.¡± Jaegan¡¯s voice was like summer rain, cool to soothe my red-hot self loathing. ¡°There¡¯s no way you could have known you¡¯d be able to cast one of the most powerful Spells any spellcaster can access at ten years old. That you had enough Mana at that age, assuming you weren¡¯t wearing any Mana boosting gear,¡± I shook my head, ¡°is nothing short of miraculous.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. It¡¯s my fault.¡± I seethed as my shame fought back against Jaegan¡¯s logic. ¡°It¡¯s my fault that my mother had to start back from nearly square one with only these Spells,¡± I flopped her old travel spellbook out onto my knee, ¡°to defend herself with. If it weren¡¯t for her being retired before I was born, I¡¯d have driven her there in one stupid move.¡± ¡°What did your mother do once the Spell ended?¡± I blinked a few times. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I passed out from Mana fatigue a few moments after hearing her scream a second time.¡± I narrowed my eyes at him. ¡°What are you angling at?¡± ¡°I had a son once, he was a [Mage], just like me.¡± His eyes grew distant. ¡°He was so caught up with trying to outdo me that he missed the fact that I was just so damn proud of him for what he¡¯d already done. He died fighting my nemesis, an [Androsphinx] named Stonescythe, because he thought that would finally make him better than me.¡± He shook his head. ¡°All I ever wanted him to be was happy and I don¡¯t think he ever really was.¡± ¡°How are those the same?¡± ¡°Forgive me, Storm-Blessed, but did you ever discuss what happened with your mother?¡± Ylsa spoke up for the first time and I shook my head in confusion. She nodded back. ¡°Jaegan is trying to tell you that, as a parent, he knows how your mother thinks better than you do, at least as far as you go.¡± There¡¯s no way. What if they¡¯re right? Mom hasn¡¯t stopped pushing for me to pursue magic, far from it. Have I been suffering all this time for nothing? I mentally flogged myself. No. You and spellcraft don¡¯t mix. They don¡¯t know you or your mother. You¡¯re a menace. Anything bigger than a [Magic Missile] from you is begging for disaster. ¡°I-I¡­ I¡¯ll have to think about that.¡± I lied. I wouldn¡¯t be thinking about it even once if I had anything to say about it. ¡°Whatever you say, Arthur.¡± Jaegan breathed out a sigh. ¡°Now, what were you alluding to when you got us to swear those oaths? Time¡¯s ticking.¡± I clenched my fists and took a deep breath before releasing it for a long time. ¡°Got it, I should get to it.¡± ¡°You should.¡± Jaegan ignored the daggers I stared his way. ¡°If you have [Analyze], please use it on me if you haven¡¯t already done so.¡± I waited a few moments for Ylsa to do as I¡¯d asked, though it was obvious Jaegan already had. ¡°What Class do I have?¡± ¡°Starlord, it¡¯s a legendary S-ranked Class.¡± The old man stroked his bare chin like he expected there to be a beard there. Ylsa merely nodded along. Despite myself, I grinned. I didn¡¯t know how many times I¡¯d be able to tell someone what my real Class was until I got much stronger, strong enough to fight against the followers of the four gods who betrayed Dominus. I mentally disabled [Status Shield]. ¡°Check again.¡± This time, Jaegan did as I asked and he and Ylsa both gaped when they saw my real Status. ¡°I am the Chosen of Dominus, the mother and ruler of the gods, and she personally¡­ godly?¡± I shook my head, ¡°She gave me the Class of her Chosen after interviewing me. She made me into the one and only [Suzerain], a Class that has only ever existed on this world twice before.¡± ¡°That¡¯s where the red System screen came from.¡± Ylsa breathed out in awe. ¡°That¡¯s why Storm-Runner chose you as her bondmate.¡± She slipped to her knees and slammed her forehead into the ground hard enough to shake the dirt under my feet. ¡°Please, accept my fealty! My people have tales of the forgotten goddess, but her name was lost. Please let me serve you, Chosen of Dominus.¡± In the back of my head, I heard Dominus¡¯ voice like a ghost. ¡°Accept her. She and her people are the only reason I still exist.¡± Not one to piss off my goddess, I mentally accepted Ylsa¡¯s fealty. Red and gold light exploded from us and Jaegan stared at us as we blinked the light from our eyes as her [Might], [Toughness] and [Perception] all grew by twenty percent. She stared at me with reverence when she realized what had happened. ¡°What are you two going on about? You¡¯re telling me there¡¯s a seventh goddess the world has forgotten?¡± For a second, it looked like he was going to argue, but after a moment¡¯s hesitation, he beamed and took a knee. ¡°I too offer you my fealty, [Suzerain].¡± The same red System message appeared and I sighed. [Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto has offered you lifelong fealty. The offer stands until Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto retracts it. Do you accept his offer of fealty? Y/N] ¡°In for a copper, in for a gold.¡± I mentally accepted and was again blinded by the red and gold light, though this time it was me and Jaegan who could see it, with Ylsa observing us with the same reverence in her eyes. Jaegan gasped and I could tell he was looking at his Status. Somehow, I knew his [Wits], [Arcane], and [Toughness] all grew. I guessed it was part of our fealty. For a moment, I debated checking to see if I could see their whole Statuses now, but decided against it. They¡¯ll tell me what I need to know. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it!¡± He yelled before starting to dance a jig. ¡°My [Toughness] broke the Class limit! I¡¯m not going to die of old age anytime soon!¡± He openly wept as he danced. Before I could ask him what he was going on about, I felt two of my summoned [Sylphs] died less than a second apart in the direction of Grenwall. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to interrupt you, but it appears we have company.¡± I drew my bow and strung it. ¡°Two of my summons just died.¡± I felt another one disappear, closer to our campsite. ¡°Now three.¡± Jaegan laughed maniacally as he hefted his staff. ¡°Leave it to me, milord. I¡¯ll show you what the Wallbreaker can do!¡± Chapter 16 - Defense? I Don’t Need No Stinking Defense! As I swiveled with an arrow drawn, alert for any foes who might come into view, I pulled up my list of slotted [Skills] in the corner of my vision. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 2/6 Photosynthesis Haste Air Step Healing Light] Huh, looks like I can slot another [Skill] now. I wonder if that¡¯s part of increasing the mastery on [Skill Dominance]? Either way, I still don¡¯t have any ranged [Skills] in there, so maybe I should slot [Psyknife]? It doesn¡¯t have the range of my bow, but it seems pretty useful. Then again¡­ I¡¯ve never used it. Is now the time? Might as well check the description real quick. [Psyknife allows the user to form blades of psionic energy at a cost of five mana per blade. The user¡¯s Wits stat determines the range they can be thrown before disappearing as well as the amount of damage they deal, either ranged or in melee. Unlike normal blades, those produced by this Skill do not have any physical mass and cannot be used to deflect blows. As a psionic Skill, this ability may be used without verbally invoking its name, even at low mastery levels.] Damnit, until I get a [Skill] to use with my bow, I might as well not use it. Not only can I throw them farther than I can shoot an arrow accurately, but they¡¯ll do way more damage than my pitiful [Might] could because they trigger off of [Wits]. Hopefully all those hours of training will serve me well with the blades. With a thought, I slotted [Psyknife] before stowing my bow in my storage ring. Another thought later and I had a pair of purple and green energy blades in my hands. ¡°Gotta be careful, I used most of my Mana on summoning the elementals, so I¡¯ve only got enough for ten more blades.¡± To my left, Ylsa cracked her knuckles and pressed them together, when they separated they were coated in blue and silver energy. ¡°[Storm Knuckles], one of my Class¡¯ [Unique Skills].¡± I knew [Skill Dominance] triggered, but ignored the window it generated. I¡¯d check it out after the fight was over. ¡°[Arcane Battery]!¡± Jaegan yelled and a score of glowing orbs of all sorts of colors surrounded him. I looked over at him and found him grinning like a little kid. ¡°Leave these interlopers to me, it¡¯s been far too long since I got to fight someone worthy of my time.¡± I mean, from his nickname, I figured he was a combat [Mage], but did he really need to set up an [Arcane Battery]? Those things are used to lay siege, not for fighting a group of spies and/or assassins. Another elemental died just before it was about to break through into the clearing and a black blade fell from its disintegrating body. Behind it, I saw a robed figure for a moment before they faded back into the shadows. For most people, it wouldn¡¯t have been enough, but my family pushed me and I evolved my [Analyze] into [Essence Reading] before my System day. [Name: Assassin #5 (Wendell Woods) Race: Human Class: Assassin - Rare - Rank C Level: 19 Emotional Status: Determined/Focused] Not sure if that means there are four more [Assassins] or if that¡¯s just what Wendell goes by. The elementals confirmed four targets, so maybe he was the fifth? ¡°There¡¯s at least four [Assassins], if not five or more!¡± I flopped onto my back an instant before a black blade whizzed through where my neck would have been if I hadn¡¯t followed my instincts. ¡°Number five¡¯s level nineteen! Be alert.¡± ¡°Bah,¡± Jaegan roared with joy as he let his [Arcane Battery] loose on the forest in front of us. Twenty beams of a variety of colors tore through the trees and underbrush like a scythe through so much ripe wheat. ¡°Taste the painbow!¡± As I groaned, I spotted a dark robed figure sneaking up on us out of the corner of my eye as I watched Jaegan¡¯s frankly unreasonable level of firepower level part of the forest. I flicked a finger over my shoulder at the figure and was rewarded as the [Psyknife] sunk into their shoulder. I expected them to stop moving to deal with the wound or to rush toward me, but instead they locked in place as the purple and green blade in my other hand started to pulse. The figure threw their head back to reveal a stubbled man¡¯s face with a mouth drawn in a mask of abject terror. He stood like that for a few seconds before foaming at the mouth and falling to the ground, unmoving. ¡°Damn, that was more effective than I thought it¡¯d be.¡± I hurried to summon a new blade in my free hand as I scanned the area around me. My remaining elementals were all nearly back to the clearing, but instead I yelled out in Auran. ¡°Fight the black robed figures outside the clearing!¡± ¡°You got two of them.¡± Jaegan beamed as he looked over the glowing construct covering the end of his staff with loving eyes. ¡°Old girl¡¯s still got it.¡± Ylsa, not to be outdone, dove into the forest with her hands held up in a boxing stance. Ten seconds later she launched another man in a black cloak into the clearing. I stalked over to him and leveled my psychic blade at his throat. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°How many of you are there?¡± I kept my voice level. ¡°Who are you working for?¡± He rubbed his jaw, but didn¡¯t respond. Instead, he palmed a blade from his belt and lunged at me. I slashed the back of his hand and he stopped dead as he started to scream bloody murder. As I stared at the screaming robed figure, behind him another dark robed figure fell from the sky with a loud crunch. ¡°I got one of them!¡± Raiju barked happily as she ran circles in the air around us at full size. I quickly glanced over at the [Statuses] of the three dead bodies and the single man who was still screaming. ¡°Number five is still missing and there¡¯s one other assassin out there.¡± It looks like he really was the fifth in the group, huh. We have two, three, four, and six here, but one and five are missing. None of them were higher than five¡¯s level nineteen, so we should be able to handle them. ¡°The air is clear.¡± Raiju sniffed the air. ¡°There¡¯s one to the west, but they¡¯re moving away really fast. Can I chase them?¡± ¡°You¡¯re good to go. Don¡¯t let them get away!¡± I looked over where Ylsa was bouncing foot to foot. ¡°Keep an eye on Mr. Scream here, I¡¯m going to check in on the rest of my [Sylphs].¡± I danced backward until my back was against a tree. With a surge of will, I threw my mind into the strands of Mana attaching me to the remaining six [Sylphs]. It was disorienting at first, having seven viewpoints at once, and I was glad I was leaning against a tree or I definitely would have fallen over. I closed my eyes and everything immediately became clear. It was like I had six System windows open in my mindscape in a three by two grid, each displaying what the remaining [Sylphs] were seeing. I stood there, just watching those displays for the better part of five minutes until something in my top right view caught my eye. I mentally commanded that [Sylph] to hurry over and check out where I¡¯d seen the flash. The second it pulled around the tree, it was greeted with a blade to the face. It wasn¡¯t enough to kill the small scout, but it was enough to piss it off. It screamed obscenities in Auran and I heard them with my body¡¯s ears as well as in my mind. My eyes snapped open and locked on Jaegan. ¡°There¡¯s an assassin that way.¡± I pointed toward where the screaming was coming from. ¡°Can you take care of them from here, or should I send Ylsa?¡± I looked over at my much larger companion, who was standing over a comatose robed figure. Only the rising and falling of his chest let me know he wasn¡¯t dead because he wasn¡¯t moving at all. What¡¯d she do to him? I shook my head. Not the time. Focus on the assassins. ¡°Aye, I can take care of them.¡± Jaegan gave his staff a quick spin before leveling it toward where I¡¯d pointed. ¡°How high in the air is your summon? I¡¯d hate to hit it with this.¡± I closed my eyes to check. ¡°About seven feet, though it looks like the assassin is trying to knock her out of the air, so she might flow up higher.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± a runic circle formed on the end of the old [Mage]¡¯s staff. ¡°[Severing Gale]!¡± A hellacious green and black blade of wind leapt from Jaegan¡¯s staff tip, expanding to dozens of times the size it was initially as it ripped through trees and bushes like they didn¡¯t exist. I closed my eyes to check and was immediately unhappy with my decision as I had to watch as the assassin was bisected and then swiftly pounced upon by a trio of [Sylphs] who made damn sure he was dead. I messaged them to bring back anything metal or shiny from his body before opening my eyes again. ¡°You got him.¡± ¡°I know.¡± Before I could continue our verbal tennis match, Raiju came back into view and she did not look happy with her tail hanging between her legs. She landed next to me and quickly hung her head as she shrunk back to what I lovingly thought of as camp size. ¡°I failed.¡± She whimpered. ¡°He got away.¡± I blinked a few times. ¡°How did he outrun you?¡± With how fast she was, it would have taken a level thirty or so to escape her without some serious gear. She spat a cracked black gemstone the size of my fist next to my feet. ¡°This glowed bright green and he disappeared.¡± She nudged it with her nose. ¡°I tried, but I couldn¡¯t smell where he went.¡± If anything, her tail hung even lower at that point. I walked over and knelt to give her a big hug around the neck. ¡°It¡¯s OK not to succeed all the time. I¡¯m just glad you tried.¡± I picked up black gemstone and somehow knew it was a [Spellwrought Emerald], though I had no idea what Spell it might have contained. ¡°Who could afford something like this? Even I know anything that lets you teleport is incredibly expensive.¡± Jaegan walked over and snorted when he saw the gemstone in my hands. ¡°These are Verdant¡¯s Shadows. They¡¯re a group of assassins who work for the council behind King Evergreen¡¯s rule.¡± His eyes grew distant. ¡°The council are the ones who get things done in Verdant, even if everyone blames the king. It¡¯s been years since their dogs captured me and longer even before that since I really knew what they were capable of.¡± I looked at him for a few moments before my curiosity boiled over. ¡°How do you know so much about them?¡± He let out a hoarse laugh. ¡°That¡¯s easy, I used to be on the council.¡± His eyes grew wide. ¡°They wouldn¡¯t.¡± He breathed out before his eyes went wide. ¡°Arthur, did you re-enable your [Status Shield] after showing us the real thing?¡± ¡°I should have,¡± I frowned as I pulled up the menu in the System that I triggered [Status Shield] through and groaned. I rubbed my hands over my face slowly. ¡°No such luck. It was disabled.¡± To my left, Ylsa blurred into motion and sent the assassin we had captive slamming into the ground hard enough to make him bounce. She snarled before remembering the company she was in. She bowed deeply. ¡°My apologies, Storm-Blessed.¡± I walked over to check on our hostage and groaned even louder when I found him dead. [Healing Light] did nothing, and that was enough to tell me he was dead. I looked Ylsa up and down and was surprised to find her looking demure for once. She really didn¡¯t like what she¡¯d done. ¡°So, what happened?¡± I kept my tone even. She kicked a small rock between her feet and wouldn¡¯t make eye contact. ¡°He woke up and his first reaction was to grab with his arms at max extension.¡± She took a deep breath and looked away with a huge blush on her light grey skin. ¡°He grabbed the loop of my underclothes and I panicked.¡± She bowed deeply. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to kill him!¡± I patted her shoulder, as it was finally low enough for me to reach, as I guided her to stand again. ¡°It¡¯s OK, Jaegan can probably figure out what they were looking for using whatever we find on their bodies.¡± I forced a smile to my face despite my displeasure. ¡°It¡¯s all going to be fine.¡± Sensing her shame, Raiju padded over and commiserated with Ylsa about their respective failures as she pulled the much larger figure along, away from the corpse of our prisoner. Tearing my gaze away from the body, I looked over to Jaegan, who had a pensive look on his face. ¡°Copper for your thoughts?¡± I pulled a coin out and tossed it into his chest. He didn¡¯t smile and that¡¯s when I knew it wasn¡¯t good. He grimaced. ¡°The council wants us dead, even though we¡¯re going to clear a dungeon that¡¯s about to break. What does that tell you?¡± I thought about it for a few moments before gasping. ¡°They want it to break! Why would they want that? So many people would die¡­¡± ¡°Oh, that part¡¯s easy. It¡¯s the reason I left the damn council.¡± He leaned on his staff as he addressed me with a wan smile. ¡°They¡¯ve been corrupt for generations, taking bribes and stuffing their pockets with gold for the better part of two centuries.¡± ¡°Shit.¡± Chapter 17 - Ylsa is Scary! ¡°That still doesn¡¯t explain why they¡¯d want the Dungeon to break though¡­¡± I rubbed the bridge of my nose. ¡°How do they profit from that happening?¡± ¡°It could be any one of a thousand things. They could own stakes in a potential new mine that hasn¡¯t been tapped yet, and this mine getting destroyed would force the king to approve its opening. I know all of them own plenty of rental properties in Grenwall, a Dungeon Break would force the people living around here into those rentals.¡± ¡°I¡¯d bet it¡¯s a combination of a few things, but the bottom line is that they don¡¯t want us to succeed. Do you know what that means?¡± He tapped the side of his head as I shook my own cranium. ¡°It means I want to succeed even more now than I did before.¡± Raiju and Ylsa, who looked much less embarrassed, wandered over to join us. My bonded companion looked up at me with narrowed eyes. ¡°Are all manlings, besides you of course, stupid?¡± I blinked a few times before responding. ¡°I mean, they can be. So can I, and I don¡¯t hide that fact.¡± I shrugged. ¡°No matter how high someone¡¯s [Wits] stat is, they can still have dense moments.¡± I frowned as I leaned in close to her and whispered. ¡°What¡¯s this about?¡± ¡°Ylsa doesn¡¯t like it when manlings stare at her. It makes her feel like I do when my fur has a lot of dirt in it.¡± She shivered involuntarily. ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to ever have puppies because she likes manling-vixens more than manling-toms and manling-toms don¡¯t seem to respect that.¡± Got it. Ylsa is interested in women, not men. If I remember right, her culture is very family focused, so that might be why she¡¯s out here in the foothills. I nodded to Raiju before looking up at the blushing Ylsa. ¡°I can¡¯t say I blame you, I much prefer vixens to toms just like you. However, I think I prefer when the vixen I might be interested in prefers toms, or toms and vixens.¡± I winked and Ylsa nearly collapsed in relief. I hurried to her side to support her and she waved me off. ¡°I¡¯m so glad you understand, Storm-Blessed.¡± Her voice shook. ¡°Part of my duty if I were to ever encounter a servant of the forgotten goddess in my travels,¡± she gulped, ¡°was to tie them back to our people by blood at all costs.¡± ¡°You have nothing to worry about with me on that front.¡± I shrugged. ¡°My goddess wants you by my side, and I think you¡¯ll be a better wing woman the way you are than if you were interested in toms.¡± Jaegan¡¯s cackle stopped me before I could continue. ¡°Boy, if you¡¯re blooded at this point, I¡¯ll eat my beloved staff.¡± He waited, as if I¡¯d give him some kind of reaction, and I think I disappointed him. ¡°Can¡¯t say I am, though I¡¯ve never met someone who felt¡­ right?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I had a few flirtations with young women on vacation, but I¡¯ve never pursued anything more than a chaste kiss on the cheek from them. I think I¡¯m waiting for someone to sweep me off my feet. You know?¡± I looked at him and Ylsa to gauge their reactions. Ylsa nodded knowingly while Jaegan just shook his head. ¡°Ah the blessing of youth, wasted on the young!¡±¡± He chortled. ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s time for us to eat and then get to bed.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± I focused on the remaining [Sylphs] and asked them to continue their previous observation patterns after pouring a bit more Mana in to replace their lost numbers. ¡°The elemental detection system is back up, we should be good to enjoy dinner and get some rest.¡± *** The following morning, we left at first light and flew the rest of the way to the mine in just a few hours, arriving well before lunch. As we did, I reviewed the notifications that¡¯d popped up during the battle with the assassins after willing the System to condense them into groups. [Summon Elemental is ready to Evolve. Please choose one of the following for it to evolve into: Skills Summon Grand Elemental Summon Elemental Swarm Summon Elemental Behemoth Unique Skills Elemental Pactlord] [You¡¯ve acquired new Skills with Skill Dominance: Shearing Gale Arcane Cannon (Acquired from Evolved Skill Arcane Battery)] [Storm Knuckles Unique Skill acquired with Skill Dominance Storm Knuckles cannot be slotted until a higher Skill Mastery is reached.] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 27%] Looks like I still can¡¯t slot [Unique Skills], but I can¡¯t say I¡¯m surprised by that. It looks like [Skill Dominance]¡¯s growth has slowed down. I¡¯m only getting half a percent per regular [Skill] and one percent with [Unique Skills]. It¡¯s surprising to see [Summon Elemental] ready to evolve already, but I guessI did copy it from an upscale version of a [Skill Scroll] and Mom¡¯s a master of the [Skill] already, so it kind of makes sense, but for it to evolve into a [Unique Skill]? That was unexpected. For most of the flight, I hemmed and hawed about what to evolve [Summon Elemental] into but, in the end, I couldn¡¯t turn down those two words, [Unique Skill], and had to pull the trigger on [Elemental Pactlord]. The moment I made my decision, my vision went black and I felt Dominus¡¯ presence within me. It felt warm, like a mother¡¯s touch on a cold night when she pulls your blanket up to tuck you in. ¡°I don¡¯t have long, but I wanted you to know you¡¯ve made me proud. Most who summon elementals treat them as disposable tools to dump Mana into, but you showed those you summoned respect. Always remember, a proper Suzerain serves his subjects as much or more than they serve him.¡± This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it As my vision returned to normal, her voice left me feeling warmer than I had since leaving home. I made Dominus proud. I¡¯m on the right path. Ahead, the mountains grew larger and I knew I only had another minute or so to look at my new [Unique Skill] before we landed. [Elemental Pactlord is a Unique Skill earned by impressing one or more Elemental Monarchs. In your case, you¡¯ve impressed all four primary Elemental Monarchs. Elemental Pactlord has two modes and the passive is always online. Elementals will never attack you or those bonded to you or who have sworn fealty to you, even those controlled by enemy casters. In addition, wild elementals will gather around to serve you if they are within your [Divine] / 100 miles. The active portion of Elemental Pactlord allows the user to summon any variety of elemental they could possibly want from the standard four types, to the simple mixes of steam, mud, mist, lava, lightning, and sand, to the esoteric annihilation, the sturdy metal, or the bright radiant, etc. This function is nearly the same as Summon Elemental, but the Mana cost is halved and there are now far more options.] Despite myself, I whistled. ¡°Damn, now that¡¯s a [Unique Skill].¡± I rubbed Raiju¡¯s ears as she started to spiral down toward the scar in the foothill Verdant called a gold mine. ¡°Ready for some fun?¡± ¡°More time inside, away from the wind and sun?¡± She laid her ears back to cover my hand. ¡°No, but for you I¡¯ll go.¡± She bumped my hand to encourage me to keep petting her. ¡°Can¡¯t say I¡¯ve ever been in a mine, but I¡¯m kind of excited to dive in. It feels like I¡¯m getting closer to my dwarven heritage.¡± I really dug in to rub Raiju¡¯s shoulders, making her shiver with pleasure. ¡°Dad didn¡¯t really lean on it, so I¡¯m kind of flying blind when it comes to that part of myself.¡± When we got closer to the mine¡¯s entrance, it became obvious that something was wrong with it. Despite numerous buildings outside the entrance, we didn¡¯t see a single person walking around. That¡¯s strange, if something came through and wiped out the miners, the buildings should be trashed as well, but they all look fine. I had Raiju let me off near the largest building near the mine and, after putting away the [Cloud Carpet] I walked in to look around with Jaegan at my heels. Ylsa and Raiju decided with a shared look to stay outside to guard us, which didn¡¯t really surprise me. Both of them were more at home in the mountains than they were inside buildings. It soon became clear that the building we¡¯d entered was supposed to be an office. A number of desks stood in the entrance chamber, but they stood empty, with only a few scattered pieces of paper to show anyone had ever been there. ¡°People leaving in a panic don¡¯t leave mostly clean offices, do they?¡± I frowned as I turned to look at Jaegan, who had a similar expression. He shook his head. ¡°You¡¯d be right there, boyo. Something here stinks of bureaucracy!¡± He stomped his foot before charging into the door at the back of the room with a board above it labeled Overseer. I followed him in and, while he rummaged through the large desk at the back of the room, I checked the smaller desk in the corner opposite the doorway we¡¯d entered through. I hit paydirt right away as I pulled open the single drawer in the top of the desk to reveal a letter with a broken seal. While Jaegan swore up a storm as he searched the overseer¡¯s desk, I pulled on some gloves, just in case, and slowly picked up the letter before opening it. Reginald, You and your workers are to report to a new mine located at the star on the enclosed map immediately. Get the new iron mine up and working within a fortnight or leave Verdant, I don¡¯t care. This is your last chance, if you fuck this up, I won¡¯t be able to protect you anymore, nephew or not. Councilman Robert Rubble To my disappointment, the map wasn¡¯t with the letter, but I hoped it¡¯d be enough to at least point a finger at the council for the king to look at. I looked over the letter a couple more times before tossing it on the wide desk Jaegan was still rummaging through. ¡°Found a letter from Councilman Robert Rubble, if you¡¯d like to read it.¡± He jerked his head up so fast he slammed it on the bottom of the desk with a large thumping sound. ¡°Oww!¡± He howled with pain as he stood up with his head in his hands. ¡°What does it say? I can barely see straight.¡± ¡°Rubble¡¯s nephew, Reginald, is apparently some kind of fuckup and he was put in charge here. He and his crew were sent to some other mine site two months ago.¡± I frowned. ¡°Thing is, it¡¯s an iron mine, not a gold mine. I know mining is kind of universal, but aren¡¯t gold and iron vastly different in value as well as gathering methods?¡± I may not have grown up among dwarves, but I did at least a little bit of research into the topic of mining as a kid. Gold mines had large machines to tumble rocks with water to gather gold while iron mines were more traditional, pickaxes on stone in search of a nugget of metal. They couldn¡¯t have been more different while still being considered mining. ¡°You¡¯re right. Something here stinks.¡± Jaegen whimpered. ¡°And it¡¯s not just my sense of depth perception. The council had this place abandoned.¡± He held his head. ¡°Take one more look through Reginald¡¯s desk and see if I missed anything while I go sit outside and nurse the bump on my head.¡± ¡°Gotcha, will do.¡± I smiled as the old man hobbled out the front door with his hands up to his noggin. I spent the next twenty minutes going through every desk and chest in the building, but found only a handful of coppers and a pair of ratty grey socks I left behind. Defeated, I wandered out to find Jaegan being berated by Ylsa. ¡°...and that¡¯s why you¡¯re always getting injured! You¡¯re careless!¡± She sounded pissed. I wandered out and she flashed up to look at me and my skin went cool before her face went placid. She bowed to me. ¡°Forgive me. I was merely admonishing our companion for his lack of care regarding his own welfare.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t let me stop you, I¡¯m going to check the other buildings out.¡± I saluted her, earning me one in return, before moving to the second of five buildings around the mine¡¯s entrance. Behind me, I heard Ylsa start to wind up again to tear Jaegan a new one. Old man really fucked up now. Ylsa¡¯s not going to let him go on this one, is she? Her class may be [Mountain Tempest], but if someone told me it was [Grief Warrior] I¡¯d believe them. The next four buildings provided even less help, with all four picked clean of anything of interest. When I eventually left the last building, I found Jaegan sitting with his head between his knees while Ylsa glared at him. ¡°Enough¡¯s enough. Ylsa, cut Jaegan some slack. He hates the damn council, so he got a bit excited when I said one of those bastards¡¯ family members ran this place.¡± I shot her a moderate glare. ¡°I¡¯d have done the same thing he did if someone was talking about my grandfather behind my back.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not quite the same thing,¡± Jaegan groaned as he sat up, ¡°but I appreciate the thought.¡± He slowly levered himself up to his feet where he swayed before finding his balance a few moments later. ¡°That¡¯s it. There¡¯s nothing else to do.¡± I shot him a confused look. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°We have to go into the mine and close the Dungeon.¡± He looked at me with a shrug. ¡°If we do, we get paid and I really like getting paid. Especially when my payment is freedom.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t argue with that logic.¡± I looked around at Ylsa and Raiju. ¡°Are you guys ready to dive into the mine and then the Dungeon?¡± They both nodded and I looked back to Jaegan with an expectant look. ¡°Well? How are we going to find the entrance to said Dungeon?¡± With a flourish, Jaegan produced a large folded piece of canvas. ¡°I found a map in that desk!¡± I looked out at the abandoned buildings and sighed. ¡°It¡¯s late, but you¡¯re right. We can just camp in the mine before the Dungeon entrance if we need to.¡± I stood up with a smile. ¡°Time to go Dungeon hunting.¡± Chapter 18 - Miner Annoyance Entering the mine was nothing like what I¡¯d learned about in books. Where I¡¯d expected support beams every four feet or so, sometimes they were more than a dozen feet apart and even I knew that was wrong. ¡°How did this thing not fall down?¡± I gestured to the evidence before me. ¡°This place is a damn death trap!¡± Jaegan nodded. ¡°That¡¯d be the council cutting corners. For them, replacing a few workers is infinitely easier than spending the money to set this place up right would have cost.¡± He spat on the wall. ¡°It¡¯s a damn shame, but there¡¯s nothing we can do. We have to keep moving.¡± We did just that, moving through the mine with the map Jaegan found. After a few wrong turns and three hours of walking, I noticed Ylsa and Jaegan¡¯s eyes drooping. We¡¯d been moving a long time and they were obviously exhausted. As soon as we can see the Dungeon entrance, we¡¯ll make camp. A few minutes, and a mine shaft elevator ride later, we stood in a tunnel in front of the Dungeon entrance. Before they could object, I whipped out my cooking supplies and started to prepare dinner. ¡°Dinner should be ready in half an hour.¡± I smiled. ¡°Feel free to nap for twenty minutes while I get it ready, OK?¡± For a second, it looked like Ylsa was going to argue before she sighed and nodded her assent. Less than a minute later, the pair of them fell asleep with alternating snores. Raiju nodded to me before padding down the tunnel to stand guard while I cooked and our companions slept. Left alone for the first time in a while, my mind started to wander. The next time I actually sleep, there¡¯s a chance I¡¯ll level up. I should really spend some time figuring out where my new stats should go, but that can wait until we get through the Dungeon. Mom and Dad told me how they usually go, but this¡¯ll be my first time so who knows how it¡¯ll actually end up. Glancing at my sleeping companions, I used the small winch to raise the stew pot up. I smiled. ¡°Sleep tight. This stew¡¯ll be even better in the morning.¡± I whistled as quietly as I could and Raiju came back to join me. ¡°Feel free to sleep, I¡¯m just going to meditate for a few hours. Alright?¡± Her chest rumbled as she laid down with her head across my knees, pointed away from the Dungeon Portal. ¡°Good night, Artie.¡± *** The following morning after breakfast the four of us all checked our gear as we prepared to enter the Dungeon. Ylsa didn¡¯t have much except for her enormous double bladed ax that I had still yet to see her swing, based on its description it was better she wasn¡¯t always using it. [Bloodsplitter - Rare Durability - 179/200 Description - Crafted by the Stonesplitter clan, this ax allows the user to use the Primal Rage Skill even if they don¡¯t possess it. If they do, it instead grants the use of the evolved form of Primal Rage, Primordial Fury.] Jaegan didn¡¯t have much to prepare, merely pulling a few amulets and rings from some storage device to put them on. He patted a new belt buckle shaped like a pair of hands shaking before walking over to Ylsa and putting out his hand. ¡°Put ¡®er there!¡± He chuckled to himself before turning to look at me. ¡°My [Bad Deal] belt buckle sends half the damage I¡¯d take,¡± Ylsa shook his hand quickly, ¡°to the last person I shook the hand of.¡± He nodded to Ylsa, who nodded back before moving to stand with Raiju in front of the portal. ¡°It only lasts a few hours, and the effect only works on Dungeon monsters, so it isn¡¯t quite as utilitarian as it sounds. Still, it¡¯s kept me alive a number of times I should¡¯ve croaked.¡± ¡°Sounds useful.¡± It really did, with that, he was twice as hardy as he should have been, in a Dungeon that meant he could fight longer and potentially avoid death. ¡°Where¡¯d you get it?¡± The old man shook his head sadly. ¡°A Dungeon I lost a few friends in. I can¡¯t recommend going, plus it¡¯s a few countries away.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± The [Mage] went over to stand with Ylsa and Raiju, leaving me the last one to get himself ready. I checked my daggers, potions, and alchemical grenades and found them all in their proper locations. Next, I pulled up my [Dominated Skills] to check after my preparations from the night before. Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 2/6 Photosynthesis Haste Healing Light Psyknife] [Air Step] is useful out in the open air, but I¡¯m glad I unslotted it for today. I¡¯ll leave its slot open, just in case, but I think I¡¯ll be better served with something else indoors. I wasn¡¯t able to pick anything else out last night, so I think I¡¯ll just go in with these four for now. Keeping options open is always good. Right? Nodding to myself, I sucked the rest of the camping supplies into my ring before moving to stand near the Dungeon Portal. Jaegan looked the three of us over with a small grin. ¡°First Dungeon?¡± Raiju and I nodded, but Ylsa shook her head. ¡°My clan requires young adults to clear the level fifteen Dungeon by our home in order to be declared a full adult.¡± She smiled for a moment before casting her gaze down. ¡°I cleared it at twelve winters, the second fastest in clan history, only beaten by my mother at eleven winters.¡± ¡°Good to know,¡± Jaegan rubbed his chin as he looked at Raiju and I. ¡°Here¡¯s what to expect.¡± I started to interject, but he cut me off with a look. ¡°I know your parents probably told you how their Dungeon crawls went, but we¡¯re not the Reapers, we¡¯re a couple of convicts and an adventuring prince with his dog. Things here are going to be different.¡± I nodded and he started using his staff to draw in the dirt between us. He drew a big ¡®X¡¯ at one end of a box. ¡°In fights, Ylsa is going to be our tank. She¡¯ll soak the hits and draw aggro off of the pair of us. That means she¡¯s going to get hit a lot, but [Storm Drain] should keep her HP topped up as long as she can get into melee. It heals her for however much lightning damage she deals as long as she¡¯s within ten feet of the target.¡± He drew a small triangle in the middle of the box. ¡°I¡¯m a pure DPS [Mage]. Some adventurers might say controllers are more versatile, but when steel meets flesh, everyone is happy to see the monsters dying instead of getting tied up or bogged down. I¡¯m in the middle because I¡¯m the squishiest of the four of us, even with my [Mystic Armor].¡± He looked at me with a smile. ¡°I¡¯d recommend casting [Arcane Armor] now, there¡¯s no way your mother didn¡¯t teach it to you and it¡¯ll serve you well if you remember to cast it before going into a Dungeon. It lasts all day, so you should always have it on.¡± I hurried to make that happen, having forgotten to do that when I got up from my trance that day. He shook his head for a second before moving back to his diagram in the dirt and marked two circles to either side of his triangle. ¡°Arthur, you and Raiju are our backup DPS and off-tank respectively. Your job is to back up Ylsa and I if we get into any situations we can¡¯t handle, trust me, you¡¯ll know if that happens. Otherwise?¡± He grinned. ¡°Kill as many monsters not engaged with Ylsa that you can.¡± He straightened up and cracked his back after drawing in the dirt. ¡°Any questions?¡± I shook my head. ¡°None here regarding combat. Raiju?¡± ¡°Go in, defend the pack, kill monsters.¡± Raiju nodded. ¡°Seems easy enough.¡± ¡°Storm-Runner.¡± Ylsa spoke gently. ¡°Please refrain from protecting me unless I call for it. My passive [Skills] increase my damage the more injured I am.¡± The white wolf cocked her head for a moment before nodding. ¡°OK, but I just got a new pack, I¡¯m not going to let one of its members die just to increase your damage output.¡± ¡°That is more than I could rightly ask for.¡± Ylsa bowed at the waist. ¡°Thank you, Storm-Runner.¡± Jaegan did a little jig. ¡°That¡¯s it. Are we ready to go?¡± He started to move toward the entrance before frowning at the look on my face. He stopped mid dance. ¡°What?¡± ¡°What about when we aren¡¯t fighting? Don¡¯t you think we should have a party order for that?¡± Dad trained me to be a Dungeon diver. I¡¯ve heard all of this before, but Jaegan seems to be forgetting the most important part, if Dad was to be believed. ¡°Bah, Ylsa can tank anything the traps might do for a Dungeon this weak.¡± The old man scoffed and I glared at him. ¡°What, did you have something else in mind?¡± ¡°In fact I did. My father, the man you know as Shrike, trained me to be a Dungeon diver and he always stressed not underestimating the non-combat methods they use to protect themselves.¡± I shrugged and raised my hands up with my fingers splayed. ¡°Not all traps hit just the person in front, and while we are a bit over-leveled for this Dungeon, or at least you two are.¡± I glared at Jaegan. ¡°I¡¯d rather put my [Trap Finding] and [Trap Disarming] to good use, seeing as they¡¯re both over ninety percent mastered.¡± ¡°Over ninety percent mastered and you¡¯ve had a Class for less than a year?¡± His eyes went wide. ¡°What kind of hellish training did your family put you through?¡± ¡°Nothing special, it¡¯s just the Ironwind Clan¡¯s basic training course.¡± I winced and rubbed a deep scar on my right shoulder from a blade trap I¡¯d missed in training. ¡°That last set of doors and traps still gives me nightmares, but I got through the training a few years ago.¡± The [Mage] threw up his hands. ¡°You know what? I¡¯m going to defer to you on that. I¡¯ll direct us in combat, while you handle out of combat. Deal?¡± He cocked an eyebrow as he threw out a hand for me to shake, which I grinned as I took. ¡°Works for me.¡± I stepped up to the front of the line before turning back to look at the group. ¡°Raiju, you¡¯re in the rear. Jaegan, you¡¯re just in front of her.¡± I petted Raiju¡¯s head. ¡°Raiju? You¡¯re in charge of sniffing out anything I might miss with my paltry senses. If anything smells different or you hear a strange sound, please tell me.¡± For a second, it looked like Jaegan was going to object to Ylsa¡¯s placement, but a glare from her set him straight. ¡°Once more unto the breach!¡± I charged into the glowing portal with a huge grin on my face as the world slipped away into a bright blue void. Chapter 19 - Goblins Everywhere When the blue void faded, it revealed a white square of tiles around ten feet across with my party standing upon it. It was ringed in gold amid a spacious stone cavern that couldn¡¯t have been less than two hundred feet across in both directions. Stalactites hung from a ceiling that stretched out over fifty feet above, but the most interesting thing to me was the huge pile of gold ore a dozen feet from the gold ringed tiles. Part of me demanded that I seize the gold before me, but my more intellectual side stopped me before I could leave the white tile. I breathed heavily. ¡°Small landing zone for this Dungeon. Eh, Jaegan?¡± ¡°Aye, you¡¯re right there.¡± He raised his staff and light blue floating balls of light spread out all around the cavern we were in. When I looked at him with raised eyebrows, he snorted. ¡°You could see just fine, couldn¡¯t you?¡± Before I could reply, Raiju butted in. ¡°Yes, he could. As could Ylsa and I. Only your paltry human senses were failing you.¡± She sniffed deeply before snorting out a few times. ¡°Ugh, I smell something putrid behind that pile of shiny rocks as well as up by those spiky rocks on the ceiling.¡± I debated admonishing her, but gave up. She¡¯s not used to living with people, it¡¯ll take time for her to pick up social niceties and now isn¡¯t the time to spend explaining those things to her. Jaegan seemed to agree despite his frown. ¡°It¡¯s unusual for a Dungeon to drop a party in somewhere like this. Unless¡­¡± He did a one-eighty before flipping back to look at me with wild eyes. ¡°The Dungeon entrance isn¡¯t accessible. Do you know what that means?¡± I took a beat before realization dawned upon me. ¡°The Dungeon is about to break and this is the force that was going to lead the charge out into the world!¡± ¡°No doubt about it.¡± Jaegan sighed. ¡°Our Dungeon crawl just got a bit spicier. We¡¯ll have to play defense before we can go and raid this place for its riches.¡± Ylsa cracked her knuckles before nodding. ¡°Understood.¡± For a second, I tried to summon a [Psyknife] before remembering landing zones prevented [Skills] from being activated on them. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get to it then. Jaegan, we¡¯re all yours.¡± ¡°Right you are.¡± The old [Mage] cackled. ¡°Raiju, you¡¯re in charge of taking care of the monsters up by the stalactites, alright?¡± ¡°The pointy rocks? Got it.¡± Raiju allowed herself to grow to her full size, nearly shoving Jaegan out of the landing zone before he figured out he had to move. ¡°Yup, pointy rock monsters for you.¡± He almost seemed to be in some kind of combat related fugue state. ¡°Ylsa, you¡¯re the tank, when I say so, get out there and piss some monsters off.¡± He turned to me. ¡°Can you make a few elementals quickly to watch our backs? There are too many monsters in here for just Ylsa and Raiju to deal with tanking.¡± ¡°I think so, but let me check something first.¡± I closed my eyes and they flashed open to lock on the pile of golden ore. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the pile of ore, it¡¯s actually a huge [Aurimental], better known as a [Gold Elemental].¡± ¡°Shit!¡± Jaegan ran his fingers through his wild hair as his staff hung in his armpit, nearly smashing into both me and Raiju in the process. He stopped suddenly. ¡°Why shouldn¡¯t I worry about a huge [Gold Elemental]? They¡¯re damn near immune to [Spells], unless you intend on fighting it with your pigstickers?¡± ¡°My daggers have nothing to do with this,¡± I glared at him, ¡°but my [Elemental Pactlord] does. It won¡¯t be able to attack me or anyone I¡¯m in charge of.¡± ¡°What are you implying?¡± Jaegan leaned on his staff for support. ¡°Did your [Summon Elemental] evolve?¡± He started feverishly picking at his bare chin, still looking for a beard that didn¡¯t exist. ¡°If I¡¯m to be in charge of combat scenarios, I need to know what I¡¯m working with!¡± ¡°It¡¯s new!¡± I started to admonish him before taking a deep breath. ¡°Sorry about that. It¡¯s a unique variant of the evolution. It lets me summon basically any kind of elemental I want for half the Mana, plus wild elementals will just willingly join my side because their Elemental Monarchs want them to.¡± He glared at me darkly. ¡°We¡¯ll be discussing that more in the future, but for now? Get ready to call backup if we need it.¡± His eyes flitted to the [Aurimental]. ¡°Big shiny here should be good to watch our back if your new [Skill] is all it¡¯s cracked up to be.¡± It¡¯s a [Unique Skill], but I don¡¯t think now¡¯s the time to correct him. Maybe I should just try and slip it into a conversation at some point? Nah, he¡¯d just get mad again. I¡¯ll tell him when we get out of here. Ylsa looked at both of us anxiously. ¡°Am I good to go out there and punch something?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Jaegan and I both shouted. He glared at me for a moment before I raised my hands in apology. He continued. ¡°Leave the gold pile alone, take out the things hiding behind it.¡± Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°Can do.¡± She grinned before stepping out and unleashing a ferocious roar as she slammed her knuckles together. ¡°[Primordial Fury]!¡± Her knuckles started glowing with blue and silver energy. In addition, wind started whipping around her with shards of ice in it as bolts of lightning started dancing across her massive body. She looked like the embodiment of a raging tempest in that moment. She bent down like a sprinter before launching herself bodily over the [Aurimental] and landing with a huge shockwave. ¡°[Thunder Stomp]!¡± She screamed as a dozen greyish green bodies flew out to the sides of the [Aurimental]. Not to be outdone, Raiju took off into the air above the battlefield with lightning dancing across her fur. As she approached the stalactites they started moving to reveal they were actually some sort of winged creature disguised as rock formations. Before she could get within reach, they hurled dozens of dark black spines from their spine covered backs. Undeterred, she hurled the lightning surrounding her toward the approaching projectiles. When the lightning was done, two of the dozen culprits were dead and Raiju appeared unwounded. I looked over to where Jaegan was standing to find him a foot outside the landing zone with his staff held up in front of him. ¡°[Arcane Gatling].¡± His staff started glowing as a circle of twenty bright blue spheres surrounded the head of it. He leveled it like a crossbow at a trio of [Goblin Warriors] who hadn¡¯t died from Ylsa¡¯s [Thunder Stomp] and breathed out steadily. ¡°You picked the wrong [Mage] to approach.¡± A moment later, ten of the orbs around the head of his staff glowed brightly before sending out searing lances of white light directly into their foreheads, sending them to the ground where they rested mere moments before dissolving into a couple of leather sacks. He turned to me and pointed at me with his non-staff wielding hand. ¡°You, get out there and mess up some [Goblins], this place is fucking crawling with them!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t have to tell me twice.¡± I muttered under my breach as I stepped out of the safety of the landing zone, the one place in a Dungeon that was truly safe. The second I did, the [Aurimental] rose up to its full twenty foot height and turned to look at me. It bowed and spoke in grating Terran. ¡°Please, command me Pactlord.¡± ¡°Kill the [Goblins] to the last and then come find me.¡± It nodded before exploding into a swarm of flying golden ore chunks to reveal hundreds of [Goblins], of all varieties, who had been hiding behind the massive elemental. It started sending dozens of those ore chunks into the field of unsuspecting [Goblins] and the results spoke for themselves. I felt as I absorbed part of the experience, one of a few hidden Stats I knew of from my training along with [Presence] and [Comeliness], each of the creatures once contained into my body. One less thing to worry about, when I befriend an elemental, I get part of the XP it earns, at least while I¡¯m¡­ I stopped mid thought as more XP hit me all at once. Hold on, the [Aurimental] hasn¡¯t attacked again yet and I haven¡¯t attacked at all. I looked to the side to see Jaegan mowing down dozens of [Goblin Archers] who had been hiding behind rocks near one of three exits to the chamber we were within. Dominus, you absolute maestro! I¡¯m getting XP from each of those who owe fealty to me, aren¡¯t I? I¡¯m willing to bet the reason I¡¯m not feeling the same from Raiju is that the bond already syncs our levels and XP, so it just feels natural for her. As I summoned a pair of [Psyknives] I pondered the possibilities. How many people can swear fealty to me at once? I¡¯ll have to figure that out, but for now I¡¯ll just enjoy the benefits. I threw the pair of psychic blades into two [Goblin Axewielders] who were approaching our circle of death from my side. ¡°It¡¯s time for me to get serious!¡± I growled to myself as I hurled my body into the oncoming mass of [Goblins]. ¡°[Rapid Strike].¡± I struck the largest greenskin in the chest three times before throwing myself beneath the group with a [Mana Slide], cutting all of the monsters along the way with my pair of purple blades. Of the thirty I hit in that move, more than ten died immediately and two more knocked their head into the ground hard enough to kill themselves to escape the mental anguish [Psyknives] delivered with a mere cut. I popped back up in front of the biggest [Goblin] I¡¯d ever seen and I couldn¡¯t resist checking its [Status]. [Goblin Warboss - Rank C Monster Level: 25 Vulnerabilities: Fire, Lightning Immunities: Poison] I can work with those vulnerabilities. I leapt up and kicked off the chest of the [Goblin Warboss], dodging its massive bone cleaver with a flip as I mentally slotted [Air Step]. Never should have un-slotted you, you¡¯re just too damn useful. Twenty feet up, I hurriedly summoned the [Spell Console] for [Elemental Pactlord] and cursed myself for not setting up a few presets for myself the night before. I ended up with a pair each of [Azers] and [Arcweavers], dwarf shaped [Fire Elementals] and elf shaped [Lightning Elementals] respectively, for a third of my Mana. ¡°Kill the boss and as many as you can before going home!¡± I yelled in Ignan. ¡°Any elemental stones they drop are yours as additional payment.¡± I knew they¡¯d respond well to my order, given their nature, but I did not expect how aggressive they¡¯d be when doing so. I watched as the pair of [Azers] blew out a knee each on the [Goblin Warboss] before the pair of [Arcweavers] slashed its throat with paired scimitars of pure lightning. A moment later they waded into the rest of the [Warboss]¡¯s forces like a scythe through ripe wheat. ¡°Well, that¡¯s handled.¡± I spun around and found Ylsa fighting a dozen feet in front of Jaegan, drawing aggro off him with well timed taunts as he mowed down foes in droves. I looked up to find Raiju still struggling to deal with the ceiling-bound enemies. She was bleeding from a black spike poking out from her left rear leg and I¡¯ll admit to seeing red for a moment. ¡°I¡¯m coming, Raiju!¡± Chapter 20 - Bats Hate Thunder, Who Knew? It turned out that all of the stalactites on the ceiling were actually human sized bat-like D-Ranked monsters called [Spiketail Bats]. Their wings were harder than steel and their tails produced dozens of pitch black spines they threw with deadly accuracy. Despite the rank disparity between Raiju and the bat monsters, she was only able to defend herself from so many angles and blood was leaking from wounds all over her body. Despite that, she seemed to be having a great time as the small [Thunderhead] behind her poured out bolts of lightning toward her foes. She kept barking at the monsters as they bounced off the shield generated by [Storm¡¯s Embrace] until it shattered in a crash of thunder that made the bat creatures scream. ¡°They¡¯re basically huge bats!¡± I yelled as I sprinted through the air toward Raiju. ¡°Lightning might work, but thunder should be even more effective!¡± Two of the bats unaffected by the latest thunderclap launched themselves off the roof of the cavern toward me like a pair of black arrows with their bladelike wings spread out wide. I knew my [Arcane Armor] paired with my actual studded leather should be more than enough to deflect a pair of level twenty monster attacks, but my parents hadn¡¯t raised an idiot. Dad always said it was better to dodge than deflect, so I did just that. A second before the pair of wings were about to slash through where my neck and torso were, I threw myself forward as I spun to look up at the pair. I stabbed my pair of purple psionic blades into their wings and dragged them through their flesh as they swept by. Despite my [Skill] not not leaving a physical wound, you wouldn¡¯t have been able to tell by the way they screamed before bursting into a pair of dark grey leather bags that tumbled toward the cavern floor below. Not one to let a good opportunity go to waste, I sprang up from another air platform to stand beside Raiju. With a quick application of [Essence Reading], I was able to tell that only two of her wounds were more than superficial, the spike through her leg and a slash on her other back leg. Trusting her to cover me, I crouched to make myself a smaller target as I tugged the spike from her leg. She howled in pain so loudly that it had the strange benefit of driving the [Spiketail Bats] back with their feet trying in vain to cover their massive ears. The second I had the spike out, I poured mana into [Healing Light] until the wound closed up. It took maybe ten seconds, if that, before I turned my attention to the second wound. It was already seeping green puss, making me hiss. ¡°These fucking things have some kind of disease or poison on their wings. If you have to choose between taking a spike or a wing slash, take the spike. OK?¡± I leaned close to her massive head as I pulled a mid-grade healing potion and put it up to her muzzle. ¡°Tip your head back, this should clear up the poison as well as your other wounds.¡± She snatched the bottle with her teeth and threw her head back to gulp down the liquid. ¡°Tasted like cherries!¡± She really was having a good time. ¡°Can I make a bigger [Thunderhead]? This one isn¡¯t big enough to do anything to monsters of this level besides piss them off.¡± I did some mental calculations regarding the structural integrity of the cavern before nodding. ¡°Drop down ten feet and keep it less than fifteen feet across, alright? Any bigger and you could collapse the ceiling on us.¡± ¡°Yay!¡± She howled happily as the roiling ball of thunder and lightning following her grew from five feet across to fifteen feet across in a matter of seconds. Meanwhile, she let herself fall ten feet down, which had a bonus of giving her a better view of the monsters she was fighting. She wiggled her butt. ¡°I¡¯m going to chase some of them. Can you go help Ylsa? She made me promise not to, but you don¡¯t have to listen to her.¡± Without waiting for an answer, she sprang forward with her [Sparkling Charge] ability, streaking toward a trio of bats who were still recovering from her latest howl. In the wake of her leaving, I took a moment to take in the state of the battle. The [Aurimental] was doing an admirable job of keeping two of the three entrances to the chamber we were in clear as it hurled and retrieved chunks of itself down those tunnels with satisfying crunching sounds. The same could be said for the [Azers] and [Arcweavers] I¡¯d left behind as I leapt into the sky, they were well on their way to clearing the mob that I¡¯d been working on and none of them seemed to be too injured. Jaegan was living his best life, raining pain with his [Arcane Gatling] with a huge smile on his face. As for Ylsa, she wasn¡¯t doing as well. Despite her tankiness, her [Storm Drain] only granted healing from fifty percent of the damage she dealt with lightning, not thunder, so only every other punch was healing her. It was a nice benefit, but I couldn¡¯t help but wonder why she wasn¡¯t using [Bloodsplitter]. With its help, she¡¯d likely have been able to carve her way through most of the [Goblins] without any help from Jaegen or me, for that matter. There has to be a story there. From what I read about [Storm Knuckles], it applies the thunder and lightning damage to any weapon she¡¯s holding, so why is she avoiding it? She¡¯s obviously not afraid of using the [Skill] it grants, so what gives? A spine flying by my ear so close as to give me windburn snapped me out of my analytical funk. Without looking, I whipped my [Psyknife] back the way it had come and heard a high pitch scream that went quiet moments later. I summoned another one before letting myself freefall toward where Ylsa and Jaegan stood, blocking the final remaining entrance to the cavern. Two more thrown blades and two more dead monsters later, I was astounded at how powerful [Psyknife] was as a [Skill] before realization dawned upon me. It¡¯s not supposed to be used by someone with Stats like mine. My [Wits] are likely double what even a level fifty assassin type has, so it¡¯s overperforming. It almost makes me wonder¡­ I shook my head. No, no combat Spells. It¡¯s too dangerous. A dozen feet off the ground I turned myself into a whirlwind of purple energy blades as I fully let loose, channeling [Rapid Strike] as I hurled dozens of [Psyknives] into the oncoming horde in the space of a few seconds. It may have been [Mana] intensive, but with my inflated stats from [Suzerain] I could afford to go a bit wild, at least for a little while. We fought like that for what felt like a day or so, with me acting as a quick response force for whoever needed either healing or a sudden burst of damage. However, when I checked the System, it was only six hours before the monsters stopped spawning. The four of us flopped down in a pile atop the landing zone where Jaegan and I both produced cushy furniture for us to sit on. To the side, one of my [Azers], the [Aurimental], and both [Arcweavers] stood, patiently waiting for me to address them. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. The second Ylsa sat down on the beat up couch Jaegan produced, she passed out cold and nothing I was willing to do was able to wake her up. Jaegan explained that it was the downside to the upgraded form of her normal [Primal Rage], [Primordial Fury]. It was able to last as long as she needed, unlike [Primal Rage], but she¡¯d then need to sleep as long as it was active or she¡¯d have some nasty debuffs that were tough to remove without a dedicated healer. The veteran dungeoneer sat in a beat up old armchair with his feet on the couch Ylsa was napping on. Despite his lax appearance, his eyes were locked on me with a strange fervor. ¡°So, when were you going to tell me about that new summoning [Unique Skill] of yours?¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t hiding it. It only evolved while we were flying in.¡± I curled up on a large plush leather club chair with Raiju. She was in her shrunk form asleep with her head on my legs. ¡°What do you want from me? I¡¯m new to this whole Dungeon diving thing, despite my training.¡± He didn¡¯t answer for a while and I almost thought I¡¯d gotten away without a lecture when he laid into me. ¡°What I want is transparency.¡± He clenched his fists around his staff. ¡°I¡¯ve lost more than a few good friends because the people in charge only felt the need to tell us the bare minimum for the task they sent us out on.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I¨C¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not,¡± the old mage sighed, ¡°but it could be. All I¡¯m asking is to be read in on your capabilities so I can make plans.¡± He waved a hand at the elementals to my right. ¡°Case in point, if I knew how potent your new [Skill] was, I¡¯d have had you create a few easily deployable sets of elementals for any situation. What was it called again?¡± ¡°[Elemental Pactlord].¡± I murmured. ¡°Plus, it¡¯s actually a [Unique Skill].¡± He threw up his hands, dropping his staff to land in a holster built into the side of the chair for that very reason. ¡°Exactly! I need to know what you can do, what all of us can do if I¡¯m being honest. Raiju and Ylsa told me what they could do last night around the campfire, but you were lost in your own head and didn¡¯t join in. Why are you so resistant to letting me help you?¡± Am I avoiding letting him help me? That doesn¡¯t exactly sound like me. I¡¯ve always had the help of anyone I needed in Wyrm¡¯s Rest¡­ oh, that¡¯s probably it. ¡°That¡¯s the problem.¡± I ran my fingers through Raiju¡¯s silky silver fur. ¡°I grew up with everything I could ever want. Want to learn magic? Mom¡¯s got it. Want to learn how to use a sword? Uncle Arlo to the rescue.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ve never had to do anything by myself in my entire life except pay attention and learn what people were trying to teach me and I got damn good at that.¡± ¡°Why do you sound so sad about that?¡± Jaegan looked at me with a curious expression. ¡°It sounds like the ideal childhood to me. Trust me, you wouldn¡¯t have wanted to grow up like I did.¡± With a loud sigh, I leaned back even farther in the chair as I locked eyes with Jaegan. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you where I grew up, but I can tell you I was forced to leave the morning after my System Day. It¡¯s tradition as well as law that I can¡¯t return for at least a year and even then I can only stay for a week before having to leave for at least a year.¡± I shook my head. ¡°I can¡¯t live in my hometown uninterrupted until I¡¯m twice as old as I am now, can you believe it?¡± ¡°I fail to see how this relates to what we were talking about.¡± He sounded irritated. ¡°It¡¯ll make sense, I promise.¡± I steeled myself. ¡°I¡¯ve never told anyone but my grandfather this, but I couldn¡¯t wait to leave home. I wanted to leave and make my mark on the world all on my own, but as soon as I reached civilization I found my parents¡¯ shadow reached me even in the boonies at the edge of Verdant. ¡°From there, I was forced to work for a king I¡¯m still not sure is good for his people in conjunction with a pair of people more powerful than I.¡± I snorted. ¡°There are probably only a dozen people in Verdant who are higher level than me and King Evergreen just so happened to have the pair of you locked up and ready to go when I arrived?¡± ¡°Arthur, you don¡¯t¨C¡± ¡°I don¡¯t?!¡± I roared, startling Raiju partially awake before I lowered my voice as I rubbed her head to calm her down. ¡°All I wanted was to go out and meet people my age, go on a few adventures, and figure out who I really am. My Class is amazing and I¡¯m excited to help Dominus out moving forward, but somehow I know she¡¯d be fine waiting for me to figure it out on my own. Now?¡± I let out a bark of laughter. ¡°Now I¡¯m just another cog in the wheel of a system I hate and I can¡¯t leave without screwing over two people who don¡¯t deserve it. You two are¨C¡± ¡°Stop talking and listen.¡± Jaegan¡¯s tone didn¡¯t brook any disagreement. ¡°The Weaver is a fickle bitch and now that I know about Dominus and what most of her children did, I think I understand why that is. Regardless, we have to work with the hands we¡¯re dealt. You were gifted with a tremendously blessed childhood of travel, training, and love. Most people would kill for what you had, me included, but the heart can be as fickle as fate and I respect what you¡¯re saying.¡± ¡°I¡¯m confused, what are you¨C¡± ¡°I¡¯m not done.¡± He glared at me. ¡°What you have to remember is that life is what happens when you¡¯re busy making other plans. Regardless of what you wanted? This is where you are, so make the fucking best of it.¡± I sat there in a daze for the better part of an hour as I considered everything we¡¯d discussed. In the end, I didn¡¯t quite agree with him, but knew his vision of reality was closer than my own. It might not have been perfect, but it was enough to snap me out of the funk I was in I opened my eyes to find my team asleep and snoring all around me. I looked over at the elementals waiting for orders and whispered to the smaller ones in Ignan. ¡°Can you please gather the loot from the monsters and drag it over so I can go through it all before everyone wakes up?¡± They nodded and quickly set to the task I¡¯d asked of them. I turned to the [Aurimental] with a small frown as I addressed it in Terran. ¡°Were you summoned, or is this mine and Dungeon your home?¡± ¡°I have lived in this ore vein since the world was new.¡± Its voice sounded like gold coins sliding over each other. ¡°I was pulled into this place when the Dungeon was interfered with.¡± ¡°Oh? How so?¡± I was intrigued. I hadn¡¯t expected the [Aurimental] would be a source of information. ¡°What was done and did you recognize who did it?¡± ¡°I am unable to distinguish manlings from one another, but I know they were taller than you and shorter than the one on the large furniture near you.¡± It bobbed the blob that passed for its head. ¡°They threw an orb made from compressed Mana into the Dungeon portal and it grew agitated a while later. A week after that, it sucked me inside and I¡¯ve been here ever since.¡± ¡°Thank you for the information, I¡¯m sure it¡¯ll prove to be helpful.¡± I bowed to the creature. ¡°I can send you back to your native plane if you¡¯d like. Given how long you¡¯ve been away from the elemental planes, it¡¯ll likely be Genovia, if that¡¯s good with you?¡± It bobbed its massive blob of a head. ¡°It would greatly please me if you could do that, Pactlord.¡± I pulled up my [Elemental Pactlord] screen and highlighted the [Aurimental]. A second later a button labeled ¡®Return to Genovia¡¯ appeared. I smiled and waved at the elemental as I pressed the button. ¡°See you soon.¡± I watched as it faded from the space in front of me to reveal the [Azer] and [Arcweavers] who¡¯d been waiting patiently behind the massive elemental. In their hands were strings of leather bags in a dozen different shades of green, grey, and black. I waved for them to approach and had them dump the strings of bags onto a table I summoned to my right. ¡°Thank you.¡± I nodded to them. ¡°Would you like to stay here, or go home? There will likely be more fighting if you stay.¡± The [Azer] knelt. ¡°Pactlord, I would like to return to my family forge.¡± ¡°We will stay.¡± The [Arcweavers] spoke in unison. ¡°We¡¯ve finally claimed our rightful place with the Pactlord.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure what you mean by that, but I¡¯m glad you¡¯re sticking around.¡± I waved to the [Azer] as I used the other hand to send him back through the system. ¡°Have a safe trip home.¡± Surrounded by piles of loot, my eyes gleamed and I rubbed my hands together. ¡°Let¡¯s see what we got.¡± Chapter 21 - So Many Coins! ¡°You know, I kind of wish Jaegan was awake to tell me if this is a lot or not.¡± I sat back on a camp chair as I surveyed our haul. Half a dozen leather bags of gold coins sat next to a much larger pile of bags of silver and copper coins while I tossed a smaller pouch full of platinum coins from hand to hand. For some reason, just holding them made me feel as happy as a dragon on top of its hoard. Besides the coinage, there were only a couple of noteworthy items among the lot of them and I looked over them with wide eyes as I considered what we might end up doing with them. There was a ring made entirely of dark red ruby, a pair of white leather gloves stitched with emeralds flush against the knuckles, and a small vial of scintillating rainbow liquid. [Ruby Heart - Rare Durability - 244/244 Description - Born in the depths of the earth, wearing the Ruby Heart feels like sitting in warm sunlight regardless of their environment. Wearers of the Ruby Heart can channel the force of light shining upon it to send out rays of crimson light with a pair of effects. Those rays can heal allies and hurt enemies alike. By expending a point of durability, the user can also summon a shield of crystalline ruby to deflect an incoming attack before shattering and sending the shards toward whoever attacked them in a storm of razor sharp ruby pieces.] [Gloves of the Emerald Breeze - Uncommon Charges per Day - 7/7 Description - Upon striking something with the Gloves of the Emerald Breeze, the wearer can expend a charge to unleash a blast of hurricane force wind in the direction of the initial blow. They can also expend a charge to allow them to deliver strikes of wind like punches and kicks ten feet away for a minute.] [Rainbow Elixir - Legendary Description - No one knows how these scintillating potions are created, but all agree that they are precious. The drinker of the Rainbow Elixir has the almost unheard of opportunity to change their Class. Drinking the liquid within puts the user into a coma for one week, during which they will have the opportunity to have their Class changed based on their Skills and personal inclinations.] The obvious winner is the [Rainbow Elixir], I¡¯ve never even heard of something like it and it¡¯s Legendary for Dominus¡¯ sake. Maybe Jaegan will want to wear the [Ruby Heart]? I can¡¯t see any rings on his fingers and it¡¯d be good to give him the ability to heal if I¡¯m out of it. It almost feels like the gloves were made for Ylsa, with her Class and her [Storm Knuckles] working together, I¡¯m willing to bet she¡¯ll love them. A couple hours later, Ylsa, Jaegan, and I sat around the table full of loot and I learned how out of touch I really was when it came to the cost of living out in the world. ¡°By my ancestors.¡± Ylsa¡¯s eyes went wide as I told them what I¡¯d counted of the coins. ¡°You¡¯re sure that count is accurate?¡± Jaegan narrowed his eyes at me. ¡°Did you count it twice?¡± ¡°I am part dwarf, you know.¡± I snorted. ¡°I take my coin very seriously so I counted it thrice. There are seventy-five platinum, twelve hundred gold, twenty-four thousand silver,¡± I paused and nodded over to my remaining summoned elementals, ¡°and, according to my [Arcweaver] friends, there are three hundred thousand copper.¡± The old spellcaster clutched his chest and started hyperventilating. ¡°By all the g¨C By Dominus, this place is a gold mine.¡± ¡°Inside one, actually.¡± I stuck out my tongue when he glared at me. ¡°So, from the way you¡¯re reacting, this is a lot of coin? I mean, I know it¡¯s a lot of coins, but I don¡¯t really have any idea how much wealth it represents.¡± ¡°Give me a baseline.¡± Jaegan took on the same tone my math tutor had when asking me an obvious question when I was a child. ¡°How many coins of one type does it take to make up one of a higher denomination?¡± ¡°One hundred.¡± I deadpanned. ¡°I grew up rich, I know that. My education was quite thorough, I¡¯m just lacking context for what a gold versus a silver might be able to purchase.¡± ¡°Ylsa, please tell Arthur how much you made last year as a level thirty adventurer.¡± Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. She straightened up on the couch and tore her gaze from the pile of loot to look at me. ¡°I took four days off in the entire year and made one hundred and forty-eight gold last year working Iron and Steel ranked quests.¡± ¡°Is that above or below average?¡± I had to clarify. ¡°Well above average, as those quests were nearly all monster exterminations. A normal adventurer of my level normally makes around sixty or seventy gold per year.¡± I guess that explains why Khor was so dismissive of my recommendation to replace his [Skills] with [Skill Scrolls]. He¡¯s not even Steel ranked, so he has to make less than that, even if his brother is the one making payroll. ¡°Okay.¡± I nodded before frowning. ¡°I know adventurers make more money than normal people. How much does your average farmer or shopkeeper make in a year?¡± Jaegan took over when Ylsa looked at him with wide eyes and a shake of her head. He sighed. ¡°It really depends on the area, but somewhere backwater like Grenwall? Maybe a dozen silvers?¡± He shrugged. ¡°Somewhere richer, like the better parts of Sunhome, people like that might make a gold a year, at the very most. Semi-skilled tradespeople might make a multiple of that, but it wouldn¡¯t be more than five or ten times, based entirely on how good they actually are.¡± ¡°You mean this,¡± my jaw hung open as I pointed at the pile of money, ¡°is worth more than¡­¡± ¡°Grenwall¡¯s entire yearly spending, yes.¡± Jaegan finished for me. ¡°Got it,¡± I nodded as I slumped back in my chair beside Raiju. I spun my spatial ring around on my finger as I stared at it. ¡°Mom, Dad, Grandpa, what were you guys thinking, giving me this much money?¡± ¡°I figured that might be the case, though I don¡¯t want to know how much they gave you, so please don¡¯t tell me.¡± Jaegan shook his head. ¡°So, besides the coin, what did we get? We can discuss coin after figuring out who gets what.¡± I hopped to my feet and walked over to the table, I half-lidded my eyes and did my best impression of a stage show I saw once in Sunhome. I picked up the ring and held it out on my palm. ¡°You see here we have a fantastic ruby ring. Better known as the [Ruby Heart], this lovely little gem can produce lances of damaging or healing light, as well as produce a life saving shield.¡± I did a little turn and swayed my tiny hips. ¡°Who would like to wear this treasure?¡± Ylsa suppressed a snicker, but Jaegan didn¡¯t find it nearly as funny. He groaned. ¡°Please, spare us the pageantry while we¡¯re in the Dungeon. What else did we find?¡± ¡°You¡¯re no fun.¡± I threw out my hip with my free hand propped on it. ¡°Fine, next is the [Gloves of the Emerald Breeze], they let the wearer punch or kick at range as well as push their targets back with blasts of wind. It only has seven charges, but they recharge each day.¡± I paused when I saw Ylsa¡¯s eyes light up. ¡°However, those don¡¯t hold a candle to the last thing we got.¡± I reached over, grabbed the vial of color shifting liquid, and held it out gingerly. ¡°This is¨C¡± ¡°[Rainbow Elixir], as I live and breathe. I thought it was a myth made up by fools who hated their Class.¡± Jaegan stared at the vial in my hands like it was the only thing that mattered. He snapped at me. ¡°Put it in your ring, right now. No one else can know we have it, or we¡¯ll have more than a council of asshole merchants and politicians to deal with.¡± I did as he asked, before staring hard at him. ¡°How did it spawn here? Shouldn¡¯t the cap for Dungeons of this level be Rare items?¡± I reached over and tossed the gloves to Ylsa as I waited for a response. ¡°Two words, Dungeon Break.¡± Jaegan tapped his staff on the ground. ¡°The closer to breaking it is, the better the loot inside a Dungeon will be. For it to have spawned that? This Dungeon was probably going to break in the next few hours, not days or weeks. We¡¯re very lucky to have gotten here when we did. The boss chamber will likely have similar, if not better, loot.¡± He laughed to himself. ¡°If that can be believed with the haul we¡¯ve already pulled in.¡± I tossed him the ring. ¡°Put this on and let¡¯s get going. I can already heal, so it makes more sense for you to have it. Do your best to keep the three of us healed up, alright?¡± He slipped on the ring with a sigh and a grumble. ¡°Not a damn healer, DPS is king.¡± I sucked all the bags of coins into my ring. ¡°I guess we can divvy up the coins when we finish this Dungeon, we¡¯re bound to get more.¡± I turned to Raiju. ¡°Pick a tunnel and I¡¯ll lead the way.¡± She hopped off the furniture and padded around the room at speed, only pausing briefly to sniff and listen at the three exits before running back to me. She pointed at each tunnel in turn. ¡°No monster smells down that one, but I heard the sound of metal on metal repeating every few seconds. The next one had some monster smells, but not a lot. The last one had tons of sounds, but it almost sounded like they were working on something with all the banging they were doing.¡± ¡°The third one it is. Monsters working on something can¡¯t be good for us.¡± I ruffled the fur around her ears. ¡°Good job, keep an ear and nose out for anything I might miss, but don¡¯t get ahead of me as we go, OK?¡± She barked happily and her tail started to wag as she brushed up against my side. ¡°Marching order has me in front to scout and look for traps, Raiju beside me to take advantage of her senses, Jaegan in the middle because he¡¯s squishy, though I¡¯ll have the [Arcweavers] flank you as long as they choose to stay around, and Ylsa in the back to stop us from getting jumped.¡± I looked at my companions as they all stood, ready to go. ¡°Any questions?¡± I sucked the furniture back into my ring. ¡°None here.¡± Ylsa flexed her fingers in her new gloves. ¡°We hunt!¡± Raiju beat the hell out of my leg with her wagging tail. ¡°I miss hunting, we should start soon.¡± ¡°We really have to discuss how your [Unique Skill] works, but I¡¯m ready.¡± Jaegan turned to the lightning elementals who didn¡¯t even look at him with their eyes locked on me. ¡°Nevermind. Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Whatever the Pactlord commands.¡± The more feminine [Arcweaver] said as they bowed. ¡°Keep us alive, but focus on Jaegan, you hear?¡± I poked a finger at them and him at the same time. ¡°Raiju has my back, I want you to have his.¡± They merely nodded once more before the more masculine one turned to watch Jaegan while the more feminine didn¡¯t move. ¡°It¡¯ll have to do.¡± I started toward the tunnel where the most noise was coming from. ¡°Let¡¯s do this thing.¡± Chapter 22 - Gotta Go Fast! Two miles of maze-like tunnel and half a dozen traps later, I poked my head around the corner before pulling it back quickly. I turned to my companions and motioned for them to step back. We retreated fifty feet or so before I started whispering. ¡°They¡¯ve got some kind of metal wall blocking off the tunnel, but from what I can see, they¡¯re working on something even bigger behind it.¡± I drew a quick sketch of the wall with a small hole at the bottom circled. ¡°Through here, I saw what looked like some form of wagon covered in metal armor and tubes poked out all along the sides.¡± Jaegan nodded sagely. ¡°[Goblin War-Wagon], it¡¯s something [Goblin Mechanists] can make if they¡¯re given long enough to develop, though that¡¯s usually a few years, not just a few months. They¡¯re hard as hell to destroy and can carry a score of goblins in addition to the [Goblin Mechanist], who has to drive the damn thing.¡± Ylsa and Raiju looked at me expectantly, so I took the reins. ¡°In that case, do you feel like living up to your title today?¡± The old man beamed. ¡°I thought you¡¯d never ask. Let me show you why they call me Wallbreaker in the guild.¡± From a ring he pulled a red leather coated sled with wheels on it before stepping onto it. He looked at Ylsa and nodded. ¡°You know what to do.¡± After she grunted, he closed his eyes and started chanting under his breath as he visibly channeled more Mana than I¡¯d ever seen him use, even when he¡¯d used [Arcane Battery] the day before. That went on for almost five minutes before his eyes flashed open. Ylsa sprang into action and smoothly rolled his leather coated platform out into the open. ¡°[Wallbreaker]!¡± The old man roared and a five foot beam of blue and green energy sprang from his extended hands toward the mismatched stone and metal wall the goblins had set up. In less than a second the beam sprang through the wall and, as Ylsa pushed the cart, it continued tearing through the wall and everything behind it as the [Mage] moved with his cart. By the time he came to rest against the wall, thirty feet from me, he looked exhausted. Sweat dripped from his brow as he panted for breath with his hands on his knees. Obviously used to his antics, Ylsa swiftly pulled him and his cart back around the corner where he pulled out a blue potion from his ring and drank it with a grimace. ¡°Cheap, but effective, potions. I¡¯ve got a guy if you want some.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Go check my work, lad. There might still be a few left, but I doubt it.¡± I gestured for the [Arcweavers] to stay with the tired [Mage] as I crept out around the corner under the cover of [Stealth]. The scene of destruction didn¡¯t leave a lot to the imagination. Gone was the mismatched wall and in its place was a smoothly bored out tunnel without a scrap in the path. In the chamber beyond, the [Goblin War-Wagon] was basically melted, with only the rearmost portion being spared from the sheer might of Jaegan¡¯s [Wallbreaker], which I suspected was an evolved [Skill] based on [Magic Missile] of all things, but I was pretty sure I was right. They¡¯d just felt similar and I hadn¡¯t had [Skill Dominance] activate, so I knew the [Skill] it came from and I didn¡¯t know many Spells with that kind of effect. I pointed down the tunnel toward the ruined workshop. ¡°Raiju, Ylsa, get in there and take out any survivors. I¡¯ll look for anything they don¡¯t want us to find.¡± ¡°Hunting!¡± ¡°Of course, milord.¡± The pair of women charged into the chamber with abandon, tearing into the few remaining goblins as I ducked in past the wall and to the right. If I were a craftsman, and I kind of was, I knew I wouldn¡¯t have all my gear in the middle of the room, it was inefficient to have it all in the way all the time. After less than a minute of searching I hit paydirt. I found a chunk of stone with a hinge at the bottom and quickly hurried to open it after verifying there were no traps. When I pulled it open, I was surprised, if not saddened to find a tiny goblin inside, but his Status said a hell of a lot more about him than his size did. [Goblin Mastermind - Rank B Monster Level: 35 Vulnerabilities: Fire, Lightning Immunities: Poison, Psychic] I let my psychic knife fade into nothing as I tried to stab the tiny bastard with my steel off hand blade as he writhed out of my reach and down between my legs. I heard him drop something and my instincts kicked in as I dove for cover behind a huge stalagmite. It turned out to not be a second too soon as a loud roar went off behind me as the rock feature between us shook with the impact of the explosive the tiny asshole had left behind. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Out in the room and growled when I saw the tiny asshole darting in and out between Ylsa¡¯s legs, cutting the insides of her thighs with a small green blade as it went. Not having expected a fight, Ylsa hadn¡¯t triggered [Primal Rage] or [Primordial Fury] and I could tell she was regretting it as the poison coursed through her veins, something her rage abilities would have at least slowed down. ¡°It¡¯s a [Goblin Mastermind]! It¡¯s immune to my [Psy Knives]!¡± I drew my second blade and fell into a low stance as I tracked the monster¡¯s path through the room. It was like a hummingbird, flitting all over the room as Raiju tried in vain to catch it. Despite her speed in a straight line, even with what I had to assume was my lower [Agility], I had been able to dodge her out in the open. Inside a closed space like this? The little bastard was as good as untouchable. There has to be something I can do to catch it, it may be a Rank B monster, but my parents told me stories of much more difficult foes. Do I have a [Skill] that can help? I wracked my brain before shaking my head as if to dislodge something within. No, I won¡¯t use that. I¡¯ll figure something else out. It can¡¯t be fast enough for me to need to resort to magic, it just can¡¯t. Despite initially being excited to have something small to chase that she wasn¡¯t immediately able to catch and eliminate, the Mastermind was beginning to piss her off as it caught her with another green dripping blade before slipping into a hole in the rock as Raiju¡¯s jaws snapped where it was moments before. ¡°Tiny thing, I¡¯m going to eat you!¡± She howled as lightning seared her wounds shut, burning out the poison in the process. She panted as she looked at me with wide eyes. ¡°Artie, kill it. It keeps hurting me and I can¡¯t catch it.¡± The whimper settled it for me. It was time for me to go on the hunt. I slid behind the ruined remains of the second [Goblin War-Wagon] and dropped back into [Stealth]. From there, I observed the [Goblin Mastermind]¡¯s actions for the better part of a minute before finding the opening I needed. Every third pass it dives into that hatch on the east wall before reappearing elsewhere a few moments later. Raiju¡¯s [Agility] is monstrous and she can¡¯t keep up, something has to be happening here. It must have something in there to boost its speed, or there¡¯s no way it could be this fast. The next time it darted into the hatch, I seized the chance and dove after it, taking advantage of my small frame and high [Agility] to easily slide in behind it. I slid down a stone ramp that ended in a circular chamber with a dozen entrances, but the most interesting thing to me was a black iron archway stretching across the middle of the room. It glowed with a lime green light and as I passed underneath it I felt time slow down around me. I think It¡¯s some kind of acceleration buff, but I might as well be sure. [Current Status Conditions: Elemental Pactlord Vroom] It¡¯s got to be [Vroom] whatever that means. Despite trying a few times, I wasn¡¯t able to get the System to give me a description. Stingy thing, but I guess I know enough about it to take advantage of it at least. For a moment, I considered dashing up through one of the other tunnels and chasing the little bastard, but before I took two steps, I had a better idea. I ducked down and hid in the next path on the left and waited. I didn¡¯t have to wait long. Ten seconds later, I saw my chance and took it. The [Goblin Mastermind] slid down the same tunnel I¡¯d just followed him down, but I was surprised at how slow it was moving. It practically moved in slow motion as it reached for the glowing green portal. I didn¡¯t let it get that far. With a lunge, I stabbed my daggers into it and triggered [Backstab] and [Rapid Strike] in rapid succession before it slumped over before me, dead. It was almost too easy, especially given how much of a pain in the ass it had been to catch up above. I glared down at the little monster¡¯s fading form, absorbing the XP as I suddenly felt like I was moving through molasses. ¡°What¡­ the¡­ hell?¡± My voice came out far slower than I expected and my mind felt all foggy. Pulling up my Status again, I learned why. [Current Status Conditions: Elemental Pactlord Ka-thunk] It has to be¡­ the Ka-thunk effect. It must be the opposite¡­ of Vroom, slowing me down instead of speeding me up. I¡­ wonder how long¡­ it¡¯ll last? Seeing as the arch was still active and my [Essence Reading] hadn¡¯t triggered on it, I knew it wasn¡¯t an item I¡¯d be able to loot, so I figured I might as well take advantage of it to get out of the damn hole. Stepping through the arch, I felt [Vroom] activate and sped out the same tunnel I¡¯d come in, which in hindsight, was stupid. I dashed up the slope and sprang to leap through the hatch, only to find it totally immobile. ¡°Fucking ow.¡± I groaned as I slid down the ramp and through the green arch again. ¡°Must be the only way in, which means the rest should be ways out.¡± I picked a tunnel at random, and with the help of [Vroom], I sped along it and up to the surface. I narrowly avoided Ylsa¡¯s axe swing as I exited the tunnel, without [Vroom], there was almost no way I¡¯d have been able to do so. I did a flip and landed on the half-completed [Goblin War-Wagon] with a flourish of my blades before sheathing them. ¡°The [Goblin Mastermind] is no more.¡± I paused for an applause, and when it didn¡¯t come, continued anyway. ¡°It was using¡­¡± [Vroom] wore off and my voice slowed down to a crawl, ¡°some kind of¡­ magic arch to go fast. I used¡­ its own effect¡­ to catch and kill¡­ it.¡± When Ylsa spoke, it was like mom¡¯s [Elemental Gatling], though I knew it was only my perception. ¡°What do you mean? Why are you talking so fast and then so slow? Are you OK?¡± She blurred over and helped me off the war-wagon before lowering me to the ground. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­ worry. Debuff shouldn''t last¡­ too long.¡± I was wrong. Chapter 23 - Is This Really Your First Time? An hour later, I finally felt like I was back to normal and checking my Status confirmed my suspicion, the [Ka-thunk] debuff was gone. I was sitting with Ylsa, Raiju, and Jaegan around the remaining half-built [Goblin War-Wagon] drinking some water. ¡°For a buff that only lasts fifteen seconds, a debuff that lasts an hour is a steep price to pay.¡± I groaned and rubbed my neck. ¡°At least it¡¯s over now though.¡± ¡°Did you find any loot?¡± Jaegan loomed over where I sat. ¡°The [Goblin Mastermind] you killed sounds a lot like a boss monster, so it likely had the final chest hidden somewhere in here.¡± With a nod, I tossed a small four inch puzzle box to him. ¡°Just this. I wasn¡¯t going to try working on it with that damn debuff on me. It would have driven me nuts, wading through mud while working on it.¡± He looked it over for a minute before tossing it back. ¡°There¡¯s not much I can do with it. My hands aren¡¯t much use for the fine motor control this requires.¡± I looked at the puzzle box for a few minutes as Ylsa used a silver brush we¡¯d found to go through Raiju¡¯s fur. At first, the wolf hadn¡¯t liked the idea, but as soon as Ylsa got started, she changed her tune. She was a puddle of white wolf as the berserker worked her coat over from snout to tail. ¡°Ah, that makes sense.¡± I mumbled as I clicked a hidden button on one side of the cube. ¡°Aerion¡¯s Theorem, huh. It¡¯s been a while since I saw that one.¡± My fingers blurred as I finished the rest of the cube in less than a minute, pressing dozens of buttons and sliding panels out of the way with practiced speed. ¡°And with that,¡± I pushed the final panel out of the way, ¡°we have an open puzzle box.¡± Jaegan and I leaned in to look inside the box and a stupid grin took over his face as he leaned back. ¡°Congrats.¡± ¡°Come on. Don¡¯t make me wear it.¡± I groaned. ¡°It¡¯s so¡­ gaudy.¡± Inside the puzzle box was a golden ring that took up two ring slots on a single hand, stretching from ring to middle finger if worn normally. The gaudy part was the fact that as soon as I touched it, it engraved the blank circle of gold with a color rendition of my personal crest, or at least that¡¯s what I thought it was. Instead of my father¡¯s keep and pencils or my mother¡¯s sun over a lake, it was something new. The keep and pencils from the Ironwind Clan still appeared, but they were in the back corner, opposite the lake of the Sunbeam¡¯s crest. In the center of the crest was Raiju with a simple platinum circlet set with seven gems hanging from one ear. Her other ear had a multicolored ring representing all the elementals I could summon around its base. Part of me wanted to reject it, but somehow I had a feeling it was a gift from Dominus, especially since it resisted my [Essence Reading]. Sighing, I put it on and was immediately greeted with a description front and center in my vision. [Suzerain¡¯s Seal - Unique Description - This ring shall act as the seal of the Chosen of Dominus throughout his life, to be passed down only in the event of his permanent death. Any Spells cast by Arthur or his descendants while wearing this ring with an elemental component have their potency increased by fifty percent. In addition, this ring allows Arthur to access an aspect of the System long lost, the Party System as well as Party Chat. This ring is immune to Analyze type effects.] Sonofabitch. I groaned. This thing is basically telling me I have to be a caster. Dominus, why do you do this to me? I¡¯m a Rogue build, damnit! Summoning is fine, but I refuse to cast combat Spells! My left eye started to twitch as I sat there, stewing. Eventually, Ylsa got curious enough to ask what was going on. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? It looks like you got some kind of custom item from the Dungeon, why aren¡¯t you happy?¡± She set her ax down against the wall as she withdrew a whetstone from her bag. ¡°I can feel my goddess¡¯ presence, so it must be a gift from her.¡± She nodded happily as the sounds of her sharpening her ax filled the chamber. ¡°The ring is amazing, it¡¯s one of the effects I don¡¯t like. It enhances elemental spellcasting.¡± ¡°Sounds like she¡¯s trying to tell you something.¡± She nodded. ¡°Maybe you should listen.¡± Jaegan roared with laughter. ¡°You¡¯ve got him there, Ylsa!¡± He slapped his knee a few times as he carried on for a bit. Wiping a tear from his eye, he took me in with a shake of his head. ¡°Your build is fine, but you really should embrace your magic. Even your summons are fearsome and they don¡¯t have half the might I¡¯m convinced you could bring to bear if you really leaned into your talents.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not having this argument again.¡± Brushing my pants off, I waved to the [Arcweavers]. ¡°Let¡¯s go clear out the other paths, they shouldn¡¯t be nearly as troublesome as this one was.¡± Lightning elementals in tow, I left Raiju, Ylsa, and Jaegan to go and kill some monsters. Anything to get away from that damn conversation again. I know what I want and it isn¡¯t to be a damn caster! The next tunnel we went down ended in what appeared to be a nursery that was blissfully empty of any young goblins. Even if they were monsters, killing kids was not on my list of things to do. In the corner, I found a hidden door where I heard a few goblins arguing behind it. With a thought, I sent the pair of [Arcweavers] through the door and, thirty seconds later, they reported the room was clear. As they were my summons, the XP still went to me, and I was almost certain I¡¯d leveled up by then. Dominus, here I come. I hope you¡¯re ready for an argument! I planned my revenge as I went through what passed for loot in the room. Twenty gold worth of coins later, I left the room behind and made my way out into the massive entrance chamber. With only one path unexplored, I started down it while checking for traps. I only found one, but it would have immolated me if I hadn¡¯t found it, so I was glad to have done so. I managed to disconnect the fuel canister on the mechanical trap and threw it into my spatial ring, you never knew when you¡¯d need a bunch of fire. I turned the corner to find a single level ten automaton slamming a brick of metal into an anvil within a small forge. It didn¡¯t even look up at me as it kept hammering away, despite the metal in its grip being cold. With a pair of daggers to the eyes, I got the bit of XP it was guarding and immediately felt as the Dungeon relaxed. It was the only word for it as I felt the world start to condense. I hurried to search the room as it began to shrink. Finding nothing, I headed back into the central chamber to find my friends sitting on my furniture in the landing zone. ¡°You finished clearing the Dungeon, good job m¡¯boy.¡± Jaegan grinned as his gaze swept all over me. ¡°Are you sure this is your first one? I¡¯ve seen veterans of dozens of Dungeons struggle more than you did.¡± Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Yup.¡± I stepped within the landing area and the world around us shook as the tunnels all disappeared simultaneously. ¡°We should get going. We can divvy up the coins out in the real world.¡± Without waiting for a response, I strode through the portal. *** ¡°... and that should do it.¡± I finished piling up the bags of coins before Jaegan, Ylsa, and myself on the same table I¡¯d sorted them on before. While all of our piles were vastly different in size, they all contained the same value of coin, 2,990 GP. My pile was the smallest, but for some reason I really liked the feel of platinum running through my fingers, so I took twenty-nine of those and ninety gold to fill out my total. Jaegan¡¯s pile was huge, as he¡¯d taken all the copper. He said he had a use for it, so we gladly passed them his way. The pair of them had argued with me for hours about taking a larger percentage of the payout, but they didn¡¯t know how truly wealthy my family was. I suspected Jaegan knew, but he still tried to push for a four way split, with me taking Raiju¡¯s share. In the end, I agreed to take a larger portion of the next loot haul we received if they agreed to take equal portions this time. ¡°This money,¡± Ylsa stared at the pile of coins before her in a half drunken haze, ¡°it will buy my people so much of what they need.¡± Tears welled in her eyes. ¡°I thought it would be decades, but now¨C¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough, lass.¡± Jaegan patted her back in a grandfatherly way. ¡°As soon as we can get what your people need, we¡¯ll make a trip to visit them. But before that, we need to help our boss here gather up his reward from King Evergreen.¡± Tossing the small bag of coins from hand to hand, I pulled out a single platinum coin, palmed it, then stored the bag away. ¡°We should get going.¡± ¡°Aye, you¡¯re right about that.¡± Jaegan waved a hand and his bags of coins disappeared before standing up with a surprising amount of creaking. Unlike Jaegan and I, Ylsa didn¡¯t have a storage ring, eschewing it for a storage bag. Storage bags had a lot more storage space for the same level of rarity, but weren¡¯t nearly as easy to use compared to storage rings. It took her a bit of time to slide her assorted coin purses into her bag, but when she finished she stood ready with her axe slung over one shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m ready to go.¡± With a nod, I led the way out of the gold mine with Raiju at my side, Jaegan behind me, and Ylsa pulling up the rear. I was almost tempted to check out the rest of the mind, but after a few moments thinking about it, I gave up on that idea. It¡¯s not like we need the money right now. Plus, if the king asks if we took anything from the mine, now we can honestly say we didn¡¯t without lying. The moon cast an ethereal glow upon the abandoned mine, its silver light struggling to penetrate the inky shadows that clung to the weathered stone buildings. Squat structures, once bustling with life, now stood as silent sentinels, their windows hollowed eyes staring blindly into the night. A chilling wind whispered through the skeletal remains of equipment, carrying with it the faint scent of decay and damp earth. The only sound to break the eerie silence was the distant howl of a wild creature, a mournful echo in the desolate expanse. ¡°We should hold up in one of the buildings for the night.¡± I nodded to what I assumed was the bunk house for the mine¡¯s former workers. ¡°We should be safe to sleep in there, even if it isn¡¯t comfortable.¡± None of my companions argued, and soon we were able to get set up on the second floor of the bunkhouse. We shoved the crappy bunk beds into a corner and got our bedrolls set up, though Raiju and I slept on the [Cloud Carpet], finding a mattress of air far more comfortable than the hard ground. The following morning after breakfast, but before we were able to set out, a monotone voice started speaking in my ear. ¡°Listen up, I have a deal for you.¡± The voice sounded tired, like the person behind it hadn¡¯t rested in days if not weeks. Putting a hand up to that ear, I frowned. ¡°Who is this and how did you contact me?¡± Magic for contacting people over a large distance was rare and somehow I could tell that was what I was dealing with. ¡°Ha ha ha, very funny.¡± The voice maintained its monotone. ¡°This is King Evergreen of Verdant and I¡¯m using a [Farspeech Tome] to speak with you. This ink is insanely expensive, so pay attention.¡± That makes sense, I guess. Mom told me about those, but even her family thought using them was a waste of money. He must be desperate. ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡± ¡°Good. As soon as you finish with the gold mine, I need you to head to Chalcedony. The Tower there is causing problems and you and your companions are the only people I can ask to go and take care of it.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s my payment for clearing the gold mine dungeon?¡± I glanced over and found Jaegan staring at me with a curious expression. ¡°A king always pays their debts, right? Pay up and I¡¯ll consider helping you further. Don¡¯t forget you¡¯ll have to pay Jaegan and Ylsa for their services as well, seeing as they¡¯re rightfully free now.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re lying to me, I¡¯ll see you all blackballed and stripped of your adventurer cards. I swear it.¡± Wrong choice, jocko. ¡°You know what? I think I¡¯m good with the stacks of coins I got in the Dungeon. Get me my payment and I won¡¯t have my grandfather burn your capital to the ground for sending assassins after my friends and I.¡± ¡°Hold on. What assassins? I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about.¡± Jaegan mimed a man wearing a crown with his eyes covered and I had to suppress a giggle. ¡°You¡¯re blind to the betrayal of your council. I¡¯m currently standing in the bunkhouse for the mine and it looks like no one has been here in months. I even have paperwork detailing the reassignment of the workers here.¡± I snorted. ¡°To top it off, the Dungeon was hours from breaking, not weeks. If we hadn¡¯t flown in, there¡¯s no way we¡¯d have been able to stop it from breaking and you¡¯re questioning my veracity? Shame on you, King Evergreen.¡± ¡°Prove it. I¡¯ll have an [Item Box] delivered to you within the hour. Within will be the best [Skill Scrolls] I¡¯m able to scrape together in that amount of time. Put any proof you have inside and I¡¯ll make sure the Governess of Chalcedony has payment ready for you when you finish in the Tower there.¡± I gritted my teeth. ¡°I¡¯ll give you until noon if it gets me better scrolls, I¡¯d hate for you to not get what you wanted because you dealt in bad faith.¡± ¡°Cheeky brat. Stay tight. The box will be on the way as fast as I can con those losers I call a council into making you some [Skill Scrolls].¡± I flopped back onto the [Cloud Carpet] with a sigh. ¡°Well, that could have gone better.¡± I groaned. ¡°Got us a new gig though, so that¡¯s good.¡± Jaegan padded over and sat next to me. ¡°You did well with King Evergreen. He only respects those who deal with him directly, instead of through backhanded deals. That¡¯s another reason he doesn¡¯t get along with his council very well anymore. They only deal behind the scenes and he¡¯s anything but subtle.¡± ¡°I noticed.¡± I smiled as I remembered him showing off his [Unique Skill] right in the middle of his throne room. ¡°I wonder what kind of [Skill Scrolls] he¡¯ll be able to scrape up. I hope they¡¯re decent.¡± ¡°Milord, I have finished cleaning Storm-Runner¡¯s fur and claws.¡± Ylsa knelt before me with her head held low. ¡°What else would you have me do?¡± ¡°Relax a little. We¡¯ve got until noon, so I¡¯m going to try and actually sleep for a few hours to see if I leveled and apply it if I did.¡± I laid back on the [Cloud Carpet] with a yawn. ¡°Don¡¯t hesitate to wake me if you need to but¡­ don¡¯t need me. OK?¡± I snapped my fingers and the [Arcweavers] from the Dungeon appeared. ¡°Guard my body as I rest, but obey Jaegan¡¯s orders as if they were my own.¡± Somehow, they¡¯d come through with me and it didn¡¯t feel like they were going to leave anytime soon. They each only sapped three percent of my max Mana, so I figured having a pair of unsleeping watchmen was well worth the price, especially with me not casting in combat. ¡°Sleep well, milord.¡± Ylsa bowed once more before moving to guard the entrance to the bunkhouse room we occupied. Meanwhile, Jaegan sat in the corner with a pipe in his hand. ¡°Don¡¯t do anything hastily, think your level over. Twenty-five is a big level, with many benefits and pitfalls. Be sure to read everything available before doing anything you¡¯ll regret long term.¡± Raiju, to her credit, was already asleep beside me with nice clean fur. Ylsa did a great job. I gave it until the day after tomorrow for it to get messed up again. I drifted off to sleep to the sound of Raiju¡¯s snoring. Somehow, it reminded me of my Dad¡¯s snoring and it put me at ease as I fell asleep cuddled up next to her. Chapter 24 - Baby’s First Level Up ¡°You¡¯ve been a busy boy, Artie. I¡¯m proud to call you my Chosen.¡± Dominus¡¯ voice was like liquid velvet, smooth and rich, yet carrying an undercurrent of steel. It possessed the allure of a siren song, capable of both captivating and compelling. Infused with a subtle, ethereal quality, it was as if her voice echoed from a distant, celestial realm. There was a timeless elegance to it, a tone that suggested centuries of experience and wisdom, tempered by a touch of amused detachment. Smiling to myself, I opened my eyes and found myself in the same white void as the last time I¡¯d met Dominus. She sat with her long legs curled underneath her on a dark green leather loveseat before me in a sheath dress that almost looked to be made out of a sunset in the mountains as it wrapped her voluptuous curves. The colors complimented her long flowing blonde hair and her mismatched cerulean and smokey grey eyes. Her smile lit up the void with a warmth I didn¡¯t expect. ¡°You undersold [Suzerain] the last time we spoke.¡± I looked down and found I was still naked, but it wasn¡¯t like I had anything to hide from my patron goddess, so I mentally shrugged it off. She waved a hand dismissively. ¡°You haven¡¯t seen anything yet. You should wait until you see the benefits you get from hitting level twenty-five. Trust me.¡± She laughed and I couldn¡¯t help but smile along. I blinked a few times before pointing to my chest. ¡°Wait, can you help me with my build? If you could, that would negate my racial disadvantage¨C¡± ¡°Yes and no,¡± she cut me off before I was able to start rambling. ¡°I can help you with your level ups to a point, but I can¡¯t give you any more information about the outside world than you already have. It¡¯s one of those rules I put in place to stop my idiot children from accidentally killing each other off.¡± She snorted. ¡°As long as I don¡¯t break it, they can¡¯t either.¡± ¡°What does that have to do with my build?¡± I cocked my head to the side and blinked a few times. When I finished blinking, I found myself curled up on the couch with the goddess on her couch. ¡°Let me give you an example.¡± She ran her fingers through my hair and massaged my scalp. It was enough to send shivers of pleasure down my back. ¡°Let¡¯s say there¡¯s a [Dread Necromancer] who follows Devourer amassing a horde of undead that I¡¯m relatively sure you¡¯ll come into contact with sooner or later and in his horde there are some [Banshees] who can kill anyone with a [Wits] stat under two hundred as easy as you breathe.¡± ¡°You¡¯d tell me to pump my [Wits] even if I weren¡¯t already going to do so. I don¡¯t¡­¡± I groaned. ¡°Which would invalidate any effort he put into raising that [Dread Necromancer]. In turn, he would tell his follower to focus on some other kind of undead if I were going to be the primary combatant. It¡¯d be a big circle of wasted time.¡± ¡°Bingo.¡± She raked her nails down the back of my neck gently as she hit itches I didn¡¯t even know I had. ¡°I¡¯ve visited worlds where the gods did shit like that behind the scenes and it always went to shit eventually. Trust me, this is better even if it doesn¡¯t feel like it.¡± ¡°Makes sense to me.¡± I pulled up my Status and made it bigger so we could both see it easier. Even if she was a goddess, it was only polite to try and treat her like I would any other woman. [You¡¯ve gained two levels! 24 ¡ú 26] [Level Up - Step 1 of 3 Stat Distribution: Might: 17 Agility: 101 Toughness: 65 Charm: 75 Wits: 115 Perception: 91 Arcane: 299 Divine: 299 You have 60 points to spend.] ¡°What a gentleman.¡± I heard the smile in her voice as she rested my head beneath her breasts as we looked over my level up screen. ¡°You¡¯ve got sixty stat points to distribute, where do you think they should go?¡± ¡°Well, something¡¯s already different than I expected. My magic stats jumped by a hundred points on their own.¡± I frowned despite the benefit. ¡°Care to explain?¡± ¡°It¡¯s one of the perks of having an SSS ranked Class.¡± She said matter of factly. ¡°Regular S ranked Classes get the thirty stat points you do, but no bonus stats based on their natural inclinations while double S¡¯s get a hundred bonus stat points split up as their Class requires.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± I sighed. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± She leaned down to look at me more closely. ¡°I¡¯ve never had a Chosen be disappointed in that particular benefit before. Is it because¨C¡± Her eyes spun with an unnatural kaleidoscopic light for a moment before she pulled me in tighter to her bosom. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I didn¡¯t think to look back so far when I picked you. The Chosen selection process is complicated, but suffice to say it pretty much only highlights your wins, not your perceived losses. I knew you cast [Comet Storm] as a child, but not how it affected your psyche moving forward. I kind of wondered why that was the last combat you cast, but I figured I¡¯d figure it out as I watched you moving forward.¡± ¡°I just had an argument about this with Jaegan, I¡¯d really rather not hash it out with you too.¡± My eyes stung. ¡°Can you just review that so we can move forward?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± She half-whispered. A moment later she bumped her chin against the top of my head. ¡°I think I understand now and I¡¯m sorry for not looking over your history before starting this process. I¡¯ve since reviewed your life, including your parents¡¯ and grandparents¡¯ lives as well, just for context.¡± Sorrow seeped into her tone. ¡°I¡¯ll try and be a better patron moving forward.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± I leaned back and sighed. ¡°So, I take it [Suzerain]¡¯s are meant to be some kind of caster. I¡¯m kind of surprised it doesn¡¯t give [Charm] instead of both magic stats, to be honest, given its whole schtick.¡± ¡°At one point, it did. It was my first Chosen and he ended up totally disregarding his [Arcane] stat.¡± She threw up a System window in front of us displaying a white armored knight with dozens of women hanging off him and piled around him with half-glazed eyes. ¡°He did a pretty good job until he stole [Lustful Presence] from an [Empyrean Temptress] who had attacked a ship he owned. Dealing with a [Monster Skill] like that overwhelmed him due to his low [Arcane] resistance and he quickly fell to drugs and debauchery. He died shortly after that when his rivals caught up to him mid-binge.¡± ¡°A [Monster Skill] you say? Interesting.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what you took from my cautionary tale?¡± She ruffled my hair. ¡°Given your history, I guess that is what would interest you most about that anecdote. Regardless, both magic stats also serve as the magical defense to like magic. For example, it¡¯s why [Mages] suck at killing each other if they don¡¯t use Spells like [Boulder Toss] or [Dagger Storm] that create actual projectiles. I found that [Monster Skills] have a corrupting effect if the person using them doesn¡¯t have a high enough relevant stat to use it. That includes physical stats as well.¡± Her voice took on a deadly serious quality. ¡°Unless you seriously pump your [Might] up, don¡¯t go trying to use any giant related [Monster Skills], they¡¯ll turn you into an unthinking brute as low as it currently is.¡± Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. ¡°Got it, stay in my lane.¡± I took another look at the level up screen before stopping and looking up at Dominus. ¡°I¡¯ve heard getting stats to multiples of a hundred was helpful. Does that extend to the magic stats?¡± ¡°It does.¡± ¡°One point each for them then.¡± I stroked my bald chin. ¡°What else?¡± In the end, this is what I ended up doing. For a moment, I considered pumping my [Might] to twenty, but Dominus convinced me it was a waste of my time if I had [Moonsilver Powder] still to use. Once it ran out it would be a different story, but for now I held off. [Level Up - Step 1 of 3 Stat Distribution: Might: 17 Agility: 101 ¡ú 105 Toughness: 65 ¡ú 85 Charm: 75 ¡ú 100 Wits: 115 Perception: 91 ¡ú 100 Arcane: 299 ¡ú 300 Divine: 299 ¡ú 300] [Confirm Stat Point Distribution? Y/N] After conferring once more with Dominus I agreed to the prompt and was introduced to a new screen. [Level Up - Step 2 of 3 You may choose Dominated Skills and Claim them. This will add them to your normal [Skill List]. Normal Skills cost one point while Unique Skills cost five and [Monster Skills] cost ten.] Claim Points Remaining: 3] ¡°I was wondering if this would happen. I haven¡¯t seen [Psyknife] or [Haste] gain any Mastery despite how much I use them, so I figured it had to be a level up thing.¡± Dominus shifted so her back was against the arm of the loveseat and pulled me into her lap. ¡°Other classes have [Skill] mastery percentage increases here, but [Suzerain] doesn¡¯t really need that with how much it boosts your natural growth.¡± She started in on my scalp again with her nails. ¡°You got one point at twenty-five and two more at twenty-six just like you will until you hit fifty-one, so don¡¯t feel like you have to store them up unless you have a Unique Skill you really want to access.¡± ¡°Is there any other way to get points for this?¡± I couldn¡¯t resist, I had to ask. ¡°Not that I¡¯m ungrateful, but if there was¡­¡± My voice trailed off as she hit the spot on the side of my head and I had to collect myself. She kept on like nothing had happened. ¡°There are, but it¡¯d be hard to farm them. You¡¯re better off just adventuring as normal and enjoy when you get a bonus point or two.¡± ¡°Heard. I know exactly what I want then.¡± [Level Up - Step 2 of 3 Skills Claimed: Haste Psyknife Air Step Claim Points Remaining: 0] [Confirm Claiming of Skills? Y/N] ¡°I can¡¯t say I¡¯m surprised, those are all very useful given your current fighting style.¡± Dominus intoned as she massaged my shoulders. ¡°One screen left.¡± I groaned as I bumped the accept option to reveal the last screen. [Level Up - Step 3 of 3 Path Selection: Scholar Warrior Tactician Caution! Choose wisely, for once this decision has been made there is no way to change paths.] Part of me wanted to press the [Path of the Tactician] option immediately, but I knew I should review the other two before doing anything reckless. [Path of the Scholar: While all Suzerains can cast Spells, those who walk this path are truly unparalleled in that field. With the ability to see the ebbs and flows of Mana, you will be able to sculpt your Spells to strike foes harder and avoid allies entirely. In addition, Mana costs are reduced by 20% for any Skill or Spell that draws on the Arcane, Divine, or Wits stats.] [Path of the Warrior: Born with a weapon in hand, Suzerains on this path are true terrors of the battlefield. Any weapon in your hands gains the benefits of all weapon training you¡¯ve gained. No foe will be able to hide their weapon Skills from you, granting you the ability to see the combat relevant Skills they have when using Analyze type Skills. In addition, deal 20% increased damage with all weapons and weapon Skills.] [Path of the Tactician: The spider in the center of its web, that¡¯s you. You command the battlefield with an intrinsic knowledge of your allies status and abilities. Gain the ability to create a Party where you will be able to see the HP, Mana, and Stamina of all Party Members as well as access Party Chat, a unique telepathic form of communication.] ¡°All of these seem great, but as much as I love it, I know the [Path of the Warrior] isn¡¯t for me.¡± As I acknowledged it aloud a red ¡®X¡¯ appeared over the text before it faded from view, leaving only two options. ¡°Huh, I guess that kind of makes sense, doesn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Indeed it does.¡± Dominus¡¯ knuckles dug deep into the muscles of my back as I read and reread the screen a dozen times. ¡°The System has its quirks, but it¡¯s rarely nonsensical when it comes to things like this.¡± I groaned and leaned to the side a few minutes later. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to do.¡± ¡°How so?¡± The goddess leaned away to give me some semblance of space despite my position on her lap. ¡°Is something wrong with the options?¡± ¡°I¡¯m torn between what I know is the right choice and what I want to do.¡± I sighed. ¡°The worst part is the gift you sent makes what I want to do even more stupid.¡± ¡°What gift?¡± She frowned. ¡°Raiju?¡± Her eyebrows went up. ¡°How would your traveling companion invalidate one of those options?¡± ¡°Come on, we both know you¡¯re the reason that Unique ring dropped for me in that Dungeon. It was way too weak to¨C¡± ¡°I don¡¯t interfere within Dungeons.¡± Dominus lived up to her name as her voice took on a tone that left no room to interrupt. ¡°Dungeons and Towers are the true children of the System and it is incredibly protective of them. Any deity who interferes within either of them quickly learns how foolish that idea was.¡± She cracked a smile and her normal silky smooth voice returned. ¡°Anything you received within a Dungeon was straight from the System with no interference from me. If you got a Unique item, the System wanted you to have it. Also, what is this ring, what does it do?¡± ¡°Shit.¡± I let myself rest against the goddess¡¯ bosom as I considered what that meant for me. A full ten minutes later I shook my head. ¡°Dominus, how long has the Party Chat function of the System been broken? How long has it been since anyone used it on Genovia?¡± Her eyes took on an otherworldly look for a moment before going back to normal. ¡°About fifty thousand years. Once Genovia¡¯s System Integration finished, it and the formal Party System as a whole were both scrapped.¡± It seems Genovia helped me make my decision, didn¡¯t it? Thanks I guess? It feels weird to mentally talk to a planet, so I¡¯m going to stop now. ¡°My new ring lets me form a Party and we can use Party Chat. It¡¯s right in the description.¡± She gasped and I leaned forward to select the [Path of the Scholar], but didn¡¯t confirm it. ¡°That¡¯s the big selling point of the [Path of the Tactician], so why should I take it if I have a Unique item that lets me do what it does for no opportunity cost?¡± ¡°Are you going to be OK with that decision though?¡± She sounded very concerned for my wellbeing, which I really appreciated. I nodded. ¡°I think so, though I still don¡¯t want to use combat Spells if I can avoid it. It looks to be inevitable that I¡¯ll have to do so, but I¡¯m hoping to avoid it for as long as possible.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re ready, you should cement your level up and take a look at your updated Status page. Your stats hit a few multiples of a hundred this time, so you should have a boon for each that did to look at.¡± [You¡¯ve opted to walk the Path of the Scholar. Confirm this choice? Y/N] I mentally confirmed [Path of the Scholar] and my vision went fuzzy for a few seconds. At that moment, the white void around me looked anything but like a void. All around me was a maelstrom of creation and destruction, a cosmic battlefield where galaxies clashed and shattered like glass. Swirls of chaotic magic, iridescent and violent, churned and twisted, forming and dissolving nebulas in an endless cycle. It was a symphony of light and darkness, birth and death, played out on a canvas stretching infinitely in all directions. Yet, within this chaos, there was a strange order, a pattern to the madness, a rhythm to the cosmic dance. From my vantage point on the leather couch, the scene was both terrifying and mesmerizing. I could feel a strange pull, a gravitational force tugging at my consciousness. The couch, once a symbol of domestic comfort, now felt like a fragile vessel adrift in a cosmic ocean. The once featureless void had transformed into a cosmic observatory, offering a front-row seat to the universe¡¯s most spectacular and terrifying light show. Then, a second later, the light show was over and I was back sitting on Dominus¡¯ lap in the featureless white void I¡¯d begun to link to her. However, there were a few echoes of what I¡¯d seen before that told me I hadn¡¯t imagined it. Waves of pale jade light drifted throughout the space and they were the same exact color of one of the nebulas that¡¯d been consumed as I watched. A streak of crimson light blasted through the space a little too close to the couch and I felt as Dominus enforced her WILL on the area around us and banished everything that might interfere with my concentration. ¡°Sorry. I should have expected picking up [Path of the Scholar] would do something like that.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± I slumped against her, my mind still reeling from all I¡¯d seen. ¡°That was¡­¡± ¡°The multiverse laid bare.¡± She clucked her tongue. ¡°Not something someone with less than a thousand [Wits], [Arcane], and [Divine] should ever lay eyes upon for more than a few seconds. Even that tiny bit will likely have an effect on you, but I should be able to tweak it if whatever it gives you is too awful.¡± ¡°OK.¡± I mentally summoned my Status to take a look and marveled at what I found. Chapter 25 - Stat Update Chapter The chapters labeled ¡®Stat Update¡¯ are not essential to the story and if you don¡¯t want to read/hear everything Artie has going on all over again, you can skip them as all major changes will be/have been mentioned in the story. However, I understand that many readers enjoy detailed character information, so I¡¯ve included this for those who want that kind of stat crunchy goodness and will do so 1-3 times per book as needed. [Name - Arthur Bajbub Neilson Class - Suzerain - Unique - Rank ??? Path: Scholar Level - 26 HP - 230 Mana - 630 Stamina - 352 Stats Might - 17 Agility - 105 Toughness - 65 Charm - 100 Wits - 115 Perception - 100 Arcane - 300 Divine - 300 Active Skills - Mastery % Rapid Strike - 81 Dual Chop - 65 Backstab - 96 Mana Slide - 24 Arcane Armor - 77 Magic Missile - 97 Elemental Bolt - 75 Lockpicking - 85 Trap Finding - 99 Trap Disarming - 99 Wingbind - 81 Synthesis - 96 If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Sunny Side Up - 100 (No Evolution Available) Skill Dominance - 28 Status Shield - 52 Psyknife - 28 Air Step - 28 Haste - 28 Unique Skills - Mastery % Dominus¡¯ Insight - 28 Elemental Pactlord (Summon Elemental Evolution) - 5 Passive Skills Essence Reading (Analyze Evolution) Evasion Linguist Light Armor Training Medium Armor Training Small Blade Training Bow Training Code Cracking Spelunking Cartography Herbalism Ritual Magic Chosen of Dominus (Unique Passive) Mystic Eyes (Morphed from Arcane Sight after walking the Path of the Scholar) Friendly Face Spell Turning Holy Visions Spatial Awareness Stolen Skills (6 Slots Available - Cannot Currently Slot Unique Skills) Stolen Active Skills: Arcane Cannon - Generates a cannon that blasts Mana at anything hostile in range Cat¡¯s Prowl - Move with a cat¡¯s grace while hunting. Charming Gaze - Minor charm effect, nearly undetectable Corona - Creates a ring of intense heat around the caster, damaging and deterring enemies. Eavesdrop - Listen in on conversations. Fireball - Launches a large ball of fire that explodes on impact, dealing significant fire damage. Guardian¡¯s Bond - Teleport to someone you have designated as your bond. Gust - A small burst of wind that pushes objects or extinguishes flames. Gust of Wind - A powerful gust of wind that pushes back enemies. Healing Light - Creates a warm light with a minor healing effect. Minor Magnesis - Control metal within range. Mold Earth - Shapes a small amount of earth, useful for digging or creating minor cover. Obscuring Mist - Creates a thick fog that hinders vision in an area. Open - Opens most doors (Knock is the evolution) Photosynthetic Burst - Rapidly grows plants in an area, creating difficult terrain or entanglement. Pyrotechnics - Produce a minor firework. Shearing Gale - Produce wind blades to send at a number of targets based on mastery and Wits Solar Deflection - Encases the caster in a momentary shimmering barrier that deflects non-magical attacks. Solar Flare - Launches a small burst of fire that explodes on impact. Spark - Creates a small spark that can ignite tinder or deal minor fire damage. Spike Field - Creates sharp stones that erupt from the ground, damaging creatures that step on them. Sun Armor - Grants the caster a tough, heat-resistant magical armor. Sunbeam - Creates a dazzling beam of sunlight that can blind or deal minor radiant damage. Sunburst - Creates a blinding explosion of light and radiant energy, dealing damage and potentially blinding enemies. Searing Light - Bathes an object or creature in intense heat, causing minor burning. Searing Wind - A scorching wind blasts the area, dealing fire damage and pushing enemies back. Sun Jump - A short-range teleport usable only in sunlight. Sunlance - A powerful beam of sunlight blasts a target, dealing significant radiant damage. Stolen Passive Skills: Photosynthesis - Absorb sunlight to replenish Health, Mana, and Stamina. Silent Step - Your footsteps make no sounds. Stolen Unique Skills: Storm Knuckles - Wreath your knuckles in Storm Essence, deal additional lightning, thunder, and cold damage with each blow. Additionally, even while not active, the Skill Bearer cannot be injured by touching things with their hands. Serene Glade - Create a zone of absolute privacy where the users¡¯ Skills are all enhanced by 50%. Additionally, even while not active, the area within Divine/10¡¯ always has perfect weather.] Chapter 26 - From Dungeon Delving to Tower Climbing ¡°Wow,¡± I blinked a few times. ¡°I¡¯m shocked.¡± ¡°At what?¡± Dominus chuckled. ¡°You leveled up twice and haven¡¯t been looking at your Status regularly, of course it¡¯s changed a lot.¡± ¡°I get that, but it¡¯s my [Skill Masteries], they¡¯re all so much higher than before. Isn¡¯t that abnormal?¡± According to what I¡¯d been told, it could take people actively using a [Skill] for months to see even a few percentage points of increase at the lower levels. It wasn¡¯t unheard of for the last few percentage points before evolving to take years. ¡°You¡¯re my Chosen, of course Skills come easily to you. I created most of them.¡± My jaw dropped. ¡°What?!¡± She waved a hand and the space around us was filled with System windows. As I took them in, all of them were Skills and they were all both evolved and mastered. ¡°Besides ruling the gods, that¡¯s what I spent my time doing, creating new Skills for the System to hand out. That passive you¡¯ve probably forgotten about, [Chosen of Dominus],¡± she smirked, ¡°my Chosen, helps you master Skills a hell of a lot faster. What do you expect? You have dozens of Skills to master already and you¡¯ve been adventuring for less than a month. If it took you as long as everyone else you¡¯d have a ton of low mastery Skills and get killed by a damn [Horned Rabbit] or something.¡± ¡°I could handle a [Horned Rabbit] when I was five. Two [Magic Missiles] and they died.¡± I did my best to save face, but I was beet red. ¡°I think I understand what you mean though. With that lovely passive, I can focus on what I need to do and I should be able to master what I want to quickly.¡± One thing caught my eye. ¡°Hey, what happened with [Elemental Bolt]? I haven¡¯t used it in a decade and suddenly it increases in mastery by twenty-seven percent. What gives?¡± ¡°Think about it.¡± She beamed. ¡°Honestly, it¡¯s something I¡¯m pretty proud of you for.¡± What could she be talking about? What have I done that would make her proud? She laughed as the tip of my tongue poked out the bottom corner of my mouth as I wracked my brain. She¡¯s the goddess of Skills and¡­ rulers. ¡°[Elemental Pactlord]?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°How is that linked to [Elemental Bolt]? It¡¯s a summoning [Spell], not a combat [Spell].¡± ¡°That¡¯s not how [Lord Skills] work.¡± She banished the thousands of screens surrounding our couch and instead pulled up a blank screen before writing [Elemental Pactlord] in the center of it. ¡°I hadn¡¯t expected you to get your first [Lord Skill] for a while, to be honest. They can take a long time to figure out, even for my Chosen.¡± She drew a circle around the words before drawing four lines out from the circle and then drew circles at the ends of those lines. ¡°You see [Lord Skills], as they¡¯re called, represent an almost supernatural connection to whatever it is they¡¯re tied to. In [Elemental Pactlord]¡¯s case, that¡¯s the elemental planes.¡± She wrote Summoning, Direct Control, Manifestation, and Understanding in the open bubbles. ¡°I¡¯d guess that these are the portfolios you have access to, even if you¡¯ll never really know without finding a [System Stone].¡± My eyes shone at the idea before she dashed my hopes. ¡°Trust me, don¡¯t worry about them, they¡¯re holdovers from when the System wasn¡¯t fully integrated. They just give wordier descriptions than the System does nowadays. As far as I¡¯m concerned, it¡¯s better this way.¡± ¡°What exactly do these things mean? I can guess about the Summoning and Understanding ones, given what I¡¯ve already done, but the other two?¡± I shrugged. ¡°They don¡¯t really make much sense given what I did.¡± She nodded. ¡°You¡¯re not wrong, but in your case your unique upgrade was a gift from the Elemental Monarchs. When you accepted the gift, good job on that by the way, they basically shoved all the information you might need to put the thing to work properly straight into your head.¡± She tapped the pair of bubbles with Direct Control and Manifestation. ¡°These two? They¡¯re why [Elemental Bolt] gained a bunch of mastery percentage points. Your control, should you ever use it again, will likely be significantly better than before, up to and including doing curved shots with it if you plan ahead. That¡¯s part of Manifestation, but Direct Control is just using [Elemental Pactlord] to move the elements all around you.¡± She patted my shoulder. ¡°When you wake up, try to reach out to the campfire. I¡¯m willing to bet you can move the flames in it, though don¡¯t push too hard or you might turn it into a small [Campfire Elemental].¡± ¡°Gotcha.¡± I shook my head and looked over the rest of the changes to my Status. [Mystic Eyes - Passive Skill - You can see the flows of magic and can inherently understand them. This is not an additional form of vision, rather it is applied to your standard vision as a filter you can turn on and off through a System prompt.] Looks like [Arcane Sight] evolved when I started walking the [Path of the Scholar] to become [Mystic Eyes]. I should probably leave it on most of the time, but not right now. I don¡¯t need to go blind by accidentally catching a glimpse of Dominus with it. Nope, I¡¯ll keep my vision intact. [Friendly Face - Passive Skill - People are twenty percent more likely to regard you friendly on initial meeting. Their opinions will change based on further impressions, but first impressions are usually what matters most. You will be notified if this Skill was the deciding factor to a positive impression.] Must be what [Charm] going to a hundred got me. I guess it can¡¯t hurt, but I can¡¯t help but wish for something more concrete. Eh, can¡¯t complain too much, at least I¡¯ll know if it¡¯s working unlike some of those crazy cultivation novels Grandpa likes to read. Skills without a System? Preposterous. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. [Spell Turning - Passive Skill - Non-beneficial Spells used against you have a twenty percent chance to fail outright. If that happens, there is another twenty percent chance the Spell will rebound and head back to the caster.] I¡¯m willing to bet that¡¯s [Arcane] hitting three hundred right there. I¡¯m not going to turn down a twenty percent chance to ignore Spells cast on me and if four percent of the time it returns to sender? I¡¯m not going to complain. [Holy Visions - Passive Skill - Blessed by the divine, you are more in tune with nature, the gods, and the world as a whole. In places where any of those things hold sway, you will have an inherent understanding of which of those things is at play. This does not grant you protection from those effects, but it may inform you if you need to worry about them.] That has to be [Divine] hitting three hundred. Honestly, the part I¡¯m most surprised about is that it cares about nature in addition to the gods. I wonder if that¡¯s why [Druids] and their ilk care about their [Divine] stat so much. Now that I think about it, that makes a lot of sense. I¡¯m glad I¡¯m doing this in my head, or Dominus would be laughing at me right now¡­ on to the next [Skill]. [Spatial Awareness - Passive Skill - You now have a heightened sense of your surroundings. Your ability to perceive the environment in three dimensions, accurately judge distances, and anticipate potential hazards is greatly increased. This will allow you to navigate complex terrain with ease, avoid traps, and even predict the movements of enemies. [Perception] hitting one hundred, no doubt about it. I wonder how it¡¯ll sync up with [Trap Finding], considering it mentions them in its description. It¡¯s right on the edge of evolving, so maybe I¡¯ll find out soon?] I shook my head to clear out the fog that threatened to take over. ¡°I¡¯m starting to feel groggy. Is everything OK?¡± ¡°Our time together draws short.¡± Dominus pulled me in close to her and pressed my back against her chest as she wrapped her arms around me. ¡°We were only able to spend so long together because you leveled up twice in between rests. Maybe you can keep doing that?¡± She sounded so sad, I wanted to agree, but knew I couldn¡¯t. Before I could reply, she continued. ¡°I know you can¡¯t do it all the time, but I¡¯ll treasure those times you can.¡± I overlapped my hands with hers. ¡°As will I.¡± ¡°Charmer you.¡± Her tone belied how happy I¡¯d made her as it came out much higher than usual. ¡°Anyway, before you go, I want to remind you of something.¡± What could that be? My memory is kind of ass, so I¡¯ll take any help I can get. ¡°What might that be?¡± I tried to sound cool, but her snort told me I failed. She picked me up and spun me around to face her. ¡°You have another Unique Skill with my name on it. Don¡¯t be afraid to use it in town, no one will be able to see the results but you and your retainers.¡± My vision started going black and she pulled me in for one more bone crushing hug. ¡°Come back to me, OK? I get lonely¡­¡± Her voice faded to nothing as the void disappeared entirely. *** The sound of heavy panting greeted me as I struggled to open my eyes. The moment I succeeded, Raiju licked my face from top to bottom with a huge wolfy grin. ¡°I leveled up!¡± She barked happily. ¡°I haven¡¯t leveled up in so long! I¡¯m so much stronger now¡­ I can protect you Artie!¡± A few licks later, I managed to slide off the [Cloud Carpet] and began to stretch. ¡°That¡¯s awesome, what¡¯d you do with your level?¡± I twisted my back and hips until they popped into their proper position before starting toward where I could hear lunch being prepared. She bounded along next to me at dog size instead of her massive lupine form, but looked away as she spoke. ¡°I asked the System to grant me more [Wits] and [Perception] so I could be a better companion to you.¡± Her ears drooped. ¡°Are you mad?¡± ¡°Nothing could be further from the truth.¡± I stopped and dropped to one knee before pulling her in to my chest for a big hug. ¡°Thank you for thinking of me when you were leveling up, but don¡¯t forget about your own wants and needs. We¡¯re going to be together for a long time and I¡¯d hate for you not to be yourself for my sake.¡± ¡°OK, Artie.¡± She nuzzled into my neck. ¡°I¡¯m just happy you¡¯re not mad.¡± I ruffled her fur, but before I could respond a hickory box about two foot cubed popped into existence next to my right foot with a loud pop. With my new [Spatial Awareness] I could tell there was nothing unusual about the exterior of the box, but the inside was a mystery to me. ¡°Raiju, go get Jaegan and Ylsa.¡± I gave her a gentle push towards the door. ¡°I¡¯m going to check this box out and I need you to let them know, just in case.¡± As she left, I knelt down next to the box and went over it with a fine toothed comb. My manual inspection confirmed what my [Spatial Awareness] told me. There was nothing unusual about the box except for the fact that it popped out of thin air right next to me. ¡°Nothing to it but to do it.¡± I put a hand on the lip of the box to open it and immediately thought better of it. ¡°You know what? I might actually have something for this.¡± I pulled up my [Dominated Skills] list and hurried to slot in a couple new Skills since I no longer had to worry about doing so for [Haste], [Air Step], or [Psyknife] after my level up. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 2/6 Minor Magnesis Photosynthesis Healing Light Sun Jump] ¡°Those should do it. One to open the damn thing and one to get away if it tries to explode.¡± From outside the window on my carpet, I reached out with [Minor Magnesis] and used a discarded fork to wedge in the opening of the box. With a grunt at the surprising amount of effort required, I heaved the box open to reveal a pair of scrolls and a letter. Since it didn¡¯t explode or spray out some kind of evil gas, I figured it must be relatively safe. With a Herculean display of will, I refrained from looking at the scrolls until I checked out the letter. It wasn¡¯t in an envelope, so I was able to use the fork to lift it up and read it after a moment of finagling. Arthur Neilson, I regret to inform you that this pair of [Skill Scrolls] were all I was able to put together on such short notice. Worry not, for I have commissioned three more to be made in the coming weeks as payment for the work you¡¯ve already done on my behalf. I¡¯ve contacted the Governess of Chalcedony and she will have three more [Skill Scrolls] ready when you figure out what¡¯s going on with the Tower. Please make haste toward Chalcedony, for I have been told Tower monsters have been seen roaming the streets and their guards have taken heavy losses defending the townsfolk. I have already placed a contract with the Adventurers¡¯ Guild and had it forwarded to the Chalcedony branch so you can accept it when you get there. When you are ready for the [Item Box] to return to me, place the evidence of the mining camp¡¯s state and orders within and close the box. Once done, say ¡®Evergreen, not Ever Gullible¡¯ to send it on its way. I thank you again for all you¡¯ve done and look forward to working with you more in the future. Sincerely, King Gareth Evergreen Chapter 27 - A Father’s Grief With a chuckle, I pulled the pair of scrolls out and put them to the side. ¡°I guess I can work with that.¡± From my spatial ring I pulled all the documents we¡¯d found left behind, from all over the mining camp. Fanning through them, I contemplated curating the documents for the king but eventually decided to just drop them all in. ¡°Partial payment, partial documentation.¡± I flipped the lid shut with a clatter, but before I could say the command phrase, Jaegan poked his head in. ¡°Oh, an [Item Box]. Old Piney must really want whatever it is he asked you to send.¡± He grinned. ¡°Do you mind if I add a personal letter I wrote him a while back?¡± Frowning, I looked him up and down as he walked up, letter in hand. ¡°What¡¯s in the letter?¡± ¡°Oh, just a few things he¡¯ll want to know about the council and the country at large.¡± He held his free hand up over his heart. ¡°I swear, it¡¯s nothing that would make him think less of you.¡± He tried to snake the box open, but I put a foot up on it before he could get it open properly. ¡°Cards on the table, what did you do with the [Genealogical Record of the Kingdom of Verdant]. If that letter is you bragging about how he¡¯ll never find it, Evergreen will come in person to kick all of our asses.¡± ¡°I told you before, I gave it¨C¡± ¡°Don¡¯t bullshit me.¡± The System lent my words power as I drew upon our bond of fealty. ¡°No, you didn¡¯t tell me, though I¡¯ve asked a few times. Why did you steal the book and where is it now?¡± ¡°So, it¡¯s going to be like that.¡± The old man leaned on his Unique staff. ¡°I¡¯m a member of the resistance within Verdant. We know something is wrong with our land, people don¡¯t gain levels as they should for acting as their Classes demand.¡± ¡°Yeah, King Evergreen told me the same himself.¡± I glared at him. ¡°What does the resistance think they¡¯re going to change by fucking with the most powerful person in their damn kingdom?¡± ¡°Why do you think he¡¯s so powerful? Him and his family, I mean.¡± Jaegan ground his teeth before shouting at me. ¡°His family is siphoning that experience! It¡¯s the only thing that makes sense!¡± My voice took on a cold, unfeeling tone that made me a bit uncomfortable. ¡°Answer my fucking question or I¡¯ll cut you down where you stand.¡± Behind him the [Arcweavers] stood with blades extended. Somehow they knew I needed them and worked flawlessly. I made a mental note to get their names so I didn¡¯t have to just call them by their species, it was only fair. For a moment, I saw how badly it could have gone. Jaegan could have used his [Staff of the Wallbreaker] to attack me, dying to multiple blades in the neck at the same time, but not before he could unleash whatever trump card he was holding back. All adventurers ended up with them at a certain point, so it was a safe bet he had one. If I was lucky, my [Evasion] would let me avoid his trump card, but there was no guarantee. Instead, he stood there glaring at me while drumming his fingers on his staff for almost a minute before throwing it on the bed to my right and flopping down on the opposite bed. ¡°I preferred you as the naive young adventurer fresh off his first quest.¡± He leered at me. ¡°But I guess it¡¯s a good thing you¡¯ve got it in you to stand up to someone like me if you¡¯re going to be in charge at some point.¡± When I raised a hand to signal the [Arcweavers], he waved me away. ¡°I sent the tome to my contacts in Chalcedony. It¡¯s the second biggest city in Verdant and, due to the Tower, the wealthiest by far. ¡°I haven¡¯t been able to get in touch with my comrades in the resistance, but if they¡¯ve followed the plan we had in place, they should¡¯ve been passing it from person to person in the Chalcedony underground for the past twenty years.¡± He chuckled. ¡°No matter how many times Piney asked me who had his book I never lied, I really don¡¯t know who has it. With him not knowing about the resistance, he never thought to ask the questions I wouldn¡¯t have been able to answer honestly.¡± ¡°Why did you want the book?¡± My face was like stone, unfeeling, despite my inner turmoil. I felt for his people, they were frustrated at how weak they were and no matter what King Evergreen had tried, nothing had worked to fix the issue with his country. ¡°What good could it do for you?¡± The [Mage]¡¯s eyes gleamed with a fervor I¡¯d thought only existed within religious zealots. ¡°It records the events, accomplishments, and crimes of all citizens of Verdant, the Pine family included. We were going to monitor their sections of the book until we saw something relating to the curse on the land and use it to rise up against him.¡± ¡°Then why haven¡¯t they?¡± I deadpanned. ¡°It¡¯s been twenty years since you stole the damn thing and he¡¯s still in power. It seems your plan failed.¡± ¡°It has not!¡± He screamed and started ranting. ¡°They just haven¡¯t been looking for the right things. When I get there I can fix it. I can find the connection, I can avenge my Sophie!¡± Tears rolled down his face as he sobbed. ¡°If she were stronger, like the citizens of the other countries around Verdant, she would have escaped her kidnappers. If she didn¡¯t live in this cursed place¡­¡± His voice trailed off as he devolved into a fit of sobbing both threats and concerned pleas couldn¡¯t shake him out of. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. I opened the letter he¡¯d left on the bed and read it quickly. In the end, it was merely the rantings of a father broken by grief over the loss of his whole world. In it, I learned that she¡¯d been kidnapped a few years before I was born and Jaegan had thrown himself into adventuring before joining the council and eventually stealing the [Genealogical Record of the Kingdom of Verdant]. Nothing in the letter implicated me or gave up any of my secrets, so I wrote Jaegan¡¯s name on the envelope and dropped it in the [Item Box] before saying the code phrase. ¡°Evergreen, not Ever Gullible.¡± The box flickered for a moment before snapping out of existence. Over on the bed, Jaegan had cried himself to sleep, so I left him there a moment as I checked out the pair of [Skill Scrolls] I¡¯d received as partial payment for clearing the Dungen. If it weren¡¯t for the System enforcing our deal, I¡¯d have worried about King Evergreen reneging on the deal, but the penalties for doing so were steep, so I had confidence he¡¯d be as good as his System-bound word. The first was interesting, if mostly inconsequential for me, but the second? That was something I¡¯d been hoping to find at some point and it made me grin like a little kid. [Learn Keen Mind - Y/N] I mentally tapped the yes option and, a moment later, the scroll glowed brightly and another window appeared. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 27%] [Passive Skill Added - Keen Mind] As the [Skill] took over, I gasped. How wrong could I have been? The moment [Keen Mind] finished settling into my [Status] I felt an immediate improvement in damn near everything about me. What I¡¯d thought was just a [Skill] to help with puzzles and the like actually improved my Mana efficiency as well as the way I processed data. I stumbled for a second before the [Arcweavers] caught me and lowered me down on a free bed with gentle hands. I flashed them a pained smile. ¡°Thank you. By the way, what are your names? I don¡¯t like referring to you by your species if I can help it.¡± The female nodded. ¡°I am Volta.¡± ¡°And I am Voltaire.¡± The male followed a half second later. ¡°Thank you both for your service, Volta, Voltaire.¡± I nodded to each of them in turn. Something was nagging at me, there was a puzzle I had most of the pieces I needed to solve, but in the end it didn¡¯t click and I had to give up and let my subconscious work the problem for me. My consolation prize was pretty great though. [Learn Light Arrow - Y/N] I couldn¡¯t confirm it fast enough. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 28% Light Arrow - 69%] Sixty-nine percent mastered, not bad, not bad at all. I drew upon [Light Arrow] and an arrow of golden light formed before me. I drew my arm like I was drawing a bow and a bow made of light appeared with the arrow resting on the string. With a surge of effort, I drew the bow back to its full capacity and let it fly out the window. The light arrow construct sprang from the light bow construct like a normal arrow from a bow, only a hell of a lot faster considering how much higher my [Divine] was than my [Might]. I was initially confused why it was drawing from [Divine] rather than [Arcane] as I¡¯d expected, but soon I realized it was likely a [Skill] the high priest of Light donated to help King Evergreen out. In the end, those Stats were even for me, so it didn¡¯t really matter. Playing with [Light Arrow] was enough to distract me for a few hours so Jaegan could sleep off his emotional baggage for a while. In the end, we got going after lunch with me riding Raiju and Ylsa and Jaegan riding on the [Cloud Carpet]. According to the map, we were at nearly the westmost area of Verdant while Chalcedony was on the eastern edge. Even at Raiju¡¯s top speed pulling the carpet safely, it was going to take us at least two weeks to travel the breadth of Verdant, a country known for how wide versus how tall it was. In the end, we settled on traveling ten hours a day, hunting random monsters for four hours, and camping for the remaining time with lunch and dinner in the middle. The first few days were awkward as all hell, with Jaegan doing his best to stay away from me, but after he almost got eaten by a [Dire Wolf], stopped only a second before by a [Light Arrow] through the skull he and I came to an agreement. I agreed to let him meet with the resistance as long as he took me with. He balked at first, but I leaned on his fealty to me to get him to agree by promising to use [Dominus¡¯ Insight] on their leadership. I needed to meet the people who¡¯d left their friend and leader rot in jail for twenty years. The monsters along our path weren¡¯t much, especially with Raiju getting bored while camping and roaming ahead to hunt. On the fifth day, I convinced Volta and Voltaire to go back home, though they swore to return should I ever call them again. Knowing I needed to practice, I summoned a few different elementals each day to spar with both Ylsa and myself. I primarily fought against fire elementals to work on my speed while she liked fighting mud elementals for some reason, which earned her a laugh from Jaegan. Day nine ended with us a few miles from a fort on top of a hill in the center of Verdant. Two hours after landing, we were surrounded by guards and mages, but as soon as we flashed our Adventurers¡¯ Guild badges they backed off. Their lieutenant tried to charge us a fee to ¡°use the land¡±, but a growl from Raiju was enough to send him packing with his tail between his knees. Thirteen days after leaving the mine our vantage point let us see Chalcedony in the distance and instead of inspiring wonder, it inspired dread. The Tower loomed over the once-peaceful city of Chalcedony, its dark silhouette a stark contrast to the sun-drenched landscape. The tower, once a source of income and growth, had become a destructive force, spewing dark forces from its heart. Now, the city was a battlefield, its streets ablaze with the fires of chaos. Monstrous creatures, produced from the Tower¡¯s Mana overload, roamed the streets, their eyes glowing with malevolent intent. The once-vibrant marketplace was a charred ruin, its stalls littered with the remains of the city''s defenders. The tower itself seemed to pulsate with a sinister energy, its windows glowing with an eerie, unnatural light. The city''s defenders fought valiantly to contain the darkness, but the odds were against them. The Tower¡¯s power was too great, its influence spreading like a malignant tumor through the city''s heart. ¡°Well, I guess we have our work cut out for us, right?¡± I looked around at my companions who nodded quietly, which reminded me of something. I rubbed my thumb over my signet ring before shaking my head. ¡°I¡¯ve got a trick up my sleeve, hopefully it¡¯ll help us save some more people.¡± Chapter 28 - Party on, Artie With a surge of will through [Suzerain¡¯s Seal] I sent Ylsa, and Jaegan a party invite. I tried to do the same for Raiju, but wasn¡¯t able to do so. Frustrated, I pulled up the Party Interface to see if at least the other two were able to join me. [Arthur¡¯s Party: Party Members: Arthur - Starlord (Suzerain) Party Leader HP: 100% Mana: 98% Stamina: 100% Raiju - Evolved Gale Wolf Bonded to Arthur HP: 100% Mana: 100% Stamina: 100% Jaegan - Mage HP: 100% Mana: 96% Stamina: 100% Ylsa - Mountain Tempest HP: 100% Mana: 100% Stamina: 99% Loot Options (Choose One) All loot delivered to Party Leader (Default) Equal Loot Distribution Hold loot in party interface until combat ends] OK, so that¡¯s pretty sweet. I can see everyone¡¯s expendable resources, but don¡¯t have to do math all the time to figure out how close to running out they are. My eyes grew large when I reached the loot options. Hold on, does this mean¡­ ¡°Jaegan, check out the Party Interface.¡± I leaned back to yell at him and the wind stole my words. ¡®Use the Party Chat.¡¯ Jaegan¡¯s voice sounded in my head. ¡®Just think about talking to me and I¡¯ll hear it. You can do the same with Ylsa and Raiju as well as all of us at the same time or any subgroup you want.¡¯ Seems he took to this like a fish to water, I can¡¯t say I¡¯m surprised. He¡¯s a crafty old bastard. ¡®Have you checked out the Party Interface?¡¯ ¡®I have, and Ylsa and I both agree with you handling the loot.¡¯ I felt his smile through the connection. ¡®With your storage ring being so large, you can take damn near anything that¡¯d drop and we can figure out where it goes when we have a few moments.¡¯ ¡®Ylsa, is that true?¡¯ I messaged her directly. ¡®Jaegan can¡¯t hear us, so you can be honest with me.¡¯ ¡®Without question, milord.¡¯ Her voice came through even louder than it did out loud. ¡®As your vassals, our loot is yours until you deign to relinquish the bits you see fit to.¡¯ That sent me reeling. Is that how she sees our connection? Before I could fully unpack that, I realized something else that nearly sent me flying off Raiju¡¯s back, and it would have if she hadn¡¯t noticed it happening and bumped me back into place. Hold on, if we have loot settings, does that mean¡­ I messaged everyone in chat. ¡®I think we might auto-loot now.¡¯ The silence was deafening as we flew ever nearer Chalcedony until Jaegan replied with a hesitant mental voice. ¡®This¡­ is as amazing as it is incredibly dangerous.¡¯ His gulp came through the connection. ¡®Entire countries would kill the lot of us if that is true.¡¯ I nodded to myself. ¡®I know.¡¯ Raiju, bless her heart, chimed in curiously in chat. ¡®Why? Can¡¯t we always loot our kills? What does this change?¡¯ ¡®Arthur, would you care to field that, or should I?¡¯ Jaegan messaged me directly. ¡®I think I know the answer, but I¡¯d appreciate it if you did. You¡¯ve traveled a lot more than I have.¡¯ He did just that. ¡®Raiju, do you know what war is?¡¯ ¡®Tribes fighting each other over territory?¡¯ The wolf ran higher to give us a better look at Chalcedony. ¡®With Gale Wolves, it usually had something to do with food too, but I don¡¯t think manlings usually have issues with food from what I¡¯ve seen.¡¯ ¡®You¡¯re not exactly wrong, but there¡¯s something you¡¯re missing. Power.¡¯ Jaegan¡¯s tone was that of a caring father talking to a young daughter, kindly but firm. ¡®Manlings, as you put it, crave power and one of the easiest ways to gain power is killing your foes.¡¯ Raiju¡¯s head darted out as she snatched a bird from the air as she ran. ¡®Of course, killing gives experience, even if the System doesn¡¯t show it happening. How does auto-loot change that? It might save a bit of time, but it¡¯s not like it¡¯s going to be better quality that way.¡¯ ¡®Air raids, bombardments, and just plain sniping.¡¯ I chimed in. ¡®Our friend Jaegan here knows how one of those works a lot better than most.¡¯ We were getting close to the city and I knew we had to speed up the explanation so we could figure out what to do in town. Jaegan obviously realized where I was going and kept the rest of his explanation succinct. ¡®Exactly. With an auto-looting ability, a party of snipers, artillerists, or simply [Mages] drunk on power could attack a city and kill people with impunity, gather piles of loot and escape before anyone was the wiser.¡¯ Somehow I heard him hiss out through his teeth. ¡®It¡¯d be total anarchy if this ability got out. There¡¯s a good reason the System disabled the Party System if auto-looting was a basic portion of it. As is, having to loot manually takes enough time that commandos can¡¯t just kill people, take their stuff, and leave before someone can help. At least usually.¡¯ ¡®Oh.¡¯ My bonded shook her head. ¡®Manlings are scarier than I thought, despite their lack of useful teeth.¡¯ ¡®An understatement if I¡¯ve ever heard one.¡¯ I took command of the conversation. ¡®Alright, we¡¯ll deal with the loot issue once we get done working to save the people of Chalcedony. Here¡¯s my current plan, please let me know if you have anything to add. ¡®Jaegan, I¡¯m going to drop you and Ylsa off on the lord¡¯s keep near the Tower. From there you should be able to blast any large groups coming out from the infernal thing before they can split up. Ylsa, you¡¯re in charge of defending the old Wallbreaker, alright? Trust no one to guard his back, we don¡¯t know why the Tower is like this, so it could be an inside job.¡¯ I chuckled. ¡® Old man, try not to live up to your nomme de guerre, alright? This place already looks rough, they don¡¯t need to have to rebuild.¡¯ A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡®Cheeky pup.¡¯ He growled through our connection as we passed over the wall and into the scene of chaos. With a gesture he spawned a number of [Arcane Cannons] and set them to raining pain on any monsters they could target behind us as we flew quickly toward the center of town. ¡®As you will, Storm-Blessed.¡¯ Ylsa clapped a fist to her chest. Still not used to that title, but I guess it¡¯s not wrong, given [Elemental Pactlord] and Raiju. Part of me thinks I should¡­ My mind rejected the next thought so violently that I nearly passed out. NO, it¡¯s still too dangerous. I should just summon some elementals to help. Somehow I knew I was compensating for something, but it didn¡¯t mean it was a bad idea. ¡®What are you going to be doing, milord?¡¯ Jaegan¡¯s voice snapped me out of my distracted state. ¡®I figure you¡¯ll be taking Raiju with you, but where should we look out for you?¡¯ ¡®Wherever the most monsters are.¡¯ I smiled sadly to myself. ¡®Maybe I¡¯ll be able to save someone from a horde of monsters, but at least I¡¯ll be able to do some damage. Raiju¡¯s going to be in charge of hunting down civilians surrounded by monsters and getting them to whatever safe zones they¡¯ve managed to establish.¡¯ Wind whipped by as Raiju sent us into a nosedive above the lord¡¯s keep. A few arrows and [Elemental Bolts] streaked toward us until the person in charge noticed we weren¡¯t monsters, at least most of us weren¡¯t, and had his subordinates stop just as we alighted on the crenellations. Raiju growled at a nearby archer as she crunched an arrow she¡¯d caught as we were freefalling. Without missing a beat, Ylsa hopped off the carpet with Jaegan in a princess carry before carefully setting him down. The brown-haired middle-aged man in charge stalked over with his hand on his sword hilt. His big brass pauldrons didn¡¯t match his armor, but with [Essence Reading] I could tell they were decently powerful morale enhancers. ¡°State your business!¡± He roared unnecessarily loudly and my impression of him dropped a few points. ¡°Orders from the king to help clear out monsters,¡± Jaegan threw a cocky salute his way, ¡°unless you¡¯d like us to leave?¡± His [Arcane Cannons] hadn¡¯t stopped firing as they poked over the top of the keep to rain magical ordinance on the monsters pouring out of the Tower in a steady stream. To his credit, the brass pauldron wearing soldier didn¡¯t miss a beat. ¡°Adventurers, got it. I¡¯ll have my subordinates stay out of your way unless something gets close to¡­¡± He trailed off as Ylsa stepped up beside Jaegan with [Bloodsplitter] hefted in an unconsciously menacing pose. ¡°Focus on your men. I¡¯ll guard Wallbreaker.¡± Not a second after saying that she whipped an arm out and slapped a [Dire Mosquito] out of the air before it could even get close to her charge. The soldier in charge wiped some sweat from his brow as he turned to see me sucking the [Cloud Carpet] into my storage ring. ¡°And what are you going to do?¡± ¡°Rude, not even giving your name.¡± My tongue stuck out unconsciously as I pulled up the menu for [Elemental Pactlord] and selected a preset I¡¯d worked on while flying in. ¡°I¡¯m Captain Barney Fifendo, now what are you¨C¡± The captain was cut off as the sky around me erupted with a host of [Arcweavers], [Thunderhawks], and [Cloudpups]. Six of the vaguely elf-looking [Arcweavers] arrived, with Volta and Voltaire standing at attention in front of their fellows. The dozen [Thunderhawks] were just that, six foot long birds made out of black cloudstuff and lightning, but the biggest one stood out in front with a bright blue head frill as he looked me in the eye. [Cloudpups] weren¡¯t much use in fighting with their friendly doglike cloudstuff bodies, but with twenty of them working together, they¡¯d be able to put out way more fires than even a similar sized group of [Aquanids]. ¡°The name¡¯s Arthur Neilson and I¡¯m going to take my friends to go kill a bunch of monsters while my fluffy pups help out your fellow citizens.¡± I grinned wildly from Raiju¡¯s back. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Raiju!¡± She immediately sprang off from the crenellation and sent us soaring above the city in just a few bounds. ¡°Where to?¡± ¡°First things first.¡± I stroked her neck before turning to address my elemental army in Auran. ¡°Volta, Voltaire, it¡¯s lovely to see you again. I appreciate you showing up on such short notice.¡± All of the [Arcweavers] bowed before Volta stepped forward. ¡°The [Arcweavers] stand with the Pactlord. We await your orders.¡± She stepped back next to her brother, just half a step in front of the other four of her kind. I guess she and her brother got some kind of promotion? Good for them. ¡°I need you six to spiral out from my location and keep me from getting overwhelmed.¡± I grinned while running my fingers through my platinum blonde hair. ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid to let monsters through, but don¡¯t let me get mobbed either. I¡¯m pretty tough, but without Raiju around I¡¯m going to be relying on you to back me up.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Voltaire clapped his fist to his chest before he and his fellow [Arcweavers] did just as I asked. They swept through a hundred foot radius circle around me as they shot arrows at the assorted monsters below with bows and arrows formed of pure lightning. The blue frilled [Thunderhawk] flew closer to me and dipped her head. ¡°I am Electra. How might my kettle be of use to you?¡± Her voice was sharp, but not unkind. ¡°I need you to keep the skies clear of those [Gargoyles] we¡¯ve seen flying by.¡± I pointed to one of the seven foot tall stone-skinned monsters flying toward a group of civilians a few streets away. ¡°Other than that¨C¡± ¡°Not to be impertinent, but why don¡¯t you tell the [Gargoyles] to stop?¡± Electra looked at me curiously. ¡°They follow the Earth Monarch, so a single word from you should stop them dead.¡± I gaped at her for a second before pouring a bit of my remaining twenty percent of Mana into [Elemental Pactlord] as I bellowed in Terran. ¡°Ceasefire! Gather as close to me as you can so I can address you properly.¡± I watched as my words became a wave of energy that swept out over the city. Despite its wealth, Chalcedony was only a few miles across, so it was only mildly surprising when the wave lapped over the edges of the city and out into the surrounding countryside. Checking my remaining Mana, I hissed unhappily. ¡°Damnit, that took almost everything out of me. I just wanted to throw a dozen Mana at it too¡­¡± Instead, I¡¯d used sixty Mana, nearly ten percent of my total supply and nearly fifty percent of my precious reserves. The effect, however, was impressive. All over the city, [Gargoyles] left their victims to streak into the skies toward me. There had to be dozens, if not hundreds, of them. ¡°Electra, remind me to give you a gift before you go home.¡± I gave her as regal a nod as I could. ¡°I guess you and your kettle are on cleanup duty. Kill any monsters you see fit, but make sure not to injure any civilians in the process.¡± I really don¡¯t know what else to have her do, she solved what I summoned her for with a small bit of monster knowledge I didn¡¯t have. I really need to study up on elementals with this damn Unique Skill, it¡¯s way more powerful than I already thought it was. ¡°As you will.¡± She let out a throaty caw and dipped a wing to me. ¡°Form leashes. We hunt!¡± The [Thunderhawks] split into groups of three before streaking away at incredible speeds toward large groups of [Inferno Drones]. [Inferno Drones] were small metallic monsters with flamethrowers that hovered near the ground lighting people and buildings on fire. I turned to my fluffy doggos and beckoned them closer. ¡°Do you prefer Auran or Aquan? And what should I call you?¡± I asked in a mixture of the languages. ¡°Either, master.¡± One of them bumbled forward and bowed deeply. ¡°I am known as Nimbus. What would you have my pack do?¡± Auran it is. Best to keep it to as few languages as possible. I¡¯ve already got Common, Auran, and Terran going, no point in adding another. ¡°What you do best, Nimbus.¡± I resisted the urge to pet the cloud pup. ¡°Make it rain. Though I¡¯d like you to focus your efforts on wherever you see the most civilians nearby, I trust you know how your abilities work far better than I. Wherever you see people and fire in close proximity,¡± I tapped my nose, ¡°make the fire disappear.¡± The lead [Cloudpup] put a paw forward in a bow. ¡°We¡¯ll do our best.¡± He spun on another paw and rumbled toward his pack before they scrambled toward a nearby conflagration. They¡¯re so damn cute¡­ I¡¯m glad they¡¯re working for me, it¡¯d be tough to have to attack them. ¡°You¡¯re doing great,¡± I patted Raiju¡¯s side. ¡°Sorry for keeping you out of the fight so far, you¡¯ll get your chance in a bit.¡± She craned her head around to look at me with big eyes. ¡°I know. Plus, I like carrying you around. It makes me feel¡­ better somehow.¡± ¡°Me too.¡± I leaned forward and hugged her. ¡°You¡¯re the best, Raiju.¡± Her chest rumbled and I knew she appreciated my honesty. A ten foot tall [Darkstone Gargoyle] sped ahead of the pack of normal [Gargoyles], on forty foot wide wings, toward me before bowing frantically. His near-black granite skin gleamed, reflecting the flames below. [Essence Reading] told me he was an evolved [Gargoyle], but not much else, I really needed a book on elementals¡­ Maybe I should ask for one from King Evergreen or even the Governess? ¡°Pactlord,¡± his voice shook with fear, ¡°command my host as you will.¡± ¡°Manners. What is your name,¡± I tutted a finger, ¡°and how long have you been on Genovia?¡± I ran a hand through Raiju¡¯s fur as I watched the huge monster squirm. ¡°I am known as Edifice, Pactlord, and I have been present in this incarnation on Genovia for fifteen years, as the mortals call them.¡± Edifice rubbed his claws together nervously as I stared deeply into his garnet eyes. ¡°Do you know what caused the Tower to leak, or break?¡± I figured it couldn¡¯t hurt and was soon proven correct. Edifice hung his head. ¡°I do,¡± my eyebrows went up, ¡°at least in part.¡± What a letdown. I guess I should figure out what he knows. For some reason, he feels a lot¡­ slimier than the other elementals I¡¯ve spoken with since evolving [Elemental Pactlord]. Maybe it has to do with whatever caused his kind to attack the city alongside the [Ashen Tunnelers], [Flame Golems], and [Inferno Drones]. ¡°Explain.¡± Chapter 29 - Tower Tumors The [Darkstone Gargoyle] floated in the air with his head hung low, his wings not even bothering to beat in his present state. ¡°My kind were in charge of defending the Tower from exterior influence and we took those duties very seriously.¡± ¡°Why past tense? What changed?¡± I glared at him, he was taking a long time to explain and I had people to save damnit! ¡°Four months ago, I felt something¡­ wrong appear within the Tower that didn¡¯t belong, however, as I was merely in charge of the east approach, I didn¡¯t do anything about it.¡± Edifice¡¯s horns drooped. ¡°Over the next two months, the Tower started to feel more alien, despite nothing entering it that my contemporaries or I could detect. ¡°In a bit of desperation a week ago, the other guardians and I had a meeting to see if we could send someone inside to check out the Tower, but to do so one of us would have to evolve. My contemporaries were all chipped and damaged over the years, so I was selected.¡± He flexed a clawed granite hand. ¡°When I went inside through my maintenance hatch I found the floor of the Tower coated in a black membrane. Before I could do any real exploring, I found myself outside the Tower with a strange phrase in my head and a claw full of black crystals I felt compelled to give to each of my kind surrounding the Tower.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t waste my time.¡± I seethed. ¡°What was the phrase and what kind of black crystals?¡± I¡¯m going to stick a [Psyknife] in this asshole if he doesn¡¯t speed it up. ¡°Apologies, Pactlord.¡± Edifice kowtowed in mid-air. ¡°The phrase was ¡®Await the flames.¡¯ As for the crystals,¡± he beckoned a smaller [Gargoyle] closer and spun them around to expose their neck. ¡°This kind of crystal. I don¡¯t exactly know what they do, but ever since I finished handing them out, I have no memory. That is until you summoned us, for which I thank you on the behalf of my host and myself.¡± I need to know if he¡¯s lying, how can I do that? I pondered it for a moment before snapping my fingers. I can try that out! With a thought, I triggered [Dominus¡¯ Insight] and was surprised to see a screen pop up in the corner of my vision even as the bit of Mana I¡¯d regenerated was sucked away, leaving me with the same dregs I¡¯d had post [Pactlord¡¯s Call] as I thought of it. [Edifice is a lying sack of garbage most of the time. He is the reason the rest of the guardians of the Tower were damaged badly enough to force them to send him in to check out the status of their charge. However, he isn¡¯t lying about his current state. Those crystals have suppressed his memories. Before leaving town, you will need to have him and his fellow Gargoyles remove their crystals, even if it risks their corporeal forms, or they will remain a threat to Chalcedony in perpetuity.] ¡°Works for me.¡± I murmured under my breath before snapping up to look at Edifice. ¡°You and your kind are basically immune to fire, correct?¡± ¡°Highly resistant, yes. Though a powerful enough¨C¡± ¡°Got it.¡± I cut his rant off before it could really get started. ¡°I need you to swarm the [Flame Golems] and take them down, hard. When you get done with that, each of you is to fly outside the wall and remove your embedded black crystal. If you¡¯re still aware after that, return and help rescue civilians.¡± I leaned down and whispered in Raiju¡¯s ear despite the party interface, as I knew she liked me close. ¡°You¡¯re free to go and save some people or kill monsters. I can get where I¡¯m going from here.¡± Without missing a beat, I triggered [Air Step] and flipped off her back. ¡°Have fun!¡± Letting myself freefall, I looked out over the city as Raiju streaked off to the north, howling all the way. With sixty percent of the city engulfed in flames, I didn¡¯t exactly have many safe places to land, but a few seconds into my fall I spotted something interesting. The sign outside called it the Arcane Nook and it was a modest storefront nestled amidst the chaos of the burning city. Its facade, once adorned with arcane symbols, was now blackened and soot-stained, yet the cerulean barrier surrounding it remained unbroken. The shop¡¯s entrance, a simple wooden door with a brass knocker, seemed to defy the inferno that raged around it. While the shop¡¯s barrier appeared to be doing a great job against the [Flame Golems] and the [Inferno Drones], it was the [Ashen Tunnelers] that seemed to be the biggest threat. Five of the six-foot long grey snakes with black diamond patterns along their backs were spraying light green acid at the shop in volleys and I watched as a single hexagonal portion of the barrier shattered, letting the acid globule strike one of the windows on the second floor, where it ate through in less than a tenth of a second. Through the window, I could see movement and that was all I needed to pick it as my target. Seems like someone needs some help there, let¡¯s see how I stack up against these [Ashen Tunnelers]. Like a bird of prey, I dive bombed toward the snake-like monsters, checking the Status of them as I fell. [Ashen Tunnelers - Rank D Monsters Levels: 25-29 Vulnerabilities: Water, Ice Immunities: Acid, Poison] Nothing I can¡¯t handle¡­ probably. I grinned despite the situation, I¡¯d always loved flying and this was as close as I¡¯d come so far to doing so under my own power. Seventy feet above the shop, I triggered [Air Step] a few times to slow myself down safely before drawing a bow of golden light to my ear and sending a [Light Arrow] straight through the head of the biggest snake monster. It fell down, slain by the combination of the damage multiplication of [Backstab] and the radiant damage from [Light Arrow], before dissolving into smoke as I felt the loot enter my ring through the Party System. I¡¯d felt the same thing happening as I flew with Raiju, but now I knew for sure what it was. I knocked another [Light Arrow] and soon began a dance through the air as the [Ashen Tunnelers] decided I was more important to destroy than some random shop with a barrier they had trouble eating through despite their acidic spit. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. I was truly in my element as I danced through the sky, relying on [Photosynthesis] and my natural Mana regeneration to keep me from bottoming out my Mana completely. Though with so many summons out, I couldn¡¯t go over twenty percent of my total at any given point, I still had more than enough to rain [Light Arrows] down on the slithering bags of scales. As I whirled above the battlefield, more of the boots to be showed up despite me killing four of them already, and a couple of them figured out how to slither up the side of one of the other buildings. I only know that because as I poured attacks down at the growing group of [Ashen Tunnelers] on the ground I suddenly felt something wet hit the side of my face before it began to burn like nothing I¡¯d ever experienced. Before I could do anything about the acid eating away at the side of my face, the back of my head suddenly burst into flames, sending me tumbling down toward the monsters below. ¡°Hey, grab onto the pole!¡± A high pitched female voice broke the [Shocked] status I¡¯d picked up after getting blindsided twice. ¡°I¡¯ll pull you in!¡± Twisting my body in the air, I saw I was just about to fall past the pole that was now sticking out of the barrier around the shop. ¡°I refuse to become snake food!¡± I savagely kicked off the air with [Air Step], launching myself at the pole, where I wrapped my arms and legs around it. The slick brass pole moved a bit before stopping. ¡°Fucking heavy for a little guy, damn.¡± I heard her curse under her breath. ¡°Hold on!¡± She yelled and I only had half a second before the pole practically flew back in through the gap in the barrier. I nearly lost my grip on the pole when it shimmied to the left and my shoulder slammed into the corner of the window, shattering it and covering my already acid coated face in shards of glass. Somehow, I managed to hold on just a moment longer and was unceremoniously dumped ten feet onto the well-worn floor of the shop. ¡°Ugh,¡± I grunted as I produced a waterskin from my spatial ring and dumped it over the acid still eating away at my face, ignoring the bit of burning still happening on the back of my head besides whatever splashed over. Suddenly, I felt the water I was pouring from my waterskin form up around my head with only a small gap for my nose and mouth. My eyes widened as a thread of ruby liquid entered the globe of water before flowing over to coat my cheek and the space around my right eye. I looked around in a panic until my eyes locked onto a pair of young women, one raven-haired and the other a deep chestnut. Closest to me was the raven-haired woman, her skin the color of sun-kissed ivory, as she knelt beside me with her hands glowing with an ethereal light. She was obviously controlling the water around my head, but for some reason I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off either of the women. At the heart of the shop was a workbench where a sprightly young brunette woman labored over her craft, her hands glowing with arcane energy as she etched intricate runes onto a piece of enchanted metal. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about your face, Mindy¡¯ll get you right as rain in just a bit.¡± The craftswoman¡¯s voice was like music before she chuckled. ¡°Never thought I¡¯d use that fishing rod inside, but I¡¯m glad it worked out.¡± ¡°How does your face feel? Do you still have any debuffs?¡± Mindy had gorgeous garnet eyes, betraying her heritage as a Tiefling despite her ivory skin. Her voice was like the spring sun after a long hard winter in the mountains. Checking my Status, I found it totally normal, minus the eighty percent of my Mana tied up in all the elementals currently tied to me. I suppressed the [Skill Dominance] notifications, knowing there were likely more to come. ¡°Everything seems to be in order.¡± I bowed to the healer. ¡°Thank you, Mindy. Your efforts are greatly appreciated.¡± The young Tiefling woman gasped, covering her face with her hands. ¡°Oh, it was nothing. Marie was the one who fished you out of the air, I just used [Healing Waters] and a Common [Regeneration Potion].¡± She sucked the water from around my head into an open waterskin at her waist. ¡°Sorry, but I was all out after putting out a small fire in here. I hope you don¡¯t mind.¡± I waved her concern off as I looked around at my surroundings. The air inside the shop was cool and still, a stark contrast to the heat and chaos outside. Shelves lined the walls, filled with an eclectic assortment of magical artifacts and enchanted items. In the center of the chamber was the real focal point, the Runesmith¡¯s workstation, where Marie seemed to be diligently at work on some sort of bracer. Despite my best efforts, I wasn¡¯t able to stop staring at either of them without a distraction, so I let my eyes focus on the women¡¯s Statuses to avoid any awkwardness. [Name: Melinda ¡°Mindy¡± Emberstone Race: Tiefling Class: Hydromancer - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 15 Emotional Status: Scared/Nervous] [Name: Marie Emberstone Race: Human Class: Whisperknife - Rare - Rank B Level: 21 Emotional Status: Amused/Focused] ¡°Yes, we¡¯re blood related sisters.¡± Marie chuckled as she set down an engraving tool on the desk before banishing the bracer to some storage device. ¡°Mom had a fling with a demon after Dad fucked off, but before she knew she was pregnant with Mindy.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad to hear you claim her then, I¡¯ve been told it¡¯s not something most people would do.¡± I looked outside at the [Ashen Tunnelers] behind the barrier before turning back to Marie while Mindy hid behind her. ¡°Mom put her up for adoption and no one would take her, so the Architect''s church forced her to take her back in.¡± Marie huffed. ¡°Bitch tried to kill my little sister and she would have pulled it off if I hadn¡¯t caught her in the act too.¡± I blinked a few times. ¡°How old were you?¡± ¡°Six, but Dad had been teaching me to use a blade so she never saw me coming.¡± She shrugged to reveal a brace of throwing knives along her left deltoid. ¡°The church took care of us after that, that is until my System Day. From then on, I¡¯ve taken care of Mindy all on my own.¡± She waved a hand all around her. ¡°This place is the culmination of all our hard work the past ten years.¡± She¡¯s human, so that¡¯d make Marie around twenty-eight years old and Mindy about twenty-two give or take six months. To have been on their own for so long, they must have suffered so much. I can¡¯t let some damn snakes take this place from them. ¡°How long can your barrier hold out under an assault like this and can we open up a hole in it so I can shoot out?¡± I stretched a bit, squatting with one leg extended and bouncing a few times before switching to the other side. ¡°I¡¯ve got a few friends I can call in for help if it¡¯s desperate, but I¡¯d rather leave them to their present tasks.¡± Surprisingly, it was Mindy who replied to my questions. ¡°The barrier is water Mana based, so it¡¯d take a lot for any acid to get through without some sort of specialized evolution, like the bigger [Ashen Tunneler] you killed first.¡± She pointed up at the ceiling toward a huge clear bowl suspended above the center of the room. It was at least ten feet across and I almost couldn¡¯t believe I hadn¡¯t spotted it before. ¡°As long as there¡¯s water in that bowl the barrier will hold, though broken panels might take a bit of time to fix themselves if I don¡¯t help them along.¡± Her sister pulled her around and rested her hands on the [Hydromancer]¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Mindy here is a damn barrier genius and don¡¯t let her tell you anything less. Selling smaller versions of that big bastard paid for this shop, no doubt. My pitiful [Runesmithing] has nothing on her talent.¡± Nodding along, I grinned. ¡°It¡¯s brilliant. Remind me to give you my great-aunt¡¯s office address, she might be interested in something like that. However,¡± I hooked a thumb toward the monsters outside, ¡°for now, we need to deal with those scaly shits. Can we pop a hole to shoot out of, or am I going to need to walk out and get to dancing again?¡± I smirked. ¡°Hopefully with a lot less acid and fire hitting me.¡± ¡°I¡­ think I have an idea for that.¡± Mindy¡¯s voice shook. ¡°Follow me.¡± Chapter 30 - Hydromancy is Dope ¡°Mind, you might just be a genius.¡± My voice echoed throughout the cramped room she¡¯d led me into on the second floor. ¡°If this works? I¡¯ll buy it off you.¡± Her face went a shade nearly matching her garnet eyes as she settled a brass saucer on my hip. ¡°D-d-don¡¯t make¡­ fun of me.¡± She stuttered before retreating to the corner of the room. Fanning my hand out on my breast, I gasped. ¡°I would never. I genuinely believe your use of your Class is masterful, to create something like this.¡± With a flourish, I held up my newly gloved right hand. [Prototype Hydromatic Blasting Glove - Uncommon Charges - 15/15 Durability - Unknown Description - Crafted by Mindy Emberstone, this glove grants the user the ability to use the spell Water Shot. As long as the attached water receiver is connected to a source of water, no charges will be consumed. Prototype Warning: May react strangely if exposed to lightning or cold energy.] ¡°You came up with this in less than a week¨C¡± I stopped mid sentence when I caught her flinching and, realizing how nervous she was, lowered my voice. ¡°You made this in less than a week under a ton of stress and the System acknowledged it as an Uncommon. That¡¯s amazing.¡± She didn¡¯t meet my eyes as she walked over and opened up the large window looking out over the courtyard in front of the shop. Out there, over a dozen [Ashen Tunnelers] hissed as they continued alternating between biting at the barrier and spraying acid at it. My eyes narrowed when I spotted the [Inferno Drone] that¡¯d blindsided me and sent me careening out of the sky. You¡¯re my first target, you little shit. I wonder how you¡¯ll like some water mana right in the face? ¡°Are you OK?¡± Mindy asked quietly. When I looked over at her, she frowned. ¡°You had a sort of wicked smile on your face a second ago. Is everything alright?¡± ¡°Ah,¡± I pointed out at the offending monster. ¡°That¡¯s my first target. It knocked me out of the air and I want a bit of revenge.¡± She nodded and we moved to stand in the large opening. I sighed mentally when I realized she was almost a foot taller than me. Before, she¡¯d been cowering so much that I hadn¡¯t noticed, but now it was obvious. The moment she lined up on the window, her hesitation was gone, replaced with calm resolve. Combat suits her. I wonder why she doesn¡¯t go out and adventure. Maybe it¡¯s Marie not wanting to go? I should ask her after we deal with these snakey shits. I took a deep breath before exhaling. ¡°Three, two, one. Let ¡®er rip.¡± Like a well oiled machine, the pair of us channeled water from a globe Mindy had produced and set hovering behind us as we launched [Water Shots] out the window. Unlike my [Light Arrow], [Water Shot] was able to pierce through the barrier without even leaving a ripple behind. I let out a happy whoop when my first blast struck the [Inferno Drone] and marveled when it exploded on impact. With that taken care of, I turned my attention to the [Ashen Tunnelers] and was pleased to find the water-based attacks were far more effective against them than any of the other things I¡¯d attempted were, including [Light Arrow] and [Psyknife]. ¡°Who knew?¡± I mused as I let out a pair of water bolts from my forefinger and pinky at once, they simultaneously struck the same target in the head and chest, killing it instantly. While I was a quick learner, Mindy was undoubtedly highly skilled in using water mana in combat. She was like an orchestra conductor as she weaved [Water Shots] in with [Aqua Slices] and, my favorite, [Raging Torrent]. The latter being a condensed beam of water no thicker than a copper coin she used to carve through half a dozen [Ashen Tunnelers] in as many seconds. It seemed to be Mana intensive, but from the effect it had, it appeared to be well worth it. ¡°What do you mean?¡± She asked as she reached back without looking and used [Hydrosphere] to replenish my dwindling ammunition. ¡°Despite their name, I didn¡¯t put together that the [Ashen Tunnelers] were fire and earth attuned.¡± My glove hand started to heat up, so I stuck it in the [Hydrosphere] to cool down a bit. ¡°I was using light Mana, which is downright terrible against both of those elements before I got blasted out of the sky. If it weren¡¯t for [Backstab], I probably would have failed to even kill the one I sneak attacked.¡± She didn¡¯t respond for a minute as she focused on hitting the reinforcements hard with a trio of [Water Bombs]. They took the shape of large blue balls that the monsters somehow knew were dangerous as they left the barrier, or at least that¡¯s what it looked like. The moment the trio of spheres exited the barrier, the fifty [Ashen Tunnelers] all turned and let loose on them with their acidic spit. Two of the bombs made it to their independent destinations, but the final one was disrupted enough that Mindy took it upon herself to detonate it early after lowering it down to almost street level. The results were beyond my expectations. There was a deep *whump* sound as the first [Water Bomb] went off, momentarily flooding the courtyard with high pressure water before it disappeared a few seconds later. The monsters assembled were devastated, nearly thirty of them were killed instantly and the remaining twenty were wiped out when the second bomb reached its destination at the mouth of an alley that let out in the courtyard. The final [Water Bomb] floated at the mouth of the other street that emptied into the courtyard like a sentinel, daring any monsters to come its way. ¡°Wow.¡± I let out a breath I hadn¡¯t noticed I¡¯d been holding and turned to look at Mindy. To my surprise, her eyes were closed and her whole body was shaking. ¡°Hey, are you OK?¡± I wanted to touch her shoulder, but knew better than to do that when someone I didn¡¯t know was in the middle of something in a fight. I may have grown up sheltered, but my parents had instilled in me a deep understanding of proper etiquette for combat. ¡°It¡¯s taking a lot not to have the last one go off.¡± She grunted. ¡°The longer I hold it, the bigger the blast¡¯ll be.¡± Her whole body shook, but she didn¡¯t let it go. We sat there for almost a minute, during which time Mindy let out a few squeaks of pain, before the biggest [Ashen Tunneler] yet came into view. It had to be fifteen feet tall, even standing on its tail, over double the size of the normal ones. Behind it was easily another hundred of the normal sized [Ashen Tunnelers]. In a bit of a panic, I let [Essence Reading] trigger again and gasped. [Ashen Devastator - Rank C Monster Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Levels: 45 Vulnerabilities: Water, Ice Immunities: Acid, Poison] ¡°How bad is it?¡± Mindy said through gritted teeth. For a second, I considered lying to her, but what purpose would that have served? With a grimace I started unleashing [Water Shots] at the monsters following the [Ashen Devastator]. ¡°Pretty bad, if I¡¯m being honest. It looks like we got the boss monster headed our way.¡± I changed targets and started peppering the beast with the gauntlet. ¡°It plus a hundred of its ugliest friends.¡± ¡°Shit.¡± She swore for the first time in front of me. It shocked me so badly I nearly missed what she said next. ¡°Tap my shoulder when the [Water Bomb] is in the middle of that horde and I¡¯ll let it go.¡± ¡°What about the boss?¡± Even with a bigger blast radius, her [Water Bomb] wouldn¡¯t hit the boss if she waited that long. There was no answer for a long moment before it dawned upon me. ¡°You¡¯re going to use the barrier to hit it, aren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Can you distract it for a bit to let me get set up for that?¡± She hissed. ¡°Marie¡¯s been working on converting the barrier into a weapon to sell, but I haven¡¯t tested it. I¡¯ll need at least a minute or two to get it set up, during which the shop is going to be defenseless.¡± Is this what Dominus would want me to do? I pondered silently and subconsciously triggered [Dominus¡¯ Insight]. [Mindy is a pure soul who has been beaten down her entire life. Marie is her only living family member and she would drown the world to protect her, despite being the younger of the two. Her talents are significant and, with the right backer, she could be an invaluable vassal and companion with her healing and barrier abilities. Vassal Approval: 95%] I guess I know what you think about her now, don¡¯t I? I let out a snort. Time to play hero¡­ ¡°I can survive a few minutes, but make the first shot count.¡± I watched the approaching army of large greyish tan snakes with a grimace. ¡°I¡¯m good, but I¡¯m not invulnerable.¡± She nodded curtly before going still as she waited for my signal. Thirty seconds later, I gave it and I¡¯ll never forget the feeling of the blast wave hitting me. It threw me back against the door of the small storage room and it felt like I¡¯d been struck by Uncle Arlo¡¯s warhammer in training. His [Might] was over five hundred, so I was more than a little impressed by Mindy¡¯s big attack. She sagged to the ground and, after peeling myself off the wall, I moved to help her up. The scene outside the window was both better and worse than I¡¯d hoped for. All of the average sized [Ashen Tunnelers] were gone, obviously destroyed by the blast, but the [Ashen Devastator] was an entirely different story. He stood up even taller than before and somehow he¡¯d sprouted four more snake heads along his body until it became obvious what [Ashen Tunnelers] grew into. [Ashen Hydras], the most feared monster in the foothills of volcanoes. Known for killing parties of adventurers ten levels higher than them and then hunting down their families. I would have been in trouble if this were a standard member of the species, but I wasn¡¯t that lucky. This was a boss variant with ten levels on me and I¡¯d just agreed to tank it for at least two minutes. ¡°Well¡­ fuck me.¡± I muttered under my breath as I helped Mindy down the stairs as the newly evolved [Ashen Hydra Devastator] roared indignantly. Marie met us at the bottom of the stairs with a confused look. ¡°What happened to her? Did the barrier fail?¡± ¡°Nope, but it¡¯s about to.¡± I gently levered Mindy into her sister¡¯s waiting arms. ¡°Mindy was going to use the energy from it and turn it into a weapon of sorts.¡± I looked at the water mage with a small smile. ¡°She¡¯s done an amazing job so far, but the [Ashen Hydra Devastator] outside could kill everyone in this city by itself if we don¡¯t deal with it. Mindy¡¯s our only hope of taking it down without sacrificing a hell of a lot of people.¡± Or a lot of elementals, but I don¡¯t think the Elemental Monarchs would appreciate me doing that very much. I really like [Elemental Pactlord] and don¡¯t want to risk losing it by pissing them off unless I absolutely have to. It¡¯s on the table, but not until we¡¯ve tried everything else first. To her credit, Marie didn¡¯t flinch. ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll help her get everything ready for Big Bertha.¡± Seeing the look on my face, she clarified. ¡°It¡¯s what I¡¯ve been calling the water cannon.¡± Unable to help myself, I chuckled, earning me a glare from the shopkeeper. ¡°Hey, you haven¡¯t had to name almost a dozen different new recipes for the system, I have. Having a test name until you complete whatever you¡¯re working on is smart, or you¡¯ll accidentally name it something dumb when you complete it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take your word for it.¡± I went through my potion bandolier and confirmed everything was in place. I had a feeling I¡¯d be burning through my good stuff if I didn¡¯t want to end up beaten and bloody. ¡°I¡¯ll be outside when you drop the barrier. Hopefully that¡¯ll stop huge, grey, and scaly from taking a bite out of your shop.¡± I threw a half-hearted Clan Ironwind salute, dominant hand clasped over the heart with forefinger, middle finger, and ring finger out. Honor, Precision, and Victory. Hopefully I can live up to those today and make gramps proud. The few times I met him, he bragged about killing an [Ashen Hydra] as a younger dwarf. Just before stepping outside, I figured it would be a good idea to go through my notifications. I wasn¡¯t stalling¡­ OK, I was, but I really didn¡¯t want to get eaten and the hydra in front of me stood nearly thirty feet tall now with five acid dripping heads. [Multiple Skills Acquired with Skill Dominance (Placed in order of acquisition) Healing Waters Runesmithing Hydrosphere Water Shot Aqua Slice Raging Torrent Water Bomb] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 30%] Not a ton of things useful to me in there, but I guess it can¡¯t hurt to have them available. I guess Marie really is a Runesmith, or I wouldn¡¯t have picked the Skill up. I might just have to have her make me some things when the Tower issue is sorted out. With a sigh, I shook my head and muttered under my breath. ¡°No one else is going to tank this thing, it¡¯s up to you to protect Mindy and Marie until Mindy can kill it.¡± Before I could talk myself out of it, I stepped through the door and shut it behind me. Two feet in front of me stood the gleaming cerulean barrier and again I marveled at it. I knew Mom could do something similar, but it drained a hell of a lot of her Mana from what I remembered. The fact that Mindy had come up with a more efficient barrier technology was truly inspiring. Essence reading triggered on the barrier and the monster behind it simultaneously. [Mindy¡¯s Geodesic Barrier Formed from water Mana, this barrier is nearly immune to most damage, including all physical strikes, taking only one percent of the damage and losing a drop of water from the reserve per point done. However effective it is with most damage types, it does nothing to prevent radiant and water spells from passing through it.] Genius. Great Auntie is going to want to apprentice her, I can feel it. As a [Riptide Caller] she and Mindy have a lot in common, including their love of barriers. I really have to connect those two at some point. [Ashen Devastator Hydra - Rank A Raid Boss Levels: 52 Vulnerabilities: Water, Ice Immunities: Acid, Poison Chosen of Dominus: This creature has been exposed to Devourer¡¯s control. It knows you are my Chosen and will target you, and only you, as long as you are within five miles of it unless someone or something does grievous damage to it. Killing it will grant you bonus Stats as well as a boon from me, though escape is still a valid option. Discretion is the better part of valor for a ruler after all.] Well, that¡¯s not great. How did that happen? I groaned as the barrier in front of me flickered for a moment as the big beasty slammed his heads into it all at once while staring at me with blood red eyes. Nothing really changes, but now I know it¡¯s personal. I wonder what kind of stats and boon I¡¯ll get if we kill it? The behemoth slapped the end of its tail against the ground hard enough to shake the building and a moment later the barrier failed entirely. Triggering [Haste] and [Air Step], I launched myself toward the creature before my nerves could get the better of me. Chapter 31 - The Bigger They are… the Harder They Hit It turns out that dashing straight toward a snake-type raid boss fifteen levels higher than you is a fucking terrible idea. I groaned as I pulled myself out of the Arthur sized hole in the wall of the bakery kitty corner from Mindy and Marie¡¯s shop, which I¡¯d just learned was called Barriers and More as the sign was slammed into my chest as the hydra used it as a paddle. My HUD showed I was still over fifty percent health, but I¡¯d only taken a single hit! This thing was way stronger than even Arlo or Dad. I was outclassed and I knew it. I don¡¯t have to win, I just have to survive until Mindy and Marie can get the cannon ready. I can do this! Popping an Uncommon [Healing Potion] was enough to get my HP headed in the right direction, just in time as a pair off the hydra¡¯s heads streaked toward my slight form. With a surge of will, I triggered [Mana Slide] and just barely dodged the acid dripping fangs. Pulling my daggers out, I tried digging them into its necks as I flew underneath its belly, but they just bounced off like they were cheap eating knives instead of hand-crafted Rare daggers. ¡°Shit, if that¡¯s the case¡­¡± I spun the blades in my hands and returned them to their sheathes in a single, well practiced, motion. I popped up behind the raid beast without a plan and before I knew it I¡¯d placed my fingers against its body and triggered the glove Mindy had given me, sending a bolt of water deep into the trunk of the creature. It hissed in pain and I mentally slotted [Hydrosphere] as a plan formed in my mind. A notification in my HUD confirmed my choice with [Hydrosphere]. [Prototype Hydromatic Blasting Glove - Charges: 14/15] With a quick trio of hops, I found myself fifty feet above the street, or twenty feet above the raid boss, which was far more relevant to my plan. I used [Hydrosphere] and anchored it to the brass disk on my hip where the water inlet for the glove was connected by a thin brass hose. With that in place, I began to kite around the hydra in a wide circle, being careful not to drop low enough to risk the beast shooting acid at me and having it land on a random shop. For the better part of a minute, that actually worked. I was sending bolt after bolt of water down into the creature and it wasn¡¯t able to reach me, or so I thought. Just as I got into a rhythm I learned first hand why Dad always said to change things up around monsters. I was mid-leap on my fifth loop when instead of shooting a globule of acid at me, the creature used three heads to send a cloud of acid instead. I hadn¡¯t planned for that and just before it engulfed me, a huge gust of wind pushed it back toward the creature like someone slapped a return to sender tag on it. ¡°Artie!¡± Raiju¡¯s sleek pearly form slammed into me, sending me bowling through the air until she darted underneath and caught me. ¡°The party interface said you were in a boss fight and wouldn¡¯t let us talk to you, so I came as fast as I could.¡± She growled and lashed out with a lightning coated paw at one of the heads of the creature that was trying to bite at her leg. It hissed angrily as it jerked back toward its core, mostly uninjured but instead chastened. ¡°That was a lot of Mana and it didn¡¯t do anything.¡± She sounded concerned. ¡°What are we going to do? What¡¯s the plan?¡± I lay down against her neck and kept my brass coated glove wearing hand away from her head as I explained what Mindy and Marie were doing as I continued firing upon the monstrosity. Riding on Raiju¡¯s back felt like cheating with how well she was able to dodge the creature¡¯s strikes and ranged attacks. That all changed when we got its health under seventy percent. [Raid Boss - Ashen Devastator Hydra - has Reached Seventy Percent of its HP Combat Phase One has Ended and Stage Two Begins Now] The raid boss threw back all five heads and screamed into the air, a sound like a thousand angry toddlers mixed with the same number of angry cats. The second it began, Raiju and I fell from the sky like a pair of stones. She was agile enough to bounce off the edges of buildings around us to bring us down safely as I checked the new notification we all had. [Raid Phase Two - Flying and teleporting Skills are sealed.] Apparently, [Air Step] and Raiju¡¯s [Swift as the Wind] were both considered [Flight Skills] as neither of us were able to use them. Not only did losing access to [Swift as the Wind] bind Raiju to the ground, it also decreased her land speed by a significant margin. While she¡¯d been able to effortlessly avoid the snake hydra¡¯s strikes before, now she was only narrowly avoiding being struck and eventually that luck ran out thirty seconds into us both attacking it with all we were worth, me with my water glove and her with [Thunderhead] as it loomed over the pair of us. While one head bit down on her foreleg, another did the same on my non-gloved arm. The pain was intense as it pumped my body full of acid. It almost felt like my body was filling with magma instead of acid as it picked me up and held me in its second head before the central, bigger, head. Despite the danger it represented, in the pain haze it almost looked majestic with its tan scales dusted with a peppering of black and gold around the eyes. It opened up its frill to reveal a hood like a [Dust Cobra] as it drew back its central head to finish me off, not that its other head wasn¡¯t well on its way to doing so, but it obviously wanted to watch me die. ¡®Don¡¯t forget your less conventional weapons.¡¯ A faint voice flooded into my mind, snapping me out of my near death fugue state. With a grunt, I reached toward the grenade pocket of my potion bandolier and produced my least conventional weapon, [Megara¡¯s Big Stink]. I depressed the button on the side of the greyish-blue egg and pushed it all the way in to trigger it immediately instead of after two seconds like usual before tossing it in the center head¡¯s gaping mouth. The resulting smell defied all logic. Trying to describe it would be like trying to explain color to a blind person or the complexities of a good wine to someone with no sense of taste. It somehow went beyond smell into some other realm I hated to be the center of, but I loved the fact that my sense of smell was a hell of a lot worse than the snake monster in the middle of trying to kill me. The moment the gas from the grenade started pouring out, the creature dropped me like a hot rock, but not before catching the hose attached to my glove and ripping it apart. I lay on the ground, HP cratered, and bleeding profusely for a few moments before I closed my eyes and reached for one of [Megara¡¯s Healing Potion V]s. I popped the cork from the small vial and sucked it down in a single gulp, not taking the time to relish the effect of the Pseudo-Legendary item as I rolled over to retch out the acid the potion was forcing from my body. My whole body ached as gallons of acid left my body through my mouth as well as my pores. My armor was destroyed, along with most of my clothing, leaving me in my underwear and a pair of rings. With a thought, I passed the somehow still intact [Hydrosphere] over my body to get the remaining acid off my body before summoning a simple black set of robes Dad insisted I have for stealth missions from my ring directly onto my person. I rolled away from the [Ashen Devastator Hydra] as fast as I could until I bumped into something white and furry. It was Raiju and she wasn¡¯t in nearly as bad a shape as I was, but her nose was way better, so [Megara¡¯s Big Stink] was a lot more debilitating to her than it was to me. I checked her HP in the Party Interface and found it was over eighty percent and quickly rising, so I didn¡¯t bother giving her a potion. Struggling to my feet, I looked up at the monster and found it was slowly recovering, mostly by having the central head keep its mouth shut. With only a little bit of the Big Stink leaking out from its nostrils, the creature now looked even angrier than it had before and it¡¯d already been trying to kill me. Now? It was going to enjoy eating me. With a roar, it proved me right as three of the five heads lurched out toward me faster than a whip crack. As I¡¯d been on guard, I did a quick flip back and, for a half a second, debated landing on the extended neck. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! You know what? Might as well do it. At least if I¡¯m up its head it won¡¯t have enough space to do an effective bite at me. With a burst of [Haste], I launched myself up the creature¡¯s neck. It was all I could do to avoid the other two striking heads, but I quickly found myself seated at the crook of the creature¡¯s lowest neck on the right side. Knowing my normal daggers wouldn¡¯t help, I produced a pair of [Psyknives] and went to town on the base of said neck. They may not have had any real physical presence, but they sure as hell did one thing right, they royally pissed my target off. The thing went berserk, thrashing all over as it tried biting down on me repeatedly with its three other unoccupied heads. It took every trick Dad ever showed me to avoid the berserk boss¡¯ attempt to murder. I rolled, ducked, dived, and spun all over the thing¡¯s necks to avoid getting attacked and was relatively successful. I caught a few abrasions from the thing¡¯s eye ridges catching on my skin, but its teeth never got close to me for the better part of two minutes. As I spun over the central head in the air with a grin I spotted something both amazing and horrifying. Mindy was standing in the door to Barriers and More with a six inch wide pipe with runes wrapped all the way around it tucked under her left arm while her right hand was on a short handle poking out the side. [Mystic Eyes] showed the connection between the run on the end of the handle and the rest of the device. As soon as she touched it, I was in deep shit. Behind Mindy stood Marie and, from where I stood I was surprised I¡¯d been so besotted with her before. Must be some kind of aura that makes¡­ Now is not the time! Her sister¡¯s going to kill me if we¡¯re not careful here. ¡®Raiju,¡¯ I hoped that, despite the Party Interface being muted, our Bonded communication would still work. ¡®I need you to tell the lady in the door of that shop to fire when she sees me leap off the centermost head.¡¯ It was faint, but I heard her response after a short delay. ¡®Can do. I can¡¯t hurt it anymore like I am now, my Mana¡¯s almost dry.¡¯ I watched as she darted over to Mindy, who nearly dropped the water cannon when the huge wolf darted into view and she displayed admirable judgement for not discharging weapon and killing my bonded companion. In hindsight? Maybe I shouldn¡¯t have sent Raiju, a monster, to talk to someone who¡¯s never met her while fighting a raid boss. Something to think about for next time¡­ I hope I¡¯m around for the next time, to be honest. This thing¡¯s been getting closer to catching me the whole time I¡¯ve been mounted on it and I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll last another thirty seconds, let alone a few minutes, as it is. We have to end this now or I¡¯m screwed. Summoning the dregs of my Mana, a mere one percent of my total, I stabbed the base of the snake¡¯s central neck slightly to the left, which might as well have been tickling it for all the effect it had, before leaning back and using [Mana Slide] to slip along its neck and head to launch myself up into the air above and to the right of the creature. I¡¯ll never forget the image of Mindy, a pale faced tiefling with eyes like gemstones, blasting the [Ashen Devastator Hydra] with a four inch beam of water at speeds far exceeding anything I¡¯d ever seen besides teleportation. The moment it struck the boss it tried resisting with a barrier, but the water cannon was too much for it, tearing through it like tissue paper. Wherever the water struck the creature, that bit was removed from existence. She started it low, aiming toward the base of the snake where it touched the ground, before sweeping her fire up along its body, just like she showed me to do with [Raging Torrent] but a hell of a lot bigger. When she got up toward the creature¡¯s heads the beam of glowing blue water had reduced to be closer to three inches across and was shrinking fast, even as she took its left two heads from it in one swift arc. As it finished, she fell back and dropped the smoking contraption, but before I could celebrate a new screen filled my vision and panic filled my soul. [Raid Boss - Ashen Devastator Hydra - has Reached Ten Percent of its HP Combat Phase Two has Ended and Stage Three Begins Now] [Due to Devourer¡¯s influence, the Ashen Devastator Hydra¡¯s regeneration will increase in effectiveness by one thousand percent until the boss is fully healed.] To my horror, I could see the healing taking place as the wide swaths of the creature¡¯s body that¡¯d been removed just a few moments before started regrowing before my very eyes. Mindy started to do something before her eyes rolled back into her head and she passed out. Her sister, ever the watchful minder, pulled her back inside the shop and slammed the door after throwing me a weird look I couldn¡¯t quite place. What can I do? This thing¡¯s regeneration was already damn near instantaneous, what am I missing? What did Gramps say about the time he killed one of these? My mind blurred as my increased [Wits] stat showed off how useful it could be as I reviewed an old memory. *** The whole family, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, my parents, and I included, were seated in the main hall of the Ironwind Clan and Gramps was bragging again about killing the [Ashen Hydra] when Mom had had just about enough of it. She slammed her hands on the table hard enough to shake the goblet in front of her. ¡°Why don¡¯t you talk about how your caster saved your ass?¡± She seethed. ¡°All this talk about warriors and their glory, but you neglect to mention the only reason you came home. Your caster stopped its regeneration long enough for you to kill it.¡± Her shoulders shook with anger and she turned to Dad. ¡°We need to leave, I won¡¯t have Arthur¡¯s head filled with this kind of idiocy. I¨C¡± Gramps cut her off by clearing his throat. ¡°I ken what yer speakin a lassie.¡± He chuckled. ¡°Mine bes¡¯ friend were da one yer speakin a. A [Glacier Magus] ¡®e were. Saved me arse more times ¡®en I¡¯ll ere admit.¡± ¡°See?¡± Mom¡¯s shoulders stopped heaving and she smoothed out her sundress before sitting down beside me once more. ¡°Casters are vital when fighting hydras, without hitting their weaknesses when they¡¯re near death, they¡¯re basically unkillable no matter how hard you hit them.¡± *** ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± I yelled as I pulled up the creature¡¯s status once more, but this time there was far more information on it because I¡¯d been fighting it so long. [Ashen Devastator Hydra - Rank A Raid Boss Levels: 52 Vulnerabilities: Ice Immunities: All except Ice and Water Chosen of Dominus: Devourer has invested more of himself into this creature than is proper, granting it stats unbecoming of something this level. A System report has been sent anonymously regarding it. Killing this creature may grant a small percentage of its overly inflated stats as payment.] ¡°Hit it with Ice!¡± I howled, only to see Raiju pinned by the remaining two uninjured heads of the creature. ¡°Raiju!¡± The snake heads started to pull and Raiju started to whine as her body was slowly being pulled apart. As I fell down behind the boss, I realized I only had a single option to save her¡­ but it¡¯d require me to break my rule against casting combat Spells. She¡¯s worth it. She¡¯s worth anything. ¡°[Ice Bolt]!¡± I howled as I converted HP into Mana to fuel the barrage of ice spears I peppered the creature¡¯s necks and heads with. Unbelievably, each spear tore through the creature as well or better than the water cannon had and before my feet hit the ground I got the notification I¡¯d been waiting on and another pair right behind it. [Ashen Devastator Hydra, a Level 52 Raid Boss, has been slain. Those who took part in this creature¡¯s death will each receive one percent of its stats as long as they removed at least ten percent of the creature¡¯s base HP throughout the battle.] [As the Chosen of Dominus, you and your bonded will receive an additional four percent of the creature¡¯s boosted stats in addition to loot befitting your deeds. This has set Devourer back in no small way, which greatly pleases your goddess. Keep it up.] [Please select one of the following Passive Skills for your exceptional valor: Lordly Aura ¨C Those who follow you into battle will have increased HP, Mana, and Stamina regeneration. This aura¡¯s range is equal to your Charm stat in yards. In addition, your Charm stat will be treated as if it were twenty percent higher than it is for all purposes. Tactical Targeting ¨C Tactical Targeting allows you to pinpoint specific weaknesses in your enemies, identifying their most vulnerable points for maximum damage. Hitting those spots will deal double your normal damage, but as a tradeoff, you will deal twenty-five percent less damage when not targeting a weak point.] Before I could really think about the boons that¡¯d been presented to me, my eyes went wide at the stat gains I¡¯d received from killing the hydra. [Might: 17 ¡ú 54 Agility: 105 ¡ú 128 Toughness: 65 ¡ú 110 Charm: 100 ¡ú 107 Wits: 115 ¡ú 124 Perception: 100 ¡ú 130] My body felt red hot as it was torn apart and rebuilt in the space of a few seconds. I felt my armor start to strain at the seams before, with a supreme effort of will, I banished it to my storage ring as muscles unlike any I¡¯d ever dreamed of grew all over my frame. I was under no illusion that I was as tough as my dwarven family members at that point, but at least now I wouldn¡¯t embarrass myself when I went to visit with my ¡°twig arms¡± as Durvin liked to put it. How high were this thing¡¯s fucking [Might] and [Toughness]? Five percent gave me thirty-seven [Might] and forty-five [Toughness], so that¡¯d be¡­ 725 and 900 respectively?! This thing was so damn overpowered. What was Devourer thinking? With [Toughness] jumping over a hundred, I knew I¡¯d have a stat boon to look at, but before I could glance at it my ears cleared enough for me to hear screaming coming from Mindy and Marie¡¯s shop. With utter disregard for my barely clothed form, I sprang over the disintegrating form of the [Ashen Hydra Devastator] where Raiju was tearing bits off it for snacks later before they could disappear. My face went white when I saw the state of the front of the shop and my heart sank when I realized what might have happened. Please Dominus, don¡¯t let this be a repeat of the last time I used combat magic. The same small voice popped into my head once more and my heart dropped to the ground. ¡®I¡¯m sorry, Artie. Sometimes things like this happen. Trust me, not all is lost.¡¯ Chapter 32 - Guilt’s a Bitch Totally ignoring the rest of the blinking notifications in the corner of my vision, I sprinted full tilt into Barriers and More to find Marie keening over the bleeding form of her sister. A forearm length spike of ice with a bloody tip rested to her side. The brunette whirled around and glared at me with hate in her eyes. Gone was the uncaring shopkeeper from before and in her place was a woman who wanted blood. To be more specific, she wanted my blood. ¡°You killed my sister!¡± She launched herself at me screaming as a pair of matte black daggers appeared in her hands. The reverse grip she used for her blades told me all I needed to know about her combat ability, Marie knew what she was doing with a pair of short blades. Dancing back, I tried to ward off her blows with my own blades, but it was almost like her matte blades were alive as they writhed around my own like I wasn¡¯t even trying. In the space of a few moments she nicked me more than a dozen times and I saw that I¡¯d picked up the [Moderate Poison] status. It wasn¡¯t anything lethal, but it did slow me down even more and I wasn¡¯t going to survive if things kept going like that. After checking my Mana levels, I figured I could handle a few moments of [Haste] to figure what exactly was going on. The second [Haste] kicked in I pushed and the world seemed to slow down even more. Marie was still slashing at me, but now I could see the individual swings for what they were, a trained attack chain with no real variation. I reached out and tapped her right blade lightly on the pommel and couldn¡¯t help but smile internally when the tiny bit of force sent her stumbling to the side. I scanned the room with my recently acquired [Spatial Awareness] to see if there was anything I wasn¡¯t seeing and stopped stock-still when I found the most amazing thing. Mindy¡¯s heart was still beating, she was using her Mana to keep herself alive by forcing it to work while the hole in her chest skewered her non-functional lungs just to the right of it. As long as her will lasts, I can save her! Much to my chagrin, my Mana ran out then and [Haste] came crashing down around me. The loss of my enhanced speed made it feel like I was moving through molasses as I moved toward where Mindy was bleeding out. ¡°She¡¯s still ali¨C¡± Marie, in her fury, didn¡¯t appreciate me speaking or my course of action. ¡°Stay away from her!¡± The Runecrafter¡¯s voice took on an almost physical quality as she screeched and when I kept moving, her jaw dropped before she set her mouth in a thin line. ¡°If that didn¡¯t work, I¡¯ll have to work harder to kill you.¡± Another notification popped into the corner of my vision, but I ignored it in favor of diving toward Mindy¡¯s prone bleeding form with a pair of potions in my hands. The left contained my third Pseudo-Legendary healing potion, [Megara¡¯s Healing Potion V] while the right contained a Rare [Potion of Regeneration] I¡¯d looted back in the Dungeon. Despite having the jump on Marie, the [Moderate Poison] condition slowed me down enough for her to dig both her blades into my right leg as I thudded to the ground next to Mindy. With a quick bit of sleight of hand, I managed to dribble one potion into her mouth and the other into the wound in her chest. I¡¯d only seen the effects of [Megara¡¯s Healing Potion III] and this version two iterations later didn¡¯t disappoint. Bright gold light sprang from her mouth, eyes, and the hole in her chest as it and the regeneration potion worked together to fix the woman¡¯s heart, lungs, and every single other wound and scar on the woman¡¯s body. When she gasped and rolled to the side away from Marie and I to hack up blood, her sister froze. Deciding enough was enough with her, I triggered [Sun Jump] for the first time and, using the light beaming into the room, teleported to the other side of Mindy to check on her. The [Hydromancer]¡¯s eyes were wide with panic and when they locked on mine I couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°Sorry about the ice spike.¡± Internally, I cringed, but it seemed my [Charm] stat was enough to carry the day when she coughed weakly before chuckling. ¡°Your aim could use some work.¡± ¡°Move!¡± Marie slammed into my side and bowled me over. When she saw her sister alive and breathing her shoulders sagged and she spoke quietly. ¡°I thought I lost you.¡± ¡°Silly,¡± Mindy reached out a shaking hand to touch her sister¡¯s blood splattered face, ¡°just use the [Family Compass] to find me if I get lost. Remember, it¡¯s¡­¡± The surge of energy from [Megara¡¯s Healing Potion V] wore off at that moment and she slipped deeply into slumber, despite Marie trying to shake her awake. ¡°It won¡¯t work, you know.¡± I pulled an Uncommon [Healing Potion] and downed it as I watched the timer tick down on my [Moderate Poison] while sitting back against the counter where she¡¯d knocked me. ¡°That potion is a beast, but it almost always knocks the person out for at least a day or so if their wounds warranted using it in the first place.¡± I only had six of those when I left home and less than a month later I¡¯m down to four. Autie Megara would be the first to agree that it¡¯s better to have powerful potions and use them than to horde them and let people die. She whirled around to glare at me. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me you could heal her?¡± Despite her words, her tone lacked the venom from before and in its place was a bone deep weariness I could relate too. ¡°Didn¡¯t know I could, if I¡¯m being totally upfront.¡± I closed my eyes and trusted [Spatial Awareness] would be enough to protect me from her if she got pissed again. ¡°It wasn¡¯t until I felt her Mana still working to keep her heart beating that I thought to even try.¡± Sobs from the young woman got me cracking an eyelid to catch her in the act. ¡°It¡¯s all good, she¡¯ll be fine now. Hell, that potion was powerful enough, if she had any old wounds or debuffs, they¡¯re probably gone now too. Relax, she¡¯s fine.¡± I closed my eye again and mentally checked in on my elementals. Based on the console for [Elemental Pactlord], the [Arcweavers], [Thunderhawks], [Gargoyles] and [Cloudpups] all appeared to be doing decently well. Each group had taken a few losses except for the [Arcweavers] to my surprise. I guess Volta and Voltaire really are badasses, if they can keep all their fellows alive despite everything going on. The [Gargoyles] fared the worst, with nearly seventy percent of them having been smashed and reformed at least once. It sounded worse than it was because of their unique tie to the Tower, as long as they¡¯re within ten miles of it, they could reform themselves over and over again as long as their cores were intact. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. ¡°Why?¡± My eyes snapped open to lock on Marie where she sat rocking with her knees against her chest and her arms wrapped around them. ¡°Hmm?¡± She glared at me and the illusion of otherworldly beauty I¡¯d missed before fell from her to reveal a mousy haired woman with a decent build and a mean streak. ¡°You know what I mean. Why did you heal her? You could have just left.¡± ¡°That¡¯s easy,¡± I sat forward. ¡°I wanted to and had the means to do so, so I did.¡± I shuddered. ¡°It was my magic¨C¡± A black and white swirl appeared in Marie¡¯s right eye as she spoke. ¡°Combat magic is dangerous and you should avoid using it in the future. Look what happened when you used it again.¡± For a second, it felt like I was ten years old again standing in the ruins of my childhood home. That feeling faded almost as soon as it appeared, leaving me more confused than anything else. ¡°You¡¯re only half wrong.¡± Raiju padded in and sat down next to me with a huff as she stated at Marie. ¡°Combat magic is dangerous, so Artie should use it more so he gets better with it.¡± She laid her head in my lap with a snort. ¡°Who are they?¡± Before I could reply, Marie leapt to her feet with her blades held defensively in front of her. ¡°You two need to leave.¡± Her body practically shook as she motioned for us to leave. ¡°Now!¡± ¡°What do you¨C¡± ¡°Get out!¡± Her scream drowned out my question. ¡°Be gone in the next ten seconds or I¡¯ll kill you both!¡± Something is going on, but I don¡¯t exactly have time to figure out what right now. I¡¯ll come back later. ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here, Raiju.¡± I heaved myself to my unsteady feet before straddling her waiting back. ¡°Ungrateful.¡± She snorted as she glared at Marie. ¡°I hope your first litter is overly territorial.¡± With a swish of her tail, she had us blasting out of Barriers and More and up into the sky. She ran up in silence as we careened over a part of the city that appeared to have been spared from the fires because of a thin misting of rain in the air. I thought I caught a glimpse of a [Cloudpup] and when I checked the System console I found they¡¯d split up to better prevent the fires from spreading and destroying the city. Good deal, they can adapt on the fly even if I summon them directly. That¡¯s good to know. It¡¯d suck to have a guardian elemental summoned and have to give it hyper specific instructions to get it to do anything. As we ran, I finally took the time to go back over my notifications in reverse order of when they popped up. [Due to Lordly Aura, you successfully resist Devourer¡¯s Coercion.] Huh, I hadn¡¯t made a decision on that one yet¡­ oh. [Chosen of Dominus automatically selected Lordly Aura to protect the Chosen from another god¡¯s influence.] Dominus protect me. How bad would it have been if I¡¯d already picked [Tactical Targeting] over [Lordly Aura]? I¡¯ll have to ask her when I sleep next. [Sanguimancy Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 31%] So that¡¯s how Mindy was keeping herself alive. My mind drifted back to the pale tiefling woman for a moment before I shook my head. I should make sure to check in on her before leaving Chalcedony. It¡¯s only right, I did almost kill her before basically bringing her back from the dead. It¡¯s my job to make sure she¡¯s still alive. [For killing a Raid Boss class monster double your own level, you¡¯ve been granted the Tiny but Mighty Passive Skill. Tiny but Mighty - You¡¯re not afraid to mix it up with anyone or anything bigger than you and that¡¯s amazing. When fighting anything larger than you by a significant margin, you¡¯ll deal thirty percent more damage.] ¡°What the hell? Is this the System making a short joke?¡± I muttered under my breath in mild disgust. ¡°[Tiny but Mighty]? Really?¡± Never one to leave me alone when I was talking to myself, Raiju butted in. ¡°Did you get a new Skill? Why are you mad about it if it¡¯s only helpful?¡± Over the next two minutes I did my best to convey how terrible a joke like the System had made at my expense really was, but in the end, she didn¡¯t get it. Instead, she couldn¡¯t stop laughing. ¡°The System called you short!¡± Utterly disgusted, I considered using [Air Step] to get myself some reason before sighing and giving up on the idea. I sagged against her back. ¡°Bully.¡± When that only earned me more ridicule, I went back to my notifications. [Elemental Bolt Mastery Increased: 75% ¡ú 90%] Seems like a lot for using the thing for the first time in fifteen years, but I guess I did just use it almost a hundred times in less than twenty seconds, so maybe that¡¯s normal? [For reaching 100 Toughness, you¡¯ve received the following boon, Hydra¡¯s Regeneration Hydra¡¯s Regeneration - Passive Skill - Never one to let someone else stand between you and the action, sometimes you get hit and sometimes you get beaten. Badly. Hydra¡¯s Regeneration triggers when you reach thirty percent HP for the first time each hour. It grants ten percent HP regeneration per second for a minute.] Interesting, so the System can pull from my experiences to generate Skills for me. I guess it makes sense, but I¡¯d never really thought about it too hard. As for [Hydra¡¯s Regeneration], it seems like it¡¯s saying I get into melee too often, but that heal isn¡¯t going to stop me from doing it if the situation calls for it. Ahead, I could see the Lord¡¯s Tower with only Jaegan and Ylsa standing atop it with the guard captain huddling between them. As Raiju alighted on the parapet, all those assembled winced at the System tone that rang out. [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Purification Wave 1 Complete Highlights: Highest Single-Handed Kill Count - Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto Highest Group Kill Count (Paid to Leader of Group) - Arthur Bajbub Neilson Raid Boss Kill - Arthur Bajbub Neilson and Melinda ¡°Mindy¡± Emberstone Rewards will now be paid out to all who participated in repelling the wave while punishment will be dealt out to those who sought to hurt their fellows in the turmoil of the event. Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Purification Wave 2 will commence in thirteen days, twenty-three hours, fifty-nine minutes, and thirty-six seconds.] Howls of anguish and cheers of exaltation filled the air all around the Lord¡¯s Tower as people got their just desserts. Jaegan¡¯s grin said everything, he felt alive in a way he hadn¡¯t in years. It was obvious as he addressed me. ¡°Took down the Raid Boss with some rando, huh? Wish you¡¯d come and gotten me, we¡¯d have cleaned it up right quick.¡± ¡°It was a level 52 [Ashen Hydra Devastator].¡± I glared at him and he had the good graces to look away, chagrined. ¡°Maybe not.¡± He groaned. ¡°You¡¯re a damned monster. Did you know that?¡± ¡°So you keep telling me.¡± He stared at me for a few seconds before snapping his fingers. ¡°You used some kind of combat Spell didn¡¯t you!? That¡¯s why you¡¯re not crowing like usual. That¡¯s amazing!¡± I did my best to measure my response, but it was far harder than I expected. ¡°In doing so, I nearly killed someone who I might need alive later. We can discuss it later.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± He shrank back behind Ylsa, who merely nodded as she waved out at the city. ¡°Can we go get a drink? I¡¯m parched.¡± Summoning the [Cloud Carpet], I motioned for the pair to jump on. ¡°We can, and we¡¯ll check out the loot we¡¯ve earned at the same time.¡± Chapter 33 - Loot Soothes the Pain Away… Mostly ¡°Lady, preserve me,¡± I swore under my breath before kicking back and leaning against the wall of the private tavern dining room we¡¯d rented for the evening. ¡°This is a lot of loot.¡± Across the table from me, Jaegan was napping with his staff clutched to his chest like a childhood stuffed animal. His earlier energy had quickly been replaced by exhaustion as the battle high faded. It took all he had to walk into the upscale tavern, order his meal, and eat it before passing out. Ylsa, on the other hand, was nodding along as I spoke while she fiddled with the bones from the poultry carcass in front of her. ¡°I think Jaegan and I must have killed at least a couple hundred [Flame Golems] and [Inferno Drones] between his spells and my axes. If you have all the loot from that many monsters, I¡¯d be surprised if there wasn¡¯t a lot there.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that¡­¡± My face was pale. ¡°I have all the loot from the [Ashen Tunnelers] and the raid boss as well. Either Mindy never went out to gather her portion, or the System just gave it all to me without giving her a bit due to the Party Interface.¡± I rubbed my face slowly with both hands. ¡°I can¡¯t decide which would be worse, to be honest.¡± As usual, Ylsa gave me a new perspective. ¡°If the Lady says this Mindy woman is fit to be a vassal, why not induct her? If you did, this wouldn¡¯t be an issue.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that simple. She and her sister, more the latter if I¡¯m right, have some ties to Devourer¡¯s church.¡± I paused to sip some of the more than adequate wine before continuing. ¡°If we¡¯re not careful, we¡¯ll show our hand and everything will get more difficult. [Status Shield] is a good tool, but when Grandpa told me about it, he said high ranking clergy would likely be able to see through it.¡± ¡°As you say.¡± She was obviously not happy with the decision, but decided not to argue with me. ¡°How much loot did we get if it¡¯s enough to make you uncomfortable?¡± With a grimace, I shared the loot breakdown to her and barely avoided smirking when her jaw dropped. [Party Loot: Coins: 33 pp 4086 gp 94718 sp 421919 cp Gems: Alexandrite (800 gp) Amethyst (110 gp) Banded Agate (9 gp) Black Pearl (700 gp) Bloodstone (50 gp) Coral (80 gp) Deep Blue Spinel (500 gp) Emerald (1000 gp) Eye Agate (13 gp) Freshwater Pearl (5 gp) Hematite (9 gp) Jasper (50 gp) Lapis Lazuli (11 gp) Moss Agate (9 gp) Moss Agate (12 gp) Onyx (30 gp) Rhodochrosite (12 gp) Sapphire (1000 gp) Star Rose Quartz (50 gp) Total Gem Value - 4450 gp Weapons 33x Emberforged Axes - Uncommon 147x Lava Javelins - Uncommon 3x Obsidian Longblades - Rare 3x Obsidian Scimitars - Rare 2x Obsidian Daggers - Rare Armor 12x Obsidian Platemail - Rare 2x Cinder Robes - Rare Hydra¡¯s Ward - Legendary Misc Acid Spray Skill Scroll] ¡°That is a lot of loot.¡± She sat back with a thump about halfway through before focusing again to finish reading through. ¡°Do you remember our agreement from the mine hoard?¡± ¡°I do, but I was hoping you wouldn¡¯t, if I¡¯m being totally honest. I don¡¯t really need this money¨C¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need it now, but with your responsibilities, you will need it.¡± She cut me off with a stern look. ¡°The winds of fate dance around you, Milord, and those who can see them will be drawn to you like moths to an open flame. When that happens, you¡¯ll need to be able to outfit those who follow you.¡± A single platinum coin danced across my knuckles as I considered her point. ¡°You¡¯re not wrong, but you don¡¯t know how wealthy I already was before this. I have¨C¡± ¡°Stop, please.¡± Ylsa covered her ears. ¡°I don¡¯t need to know how wealthy my benefactor is, only that he is generous, kind, and strong. You¡¯ve proven to be all of those things and that¡¯s enough for any goliath, me included, to follow you.¡± Stolen story; please report. ¡°You know, I am part dwarf, I live for the deal.¡± I flicked the coin into the air before sucking it back into my ring before it could bounce. ¡°This whole stopping me from even arguing about it is a real buzzkill, but two can play at that game. I¡¯ll agree to take forty percent¨C¡± ¡°Fifty percent and not a bit less, Jaegan and I already agreed. Milord.¡± Her face split into a cheeky grin for half a second. ¡°I argued that you should get sixty-six percent, but he said you¡¯d reject it outright if I said as much.¡± With a groan I nodded. ¡°He was right, though I still think fifty percent is too much.¡± ¡°Raiju counts for at least as much as we do.¡± The goliath tribes woman pointed to where my bonded one slept on a pile of furs I¡¯d bought on the way over. ¡°If it feels wrong, just consider the additional twenty-five percent her share and spoil her with it.¡± ¡°Fine.¡± I opened up the party interface and selected the loot split to allot fifty percent of the coin to me and twenty-five percent to Ylsa and Jaegan. As for the rest, I only really had interest in a few things, so I tagged them and sent the rest over to the other pair to distribute as they wished. Despite how tired I was, I couldn¡¯t help but grin at my haul. [Party Leader Loot: 33 pp 800 gp Sapphire (1000 gp) Emerald (1000 gp) 2x Obsidian Daggers - Rare Cinder Robes - Rare Hydra¡¯s Ward - Legendary Acid Spray Skill Scroll] [Obsidian Dagger - Rare Durability - 100/100 Description - Obsidian weapons are known for two things, their impossibly sharp edge and their fragility, and this is no exception. Obsidian daggers aren¡¯t meant to be wielded in a melee, they¡¯re to be used to to carve through the defenses of anything too tough for a standard blade before being replaced once more for those more resilient blades.] I wish I¡¯d had a pair of these while I was fighting that hydra. If I had, maybe¡­ I shook my head to try and get my head back on track. Nope, not going there, plus, she¡¯s fine now. I¡¯m willing to bet they¡¯ll channel fire abilities well too. [Cinder Robes - Rare Description - Originally crafted by a sect of monks who dedicated themselves to the study of a nearby volcano, these over robes are now worn by mages with a penchant for fire all over Genovia. Wearing these robes grants the wearer and their equipment resistance to fire damage. In addition, once a day, the wearer can turn into a cloud of ash and instantly teleport a number of feet equal to their Wits.] I hope these things resize, or I¡¯m going to be in a damn dress, but that last ability would make it worth doing. Another teleport, this one without the need to be in the sun, is damn near invaluable. Plus, I think they¡¯ll fit over the real prize. [Hydra¡¯s Ward - Legendary Description - Hydra¡¯s Ward is a set of dark grey leather armor crafted from the resilient hide of a slain Ashen Hydra Dominator. Imbued with the creature¡¯s acidic nature, the armor grants the wearer and their equipment resistance to poison damage, immunity to acid damage, and the ability to channel toxic energy into their attacks. The armor¡¯s surface shimmers with a faint, iridescent glow when reinforcing weapons in an echo of the hydra¡¯s power.] Dominus, you¡¯re too good to me. I would have sworn I heard a giggle, but decided to move on. Then again, maybe this is just the kind of perk to expect from killing a level fifty-two raid boss. My current armor is great, but this is on a whole ¡®nother level. I don¡¯t think Arlo will be too mad when I tell him¡­ I should really send a letter home soon, or they¡¯ll think I died or something. With a thought and a push of will, I donned the armor and a moment later did the same with the robes. I stood up and used the system to see what I looked like with a wide grin. I was still short, but the charcoal colored [Cinder Robes] did a good job of drawing people¡¯s attention to my face instead of my short stature. Beneath the loose robes, the slate grey [Hydra¡¯s Ward] popped, doing even more to draw attention to my face, which I¡¯d always say was my best feature. I tested drawing a potion and an alchemical grenade around the [Cinder Robes] and was pleasantly surprised to find it was nearly as easy as it would have been without them on as long as I remembered they existed. Over the next few minutes, I practiced that exact thing until it became second nature. There was nothing worse than having a potion you needed, only to fumble at getting it when you needed. Dad had told me about how his cousin had nearly died due to a change in his kit without his knowledge. He¡¯d been stabbed, but the healing potion that had been on his right hip had been moved behind his back for some reason. If it weren¡¯t for Dad stepping in and saving him, he¡¯d have died right there in the training hall. The Ironwind Clan doesn¡¯t mess around when training their assassins. With my immunity to acid firmly in place, I finally decided to check out the only [Skill Scroll] from the loot. It was kind of what I expected, but that was actually a good thing in this case. [Acid Spray - Spray acid from any part of your body in one of four shapes, a bolt, a line, a cone, or a globe. The bolt can travel Wits feet, while the line is half that long, but two feet wide. The cone is half again as long as the line, but spreads out to the same width as it is long with your body as the originating point. Finally, the globe can be launched up to half your Wits in feet before exploding into a globe of acid thirty feet across.] Looks like I have an oh-shit option now. Drop the globe at my feet and let it go off. That should be enough to dissuade most foes. Not sure about the options given everything that¡¯s happened recently, but at least one mode is good for me at this point. With a small trickle of light, the scroll appeared in my hand before I quickly learned the Skill within. [Learn Acid Spray - Y/N] I mentally assented and, a moment later, the scroll glowed brightly and a new window appeared. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 31% Acid Spray - 31%] Looks like I might be able to buy cheaper [Skill Scrolls] after all. I¡¯m willing to bet the System gives out base percentage examples of scrolls, so if I still got thirty-one percent and that¡¯s the same as [Skill Dominance]... I can assume the two are linked. I wonder what¡¯ll happen if I master it fully? Will it automatically evolve any Skill I get? Shaken at that thought, I looked out over the room to find Jaegan had not only woken up, but he was also wearing a set of [Cinder Robes]. He beamed as he tipped his non-existent hat to me. ¡°My generous lord, thank you for not arguing too hard with Ylsa. She was deeply concerned you would manage to talk her into a corner with that silver tongue of yours.¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t really give me a chance, if I¡¯m being totally honest. Plus, it¡¯s hard to talk over her when you¡¯re as short as I am.¡± She gaped at me for a few moments before recovering and looking back down at one of the [Obsidian Longblades]. A quick check of its status confirmed my guess, it worked just like my [Obsidian Daggers] just with a much bigger blade and a bit more durability. I slowly padded away from the table toward the door to the rest of the upscale tavern. ¡°I¡¯ll get us a room upstairs, alright? I need to check in with the Governess before I do anything else today. Hopefully she¡¯ll know what the hell is going on with the Tower.¡± My face darkened. ¡°We all saw that message. If this was just Wave 1, I don¡¯t want to see what Wave 2 or 3 would look like.¡± Jaegan nodded thoughtfully. ¡°I can¡¯t say I like the woman, but it¡¯s been twenty years, so maybe she¡¯s changed?¡± ¡°Anything I should know?¡± My hand rested on the brass knob. ¡°No one told me what to expect with King Evergreen and I wish they had.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t trust a word she says without seeing a contract or invoking the System.¡± Jaegan grabbed his wine goblet and drained it. ¡°She¡¯s a snake, but that doesn¡¯t mean she isn¡¯t a hell of a Tower scholar. She¡¯ll deal honestly if the System is watching, trust me.¡± ¡°Not a lot to go on, but I¡¯ll take your word for it.¡± With a twist of the knob, I let myself out into the hallway before closing the door slowly behind me. Raiju took a hell of a beating from the hydra and all the [Inferno Drones] who¡¯d swarmed her before she came to join me. She deserved a good night¡¯s rest and going to visit the Governess wasn¡¯t going to be conducive to that. The tavern was known as the Bawdy Maid and it had those in spades despite catering to supposedly more discerning clientele. All around the huge common room more than a dozen busty women and a pair of salaciously dressed men strutted around faking wardrobe malfunctions as they delivered drinks and food alike. Despite that, the atmosphere was far more upscale than the average inn and it was all because of the towering man behind the bar. The owner of the inn, Marcus Trenton, was a seven foot tall dark-skinned mountain of a man who stood more than three and a half feet wide to go with his height. Whenever a customer even thought about getting handsy with the wait staff, he¡¯d flick a shelled nut with pinpoint accuracy to nail the offending hand. Because of that, his staff felt safe to really play up their acts as Bawdy Maids and the visitors loved it. Marcus watched me slip out the hallway that led to the private dining rooms with a raised eyebrow. I raised two fingers before bringing them together and pointing up. He nodded silently and I knew I had our domicile figured out, at least for the night. Slipping out into the streets was easy, but taking in the view outside wasn¡¯t. All around the tavern were the burnt remains of buildings, with only a few stone structures still standing. The Bawdy Maid was located on the edge of the ring of buildings surrounding the Tower, the region that got hit hardest when the monster wave began. If it weren¡¯t for Marcus, a retired Tower Climber, none of the buildings in the center of town would have survived. Chapter 34 - Pactlord’s Privilege Walking down the mostly ruined streets was surreal. Just two months back, I¡¯d been walking the streets of Sunhome with my parents on one final trip before my System Day and now I was moving through what amounted to a war zone. As I wandered toward the lord¡¯s keep, I pulled up the System panel for [Elemental Pactlord] and tabbed through the assorted groups I had control over at the moment before settling on the [Gargoyles]. Figuring it wasn¡¯t a good idea to summon a huge [Darkstone Gargoyle] onto an already destroyed street, I parkoured my way up to one of the remaining roofs and settled in. I didn¡¯t have to wait long for Edifice to flap over from the Tower. He bowed low. ¡°Pactlord, your servant Edifice has returned. What would you have me do now? Should I clear out the remaining rabble in town? They are quite noisy, with all their crying and moaning.¡± Yeah, Dominus was right, Edifice is a piece of shit. It took more willpower than I thought I had left for the day to not grind my teeth as I stared at the huge elemental. ¡°No, and I never want to hear you speak disparagingly of the civilians of this place again.¡± The sycophant stared at me blankly for a moment before nodding. ¡°Of course, Pactlord. Was that all you called me for?¡± He made to move away, but I stopped him with a glare. ¡°Not even close.¡± I walked around and checked the back of his neck, confirming the presence of the crystal on his neck before stopping in front of him. ¡°You are to take all of the remaining [Gargoyles] in town, along with any [Darkstone Gargoyles] who may have evolved in the fighting, and fly two miles beyond Chalcedony¡¯s walls.¡± Edifice¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Once there, you are to destroy the crystals on each others¡¯ necks until none remain. Once that¡¯s completed, return to your former posts.¡± ¡°Pactlord, that¡¯s unreasonable¨C¡± He began to whine before I cut him off. ¡°No, it isn¡¯t.¡± I poked a finger into his granite-like chest. ¡°Those crystals are part of the reason you and your fellows allowed the Tower to get like this. Some of you might not make it back when removing the crystals and that is a small price to pay to get the Tower¡¯s rightful protectors back. Take your fellows and leave now.¡± The [Darkstone Gargoyle]¡¯s enormous fist shook with rage, but before he could strike at me he checked himself. ¡°If that is what the Pactlord wishes, so it shall be.¡± Based on how every other elemental treated me, he likely saved his own life in doing so. ¡°If you¡¯re not gone by the time I return from meeting with the Governess, I¡¯ll be forced to banish you and your whole flock of [Gargoyles] from Genovia.¡± A small smile snuck its way onto my face. ¡°Don¡¯t tempt me with a good time, you hear? And make sure to let me know whatever it is you suddenly remember tomorrow.¡± The massive winged figure threw himself into the air and saluted me. ¡°Fare thee well, Pactlord. I shall gather my host and depart immediately.¡± He dipped a wing as he flew away at a breakneck pace. Couldn¡¯t happen to a nicer asshole. I just hope the rest of his flock do alright with removing the crystals. Dominus said they were repressing memories, so hopefully he¡¯ll let me know what it is he remembers after he gets whatever is blocked back. Flicking through the System panel once more, I decided to work my way from easiest to most complicated. With a gesture, I summoned Nimbus the [Cloudpup] with a wet pop. He bowed deeply with a paw extended. ¡°Master, it is a pleasure to speak with you again.¡± ¡°Likewise, Nimbus.¡± My hand itched to pet his cloudy noggin, but I refrained out of respect. ¡°How did you and your pack do on fire-fighting duty? I¡¯m sorry to see you had a few casualties. Is there anything I can do to assist you or them?¡± ¡°You humble me, master.¡± If anything, he bowed lower at that point. ¡°I am sorry to say we were unable to quench the flames in this area, they were far too large and without the help of even a [Stratohound] we lacked the ability to produce large quantities of water at one time.¡± He whimpered. ¡°I¡¯ve been told I¡¯m near evolving, but I need a proper catalyst to trigger the process.¡± Unable to restrain myself, I patted his surprisingly dense cloud head. ¡°It¡¯s OK, I swear.¡± He looked up at me with big eyes. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect this street to survive, but from what I saw the rest of the city looks pretty good and the people have you and your pack to thank for that.¡± ¡°That is nice to hear.¡± He bumped his head against my palm happily. ¡°I am glad to have been able to help you, master.¡± ¡°What kind of catalyst would it take to help you evolve?¡± I scratched the side of my head with my free hand. ¡°I may have just come into a significant amount of coinage and I¡¯d be happy to help you out if I can. As long as it¡¯s not out of my means, I should be able to assist.¡± The [Cloudpup] stumbled back and sat on his haunches. ¡°Master, I couldn¡¯t ask you¡­¡± he tapered to a stop when I frowned before continuing, ¡°to provide a sapphire of sufficient size. Nearly all elementals typically do favors for the Earth Monarch in exchange for the ability to evolve. It is our way.¡± Easy come, easy go, I guess. I summoned the two inch ball of sapphire into my hand. Plus, I¡¯d rather engender a good relationship with my allies than have even this gorgeous gewgaw. After a moment of hesitation I tossed the sapphire toward Nimbus before he could stop me. What followed made me very glad I decided to do so. The [Cloudpup] representative wasn¡¯t expecting me to just toss a precious stone to him, so he didn¡¯t react in time. The gem hit him squarely in the forehead before sinking in and leaving no trace. He threw his head back and howled far louder than I would have guessed he¡¯d be able to. Before my very eyes his whitish-grey cloudstuff body changed to take on a slightly blue tint in addition to growing nearly a foot in all directions. In the end, he was nearly half Raiju¡¯s biggest size and on his forehead was a tiny chip of the sapphire I¡¯d tossed to him. He bowed low to me and wailed. ¡°Master, you are too good to me! I never even dared dream of becoming an [Azure Hound] and you gave me such a kingly gift.¡± He howled happily once more, making me check over my shoulder to make sure Raiju didn¡¯t come running. She didn¡¯t, but through our connection I could feel her stirring. Nope, don¡¯t need that. She needs to rest. ¡°Nimbus, please.¡± I knelt next to his head. ¡°My lupine companion is exhausted, but if you keep howling she¡¯ll wake up and I¡¯d really rather she didn¡¯t. It¡¯s OK. I¡¯m glad I was able to help you.¡± For a second, it looked like he was going to howl again, but he stopped at the last second. ¡°Of course, master.¡± He nuzzled his much larger head against the side of mine. ¡°Thank you, for your far too generous gift.¡± With a scoff, I dismissed that. ¡°What are you talking about? Think of it as payment for services rendered.¡± He leaned back and stared at me. ¡°Do you truly not know?¡± I cocked my head to the side curiously. ¡°Know what?¡± ¡°The reason us elementals allow themselves to be summoned to Genovia.¡± He laid down against the burnt roof when I shook my head. ¡°Most summoning spells last at most an hour, so even young elementals, barely a century old, can take those calls. In exchange for their services, they get some Mana and experience fighting.¡± This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Why does Mana matter so much?¡± It didn¡¯t make much sense to me. ¡°Don¡¯t you have Mana where you come from?¡± The hound shook his head. ¡°Not the way Genovia does. In the elemental realms, only the Elemental Monarchs regenerate Mana naturally and it¡¯s been that way for eons. For elementals to get back expended Mana they have two choices, work for the Elemental Monarchs or respond to summon requests. The Elemental Monarchs don¡¯t like it when we answer someone else¡¯s summons over their own, with only a few exceptions. Yours for example.¡± ¡°Why is that?¡± I was genuinely curious, because based on the description of [Elemental Pactlord] I¡¯d been granted access to it by the Elemental Monarchs, so it was curious to hear that they didn¡¯t like their subjects going out on calls. ¡°What makes my calls different?¡± The big blue-grey dog used a claw to draw a circle with a ¡®G¡¯ in the center. ¡°This is Genovia.¡± He drew a bigger circle around the middle one and separated it into four parts with ¡®E, F, W, and A¡¯ in the segments. ¡°These are the elemental planes. When most people call us, the walls between our realms are ripped asunder, costing the Elemental Monarchs a lot of Mana to repair the boundaries. Your calls, on the other hand, are gentle. They don¡¯t rip massive holes, instead they open long dormant gates in the boundaries to let us pass through without issue.¡± I sat back in shock. ¡°You¡¯re telling me that there are doors no one else is using that my Skill lets me tap into?¡± ¡°Precisely. They haven¡¯t been used since the last [Elemental Pactlord] died eons ago.¡± Nimbus nodded. ¡°Also, once we¡¯re through the gates, we get seventy percent of the Mana you would have regenerated during the time we¡¯re summoned instead of the usual ten percent, with the Elemental Monarchs taking the remaining thirty percent which is still far more than they¡¯d have retained after fixing the dimensional boundary for a normal summon. Your summons are better for literally everyone in the cycle, you included.¡± ¡°Nimbus, you¡¯ve given me a lot to think about, but I think it¡¯s time I let you and your pack return home.¡± With a bit of effort, I kipped-up to my feet. ¡°Is there anything else I should know about my Skill that you can tell me?¡± He cocked his head to the side before shaking his newly shaggy looking noggin. ¡°Nothing comes to mind.¡± ¡°Then go in peace.¡± I waved as he faded away after selecting the option in the System panel. ¡°That¡¯s a good dog. I think I might summon him again, just to hang out.¡± ¡°I think he would like that.¡± A vaguely familiar feminine voice came from behind me. I whirled around to find Electra, the blue frilled leader of the [Thunderhawks] I¡¯d summoned. She alighted upon the edge of the roof and preened a bit. ¡°I recognized the smell of an [Azure Hound] and thought you might be involved. It seems I was right.¡± Something tells me Electra¡¯s a bit more than your average [Thunderhawk], isn¡¯t she. ¡°Guilty as charged.¡± I leaned back on my hands. ¡°Thank you again for the information about the [Gargoyles]. Without them, a lot more people would have died. Not that you weren¡¯t up to the task of dealing with the [Inferno Drones], but I don¡¯t particularly like putting people I like against flying bombs.¡± Her laughter sounded like a localized thunderstorm. ¡°Hah, you¡¯re right there! I likely would have had to deal with most of them myself to save my kettle the trouble.¡± ¡°I¡¯m guessing there¡¯s more to your blue frill than you let on,¡± I raised an eyebrow, ¡°right?¡± She hid behind a wing for a moment before giggling. ¡°Can¡¯t a girl keep some of her secrets?¡± With a thought, I summoned the large emerald and passed it from hand to hand. ¡°I mean, if you don¡¯t think I need to know who you are, I guess I¡¯ll just have to default to some generic benefit for your assistance.¡± Her eyes didn¡¯t leave the gem until I sent it away again. ¡°Maybe some monster meat?¡± ¡°Mother was right, you are interesting.¡± Electra hopped forward and shifted from her former huge hawk shape to take the form of a halfling with spiky blue hair. Her sun dress was decorated with stylized birds of prey, but the most detailed decoration was a pin that was a dead ringer for her bird form. ¡°Hello again.¡± She curtsied. ¡°I guess proper introductions are in order. I am Electra, third daughter of the Air Monarch and her current mouthpiece on Genovia.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, Electra.¡± I did the proper bow to match her curtsy. ¡°I am Arthur Bajbub Neilson, current [Elemental Pactlord].¡± She gave me a huge grin. ¡°That¡¯s not all you are, is it?¡± She¡¯s going to be trouble, isn¡¯t she? ¡°That¡¯s all I can say here, that¡¯s for sure. Anything else would be impertinent to bring up in this place.¡± Her lower lip quivered. ¡°Oh come on, just once?¡± Dominus, she actually thinks that¡¯ll work on me? As if summoned by the thought, [Dominus¡¯ Insight] kicked in at that moment. [Electra is her mother¡¯s favorite child by a wide margin, despite her relatively young age at nearly a millennium. She¡¯s used to people folding over themselves to do as she wants, but in reality, craves someone who won¡¯t do so for her. She¡¯s a fantastic ally to have, but you won¡¯t be able to count on her to be able to assist all the time due to her mother¡¯s requirements on her time.] Taking Dominus¡¯ advice, I shook my head, earning a gasp from the Elemental Princess. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to do as you ask. I made a promise to my own mother to come home safe and doing as you ask is likely to hurt my chance of doing so. You know how Moms can be.¡± I flashed her a cocky grin. ¡°Amazing and frustrating in equal parts.¡± ¡°You know it.¡± She snorted before covering her face, absolutely mortified at what she¡¯d just done. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I just snorted in front of you. What kind of princess snorts in public?¡± ¡°One who enjoys a good joke.¡± I closed the distance between us and was pleased to find I was at least a little bit taller than even her spiky hair. ¡°So, Elektra, what would you like for your assistance earlier?¡± Her eyes flashed to my storage ring and I knew what she wanted, but I made her ask for it. Girls like her were all the same, used to everything being given to them so they had trouble asking for anything they really wanted. My cousins on both sides were the same, if I¡¯m totally honest, though Mom¡¯s side were technically not cousins, they were treated like they were when we visited and it was nearly painful to deal with how stuck up they were. ¡°Oh, I think you know what I want.¡± She tried to sound coy, but I knew her kind well enough to deal with her. ¡°Don¡¯t keep me waiting.¡± Before I could rebut her statement, another pair of familiar forms swept over the lip of the roof to reveal Volta and Voltaire, my [Arcweaver] friends. They bowed to Electra and I in turn, though they bowed much deeper to her than to me. Volta smiled at us. ¡°Princess, Pactlord. It is wonderful to see the charade from earlier today has been dismissed.¡± ¡°I, for one, enjoyed said charade.¡± The Air Elemental Princess stomped her foot indignantly, which created enough wind to blow all the soot off the ruined roof in a single puff. ¡°We were just discussing payment for services rendered. Wait over there until we¡¯re done.¡± She pointed to a building across the street away from the Tower. ¡°I¡¯ll call you over when I¡¯m done with him.¡± ¡°As you will.¡± The pair of [Arcweavers] said in unison before flying to where Electra had pointed. She turned and poked a finger into my chest. ¡°You called them to wreck my fun, didn¡¯t you!?¡± I could feel the beginning of a tantrum starting, so I cut it off at the pass. ¡°Nope, I didn¡¯t call you either, to be honest.¡± I pointed out at the retreating form of Edifice in the distance, ¡°I called him and Nimbus, but you showed up post conversation to surprise me. How is Volta and Voltaire showing up now any different?¡± Her eyes went wide. ¡°I¡­I¡­I¡¯m¨C¡± ¡°A princess,¡± I shrugged. ¡°I know. Now tell me what you want to be paid so I can speak with those two.¡± I hooked a thumb toward where my lightning elemental friends waited patiently. For the better part of ten seconds, she gaped at me before snapping her jaw shut. ¡°Give me the emerald you were playing with. It¡¯ll serve to evolve my maid back in Mother¡¯s palace so she can leave the domain with me.¡± ¡°Done.¡± I produced the gem and tossed it to her. She caught it after bobbling it a few times. ¡°Rude!¡± ¡°Wrong again. Expedient.¡± I put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°I treat everyone the same based on how much of my respect they¡¯ve gained. You¡¯re doing great on that scale, don¡¯t wreck it by going full princess-mode on me. OK?¡± For half a second, I thought she was going to scream at me until she started laughing. ¡°You¡¯re too much!¡± She slapped her side. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to see what you get up to next, I just know it¡¯s going to be entertaining!¡± ¡°I am who I am,¡± I shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ll be seeing you soon, Artie!¡± She threw me a saucy salute before fading out of existence before my eyes. ¡°Volta, Voltaire,¡± I waved them over. ¡°Would the pair of you care to join me to meet the governess of this city? It¡¯s always good to show up looking strong and you two fit the bill.¡± ¡°It would be our pleasure.¡± Voitaire grinned. ¡°It will be interesting to see how such a person acts toward our Pactlord.¡± Somehow, I¡¯m not sure if this was the best idea now, but I guess I¡¯m committed to it. ¡°Follow me.¡± I let myself off the roof and [Air Stepped] the rest of the way to the Lord¡¯s Tower with a pair of [Arcweavers] in tow. Chapter 35 - The Pyrite Python ¡°I hope this is important, for I am quite busy.¡± Intoned a tall, lithe, blonde woman seated on a throne of brass a dozen feet away from me. ¡°My city was just under attack you know.¡± I have to say, that¡¯s one thing Verdant has had over Sunhome until now, no elven superiority complexes. In contrast to how Mom and Grandpa are, gold elves are the worst to deal with. Wearing a corset not unlike one Mom would wear, she fanned herself with a folding fan I was nearly certain was made of actual gold. The look of contempt on her face set my teeth on edge. It was the same when my family first visited Sunhome to visit Mom¡¯s relatives when I was fifteen. She and Dad went off to find Grandpa, leaving me to my own devices on the family estate. Less than ten minutes into wandering the grounds a group of young members of the family stopped and asked what a peasant was doing on the Sunbeam estate and, before I could even respond, used a wind spell to throw me into the lake that surrounded the island. When I showed back up at the front gate drenched and asking for Mom, she went off on a tear through the family to find those involved and basically tore them all apart. By that, I literally mean she tore them to shreds using [Glaive Cyclone], a Skill she¡¯d evolved late in her career, and if it weren¡¯t for their parents begging her for mercy on their behalf, she¡¯d have ended their lives right there. After that, all the young family members treated me like royalty, but the damage was done, I knew how they really were. The governess was giving the same vibe as those entitled assholes and I figured it was time to throw my weight around a bit. ¡°Huh,¡± I stroked my chin. ¡°I guess you¡¯re not as well informed as I was led to believe you would be.¡± The glare she shot my way would have put people with lower [Charm] and [Wits] stats to the ground, but I was unfazed. All that did was piss her off more. ¡°Speak or leave.¡± She flipped her golden tresses with more arrogance than I¡¯d ever seen outside of a gold elf. ¡°I¡¯m going to be meeting with some important people soon and would like to prepare in peace.¡± [Name: Gabrielle Honeydew Race: Gold Elf Class: Grovetender - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 23 Emotional Status: Cocky/Scared] One look at her [Status] told me all I needed to know about her. I knew exactly how to get under her skin. This is going to be fun. ¡°How are the family orchards doing Gabby? I hear Sunhome¡¯s been having issues with a bit of a drought the past and they¡¯re out on the outskirts, right? Have they finally found some [Hydromancers] willing to work for the scraps they¡¯ve been offering?¡± From my spatial ring I produced a finely crafted elven stool perfectly sized for me and took a seat. Volta and Voltaire took up positions behind me to my right and left respectively like the bodyguards they obviously wanted to become. ¡°How could you¡­ What nerve, you stunted mongrel!¡± The governess snapped her golden fan closed and my instincts were proven correct when it clinked. ¡°Guards! Remove this rabble immediately!¡± She tried her best to bore a hole through my forehead with her eyes, but all I did was lean back and wait. Nearly thirty seconds went by before she started to get nervous. ¡°Guards! Where are you?¡± She screeched before turning back to look at me with a mildly horrified look on her face. ¡°What did you do to my guards?¡± ¡°Thomas and Elena are fine. I showed them my guild plate when I came in and told them you might start yelling before sending them to the mess.¡± I shrugged. ¡°They¡¯re probably still there, since I haven¡¯t even been here five minutes yet.¡± Fury raged in her eyes, she obviously wasn¡¯t used to someone outmaneuvering her off the jump. ¡°In that case, present your guild plate so I can lodge a formal complaint as soon as this Tower business is finished.¡± She held out a hand imperiously. ¡°Gladly.¡± I turned to look at Voltaire who nodded. He took the steel tag from my hand before flowing over to drop it in her waiting palm where it gave her a mild shock. He waited off to the side, patiently waiting for her to return my property. The tiny eep she let out didn¡¯t stop her from ogling the steel plate, more specifically the last name and Class on it. Her gaze jumped between the plate and me no fewer than a dozen times before her face fell. ¡°My apologies most revered [Starlord], if only you would have¨C¡± ¡°Told you who I was?¡± I couldn¡¯t help it, I snorted before covering my face in mock embarrassment. ¡°How unbecoming of me as the only [Starlord] born in the last two thousand years. Do you know where you messed up for the first time in this interaction?¡± Her eyes flicked from side to side for help in a panic, but none was coming. She cleared her throat. ¡°Failing to ascertain your identity before treating you like a commoner. I am very¨C¡± ¡°You¡¯re half right, but that¡¯s to be expected.¡± I rolled back off the stool before turning it into a back handspring. ¡°When¡¯s the last time you went back to Sunhome? A year? Five?¡± ¡°Nearly twenty years,¡± she blushed. ¡°I just haven¡¯t found the time.¡± Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Due to a pact made with the System millenia ago, each golden elf inducted to the System was required to commune with the [Great Suntree] at least once every twenty years or they would begin to rapidly age, faster even than a human. If Gabrielle was cutting it that fine, something had to be wrong. She probably couldn¡¯t return to Sunhome. ¡°Stars help you,¡± I almost felt bad for her. ¡°Before I get into what¡¯s going on with that, I¡¯ll tell you how you were still wrong.¡± I walked closer, until we were only separated by five feet of plush green carpet. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t speak to anyone who makes it past your guards as anything less than someone to respect. Honestly, you should show everyone respect, but I know that¡¯s more than I can ask for a golden elf. Anyone who can get past your guards, who are both only a few levels lower than you, they can likely deal with a [Grovetender] like you quite easily. You and I both know it¡¯s not a combat oriented Class.¡± For half a second, it looked like she was going to pull a weapon on me before she sighed. ¡°I concede that you may have a point.¡± Typical elven response, but I can work with it. ¡°So, what¡¯s stopping you from going back to Sunhome?¡± I leaned in and whispered in Elvish. ¡°We both know it isn¡¯t just a timing issue, despite what you might tell anyone else. I know just how important it is for you to go back and the clock is ticking.¡± ¡°Would you please join me in my private chambers?¡± She made to stand up and I stepped back to keep the same distance between us as she did. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t care to have my dirty laundry aired where just anyone could listen in.¡± She glared at the doors to the right and left of the room where functionaries were doubtless listening in to every word between us. ¡°Lead the way.¡± Voltaire floated back behind my left shoulder as we made our way through a doorway, down a hall, and up a flight of stairs. The room the governess finally stopped in was downright homey compared to what I was expecting. Every other elf I¡¯d ever met had some sort of formal sitting room set up for visitors, but instead she led me into a plush living room full of comfortable chairs and couches with loaded bookshelves covering every bit of wall not occupied by a doorway. She even went so far as to kick off the bright green high heels she¡¯d been wearing to curl up on a loveseat before waving toward a nearby chair. ¡°Please, make yourself at home.¡± Gone was the stuck up gold elf from before and in her place was a woman who was obviously at wits end. ¡°My apologies for the accommodations, but I had my formal sitting room converted years ago. This suits me far better.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mind me.¡± I sighed as I settled into the well worn club chair. ¡°This is much more my speed, if I¡¯m totally honest. So, why the act? It¡¯s not like anyone else here is high enough level to give you any shit if you show how you really are.¡± ¡°You¡¯d be wrong there,¡± she picked up a thick red leather bound tome from her side table and stroked its spine absentmindedly. ¡°During the last census ritual, we found four non-adventurers in the area surrounding Chalcedony with levels higher than mine.¡± That¡¯s a bit concerning. If the governess of the region isn¡¯t powerful enough, she¡¯d be¡­ ah, things are starting to make sense now. ¡°Any idea who they are?¡± She let out a humorless laugh. ¡°A pair of them are rebels who¡¯ve been trying to kill me for the past fifteen years. Every time I even think of leaving this tower they somehow manage to track me down before I can even finish dinner, let alone make it to Sunhome. I¡¯d be dead before I left Chalcedony if I tried, but I¡¯m not going to have a choice but to try in the next month if I don¡¯t want to just wither away in the next five years.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s put a pin in that for later, I might be able to assist with getting you to Sunhome if everything goes to plan.¡± It was on my list of places to go since being inducted into the System and one more passenger on the [Cloud Carpet] wouldn¡¯t slow us down much with Raiju pulling it along. ¡°Besides the whole level thing, why do you put on that show? It obviously isn¡¯t the real you.¡± No golden elf who had a sitting room like hers was as stuck up as she pretended to be, it just wasn¡¯t possible. All of golden elven culture was centered around showing off beautiful things like paintings and artwork, not gorgeously worn furniture like we were sitting on. ¡°When I got appointed to this position after doing some work for King Evergreen¡¯s grandfather a hundred years ago.¡± She smiled at the memory. ¡°That big tree in the center of Grenwall had an infestation of [Creeping Black Fungus] around the roots and he wasn¡¯t able to deal with it. I just happened to be in town when he put out a call for anyone who could help. My [Grovetender] was just what the king ordered.¡± Her real laugh was much closer to Mom¡¯s, melodious and strong. It was a far cry from the shrill offerings she¡¯d presented to that point and I knew at that point that she had let her guard down completely with me. ¡°I figured I should present myself as formally as everyone would expect from a golden elf and over the years it just became a habit.¡± She waved a hand out to indicate the books all around us. ¡°Anyone I like I take up here so they can see who I really am. It¡¯s just easier that way.¡± ¡°Might want to tone the bitchy elven noble act down. It¡¯s probably not helping the whole ¡®rebels trying to kill you¡¯ situation.¡± She stared at me in shock for a minute before pressing the book in her hands to her face. ¡°How didn¡¯t I see that?!¡± She groaned. ¡°They always scream about how stuck up I am, but I figured it was just because I was in charge and they weren¡¯t. Light damnit!¡± Yup, she¡¯s a dork. At least she¡¯s not an asshole though. That¡¯s a surprising bonus. ¡°Before we go too much farther, can you please check whatever you usually use to converse with King Evergreen?¡± I curled up in the club chair to match her stance. ¡°There should be a message in there about me visiting.¡± ¡°Let me check.¡± A thin black ledger popped into her hands. ¡°I haven¡¯t had a moment to check in a bit with everything going on.¡± She flipped it open and read through it with impressive speed, nodding along until she suddenly stopped dead. Placing a finger on the page, she read it again before looking up to me. ¡°You really had him over a barrel, didn¡¯t you?¡± Instead of answering, I grinned devilishly and she got the gist. ¡°Luckily, I¡¯ve been stockpiling [Skill Scrolls] for the last twenty years, so I should be able to help.¡± She rolled her shoulders. ¡°I was going to use them as a peace offering to my family for being gone so long, but you can have your pick of the lot if you can help me get back to Sunhome before the end of next month.¡± My eyes narrowed. ¡°I already did the task I was asked to, why should I wait for payment?¡± ¡°That¡¯s easy.¡± She giggled. ¡°Quality and rarity.¡± Behind me, Volta shifted slightly. It appeared that she really didn¡¯t like it when people played with me. ¡°Explain.¡± She pulled out a piece of parchment with hundreds of Skills listed on it. ¡°Like I said, I¡¯ve been stockpiling [Skill Scrolls] for twenty years. Every time an adventurer capable of making one comes into town, I offer them a tax break if they make me one I don¡¯t already have.¡± She steepled her fingers. ¡°Taxes make the world go round, but tax breaks are how the people in power get what they want.¡± Note to self, poach Gabrielle from Verdant if I ever find myself in charge of anything bigger than a single town. Strike that, I should try and hire her before leaving town. [Grovetenders] are decent healers, even if they only have poison to attack with, but she¡¯s worth having around just for her mercantile acumen. Our party has enough gold to do some serious business and she¡¯d be great at managing all that. Chapter 36 - The Scroll Hoarder ¡°That doesn¡¯t explain why I should wait.¡± Despite myself, my inner dwarf was revving up for some haggling. ¡°All I see is a list of [Skill Scrolls] I should be able to pick from.¡± She handed me the piece of parchment. ¡°By all means, please, take your pick.¡± She grinned evilly. ¡°Let me know when you figure out what I was talking about.¡± Taking a closer look at the list of available [Skill Scrolls] I quickly came to see what she was talking about. ¡°These are all borderline useless. [Coif Clean]? [Grape Grenade]? [Rust Removal]? I mean, the last one is halfway useful, but these all suck.¡± She pouted. ¡°[Grape Grenade] is one of my few non-poison damaging Skills.¡± ¡°Sorry, but you know what I mean.¡± I grimaced in embarrassment. ¡°None of these are useful to a [Starlord] like me.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± She sat back like the bird that got the canary. ¡°Get it yet?¡± What is she going on about? These are useless¡­ Oh. I¡¯m dumb. I really do need to poach her later. ¡°If I don¡¯t help you, you won¡¯t let me access the good stuff. Right?¡± My inner dwarf railed at the concept of her having the upper hand, but I didn¡¯t exactly have much to bargain with. Yet. Leaning in, she grinned. ¡°You¡¯re a smart one. I guess that¡¯s how you got one over on young Gareth.¡± She threw out King Evergreen¡¯s name like it didn¡¯t matter, which, in hindsight kind of made sense. Her position had outlived at least one, if not two previous kings, so why should she worry about the current iteration¡¯s impression of her? Dwarven blood surging in my veins, I settled in for the long haul. There¡¯s no way she¡¯s going to get the better of me. How could I ever look her in the eye as her [Suzerain] when I poach her otherwise? She¡¯d laugh me out of the building. What followed was one of the longest and loudest shouting matches I¡¯d ever witnessed, let alone taken part in. Nearly four hours of screaming, ranting, bargaining, and borderline insults later, we both sat back in the afterglow of our negotiation. In the end, we¡¯d agreed on one pick from her full list of [Skill Scrolls] before heading into the Tower, and two more after getting her clear of the rebels in town who wanted to kill her so she could leave for Sunhome before her time was up. It was her proposal and, while I¡¯d argued for all three picks up front, I actually wanted to delay my later picks. It turns out that more options isn¡¯t always better. To be clear, it usually was, but I was starting to get overwhelmed by the number of options for Skills and those were just the ones I actually knew, not including those I had dominated. I figured a bit of Tower-Climbing would help me solidify my Skill foundation and let me know where I was still lacking. With a pop, Gabrielle pulled a cork from an ornate green bottle with gold filigree all around the neck and label. She wafted the heady bouquet from the bottle before presenting it to me. ¡°I¡¯ve been keeping this for just such an occasion.¡± When I took the bottle, she waved a hand at the table to deposit two wide brimmed dessert glasses before settling back on her couch with a satisfied sigh. ¡°I haven¡¯t had to pull out those tricks in almost a hundred years. You¡¯re something special, [Starlord].¡± A glance at the label, topped with the bouquet from the open neck, told me all I needed to know about the bottle we were going to partake from. ¡°Eight hundred and sixty-three years of aging, all in preparation for this morning.¡± With grace seldom seen, I deftly filled both glasses sans a half inch to the lip to allow for aeration. ¡°If I remember my wine history correctly, that was your family orchards¡¯ best year in the last millenia. No?¡± She chuckled. ¡°As I¡¯d expect from the Sunbeam¡¯s scion.¡± She shook her head, ¡°It was a gift for my two hundredth birthday from the family head. I decided not to sell it or even open it until I¡¯d met someone outside the family who could actually bargain me into a corner.¡± Lifting the glass to her luscious red lips, she took a small sip. ¡°The tannins are balanced, the acidity is crisp, and the sweetness just right. A truly exceptional vintage. My great grandmother should be proud.¡± She held her glass close to her chest as she sat back, as if waiting for my response. Picking up the wine glass, I took a deep breath, closed my eyes and, surprisingly, my [Essence Reading] triggered as I did my best to absorb the contents of the bouquet. Unlike usual, it read out loud in my mind as I took a small sip. [Rowan Honeydew¡¯s Finest - Legendary Description - Rowan Honeydew¡¯s Finest is a masterpiece of viniculture, a deep amber liquid that shimmers with a golden glow. Its complex bouquet, a symphony of orchard fruits and spices, unfolds on the palate, revealing layers of sweetness, acidity, and a lingering warmth that lingers long after the last sip. Drinking this vintage for the first time will permanently increase the imbiber¡¯s Charm stat.] What in all the world is this delightful liquid! This is both more complex than any wine I¡¯ve ever had, but I think it¡¯s probably just plain better than all but the bottle Mom broke out of the family vault for Grandpa¡¯s three thousandth birthday. Notes of apple, orange, and a hint of [Tantelope] all dance across the palate in total harmony with a strong honey finish almost like a mead. This is to die for, no question. [Charm Increase: 107 ¡ú 127] What?! With difficulty, I didn¡¯t spit out the delectable liquid at the notification. Twenty Stat points for one sip! Is it the [Tantelope] or is it something to do with the apples they were using? I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen [Tantelope] used outside of fancy desserts¡­ that has to be it. Doing my best to keep my cool, I opened my eyes to find Gabrielle just a foot in front of my face. Her glass was behind her on the table as she stared at me with wide eyes. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡°Well?¡± She practically glowed with happiness. ¡°Was it everything you ever wanted in a drink?¡± ¡°The [Tantelope] has a hell of an effect, if I¡¯m correct.¡± Something came over me and before I knew what was happening, I drew her down into my lap. To my surprise, she didn¡¯t resist as she curled up against my chest. ¡°In addition to being absolutely delicious, it also gives a permanent Stat buff for [Charm]. I¡¯d say it was more than effective if you were trying to get on my good side.¡± My mind whirred as I considered the situation we were in. I wasn¡¯t all that attracted to her, despite her obvious beauty, but something made me want to pull her in and keep her close. She practically purred. ¡°Ten points for me, but with [Starlord] you probably got closer to twenty, right? Gran Gran always swore this was her Magnum Opus and I¡¯m inclined to believe her after finally trying it for myself.¡± She threw her arms around my chest and held me tight. Before I could consider what it was she was trying, her body shook as she began to sob. This is the first taste of home she¡¯s had in years, I¡¯d be willing to bet. I was wondering why I reached out for her and that must be it. Somehow, I picked up on her longing for home and my body moved on its own to comfort her. I wonder if [Dominus¡¯ Insight] will agree? As the governess wept in my arms, I braced for the Mana drain of [Dominus¡¯ Insight] and the results didn¡¯t disappoint. [Gabrielle Honeydew is a young elf too long separated from her family. Her role as the governess of Chalcedony requires her to show a cold exterior over her genuinely warm heart. What she lacks in combat ability she more than makes up for in mercantile skill and political acumen. Born to a family of little importance, she¡¯s worked harder than any of her contemporaries to gather up a Skill Scroll vault of impressive size in a desperate bid to raise her family¡¯s lacking status in Sunhome. The woman she refers to as Gran Gran is Rowan, the Honeydew family founder. Rowan has decided to leave Sunhome forever if her favorite descendant, Gabrielle, doesn¡¯t return before the end of the year. Vassal Approval: 99%] ¡°It¡¯s OK.¡± I whispered as I stroked her long blonde hair as soothingly as I could. ¡°I¡¯ll get you back to your Gran Gran before the end of the year. I swear it on the System.¡± A screen appeared in front of my face, but I willed it away. I already knew what it said. [System Oath accepted between Arthur Neilson and Gabrielle Honeydew. Failure to adhere to this agreement will result in severe penalties.] We sat there for a few minutes, with her sobbing into my chest as I alternated between rubbing her back and stroking her hair. At one point, she tried kissing me, but I politely rebuffed her. ¡°You¡¯re smart, beautiful, and a shrewd negotiator, but please, not now. Give it a few weeks and let me know if you still feel the same way.¡± It looked like she wanted to argue, but in the end, relented and went back to hugging me like nothing had changed. Sitting there, I pondered romance for what might have been the first time since I learned of the concept. What exactly am I looking for in a partner? While I can appreciate the appeal of a well muscled man as well as anyone, I¡¯ve never even felt a spark of desire for any of them. As for women? I¡¯ve literally seen a goddess in all her glory and felt next to nothing. What¡¯s wrong with me? My vision started to go dark as I leaned against Gabrielle in the middle of a panic attack. In her grief, she didn¡¯t notice and just clung to me tighter. I surprised myself by pulling her in closer than even she expected, clinging to her as an unlucky rabbit would a rock in a raging river. Grandpa¡¯s over three thousand years old and living even a hundred without Grandma has nearly killed him. As Dominus¡¯ [Suzerain], I likely didn¡¯t have any stat caps, so my lifespan was effectively endless. I don¡¯t want to spend eternity alone. ¡°You won¡¯t be alone.¡± The faint voice I knew belonged to Dominus drifted in my ear like a summer breeze. ¡°Trust that I¡¯d never let that happen to you. As my Chosen, your journey will take you far and wide. One day, you¡¯ll encounter someone truly special, a person who will hold a place in your heart like no other. When that happens, you¡¯ll know exactly what to do. I promise.¡± Dominus¡¯ voice was tender, like a loving mother¡¯s caress. I don¡¯t know if you can hear me dearest goddess, but if you can¡­thank you. It¡¯s been years since my last episode, I thought I¡¯d grown out of them. You stepped up when my Mom wasn¡¯t able to join me and I really appreciate everything you¡¯ve done for me so far. I look forward to a long happy life with you at the top of the pantheon once more. ¡°Flatterer.¡± She half laughed, half choked before stopping and getting serious. ¡°Now be quick in picking your [Skill Scroll] and get back to your party. Things are still in motion, even if they¡¯re not obvious.¡± Anything for my favorite goddess. With a sigh, I gently released myself from Gabrielle¡¯s clutches, despite her protests. ¡°Shh, it¡¯ll all be fine. I just need to look at that list of yours before going back to my friends at the inn. We¡¯re planning on diving into the Tower around noon and I still need to meditate.¡± She wiped tears from her eyes, the lack of streaks revealed the lack of beauty products on her perfect elven skin. ¡°You¡¯ll come back to get me, right?¡± Her eyes welled up with tears once more until I put a hand over my heart. ¡°My System Oath is my bond in this case. I¡¯ll return for you as soon as I reasonably can.¡± With a bit of effort, I shimmied out from underneath her and laid my fingers on her shaking hand. ¡°The list, please.¡± The look in her eyes said she was considering forcing me to stay for a while longer before she shook her head vigorously a few times before waving a hand over the coffee table and depositing a four inch thick and ten inch long roll of parchment. ¡°Sorry it¡¯s not sorted, but I never really planned on using them for myself so I just added the names and mastery levels and left it at that.¡± Picking up the roll, I slowly unrolled it, letting my eyes scan over each inch as it was revealed. ¡°That should be fine, thank you Gabrielle.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to meditate over here while you look.¡± I could barely hear her as my mind raced at the possibilities contained within Gabrielle¡¯s [Skill Scroll] collection. With this many [Skill Scrolls], I bet I could¡­ I could master [Skill Dominance]! What wonders would that let me achieve? My eyes skipped down the list, though I made sure to at least read each Skill¡¯s name and mastery level. I wonder if she¡¯d let me¨C Dominus roared into my ears once more, this time like I¡¯d heard my aunts screaming at my cousins. ¡°Don¡¯t become a paper tiger. Master [Skill Dominance] the right way. Doing it as you¡¯ve just surmised is the reason one of your predecessors died. They had all the Skills in the world, but no practical experience using any of them. They died to a lowly Uncommon C rank [Swordsman] in fair combat because they couldn¡¯t figure out which Skill to use on someone as lowly as them.¡± Got it, learn Skills the old fashioned way if possible and don¡¯t abuse my soon to be mercantile partner. Noted. I¡¯m still taking what I¡¯m owed though, I earned them. ¡°As is your right by conquest. Just be sure to actually use the damn things after you learn them. Alright?¡± Her voice softened. ¡°You¡¯re my¨C¡± Dominus? What happened? What am I to you? No matter how many times I tried reaching out to her, nothing happened. I even tried [Dominus¡¯ Insight] and got a System error almost a minute later that refunded the whack of Mana the Skill used to activate. My Status still shows my [Chosen of Dominus] trait, so she has to be alive. She must have just gotten busy. I shook my head. Time to pick my newest Skill. I wonder if I should pick a combat spell? The mere thought of it made me start to gag as I remembered Mindy¡¯s body bleeding out on the floor of the shop she shared with her sister. Panting, I mentally shook myself. Maybe, but it¡¯d have to be the perfect option or I¡¯m just going to pick something else. Chapter 37 - Checking In Half an hour later, I had three Skills picked out and I wasn¡¯t exactly happy with them. I had one passive, one martial, and I¡¯d begrudgingly selected a single combat Spell. At my request, Gabrielle produced all three [Skill Scrolls] so I could look them over with [Essence Reading]. They each told a different, equally impressive, story of who I could become in the future. [Embody the Water Droplet - 86% Mastery Skill Scroll Skill Description - This passive allows the user to slowly wear down nearly anything, given enough time and effort. For attacks, the process is obvious as each attack on the same target grants the user a stack that gives one percent of additional piercing (max 100 stacks) and when the target dies, the stacks can be spent to deliver twenty percent of the total damage dealt by the user to another target. The use for non-combat Skills is less obvious, but no less useful. When working on a long project, the user will find it gets easier, not harder, as time goes by. This portion of the ability has no set limit of stacks, as there is no percentage growth.] This thing is unreal. If I¡¯d had this against that damn Hydra, I wouldn¡¯t have needed to use [Ice Bolt] and Mindy wouldn¡¯t have gotten injured. It¡¯s definitely amazing, but I¡¯m supposed to be our party¡¯s burst damage dealer, not the sustained DPS. That¡¯s Jaegan¡¯s job. If I were a crafter, I¡¯d take it right now, but I haven¡¯t really spent much time looking into crafting yet. There¡¯s no use thinking about it so much when I haven¡¯t even seen what the others do. Moving on. [Dragon Claws - 97% Mastery Skill Scroll Skill Description - Dragon Claws grants the user the ability to summon a pair of powerful claws made of elemental energy covering their fingers. The user can choose the element of the claws, such as fire, ice, or lightning, etc., altering their properties and attacks accordingly. Upon striking a target, the user can choose to leave behind a single claw inside their target. Once five claws have been deposited inside a single target, the user can detonate them at will for up to a week potentially turning the target into a single massive bomb. The damage dealt by these claws is based on the user¡¯s combined Wits and Arcane stats.] It¡¯s a lot more straightforward than [Embody the Water Droplet], but damnit if it wouldn¡¯t be effective. I don¡¯t have many close up combat Skills that don¡¯t need me to have a weapon, so it¡¯d be nice to have this to fall back on if things really go to shit. One more to go¡­ I hope the last one isn¡¯t as good as it looked on paper, but how likely is that? [Sun God¡¯s Gaze - Evolved Skill Scroll - Will grant Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition instead, due to the evolved state of base Skill. Skill Description - Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition allows the user to channel the divine light of the sun, unleashing beams of radiant energy that can both heal allies and scorch enemies. Used by Light¡¯s high apostles, this Skill has been known to evolve into Sun God''s Gaze, granting the user even greater power and versatility in their ability to manipulate solar energy.] Grandpa would lose it if he knew someone had sold a scroll of his God¡¯s favorite Skill to a member of Verdant¡¯s nobility. Sunofabitch, I have to take it, don¡¯t I? Grandpa would never forgive me for leaving it behind. On the plus side, Dominus did say I was going to get the [Scion of the Sun] Class, so maybe it¡¯d feel natural? I pondered it for a moment before something else occurred to me. I wonder what¡¯ll happen when it evolves with my current Chosen status? Hell, will it be able to evolve for me? It¡¯d suck to have a Skill stuck at ninety-nine percent for all time. In the end, I knew what I had to do. I sat forward and waved to get Gabrielle¡¯s attention. ¡°[Sun God¡¯s Gaze] please.¡± ¡°Drat.¡± She threw me a cheeky smile. ¡°I was almost sure you¡¯d take [Dragon Claws] after hearing the story of your fight with the hydra.¡± Shaking my head, I leaned back on the couch one last time. ¡°If that was what I was worried about, I¡¯d have taken [Embody the Water Droplet]. Stacking penetration buffs are rare and that one is particularly potent.¡± I shrugged. ¡°[Dragon Claws] was my third pick though, to be fair, after [Sun God¡¯s Gaze] and [Embody the Water Droplet].¡± Something heavy thumped into my chest, making my eyes snap open as I caught whatever it was. When I looked down at the offending object, I found a gold and ruby encrusted scroll case. I looked up at Gabrielle and she mimed me opening the case with a big grin. At first, it wouldn¡¯t open, but as soon as I threaded a bit of Mana into it, the cap popped off in my hands without me doing anything more. Slowly, reverently, I pulled the most gilded and fancy piece of parchment from the tube, which I left on the table. It almost looked like the lettering was done in gold while the punctuation was made up of tiny rubies. Upon closer inspection, I found I was actually correct which rocked me back a bit. ¡°What the hell is going on with this thing?¡± ¡°It¡¯s for an Evolved Skill, that kind of thing needs a hell of a lot of Mana capacity to store the Skill properly.¡± Gabrielle acted like it was totally normal. ¡°That one came from a [High Priest of Light] who owed my grandmother a favor and happened to be dying in Chalcedony. He actually gave me the damn thing, if you¡¯d believe that!¡±This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. With a groan, I took to my feet, which did nothing to alleviate the difference in our heights. ¡°Actually, I do. He wanted to pass it on to another golden elf and hoped you¡¯d be kind enough to find it a good home. Which you did.¡± I quickly tucked the scroll back into its case before storing the lot in my ring. ¡°It was good talking to you governess,¡± I put on a fake serious tone as I walked toward the door, ¡°you drive a hard bargain. I¡¯ll deal with the Tower, but you and Verdant will owe me for it!¡± She gaped at me for a moment before figuring out what I was going for. Taking to her feet, she walked closer to the door. ¡°Get it done quickly, peasant! I have more important things to deal with than some trumped up pile of rocks.¡± She mouthed ¡®Thank you,¡¯ before I turned and walked down the hall toward the stairs. *** ¡°Oof!¡± Before the door even clicked shut behind me, Raiju bowled me onto the bed in the corner of our room at the inn. Her massive paws pressed me deep into the surprisingly soft bed. ¡°You went somewhere without me¡­ again!¡± Her ears lay low against her head as she laid down on top of me. ¡°It¡¯s my job to keep you safe and I can¡¯t do that if you keep sending me off or sneaking away.¡± A soft keening sound welled up from the back of her throat and, despite my best efforts, I wasn¡¯t able to move her full-sized form. Looking around her enormous paws and head, I was able to see very little of the room, so I just lay there and let her have the moment she needed for a few minutes. Volta and Voltaire looked down at me questioningly from the corners near the ceiling they¡¯d flowed into, but I softly shook my head. From behind the white wall of fur I was mildly annoyed to hear Jaegan¡¯s soft cackling. ¡°She¡¯s been a mess since we woke her up to come to the room. Ylsa did her best to calm her down, but it didn¡¯t seem to do much.¡± Ylsa¡¯s towering form loomed into view over Raiju¡¯s paw. She bowed low enough to pass out of view before straightening up again. ¡°My apologies Storm-Blessed. I attempted to comfort Storm-Runner, but she was inconsolable.¡± She sighed deeply. ¡°The best I could do was convince her to spar with me and later keep her from using her connection to you to follow you to the lord¡¯s keep.¡± I have to remember I¡¯m not on my own. It isn¡¯t like when I¡¯d ditch my parents on vacation to go explore, Raiju and Ylsa aren¡¯t used to my disappearing acts yet. Hell, Mom never really got used to them, but Dad was so good at tracking me down that she just sicked him on me to get me back when it became too much for her. I can¡¯t help but wonder if he had something he could track on me, that would make some weird sort of sense. Running my fingers through the hair behind her whiskers I spoke quietly so only she could hear me despite knowing I could use the Party Interface to speak to her mentally. This was so much more intimate. ¡°Raiju, I¡¯m always going to come back. OK? Sometimes I¡¯ll have to go away, but I¡¯ll always come back to my best friend.¡± Throwing my arms around her neck, I hugged her tightly. ¡°You were my first real friend and I¡¯m so Dominus brought us together.¡± ¡°You¡¯re my favorite thing.¡± Big lupine tears streamed down her cheeks before splashing onto my forehead, ¡°Even more than playing chase or that stew you made a while ago.¡± Jaegan and I chuckled to ourselves at that, but the next time I tried to get up, she shifted to put her head in my lap instead of splaying her form across my whole body. I ran my fingers through the hair on her head as I looked around the room. It wasn¡¯t huge, but there was a bed in each corner and a table in the center. Jaegan sat on the bed directly opposite me and Ylsa paced alongside the table. There was plenty of space for us to stay a few days if necessary, though that wasn¡¯t likely given what I was about to propose. Clearing my throat, I got everyone¡¯s attention before pulling a drawing of the Tower I¡¯d found in the street as I walked back to the inn. There was a boot print in the bottom corner, but it didn¡¯t interfere with its use as a visual aid. ¡°How¡¯s everyone doing after the first wave from the Tower? I know I¡¯m good, though I¡¯ll need a real night¡¯s rest when we get done with all of this.¡± Jaegan shrugged. ¡°I got six hours of sleep, so I should be good to go.¡± ¡°Five for me, but that¡¯s more than I used to get before being imprisoned and then becoming your vassal.¡± Ylsa began stretching. ¡°I¡¯m always your willing guardian.¡± ¡°Not going anywhere without me.¡± Raiju¡¯s voice rumbled through my body before she whimpered. ¡°Plus, I got lots of sleep.¡± As I gave her reassuring pats, I looked up to my [Arcweaver] compatriots. ¡°Volta, Voltaire, how are you two doing? Do you need to return to your realm any time soon?¡± ¡°That shouldn¡¯t be necessary,¡± Volta bowed from where she floated, ¡°as long as you are willing to keep us around, we¡¯ll be happy to remain your willing servants.¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Should I contact your Duke and see if I can work out something permanent for your services?¡± As [Arcweavers] originated in a subdomain of the Fire and Air elemental planes, rather than reporting directly to one of the Elemental Monarchs, Volta and Voltaire were instead bound to follow an Elemental Duke. I didn¡¯t know as much about them as I did the Monarchs, but I knew the Lightning Duke wasn¡¯t exactly the most stable. Her face literally lit up with excitement. ¡°That would be preferred, yes. Our entire battalion of knights would like to serve you indefinitely, but I know my current liege would be remiss to lose all of us.¡± Her eyes flicked over to her brother, who was a lot better at hiding his emotions than she was. ¡°Voltaire and I have been working for centuries with our battalion and they would likely be fine without our continued presence.¡± Got it, so there¡¯s a reason they came instead of any of their contemporaries. Their Duke likely has something against them, or vice versa. Either way, it¡¯s not a bad idea to get them contracted for an extended amount of time, it¡¯d release the tiny bit of my Mana and regeneration they have locked down at the moment. ¡°I¡¯m not as familiar with the Dukes as I am the Monarchs, does your liege,¡± Volta winced almost imperceptibly and I noted it before moving on, ¡°have a particular thing he prefers for trade besides pure Mana?¡± ¡°Fulgurite, sir.¡± Voltaire saved his sister. ¡°He takes great pleasure in destroying as many pieces of it as he can get his hands on, as his rival the Sand Duchess loves it and he enjoys the way she reacts.¡± ¡°Noted. I have a cousin who makes some of the finest fulgurite artwork in a shop in Sunhome.¡± I mused with a hand on my chin. ¡°I¡¯ll have to stop and see her when we make our way there with Gabrielle.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s Gabrielle?¡± Ylsa and Raiju intoned as Jaegan groaned and flopped back on the bed. ¡°I guess we have a few minutes.¡± I set the picture of the Tower down on the bed beside me and settled in. ¡°Well you see, I went to visit the Duchess¡­¡± Chapter 38 - What a Nightmare The Tower loomed large over our group as we walked toward the entrance closest to our inn. Gone was Raiju¡¯s sour mood as she pranced forward with me on her back. Initially, I¡¯d been against it, but when I realized it would make her happy and cost me nothing but a bit of pride, I let it go and accepted the lift. The Tower stood defiant against the midday sun, its dark grey stone shimmering in the heat. The six-storey behemoth was a fortress of challenge, its circular shape casting long, angular shadows across the surrounding courtyard. Empty perches for Edifice and his fellow [Gargoyles] lined the uppermost parapet, with only one in five filled, their stone faces etched with expressions of eternal vigilance. At each compass point, towering arches framed the entrances, inviting the brave and foolish alike to test their mettle. The Tower¡¯s imposing presence did nothing to dissuade our group from entering. The first level of the tower was just a lobby, with a shimmering blue teleportation circle in the center. Smashed remains of wooden shops were pushed up against the walls with more than a few still smoking after the monsters from the Tower got done with them. We only found two bodies, which Ylsa dutifully ran out to the Lord¡¯s keep so the families could be notified. A few deep breaths and one mental pep talk later, I nudged Raiju and we stepped together into the teleportation circle. However, rather than immediately teleporting me as I¡¯d expected, a System window opened up in front of me to reveal the Party Interface. There was now a Tower tab at the top. Opening it up, I found that the Tower was designed to work with the Party Interface, but with it gone, it¡¯d just been operating based on the number of people standing on the teleportation pad at the top of each hour. ¡°Lady, preserve me.¡± I let out a long breath before sucking in through my teeth. ¡°So, we have some options.¡± Jaegan, ever the savvy bastard, messaged us all through the Party Interface. ¡®What do you mean? I¡¯ve been in the Tower a few times. We just need to wait another few minutes¡­it¡¯s the Interface, isn¡¯t it?¡¯ His eyes lit up. ¡®Got it in one.¡¯ I rubbed my forehead. ¡®It turns out that this thing is supposed to have what amounts to a difficulty slider, with greater rewards based on the difficulty attempted. Nowadays, everyone¡¯s been going in on easy-mode, while we have the option of easy, normal, hard, or nightmare modes.¡¯ ¡®What do each of them entail?¡¯ The [Mage] rubbed his hands together greedily. Looking around the System window, I found a button to explain what was going on with the options. With a gesture, I sent the window for everyone to view on their own. [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Difficulty Selection: Easy - Monsters on Floors 1-3 will be lower level than the average of the party entering. Floor 4 will have monsters of equivalent level while floor 5 will have a boss two levels higher than the highest level among the assembled group. Monster numbers will be at their lowest density. (Default Setting) Normal - Monsters on Floors 1-3 will be of levels equal to the average level of the party entering. Floor 4 will have monsters 2-4 levels higher than the average level while floor 5 will have a boss five levels higher than the highest level among the assembled group. Monster numbers will be at their normal density. Hard - Monsters on Floors 1-3 will be 2-4 levels higher than the average of the party entering. Floor 4 will have monsters 5-8 levels higher while floor 5 will have a boss ten levels higher than the highest level among the assembled group. Monster numbers will be considerable. Nightmare - Monsters on Floor 1 will be ten levels higher than the average level of the party entering. Each floor after that, up to Floor 4 will increase in level by two. Floor 5 will host the Tower Boss. This monster will be twenty levels higher than the highest level among the assembled group. Monster density will be exceptionally high and the Tower Boss will have double the adds. Bonus: Defeating the Tower Boss on the Party Leader¡¯s first trip into this Tower will grant the Party Leader administrative rights to the Tower of Trials - Chalcedony until someone else does the same. Maintenance Note: A disturbance has been detected on Floor 3 that is producing abnormally high levels of Chaos Mana. The offending object will only have a fifty percent chance of appearing on Hard, but is certain to appear on Nightmare. Only maintenance crews who have been certified by the local Adventurers¡¯ Guild are advised to attempt to remove the offending object. If the disturbance is not removed within thirteen days, three hours, fifty-two minutes, and nineteen seconds Purification Wave 2 will commence.] Dominus damn this place. I knew there had to be something bullshitty going on to make the Tower go nuts, though I guess I should call it the Tower of Trials¡­nah. The Tower is fine for now. If we¡¯re going to fix the issue, we have to, at minimum, go in on Hard, but that¡¯s not going to guarantee us even seeing the issue. ¡®Jaegan, how long did it take to make it to the third floor of the Tower on Easy?¡¯ I messaged him directly. He frowned. ¡®It depends on the scenario that¡¯s generated. I had one trip that only took a few hours per floor, but another took nearly a week to even make it to the third floor.¡¯ ¡®That¡¯s what I was afraid of.¡¯ I fought the urge to grind my teeth. ¡®The second wave from the tower is going to start in a little less than two weeks. We don¡¯t have time to do this twice.¡¯ The [Mage] turned to look at me with a mask of horror on his face. ¡®Lad, we can¡¯t¨C¡¯ I turned and addressed the rest of the party. ¡®It¡¯s decided, we have to go in on Nightmare or there¡¯s a good chance we don¡¯t get another chance to do so before the next purification wave begins.¡¯ Sweeping my gaze over my companions, I kept my face featureless despite my concerns. ¡®Chalcedony won¡¯t survive another purification wave, even with us here to help stem the tide. Does anyone have any concerns to bring up to the group? Time is of the essence.¡¯ Part of me felt bad for ignoring Jaegan¡¯s reaction, but at the same time¡­I had to be decisive in the moment and let others temper me from time to time. If he felt strongly enough, he¡¯d bring his concerns up in front of everyone. Otherwise, they obviously weren¡¯t important enough for me to bother with at the moment.This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. He kept thoughts to himself and so did everyone else, which actually felt a bit bad if I was being honest with myself. Nearly a minute passed, but no one spoke up. Did I lay it on too thick and make everyone feel bad for being apprehensive? Panic gripped me for a moment until the feeling of Raiju¡¯s back beneath me brought me back to reality. I squeezed her sides gently with my thighs in a silent show of thanks. Now¡¯s not the time to worry about the kind of leader I¡¯ll be in the future, for now we have to save Chalcedony. I can worry about becoming a dictator later. ¡°If no one has any concerns, let¡¯s get this thing started.¡± I waited a beat to see if anyone would take the last second opportunity to object, but when I looked at my companions, I found each of them prepped and ready for a fight. Ylsa grinned at me over her pressed together fists, her muscles bulging as she flexed them. ¡°Lead us into glorious battle, Storm-Blessed.¡± ¡°In for a copper, in for a gold.¡± Jaegan wasn¡¯t as gung-ho, but nevertheless, he hefted the [Staff of the Wallbreaker] in both hands. ¡°I said I¡¯d follow you and this isn¡¯t any crazier than the other stuff you¡¯ve been doing, so let¡¯s get to it.¡± Raiju yipped happily. ¡°Time to fight some monsters!¡± I turned to Volta and Voltaire with a half-grin. ¡°Not sure if you two will come through with us. If you don¡¯t, I¡¯ll summon you again as soon as I can.¡± They bowed to me in unison. ¡°Understood.¡± With a nod, I did a final check of my newest Skills and my present allotment of [Slotted Skills]. [Active Skill - Mastery Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition - 99%] If what Grandpa told me about this Skill is true, this thing¡¯s more powerful than any other Skill I have access to. The thing is, it¡¯s about to evolve, so there¡¯s no telling what kind of options I¡¯ll get for it to advance. I just hope it keeps the utility he says it has in my new version. The cooldown¡¯s going to be a bitch regardless. Unlike the rest of my Skills, [Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition] had a cooldown of a minute to deal with. Based on what I¡¯d read in the description, that was supposed to be much higher, but my increased [Divine] stat did a lot to reduce it. That was the way of the world, casters with higher [Arcane] and [Divine] stats would always out-perform high [Wits] when it came to the most powerful Spells and Skills while the opposite was true for those Spells and Skills that lacked a cooldown, but scaled based on [Wits]. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 1/6 Minor Magnesis Healing Light Solar Deflection Spike Field Open] In the Tower, [Photosynthesis] and [Sun Jump] would be basically useless, so they had to go. I almost brought [Hydrosphere] and [Healing Waters], but they¡¯re only a bit more effective than [Healing Light] and it only costs one slot. [Spike Field] was always something Mom got good use out of in her Tower climbs, so I might as well try it out, same with [Open] for doors after I check them for traps. One open slot for anything that might be useful that I haven¡¯t thought of yet¡­maybe I should¨C Raiju¡¯s shake brought me back to reality, where I found my party still waiting for me. I blushed. ¡°Final check took a second.¡± Without leaving time for a response, I hurried to select the Nightmare difficulty and the teleportation circle beneath our feet activated. The air around us shimmered, distorting the light into a kaleidoscope of colors. A circle of ethereal energy began to form at our feet, its glow intensifying until it seemed to swallow us whole and the world went black. *** With a pop, we appeared in a chamber that appeared to be made of the same dark grey stone as the Tower itself. Ylsa, Jaegan, Raiju, and I stood within a brass ring on the ground that was quickly burning away like an oil soaked candle wick. Above me floated Volta and Voltaire, who appeared to be pleasantly surprised they¡¯d been able to come through the portal. The room we stood in had a pair of exits leading out into the Tower, but for some reason the room was eerily quiet. Before I could say anything, the last bit of the brass circle burned away and the sheer heat of the floor slammed into all of us like a physical presence. Pulling up my Status, I saw the temperature was at 140 degrees and rising at a rate of two degrees per minute. ¡°This is¡­unpleasant.¡± Ylsa wiped sweat from her massive neck and tossed it down beside her with a disgusted look on her face. Our [Mage], on the other hand, wasn¡¯t as calm about the heat. ¡°Devourer¡¯s balls, it¡¯s more than unpleasant. I¡¯m burning up here!¡± His usually clear skin was indeed already taking on a more pink tone. Surprisingly, I felt totally fine until I got off Raiju¡¯s back. As soon as I cleared it I felt like I was bathing in the heat of my Mom¡¯s [Fire Wall] Spell as a kid again. She¡¯d had to use it to defend the family villa a few times from hordes of flying monsters and once I¡¯d been a bit closer than she expected. I was fine a few feet behind the cool side, but she¡¯d pulled me out faster than I¡¯d ever seen her move at that point before I could be badly burned. ¡°Yeah, this sucks.¡± I grunted. ¡°It¡¯s fine on Raiju¡¯s back, but I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s a good idea for us to stack up like that. Let¡¯s just hurry and see what we have to do to clear this floor.¡± ¡°Check the corner of your vision!¡± Jaegan snarled as he made his way to lean against Raiju. He sighed. ¡°We need to kill two hundred and fifty [Magmen] and ten [Flame Golems] before the next floor will open. The current goal for the Tower will always be there if you look.¡± Padding over to the nearest room exit, I triggered [Trap Finding] and was astounded at the number of pitfalls and tripwires I found in just a twenty foot stretch of hallway. Pulling out my toolkit, I rolled up my metaphorical sleeves. ¡°Things just got dicey, ladies and gentlemen. There are at least twenty traps in this stretch alone. I¡¯m going to have to pick our way through, or we¡¯ll be here forever. Follow exactly where I step, except those of you who can fly or walk on air, fliers should stay a few feet above the floor and at least a foot off each wall.¡± What followed was a three minute slog as I had to disable four trip wires that stretched from floor to ceiling, using a special type of weight Dad gave me a literal ton of. They clip on the wire at each end and with a quick push of Mana, snip the wire at the same time. They basically trick the wire into thinking it¡¯s still whole while leaving it ineffective as long as no one does something stupid¡­like kick it. Dad was still mad at Uncle Arlo for doing that one time on a Dungeon dive years ago that cost them a pile of loot. Turning the corner after the trap-laden hallway, ten feet of un-trapped floor away, I saw a room with a literal pool of lava in the center while tiny naked red-skinned humanoids danced around it. [Magmen - Rank D Horde Monster Level: 40 Vulnerabilities: Cold, Water Immunities: Fire] To my surprise, instead of just giving me the usual information, [Essence Reading] gave me a full description of the little jerks. At that moment, I chalked it up to the Tower, but Jaegan dissuaded me from that idea later. He explained that I¡¯d just experienced a rare [Evolved Skill Mutation], but didn¡¯t explain much more. [Magmen are a naturally occuring goblin variant that have adapted to life near a volcano. Their skin has taken on a fiery, molten red hue, and their bodies have become nearly immune to heat. Their eyes glow with an intense, ember-like light, reflecting the volcanic environment they inhabit. They are known for their fiery tempers and their ability to manipulate flames with incredible precision. Despite their small size, they possess surprising strength and durability, thanks to their adaptation to the harsh conditions of their volcanic home.] ¡®Cold and water Mana vulnerabilities, people. No fire attacks if we can avoid them.¡¯ I quickly messaged in Party Chat as I spun a pair of [Psyknives] into existence. ¡®We go in as soon as Ylsa gets to the front, she¡¯s going to be tanking. Same tactics as the Dungeon until we come up with some others. Heard?¡¯ A chorus of ¡®Heards¡¯ sounded through the chat as the [Mountain Tempest] practically leapt to my side with a huge grin and knuckles covered in spikes of ice. ¡®It¡¯s time for me to show you my cool side!¡¯ Without waiting for a response, she surged into the room like a woman possessed. ¡°Terrible pun, but you can¡¯t fault the style.¡± Jaegan chuckled as he passed my face-rubbing form at a good clip with Raiju at his side. ¡°Get on it, lad. Wouldn¡¯t want our tank to get overwhelmed.¡± I hurried to catch up with them a beat later after recasting [Arcane Armor]. Chapter 39 - Lava and Hair Don’t Mix Horrible high pitched screams came from the group of [Magmen] Ylsa was in the midst of. As I entered the room, she drew her ice spikes from the chest of one [Magman] whose body appeared to be turning to stone before shattering into a million pieces half a second later. The goliath woman spun low to avoid a globule of lava thrown by a pair of the red hot creatures working together before surging toward them nearly perpendicular to the floor. ¡°[Frost Blade!]¡± She screamed excitedly as her leading shin suddenly did its best broadaxe impression before cleaving one of the offending goblinoids in twain. She truly embodied her [Mountain Tempest] Class at that moment as she showed what a mountain blizzard could do to a group of creatures weak to cold. Leaving her to take care of the dozen fiery bastards on her own, I turned to find Raiju doing far worse. Despite her innate stat advantages as an S ranked beast, her lack of ability to produce any meaningful ice or water Mana left her in a tough spot when surrounded by thirty [Magmen]. For each one she blasted with [Thunderhead] or [Lightning Strike] five more of them threw lava balls that splashed against her lightning shield from [Storm¡¯s Embrace]. As I watched, one of the lava spikes from a slightly larger [Elder Magman] slipped through after [Storm¡¯s Embrace] failed and before she could reup it. The dagger sized spike of lava hit her square in the front right quarter, burning off the lustrous white fur there and exposing scorched red skin below. Her howl of rage and pain was more than I could handle calmly. Dad¡¯s training had a dozen different techniques to deal with an ally who was surrounded, but only one came to mind in the moment and it was the one he told me was both his favorite and the worst for a stealth specialist like him and I ¨C though me to a much lesser extent than him. Blades of psychic Mana in each hand, I triggered [Mana Slide] to get behind the group attacking my bonded and went absolutely apeshit on them. I was on them in less than a second and they were not ready for me. The first thing I did was tear into the [Elder Magman] who¡¯d actually managed to strike Raiju. Two [Pysknife] fueled [Backstabs] with [Dual Chop] for good measure was enough to erase him from the Tower in a satisfying pop, but I wasn¡¯t there to see what happened next as I spun into the next pair of smaller hotfoots. A single [Psyknife] to the base of each of their spines was enough to send them to the void. At that point, one of the rearmost [Magmen] spotted me and shouted to his compatriots in Goblin to watch out, or he would have if I hadn¡¯t thrown a [Psyknife] into his forehead the moment his mouth opened. He fell back with white eyes before expiring. [Psyknife] is absolutely overpowered for someone with [Wits] like mine. I triggered [Haste] to dodge around and slash into another pair of monsters as my mind raced. I can¡¯t help but wonder if it¡¯s something people know about, but don¡¯t take advantage of, or if it¡¯s something hidden by those who have it because of how effective it is. I guess I¡¯ll have to ask Dominus the next time I level up. As is, Raiju¡¯s clear, so I should¡­ ¡°Room clear!¡± Jaegan bellowed as he let his [Arcane Battery] constructs fade into blue flecks of Mana that faded a moment later. I raced around the large lava filled chamber once more before disabling [Haste] and rushing to Raiju¡¯s side. I slid to my knees beside where she lay, nursing her shoulder. Mentally slotting [Hydrosphere], I summoned the ball of water around her wound, which got her howling for a moment before turning to glare at me. Her gaze softened and she let her head fall to the ground in resignation. ¡°It¡¯s alright, I¡¯m here.¡± I used [Healing Light] through the sphere of water and watched as the burned skin slowly sloughed off to reveal fresh pink flesh in its place. ¡°Should just be a few more moments, though I¡¯m not sure how long it¡¯ll be before your hair grows back there. Sorry about that.¡± ¡°Stupid fire chuckers. Can¡¯t even use the good elements and they think they¡¯re all big and bad.¡± She huffed. ¡°I¡¯ll show them next time.¡± Petting her fur as I let the [Hydrosphere] fade, I chuckled softly. ¡°Maybe you should stay at a range against the [Magmen]? Lava and fur don¡¯t exactly mix well.¡± The look she gave me sent shivers down my spine and I suddenly knew how everyone she¡¯d ever killed felt. Absolutely terrified. ¡°No. I will prove that I can deal with those fiery jerks.¡± She huffed and rose shakily to her feet before taking a couple of test steps and looking back at me. ¡°I suggest you get a move on, because I¡¯m going to leave this room in one minute to look for revenge.¡± ¡°Gotcha.¡± I turned around to give Volta and Voltaire orders, only to find them floating above the center of the lava pool. I put my fist on my hip. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a strong Mana source in the middle of this pool.¡± Volta bowed. ¡°We were debating how to retrieve whatever it is for you, Pactlord.¡± Looking from them to Raiju, I knew time was of the essence, so I didn¡¯t hesitate. Pulling up the [Elemental Pactlord] panel, I switched the dials to summon a [Obsidian Knight] which triggered [Essence Reading] again. [Obsidian Knights are imposing elemental creatures, their forms forged from the obsidian depths of the confluence of the earth and fire elemental planes. They resemble armored knights, their bodies composed of the dark, volcanic glass that shimmers in the light. Their eyes, two burning embers, glow with an intense red heat. Their swords and shields, crafted from the same obsidian as their bodies, are incredibly durable and capable of inflicting devastating damage. Obsidian Knights move with a fluid, almost serpentine grace, their every step leaving a trail of obsidian shards in their wake.] I addressed it with a courtly bow before addressing it in Terran. ¡°Sir Knight, would you please retrieve whatever is producing the Mana in that pool?¡± I paused. ¡°Also, what is your preferred name?¡± ¡°Arlian, Pactlord. It seems you are in a rush. Please advance, I will catch up.¡± The imposing figure saluted before walking straight into the fifty foot wide pool of lava, sinking after taking just a few steps. ¡°Volta, Voltaire, please stay and guard the pool and Arlian.¡± I looked to the side and found Raiju mere feet from the path out of our current chamber. ¡°Sorry, gotta go!¡± I was just barely able to squeak past my hairiest companion into the next hallway and was surprised when I only found a single trap about thirty feet into the hundred foot long black tiled tunnel. It was a curious thing, a single uneven tile in the middle of the huge tunnel and it stood out like a sore thumb, even to my party. Getting closer, I pulled out an old sleeve of tools Dad always swore by. ¡°Longspoon thieves¡¯ tools. Never thought I¡¯d actually want to use them again, but this is just what they¡¯re for.¡± I shivered at the memory of my training with them as a teen as I drew the three foot long steel implements from their sleeve. I slid the tool forward until I could catch the edge of the tile with the tip and gently pried up on it about half an inch.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Two seconds later, the end of the hallway we¡¯d entered lurched upward on the axis of the center of the hallway where I was, slamming our rearguard, Ylsa, into the ceiling with a grunt. ¡°Put it back!¡± Our [Mage] hollered as Ylsa slid into the back of his knees, bowling him over and sending the pair of them barreling toward Raiju¡¯s furry self who stopped them cold. ¡°I am!¡± I delicately, but quickly, slid the tile back into place, but not before spotting a void at the other end of the hallway below where the exit should have been. Two seconds later, the hallway slammed back into position, but this time we were ready and braced ourselves for the shift. My companions slowly clambered back to their feet as I pulled my tool back and found the metal near the tip was far more pliable than it should have been. Touching it, I swore. ¡°Dominus damn this place, the trap had some sort of acid or fire enchantment on it. I¡¯m going to have to fix this when we get back to town.¡± I slipped the damaged tool back into my ring before pulling out the old standby of all adventurers. ¡°Ten-foot pole.¡± Jaegan grinned. ¡°No adventurer worth their plate ever leaves home without one.¡± ¡°But of course.¡± I matched his wry grin with a smile of my own. Placing the end of the ironwood pole against the tile, I gave it the gentlest of touches, barely moving it an eighth of an inch. As I¡¯d expected, the hall shifted to match the state of the tile, revealing an opening not only at the bottom of the newly angled hallway, but also at the top. With the angle at a much more reasonable angle, we were able to take a minute to look and found there appeared to be rooms beyond each opening we¡¯d exposed. ¡°Top or bottom first?¡± I scratched the back of my neck anxiously. ¡°I¡¯m partial to the top, that way we can slide back in here if something goes wrong in there. Anyone else have a strong opinion?¡± My party collectively shrugged or grunted something noncommittally for a few moments, so I took the initiative to start walking up the slope to the newly exposed opening. ¡°Keep up!¡± Raiju took my words as a challenge and quickly made me regret my choice of words as she blew past me fast enough to spin me around like a top. If it weren¡¯t for [Air Step], I¡¯d have fallen back toward the middle of the tunnel without a doubt. With it? I was able to spring off the air itself to run after her, laughing all the way despite the situation outside. In the Tower, at that moment, I was just a boy chasing his oversized dog. She barked excitedly when she reached the top, jumping with her legs extended to clear the barely more than four foot opening. Her barks quickly turned to growls before I heard the distinctive sound of her [Lightning Strike] and [Thunderhead] abilities. Turning to the group behind me as I ran, I yelled. ¡°She¡¯s fighting up there. We have to hurry!¡± With a thought, I triggered [Haste] and blurred up the incline and through the me-sized entrance to find myself in a sixty foot circular chamber with a thirty foot tall [Flame Golem] in the center. Its arms swept around the room as it poured a tremendous amount of flames toward Raiju¡¯s sprinting form. The problem was, it was able to turn faster than she could run in here, where she couldn¡¯t get a good run up to trigger the speed portion of [Swift as the Wind], and her back legs already had char on them from where she didn¡¯t manage to dodge. I watched as she tried running into the air over the torrent of flames, only to have the golem switch one arm to follow her movement while the other one tracked where I¡¯d entered the room. [Flame Golem - Rank C Mini-Boss Level: 40 Vulnerabilities: Cold, Force Immunities: Fire, Lightning, Poison, Psychic, Bludgeoning, Piercing, Slashing] [Flame Golems are towering, thirty-foot behemoths of living flame contained within molten sandstone shells. Their forms resemble a humanoid, but their bodies are composed entirely of molten rock and burning embers. Their eyes glow with an intense, fiery heat, and their gaping cores, shaped like a furnace, emits a constant roar of flames. These creatures are not elemental in nature, but are actually remnant creations of an ancient race of master craftsmen who harnessed the power of fire to create these formidable guardians. Flame Golems are often found in ancient Towers and Dungeons, where they serve as formidable challenges for adventurers who seek to plumb their depths. Their primary attack is a torrent of flame that they can shoot from both arms and sometimes their furnaces when they are close to being destroyed. These flames are hot enough to melt Mithral and warp Adamantine.] As I darted in closer to it, [Essence Reading] told me what I was working with and I was excited and worried in equal measure. We needed to find and kill ten [Flame Golems] to leave the first floor, but with the immunities it had, I wasn¡¯t going to be nearly as useful as I had been against the [Magmen] unless¡­ Shaking my head, I banished the beginnings of that thought. Focus. You can use [Light Arrow], it¡¯s basically just an arrow from a bow, but made of light instead of a normal arrow. That should do something to it at least. I hope. A [Mana Slide] narrowly sent me beneath the initial sweep of flames so I could focus on summoning my bow of light. Technically, it wasn¡¯t needed for the Skill, but it helped me think of it as a weapon instead of a Spell, so I used it like that without thinking. I unleashed a barrage of [Light Arrows] toward the behemoth as I kited it as best I could. From what I could tell, it couldn¡¯t do anything besides rotate so as long as Raiju and I were able to keep ahead of the flame¨C A yelp of pain from Raiju broke me out of my flow state and nearly got me clipped by the moving wall of flame that swept toward my miniscule form. Before that could happen, I heard Jaegan yell as he entered the room. ¡°[Wall of Force]!¡± The [Mage] stood with his hand extended as a clear blue wall of magic sprang into existence around the entirety of the [Flame Golem]. Behind the wall there was a conflux of flames attempting to leak out, but Jaegan¡¯s shield held. But only just. You see, [Wall of Force] is an interesting Skill. It¡¯s damn near impenetrable, but all the damage inflicted upon the wall is reduced by ninety-nine percent before being passed onto the user as pure psychic damage. That would be great for Jaegan with his [Bad Deal] belt buckle connecting him to Ylsa, if it didn¡¯t have a single caveat, the psychic damage bypassed all types of damage mitigation or redirecting factors besides the user¡¯s [Arcane] and [Toughness] stats. I watched as tiny cracks began to form on the nearly transparent wall of magic. Turning to Raiju, I found her limping toward me with her front left paw looking like a charred mess. Blood poured from the cracked, scorched, mess of a paw she clutched to her chest protectively. Without bothering to check my notifications, I knew I¡¯d stolen [Wall of Force] from Jaegan, so when I tried to slot it in, it worked. Or it would have if not for¡­ [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 0/6 Minor Magnesis Healing Light Solar Deflection Spike Field Open Hydrosphere] [No slots available, unable to slot Wall of Force] Bullshit! There has to be a way! I started to panic as the cracks grew in Jaegan¡¯s [Wall of Force]. Until, in a moment of panicked clarity I remembered something Grandpa told me about years before. ¡°Never forget, Starchild, the System isn¡¯t just some unthinking, uncaring entity. It can be bargained with.¡± Tears ran down his face. ¡°Just be prepared to pay the cost if you do, for there is no going back when dealing with it and it won¡¯t hesitate to ask for far more than you¡¯re willing to pay to give you what you want.¡± Sprinting toward the center of the room, Ylsa leapt high into the air before unleashing a devastating axe kick to send a [Frost Blade] down into the head of the trapped [Flame Golem]. It reeled back in pain, but everyone in the room could tell it would take far more than a few [Frost Blades] to kill this mini-boss. As we all watched, Jaegan slumped to the ground and his [Wall of Force] fell with him. Torrential red flames poured out into the room toward my allies and I. ¡°System, I want to bargain!¡± I screamed and the world went still. Chapter 40 - A Cost Worth Paying A black and white window appeared in front of my eyes. [Negotiation Protocol Session 68,732,165 has begun. User, state your request.] ¡°I need to exceed the max slots for [Skill Dominance] to slot [Wall of Force] right away.¡± I pleaded despite myself. ¡°I would also be happy to just remove [Minor Magnesis] and replace it with [Wall of Force].¡± [Request Denied. Unable to manipulate Skill, [Skill Dominance] in that manner due to restrictions put in place by [Administrator: 01], codename [Dominus], 29,758 years ago.] I saw a spark of hope in that. ¡°I¡¯m her Chosen, she¡¯d let me do it to save my companions!¡± [Irrelevant. [Dominus] has no sway within the [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony]. Instead, the User will deal with System entity 4,366,842 directly.] ¡°What can I do to get access to something that could save my friends right now?¡± I pleaded despite myself. ¡°Please, tell me.¡± [Renounce your name and family to become a [System Enforcer] for the next three thousand, two hundred forty-eight years.] ¡°Never.¡± I surprised myself with how vehement that came out. ¡°Ask that again and I¡¯ll find a way to get even.¡± [Understood. Calculating¡­new protocol detected. Change made by [Administrator: Dominus]. Audio change log playing now.] ¡°You¡¯re in a tough spot, Artie.¡± Dominus¡¯ voice was despondent. ¡°Where you are now, I can¡¯t help you directly, but I can make it so that the System can help you. The cost will be high, far higher than if I were able to help on my own, so be sure you can live with what you¡¯re giving up before agreeing. We both know you lead with your heart before your head sometimes.¡± She chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ve approved modification to [Skill Dominance] as long as my Chosen and the System are in agreement on the cost. Good luck, you¡¯re closer than you think to a¨C¡± Her voice cut off as a new window appeared in front of my face. [Initial request: ¡®I need to exceed the max slots for [Skill Dominance] to slot [Wall of Force] right away. I would also be happy to just remove [Minor Magnesis] and replace it with [Wall of Force].¡¯] [Proposed Cost: Reduce available slots to two, permanently, with no growth possible.] Just two slots forever? There¡¯s no way¡­I can¡¯t do that. My dwarven blood surged. System, it¡¯s time to bargain. ¡°Counter offer, reduce slots available to three for one month.¡± I didn¡¯t think it would work, but it was worth starting low to preserve the use of the Skill as best as possible. [Proposal denied. Counter Proposal: Reduce available slots to three immediately, with one slot regained when fully mastered.] That¡¯s closer, but three slots is still not going to be enough with how hard it¡¯s going to be to level once I get past thirty. I need to think of something¡­I¡¯ve got it. ¡°Counter offer, reduce slots available to five until fully mastered and lose ten stolen Skills permanently, with no way to regain them. Ever.¡± It would hurt, but I had enough chaff Skills I figured I¡¯d be able to forget ten of them without really feeling it too much. Unlike every time before, when the response was immediate, this time the response took a few seconds. [Proposal denied. Counter Proposal: Reduce Available slots to five until fully mastered and lose twenty stolen Skills, permanently, at random.] ¡°At random!?¡± My eyes bulged in a fit of rage. ¡°You want to gamble with my friends¡¯ lives?¡± Steam practically came from my nostrils as I considered the System¡¯s request for another moment. I can¡¯t agree to a full random removal, but what if¡­ ¡°Counter proposal, final offer or I do my best to survive this scenario on my own.¡± I was done negotiating with something so much larger than me that it couldn¡¯t see the trees for the forest. ¡°Reduce available slots to five until fully mastered and lose twenty stolen Skills at random, permanently, with two caveats.¡± I snarled. ¡°Empty my current slots and¡­ I get to protect five Skills from the mass deletion.¡± Time passed in the weird pseudo time stop state I was in, though I watched as the flames crept ever closer to Raiju and Jaegan¡¯s prone form. My mind raced for things I could possibly do to save them, but every single one had me losing at least one of them, even with sacrificing myself to body block for Jaegan while blocking Raiju with a huge [Hydrosphere]. I might not die, but I wouldn¡¯t be much good after getting hit like that by a [Flame Golem]. I think it was ten minutes, but it could have been longer, before the System got back to me. [Offer Accepted: Choose your five protected ¡®stolen¡¯ Skills so the deletion can begin.] I really need to figure out which of these I should protect. I mentally pulled up a System window and laid out the list I was still debating along with the reasoning for each of them.This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. [Skills to Protect: Wall of Force - This is a no brainer, considering what I¡¯m giving up to get access to it. Arcane Cannon - I¡¯ve seen what this can become and it would suck to lose access to it. Plus, I don¡¯t have to aim it, so it barely counts as using combat magic. Sunlance - Grandpa¡¯s favorite basic attack and the most powerful spell I have access to. Serene Glade - Best Unique I have access to. Undeniably useful for privacy reasons alone. Healing Light - I¡¯ve been using it for the better part of a month and it just keeps coming up. Sanguimancy and Healing Waters - Similar, but very different healing Skills.] Obviously [Wall of Force] gets protected, so that leaves me four more slots. I have to keep at least one healing ability, I don¡¯t have enough potions not to, but I have three available. [Healing Light] is weak now, but has no requirements to use and isn¡¯t invasive. [Sanguimancy] and [Healing Waters] are both more powerful, but [Sanguimancy] has the whole blood thing going on and not everyone is going to like me using that on them, especially not if they have some sort of powerful bloodline. [Healing Waters] would be a shoo in if it weren¡¯t for the fact that it needs so much water to make it work, last I checked it needs twenty-five gallons at least, which it consumes half of to work one time. Do I go with power or ease of use? Memories of Mom and Dad telling me stories of their adventures, punctuated by the healing from Aunt Megara made the choice easy. Powerful healing is too important to risk losing,[Sanguimancy] it is. I guess that means I have my answers. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡± I waited a beat before beginning. ¡°Protect [Wall of Force], [Sanguimancy], [Sunlance], [Serene Glade], and [Arcane Cannon].¡± [Protected Skills Acknowledged. Stolen Skill Deletion Completed.] My whole world swam for a moment as I felt part of my die as I lost so many stolen Skills at once. As I was recovering, a new window appeared in front of me that told me what I¡¯d lost. In the end, I wasn¡¯t pleased, but it could have been worse. [Deleted Stolen Skills: Charming Gaze Corona Eavesdrop Guardian¡¯s Bond Gust Gust of Wind Healing Light Healing Waters Minor Magnesis Mold Earth Obscuring Mist Photosynthetic Burst Pyrotechnics Runesmithing Searing Light Silent Step Solar Deflection Solar Flare Spark Sunbeam] Ugh, losing [Mold Earth] and [Runesmithing] kind of sucks, but the rest I think I can live without. I¡¯d have liked to learn [Runesmithing] later in life, but I guess it wasn¡¯t meant to be. As for the healing Skills I have left, it¡¯s almost like the System could hear what I was thinking and took the ones I didn¡¯t pick, which doesn¡¯t exactly feel fair. As I mentally shook my head, I pulled up the list of my remaining ¡®stolen¡¯ Skills and took stock. [Dominated Skills: Aqua Slice Arcane Cannon Cat¡¯s Prowl Fireball Frost Blade Hydrosphere Photosynthesis Raging Torrent Sanguimancy Searing Wind Serene Glade - Unique Shearing Gale Silent Step Storm Knuckles - Unique Sun Armor Sun Jump Sunburst Sunlance Wall of Force Water Bomb Water Shot] Before I could really consider what I had left, the System sent me one final message. [Returning to normal time in 5, 4, 3¡­] I hurried to fill my reduced slots as I felt my body begin to move again. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 1/5 Wall of Force Sun Armor Sanguimancy Arcane Cannon] It¡¯s time to save my friends. My hand inched forward as I screamed. ¡°[Wall of Force]!¡± The moment the words left my lips, a much thicker barrier than Jaegan¡¯s sprang into existence around the [Flame Golem], but not before the edge of the flaming cascade slammed into Jaegan and Raiju¡­ Or it would have if Volta and Voltaire hadn¡¯t practically sprung into existence as they sped down the tunnel as bolts of lightning to block them with shields of wind that cracked nearly instantly. Blessedly, they bought enough time for my [Wall of Force] to block the rest of the mini-boss¡¯ current salvo of flames. When the flames cut off, they looked over to me with eyes that blazed with violet lightning. ¡°Pactlord, what did you do?¡± They intoned together with a reverential tone. ¡°What I had to do.¡± I recast [Sun Armor]. ¡°Now help Ylsa kill this thing so I can focus on healing Raiju.¡± ¡°Yes Pactlord!¡± They bowed before launching themselves into the air toward the head of the [Flame Golem]. I glanced over at Jaegan, who lay prone near the entrance to the chamber and quickly pulled up the Party Interface to verify his condition as well as Raiju¡¯s. Jaegan¡¯s not doing well, but he¡¯s at least stable. Raiju¡¯s HP is at ten percent and dropping at a steady pace, there must be more damage to her body besides her paw¡­silly girl, I bet she was worried I¡¯d be mad she got hurt before. While the battle raged around us, I padded over to my companion, who winced as I looked at her. ¡°Raiju, why didn¡¯t you tell me you were already hurt? I would have gladly healed you all the way before we came in here.¡± I reached a hand up to place it on her head as a tremor ran through me from the impacts to my [Wall of Force]. Against flames like that, I can hold out a long time. With my [Arcane] stat as high as it is, incremental damage doesn¡¯t mean shit to my walls. If the big bastard starts slamming into it? That¡¯s another story, but for now I¡¯m good. Raiju¡¯s ears drooped as she stopped next to me. ¡°I don¡¯t want to be the nanny of the pack. I want to be a huntress, like my dam.¡± She refused to look at me as she stared back at the battle taking place around the center of the room. ¡°I¡¯m worth more than just companionship.¡± ¡°What are you talking about¨C¡± My brows furrowed for a moment before realization struck me. I gasped. ¡°Raiju, I¡¯m not telling you not to fight, far from it.¡± She looked at me with confused eyes. ¡°What do you mean? I¡¯m weaker than everyone else in the group. None of them even got hurt in the last fight, while I almost didn¡¯t make it out.¡± A soft whimper escaped her throat and my heart sank. As I reached out to pet her, I activated [Sanguimancy] and began to let my consciousness stream through her body. She was in rough shape, the muscles in her paw were nearly completely destroyed and her haunches were strained to near uselessness. With some effort, I kept a bit of awareness outside Raiju¡¯s body despite the mental toll of [Sanguimancy]. ¡°Some of these wounds are old, why didn¡¯t you tell me¨C¡± I cut myself off. ¡°You know what? That can wait.¡± I rubbed at a muscle knot by her neck. ¡°I¡¯m going to heal your paw and haunches for now. We can talk more about this after the battle.¡± Unbeknownst to me, my eyes glowed with a crimson light as I channeled the blood magic into my injured companion. A swirling vortex of blood energy formed above us, drawing life force from me and any creature within fifteen feet of us to fuel the healing. The swirling vortex descended, its crimson tendrils reaching into her ravaged paw. As the blood magic coursed through her body, the torn muscles and shattered bones began to mend, their raw edges knitting together like pieces of a puzzle. Pain long ignored subsided quickly, replaced by a warm, tingling sensation as the life force flowed through her veins. The paw, on the other hand, burned like it was on fire again as new skin and hair formed while my face became more and more gaunt. Chapter 41 - A Cost Too High I¡¯m not sure how long I spent healing her, but when I felt the process finish, I let [Sanguimancy] drop and fell back on my ass. Blinking a few times, I looked toward the center of the room to find Arlian, the [Obsidian Knight] standing at attention outside my [Wall of Force] with his massive black glass spear planted in the stone circle that once hosted the [Flame Golem]. The threat gone, I let the barrier fall. Jaegan and Ylsa jumped at the sudden change and moved to join Raiju and I quickly, while Volta and Voltaire stood guard by the entrance. The old man looked concerned, but I was mostly worried about Ylsa. She was pissed. For some reason, I was getting more ¡®disappointed mom¡¯ vibes from her than I was ¡®furious berserker¡¯, but that was almost worse. I could deal with an angry party member, but I¡¯d always had a soft spot for maternal figures. She loomed over me like a tower of feminine perfection as she stared at me, unblinking. ¡°Storm-Blessed¡­¡± She shook her head. ¡°No. Arthur Bajbub Neilson,¡± I shivered at the full name usage knowing I was in big trouble, ¡°what in Dominus¡¯ name were you thinking bargaining with the System in the middle of a fight!¡± I was glad to be seated, as her enraged yell would have knocked me off my feet as she subconsciously tapped into the wind element of her Class. ¡°Not only that,¡± she was practically frothing at the mouth, ¡°you left [Wall of Force] active while also using [Sanguimancy] at the same time! Do you want to die? Please, as your vassal, let me know. For I¡¯m happy to assist if that is your wish!¡± She hefted [Bloodsplitter] in her off hand. The old [Mage] reached up to put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°What she means, lad, is¨C¡± She cut him off. ¡°Do. You. Want. To. Die?¡± She punctuated each word with a finger to my chest that seriously hurt. ¡°No, I really don¡¯t.¡± I tried to stand, but she was surprisingly able to shove me back down with a single finger to the chest. ¡°Then what were you thinking!?¡± She roared and the temperature around us dropped from a balmy one-forty, to merely a hundred degrees as snowflakes flew from her enraged form. ¡°Jaegan told me how both of those Skills of yours work and using them together should almost always be lethal.¡± She sounded defeated and, more salient to me, sad. ¡°My clan is relying on me to save them and I can¡¯t do that without you. Please, for the love of Dominus, don¡¯t make me regret serving you¡­¡± I waited a moment before trying to stand again which, surprising only me, required the help of the newly healed Raiju to complete. My vision swam as I got my feet underneath me, but Raiju stayed beside me to keep me grounded as I addressed our companions. ¡°I¡¯m not sure what you mean about using [Wall of Force] and [Sanguimancy] together being lethal. I feel¨C¡± ¡°Check your health in the Party Interface, lad.¡± Jaegan¡¯s tone was dire. ¡°I know we have been since we took out that big bastard two hours ago.¡± With a frown, I pulled up the Party Interface and gaped at what I found. [Arthur¡¯s Party: Party Members: Arthur - Starlord (Suzerain) Party Leader HP: 2% Mana: 13% (7% missing - 2% Volta, 2% Voltaire, 3% Arlian) Stamina: 4% Raiju - Evolved Gale Wolf Bonded to Arthur HP: 100% Mana: 100% Stamina: 100% Jaegan - Mage HP: 30% Mana: 25% Stamina: 35% Ylsa - Mountain Tempest HP: 80% Mana: 55% Stamina: 92%] ¡°Two percent HP?!¡± I suddenly felt far more vulnerable than I had a moment before. My fingers twitched toward my potion bandolier, but I held off for the moment. ¡°What happened to me?¡± Jaegan saved me from my burning curiosity, despite his shaking head. ¡°You didn¡¯t learn how [Wall of Force] worked before using it, did you? Same with [Sanguimancy]?¡± ¡°I¡­saw both of them being used.¡± I averted my gaze. ¡°What did I miss?¡± He cackled despite it earning him a glare from both Raiju and Ylsa. ¡°Basically the fundamental properties of both Skills.¡± His tone irked me, I¡¯d always hated when Dad used that self-aggrandizing tone when explaining things to me. Thing is, he was my vassal, not my Dad.Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°Tread lightly.¡± My tone bore the full weight of a displeased [Suzerain] and the aged [Mage] nearly crumpled to the floor before Ylsa caught him. ¡°No disrespect was intended, milord.¡± His voice shook. ¡°I was just¨C¡± Nearly imperceptible threads of energy streaked out from Volta and Voltaire to my feet, filling my body with a curious amount of energy. ¡°Making me out to be a fool for saving all of your lives.¡± I deadpanned and Raiju, picking up how truly ticked off I was, started growling deep in her chest. ¡°I¡¯m not used to not being in charge.¡± His eyes flicked side to side before he deflated even more. ¡°It won¡¯t happen again, milord.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I¡¯m saying.¡± I walked up and put a fist to his chest. ¡°I¡¯m not asking for all the bullshit ¡®milord¡¯ stuff while we¡¯re in private. I just don¡¯t want you to treat me like some fool when I was just saving all of our asses.¡± I let that sink in for a few seconds before speaking softly. ¡°Now tell me what I need to know so I don¡¯t accidentally almost kill myself again.¡± I snorted. ¡°At least not with those two Skills.¡± ¡°That combination is as dangerous to use as it is rare to see in one person.¡± He looked up at me with a bit of his former spark, but it was measured with a newfound respect. ¡°I had a friend who used to heal for my party, back in my Dungeon days with the rebellion. He had a few healing Skills, but his most powerful was [Sanguimancy]. He only used to bust it out when one of us was at death¡¯s door and never during a fight where I was using [Wall of Force].¡± I frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t see the connection.¡± He nodded. ¡°I can see why you wouldn¡¯t, with you providing both parts to the combination. With me only providing half, I was able to see what happened when he used [Sanguimancy] even twenty feet away from me. It¡¯s the blood vortex, it may seem like it pulls all the energy from the area that it needs at the beginning, but that¡¯s patently not true. Instead, it pulls from all living creatures not being healed by the ability to fuel the healing. It¡¯s not a one to one ratio, but I¡¯d hazard a rank S beast like Raiju,¡± he bowed to her, ¡°no disrespect, has almost a thousand HP at your level and I¡¯m willing to bet you have less than a third of that.¡± ¡°Almost exactly a third, actually, but continue. I think I see where it¡¯s going.¡± ¡°In that case, I¡¯ll speed this up.¡± He gestured between himself and me. ¡°Sanguimancy keeps pulling HP until you cut it off or you reach the HP threshold you set in the System menu for it, which I don¡¯t think you did. It defaults to twenty-five percent.¡± ¡°Which is less than my [Hydra¡¯s Regeneration] would trigger at, that being thirty percent.¡± ¡°That¡¯s even worse.¡± The [Mage] leaned against Ylsa for support in an uncharacteristic show of his age, ¡°If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯m willing to bet you don¡¯t have any limit set at all, or it might mess with your regeneration ability. Top that with your [Wall of Force] hitting you for a few points here and there, due to what I have to assume is a truly monstrous [Arcane] stat given how you tanked that fire, you probably skipped right over the percentage to stop if you even have one.¡± ¡°Long story short,¡± I cocked my head to the side, ¡°both were a drain on my HP and I didn¡¯t have any safety protocols in place to stop them from draining me out?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± Jaegan looked downright haggard for some reason. I flicked open the System window for both Skills and found he was right, the threshold for [Sanguimancy] was set to unlimited and [Wall of Force] was the same, which was less egregious since it was a damage prevention ability in essence and any damage it absorbed was going to be more than it drained. ¡°Done. I set it to thirty-five percent, just to be safe.¡± I checked the Party Interface again and was shocked to see his Stamina was falling steadily, somewhat like how Raiju¡¯s HP was before, but much faster. My voice grew stern once more. ¡°Jaegan, what¡¯s wrong? Your Stamina is cratering.¡± He coughed weakly. ¡°This old body of mine can¡¯t handle all this excitement.¡± That¡¯s bullshit and he knows it. Something else is going on. What could it be? I wracked my brain, but nothing came to mind that could cause that effect. A bit desperate, I triggered [Essence Reading] deliberately on him and scowled at what I found. [Name: Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto Race: Human Class: Mage - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 33 Emotional Status: Exhausted/Proud Physical Status: Mortally Wounded (Cause: Spirit Wound) Current Estimated Lifespan: 143 Hours] ¡°When did you take a spirit wound?¡± My voice shook with emotion as I considered losing Jaegan. I¡¯d never lost anyone before, not really. Grandma died before I was born and, while it still hurt for Mom and Grandpa, it didn¡¯t really hit me when they explained why she wasn¡¯t around. I was no stranger to death, but losing someone I cared about? That was new. I immediately resolved not to do anything I could not to get used to it. The dying [Mage] didn¡¯t want to answer, but Ylsa¡¯s outraged glare finally shook the answer loose. ¡°It was the final middle finger from the big flaming bastard.¡± He tried to stand up straight, but nearly fell instead. ¡°Ugh, I hate this.¡± ¡°How did it get¨C¡± ¡°Through your [Wall of Force]?¡± He smiled weakly. ¡°They¡¯re great for energy and physical attacks, but not much use against mental abilities or spirit attacks.¡± The room started to spin in my vision and I grabbed onto Raiju like she was the only real thing in the world. Meanwhile, Ylsa pulled Jaegan close. ¡°We have nine more of them to kill before we can leave this level.¡± Ylsa¡¯s voice cracked. ¡°What are we going to do? None of us can take wounds like that and survive.¡± Before any of us could come up with an answer, Arlian spoke from the center of the room as he strode closer. ¡°That¡¯s not technically true.¡± ¡°How so?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but ask. ¡°That¡¯s simple,¡± he spun his obsidian spear around one finger as easily as I would a dagger, ¡°us summoned elementals are immune to spirit attacks.¡± He grabbed his spear and spiked it in between his feet as he stood tall in front of us. ¡°Plus, I¡¯m immune to flames. I can clear out any more [Flame Golems] for you without much of an issue. I do have a request though.¡± ¡°If you can do that for us?¡± I couldn¡¯t believe my luck. ¡°I¡¯d give you almost anything.¡± The [Obsidian Knight] took a knee and held out his spear. ¡°Swear that, when you establish a stronghold for yourself, you¡¯ll form a permanent contract with me, Pactlord.¡± Despite how solid Arlian was, it was obvious he was nervous to impose as he just had. ¡°You see, where I¡¯m from¨C¡± He continued until I cut him off. ¡°I¡¯ll do you one better, if you¡¯d like.¡± I went to reach for his spear. ¡°If you can do that for me? I¡¯ll form a contract with you before we go to the next level of this Tower.¡± He leaned back to avoid my reach, but his black glass visor did nothing to hide the violet flame of his eyes lighting up. ¡°We have an accord. The proceeds of my kills should appear in your Loot Tab in just a few minutes.¡± Before I could respond, he sank straight into the floor with what I can only describe as a happy cackle. For just a moment, everyone but Volta and Voltaire were shocked into silence before Jaegan started laughing weakly. ¡°Should have known, that [Elemental Pactlord] of yours is one of the most broken Skills I¡¯ve ever heard of, let alone seen.¡± He leaned back against Ylsa¡¯s rock hard abs. ¡°I¡¯m going to take a nap. Let me know when he gets back.¡± Chapter 42 - Arlian Solos Them Less than twenty minutes later, while the rest of us sat on the platform formerly containing the [Flame Golem] eating a snack, Arlian slipped from the floor without a sound just to my right and behind Ylsa. I managed to catch a glimpse of his head given my position, but she wasn¡¯t so lucky. The sound of his feet settling after flowing out of the rock was the first indication she had that something was there and, keyed up as she was, she took a swing at him with her bare fist. He chuckled darkly as he swayed back to avoid the attack. ¡°Is that any way to treat the person who just killed not only the rest of the [Flame Golems] on this floor, but the hordes of [Magmen] guarding most of them as well?¡± ¡°What are you¨C¡± Ylsa¡¯s flustered reply was interrupted by Jaegan¡¯s weak cough. ¡°Check the floor progress, he¡¯s not lying.¡± Despite his weakened state, he still nodded appreciatively to the [Obsidian Knight]. ¡°Nice work.¡± ¡°It was my pleasure.¡± The black glass knight lifted his visor to reveal a face of the same material, but with far more emotive options. He smiled. ¡°It¡¯s been quite a while since I had to fight three creatures like [Flame Golems] at once, so it was interesting, to say the least.¡± After verifying his claim, I rose to my feet and turned to face him. ¡°I trust you did what you said, but I¡¯d like to have you run me through the floor once so I can look for hidden loot caches. Is that alright?¡± He nodded. ¡°I¡¯m pretty savvy at that kind of thing, given my history, but I¡¯m more than happy to play tour guide for a bit.¡± Turning, he made to walk toward the exit. ¡°Well? Are you coming?¡± With an apologetic look at my party, I hurried after Arlian¡¯s departing form. Over the next hour, I scoured that entire floor, minus the lava pits I had Arlian check, for secrets and was rewarded handsomely for my efforts. Despite the value of everything I found, I didn¡¯t find what I was hoping for, healing for a soul wound. Arlian assured me that we¡¯d gone through everything, but I kept hunting for another hour to no avail, even after having the elemental knight phase through the wall of every cavern we hadn¡¯t found secrets in already. It was to no avail, we¡¯d already found everything on the floor. As I sat, fuming, down the hall from my companions, I took a minute to check my notifications and wasn¡¯t surprised to see I had a stack of them. With a surge of will, I condensed them into a single long notification. [Skill Mastery Increases: Air Step - 28¡ú61% Arcane Armor - 77¡ú80% Psyknife - 28¡ú50% Mana Slide - 24¡ú31% Backstab - 96¡ú99% Rapid Strike - 81¡ú86% Dual Chop - 65¡ú71% Haste - 28¡ú48% Light Arrow - 69¡ú71% New Skills Acquired with Skill Dominance: Frost Blade Wall of Force] Not much in there I¡¯d say was actually surprising, besides the rate my Skills are advancing, but Dominus told me that would happen. It¡¯s weird not to see [Trap Finding] or [Trap Disarming], but¡­oh. [Trap Finding and Trap Disarming have merged to become Trap Master upon their simultaneous evolution. Note: As this is an amalgamation of all evolution options with the full functionality of each, it was automatically selected.] I guess that¡¯ll be interesting to figure out. I wonder if that¡¯s why Dad always made me find the trap and disable it, instead of just finding it and resetting? Maybe he has something similar? I really miss them right now, they¡¯d know how to help Jaegan¨C ¡°I¡¯ve got it!¡± I sprang to my feet and started running down the hall toward the group. I burst into the room with a shout. ¡°I know how to help Jaegan!¡± Ylsa, Raiju, and the man himself all looked at me like I was crazy, which I guess isn¡¯t insane, given my appearance. The last of the loot caches I¡¯d found was in the chimney above a massive fire pit Arlian told me the [Magmen] were using to roast some sort of big bird whose carcass didn¡¯t survive the battle. I was coated from head to toe in dark black soot and, despite my efforts, nothing had helped to remove it and I wasn¡¯t going to change my slotted Skills out for [Hydrosphere] just to clean myself up.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Did you get in a fight with a chimney?¡± Jaegan chortled before breaking out into a series of coughs. ¡°Ironically, yes, I did.¡± I was too excited to let his usual antics get to me. ¡°I know how to heal your spirit wound¡­or at least who can deal with it nearby.¡± My voice trailed off as I realized where we were and what we were doing. ¡°As soon as we figure out what¡¯s wrong with the Tower we can¨C¡± ¡°Bah, stow that.¡± The [Mage] fought his way to his feet. ¡°It¡¯s time to go to floor two, hopefully it¡¯s a bit cooler than this, my old bones aren¡¯t loving this extreme heat. Where¡¯s the exit?¡± I blushed. ¡°I have an option in my Party Interface to move us all to the next floor, as long as you¡¯re all within twenty feet of me. It stresses that part in bold.¡± I hurried over and stood next to my old friend. ¡°You¡¯re going to make it, alright? You¡¯re going to survive. You aren¡¯t Jaegan ¡®Wallbreaker¡¯ Toretto for nothing. We¡¯ll find a way through these walls to get you sorted out.¡± ¡°Save it for someone who¡¯s dying. I¡¯m good.¡± He swayed on his feet before staring at me meaningfully. I surprised even myself by not commenting on it further. From the edge of the pedestal, Arlian coughed. I looked over his way before blanching. I turned back to the group with a wry grin. ¡°Hold on just a bit, I need to honor a promise.¡± Raiju practically pushed me off the stone to go to our savior. He grinned with cheeks of rounded black glass. ¡°Are you ready to honor that promise of yours?¡± He hefted his spear and made to go down on one knee with a questioning eyebrow raised. I nodded. ¡°I¡¯m a man of my word. Give me a second to figure this out.¡± With a gesture, I pulled up the [Elemental Pactlord] menu, but nothing in there mentioned a permanent binding. ¡°Boss? It¡¯s not done through your Skill, this is the System, pure and simple. Anyone could do it if they weren¡¯t such assholes, had the permission of the Elemental Monarchs, and had Mana as delicious as yours.¡± He chuckled. ¡°I, Arlian the [Obsidian Knight], swear allegiance to my lord and his dynasty, until the end of time.¡± A bright red System window appeared in front of me. [Arlian the Obsidian Knight has requested to be your subject for as long as your dynasty remains. The offer stands until Arlian retracts it. Warning! This will permanently consume 1.5% of your Mana regeneration rate. Do you accept his offer of fealty? Y/N] ¡°I¡¯m a man of my word. I accept.¡± I went to manually select the option, only to find it gone. The System took my vocal acknowledgement as enough. I¡¯m going to have to be careful with that, especially if I¡¯m ever bluffing. Not that I¡¯d ever do that to anyone who wasn¡¯t an asshole, but still¡­gotta be careful with my words. It¡¯s kind of nice that it gives the percentage of Mana I had allotted for him back when he gets here permanently. I wonder if that¡¯s because he can pull some of his own in now that he¡¯s a denizen¡­ Before I could open my mouth to congratulate him, the pair of us sagged toward each other as we doubled over in pain. He screamed and I howled as a bond was forged anew between us at the same time as another bond was severed. The pair of us stood there, panting together, for the better part of a minute before I helped him stand back up. I found his body surprisingly warm for a moment before remembering what he really was. ¡°That sucked.¡± He spat out a few chunks of obsidian that looked suspiciously like teeth before flashing me a toothy grin. ¡°You¡¯re telling me. It felt like I was being ground down for some glassblower¡¯s project as my connection to my former employer was severed. The new bond was pleasant by comparison but, you are correct, it did indeed suck.¡± I padded over to the group of watching adventurers and companions, catching a brief look of jealousy from Volta before she hid it. ¡°So, Arlian¡¯s going to be with us for the foreseeable future, please be good to him.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my pleasure.¡± He did a sweeping bow with his black spear planted firmly in its sheath on his back. Looking over to Jaegan, he spoke softly. ¡°Tactical commander, please treat me as a bruiser DPS unless fire¡¯s involved,¡± he grinned, ¡°then I¡¯m a mixed Tank/DPS.¡± ¡°Noted. You¡¯ll float like the boss does then. Marching order-wise, you¡¯re in the rear with Ylsa.¡± The old [Mage] turned to look at me. ¡°Care to dish out the loot before we leave? The stuff here might be useful for the next floor, or at least that¡¯s how it always was for my groups. Keep the valuables for the inn after the Tower though, no need to max out our storage with coins and gems when the System is being so kind as to hold it for us.¡± ¡°Can do¡­I think.¡± Pulling up the Party Interface, I flicked over to the Loot tab and soon found the option I was looking for. ¡°There¡¯s a lot here, but only two things look even remotely useful in the short term.¡± I tapped on the names of the items and they appeared in the space before me before Arlian caught them and held them out for all to see, turning them slowly so everyone could get a good look. [Molten Mantle - Rare Durability - 755/755 Description - This cloak is woven from the tough, heat-resistant fibers of a Magman¡¯s hide. It provides the wearer with significant fire resistance and protection from heat-based attacks. Additionally, the mantle can be ignited, releasing a burst of flames that can damage enemies. Alternatively, the mantle can be ignited to provide ongoing cold damage resistance until extinguished.] This is useful for literally everyone, minus my elementals of course. On second thought, I wonder if the System would let Raiju slot it? That¡¯d be something to check out, even if she doesn¡¯t want it, just to check. [Inferno Gauntlets - Rare Charges per Day - 15/15 Description - Gauntlets crafted from the remains of a Flame Golem. These gauntlets grant the wearer increased fire resistance and the ability to channel fire-based attacks through their fists.] I didn¡¯t even bother considering them, instead passing them off to Ylsa without a word. She slipped them on with a small smile. ¡°Thank you, Storm-Blessed. I didn¡¯t want to impose.¡± She tried to hide a blush, but failed miserably considering her size. ¡°I¡¯ll put them to good use.¡± ¡°I know you will.¡± I turned to face the group. ¡°I think we should let Raiju try on the mantle, just in case the System lets her slot it. If not? No big deal, Jaegan can have it. If she can, I think she should get it.¡± I did my best not to sound catty. ¡°We all know her fur is very flammable.¡± ¡°It is n¡­yeah, it really is.¡± Raiju sounded defeated. ¡°I¡¯ll try on the stupid short cloak if everyone¡¯s OK with it.¡± When no one objected, she put a paw on it and, half a second later, it appeared around her shoulders. She shivered happily. ¡°It feels like I¡¯m all curled up with my pack back when I was a pup. Thanks everyone!¡± She barked happily before turning to Jaegan. ¡°Sorry, you can have it if you want it.¡± Before she could try and get it off, he patted her head. ¡°No, you need it. I¡¯m plenty fire-proof for a caster.¡± He turned to me with bright eyes. ¡°Let¡¯s get going, I don¡¯t want to die in this hotbox.¡± ¡°As you wish. Everyone, gather up.¡± I waited for Volta and Voltaire to float down near the group before selecting the option in the Party Interface to move us to the second floor. ¡°Up we go!¡± Chapter 43 - We Got Themocycled and No One Liked It Did you know that Gold Elves hate the cold? It¡¯s baked into our genetics like the love of sunlight is on the positive side of the equation. All of that is to say that when I felt the chill of the area seep in, before I even opened my eyes, I knew I was going to have a bad time on the second floor of the Tower. Looking around, I found my party had been split up, but not by very much. We were only separated by a quarter mile per person, at least according to the Party Interface, which had the direction and distance each party member was from the party leader. It surprised me that it included Volta, Voltaire, and Arlian alongside my other companions. With a twist of the usual Mana for the Skill, I drew back a series of red [Light Arrows] and sent them soaring into the air above me in a fan. As I waited for everyone to meet up on me, I took in the scene before me and was terrified. ¡°That is the biggest mountain I¡¯ve ever seen¡­¡± My jaw dropped as I leaned back to try and take as much of it in as I could. ¡°It has to be at least fifty miles high! How the hell are we going to climb¨C¡± A sudden freezing impact in my gut sent me sprawling backward, clutching my stomach. I hurried to reapply [Sun Armor] and [Arcane Armor] as I rolled to the side to dodge the barrage of icy boulders being hurled my way from a spot in the distance I couldn¡¯t see, even with my mostly elven eyesight. That didn¡¯t stop me from hurling [Light Arrows] in that general direction in a bit to at least slow the attacks down. I guess I should have just told everyone how far they were from me through the chat, huh. Despite the situation I found myself in, I still found time to beat myself up about it. I really need to take a week, or even just a day or two, and get a hold on everything the Party Interface can really do. It¡¯s been missing from the world for so long¨C Despite my [Evasion] triggering half a dozen times to slide me slightly out of the way of the barrage coming my way, another icy boulder slammed into my left leg with a definitive crunch, shaking me out of my internal reflection as a scream ripped itself free of my lungs at full volume. From my left I heard something, but couldn¡¯t make it out. It was quickly made clear what it was when I got a message from Jaegan. ¡®Use [Wall of Force], it¡¯ll drain a bit of your HP, but it¡¯s better than getting your legs broken. We¡¯re already going to need healing, so hurry up. We¡¯re all about to converge on you and we need a safe place to land.¡¯ ¡°How did I not think of that!¡± My scream of frustration morphed into a whimper as the [Wall of Force] sprang into existence before me. It was forty feet by ten feet and I slumped against it as I took a good look at my leg. It didn¡¯t look great. Despite the double layer of armor Spells and my Rare armor, I could already tell it was at least sprained, if not broken by the slight misalignment versus the other leg. Before I could dive too deeply into fixing my leg, Jaegan and Ylsa arrived on a sled I¡¯d never seen before, careening into the snow behind my [Wall of Force]. ¡°Uncommon [Healing Potion], now.¡± Jaegan¡¯s gaunt face was twisted into a grimace. ¡°Ylsa took a pair of those ice boulders to the head as she moved to cover me.¡± Potion in hand, I turned to check Ylsa and found her unconscious with thready, irregular, breathing. Propping her head up on my good leg, I poured the potion into her mouth, but she didn¡¯t swallow and looked like she was going to choke it up. ¡°Massage her throat!¡± The old [Mage] howled as he focused on the [Arcane Battery] he¡¯d summoned above my wall. ¡°It¡¯ll force her to inhale it!¡± He raised his staff and pointed at the mountain before us. ¡°Three second bursts spaced half a yard apart. Find that bastard boulder chucker my precious!¡± Doing as my Dungeon and Tower mentor said, I gently massaged Ylsa¡¯s throat and, half a second later she started choking the potion down. I worried for a second about her inhaling it versus drinking it, but the effect was nearly instantaneous as her eyes flashed open a few seconds after she started choking on it. By sheer force of will, she stopped choking and swallowed the rest of the potion with a grimace. She tried to stand, but instead fell off the sled she¡¯d been resting on, holding her head in both hands. ¡°Is Jaegan OK?¡± She slurred her words quite a bit, but I knew what she¡¯d be worried about. ¡°He¡¯s fine, but you took a couple hits to the head. Rest up a minute while I grab another Uncommon [Healing Potion] for my leg. I think it¡¯s busted.¡± I slipped the vial of red liquid from my ring, but before I could drink it, Ylsa stopped me. ¡°Let me set your leg first. There¡¯s no use letting it set poorly, or you¡¯ll have to have it broken again to heal it properly later.¡± I protested briefly, but the boulders pounding on the wall connected to my lifeforce, draining my HP, coupled with her massive size stopped me from getting my way. The pain as she set my leg against the wood of the sled was nearly transcendent and I think I blacked out for a bit. It wasn¡¯t until I heard ice thunk into the sled next to my leg that I sprang awake. Without looking, I threw up another [Wall of Force] to my fully assembled party¡¯s grateful gasps. Behind me, Jaegan slumped against my wall as he let his own fade. ¡°Check your Status, having your leg set shouldn¡¯t have knocked someone with over a hundred [Toughness] out. Something else has to be going on.¡± I did as he recommended and was horrified at what I found.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. [Current Status Conditions: Elemental Pactlord Icebound Agony (Left Leg) - 58 Minutes Remaining] ¡°What the hell is [Icebound Agony]?¡± I muttered before tapping the name for more information. [Icebound Agony - Icebound Agony is a debilitating condition that causes the victim to experience extreme pain and sensitivity to the afflicted location. Those afflicted with Icebound Agony find that even the slightest touch can be excruciating, and their bodies may react violently to even the slightest touch.] ¡°Well, fuck us I guess.¡± I threw the description over to the rest of our party, though I¡¯m sure Raiju avoided reading it as she hurled bolts of lightning from her [Thunderhead] where it floated above us. Ylsa frowned. ¡°I can¡¯t get any more information about the condition, but you can.¡± She shrugged. ¡°If my liege knows, I needn¡¯t worry.¡± She bowed to me. ¡°I also took the liberty of saving the potion you nearly dropped and got it down your throat. Your leg should be fine, minus the condition, now.¡± Slowly levering myself from the sled, I put some weight on my left leg and found it felt fine, though I didn¡¯t like the way my armor rested against it. ¡°Makes me itch, but with [Icebound Agony] on it, I guess that¡¯s to be expected.¡± Behind me, Jaegan grunted before spitting. ¡°I¡¯m glad you¡¯re up, m¡¯boy, but we need to get going if we¡¯re going to finish this floor in time. Check the clear condition.¡± Focusing on the corner of my vision, I did as he requested. [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Floor 2: Clear Condition - Reach the top of the mountain in one week or less. Penalty for Failure - Death. Bonus - Reach the top of the mountain in three days or less.] ¡°If we fly¨C¡± I started until Raiju barked to cut me off. ¡°I can¡¯t fly here, just like that Raid Boss fight. All flight abilities have been locked.¡± She swung her head toward where Volta and Voltaire were darting out from around the [Wall of Force] to send arrows of lightning toward whatever it was that was throwing ice boulders at us. ¡°Even they can¡¯t fly and they¡¯re made of air, fire, and lightning.¡± Volta motioned for her brother to continue before walking over and bowing deeply. ¡°Honored Raiju is correct.¡± The wolf yipped happily despite herself. ¡°My brother and I are presently unable to fly more than six inches from the ground. It turns out,¡± she shivered,¡± that snow and lightning do not in fact, mix. I made the mistake of trying to stand upon the stuff and the agony I felt was more than any I¡¯ve ever experienced.¡± That got my mind whirling. ¡°That¡¯s the trick to the floor. The last one was about endurance, but this one¡¯s about tenacity.¡± I moved to get everyone in my field of vision before continuing. ¡°Think about it, the last floor had us killing hundreds of monsters in intense heat, some of which had access to spirit attacks,¡± I glanced over at Jaegan, who shrugged despite his situation, ¡°while this one only asks us to reach a destination, but has us under a near constant assault from above.¡± I checked the loot tab of the Party Interface and chuckled, earning me a few strange looks. ¡°We¡¯ve been attacking our aggressors for a few minutes. Hell, Jaegan unleashed his second biggest attack, and we haven¡¯t received a single piece of loot. Not a piece of fur, claw, or anything. We¡¯re not dealing with a monster here, we¡¯re fighting the mountain itself!¡± ¡°How are we supposed to fight a mountain?¡± Raiju panted as she let the cloud above us fade. ¡°That¡¯s the beauty of it,¡± I grinned wickedly, ¡°we¡¯re not!¡± What followed in the next hour was an absolutely glorious mess. With the help of Ylsa¡¯s [Sledding] and [Woodworking] we were able to cobble together something I hoped would let us accomplish our goal, with one big problem. ¡°I refuse to pull your sled wearing that ugly piece of garbage you¡¯re calling armor.¡± My bound companion stomped her foot and looked away from the hodgepodge of armor pieces, cloth, and leather we¡¯d put together to protect her as she pulled the twenty foot long sled with walls made from [Magmen] leather from the previous floor that pulled up to make a tent covered sled. We¡¯d tested it against the unending rain of attacks and it seemed the [Magmen] leather was far tougher than the creatures themselves had been. With tent poles made from the frame of a [Flame Golem], our sled was rock solid, even if it was Ugly with a capital U. ¡°Raiju,¡± I walked around in front of her, ¡°it¡¯s OK if you¡¯re scared. We all are¨C¡± She snarled. ¡°I¡¯m not scared of those puny boulders, I can dodge them easier than you walk up stairs.¡± Her ears laid down dangerously. ¡°I¡¯m just saying I don¡¯t want to be seen wearing something so¡­inelegant. It doesn¡¯t suit me at all.¡± From the back of the sled, Jaegan snorted, but wisely kept his mouth shut. Ylsa, on the other hand, padded over to assist. She knelt and bowed until her head nearly touched the ground. ¡°Storm-Runner, may I speak my piece?¡± Ever the sucker for flattery, Raiju nodded imperiously. ¡°You may.¡± ¡°I thank you for the opportunity.¡± Ylsa sat back on her knees to take in Raiju in all her glory. ¡°You could complete this floor on your own within a few hours, completely unharmed, of that I have no doubt.¡± She laid it on thick and Raiju lapped it up. ¡°But what of your companions? None of us are even half as fast or strong as you, not even me, and without you¡­Jaegan is doomed to die here on this mountain.¡± I clenched my teeth at the reminder. Jaegan¡¯s soul wound hadn¡¯t improved, which meant even if we made it to the top of the mountain in a week, he¡¯d already be dead. ¡°But, but, but¡­it¡¯s so ugly!¡± The white wolf went full drama mode. ¡°Look at how sleek I am, with that thing on I¡¯ll be like a running boulder. How can I go fast looking like a boulder?!¡± ¡°I mean, that¡¯s how we¡¯re being attacked, right? Flying boulders.¡± I deadpanned. ¡°If you were as fast as those? I¡¯d be really happy.¡± She stared at me with something I¡¯d never seen before from her, hatred, however briefly it lasted. Without a second thought, she turned around and unleashed a dozen [Lightning Bolts] on the clunky cloak we¡¯d put together for her in less than half that many seconds. Ylsa and I watched in horror as the metal ribs melted out into the snow while the monster leather was left with huge holes in it. She turned to me with an evil smile. ¡°I know what we can do instead!¡± Something told me I wasn¡¯t going to like her idea. Chapter 44 - Ice Boulder Run I was right. Not only did I hate Raiju¡¯s idea, but everyone else did too. I mean, except for Jaegan, but he liked it when I was miserable. I was going to be cold, wet, and miserable for the foreseeable future while everyone else stayed warm and dry. Instead of relying on some clunky piece of armor we¡¯d kludged together, Raiju had me ride on her back with [Wall of Force] formed into a hemisphere that ended about a foot above the ground. The tricky part had been figuring out how to anchor the Skill to myself instead of the ground, but with Jaegan¡¯s mocking assistance, I figured it out in just under two hours. We¡¯d already been hurtling up the mountain for four hours with no end in sight. It seemed to just go on forever, though Raiju assured me that she could see a glowing green disk at the top of the path, nearly a hundred miles away. Seeing as she had [Enhanced Senses] as well as a [Perception] in the mid three hundreds, I took her word for it. Despite myself, I couldn¡¯t help but do some math to see how soon we could reach the top. Based on my earlier experiences with her and her increased Stats from leveling and fighting the [Ashen Devastator Hydra], I think her sustained speed has increased from the twenty-five miles an hour she used to be able to sustain. The new math shows thirty miles an hour, but that doesn¡¯t take into account the terrain we¡¯re working with and the fact that it is so damn cold. With all that figured out, I¡¯m willing to bet we¡¯re going to be doing more like ten miles an hour, with all of the switchbacks and cliff faces even I can see along the path ahead¡­ we¡¯re going to be able to make barely twenty miles a day of vertical progress. It¡¯s not enough. How can I speed us along? I don¡¯t have any Skills or Spells that would lend themselves to speeding her up besides [Haste], which has the nasty downside of slowing you down for as long as you had it going. I mean, maybe it¡¯d work? I messaged the party to see what they thought of the idea. ¡®What do you guys think about me putting [Haste] on Raiju? It¡¯d speed her up for as long as I held it, but she¡¯d be slowed down as soon as it fades for the same amount of time.¡¯ Surprisingly, it was Arlian who finally poked the hole in my plan. ¡®Milord, despite the increase in raw speed we¡¯d experience, it wouldn¡¯t do much to deal with the terrain. We all know she¡¯s far faster than she¡¯s moving right now, but the weather and circumstances are slowing her down. [Haste] would only exacerbate the same issue, plus drain your Mana.¡¯ ¡®You¡¯re right.¡¯ I muttered mentally. ¡®Back to the drawing board I guess.¡¯ What else could I do? [Sun Jump] is a teleportation ability, but it doesn¡¯t work without direct sunlight and it would only take me. I leaned close to Raiju¡¯s neck and screamed in frustration, earning me a quick question of if I was alright, but I just told her I was frustrated. We traveled for nearly a full day before our first real obstacle came into view. Stretching out above us was a thousand foot tall cliff covered in a four inch thick sheet of ice. At first, I thought it was going to be easy, that Volta and Voltaire would be able to glide up along the ice and then draw the rest of us using the prodigious amount of rope I had in my ring. Nope. While the [Arcweavers] were able to float above the snow by a bit, the second they tried to do the same with the wall, they fell into the snow and began screaming in pain. After helping them back into the sled/tent, I tried using [Elemental Pactlord] to just summon an [Ice Goliath] to bear us to the top, only to find the Skill was sealed. It was the same with [Air Step], which failed after the first jump and sent me sliding down the wall into the bank of snow at its bottom. ¡°Dad would just wall-run up this damn thing, but I was never very good at that. Hell, I didn¡¯t even unlock [Freerunning] after training with him on it for the better part of a decade.¡± I was huddled up in the covered sled along with everyone but Raiju, who genuinely seemed to be enjoying the mountainside, snow and all. I turned to the rest of my party. ¡°Anyone else have any ideas? I¡¯m fresh out.¡± Ylsa pulled a pair of climbing axes from her bag with a sigh. ¡°I could probably make it to the top on my own in a few hours, but I¡¯d be vulnerable and exhausted at the top.¡± She shook her head as she spun the tools in her fingers. ¡°I¡¯d be a sitting doe and would soon return to you, but much faster than I left you.¡±Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Before I could ask, Jaegan filled in the small gap in my understanding. ¡°She means ¡®sitting duck¡¯, but hasn¡¯t ever seen one, so she says doe instead.¡± She threw up her hands. ¡°No, your mythical ducks do not exist! A bird who can float atop the water? Preposterous.¡± She huffed before shoving her climbing axes into her bag once more. The painfully weak [Mage] looked me up and down. ¡°If your dad would use [Freerunning] to get to the top, or some variant of it, what would your mom or the rest of their party do in this situation?¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s easy. Mom would use [Elemental Teleportation] and¡­¡± My eyes went wide. He poked me weakly in the leg. ¡°Don¡¯t keep a dying man in suspense. What did you figure out?¡± My hands trembled as I reached into my spatial ring and retrieved the gift Mom had given me on my System Day. The supple red leather bound tome had the Sunbeam family crest pressed into the cover and below that was my mom¡¯s name in Elvish. The [Mage] whistled, but waited for me to speak. ¡°This is the first book I ever touched that contained even a single Spell.¡± I stroked the red leather like it was a long lost pet. ¡°Mom had it displayed on the mantle and I knocked it off with a ball at two years old. It¡¯s one of my earliest memories.¡± I chuckled. ¡°Instead of getting mad, she took it as a sign and showed me how to use my first Spell through it, [Light].¡± I flipped to the dog-eared page and uttered the twisting words for the Spell. A soft golden sphere producing light that felt like the spring sun sprang into existence above my finger before I moved it to the peak of the tent with a gesture. All of those days, sitting with Mom and learning Spells rushed back to me in a wave. I¡¯d been suppressing the good memories of Spellcraft so long that remembering even a single one let loose the floodgates on more than just the memories as tears ran down my cheeks in streams. Over a decade of Surprisingly, it was Raiju sticking her head in through the flap that startled me out of it. She looked over at the glowing orb and basked in the feeling before noticing my tears. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± She turned to the rest of the party with a growl starting in her throat. ¡°Who made him cry?¡± Before anyone else could get themselves in trouble, I patted her massive cranium. ¡°No one made me cry. These are bittersweet tears as I remembered some parts of my childhood I¡¯d tried to block out.¡± I ruffled her fur. ¡°Thanks for trying to defend me. I appreciate it. Now, why did you pop in?¡± She nuzzled into my side. ¡°The fake sun¡¯s going down out here. I think we should make camp.¡± Her eyes glowed excitedly. ¡°Maybe you can make some of that stew we had with Khor?¡± Everyone felt it as her tail started slamming into both sides of the covered sled. ¡°Please? It was delicious and even gave Stats!¡± Ignoring the looks of incredulity from the rest of my companions, I nodded. ¡°I can do that. We¡¯ll have to get some windbreaks up before I get started though.¡± Though he looked like he wanted to ask me questions, Jaegan held his tongue for the moment and instead offered to put up a hollow stone box for us to rest in for the night. Twenty minutes later, I picked up [Basalt Bunker] after Jaegan showed just how useful it could be as he made a twenty foot square block of stone with a single doorway out of nothing. He explained that it would last for forty-seven hours, or his [Wits] divided by five, with his mastery of the Skill. After teaching me a few tricks with the new ability, he shuffled off to one corner where Ylsa had set up the old man¡¯s bedding while I prepped dinner with her help. As my elemental companions didn¡¯t need to eat or sleep, they offered to stand guard so the rest of us could relax. When I eventually relented and let them do as they wished, Arlian sank into the stone box with a sigh of relief before flowing into the ceiling corner nearest the slope down. Meanwhile, Volta and Voltaire took turns cycling the air within the bunker and standing guard out in the snow. It seemed the floor wasn¡¯t meant to be totally impossible, so while we rested at the foot of the wall, no ice boulders hurtled out of nowhere. However, that didn¡¯t stop the siblings from worrying as they took their guard duty seriously. When I pulled the [Moonsilver Powder] out, Ylsa froze in place, but I shushed her and added a liberal dose to the pot before tasting it and adding another ounce or two. ¡°Dominus provides.¡± She muttered under her breath. Licking the tip of the finger I¡¯d used to swipe the back of the spoon, I shrugged. ¡°It was my grandfather, actually. Though he didn¡¯t tell me what it was worth, so I just started using it to season my stews after Dad told me it was good for them.¡± To her credit, she didn¡¯t berate me like Khor did, but she did ask a few questions about my childhood as we cooked. I gave her the same basic story I did Khor, though with far less obfuscation since she already knew what my Class actually was and who my Mom and Dad were. Jaegan, Ylsa, and I were joined by a dog sized Raiju for dinner. She licked her chops. ¡°I want this to last a while, it¡¯s been months!¡± Everyone laughed at her antics as her tail wagged a hundred miles an hour. Chapter 45 - Arcane Trickster or Spellblade? About ten minutes into dinner, Jaegan couldn¡¯t help but ask a question about our earlier conversation. ¡°Is that book what I think it is?¡± His tone was borderline reverential. ¡°Is that a real grimoire?¡± ¡°That it is.¡± I nodded before setting my bowl down on the floor. I pulled the book back out and held it like Mom had always insisted, with the thumb and forefinger of one hand, as I flipped through it with the other hand. ¡°Mom¡¯s travel grimoire from her adventuring days. It contains the Spells she considered important enough to have access to if her main grimoire happened to get destroyed. The core of her repertoire, if you will, in addition to a few odds and ends she just wanted to have access to for convenience¡¯s sake.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so special about a ¡®grimoire¡¯?¡± Raiju burped and licked the remaining stew from her muzzle. ¡°Is it magic?¡± Ylsa watched with interest and it was obvious she¡¯d been thinking the same thing as she looked away when I glanced over at her. ¡°Grimoires are incredibly rare and very powerful magic items.¡± Jaegan spoke quietly. ¡°The most common, if you can even call a Legendary item that, is what is known as a Spell grimoire. Like what Artie here has from his mother, a queenly gift to be sure.¡± I paused my flicking through the tome to raise a finger. ¡°Technically, this is a pseudo-grimoire, as it was created through her Class, not through the System. It works the same, but if she were to ever die,¡± I didn¡¯t let my thoughts dwell on that, ¡°it would fade within hours, if not immediately. Plus, it¡¯s blood-linked to our family.¡± I tapped the cover with my free hand. ¡°Only usable by us, unlike most other grimoires.¡± ¡°It is as young Arthur says,¡± the old [Mage] sighed, ¡°though I¡¯ve never heard of such a thing, it only makes sense. The thing that makes most grimoires special is that they let anyone with an [Arcane] Stat cast the Spells within its pages, regardless of if they have them on their Status page.¡± Ylsa¡¯s jaw hung open, but Raiju nodded along before throwing doe eyes my way while looking at the pot of stew. I poured her another ladleful before turning back to the group. ¡°With [Skill Dominance], I could absorb these Spells and the System would recognize them as official Skills for me.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I¡¯d go from an [Arcane Trickster] to a [Spellblade] in a little less than ten minutes. Hell, I¡¯d even get to put the [Path of the Scholar] to use if I grabbed all of them.¡± Jaegan¡¯s left eye twitched. ¡°Put what to use? You have access to a Path and aren¡¯t using it!?¡± He shouted. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you, I thought you just had a martial Path and didn¡¯t want to talk about it!¡± Raiju peeked up from her bowl with a stew stained muzzle. ¡°What¡¯s a Path?¡± Ylsa put a hand on her old friend¡¯s shoulder to try and calm him down before addressing Raiju. ¡°Paths are what truly separate S-ranked classes from their A-ranked counterparts beyond the extra five Stat points per level.¡± She grabbed a slate from her bag and drew a circle with three lines coming out at angles from it each ending in another circle. She drew a stick figure in the first circle and a sword, bow, and a sword crossing a bow in the remaining circles before drawing three more lines off each of the secondary circles without bubbles on the other end. She gestured to her drawing after checking to make sure Raiju was paying attention. ¡°Imagine this figure represents an S-ranked [Martial Savant], they¡¯re the most common S-ranked Class, if you can even call it that, and therefore the most understood. Each [Martial Savant] has a choice at level twenty-five and again at level fifty, should they make it there. Their choices of paths define the way they¡¯ll fight for the rest of their lives.¡± She put a finger on the sword circle. ¡°This represents the [Path of the Blade] which doesn¡¯t actually limit them to blades, but it does prevent them from developing new Skills related to ranged weapons. In exchange, all of their melee Skills become far more potent and they¡¯ll develop more of them than they normally should. The same goes for the [Path of the Marksman],¡± she moved her finger over to the bow circle. ¡°It does the same thing for the Savant¡¯s ranged Skills.¡± ¡°Does the last one leave them the way they are?¡± Raiju cocked her head, her bowl of stew forgotten for the moment as she watched the goliath intensely. ¡°Not quite,¡± Ylsa moved her finger to the final circle. ¡°The last option they have is the [Path of the Master]. It forces the person walking it to learn more and more weapons and, for each one they reach a certain level of proficiency in, they gain more Skills and even more Stat points to spend. Two of the greatest fighters in the past thousand years were [Martial Ascendants], but they walked different paths and are known for totally different things. One was a master archer, whose bow was feared around the world for how far he could snipe targets from. The other is a woman who bears thousands of weapons and can use any of them as well as the next master.¡± She smiled a bit to herself. ¡°I¡¯ve been told that when an S-ranked person reaches level fifty and then one hundred, they get the opportunity to choose a more advanced path, but I don¡¯t know much about those. One can only assume they do similar, if more specialized things.¡± She settled back and looked at me. ¡°If I remember correctly, that female master¡¯s name is Thorna Bladebreaker and she¡¯s a goliath. I think I met her with my grandfather a few years back when he brought me with him to a council meeting.¡± I smirked. ¡°Any relation? You do look a bit like her¡­¡± ¡°Correct as usual.¡± She laid a hand against her heart. ¡°Thorna Bladebreaker is my maternal grandmother. I learned to fight from her as a y¨C¡± ¡°You¡¯re descended from the most powerful martial force on the planet and you let us rot in jail for twenty years!¡± Looking to the side, I found Jaegan had shifted his glare from me to Ylsa. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you two!¡± For a second, it looked like he was going to storm off, but he sagged in his camp chair instead. ¡°I¡¯m traveling with monsters with no common sense¡­¡± ¡°Goliaths live long lives.¡± She shrugged. ¡°Grandma Thorna would likely have made me break my own way out anyway, she¡¯s like that. I could have gotten us free at any time and so could you, we just didn¡¯t want the collateral damage from breaking our way out and you know it.¡± Jaegan waved his hand feebly. ¡°Still¡­¡± He sighed before turning his gaze back on me. ¡°What does your [Path of the Scholar] actually do?¡± I hesitated a moment before throwing the System window to him, Ylsa, and Raiju.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. [Path of the Scholar: While all Suzerains can cast Spells, those who walk this path are truly unparalleled in that field. With the ability to see the ebbs and flows of Mana, you will be able to sculpt your Spells to strike foes harder and avoid allies entirely. In addition, Mana costs are reduced by 20% for any Skill or Spell that draws on the Arcane, Divine, or Wits stats.] He practically frothed at the mouth as he stared at the System window and me behind it. ¡°This is¡­totally bullshit.¡± He started to swoon before catching himself. ¡°If you don¡¯t learn all those Spells, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever forgive you.¡± His tone told me in no uncertain terms that he wasn¡¯t bullshitting. ¡°I¡¯ll still be your retainer, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever respect you again. With this Path,¡± he sighed, ¡°no battlefield would be a barrier to you. You could cast the biggest combat Spells into a field of enemies surrounding an ally and free them without thinking twice about it. I¡¯ve lost friends doing just that and you have this ability and don¡¯t fucking use it!¡± ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± He kept ranting. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯d waste something so¨C¡± He stopped mid sentence and snapped his gaze over to me. ¡°What was that?¡± ¡°I said you were right. I¡¯ve spent too long running from my destiny.¡± I rolled my shoulders back and braced myself. ¡°It¡¯s time to face the truth: I am the heir to the Sunbeam house, and the magic in my mother¡¯s grimoire is my birthright. I need to learn these Spells, to embrace the guidance of my Path, and become the spellcaster I was meant to be.¡± ¡°Well said.¡± The old man sagged back against his seat¡¯s back. ¡°Exactly what Spells are you going to learn from the book? I can¡¯t help but wonder, despite how frustrated I am at how unfair the System can be at times.¡± He mumbled something else, but even my elven hearing wasn¡¯t good enough to catch it. Air hissed between my teeth as I let out a long breath. ¡°It¡¯s a bit of a list: [Mage Hand], [Light], [Elemental Barrage], [Elemental Body], [Chain Lightning], [Wall of Fire], [Maelstrom], [Transmute Rock to Mud], [Geyser], [Storm Sphere], and [Elemental Teleportation]. There are a few others in here that I already know, but those are the ones I still need to learn.¡± I flinched as a bunch of dried beans hit me in the chest. I looked up to find Jaegan staring at me. ¡°Really?!¡± He threw up his hands. ¡°Learn those right now, I¡¯m not talking to you anymore until you get that done.¡± He crossed his arms and stared at me with unveiled envy and frustration. Part of me said I should wait a bit to learn the Spells, but I dismissed the idea nearly immediately. That was my old Arcane Trickster-esque self leaking in when I really needed to lean into my new Spellblade role before I lost my nerve. Over the next ten minutes I absorbed my mother¡¯s legacy. Instead of feeling a loss of independence, I felt a surge of warmth and power. I¡¯d been denying myself this opportunity, afraid to rely on it when in reality, this was her gift to me, to keep me safe and help me along my way as an adventurer and I¡¯d been denying myself access to it in an effort to say I did it all on my own, which was total bullshit anyway. Lone adventurers don¡¯t last long, no matter how powerful they are. It takes a party, even an unbalanced one like mine, to bring out the best in everyone involved. When I finished, I flicked the condensed System notification panel over to my friends as I reviewed it myself. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 31¡ú36% Light - 99% Mage Hand - 99% Elemental Barrage - 99% Elemental Body - 99% Chain Lightning - 99% Wall of Fire - 99% Maelstrom - 99% Transmute Rock to Mud - 99% Geyser - 99% Storm Sphere - 99% Elemental Teleportation - 99%] Mom really hadn¡¯t played when she picked what would go into her travel spellbook, all of the Spells were on the precipice of evolving, just like [Conjure Elemental] had been and it had evolved upon first use for me. I couldn¡¯t help but rub my hands together like a greedy chipmunk as I considered what kind of evolutions I¡¯d be able to get for each of them. As I considered walking out into the night to test each of the Spells, I caught Jaegan struggling to stand. I sprang to my feet and rushed over to him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± He clocked me on the head with his staff. ¡°That¡¯s for being an idiot,¡± he rubbed the spot he¡¯d whacked, ¡°and that¡¯s for finally listening.¡± He pushed me back to sit next to Raiju. ¡°I¡¯m not done with my dinner and I¡¯m already getting tired, so does anyone have any more questions before I finish eating and go to sleep to try and forget how unfair the damn System is?¡± ¡°If a Spell grimoire is the more common type of grimoire, what¡¯s the rarer type?¡± Raiju yawned and settled in next to my hip. Jaegan steepled his fingers. ¡°A Class grimoire.¡± Ylsa gave him the reaction he was looking for, but I looked away and refused to meet his eyes. ¡°Which I¡¯m now assuming our leader knows something of, but I¡¯ll explain.¡± He turned to Raiju and Ylsa. ¡°A Class grimoire lets someone change Classes to whatever Class it contains, regardless of the System requirements. For example, a [Mage] grimoire would let a [Warrior] with no [Arcane] cast Spells, though I¡¯ve been told they start at one point in the new Stat.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± Raiju¡¯s eyes were getting heavy. ¡°Neat.¡± We sat in companionable silence as we finished dinner. Ylsa thanked Jaegan for his explanation and me for dinner before moving to her bedroll in the corner nearest the doorway. Raiju was the next to leave, and she shot me a meaningful look before padding over to where I had my bedroll, as my usual bed, the [Cloud Carpet], wasn¡¯t able to function on this floor. Jaegan¡¯s eyes began to droop after talking with him about the Spells I was about to learn for a few more minutes. It took a minute, but I convinced him to go to sleep in his nearby bedroll before helping him the rest of the way. A quick glance at his [Status] as he drifted off to sleep helped cement what I had to do. [Name: Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto Race: Human Class: Mage - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 33 Emotional Status: Exhausted/Proud Physical Status: Mortally Wounded (Cause: Spirit Wound) Current Estimated Lifespan: 132 hours] Can¡¯t hurt, I guess. With a bit of effort, I manually manipulated [Lordly Aura] and pushed all of its effects solely onto Jaegan and checked his [Status] again. [Name: Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto Race: Human Class: Mage - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 33 Emotional Status: Exhausted/Proud Physical Status: Mortally Wounded (Cause: Spirit Wound) Current Estimated Lifespan: 228 Hours (132 Hours without the effects of Lordly Aura)] Better than nothing. Now we have a bit less than ten days to save him. ¡°You¡¯re not dying on my watch, old man.¡± I clenched the grimoire tightly to my chest, like a child does their security blanket. ¡°Not if I have anything to say about it.¡± Without another word, I wandered out into the snow to see what I was going to be working with moving forward in my new role as a Spellblade. Chapter 46 - Combat Evolved The wind cut like blades as I paced out a dozen yards from the shelter and put my back toward the ice coated cliff. ¡°Might as well go in order, plus a bit of [Light] goes a long way.¡± Unlike the tiny ball of golden light I¡¯d shown my party on the sled, this time what I produced was more akin to a large watermelon in size, if not in shape. Despite how much it illuminated, the light remained pleasant to look at, which I was grateful for when I heard Raiju yelp at being exposed hiding in the snow near me. ¡°If you¡¯re going to be out here, at least sit next to me and keep watch.¡± I beckoned her over and over the next few minutes of companionable silence, I summoned over a hundred globes of [Light] before the window I¡¯d been expecting appeared. [Light is ready to Evolve. Please choose one of the following for it to evolve into: Skills Illuminate Continual Flame] That was the easiest of the decisions I made that night, as I knew [Continual Flame] had a material component I didn¡¯t want to need to source and [Illuminate] just did the same thing as [Light] without a visual source, with more options as to the appearance, and with a longer duration. The first time I used [Illuminate], it confirmed my action as it laid a nicely simulated sunlight for me to work by. Before starting in on [Mage Hand], I realized I had one other Skill to evolve and there was every chance I¡¯d need a few hours to pull it off. Pulling up [Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition], I checked the cooldown and verified it was still just under a minute. ¡°Raiju, this might be a bit brighter than [Illuminate], so I¡¯d like you to shield your eyes just in case.¡± She nodded and hunkered down on the pallet I¡¯d pulled out to sit on mid way through evolving [Light]. ¡°[Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition].¡± I projected clearly with my hand extended¡­but nothing happened. I checked the description and groaned. ¡°Does it need a target to even cast?¡± I pulled a dagger training dummy covered in painted red rings over where a person¡¯s vital spots would be from my ring and set it up a couple hundred feet away from the bunker, Raiju, and I. ¡°I hope it doesn¡¯t have to be alive to count as a valid target and that Dad never hears I used his favorite training aid for Spellcraft training. He¡¯d never let me hear the end of it.¡± Hand extended, I tried again to cast the Skill and wasn¡¯t disappointed by the results. I was absolutely terrified. The moment I targeted the dummy, a column of red and gold light fell from the heavens to hammer down on its location for less than a second. The training dummy had been replaced by a five foot by twenty yard deep hole. The most terrifying part wasn¡¯t the damage, it was the fact that it was totally silent, despite the destruction it caused. As Raiju and I hurried over to check and see if the dummy had somehow survived, not that I had much hope for it at that point, I winced at the state of my Mana pool. ¡°Holy shit, that used more Mana than [Comet Storm]. I hope I don¡¯t need to use it a hundred times for it to evolve, or I¡¯ll be at this for a while.¡± Checking the hole, I confirmed my assumption. ¡°Dummy¡¯s gone. What am I going to do now?¡± Raiju sniffed the hole before snorting a couple of times. ¡°Light Mana, kind of stinky.¡± She shook her head and turned to walk back toward our previous position, but not before she asked me a painful question. ¡°Why not just use a rock or a copper coin or something? Would those work?¡± The color drained from my face. ¡°I hope not¡­or I just pissed my Dad off in the future for no damn reason.¡± For the record, Raiju was right, and my Dad was indeed going to be pissed at me. I started intermixing [Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition] in between castings of [Mage Hand] whenever it was ready to go. Each time, I aimed for a new rock and each time I erased that rock. A couple of minutes in, [Mage Hand] was ready to evolve. [Mage Hand is ready to Evolve. Please choose one of the following for it to evolve into: Skills Ethereal Touch Distant Legerdemain] Despite the increased utility of being able to interact with the ethereal in [Ethereal Touch], I had to go with [Distant Legerdemain]. It would let me disarm traps and open locks like I was right next to them. The System even informed me it would mesh with [Trap Master] after I picked it, so I was confident I made the right choice. The next Skill had me getting nostalgic with Raiju. ¡°This one is Mom¡¯s favorite, [Elemental Barrage], despite it evolving into [Elemental Cannonade], she always preferred the unevolved version. She said it just felt right for some reason.¡± I pointed off into space and let it loose, allowing the fire, lightning, and cold energy coil around each other to merge into a single purple beam of energy fifty feet away before screaming off into the darkness.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°That¡¯s neat.¡± Raiju couldn¡¯t help but throw a [Lightning Bolt] out after me and we kept that up for almost a minute before [Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition] was off cooldown. Once I sent that off, I sat down next to Raiju while absentmindedly shooting [Elemental Barrages] out every few seconds. ¡°Mom wanted to teach this to me before I left, but I refused.¡± I shook my head after loosing the Spell once more. ¡°I told her I was going to use a bow instead.¡± Tears formed in the corner of my eyes, but I didn¡¯t let them fall. ¡°When this is all done and Jaegan is healed up, we¡¯re going to Sunhome and I¡¯m going to spend a week with Grandpa.¡± I ruffled her fur. ¡°He¡¯s going to love you.¡± ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t he? I¡¯m amazing.¡± Gone was her previous sense of inadequacy, she was a lot like a kid in that. Nothing lasted long for her besides her love for me and my food. Another [Elemental Barrage] later, I patted her head. ¡°You¡¯ve got that right.¡± [Elemental Barrage is ready to Evolve. Please choose one of the following for it to evolve into: Skills Elemental Cannonade Elemental Cascade Elemental Storm Unique Skills Elemental Mastery] For a second, I hesitated, or that would have been the fastest decision over [Illuminate]. I snapped [Elemental Mastery] up immediately and pulled up the effect of it nearly as quickly. [Elemental Mastery is a Unique Skill earned by impressing at least one Elemental Duke, though you¡¯ve done so with all eight of them. Elemental Mastery has a number of effects and the passives are always active. The effect of all elemental damaging Spells or Skills will be increased by twenty-five percent and elemental damage dealt to you is reduced by one tenth of your Arcane. In addition, you are now immune to the effects of inclement weather, including intense heat and cold. The active portion of Elemental Mastery allows you to form elemental energy into constructs of all types, be they for attacking or otherwise. The only limit is your creativity and your Mana supply. Any elemental constructs not generated from natural terrain will last one tenth of your Arcane in hours.] I hesitantly reached back to touch the wall of ice and chuckled when it felt cold, but not unpleasantly so. With a pulse of Mana, I tried drawing a step out of the wall near my hand and grinned when it came out smoothly. ¡°Well, there¡¯s always that option for getting up, but I¡¯m hoping [Elemental Teleportation] will be faster and cheaper, Mana-wise.¡± I leaned back against a chair I formed of ice and settled in for the long haul. ¡°This is going to be a long night.¡± Raiju shifted to dog size and settled in my lap. ¡°I¡¯ll be here the whole time.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the best.¡± I held her close. She snorted. ¡°I know.¡± *** Over the next two hours, pushing well past the night and out into the wee hours of the morning, I managed to upgrade all the Skills I had that were floating at ninety-nine percent except [Backstab], considering I had nothing living to stab besides Raiju. I figured that could wait for the end of the floor, if I were lucky. In a strange, but welcome turn of events [Wall of Fire], [Transmute Rock to Mud], [Geyser], [Maelstrom], and [Storm Sphere] all had the option to merge with [Elemental Mastery] when they evolved. After considering it the first time for [Wall of Fire], I decided to go through with it and I was so glad I had. Not only did I not lose access to the function of the Spells in question, but now I wasn¡¯t tied to the rigid form many of them were supposed to take. In exchange, my Mana efficiency with fire, earth, mud, water, air, and lightning were all increased by fifty percent when using [Elemental Mastery] to produce effects related to those elements. As for [Elemental Body], I ended up picking [Elemental Form] as the evolution. It would let me take on the physical stats of an S-Ranked elemental of the element I chose when using it. I planned on using it as a sort of emergency escape or tanking option, given how maneuverable and/or tough those forms tended to be. Especially at S-Rank. When I¡¯d tested it out, I¡¯d chosen fire and ended up turning into an [Inferno Baron], a ten foot tall figure of pure blue flame. The Mana drain was significant, but my inflated casting stats and [Wits] were more than up to the task of maintaining it as long as I didn¡¯t use any other Skills at the same time. [Chain Lightning] gave me an option I¡¯d never considered and I just had to take it. [Bunker Bolt] worked just like [Chain Lightning]...unless the target was wearing some sort of hardened armor or was entirely made of a non-living material. If that was the case, the bolt would instead pierce deep within the target and detonate each of the six ¡®chain bolts¡¯ within the target all at once. Based on my [Status], it wasn¡¯t an undiscovered or Unique Skill per se, but I¡¯d never seen it in any of the books I¡¯d been given while studying evolved Skills, so it couldn¡¯t be common. Gramps should know more about it. I¡¯ll ask him the next time I see him. On its hundredth cast, [Sun Apostle¡¯s Perdition] decided to let me evolve it, and I was anything but surprised at what it turned into. I was only given one option and I knew why. Dominus wanted a chance to smite some bitches. [Dominus¡¯ Fury is a Unique Skill first developed by Arthur Bajbub Neilson, Chosen of Dominus. Unlike the Skill it evolved from, Dominus¡¯ Fury doesn¡¯t need to be aimed. Instead, once activated, Dominus herself gains the ability to unleash one ten thousandth of her might upon the battlefield upon anything/anyone there she so chooses. In exchange for this flexibility and power, this Skill has a cooldown of one year. This cooldown will decrease based upon the number of people following Dominus on Genovia. The Mana cost of this Skill is one.] The moment I unlocked it, I knew I¡¯d have to use it someday, but it would be my absolute last resort. It was nice to have an option like [Dominus¡¯ Fury] in my back pocket, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel like she was watching me a bit closer than before and I didn¡¯t love the idea of that when I wasn¡¯t in danger. A quick prayer later and the feeling receded, but it didn¡¯t fade entirely. Finally, the Skill we¡¯d be using to go up the wall in less than five hours decided to evolve. The options were limited, but another Unique Skill called my name and I knew I had to take it. [Elemental Surge] was a bit like the Skill it evolved from, but it was now a hell of a lot more flexible. Gone was the need to do a huge burst of elemental damage at the exit point of the teleportation, and instead it gave me a number of ways to travel with my companions. Teleportation, flight, swimming, sliding, tunneling, or sheer ground speed were all options with [Elemental Surge]. The only downside I could find was that the people I brought with me would have to be moving the same direction as me, or at least stay close, as the range they could spread from me was only one fifth of my [Wits], or a little less than twenty-five feet right then. All in all, I couldn¡¯t wait to test it out, so Raiju and I slid up and down the wall a bit to get a feel for it. She left the Skills¡¯ range once and immediately fell, which was good to know, but she didn¡¯t appreciate falling thirty feet to the snow below very much. After using [Elemental Mastery] to dry her fur out, we went back into the shelter and I caught the four hours I needed to meditate and feel refreshed. Chapter 47 - Killer Cold ¡°You¡¯re sure it¡¯s safe?¡± In an uncharacteristic show of worry, Ylsa was having second thoughts about me warping everyone up to the top of the wall. ¡°What if something¡¯s up there to ambush us?¡± The tall dark figure of Arlian walked up behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°I¡¯ll stand in front and tank the first few blows so you fleshlings can get reoriented. It¡¯s not that different from my normal [Earth Glide], but for ice, so I should be good.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a bit more than that, but Arlian¡¯s right.¡± I tried to sound confident. ¡°I¡¯ll warp us up there and we¡¯ll be able to keep going. You have the sled in your bag, right?¡± I looked at her questioningly. She nodded, but before she could respond, Jaegan cut to the chase of the matter. ¡°It¡¯s time to go. Everyone form up on the boss. Alright?¡± The bloody cough from the day before was absent, and I chalked it up to [Lordly Aura] buoying him up. I¡¯d informed the rest of the party of what I¡¯d done, but didn¡¯t mention it to the man himself, or he¡¯d likely have gotten mad at me for some reason despite the effect it had on his health. He was practically back to normal, for now at least. Once everyone was gathered around where I stood with a hand on the wall of ice, I braced myself and spoke as calmly as I could while focusing on warping us through the ice to the top of the wall. ¡°[Elemental Surge].¡± I¡¯d learned that intention was everything with the Skill, with more than a few false starts when I¡¯d accidentally started tunneling the night before a few times. That day, the warping went perfectly as we all went from standing at the foot of the wall to standing twenty feet from it with weapons brandished. The [Arcweavers] were the first to react to the spears of ice flying toward us as they threw up a combined wall of wind to throw them off target. It wasn¡¯t a second too soon as more than a dozen different ice spears hurtled up and over our party before sailing down to the ground far below. Thinking fast, Ylsa produced the covered sled from her bag, but just before she was about to dive into it, a spear ripped straight through one side and out the other right where she¡¯d sat the day before. She recoiled back, her usually light grey face as pale as a ghost. ¡°[Wall of Force]!¡± I howled before a semicircular wall of pale blue energy sprang up around our group. I looked around and found no one was injured, but Volta and Voltaire were flickering for some reason. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked them directly. ¡°Why are you flickering in and out?¡± For once, it was Voltaire who spoke, as his sister wasn¡¯t fully there at the moment. ¡°It¡¯s the ice spears, they¡¯ve got some kind of disruptive magic on them. We¡¯re not of this realm, or even Genovia, so it has a disruptive effect even through our elemental constructs, as they are connected to our essence.¡± His words were quickly proven true as a salvo of spears hit my wall and it felt like I¡¯d taken a maul straight in the gut. I grunted painfully. ¡°Yeah, I can tell.¡± In a flash of inspiration, I pushed another full percent of my Mana regen their way through the [Elemental Pactlord] window and they slowly faded back into view. ¡°Let me know if you need more, OK?¡± They bowed deeply. ¡°Of course, Pactlord.¡± With uncanny grace, the pair began hurling lightning bolts over the wall in graceful arcs that each ended on a different spear of ice, exploding them before they could hit my barrier. ¡°We¡¯ll do our best to assist as long as we¡¯re around.¡± To his credit, Jaegan wasn¡¯t panicking, he was problem solving. He turned and addressed the group as a whole. ¡°It seems we¡¯re not going to be sailing straight up the mountain like yesterday.¡± I held my tongue about not having had it so easy and he nodded appreciatively. ¡°Give me options, people. What do we have that¡¯ll let us move through this icy shitstorm?¡± For a second, it looked like Ylsa was going to give a solution, but she shook her head sadly instead. ¡°I have nothing to assist with that I can think of.¡± Arlian echoed her sentiment. ¡°I can get myself up there, but I can¡¯t bring anyone with me.¡± He paused and gestured to me. ¡°Why not use [Elemental Surge] to move through this storm?¡± I opened my mouth to rebut his point before closing it and thinking about it for a second before nodding. ¡°I could do it, but I¡¯d be out of Mana if I tried doing it all the way up to the top of the mountain.¡± Jaegan¡¯s head whipped around to glare at me. ¡°You can do what?¡± It looked like he wanted to yell at me, but instead he slowly released the air that¡¯d been building up in his lungs. His tone was calm, despite the obvious rage behind his words. ¡°I need a real number, how much Mana do you have, how much does it cost to travel with all of us using [Elemental Surge], and what¡¯s your regeneration rate reduced to with Arlian, Volta, and Voltaire around?¡± Doing some quick math, I smiled a bit. ¡°Total Mana pool is 648 at its peak.¡± He coughed in surprise, but waved for me to continue. ¡°And with Volta and Voltaire eating eight percent of my base Mana, that leaves me with 596 to work with. As for my regen rate, I¡¯m elven enough to get a full Mana pool back in four hours normally, but with Arlian taking a percent and a half, and the siblings taking eight percent, It¡¯s more like four and a half hours if I¡¯m doing nothing but meditating, more like ten hours if I¡¯m active. As for traveling with all of us in my Skill?¡± I shrugged and pointed back at the wall behind us before sagging as another batch of ice spears slammed into my wall. ¡°That took twenty-four Mana. I¡¯m not sure how much it¡¯d cost to go a longer distance with it.¡± ¡°What¡¯s your max teleport range on it or the base Skill?¡± He leaned in. ¡°We¡¯ve got more than sixty miles to go¡­¡± Checking my Status, I blinked a few times before blushing. ¡°Is that all? I hadn¡¯t checked this morning.¡± Peeking in the corner of my vision behind my Status window, I saw the indicator that we were sixty-four miles from the top of the mountain slope.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. The [Mage]¡¯s eye took on the twitch I felt I¡¯d single handedly jumpstarted for him. ¡°How far?¡± His toe began to tap in irritation, making Arlian and Raiju snicker. ¡°So, I was really tired last night and didn¡¯t exactly check until now¨C¡± ¡°How. Far?¡± He legitimately began to growl at me. ¡°It¡¯s ten Mana per mile, max range of one fifth of my [Wits] per jump. The cooldown on that is twenty minutes.¡± Seeing his glare, I clarified. ¡°A little less than twenty-five miles.¡± ¡°Pack it up, Ylsa!¡± The tactician spun on his heel. ¡°Everyone get ready for a fall. Arlian, when we land, please make us a couple walls of stone to hide behind if you can.¡± ¡°Can do.¡± The [Obsidian Knight] was the consummate subordinate, accepting orders that made sense without missing a beat. ¡°Standard ten foot box OK? Otherwise, I¡¯ll need help.¡± ¡°Perfect.¡± Jaegan whirled on me. ¡°Jump at a thirty degree angle straight up the slope. The gradient¡¯s a bit less than that, but it gets steeper the higher we go, so we shouldn¡¯t get dumped out too high off the ground.¡± He turned to Raiju. ¡°Can you make a bubble of air for us to land on if we end up falling?¡± She shook her head. ¡°That Skill is totally locked down in here, sorry.¡± Her tail hung between her feet. She was obviously depressed not to be able to help. He moved to pat her head, but she pulled away. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. We wouldn¡¯t have gotten this far yesterday without you. Let your lazy master do some work, OK?¡± He pulled half a sandwich from his spatial ring and tossed it to her. ¡°We¡¯ve got this.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take care of the landing, should it be needed.¡± I grimaced. ¡°I can always turn into a [Mud Baron] and catch us if it¡¯d be a bad one.¡± Every woman there, even Volta, shot me a glare that told me in no uncertain terms that was the worst idea they¡¯d ever heard. Hands up defensively, I backtracked. ¡°Did I say a [Mud Baron]? I meant a [Water Baron].¡± I laughed nervously. ¡°Trust me, it¡¯ll be fine.¡± For half a second, I thought Jaegan was going to strangle me, but he looked away instead. ¡°Jumping in ten seconds. Everyone gather up!¡± Channeling the energy in the snow beneath me, I flexed [Elemental Surge] and a moment later our party stood on a perfectly flat patch of light blue snow. Moments later, a box made of obsidian sprang into existence with the only openings a dozen arrow slits that served double purpose as air holes. Less than a second later I heard the sound of ice smashing into magically reinforced obsidian, but it held, so I didn¡¯t spare it another thought as I spun down to the ground and began to meditate to get back the one hundred and twenty Mana I¡¯d just spent. ¡°One-twenty, by the way.¡± I muttered before letting my mind wander as I meditated. During the cooldown period for the teleportation portion of [Elemental Surge] I was still aware, even if I wasn¡¯t actively helping. Arlian¡¯s box of obsidian did really well until large ice balls, far larger than the earlier ice boulders, started hurtling down the slopes toward us, gaining speed all the way. At Jaegan¡¯s direction, he tried making a ramp in front of the box, but the second the first giant snowball hit it, the ramp shattered and the snowball blasted into the forward wall of our shelter. Without another word, Jaegan summoned a ramp using [Wall of Force] in its place, and none too soon, as four more rolling boulders of ice were headed toward us mere moments later. I bled for him, but these were our roles and he¡¯d ask for help if he needed it. Probably? Each boulder that ran up his ramp was like a solid hit from a boxer to the old man. The third one hitting got him to spit up blood, but he held on for the fourth to slam in. The impact of that boulder was enough to make blood spray from the corners of his eyes, but he refused to yield. ¡°No snowball¡¯s going to do me in!¡± He howled to no one in particular. During my entire recuperation period, the onslaught of ice boulders, icicle spears, and hurled ice balls didn¡¯t let up and neither did Jaegan. He chugged healing potion after healing potion so he¡¯d be able to maintain the barrier through the incremental damage he was supposed to be taking. Doing some rough math based on the Party interface¡¯s data, I was astounded to find that, if he wasn¡¯t protecting all of us, everyone in the group would have died to two or fewer hits from the massive boulders slamming into them. Jaegan may think I¡¯m a monster, but he obviously didn¡¯t spend enough time looking in the mirror to be throwing out titles like that. The second the cooldown was up, I pulsed the Skill and sent us hurtling up the slope toward the summit. Instead of blue snow, this time it was dark blue, nearly black and, from the looks of everyone around me, it was cold up there. The barrier of obsidian slammed into place a second later, but no impacts came. Instead, it just kept getting progressively colder and I watched as my Party¡¯s HP slowly dropped as I tried to meditate. No matter what they did, nothing helped. The [Arcweaver] siblings, beings born of lightning, fire, and air, tried to make a fire, but found themselves unable to do so. They were still made of those things, so everyone gathered around them, but it wasn¡¯t enough. The moment Jaegan¡¯s already diminished HP hit twenty percent, I knew I had to step in. ¡°[Elemental Form].¡± I intoned as I reached deep into the elemental sub-plane of magma for the form I was looking for. The temperature inside the obsidian box skyrocketed from the double digit negatives all the way up to something akin to the first floor¡¯s hotbox as I turned into a [Magma Baron]. As a [Magma Baron], my body had grown nearly two feet in all directions and was entirely composed of molten rock. My skin shimmered with an intense, fiery heat, and I could see my eyes glowing with an otherworldly light in the obsidian walls. Every little movement felt ponderous, but from the looks on my friends¡¯ faces, they were glad to see me helping out. Except for Jaegan. He glared at me, despite his body visibly relaxing as the blue started fading from his fingertips. ¡°You¡¯re wasting Mana, change back. We can deal with a little cold for the next ten minutes.¡± My breath was like the air around a sauna. ¡°It¡¯s only been two minutes since we landed. You would be dead long before ten minutes were up. The rest of you might be alive, but you, Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto, would be dead in less than two minutes, let alone ten.¡± Despite his rage, I shrugged my surprisingly flexible shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s a one time cost I¡¯ve already paid to be like this, so get over it. Heal up and relax for a few minutes. I¡¯ve got a bad feeling about the summit and we¡¯ll be there after the next jump.¡± After a few minutes, I gave up on meditating and instead decided to just pop one of Aunt Megara¡¯s Mana potions if I needed it. Instead, I spent that time discussing life on the elemental sub-plane of magma with Arlian and learned a lot. He agreed to go through the tome I¡¯d learned from and point out any inaccuracies he could find for both the earth and fire planes, which I appreciated. What good is a textbook if it¡¯s full of bad information? Chapter 48 - Lava Beats Ice Every Time The moment our party appeared fifty feet above the dead center of the summit, I scanned the area beneath me and grit my rocky teeth. The hundred foot wide plateau of a summit was completely covered in [Winter Wolves] and [Yeti] amid dozens of large snow drifts, lying in wait. Directly beneath us was a black stone arch covered halfway up with snow, which I assumed was either the way to let in the boss for the floor, or our way up to the third floor, but there was no energy cracking within its snowy expanse. If we had arrived at the plateau how the level obviously expected us to, only a few [Winter Wolves] would have been visible from the nearest edge to the floor start. Instead, I was able to make out thirty [Yeti] and at least sixty [Winter Wolves]. Surprisingly, even my [Essence Reading] mixed with [Mystic Eyes] couldn¡¯t even spot a variant of the below monsters in the short time we hung in the air, let alone a boss. [Yeti - Rank C Monster Level: 42 Vulnerabilities: Fire Immunities: Cold, Water] [Yeti are large bipedal creatures covered in white fur who only live above the snowline of the tallest mountains in Genovia. Physically powerful, Yeti¡¯s most dangerous form of attack is their vicious two foot long ice claws, which can freeze or decapitate just as easily. Despite their size, they are cowardly and will flee at the sight of fire unless their leader, a Yeti King, is present. They are known to raise Winter Wolves as hunting dogs.] None are fleeing yet, but I¡¯m not exactly visible right now. If they don¡¯t run, I guess the floor boss is a [Yeti King]. Hopefully it¡¯s not that tough¡­ damnit, I just jinxed it. I need to get Arlian working on carving them up before they can get too out of control. [Winter Wolves - Rank C Monster Level: 42 Vulnerabilities: Thunder Resistances: Fire Immunities: Cold] [Winter Wolves are large light grey to white wolves who live in the coldest regions of Genovia. Their ability to see and move through snow is nearly unparalleled, with even large amounts of settled snow not acting as even the slightest barrier to their vision. Beware their [Arctic Breath], a blast of cold energy that can freeze a person solid as easily as it can kill them with damage.] Shit, they¡¯re resistant to fire damage. That¡¯s going to make this more difficult. I¡¯ll have Volta and Voltaire focus on them. With our flight Skills still locked, most people would¡¯ve had no choice but to land on the massive snow pile, but we weren¡¯t most people. With a gasp of effort, Jaegan fashioned a slide using [Wall of Force] and let most of our party down with him toward the lightest concentration of monsters. I remained atop the slide, still shapeshifted into a [Magma Baron], as I debated the best course of action. There are three ways I can do this, but I don¡¯t know which will turn out best. I could just rain magma down on the pile of snow beneath me, but there¡¯s a chance that just frees the boss before we can deal with the adds. I could do the same with the other snow piles, which doesn¡¯t seem like a bad idea¡­ Or, I could make myself a target by dropping small globules of magma on all the monsters at once and give my friends time to get ready. Despite my shapely magma body, I shivered. If I do that, Ylsa might actually try and kill me. She was pissed the last time I tried tanking, so yeah, not going to do that again. Snow piles it is. Drawing in a huge breath, I felt as the magma within superheated the previously sub-zero air before I added bits of my magma body to the cavern forming the mixture inside me. Below, the monsters nearest my friends started to turn around to look at them and I knew I needed to level the playing field before they got surrounded with nowhere to go. With a roar, I unleashed my pent up magma breath, pouring fire and earth energy into it from [Elemental Mastery] at the same time to create a cascade of magma as I slowly turned to try and melt as many of the snow embankments as I could. My first attempt was enough to clear the space between my friends and the creatures sneaking up on them in addition to another quarter of the battlefield. Before I could do it again, a four foot icy rock hurtled out of nowhere and slammed into my core.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. I screamed in pain as my [Elemental Form] ability faded from excess damage. I¡¯d forgotten the biggest rule of any [Form] Spell. Humanoids don¡¯t usually have vulnerabilities unless a Passive Skill gives one to them. Monsters do, even those we take the shape of with [Form] Spells. I hadn¡¯t checked, but as I writhed in agony at the mere memory of the hit, I landed flat on my back and slid down the snow pile in the center of the plateau. Note to self, [Magma Baron]¡¯s really hate cold damage. Fuck, that hurt! Rolling to my feet, I triggered [Haste] so I could get my bearings and it likely saved my life as I turned just fast enough to dodge a massive white clawed hand shooting out from the pile of snow I¡¯d just slid down. Spinning down into a crouch, I pointed both hands at the offending claw. ¡°[Bunker Bolt]!¡± A two foot wide bolt of blinding white lightning flashed out from my extended hands, striking the snowbank with a thunderous roar. The icy surface shattered, sending shards of frozen water flying in all directions. The lightning penetrated the snow, burrowing deep into the icy depths and melting them all the way. It pierced the black stone archway, leaving a smoking, jagged scar. Finally, it struck the horned yeti, who let out a deafening bellow as the electric current coursed through its massive body. The yeti¡¯s brilliant white fur stood on end, crackling with electricity, and its yellowed fangs glinted menacingly in the brief flash of light. [Yeti King - Rank A Floor Boss Level: 42 Vulnerabilities: Fire Immunities: Cold, Water] [Yeti Kings are enormous bipedal creatures covered in white fur whose kingdoms consist of the entire mountain they call home. Of unparalleled physical might, a Yeti King¡¯s claws have been known to tear through Mithral like it was paper. Despite that, their most dangerous trait is the ability to boost the physicality of any Yeti within half a mile. All Yeti King hunters agree, the best way to kill a Yeti King is to hit it as hard as you can with fire or lightning, as fast as you can, and not leave anything to chance.] Even as my haste increased vision read the notification that filled the corner of my vision, I continued my assault. ¡°Eat this, bitch!¡± Cerulean and scarlet flames leapt from opposite palms toward the creature. The scarlet flames had an almost liquid-like quality, while the cerulean flames burned far hotter than your average flame. The pair of flames met in the air just before the boss, where they merged to become a deep amethyst purple color that slammed straight into the chest of the beast before I walked it up toward his head and shoulders. Unlike normal flames, the amethyst flames kept burning even when the creature dove right into the remaining snow beside it. The purple flames continued to burn, giving me a straight shot at it, and I decided it was time for me to start putting my [Path of the Scholar] to good use. With a glance around, I found my party fighting their way toward me, with Raiju leading the pack mid-bite into a [Winter Wolf] who had their mouth open toward me. ¡°[Eruption]!¡± I slammed my hands down onto the ground and poured ninety percent of my Mana into a single application of [Elemental Mastery]. While I didn¡¯t technically have to yell out what I was doing, it did help me center myself, so I went with it. Before me, the rock began to boil in a straight line toward the [Yeti King], where it suddenly burst free in a ten foot geyser of lava that continued to pour high into the air with the huge creature born upon it. With a grasping motion and a supreme effort of will, I grabbed hold of the molten rock and redirected it to fill the entirety of the plateau we stood upon except for a five foot circle around me and each of my allies. The sounds of screaming monsters filled the air and it was like music to my ears when the creatures started popping out of existence as lava poured down around them. I did it Mom, I used combat magic. I finally did it. I hope you¡¯re proud of who I¡¯m becoming. Tears formed in my eyes as I looked up at the lava fountain I¡¯d formed. Dominus, this is all because of you. Hopefully I¡¯ll be half as useful to you as you¡¯ve been to me so far. The lava continued pouring out of the mountaintop far longer than I¡¯d expected. I¡¯d only planned on it going for around thirty to forty-five seconds or so and it¡¯d been going on for three minutes when Arlain walked up behind me with his visor up and worry on his face. I nodded curtly as I continued my hold on the lava, preventing it from landing anywhere near my friends or myself. ¡°Boss, we have a problem.¡± He pointed his spear at the lava fountain and then all around the plateau. ¡°This isn¡¯t a mountain.¡± ¡°What¡­do you¡­oh¡­¡± I grunted with the effort of trying to stop the lava fountain, but despite [Elemental Mastery] and my significant Stats, it didn¡¯t even slow down. Instead, it started pouring out even faster, as I¡¯d needed to loosen my grip on the energy to change what I was doing with it. ¡°I think you¡¯re the only thing stopping this volcano from going up all at once.¡± The [Obsidian Knight] practically shook with fear. ¡°We need to go. Now. The portal¡¯s active, but it needs the Party Leader to open.¡± My gaze flicked over to the portal, where my entire party stood, minus Raiju and Arlian, who were with me. She bumped into the back of my legs, gently pushing me their way. Jaegan flashed me a huge smile. ¡°You did it! Now, get your ass over here so we don¡¯t die in a fiery death despite your triumph over your childhood fears.¡± The twenty foot walk from where I¡¯d used [Eruption] to the portal just to the left of the lava plume was the most difficult I¡¯d experienced to that point. Every step grew more difficult as the volcano beneath our feet began to shake and the lava pouring out from the hole I¡¯d created in the hundred foot thick rock grew in intensity. Five feet from the portal, I lost control of the energy and nearly fell flat on my face, but Raiju and Arlian didn¡¯t let me down. He slung me over her back and she bolted for the glowing purple portal, where she slid to a stop that slammed my hand against the purple barrier. [Would you like to ascend to the third floor? Y/N] After mentally smashing the ¡°Yes¡± option, I fell through the portal and the world went black. Chapter 49 - Tentacles and I Don’t Mix The pounding in my head was only outdone by the piercing pain as my eyes cracked. I hissed and tried to use my right hand to rub my head, but there was something heavy pressing down on it. I wiggled my hand and felt something furry and warm against the back of my knuckles. ¡°Raiju, I¡¯m alive.¡± I winced as my own voice felt like I was stabbing them with knives. ¡°Can you please let me up?¡± The pressure on my arm disappeared only to reappear on my chest a moment later as she laid there licking my face. ¡°I*lick*thought you*lick*weren¡¯t going to*lick*wake up! It¡¯s been so long!¡± I lay there for a moment, just letting my body adjust to the land of the living/awake before speaking quietly. ¡°How long was I out?¡± Ever faithful, Ylsa responded quickly from behind where my head rested on my bedroll. ¡°A little more than nine hours. The Party Interface said you were suffering from Mana Burnout and would wake up within twelve hours, so we rested here in the Safe Room at the beginning of the level.¡± ¡°Ah, that makes sense.¡± Nodding, I levered myself up and hugged Raiju. ¡°I¡¯m OK, I promise.¡± She sagged against my chest, which threatened to knock me back over until I hugged her even tighter. Sensing she was about to fall, she straightened up and brought me with her. ¡°Thanks.¡± I ruffled her hair as I slid out from beside her to stand up and look around the room. It was pretty typical from what I¡¯d read about Dungeon Safe Rooms, and given the connection between Dungeons and Towers, that made a lot of sense to me. The tell-tale Gold runic floor pattern was only in one place, the ten foot barrier full of white and black smoke with a floating System window in the middle. [Behind this barrier lies the Mid-Boss of the Chalcedony Tower of Trials. Once all climbers pass through it, the Safe Room will cease to exist. The Safe Room on this floor will remain so for the next 38 hours and 26 minutes otherwise.] ¡°I guess this place gives you two days to recover from the bullshit that was the second floor¡­ How generous of it.¡± I snorted mid turn as I checked out the rest of the room. Jaegan was passed out in the corner, covered in blankets despite the temperate climate while Ylsa stood behind the pallet I¡¯d been resting on until a few moments ago. Ylsa made to bow to me when she caught my gaze and I waved her off. ¡°I¡¯m not fully comfortable with that yet, though I know that¡¯ll need to change. I do ask, howerever, that at least in Towers and Dungeons, please refrain from bowing. We¡¯re just party members in here.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll endeavor to remember that, Storm-Blessed.¡± She hesitated before nodding. ¡°I do have to ask, how are you dealing with your Mana Burnout so quickly? The last time it happened to me, I needed nearly two days to be able to open my eyes, let alone walk and talk.¡± I cracked my neck. ¡°It¡¯s all about the difference in our Mana Regeneration rates.¡± A few quick hops later, I began stretching out my arms and legs. ¡°You need, what, twelve hours to regenerate your Mana pool? Yeah?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct, the same could be said for nearly all goliaths.¡± She grunted as she began stretching with me. ¡°I know elves regenerate Mana more quickly from your conversation with Jaegan in the ice box on the mountain, but how does that all work exactly?¡± ¡°Each race regenerates Mana at a different rate, but they also have vastly different base stats and Class inclinations.¡± A quick glance around the room revealed Arlian and the [Arcweaver] siblings mid mock duel over on the empty end of the rectangular Safe Room. ¡°I can nearly guarantee no elf, even a Wood Elf, would ever get your [Mountain Tempest] Class unless they had a truly bizarre upbringing. It¡¯s just too Stamina dependent with their low base [Might] and [Toughness]. The same could be said with a dwarf getting [Archer] with how low their [Agility] tends to be, my dad¡¯s Clan notwithstanding, since they mingle with other races each generation. ¡°I just so happen to be half Gold Elf, so my Mana should fill up in four hours. Fixing the dregs, or the fallout from Mana Burnout, only needs you to regenerate your Mana on top of your full Mana pool. Nine hours is just long enough for me to do that with Arlian, Volta, and Voltaire around.¡± I settled my back against the wall and slid down to stretch out my hamstrings. ¡°You know, I haven¡¯t had the dregs since I was a kid? Back then?¡± I chuckled to myself. ¡°I had them at least once a week, if not more. I guess my bad habit of burning all my Mana at once is still something I need to work on.¡± ¡°At least it was effective.¡± She settled in front of me and we ended up helping each other through a paired stretching routine she introduced me to. *** With a groan, I stood up and walked over to Jaegan, who was still asleep. I¡¯d checked the Party Interface and nothing had changed, minus the nine hours of me being asleep. [Lordly Aura] didn¡¯t even fail while I slept, at least according to how long it said he had to live. The thing is, I didn¡¯t buy it. ¡°There¡¯s no way he¡¯d sleep this long if he was actually OK. Something¡¯s up.¡± I reached down for the blankets covering the old man and gently pried them off of him. Or, that¡¯s what I tried to do. The second I touched the top blanket, a snake of black and purple energy snaked out from it and tried to impale my hand. With a flex of my calves, I leapt back and quickly had a [Psyknife] in one hand and a trio of [Magic Missiles] floating above the other, Dad¡¯s blade training mixing flawlessly with Mom¡¯s magic tutelage. The second I released the blanket, the snake of malicious energy retreated beneath the barrier, but not before I caught the Party Interface blinking in my vision. [Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto is Infected by Unknown Entity] ¡°Oh, fuck that.¡± A mental command summoned Arlian, Volta, and Voltaire, where I motioned for them to surround the [Mage] from both sides and above. ¡°I¡¯m going to burn those covering off of him, OK? You three need to do whatever you can to knock whatever comes out down so I can see what we¡¯re dealing with.¡± Hopefully Dominus is ready to give me some insight, or I¡¯ll just have to wing it. I hope you¡¯re listening, my party needs you right now. A quick pulse of Mana into [Elemental Mastery] generated a ball of blue flame that I lobbed onto Jaegan¡¯s sleeping form, trusting [Path of the Scholar] to keep my companion safe. The resulting fire was brief, but revealing as a small, purple, tentacled creature was revealed to be sitting on Jaegan¡¯s chest. Or it was before my flames landed on its back at nearly the same instant Arlian sent an obsidian spear through it and the [Arcweavers] hit it with blades formed from lightning. The creature screamed, a sound I¡¯ll never forget, as it was brutally assaulted. Its immediate reaction was to snake a tentacle toward a suspicious black crack in the wall that¡¯d been hidden behind Jaegan¡¯s blankets, but not before [Essence Reading] and [Dominus¡¯ Insight] were able to trigger nearly simultaneously. [Soul Thief - Rank A Monster Level: 75 Vulnerabilities: Radiant Resistances: All except for Radiant and Force Immunities: Necrotic, Soul] [Soul Thieves have not been observed by this System. Observe the creature before slaying it for additional experience.] Yeah, fuck that. This thing is dying now. [Your instincts are correct. This creature is a construct of Devourer, though it bears some of Wild¡¯s markings as well. Based on previous creatures I¡¯ve observed like this, it is likely physically weak, but immensely fast. It must be destroyed immediately.] Mana surged out of me for both [Dominus¡¯ Insight] as well as the barrage of [Magic Missiles] I sent into the [Soul Thief]. Dozens of tiny bolts of force leapt from my extended hands after I hurled the psychic blade into the gap the creature tried to escape through. The thing let out another soul-wrenching scream as nearly half of its tentacle was severed by the blade.This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. That¡¯s not possible. [Psyknife] can¡¯t cut anything. We¡¯re missing something. With a thought, I slotted [Sunburst] into my only free slot and didn¡¯t hesitate to pour ten percent of my Mana pool into it. The mid tier radiant spell filled the room everywhere my friends weren¡¯t with the [Path of the Scholar]¡¯s help. Above me, I heard a far louder scream as the creature I¡¯d seen initially with the creepy black and purple tendrils instead of tentacles was revealed by my radiant assault. [Master Soul Thief - Rank S Monster Level: 125 Vulnerabilities: Radiant Immunities: All except for Radiant and Force] Fuck. The creature¡¯s single eye stared down at me with sheer hatred as it sent a dozen tendrils of inky purple tendrils spearing toward me. If it weren¡¯t for the [Sun Armor] and [Arcane Armor] I¡¯d cast when I woke up, that assault would likely have ended me. As is, the [Sun Armor] shattered, but in doing so it cut half of the tendrils apart with radiant energy while the remaining tendrils slammed into my [Arcane Armor] hard enough to send me careening across the room and into a wall hard enough to rattle my teeth. ¡®It¡¯s immune to everything but Radiant and Force!¡¯ I gritted my teeth as I messaged everyone through the Party Chat at the speed of thought. ¡®The thing on Jaegan¡¯s chest is some kind of psychic construct and it¡¯s resistant to everything but Radiant and Force.¡¯ To their credit, my summons didn¡¯t hesitate to absolutely obliterate the barely hanging on form of the [Soul Thief] on the [Mage]¡¯s chest, my [Sunburst] having nearly killed it in one shot. When it died, I felt the wave of anguish from the [Master Soul Thief] as it hurled itself at me. Just as its gaping maw full of needle-like teeth was about to slam into me, I triggered [Mana Slide], and got by with only a scratch on my exposed forearm bearing the [Psyknife]. Pain that defies description ripped through me from just that tiny scratch, making me lose my grip on the psychic construct. Without a connection to me, it faded a moment later. [Sunburst] doesn¡¯t hit hard enough, even with a vulnerability against something this powerful. I need to think like a [Mage]. What would Jaegan do? A quick backflip off of an [Air Step] over a pair of scything tendrils shook an idea loose. I think it¡¯s time for my best Jaegan impression. Behind me, Ylsa tried to sneak in a strike, but Arlian held her back. ¡°Let the boss work. I think he has a plan.¡± While I appreciated his confidence in me, I wasn¡¯t nearly as confident in the idea I had as he was in me. ¡°[Arcane Cannons]!¡± I poured another thirty percent of my full Mana pool into the ability, coupled with my [Wits] and [Arcane], that gave me five force constructs floating around my shoulders. With a thought, the constructs started pouring hundreds of tiny blue darts of force toward the [Master Soul Thief]. Despite the deluge of attacks, the creature deftly deflected nearly all of them with a tendril, only reacting when its central body was struck. It surged toward me with a vengeance, even as my cannons unloaded on it. The creature went from eight tendrils to sixteen in less than a second before unleashing most of them on me. I ducked, dived, and dodged as best I could, but I had some very close calls mere moments into our exchange. Popping [Haste] bought me some breathing room, but thirty seconds into our newly evened up dance, the damn thing grew another sixteen tentacles and my ability to dodge got a hell of a lot worse. I started catching stray slaps from tentacles, which apparently had some kind of paralytic effect building up. I saw the bar in the corner of my screen growing steadily and knew I had to make a move or I was screwed. The [Master Soul Thief] was an absolute beast, with far more [Might], [Agility], and [Toughness] than me, of that I had no doubt. In addition to its insane physical Stats, the damn thing seemed to be learning my patterns, causing me to catch even more slaps and causing the yellow bar I was dreading to build up even more. At that point, it was approaching seventy-five percent and, from the looks of the mass of tentacles around me, it wasn¡¯t even close to dead. Before I could even start to form [Light Arrows] in my palms, I heard a crackling of energy behind me that soon coalesced into the speeding form of Arlian, whose spear was coated in the telltale sheen of force damage. A message slammed into my mind, nearly causing me to get skewered by one of the creature¡¯s primary tentacles. ¡®We¡¯ve boosted Arlian as much as we can, but he¡¯s vulnerable now.¡¯ Ylsa¡¯s mental voice sounded reserved. ¡®There is something wrong with this creature, it shouldn¡¯t exist in this realm. My totem burns against my chest, but I didn¡¯t know enough to assist more.¡¯ Arlian¡¯s speeding form slammed into the wall next to the writhing ball of soul theft as he ran the thing through with his spear, earning us all a scream as the creature writhed on the end of his weapon. Before he could even pull his spear from the wall, another thirty-two tendrils burst out from its back and all of them dove toward the [Obsidian Knight]. He didn¡¯t stand a chance. No matter how much Volta, Voltaire, and Ylsa did to buff him up, his base [Agility] and [Perception] were just too low for him to deflect even half of the blows headed his way. I fought against the storm of tentacles headed toward me, but all that did was earn me another ten percent on my paralysis meter. At least he¡¯s immune to Soul damage. Maybe he¡¯ll be OK. He wasn¡¯t. In less than ten seconds, I saw a flash in the corner of my vision indicating he was below half health and five seconds later a repeated flash showing he was under ten percent. I did all I could to help, directing my [Arcane Cannons] to shoot at the appendages attacking him and doing all I could to distract the main body with [Light Arrows], but nothing worked. His black glass armor was all shattered into powder, revealing the cut figure of the elemental knight below. He caught my gaze and nodded as I watched a bright light begin to burn in his chest. ¡°No!¡± I screamed in horror as my first elemental retainer detonated his core in a rush of bright red energy. The blast wave swept through the half of the room we fought in. Ironically, the [Master Soul Thief]¡¯s multitude of tendrils served to be its undoing as they absorbed nearly all of the energy released from Arlian¡¯s core. The creature¡¯s scream was louder than ever and I knew I had to capitalize. All but the eight core tentacles were gone, obliterated by Arlian¡¯s sacrifice, and the creature fell off the wall in shock at the loss. [Light Arrows] clenched like blades in each hand, I used [Elemental Surge] to appear above the creature in a puff of air. ¡°For Arlian!¡± I buried both light constructs in the creature¡¯s back, triggering both [Backstab] and [Rapid Strike] as I punctured the monster repeatedly with the only radiant stabbing implements I had. The creature sagged against the ground, appearing defeated, but I didn¡¯t let up my assault, pouring a concentrated barrage of [Arcane Cannon] blasts into its form as I continued doing my best impression of a woodpecker on its tiny round body. Nearly a minute later, my voice hoarse from screaming, I sagged back against the wall opposite my friends, feeling utterly defeated despite having won a prolonged battle against a creature nearly five times my own level. My gaze flicked to the corner of my vision, where I saw a single message waiting for me. Before I could do anything but see it was from Arlian, something slammed through the [Arcane Armor] on my chest and bored straight through my right lung. Ahead of me, the [Master Soul Thief] had a single tentacle that stretched between the two of us. Blood poured from my mouth as I went into shock at the savage wound. The creature started to wobble onto its tendrils, but before it could even move a foot, Ylsa¡¯s glowing blue fists crashed down on it in a hammerblow and splattered it all over the floor. Without hesitation, she hauled the tendril from my chest and snatched one of my remaining [Megara¡¯s Healing Potion V]s from my bandolier and poured it half in the wound itself and the other half down my bloody gullet. I¡¯m pretty sure I blacked out, because the next thing I remember is her laying me down next to Jaegan on a bare bedroll. Struggling against her efforts, I managed to lever myself up into a seated position against the wall. It looked like she wanted to talk, but I needed to know what Arlian¡¯s last words were. I shot her a glare that would have scared a dragon and opened up Arlian¡¯s message. [Boss, I want you to know I was prepared for this, which is why you got this message just before I died. I started writing it the moment you decided to honor our deal and take me on permanently. I¡¯ve been around a long time, far longer than even your eldest relatives, and I have to say the time with you has been a huge highlight. You never treated me like a servant, even when I was just some summoned elemental you brought in because I was immune to fire, and that was the first time I ever truly felt needed. Elementals lives on our home planes are dreary, dull things. We do whatever our Duke or Monarch tells us endlessly, with only the very upper echelons ever being granted what you would call time off. I wasn¡¯t there, but I served the son of my Duke for a few millennia and got to enjoy a single day to myself in all that time. Because of that, we live for the moments we get summoned to planes like Genovia, where we get to fight new things and see new places, even if our summoners usually treat us even worse than our rulers, at least it¡¯s something new. You were new, and I relished getting to know you. I¡¯m hoping I went out in a blaze of glory defending you, because that¡¯s how I always wanted to go. If I¡¯m gone, I ask you to take care of my spear, because it¡¯s the only thing I own and it¡¯s been with me a very long time. It isn¡¯t fancy, but it¡¯s my only real possession and that means something to me. Your Knight in Obsidian Armor, Arlian P.S. I¡¯m adding this as my core goes critical. I do not blame you for this, I chose this end. If you feel guilt, pour that feeling into taking care of your friends, including Volta and Voltaire. Those kids want to serve you like I did, even if it makes a death like this possible. Trust me, they¡¯ll serve you and your family until the rock you call home stops spinning if you treat them right. Aw shit, that¡¯s starting to hurt. Last thing, as long as you always keep to your word, I¡¯m sure things will work out for you and Dominus in the end.] Tears streamed freely down my cheeks as I read his message over and over again, beating my fist into the wall repeatedly. ¡°I should have been stronger, faster. If only¡­¡± My head blasted to the side as Ylsa¡¯s huge hand crashed into my cheek and sent me spiraling to the ground. I looked up in shock to find her glaring daggers at me. ¡°Arlian died a hero¡¯s death, defending you, our liege. To dishonor his sacrifice by claiming you could have saved him is an insult to his memory. This spear, stained with the blood of the enemy, serves as a reminder of his ultimate loyalty. It is a testament to the noble path we both chose.¡± Chapter 50 - Mercy Killing ¡°I¡­I d¡­didn¡¯t mean¨C¡± I stammered for a moment as Ylsa¡¯s fury washed over me. It felt like the time my dwarven cousins dared me to walk out on the family veranda on the side of the mountain, naked, during a windstorm. It took months for my skin to recover and it felt like the same thing was going to happen to my psyche as she tore into me. Over the next five minutes, Ylsa absolutely ripped me a new set of holes. Every selfish or inconsiderate thing I¡¯d done since meeting her came out and she told me exactly what she thought about each of them. I¡¯m not saying I didn¡¯t agree with some of the things she was saying, but her hitting me with them all at once was absolutely overwhelming. By the end, I was left in a heap against the wall, just nodding and apologizing over and over again. When the berration faded, I didn¡¯t speak, afraid it would set the [Mountain Tempest] back on me for round two. Nearly a minute later, she crouched down next to me and lifted my chin so I could look her in the eye. ¡°All of those things, little or big, while annoying, don¡¯t matter in the long run.¡± She smiled as my eyes widened. ¡°Arlian made the same decision I would have, no question about it, and you have to respect that. What¡¯s done is done. What you have to do now is stand up, straighten your back, and lead us on to new places and things. This Tower isn¡¯t going to clear itself.¡± From his corner a few yards away, Jaegan coughed weakly. ¡°I hate to interrupt a good dressing down, but has anyone else noticed the threads of black snaking over the stone toward each of us? The ones headed toward me are getting a bit close for my liking.¡± Glancing around Ylsa¡¯s imposing form, I saw what the [Mage] was talking about. Dark trails traced all throughout the room from the entrance to the boss room, though for some reason they seemed to be avoiding Volta and Voltaire. I gestured to the pair of them and they quickly got the gist and moved to stand in front of Jaegan. I watched as the miasmic lines headed for the old man gently curled away from the [Arcweavers], as if they were matching poles on a magnet. Hurrying to my feet, I shook my head to clear away the fog I¡¯d been resting in. I looked at Ylsa. ¡°I can¡¯t say I¡¯ll ever be the perfect lord for you, but I promise to try and be better.¡± She saluted me with her fist over her heart. ¡°That¡¯s all I ever wanted. Perfection is overrated.¡± With a nod, I moved away from Ylsa to go and check on Jaegan. Where before he¡¯d been mostly untouched physically despite his mortal soul wound, now he looked like absolute hell. His cheeks were gaunt and his robes hung from his frame like he was skin and bones. The only thing that wasn¡¯t changed for the worse was the fire in his dark brown eyes, they sparkled with a fervor I only wished I felt. ¡°It¡¯s time.¡± He tried to stand up on his own, but Volta ended up needing to help. She stood next to him, offering support with the dignity he deserved. ¡°We have to clear this floor, or this has all been for nothing, right?¡± ¡°Clear it? No. Fix it? Yes.¡± I smirked and he weakly waved me away. ¡°There¡¯s something on this floor that the Tower knows isn¡¯t supposed to be here. We just need to find it and get rid of it so we can get the hell out of here and get you healed up.¡± I snuck a glance at his Status and immediately wished I hadn¡¯t. [Name: Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto Emotional Status: Exhausted/Determined Physical Status: Mortally Wounded (Cause: Spirit Wound x2) Current Estimated Lifespan: 48 Hours (6 Hours without the effects of Lordly Aura)] ¡°Jaegan, you don¡¯t need to¡­¡± My eyes darted away from the System window to find him glaring at me. ¡°Stuff it.¡± He poked a finger weakly into my chest. ¡°My physical stats may have gone to shit, but my [Wits] and [Arcane] are as good as ever. Let me do this.¡± He sighed. ¡°Let me do everything I can for as long as I can. Please?¡± Part of me wanted to tell him to rest, but what good would that do? Jaegan had two days to live, assuming I could keep [Lordly Aura] up the entire time. I thought back to what Ylsa had said about respecting Arlian¡¯s wishes and hardened my heart. ¡°If that¡¯s what you want?¡± I looked to Volta with a small smile. ¡°Would you mind helping the old man get around in the next fight or two?¡± I flashed him a quick shark-like grin. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t do for him to go down because he got caught up in his baggy ass robes.¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. She saluted me just like Ylsa had moments before. ¡°It shall be done.¡± ¡°Cheeky pup,¡± Jaegan grumbled before spitting out some bloody sputum, ¡°let¡¯s get going before I feel even worse.¡± Bracing to dodge backward away from the slap I knew was coming, I grinned. ¡°Can¡¯t be any worse than you look!¡± His scoff and half-hearted slapping attempt were all it took to get me ready to go. We stacked up on the door to the boss with Raiju and I in the lead, Jaegan and Volta were behind us, while Ylsa and Voltaire pulled up the rear. The ten foot opening was big enough for us to go through two or three abreast and we planned on taking advantage of it. With a surprisingly small amount of pressure, the wall of fog lifted and I stepped into the Mid-Boss room of the Chalcedony Tower of Trials. The chamber we stepped into was nothing like I¡¯d expected. It looked like we¡¯d stepped into a small town where most of the buildings were made of the same grey stone as the tower. The stone buildings, their roofs thatched with dried reeds, clustered around a central courtyard. A patterned stone path wound its way through the village, leading to a peculiar fountain in the center of the courtyard. The fountain, carved from a single, massive stone, featured a strange, humanoid figure atop it, its features obscured by moss and time. The figure held a cup aloft, from which a gentle stream of water flowed into a circular basin below. Despite the strange fountain, the most striking thing in the village, if it could be called that, was the ten foot tall black and purple spike ten feet behind the water feature. The same dark energy threads and trails we¡¯d seen encroaching in the Safe Room seemed to be coming from the huge dark edifice. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s probably what¡¯s causing the problems with the Tower.¡± I muttered under my breath as I looked around for any enemies. It appeared that the System agreed as a window popped up in front of all our visions. [Emergency Quest - Remove the Infection from the Chalcedony Tower of Trials. Reward - Variable based on the state of the Tower upon completion compared to this moment.] A Quest? Huh, I guess the System really does love its Towers and Dungeons. Maybe it¡¯ll offer to fix Jaegan!? ¡°We have to do this perfectly.¡± I turned to see Jaegan and Ylsa staring at the notification in shock. ¡°I get it, it¡¯s probably your first Quest, it¡¯s mine too. Get over it and maybe Jaegan can live through the end of the week. Copy?¡± That snapped Ylsa out of it. Her gaze turned toward the buildings surrounding the courtyard. ¡°We should get Jaegan hidden in one of those buildings so he can support, but be out of the way of any attackers when things pop off.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not dead yet!¡± The creaky old man whined. ¡°Let me fight.¡± With a sigh, I turned to him. ¡°You can fight, but if we have to spend every moment defending you, we¡¯re going to get hurt. I¡¯ll give you both of the siblings as guards, they should be able to keep you safe and ready to kick some ass. Fair?¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Fine, but I don¡¯t like it.¡± He relented before turning to the [Arcweavers]. ¡°Well? You heard the boss, get me up on the roof of that building.¡± He pointed at the same dwelling Ylsa had mentioned he should hide within. ¡°We don¡¯t know when the monsters will start spawning and we have to be¨C¡± A huge bell began to ring and everyone¡¯s eyes shifted to the manor house behind the spike of black stone in the middle of town. The ten foot wide doors were slowly creeping open and from within I could make out the enormous shape I hoped was not the Mid-Boss. When the doors finally opened fully, I was almost disappointed when I saw what we were dealing with. [Ogress Warboss - Rank B Mid-Tower Boss Level: 44 Vulnerabilities: All Status Effects: Entropic Drain - All Stats Halved and Vulnerable to All Damage] [Orc Guards - Rank C Monster Level: 44 Vulnerabilities: All Status Effects: Entropic Drain - All Stats Halved and Vulnerable to All Damage] [A once proud female ogre warboss, laid low by the efforts of an outside source attempting to subvert her home. She and her guards are all that are left of their village and they seek death like a parched person seeks water. Please, put them out of their misery as kindly as you can.] ¡°Everybody, check this description. I almost feel bad for them and they¡¯re not even real.¡± Forming a ball of fire in my right hand, I hefted it a few times before preparing to lob it into the monsters¡¯ midst. ¡°A quick fireball or two should take care of this.¡± Before anyone could say anything, I hurled the sphere of flame a hundred feet toward the sickly Mid-Boss and her adds. The moment the fireball exploded, the black spike glowed a dark purple and I felt my control of the flames failing at the same time as they were being sucked into the spike. Unwilling to risk a direct connection to something that could corrupt a whole Tower, I cut my connection to the flames with a small frown. ¡°What was that?¡± I felt a light pressure bump into the back of my head and turned around to see Jaegan¡¯s gnarled form hand raised as he shook it at me. ¡°If we¡¯re dealing with Entropy, you can¡¯t just lob magic around willy nilly! Everyone knows that!¡± I turned away to hide my blushing face. ¡°Well, I guess I¡¯m no one, because I didn¡¯t know that.¡± ¡°There¡¯s only one kind of magic you can use when Entropy is involved!¡± He stumbled into the corner of my vision with a huge grin on his face. ¡°Force magic.¡± He raised his staff and slammed it down twice on the flagstones. ¡°[Arcane Battery]!¡± A dozen watermelon sized orbs of force sprang into existence all around the [Mage] as he cackled. ¡°Let ¡®em have it!¡± Chapter 51 - Jaegan’s Choice What followed couldn¡¯t even be called a battle. It was a rapid series of mercy killings, plain and simple. The monsters didn¡¯t even try to avoid Jaegan¡¯s overwhelming assault as it ripped straight through their emaciated bodies like a scythe through ripe wheat. In less than thirty seconds, no monsters remained on the third floor, but the spike of Entropic energy remained. Walking over, [Essence Reading] failed to trigger on the black stone obelisk, so instead I activated [Dominus¡¯ Insight] and nearly fell down when it drew even more Mana than usual to activate. [This Entropic Spike is made of pure Entropic Mana and was created by the Maw of Oblivion, a group dedicated to Devourer¡¯s destruction aspect. It was delivered two months ago by Marie Emberstone, Chosen of Devourer. At its current rate of spreading, the damage it has done will be irreversible in less than ten minutes. A word of caution, destroying anything consisting purely of Entropic Mana is difficult and dangerous. I recommend a simultaneous assault from your Arcane Cannon and Jaegan¡¯s Wallbreaker from the farthest opposite corners of the floor for the highest chance of success.] ¡°No way. Marie?¡± I leaned against Raiju for support and she started whimpering when she felt how distraught I was. My mind was running a million miles an hour, trying to find anything about how she might have acted that could have pointed me toward her true identity, but came up with nothing. She was just a girl who really loved her sister. She didn¡¯t even fight against the Raid Boss attacking her shop! If she were a Chosen of Devourer¡­ that¡¯s why the Raid Boss was attacking that shop in particular. It could smell her divine energy, even when I couldn¡¯t. Raiju bumped her head against my side. ¡°What¡¯s going on with Marie? Is she OK?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± I started petting her head mechanically. ¡°Here, everyone should take a look at this.¡± With a quick flick of my fingers, I threw the window containing [Dominus¡¯ Insight] to the rest of my party. ¡°I met Marie outside the tower.¡± I let out a short bark of wry laughter. ¡°Helped her and her sister defend their shop from the monster wave, including the Raid Boss. Her sister, Mindy, saved my ass a couple of times.¡± When I looked around to check how everyone was dealing with what I¡¯d both shown and told them, I found everyone responding a bit differently. Ylsa was rooted in place, with her hand stretched out to touch the window created by [Dominus¡¯ Insight] as she muttered some sort of prayer under her breath that even my enhanced [Perception] couldn¡¯t pick up. Jeagan read it once before dismissing it and walking with Volta and Voltaire¡¯s help toward the farthest side of the room. He turned back to look at me and I knew exactly what he wanted. He wanted us to destroy the [Entropic Spike] and fix the Tower, no matter what. The elementals seemed to be of a similar mind when I messaged them through the interface. ¡®We have the recommendation of your goddess, there doesn¡¯t seem to be a reason to wait.¡¯ Volta bowed as she hurried to keep up with her brother and Jaegan as they continued on. Raiju didn¡¯t appear to care either way, and when I brought it up she shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I didn¡¯t get a good sniff on Marie, but Mindy definitely wasn¡¯t bad. She smelled like rain, not sulfur or whatever this stupid spike smells like.¡± She pawed at her nose. ¡°It¡¯s really bad, you¡¯re lucky your nose isn¡¯t nearly as good as your eyes or ears, or you¡¯d know how bad it was too. It almost makes me regret putting so many points into [Perception]...almost.¡± She and I padded over to the other side of the room from Jaegan and Ylsa followed soon after, knocking down any building in between my final location and the center of the floor as she went with a massive greathammer I¡¯d never seen her use before. ¡°Not going to stand with Jaegan?¡± I frowned. Something didn¡¯t add up. She shook her head. ¡°He told me to clear a path for you and then wait here. He said something about time being of the essence.¡± Before I could say anything about that, the message from Jaegan came through. ¡®Prep as many [Arcane Cannons] as you can in the next ten seconds and release them on my mark. [Wallbreaker]¡¯s already mid-channel and I really don¡¯t want to cancel it.¡¯ ¡°Shit!¡± I hurried to comply with Jaegan¡¯s request, despite my misgivings about what was going on. With a surge of will, I produced eight [Arcane Cannons] before I felt something push back. Despite the situation, I noted that was twenty percent of the forty percent mastery I had with [Skill Dominance]. The force constructs bobbed in the shape of an arc or a crown above my head as Jaegan¡¯s countdown reached its climax. ¡®Three, two, one¡­FIRE!¡¯ ¡°Fire!¡± I yelled as I felt the pulse of Mana from the other side of the half mile wide room, and my cannons unleashed a half dozen finger thick beams of pure force that merged about ten feet in front of me to become something more. The resulting beam was more akin to a keg in width, maybe two and a half feet wide, as it tore toward the [Entropic Spike] faster than an arrow.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. The two beam Spells impacted their target nearly simultaneously and, surprisingly, it didn¡¯t immediately explode into a billion tiny pieces. Instead, it didn¡¯t even shake when impacted by the five foot wide torrent of force that was Jaegan¡¯s signature Spell, [Wallbreaker]. Just as I was about to push another twenty percent of my depleted Mana pool into my own [Arcane Cannons], a message from Jaegan came through and stopped me. ¡®Don¡¯t waste your Mana boosting that Spell. We all know what has to happen if we¡¯re going to destroy this damn thing. There¡¯s no time to find another plan.¡¯ I could almost hear his weak chuckle. ¡®You¡¯ve been a good lord, despite your inexperience, and I know you¡¯ll go on to do amazing things as Dominus¡¯ [Suzerain]. All I ask when I¡¯m gone is that you treat Ylsa right and make sure my kid knows I went out a hero, not some deadbeat in jail.¡¯ Then [Skill Dominance] triggered for a Skill I hoped never to need. [Sacrificial Surge Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 41%] ¡®Jaegan, you don¡¯t have to do this, Galloway can heal you and I can use [Dominus¡¯ Fury] to get rid of this thing!¡¯ I screamed through the Party Interface. ¡®I¡¯m only a few steps from the grave and you know it, plus you¡¯re going to need that in your travels.¡¯ The energy from the other side of the room increased by a couple orders of magnitude. ¡®Make sure to take good care of my staff. It¡¯s been with me a long time and I¡¯d hate for it to get left behind when I¡¯m gone.¡¯ He opened the channel to include everyone in the party as blue light started to fill the room. ¡®It¡¯s been a pleasure, ladies and gentlemen. I wish you the best of luck in taking down the bastards who put this thing here, but I¡¯ve got this part. Goodbye my friends.¡¯ Jaegan¡¯s face was contorted in concentration as he channeled his life force into his staff. The wooden shaft hummed with a low, resonant vibration as the arcane energy visibly surged through his veins. The air around him crackled with static electricity, and a faint glow began to emanate from the tip of the staff. With a final, guttural cry, Jaegan unleashed the spell. The staff thrummed with a violent intensity, and a blinding beam of force erupted from its tip. The beam, normally a narrow, focused stream of energy, was now vastly amplified by the [Mage]¡¯s sacrifice. It grew in width, expanding from its usual five feet to a fifteen-foot-wide torrent of destructive force. The beam tore through the air, its path marked by a trail of crackling energy and shattered debris. It struck the [Entropic Spike] with a deafening roar, obliterating the malignant artifact in a blinding flash of purple and blue light. Jaegan¡¯s body hung in the air between the [Arcweaver] siblings for a moment after with a huge smile I would swear I saw even from half a mile away, before he crumbled to dust, his sacrifice complete. In the end, all that was left of the old [Mage] was his staff, [Bad Deal], the [Ruby Heart] ring from our Dungeon run, his storage ring, and a pile of dust that quickly disappeared as the Tower absorbed his remains. Just to add insult to injury, a notification window appeared in front of my face to block my view of where my friend had just sacrificed himself. [Completed Emergency Quest - Remove the Infection from the Chalcedony Tower of Trials. Reward - Three Choices are Available] Brushing the screen away, I sprinted toward the [Arcweaver] siblings, whose faces hung low. They started apologizing as soon as I got within a few yards, but I stopped them with a sharp cut of my hand. ¡°Nothing you could have said or done would have stopped Jaegan from doing whatever it is he wanted to do.¡± I drew in a deep breath before sighing. ¡°The same can be said for everyone here, even Ylsa.¡± I turned back to look for Ylsa and found her standing near where the [Entropic Spike] used to be. For a second, I felt the need to kneel down and cry, but Jaegan¡¯s voice yelling at me in my head stopped that. I wiped a tear from my eye before sweeping the belt [Bad Deal] was attached to into my ring as I put his storage ring on next to my own storage ring, and slipping the [Ruby Heart] on the hand opposite my [Suzerain¡¯s Seal]. His staff I hung at my hip. Even if him being gone diminished its power, he¡¯d asked me to take care of it and I fully intended to do so. It felt right in a perverse sort of way, like I was always meant to end up with it, and I was nearly sick at the thought. Shaking it off, I hurried over to where Ylsa stood in the center of the chamber. She loomed over the crater as I approached and when I got up next to her, I understood why. At the bottom of the crater dozens of tiny cracks were starting to form. As I watched, one of the small cracks shot up the edge of the crater and across the room toward the wall nearly faster than my elven eyes could follow. Ylsa turned to me and I saw her eyes were red from crying. ¡°We need to leave, now. This Tower isn¡¯t stable and it can¡¯t repair itself with us in here.¡± Nodding, I pulled up the Tower interface and went to the [Exit Tower] tab, only to find it greyed out. Pushing on it, a new window appeared over top of the interface. [Due to structural damage done to the Tower, exiting is no longer possible without clearing all five floors. As a recompense, all drops will be increased in rarity by one step from now until you clear the fifth floor.] ¡°Uh, we have a problem.¡± My face went white and Ylsa motioned for me to continue. ¡°We can¡¯t leave without clearing the Tower.¡± ¡°Dominus damn this place!¡± She bellowed before punching the ground at her feet. We both gasped when the nearly indestructible floor cracked from her blow and started splintering off quickly to the rest of the floor. ¡°I should not have done that.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t help but agree, but what¡¯s done is done.¡± I motioned for our diminished party to gather around me and they all quickly complied. I stood in the center of the group and turned to catch each of them in the eye as I spoke. ¡°It looks like we¡¯re going to need to clear this fucking Tower to get clear. We¡¯re all still fresh, at least mostly, and I think we should deal with the next floor before we rest again. Let¡¯s get out of here so we can toast Jaegan in his favorite inn in Chalcedony.¡± Letting Jaegan¡¯s loss sink in as we rest before going into an unknown situation is the last thing I want. He¡¯d want us to use his loss as fuel for our fires, not lead weights around our necks. When no one dissented, I pulled up the Tower interface and selected the option to advance floors with a grimace. ¡°For Jaegan.¡± Chapter 52 - Demons Fear Me The overwhelming smell of sulfur hit me the moment we snapped into existence on the fourth floor. A quick glance around showed we were standing in a similar golden circle as the first floor, a landing mat of sorts. The circle was located in the cleft of a valley consisting of red stone and, despite the smell pointing toward something volcanic, the air was temperate. My gaze flicked to the corner of my vision to check the requirements to clear floor four and, despite myself, the corner of my mouth lifted in a small smirk. ¡°I guess we¡¯re going to blow off some steam on this one.¡± [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony - Floor 4 - Nightmare Difficulty Requirements to advance to Floor 5: Defeat a combined total of 1,000 Imps, 200 Succubi/Incubi, or 10 Shadowfiends. Equivalent values include: 100 Imps = 1 Shadowfiend, and 5 Imps = 1 Succubus/Incubus. Bonus: Additional rewards will be allotted for every multiple of 1,000 Imps killed.] Raiju took a few tentative steps into the air before barking happily. ¡°I can run like normal!¡± She continued spiraling up about fifty feet before bonking her head on some sort of barrier and slowly walked back down to the group. ¡°I couldn¡¯t get high enough to look over the walls, but I heard a lot of noise higher up. I think we¡¯re in the middle of some sort of horde right now.¡± She looked over to find me limbering up with Ylsa in the middle of the circle. ¡°What are you two doing?¡± ¡°Getting ready to kick some demon ass.¡± Ylsa picked me up and rolled me over her spine before I struggled to do the same for her. ¡°Losing Jaegan¡­it sucked, but he would have wanted us to keep on living.¡± I hefted his staff and went through a kata I¡¯d watched Arlo do a hundred times as a kid as he mimed using magic in the midst of his close quarters combat. ¡°I¡¯m going to see if I can put his staff to good use in honor of him.¡± Some part of me knew I was just using the excuse of fighting in his memory as a crutch to avoid thinking about him being gone, but I pushed that thought down as deep as I could. I didn¡¯t have time to deal with those emotions right now. They¡¯d have to wait until I met with Dominus the next time I leveled up. The [Mountain Tempest] bounced on the balls of her feet by the edge of the circle with [Storm Knuckles] already running as she stared straight through me. ¡°Are we good to go?¡± Bracing myself, I let out a big sigh before walking over to her and putting a hand on her shoulder. ¡°With Jaegan¡­not here, I¡¯m going to take care of the tactical side of things. OK?¡± She hesitated a moment before nodding. ¡°Tell me what you want me to do.¡± ¡°Your role is the same as it always was, you¡¯re our vanguard. Take a lickin¡¯ and keep on kickin¡¯ as your lifesteal Skill puts in work. If you drop under twenty percent health, take one of these.¡± I handed her a trio of Uncommon [Healing Potions] in a leather armband I¡¯d been working on during my downtime and a single [Megara¡¯s Healing Potion V] I handed her by itself. ¡°That¡¯s in case you drop to five percent or less. I can get more, so don¡¯t hesitate if you hit that threshold. If you run out, find me for a refill. Heard?¡± She took the trio of Uncommon potions quickly, but hesitated to accept the Pseudo-Legendary for a moment before claiming it and slipping it in with the Uncommons after putting on the armband. Her nod let me know she understood what I wanted from her, I just wanted her to make it through the floor, regardless of the resources it might cost. I turned around to address Volta, Voltaire, and Raiju, the remaining members of our once six man party. ¡°Volta, Voltaire, you two are good to roam and snipe any [Imps] or sexy demons you see if you think you can put them down quickly. All I ask is that you keep an eye on the rest of us and help out if you see us getting overwhelmed. Raiju, you¡¯re with me.¡± The pair of [Arcweavers] bowed deeply before saluting with their first over where a non elemental elf¡¯s heart would be. Raiju, on the other hand, started circling me like a dog herding sheep. She didn¡¯t even bark as she went straight into guard mode. ¡°Let¡¯s make Jaegan proud.¡± Before I could second guess it, I broke the line of the landing zone and the golden energy maintaining it faded. ¡°Volta, fly up and scout. I want to know where the biggest concentration of demons is.¡± Her form streaked up past where Raiju was stopped in the landing zone, and she flew up almost three hundred feet. A few moments later, she messaged the party. ¡®The biggest concentration of demons is to the right of the exit from the valley, but I¡¯d recommend we go left instead. That¡¯s where the majority of the ¡°sexy demons¡± are located.¡¯ A moment later, a battlefield map appeared in the Party chat. ¡®This is what I can see. It looks like they¡¯re fighting each other for fun, but I haven¡¯t seen any of them dropping, so it looks like they¡¯re not going to do our job for us.¡¯ The map showed a series of triangles I presumed to be the walls of our valley with a small gap near the top representing the gap I could see. All around us she indicated [Imps] with circles, while [Incubi] and [Succubi] were squares focused on the right side of the map, and the ten [Shadowfiends] were stars located equidistant from each other around the edges of the battlefield with dozens of [Imps] surrounding them. ¡®Excellent work, Volta.¡¯ I praised her efforts. ¡®I agree with you. We should head for that group of sexy demons on the left. Once we clear them out, we¡¯ll reassess. Voltaire, join your sister up there and hound us as we go.¡¯ ¡°It shall be done.¡± The male lightning elf disappeared in a flash before reappearing next to his sister. The pair drew bows made of blue lightning and waited for those of us on the ground to move. ¡®Move out. I want at least two hundred [Imps] worth dead in the next half hour.¡¯ I thrust Jaegan¡¯s staff forward and Ylsa surged toward the gap in the valley like a bolt from a crossbow. It was obvious she really wanted to hit something. Hopping on Raiju¡¯s back, she loped to follow the goliath toward the unaware horde. As we exited the valley we¡¯d appeared in, we found ourselves on the edge of a field of broken red stone. The only other raised landmasses in sight were a ring of mountains surrounding the plain. This is a killing field¡­ The moment the last of us entered the open plain, the ground began to rumble as the red stone that made up the walls began to sink down into the ground. In less than ten seconds, we were left in the middle of a huge open plain, entirely surrounded by demons who were staring at where the valley in the center of their domain used to be. Dismounting from Raiju¡¯s back, I squared myself up with the enemies formerly to the right of our starting point, the mass of [Imps] with only a few [Succubi] to corral them. I messaged the party to include the [Arcweavers] far above. ¡®The rest of you should continue with the plan, I¡¯ll take care of these small fries and catch up.¡¯ I rubbed a thumb across the head of Jaegan¡¯s staff. ¡®Volta, you¡¯re in charge of watching to see if I¡¯m about to be overwhelmed while I deal with these things. If you tell me to get out, I will.¡¯ A deep whine came from Raiju, but she didn¡¯t argue with me. She could tell I had something to prove and trusted me to deal with it as long as she was nearby. Ylsa, on the other hand, wasn¡¯t as keen on my new plan. ¡®Are you sure? We could create a¡­¡¯ She trailed off as I shook my head.A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡®Like I said, I¡¯ve got the small fries.¡¯ Pushing Mana through the staff, I summoned a quintet of [Arcane Cannons] to bob around above my head. ¡®If you need me, let me know. This shouldn¡¯t take too long.¡¯ Putting my party out of my mind for a moment as I heard them working their way toward the [Succubi] and [Incubi], I focused on the field of enemies before me. There had to be at least four hundred [Imps] between me and the nearest [Nightfiend] and I fully intended to reap them all. A quick push of intent was enough to start my staff boosted, triple damaging, [Arcane Cannons] firing toward the horde. Wherever their individual beams touched, an [Imp] exploded. With my basic safety seen to, I was able to focus on how I was going to deal with the horde at large. Focusing on the monsters in view, I let [Essence Reading] fill me in on what I was dealing with. [Imp - Rank E Horde Monster Level: 46 Vulnerabilities: Radiant, Cold Resistances: Poison, Acid Immunities: Fire] [The weakest form of fiendkind, Imps are little more than fodder for the generals employing them. They range in size and color, but all maintain a range of resistances and an immunity to fire. The only things to worry about when combating them are their venomous sting, which can cause temporary paralysis and their ability to throw fire a short distance.] They¡¯re fodder, I can¡¯t say I¡¯m concerned if even at level forty-six, they can¡¯t seem to stand up to¡­I guess I¡¯m tripling all my Spell damage now, so maybe I¡¯m a bad example. Either way, as long as they don¡¯t get close, I¡¯m not too worried about them. [Succubi/Incubi - Rank C Monster Level: 46 Vulnerabilities: Radiant, Cold Resistances: Poison, Acid Immunities: Fire] [Two halves of the same lustful coin, Succubi and Incubi are fiends focusing more on the mind than their physical combat ability. Combating them can be quite easy as long as you don¡¯t match eyes with them, for if you do their Lustful Gaze ability may drain your will to fight.] I have to wonder if their ability would even work on me. I¡¯m half tempted to let them use it on me to test it out, but everyone would be pissed if they figured out what I¡¯d done¡­maybe if there¡¯s just the one left? Nah, too risky. Maybe I can find a summoning Skill for one to test it out later. [Nightfiend - Rank A Monster Level: 46 Vulnerabilities: Radiant Resistances: Acid, Cold Immunities: Poison, Fire] [The stuff of nightmares, Nightfiends stand at least fifteen feet tall and continue growing the longer they remain at this stage of evolution. Often serving as generals in the many armies of the hells, Nightfiends exemplify the peak of physicality for fiends. A single fist from even a weak Nightfiend is enough to destroy the average castle wall.] Alright, something I actually need to worry about. I may have a lot of firepower, but my Radiant damage options still kind of suck. If I get into melee with one of these, I¡¯m going to be in for a world of hurt. I really should wait for Ylsa or Raiju to join me before taking one of them on¡­probably. With a thought, I sent the stats and descriptions for the monsters on the floor to the rest of my party through the Party interface before getting down to business. Triggering [Air Step], I raised myself fifteen feet off the ground to get a better look at what I was looking at. My cannons were already putting in work as I watched them each taking out at least one [Imp] every few seconds. At that rate, we¡¯d be able to leave the floor soon, but I didn¡¯t just want to leave the floor, I wanted to destroy it. Channeling lightning into Jaegan¡¯s Staff, the head of it started to blaze with blue light as I crystallized what I wanted to happen with the gathered energy. While [Elemental Mastery] gave me a hell of a lot of flexibility in what I could do with my Mana, it had a not-inconsequential downside as well. Every single time I used it, I had to create the image of what I wanted. It was easy when I was just imitating a Skill I used to have or had seen used before, but when I wanted to make a change or, Dominus forbid, something totally new? That was a bitch. What I wanted now was a combination of two Skills, with one being [Chain Lightning] and the other being [Fireball], but shifted to use lighting instead of fire. I wanted each point in the chain of the [Chain Lightning] to explode like a lightning based [Fireball] a [Sparkball] if you will. I¡¯d toyed with the idea the night before, but hadn¡¯t had a chance to try it out. Now I had the chance and I was having a bitch of a time with it. I can visualize exactly what I want, but when I try to let the Mana loose in the pattern I¡¯m thinking of, it doesn¡¯t want to go. I have to be missing something! Maybe I should just go with [Chain Lightning]? I waffled about it for almost a minute, even letting a single [Chain Lightning] go as I thought, but I was unimpressed by the mere seven [Imps] it killed for the Mana spent. That¡¯s not going to work, or we¡¯ll be here all day. What would Jaegan do? As my mind wandered, I remembered something Jaegan had told me around the campfire after learning about my past issues with magic. ¡°Magic is easy if you let it be. Don¡¯t try and force it to do what you want, let it do what it wants and you¡¯ll always be good to go. That¡¯s how I got my Unique Skill, [Wallbreaker]. [Magic Missile] was ready to evolve and I just let the System do what it wanted, I didn¡¯t even look at the notification when it popped up.¡± Crazy bastard, letting something so important just happen¡­ sonofabitch. Taking the electricity gathered on the head of Jaegan¡¯s staff, I threw another two percent of my Mana into it and just let it go. The results weren¡¯t exactly what I wanted, but they were damned impressive regardless. The bolt of blue lightning leaping from the staff streaked toward a lone [Imp] rushing toward me, burned a hole through it, and barreled deep into the gathered group of [Imps]. It must have bounced from a dozen dead [Imps] before it really showed what it was meant to do. The fifteenth chain bolt struck the leader of the section the Spell had ripped through, a [Succubus] with a blinding flash of light. The electric energy surged through her body, building and intensifying until she was a living conduit of pure electricity. Her form shimmered and distorted, her eyes glowing with an unnatural intensity. The succubus let out a blood-curdling scream as the energy within her reached critical mass. With a deafening explosion, the succubus¡¯ body was consumed by a torrent of electricity, her form obliterated in a blinding flash of light. The air was filled with the acrid scent of ozone, and the ground trembled beneath the force of the blast, leaving behind a hundred and fifty-foot crater where the succubus once stood. I stared down, stunned at what I¡¯d just done when a System notification popped up in my vision. [New Unique Skill Discovered - Resonant Bolt As the first person to discover this Skill, it has been added to your list of Unique Skills. Skill Dominance Mastery Increase: 41¡ú46%] ¡°A whole new Unique Skill¡­ and look at that [Skill Dominance] boost! Holy shit¡­¡± I took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. ¡°I can¡¯t say it was what I was hoping for, but I can¡¯t say I¡¯m disappointed. Even without Jaegan¡¯s staff, I¡¯m pretty sure it would have been pretty impressive. Took nearly seventy Mana to do it, but it was pretty damn impressive.¡± ¡®Are you OK?!¡¯ Raiju¡¯s voice cut off my musings. ¡®That was a big explosion! Were you in it?¡¯ Shit, I should have let them know I was OK. I hurried to do just that. ¡®Just testing out a new Skill. It seems like it worked out. I think it killed at least fifty [Imps] and a [Succubus].¡¯ ¡®You don¡¯t know?¡¯ Ylsa deadpanned. ¡®Typical for my liege, not taking care of his accounting.¡¯ My dwarven sensibilities were offended. ¡®I¡¯ll have you know I have every coin I¡¯ve ever had tracked down to the copper. As of now¨C¡± ¡®Not that kind of accounting.¡¯ She let out a surprising laugh. ¡®I meant you never seem to realize how crazy the things you do turn out. We¡¯re still fighting our first [Incubus] and you blew one up just now? Crazy.¡¯ I kind of like the new Ylsa. Maybe Jaegan was a bit too much of a stabilizing influence on her and now she¡¯s getting to spread her metaphorical wings? I pondered what she said for a moment as my [Arcane Cannons] picked off a dozen [Imps]. ¡®You might be right. I¡¯ll have to work on that.¡¯ ¡®Don¡¯t bother, we¡¯ll take care of that stuff.¡¯ She assured me. ¡®You just need to focus on being the brilliant [Suzerain] you were meant to be and we¡¯ll make sure to document everything.¡¯ The [Arcweaver] siblings chimed in their agreement along with Raiju. ¡®Fair enough.¡¯ I shrugged to no one. ¡®I¡¯m going to see how much I can push [Elemental Mastery] as I work on this horde. If you hear any big explosions, they¡¯re probably me. I¡¯ll make sure to message you guys if I¡¯m in trou¨C¡¯ A two hundred pound boulder flying hundreds of miles per hour cut my message short as it slammed into my shoulder, breaking it, and sending me spinning to the ground. Chapter 53 - Nightfiends are Petty Bastards My scream of pain was cut off as a huge black fist slammed into a red shield just in front of my solar plexus half a second before I was going to hit the ground, sending me rocketing down into the red stone and bouncing me off it like a damn red bouncy ball. The only thing that saved me from death was the [Ruby Heart] Jaegan left behind. When the boulder struck me, I triggered the crystalline shield function on instinct and there¡¯s no doubt in my mind it saved my life. The ruby shards of the shattered shield sped toward the face of the twenty-five foot tall [Nightfiend] looming over my prone body. To my surprise, it spoke to me in a dialect of Abyssal I knew. ¡°That was my favorite concubine you just killed. You won¡¯t live to regret it, not that you smooth brained fools can even understand me.¡± He raised a foot to slam down on my whole body and end my existence before I started panicking. ¡°I understand you!¡± I wheezed and a bit of blood flitted down to rest on the grey leather of [Hydra¡¯s Ward]. I may not have gotten blasted by the fist, but I was still down twenty percent of my health from just the boulder to the shoulder, which doesn¡¯t even take into account my broken shoulder. The [Nightfiend] pulled his foot back and let it fall to the ground with a resounding boom. ¡°Tiny man speaks the true tongue? Preposterous.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± I made to sit up and the monster stopped me with a look. ¡°I was tutored in the true tongue as a child to ensure I would be able to serve ones as great as you!¡± I lied through my teeth. Mom taught me Abyssal so I¡¯d be able to use it for contracts with demon servants I summoned with [Ritual Magic]. I¡¯d summoned my first [Imp] that way at six years old, though I didn¡¯t bother binding the useless thing. As the creature pondered my lie, I hurried to message my party. ¡®Got ambushed by a [Nightfiend]. It¡¯s not going well. Can I get some help over here?¡¯ A few moments went by before a response came. ¡®Same thing over here, the four of us are going all out on this thing and it¡¯s shrugging off everything we¡¯ve got access to.¡¯ Ylsa¡¯s usually calm voice came through frazzled. ¡®I¡¯m sorry, but you¡¯re on your own, my liege.¡¯ ¡®Don¡¯t worry about me, I can take care of this big idiot. I¡¯ll be over to help you as soon as I can.¡¯ I cut off the connection as the fiend rubbed his chin while looking at me. ¡°If you were raised as a servant, why do you wear armor?¡± His voice made it feel like my whole body was shaking, sending bolts of pain through my broken shoulder. ¡°May I stand, oh great lord? It is the highest form of disrespect to speak to one so honorable and powerful as you while laying down on the job.¡± Come on dummy, let me get up. Maybe I¡¯ll be able to pop a potion while I get up too? If my math is right, a Rare [Healing Potion] should take care of my shoulder and the HP I¡¯m down. His chest rumbled as he laughed. ¡°No. Worms like you should remain where you belong, far below my impressive stature.¡± His large black set of rams horns glinted in the light as he stared down at me with glittering red and black eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t look like the rest of the fiends here. What are you?¡± Well, shit. That didn¡¯t work. What am I going to do now? I can¡¯t tell him I¡¯m not a fiend, or he¡¯ll kill me for sure. Come on memory, we need those lessons! The monster drew black an ebony fist that began to crackle with purple energy as he poised to pound me out of existence. Obviously, I¡¯d taken too long to answer for his liking. In a panic, I blurted out the first kind of fiend I could remember. ¡°I¡¯m an [Archivist of the Abyss]!¡± Somehow, [Status Shield] took that as instructions to change my Status, which likely saved my life as I felt the enormous fiend scan it moments later. [Archivist of the Abyss - Rank D Monster Level: 46 Vulnerabilities: Radiant Immunities: Fire, Psychic] The [Nightfiend] blinked a few times before letting his fist fall to his side. He cocked his head at me instead. ¡°A D-rank like you was able to do that to my army?¡± He waved back at the crater from my [Resonant Bolt] and I kept my lips shut as I nodded rapidly. Score one for Grandpa on giving me[Status Shield], though I don¡¯t think he ever saw me using it like that. I¡¯m nearly certain it just saved my life. For a moment, I wondered why he wasn¡¯t asking why I did it before it dawned on me. Fiends kill each other all the time, so he¡¯s not mad I did it! He just wants to know how I did it! Emboldened, I slowly sat up and brushed off my armor. ¡°I found a Spell and wanted to test it out. They just happened to be where I chose to do that.¡± When he nodded, I made to slowly stand up and he actually stepped back to give me space. I forgot something really important about fiends, and demons in particular. They may speak Abyssal, but their first language is power and I¡¯ve demonstrated it. Cracking my neck, I worked on brushing the red dust off my armor before turning to look up at the enormous demon. ¡°The destruction of lightning is just gorgeous, isn¡¯t it?¡± I focused on [Arcane Armor] and [Sun Armor], triggering both at once as I sent lightning cascading over my body to hide what I was doing. ¡°Bah,¡± the [Nightfiend] snorted, ¡°raw void energy is my path to power.¡± His hands briefly clasped into fists and the moment he did that same purple and black energy, void energy, sprang into existence before fading as soon as his fists opened up. I clapped a fist to my chest, never taking my eyes off of the [Nightfiend]¡¯s horns, which were slowly accumulating some sort of energy between them. ¡°I was not so lucky as to be granted access to the void by the Abyss. Instead, I was limited to the pitiful power of the elemental nodes.¡±The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Sorry Elemental Monarchs! I¡¯m trying to save my ass here. I¡¯ll make it up to you later. I threw the mental message into the universe and hoped they¡¯d somehow receive it. Dominus? Can you assist me with that? I know you can¡¯t interfere directly right now, but that shouldn¡¯t count, right? I felt a tickle in the back of my head akin to a giggle and immediately put it out of my mind. I had a demon to distract and/or kill. Looking around, I found the hordes farther away from me were running away from the pair of us, not toward, and an evil smile came across my face. I rubbed my chin, where a beard would be on anyone with more dwarven blood than me. ¡°Would you care for another demonstration on,¡± I let out an evil chuckle, ¡°your fellows¡¯ armies instead?¡± The demon general looked down on me and his abyssal gaze warped into a similar evil grin to my own. ¡°That would be¡­informative.¡± As the massive demon led me toward his eastern neighbor, I informed my party of what I was planning on doing through the Party Chat. Ylsa wasn¡¯t exactly happy with it, but with how powerful the [Nightfiends] ended up being, she didn¡¯t resist too harshly. Raiju chimed in to let me know she¡¯d helped take down another one of the generals that had jumped them by ripping out its throat as Ylsa tied up its glowing fists. A couple of Uncommon [Healing Potions] were enough to get them back to full health, at least according to the interface. With the knowledge that my Party was doing alright, I followed the [Nightfiend], who I learned was referred to as Quadrus by his fellows. He was the fourth most powerful [Nightfiend] around and his name would change if that status did the same. When he stopped walking, I looked down and saw a thin brown line snaking from the center of the floor toward the wall. ¡°Test it out on those.¡± His voice grated on my ears. ¡°The fewer of them left, the better. For testing purposes, of course.¡± His evil grin was in full view as the energy between his horns continued to grow. At this point, it was about the size of a ripe cantaloupe and it kept growing, even as I watched it. ¡°Milord, before I go, I have to ask, what is that collection of energy growing between your horns? It¡¯s mesmerizing.¡± I faked awe as he turned to look down at me. ¡°My lunch.¡± He reached a hand up and pulled the glowing purple and black orb out before opening his mouth and throwing it in and crunching down. The pulse of energy was almost enough to knock me down, even contained within his mouth. ¡°Pure void energy from the battles between my servants. Far better than just eating them, if you ask me. How can they fight if I eat them?!¡± He howled with laughter before stretching a hand out to point at a particularly dense pocket of demons in the middle of his rival¡¯s army around half a mile away. ¡°Aim there if you can, Tertius¡¯ favorite [Incubus] is in there and I¡¯d love to see her face when he gets blown back to the Abyss.¡± It¡¯s strange, but he hasn¡¯t even poked a finger over that line on the ground. Is he tied to this wedge of the floor? It would make sense, that way you¡¯d have to be on a border to fight a pair of them together, instead of them ganging up on Climbers. Might be good if I pretend I can¡¯t either, but keep it in mind so I can escape later. Stepping up to within five feet of the district dividing line, I stretched out my good arm with Jaegan¡¯s staff in hand as I muttered arcane nonsense to obfuscate what I was actually doing. After half a minute of fake Spellcasting, I triggered [Resonant Bolt] and let it actually start charging up while I continued chanting. Another thirty seconds later and I held a construct of energy on the tip of the staff worth half my Mana pool worth of energy, if I hadn¡¯t provided ninety percent of what was gathered from the area around me. As is, it had only cost five percent of my own Mana, a far cry from the last time I¡¯d tried it. With an unnecessary grunt, I hurled the Spell into the mass of demons surrounding a statuesque [Incubus]. The results exceeded my every expectation. To be clear, I¡¯d been expecting something similar to what had happened to Quadrus¡¯ concubine, to have the lightning gather up and then detonate all at once, and it did that. What I didn¡¯t expect was the increase in the blast radius. The moment I threw the bolt, I knew it was different. It was more. It streaked toward the nearest [Imp] in the group and shot through it without pausing even a moment before passing all throughout the group in a clockwise pattern. The bolt blew through its fifteenth target without even pausing until it hit its twenty-fifth target, the [Incubus] of the hour, as it were. The moment the bolt struck him, he began to glow like the noonday sun at the height of Summer in the desert. My eyes ran with tears as I watched him go from a nearly blinding bar of light to the resulting explosion. If my first time using [Resonant Bolt] was to be compared to a [Fireball], then this time was more like [Meteor Swarm]. It was bigger, badder, and the pressure wave from it knocked me and Quadrus onto our asses as the ground merely ten feet in front of us was erased from existence. When I was finally able to open my eyes again, I looked out at what I¡¯d done and was actually a bit frightened. ¡°Dom¨CAbyss guide me.¡± I quickly caught myself before glancing over at Quadrus, who was giggling like a maniacal child. Is that even weaker than [Dominus¡¯ Fury]? I felt a pinch in the back of my head and knew I was treading a fine line. I mean, it¡¯s pretty damn impressive, though it took over thirty seconds to gather and then had to arc through twenty-four targets before landing on the epicenter¡­while [Dominus¡¯ Fury] is instant godly retribution, so it¡¯s obviously stronger and more versatile. Damn it. I¡¯m going to have to talk to Grandpa about registering, aren¡¯t I? Shit. ¡°Archivist, you¡¯re going to need a real name, because we¡¯re going to be working together for the foreseeable future.¡± The [Nightfiend]¡¯s giggling turned into cackling as the barrier line before us began to dissolve. The huge figure stretched out a tentative finger over the line and absolutely lost his shit when nothing stopped him from doing so. He threw his head back and roared loud enough for me to try and use my bad arm to block my ears. Seeing my chance, I pulled a vial of Rare [Healing Potion] from my bandolier and gulped it down quickly before slotting it back a second later. As I fought back the grimace as my shoulder and collarbone were being rebuilt, I observed the results of my Spell with more than a bit of awe. The previous detonation had been respectable, over one hundred and fifty feet across, but this was on another level. My blast exposed the grey Tower stone fifty feet below the red dirt of the Fourth Floor for almost half a mile in all directions from the point of detonation. Just the blast wave had thrown me back nearly fifty feet, and while it only sent the general back ten feet, he was a being nearly thirty times my mass, if only five times my height. If I¡¯m ever going to use this in combat at that level again, I¡¯m going to have to make sure to do it from the nearest hillside, not on the actual battlefield. Grandpa had the same thing happen with his [Thousand Rays of Destruction], so hopefully he can help me with [Resonant Bolt]. Yet another reason to go to Sunhome and leave this backwater behind me. This tiny ¡®berg took a friend from me and I¡¯m never going to forgive it for that. For a second, Jaegan¡¯s staff seemed to twitch in my grip before I tightened my grip on it. Keep it together, Quadrus can¡¯t know how shaken up I am. Can¡¯t have him see me shaking at my own Spell. I got to my feet gingerly, as the potion working on my body still wasn¡¯t quite done and I really didn¡¯t want my shoulder to heal poorly. It¡¯d happened once in training as a child and the pain of having a bone rebroken to be rehealed was something I¡¯d never willingly experience again. ¡°I¡¯ll leave my name up to you, milord. I¡¯m just glad you like the result of my efforts.¡± I gave him another half-bow without breaking eye contact. The demon stared at me with the most intense look for almost a minute before nodding to himself. ¡°Your new name is Conflux.¡± Part of me was surprised, but in the end, he wasn¡¯t wrong. I was my mother¡¯s son. ¡°Sounds good, call me Conflux.¡± Chapter 54 - Mop Up, Demon Style Over the next hour and a half, Quadrus led me through another five of his rivals¡¯ portions of the floor, detonating them and their armies alike. With my natural Mana regeneration, I could likely have kept going, but I faked being tired and my unwitting guide begrudgingly led me back to his portion of the floor, only to find his army completely wiped out. In their place stood my party in all their glory. Half an hour before, I¡¯d had them move over and get to work on clearing out the remainder of Quadrus¡¯ army. It was only when they told me they were all healed up and ready that I¡¯d put on my act and brought him back to his original wedge. He roared before lowering his head to charge at the assembled party like a huge black [Minotaur] with another orb of void energy floating between his horns. ¡°My army! I¡¯ll eat your entrails for breakfast! Conflux, attend me!¡± He screamed as he blasted toward them and I joined him, but not the way he expected. Behind his raging form, I jogged as I produced dozens and then hundreds of [Light Arrows] in a fan above my head. While [Elemental Mastery] wasn¡¯t directly able to help with my efficiency in producing the Skill, my practice with it had definitely worked wonders in my ability to pull energy from the air around me instead of just using my internal Mana reserves. It was harder when it wasn¡¯t an elemental ability, but radiant energy was produced in small quantities whenever light was present and all I had to do was snag a hold of those small motes of energy to serve as the building blocks for my [Light Arrows]. ¡°Hey, Quadrus?¡± I singsonged. ¡°I don¡¯t think this relationship is going to work out. This is a toxic workplace and I quit. Thanks for the name though, I think I¡¯ll keep it.¡± The huge [Nightfiend] stumbled as he couldn¡¯t resist turning to look at me, but before he could say anything, I unleashed two hundred [Light Arrows] directly toward his face and torso in a flurry. His look of shock quickly turned into rage as the first arrow struck his cheek and blew a hole straight into his mouth. Somehow, he managed to turn his entire body around faster than I could perceive as he completely disregarded my party in favor of erasing me from existence. The egg of void energy between his horns pulsed and the vast majority of my [Light Arrows] streaked toward it, but maybe twenty were aimed low enough that being pulled up just sent them streaking into his face. ¡°You¡¯ll die for this betrayal, Conflux!¡± The massive general¡¯s strides devoured the distance between us in less than a second as he hurled a huge haymaker straight for my miniscule body. Just before he was about to make impact, I flexed my will and produced a [Wall of Force] between the two of us and, while I felt my HP take a hit from the impact, he definitely had it worse. I grunted as the massive demon¡¯s severed arm grasped for me after my [Arcane Armor] and [Sun Armor] ate up most of the force remaining after it was removed. The [Nightfiend]¡¯s eyes glowed crimson and ebony as he pounded his remaining fist into my [Wall of Force] thirty times in less than five seconds. Despite my HP regeneration, if he didn¡¯t stop soon, I was going to be in for a world of hurt. Luckily, while he was on his own, I had a party to help me out. Raiju was the first member of my party to arrive on scene and she went at Quadrus with a vengeance. She was everywhere, biting him, tripping him up, and shocking the ever living Abyss out of him with her [Lightning Strike]. Ylsa arrived just as Raiju used [Winds of Fury] to shove the fiend back from the barrier and down to the ground. The [Mountain Tempest] somehow arrived like she¡¯d been thrown with [Bloodsplitter] drawn back and [Primordial Fury] screaming from her lungs. She came down like a hammer of an angry goddess, which she kind of was, on Quadrus¡¯ remaining arm, only to be deflected as the void energy between his head pulsed once more, throwing my allies back and shattering my [Wall of Force]. I fell to one knee as the sudden shattering of my wall sent a shock through my system. My eyes bulged when I saw the debuff I was dealing with. [You have been afflicted with System Shock, leaving you unable to use any Skills for the next two minutes.] What am I going to do to him now? Without my Skills, I¡¯m a sitting duck! I clutched Jaegan¡¯s staff to my chest as Quadrus rose to his feet like he was a marionette on a set of really huge strings. The void energy from around his horns quickly surrounded him in a cocoon of sorts and, no matter what Ylsa, Volta, Voltaire, and Raiju did to it for the next minute, nothing was even able to scratch it. When the cocoon split open, a small part of me was surprised to see Quadrus¡¯ name show up on his Status, but the rest of me was terrified of what I was seeing on the rest of it. [Quadrus - Unique - Rank S Monster Level: 46 Vulnerabilities: None Immunities: Poison, Fire, Acid, Cold] ¡°CONFLUX!!!¡± The newly evolved demon exited his chrysalis to reveal a figure merely ten feet tall compared to his previous towering stature, but instead of missing an arm he now had four in place of his original two. Armor that appeared to be made of the night itself covered his body from head to toe, with only cutouts for his horns and face. ¡°YOU DIE NOW!!!¡± He moved so fast, he may as well have teleported as he lashed out an armored foot to slam into my chest and send me flying into the air while simultaneously knocking all the air out of my lungs. Dark energy gathered between his horns as he screamed obscenities at me, and this time I was pretty sure it wasn¡¯t his lunch as a beam of pure void energy ripped out towards me from it a moment later. I braced for the impact, but to my surprise, it never came. In front of me stood the familiar form of Voltaire, his [Arcweaver] body wavering as the energy binding him to Genovia drifted out through the foot wide hole in his chest. He spun to face me in the air and bowed. ¡°It has been a pleasure serving you, Pactlord. I hope¨C¡± Before he could finish, he burst into static and I heard his sister¡¯s roar of indignation and rage off to my left. While part of me reeled, the part containing my mother and father¡¯s training kicked in as I threw my arm out and [Arlo¡¯s Animated Buckler] sprang to life, producing a mostly transparent, blue, floating shield of force about the same size as a large dinner plate. It hovered between us as I raised my other arm to level the [Ruby Heart] at him with a clenched fist. Lances of crimson light speared out from the circle of ruby toward the fiend and, while the [Ruby Heart] may feel warm to the touch, it isn¡¯t the warmth of a fire, it was actually the warmth of the sun. Quadrus took the first beam on the shoulder, only to roar out in pain as the radiant damage ripped into his new armor. His devastating speed was more than enough to dodge the next five bolts of energy from me as I fell toward the ground below, but while I¡¯d been hanging in the air, my Party hadn¡¯t been stagnant.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Ylsa slugged back a green potion before triggering [Primordial Fury] once more and launching herself at the monster with reckless abandon, [Bloodsplitter] drawn back to cleave into the large fiend. She landed right in the path of one of my crimson light beams and, due to the secondary effect of the [Ruby Heart]¡¯s attacks, was actually healed a bit as she hauled off into the waiting pair of Quadrus¡¯ with a grunt. The moment his hands landed on her blade, she tried to spin out of his grip, but soon gave up on overpowering him physically and instead activated [Storm Knuckles] the moment before she released her greataxe. Dropping low, she delivered a devastating combination to his body, her Unique Skill going to work, building up stacks of resonance damage on the creature while Raiju and Volta harried him from the other side with a barrage of lightning and wind blades he needed both of his free hands to deal with. I¡¯m not going to say my landing was graceful, it was anything but that, but I can say that Arlo¡¯s gift really helped absorb the impact of me slamming into the ground. Though it cost a few durability points on it to do so, I marked them off as a cheap alternative while [System Shock] was still fucking with me. A quick glance at my Status told me I still had forty-five seconds without my Skills, but that made me think. It specifies Skills, but I also have¡­ Leveling Jaegan¡¯s staff at the fiend alongside the constant barrage of crimson lances from the [Ruby Heart], I focused on the first time I¡¯d ever used [Magic Missile], two decades before my System Day. I hadn¡¯t had its help then and I didn¡¯t have it now. Chanting the words of power I¡¯d first uttered at two years old and polished training with my mother, I cast [Magic Missile] without the assistance of the System. It wasn¡¯t as powerful as it usually was, but it happened, and that¡¯s what mattered to me at that point. A dozen tiny darts of force spun around the head of Jaegan¡¯s staff for a second as I let myself be happy casting the Spell for the first time in forever. With a surge of will, I sent the tiny force darts spiraling toward the titanic force that was Quadrus. His impressive speed would have been enough to dodge nearly any Spell or Skill in my arsenal, but [Magic Missile] is the go to spell for most [Mages] for a very good reason besides being cheap to cast. It never misses. It can be deflected, but that requires a highly specific Skill only learned by certain bodyguard or knight classes. The dozen projectiles from my Spell slammed into the miniscule gaps along his breastplate, bypassing his armor as only force and psychic Spells can. Green blood poured out from those holes as Jaegan¡¯s staff tripled the damage of my Spell. His eyes blazed with crimson light as he threw his head back and howled. Our only melee combatant at the time, Ylsa, was thrown back nearly fifty feet alongside her axe, which landed uncomfortably close to her head as it skidded along the ruddy dirt. She was back up in a flash, charging toward the demon, but he only had eyes for me despite my other companions¡¯ attempts to get his attention. ¡°YOU WILL NOT LIVE TO REGRET BETRAYING ME!¡± His voice boomed out ahead of his body as he blurred toward me again and this time, I didn¡¯t have a [Wall of Force] in my back pocket to block him. All I had was my father¡¯s training to fall back on and I didn¡¯t hesitate to put it to work. Dropping low to avoid Quadrus¡¯ attempt to grapple me with his lower arms, I put my small stature to good use as I dodged between his legs, an [Obsidian Dagger] in one hand and my staff in the other as I traced the blade over the back of his right greave, parting the armor on that leg like an eggshell before he could react. He whirled around and tried kneeing me in the head, but I was a man on a mission as I put my paternal grandfather¡¯s tunnel fighting training to use. I¡¯d cursed his name for months after the week I¡¯d spent with him in the caves under Ironhold, but now I was glad for the experience as I treated Quadrus like a [Cave Ogre Skirmisher], strong, fast, and absolutely unaware of how to fight something so much smaller than him. Quadrus was so much faster than me that I wasn¡¯t able to get in more than a few slashes over the next thirty seconds alongside my [Magic Missiles], but the few I was able to get removed pieces of armor from the equation. By the time he finally clipped me with a rogue elbow and sent me reeling ten feet away, shattered [Obsidian Dagger] hilt in hand, I¡¯d removed all his leg armor, the majority of his cuirass, and all the armor on his four arms. Before he could dash over and stomp my head in, Ylsa made her presence known. She slammed into his exposed lower back with [Bloodsplitter] glowing white. ¡°[Edge of Spring]!¡± Unlike when she¡¯d last struck at him, this time she landed a hit on his flesh and the white energy coating her blade sprang into the wound and then detonated into a dozen more blades of wind, carving up his back and legs before he spun around and grabbed ahold of her blade once more. The moment he did so, a huge blast of lightning crashed down on his head from above, where Raiju and Volta floated with a massive fifty foot tall thunderhead above them. Volta had one hand extended up toward the thunderhead and another pointed down at Quadrus¡¯ twitching form while Raiju had her jaws wide open as she howled. Despite all that, he didn¡¯t fall. In fact, he began to laugh the moment he stopped twitching. ¡°PUNY BEINGS, YOUR DOOM HAS COME.¡± He threw his head back and laughed as the energy around his crown of horns pulsed, it was nearly ready once more. As I was scrambling back to my feet, I spotted a long awaited notification and my whole plan changed in an instant. [You are no longer afflicted with System Shock. All Skills are available once more.] Drawing deep upon my dwindling Mana, I used the only pair of Skills I had access to that I thought would let me fight Quadrus on equal footing. [Haste] and [Elemental Form]. In less than a heartbeat, gone was the tiny mutt of an adventurer and in my place was a seven foot tall figure radiating lightning in an aura all around. Ylsa gasped. ¡°A [Lightning Baron]. You truly are Storm-Blessed!¡± [A Lightning Baron is a majestic elemental being, its form composed entirely of crackling multicolored electricity. It stands tall and proud, its body shimmering with a blinding intensity. Its eyes, two piercing bolts of lightning, seem to pierce through the very fabric of reality. The Lightning Baron is often adorned in ornate, flowing robes, their vibrant colors seeming to dance and shift with the electric currents that course through its body. With a single word or gesture, the Lightning Baron can summon bolts of lightning from the sky, or conjure a shield of crackling electricity to protect itself from harm.] Flexing my newly elongated fingers, I summoned a pair of fighting knives made of blue and white lightning respectively. ¡°Yeah, I never worked for you. You worked for me and I¡¯m terminating that contract, effective immediately.¡± A flash of lightning later and I stood on the other side of him, having streaked straight through him. I spun and buried my blue blade into where a kidney would be on a human as the white blade cleaved straight into his spine. Both triggered [Backstab] and another notification popped up, but I didn¡¯t have time to read it as he defied logic by spinning around, effectively severing his spine, to attempt to grab hold of me. Shocked, I didn¡¯t react in time and he snagged me before beginning to squeeze. If I¡¯d needed to breathe, I¡¯d have been worried, but as a [Lightning Baron], that wasn¡¯t a problem for me. I tried to pass through him once more and found I couldn¡¯t. ¡°What the¨C¡± He looked down at me and spat as his eyes danced crazily. ¡°IF I MUST DIE, YOU DIE WITH ME!¡± His whole body took on a glow matching the missing orb from between his horns and I suddenly knew why he hadn¡¯t protected his spine. ¡°He¡¯s going to blow! Get clear!¡± I screamed as I cursed my [Elemental Form] for its lack of ability to cast Spells. It was the only real downside to the Skill. It gave me the ability to take on the form of any elemental I knew enough about in exchange for losing access to most, if not all, of my gear and Skills for the duration of the Skill. The only way to dismiss it was to have the form get destroyed or a minute long dismissal, so I didn¡¯t have time to summon a [Wall of Force] to protect my friends. In a panic, I did the only thing I could think of. I grabbed hold of him and suplexed him before propelling the pair of us toward the farthest gathering of demons at blistering speeds. It was the zone controlled by Primus, Quadrus¡¯ most hated rival and the most powerful [Nightfiend] on the fourth floor before Quadrus¡¯ evolution. ¡°I¡¯m not going to let another friend die to save me again. Never!¡± I clinched his arms with my own arms and legs as the purple glow intensified to an almost blinding level. ¡°TOGETHER WE DIE, CONFLUX!¡± Quadrus¡¯ scream is the last thing I remembered before the world went purple and then black. Chapter 55 - You Blow Up a Lot When I opened my eyes, a trio of blinking notifications filled my vision, obscuring the rest of the world until I mentally pushed them aside. Sitting up, I found a dog-sized Raiju resting on my legs while Ylsa stood a few yards away speaking with Volta animatedly. I couldn¡¯t hear what they were talking about, but from what it looked like, Ylsa was pissed off and Volta was trying to talk her down. She¡¯s probably got that. Probably. ¡°Hey.¡± I ran a hand through Raiju¡¯s fur. ¡°How long was I out this time?¡± She raised her head and lolled out her tongue as she laid it down in my lap. ¡°Ten minutes, tops.¡± She sighed and flicked her gaze over to the irate goliath. ¡°Fair warning, Ylsa took a ton of damage and Volta had to feed her that special potion you gave her or she would have died. She¡¯s been arguing with Volta about how much of a waste it was for five minutes or so.¡± ¡°Ylsa, Volta, get over here.¡± I barked at the pair arguing, surprising even myself. ¡°Please?¡± I added lamely. The pairstarted at my assertion before complying, though I could have sworn I caught a hint of a smile on Volta¡¯s face for half a second before it disappeared like a mirage. The pair saluted me when they stopped a few feet away from me. ¡°Volta, good work. My biggest priority is always going to be keeping everyone alive,¡± I winced, ¡°which is why I¡¯ll be resummoning your brother as soon as I can.¡± She nodded appreciatively. ¡°It appears the Tower didn¡¯t like me summoning more help, so it¡¯s blocked my ability even on this floor. I¡¯ll try again in the safe room on the next floor.¡± I turned my gaze to Ylsa. ¡°If you insist on arguing I¡¯ve wasted a potion on you, I¡¯ll dump another one on the ground right now.¡± I thumbed the top of a vial in my bandolier. ¡°Things can be replaced, and I didn¡¯t even pay for those, so don¡¯t feel bad. Auntie Meg will make me more if I send her a letter or a [Sending]. I¡¯ll just have to have Grandpa or Mom deliver it when we get to Sunhome.¡± I stared her straight in the eye as I drew out the Pseudo-Legendary potion and started to tip it. ¡°Am I clear?¡± She hesitated a moment and I tipped it farther, the vibrant red liquid inside forming a bead on the lip that threatened to fall to the ground. ¡°I agree, now please¨C¡± I tipped the vial back level, corked it, and tossed it to her. ¡°You used the last one, so here¡¯s another. I¡¯ve still got two more, so don¡¯t be afraid to use it.¡± Raiju took that moment to stand up and stretch, finally freeing me. I clambered to my feet, twisting my torso this way and that to limber up. ¡°What exactly happened after I blacked out? The last thing I remember was Quaddy screaming in my face as he started to explode.¡± Ylsa was still holding the potion like it was a newborn baby that had flown through the air, not a potion, so Volta helped me out. ¡°The whole floor blew up, give or take. It was only Ylsa using [Bloodsplitter] and channeling [Frost Blade] through it that let us deflect the worst of the blast. It still leaked through and injured her quite severely, but the aforementioned potion took care of that.¡± She saluted again. ¡°According to the Tower, we¡¯re good to move onto the next floor, Pactlord.¡± A quick glance at my notifications told me she was correct, including a big bonus for killing all of the demons instead of just five percent as was required. The other was interesting, if not unexpected. [Edge of Spring Acquired with Skill Dominance] The other was a bit more interesting, if a bit touchy if I was being honest with myself. I never used Dad¡¯s gift, [Night¡¯s Fury], so I haven¡¯t learned [Assassinate] yet. The odds of it being available when I evolve [Backstab] are really good. I wonder¡­ ¡°Ylsa.¡± My voice snapped her out of her stupor as she snapped to attention. ¡°Yes, Storm-Blessed?¡± ¡°Is there a way to delay a Skill evolution without having the stupid notification blinking in the corner of my vision until I go through with it?¡± She looked at me like I was crazy. ¡°Why would you want to delay something like that? Skill evolutions are rare¡­for everyone but you.¡± She sighed. ¡°Not that I know of. Everyone I¡¯ve ever met has just taken care of it the next time they rested for a level up.¡± ¡°Thought that might be the case.¡± I shrugged and mentally blocked out the blinking Skill evolution notification as I looked at my party. Let¡¯s be honest, we were kind of a hot mess at that point. Trying to distract myself I checked my combat log, a minute long ritual I¡¯d never really spent much time going through and found that, apparently, [Hydra¡¯s Regeneration] had kicked in and started its one minute full heal the moment I passed out, which saved my life. ¡°Nothing left to do but go up a floor and take a rest so we can all level up before the boss. Any objections?¡± A few seconds of silence later, I had my answer. ¡°Time to go then.¡± With a mental flick, I hit the button to take us up a floor and the world devolved into white light. A few seconds later, I blinked away the tears to take in the Safe Room. The grand entranceway was a sight to behold. A sweeping white marble staircase ascended majestically towards a set of imposing bronze double doors, their surface adorned with intricate carvings of the Tower¡¯s exterior. Where we rested at the base of the staircase, a spacious twenty-foot area was paved with gleaming silver tiles, reflecting the light from the overhead chandeliers. Flanking the entranceway stood pairs of elegant marble columns, their capitals adorned with intricate details. The Tower walls beyond the columns were a stark contrast to the ornate entranceway, their smooth, grey stone surface devoid of any decoration.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. A closer inspection found the gold line that denoted a Safe Room wrapping around the silver tiled area all the way up to the walls and stairs. ¡°[Trap Master] didn¡¯t trigger and the gold line¡¯s there, so we should be safe. I¡¯ll cook us some dinner and then we¡¯ll take a well deserved rest so we can apply our levels. After that? We stomp the boss¡¯ ass and get back out into the world.¡± Dinner was a solemn affair, with just Ylsa, Raiju, and I eating. I missed Jaegan¡¯s effortless way of getting us to talk more than I could say and the only thing that made it go away, even a little bit, was resting his staff across my knees as I cooked and ate. Just having it nearby was comforting, though I wasn¡¯t sure if it was because of the increase it gave me to my destructive potential, or the fact that my mentor used to bear it. Once we all finished dinner, Raiju and Ylsa both took two heaping portions of the pork fried rice I made, and we all got ready for bed. Ylsa set out her bedroll and I pulled out the [Cloud Carpet]. The moment I got settled on it, Raiju hopped up and curled up by my feet before immediately passing out. I stroked her fur a few times to calm my nerves and let myself drift off to sleep. *** ¡°Four levels at one time?¡± Dominus¡¯ dulcet voice filled my ears. ¡°You spoil me.¡± Smiling despite myself, I opened my eyes to find myself in the parlor I grew up playing in. Dominus was sitting where I usually did on the long tan leather couch with her long legs curled under her and to one side. She wore a tightly fitted set of violet robes any female [Mage] would kill for as they accentuated her divine figure just so. Her flowing blonde hair was tied up in a messy bun with what looked like a pair of kunai holding it in place. The eyes of the throwing blades had gemstones matching the opposite eye of the goddess, cerulean lapis lazuli on one side and smokey topaz on the other. It was her smile that really caught my eye though, it was just so inviting. Gone were her attempts to seduce me, revealing a woman who was just excited to have someone to talk to. Phenomenal cosmic power and an itty bitty living space¡­I mean, relatively. She chose this place to put me at ease and it¡¯s definitely working. ¡°I like what you did with the place.¡± I padded over to join her on the couch and when I sat down beside her I was genuinely surprised to find myself wearing a set of my favorite green [Demonsilk] pajamas. I leaned against her and let my body relax for the first time in a few weeks. ¡°It¡¯s nice to be home, even if it¡¯s only a reflection.¡± ¡°What did I get wrong?¡± The goddess practically pouted, though she did her best to hide her irritation. ¡°Was it the clock?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the smell.¡± I took a deep sniff and sighed deeply. ¡°It¡¯s fall right now, so Momo would be working on her breadmaking, filling the entire house with the heady scent of fresh bread. Right now, it smells like summer, when she works on her pie making. Hence the smell of apple pie in the air.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve got me there, I only really got to look at the house on your System Day.¡± She waved a hand and the smell shifted to match what I¡¯d described. ¡°Better?¡± ¡°It was good either way, but I do love this smell so thank you for that.¡± I reached for her hand and pulled it into both of mine. ¡°I appreciate the effort. Thank you.¡± Dominus looked away and coughed once. ¡°It was the least I could do. You¡¯re out there doing exactly what I wanted and all I could give you was¨C¡± ¡°A SSS-ranked Class and your blessing?¡± I snorted. ¡°You¡¯ve done more than enough.¡± Surprising me, she shook her head. ¡°If I were a bit more powerful, I could have saved¨C¡± ¡°Stop it.¡± I cut her off before she could finish. ¡°Jaegan¡¯s sacrifice was his choice.¡± She looked down at me in confusion. ¡°I was talking about Arlian. Jaegan¡¯s¡­¡± Her eyes lit up. ¡°Have you actually checked the description on Jaegan¡¯s staff since he died?¡± ¡°No.¡± I narrowed my eyes. ¡°Why would I?¡± ¡°Have I led you wrong yet? Please check.¡± She waved her hand and Jaegan¡¯s staff appeared in a metal rack that looked like it was meant for swords or umbrellas, depending on the household. Turning my gaze upon it, I felt [Essence Reading] trigger, something that usually happened in the background so often I put a filter in my System settings to block out all but the most important notifications from. [Staff of the Wallbreaker - Unique Awakened - Stirring Durability - */* - Cannot break while Jaegan¡¯s soul persists within Description - Originally crafted from a thousand year old oak with a sliver of Jaegan ¡°Wallbreaker¡± Toretto¡¯s soul in a moment of need, this staff drastically enhances offensive magic. All Spells cast by the wielder have their damage amplified three-fold. The wielders¡¯ area of effect Spells do not harm those they consider allies. The wielder of this staff can use [Wallbreaker], the Unique Skill of the original bearer. If this staff is taken from Arthur Neilson, it reappears in his grasp a minute later. In Jaegan¡¯s final moments, he poured the shattered remnants of his soul into this staff. Each soul snuffed out by the wielder will be siphoned, strained, and fed to the remnant until it is fully healed. At that point, Jaegan¡¯s soul remnant will be able to communicate with the wielder.] ¡°A soul remnant?¡± My eyes were wide as I turned to find Dominus beaming. ¡°What does this¨C¡± ¡°Jaegan isn¡¯t gone!¡± She couldn¡¯t contain herself. ¡°His body may have disintegrated, but it was only a few years from dying anyway. Now, he¡¯ll live on with you for the rest of time.¡± I was equal parts excited and horrified at what I¡¯d just heard. Though I was leaning toward excitement, I had to ask. ¡°Did he know this was going to happen?¡± She nodded, catching on that I had mixed feelings for what had happened. ¡°He knew because he asked me how to do it. He could feel his soul and body both degrading at a frightening clip and didn¡¯t want to let his soul vanish, losing him access to the afterlife. Instead, I taught him to bind himself to the tiny sliver of his soul already in his staff.¡± ¡°Is he OK with that though? He won¡¯t have arms or legs, or¡­anything anymore.¡± The mere thought of complete lack of bodily control gave me goosebumps. ¡°Wasn¡¯t there any other way?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± She rubbed her thumb on the back of one of my hands. ¡°With your location, there was nothing that could have been, even if you¡¯d used my Fury on the spike, I wouldn¡¯t have been able to save him at that point. Honestly, I¡¯m not great at fixing things, I¡¯m much more the ¡®build a new one¡¯ kind of goddess. To be clear, Jaegan chose his fate. He¡¯s excited to see how you develop as a caster and should be able to guide you on that path far better than most of those hacks who call themselves [Mages].¡± We sat there, just chatting about what I¡¯d gone through since we last spoke, for the better part of two hours. She didn¡¯t agree with everything I did, but didn¡¯t admonish me for my choices either. She said, ¡°What good is having a Chosen if you have to tell them what to do all the time,¡± when I asked her why that was. I wasn¡¯t able to refute her, so I let the point drop. When we got to the part where Arlian sacrificed himself for me, I wept and she held me tight. ¡°He was almost as old as my youngest child, Wild, if you¡¯d believe that.¡± She hummed comfortingly. ¡°He¡¯d been stuck as an [Obsidian Knight] since before the System came to Genovia. Imagine that, a being with so much skill and knowledge bound to the form of a B-ranked elemental when he had the potential to be the next Lava Duke? It was pure torture. His sacrifice was a release, plain and simple. Never question what happened, it was the best outcome¡­trust me.¡± Chapter 56 - Level 30, Feeling Dirty Two hours later, I finished skipping around the story to wrap up when Quadrus exploded. ¡°You said it was four levels this time? I¡¯m going to hit thirty before I¡¯m thirty.¡± A soft chuckle escaped my partially closed lips. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to rub it in Dad¡¯s face!¡± With the knowledge that he¡¯d been forty when he hit level thirty in my back pocket, I was feeling pretty good at that point, despite everything going on. I¡¯m going to feel like shit when this is all over and I get to decompress, but for now I¡¯ll take any little win I can get. Take that Dad! The goddess beamed at me. ¡°I¡¯m both glad and worried to see how quickly you¡¯ve compartmentalized the struggles you¡¯ve had laid upon your shoulders in just the past few days, let alone since you left home.¡± She pulled me in for a long hug against her prodigious breasts. ¡°I may only be able to see you when you level up, but if you ever need to talk, just use my Judgement on something and I can sneak you a tidbit or two if the System doesn¡¯t censor me too badly.¡± ¡°The System can censor a goddess like you?¡± Throwing propriety to the winds, I leaned in and sighed. ¡°I guess it makes some sense, given your current state.¡± She stiffened and I immediately felt bad for what I¡¯d said. ¡°I¡¯m so sor¨C¡± ¡°I¡¯m never going to get mad at you for figuring something out.¡± Stroking my hair, she let out a sigh much longer than my own. ¡°It¡¯s just that I¡¯m sensitive about how much control of my life the System has right now. Before the majority of my children revolted against my rule, the System asked me for permission to make changes to Genovia, but now I can¡¯t even talk to you, my Chosen, without it altering the wording, if not the spirit, of what I¡¯m trying to convey.¡± Something stirred within my chest and before I knew it, I held her like my mother had held me a thousand times before as I reciprocated her hug for what felt like the first time. ¡°It¡¯ll be OK. I¡¯m going to spread word of you throughout the world once more and we¡¯ll get you back where you belong at the top before you know it.¡± A single tear landed on the top of my head before she leaned back and laughed. ¡°I know you will, now let¡¯s get this level up of yours done before our time runs out. Do we have an accord?¡± ¡°We do.¡± I turned around so we could both see my Status before triggering the level up notification. [Level Up - Step 1 of 2 Stat Distribution: Might: 54 Agility: 128 Toughness: 110 Charm: 107 Wits: 124 Perception: 130 Arcane: 300 Divine: 300 You have 120 points to spend.] ¡°With me taking on more of a spellcaster path, all puns aside, I don¡¯t think I should really be putting much into [Might].¡± I muttered to myself. ¡°Any guidance on where to put my points moving forward?¡± ¡°I can give very generalized bits of advice, but even the bits you remember from talking to your mother and grandfather would be more helpful than what I¡¯m allowed to give you.¡± She clung to me like I was a life preserver and she was lost at sea. ¡°I can say that hyper focusing on one or two Stats can be decently powerful, but might leave you open if you didn¡¯t have [Elemental Form] to cover up any physical weaknesses you may or may not have.¡± She winced, as if she¡¯d said too much and the System took umbrage, but didn¡¯t stop her and instead just delivered a jolt of pain as a reminder as to who was in charge now. ¡°Noted, let¡¯s see what I can do here.¡± I spent the next ten minutes flicking through my Stat increase screen before finally settling on what I thought would be the most beneficial in the long run. [Level Up - Step 1 of 2 Stat Distribution: Might: 54 Agility: 128 Toughness: 110 Charm: 107 ¡ú 131 Wits: 124 ¡ú 200 Perception: 130 Arcane: 300 Divine: 300] [Confirm Stat Point Distribution? Y/N] After hitting the confirmation, my thoughts grew clearer as the massive boost to my Wits made thinking easier, even if it didn¡¯t exactly make me any smarter, per se, it would hopefully make the next selection easier. [Level Up - Step 2 of 2 You may choose Dominated Skills and Claim them. This will add them to your normal [Skill List]. Normal Skills cost one point while Unique Skills cost five and [Monster Skills] cost ten.] Claim Points Remaining: 8] ¡°This one¡¯s going to be a bit harder, even with the Wits boost. I hadn¡¯t considered the fact that I was going to have eight points to spend all at once.¡± I leaned back against Dominus¡¯ chest as she scratched my scalp just the way I liked it. ¡°With your [Elemental Mastery], a lot of the Skills you have dominated would just combine with it if you claimed them. If that¡¯s something you want, I¡¯d say to go for it, as the efficiency boost could be incredibly powerful in the long run.¡± Her deep voice rumbled through my chest where it rested against her. ¡°Selecting a Unique Skill is a unique benefit because of you leveling up four times at once, but you¡¯ll have to decide if either of the two you have access to are worth your time.¡±Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. I took a minute to pull up the descriptions for both of the Unique Skills I had access to and the answer was immediately relevant. [Storm Knuckles - Wreath your knuckles in Storm Essence, deal additional lightning, thunder, and cold damage with each blow. Additionally, even while not active, the Skill Bearer cannot be injured by touching things with their hands.] [Serene Glade - Create a zone of absolute privacy where the users¡¯ Skills are all enhanced by 50%. Additionally, even while not active, the area within Divine/10¡¯ always has perfect weather.] ¡°I¡¯m no boxer with my relatively low [Might], so [Storm Knuckles] really isn¡¯t in the cards right now, but [Serene Glade] could be a game changer. A fifty percent boost to my Skills would be insane if it stacked with the [Staff of the Wallbreaker], it¡¯d be even more busted if it stacked with [Suzerain¡¯s Seal] and [Elemental Mastery] for elemental based Spells and Skills.¡± I tipped my head back to look Dominus in the face and found her grinning from ear to ear. ¡°I guess I know what I¡¯m taking then, or at least where the bulk of my points should go.¡± A couple of minutes later, I made my decisions and finished the level up process. [Level Up - Step 2 of 2 Skills Claimed: Serene Glade - Unique Wall of Force Sunlance Sanguimancy Claim Points Remaining: 0] [Confirm Claiming of Skills? Y/N] An instinctual understanding flowed into me as I learned a few more of the intricacies of [Wall of Force] and [Sanguimancy]. From Grandpa¡¯s stories, I was well aware what a well placed [Sunlance] could do to a monster or anything else in its path. ¡°That¡¯s why Mindy was so good at healing!¡± I gasped when I learned how intrinsically [Sanguimancy] was tied to water energy. ¡°She¡¯s a [Hydromancer], so I guess it makes sense she had it. I kind of thought it might have been a racial Skill for her, but I guess I was wrong about that.¡± The incessant notification for [Backstab]¡¯s evolution filled my gaze and wouldn¡¯t go away, no matter what I did. I brought it up to Dominus and she nodded knowingly. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll get something usable, even if it isn¡¯t exactly what you wanted.¡± She perked up. ¡°Maybe it will merge with [Assassinate] when you unlock it?¡± ¡°I can only hope.¡± With a groan, I allowed the evolution to take place and reviewed my options and was pleasantly surprised not to find [Assassinate] among them. [Backstab is ready to Evolve. Please choose one of the following for it to evolve into: Skills Assassin¡¯s Mark Elemental Ambush Death From Above] With a thought, I pulled up the description for the Skills, as I hadn¡¯t ever heard of two of them, which I thought was really weird given the training I¡¯d received from Dad. I knew what [Assassin¡¯s Mark] did, but figured it couldn¡¯t hurt to bring it up alongside the others. [Assassin¡¯s Mark: A nearly undetectable Skill that allows the user to mark a target, making them more vulnerable to subsequent attacks. Elemental Ambush: A Skill that allows the user to infuse their attacks with elemental energy, such as fire, ice, or lightning. Death From Above: A powerful finishing move that allows the user to leap high into the air and deliver a devastating blow from above.] I looked over at Dominus and grinned wickedly. ¡°This isn¡¯t level up related, so can you help me with this one?¡± She hesitated before smiling. ¡°You know I can¡¯t tell you how useless picking [Death From Above] would be for you, but the others are definitely more worth your time.¡± Got it, nixing [Death From Above]. If I need to, I can probably figure out how to learn it naturally by attacking from the air on the way to the ground a few thousand times. The other two though¡­I want them both. ¡°I¡¯ve kind of been pigeonholing myself into being a pure elementalist recently, which isn¡¯t bad since I have a wide breadth of elements to play with, but maybe [Assassin¡¯s Mark] would be better? It would give me a non-elemental way to deal more damage, kind of like how [Backstab] used to. Plus, it¡¯ll probably stack with [Assassinate] when I eventually unlock it.¡± My decision made, I picked [Assassin¡¯s Mark] and grinned as the multitudinous uses it had filled my mind. ¡°Check your benefit for taking Wits to two hundred.¡± Dominus urged me along. ¡°It should be a good one if I remember what I created properly for [Suzerain].¡± I decided to let her last comment slide for the moment in favor of checking out the Wits Boon I got. [Flash Focus - Active Skill - Flash Focus is a Skill that drastically increases the user¡¯s perception speed at the cost of two percent of the user¡¯s Mana per second, with a minimum of one second at a time. Time appears to slow down, allowing the user to react to events with incredible precision and speed. This ability can be used to dodge attacks, analyze complex situations, or simply appreciate the beauty of the world around them. Warning: Extended use of this Skill can have undesirable effects on the user¡¯s mental health.] ¡°Damn.¡± I whistled. ¡°If it didn¡¯t cost so much to use, that¡¯d be totally insane!¡± My mind drifted back to the last time I¡¯d sparred with my father back behind the house. ¡°With this, I could probably beat¡­¡± Dominus¡¯ rich laughter flowed over me and when I craned my neck back to look at her, she had a hand in front of her face as she tried to muffle her outburst. ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡± I narrowed my gaze. She lost it once more and it took nearly two minutes for me to figure out why she was laughing so hard. ¡°Is he really so much stronger than I am?¡± I crossed my arms. ¡°I¡¯ve almost beaten him a few times when sparring with just daggers.¡± ¡°Darling Chosen, your father is one of the most accomplished [Blade Dancers] to grace Genovia in the last hundred generations. That, on top of the level disparity between you, means he¡¯s never shown you more than five percent of his true power. Any more and he¡¯d have accidentally injured you.¡± ¡°What!?¡± My jaw hung low until I clacked it shut as I hurried to ask a question my parents had always dodged. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, why did he and Mom retire from adventuring? I thought it might have to do with someone in their party dying, but they always seemed to be more than the rest of the people in Wyrm¡¯s Rest.¡± For a second, it looked like she was going to answer before angry red strings of energy appeared out of nowhere to sew her lips together. She fought against them for a few seconds before sighing and a moment later the red strings faded like they¡¯d never happened. Instead, she growled. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you much because I can¡¯t afford to get censured again with you out doing things. What I can tell you, according to the agreement I just read, is that your parents and their party made¡­¡± She paused and threw her gaze toward the gently banked fireplace. ¡°Really? That was too much? Shit.¡± She ran her fingers through her long golden hair before doing the same with my platinum locks. ¡°Your parents and their friends,¡± she stared me straight in the eye, ¡°you grew up with didn¡¯t stop adventuring because they wanted to. That¡¯s it. That¡¯s all I can tell you.¡± Message received. I only know two other people who might be able to help me figure out what happened to them and one of them hates me, or at least the idea of me. I guess I will be stopping by Galloway¡¯s house before leaving this backwater kingdom. He¡¯s still Mom¡¯s best friend, even if I never met him, so he should be willing to tell me something of what they were doing before they retired. Anya might know, especially since her mom died just before they retired, but from what Dad said, she probably hates my guts just for existing. Dominus lifted me off her lap like I weighed nothing and set me down on the couch next to her before turning to look at me seriously. ¡°You have time for two more questions before you have to wake up, make them good ones.¡± While I didn¡¯t exactly appreciate being moved, I understood what she was saying and just a few moments later, I had my first question. ¡°S-ranked Classes supposedly grow slower, why isn¡¯t that happening to me? If anything, I feel like I¡¯m growing way faster than someone lower ranked than me.¡± ¡°I thought I¡¯d mentioned it to you, but I¡¯ll happily explain it again regardless.¡± She nodded to herself. ¡°As my Chosen, the System is forced to treat you more nicely than your average SS or SSS-ranked Class. I¡¯m the one who gave the System more than eighty percent of the Skills it uses to give to people. In return, I get better treatment than the other gods and my Chosen get treated better than all the other mortals. Your growth rate is closer to C-rank, which we both know is the second fastest after D-rank. You¡¯re getting all the good parts of the SSS rank of [Suzerain] without the drawbacks. If you¡¯d somehow received [Suzerain] naturally, you¡¯d still be level twenty-four. Our connection is the only thing that makes the Class usable on this world.¡± Part of me was shocked, but I was mostly just glad to know it wasn¡¯t something I was going to have to deal with later. As I soaked that in, I moved on to my next question. ¡°Why are Skills and Spells treated differently by the System?¡± I¡¯d always wondered and even Mom hadn¡¯t known the answer. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s an easier answer.¡± The goddess¡¯ form began to shimmer before she closed her eyes and the effect stopped. ¡°Good thing too, because you¡¯re about to wake up.¡± She laid a hand on my knee. ¡°The reason the System controls all the Skills, but not Spells is that the Spells were here before it arrived on Genovia. Skills contain what used to be called Arts, but Arts were devoured by the System when it arrived. Don¡¯t worry about their loss too much, they sucked and that let the casters take over the world. It¡¯s better now, trust me.¡± Before I could ask anything more, I felt my eyes drifting closed. The last thing I remember before everything went black was Dominus grabbing my hand tenderly before squeezing it like I was the most precious thing in the world. Chapter 57 - The Final Push Upon waking up, I wasn¡¯t surprised to find Raiju resting over my legs, but I was surprised to find Ylsa curled up on the other edge of the [Cloud Carpet] from where I was resting. She was a bit too long, so her feet draped over the edge, but she was snoring peacefully, so I carefully slid off the carpet to get breakfast started. As I cooked, I got my Dominated Skills in order, since most of the ones I had before ended up on my main list already. I couldn¡¯t help but wonder if that was what I was supposed to do. Was it just a way for me to figure out what kinds of Skills I wanted to end up using? I sat there, doing nothing but flipping the contents of a pan for almost a minute before I snapped out of it. No time for that, I¡¯ve got Skills to pick. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 1/5 Sun Armor Arcane Cannon Sunburst Raging Torrent] That should be a good mix of offense and defense, or at least proactive defenses in the case of [Arcane Cannon]. That has to be my next thing I claim, for sure, it¡¯s too versatile not to have access to it all the time. I just hope [Raging Torrent] still gets all my elemental boosts even thought it¡¯s not technically my Skill yet. Taking a moment to activate [Arcane Armor] and [Sun Armor] for the day, I flipped the contents of the pan once more. The smell of bacon coated with [Moonsilver Powder] cooking in the skillet alongside some eggs woke my goliath companion a few minutes later. She rolled off the carpet with more grace than most would allot to her kind, but I knew better. While her primary Stats were [Might], [Toughness], and [Perception] she didn¡¯t let her [Agility] fall too far behind. ¡°Good morning, Storm-Blessed.¡± She bowed from the waist before pulling up a seat on one of the three camp chairs I¡¯d set up. ¡°Still setting three chairs? I guess Volta could sit if she¡¯d like to? You¡¯d have to move the staff though.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Jaegan¡¯s seat until he tells me he doesn¡¯t need it.¡± I waggled my eyebrows at her as I filled a plate with bacon and eggs and handed it to her. She seemed almost offended at my comment, though that didn¡¯t stop her from taking a bite of bacon. Wiping her mouth, she frowned at me. ¡°Jaegan¡¯s sacrifice was noble. Do I need to explain how you beli¨C¡± ¡°Analyze the staff before you give me any more shit.¡± I deftly sliced up my bacon and folded it into the cheesy eggs I made for myself. One huge bite later, I watched as her eyes grew wide at what the description said. ¡°See? It¡¯s his seat still, he just isn¡¯t eating all the bacon anymore.¡± I felt a tinge of something from the staff, but it wasn¡¯t anything more than a twinge. Either way, I was happy to see his soul was recovering. Ylsa¡¯s face went through a gamut of emotions before finally settling on begrudging admiration. ¡°Crazy old man, I hope you like living in a piece of wood.¡± That seemingly handled, she swiftly polished off the mound of food I¡¯d presented to her before taking my empty plate and tossing the dirty plates in her spatial bag. We still had a dozen sets of clean dishes, so we¡¯d worry about cleaning the dirty ones after we got out of the tower. Twenty minutes later, I was swearing at the interface for [Elemental Pactlord]. ¡°What the fuck do you mean I can¡¯t summon Voltaire back? This is a bunch of bullshit, I was lying to a demon!¡± [The Arcweaver you know of as Voltaire is not available to be summoned by you at this time. The Lightning Elemental Duke has put a ban in place due to a comment he overheard while you were speaking with the Nightfiend, Quadrus. He has requested ten pieces of fulgurite be delivered to his palace before he will allow you to summon Voltaire again.] Beside me, Volta stared at the system window with unveiled hatred on her face. She opened her glowing blue lips to speak before snapping her jaw shut. She turned to look at me and bowed deeply. ¡°I apologize for my Duke¡¯s reaction.¡± She ground her teeth and, despite them not having any real physical presence I still heard it. ¡°Voltaire will understand what is going on, have no fear.¡± She faded up into the air over my shoulder where I could have sworn I heard her badmouthing the Duke under her breath. For a few minutes, I stood there seething before banishing the interface entirely. ¡°I¡¯ll just summon whatever we might need when we get in there. We don¡¯t even know what the boss is, so it¡¯d be a waste of time and Mana to summon anything out here.¡± I was half trying to convince myself, half explaining my actions to my companions and I knew they knew what I was doing. Raiju¡¯s full sized head bumped into my back. ¡°It¡¯s OK, we know you¡¯ve got this, Artie.¡± She moved around and stood with her back nearly level with the top of my head. ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here, I want to run around in the sky again.¡± As if summoned by her mentioning the outside, the ornate columned room we stood in shook and cracks began to form along the featureless grey walls of the Tower. The shaking didn¡¯t let up like all the previous Tower-quakes we¡¯d experienced at that point had, and the cracks were far deeper and longer than before. ¡°I guess it¡¯s time for us to go. Ylsa in front, me in the middle, Volta overhead, and Raiju to cover the rear until we get a grip on what¡¯s in here. Heard?¡± A chorus of ¡°heards¡± met me as I stepped back to let Ylsa push the massive carved bronze doors open with a single hand in the middle. The way they swung open made me think of dwarven craftsmanship, as they didn¡¯t even creak as they swung open effortlessly. A white mist blocked our vision twenty feet inside the next room, but Ylsa strode forward with purpose the moment the doors stopped without any sound. The moment she passed through the mist, I lost her on my Party Interface, but as soon as I followed her through she reappeared at the same time I could see her dodging a ghostly hand as it tore through the space she¡¯d occupied a moment before. Now¡¯s as good a time as any to test out that new Skill.Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. With a thought, I enabled [Flash Focus] as I widened my eyes as much as I could and the world appeared to slow down all around me. It wasn¡¯t like time stopped, I knew that, but it was the next best thing. Looking around the chamber we found ourselves in, I found a number of interesting and horrifying things. The chamber we were in was a hundred yards deep and twenty yards wide. The white and black marble walls were covered in carvings of different types of humanoids being tortured in every way imaginable while the floors were patterned like a checkerboard with ten foot tiles of white and black marble. A dozen [Wraiths] floated around the room, one of which was in the middle of attacking the dodging form of Ylsa, but from what I could see she¡¯d dodged with plenty of room to spare. At the far end of the long chamber stood a throne of carved black marble with white marble inlay. Floating above the throne was probably the worst matchup our team could have run into at that point, a [Wraith King] stood proudly in the air watching us. A stabbing pain started in the back of my head, telling me my time with [Flash Focus] was nearing its end, but before that happened, I glanced over what [Essence Reading] had to tell me about our foes. [Wraith - Rank B Monster Level: 48 Vulnerabilities: Force, Radiant Resistances: Thunder, Fire Immunities: All except Fire, Force, Radiant, and Thunder] [Wraiths are creatures born from the souls of the departed who left the world with vengeance in their hearts. They retain a measure of their intelligence from their previous lives, though none of their memories, save the vengeance they crave, survived the transition. A mere touch of their hands can be enough to drain Stamina and, should the creature struck be out of Stamina their touch drains levels and the Stats gained by those levels instead.] Holy shit, they can drain LEVELS!? What kind of bullshit is that? It¡¯s a good thing Ylsa and Raiju are tanky, with lots of Stamina to burn, but Volta and I are another story. [Wraith King - Rank S Tower Boss Level: 50 Vulnerabilities: Force, Radiant Immunities: All except Force and Radiant] [A Wraith King is a Wraith who devoured levels equal to its level and evolved. Their souls are still full of vengeance, but now they don¡¯t hunger for Stamina or levels. No, they feed on the building block of a creature¡¯s personality, the soul. All attacks of a Wraith King drain the targets¡¯ Soul in addition to dealing necrotic damage. Warning! This subject has nearly met all the requirements to become a Wraith Emperor. Should it drain one more being¡¯s entire soul, the process of its evolution will begin.] More Soul damage!? That¡¯s it, I¡¯m going to hang out with Gallaway until he gives me two different soul balm Skills, at least. I¡¯m the best fit to fight him, so I¡¯ll have to leave the adds to Raiju and Ylsa. Another knife to the brain hit and I lost focus on [Flash Focus], nearly sending me sprawling to the ground until I turned it into a front handspring. While I hung in the air, I flicked the pair of Status pages to my party through the Party Interface. ¡®I¡¯m on the King.¡¯ I triggered [Haste] and launched myself toward him using [Air Step]. ¡®You guys deal with the adds. Be careful, they drain Stamina.]¡¯ As I dashed above the battlefield at incredible speed, [Spatial Sense] told me that none of the [Wraiths] were more than two feet above the ground. Before I could wonder why that was, the Skill screamed at me to fall, so I let it happen. No sooner did I drop below ten feet did a black scythe composed of something even [Essence Reading] couldn¡¯t figure out swept through the space I¡¯d just occupied moments before. ¡®Guys, no flying in here.¡¯ I juked a [Wraith] before sending a salvo of [Magic Missiles] into its back, mostly dissipating it. ¡®There¡¯s a big old fuck you scythe that rips through and tries to kill you if you do.¡¯ Raiju was the first to complain through chat, though Volta joined in a moment later. It¡¯s good to hear that she¡¯s feeling close enough to complain along with us. If I have my way, she¡¯ll be around a long time. Panic threatened to overwhelm me as I remembered Arlian¡¯s fate until I centered myself on my current goal. As soon as I can kill the [Wraith King], I¡¯m going to offer her a spot in my employ and to hell with the consequences. Dancing around on [Air Steps] as I continued blasting my way toward the boss, though this time only a few feet off the ground, I tried dodging the [Wraiths], but they were just too fast. I grimaced as one of their hands impacted my [Sun Armor]. The good news is that it burned them and stopped them from hitting me, but it still burned a six inch hole in the armor where they¡¯d struck. With half a dozen [Wraiths] between me and the [Wraith King], I knew I had to change tacts. There was no way I was going to get through before they could hit me and drain my minimal Stamina. ¡®New plan,¡¯ I messaged the party as I backflipped over an extended [Wraith]¡¯s hand. ¡®I¡¯ll get back to you guys and we¡¯ll work through these damn [Wraiths] together. My [Agility] isn¡¯t high enough to dodge them, even with [Evasion].¡¯ As I flipped, I spotted my team behind me, only a few yards behind. Landing on the ground, I coiled my legs before launching myself bodily into their midst. Ylsa¡¯s fists were covered in the crackling grey energy of her [Thunder Knuckles] as she batted away a pair of questing hands that followed me toward them with one hand. With her other fist, she drove a crackling fist straight through a [Wraith]¡¯s head with a satisfying popping sound. She roared as she clapped her fists together a moment later and a sonic boom went out, giving me a moment to catch my breath as I slid to a stop between her and Raiju. Raiju, to her credit, was doing her best with [Thunderhead], despite it only dealing partial thunder damage. Blasts from the cloud above her didn¡¯t do much damage to our spectral foes, but they sure as hell sent them flying from the concussive portion of the ability. Volta was in a similar situation, but she was making do with a blunderbuss made of lightning that sent thunder buckshot out into the spectral assholes to no small effect. A quick glance around the room informed me that we still had nine [Wraiths] to deal with and the [Wraith King] had some sort of magic circle forming over his head. [Magic Sight] told me it was some sort of mass damage ability, but nothing more. I gritted my teeth. ¡°Keep them off me for a sec. I have to stop the boss from killing all of us with whatever it is he¡¯s doing right now.¡± I leapt to the side to dodge a spectral hand and Raiju somehow got underneath me mid jump. ¡°I¡¯ll handle the dodging, you handle whatever else you need to do.¡± She really put her 600 [Agility] to work as we blitzed around the battlefield. Using [Storm¡¯s Embrace], she even kept the wind of our passage from hitting me as I channeled a huge amount of Mana into the head of Jaegan¡¯s staff. ¡°I hope you appreciate this, you old codger.¡± I muttered under my breath even as I chuckled. ¡°[Arcane Cannon]!¡± Thrusting twenty percent of my Mana into [Arcane Cannon] through the staff, the result wasn¡¯t nearly as spectacular as when Jaegan used [Arcane Battery], but it did its best impression. Half a dozen orbs of blue energy formed and floated above and around my head. A gesture from me was all it took for them to combine their beams to send a big ol¡¯ fuck you beam toward the [Wraith King]. The two foot wide beam of energy sliced through part of the boss¡¯ gathered energy, but it wasn¡¯t enough to stop it from going off. With a sneer, he threw his hands toward us and I felt my doom coming until Raiju howled. ¡°[Whirlwind Rush]!¡± Everything became a blur as a blast of blue wind swept over our entire party. A moment later we stood back at the entry to the room as the [Wraith King]¡¯s big attack detonated and killed three of his [Wraiths]. ¡°When did you learn that?¡± I breathed heavily, the inertia of moving hundreds of feet in a second making me nauseous for a moment. ¡°Level thirty!¡± She barked happily. ¡°I wanted something to protect everyone and that¡¯s what the System came up with. Isn¡¯t it cool?¡± She preened. ¡°Cooldown is thirty seconds, so we should be good as long as I don¡¯t need to use it for anything other than the big booms from jerkface over there.¡± Observing the battlefield before us, I spotted the colors of the boss¡¯ throne had inverted. Now it was white with black inlay. Looking at where we¡¯d been standing before being whisked away, I noticed one of the [Wraiths] seemed unharmed. An idea began to form as my [Arcane Cannons] started pouring fire into the nearest [Wraiths]. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t need it if I¡¯m right, but we should test my theory before we rely on it.¡± I grinned. I switched to mental communication. ¡®I think I know how he targets his big blast.¡¯ Chapter 58 - Dogged Determination The next time we surged toward the boss, we had an actual plan. I know, shocker. We systematically tore through the lesser [Wraiths] like the adds they were, despite their increased level, they couldn¡¯t stand up to our powerful classes and, in Raiju¡¯s case, species rating. We may not have been going as fast as I had the first time, but this time we weren¡¯t leaving adds behind us that would cause an issue if we had to retreat. The moment we crossed the quarter way mark another dozen [Wraiths] appeared and my [Arcane Cannons] and [Magic Missiles] picked them off while Raiju¡¯s [Winds of Fury] and Ylsa¡¯s [Thunder Knuckles] kept them off us long enough for me to get through them. It was then that my plan really came to fruition as the [Wraith King] began gathering energy for a magic circle above his head again. A quick glance at the throne was all it took for me to implement my plan. ¡®White tiles only until he lets that thing loose. We¡¯ll have to jump kitty-corner a bunch, but we should be able to keep moving as long as we stay on our toes.¡¯ I punctuated my words with a [Sunlance] through three [Wraiths] heads at once as they lined up nicely. ¡®If I¡¯m wrong, we¡¯re in for a world of hurt, but I¡¯ll try to tank it if I can.¡¯ The combined glare I got from Ylsa and Raiju scared at least ten years off my life, but I quickly dodged their gazes as I focused on clearing the adds. I¡¯d tried sending a few [Magic Missiles] and [Sunlances] toward the [Wraith King] directly, but whenever they got close, they dissipated a moment before they could land on him. Even if I¡¯d been able to make my way to him alone, I¡¯d have been out of luck anyway. I have to be better, I can¡¯t just go off on my own anymore. This is too important for me to try playing [Hero]. What a shit Class that is, merely S-rank and everyone thinks you¡¯re going to save the world. The boss seemed to have figured out what we were doing, as he wasn¡¯t releasing his soul rending attack as we danced across the white tiles. It wasn¡¯t until we hit the halfway point in the room that he finally let loose, but he didn¡¯t even try and hit us. Instead, he reaped the souls of half the new adds that¡¯d just arrived. Fuck! I screamed internally. He¡¯s going to clear his adds and drain their souls to make himself stronger. They may not have a full soul each, but a dozen or two of them might just add up. ¡®Change of plans. We need to clear those adds as soon as they arrive,¡¯ I seamlessly mounted Raiju¡¯s back and whirled Jaegan¡¯s staff around my head as I summoned another five [Arcane Cannons], dropping my available Mana under the fifty percent mark for the first time in the fight. ¡®I¡¯m going to focus on all the [Wraiths] outside you guys¡¯ reach, but I need you to clean them up as fast as possible. Don¡¯t worry about conserving Mana, I¡¯ve got enough potions to keep us full for a week on the right side of my bandolier. Grab what you need,¡¯ I eyed Volta, ¡®you included.¡¯ ¡®Heard!¡¯ They chorused as I turned my attention toward the farthest grouping of [Wraiths] near the boss while my cannons focused on the middle distance. Despite the situation, I was having fun fighting alongside my companions. I may not have known any of them very long, but that didn¡¯t change the fact that I trusted each and every one of them with my life. Even as I began working up [Sunbursts] to hit a few groups, I was amazed at the efficiency my Party displayed. Ylsa displayed the power of her [Mountain Tempest] Class as she unleashed devastating salvos of punches, kicks, and massive claps to deal as much thunder damage as she could in a short period of time. I noticed her [Gloves of the Emerald Breeze] glowing as she blasted back a pair of [Wraiths] who were about to reach me. I flashed her a grateful smile, but she was too busy with another pair of the adds to even notice the gesture. Hovering around the four foot mark over Raiju¡¯s shoulder Volta put on a clinic when it came to crowd control. Her whips of lightning may not have been able to damage the [Wraiths], but that didn¡¯t stop them from grabbing hold and grouping them up for her thunder fueled blunderbuss to rip them apart. It was like she was channeling the speed and power of her brother in addition to herself as she tore through even more of the monsters than Raiju and Ylsa did combined. That isn¡¯t to say that Raiju wasn¡¯t active. Her [Thunderhead] floated just over Volta¡¯s head where she unleashed periodic massive blasts of thunder and lightning into more of the groups Volta was gathering in addition to any groups Ylsa couldn¡¯t get to in time. She did all of that while guarding my nonsensical ass as I let loose on any group of more than two [Wraiths] with [Sunburst]. It may not have been the most effective use of Mana, but it was the most effective use of my time as I was then able to keep an eye on what the boss was doing. He let another magic circle drop on the area around us, and while we were fast enough to dodge it, his minions weren¡¯t and he was able to devour another half dozen. My elven eyes, in conjunction with [Magic Sight] noticed the gems I¡¯d dismissed as onyx in his crown were now more than half diamond. The next time he killed a pair of his minions another of the eleven stones slowly transitioned from black to clear white, leaving only four black gems remaining. ¡®We need more help. I¡¯m going to try and summon us some more.¡¯ I messaged before flicking open the [Elemental Pactlord] interface while my [Arcane Cannons] continued with their assignment. I need something that can actually hurt these things. What should I pick? I don¡¯t have the option for a [Radiant Elemental], though I¡¯m willing to bet they exist. I really don¡¯t know, what should I do? I didn¡¯t study how to deal with this kind of thing! Over my shoulder, Volta paused her assault to lean down and whisper in my ear. ¡°It might cost us, but a [Radiant Phoenix] would likely be able to assist.¡± She motioned to the fire toggle before darting back to her previous battle station. A [Radiant Phoenix]? What would that even do? Aren¡¯t [Phoenixes] just big fiery birds? I mean, Volta is at least tangentially connected to the Plane of Fire, so she should know what she¡¯s talking about. I spun the dials to align with pure fire and entered Radiant Phoenix in the Summon Target box. The quantity dial spun back to one all on its own the moment I hit the Summon button and I soon realized why that was. ¡°Who dares attempt to summon Luce, Sun¡¯s Avatar?!¡± A voice far more powerful than I¡¯d anticipated sent me crashing into Raiju¡¯s neck. ¡°Speak now, or I shall reap the very heat from your body!¡± ¡°Arthur Bajbub Neilson, Elemental Pactlord of Genovia, ma¡¯am.¡± I croaked out as the pressure increased. My title didn¡¯t seem to faze her. ¡°Honored Sun¡¯s Avatar, this Pactlord is requesting aid in destroying an undead corruption on Genovia spawned by the work of a deranged god.¡± Lying to even a normal [Phoenix] was a good way to die, so I laid my cards all on the table right from the get go. ¡°A trivial matter.¡± The powerful elemental drew back the pressure she put upon me. ¡°If you cannot deal with such a small issue on your own, you are not worthy of summoning me. Do not contact me again until you are at least level 120, or I shall drain every drop of your delicious Mana from your soul. I will take but a tiple for the inconvenience you have put me through today.¡± Just before our connection faded, I felt a sudden pull on my Mana and all but six points vanished in a second. My head swam from the dregs even as I fumbled for the Mana potions in my bandolier. ¡®No elemental help incoming,¡¯ I struggled to convey through the Party chat. ¡®Mana drained in the attempt. Need a pot.¡¯ While I was able to pull a pot from my bandolier, I wasn¡¯t able to get the cork off. The top was shaped like a diamond with an easy edge for a thumb to flick off, but in my dregged state, my thumb kept slipping past it each time I tried to open it. For a moment, I considered just throwing the whole potion in my mouth and just eating the damage from the glass running down my throat, but before I could toss it in, I felt hands warm with electrical current take it from me.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Pactlord. I wasn¡¯t aware Luce would be able to hear your summons. I was hoping for her daughter, Aurelia, to answer. She owes me a favor.¡± She popped the cork and tipped it back for me to drink, which I did greedily. A few seconds later the effects of [Megara¡¯s Mana Potion IX] slammed into my system and it felt like I was mainlining raw lightning. I choked as a new notification popped up in the corner of my vision. [You are generating more Mana per second than your Mana pool can sustain. If the excess Mana isn¡¯t spent, a Mana rupture could occur. Additionally, while in this state all Mana-based Spells and Skills used will have their cooldowns halved and their damage doubled.] ¡°What the hell Aunt Megara?! I didn¡¯t need Legendary Mana pots!¡± I bellowed as I leveled a hand to one side and summoned half my Mana pool to unleash a sweeping [Sunlance]. The Skill wasn¡¯t meant to be used that way, but with so much Mana forced into it, the beam was sustained long enough for me to pull it off as I sliced through a dozen [Wraiths] with a single Skill. Less than two seconds later my Mana pool was full again and I got to work. Springing up to a seated position like a child¡¯s toy, I spun even more Mana to form another two dozen [Arcane Cannons] and set them to join the others above my head. At that point, they were working on a limited set of instructions, so I expanded it to have them work in quartets to take down [Wraiths] instead of obliterating each one with the might of all forty cannons on one target. I kicked myself for missing that initially, but as soon as I made the change, the whole battlefield opened up. I figured it couldn¡¯t hurt, so I activated [Serene Glade] to boost all my Spells and Skills, I had the Mana to burn. While I¡¯d been indisposed we¡¯d reached the end of the checkered floor to find ourselves on the black half of the split marble floor before the [Wraith King]¡¯s throne. My battery of cannons, a loving mimicry of my magical mentor¡¯s favorite Skill, picked off the last freestanding [Wraith] and the [Wraith King] finally shifted off his throne. He shot toward us like a bolt of shadow and was among us half a second later. A black shafted scythe with a cruel, five foot long, white blade appeared out of nowhere and would have severed my head if Raiju hadn¡¯t dropped to the ground and rolled. I kicked off an [Air Step] to get some distance as I struggled to channel the sheer force of Mana raging through my body. The [Wraith King] didn¡¯t speak, which was almost disappointing until he landed a glancing blow on Volta as she body blocked for Ylsa and the elemental¡¯s health dropped from nearly full to exactly three. Now, [Arcweavers] aren¡¯t known for their sturdiness, but she still had almost as much HP as I did before the battle with the [Ashen Hydra Devastator] jacked my [Toughness]. ¡°Scatter!¡± I screamed as I unleashed a cannonade of [Magic Missiles] upon him in an unending stream alongside my [Arcane Cannon] fire. He didn¡¯t even flinch as they slammed into him, ripping tiny bits of shadowstuff from his incorporeal robes, but doing nothing to his main body. Thousands of points of Mana ripped through the channels in my arms in a few seconds and I felt them heat up in a way I¡¯d been warned about a few times as a wunderkind caster. I¡¯m halfway to a full channel burnout already, but I can¡¯t let him land a hit on Ylsa or Raiju with that damn scythe or they¡¯re goners. Volta tanked that hit for Ylsa because she¡¯s immune to the soul damage, but the rest of us don¡¯t have that luxury. ¡°Hey, ugly!¡± I screamed and the boss whirled to look at me, ten twinkling diamonds filled his crown, with only the central larger stone remaining unfilled. ¡°Let¡¯s dance!¡± Triggering [Haste] and [Flash Focus] at the same time was something I was willing to bet I was going to regret later, but I needed a moment to think. Horrifyingly, even with those both increasing my perception, the [Wraith King]¡¯s form still moved like it was underwater as it moved toward me. How fucking high is this thing¡¯s [Agility]? It has to be pushing 1,500 if it¡¯s visibly moving while I¡­no time! What else can I do to fuck with this thing? [Sunburst] might hit my friends, same with a powerful enough [Sunlance], so they¡¯re out because they¡¯re not Spells, they¡¯re Skills. Fucking semantics to me, but I¡¯m not going to kill them on accident and [Magic Missile] and [Arcane Cannon] don¡¯t have enough punch, he didn¡¯t even flinch when they hit him. Unbidden, [Essence Reading] triggered alongside [Dominus¡¯ Insight] and my gut dropped. [Wraith King - Rank S Tower Boss Level: 50 Vulnerabilities: Radiant Resistances: Force Immunities: All except Force and Radiant] [With his Soul Crown nearly full, this Wraith King is mere moments from ascending to a Wraith Emperor, a monster even your grandfather¡¯s contemporaries would fear. If this creature isn¡¯t stopped in the next minute, he may escape the Tower and reap the souls of all the people in Chalcedony. Check your notifications for a way to deal with this threat or you will surely perish.] What notifications!? I frantically flicked through the notifications I had left until I found the only one that could possibly be what Dominus was talking about. [Completed Emergency Quest - Remove the Infection from the Chalcedony Tower of Trials. Reward - Three Choices are Available] With a thought, the Quest notification opened up and three options were laid out before me even as the [Wraith King] closed to be within ten feet of me and pain was shooting through my head from the use of [Haste] and [Flash Focus] at the same time. [Option 1: Become the Tower Lord of the Tower of Trials - Chalcedony. This is a permanent position, unlike the Tower Administrator position you would receive for defeating the Tower Boss on your first visit to the Tower. Option 2: Modify the wording of one Skill or Class ability you have, adding or removing two words at most. Option 3: Leave the Tower with your party immediately.] I glared at the notification. We could have left!? Jaegan could have lived! A small voice filled the back of my mind. ¡®No, lad. I was already gone when you got this option.¡¯ Tears ran down my face as I realized Jaegan¡¯s spirit had awoken at the exact moment I needed him. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ I practically begged. ¡®I only have a minute left before I burn out in more than one way.¡¯ The old [Mage] turned item spirit laughed. ¡®Option two is the only choice. You just need to modify your path to include Skills instead of just Spells.¡¯ His voice faded a bit. ¡®I¡¯m going to sleep a bit now, lad. I¡¯ll talk with you later. You¡¯ve got this.¡¯ ¡®Thank you!¡¯ Without a bit of hesitation, I mentally slammed on option two and a new box appeared before me with a list of my Class abilities and Skills on it. I mentally tapped Path of the Scholar and added the most important two words of my life to that point. [Path of the Scholar: While all Suzerains can cast Spells, those who walk this path are truly unparalleled in that field. With the ability to see the ebbs and flows of Mana, you will be able to sculpt your Spells and Skills to strike foes harder and avoid allies entirely. In addition, Mana costs are reduced by 20% for any Skill or Spell that draws on the Arcane, Divine, or Wits stats.] The System hitched, for lack of a better term, and I quickly realized it was checking with Dominus to confirm that it was allowed to alter [Suzerain] in the way I¡¯d requested. It hung there for what felt like an eternity as I watched the [Wraith King]¡¯s scythe cut toward me inch by inch. [Adjustment to Path of the Scholar completed as requested. Warning! Any further attempts to modify Unique-ID 921963: Class-Suzerain will be rejected.] Hopefully I only ever need that one modification! The boss streaked toward me, ever moving despite the time dilation of [Flash Focus] combined with [Haste], but I was ready. Bypassing the limits most casters would call good sense, I poured every single drop of my inflated Mana pool into a single invocation of [Sunburst]. The moment I felt the energy pool in my right hand, I released [Flash Focus] and a few things happened in a split second. The world was bathed in the light of a [Sunburst] that would have made my grandfather proud the moment time began to move normally. Notifications flooded into the corner of my vision as I was thrown back against the wall hard enough to crack the stone of the Tower. Was that fur I just felt? What could have¨C My eyes finally adjusted just in time to watch Raiju fall off of the [Wraith King]¡¯s extended scythe, the residual breeze from [Whirlwind Rush] floating past me, as he dissolved in holy light. She turned around to find me struggling to my feet and threw me a weak grin. Checking the Party Interface, I noticed her insane health pool had been reduced to ten percent, but that wouldn¡¯t explain the dim light in her eyes. [Essence Reading] confirmed my fear. [Name: Raiju Emotional Status: Exhausted/Content Physical Status: Mortally Wounded (Cause: Spirit Wound) Current Estimated Lifespan: 12 Hours] Before I could do anything, my vision filled with notifications that wouldn¡¯t be pushed aside no matter how many times I tried dismissing them without looking at them. Gritting my teeth, I opened each of them for half a second before sending them away to bring in the next one. Only a single notification required a choice and I hurried to slam my hand down on it the moment it appeared. [Would your Party like to exit the Tower of Trials - Chalcedony now? Y/N] ¡°You idiot, you big dumb heroic idiot!¡± Stumbling to embrace Raiju, I pulled her huge head to my chest. Ylsa and Volta rushed over to join us as white light surrounded us. ¡°It¡¯s going to be OK. Uncle Galloway lives twenty minutes outside Chalcedony. If anyone can save you, it¡¯s him. We have to hurry!¡± Epilogue and Final Stats (Artie and Raiju) Epilogue: ¡°Sorry to leave you like this, sis, but I can¡¯t take you where I¡¯m going.¡± Marie Emberstone lowered her newly unconscious sister, Mindy, against the newly pulsing pillar of light in the center of the Tower¡¯s ground floor between the entry arches. ¡°The High Priest is going to want to take his pound of flesh for my failure and I won¡¯t let him hurt you. You¡¯re the only good thing I¡¯ve got left and I won¡¯t let him take you from me.¡± She wiped a tear from her face before putting on the nondescript black eye mask she¡¯d need to wear for who knew how long. ¡°Devourer isn¡¯t known for his kindness and understanding, so it might be a while before I can come back, even as his Chosen.¡± She placed a letter with ¡°Artie¡± written on it in flowing script on her sister¡¯s chest and adhered it with a touch of shadow magic. ¡°In another life, I¡¯d stay with you and join his party myself, but I can¡¯t do that now. My path is set.¡± She turned and walked away from her only remaining family without looking back as the shadows at her feet reached up to swallow her whole. ¡°Never doubt that we¡¯ll see each other again.¡±

***Three Hours Later***

Silence filled the dungeon beneath the Hidden True Temple of Devourer. Hanging from a rack so stained with blood to turn ash wood black was the naked and flayed form of Marie Emberstone. Her body was entirely covered in tiny cuts, none more than two inches in length, that dripped with sanguine fluid. Despite all that, she remained silent. A masked and hooded figure stood before her tutting his finger. ¡°You let the single most dangerous person to our lord and savior¡¯s ascension get away.¡± His deep bass voice boomed throughout the torture chamber, for that was obviously its purpose. ¡°You have no one to blame but yourself for this.¡± He waved a hand and a pair of [Imps] approached carrying a bucket between them as they flew. ¡°Another round before we heal her and do this again.¡± The small red demons cackled with glee as they flew up above Marie¡¯s bleeding form. ¡°Do it.¡± Salted red wine poured out from the bucket to cascade down Marie¡¯s form. While her body arched in agony, she didn¡¯t make a sound. Turning her head to the side, she spat a globule of bloody spit before glaring down at the robed figure. Before he can say another word, a wave of pressure slams down upon him. The sound of bones cracking follows as he supplicates from his knees. ¡°Great Devourer, I beg for mercy!¡± Gone is his affected bass tone as it¡¯s replaced by what Marie knows is his actual voice, a high pitched counter-tenor. ¡°What have I done to displease you so!?¡± ¡°Release my Chosen.¡± A voice akin to a slithering snake¡¯s skin sliding over itself fills the room. ¡°She has much to answer for, but I will give her one more chance to save herself.¡± Marie¡¯s body tensed, she knew what was coming and still didn¡¯t have a plan to get out of it. ¡°I just need her to kill Mother¡¯s Chosen, then all shall be forgiven.¡±

***Ten minutes after Marie left Mindy beneath the Tower***

Ylsa, Volta, Raiju, and I appeared beneath the Tower with great fanfare as a notification went out to everyone in Chalcedony as something heavy slumped against me. [Welcome your new Tower Administrator, Arthur Neilson! May his administration be wise.] Pushing the very annoying notification away, I looked down to find Mindy, the [Hydromancer] from the magic shop lying at my feet with a letter on her chest. I tried shaking her awake before Ylsa urged me to open the letter. ¡°We have a minute, read it so we can see what we¡¯re dealing with.¡± The goliath helped Raiju to her feet, where she stumbled until she shrank down and Ylsa picked her up. ¡°It¡¯ll be faster if we run with our new Stats.¡± ¡°Got it, I¡¯ll open this up while Volta goes to get Gabrielle from her keep. It¡¯s about time we leave this place before people start asking why I¡¯m the admin of the damn Tower now.¡± Slitting the top of the letter, I let it fall to the ground as I took in its contents. {Arthur, I¡¯m leaving Mindy to you for a while. I slipped her a pill that should keep her unconscious for four hours or so as the System rebuilds her body to fit her new Class. She¡¯s a good girl, unlike me, and I¡¯d really appreciate it if you could keep her safe while I¡¯m dealing with some things. You might notice a change in how you look at her with me gone, but don¡¯t worry about it too much. I have that effect on people. Marie P.S. - Tell Mindy I¡¯m sorry for leaving, but there¡¯s something I have to do that she can¡¯t be a part of as she is now. I¡¯ll be back for her¡­ eventually.} ¡°I guess we¡¯ve got another passenger.¡± Groaning, I threw Mindy over my shoulder. ¡°Maybe Uncle Galloway can help Mindy too. Her sister drugged her and left her here for me.¡± Ylsa matched my groan as we loped out of the tower to find Gabrielle battling a trio of cloaked figures alongside Volta.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Can we catch a freaking break!?¡± End of Book Stats: Below you¡¯ll find the updated Statuses of both Artie and Raiju post Tower. They both have notifications to go through, but this is the state of their Statuses as of that point in time. [Name - Arthur Bajbub Neilson Class - Suzerain - Unique - Rank SSS Path: Scholar Level - 30 HP - 380 Mana - 894 Stamina - 614 Stats - (5% of Wraith King siphoned as Tower Boss - Already in Total) Might - 56 (+2) Agility - 178 (+50) Toughness - 140 (+30) Charm - 151 (+20) Wits - 222 (+22) Perception - 100 (+50) Arcane - 350 (+50) Divine - 350 (+50) Active Skills - Mastery % Rapid Strike - 89 Dual Chop - 76 Mana Slide - 40 Arcane Armor - 86 Magic Missile - 100 (Awaiting Evolution) Elemental Bolt - 79 Lockpicking - 86 Sunny Side Up - No Evolution Available Wingbind - 81 Synthesis - 99 Status Shield - 59 Psyknife - 53 Air Step - 84 Haste - 65 Light Arrow - 75 Acid Spray - 33 Wall of Force - 40 Sunlance - 50 Sanguimancy - 40 Unique Skills - Mastery % Skill Dominance - 46 Dominus¡¯ Insight - 33 Lordly Aura - 31 Resonant Bolt - 40 Serene Glade - 40 Passive Skills Essence Reading (Analyze Evolution) Evasion Linguist Light Armor Training Medium Armor Training Small Blade Training Bow Training Code Cracking Spelunking Cartography Herbalism Ritual Magic Chosen of Dominus (Unique Passive) Friendly Face Spell Turning Holy Visions Spatial Awareness Tiny but Mighty Hydra¡¯s Regeneration Flash Focus Evolved Skills Elemental Mastery - Elemental Barrage Dominus'' Fury - Stealing Judgement Elemental Surge - Elemental Teleportation Assassin''s Mark - Backstab Illuminate - Light Distant Legerdemain - Mage Hand Elemental Form - Elemental Body Bunker Bolt - Chain Lightning Elemental Pactlord - Summon Elemental Trap Master - Trap Finding and Trap Disarming Mystic Eyes - Arcane Sight Stolen Skills (5 Slots Available - Cannot Currently Slot Unique Skills) Stolen Active Skills: Aqua Slice Arcane Cannon Fireball Frost Blade Hydrosphere Raging Torrent Searing Wind Shearing Gale Sun Armor Sun Jump Sunburst Water Bomb Water Shot Basalt Bunker Edge of Spring Stolen Passive Skills: Cat¡¯s Prowl Photosynthesis Silent Step Stolen Unique Skills: Storm Knuckles] *** [Name: Raiju Monster Type: Raiju (Evolved Gale Wolf) - Unique - Rank S Bond: Arthur Bajbub Neilson - SSS Rank Level: 30 HP: 960 Mana: 605 Stamina: 1812 Stats: Might: 202 Agility: 650 Toughness: 430 Charm: 120 Wits: 152 Perception: 450 Divine: 201 Active Skills - Mastery % Winds of Fury - 100 (Awaiting Evolution) Sparkling Charge - 42 Lightning Strike - 100 (Awaiting Evolution) Storm¡¯s Embrace - 75 Thunderhead - 100 (Awaiting Evolution) Whirlwind Rush - 2 Passive Skills: Lightning Conductor Keen Senses (Smell and Hearing) Storm¡¯s Presence Swift as the Wind] Book 2 Chapter 1 - Rebels Falling The scene greeting Ylsa and I upon leaving the confines of the Tower confused me at first. A dwarf, an elf, and a trio of humans were all assaulting Volta and Gabrielle. The pair were holding their own, but neither appeared to be willing to injure their attackers. ¡°Please, be reasonable.¡± Gabrielle pleaded as she dodged an axe blow from the dwarf. ¡°I¡¯m leaving Verdant forever. Right now. Please just let me go.¡± A vine sneaked out of the cobblestones beneath the dwarf¡¯s feet and held him fast as she danced backward. While the dwarf appeared thoughtful, his fellows didn¡¯t share his momentary lapse of aggression as the three humans whirled around to address Ylsa and I. The oldest human, the one with the best-looking armor and a blade that appeared well-worn, drew said blade back and it began shimmering with energy. ¡°Stay back, our business is with the damned administrator, not you folks.¡± He took in the fact that Ylsa and I were bearing a large silver wolf and a woman on our shoulders before cocking his head to the side. ¡°Sal over there is a [Ranger], he¡¯ll be able to patch up whatever you need. Once we got this would-be-Lord. Just stay back and we¡¯ll take care of this quickly.¡± I wasn¡¯t unfamiliar with rage, but the feeling washing over me at the mention of the man his fellows attacking Gabrielle struck a chord with me. He can¡¯t injure her, she¡¯s mine. Before I could shake the feeling loose I summoned a quintet of [Magic Missiles] and set them swirling around the head of Jaegan¡¯s staff. ¡°We don¡¯t have time for your silly vendettas. Right now, Gabrielle is coming with us, and I¡¯d really hate to deprive the city of one of its able-bodied defenders when I leave, but I¡¯m not above doing so.¡± I pushed out with my [Lordly Aura] and the man¡¯s knees trembled before he caught himself just before he would¡¯ve fallen before me, prostrated. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, you must be one of those noble lovers! Boys, get him!¡± [Essence Reading] triggered, and I got a better idea of who we were up against. What I saw would¡¯ve worried me a week ago, but now I just felt bad for them. They didn¡¯t know what we¡¯d just been through and, compared to even the [Imps] from the fourth floor of the Tower, they didn¡¯t hold a candle. [Name: Boyd Rolfson Race: Human Class: Fighter - Common - Rank D Level: 27 Emotional Status: Angry/Triumphant] [Name: Ignacio Smith Race: Human Class: Smith - Common - Rank D Level: 24 Emotional Status: Determined/Frustrated] [Name: Greg Thompson Race: Human Class: Guard - Common - Rank E Level: 23 Emotional Status: Scared/Drunk] [Name: Jenson Shorthaft Race: Dwarf Class: Axman - Uncommon - Rank D Level: 29 Emotional Status: Determined/Cautious] [Name: Salamontona Vinechild Race: Wood Elf Class: Ranger - Uncommon - Rank D Level: 28 Emotional Status: Grumpy] ¡°Ylsa, don¡¯t worry about these fools, I¡¯ll make sure they can¡¯t follow us.¡± Without a moment of hesitation, I lanced three of my five darts through Boyd¡¯s left leg. Blood spurted out, but he kept coming at me. He lunged at me with a glowing blade, but half a second before impact I triggered [Mana Slide] and, with difficulty, sprang up behind and cuffed him in the back of the head with a fistful of earth I¡¯d gathered with [Elemental Mastery]. He stumbled as he turned and attempted to attack me again, but by then I was already moving to slice his leg with a blade of psychic energy I formed with [Psyknife]. It was over for him after that, as the pain of the Skill rippled through his body. He threw his head back to howl with pain, but before he could even begin his eyes rolled back into his head and he fell to the ground, unconscious. The elf and the dwarf both regarded me with cautiously optimistic looks on their faces before they turned to each other with somewhat knowing gazes. The dwarf stood back and hung his ax on his hip. ¡°I¡¯d know that insignia anywhere, a grudge like this isn¡¯t worth drawing the ire of the Ironwind Clan.¡± He held his hands above his head. ¡°Ye shan¡¯t have to deal with me any longer, lad.¡± He walked a few feet away and sat down against a nearby building with his arms still raised. ¡°Elf, yer eyes are e¡¯en better dan mine, he¡¯s one a yer¡¯s too.¡± The [Ranger] scowled, but put away his twin sabers before moving to stand next to where the dwarf sat. ¡°I saw the signet ring. I don¡¯t need that old monster chasing me down any more than I need a Dragon to eat me.¡± He shivered, but didn¡¯t move away from the wall. His fellows, the remaining pair of humans, didn¡¯t have the good sense to stop when half of their number removed themselves from the fight. No longer tied up with the elf, Volta proved her worth as she transformed into lightning and blasted through them, putting her [Arcweaver] speed and power on full display. The two men stood there, lightning crackling over their bodies before, just like their boss, their eyes rolled back in their heads, and they fell down unconscious. She turned to look at me and I shook my head, so she moved to stand before a slightly panicked Gabrielle who was watching me closely.Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. ¡°I knew about your connection to your grandfather, obviously.¡± She scratched her head. ¡°What¡¯s this about a connection to the dwarven clans?¡± Awkwardly waving at my height compared to her and even Ylsa, I shrugged and Mindy nearly fell off my shoulders before I strained to catch her. ¡°This height of mine isn¡¯t just for show, I am one eighth dwarf. Iron Wind Clan, just as mister dwarf over there mentioned.¡± Her eyes fluttered before she nodded. ¡°That makes a lot more sense now, I apologize.¡± I noted a particularly large bag on her hip and [Essence Reading] informed me it was a particularly powerful spatial storage bag. I turned to address the elf and dwarf. ¡°You were wise to clear the way. We¡¯ve been fighting for our lives for the past few days and holding back isn¡¯t something we¡¯ve had any practice with lately.¡± With a quick flex of my will I generated a System prompt and threw it to each of them. ¡°Accept that, and we¡¯ll be on our way now and will not hold the actions of you or your fellows against you. Does that make sense?¡± The pair read through the agreement a few times. Jenson twice and Sal thrice before they both begrudgingly agreed, but not before glaring once more at Gabrielle. [Jenson Shorthaft and Salamontona Vinechild have agreed to refrain from hostilities with Arthur Bajbub Nielsen for the next six months as long as he and those beholden to him refrain from aggression towards the aforementioned.] [The System recognizes this accord.] Hefting Mindy higher on my shoulders. I waved to the pair before stopping and looking more closely at the elf. ¡°Have you met a man named Galloway who lives near the city? I¡¯d be willing to pay you to guide me to him, assuming you have.¡± It never hurts to ask a local for directions if you¡¯re in a hurry, even if you¡¯re pretty sure where you¡¯re going. The elf¡¯s face blanched and he took a stumbling step away from me before pressing himself back against the wall. ¡°No one goes near his grove, at least no one who ever comes back.¡± The man shivered. ¡°You can¡¯t miss it if you head due east toward the mountains, the trees there are hundreds of feet taller than they should be.¡± He hesitated for a moment before beginning to walk away. ¡°I wish you luck, young Sunbeam.¡± The dwarf waited for my party to move by before moving to pick up his fellows and throwing them over his shoulder as easily as if they were bags of flour. ¡°May your blade strike swiftly and cut deeply.¡± He called out behind him. As Ylsa, Gabrielle, Volta, and I raced through the city, carrying our unconscious companions, I tried to reach out to them with the Party System, but when I realized Gabrielle couldn¡¯t hear me, I switched to shouting. ¡°We have five and a half hours to reach the only person I know who might be able to help with Raiju¡¯s soul wound. He lives twenty miles outside of town and, if my mother is to be believed, he should be willing to help us.¡± I stumbled as I realized Gabrielle was a walking arsenal of scrolls. ¡°Unless you have a scroll for some sort of soul healing Skill, Gabrielle?¡± She sighed as she pumped her legs to keep up with Ylsa and I. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I don¡¯t have access to anything like that. Soul healing Skills are insanely rare and, therefore, expensive, I focused mostly on cheap and plentiful, rather than rare and qualitative. I¡¯m sorry.¡± She hung her head even as she struggled to keep up with the punishing pace Ylsa and I were pushing. A large part of me considered activating [Elemental Form] and turning myself into some kind of huge air elemental that could carry everyone but Volta, but the inability to use Spells and Skills while shaped like that made it a good option for a last resort, but not something I wanted to lean on for traversal. I knew once we got out of town that I could activate [Elemental Surge], but the winding streets of Chalcedony slowed us down considerably and it took nearly half an hour to clear its confines, with Gabrielle clearing the way with the guards out the reinforced east gate before we exited and began making our way into the hills. As soon as we cleared the treeline, I had Volta fly up and steer us toward the highest hill she could find nearby. She obliged, directing us a touch north for a couple of minutes until we arrived at the hill. It may have once been some sort of fortification, as ruined stonework stuck out from the hillside, but despite my dwarven curiosity, I kept my mind on the task at hand by checking Raiju¡¯s Status where she rested on Ylsa¡¯s shoulders. [Name: Raiju Emotional Status: Scared/Insecure Physical Status: Unconscious, Mortally Wounded (Cause: Spirit Wound) Current Estimated Lifespan: 10.5 Hours] Veering toward the pair, I laid a hand on the silver wolf¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Galloway will get you fixed right up.¡± She whined, but didn¡¯t stir beyond that. The top of the hill was littered with ruins, with the very peak surrounded by a four foot high ring of stone with a battered metal door set into a surprisingly robust doorframe. That¡¯s dwarven stonework, there¡¯s no doubt. When was the last time a dwarven clan spent any time out this way? I shook my head to clear it. Jenson¡¯s a native, so maybe his family helped with it. I¡¯ll have to ask if I ever go back to that accursed place. I gritted my teeth. I won¡¯t let you take another friend from me, Chalcedony, Jaegan¡¯s body was more than enough for the cost of tuition. Skipping the door entirely, a platform of solidified air formed under my foot as I used [Air Step] to land atop the ruin. Hand over my eyes to block the glare, I put my elven eyesight to work checking the surrounding area for the massive trees the surly [Ranger] had denoted as Galloway¡¯s Domain. A few minutes went by as my friends and I looked east for the grove in question, but nothing really stood out. I had half a mind to go back into Chalcedony, find Salamontona, and make him lead us to Galloway¡¯s grove when it suddenly dawned on me what we were missing. Groaning, I hopped to the ground and gently laid Mindy down on the ground. I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration as I began lunging around. Stretching was good for the mind and I was definitely going to need all the help I could get in that department if I was right. ¡°We¡¯re going to have to change tacts.¡± Ylsa hopped down lightly and laid Raiju down next to Mindy before crossing her arms. She cracked her neck. ¡°What do you mean? Isn¡¯t it just a big bunch of trees?¡± The goliath stared at me with a fervor I didn¡¯t really feel like I deserved. ¡°It all boils down to travel speed.¡± I stopped doing lunges and walked over to stand near the [Mountain Tempest]. ¡°I was thinking twenty minutes at my pace, barring Raiju¡¯s help and the use of [Elemental Surge], but that was stupid of me.¡± Behind me, Volta gasped and I nodded. ¡°Exactly, I wasn¡¯t even thinking on the right scale, let alone the right amount of miles. My mom has her own evolved version of [Elemental Teleportation]. It¡¯s called [Elemental Step], and if she was talking about Galloway living twenty minutes away using it? He could be nearly a thousand miles away right now.¡± ¡°Want to find out? No charge.¡± I turned around to find Gabrielle panting as she flopped down next to our unconscious charges. ¡°You guys kind of left me in the dust once we left the city, but I was able to follow the ozone smell from Volta.¡± She turned and waved at the [Arcweaver]. ¡°Thanks for that, by the way.¡± ¡°What do you mean? Do you have some kind of [Farsight] Skill Scroll?¡± She flicked her eyes side to side as she drew deeply from a waterskin. Wiping her face, she shook her head. ¡°I¡¯ve got a [Sending] scroll you can use. Call it a sign of good faith.¡± She put her hand into her bag and, a moment later, drew out a green tinted roll of parchment. ¡°Here.¡± Before I touched it, I looked her over and let [Essence Reading] and [Dominus¡¯ Insight] loose once more on the former Chalcedony lord. Despite trusting her enough to travel with her, I wasn¡¯t willing to risk taking something for nothing from her quite yet. [Name: Gabrielle Honeydew Race: Gold Elf Class: Grovetender - Uncommon - Rank C Level: 24 Emotional Status: Hopeful/Excited] [If you offer Gabrielle a space in your service, you will have nothing to fear from her. Should you fail to do so, her calculating mind may eventually come back to bite you. However, you have nothing to fear from her present actions. Vassal Approval: 99.9%] You know what? Now¡¯s as good a time as ever. Might as well kill two birds with one stone. ¡°Volta, please come over next to Gabrielle.¡± I intoned as I watched the elf start to shift uncomfortably with her hand still extended with the jade green scroll hanging limply. Chapter 2 - Trust is Hard Half a second later, the [Arcweaver] flashed to join Gabrielle. The [Grovetender] hurried to her feet, where she stood looking at me with a worried expression. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± She clutched the scroll like it was a lifeline, which I guess it was, but not for her. ¡°I promise, you can have it. No strings attached.¡± She went to raise her hand to swear on her house in the Gold Elf tradition, but I held up a hand to stop her. ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary.¡± I beamed at the pair before me. ¡°I have something to offer the pair of you instead.¡± Volta¡¯s face lit up blue as tiny arcs of cerulean lightning sprang to life all over her. ¡°Pactlord, now isn¡¯t the time¨C¡± ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± I frowned as I pulled up the interface for [Elemental Pactlord]. In it, I found the notice preventing me from summoning Volta¡¯s brother, Voltaire, back to Genovia. ¡°Your brother should be here, but until I can get a piece of fulgurite to your, soon to be former, lord¡¯s palace, that¡¯s not possible.¡± As I rolled my shoulders, I noticed Ylsa standing behind me in solidarity. She nodded approvingly as she smiled at Volta. ¡°A wise choice, Storm-Blessed.¡± Her approval helped confirm my decision. I locked eyes with the ¡°Gabrielle, what you¡¯re about to hear is likely enough to get me killed if anyone significantly more powerful than I am ever hears it. Do you still want to hear it?¡± She hesitated before bobbing her head, her golden hair braid sliding in front of her chest as she did so. ¡°You¡¯re the only reason I even have a chance of making it home before I begin to wither. Please, tell me.¡± Ylsa put a comforting hand on my shoulder and I began. ¡°You see, my class isn¡¯t actually [Starlord], that¡¯s just what I told [Status Shield] to mask it as.¡± Her eyes widened. ¡°It¡¯s actually [Suzerain], a Unique SSS-ranked Class.¡± ¡°What!?¡± Her grape vine green eyes bulged. ¡°It¡¯s the Unique Class for the Chosen of Dominus, the true ruler of our pantheon of corrupt deities.¡± ¡°Chosen of who?¡± She choked out before she had to put her head between her knees and begin hyperventilating. Putting a hand on her shoulder, I spoke softly. ¡°Dominus is the mother of all six other deities the people of Genovia worship, but four of her children betrayed her millenia ago. Only Light and Darkness stayed true,¡± she looked up at me with hope in her eyes at the mention that Light ¨C the elven patron deity ¨C wasn¡¯t one of the betrayers, ¡°though parts of their pantheons were siphoned off by the betrayers over time as they tried to consolidate everything under their control.¡± Dominus had been particularly irritated when she mentioned how Darkness had lost control of the void to Devourer. She mentioned something about his lack of understanding putting Genovia at risk, but wouldn¡¯t expand on it even with me pushing hard during our last conversation. ¡°My goddess¡¯ only request was for me to grow stronger and live my life as best I could.¡± I ran my free hand through my platinum blonde bob. ¡°Doing that put me in your path, so I guess it could be said you were already on her list. She likes you quite a bit, I can confirm.¡± ¡°She likes me?¡± The former administrator slumped down on her rump, ruffling her green travel dress. ¡°How do you know that?¡± Rather than explain how [Dominus¡¯ Insight] worked, I shot the description over to her in a golden System window. ¡°She told me as much when I used that on you. She really wants you working for me and I concur, I could really use someone as talented as you working to grow my fortune so I can do whatever I end up needing to do later in life.¡± I shrugged. ¡°More money should make that easier and Dominus was impressed enough with your negotiating to ask me to recruit you.¡± She placed a finger on her chest and mouthed ¡®me¡¯ a few times without making a sound. I nodded and she narrowed her eyes at me. ¡°How would that even work?¡± It was obvious she found strength in the art of negotiation as her spine straightened as she looked slightly up at me. ¡°It¡¯s not like you have a base of operations to call your own, do you?¡± Stupid short body. She¡¯s sitting and barely even has to look up at me. Note to self: Look into platform boots when I get settled in somewhere. People looking down at me when I¡¯m in charge would suck. Behind me, Ylsa practically growled. ¡°The goliath people are behind the [Suzerain] one hundred percent. We are those who never lost faith in our goddess, even if we no longer knew her name until Arthur came into my life.¡± She grunted. ¡°Our valley is remote and highly defensible. An excellent place for an empire to begin.¡± ¡°As much as I appreciate the sentiment, I¡¯m not looking to found an empire just yet.¡± Turning to face Ylsa, I nodded gratefully before looking back at Gabrielle. ¡°I was planning on employing my maternal familial connections to get my feet wet in the political battlefield that is Sunhome before doing the same with my father¡¯s line at a later date.¡± With a glance over at Raiju¡¯s whimpering form, I forced myself back on task. ¡°I know you have more questions, but I need to know¡­will you follow me?¡± A red System window appeared before Gabrielle. [Arthur Bajbub Neilson, Suzerain and Chosen of Dominus has offered you vassalship. Accepting this is a permanent commitment, barring negotiation between you and him at a later date to dissolve the relationship. In return, your three highest Stats will be increased by 20% for as long as you faithfully follow his rule. Do you accept his offer? Y/N] Surprisingly, Volta beat Gabrielle to the punch, quickly swearing allegiance. ¡°I, Volta the [Arcweaver], pledge my loyalty to my lord and his heirs, forevermore.¡± A semi-familiar bright red System window appeared in front of me. [Volta the Arcweaver has requested to be your subject for as long as you and your heirs remain. The offer stands until Volta retracts it. Warning! This will permanently consume 1% of your Mana regeneration rate. Do you accept her offer of fealty? Y/N]If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°Of course I do.¡± I mentally accepted her contract and felt as I actually gained Mana in doing so. She went from consuming two percent of my Mana total and regeneration to only eating up one percent. I didn¡¯t plan on sending her back to her former lord, so saving a whole percent on my total Mana was a welcome addition. The lightning knight knelt before me on one knee. ¡°Milord, what would you have me do?¡± Drawing Jaegan¡¯s staff, I tapped her on each shoulder. ¡°Rise, Volta. None who follow me truly must kneel before me. That position is reserved for those who wrong me and mine.¡± A bit of an edge snuck into my tone, but she grinned wickedly as she straightened up. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have it any other way.¡± ¡°Catch.¡± I tossed a glittering black and green gem high in the air. ¡°Think of it as a signing bonus. I want you as strong as possible, since you don¡¯t just go home when you get disrupted anymore.¡± Not waiting for the stone to land, Volta zipped up to snatch it thirty feet in the air. ¡°Milord, this is too generous.¡± ¡°Bah, it¡¯s just a black opal. I¡¯ll buy another one for your brother when we make it to Sunhome, alongside a big ass piece of fulgurite for the Duke so I can get him back.¡± I grumbled to myself before looking up at her. ¡°Get started on your evolution. I want to get moving as soon as I get done with Gabrielle and the [Sending].¡± She floated to be perpendicular to me in the air before bowing deeply. ¡°At once.¡± Lightning coursed through her as she laid the two inch ovoid gem in the space between her breastplate and her skin. Unlike when I¡¯d watched Nimbus evolve from a [Cloudpup] to an [Azure Hound], she didn¡¯t grow massively. Instead, she solidified. Lightning cascaded toward her from all around for the next five minutes, despite there being not a cloud in the sky. Each bolt that struck her increased her glow from her usual, barely more than a candle, until she began to rival the noonday sun. It all ended when an enormous bolt of black lightning shot up from the ground to lance into her. Her back arched as she screamed in ecstasy as the light pouring out of her turned inward as her body changed from her previously semi-solid state to milky white flesh you wouldn¡¯t be surprised to find on a particularly wealthy elven woman. When the light finally faded enough for me to get a good look at her, most people would have averted their eyes, but I understood how much it meant to her that I watched as she floated down to stand before me. ¡°You¡¯re stunning.¡± My gaze traced her newly formed physical body. ¡°May you enjoy your physical form, Volta.¡± She spun on one foot in a circle giggling before stopping and bowing low to me and sending her long black-green hair cascading down her front. ¡°I will, Pactlord.¡± She couldn¡¯t help it as she began to giggle again. ¡°No, Arthur.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough of that.¡± Gabrielle walked up behind Volta, threw a long red cloak around her shoulders, and pulled it shut roughly. ¡°Modesty is important in a knight. You should¨C¡± ¡°Stop.¡± I glared at Gabrielle. ¡°Volta is merely enjoying her new body. There¡¯s nothing to be ashamed of in the mortal form. Have you forgotten so much of elven culture in your time away from Sunhome?¡± The blonde elf¡¯s face blanched. ¡°She was fully nude! It isn¡¯t becoming of a¨C¡± ¡°She¡¯s the first Storm Elf on Genovia in over a thousand years according to my [Essence Reading]. Let her enjoy it before you slap her in cloth bonds.¡± She looked like she wanted to argue before she sighed. ¡°Of course, milord.¡± She tapped the notification floating in front of her and I received a slightly different notification than I¡¯d received before. [Gabrielle Honeydew has accepted your offer of vassalship. Treat your new Treasurer well.] ¡°Treasurer?¡± I frowned. ¡°Did you do something, Gabrielle?¡± ¡°As Volta was evolving, I was poking around this red System window. It turns out it¡¯s tied directly to your [Suzerain] Class. When I asked the System what I could do, it gave me a list of jobs I could accept and I picked the one I thought myself best suited to given what you¡¯ve asked of me. The Skill I got for accepting it is pretty amazing, to be honest.¡± Eyes widening, I focused on the idea of my Domain, the place I would one day rule given the chance, and a red window snapped into existence before me. [Domain Management - please choose a section to review: Vassals Finances - Delegated to Gabrielle Honeydew (Treasurer) Land Infrastructure Diplomacy] ¡°Sonofabitch.¡± I groaned. ¡°Show me Vassals.¡± [Vassal Management - please choose a subsection to review: Council Military Crafters Diplomats General] ¡°This is getting ridiculous.¡± I looked over at Ylsa and muttered under my breath. ¡°Military.¡± [Military Management: Imperial Guard Marshall Tactician Quartermaster General] ¡°Imperial Guard.¡± I half whispered before remembering I could navigate the menu with my mind. [Imperial Guard Management: No members of your Imperial Guard have been selected. Would you like to offer a position to one of your existing vassals? Note: As a level 30 Suzerain, you have three positions available in your Imperial Guard.] ¡°Install Ylsa as Chief Bodyguard and Volta as my Marshall.¡± The System practically hummed, as if managing the Domain System was something it enjoyed. A moment later, Ylsa gasped. ¡°I accept!¡± Crimson light settled upon her shoulders before a matching red window snapped in front of her. ¡°This should be useful with how beat up he always gets.¡± A second later, I suddenly felt more¡­solid. ¡°What in all the hells?¡± I muttered under my breath. Ylsa must have heard me, because she flipped the screen she was looking over so I could see what it entailed. ¡°Oh, that makes sense.¡± [As the Suzerain¡¯s Chief Bodyguard, you are responsible for his wellbeing. To assist in that, you have been granted the Sympathetic Statistics Skill. It is permanently linked with your Suzerain. Sympathetic Statistics - You and your charge each gain twenty percent of the highest physical Stat you naturally possess, including Vassal bonuses, as long as you remain within ten miles of each other.] ¡°Your [Toughness] is insane! Just twenty percent of your base was enough to boost my [Toughness] over my [Agility].¡± She smirked. ¡°You¡¯re one to talk, you nearly doubled my [Agility].¡± She crouched down and sprinted down the hill far faster than I¡¯d ever seen her run before without the use of a Skill. ¡°If you¡¯re done playing, here¡¯s the [Sending] scroll, milord.¡± Gabrielle tapped my arm with the rolled up piece of jade parchment, snapping me out of my shocked state. ¡°We don¡¯t have time to waste if we want to save Raiju.¡± I took the scroll with a grateful nod and unfurled it. [Learn Sending - Y/N] I mentally tapped the yes option and, a moment later, the scroll glowed brightly and a new window appeared. [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 47% Sending - 73%] ¡°Excellent.¡± I patted her shoulder. ¡°Thank you, and please just call me Artie, or Arthur if you must.¡± The former Verdant lord smirked. ¡°Only if you call me Gabby.¡± ¡°Can do, Gabby.¡± Chapter 3 - Damnit Mom! Sitting on the wall of the ruined tower with my feet dangling, I plotted out my message to Mom. ¡°I still can¡¯t believe this stupid Spell has a thirty minute cooldown with three hundred and fifty [Arcane] with nearly seventy-five percent mastery.¡± I grumbled to myself. ¡°Normal people must have to wait four plus hours, or maybe even a day when they learn it.¡± Behind me, someone giggled as Gabby joined me on the wall. ¡°That¡¯s why I never learned it myself, to be honest. My Stats lean far more into [Wits] and [Charm], given what I¡¯ve been doing the past few dozen years. Because of that, I was told I¡¯d have to wait days to send multiple twenty-five word messages when I talked to the local [Augur].¡± She smiled when I looked at her with a cocked head, obviously confused. ¡°It¡¯s someone who can tell you how something will affect your Stats or how a particular Skill or Spell will work for you.¡± She flipped her glittering gold locks over her shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s a Rare D-rank Class, but nobody really wants it. It has absolutely no combat capability and very little in the way of ways to make money outside of that one thing. The problem they run into is that very few people, almost exclusively adventurers in fact, are willing to pay for that kind of information. They often end up leaning on crafting to live instead.¡± ¡°I had no idea.¡± I handed her a piece of paper and had her double check the word count for me, just in case I¡¯d fucked it up the previous four times I checked. ¡°Still can¡¯t believe contractions count as multiple words¡­some bullshit there.¡± She grunted as she tapped each word in turn while counting on her fingers with her other hand. She handed it back. ¡°Twenty-nine words, you should be good to go. I would recommend adding ¡®meow¡¯ to the end though.¡± ¡°What?¡± I laughed, but when she didn¡¯t, I turned to look at her more closely. ¡°It¡¯s no laughing matter,¡± she blushed furiously. ¡°[Sending] is a far more powerful Spell than its Mana requirement would lead you to believe. That¡¯s because it taps into the power of Genovia at large, or at least it did before the System came. Now it piggybacks on the old Party interface, but because of that, the gods can read all messages sent and can even add their own to the message if there are free spaces.¡± She puffed up her chest. ¡°Casters as far back as our people have records mentioning using the word ¡®meow¡¯ to fill gaps to prevent just that. It¡¯s tradition.¡± For a second, I considered messing with her a bit, but the look she gave me somehow let me know that would be a massive mistake. Instead, I nodded gratefully. ¡°Noted, adding ¡®meow¡¯ at the end.¡± ¡°Get going. Raiju is waiting.¡± She pushed my shoulder, revealing far more skin than would be considered appropriate in Verdant as her travel dress shifted, and I cursed myself for lacking a reaction. Dominus said it would happen, I just have to wait for the right person at the right time. I just have to trust my goddess to take care of my love life. Be gentle, kind goddess. With a small hop, I landed on the ground and walked a few yards away as I cast [Sending]. A window appeared in front of me asking for my message and I dutifully filled it out. [Mom, it¡¯s Artie. I need Galloway¡¯s help. Send me the exact distance and direction from Chalcedony to his house. A precious life is at stake. Please respond quickly. Meow.] A dozen Mana drained from me as the message folded in on itself before disappearing entirely. When I turned around, I found Ylsa standing there, staring at me. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± My body fell into a defensive posture as I began looking over my shoulders for some sort of threat. ¡°Why did you bring Mindy with us?¡± She shook her head. ¡°As your bodyguard, I need to know if there¡¯s a good reason I might have to defend someone besides yourself.¡± Part of me wanted to tell her off, but I bit my tongue before it got me in trouble. Instead, I sighed and told the truth. ¡°Cards on the table?¡± She nodded. ¡°I wanted to see if I still felt anything for her or if it was all something her sister did to me. I still don¡¯t know and it¡¯s been driving me absolutely batty.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t seriously t¨C¡± ¡°Plus, Dominus told me to recruit her if I could.¡± I hastily added. She snapped her jaw shut as she glared at me. ¡°Next time, lead with that.¡± Without another word, she spun on her heel and walked around the broken tower to stand guard over our comatose companions. Feeling shitty, I stood there for a minute kicking rubble when a notification hit the corner of my vision. Finally. Opening it up, I groaned. ¡°Really, Mom!?¡± I howled at the sky. [It is so good to hear from you my darling boy! How are you doing? Have you leveled up? What have you been doing the past few months? Why do] As I stood there, bemoaning my airheaded mother¡¯s incapability of staying on task, a new notification hit the corner of my vision. Opening it up, I blinked a few times. ¡°Oh, that might work.¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. [Hildegard ¡°Conflux¡± Sunbeam is attempting to contact you with Illusory Communication. Do you accept the 25 Mana cost? Y/N] With a thought, I accepted the cost and an image of my mother¡¯s torso, arms, and head snapped into existence before me. ¡°You¡¯ve grown so much!¡± She squealed and tried throwing her illusory arms around me. When they passed straight through, she crossed her arms as she pouted. ¡°I should have just teleported to you so I could hug you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too, Mom.¡± My heart warmed. I really had missed her and Dad since leaving home. ¡°Before we get into anything serious, how are you and Dad dealing with an empty nest?¡± The glare I received would have slain lesser mortals, but I was used to her flashes of anger. They were totally normal to me, like any other day of the week. ¡°I¡¯ll have you know we¡¯ve been enjoying a bit of time to ourselves.¡± Her left eye and breast twitched in unison, a sure tell she was lying. ¡°It¡¯s been nice not having to worry about someone wandering around the house when me and his father¨C¡± ¡°I¡¯ve missed you guys too.¡± I cut her off. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry to cut our time short, but I need directions to Galloway¡¯s house, right now.¡± I paused. ¡°He can deal with a Spirit Wound, right?¡± The color drained from her face. ¡°Are you hurt!?¡± She whirled around and started yelling. ¡°It¡¯s time to go! My baby¨C¡± ¡°Mom!¡± I yelled at the image and she whirled around to face me again. ¡°It¡¯s not me. I¡¯m mostly fine.¡± I shook my head, there was no use telling her anything about what I had going on. She would blow it all out of proportion and somehow end up putting me in a force bubble somewhere to keep me ¡®safe¡¯. ¡°Uncle Galloway. Where is his house? I need exact distances, none of that ¡®twenty minutes from Chalcedony¡¯ bullshit you gave me as a kid.¡± To her credit, she calmed down in far less time than she would have if I were there with her. It just took me giving her a rough synopsis of what I¡¯d been doing since I left to get her to focus up. ¡°Galloway lives twenty minutes due east from Chalcedony via [Void Step].¡± I groaned. ¡°In miles, please?¡± I knew we were screwed, but it couldn¡¯t hurt to hear how badly. [Void Step] was how Mom brought Dad and I with her on vacation. She could travel the length of the continent in less than an hour with it. She started counting on her fingers and, I suspect, her toes. ¡°Twenty-five hundred miles? Give or take. He used to live closer, but his grove got overrun by¨C¡± Her whole body locked up as blue lightning sprang from the area behind her corset to cover her entire body. Her mouth opened in a silent scream as tendrils dug into all her joints as well as her lungs and heart. ¡°Mom!¡± I yelled at her image, but no matter how many times I tried, nothing worked. She was stuck like that, with only her eyes moving to tell me the Spell was still active, for the next four minutes when the blue lightning slowly retracted back from whence it came. She floated there, panting, for almost a minute before looking up and locking eyes with me. ¡°One moment.¡± She produced a cherry-red potion from her ring and downed it with her eyes closed. ¡°Ugh, her Uncommon pots always did taste like coppers.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± I wanted to leap through the image and tackle her, but knew I couldn¡¯t. ¡°Are you OK?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing for you to worry about.¡± She brushed me off. ¡°Now, how long until your companion dies from their Soul Wound?¡± My left eye twitched, but I knew from experience that she wouldn¡¯t be answering my previous questions. ¡°If I got to him, could Uncle Galloway heal a mortal Soul Wound?¡± She scoffed. ¡°He¡¯s the most powerful [Forest Shaman] alive who¡¯s under a thousand years old, the last time I checked. Yes, he can heal a little Soul Wound.¡± ¡°Fuck. He¡¯s too far.¡± I started running my hands through my hair nervously. ¡°[Emental Surge] might get me close, but I¡¯d have to mountain hop to have a chance.¡± ¡°[Elemental Surge]?¡± Her eyes went wide. What is that?¡± I didn¡¯t have time for her antics. ¡°It¡¯s the evolution I picked for [Elemental Teleportation], if you must know. It lets me move like an elemental in addition to teleporting, but the teleport costs ten Mana per mile, with a max range of twenty percent of my [Wits]. Cooldown is around sixteen minutes too, so there¡¯s no way I can make it to him in time.¡± I slammed my fist into the wall behind me. ¡°Damnit!¡± Mom¡¯s eyes softened. ¡°We can talk more about you evolving a Skill later. For now, I need to guide you toward where Galloway used to live.¡± ¡°How is that going to help me?¡± I felt powerless. ¡°Unless you know how I can travel through time, getting to where he used to live isn¡¯t going to help me!¡± ¡°Calm down.¡± She oozed motherly calm and I sagged nearly to the ground. ¡°Galloway is old-school. He told a number of his friends, and unknown enemies, where he was going to settle down. He wouldn¡¯t have just left them all to die if they came for help from him.¡± ¡°How?¡± I pleaded. ¡°Galloway¡¯s old grove is one hundred and thirty-six miles east by northeast from Chalcedony.¡± Mom was suddenly all business. ¡°[Send] me again when you get there and I¡¯ll have the answers you need.¡± I pulled myself up to my feet using the wall. ¡°I can do that.¡± She smiled. ¡°Good boy. Now, do you have any more questions before this Spell ends in thirty seconds?¡± She looked away, embarrassment obvious from her body language. ¡°Just one.¡± I couldn¡¯t help getting one more shot in. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you teach me [Sending]? I had to burn a Skill Scroll to learn it.¡± Her eyes widened as her gaze snapped back to me, but before she could answer the connection was severed. ¡°Oh, the timing.¡± I brushed off my dark charcoal [Cinder Robes] before walking around to join my friends. Gabby looked concerned. ¡°I heard yelling, but didn¡¯t feel right checking on you since the Party interface said you were fine.¡± She made to walk over and give me a hug, but I motioned for her to stop before she could get close. ¡°Mom did something she shouldn¡¯t and got blasted by the System.¡± I¡¯d recognize that look anywhere, it was the same thing that happened to Dominus when she told me too much in my level up sessions, only with deity level [Toughness]. ¡°She gave me directions to Uncle Galloway¡¯s old grove. When we get there, I need to reach out to her once more and she¡¯ll find a way to get us the rest of the way to him.¡± Without speaking a word, Ylsa leaned down and hefted the unconscious form of Raiju over her shoulders. I pulled the map of the area up and did some rough math before copying the goliath. ¡°It¡¯ll be faster if we run between teleports, is that OK with everyone?¡± I looked mostly at Gabby, who blushed furiously. ¡°As long as it¡¯s through an area with trees, I should be able to keep up better than I did on the way here. [Arbor Stride] lasts a long time and I can use it to pop between trees of the same species within a thousand feet on my own.¡± Looking out to the sea of trees to the east, I chuckled. ¡°I think you¡¯ll be fine then. Gather up, we¡¯re going.¡± A moment later we all disappeared in a flash of brown and green energy. Chapter 4 - Grove of Corruption Two [Elemental Surge] teleports and a ten minute headlong dash through the forest later we arrived at what could only be Uncle Galloway¡¯s former grove. The trees surrounding it stood far taller than even their closest bits of competition, towering nearly five hundred feet in the air compared to the two hundred feet of their fellows. The effects of the [Forest Shaman]¡¯s presence were obvious, as were the effects of his absence. The grove had to be at least a mile across, with six different kinds of fruit tree orchards growing beneath the boughs of the massive defender trees. [Essence Reading] let me know they were all Rare variants that shouldn¡¯t have been able to grow there, but the [Forest Shaman]¡¯s touch was obvious as they stood nearly double the height most of them should have with far more laden branches. It wasn¡¯t all good in the grove, however. In the center of the grove, where a once powerful and majestic [Celestial Oak] stood, now a shriveled hulk of a thing dominated the space. The formerly amber bark had lost its luster and was now a deep, depressing, grey. My gaze traced up its height and I groaned at what had been lost. Gone were the balconies and slides I¡¯d played on as a young boy and in their places were black iron grates and spiky protrusions stabbing both into the wood and out into the air. The foot of the tree was the worst, as far as I was concerned. Uncle Galloway¡¯s prized [Topiary Lions] now stood bare of their leaves as they prowled the steps leading up to a new black iron gate that replaced the sweeping wooden entrance I remembered. Up against the gate stood a pair of black robed and hooded figures with massive blacked-out long axes hung over their shoulders as they guarded the entrance. All throughout the grove, a place I¡¯d once been told would always be around to protect me, dozens of black robed figures roamed. Some were doing mundane things like picking fruit from the orchards, but others were working on hideous contraptions belching smoke and flames into the air. Said contraptions were a bit like the [Goblin War-Wagon] we¡¯d found in the Dungeon a month ago, but instead of ramshackle steel plates strapped to a wooden wagon with a boiler bolted in the middle, these looked like tuned instruments of war. Has it really only been a month since the Dungeon? It feels like forever. ¡°This is totally unacceptable.¡± Staring through the trees at the state of the grove, I growled to myself. ¡°Their perversion of this place will not stand.¡± Part of me wanted to dive in, right there with Mindy on my shoulders, but I stopped myself before I took more than a few steps. A few deep breaths later, I turned and looked at my allies. We weren¡¯t in the best shape and I knew it. ¡°They¡¯re beautiful.¡± Gabby¡¯s eyes gleamed. My hackles rose. ¡°I¡¯m surprised at you, how coul¨C¡± ¡°The fruit trees,¡± she shut down my indignation in an instant with her reverent tone, ¡°they¡¯re all so perfect. I think I gained a level just by looking at them for a few minutes. Can you imagine what I¡¯d gain if I could actually spend time with them?¡± She shook herself out of it and looked over at me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, did you say something?¡± ¡°Nothing important.¡± I turned to look at Ylsa, who nodded. ¡°You¡¯re in charge.¡± She stared me straight in the eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll do whatever you want, but I¡¯m prioritizing keeping you alive over anything else.¡± A plan started percolating in the back of my mind on how we could do what we needed to in the grove while keeping our allies safe. ¡°I can work with that.¡± I turned to look at Gabby. ¡°Do you have any stealth abilities? I¡¯m mostly looking for something that might let you, Raiju, and Mindy hide here at the edge of the grove while Ylsa and I go on a quick trip into the mess out there.¡± She raised a finger, hesitated, then put it down. ¡°You know, that¡¯s probably not a bad idea.¡± She pulled a Scroll from the bag at her hip, then slowly put it back. ¡°I should just use my Daily.¡± ¡°What¡¯s a Daily?¡± I physically couldn¡¯t stop myself from asking. ¡°It¡¯s not something you¡¯ll ever really have to deal with, considering your insane Stats, but for us normal people,¡± she ran her hands up and down herself, ¡°we usually have a Skill or two that have cooldowns that around a day long, so we call them Dailies.¡± Thinking back, I remembered Dad complaining about Mom¡¯s lack of cooldowns and realized he probably had something he¡¯d call a Daily if he knew the term. I really needed to sit down and talk with him at some point, but now wasn¡¯t the time to be thinking about that! ¡°OK, that makes sense.¡± I nodded. ¡°What¡¯s your Daily?¡± She took a few steps closer to the nearest [Barrier Oak]. ¡°It¡¯s called [Mother¡¯s Embrace]. It lets me and up to five other people temporarily occupy an extra dimensional space within a plant.¡± She blushed. ¡°I¡¯ve only used it a few times, because if the plant were to be killed or destroyed, I¡¯d go with it.¡± She slapped the massive tree appreciatively. ¡°But that won¡¯t be an issue with this big boy! He¡¯s damn near indestructible, so we should be safe.¡± Unbeknownst to me, Ylsa had begun moving Raiju and Mindy¡¯s unconscious forms toward the tree Gabby was standing beside, so when I turned around to look for her, I found her in the middle of the process.Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°I was just about to say we should do that¡­nice work.¡± I blushed faintly before moving to help. Thirty seconds of giant wolf wrangling later, Gabby saluted me with a fist over her heart. ¡°I¡¯ll keep them safe while you do whatever it is you¡¯re planning on doing.¡± She moved her hand to touch the tree beside her. ¡°When you get back, I¡¯ll pop us out so we can get moving right away.¡± ¡°But how¡­?¡± I trailed off as she started chuckling. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be much of a defensive Skill if I couldn¡¯t see what was going around my hidey-hole.¡± She took a deep breath before letting it out long and slow. ¡°[Mother¡¯s Embrace].¡± In less than a second, she, Mindy, and Raiju disappeared from view. The Party Interface said they were fine, so I trusted Gabby¡¯s Skill was working. Turning to face my remaining compatriots, I slipped [Night¡¯s Fury] onto my right forearm and slowly tested the action to deploy the blade. The foot long blade seemed to defy the light¡¯s very existence as it seemed to drink in the light rather than reflect it as it should have. ¡°I guess that¡¯s what level two hundred Wraith Dragon parts gets you.¡± I let the blade sink back into the housing. ¡°My plan is pretty simple, I want to keep this a stealth operation as long as possible. Volta, are you confident in the new Skills you unlocked after your evolution yet? I can¡¯t think of any of your old Skills you¡¯d even be able to use stealthily.¡± The Storm Elf produced a short blade of concentrated black lightning from a sheath at her waist before stowing it once more. ¡°My new Skills from the evolution are mostly big and flashy, as most proper Storm Elves have been since time began, but I did learn [Wind¡¯s Whisper]. It should at least let me get away with sneaking around.¡± She looked down at her feet. ¡°I¡¯m not exactly used to walking around yet and flying eats Mana now, so I¡¯m getting used to it.¡± Her face hardened. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me though, I won¡¯t hold you back.¡± Stepping forward, I patted her shoulder. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t dream of it.¡± Before I could address Ylsa, she beat me to the punch. ¡°I was already pretty stealthy before my [Agility] nearly doubled, no big heavy armor for me.¡± She flexed her impressive biceps. ¡°Stealth takedowns? I can do that.¡± I beamed at the pair. ¡°Let¡¯s do some planning then. We don¡¯t have all day.¡± *** Over the next twenty minutes the three of us observed the guards¡¯ paths of travel and slowly built up a plan for how we would make our way through the scattered defenders. Our biggest problems were the war machines, which [Essence Reading] identified as [Consuming Colossi]. Their defenses looked impressive, but as long as no one was inside them, they were useless. During our time observing, I¡¯d only seen one person even enter one of them, but they didn¡¯t come out again for nearly ten minutes, which made them far too much of a wildcard not to deal with them immediately. Conveniently for us, the area containing the majority of them abutted the forest, likely so they could gather wood for the forges in the same area more easily. The three of us moved through the woods as quietly as we could, but not before I filled my last floating Skill slot. [Dominated Skills - Slots Available 0/5 Sun Armor Arcane Cannon Sunburst Raging Torrent Silent Step] With [Silent Step] deadening the sound of my footsteps, I led the way through the forest with Volta twenty feet behind me and Ylsa thirty feet behind her. I reveled in the freedom of the forest. I¡¯d played in the glade most of the times we¡¯d visited, but when I was nine Uncle Galloway hid a toy in the area around it and sent me out to look for it. Six hours later, I¡¯d returned to the residence triumphant with a new dagger made of [Ironwood] clutched in my mud caked fist. Mom hadn¡¯t been happy with me, but Dad and Uncle Galloway had laughed their asses off until her glare silenced them. Shaking off the memories, I slid through the shadows cast by the enormous [Defender Oaks] making up the edge of the glade. We worked our way clockwise so the sun would be in the eyes of our targets as we attacked. It may have been a risk to each take our own target initially, but we didn¡¯t really have a choice, there were half a dozen targets just in the vehicle pool. If we didn¡¯t all do our part, there¡¯s no way we didn¡¯t get caught. I snuck past a cloaked smith with bare arms working a forge and messaged Ylsa to take that one when I gave the signal. Next was a slight fellow working beneath one of the [Colossi]. He had on a bandolier of tools we¡¯d already seen clatter to the ground multiple times and each time his fellows rushed to his aid, so we had to take him out where he was or the jig would be up. That left me with the most dangerous target, a seven foot tall black cloaked figure with a black oiled greatsword thrown over one shoulder. With no apparent pattern, he would occasionally burst into motion toward something unseen dozens of yards away and slash at nothing before slowly returning to his former location over the course of a minute or so. He¡¯d just returned, so I was relatively confident he wouldn¡¯t do the same thing again immediately, but my backup plan was bad, so I really hoped I didn¡¯t end up needing it. We all got into position and I counted down in the Party chat so we could all strike simultaneously. ¡®Five, four, three, two, one, go!¡¯ Just before I went to slide the blade of [Night¡¯s Fury] into the base of my target¡¯s skull, I triggered [Flash Focus] and was immediately grateful I¡¯d done so. Just outside the cordoned off vehicle area a robed figure was walking into view with his hand raised in greeting. His eyes went wide as he spotted me just as my blade began to sink into my target¡¯s spinal column. In a panic, I did the only thing I could think of. I produced a [Psyknife] and sent it hurtling toward my observer¡¯s forehead even as I let my perception of time return to normal. A few things happened at once after that. [Night¡¯s Fury] severed my initial target¡¯s spinal column, killing him instantly as [Assassinate] triggered and a blinking new notification in the corner of my vision told me its secondary property triggered properly and I was now the new proud owner of an [Assassinate] Skill of my very own. A tenth of a second later, my psychic blade struck the interloper¡¯s forehead and he fell down like a marionette whose strings had been cut with his mouth wide open, but no noise was coming out. I hurried to produce another pair of [Psyknives] and hurled them at his prone form as I activated [Distant Legerdemain] and strained my mental muscles to pull him the last ten feet into the vehicle pool. Dropping as low as I could while still moving quickly, I darted over to check if he was still alive and found his heart had stopped. A few more stabs with a [Psyknife] later, I was confident he was dead and moved for my next target, a [Battlefield Mechanic] working on the armored plating of the nearest war machine. She was smaller than her fellows, but I¡¯d seen her bend over backward to dodge a rogue fireball from her metallic charge and knew she could move far faster than her attire would lead you to believe. Chapter 5 - Tactical Removal of Assets My target had just finished welding a narrow band of armor to the right side of one of the armored behemoths as I approached. As I waited for [Essence Reading] to give me more details, I activated [Assassin¡¯s Mark] over the course of a few seconds, something I¡¯d forgotten to do on my previous target. What it finally reported didn¡¯t surprise me, but it did infuriate me. [Name: Dahlia Shortblade Race: Quarterling (Half-Human, Half-Halfling) Class: Battlefield Mechanic - Rare - Rank B Level: 31 Emotional Status: Focused/Content] Below the normal window was another, smaller box, but it held the most relevant information of everything I had available. [Chosen of Dominus: Dahlia is a devout follower of Devourer, as are all of the people in this glade besides you and your companions.] So that¡¯s what [Chosen of Dominus] does besides mark me as her Chosen. My eyes narrowed on the woman where she was working on a smaller panel of black-green metal in a large forge full of purple flame. Devourer, you bastard! This place isn¡¯t for you and your shitty cultists. I¡¯m of half a mind to claim this glade for Dominus directly and see what fucking happens to your cannon fodder. Surprisingly, a red box ringed with gold snapped into existence in the corner of my vision, but I banished it to the tiny icon for silenced notifications as I snuck up on my target. I have a feeling I¡¯m going to want to consider that for a bit, so it can wait ten seconds. Reaching out to the forge with [Elemental Mastery], I pushed some Mana into it to cause it to flare up. Dahlia reared back before cursing under her breath. ¡°Stupid [Holy Forge], shoulda just used a regular [Arcforge]. There have been nothing but problems since we got this damned thing.¡± She half giggled. ¡°Damned thing, for a [Holy Forge]! I¡¯m funny!¡± Those were her final words. As she reached toward the dials on the side of the forge to try and get them under control I slid forward the final five feet to bury [Night¡¯s Fury] in the base of her skull. I ripped the wrist mounted blade out of her corpse and sent the blood on the blade flicking into the forge, where the newly reduced flames surged once more until her blood burned off. ¡®Both of my targets are down.¡¯ I huddled beneath the armored vehicle my latest target had been working on. ¡®Any issues with the dude popping in and out of the vehicle, Volta?¡¯ Nearly thirty seconds of tense waiting later, she replied. ¡®I caught him just as he was crawling out with a blade through his heart. His body is in the metal monstrosity. The other is now roasting in his own forge with his throat cut.¡¯ Ylsa didn¡¯t wait for me to react before putting in her two coppers. ¡®Two [Mechanists] neutralized. Tossed both in the big forge over here and their bodies are charring away¡­¡¯ ¡®Did you loot them?¡¯ Realization struck me as I realized they didn¡¯t need to do that with the Party Interface. ¡®Nevermind, stupid question. Their bodies should have decomposed in a few minutes after looting if they¡¯re all at a similar level to the one I checked, but I guess it can¡¯t hurt.¡¯ It kind of amazes me to have the Party Interface sometimes. Looting your target tells the System it¡¯s time to reclaim the body of the slain, which my Party members do automatically, unlike everyone else on Genovia. They all have to touch their targets, putting ranged damage dealers at a severe disadvantage when the time to loot comes. I wonder if Mom¡­nope, not going to let myself dive down that rabbit hole right now. It¡¯s time to look at that notification. With a flex of my will, the gold rimmed red window reappeared before me. Despite their similarities, it somehow felt more than the other windows unique to [Suzerain]. Like it had some holy mojo going on, which ¨C I guess ¨C it did. [Would you like to officially contest the Grove of Corruption in the name of Dominus against Devourer? Y/N] A sub-window unfolded to the side as I considered what this thing actually meant and really clarified what I was dealing with. [Note: Officially contesting a location as the Chosen of a deity makes you their champion by default. If you accept this request, Devourer will have one minute to name a temporary champion as long as their Chosen isn¡¯t present. After that minute, you and the other champion will be teleported to the center of the contested space where you will fight to the death. The loser of the contest will have all their followers in the area slain and their energy delivered directly to the winner¡¯s deity.] Holy shit, I kind of guessed it would be something like that, but to read it in black on red¡­it makes it all real. My mind began to spin and I sat down on the pavers with my back to the forge. Am I ready to directly contest a god? Even if it is that piece of shit, Devourer. Am I ready for the world to know I exist? There¡¯s no way a notification regarding a contest between two deities doesn¡¯t get broadcast to at least the nearest city. Am I ready for Chalcedony to know I¡¯m the Chosen of Dominus?If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. It wasn¡¯t the combat I was worried about. I had enough tricks and life saving potions in my bandolier to outlast most people, though if they were on a similar level as my parents¡­I¡¯d be screwed. As I sat there in a state of decision paralysis, Volta and Ylsa found their way over and stood guard over me. Silent guardians against the demon that was my mind. Nearly five minutes later, I made my decision, or at least decided how I¡¯d make the decision. ¡°It¡¯s up to you, Dominus. Tell me what you want me to do.¡± I pushed a quarter of my Mana into [Dominus¡¯ Insight] when the usual eighth didn¡¯t do it and the resulting golden window finally flared to life. [The choice is ultimately yours, Artie, but with this I can lay out the facts of the situation so you can make an insightful decision. Heh, insightful. Anyway¡­ There are seventy-eight followers of Devourer at this location with levels between ten and forty, though the average is twenty-seven. Their leader is a level forty Priest of Devourer, a Rare A-Ranked Class. I won¡¯t tell you the idea of siphoning so much power from my most ungrateful progeny doesn¡¯t make me happy, but I don¡¯t want you to do this for me. I want you to do it because you want to embrace who you are meant to be, this world¡¯s Suzerain.] ¡°Yeah, I kind of figured that¡¯s what she¡¯d say.¡± I tossed the trio of notifications to my pair of guards and let them read through them while I pondered their contents. ¡°What do you think I should do?¡± I entreated them. Volta finished first. She closed the notifications and looked back at me with eyes that sparkled like the black opal she¡¯d used to evolve. ¡°Before evolving, I¡¯d have said to continue what we started, but now? I can¡¯t help but say you should assert your dominance. Let the world hear you roar, even if it¡¯s only in this tiny corner of it.¡± ¡°Despite how long she¡¯s been mortal, I can¡¯t say I disagree.¡± Ylsa stared down at me before extending her hand and hauling me to my feet. ¡°You¡¯ve dealt with far worse than a level forty priest in just the past few days.¡± She flashed me a surprisingly wild grin. ¡°Slaughter him and feed our goddess the power of those heathens!¡± Yeah, I really should have seen that coming. I smiled at the pair of them. Ylsa¡¯s the most devout follower of Dominus after me that I know. Of course she¡¯d want to empower her goddess with the blood of her enemies. ¡°It¡¯s time for a tactical assassination.¡± I clicked the yes option. A moment later, the bark of the [Barrier Oaks] surrounding the glade began to glow and soon a barrier of emerald light rippled out to surround the entire space. A notification snapped into existence before all of our faces, even though we already knew what it would say. [Arthur Bajbub Neilson, Chosen of Dominus, has officially challenged Devourer for control of the Grove of Corruption in the name of his goddess. Should Devourer¡¯s Chosen not be present, he shall have one minute to select a suitable proxy within the barrier or immediately forfeit control of the Grove of Corruption and the lives of his followers within it.] From my vantage point, I watched as dozens of robed figures began to get pushed out of the central tree by a barrier matching the same emerald surrounding the glade. The cultists, as I¡¯d decided to continue referring to them as, were in a panic. A quartet of them worked together to coalesce a massive [Fireball] and hurl it at the emerald wall around the glade, but the moment it struck the barrier it disappeared like it never existed. All around the glade, a smattering of other groups tried to pierce the barrier, but I knew they¡¯d never succeed. There¡¯s a reason Uncle Galloway planted those [Barrier Oaks] around his glade. Their barrier, though insanely Mana inefficient when not under attack, was nearly indestructible for anyone under level two fifty. Once under attack, the barrier could absorb any Mana used to attack it and use the absorbed Mana to continue powering the barrier. Sunhome has a ring of far larger [Grand Barrier Oaks] surrounding it, though they hadn¡¯t been activated since the day before the Gold Elves welcomed the rest of their elven brethren into the city millenia ago. I moved to the center of a small group of the [Consuming Colossi] and had Ylsa and Volta pile me up with all the buffs they could in the forty-five seconds we had left before I¡¯d be teleported away to the rotted [Celestial Oak] I¡¯d once called a home away from home. The resulting suite of buffs was surprising as, until just then, [Skill Dominance] had never triggered on any of them before. Later, Ylsa explained how she usually buffed up in the privy, as one of them forced her to expunge¡­impurities, something I was glad I didn¡¯t end up dealing with for some reason. From Ylsa, I received three buffs. [Might of the Mountain] was a racial Skill that granted the user a twenty percent buff to [Might] and [Toughness] for ten minutes at the mastery she had. [Mountain Spring] served to clear debuffs, or prevent them from applying in the first place for a full twenty-four hour period, something I was very glad to have against a [Priest of Devourer] who were known for their powerful debuffs. Her final buff was innocuous but very welcome, [Purity of Purpose]. It was a buff usually found on Priest style Classes, but more powerful Warrior style Classes usually unlocked it around level thirty, and its purpose was painfully simple. It prevented you from overthinking everything while it was active, helping you focus on the task at hand. That¡¯s not to say it didn¡¯t let you strategize, far from it in fact. Upon casting, the buffer would select a mission or task and anything unrelated to said mission or task would be relegated to the buffed entity¡¯s subconscious until the end of the buff, an hour for Ylsa. [Purity of Purpose] was dangerous to use too often, as it had been known to lead more powerful users to forget to eat as they worked toward some sort of grand goal. I¡¯m not going to be slotting any of those three very often, am I? Now that I know about [Mountain Spring], I¡¯ll just ask Ylsa to use it on our Party before giving her a Mana potion each morning to refill her pool. [Purity of Purpose] seems almost too useful and I know I¡¯d use it all the time if I had easy access to it. It¡¯s good to know I have it available, but I should really avoid using it myself. Volta only had a pair of buffs for me, but they were no less impressive than Ylsa¡¯s offerings. [Lightning Fast] was an evolved form of [Haste], though not one I¡¯d probably pick if I got to that point, focused more on increasing arm speed than it did movement speed. The real game changer she offered up was deceptively simple for how effective it was, [Mislead]. It was a Skill that gave the buffed individual a channel to push Mana into and the more you gave it, the harder it would be for those with hostile intent to aim directly at you. I had a lot of Mana and there was almost no way I¡¯d run into issues with a lack thereof against a single opponent, making [Mislead] nearly perfect for my current situation. [Might of the Mountain, Mountain Spring, Purity of Purpose, and Mislead Acquired with Skill Dominance] [Active Skills - Mastery Skill Dominance - 48%] ¡°Thank you both.¡± My limbs began to feel lighter as the teleportation effect took hold. ¡°I¡¯ll see you both soon.¡± Chapter 6 - A Totally Fair Duel The moment the teleport deposited me in the center of the glade, I knew exactly where I was. The ornate carved scrollwork on the curving staircase that wound all the way up to the canopy was engraved in my memory from all the times I¡¯d ridden down from the top on pillows. Even though all the paintings and detached decorations were gone, there was no doubt where I was. Twenty feet in front of me stood a hulking, black-armored, figure with an open helm revealing a scarred green face with tiny tusks in the corners of his mouth. He must have been eight feet tall if he was six, but his width was where I actually grew concerned. He was built like an overgrown dwarf in that he was more than half as wide as he was tall and he bore a massive black metal mace with a wicked flanged head and a spike out the tip at his hip. [Essence Reading] confirmed my suspicions and I would have recoiled if I could. [Name: Krark Skullsmasher Race: War Troll Class: Priest of Devourer - Rare - Rank A Level: 40 Emotional Status: Confident/Bellicose] Dad¡¯s dad had told me stories about War Trolls and they were bad news. Unlike their normal [Troll] cousins, War Trolls were recognized as a sapient species by the System and were therefore granted Classes and boons by it as well. Every single time a [Troll] outbreak threatened Ironhold in the last five hundred years, it was led by a War Troll of some sort, usually a [Shaman] variant. War Trolls were just as strong as their idiot cousins, but they possessed an unnatural cunning in addition that made them incredibly dangerous opponents. It looked like the only thing I had going for me was my speed, though at the moment of my arrival, I could only move my eyes. My eyes bulged as I tried to take in my surroundings, but from where I was placed, just before the door leading outside, I could only see the doors leading out of the foyer and the staircase I¡¯d already spotted. I tried triggering [Flash Focus], but got an error message. [Warning! No active Skills may be used until the duel formally begins. Any further attempts to do so will be considered an official surrender.] Letting the Skill rest, I locked eyes with the priest before me. He cut an impressive figure, but I was used to that. Uncle Arlo taught me everything I knew about fighting that didn¡¯t involve where to stab a dagger and he was nearly the same size as Krark. A new window appeared in the air between us and started counting down from ten. As it did, I felt the hold on my mouth release, and was immediately aware the same had happened to Krark. ¡°We have been waiting for you, little Chosen.¡± His voice gave me the impression of a bag of nails and glass shards, rough hewn and as dangerous as it was slow and drawling. ¡°I was told to offer you a chance to surrender, but you saved me the effort.¡± The moment the countdown reached zero, I regained full control of my body and immediately dove to the right to avoid Krark¡¯s mace as it hurtled through where my head had been a moment before. He clicked his tongue and held out his hand toward his mace, which whipped back to him nearly as fast as it had flown toward me. He spun it in his grip as he and I circled each other. It didn¡¯t matter how many layers of magical protection I had, if he crushed my head, I was dead and he knew it. I pushed a quarter of my Mana into [Mislead] and his glowing red eyes unfocused. Seeing my opportunity, I formed a quiver¡¯s worth of [Light Arrows] and sent them screaming toward him. Individually, they weren¡¯t worth much against a corporeal target, but I was just trying to figure out where he would subconsciously move to protect, triggering [Flash Focus] just as I launched them so I could observe his every motion in the presence of a threat. His right eye flinched and flicked down at his right side, maybe an old injury? I guess it could be¨C I was knocked out of [Flash Focus] as an obsidian ring on the [Priest of Devourer]¡¯s finger let out a pulse of darkness before shattering. Pain wracked my entire body, but the worst spots were my extremities and my head. It felt like every ounce of Mana I had in my body was being pulled out through my pores in crystal form. ¡°It is as my lord prophesied.¡± The War Troll laughed darkly. ¡°This is meant to be a battle between champions, not a farce as you intended.¡± I slumped to my knees as he began to close the distance between us slowly, inexorably. ¡°Those buffs you were practically glowing with are now gone, replaced by stacks of [Agony],¡± he flashed me a pointy-toothed smile, ¡°a personal favorite of mine.¡± He stopped no more than a yard from me and began spinning his mace in a circle, generating a black aura as he did so. ¡°It is almost a shame to waste such sweet torture on someone who will be dead within the next thirty seconds.¡± Inside, I was frantically trying to find a way out of this seemingly hopeless situation. You¡¯ve been closer to death, now think! What can you do while your body isn¡¯t working properly? [Arcane Cannon] is a possibility, as it can be commanded with my mind, but it¡¯s too damn weak to kill someone like Krark. [Elemental Mastery] takes too much damn concentration, there¡¯s no way I can focus hard enough to get off anything useful.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. My mind went blank for a moment as another wave of white hot pain raced through me. His preparations done, my opponent went for a massive downward swing and I suddenly knew what to do. [Elemental Pactlord]. Summon the most powerful [Earth Elemental] I have access to who will come willingly in between Krark and I. After that, summon a [Water Elemental] who can remove these [Agony] stacks. Just before the head of Krark¡¯s mace was about to slam into my forehead, a gem encrusted sandstone hand stopped it dead in its path before crushing it in one hand with an audible crunch. My eyes widened as I took in the fifteen foot tall [Dao] standing between us. [Essence Reading] triggered and my jaw dropped. [All Dao serve as the personal guardsmen of the Earth Monarch. They are beings of stone and soil, but the older and more powerful they are, the more their bodies turn into previous crystals. They possess immense strength and endurance, capable of shaping the land with a mere touch.] The [Dao] turned to me and nodded before returning his fierce gaze upon the War Troll. ¡°You are an annoyance.¡± His voice sounded like diamonds hitting a felt lined box, soft but distinct. Out of nowhere, he produced an enormous black stone hammer with an emerald core and went to work on the [Priest of Devourer] with sweeping blows that were so powerful the wind compressed on the head on the hammer between blows became projectiles that tore into him before the hammer even struck. To his credit, Krark didn¡¯t give up as he backpedaled without his Meanwhile, a splash of water landed next to me and I blinked a few times before croaking out. ¡°Nimbus?¡± I clutched my head as it revolted at my verbalization. The [Azure Hound] I¡¯d helped evolve before entering the Tower stood next to me with the dopiest grin on his face. ¡°Let me help you get rid of those pesky debuffs, Pactlord.¡± With a single lick to my face, I felt his [Azure Renewal] rip the [Agony] stacks from me in addition to refilling my HP and Mana. His head drooped low despite the goofy grin on his face. ¡°I¡¯m tired now. Call me again soon.¡± And just like that he turned into a puddle and disappeared. ¡°I owe you, Nimbus. I¡¯ll summon you again soon.¡± I struggled to my feet and scurried back against the wall to briefly watch as the [Dao] absolutely ripped Krark apart. His black plate armor had been shattered into tens of thousands of pieces, leaving him in black leather armor, not too different from what I wore beneath my [Cinder Robes]. Checking my available Mana, I coughed when I saw that Bhoomi the [Dao] was eating a whopping twenty percent to maintain. He was well worth the cost, but it was still horrifying to see how much more powerful he was than what I was thinking of getting. I¡¯d expected a mid-level [Earth Elemental] looking for a bit of time off, not one of the Earth Monarch¡¯s personal guardsmen. Note to self: Send an offering to the Earth Monarch as soon as possible. Bhoomi might just be the reason I get out of here today. As I watched, I layered [Arcane Armor] over [Sun Armor] in a few motions and felt a bit less naked. The moment I finished, I began summoning [Arcane Cannons] all over the room, pushing a full two percent of my considerable Mana into each of them until I had two dozen of them. ¡°System, this is outside interference! I demand arbitration!¡± Krark roared just before Bhoomi was going to knock his block off with the hammer, which stopped dead in its path as the pair of figures began to glow System blue. Less than five seconds later, Bhoomi appeared beside me with a sad smile on his face. ¡°I¡¯ve done what I could for you, Pactlord.¡± He patted my back, dropping a bundle of something down the neck of my robes as he did so. ¡°Thank you for giving Arlian the freedom he wanted. He was a dear friend and comrade for many years.¡± A moment later he began to fade away mid salute. ¡°It seems my time here is done. Call me again sometime, I¡¯d love to talk about our shared comrade more¨C¡± All that was left to show of Bhoomi¡¯s presence was the devastation he¡¯d wrought throughout the room. Shards of black metal littered the floor amid green troll blood splatters, but the bleeder didn¡¯t look much better himself. His whole body looked like it¡¯d gone through the wringer, but I knew it wouldn¡¯t be long before his natural regeneration kicked in. Raising a hand, I lowered it to point a single finger at Krark. ¡°Let your god know I¡¯m coming for him when you see him.¡± Twenty beams of concentrated force slammed into his body, spearing through his arms and shredding his under armor as they traced his body to deal as much damage as possible in a short period of time. ¡°I¡¯ll make you regret that!¡± The War Troll threw back his head and howled as he ripped his own armor and undershirt from his body to reveal a foot wide black crystal embedded in his chest. The second light hit the embedded gem, it pulsed with purple and black light before I began to feel a pull toward him. ¡°Taste the void!¡± My barrage of [Arcane Cannon] fire stopped impacting his body as the beams seemed to inexorably streak toward the gem, so I cut off the feed of Mana, letting them fade away. As he screamed, I felt the pressure building from the crystalized [Void Vortex] in his chest and my feet began to slide toward him across the polished wooden floor. I hurried to reach a hand back and suck whatever it was Bhoomi left me into my spatial ring, but that motion required opening up my [Cinder Robes] which I felt give before they ripped right off me and into the [Void Vortex]. ¡°What the hell?!¡± I grimaced as I triggered [Air Step] to try and brace myself, but the moment I summoned them, they began to drift toward Krark and his vortex. ¡°Shit, that didn¡¯t work.¡± I muttered under my breath. All the blood had drained from Krark¡¯s face, leaving him looking an unnaturally pale green. ¡°You¡¯ll never escape Devourer¡¯s clutches!¡± The wounds on his body had stopped healing entirely and had in fact begun to grow worse as more and more of his blood was siphoned into the vortex. I tried summoning [Arlo¡¯s Animated Buckler] to jump off toward the opposite wall, but the moment it left my arm it was ripped unceremoniously toward the vortex, just like my [Cinder Robes]. Damnit, that was a gift from Uncle Arlo! I have to be smarter about this. That [Void Vortex] is nasty, it¡¯s even swallowing up the pieces of armor Bhoomi cracked off of Krark that ended up on the stairs above us. It¡¯s almost like it¡¯s trying to eat anything magic in the area¡­ that¡¯s it! Dominus, I hope this works. With a deep breath, I banished all of my magic items, even [Hydra¡¯s Ward], ¨C my legendary armor ¨C and Jaegan¡¯s staff, to my spatial storage ring and canceled [Arcane Armor] and [Sun Armor]. Chapter 7 - The Void Beckons The pull from the vortex was almost totally gone, with just a tiny pull remaining at the spatial rings on my right hand. Despite myself, I grinned. I was right! After giving up fifteen years of using combat magic, only to return to it in my darkest hour, no one would accuse me of wasting an opportunity. Walking in a circle around Krark, who appeared to be rooted to the place he¡¯d exposed the [Void Vortex], I produced the brace of a dozen throwing knives I used in tavern games. They were the only non-magical weapons I carried, even the [Obsidian Daggers] had a small enchantment on them to reinforce the material, and their cutting edges left a lot to be desired. What wasn¡¯t lacking was the edge on the first two inches making up the tip of the blades, those were viciously sharp to sink into wooden boards better. Treating the [Priest of Devourer] like one of those wooden dagger targets, I began hurling blades at him. He raised his arms to block, but it did him no good as I was hurling them at his back, getting the benefit of [Backstab], despite it evolving, from a range and increasing the attacks penetrating power. He slumped over on the tenth dagger, but I wasn¡¯t going to let him get away with playing dead, so I took my last two blades and ran up the staircase until I could easily launch myself over him by a dozen feet, give or take. When I left from the stairs, he sprang his trap, but the blast of void Mana only reached ten feet away from him before slamming back into his chest, cracking the [Void Vortex] crystal there with the sound of a thousand screaming women. His eyes were full of hate before my daggers found their targets and sank deep into his skull. He slumped over as I skidded to a stop twenty feet from him. I whirled around with my hands up, ready to cast [Wall of Force], but then I felt the pull on my rings fade. Straightening up, I padded over to where one of my daggers had landed and casually tossed it into the back of his neck. He didn¡¯t move. Loud trumpets sounded from nowhere just as the door to the study burst open to reveal Uncle Galloway behind him stood the massive clock built into the wall of the tree, glowing faintly. His face was a mask of horror as he took in the state of his home, but his eyes landed on me and all that was forgotten. Before he could say anything, a System window appeared in the air above Krark¡¯s body, which started to shake violently until a golden barrier snapped into existence around it. [Arthur Bajbub Neilson, Chosen of Dominus, has won the contest for control of the Grove of Corruption in the name of his goddess. All followers of Devourer in the Grove of Corruption are now having their souls absorbed by Dominus. Any attempt to contest this process will be seen as a crime against the System.] Just as I finished reading the message, Krark¡¯s body imploded. Not to be denied, the golden barrier I inherently knew was Dominus¡¯ flashed and his body stopped the implosion process, but not before his extremities and the bracers he was wearing were totally obliterated. Up above, a young man threw himself from the highest part of the stairs, groaning in ecstasy as the golden light subsumed him before he even hit the ground. Similar sounds poured into the stairwell for a few moments before they faded away like a strange memory. Golden light began streaming toward me from the rooms up above as well as through the seams in the closed doors leading outside until I popped them open with [Distant Legerdemain] and the flood from outside poured into me. Every streamer of light that struck me felt like a hug from Dominus and I couldn¡¯t help but smile and run my fingers through the light as it came toward me. ¡°Artie, what is going on?¡± Uncle Galloway¡¯s jaw hung open as he watched me absorb massive quantities of energy on the behalf of my goddess. ¡°What is that about you being the Chosen of someone named Dominus? Is that a demon, are you OK?¡± He cast his forest green eyes all over me as I watched him in turn. ¡°I just announced my position to the world, I guess.¡± I rubbed my head ruefully. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you, Uncle Galloway. How have you been?¡± He cut an impressive figure despite standing just under six feet tall, with his toned abs on display through his typical stylish robe, which hung open as usual. It was a robe I¡¯d seen him in before, the colors would shift depending on where he was, most often taking on the colors of the forest floor in shades of green and brown. Uncle Galloway¡¯s face was a study in tranquil beauty. His forest green eyes, filled with wisdom and kindness, seemed to hold the secrets of the ancient woods. His features were perfectly chiseled, a testament to the grace and harmony of nature. His chestnut skin, weathered by the sun and wind, bore the marks of countless seasons. And his hair, the color of fresh spring leaves, framed his face, flowing freely in a gentle breeze that I knew came from a racial Skill. All of that is to say that the only male Dryad born in the last hundred thousand years on Genovia was always in demand, yet he chose to spend time with me and my family. He ground his perfect teeth. ¡°You didn¡¯t really answer my questions. Who is dominus and how are you her Chosen?¡± Rather than explain in words, I disabled [Status Shield] and sent him an abbreviated version of my Status. [Name - Arthur Bajbub Neilson Class - Suzerain - Unique - Rank ?? ¡­ Passive Skills Chosen of Dominus (Unique Passive)]A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. While he ogled at my Class, I messaged my party to come into the central tree, now that the danger had passed. Ylsa said she¡¯d go and gather up Gabby, Raiju, and Mindy with Volta¡¯s help and I thanked them as I watched Uncle Galloway¡¯s face shift from confusion to wonder. He flipped the window around and pointed at the pair of question marks for the Rank of Suzerain. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± ¡°The System can only show two characters?¡± I shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s Triple S-Ranked though, trust me. The mother of the gods treats her Chosen well.¡± ¡°Triple S!?¡± He practically yelled before locking eyes with me. ¡°W-w-wait. Did you say the mother of the gods?¡± ¡°I did.¡± I walked over and gave him a big hug. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you, Uncle Galloway.¡± He patted my back reflexively. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too, Artie. Before we get too much further, why are you standing in my former foyer in just your short clothes?¡± As I got dressed in my armor, though my [Cinder Robes] and [Arlo¡¯s Animated Buckler] were sadly unable to be recovered, I explained what my party and I had discovered when we arrived at his grove. His face darkened as I spoke, but he didn¡¯t interrupt, except to clarify a few times. When I finished getting dressed, he asked for more details about Dominus and how I became her Chosen and, after a bit of internal debate, I gave it to him straight. It felt good for someone outside my Party and Grandpa to know what I was dealing with, and Grandpa didn¡¯t even know all of it anymore. I glossed over some of the minutia, but gave him the broad strokes of my journey so far as we waited for my friends to arrive at the door. Ten minutes went by before they made it and Gabby actually passed out when she saw Uncle Galloway for the first time. He ushered Ylsa inside and effortlessly took Raiju from her arms. ¡°It¡¯s worse than your mother said it was. We¡¯ll need to work fast.¡± He took off at a dead sprint through the doorway to the right of the entrance. I hesitated and Ylsa waved me off. ¡°Go, I¡¯ll take care of Mindy and Gabrielle!¡± ¡°Thanks!¡± I yelled over my shoulder. I activated [Haste] and caught up with him just as he was entering a secret door just before the kitchen, which was totally destroyed compared to how I knew he liked to keep it. Slowing down, I canceled [Haste] and took in the room he¡¯d stopped for. The chamber was about ten feet across, but the most interesting part was the exposed root of the [Celestial Oak] running along the back wall. There were a pair of hollows cut out of it, revealing perfectly healthy insides despite how it looked outside. Each was sized for someone of Uncle Arlo¡¯s size and I realized there was a reason for that, this was likely where my parents¡¯ party had ended up after their adventures, since no one else had a residence I knew of until the rest of them moved to Wyrm¡¯s Rest. He gently laid Raiju down in the left hollow and soft green light began to cover her. Despite myself, I moved to defend her. ¡°What¡¯s happening to her?¡± I surprised myself. ¡°Please?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the [Celestial Oak] working to try and stabilize her soul.¡± He pulled me against his chest and stroked my hair just like my parents would. ¡°She¡¯s in a bad way, but I¡¯ll do everything I can to save her. I swear it.¡± I fought back tears as I pressed my white-knuckled fists into his chest. ¡°Please, I can¡¯t lose her too. That Tower has already taken two friends from me, I won¡¯t let it take a third.¡± He nodded. ¡°She¡¯s in the best place she could be besides Light¡¯s High Temple in Sunhome, or potentially Wild¡¯s High Temple, if you could even find it.¡± Despite ostensibly being a god for all people, Wild¡¯s High Temple¡¯s location was a closely guarded secret by his priesthood. His temples were places where anyone could take an animal or a monster they wanted healed and have it done for a ¡®nominal fee¡¯, but they refused to heal any of the sapient races even if paid. The only people who truly worshiped him were [Beastmasters] and monster ranchers, though even they did it only out of fear of his reprisal if they didn¡¯t pay their tithe of monster parts. ¡°She was saved by Dominus as a cub, there¡¯s no way Wild would let her live if he ever got his clutches on her.¡± I growled. He nodded knowingly. ¡°That makes a lot of sense, given what you¡¯ve told me of her. Wild hates Unique monsters he doesn¡¯t have his clutches on. Trust me, I used to know a monster rancher who was a devout follower of Light. He managed to breed an A-ranked Unique monster and, when he refused to surrender her to Wild¡¯s church, they burned his ranch down with him inside.¡± He shivered at the memory. ¡°I found his body a week later, still wrapped around the body of the [Milk Mink] he gave his life to try and protect.¡± ¡°That¡¯s awful,¡± I shook my head to try and get the image of Raiju dead in a fire from my head. ¡°What can I do to help you?¡± He laughed. ¡°Unless you can boost my [Wits] or [Divine]? Not much.¡± ¡°What if I could?¡± I pulled back so I could see his reaction. To his credit, he didn¡¯t look at me with suspicion. Instead, he seemed curious. ¡°How so?¡± He moved to the wall and a System window appeared. He started flicking through it with a growing grimace. ¡°Is it some kind of buff with a nasty debuff afterward? I¡¯m not interested if that¡¯s what it is. This process will likely be far longer than any of those tend to last.¡± For once, I didn¡¯t hesitate. ¡°It¡¯s part of my Class. [Suzerain] gives me access to the Domain portion of the System, something usually reserved for monarchs or large landholders.¡± I moved to look him in the eye, putting Raiju right beside me as I watched him. ¡°If you swear fealty to me, your top three stats will all be boosted by twenty percent as long as you remain loyal to me.¡± He stopped what he was doing and stared at me. ¡°You¡¯re not joking¡­ are you?¡± ¡°Not in the slightest.¡± I drafted a similar, yet more flexible contract, modeled after the one I¡¯d offered Gabby, and sent it to him ¡°This is nothing to joke about.¡± [Arthur Bajbub Neilson, Suzerain and Chosen of Dominus has offered you vassalship. Accepting this is usually a permanent commitment, but the Suzerain has offered an exit clause for you with one month of lead time. In return, your three highest Stats will be increased by 20% for as long as you faithfully follow his rule. Do you accept his offer? Y/N] ¡°If a boost to your Stats is what you need? This is the best way I have to help you, unless¡­¡± I sighed and checked his Status. [Name: Galloway Forestchild Race: Male Dryad - Unique Class: Forest Shaman - Rare - Rank A Level: 97 Emotional Status: Worried/Excited] I shook my head. ¡°Nevermind, it would take too long and I don¡¯t know if it would even help you with something like this.¡± I mentally checked the [Rainbow Elixir] in my spatial ring and confirmed it was still there. Uncle Galloway stared at me for a few moments before nodding to himself. ¡°I think I can accept your offer as long as you can agree to three conditions.¡± ¡°Name them.¡± I stood proudly as I observed him. ¡°A [Suzerain] always keeps his word.¡± Chapter 8 - Birth of the Dominion Uncle Galloway sighed. ¡°First off, I¡¯m not going to call you Milord or anything like that. You¡¯re Artie to me forever and nothing will ever change that.¡± He cracked a small smile, but it didn¡¯t reach his eyes. Starting small, I can¡¯t help but wonder what the bad thing he¡¯s going to ask for is. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have it any other way. Titles like that make my ass itch.¡± I paraphrase Dad¡¯s dad¡¯s favorite thing to say when his Clanmates got too stuffy. ¡°What¡¯s next?¡± ¡°I need to speak with Dominus, privately, as soon as is feasible.¡± He winced. ¡°I have two questions I need answered that even Light couldn¡¯t, or wouldn¡¯t, let a mere mortal hear the answer to.¡± Still not that bad, if a tad pushy. Where¡¯s the other shoe? What is he saving for last? After a few moments of consideration, I nodded. ¡°From what I understand, the sooner we can assemble a permanent shrine to her, the sooner her power will return.¡± I grinned. ¡°Though what I did today should help out a lot on that front as well. The souls of true believers hold some serious power and Dominus got to glut herself on seventy of them today.¡± I heard a soft grunt somewhere behind me and was immediately made aware that Dominus didn¡¯t appreciate my phrasing. Sorry, Dominus. I just wanted to put him at ease. I paused before continuing. Can you talk to him through my body after he heals Raiju? I¡¯d gladly give you half an hour to do what you needed to. A warm sensation ran down the backs of my arms before I heard her sensual voice in my head. ¡®As long as he doesn¡¯t need my full power, half an hour should be fine for you to host me. Plus, you might get a boon out of it if the System is feeling generous.¡¯ ¡°She says it should be possible.¡± I added as Uncle Galloway stared in wonderment. ¡°I asked and she let me know she can use my body as a conduit. If she doesn¡¯t want me to know what you asked, I won¡¯t.¡± He narrowed his eyes before nodding. ¡°I can accept that.¡± He moved to the side and hit a few buttons on the System window next to Raiju¡¯s pod before returning to stand before me. ¡°Come on, hit me. What¡¯s the big and bad thing?¡± I was tired of beating around the bush. ¡°Your first request was a gimme and the second was reasonable, assuming I could grant it. What is it that you don¡¯t want to ask?¡± He took a step back, like I¡¯d slapped him, before covering his mouth as he began to laugh. ¡°You are definitely Hildy and Neil¡¯s son, of that I have no doubt, even if I was there when you were born, and I was.¡± He waggled his eyebrows before sighing. ¡°My last request is for help in locating and ending my mother¡¯s abuser.¡± He hung his head in shame. ¡°I¡¯ve looked for the better part of twenty-five years and have come up empty.¡± I blurred forward and pulled him into a big hug. ¡°I¡¯d have done that regardless of you becoming a vassal, of course we will.¡± I drew back and raised an eyebrow. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you ask your party for help? I know Mom and Dad take that kind of shit seriously.¡± As did I, given how merciless I¡¯d found myself reacting against that prick back in Cliffhaven. They¡¯d instilled the need for mercenary justice in cases like that one and I took it to heart. ¡°I¡¯ll explain more once I have Raiju healed up,¡± he shook his head, ¡°but before that. I have something I need to do.¡± He reached out and tapped the button to accept my offer of vassalship and the world exploded in gold light. As he looked over his options, a pair of new windows appeared before me and my grin grew the more I read. ¡°This is amazing!¡± [Congratulations Arthur! For recruiting someone more than three times your level to join your Domain, you have completed the Secret Quest, Architect of the Unlikely. Please select from the following reward options:Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Domain Storage ¨C You and your most trusted advisors will have access to a connected extradimensional storage space. The available storage space will increase as your Domain grows in power. Resourceful Nation - You and your vassals will receive ten percent more loot, that is again ten percent more likely to be of a higher than normal rarity, whenever you kill a monster. Dominion (Dominus) - When this option is chosen, whenever someone joins your Domain, and whenever your Domain reaches a new tier, all those who serve your Domain loyally will have their Classes boosted by a full Rank (Max B as a Tier 2 Domain) the next time they level up. For every twenty-five percent of their natural lifespan they serve, this will occur again. In addition, your vassals will find their Skills growing twenty-five percent faster than normal as long as they revere Dominus over all other deities. In addition, your Domain will now be referred to as ¡°The Dominion¡±. You will not benefit from this upgrade personally, as it is a minor reflection of the effect Chosen of Dominus has on Skills.] Part of me was screaming to pick [Domain Storage] but, despite how useful it would be once I had a bunch of land to traverse to reach my allies, right now it kind of did nothing for me since my Party had access to the Party Interface, which linked into each of our spatial storages anyway. I ended up pushing it to the side, hoping I could get it some other way later. While [Resourceful Nation] was more immediately useful than [Domain Storage], I realized that I hadn¡¯t even checked the loot we¡¯d received from the Tower yet, barring a single item from the first floor. If that were the case, [Resourceful Nation] was going to have a similar problem to [Domain Storage], the Party Interface kind of made it obsolete. Since we didn¡¯t have to touch to loot, my Party could work far faster than most, earning us more loot in the process. The chance at increased rarity was sweet, but ten percent didn¡¯t feel like enough to even make me consider it given the last option. [Dominion] was on an entirely different level from the other two rewards. Back in the Dungeon, Jaegan¡¯s reaction to the [Rainbow Elixir] told me that people weren¡¯t always happy with their Classes. If knowledge that joining The Dominion would cause someone¡¯s Class to jump a Rank? I¡¯d be beating new vassals away with a stick. There was a risk in that, given how jealous other monarchs would become if I started poaching their citizens en masse. That was to say nothing about the increased Skill growth from the second half of the reward. For most people, Skills could take years to raise even ten percent if they weren¡¯t used exclusively, so increasing that speed by twenty-five percent would be a serious increase. I had an image of people who¡¯d been stuck at bottlenecks for decades having their Skills upgraded in an epiphany after joining me and it made me smile. That¡¯s the kind of place I want to rule, somewhere people can focus on bettering themselves instead of worrying about having enough to eat or wars on the horizon. We may fight, but we¡¯ll always fight to win decisively, not letting the war grow to become one of attrition. History told of dozens, if not hundreds, of nations who had won a long war of attrition, only to fall apart less than a decade later. Not The Dominion, I decided right there. I won¡¯t let that happen to my nation. With a thought, I picked [Dominion] and there was a flash of red-gold light that filled the room before pouring out over the entire glade alongside the next notification, as I was later told. [Arthur Bajbub Neilson¡¯s Domain has a name: The Dominion. May its citizens live long and prosper!] The window hiding behind the Secret Quest reward was less exciting, but I was still glad to see it, though I knew I¡¯d need to discuss its contents with Gabby to fully benefit from it. [Gaining your fifth vassal at one time has increased the Tier of The Dominion from Tier 1 to Tier 2. You now have access to the following: Vassal Chat - Pick two vassal positions and gain the ability to speak to them regardless of the distance, this number will increase to match whatever Tier your Domain is. As you have access to the Party Interface, you may instead speak to twice as many vassal positions. Capital - You may now claim a location as your capital, which will grant it a number of benefits based on the traits of the location. Regardless of where it is, a small keep will form unless you have a Court Architect, in which case, they will be able to form whatever you request up to a certain size.] I immediately tagged Treasurer as one of my four vassal positions for Vassal Chat, leaving the other three open for the moment. With a childish grin, I messaged to let her know we¡¯d Tiered up, sending her down the rabbit hole that was the Domain system. She let me know she¡¯d poke around and let me know if there was anything I really needed to address. ¡°I almost can¡¯t believe it.¡± Uncle Galloway held his hands out as he inspected the backs of them. ¡°This power, it¡¯s borderline intoxicating.¡± ¡°Wait until we hit the next Tier, it¡¯s going to be nuts.¡± Padding over to him, I patted his back. ¡°Do you have what you need to save Raiju now?¡± I tried not to plead, but my worry obviously seeped into my voice from the look he gave me. ¡°My [Divine] is over nine hundred now. If I can¡¯t do it? No one but one of those monsters your grandfather hangs out with could have done it.¡± He cracked his perfect knuckles and moved over to the crystal cover over Raiju¡¯s pod. ¡°It¡¯s time to get to work.¡± Chapter 9 - An Irreversible Decision Chapter 9 - An Irreversible Decision Nearly three hours into the process as Uncle Galloway worked on Raiju, he started swearing under his breath as red lights started to pop up on his System console. ¡°Are you fucking kidding me? There¡¯s no way this is right. That should have worked!¡± He hissed through clenched teeth as he turned to look at me over in the corner of the room. ¡°Was Raiju always a Unique monster, or did something happen to make her that way?¡± He ruffled his hair nervously. ¡°I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s the latter, but I have to ask.¡± ¡°She was just a runty [Gale Wolf] until Dominus gave her the spark to become Unique.¡± I started pacing. ¡°What¡¯s going on? Why can¡¯t you heal her?¡± ¡°You¡¯d think someone as powerful as she is would have done a better job splicing the patch she did on the poor thing¡¯s soul, I¡¯ve got a feeling it was a mess before getting slammed by that¡­what was it?¡± ¡°The [Wraith King], a being who would have broken out of the Tower and ravaged the entire country if we hadn¡¯t defeated it.¡± I seethed. ¡°Speak carefully, Dominus has done nothing but good for me and mine. To speak ill of her is to do the same to me.¡± I leaned on him a bit with my [Lordly Aura] unconsciously. He held up his hands hastily. ¡°No disrespect meant! I¡¯m just amazed to see an artificial advancement to Unique. If someone as wise and powerful as her had this much trouble? No mortal will ever succeed. This bit of healing I¡¯m doing has eliminated an entire field of magibiology, there are thousands of researchers working on just that as we speak and I just learned it was impossible.¡± The panel behind him began to beep and his face went from calm to worried in a blink. ¡°Time is of the essence, and you¡¯re the closest thing she has to family, so the decision lies with you.¡± He folded his arms before grabbing one forearm with his opposite hand in some sort of nervous gesture. ¡°Your parents raised you right, so I¡¯m going to be straight with you.¡± I nodded and he continued without missing a beat. ¡°There¡¯s no way to keep Raiju as she is, it¡¯s just not possible.¡± He waved his hand and the System window he¡¯d been working on moved where we could both see it. He pointed at the right side. ¡°It says here that her Soul Integrity score is seven percent. To rebuild so much of her soul in a body like she has?¡± He motioned to her crumpled form with a sigh. ¡°Would be the height of folly. It¡¯s just not capable of handling the work she¡¯d need. Plus, she¡¯d dip below the five percent mark well before I finished prepping her for the process.¡± ¡°What¡¯s so special about the five percent mark?¡± Fear crept into my voice. ¡°What are you saying? Can¡¯t you save her?¡± He reached out to put a hand on my shoulder, but I swatted it away harder than I meant to with a loud slapping sound. He held up his hands. ¡°Sorry, old habits.¡± He turned to the System window and flicked it to the right to reveal a pair of figures separated by a single line in the middle from top to bottom, a canine figure on one side and a humanoid figure on the other. ¡°I can save her, but this is the only way I can do so.¡± ¡°What am I looking at? Why are you wasting time!?¡± I started to panic, but took a moment with [Flash Focus] to calm down as my eyes darted over the diagrams and the writing around them. When I let [Flash Focus] go, I knew what I was looking at. ¡°You have to let her body die, don¡¯t you?¡± He did a double take before his eyes went wide. ¡°Was that [Flash Focus]?¡± I nodded and he shook his head. ¡°Your dad used to use that to win every damn game we ever played together. I¡¯m guessing you read the options?¡± ¡°Let her go back to being a [Gale Wolf], which will basically shred her personality into tiny strips and shove them into a much smaller body with less than ten percent of the capabilities of her old form, or¡­¡± I trailed off before sighing. ¡°You found something else in her soul, didn¡¯t you?¡± He nodded as he pointed to the ears and tail on the humanoid form. ¡°Deep in her soul, there was this image. It makes up one percent of her whole soul and she¡¯s protected it, even with all the damage done. It¡¯s basically a core personality trait, even if she doesn¡¯t look like the image outside, she wishes she did.¡± He seemed to be getting excited. ¡°I think. No, I know if I let her soul reincarnate into the next pod like I was planning, this is what her body will take the shape of on its own. I just need your go ahead so I can prepare the necessary materials.¡± Why does her soul have the shape of a humanoid when her body is so amazing? She¡¯s so huge and powerful. Why would she want to be a weak humanoid like the rest of us? ¡°Let me check one thing first.¡± I held up a hand to the male dryad. He flicked the System window back and nodded. ¡°Make it fast, she¡¯ll drop below seven percent stability in less than two minutes and then things will get even dicier than they already are.¡± Pushing half my Mana into [Dominus¡¯ Insight], I sent her a pair of questions directly. Is this what Raiju wants? Will she be happier as a humanoid?This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. Unsurprisingly, the two answers couldn¡¯t have been more different. [Is this what our girl wants? Yes, with all of her being. She wants to be able to walk next to you in cities without everyone thinking she¡¯s some stupid monster. It is her most heartfelt wish, but it won¡¯t be all sunshine and roses. Even as a Primal Elf, which is what she¡¯ll end up as, people will stare at her and think she¡¯s different, but as long as you don¡¯t scorn her? She¡¯ll be the happiest she¡¯s ever been. You¡¯re her entire world and you always will be as long as you want to be. Galloway is correct, the soul patch I did on Raiju wasn¡¯t my finest work, so don¡¯t hold his inability to fix her soul against him. No one could have done it besides another deity, and they would have taken far more than they gave to do it. This bit of soul surgery will consume the bond you two have, but don¡¯t fret, it¡¯ll let her form a fantastic SS-ranked Class that should let her have access to her old body should she need it. If she offers to reestablish the bond, don¡¯t push her away, or she¡¯ll break.] Gathering up my courage, I nodded slowly toward my uncle. ¡°Let her soul do what it wants. What can I do to help?¡± He clapped his hands excitedly. ¡°Just you being here is having a stabilizing effect on her, so if you could sit on the wood between the pods, that would be for the best. Your bond should act as a natural pathway for her soul to travel through if you place a hand on each of them.¡± He mimed holding his hands down low to each side. ¡°The process shouldn¡¯t take long after I get it started.¡± ¡°OK.¡± I walked calmly and used [Air Step] to get up on top of the pods before settling between them. I looked down at Raiju¡¯s lupine form and winced. She looked so small all curled up like that despite her size. It was like her soul was already gone and I was merely looking at a soulless husk. ¡°It¡¯s going to be OK. I¡¯m right here.¡± I laid a hand on the crystalline hatch on both sides of myself. Uncle Galloway stepped back from the console and pulled a couple bags of powder from his spatial ring and spun slowly to pour a perfect circle in two halves. [Essence Reading] told me they were powdered [Starlight Diamonds] and crushed [Soulblooms]. As he spun, he muttered under his breath, but I couldn¡¯t hear what he was saying. When he stopped, he pointed a hand at each pod. ¡°Raiju, born a [Gale Wolf] and bonded to the [Suzerain] by choice, I order you to [Reincarnate]!¡± Green and silver ropes of energy sprang out from his left hand and slammed into the pod containing Raiju¡¯s crumpled form. Her body began to convulse and tiny motes of gold, blue, and silver began to pour toward where I had my hand placed on the top of the pod. The moment they touched me, I knew we¡¯d done what she hadn¡¯t even been able to hope for. We¡¯re granting her wish. This is what she¡¯s wanted since before the Tower. I kicked myself for not realizing she wasn¡¯t happy. That¡¯s why she was so reserved, I figured she just didn¡¯t like being inside for so long. How stupid could I have been? The stream of motes increased and I felt Raiju¡¯s emotions clearly. She was so happy, her soul was practically singing. Unable to contain the worry and pain in my own soul, I sang along. It was an ancient elven nursery rhyme, something all elves learned from their mothers in the first few years of their incredibly long lives, something from the time before the elves knew war. It spoke of a time before the System, when natural magic ruled the world. ¡°Silken hair and gentle eyes, Beneath the sun and open skies. A family bound, a love so pure, Nature¡¯s beauty, ever sure. Laughter echoes, hearts aflame, A bond of love, a cherished name. Underneath the forest''s shade, A family¡¯s love will never fade.¡± As I sang, I felt her soul rejoice and the motes of her soul began to rush out of my other hand into the empty pod. The moment he saw it happen, Uncle Galloway unleashed the same green and silver energy toward the new pod and I saw a core start to form with his power as the shell. Raiju¡¯s soul poured into the shell until it was fit to burst. Despite what I saw on the other side, I openly wept as Raiju¡¯s old form began to dissolve into the world. When her massive form was gone, all that was left was a silver box with a bright brass nameplate atop it with her name on it. ¡°She dropped loot, I guess I shouldn¡¯t be surprised.¡± I chuckled through the tears before wrenching my gaze back to where she was now working on forming a new body. Over the next five hours, Uncle Galloway and I worked together to provide the Mana Raiju needed to finish her body, which ended up being far more than either of us had bargained for. As he had to keep a constant stream of energy on her new form, I had to figure out how to pass my impressive Mana pool onto him. Less than five minutes before he would have run out of Mana, I figured it out and actually unlocked my first new Skill that I hadn¡¯t stolen or taken from a scroll since I learned [Skill Dominance]. It was called [Mana Conduit] and it let me give or take Mana to/from another willing target. We still ended up taking a pair of [Megara¡¯s Mana Potion VII]¡¯s and that was just barely enough to let Raiju form her new body. We sagged to the ground, back to back as we stared at the pod containing Raiju¡¯s Primal Elven body, just as Dominus promised. There was a sort of fog giving her privacy, but we couldn¡¯t have cared less. We were just glad the process seemed to have succeeded. ¡°Now, we wait.¡± Uncle Galloway pulled a pair of [Craigspot Cigars] from his spatial ring and handed one to me as he lit up his own. ¡°Congrats, you brought a new life into the world.¡± For some reason, I didn¡¯t want to join him, despite loving the smell of a good [Craigspot], a particularly fruity cigar I grew up smelling as he and Dad would smoke while they hung out. It felt¡­wrong, for some reason. I gently pushed his hand away with a laugh. ¡°Save that for when I have a kid, alright? This is Raiju, just with a new shell containing her awesomeness.¡± I hesitated, then decided to leave it at that. We sat there for another hour in companionable silence, surrounded by the sweet smelling smoke of my childhood. Chapter 10 - In Matilda’s Memory As we sat there, I finally couldn¡¯t take the silence another second. ¡°Uncle Galloway?¡± I murmured, turning my head to look behind me. He chuckled. ¡°Yes, Artie?¡± ¡°Why did you stop adventuring with The Reapers? I asked Mom and Dad a few times and they said it was complicated.¡± I half-turned in my seat to look at him easier. ¡°They retired less than a year after you guys stopped traveling together, are they linked?¡± The [Forest Shaman] turned to match me, hesitated for a moment, then sighed. ¡°It isn¡¯t that they don¡¯t want to tell you, they can¡¯t. On the other hand, I¡¯m not bound by the same System Oath, so I can tell you. Are you sure you want to know?¡± Eyes wide, I spun around to face him fully, sitting back on my knees. ¡°It¡¯s been the mystery of my childhood, trying to figure out why the most powerful adventurers I ever met all retired at one time.¡± He got up and checked the pod containing Raiju¡¯s new body, confirmed she was just sleeping, and then pulled a pair of comfortable club chairs from his spatial ring, popping them down in the middle of the room facing each other. He motioned to the other chair. ¡°Take a seat and I¡¯ll explain.¡± I hurried to join him and sat on the edge of the seat, glancing over to check on Raiju before turning my gaze to him. ¡°I¡¯m ready.¡± Uncle Galloway sat back with his hands steepled before him. ¡°When I was traveling with The Reapers, we were at the very peak of the Adventurers¡¯ Guild, Orichalcum. Kingdoms from all over the world would reach out to us through the guild to have us fix problems for them.¡± He laughed and ran his fingers through his hair. ¡°It was amazing, despite the danger. We visited places I¡¯d only read about more times than I can count, but it was a trip to the Iroan Empire that changed everything.¡± I was barely breathing. This is it, he¡¯s going to tell me what happened! ¡°Your grandpa reached out to us on his friend, the Iroan Emperor¡¯s behalf. One of his granddaughters had been kidnapped when she was out leveling with her guards, she had plenty of Rare, and even a few Legendary, pieces of gear dedicated to defense, so they weren¡¯t worried about her being alive. They just wanted her back sooner, rather than later, and to have her guards avenged if possible.¡± He wove a tale of the days Dad spent tracking the kidnapped girl, fighting random groups of bandits and other unsavory types, until they found a hidden temple deep in the heart of the Iroan Empire, more than a thousand miles from Aurana, their capital. ¡°It was the High Temple of Devourer, your mom confirmed it with her dad who asked the [High Priest] of Light.¡± He wrung his hands. ¡°We argued amongst ourselves if we should even get involved, but in the end, the majority ruled and we went in after the girl. Winding our way through that maze-like place, it was a slaughter. Dozens of [Priest] initiates, they couldn¡¯t have even been level twenty, threw themselves at us like feral beasts, not even using their Spells or Skills. It was like they had no sense of self preservation.¡± He hung his head in his hands. ¡°I didn¡¯t even want to get involved once we realized Devourer was involved, same with Arlo, but he wasn¡¯t going to let his wife go without him and I wouldn¡¯t leave your mom without a magical healer. As good as Megara¡¯s potions are, someone has to administer them, and I couldn¡¯t risk her not leaving because I was a coward.¡± He spat. ¡°You¡¯re no coward, Uncle Galloway.¡± I pushed with my [Charm] combined with [Lordly Aura] and he seemed to recover a bit. ¡°I was, but maybe I can be better as your Court Physician.¡± He chuckled. ¡°Took that one when I saw it on the list.¡± After briefly debating checking what he got for that, I set it aside in favor of the story at hand. ¡°Not going to be able to distract you as easily as I did when you were a kid, am I? Drat.¡± He smirked for a moment before grimacing. ¡°We found the princess, but she was twisted somehow. Her eyes were black and she was chanting some language even your mom didn¡¯t know. We tried to knock her out so we could take her back but she, a mere level thirty-six, fought the five of us in the mid-nineties back like we were schoolchildren.¡± He groaned at the memory. ¡°We were under strict orders not to injure her and none of our afflictions would take hold, we were at a loss.¡± A soft hissing came from the pod containing Raiju¡¯s new humanoid form and when we turned to look, she was struggling to slide off of the construct. She glared at Uncle Galloway when he sprang up to help her alongside me. ¡°Artie can help me. You finish the story.¡± She did nothing to hide her nude form, but the sudden fierceness of her rebuke mitigated that factor and sent him back to his chair. ¡°Alright, but be careful with her. Her new body may be in the low-thirties, but she¡¯s not used to it yet.¡± He looked like he wanted to assist more, but another glare from her stopped him before he could begin. Raiju stumbled as she slid free of the pod and it was then that I got my first look at her new body. She was short for an elf, only five feet tall, but still taller than me. Long silver-white hair cascaded around wolf-like ears, past ears strangely similar to my own, and down her shapely form, the exact same color as her old pelt, before ending just above her short wolf-like tail. She crossed her arms under her breasts as she looked at me with those striking sky blue eyes, putting her more than ample bosom on full display as she tapped her foot as my eyes lingered on her form far longer than was normal for me. What is going on with me? I should be helping her, not staring like some creep. I hurried over and helped her get into her original pod, where the box with her name on it sat. After I opened up the pod, she pushed the lid off the golden box without a hit of sentimentality. Reaching inside, she pulled out a silver and blue longcoat far larger than the box could possibly have held. She laid that to the side as she reached in and pulled out a dark blue, corset-like top with silver metallic plating on the chest and shoulders. It was paired with a white pleated leather skirt and dark stockings with garters. Lastly, she pulled out a functional set of dark blue underclothes.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. She looked over her shoulder at me as her bushy white tail whacked against my side. ¡°Help me put these on. I¡¯ve never worn clothes before.¡± She glared back at Galloway. ¡°You, back to the story. I want to know about Artie¡¯s parents too.¡± Uncle Galloway looked away as he muttered something under his breath. A moment later, he did as she bade him. ¡°With the emperor¡¯s granddaughter bashing against us over and over again, we had to make a move soon, or we¡¯d have had to put her down. It was Matilda who came up with the plan and put it into motion, but we should have stopped her.¡± He braced himself and I suddenly saw where it was going. ¡°No.¡± I gasped. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to report that you¡¯re probably right.¡± He let out a loud breath. ¡°Her plan was simple, she was going to use [Total Bodyguard] on the princess, reducing the damage she would take and transferring it over to Matilda so we could hit the damn girl hard enough to shake her out of whatever she had going on. None of our cleanses worked on whatever that debuff was, even Matilda¡¯s goddess granted ones from Weaver failed, and [Essence Reading] couldn¡¯t pick up on what it was. We hit her hard, and I mean we went all out while Matilda downed potion after potion to keep up with our damage output over the course of a few minutes, but nothing worked. Your dad hit her in the back with [Assassinate] and her eyes changed colors. That was the start of the real shit show. ¡°She started sending out tiny needles formed out of compressed souls. We had no idea where she was getting them, but we knew we couldn¡¯t take hits like that and keep going. You know how bad soul wounds can be and I only had the most basic soul healing Skill to hand at that point, [Soul Patch].¡± He chuckled weakly. ¡°Terrible name, but good to have in a pinch, I¡¯ll use it so you can grab it with that busted Unique of yours.¡± ¡°Thanks, but what happened? How did Matilda end up dying?¡± I¡¯d just managed to help Raiju into her underclothes and she was working on getting her skirt cinched up, but was having issues looping the strap over her tail. I moved to help as I waited for his answer, despite her growl of protest. ¡°Maddie was great at a lot of things, but dodging wasn¡¯t one of them. Once that thing realized she couldn¡¯t get the rest of us, she poured all her attacks on Maddie and our [Paladin] wracked up a hell of a soul wound in less than thirty seconds. It was then that I decided we¡¯d had enough and I pulled out my trusty fern, Jessica, from my spatial ring. I tossed it down next to her and the rest of the team knew the assignment, get her to me and I would take her away with [Transport via Plants]. It¡¯s an expensive Spell, but I had plenty of Mana to burn, since no one was really injured besides Maddie, who I hit with a few [Soul Patches] as I moved closer to the monster in princess¡¯ attire. ¡°We ended up corralling her and I overwhelmed her resistance to drop her right in her grandfather¡¯s garden as our whole group landed a few seconds later. I lost a two hundred year old [Wandering Fern] that day, and I still miss her. Jessica had been with me since I was a child and I regretted leaving her behind, but it was the only way. I felt it as Jessica was torn to shreds mere minutes after we got away.¡± He winced, but kept going. ¡°Anyway, the girl¡¯s grandfather arrived in a flash as we landed in his garden and he was easily able to contain his granddaughter. I later learned she had been possessed by a [Void Demon], a super high level one, but the old man and his friends were able to cleanse her after a few weeks of trial and error. In the meantime, Maddie got sick. All of The Reapers did our utmost to find something to save her but, in the end, we ran out of time. Maddie died nine days after we left Devourer¡¯s High Temple. We didn¡¯t take it well. ¡°Over the next two months, we tore through dozens of temples to Devourer and found more than half of them had a seedy basement not dissimilar to the High Temple. We learned it was a cult within the overall clergy of Devourer we were against, not the whole lot of them. The Cult of the Void, bastards all of them.¡± He spat away from us. Something Dominus told me the last time I leveled came to mind at the mention of the void. ¡°You know, that actually makes a twisted sort of sense.¡± He glared at me. ¡°In what way?¡± ¡°Dominus mentioned how Devourer had wrested control of the void portion of the pantheon from his sister, Darkness, when Dominus was ousted. It would kind of make sense that part of Devourer¡¯s clergy would be unstable, Dominus said he still didn¡¯t have a good handle on the void, even after all of the years he¡¯s had it in his domain.¡± Uncle Galloway¡¯s jaw hung open. ¡°You¡¯re telling me all that heartache came about because some god stole his sister¡¯s toy and couldn¡¯t figure out how it worked?¡± ¡°Seems like that could be the case, yeah.¡± I motioned for him to continue. ¡°That doesn¡¯t explain why you left the team or why you can talk about all of this though¡­¡± His eyes were wild with emotion, but he reined it in with a few deep breaths. ¡°It was three months after Matilda died. Your dad was a wreck trying to take care of Anya, though she was a young woman at the time and resented his attempts, and the rest of us weren¡¯t much better. Your mom and dad had started spending more time together to unwind and everyone but Anya was glad to see them finding some joy in the wake of Maddie¡¯s death. One of our information brokers confirmed the largest batch of those Voider bastards we¡¯d ever even caught wind of.¡± He let out a huge sigh. ¡°They were located in the middle of Seraph¡¯s Embrace, a town composed almost entirely of single parents, their children, and orphans who had lost parents and partners in the Grand War of Herlu. Seraph¡¯s Embrace is only ten miles from my mother¡¯s grove and it¡¯s where I found myself after I escaped her tormentor.¡± Tears welled up in his eyes. ¡°I knew they needed me, but I couldn¡¯t bring myself to put all those people at risk, so in the end, I stayed topside instead of going in with them. In a fit of rage, I denounced them as monsters for risking so many innocents and removed myself from The Reapers¡¯ roster at the guild. ¡°That¡¯s the only reason I can tell you this story. My friends went into that hellhole and when they came out? They were shells of their former selves. All of them had lost twenty or more levels and they insisted they couldn¡¯t tell me what went on during the raid, but I pieced it together over the next dozen or so years. They never held what I did against me, in fact they were glad I wasn¡¯t stuck in the same situation they were.¡± I was practically bouncing as I helped Raiju into her longcoat. ¡°Well? What do you think happened?¡± ¡°They fought as hard as they could, but without me and Maddie, they didn¡¯t have what it would have taken to eliminate the Voiders. In the end, they made a deal to stop those crazy assholes from operating, but in return, The Reapers had to stop operating as well. That¡¯s why they trained you so hard, to make sure you would be ready if their past ever caught up to you, which it seems it has. That spike of Chaos Mana on the third floor of the Tower you told me about was one of the Voiders¡¯ favorite tactics to destabilize Towers and Dungeons alike.¡± ¡°It¡¯s likely you¡¯re dealing with the children and disciples of those same people who your parents and I fought over thirty years ago.¡± He locked eyes with me. ¡°Now it¡¯s up to you and your party to finish them before they start killing innocents en masse again.¡± Chapter 11 - Exhaustion and Money Mix Just Fine A few hours later, I laid sprawled out on the floor of the bedroom I used to sleep in when I visited Uncle Galloway with Mom and Dad. I could have laid on the [Cloud Carpet], but some part of me wanted to lay on the uncomfortable floor, like it was somehow keeping me anchored to the present as my mind raced through everything Uncle Galloway had dropped on me in his lab. Mom had reached out half an hour before, but I declined the connection, wanting to come to grips with what I¡¯d learned before opening myself up to even more revelations from her and Dad. One good thing, though I¡¯d have to be hard pressed to admit it as such, was that I wasn¡¯t alone in the room. Ylsa, Volta, and Raiju had all insisted on joining me, while Gabby spoke with Uncle Galloway about his orchards. Her wide eyed optimism and excitement was too much for even his usually grumpy demeanor to deny her and they¡¯d been out there for a couple hours already. The ladies who¡¯d joined me were both resting on some bedrolls Ylsa¡¯d produced from her spatial bag, but I knew they weren¡¯t really resting. They were watching me, I could feel their gazes and I¡¯d caught them each staring at least once when they thought I wasn¡¯t paying attention. I didn¡¯t blame them, I¡¯d just finished fighting the champion of Devourer and we hadn¡¯t had time to discuss it before everything else got in the way. Regardless, I finally didn¡¯t have anything pressing to do, so I pulled up my silenced notifications and took a look through them. There were more than a dozen warnings about the void Mana Krark had wielded and how dangerous it was, but even more were from back in the battle with the [Soul King] back in the Tower. Until then, I hadn¡¯t known exactly how close I¡¯d come to dying, but the notifications painted me a pretty clear picture. A single attack from the [Wraith King] would have ended me, even if he hadn¡¯t built up such a huge amount of soul energy. When the Tower interface said we were going in on Nightmare difficulty, I kind of brushed it off, but I really shouldn¡¯t have. We should have all died, and I would have if Raiju hadn¡¯t taken that hit. Looking over at Raiju in her new Primal Elf body, I couldn¡¯t help but feel bad. It¡¯s my fault. I¡¯m the reason she¡¯s stuck like that. I¡¯m the reason she lost the body Dominus rebuilt for her. ¡®Don¡¯t forget, this is what she¡¯s been dreaming of.¡¯ A faint voice rang out in the back of my mind. ¡®Don¡¯t discount her wishes as you beat yourself up for no apparent reason. Bad things happen, but this ended up far better than it should have. Take the win.¡¯ But still, I¨C Dominus cut me off mid thought. ¡®I¡¯ll be brief, as you¡¯re not quite ready to level yet. I was going to have you find her a way to get a new body in the next few months anyway, even if she hadn¡¯t been mortally wounded. She¡¯s asked me and the System for a way to get one every time she¡¯s leveled since meeting you and I¡¯ve been listening.¡¯ She huffed. ¡®Now go through your notifications and your loot from the Tower, I got to pick some of it and I think you¡¯ll find at least a couple pieces for Raiju, if you want an apology gift for some reason.¡¯ Feeling chastened, I went through the rest of my notifications and found what I thought Dominus had been talking about in my notifications. [Magic Missile is ready to Evolve. Please choose one of the following for it to evolve into: Skills Greater Magic Missile Soul Dart Unique Skills Wallbreaker Force Missile Swarm] [Soul Dart] is right out, I don¡¯t care how good it might be, I¡¯m not willing to deal damage directly to someone¡¯s soul just to win a fight. [Greater Magic Missile] is basic, but it does the job. A bit more damage, similar Mana cost, and the casting motion just needs an extra finger pinch, so it would be easy to get used to. I stared at those options before allowing myself to look at the Unique Skills on offer. My eyes darted down to [Magic Missile Swarm] a few times, but they locked onto the other option the rest of the time. It almost feels wrong to get access to his Unique Skill, you know? I chuckled to myself. I guess I¡¯m just thinking to myself, but it¡¯s still kind of funny that I¡¯m doing it. Either way, [Wallbreaker] was Jaegan¡¯s Signature Spell, and I think it would be wrong to take that from him. Plus, as long as I have [Staff of the Wallbreaker], I can use it, so there¡­ As for [Force Missile Swarm], I¡¯ve never heard of it. With a thought, the description popped up and I couldn¡¯t help but grin. Yeah, that¡¯s more like it. [Force Missile Swarm - Unique Skill - A powerful evolution of Magic Missile, Force Missile Swarm allows the caster to summon and store multiple force missiles within a concentrated area. As the caster channels more energy into the swarm, the missiles grow in number and potency. When unleashed, the swarm erupts in a devastating barrage of force energy, striking multiple targets with precision or a single target with overwhelming force.] Something to pour my Mana into before a fight? Check. Force damage? Check. Multiple targets? Check. It¡¯s like this thing was made for me. I mentally selected [Force Missile Swarm] and shivered as a cold wave of energy swept through me as the Unique Skill became a part of me. It never ceased to amaze me how good it felt to learn a new Skill, it was kind of addictive and I¡¯d been given the easiest way to get a fix for that feeling in the world in [Skill Dominance]. With that settled, I pulled up the Party Loot function of the Party Interface and my jaw dropped when I saw everything we had sitting there. It was all subdivided into categories by location gathered, but I had it collate the coinage and gems into their own section, and had it give me more specifics on the gems, outside the norm before reviewing it further. [Party Loot: Coins: 409 pp 34078 gp 71506 sp 6416847 cp Gems: Diamond (flawless): 2000 gp Emerald (flawless): 1200 gp Ruby (flawless): 1000 gp Sapphire (flawless): 800 gp Jade (imperial jade, large): 800 gp Tanzanite (large, deep blue): 600 gp Opal (fire opal, large): 500 gp Topaz (golden, flawless): 400 gp Tourmaline (bi-color, large): 400 gp Peridot (large, vibrant green): 350 gp Spinel (pink, large): 350 gpIf you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Zircon (blue, flawless): 300 gp Amethyst (large, deep purple): 300 gp Aquamarine (large, clear): 200 gp Garnet (large, deep red): 250 gp Citrine (large, deep yellow): 250 gp Opal (common, small): 50 gp Amethyst (small, light purple): 50 gp Citrine (small, pale yellow): 25 gp Garnet (small, light red): 25 gp] ¡°Dominus save me!¡± I clutched at my chest as I heaved myself to a seated position. ¡°That¡¯s almost eighty-seven thousand gold!¡± Everyone in the room turned to look at me, but it was Ylsa¡¯s gaze that told me I had something good coming. Her eyes were lit up like bright grey diamonds. ¡°Dominus has truly blessed us!¡± She made to get up and bow, but I waved her down. ¡°How much did your people need to fix up their valley again?¡± She started to hesitate, but my glare got her talking. ¡°Ten thousand, nine hundred, and sixty-three gold, in addition to what I¡¯ve already gathered.¡± With a gesture, I allotted fifteen thousand gold to Ylsa in the interface and her eyes began to moisten. ¡°There you go, now we can deal on equal terms when I go and visit them for the first time.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I love coin as much as the next dwarfkin, but I¡¯d rather help your people than hoard it all to myself.¡± Before I could get any other crazy ideas, I pushed the rest of the coinage, minus fifty platinum pieces for my personal hoard, as I am still part dwarf, over to the treasury for The Dominion and set it to alert Gabby. The [Mountain Tempest] looked at me with pure appreciation and more than a little bit of wonder. ¡°My people would have served you for nothing. This is¨C¡± ¡°Less than you¡¯ve earned.¡± I cut her off. ¡°Now, let¡¯s look at the items we¡¯ve been ignoring before Gabby sprints in here with her panties in a knot about the sudden influx of cash.¡± [Magic Items: Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Floor 1: Crimson Sash - Uncommon Durability - 248/250 Description - A crimson sash, imbued with the fiery essence of a volcano. While it offers no direct combat benefits, it grants the wearer increased stamina and resistance to fire damage. Additionally, the sash subtly enhances the wearer¡¯s Charm, making them more persuasive and charming.] Pulling the sash from my ring, it felt warm in my hands, almost like it was alive. I hesitated a moment before wrapping it around my waist like a belt. ¡°I¡¯m going to need all the [Charm] I can get in Sunhome.¡± I grimaced. ¡°Those old monsters are damn near vicious if the people they¡¯re talking to don¡¯t meet their ¡®standard of beauty¡¯ and this should help me hit that threshold.¡± Raiju padded over, surprising me with how agile she already was with her new body, and sat next to me with her head on my shoulder. ¡°More. I want something pretty to wear with my skirt.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s hope there¡¯s something in here that¡¯ll fit you.¡± [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Floor 2: Yeti Leather Armor - Uncommon Durability - 467/500 Description - A strangely light set of white leather armor crafted from the leather beneath the thick fur of a Yeti. It offers exceptional protection against physical and cold damage. Tempest¡¯s Fury - Rare Durability - 789/1000 Description - A matched pair of light hammers forged from the heart of a storm. When wielded together, they allow the user to summon a blizzard to aid them in battle. If thrown, they will return to the thrower.] ¡°I want that.¡± Raiju jabbed a finger at the [Yeti Leather Armor] and it appeared in her lap. She pulled it against her and sighed contentedly. ¡°With this and [Raiju¡¯s Fur Coat], I should be nearly as warm as I used to be. How do two-legs deal with being so cold all the time?¡± She started trying to get it on before sighing. ¡°I need help.¡± ¡°We wear more clothes.¡± Ylsa covered a smile I knew was there with her hand. ¡°Of course, Storm-Blessed, I¡¯ll happily assist you with your armor, but we should finish going through the loot first.¡± Taking that as permission to continue, I mentally allotted the pair of hammers making up [Tempest¡¯s Fury] to Ylsa in the interface. ¡°Unless we meet someone better suited, you could use a pair of smaller weapons in case you¡¯re low on Mana or need something to hit a flying target.¡± ¡°Good.¡± She nodded, obviously pleased. ¡°I like it when you¡¯re decisive.¡± Part of me wanted to talk to her about what she meant, but my common sense screamed I didn¡¯t want to have that argument right now, so I pulled up the next floor¡¯s loot instead. [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Floor 3: Amulet of Motherly Love - Legendary Charges per day - 1/1 Description - This legendary amulet, forged from the heart of a grieving Ogress Warboss, pulses with a gentle, protective energy. It grants a female wearer a powerful aura that shields them from harm and heals their wounds. Once per day, the wearer can activate a potent healing ability able to revive recently fallen allies or restore a significant amount of health to themselves. This jade amulet, imbued with the Ogress¡¯ love and sorrow, serves as a beacon of hope and resilience.] Pulling the silver amulet shaped like a stylized heart made up of a pair of woman¡¯s hands from the window, I immediately hung it from Raiju¡¯s neck. My whole body relaxed the moment it settled against her chest and I was suddenly aware I¡¯d been subconsciously shielding her ever since she¡¯d left the pod for the first time. Running my fingers through my platinum blonde hair, I noticed it was getting a bit long, I breathed out a deep sigh. ¡°With that around your neck, along with the [Yeti Leather Armor], I think I can finally¡­¡± Ylsa¡¯s glare caused me to trail off slowly as she nodded. ¡°I agree, Raiju is the perfect wearer of the [Amulet of Motherly Love], as she¡¯s the only woman personally touched by the all-mother, Dominus.¡± Her gaze flipped over to a smile when Raiju glanced up at her, but the moment the wolf-turned-elf looked away, her disapproving stare returned. ¡°Keep going, it looks like we¡¯ve only got a couple of items to go.¡± Once I made sure Raiju hadn¡¯t shucked off the amulet, I did as Ylsa advised and moved on. [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Floor 4: Demons Nightfiend¡¯s Lash - Legendary (Damaged) Durability - 75/1,500 Description - A relic of a bygone era, this whip, once wielded by a fearsome Nightfiend, is a testament to its former owner¡¯s power. Though horribly damaged and weakened, it still retains a deadly edge. The whip¡¯s leather, infused with dark magic, can siphon life energy from its victims, weakening them and empowering the wielder. However, the whip requires constant repair and maintenance, as its power wanes with each use. If left unchecked, it risks falling into ruin, losing its potency forever.] ¡°Part of me says we leave this in storage, but the other part¡­¡± I hesitated. ¡°I kind of want to learn to use it after fixing it up. What do you guys think?¡± While Ylsa stood there, pensive, Raiju had no such hang ups to speak of. ¡°If it¡¯ll keep you safe, why not use it?¡± Before I could try and explain how evil the whip was, Ylsa chimed in. ¡°Despite initial misgivings, I agree. Even if the description makes it seem evil, a dastardly weapon in the hands of a good person can be a powerful tool for good.¡± Eyes wide, I stared at the pair of them. ¡°Are you both serious? This thing has probably ripped the life force from hundreds, if not tens of thousands, of innocent beings! Why are you both OK with me using it?¡± Raiju shrugged innocently. ¡°You¡¯re not like that. You won¡¯t use it on anyone who doesn¡¯t deserve it. Destroying it would be wasteful.¡± ¡°Storm-Runner speaks wisdom.¡± Ylsa nodded along. ¡°Tools, no matter their origin, are just that. Tools. Tools merely enhance their users, so let this tool do that for you if you want to.¡± With a flick, I allocated [Nightfiend¡¯s Lash] to myself and pulled up the last item, even if I already had a sneaking suspicion as to what it might be. I wasn¡¯t disappointed, even if I didn¡¯t want to even look at the thing. [Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Floor 5: Soulreaper, the Dracolich¡¯s Scourge - Unique Description - Forged from the spine of a slain White Dracolich, the Soulreaper is a weapon of immense power and sinister beauty. Its bone-white blade, imbued with the Dracolich¡¯s essence, can pierce any armor, physical or magical. It strikes not at the flesh, but directly at the soul, draining life force and weakening the spirit. The scythe¡¯s form is malleable, adapting to its wielder, ensuring a perfect fit for any being, no matter their size or shape. A relic of a bygone era, the Soulreaper remains a potent weapon, capable of reaping souls and shattering bonds.] ¡°Nope. No way.¡± I shivered at the thought of wielding the weapon. ¡°This thing¨C¡± ¡°It¡¯s amazing!¡± Raiju leapt to her feet and started dancing around the room, miming fighting with a scythe quite poorly, despite her considerable [Agility]. ¡°If I don¡¯t have teeth worth fighting with, I want that!¡± She did a flip and mimed slamming something down afterward. ¡°Plus, it¡¯s going to be cold if it¡¯s from a [White Dracolich] spine, so I¡¯m the natural pick.¡± I stood up and walked over to put a hand on her shoulder. ¡°You know this is likely a version of the weapon that severed your soul from your original body, right?¡± My concern for her well-being forced me to be direct at that moment. She shrugged. ¡°I got what I wanted early, I¡¯m not mad. Plus, it¡¯s Unique, like I am!¡± Her grin reminded me of her old wolfish smiles and I couldn¡¯t help but join her. ¡°If you¡¯re sure¡­by the way, would you mind letting me see your Status?¡± Most people would have called me rude for it, but I needed to know what we were working with. I scratched my hairless chin. ¡°By the way, is our bond¡­¡± She dashed over and pulled me into a tight embrace. ¡°It was gone when I woke up in this new body, but Dominus put it back when I asked her to.¡± Color spread over my cheeks. ¡°Oh, OK.¡± I looked away and spotted Ylsa practically bursting with laughter, though she had the good sense to cover her mouth. We both knew how much Raiju hated to be laughed at. Volta merely stood in the corner, smiling at the interaction. I hesitated to allot the scythe to Raiju, holding her at arms¡¯ length. ¡°Once we get you some scythe training, I¡¯ll give you the scythe, but until then it stays in my ring. It¡¯s just too dangerous to have in anyone but an experienced wielder¡¯s hands. Deal?¡± ¡°Yeah, thank you so much, Artie!¡± She squealed. ¡°Can we look at my Status together? I can finally see it and I have questions.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Chapter 12 - Raiju Stat Update The chapters labeled ¡®Stat Update¡¯ are not essential to the story and if you don¡¯t want to read/hear everything Artie or Raiju have going on all over again, you can skip them as all major changes will be/have been mentioned in the story. However, I understand that many readers enjoy detailed character information, so I¡¯ve included this for those who want that kind of stat crunchy goodness and will do so 1-3 times per book as needed. [Name - Raiju Class - Storm-Runner - Unique - Rank SS Path - Wolf Bond - Arthur Bajbub Neilson Level: 30 HP: 960 ¡ú 630This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. Mana: 605 ¡ú 702 Stamina: 1812 ¡ú 1156 Stats: Might: 202 ¡ú 151 Agility: 650 ¡ú 375 Toughness: 430 ¡ú 265 Charm: 120 ¡ú 180 Wits: 152 ¡ú 176 Perception: 450 ¡ú 275 Divine: 201 ¡ú 250 Active Skills - Mastery % Sparkling Charge - 47 Storm¡¯s Embrace - 75 Whirling Dervish - 0 Whirlwind Rush - 6 Unique Skills: Gale-Wolf Form - 50 Passive Skills: Lightning Conductor Storm-Blessed (Unique Passive) Keen Senses (Sight, Smell, and Hearing) Animal Speech Swift as the Wind Language Sponge Evolved Skills: Boreal Spear Chain Lightning Celestial Tempest] Chapter 13 - You Don’t Understand… Raiju and I sat together on the floor for half an hour as I reviewed her Status before I started asking her questions about what I was seeing. Ylsa had left us behind to go and talk to Gabby about the loot she¡¯d be in charge of managing a few minutes before while Volta conveniently left on patrol around the glade. I leaned back and pointed at her Stats. ¡°Your stats are pretty incredible, given your level. Do you have any idea how that happened?¡± She nodded, swallowing the piece of jerky she¡¯d been working on. ¡°I got a notification about it. It said my new body wasn¡¯t capable of handling so much power, so some of my Stats were used to make my new coat. I got just over fifty percent of most of my old Stats, with a few of my mental stats getting a boost and [Divine] going up a full hundred points. It¡¯s not like I expected to keep anything from my past self, so even what I got is pretty incredible.¡± She popped another piece of jerky in her mouth and I saw a flash of her elongated canines digging in before she closed her lips around the meat. ¡°OK, that makes sense.¡± I scrolled down and stopped on [Gale Wolf Form] in her Unique Skills. ¡°You can shapeshift into a [Gale Wolf]? That¡¯s pretty cool.¡± Her face darkened. ¡°What, are you not excited? You can go back to four legs whenever you want¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t wanna.¡± She practically spat, crossing her arms over her more than ample bosom. ¡°I like the way I am now.¡± My mouth opened, but I was smart enough not to say anything I was thinking. Instead, I closed my jaw with an audible clack and smiled. ¡°I can see why, you¡¯re even more radiant now than you were before.¡± Her eyes lit up like blue flames and she licked her lips. ¡°I¡¯m glad you think so!¡± Her lupine ears flicked a few times and her tail wagged hard enough to leave a bruise on my leg. Totally oblivious, I moved on to her Passive Skills. ¡°Looks like you got to keep most of your old Skills, but you picked up a few in their places. [Language Sponge], [Animal Speech], and even a Unique Passive, [Storm-Blessed]. Those should make your transition to two-legged life a lot easier. Actives got a similar treatment, but from what I can tell a lot of your Skills were ready to evolve, so these are just those modified to fit your new Class and Race combo. There¡¯s a new one there too, [Whirling Dervish]. I wonder if that¡¯s a signature for your Class or something.¡± As I continued to muse, her gaze got more intense until I turned to look at her. ¡°What¨C¡± She bowled me over and held me down as she kissed me while straddling my waist and grinding on me. For just a second, I enjoyed kissing someone I wasn¡¯t related to for the very first time, but then deep seated insecurity reared its ugly head and I knew I couldn¡¯t just let her do as she pleased. She¡¯s like this because of me! I let her die and now she¡¯s kissing me? What¡¯s going on? ¡°Shtop.¡± I mouthed around her lips as they actively sought my own out. ¡°This isn¡¯t right!¡± I heaved myself to the side, sending her sprawling out onto the polished wooden floor. Hurrying to my feet, I looked down at her in horror. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to¨C¡± Tears streaming down her face, Raiju activated [Whirlwind Rush] and launched herself out the double doors onto a balcony before hurdling the railing and plummeting toward the ground. I knew she had [Swift as the Wind] still, but that didn¡¯t stop me from panicking. Rushing over to the balcony, I spotted her tail entering another room via a balcony a dozen floors below me. Flopping down to the ground, I sat back against the railing and held my head in my hands. ¡°What did I just do?¡± My mind raced with all the things I should have done, but none of that changed what I did. ¡°Did I just ruin our relationship?¡± I murmured to myself. ¡°Welcome to the club.¡± I looked up to find Uncle Galloway standing in the doorway off the balcony. Wiping nascent tears from my eyes, I frowned. ¡°What do you mean?¡± He flopped down next to me with an uncharacteristic lack of decorum. He proffered a metal drinking flask to me and I shook my head. ¡°More for me.¡± He tipped it back and took a deep pull before setting it down between us. ¡°I¡¯m guessing Raiju made her move?¡± Eyes red, I glared at him. ¡°You knew she¡¯d do this? Why didn¡¯t you tell me?!¡± I was mad, but there was no heat to my tone. I was hurt, but I¡¯d done it all to myself. Instead of answering, he pulled out a well-worn locket I¡¯d never seen from his shirt and opened it up so I could see what it contained. Inside were two yellowed portraits, the left side was decorated with a picture of the most gorgeous woman I¡¯d ever seen outside of Dominus, sitting on a chair made of tree roots. But it was her smile that told me who she was. It was his mom, Elaine. The right side had a portrait of a couple, a young looking male human and an older halfling woman. They were holding each other, with the man holding the woman in his arms as he dipped her low for a kiss. ¡°The three people I love most in the world, followed closely by you and your folks of course.¡± He rubbed a finger over the right side and sighed. ¡°Take it from me. Don¡¯t let guilt wreck a good thing or you¡¯ll regret it the rest of your very long life, especially with your [Toughness] and [Suzerain].¡± He took another pull from the flask and groaned. ¡°All out.¡± The flask disappeared to his spatial ring and an almost identical one replaced it a moment later. One sip later, he put it between us again.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°I understand why you have a picture of Elaine in there,¡± he winced and I felt bad, but I was curious and hurt, so I pressed on, ¡°but who are those other two?¡± ¡°The loves of my life.¡± He closed his eyes and rested his head against the railing. ¡°Or they were at one point.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± My eyes went wide as I pushed my own trauma to the side. ¡°Do they not love you back?¡± He let out a short bark of laughter before looking at me with a single eyebrow raised. ¡°Ironically, I had exactly the opposite problem. They loved me, but I didn¡¯t feel right accepting their affection.¡± Ignoring his look, I pressed. ¡°Why not? You¡¯re amazing.¡± He shook out his long chestnut hair and rolled his shoulders, as if he was shouldering a heavy weight. ¡°It was almost a hundred years ago, before I even started adventuring with your parents. I was walking through this forest, looking for a rare mushroom I needed for a tincture I was working on, and stumbled upon Eugene and Marielle. They were huddled inside the hollow of a tree, both bleeding from multiple wounds, as a huge, level thirty [Spitethorn]. The damn thing had cornered them and was mostly waiting for them to succumb to its toxin, just taking a few random swipes to keep them in place.¡± His eyes glazed over as he remembered. ¡°I tried talking to the thing, but it wouldn¡¯t give up its prey, so I killed it. I was level forty-five even back then, so it was easy. I called out to them after I got rid of it, but they didn¡¯t respond. The damn [Spitethorn]¡¯s toxin had already done its work and they were unconscious. I knew they didn¡¯t have long, so I pulled them out of the tree hollow and stripped them right there. ¡°Each of them had at least a dozen small scratches and a few deeper lesions from the monster, so I knew I had to work fast. I hit them both with [Neutralize Poison], but it didn¡¯t work. The damn thing had [Invigorated Toxin], so instead of healing them, I¡¯d just made it worse.¡± ¡°What happened next?!¡± I leaned in, hanging on his every word. Uncle Galloway always told the best stories, but never about his past outside of his time with Mom and Dad. ¡°How did you save them?¡± He scratched his head. ¡°I cheated. I used [Subsume] on the [Spitethorn], denying the world its nutrients and synthesized an antidote over the next few minutes. It was a close thing, but they lived. Over the next two months I watched over them in my cabin in those woods, but they didn¡¯t even stir. It wasn¡¯t until I returned from town on a supply run that I found the two of them entwined on my bed. Their passion, it was almost as frightening as it was enticing. ¡°When the door opened they sprang apart, but I waved them off. It wasn¡¯t anything I hadn¡¯t seen the Dryad¡¯s doing back home before I got old enough for them to start lusting after me. They apologized and introduced themselves to me. They were both slaves, him a woodsman and her a concubine, who escaped so they could be together. I assured them that they were welcome to stay with me for as long as they wanted and they took me up on it. ¡°We lived together for almost two years in that little cabin in the woods. About six months in, the pair of them approached me about joining them, but I politely declined despite desperately wanting nothing more than to agree. You see, I¡¯d saved their lives so I thought it was just Healer¡¯s Heart, not actual affection. That, or they felt obligated, since they¡¯d been going at it on the regular since waking up, especially at night when they thought I was asleep.¡± ¡°Healer¡¯s Heart? You mean the thing that Auntie Megara says helped her snag Uncle Arlo?¡± I frowned. ¡°He always laughed her off, but they never really explained it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s what they call it when someone falls for the person who healed them. Healers of most clergies can have their membership revoked for getting involved with a patient, it¡¯s serious stuff.¡± He snorted. ¡°Not that I¡¯m like them, but I still didn¡¯t feel right taking them up on their offer. They tried over a dozen times, citing seeing the way I¡¯d looked at them and telling me how much the pair of them loved me. In the end, I left them there with a big bag of gold, a map to the nearest town, and moved a thousand miles away.¡± ¡°Why?¡± He shoulder bumped me. ¡°I can ask you the same thing, but I¡¯ll explain for your sake. I was afraid to wreck what we had, so I left rather than let it change. Sound like anyone you know?¡± ¡°This has nothing to do with what happened¨C¡± I started to rant, only for him to cut me off. ¡°Wrong.¡± He ran his thumb over Eugene and Marielle¡¯s faces. ¡°She saved you and you saved her right back, but instead of returning her feelings, which my [Heartsight] tells me you do, you pushed her away. You made the same decision I did, but you can still fix yours. My chance at love is gone, but yours is still alive and well.¡± ¡°I mean¡­ wait, why didn¡¯t you use [Heartsight] to look at Eugene and Marielle?¡± I tried to deflect the embarrassment back on him, but he wasn¡¯t having it. ¡°I didn¡¯t learn it for another twenty years and the second I did, I hightailed it back to that tiny town. I found they¡¯d founded an inn with the money I¡¯d left them, they called it Galloway¡¯s and the sign was my name with theirs hanging off the beginning and end. I used a [Minor Alteration Potion], went inside, and found Eugene behind the bar. He¡¯d aged gorgeously, all smile lines and gently aging muscles. Marielle came out a bit later and I heard them talking to a traveler about the name of the inn. They said they¡¯d named it after the person they loved more than anyone but their children, which they had six of. [Heartsight] confirmed what they said, pink lines ran strong between the three of us.¡± ¡°What did you do then?¡± He shook his head. ¡°I left. Our time was done. They had kids and adding me to the mix would have just confused them.¡± Tears streamed down his cheeks. ¡°I missed my chance at a happy future. Don¡¯t do the same.¡± He patted my leg hard enough to jolt me out of my own daze. ¡°The connection you two have is strong, don¡¯t forsake it because you helped her achieve her dream early.¡± A notification light in the corner of my vision finally caught my attention and when I opened it, I couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°Thanks for the Skill, something tells me [Heartsight]¡¯s going to make its way onto my permanent list pretty quick. It¡¯s perfect for a [Suzerain].¡± [Heartsight Acquired with Skill Dominance] I removed [Sunburst] and [Silent Step] from my Dominated Skill Slots and immediately slotted [Heartsight]. ¡°Stuff that.¡± Ylsa¡¯s stern voice sounded from the doorway. I looked up and she was already next to me. She lifted me by [Hydra¡¯s Ward] and threw me over the railing. As I fell, I heard her call after me. ¡°Make it right now, or that girl will never forgive you!¡± Chapter 14 - Emotions are Hard A few flips in the air later, I was able to catch myself with a few sloped [Air Steps] as information about [Heartsight] flooded into my mind. The more intense a certain connection was, the more vibrant it would be, but the longer it had been there the wider its portion of the light mix would be. For example, a person you¡¯ve known forever but didn¡¯t have a particularly intense connection to would have a wide beam of light, but it would be pale with barely any color to it. The counterpoint was someone you just met who you viscerally hated, the line would be thin, but it would be very vibrant. There were a hundred or more colors and shades I¡¯d need to learn eventually, but I initially limited my filters to the seven most common. Romantic love, something I¡¯d long wondered if I¡¯d ever find was bright pink, passionate, intense, and vibrant. Familial love and platonic love actually got different colors, which I found surprising as I fell, the prior was a warm, nurturing golden yellow, while the latter was a rich emerald. A professional or academic connection was a light indigo, while an adversarial or rivalry would show up fiery orange. The last two I picked to focus on were obligation/duty and shared trauma, a deep sapphire and a grey so dark as to almost be black. Lastly, I picked hatred, a deep crimson. Taking a moment to collect myself and fix the fit on my armor, I lightly stepped down on the balcony I¡¯d seen Raiju dive through a while before. Inside, I found a room full of bedrolls with a purple ¡°D¡± with a spiral in the center branded near the top, what I assumed was the symbol for the cult of the void. Curled up on a pile of said bedrolls was Raiju. Her knees were pressed up against her heaving chest as she sobbed. The sound cut me straight to my core, and I rushed over to her. The moment I laid a hand on her she recoiled. ¡°No!¡± She sounded so¡­hurt. ¡°Leave me alone!¡± [Heartsight] triggered unconsciously and I saw the connection between us was as far more complicated than I¡¯d expected. The light stretching out from her toward me had a vibrant core of pink with thinner threads of gold and emerald wrapped around it, but right down the center of the beam was a thin core of sapphire more intense than any I¡¯d ever witnessed. What does this mean? My mind raced as I triggered [Flash Focus] to buy myself more time to think. So much pink, but there¡¯s gold and emerald there too! What does it all mean together? Then there¡¯s the sapphire in the middle¡­I¡¯m going to have to work my way out to figure this out. I really wish I could see what my line said, but I¡¯ll have to ask Uncle Galloway later to have him tell me. The core is her sense of duty to me, maybe that¡¯s from our connection as bonded partners, or maybe it¡¯s because of how Dominus put her in my path, but that forms the core of our connection. Next is romantic love, or maybe lust, I¡¯m not sure. She finds me attractive, that I can be sure of, and it¡¯s her dominant feeling toward me if the quantity of light is to be believed. I¡¯m still not comfortable with that, but I¡¯ll have to look at the rest before I make a decision about it. The emerald and gold connections are basically interwoven, so maybe she¡¯s confused about which she should be aiming for? One is platonic love and the other familial love, which I basically treat as the same thing, but I guess they¡¯re different? That¡¯s kind of interesting¡­ My mind wandered for a moment before I caught it and mentally chided myself. Focus! Both [Heartsight] and [Flash Focus] chew through Mana, you don¡¯t have time to let your scatterbrain work. Taking a second, I let myself calm down and looked more closely at the situation. Based on what I can see, Raiju is in love with me. That much is clear. Do I love her? Thinking back to her time as an evolved [Gale Wolf], I would have been able to honestly say no. Then she¡¯d just been a member of my growing family as far as I was concerned, but based on the thickness of the pink in her heartline, she¡¯d been in love with me for far longer than just today. Now though? I could honestly say I wasn¡¯t sure how I felt. For the first time, barring the time Marie messed with my emotions and made me attracted to her and Mindy, I actually felt a desire for someone when I saw her. Her smell was damn near intoxicating, now that I¡¯m remembering it¡­aw damnit. Is this what Dominus meant by finding the person for me? Thankfully, my patron goddess chose that time to reach out directly.Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡®Hey, Artie. I can¡¯t talk long, but since you sent me that delicious offering of corrupted souls, now purified by the way, I can talk to you while you¡¯re using [Flash Focus]. Yes, Raiju was the person I knew was going to be the first person you could ever fall for. She¡¯s not the only one, but¡­nope, not going there. Anyway, Raiju¡¯s been in love with you since you cooked for her the first time, treating her like a queen when she was used to being alone and before that, being the runt of her litter. Her feelings are genuine, no manipulation from me, but you¡¯ll need to come to grips with your guilt before anything can happen between the two of you.¡¯ I started to try and reply, but she beat me to it. ¡®Instead of telling her no, take the time it takes to get to Sunhome to make a decision. She¡¯s used to waiting, but if you don¡¯t deal with her feelings soon, she¡¯ll leave and I¡¯d hate for my two favorite people to be separated so soon.¡¯ ¡®How long have you been planning this?¡¯ A bit of heat leaked into my mental voice. ¡®Were you always planning on her dying to get her a new body?¡¯ ¡®No!¡¯ She blurted. ¡®I was going to bargain with the System for a way for her to shift over. This was far more traumatic for you, but was actually easier on her. She may have worried about displeasing you if she¡¯d used the path through the System, but this way she didn¡¯t have a choice. She got what she wanted, because she knew you¡¯d never fall in love with her as a big ass wolf.¡¯ ¡®I loved her as a wolf!¡¯ I spat back before realizing what she¡¯d said. ¡®I guess I loved her but wasn¡¯t in love with her, was I?¡¯ ¡®Exactly, now focus back to the real world and cancel [Flash Focus], you¡¯re bleeding from your nose again.¡¯ Dominus sent waves of compassion and love through our connection. ¡®Take it slow, she¡¯ll understand. Oh, and tell her I say ¡°Hi¡± and ¡°Good Job¡± when you eventually tell her about this.¡¯ I bowed to her in my head, earning me a chuckle. ¡®Talk to you soon.¡¯ Armed with a plan, I cancelled [Flash Focus] and knelt down next to Raiju where she remained curled up. ¡°Can we talk?¡± I kept my voice calm, with what I hoped was a thread of affection running through it. She curled up tighter before whimpering. ¡°You can talk.¡± Running my fingers through my hair, I sighed. ¡°First off, I¡¯m sorry. I shouldn¡¯t have yelled at you like that.¡± She peeked an eye out, but didn¡¯t speak, so I kept going. ¡°I had no idea you felt that way¡­no, that¡¯s not true.¡± I sat back on my heels. ¡°I thought you might have feelings like that for me, but I never thought you¡¯d act on them so soon in your new body.¡± ¡°You weren¡¯t attracted to my old body, I could smell it.¡± She sniffed the air before hiding her face once more behind her arms. ¡°My nose isn¡¯t quite as good as it was after losing nearly two hundred [Perception], but I can still smell it when someone¡¯s attracted to someone else. You want me in my new body. Why not let me have what I want?¡± Her body shook with emotion. Before I could stop myself, I laid a hand on her shoulder and she stopped moving. When she didn¡¯t freak out, I decided to leave it there for the moment. ¡°You¡¯re right, but here¡¯s something you don¡¯t know about me.¡± I tilted my head back and spoke to the ceiling to avoid seeing her reaction. ¡°I¡¯ve never been attracted to anyone without the effect of magic before. Not until you, just a few hours ago. I¡¯ve wondered for years if I was asexual and aromantic, but it looks like that may be a more complicated scale than I once thought.¡± I shivered as she laid a hand on my thigh, but didn¡¯t look down. ¡°Really? Never?¡± ¡°Never. I¡¯ve been exposed to more beauties than any young man would ever expect to, but none of them ¡®got me going¡¯ so to speak. Not even Dominus¡¯ avatar.¡± I chuckled and moved my hand from her shoulder to place it against hers. ¡°You¡¯re my first crush and I didn¡¯t know what to do, so I lashed out verbally and that was wrong.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± She half whispered, half chanted. ¡°In that case¨C¡± I cut her off by gripping her hand tightly. ¡°When I came in here, I panicked again and triggered [Flash Focus]. When I was like that, I talked to Dominus, she asked me to pass along ¡®Hi¡¯ and ¡®Good job¡¯ by the way.¡± I chuckled when Raiju yipped happily. ¡°Anyway, she gave me some advice given our unique situation.¡± ¡°What kind of advice?¡± She slowly maneuvered until she was sitting the same way I was, on her heels, though she didn¡¯t remove her hand from mine. ¡°She said we should let our relationship develop until we get to Sunhome, then make a decision as to what we want to be to each other.¡± I finally looked back from the ceiling and locked onto her brilliant cerulean orbs. ¡°I¡¯d like to give this a chance, but I don¡¯t think I¡¯m ready for anything too intimate right now. Can you give me the space I need to make this decision?¡± ¡°The Great Mother is wise. I waited for so long just to meet you, I can wait another few months.¡± She opened her arms. ¡°Can I still hug you?¡± Her voice warbled just a bit and I couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°Of course.¡± She lunged in and squeezed me tight before pulling back and staring into my own eyes. She was just too cute and I felt a bit impish, so I leaned in and gave her a peck on the cheek before leaping to my feet. ¡°It¡¯s time to go tell Ylsa we came to an agreement, or she¡¯ll find some way to make me miserable.¡± I sprinted for the open door leading outside, leaving her gaping open mouthed on the bedroll. ¡°Last one to my bedroom has to do dishes for a week!¡± She spent another second or two gaping before snapping her jaw shut and lurching for the doorway. ¡°But I don¡¯t know how to do dishes!¡± Chapter 15 - Financial Dinner Meeting Dinner that evening was interesting. Gabby, Ylsa, Raiju, Volta, and I sat with Uncle Galloway around a round table he pulled from his spatial ring and set down right outside the [Celestial Oak] in the center of the glade, but on the opposite side from the main entrance. We were seated in what I later learned was once a particularly gorgeous series of hanging gardens. When I brought the steaks, potato croquettes, and white asparagus I¡¯d made out for dinner, I heard the two of them discussing how they¡¯d restore it to its former glory. He was insisting on trying to revive the dead plants, or trying to harvest their seeds, but she thought that was a waste of time. She had a veritable seed vault in one of her spatial bags and offered him what he needed to replant, but he begged off just as I placed the food in the center of the round table. ¡°It¡¯s the principle of the thing.¡± He nodded toward the food I¡¯d just deposited. ¡°Anyway, let¡¯s eat, then we can discuss next steps for our burgeoning Dominion.¡± The conversation during dinner avoided any conversation one would refer to as ¡®heavy¡¯, but it didn¡¯t shy away from Raiju¡¯s new form. At first, I was worried, but she leaned into it and I learned a lot about her and, notably, all the races as a whole. Uncle Galloway sat with a fork full of potato and white asparagus halfway to his face as he stared at Raiju, who¡¯d just dropped a bombshell that would shake the world to its core if it got out. ¡°Can you repeat that? I must have misheard you the first time.¡± She gulped down a full quarter steak and bared her prominent canines. ¡°Sure can, but I¡¯m sure you heard me right.¡± She glanced over at me, quickly looked away and patted the steak drippings from her face, and turned back to Uncle Galloway. ¡°When I finally sat down and looked at Primal Elf in my Status it said all elves were originally Primal Elves. It had something about where they came from beyond that, but I didn¡¯t read the whole thing.¡± ¡°Raiju,¡± I set my knife and fork down and she locked eyes with me, ¡°would you mind sharing just that window with all of us? I know at least Gabby, Uncle Galloway, and I would be very interested in reading it.¡± ¡°I know Goliaths are descended from the ancient Primal Giants. Learning elves are the same doesn¡¯t change anything for me.¡± Ylsa shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ll read it to see how closely it matches up, but I¡¯m confident in our [Storykeepers]¡¯ ability to maintain our history.¡± Volta speared a bit of steak and moaned to herself. ¡°So good!¡± Raiju fiddled with her Status window for a few seconds before we all suddenly had the same window floating in front of our vision. ¡°Got it!¡± She grinned as she snagged another steak from the rapidly dwindling pile. ¡°Bonus steak for me while you guys read.¡± Rather than challenge her, instead I got to reading the information she¡¯d provided. It ended up covering far more than just Primal Elves. [Primal Elf is a general term for the varied race that has since become the elves out in the world at large. Technically, you are a Primal Elf - Fenrir, but that designation was purged from the System as a Race. This change has since been reversed and your Status will display your race properly now. In reality, all of the races, besides humans, on Genovia are descended from a primordial beast or species of beasts now only known as the Primordials. As your original species, Gale Wolf, is most closely descended from Fenrir, the Howling Death, your Primal Elf draws its features from it. You are the first Primal Elf - Fenrir since his line was wiped out by Primal Elves descended from Krom, the Unstoppable Tusker. Those Primal Elves are now known as Wood Elves. With your birth, a new path to power has been reopened. All beings descended from creatures native to this world will have the potential to awaken their race to their Primal form once more. The trigger to do so is not the same for each person, but it should be known that doing so will grant them a second chance at a System integration if they so desire. If a being is descended from multiple Primordial Genovian beings, they can awaken each portion of their parentage individually.] Part of me wanted to immediately start trying to figure out what would trigger my Gold Elf Awakening, but I stopped cold. ¡°Wait a second. Does that mean humans aren¡¯t from Genovia originally?¡± Pulling up my Status, I selected my race and then picked out the subsection for human and asked for more information. [The Humans living on Genovia are a remarkably adaptable species, thriving in diverse environments and readily integrating with other cultures. Their ingenuity and resourcefulness have allowed them to flourish in a world teeming with magic and mythical creatures, despite their innate lack of magical talent. While they lack magical talent, they more than make up for it in technological aptitude, with more System Speakers coming from their ranks than any other race by percentage in addition to raw numbers.] That¡¯s not what I wanted, I knew all that. I want to know about where humans came from! I pushed harder on the thought of humans not coming from Genovia and a smaller box appeared before me. [Driven from a dying world by an encroaching force of desolation, desperate bands of human refugees fled across the void in vast metallic ships, seeking refuge in the vibrant, untamed world of Genovia. This perilous journey, fraught with dangers both cosmic and unforeseen, laid the groundwork for their eventual integration into the complex ecosystem of their new home. Their arrival on Genovia allowed the System to locate Genovia, though it took nearly a thousand years for the System Integration to occur after their arrival.] ¡°Dominus save me.¡± I sagged into my chair and took a few deep breaths. ¡°Humans are the reason the System came to Genovia?¡± The sound of glass breaking to my right snapped me out of the haze I¡¯d found myself. When I looked over, I found Gabby holding her hand as blood dripped down to the polished wood of the table. Her eyes blazed as she looked at me. ¡°Humans did what?!¡± She practically shrieked. Sighing, I flicked the windows I¡¯d generated over to the rest of my companions. ¡°Take a look for yourself, I had no clue until I pushed the System a bit.¡± Uncle Galloway practically choked. ¡°You did what?¡± ¡°Pushed the System.¡± I shook my head and sat forward to eat some more food, trusting it to settle my nerves. ¡°Gramps taught me a few tricks, but he said everyone could do it. He insisted that I practice as soon as I was integrated so I could get better at it fast.¡± ¡°Your family is insane!¡± He threw his hands up in frustration. ¡°That is distinctly untrue. Pushing the System is a death sentence!¡± I scoffed after swallowing a bit of croquette. ¡°Not true. Trust me, I¡¯ve done it a few times in just the past month or so. It¡¯s all about flexing your will.¡± He made to argue once more, but instead scratched the side of his neck and sighed. ¡°Can we please talk about anything else? I need time to reconsider the way I view the world¡­again. For the third time today.¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Gabby, to her credit, settled down after reading the System window I sent to everyone about humans. ¡°That reminds me, can you please explain why you dumped this pile of loot in my inbox for me to manage?¡± She flicked a window out for me to review. [Misc Loot: Armored Cultist Robes (x98) Ritual Dagger of Sacrifice (x17) Robes of Shadowy Whispers - Common Eye of the Devourer Idol Scroll of Abyssal Incantations (Non-magical) Ritually Carved Skull of Former Cult Leader Obsidian Dagger Caged Spider (Familiar) Talisman of Void Warding - Common Iron-Spiked Mace Broadsword of the Fallen - Common Hunter¡¯s Bow - Common Leather Armor Steel Helmet Throwing Knives (x6) Rusted Chainmail Warhammer Short Sword Dagger Javelin Handaxe Battleaxe Longsword Two-Handed Axe] ¡°None of us need any of that and you¡¯re in charge of the treasury.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Until we get a steward or a reeve or something, you¡¯ve got that to deal with the chaff loot. Maybe you can sell it or something?¡± ¡°Sell it where!?¡± Her face went red. ¡°We¡¯re in the middle of the forest! Should I try to sell a handaxe to a squirrel?¡± Seeing how irritated she was getting, I held up a hand. ¡°I understand. Don¡¯t worry about selling anything until we reach civilization. Just organize it all into different sections of the warehouse tab and we¡¯ll figure it out when we get somewhere we might be able to sell some of the stuff.¡± That seemed to mollify her as she smoothed out her dress and preened her golden locks. I thought I caught her sneaking a glance at Uncle Galloway, but pushed the thought aside and didn¡¯t dare trigger [Heartsight]. I do not need to know if she¡¯s got the hots for him. Nope, I¡¯ll leave that as a mystery. ¡°I have another question, what do you want me to do with the massive pile of coins you dropped in the treasury?¡± She pulled up a window and turned it around so she could draw on it with everyone watching. ¡°With nearly a hundred thousand gold to work with, we¡¯ve got some options.¡± Nodding, I motioned for her to continue. ¡°What do you recommend?¡± She snorted, then blushed as she covered her face and started talking fast. ¡°It all depends on what you want The Dominion to do as a nation.¡± She wrote Diplomacy, Infrastructure, and Research at the top of the board. ¡°These are the broad categories I¡¯ve been considering, but I need to know what you want The Dominion to focus on before I can start making an actionable plan.¡± Rubbing my hairless chin, I looked around the table. ¡°What do you all think?¡± Surprisingly, it was Raiju who offered her opinion first. ¡°Why not split it up?¡± She stuck her steak juice coated fingers in her mouth and removed them with a pop. ¡°It doesn¡¯t make sense to me to focus on just one thing.¡± Everyone around the table murmured their agreement and Gabby dutifully added a percentage sign next to the list of words on the board. ¡°Alright, so if we¡¯re going to have a split focus, what kind of split are we looking at?¡± With an uncharacteristically trembling hand, Ylsa stepped up next. ¡°As much as I¡¯d like to say infrastructure should be a large focus¡­¡± She hesitated and I motioned for her to continue. ¡°It¡¯s OK. Say your piece.¡± Throwing her shoulders back and taking a deep breath, Ylsa continued. ¡°I believe infrastructure should take up no more than twenty percent of the budget, now or going forward.¡± ¡°Can you elaborate on why you believe that?¡± Gabby asked the same question I¡¯d been considering. ¡°Specific examples are best, but I¡¯d take a general option if that¡¯s what you have.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± Ylsa cracked her neck, a tick I¡¯d learned meant she was nervous, but ready. ¡°The biggest thing we have going for us, besides our connection to Dominus, is our mobility.¡± She gesticulated all around. ¡°It¡¯s just us right now, so we would do ourselves a disservice in locking ourselves down at the moment. Once we¡¯re more established? That¡¯s a wholly different thing, but by then, hopefully we¡¯re generating enough resources that we can afford to maintain our base of operations with only twenty percent of our gross haul.¡± The whole table pondered what she¡¯d said for a few minutes. Some short conversations between different pairs among them popped up, but my mind was racing. I had a crazy idea and I just had to bring it up. Gripping the side of the table to keep myself grounded, I began to practically babble. ¡°Why not have a mobile base of operations? My Dad¡¯s family, the Ironwind Clan, has a fleet of skyships they use for long distance travel. Why couldn¡¯t we make something a bit more substantial?¡± Everyone around me was staring, so I continued. ¡°We could use Sunhome, Ironhold, Wyrm¡¯s Rest, and the Valley of Dominus as landing points if we need to land for repairs, it¡¯d be awesome¨C¡± I felt a strange sort of¡­connection to the human part of me and my eyes grew wider as I saw something amazing in my mind¡¯s eye. That almost never happened. Even with only one eighth dwarven blood, I often felt impulses from that part of me compared to three eighths human blood, but now it was almost like that information from the System earlier lit a fire in me. ¡°What if we look for the ships the humans used to get to Genovia? What¡¯s to stop us from using them as the basis for our new home?¡± It felt like my brain was on fire as I continued to go at it. ¡°I¡¯d propose twenty percent infrastructure, using that to build the places that would eventually become landing platforms. Forty percent diplomacy, with a focus on information gathering and trade, and the remaining forty percent focussed on researching the ancient world. So much has been lost since that time, knowledge of Dominus included, so why not work on rebuilding the archives the world has since lost?¡± ¡°A flying base?¡± Volta¡¯s eyes glowed with excitement. ¡°I wholeheartedly approve!¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t agree more.¡± Uncle Galloway¡¯s smile hadn¡¯t slipped since he figured out where I was going a few sentences in. ¡°With the revelations from today, we should focus on cementing our advantage as the only group who know of the chance of awakening our primal lineages. That, in conjunction with the ability to enter Towers and change their rewards, should let us get a real leg up on anyone who starts coming after us on our path.¡± Gabby waited for everyone else to speak, twisting her golden braid with one hand nervously until everyone went quiet. Once that happened, she started writing on the screen beside her. ¡°I can work with that, as crazy as it sounds. Until we get settled, I¡¯ll focus on growing our treasury by selling the loot we don¡¯t need and can¡¯t trade for political favors. In the meantime, I¡¯ll work with Ylsa to get the supplies her people need into the Valley of Dominus and reach out to some family contacts about any ancient records we might know of.¡± Looking out at my friends around the table, I felt so warm. Everyone there chose to stand by my side, despite our disparate origins, and when I came up with something most people would call crazy, they all got behind it. ¡°I love you guys.¡± I muttered under my breath before speaking up. ¡°With that plan in motion, let¡¯s talk about next steps.¡± Gabby banished her existing window to her notes log and pulled up a new, blank, one. ¡°It¡¯s time for some logistics.¡± She practically preened when everyone but me groaned. I waved to her. ¡°You have the floor.¡± ¡°Actually,¡± Uncle Galloway raised a hand, ¡°I have something to say first.¡± He looked around at us and then continued. ¡°I have a number of things to get settled before I can join you in any official capacity, I need to restore this grove so Dominus can use it to expand her interest, at least that¡¯s what she told me a few minutes ago via a quest. I also need to go back and grant her full control of my other grove a few thousand miles away from here. That¡¯ll take me a bit less than six months, so here¡¯s what I¡¯m proposing.¡± He leaned in and grinned as he looked around at us. ¡°You should all walk to Sunhome. No teleportation, no super speed running or traveling via carpet. Walk.¡± Everyone began to protest and he raised a hand to silence us. ¡°It should take you around the same time it takes me to get my affairs in order to do it, assuming you don¡¯t get lost, and in that time I need you all to work on leveling up and mastering your Skills. Anyone under level forty in Sunhome will have trouble being taken seriously and having me around will help a bit with that, but having your own base of power will go a long way to gaining legitimacy for The Dominion.¡± Gabby didn¡¯t seem happy, but the rest of us nodded. His logic was sound, despite how uncomfortable it would be. I had one question before we adjourned. ¡°Any idea where we can level on the way there?¡± He rubbed his hands together. ¡°I¡¯ve got a map of Dungeons in the area and there are four on the way to Sunhome from here, with only a small detour through the foothills of the Verdant Peaks.¡± ¡°Sounds good. Let¡¯s take tonight to rest up and be ready to leave by noon tomorrow.¡± I beamed out at the crowd. ¡°Let¡¯s get The Dominion some new loot to help her grow.¡± Chapter 16 - Loot and Obligation Floating on my [Cloud Carpet] below the massive boughs of the [Celestial Oak], I finally had some space to myself. While I loved hanging out with my new friends¨CI¡¯d grown up with a lot of time to myself outside of training and vacation¨Can hour or so floating far above their heads in the evening was just what the healer ordered for me to organize my thoughts. As I lay there, just enjoying the sound of birds and insects, I was reminded of the calm of Bhoomi the [Dao], which further reminded me of the final gift he¡¯d given me. A few minutes of digging through my¨Cadmittedly messy¨Cspatial ring later, I found the only thing I didn¡¯t recognize was a small brown leather bag. Pulling it out, I felt a few gems clinking around inside. [Essence Reading] decided to activate at that moment and my eyes widened at the kingly gift I¡¯d been given. ¡°Bhoomi, this is too much¡­¡± [Bag of Earth Elementals - Legendary Uses - 7 Description - This small Veinripper leather bag was once owned by Bhoomi, lieutenant in the Earth Monarch¡¯s guard. Objects placed within it are immune to damage as long as the drawstring is pulled. Currently, it contains the heart gems of seven level 100+ Earth Elementals who will serve the Elemental Pactmaster loyally for one week each once they¡¯ve been invoked. This service can be extended, but will require a discussion with the Earth Monarch directly to do so.] Peeking into the bag, I found the seven heart gems and all of them looked like they were different precious stones. The flawless gems all rattled around together, ruby, emerald, sapphire, diamond, opal, alexandrite, and onyx all reflected a core light I found absolutely entrancing. I think I sat there for nearly ten minutes, just looking at the gemstones before I realized what I was doing and cinched the bag up once more. ¡°Part of me thinks these are excessive and another part worries I¡¯m going to end up needing their firepower sooner rather than later.¡± I laid back with the bag on my chest for another hour before I felt someone land behind me on the carpet. Since [Spatial Awareness] wasn¡¯t freaking out, I knew it was one of my Party members or Uncle Galloway. ¡°Am I needed below?¡± I muttered as I scrunched my eyes shut. ¡°I was really enjoying¨C¡± Something warm pressed against my side, silencing me, but the person didn¡¯t say anything as they got comfortable next to me. We lay there for hours and I didn¡¯t open my eyes once, but at a certain point my nose finally clued me in. Raiju had flown up to join me and we were lying next to each other on the carpet. I considered lowering the carpet down to the trunk below so we could rest indoors for the night, but decided against it in the end as I enjoyed the companionable silence. *** We drifted off to sleep at some point and when I woke up, I found us curled up together with me as the little spoon. My initial reaction was to panic, but I fought it down after a few seconds. That was long enough to wake her up though and she sprang off the carpet like I¡¯d bitten her. She bowed low as she hovered next to me. ¡°I¡¯m so sorr¨C¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± I shot her a soft smile. ¡°I always sleep better when someone else is around anyway.¡± I stood up and started stretching as she watched me curiously. ¡°It¡¯s about time for us to go down and finish our preparations to leave. Are you ready?¡± ¡°I guess?¡± She shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t really know what kind of preparations I should have in this body. I¡¯m used to just going when the time was right.¡± With a thought, the [Cloud Carpet] began to lower down slowly toward the residence and Raiju padded through the air alongside it. ¡°I¡¯d recommend talking to Gabby about what you need to pack.¡± I passed her a spatial ring from the bag of them I had at my hip. ¡°Put anything you need in there, Gabby will teach you how to use it.¡± She slipped it on with a small smile before quickly quashing it. ¡°OK, I will. She¡¯s down in the orchard with Galloway.¡± Her lupine ears twitched. ¡°They¡¯re talking about how her family could modify the plant food they¡¯re using to help deal with the drought around Sunhome right now.¡± The corner of my mouth twitched up. ¡°Sounds like him. I bet she told him how her family¡¯s struggling and how they¡¯ve had trees withering up the past few years. There¡¯s no way he could let that stand, he looks at trees like most people would their favorite kind of animal. I guess it goes with him being a Dryad, but still, he¡¯s a bit of a tree health zealot.¡± She brushed her radiant silver hair behind her elvish ears and I was momentarily entranced as it fluttered in the wind as we neared the balcony attached to Ylsa¡¯s room. ¡°What¡¯s your favorite kind of animal?¡± I almost immediately blurted out ¡®wolf¡¯ but caught myself at the last second. Instead of answering right away, I thought about it until we landed on Ylsa¡¯s balcony. Inside, she was going through some sort of boxing routine as she darted around the room, punching the air like it owed her money. When she eventually spotted us through the windows in the door, she nodded for us to come in as she finished up her routine. ¡°[Celestial Tigers] probably, given recent events.¡± I reached for the handle and pulled the door open with a quick glance at her. Her ears and tail were both drooping and I kind of felt bad for a moment before delivering the cheesiest line I¡¯d ever even thought of to that point. ¡°My favorite species of magical beast went extinct yesterday, so I had to pick a new favorite and I met one of those when I was a kid and it was pretty cool. Not as amazing as my old favorite, but pretty cool.¡± She didn¡¯t seem to get it at first and it wasn¡¯t until I saw Ylsa whispering in her ear later that I saw her blush all the way to the tip of her elvish ears. She made to storm toward me where I stood counting barrels of trail rations, but the goliath stopped her with a hand. Another moment of whispering later, she started grinning and walked away with her tail wagging like crazy.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Ylsa shook her head as she walked over and jabbed me in the shoulder. She might have thought it was playful, but my arm went dead and it hurt like hell. Before I could even get mad at her, she leveled a glare at me so intense that I forgot about my arm entirely. ¡°If you break her heart, I¡¯ll make sure you regret it.¡± She spun around her on her heel and went back to picking through the supplies left behind by the cultists. The System was great at identifying the condition of magic items, but it wasn¡¯t nearly as good at the same with mundane goods. It could identify if something was totally ruined, but not if it was just smelly as hell and almost unusable due to being riddled with bug carcasses. Gabby had dumped the entire lot out in a storehouse at the foot of the [Celestial Oak] and Ylsa and I were tasked with going through it before we could leave while Volta checked out the weapons and armor. We were getting close to finishing, with only a few barrels of food left to check and the bedding on Ylsa¡¯s side. My bet was that most, if not all, of the bedding was trash, but the food was surprisingly not terrible. Flavorless? Yes. Spoiled? No. I had a few tricks I could use to liven up what we had, but I would definitely be making time to hunt and forage as we traveled because the thought of having to cook bricks of dehydrated bean and chicken paste made my stomach turn. Just before noon, I stood next to a cooling stone patio, where I¡¯d incinerated the entire pile of bedding and a couple small bags of meat [Essence Reading] informed me I wouldn¡¯t enjoy eating as I wasn¡¯t a cannibal. Flicking my hands to get the proverbial ick off them, I walked around to find Gabby with a checklist pulled up in front of her. She glanced up from the list when she heard me approaching. ¡°Done burning the trash?¡± I nodded. ¡°I gathered the ash into a small pile in case Uncle Galloway has a use for it.¡± The man appeared behind me, making me jump. He grinned. ¡°I¡¯ll put it to good use. The area over by those [Consuming Colossi] is in need of some fertilizer and I can use that as part of it.¡± He waved over at that area. ¡°Are you sure you want to take those things with you? They¡¯ll eat up most of your dimensional storage¡­¡± ¡°That won¡¯t be a problem.¡± I waved over to where Ylsa was hefting a four foot trunk onto her shoulders. ¡°[Dimensional Trunk]. It¡¯s big enough to hold everything in this grove that isn¡¯t alive and then some. It was inside one of the damn Colossi, if you believe that. Tons of armor plates in there too, in case we wanted to use them for some reason. We put the [Holy Forge] and [Arcforge] from that area in there too. If we manage to recruit a smith of some kind along the way they¡¯ll have everything they need to get started.¡± He put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed. ¡°While I would have had them destroyed before joining you and The Dominion, I understand why you didn¡¯t. I just hope you can find a good use for those infernal things.¡± His face was a mask of horror as he remembered the carnage one of the [Consuming Colossi] had wrought to the tree population a few miles north of the grove. He¡¯d utterly demolished that unit, but we still had the others from the depot in storage. Gabby coughed and I turned around to find her ticking off ¡®burn the refuse¡¯ on her checklist. She motioned to the last thing on her list as she locked eyes with me. ¡°Just one thing to do, boss.¡± I groaned. ¡°Call me Artie, or I¡¯ll go back to calling you Gabrielle.¡± She fluttered her eyelashes at me before sighing. ¡°Fine, Arrrrrtie.¡± She dragged the word out. ¡°The last thing to do is finalize our planned path of travel. Have you reviewed the map with Galloway?¡± She looked up at him with a gaze I suspected was supposed to be seductive, but I ignored it in favor of pulling up the map. I traced a finger from the newly renamed Dominus¡¯ Grove toward the nearest Dungeon, nearly three hundred miles away to the west. ¡°First up is the [Whispering Woods] Dungeon in the heart of this forest.¡± I trailed a finger even farther west and a bit to the south. ¡°[Ironheart Caverns] is next, it¡¯s in the foothills of the Verdant Peaks and supposedly themed around magnetism.¡± Even farther to the west, in the vast plains unclaimed by any nation referred to only as ¡®The Wastes¡¯ I stopped my finger. ¡°[Raleigh¡¯s Sunken Temple] is in the ruins of the capital that once controlled the area around it. Uncle Galloway,¡± I looked over at him and he nodded, ¡°said that he hasn¡¯t heard of anyone even going into it for some reason in the last few hundred years, so we¡¯ll be investigating why it hasn¡¯t unleashed a Dungeon Break in that time at the same time.¡± Everyone around me nodded, so I moved on to the last and, to me, most interesting Dungeon only a few days outside Sunhome. ¡°Finally, we have [Skyborn Citadel]. It¡¯s on top of a mountain peak in the Sunrise Mountains and, supposedly, it¡¯s never been cleared.¡± I scoffed. ¡°Not sure how that¡¯s possible with how close it is to Sunhome, but whatever. I want to check it out.¡± Raiju padded up on my left wearing her fur coat over her shoulders like a cape, ignoring the arms entirely. I felt a few butterflies in my stomach, but did my best to hide it. How do people deal with these feelings all the time? I¡¯ve only had them for a day and I¡¯m already getting tired of hiding them. Am I weird, or does it just take practice? Something told me it was the latter, so I didn¡¯t let it bother me too much. ¡°If that¡¯s it,¡± I glanced around and found everyone was present. ¡°It¡¯s time we set off.¡± I turned around and hugged Uncle Galloway. ¡°We¡¯ll see you in six months, OK?¡± He patted my back before ruffling my hair¡­like he always did. ¡°It won¡¯t feel so long with those Dungeons to occupy you.¡± He stepped back and nodded as he looked my party over. ¡°Lacking a real healer, but otherwise¡­¡± ¡°Um, where am I?¡± From the doorway to Uncle Galloway¡¯s home Mindy walked out holding her head. ¡°I just woke up inside a tree and I¡¯m looking for my¡­¡± Her eyes locked on me and she fell to her knees, clutching her head. ¡°Artie, what¡¯s wrong with me? Where¡¯s Marie?¡± Ylsa, Gabby, and Uncle Galloway looked at me with wide eyes. They were leaving it up to me. Volta just looked between the two of us with a spark of interest in her eyes. ¡°Your sister left me a letter¡­¡± I began as I started walking over to her. I guess we have a healer after all. I chuckled as [Essence Reading] told me she¡¯d adapted to her new Class. [Name: Melinda ¡°Mindy¡± Emberstone Race: Tiefling Class: Oceanus - Legendary - Rank A Level: 27 Emotional Status: Confused/Excited] [Oceanus are Legendary healers who draw upon the primordial power of the ocean. They wield water magic not merely to manipulate the element, but to harness its life-giving force. They can summon healing waters from the depths, cleanse the body of impurities, and guide the flow of life energy within a patient to mend even the most grievous wounds. Beyond healing individuals, Oceanus possess a deep reverence for the ocean and all its creatures. They strive to protect the delicate balance of the marine ecosystem, using their powers to heal wounded creatures, cleanse polluted waters, and restore harmony to the underwater world. Their unique abilities include potent healing waves, soothing embraces of water, and the power to revive those on the brink of death.] Chapter 17 - Cool Story Sis Surprisingly, Mindy was incredibly easy to convince to follow along as we made our way toward the nearest Dungeon on our hit list. She accepted the letter from her sister, at least after she found the hidden message even [Essence Reading] missed. If Dad knew I¡¯d become so reliant on it, he¡¯d have found a way to suppress the Skill so I could get back to my old investigative peak. She handed it back to me wordlessly as she fiddled with her new spatial ring, packed to the gills with food, drink, and clothing for the journey. Tears streamed down her face, but she didn¡¯t let it stop her from moving as we left the grove. Hitting the back of the page with a green light lit up a short message, something I¡¯d never have thought of checking in the moment when I was plucking Mindy up and rushing out from the base of the Tower. {Mindy, Sorry to spring this on you, but Artie¡¯s the Chosen of a goddess forgotten by the world. She¡¯ll never let him break his word, so as long as he swears an oath to keep you safe, he¡¯ll do it. He seemed like a decent sort and you seemed to like him, so I picked him to protect you while I¡¯m away. Hopefully I¡¯ll see you soon, but if I don¡¯t, I hope you have a better life without me in it. The lead weight formerly tied around your neck, Marie} I made to hand her the letter back, but she refused it, stating that she¡¯d rather not have it as a reminder of how little her sister thought of herself. I tucked it away in my ring and decided to wait a few days to bring it up again. *** Our first few days of traveling on foot, or shanks¡¯ mare as Ylsa insisted on calling it, were uneventful. We walked beneath trees hundreds of feet tall, something that would have been impressive if we hadn¡¯t just spent time back in the newly renamed Dominus¡¯ Grove. Ylsa and I spent those days getting to know Mindy, her by talking about the barriers the former [Hydromancer] devised and me by getting her to teach me how to properly use [Raging Torrent], a Skill I¡¯d had slotted for quite a while, but never used. While the Tiefling was reluctant to talk much about herself besides mentioning how she and her sister had always been together, bringing up her barriers lit up her face. She waxed poetic for hours about deflection angles and how allowing a tiny bit of flex saved more than thirty percent of the Mana most barriers would have used. She disguised it as the ripple of the water Mana she used to power the barriers, but she insisted any Mana with a bit of physical presence could be used for the same purpose, meaning fire and psychic Mana were right out, but others were fair game. As we jogged, she seemed to be fiddling with a screen the rest of us couldn¡¯t see and it wasn¡¯t until our fourth day of travel that she handed me a copper pendant with a tiny chip of alexandrite in it. ¡°This is the first part of my payment for the spatial ring.¡± She turned around and walked over to join Ylsa, who shrugged when I looked to her for an answer as to what Mindy was talking about. Looking at the pendant, I found it was notably fine work, given she¡¯d spent most of the time since we began traveling working with me on my water Skills. She couldn¡¯t have had more than a few hours total to work on it, but [Essence Reading] didn¡¯t lie. She¡¯d produced an Uncommon [Barrier Necklace] with five charges I could refill with Mana in less than a week. It was set to activate whenever an attack came from behind me at the moment, but I saw a rune I could shift to adjust it to any side of me except the ground. Marie wasn¡¯t kidding when she said her sister was the reason their shop was in the black. A barrier necklace like this can¡¯t be cheap. How expensive are these spatial rings in my pouch if this is just part of the cost of one? Hers is an Uncommon, but there are a couple of Rares in there too¡­ The next day, while Raiju was out stretching her legs doing her best impression of a scout for our small convoy, I sidled up to Gabby. The [Grovetender] was in rare form, smiling and whipping her neck around to look at different plants as we jogged through the dense woodlands. ¡°Do you mind if I ask you a few questions about how much things cost?¡± I lengthened my stride to match hers so we could talk more easily. ¡°Jaegan used to give me hell about being out of touch about that and I¡¯d like your help filling in some gaps.¡± She nodded before banishing the window she¡¯d been using to document the plants we passed by. ¡°I¡¯d be happy to help you with anything related to finances. It¡¯s kind of my job as your treasurer after all.¡± I found her wry smile infectious and couldn¡¯t help but crack a small grin. ¡°I guess you¡¯re right there.¡± I pulled out the bag of empty spatial rings as we moved, being careful she had a grip on it before we leapt a small stream. ¡°How much does your average magic item go for at each tier?¡±You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°Commons typically go from one to fifty silver, depending on how useful they are and how hard they are to find. Uncommons can be found from fifty silver all the way up to five gold, with spatial rings as a notable exception.¡± She blinked a few times when I looked away, but finished explaining. ¡°Anyway, Rares are really hard to find, but if you can, expect to pay at least five gold for even the least useful one and all the way up to five hundred gold if it¡¯s got a really powerful function that¡¯s in demand.¡± She elbowed me. ¡°Do I need to explain how much the bag I¡¯m now carrying would cost?¡± ¡°Please.¡± I blushed and avoided her gaze. ¡°I¡¯m almost scared to hear the answer, but I need to know.¡± ¡°Fair.¡± She opened up the bag and gasped. ¡°Dominus¡¯ tits! There have to be twenty rings in here!¡± She grabbed my arm with wide eyes. ¡°Are any of them Rare or better?¡± Ylsa looked back, but when she saw me acting embarrassed, she kept on running with a shitty little smile on her face. Rubbing the back of my neck, I answered truthfully. ¡°After I passed an Uncommon to Mindy and took a Rare for myself as a backup, there are twenty-three Uncommon and three Rare spatial rings in that bag.¡± She immediately pressed it back into my chest before hesitating and grabbing it back before I could get a grip on it and speeding toward Ylsa. She whispered a few things to the goliath, who let out a loud laugh and grabbed the bag of rings from the nearly frantic elf. My treasurer slowed down to let me catch up, running her fingers down her long braid in a gesture I realized was calming to her. She locked eyes with me and shook her head. I shrugged. ¡°So it¡¯s worth a lot?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± She slapped my arm and I heard Raiju growl from behind me. It didn¡¯t exactly hurt, but I didn¡¯t appreciate it all the same. Still, it wouldn¡¯t do for Raiju to hate Gabby, so I messaged her quickly. ¡®Gabby is teaching me. She just slapped me to make a point.¡¯ I paused to glare at Gabby. ¡®It shouldn¡¯t happen again.¡¯ The primal elf glared at Gabby as she darted past. ¡®It better not. I don¡¯t like her leaving her smell all over you.¡¯ Should¡¯ve expected she¡¯d be territorial, it¡¯s literally in her blood. Noted. ¡®Understood.¡¯ Momentarily mollified, Raiju burst forward and launched herself up into the lowest boughs of the trees nearby, nearly forty feet in the air before springing from branch to branch like she¡¯d been born to it. Gabby shivered. ¡°I take it she¡¯s not happy with me?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t like you slapping me.¡± I chuckled quietly. ¡°Something about leaving your smell on me.¡± The [Grovetender] did a quick sidestep away from me before speaking again. ¡°Got it. It¡¯s never a good idea to piss off the newly reincarnated companion of the [Suzerain].¡± She adjusted something near her neck and then drew her braid up into a tight bun. ¡°The reason I freaked out is that spatial rings break the price brackets wide open. They¡¯re worth at least as much as any other item in a category two ranks up from themselves. Common rings, if they could exist, would be as expensive as Rares, et cetera.¡± She rubbed her hands together greedily. ¡°Those four Rares, if we were to sell them, would probably go for at least ten thousand gold a piece. The Uncommons are less noteworthy, but a growing clan would probably pay at least five hundred gold each for them, assuming they¡¯re looking to outfit their retainers.¡± I made to pull off my new backup ring and she motioned for me to stop. ¡°No, keep it. Your storage items, along with the rest of the Party¡¯s make up the Loot Storage function of the Party Interface. If you run out of space, things won¡¯t loot properly and we¡¯ll have to do it by hand like regular adventurers.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sure?¡± I frowned. ¡°Ylsa¡¯s spatial bag is only Uncommon, but it¡¯s as big as a Rare ring, so it should¡­¡± She shook her head. ¡°It¡¯s full of building supplies for her clan. I tried convincing her to put all of it in the [Dimensional Trunk], but she wouldn¡¯t do it. Something about a promise she made to her father.¡± She raised her hands up and dropped them dramatically. ¡°You¡¯re basically wearing ninety percent of our loot storage on your hands, so be careful not to lose them, ok?¡± ¡°What about giving the backup to Ylsa or Raiju?¡± I wrinkled my brow. It didn¡¯t feel good to have all that unnecessary pressure on me, with all the loot on my hands for no good reason. ¡°Ylsa will refuse, something about not being able to punch as well with rings on. Volta will do the same, though merely for the fact that she feels it¡¯s outside her sphere of influence. Raiju, on the other hand, might be a good pick when she gets used to fighting in her new body. But now?¡± She grimaced. ¡°Not a great pick. She¡¯s too likely to lose one of the damn things when she buries a hand in a monster she kills.¡± Over the past few days of running, Raiju had been working on getting used to her new body, but in doing so proved that she had a long way to go. We¡¯d gone through a few katas together, using a training scythe Uncle Galloway had in storage, but she was far from ready to use [Soulreaper] in combat, so she¡¯d defaulted to lengthening her nails and using them like she would have full on claws. The results were messy, but effective, as she tore through lower leveled monsters along our travels like a scythe through ripe wheat. Ironic, I know, but the results spoke for themselves. I wanted to argue, but knew it was futile. My treasurer was a master of her craft and if she thought me wearing the second ring was a good idea, I wasn¡¯t going to convince her otherwise. Before I could talk to her about anything else, [Spatial Awareness] triggered. Something was approaching from behind us and to our right at great speed. Without hesitating, I threw a Party invite to Mindy and sent a message to the Party chat at the speed of thought. ¡®Something¡¯s coming up behind us on our right flank, fast. I haven¡¯t looked yet, but I can feel it.¡¯ A loud roar filled the air as the ground shook around me. Turning to look, I found myself eyes to chest with a [Silverthorn Gorilla]. It cut an imposing figure, standing well over seven feet tall with a coat of silver spines covering its black hair covered body. They were known as the apex predator of the forest we were working our way through. At least they were until Raiju showed up.