Death only needed to come once even in the System Then everything was over and there was no way to make up that loss
A middle ground between those two options was the reward Path the First Legend From Randidly’s experience with the previous reward Path it would be extremely lucrative But from Randidly’s other experience with the System he knew that as things progressed the rewards might get higher but also the time between them would get larger It was entirely possible that this Path would be something that required a very high amount of PP perhaps something like 500
Then his current PP would only be worth 1/5th of the total and he might spend the entire time within the Raid Dungeon without able to finish a Path But even so if the rewards were high enough
One of the downsides of being the first group to go into the Raid Dungeon is that they really didn’t have any idea how long it would take to clear In terms of scaling it was hard to imagine that it wouldn’t be higher than the Level 39 Dungeon that Donnyton possessed that a skilled party could clear in a little over 3 weeks Randidly believed that he could shove the number down in terms of raw Stat and Skill Levels but this was another tier higher and would likely increase by a large amount
It was possible that he would spend an entire month struggling through the Raid Dungeon even with his higher ability That was a slightly disturbing thought because over the past few days Randidly was feeling the absence of Neveah with increasing sensitivity Even before they had formed the Soul Bond and they were both two things strangely attached to the Aether Crossroads they had supported each other He never had to wonder whether there would be at least one person who had his back
Now
Randidly gritted his teeth resisting a sudden impulse to surrender his previous reasoning and just select Intermediate Soul Bond No of them all
Randidly was supposed to be the reinforcements in this foray into the Dungeon Although he could stand at the front with them all and would probably handle more damage than most people he needed to be ready at any point to bail them out And the most effective way to do that was to rely on his Plant Dominance to forcibly support those who fought in front of him
Path of Control it is
Randidly dumped his 100 PP into it Path of Control earning 1 Control and 10 Mana every 10 PP He also received notifications from his Soul Skill which gave him a certain amount of relief
The world of your Soul Skill turns The denizens of your inner world evolve Time has passed and the peace between the original races and the monster peoples has grown even stronger Even the staunchest supporters of the war are changing their tune as the lure of coin draws them towards trade
Again the Weave is being created with the Weavers doing their best to piece together portions of the past that have been forgotten For they fear that as the monster threat has left more sinister forces among the four races begin to simmer as greed and corruption spread among the upper echelons of the Spriggit and Earth Golem peoples
The Monster King has disappeared the body of his mount found drained of life There are whispers among the monsters about foul play but the Monster King was the most powerful warrior that they have seen in this world since the great Earth Golem Emperor They know not who might have conspired against him
The Spriggit Thief has grown from a young girl into a woman bearing the Progenitor’s weapons acting as a Ranger throughout the land She assists those who need it and arbitrates disputes But as more and more energy rises out of the strange core of this land a new threat is emerging Mutations of normal races warped by powerful emotions and the addictive energy that flows from the strange cracks in the earth
This Ranger has taken it upon herself to find and seal these cracks preventing the spread of mutation But the road is a lonely one and sinister forces begin to experiment with ways to use this power for their own twisted ends
It has been seven cycles since this world’s creation Would you like to add anything to the world (Warning the added qualities will be taken from a Skill A single Skill Level will be consumed in the taking Other side effects are unknown)
After chewing on his lip for a minute Randidly added both the Touch from Beyond and Four Shaded Domain to the Soulskill The former because he was curious how it would influence it and the latter because Randidly assumed he only had that Skill due to the Soul Skill so paying it back for what was given would do no real harm
The Touch from Beyond descended into the Soulskill and spread into several large clumps sinking in the ground in certain places creating mineral deposits of some strange unusual mineral Randidly suspected that if it was based on the same principle that the Skill was it would be highly dense and valuable When the Spriggits found it they would be frothing at the mouth to obtain it
Randidly rubbed his head Perhaps that wasn’t the best choice then another reason to go to war
Meanwhile the other Skill split into four large clumps and fell through the populations sinking into four individuals empowering them in some small way What interested Randidly most of all these happenings was that the Spriggits didn’t receive one of those split blessings but theirs appeared to go to a monster boy curled up in a small crib He was based on a variant of a duck and his wings flapped weakly as the force of energy inserted into his body
Sighing Randidly pulled his perception away The way the Soul Skill moved was interesting to watch and it gave him a chance to gather more Progenitor’s Influence but for now it was just a distraction But as he put the rest of his PP into the Path he had chosen the next notification he received made him frown
Congratulations You have received the Blessing of Cleaning Rain Wisdom +7 Free Stats +10 You have learned the Skill Child of the Rain (Un) Lvl 1
Child of the Rain Receive small bonuses to vision and stealth while it’s raining Gain a slight boost to Agility These effects grow with Skill Level
Randidly tapped his lip A small bonus most likely but one that would be useful enough in a raining scenario The problem was that the boost he received from the Blessing seemed to have shrunk somewhat even though he had gotten a Skill out of it It was a strange trade and one that didn’t really make much sense to Randidly
How had him getting a Class pushed him towards receiving Skills from his Soul Skill After all he only had a few Skill Slots remaining This Child of the Rain took up one of his remaining 10 spots
Sighing Randidly shook his head There wasn’t much time left Then his eyes flashed emerald in the darkness
It was time to see how some of his new Skills worked before he took them into the Raid Dungeon
Chapter 409
When they approached the Raid Dungeon there was a strange tension in the air a strange chill Randidly supposed that they all knew why they were there and what would happen if they failed at least in theory Most people aside from himself had experienced some small fraction of the pain of Aether Sickness so they knew how debilitating it could be
Randidly couldn’t stop thinking about that child in Donnyton who had the first cold since the System
Randidly led the group walking towards the Raid Dungeon his Bone Cloak clinking although it was somewhat muffled by his leather armor underneath Honestly although it had been difficult at first to get used to moving in it spending the last several days in it constantly had done a lot to make it more natural feeling In terms of his spear moves he believed he was almost back up to 100% performance although that remained to be seen
Immediately behind Randidly were Alana and Rose Alana was wearing well polished plate mail and spent this last portion of their walk obsessively checking her armor Rose didn’t seem to wear any armor just a practical dress over long boots She also was carrying a clipboard and occasionally made small notes on it
Behind her was Ptolemy and Clarissa who were talking quietly to each other Ptolemy’s outfit was form fitting on the chest but included a pair of fluffy pants making him look oddly like a martial artist Clarissa was dressed in full witch regalia with a crooked hat and a black cloak Randidly found it somewhat amusing how dedicated she was to her Class Weather Witch but then he remembered how unreasonably into character Ace also got and some of his amusement soured
Those two were followed by Annie and a morose seeming Lucifer Of them all Randidly reflected Lucifer was the one that made him the most uneasy He was tall lanky and carried a huge cleaver looking weapon It didn’t help that orange red hair erupted from his head hanging down at least 1 meter of his significant height making him look like a villain from a bad anime
Although Randidly had received some information in regards to how he fought in preparation for what was to come he had still never seen the man actually fight which made Randidly keep his guard up Until he knew what sort of tricks he might use
Of course the majority of the expedition was Donnyton and those Randidly trusted implicitly And also this was for the good of the Zone Randidly doubted that any of them would be foolish enough to try and strike at him while the threat of the Raid Dungeon was still live
But his main reassurance Randidly supposed was how powerful he was As long as he kept his guard up
Behind Lucifer was Ace who was trundling along next to Chrysanthemum Ace had traded his previous leather jacket for chain mail and leathers and now appeared to be actually a System ready fighter Chrysanthemum just seemed like a large bored bear
Looking at Chrysanthemum brought a pang of regret to Randidly’s chest He wondered how Neveah was doing even though he could always sense she was fine just unconscious
The tail of the expedition was brought up by Thea and Drake who were talking to each other in short clipped tones Actually Randidly was slightly shocked to find that those two were awake this morning when he had finished his training and were sparring Plus their strengths appeared to be very near equal Or at least without Chrysanthemum’s interference
Randidly wasn’t sure whether to be impressed at Drake or disappointed in Thea for using the stone to upgrade her Skill and it didn’t appear that it was particularly effective
When they arrived at the Raid Dungeon Randidly reached out and felt the stitchwork he had done pulling closed the tears he had made in the Dungeon’s Aether His Skill had advanced by a huge amount since his previous attempt so this time he completely stitched the strange Aether of the Raid Dungeon together doing his best to match the shape
It wasn’t pretty perhaps to someone like him with Aether Detection Skills But now no one would walk into the rip in the Aether and have their arm devoured
After stitching them together Randidly led the group through the gate and into the small antechamber of the Dungeon Standing there in the middle of the air was a large black hole that seemed to just absorb all light leading to the abyss Around it Randidly could see the dancing threads of Aether Luckily this portion seemed relatively undamaged or they would be in trouble
With little fanfare Randidly invited everyone into his party and they all accepted his invites Then he raised his hand and pressed it against the edge of the Gate
Warning You are about to enter into a Raid Dungeon Only one team may attempt a Raid Dungeon at a time You will either pass the Raid Dungeon in the allotted time or die You cannot escape the Dungeon without defeating it
Warning You are under Level 10 It is recommended that you do not enter any Dungeons before obtaining Level 10 Do you wish to proceed
Randidly almost rolled his eyes and pressed yes There was a lurching sensation in his stomach one that was extremely familiar It was exactly the same feeling that he got when he had been teleported to Shal’s world After a split second of that feeling everything snapped back into focus and Randidly blinked and coughed
The people around him stumbled their faces green Apparently entering normal Dungeons weren’t quite so violent a switch and it had taken them by surprise To Randidly’s relief they were still all together all 10 of them and also Chrysanthemum had been able to enter with them putting their number at 11
It made Randidly’s heart tighten somewhat because he didn’t doubt that Neveah would have been a great boon in this journey
Stop whining ’ Lucretia whispered to him breaking her long silence since he had obtained a Class She’s powering up you know that right Did you even look at the Aether constructs around her Heavy stuff Much closer to some of the constructs left by the Creature than anything we had attempted before The girl’s a genius ’
Randidly thought nothing back in response but he agreed with Lucretia’s assessment The shapes in the Aether that had appeared near her it was honestly intimidating but the fact that they were so sophisticated was probably positive She would recover they just didn’t have time to wait for that to happen at the moment
Their group of 11 was standing in what appeared to have once been a great hall of a castle or a cathedral with an open space in the front and a line of absolutely huge skyscraper sized pillars leading away towards a door perhaps almost a half kilometer away For their size the pillars were incredibly ornate but it simply emphasized even further the mind boggling size of the building they were standing in Light streamed in through holes in the roof showing the time to be near dawn or dusk here
A sound caught Randidly’s attention about the same time that everyone else noticed and he turned to find several large black cats climbing down the pillars growling at the interlopers The cats as they came closer revealed themselves to be skinless things with glowing green eyes leaving bloody pawprints on the ground as they stalked closer A glowing 47 hung over their heads
Very soon seven had appeared stalking closer circling slowly
Better fight them now before more numbers show up Rose said glancing up at the huge pillars There was an upper level of walkways that connected the things and Randidly suspected that’s where the cats lived They are using a Skill called Summon Kin so let’s move quickly Alana Lucifer want to soften them up Ace and Thea move to support
Alana leveled her spear and stalked forward Lucifer drew his weapon without ceremony and starting trotting towards the enemy moving into position Although Ace sneered he moved to follow orders putting his helmet on
Randidly’s mouth quirked into a smile as another dozen dropped down behind the group much much closer Rose’s eyes widened but before she even spoke bolts of lightning from Clarissa smashed two backward causing one of the new arrivals to roar Which earned it an arrow through the roof of its mouth destroying its brain in a single go
It collapsed while its brothers began running toward the group Randidly’s eyes glowed emerald as his smile widened
Tch these fuckers are tough Clarissa remarked as she watched those she hit with her Lightning Bolts stagger to its feet Good experience though Gained a Skill Level already
Thea pull back and support us Rose ordered turning around and glancing at the new arrivals her expression calm Can you three handle those seven
None of the three answered All were too busy approaching the cats Several of Ptolemy’s Arcane Orbs crashed in that direction distracting the cats allowing Alana and Lucifer to close the distance without giving the opponents much time to surround them If these cats wanted a fucking fight they would get one
Chapter 410
Randidly’s fingers flexed and half the group behind them were speared with dozens of roots aiming for hamstrings and vital organs When several of the roots rebounded off the bloody resilient bodies of the cats Randidly frowned But it was a 50% thing so each cat was still speared at least partially lowering its mobility This wave of spellcasting seemed to finally hit home to the cats what sort of threat had arrived and the survivors launched themselves into a dead sprint toward the group
Annie’s arrows knocked down one and killed another while Randidly used Incendiary Bolts to similarly incapacitate another two Now that they were close enough Clarissa used ice spells and Chain Lightning lowering the health of the remainder a lot and then Chrysanthemum arrived knocking the shocked survivors aside so Thea could crush their skulls with her hammer
Satisfied here Randidly turned to watch the progress against the other 7 cats It seemed that Lucifer used a strange fighting style where he took advantage of the weight of his huge cleaver to throw himself around in great swinging strikes That left him full of holes to exploit but the damage he could deal with an attack was no joke And based on the fact that he had already bisected one cat and was cornering another the holes in his stance weren’t as large as advertised
Randidly had the confidence that he would have an advantage over the other man in a fight but he certainly didn’t want to mess with how much momentum Lucifer created with his wild swings He could likely slice a car in half without even slowing down
Unfortunately for him the cats seemed much more difficult an opponent than a car and after they had realized he was deceptively quick they kept back around him going in for attacks on his flank Immediately Lucifer switched his strategy no longer attempting to attack with his actual blade but
Some sort of wind addition to his attacks Rose said frowning down at her notes just as one of the cats lost a leg even though it had hopped lightly out of Lucifer’s striking radius A huge scar on the ground was evidence of the efficacy of the attack although when Randidly squinted he could see that it was only perhaps another sword length’s worth of damage
Still if you didn’t expect that extra length with a sword like that
Alana had calmly dispatched two cats and moved to assist Lucifer Together the clobbered the remainder while Ace hung back looking bored
Very quickly all the cats were dead Randidly was annoyed
He checked his experience bar and found that it was at 90% so that was something But still he had waited so long to receive levels and now and now he had the pleasure of grinding he supposed Even so this seemed like a ridiculously slow way to level since he had killed these high level cats Was it based on how much you contributed Because then
No ’ Lucretia whispered It’s based on your relative level in the party Basically all the experience flows to the party and then you get a share based on how many levels you add to the party So you got approximately 1/400th of the experience because you are only level 1 It keeps the high level people from helping out the low levelers too much in a party Plus ’
These cats were pretty weak for something that is Level 47 Ace said his face sour as he walked over towards one of the corpses Clarissa nodded
Experience isn’t bad for what they are Pretty quick kills Alana remarked cleaning blood off of her spear Lucifer grunted
Randidly shook his head What complicated matters was that when he tried to leave the party he received a notification stating that changing parties was impossible while in the Raid Dungeon So he was effectively stuck with the nerfed experience gain currently
Wonderful It made him wish he hadn’t disdained the thought of hunting a little before coming into the dungeon
As several people began to inspect the corpses more closely looking for anything worth harvesting Randidly turned to Rose So what now I’ve never been in a dungeon before Well not any normal dungeons What do we do
Rose shrugged Everyone look around a bit Normally there is just a single path forward but since this is a bit special And with all this space there is probably a clue
This alter says we need the Key of Death to clear the Dungeon Annie interrupted Most of the group looked up to gaze at her She was standing back towards the center of the large cathedral at a dilapidated silver alter But in the center of the altar there was a large hole a slot for a key
After tapping her lip Annie simply reached out and touched the altar and a notification popped up in front of them all
Welcome to the Zone 33 Raid Dungeon Current Clear Record N/A This Raid Dungeon is considered cleared when the Key of Death is brought to the Fallen Altar unlocking the Door of Life allowing you to return to your world Rewards will be given for exemplary clear times
How informative Annie remarked turning away and peering at some of the giant columns around them Randidly sighed Certainly he shared her reservations about their goal It was easy to understand which was nice but on the other hand any sort of hint about how to accomplish it would have been appreciated
But he supposed that’s why rewards were given for exemplary times Because getting a good time was difficult Randidly also wondered what exactly would qualify for exemplary
Hissing Randidly spun We’ve got company
Several groups of cats descended from the upper levels around 3 groups of 20 And then another dozen dropped right down to the area where Rose Ptolemy and Clarissa were standing in no discernable formation
Of course Randidly was there too
Plant Dominance Randidly whispered his eyes glowing a poisonous green color Thorny vines and gnarled roots erupted out of the ground before the cats could even catch their balance ripping into the weak undersides of them knocking those too close to the spellcasters away from them Then with a few Wall of Thorns Randidly isolated the cats and allowed his team to gather
Oh so they were the numerous type of enemies Ace said extremely unhelpfully cracking his knuckles against the shoulder of a cat and sending it sprawling into its compatriot Perfect warm up
Truthfully the team was ripping through the cats where they encountered them or at least Alana Lucifer Ace Thea Chrysanthemum and even Drwaswere However although Ptolemy had some basic hand to hand combat these cats were fast and had sharp enough claws to damage Donnyton quality armor after a few swipes It was best not expose them too much
Meanwhile Rose seemed to be effectively useless and Clarissa
Well if Clarissa was too directly threatened Mrs Hamilton had informed Randidly that Clarissa had a bad habit of forgetting her teammates and spraying large AOE spells like Frost Nova and Chain Lightning everywhere Receiving damage from teammates especially magic damage was not high on Randidly’s to do list
And Annie
Randidly looked around but couldn’t find her But arrows were rapidly sprouting from cats causing them to shudder and expire so she was probably fine
Time to experiment then Call Grove Defenders Strength
Even the frontline fighters paused in their slow reforming into a formation as a low dull sound seemed to emerge from Randidly’s chest like the deep bellow of an ancient ivory horn The cats even stopped confused giving everyone time to move into a tighters shape to protect the spellcaster Then the ground directly behind Randidly rumbled and a green hand pushed itself out of the ground
After a few seconds of struggle that hand managed to wriggle itself revealing a huge green black forearm with several small leaves growing out of the furr A meter away another similar hand poked up and then a third
It was about this time that the cats realized that whatever was coming wasn’t their friend and resumed there attack But for now the lines were separated allowing the spellcasters to do their work
Chain Lightning Blast Spark Chain Lightning Randidly made a mental note not to stand near a blast spark which appeared to simply be an electric grenade that Clarissa could through She paused in her casting and drank a blue potion
Arcane Orb Ptolemy yelled and Randidly assisted with a few Incinerating Bolts but then he heard an angry bellow behind him and turned to look at the source
Behind Randidly were standing three apes their chest shoulders and arms thick with muscle However they were only a meter tall but about that wide as well Their square bodies made them slightly amusing as they pounded their chest and pointed at the cats in fury Then at the same time the three seemed to see Randidly and instantly their eyes lit up
The one in the center which Randidly assumed was the leader swaggered forward and sniffed Randidly’s ass
Shaking his head Randidly turned away God save him from eccentric pets Hopefully the size was related to his low Skill level and not a permanent thing
Then he gave the order and those bundles of muscle threw themselves forward screeching with fury
Chapter 411
Congratulations You have reached Level 2 +5 Stats distributed between Vitality Perception Resist Intelligence and Control +3 Free Stats +1 Stat to a Mental Stat +1 to a Physical Defense Stat +1 to a Mental Support Stat +1 Control +20 Health +24 Mana +23 Stamina + 5 to all Regenerations +1 to Health and Stamina Regeneration +20 Progenitor’s Influence
Congratulations You have reached Level 3 +5 Stats distributed between Vitality Perception Resist Intelligence and Control +3 Free Stats +1 Stat to a Mental Stat +1 to a Physical Defense Stat +1 to a Mental Support Stat +1 Control +20 Health +24 Mana +23 Stamina + 5 to all Regenerations +1 to Health and Stamina Regeneration +20 Progenitor’s Influence
Luckily for Randidly the way the System worked meant that he received double as much experience for the deaths of the cats once he reached Level 2 and that was then enough to push him to Level 3 before the end of the battle earning him an almost intimidating amount of stats
No wonder so many people went for this Class thing It was incredibly useful
That wasn’t all the notifications he had received from the fight either
After being summoned the stats of the Strength Grove Defenders has slightly increased Punching power increased Health slightly increased They have learned the Skill Grappling Mastery It has increased to Level 20
The gorilla things might have looked rather silly but they were basically walking wrecking balls absolutely demolishing any enemies they came in contact with They might be relatively smaller than people but it wasn’t that much smaller and they were at least as tall on their legs as a cat was on all fours putting them in perfect position to pummel the resistance out of the cats
And they were a very necessary part of the reason that the group held out All told they probably were forced to kill a little over 200 of the fuckers before they became wary and retreated Which probably meant they would need to face a boss soon but Randidly was much more pleased that he had finally leveled up so he didn’t really get annoyed by the coming fight all that much
Perhaps this fight would even give them a clue with which they could look for the Key of Death which was unlikely but it would be nice
Under Rose’s direction the group moved forward in a much more discernable formation prepared for a second surprise attack None came and the group just explored the huge cathedral taking more than an hour to cross the distance to the front doors which had broken and fallen letting them out into the air
Randidly looked around The cathedral was located on a low hill surrounded by similar rolling hills if a bit smaller than the one they were currently on Below them a few miles away there was a river and flowed off towards the horizon It was night but in the sky Randidly could see several small tears probably made when he had lashed out at the Raid Dungeon using Aether Manipulation
Grimacing he turned away from those and looked at the other landmarks that dotted the horizon Randidly spun on his heel then leaped up and climbed the cathedral so he could get a better look
This turned out to be a lot harder than it had seemed simply because of how long it took to climb the enormous building but eventually Randidly sat on top of it scanning the horizon There were three of these strange things and honestly it was good enough of a clue for Randidly as to where to go next
They were strange towards but extremely almost lumpy at the top and haphazard It honestly looked like someone had speared a giant beehive and then driven the weapon into the ground holding the beehive aloft There was a strange monstrousness to the shape of it something that made Randidly sure that this was not created by people
One even appeared to be rather near them and Randidly made a mental note to head in that direction Clicking his tongue Randidly started the long climb back towards the ground
Drake slowly sipped at the bowl of soup that was given to him his eyes on the ring of stones just outside the fire ring To give the illusion that he was lost in thought but also not blinding himself for a few precious seconds by staring directly into it in case some other monster attacked
Due to him being close to a Level already Drake had gained two levels in the previous clash the cats which was pleasing He even gained about a dozen Skill Levels fighting for that time defending against the cats flanking tactics But his mind couldn’t dwell on these happy thoughts because it was focused on other matters his fellow team members
The Ghosthound was obviously the focus of most of Drake’s scrutiny because he looked with the purpose of knowing these fighters should they ever end up on opposite sides But contrary to what Drake expected the Ghosthound had stayed rather passive allowing other people to fight at the front while he had supported with his roots and also with those strange apes
Shivering Drake scooped another bite of soup into his mouth Those three pets that the Ghosthound had summoned had torn the cats apart limb from limb Although they weren’t particularly proficient at catching them or controlling their bodies once they had their hands on an enemy
The Ghosthound also seemed completely unconcerned while those three were fighting which meant that his Control stat was either extremely high perhaps even approaching 200 or that they were independent entities Which had pros and cons associated with it but the cons were that trying to fight the Ghosthound would clearly be like fighting multiple people at once
Couple that with the fact that his true strength was still hidden Drake could finally understand why Copernicus urged Sydney towards being peaceful especially now
Of course Sydney wasn’t so foolish as to start a real war or something But there were more and less aggressive ways to deal with Donnyton’s growing share of the armor market and in the folktales of the Zone For now Sydney had remained passive This man was a large part of that reason
Drake sighed burying the budding antagonism inside himself It was pointless and he was a professional But still examining these powerful individuals was a once in a lifetime chance He would make use of it
In terms of Ptolemy and Clarissa Drake basically just marked them down as immediate targets It remained to be seen whether either of them possessed any techniques that could devastate an expert but in terms of destructive mage power East End had nothing close Coppernicus specialized in curses which was useful but not as useful as striking a squad with lightning
Thea was a bit mystifying to Drake because sometimes she made him feel a thread of fear with her strikes and other times she appeared extremely clumsy It almost seemed as if she had recently experienced a growth spurt or something and her body was a little off in terms of fighting But if that improved
And also the bear was a freight train of power Thea didn’t need to do much to pull her own weight with that thing here
Lucifer was definitely powerful but unexciting Drake had the same evaluation for Ace But he couldn’t help but notice that neither of them was pushing themselves There were further depths there to plum to figure them out For now Drake simply waited
Alana was exactly what she was billed as the leader of Donnyton’s First Squad Whether it be in timing fighting power or Skill use she was almost flawless doing about double as much as any of the other frontline fighters Although that was partially due to the fact that aside from Drake the rest of them seemed to care little for defense and instead focused on out attacking the enemy
Which was fine against enemies at this level but when they faced something stronger
Finishing his bowl he stood and offered the empty thing to Rose who nodded and accepted it Rose was also what Drake had expected but what he hadn’t expected was that Rose and Dauntless would spend very little time together They almost seemed relieved to have this chance apart Perhaps a chance worth exploiting Or
Whatcha looking at
Drake pivoted hand going to his sword to find Annie standing there smiling at him innocently Of everyone even between her and the Ghosthound Annie was the one who truly made Drake feel the most fear
Because ultimately the Ghosthound was a young man with simple direct motivations He might have the most power and the most versatility but Drake was confident that he could avoid a conflict with the Ghosthound by staying behind certain dotted lines and keeping his head down
Meanwhile when Drake met Annie’s eyes he saw that she had picked apart what he was doing and even now was slowly flaying away the top layer of his thoughts so she could dig down into why She was capricious loyal but without any scrap of hesitation when it came to making hard decisions
This in addition to the fact that she moved so quickly that he almost immediately lost track of her location meant she was the opposite of what Clarissa was a being designed to take out a powerful Classer
The other squad members Drake said stiffly Honesty was best here She could probably sense his genuine attitude and perhaps that would throw her off a bit Everyone is very strong
Laughing Annie patted his back her eyes still examining him closely Examine away Mr Drake But try to keep it professional or my boyfriend will kill you when we get out of this
Then she sashayed away and Drake looked back to the ground closing his eyes
Chapter 412
Randidly yawned languidly He was actually quite pleased with the day’s hall and with this chance to grind up his Cooking Skill Even more positive was the performance of the Grove Defenders Skill After an hour the creatures he summoned faded back into the ground but for that hour they were in the thick of the fighting ripping through the cats that were foolish enough to come close to them
They even visibly improved in their fighting Some of the mistakes that they made earlier which had put some of the other squad members in danger were by the end almost impossible considering their increasing proficiency It was also nice to know that they could gain Skills and have those Skills leveling up So taking the time to train them might also be worth it
Unfortunately the Mana cost was a little debilitating even for Randidly who had such a large Mana pool He had no idea how anyone else would be able to manage it considering the cost Plus it appeared they lacked the ability to stack when he attempted to summon another batch of Grove Defenders while the first was active there was an error
Randidly grimaced looking at the bottle in his hands And after he finished grinding his Cooking it was time to spend a little time working on improving his Potion Making Skills because this
Effective Mana Potion Lvl 39 Restores 214 Mana over 30 seconds
Donnyton had produced someone who was more capable than Randidly at producing potions Now this was a good thing obviously but it still hurt Randidly’s pride somewhat He wanted to be self sufficient in some ways and having to rely on someone else for Potions
ESPECIALLY potions This was his thing first and foremost growing crops and refining them into potions That was how he had gotten his start how he had earned Shal’s trust
Unfortunately Randidly’s long stint in Shal’s world was a period of great growth in EVERYTHING but his Potion Skills Most of his downtime went to thinking about Mana Engraving rather than Potion making as the craft of choice
Not that Randidly would have done things differently but this was still aggravating that the potions were superior to his own Perhaps there was a process that he didn’t know of he consoled himself Maybe they just have superior ingredients But these all sounded like excuses to Randidly feeling bitter in his heart
Then he chuckled aloud somewhat amused Honestly he should feel blessed that he was even this talent in potion making considering how dominant he was in terms of both close and long range fighting He was a generalist although that was shifting somewhat and he couldn’t be bitter that he wasn’t the best at something when he spent so little time pursuing it
Letting out a breath Randidly stood stretching savoring the feeling of the morning sunlight on his skin Aside from the intimidatingly large cathedral behind them it seemed like a normal hill in the middle of the forest Small birds chirped Leaves rustled
There was a soft step behind him
“How’s it looking ” Randidly asked casually stretching his shoulders and neck
“How close did I get before you noticed me ” Annie asked pouting Randidly just gave her a look until she laughed and continued “Well enough The monsters out here are few and far between and lower level than the cats but they are vastly more powerful Almost Tier I Raid Bosses each one Some have families too and those are ALL that level of strength Not just like a Raid Boss with minions “
Randidly clicked his tongue “Well it’s not like that’s not something we can handle Did you really expect it to be as easy as those cats “
Shaking her head Annie said “Maybe I just hoped the Raid Dungeon would pussy out But anyway there’s something else A few miles South there is a village WIth people Like human ones just living there “
That gave Randidly pause “What Humans “
“Well they look more like fantasy elves ” Annie said dismissively waving her hand “Long and willowy limbs pretentious faces you know Think they know woodcraft “
It took a bit of effort but Randidly resisted the urge to roll his eyes Annie’s confidence was a curious thing in Randidly’s eyes but he supposed he shouldn’t confront her about it unless there is proof its simply bravado Her pregnancy had kept her coddled and swaddled for several long months so this was finally her chance to stretch her legs
Hopefully nothing was so tight that she pulled something
Randidly hummed mentally attracting Lucretia’s attention But he needn’t have worried she was always closely monitoring his thoughts Pulling her senses away from her study of his Class Lucretia said “Well I’ve never heard of people actually living in a dungeon but its fairly common to encounter neutral if not downright helpful monster tribes within a dungeon These are usually weaker groups so they aren’t much help but they might have information on weaknesses or something “
“Plus ” Lucretia added “Considering you are inside the Raid Dungeon that has a goal other than ‘kill the boss’ they might have more information in that regard “
Randidly nodded then realized that he had just stood silent for 20 seconds while Annie stared at him and focused his eyes “Alright let’s gather everyone up and talk it over Then we are probably going to visit some elves “
Sydney frowned at her sketch then brought up the eraser to clean up the portrait These lines were a bit
Coppernicus’ jaw clacked clearly amused even though his face was locked in its constant grimace Sydney clucked her tongue in annoyance “you’d think being a skeleton would give you a bit more self control “
“I must admit modeling is not one of my strong suits ” Coppernicus said scratching the bone of his jaw The rubbing of bone on bone made a strange grinding sound and Sydney couldn’t help but wonder if he even actually had itches or just did it based on habit or nerves It was pretty clear that it was the latter however considering how little he reacted to rain or wind
It wasn’t that he couldn’t feel it or he would be easily destroyed by enemy attacks simply failing to feel them It was just some of the information given to him through whatever senses he had vibrations Sydney suspected was considered superfluous by his mind Or by the governing soul that animated him because his brain had decomposed
“Why did you warn Drake about a coming war ” Coppernicus asked his voice soft
Sydney shifted trying to change the angle of her grip on the pencil so she could finish the drawing from this angle This then was the reason that he had agreed to pose for her He wanted to sound her out FIgure out where her mind was at
Which was fair Sydney supposed her lips pressing into a thin line The sketch still wasn’t satisfactory so she again produced the eraser and obliterated her previous work The problem was that Sydney always overdid it when it came to situations regarding Randidly When they were friends it was fine although she knew that it sometimes struck Ace as profoundly strange the way they treated each other
But now that they were ostensibly political leaders their relationship had effects far outside just their minor interactions and Ace’s peace of mind
Gritting her teeth Sydney opened the small box in her chest where she buried all of her rage and frustrations
“Imagine ” Sydney said slowly “That you were born into this world and one of the first things that you saw was an ugly duckling It was an unfortunate creature that could barely take care of itself Ultimately it is harmless but you are told by everyone around you that is your duckling “
Sydney would like to believe that if Coppernicus still possessed skin he would be arching his eyebrow at her for answering his question about speaking to Drake about a war with an abrupt story But as it was he simply tilted his head to the side Which was adorable in his own way
Regardless she ignored it and continued “That duckling seemed to become more incompetent rather than less the more that I watched him Or perhaps the deeper I looked the more mediocre he revealed himself to be Meanwhile I was widely praised In both physical competitions and in academic ones I was told I was a genius And I worked hard for it That was why I accomplished so much
“So imagine my confusion ” Sydney continued her mouth almost moving without her controlling it now just following the emotions in their twisted way to make Coppernicus trust her even if she was acting erratically “When I watched the duckling work just as hard if not harder and accomplish nothing He seemed to threaten my entire worldview For me hard work led to results But for him for some reason it just didn’t He was just a shy quiet boy who couldn’t stack blocks without god knocking them to the ground “
Now Coppernicus had stilled his attention fully grabbed Sydney guzzled down a mouthful of air and continued “So I went away from it and was glad of it Better to stay away from this boy who was cursed by the heavens My world settled back into place and there was a shape to everything that made sense Work hard succeed Slack off daydream and you will be left behind I think more than anything else what people seek in the world is a shape one that makes sense and they can accept
Isn’t that what we all do Coppernicus asked raising his hand and looking at his bony fingers Sydney’s smile was tight but her pencil continued to move tracing the lines of his jaw
Chapter 413
There were a few moments of silence between them as Coppernicus examined his own situation but physically and emotionally while Sydney attempted to capture his lines Eventually Sydney leaned back and if she wasn’t satisfied she was at least found her work grudgingly acceptable
“Until that duckling showed back up in my life But this wasn’t one of those stories where he had transformed into a swan after the intervening two years no if anything he had doubled down on his stubborn dumpiness It was confusing but I would have walked away too concerned with my world than to allow his to stain me but ” Sydney sighed remembering the sound of Randidly’s father hitting him in between those two SUVs “But he was accused of never attempting to fly Of never trying and that’s why he failed I could accept that the world didn’t respect his process but not that it questioned him for taking it He was on the right path He worked hard
“This time it was like the world seemed to say that we were meant to be We both tried our best even if the way our attempts were received was so different just by both struggling “
Coppernicus grinned at Sydney “It is a very heady thing to know a secret that no one else seems privy to “
Snorting Sydney waved her hand “Say what you will Circumstances conspired to encourage me to embrace the duckling once more So for all of high school I accepted the duckling Then I told him how I would leave him and go on alone Because I wanted to find the world where I belong where the calculus of life was simple “
“That place doesn’t exist ” Coppernicus said breathing a rare sigh out his eyes unfocusing to a place neither here nor there
“Perhaps but that was only because I hadn’t created it yet ” Sydney said eyes flashing Then she leaned back in her chair setting down the pencil The jawline was broader and more smooth than a skull’s should normally had been but to Sydney’s chagrin she had relied on memories of another jaw to settle on a profile she was satisfied with “Either way this time after I left the duckling behind he flew Not high and not high but he had done it through sheer stubbornness and ill will as far as what I can tell “
“And ” Sydney added her eyes blazing as she ripped the sketch in half “This time the duckling himself seemed to say that we belonged together And there is nothing that makes you hate something more than if you’ve been told your whole life you belong together Especially a teenage girl “
Coppernicus’ eyes were mild as he examined Sydney Really examined her not looking at the style and persona that she cultivated but the body underneath it looking at her eyes her bearing her age It was a very nostalgic look similar eyes to the way Mr Ghosthound used to appraise her not sexually but also not as a person Perhaps considering solely her value as a commodity “Yet I can’t help but ask what does this have to do with Drake “
Sydney froze the scraps of paper and then stood turning away from Coppernicus “I had assumed this was a discussion about my fitness to lead not an offhand comment to Drake “
Every smile of Coppernicus’ bared his teeth but Sydney could sense that this particular brand of smile had some extra venom to it “I’ve never been a big picture fellow I live in the details Please settle my perturbed heart “
Rolling her eyes Sydney said “No if you are wondering I do not plan on going to war with Donnyton Not only is it short sighted it’s also rather pointless In the future if Donnyton is allowed to develop in the way it has been it will become an industrial hub That will be more beneficial to us than you know Because we will offer services that they will desperately need once they reach that certain size “
“Ah the special projects are rounding out nicely Who knew that Vandal could be productive when not eating ” Copernicus said chortling Sydney smiled
“But I think that after this Raid Dungeon situation is resolved we will be connected to other Zones yes In that direction lies the war as the powerhouses begin staking claims on the last bastion of humanity And it is very hard now to doubt that the Ghosthound is heads and shoulders above everyone else “
Trailing off Sydney frowned for a long second then sighed “And I can’t deny that at this point to finally see that ugly duckling grow into the stubborn monster he always was moving towards I feel a certain amount of responsibility I do not want to fight him “
“As for Drake this can be considered a test ” Sydney said walking away towards her chambers “To see how much he will let his emotions cloud his judgement I don’t need liabilities for the coming war “
“I suppose that goes for me as well ” Coppernicus said with a smile standing “Please excuse me I’m off to carry my weight “
Sydney’s smile was sharp as she watched him go Then she turned and headed towards the personal dungeon that she kept in the back of her chambers Which had recently been bumped up from a Level 37 Dungeon to Level 44 by the accumulated contribution points of East End from slaughtering monsters and completing quests
“So am I “
The giant praying mantis lashed out its long scythes ripping through the air towards Chrysanthemum making Thea’s heart jump But it wasn’t with fear not anymore It was with the vicious fury that she had received when she had upgrade her new Skill that dyed her vision red and thrust her forward into the fray It was so hard to know when she had to hold in it resisting it and when she could lose herself to it
Now while the Ghosthound pinned down 4 others while Ace was forcibly beating another into submission Thea let the fury take her Bellowing in rage she let instinct guide her as she simply stepped in the way of the scythe that was about as long as a dinner table and swung her hammer to meet it activating every Skill she could
Luckily for her Lucifer in his strange way of intuiting allies moves was already there with her his huge jagged blade a hair ahead of her swing aiming to assist His blade smashed into the scythe with a screech slowing it
Thea’s hammer arrived the conduit to her savage fury and shattered the scythe
As the largest of the praying mantis’ screamed the others looked up Or the other praying manti would have looked up but one was reduced to mush by Ace one looked more like a porcupine made of arrows another had become a frozen block of ice and the final two were lost within a squirming mass of vines and roots Even the strange insect monster seemed to sense that the tide was turning and began to back away
“Finish it ” Rose’s voice came and in the heat of fury Thea was resentful Yes she got it kill the monster Don’t say superfluous things But perhaps because of her flash of irritation Thea wasn’t the first to respond Chrysanthemum was The past day of slaughtering cats and strange Raid Boss caliber opponents had given Chrysanthemum a huge boost in strength and when she stretched to her full height she was almost 3 meters tall coming in like a rockslide on the relatively fragile looking praying mantis
But the thing hadn’t played out its tricks and it spread its wings wide A blast wind smashed outward not stopping Chrysanthemum but stalling her giving Thea time to dash out from behind her bear companion who had took the brunt of the wind Skill and allowed they to move in for the kill in that moment
With its good scythe the praying mantis slashed sideways but Thea just grinned and leapt over it raising her hammer and smashing the praying mantis’ thorax With one last screech it collapsed spasming periodically Everyone shifted backwards letting it settle into death as peacefully as possible
When it finally ceased moving there was a flash of light and a small item appeared next to its body as an item condensed Instantly everyone focused Items appearing on their own were rather rare mostly they had to be manually refined form the bodies of the dead If an item appeared it usually meant that something powerful and unique had appeared that would boost someone’s combat powers immensely
Walking slowly so as not to scare anyone Thea who was the closest went over to it and picked the item up It appeared to be a small backpack with four tiny insect wings stick up out of the back Examining it Thea’s eyes widened
Wings of the Reaping Mantis Lvl 46 A natural treasure formed when a Reaping Mantis dies under special circumstances allowing its wings to be salvaged in their entirety Agility +15 Reaction +10 The Wings may be activated causing them to grow to their full size and granting the wearer the Skills Sonic Advance Lvl 46 and Air Shockwave Lvl 46
Chapter 414
Randidly scratched his chin Although it was a nice useful boost and he could wear it Randidly didn’t think it would work as an equipment for him For one if he had it on would he wear it under his Bone Cloak But then how would the wings extend
Plus the fact that both of the Skills were at Lvl 46 and had no way of growing Randidly wrinkled his nose Sure some of the Skills he had yet to train up were at that level and a few of his spells but that was due to lack of time His true bread and butter spells were far above that and had the ability to grow An item without the ability to grow would boost a person’s strength at the moment but it would slowly become a weight that held them back
For the first time in a long time Randidly remembered that group of people he had encountered with Shal who had generously given him the Mana Engraving Encyclopedias asking only for a promise of aid in return Truly they were in desperate straits to accept such a feeble thing but Randidly had benefitted immensely from their gift and now Donnyton could share that same benefits
Plus there was a promise of them being able to teach the runes to Randidly that got them smothered by their competition the Skill Rune that could grow with the user
Randidly shivered Having that ability would put Donnyton at the top of their Zone for sure but it was a distant thing one far from the issues they faced presently Randidly would need to return to Shal’s world to receive that knowledge and to do so he would need strength enough to suppress his enemies in the Engraving Guilds
And right now everyone in the Raid Dungeon was looking at him waiting for his decision in regards to the equipment Well wasn’t the easiest answer the best in this case
If no one denies that Thea and Chrysanthemum were the biggest contributors to killing that Reaping Mantis Randidly said slowly Let her decide whether she wants the equipment or not And then if she doesn’t who it should go to
Ace frowned immediately and Randidly rolled his eyes Sure it would be useful for all of the party but he could sense immediately that Ace fixated on the item It would give him what he was sorely lacking a way to close the distance between himself and his enemies It was intimidating how quickly Randidly could see Ace improving in terms of his hand to hand combat ability but as long as distance remained a barrier for him
Alana nodded and began hacking apart one of the other Reaping Manti extracting some of its carapace to take back to Donnyton Although it was brittle it was still rigid and powerful and would serve well as cookware if nothing else The best bodies for this were the ones Randidly himself killed squeezing their soft parts to mush with vines Although they had died in a bloody manner he had just ignored the hard parts of their bodies going for the vital points
There were some huge perks to having such a high level of Control One of them was that weaknesses were comically easy to target if the enemy wasn’t skilled at avoiding defending itself And the Reaping Manti hadn’t been very quick on the uptake when Randidly’s roots came boiling out of the ground
Lucifer seemed relatively uninterested although Randidly privately thought that he was the one who could use it the most with his huge wild weapon But instead he was chopping off the unbroken scythe from Thea’s kill seemingly very pleased with the size and weight of it After a few test swings he nodded satisfied and began to sharpen it further
Unlike his jagged cleaver this would only have a blade on one side but damage such a huge razor could inflict was slightly intimidating
Clarissa and Ptolemy would use it obviously but it was mostly academic They were however whispering to each other Most others wouldn’t have heard but they were wondering whether having the item and using it a bunch would unlock Air Manipulation as a Skill Which was interesting but it did reassure Randidly that they weren’t that concerned with obtaining it
Thea seemed somewhat frazzled She at first took several shy steps towards Lucifer but seeing him ignore her rather soundly caused her to falter Then she shot Randidly a glance and walked over towards Drake of all people
You you’re the lowest Level right Maybe you
Thank you for your kindness but I’ll be alright Drake said bowing slightly You are an ideal candidate for the item anyway The mobility combined with Chrysanthemum’s strength learning to combine both will increase your strength immensely
After one more quick scan by Thea it was decided Which made Randidly relieved because he had a few confusing notifications of his own to parse apart It was slightly annoying that there had been this much hesitation in regards to the distribution but it was easy to forget that Thea especially was extremely young and shy Her recent ferocity was almost blinding in its intensity so her milder side faded to the background
The milder side of everything was quickly overrun in the wake of the System
After giving word to make camp Randidly looked at his notifications specifically the second set At the beginning of the day Randidly had reached Level 4 as he pushed through the stronger enemies in the forest to arrive at the elf people village But after this most recent fight he had reached Level 5 and that wasn’t all
Congratulations You have reached Level 5 +5 Stats distributed between Vitality Perception Resist Intelligence and Control +3 Free Stats +1 Stat to a Mental Stat +1 to a Physical Defense Stat +1 to a Mental Support Stat +1 Control +20 Health +24 Mana +23 Stamina + 5 to all Regenerations +1 to Health and Stamina Regeneration +20 Progenitor’s Influence You have gained the Skill Phantom’s Lantern (Un) Lvl 1 You have gained the Skill Grasp of Lava ® Lvl 1 You have gained the Skill Erode Image Lvl 1
Phantom’s Lantern (Un) Create a small spirit that floats in a spot Acts as a relay for the creator’s senses The creator can consciously shift his focus to the Lantern and gather sensory information Lanterns have a small amount of mobility while the creator is using them Lanterns are easily dispersed Costs 400 Mana Lanterns do not disperse on their own Mobility increases with Skill Level Survivability increases with Skill level
Grasp of Lava ® Cause a hand of lava to erupt from the ground grabbing enemies and crushing them Extremely effective at dealing with single enemies The temperature in the nearby area will vastly increase Speed and size of effect will increase with Skill Level Temperature shift will increase with Skill level
Erode Image When dealing with an opponent who uses an image strike directly at the image weakening it Mana costs depends on strength of the image Repeated use causes permanent damage to the target’s image and might cause their Skill level to drop
Randidly whistled softly Not only did he receive 3 Skills out of the blue but two of them seemed extremely overpowered Having the Lanterns would give him the ability to scout the Raid Dungeon quickly and the Erode Image Skill it was a legendary Skill that could attack the other’s Skill levels directly
It would be something that he would want to experiment with but if it really caused damage to the recipient finding someone to agree might be a bit
So rather than getting all of his Skills from his Class at once It appeared that he got another set of Class Skills at 5 containing the other half of his additions to his Class Which was nice in a way because it meant that he wouldn’t need to use any of his non Class Skill slots when he kept acquired new Skills
But it also meant he had more Skills to train
Truly the grind was endless
Humming to himself Randidly tapped his teeth This Erode Image Skill who had given him the addition that had granted it to him Of all the additions it would appear that this was the most powerful because the SKill was the highest rarity but that might just be due to the rarity of the effect it provided rather than the magnitude Still if he could have it grow to the point where it was useful against enemies
Randidly smiled widely remembering how that Master level opponent had shattered his Skill in his attempt to kill Aethon Thai
They would pay for underestimating him
Chapter 415
Randidly approached the village warily
Not that he thought from his passing investigations with Phantom’s Lanterns that there was anyone in the village strong enough to be a threat But they did appear relatively prepared to fight which was to be expected considering the location
Also considering the location there had to be a group of people in the village that had enough strength to fight off the Raid Boss magnitude monsters on a daily basis Sure they weren’t super numerous but the few that Randidly’s expedition encountered were relatively aggressive once they laid eyes on the people Perhaps they associated people with weak targets
But then why was this village almost idyllic There were two elf children playing with a fucking wooden hoop by the gate for god’s sake
To try and seem as non intimidating as possible Lucifer Thea Chrysanthemum Annie and Clarissa elected to remain in the forest grinding more experience from the nearby monsters The remaining portions of the group Randidly Ptolemy Ace Drake and Rose would be relatively low key and un intimidating compared to the whole of the group Plus that aside from Ace most of the people had enough introversion to not cause any personality friction
Honestly the only reason that they brought Ace was that Randidly couldn’t deny that despite his abnormal behavior he was still charming
“So you’ve always wanted to be a doctor ” Ace asked walking easily next to Ptolemy
“Well know ” Ptolemy a man who hadn’t said more than 10 words to Randidly admitted with a blush ” I was honestly going to nursing school when the System hit I was willing to put in the hard work and I’ve more than enough bedside enthusiasm But the amount of memorization you needed for medical school “
Ace scratched his skin a small smile on his face “Hell rich kids pass medical school all the time And there is no way in hell that they have half of the gumption that you do Head Triage Specialist of Donnyton right “
“Doctor Northwind is the head but she prefers to leave most of the healing close to the battlefield to me “
It was almost maddening It’s not that Randidly couldn’t understand how that Ace had bridged the gap with Ptolemy with leading questions and low pressure curiosity Plus it was no doubt extremely beneficial for the group for them to grow closer together Even the thought of doing it however filled him with an unending sense of exhaustion
Which was why he was useful here
Finally Ace and Ptolemy’s talk caught the attention of the two children who hopped backward like scared rabbits and scurried back behind the walls Which was exactly the point that Randidly was abruptly thankful that Ace had been talking and then he narrowed his eyes as he realized that Ace was probably speaking on purpose for just that reason So there wasn’t just abruptly a group of people who silently appeared at the treeline Perhaps it would mean nothing because the children wouldn’t spread the details of what happened But if they did
Randidly revised his opinion of Ace as they approached the gate and stood before it It was open but he figured it would be more polite not to cross the threshold until they were invited
His senses were not really focused on it but Randidly easily caught the dozen or so departing figures from the village as he stood there with his group They crept out through flaws in the stone wall around the village which Randidly reflexively noted The group scrutinized Randidly and company but they stayed some distance away slowing surrounding them It seemed like these people wanted to have an ambush ready should Randidly’s group turn out not to be friendly
Randidly was delighted when one stopped underneath his spare lantern he had left hanging in the woods As Annie had indicated their skin was a dusky grey and they had extremely long limbs They simply seemed to be humans who were made of wax that had been slowly stretched a bit This one was a bit above two meters so it was possible that they were also a good deal taller than normal people
After around 10 minutes of shifting the ambushers were apparently in position because the gates to the village swung open and four people walked out The front person was a tall man with a thin white mustache Beside him was a woman who was more weapon than person Every inch of her was covered with a different sort of dagger or hatchet that was strapped to her In addition immediately when she appeared Randidly felt a strange wariness in his heart This was an opponent that he couldn’t take casually
He supposed it made sense These people were here at the edge of this forest that was absolutely lousy with Raid Boss strength enemies If they didn’t have their own experts they would be swiftly overwhelmed But it was just the first time since Randidly had left Shal’s world that Randidly wasn’t absolutely sure he would defeat an opponent It appeared there was more to this village than it initially appeared
A few feet behind those two there were two others The first was a young woman with caramel colored skin her eyes covered in a rough looking cough Next to her glaring at Randidly’s group was a young boy no older than 10
“What is your business here ” The central man said in an authoritative voice his eyes narrowed with suspicion “It appears you are a long way from home “
Randidly opened his mouth to speak then paused thinking better of it The presence of people here was profoundly interesting It was a curious thing that this Dungeon seemed to just be in an area of a world It made a certain amount of sense because it couldn’t be much more impressive than what the System had already done splitting their world into different Zones Perhaps there was such a split in this area There could even be a barrier at the edges that would stop the Dungeon Divers but let the normal citizens of this world through The ability of the System to create miracles was not something that Randidly wanted to underestimate
While the details of this fascinated Randidly they also filled him with a sense of foreboding If they DIDN’T know they were in a dungeon is it possible that other creatures would show up in their Zone at some point killing things looking for a way to obtain the Key of Death they needed
If they DID know was this perhaps an outcome for a world after the Calamity descended Could they simply become a dungeon for other people to use to grow stronger
After allowing the silence to stretch for around 10 seconds Ace jumped in “Yes we’ve traveled far to reach this place we were hoping that we might be able to take shelter in your village for the night “
Snorting the man said “Hmph does this level of opponents truly bother you If so you will be devoured before you can leave the area There is a blight upon this land and they likely already have word of your arrival “
“Well perhaps these are some brave souls seeking eternal life Taking a pilgrimage to the Holy Land of our Lady Zith ” The woman with the cloth over her eyes asked stepping forward “We cannot turn away souls seeking a salvation from this cursed land Plus since they have the strength to make it here “
The woman trailed off and the well armored woman spat to the side but said nothing
With an awkward smile on his face Ace continued ” Yes we have come here seeking a salvation Any port in a storm right “
Randidly wanted to facepalm at the Ace’s immediately dismissive attitude towards religion but to Randidly’s surprise although his face twisted in a grimace the mustached man also nodded
Meanwhile the woman with covered eyes was nodding as well “we do not begrudge anyone for their reasons for clinging to hope we are just happy that there are so many people here who are willing to fight to gain eternity with us “
Randidly paused tapping his jaw They were inviting the group to join a cult He supposed there were worse ways to obtain entrance to the village which would give them access to greater information
“That’s all well and good ” Finally the woman who was covered in weapons spoke her voice low and hoarse Randidly frowned It sounded as though she had been injured in the past and that had slowly healed leaving either her vocal cords or lungs with a flaw Yet to still have the air of danger about her just how powerful would she have been at the peak of her strength
“But how about you recall your guards to join you yes As Dalton said there are much more dangerous monsters in the surrounding area than the riff raff you have likely fought Better organized mean and looking to tear the world to shreds It would be a shame if an accident befell them “
A threat Or an accurate description of what could happen here It was a little difficult to parse apart everything but it was enough of a show of strength that they were aware of the other group for Randidly to agree to it
So they stood waiting while Ace made several awkward attempts at small talk that filled in a few of Randidly’s questions but not all of them Still this was enough to go on for now while they waited
Chapter 416
They did obtain SOME useful information while they waited
First were the names the man was Dalton while the armored woman who gave Randidly the dangerous feelings was Cyndra Behind them the blind woman because she did not cover her eyes for vanity was named Aratta The boy was Pendlive and served as the assistant to Aratta who seemed to be the highest ranking of the strange sort of Clergy in the area who followed Zith Ace avoided bringing up the Great Lady Zith any more than necessary because his face twitched every time it was brought up as he suppressed his urge to settle into his perpetual smirk
Around 10 minutes after Randidly sent a message through the party chat the rest of the group arrived walking calmly towards the village It seemed that they had been extremely productive in the meantime because Randidly had almost reached level 6 from their efforts
Randidly was curious to see that when the group walked up the sentry that Randidly was observing with his Lantern immediately went wide eyed Randidly couldn’t be sure whether it was Chrysanthemum’s intimidating swagger or Lucifer holding two huge blades over his shoulder the jagged saw and the deadly sharp scythe Either of these would add an air o oppression to the scenario but the both of them combined served to make the whole group seem larger than life and more intimidating
It almost made Randidly smile that this group was referred to as the guards as well Honestly it was just because they were a little erratic so having them deal with strangers wasn’t the best idea
When they had all gathered they were lead into the village It was a relatively small place and probably housed only 300 or so people
There were a lot of worn and tired looking men and women who followed the newcomers with a suspicious gaze eyeing them with a long practiced ease This made the corners’ of Randidly’s mouth turn down It was one thing to encounter a group of 300 people fighting to survive in the middle of the forest it was quite another to slowly realize that this group was mostly wary eyed veterans Although no one else possessed the oppressive aura that Cyndra did they all seemed more than capable of surviving in the forest Almost more concerning however was that aside from those two children they had spotted walking towards the village not a single child was let outdoors to watch the newcomers
“For now you can stay here ” Cindra said jerking her finger towards a worn down and churchy looking building “We will talk tomorrow try and figure out whether the help of Zih is truly what you see “
Then she left followed by the man twirling his mustache and looking at them with suspicion
With a beaming grin Aratta patted Pendlove’s back and said “You’ll be staying with us then the more the merrier Come in and let’s get you all situated Oh you too Mr Bear “
“It’s missus ” Thea muttered rubbing Chrysanthemum’s side but everyone still followed her into the interior
All in all their rooms were pretty good Thea decided There was a bed a water basin and a rocking chair and more than enough space for even Chrysanthemum to have her own private room The bed of course wasn’t big enough to fit her but it was still something
They were even served a simple meal of roast meat and a carrot y vegetable before being asked whether they would enjoy listening to the teachings of Zith Everyone aside from Clarissa declined and retired to their rooms
But now as Thea was finally finishing taking off all of her armor she frowned looking out the small window the air illuminated by a huge comet ripping across the night sky Then there was a dull explosion that shook the ground Immediately there were panicked shouts from the village Sighing Thea slowly began to encase herself once more and armor
After she finished she went out front of the church finding Drake the Ghosthound and Annie already there The next to arrive was Ptolemy straightening his clothes who was stopped by the Ghosthound
“Wait here gather everyone else Then follow Us four will go ahead and figure out the situation for now”
Then Thea found herself sitting in front of the Ghosthound and Annie as they rode Chrysanthemum the short distance to where most of the commotion was
Thinking about it Thea realized as they arrived at the muttering crowd that the reason that the Ghosthound had wanted to ride Chrysanthemum was not to increase the speed of their travel Honestly the Ghosthound could probably move at double the speed of Chrysanthemum and Annie for sure shared that ability No the reasoning that they would want to ride is
An entrance
Everyone turned when the giant bear arrived Calmly The Ghosthound stepped off of Chrysanthemum’s back and the crowd parted for him as he walked forward to meet Cyndra No one casually stopped someone who was fresh off a 3 meter tall bear Although these people were more tall and willowy than people which meant the height difference wasn’t so pronounced they were just as skinny as people and the weight that Chrysanthemum shook the ground with her passing Albeit less so than the crashed comet
“We heard the commotion Is something wrong ” The Ghosthound said calmly looking directly at Cindra ignoring the few other figures gathered around reporting to her
Her mouth thinned into a line but after several seconds she grudgingly admitted ” it has arrived early but this is a relatively known occurrence That stone that descended to the ground will incite the nearby monsters They won’t all attack us but they will be thrown into a rampage “
“It’s only a distraction ” A rather pudgy for this strange race of people man said “I wonder if “
“Yes ” Cyndra said cutting him off and giving him a glare ” we believe that the Death Cultists instigated the stone to fall as a distraction Since you are here we want to stop the Death Cultists from accomplishing their goals so there will only be a barebones crew staying here at the village If you could handle the monsters I would owe you a favor Mr Ghosthound “
Before the Ghosthound could answer a notification popped up in front of Thea
Defend the Village You have received a quest from the Village War Leader Cindra She has tasked you with defeating the monster horde forming to the East Prevent the monsters from breaching the village wall to succeed Reward A favor from Cindra to the Ghosthound as well as an addition quest Plus 30% of the experience towards your next level Failure You will be disdained and chased out of the Village
Thea blinked She hadn’t much experience with quests but she knew that more and more quests were being offered to people in Donnyton from the Adventurer’s Guild Building One reason that more and more people in Donnyton were being tempted to trying it was that quite a few of the Quests provided experience as rewards giving people incentive to look for harder quests It had never been a high enough amount for anyone over Level 35 to bother with it but they were very useful for getting to that point
On the other hand this 30% boost if this was offered back in Donnyton the upper tiered people would go mad Although some of them might wait until right after a level up to get the most efficiency 30% was a big deal for someone who struggled for every percent It meant less for low level people who might prefer receiving a flat amount of experience but for people like Alana
Sweetening the deal further was the fact that the reward section seemed to imply that succeeding here would lead to further quests Now that the antagonists in the dungeon seemed to have revealed themselves the Death Cultists the Ghosthound might prefer forgoing the village and simply crushing them directly but if he chose to instead stay and pursue a questline
Thea tried to put a damper on her excitement Who knew whether this was like a video game in that regard but if so the rewards on each progressive quest should get higher along with the difficulty
But to Thea’s surprise she found the Ghosthound frowning just looking at Cyndra As this drew out longer Cyndra’s smile grew superficial and thin Right before the moment where Thea expected Cindra to explode with fury the Ghosthound nodded accepting the quest Cyndra very quickly selected 10 of the villagers to assist their group before the bulk of the villages forces shifted off for somewhere Thea frowned Cindra hadn’t been very clear what they were doing when they went to deal with the Death Cultist’s main forces
In the group chat a notification flicked up as the Ghosthound posted something
Annie
On it Annie’s swift reply came and she slipped into the shadows while none of their helpers were looking
Careful there are at least 2 of them that are as strong as us the Ghosthound added No answer came
At that time the rest of the group arrived While the Ghosthound Clarissa and Rose would stay on the wall to make sure nothing got through the rest of them were to go out find the monsters and kill them
Thea tightened her grip on her hammers a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth She certainly appreciated simpler goals now that her Skill had evolved and the fury took her
Chapter 417
After determining what the main goal of the villagers was during the monster horde distraction Annie returned to help the rest of the group Thank god she did because by the time she had arrived Randidly had been forced to use spells to intervene multiple times mostly relying on his new spell that created a hand of lava that reached up out of the ground and physically grabbed a monster burning away its skin and keeping it still as the molten rock and metal cooled
It honestly intimidated the surrounding monsters too so it was the perfect Skill to use to buy time And in that time Annie arrived prepared to give the team some breathing room
Hissing she narrowed her left eye and loosed an arrow that ricocheted off the battered helmet of two stories tall ogre and then shot an azure tiger in the forehead dropping it Blood continued to drip from the cut she had received over her other eye blurring her vision Luckily it seemed she hadn’t lost all of her razzle dazzle
After bellowing in fury the ogre readjusted its helmet so its beady eyes could see out and then looked around his wrath scouring the area for a target But Annie was already was gone flipping away With the brief distraction Alana disengaged from a huge serpent smashed back a weird tentacled creature and then exploded in a burst of sunlight illuminating the darkened area Immediately the ogre seemed to remember its previous opponent that had covered its arms and legs with wounds But it was too late that moment of distraction had revealed an opening and Alana shoved her burning sunspear into its heart Then she shoved it forward blocking another monster’s advance and leaped several meters backward to gain a few seconds of respite
But by then Annie was moving her tongue flicking out tasting the air She could feel the scents of her companions and of the horde of monsters that was pressing forward causing their group immense pressure The air was thick with such scents the vibrancy of their emotions thickening the trails but Annie’s Skill was growing by leaps and bounds and she was able to keep them all straight if just barely Plus the emotions gave her a clue who she needed to assist next
For good measure Annie put 4 arrows into the back of a giant toad’s head and then headed towards the left flank which contained the most panic of all the scents That was Ptolemy but he would only feel fear if someone else was injured so
Just like the rest of the group Annie had been initially very interested in the quest given the flat percentage it would grant at the end Plus this was a great bunch of free experience Instead of seeking out they simply had to wait by the village and the monsters would come towards them But although they had casually been referring to these monsters as Raid Boss class that was ultimately inaccurate The fearsome power of the Raid Boss partially lay in its ability to procreate and create an army that would come and wipe out a village
These monsters came ready made to wreck the village they were just much easier kill than the army because there was only one of them But that didn’t mean that they were any less dangerous than an entire army
Still considering the level of their party taking them out was child’s play Unless you were alone facing 6 of them at once with 10 more waiting behind to strike at your weaknesses Although they were powerful their group was giving ground there were simply too many high caliber monsters at once
Annie leaped to the next tree wiped the blood out of her eye and then drew her bow Ptolemy was standing some distance away healing a large gash on Thea’s shoulder From her Annie could only feel fury and hatred as she watched her bear standing up to a centipede and two headed goat bellowing its defiance Then animals hesitated intimidated by what was in all likelihood a Skill and a well leveled one at that It gave Ptolemy the precious few seconds he needed to heal Thea and then unleash a fireball on a hawk that was circling above sending it squawking to the ground harmlessly to dodge
Annie loosed an arrow pinning its wing to the tree then knocked another arrow turning towards the other looming monsters
Give some ground the message from Rose arrived and huffing Annie use her Split Shot Skill to send an arrow the split and smashed into both the centipede and goat’s faces stunning them Chrysanthemum turned and retreated allowing Ptolemy to land a precious few healing spells on her and after Chrysanthemum was clear Annie’s mouth curled into a wicked smile
“The Cold Sleet before Stillness ” Annie whispered shooting an arrow into the sky and watching as her Mana dropped to almost nothing Instantly she turned away and lopped off pulling out a Mana potion to drink not even bothering to watch as the dozens of magical arrows descended from the sky crashing into the monsters standing in the area ripping holes in their flesh and spreading a deadly creeping numbness through the area around the wounds It wasn’t a super destructive move but it was the Skill of hers that had the most debilitating effects The coldness acted like a poison that would slowly consume the body of the monsters making the entirety of them numb
The left flank then would have a few minutes but
THere was a trumpet like call as a six tusked elephant charged forward rushing forward in the wake of her Skill Grimacing Annie spun around and raised her hands to her lips Slowly evenly without any rush she drew out a long thin wisp of breath she extracted from herself feeling her Stamina drop to almost zero as well Then she snapped it in a practiced manner straightening it then flexed it turning it rigid Then she put the breath arrow on her bow and shot it towards the elephant which was only a dozen or so meters from her now rampaging
“The Last Gasp “
The smokey arrow shot forward smashing into the face of the elephant blinding it briefly before it swirled up and rushed into the elephant’s nose and mouth There it would slither like a serpent until it reached the lungs and then
Pop
The elephant’s eyes went wide and it stumbled as the blades of air sharpened abruptly and exploded in its chest ripping apart its lungs and most of the surrounding internal organs After a brief stumble the creature collapsed
Annie sniffed wrinkling her nose then continued her retreat her breathing heavy It had been quite a while since she had felt this close to danger felt this tickle of danger so constantly Her Hunter’s Instincts Skill had gained 10 Levels in the past hour which was a ridiculous amount of growth
Which she supposed was the point of the Raid Dungeon There wasn’t anywhere else where you would encounter so many dangerous monsters let alone 200 or so at once Under this immense pressure
Annie had never felt so alive
The original plan had been to split their close range forces into three pieces one acting as a vanguard splitting the monsters that were rushing forward the two flanks mopping up the remnants To no one’s surprise Alana would be alone acting as the tip of their spear Aside from the Ghosthound himself she was the most dependable and would only break when she died And Annie had fought against Alana before that woman was a bitch to scratch let alone kill
Meanwhile the choice of the flanks was much more surprising The right was Ace Lucifer and Drake while the left would be Thea Chrysanthemum and Ptolemy Rose Clarissa and the Ghosthound would stay back and support from afar while they had largely let Annie move as she pleased Annie knew the arrangement annoyed Rose but the other woman grudgingly admitted that Annie could handle herself unpredictable as her assistance was
Ace had been the only one to speak out against this plan pointing out that the left was much weaker than the right but Rose had been adamant and after bringing up the issue Ace had let it drop
Annie knew why the left was made that way Thea was slowly becoming a force of nature As she developed slowly growing used to her advanced combat Skill she was rounding out to be a berserker style warrior Meanwhile Chrysanthemum might as well be an infinite chasm for all the success the monsters had against her She was just as strong as every one of these monsters if not a bit stronger and twice as strong Plus from Annie’s observations Chrysanthemum possessed just as many impressive Skills as her bounded companion
Tasting the air once more Annie swerved and headed back towards Alana’s position Not three seconds as she sensed Alana’s frustration there was a message in the Party Chat
Close to my limit
Help is on the way Hold out 7 more minutes The Ghosthound’s reply immediately came
Acknowledged Annie imagined Alana’s stuffy face as she sent that reply hand salute included and all and stifled a giggle
As Annie tasted again there was a new scent in the air a new prey It was a variation on a familiar scent
Annie pursed her lips The Ghosthound made minions again This one was larger than the previous ones and much less while More solid He had explained briefly to her how they were based on stats so this one would be Endurance
As she thought that a turtle the size of a car trundled forward moving at a quick clip for a turtle There were a few vines curling up out of its shell around its neck Its shell was a deep black green and its skin was the color of old peas Its golden eyes scrutinized Annie briefly but then it nodded in acknowledgment and hurried passed Chuckling Annie leaped up onto its back catching a ride
It only took 30 seconds to arrive at Alana and it was clear what the problem was There was a large demon in front of the sun touched woman covered in red scales and with long clawed hands It laughed again and belched out a ball of black fire Alana spun to the side grabbing a bronze wolf by the scruff of its neck like it was a puppy and throwing it in the way of the strange fire
When the flames touched the monster it began to howl which lasted all of 3 seconds before its body was consumed and it was naught but ash Annie whistled
Talk about fast acting
Chapter 418
Although the demon monster was the largest threat it was also only part of the problem Annie’s role was not one of glory but one of intelligence Which was somewhat disappointing for now but Annie assured herself that SOME sort of rogue opponent would rear its ugly head and she would have a 1 v 1 duel with it
Probably they would think she had lost and the opponent would ambush Randidly leaving him helpless And then at the last moment Annie would reveal herself monologuing about how this was her plan all along and that due to the monster’s foolishness she had been able to turn the tables and now their side would be victorious solely due to her actions That was just how amazing she was
Annie nodded sagely then acknowledged the practical part of herself that was screaming that they were currently in battle and the daydreaming could wait until later Better address the problem in front of them before it became serious
Her fingers danced across her bow arrows sprouting from the surrounding monsters that were waiting to ambush giving Alana some space to deal freely with the demon thing Which of course the woman immediately did leaping forward and bringing her spear down in a brutal smash that shattered the thing’s shin bone Its cackles turned into screeches and it fell to the ground lashing out with its claws Lightning fast Alana drew out two spare spears and pierced the wildly swiping claws pinning them to the ground
Then she was upon its chest and slit its throat A stomp crushed the front of its skull in and then she was off gathering the spears back to herself and storing them in her ring while the demon continued to spasm wildly
In that space the turtle barreled forward its head snapping out chomping down with fearsome power shattering bones and liquefying flesh The surrounding monsters reeled back attempting to reform now that the demon was dead but those intelligent enough to motivate their comrades were immediately assassinated by Annie and those bold enough to stand their ground were smashed backward by Alana
Very soon they had a bit of space before the next wave of monsters arrived and Alana removed a bottle of water from it and solemnly drank half She offered Annie the rest who declined it She had her own water and had more downtime in the battle than most of the others rushing to and fro Alana finished the bottle
Then the next wave arrived and Annie was beginning to worry about how many arrows she had remaining After this she would have to go around and collect some of her spent ones
Withdraw Alana first
The order came suddenly much more quickly than Annie had been expecting Under the cover of the turtle’s huge durable shell the group fell back slowly allowing the middle of their formation to collapse As they did so monsters stopped attacking the flanks and piled into the middle chasing down Annie Alana and the turtle’s retreating forms
Annie smiled as they came back within sight of their reinforcements and a dozen Chain Lightnings sailed over their heads and hit the pursuers
“I suppose it’s my turn ” A voice said full of tightly controlled brutality Annie’s tongue instinctively flicked out and she shivered based upon what she tasted The Ghosthound had a switch deep inside himself and she hadn’t seen him turn it on like this since he had disappeared for several months Annie had suspected that he had undergone some sort of transformation especially when she had felt the energies moving in the sky to the Northeast as the Ghosthound had obtained a Class But now
As she watched him she could feel the energies swirling around him gathering to his will Distantly she could almost feel the image of a tree hovering above him the canopy of branches twining together to form a crown But when Annie blinked that image was gone leaving just a man holding a spear
“With the center collapsed here they come charging down the middle ” Rose said then she trailed off turning to look at Randidly “If you can’t handle this many there is no shame “
“I know ” The Ghosthound cut her off his emerald eyes looking at the assembled host of monsters “But I honestly don’t know I need to see how far I’ve come “
Then the Ghosthound stepped forward then leaped crossing 10 meters to arrive far from the group Then he shifted A wave of pressure smashed outward so that Annie and Alana grimaced and Rose was sent staggering The image that Annie had seen before came back stronger the branches twisting and weaving to form a barren and pointed crown
Annie narrowed her eyes This was similar to the move that the Ghosthound possessed before the pain aura that he used to great effect to stun the warriors of Donnyton But this this was more than pain It was distorting senses it was mental strain it was creeping wariness It was the weight of carrying a world’s portion of responsibility on your shoulders and it crushed down everyone in the surrounding area The monsters chittered amongst each other stumbling to a stop They were unwilling to rush into his area but the momentum of those behind them pushed them forward shoving some of them deeper where the weaker ones writhed and shrieked
Then something else ignited a fire a burning bride that hung above the crown of branches and roots It seemed to be composed entirely of pride and nobility a representation of the immortal will and honorable code that one could use as a source of strength to overcome the weight of responsibility It was a demonstration of his superior mental power Something indomitable And after it was activated the Ghosthound’s emerald eyes were burning like a chemical bonfire
Then another wave of force wrapped its way outward a softer wave but still as insidious It was a four colored domain that spread out and Annie felt oddly restricted by it although she couldn’t determine in what ways it affected her at the moment at least not easily
After a small breath the Ghosthound grinned and raised his spear ready to test himself
“Congratulations warriors ” Dalton said rubbing his mustache as he looked at the ragged band Drake rubbed his nose subdued He had gained two full Levels from that fight sure but also
The image of the Ghosthound at the end
Shaking his head Drake dislodged that thought then considered the notification in front of him
Congratulations You have successfully defended the village while the main force dealt with the Death Cultist threat Your relationship with the village has increased If you talk with Cyndra within the next 24 hours it is very likely you will receive a related quest You have gained 30% experience to your next Level
A satisfied grin plastered itself on Alana’s face giving away that she had finally reached Level 48 and probably got a significant percentage forward towards 49 For his part Drake finally reached 40 receiving a new Skill Captain’s Cross a powerful offensive move that was relatively cheap and would likely become the mainstay of his fighting style in the future It consisted of two super quick slashes with an exponentially increased amount of damage at the intersection of the slashes
But what Drake really regretted was that everything happened so quickly His Bone Exoskeleton Skill that he obtained from his Soul Skill would have been a perfect assist for this situation the only problem was that it took around 10 minutes to form and for that time he was completely exposed and immobile But once it had formed he would have been able to hold a flank all on his own
“Thank you ” The Ghosthound said nodding his head “I hope your side of things went well “
“Ha don’t worry we have it handled Anyways it is late Please rest In the morning we will explain more about this village’s circumstances “
And with that Dalton departed taking with him the 10 villagers who had basically just watched the Raid Dungeon Party defend their walls After exchanging a glance with Rose and Annie the group walked slowly back towards the church It appeared that Arrata was busy with other things because the doors hung open and the rooms abandoned After they were alone Annie scouted the surroundings and the Ghosthound moved his strange lanterns Then finally they spoke
Rose went first “They were definitely watching us rather than the monsters They used Skills but they were just common sight and sound enhancing Skills nothing as incisive as what I have Just common observation “
The Ghosthound grunted flexing his fingers Drake watched the man carefully What no one said and that everyone was thinking was that even the most basic child had the observational Skills to witness the absolutely dominant display that the Ghosthound exhibited ripping through around 50 monsters within 5 minutes leaving their bodies crushed their spirits broken and scattered It was the sort of thing that was beyond understanding When Drake compared his own performance with the Ghosthound’s it was hard to believe that they were even the same species and had started using the System at the same time The Ghosthound seemed to have been born like this Although he knew that the Ghosthound used to be human too a friend to Sydney when he displayed prowess like this
With a sidelong glance Drake examined Lucifer and Ace Truthfully Drake’s performance fell slightly shy of either of these two men even though Drake had probably gained 30 or so Skill Levels and 4 Levels in the past 4 days And in terms of utilization there was no better way of forcing your potential to the surface than fighting with your life on the line It was a difference in tenacity that meant that he was much much more powerful than he had been before the expedition began And it had only been a short amount of time
Drake felt a certain amount of excitement towards how powerful he would be by the end of this and a fair amount of fear towards Lucifer and Ace Lucifer was tireless now dual wielding his huge swords using brute force and momentum to wreck opponents Ace meanwhile was much more difficult to understand but almost more sinister
At first Ace just seemed like a grappler with superior reaction time and an intuitive understanding of fighting But then an opponent used a similar move again and Ace suddenly had the perfect counter prepared for the opponent He was one of the instinctive types of fighters that mid fight would make minute adjustments that would slowly tilt advantages his way
And both of them compared to the Ghosthound were just
“Annie What were we used for ” The Ghosthound said breaking the silence and turning to Annie
She frowned “Raiding a strange warren filled with bat creatures They are certainly ugly and monstrous enough to be Death Cultists but I didn’t really see much black magic Mostly the strange bat things have stupidly powerful bodies Aside from Cyndra it seemed like the common bat thing was more than a match for villagers “
Rose tutted “Aren’t we happy if the villagers are honest If we can finish this Raid Dungeon while getting these quests isn’t it for the best “
Drake privately agreed but he was wary of it too So far these had been brutal fights sure but the Ghosthound’s grim face as they entered the Dungeon had filled him with a sense of foreboding Why then was everything lining up for them to finish it without any real effort
Chapter 419
Drake shook his head This really wasn’t the sort of thing that HE needed to think about Better just stick to the grunt work The Dungeon would work out or it wouldn’t All he needed to do was stay alive and be the best Captain of the Guard he could be for Sydney when he made it out
“There was something strange about the bat creatures ” Annie interjected her face still twisted like she had tasted something nasty “Something was wrong there “
Ace dug some wax out of his ear and flicked it onto the ground “Doesn’t it make sense that the Death Cultists feel weird They worship death “
Annie just gave Ace a look He rolled his eyes and threw up his hands
Shaking her head Rose looked around “Let’s leave that for now then Anyone get any items “
“Saw a few condense in a flash of light ” Alana grunted “But there was no space to gather them and I figured we could sweep it after I saw two “
“Six ” Lucifer added softly even while still looking at the ground continuing to polish his sword
Annie will you do a sweep see what we have The Ghosthound asked Annie nodded then slipped out the door instantly blending into the predawn light Then the Ghosthound raised his hands to his head and rubbed his temples
It helped a bit Drake reflected that the Ghosthound seemed to be completely exhausted after his display earlier It was a small comfort to him that there was a bit of weakness to the man after his earlier fight But it was only a small comfort after he had witnessed the enemies melt before him Even the strange turtle creature that the Ghosthound had summoned had eventually been overcome by the Ghosthound’s own spell that seemed to warp the air and destroy the earth leaving only destruction
At the same time several of the people in the party looked up sniffing their eyes sharpening
Is that Ptolemy said slowly Ace licked his lips Even Lucifer who was usually so stoic focusing solely on his sword well swords now looked up his eyes flashing
Aratta popped up out of one of the side doors carrying a tray Oh you are all here Goodmorning I was just doing my baking Would anyone want some cupcakes
Randidly chewed his cupcake very slowly It was he had to admit very good But the news he was receiving along with it was anything but
It seemed like the battlefield had been picked clean Annie said doing a handstand while she gave her report After a brief tremor she straightened until she was only supported by a single arm and then flexed upwards But it only lasted for a moment and she tumbled forward Not just the items the bodies of the monsters too it was all gone
So we should have a talk with our hosts huh Randidly whispered narrowing his eyes
There’s more They brought back captives from their run to the Death Cultists’ lair yea But they were dumping the bodies in the forest by the time I came back out They can’t have had them for more than two hours I suppose the questioning went poorly
Finishing his cupcake Randidly wiped his hands on his reddish leather armor That was an interesting fact but Randidly couldn’t find anything suspicious about it on the surface The Death Cultists were a foreign power that apparently worshipped the end of all life Taking prisoners and executing them heavy handed but understandable But still Randidly felt that he was missing something
Adding the fact that they had swept the battlefield clean without even so much as a word to their group Randidly supposed it was their own fault for leaving it that way But after the end of the battle
Randidly shivered closing his eyes He could feel it even now the reverberations that he felt when his Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil was turned up to 10 As he walked towards a monster and ripped through its consciousness with his very presence leaving it writhing and screaming on the ground in front of him
Besides that Aratta struck Randidly as a bit
Grimacing he turned away It would take time to track down that scent of Aether on her and it was debatable whether they did have time This was a Dungeon so the outside world would keep for a bit but he didn’t like hesitating If the Death Cultists were the enemy he wanted to hit them hard and hit them fast getting the Key of Death and then getting out of here
There were some lingering doubts in regards to that plan The Creature was in here Randidly knew and also the Regalia of the Champions And yet he had heard hide nor hair of it That was worrisome And the Dungeon was taking on a perfectly acceptable shape guiding them towards an enemy with no hiccups Were the Death Cultists the servants of the Creature In addition where the fuck were Jemma and Rhaidon And the Wild Rider They had been pulled into the Raid Dungeon with the group and yet
One last thing Annie muttered straightening Then she shrugged and said I’m not sure if it means anything but there is a different flavor around the village now Or rather it was subtle before and now they are doing some sort of magic that is very peculiar It changes the air Just thought you should know
Then Annie departed scrambling out the window rather than walking out of the door to his small room Randidly shook his head a small smile on his face That was completely unnecessary but he couldn’t find it in himself to say anything Annie was finally liberated from her baby and she was fucking savoring every second of vacation
Sighing Randidly rubbed his forehead There simply wasn’t enough information Tomorrow he would talk with Cyndra and Dalton then ask Rose and Clarissa their perspectives Then they would something
Fuck this Randidly muttered settling down crosslegged He didn’t get paid enough for this Instead of working himself in circles over problems that he didn’t quite know the shape of he instead opened up his status screen
Fighting here had been good to Randidly just as it had been to everyone else He had reached Level 9 with the boost that he had obtained from completing the quest In addition to that he had gained quite a few Skill Levels He had gained 11 Levels in Phantom’s Lantern 3 in Grasp of Lava and Sharpness 19 in Call Grove Defenders 4 in Plant Dominance and Invigorating Call 3 in Touch from Beyond 1 in Sap Spray 2 in Spear Mastery and Wall of Thorns 7 in Four Shaded Domain 3 in Phantom’s Embrace and the Indomitable Spirit of Yggdrasil 2 in the Yyrwood Flesh of Yggdrasil and the Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil and 1 in the Glittering Leaves of Yggdrasil and the Emerald Sap of Yggdrasil
Then Randidly’s mouth twisted because he did gain one more Skill Level which was the reason that his head throbbed with pain since the earlier fight When he had met the final monster that was standing and used this Skill curious And he had felt its vicious resistance before being reduced to a husk of what it once was stripped of Skills and identity
He had gained 1 Level in Erode Image
It was a Skill that Randidly would think long and hard about before using again It was certainly effective but
Then Randidly shook his head He would consider it later For now time to advance his Path His 72 PP wasn’t enough to finish off his Path of Control but it took another huge chunk out of it and prepared him to move into the finishing stages
In addition again the Blessing he obtained from his Soul Skill was much different than previous iterations
Congratulations You have received the Blessing of Murderous Cold as your Soul Skill revolves +8 to Agility Perception and Reaction As you become increasingly in tune with your surroundings sensitivity to other’s attention and attitudes vastly increases
The free Stats were completely gone and there wasn’t even the added benefit of a Skill this time Grunting Randidly sat back and then finally laying himself out on the bed allowing himself some rest It would just be for an hour or so but
He needed it
Before he fell asleep he looked at his Status Screen and smiled He certainly had been growing well now that he had a Class
Level 9 (90%)
Health(/R per hour) 2920/2395 (+730) (876 (+165
Mana(/R per hour) 2149/2466 (392 (+9
Stam(/R per min) 2350/2495 (+60) (305 (+45
Vit 213 (+15)
End 127 (+20)
Str 207 (+52)
Agi 269 (+24)
Perception 228 (+20)
Reaction 219 (+15)
Resistance 172 (+45)
Willpower 286 (+10)
Intelligence 207
Wisdom 135 (+9)
Control 327
Focus 262 (+4)
Progenitor’s Influence 691
Skills (Soul Skill) Four Shaded Clockwork World Lvl 1924
Combat Spear Mastery Lvl 153 White Phantom’s Half Step (Un) Lvl 52 Heavy Blow Lvl 74 Dagger Mastery Lvl 10 Iron Skin Lvl 47 Dodge Lvl 80 Fighting Proficiency Lvl 120 Block Lvl 54 Phantom Onslaught Lvl 42 Sweep Lvl 54 Spear Deflect Lvl 10 Calculated Blow Lvl 78 Roundhouse Kick Lvl 41 Idiosyncratic Cut (Un) Lvl 70 Pierce the Skies Shatter the Earth Lvl 39 Body Control Freeze Lvl 27 Stalemate Breaker Lvl 29 Talon Strike Lvl 38 Counter Lvl 1
PoFE Class Skills Plant Dominance ® Lvl 78 Spray Holy Sap (Un) Lvl 2 Sharpness Lvl 9 Call Grove Defenders ® Lvl 20 Earthquake (Un) Lvl 1 Invigorating Call (Humanity)(Un) Lvl 7 Four Shaded Domain Lvl 9 Phantom’s Lantern (Un) Lvl 12 Grasp of Lava ® Lvl 4 Erode Image Lvl 2
The 6 Signs of the Spear Phantom ® The First Sign The Inevitable Phantom Arrives Lvl 85 (Un) The Fifth Sign The Spear Phantom’s Embrace ® Lvl 163 The Sixth Sign The Breath of the Spear Phantom ® Lvl 26
Aether Skills Aether Detection Lvl 73 Aether Manipulation Lvl 79 Living Aether ® Lvl 85 System Interference Lvl 8
Spells Spearing Roots Lvl 70 Mana Bolt Lvl 28 Mana Shield Lvl 32 Arcane Orb Lvl 22 Fireball Lvl 30 Magic Missile Lvl 4 Healing Palm Lvl 12 Pollen of the Rafflesia Lvl 20 Summon Pestilence Lvl 54 Wall of Thorns Lvl 22 Soul Seed ® Inspiration ® Incinerating Bolt Lvl 79 Circle of Flame Lvl 53 Plantomancy Lvl 35 Hammer of the Dawn Lvl 37 Burning Footsteps Lvl 23 Ashes to Ashes Lvl 24 Touch from Beyond ® Lvl 16
Yggdrasil Glittering Leaves of Yggdrasil Lvl 102 The Golden Roots of Yggdrasil Lvl 101 the Emerald Sap of Yggdrasil Lvl 99 the Yyrwood Flesh of Yggdrasil Lvl 107 the Indomitable Spirit of Yggdrasil Lvl 101 the Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil Lvl 101
Auxiliary Sneak Lvl 46 Acid Resistance Lvl 22 Poison Resistance Lvl 21 Pain Resistance Lvl 61 First Aid Lvl 16 Pathfinding Lvl 18 Fire Resistance Lvl 23 Sewing Lvl 11 Cutting Vegetables Lvl 2 Manual Labor Lvl 6 Digging Lvl 5 Cooking Lvl 53 Clockwork Mastery Lvl 16 Aether Connection Lvl 3 Soul Bond Lvl 80 Chef’s Palette Lvl 24 Nether Resistance Lvl 3 Child of the Rain (Un) Lvl 1
Chapter 420
Would you like some help washing The voice said drifting through the steamy sauna The priestess Arrata sauntered through the mist hinting at her feminine curves and all the more delicious curve of a smile on her mouth
Ptolemy’s reaction was so violent that instead of just jumping to his feet in the dream he did so in real life waking him up from the dream and destroying the wooden bed that was beneath him As he exhaled slowly the splinters of the wooden furniture skidded to a stop Then slowly he began to pick up the pieces
Ptolemy never considered himself a sexual person But hell he was a 29 year old man Sometimes sometimes you had urges right Even if they were for weird blind alien women It was normal
right
After doing his best to clean up the mess of the shattered bed and folding his sheets Ptolemy kneeled said a small prayer and prepared for his day He started today like every other day starting with 1 hour of focused Meditation Ptolemy would then use his Skills one by one trying to apply some of the knowledge that the Ghosthound had brought back with him from the other world See if a powerful image was combined with a Skill it would grow faster and the effect would be more powerful
Basically all of Donnyton upon hearing this had spent a week learning the Battle Intent Skill and it was already paying dividends However once people had it a lot of them were content to simply let it grow passively But Ptolemy struggled so much with it that he quickly got into the habit of practicing daily
He wasn’t currently the one with the highest Level but Ptolemy was determined to turn this weakness into a strength That was the trait that defined him most the stubborn insistence on working on his weak points rather than polishing up his strengths It was why he had chosen to follow his father’s wish of him becoming a doctor before compromising to a nurse If he hadn’t done that then
It wasn’t as though he was secretly an artist No Ptolemy thought with a sigh he didn’t even have that cliche going for him Ptolemy always wanted to be a wildlife conservation officer To protect animal habitats to preserve the natural beauty of the country that was Ptolemy’s dream
Which was why when he cast his Healing Circle Ptolemy imagined an ecosystem Perhaps a forest or a small valley with a stream quite like Donnyton And what his Healing Circle did was take the damage to that ecosystem and repair it funneling clean energy into that world
Whether it was by removing pests planting new trees or by reinforcing creeks Ptolemy saw the body not as one organism but a complex mix of many and his healing was just one small way to attack a problem that was much larger than the wound itself More than healing Ptolemy hoped that with his Skills he could improve a patient
Ptolemy allowed himself a small smile as he finished his Healing Circle image focus and prepared to move onto another Skill This System was truly wondrous for all its evils
Hah
You little shit I’ll knock your face in
Hmph well it’s good to see that at least your mouth works Keep your guard up She may be smaller than you but she hits harder
Sighing Ptolemy stood Unluckily for him he had been placed right next to the outer wall and it seemed that sparring practice was going on right outside of his room After making a mental note to finish his practice in the evening Ptolemy murmured another prayer and went outside to see what was going on
It was a mistake Ptolemy knew but they were a team for however long this journey lasted and he could forgo the comfort of his rituals for a short span of time in order to become closer with his teammates Plus yesterday was the first time anyone had really asked him about what he did before the System
Ptolemy knew it was a considered move made by Ace to get closer to him but he didn’t mind For all the strength the System gave people it seemed to cloud their memory making it impossible to remember the before Now that the world was so changed many people thought that nothing could be learned from the past and were dismissive of those who put a high value on it
Luckily for Donnyton it seemed neither Sam Daniel nor Mrs Hamilton were those people They were shrewd in their governance practices moving slowly towards a true republic system of government although most people hadn’t noticed it yet It was a calculated risk Ptolemy knew but he was never one who was blinded by the virtues of democracy Sure in the future when the different factions became entrenched politically against each other the 10 person council idea might seem foolish but
When Ptolemy arrived at the training ground he saw Thea thoroughly break Ace’s jaw with her hammer her eyes burning
Stop Give him a bit of space ah Ptolemy good timing Heal him up will you Alana said standing on the sidelines with her hands on her hips Comically Chrysanthemum stood next to her trying her best to mimic the human woman behind her back
Ace blew a bubble of blood out of his nose as he snorted with laughter Then he winced With a wave of his hand Ptolemy cast Healing Circle Then for good measure he cast Invigorate on both Ace and Thea restoring some portion of their Stamina It wasn’t much now but it was a recent Skill acquisition his Level 40 and hopefully it would grow to be an invaluable asset
Very quickly the bones of Ace’s jaw snapped back into place and after a thankful smile towards Ptolemy his gaze turned surly and towards Thea
After ascertaining his patient was fine Ptolemy began to move away but was waved back by Alana Things will be easier if you are here Stay a bit will you
Ptolemy nodded and wandered over Although staying here wasn’t ideal it was much much better than being caught alone by Clarissa That woman
Shivering Ptolemy closed his eyes and did his best to let the grunts and hisses of the spar flow past him Every few minutes he would be shaken awake by Alana and Ptolemy healed the participants mostly Ace Almost primarily Ace and Ace was becoming increasingly incensed due to his repeated losses
What the fuck He finally bellowed after the 5th such healing How can you how come I’m not
You rely on that Skill of yours too much Alana said coolly giving him a cold look And you insist on this pointless use of your hands
My knuckles grow strong on the blood of my enemies Ace said simply as if he had practiced saying just that 1000 times in front of the mirror Ptolemy barely resisted the urge to roll his eyes It was easy to see why Alana would become frustrated with the guy
But also it was easy to see why she would do nothing about it Because although he was an idiot it was just part of his code of conduct There was something to respect about adhering to that So instead of continuing to harp on him Alana switched tactics The reason she continues to suppress you is that her Skill is better at fighting than yours And she started at a lower Level to begin with It is easier for her to grow and catch up with you because you have a higher Level
BUT Alana said her eyes narrowing now You are also extremely foolish about what battles you pick In your hands you hold a wooden rod which can be used in thousands of ways to great effect She has a meat cleaver Stop trying to overpower the meat cleaver
I’m not here for a philosophy lesson Ace complained and turned away heading over towards the water barrel As he did so Rose and Drake arrived speaking quietly to each other Seeing the bloodied face of Ace Rose wrinkled her nose and shook her head but said nothing
Good you are here Alana said walking into the circle of dirt they used as an arena Let’s talk about form Drake get over here Thea call the match if he can’t concede
Ptolemy snuck away not really annoyed by the fighting but also not interested in it And besides if everyone else was here he might have a chance
a body only hinted at through the steam alluring and ripe
Ptolemy gulped and began to trot around the side of the church towards the front entrance From the corner of his eyes Ptolemy saw a few of the strange locals loitering around nearby buildings peeking out of windows to look at the training individuals and at Ptolemy At first Ptolemy felt an urge to go back and urge the training people to stop but then he realized they were probably visibly training on purpose
But why Was it to show the locals they were strong or that they were weak enough to be underestimated Not even Ace was going at full speed in the spar Perhaps
Ptolemy rounded the corner and ran into someone knocking them over And as he realized who it was all of the blood drained from his face
A a ar Ar He mumbled
The dusky skinned alien woman brushed herself off and smiled up at him Aratta haha Are you alright Your name was Ptolemy
It was like an invisible magical noose tightened around his lungs and he couldn’t breathe looking at her But he didn’t want to either lest the moment pass
Chapter 421
Ptolemy seemed to be in a daze as he was led back towards the baking area by Aratta until the moment that a hand fell on his shoulder
Wait a moment The Ghosthound bodily spun Ptolemy around his emerald eyes locking onto Ptolemy’s gaze then holding it Ptolemy felt something connected to his soul seem to tremble and then still Then it was like a bucket of ice water was poured over him and Ptolemy doubled over gasping
After several seconds of panting Ptolemy struggled to straighten That took a few more seconds until he finally stood his eyes squinting at the Ghosthound Sometimes it was easy to forget that he was a normal man especially recently when he had been wearing his bone cloak It was a cascading sheet of white around his body most of the time that hid his form and caused his passage to be marked by the soft and dangerous clicks of bone on bone
But without the cloak he was just a tall athletic man At least physically But around him there was always this air of mystery was the wrong word but rather certainty But what the Ghosthound was certain about it was hard to tell
Still it was there in the green of his eyes in the sharpness of his gaze in the hardness of his jaw
What were you just doing The Ghosthound asked still staring at Ptolemy intently
I Ptolemy gestured helplessly forward towards the door to the basement which was slightly ajar I was just following Aratta She invited me to help her bake so
The Ghosthound’s smile was razor sharp Well then let’s go help shall we
With the Ghosthound in the lead the two of them descended into the basement The staircase was surprisingly long and the deeper they descended the more the chill in the air grew until Ptolemy wanted to shiver even though outside when he had been standing by the training area the sun had been so warm that he had sweat a little without even moving
At the bottom there was another door which was locked The Ghosthound jiggled with the handle and then frowned Well I suppose you were invited so
With a dull cracking sound the Ghosthound pulled the door off of its hinges the stone portion of the wall around the deadbolt cracking and shattering Then in a surprising show of restraint the Ghosthound set the door down gently to the side of the opening and walked through Hesitant Ptolemy followed
Aratta looked up from her mixing bowl and smiled at the new arrivals Oh you are just in time Will you help me pour these muffins
Freezing Ptolemy remained stuck there standing halfway between apologizing and agreeing to help This this was unusual correct They had just broken down the door and entered into the kitchens Without permission just forcing themselves into the situation In addition what was that strange stupor that had brought Ptolemy here and how had Aratta been leading him one moment then deep down a staircase behind a locked door the next
Largely ignoring these questions the Ghosthound nodded and walked over to Aratta’s side As she turned away reaching for a bowl to hand him the Ghosthound aimed a glare at her back full of a something There was a palpable weight to his gaze as if he was scouring her figure for something He was searching for a target
Ptolemy gulped at the boldness of his gaze Then from the back of Ptolemy’s mind arose the possibility that he and the Ghosthound weren’t so different after all Perhaps what the Ghosthound was looking for right now was her
her smile curving upwards her body bending forwards in the sauna reaching for his
Then Aratta turned back handing the Ghosthound the bowl and immediately his expression was mild As the Ghosthound turned around he caught sight of Ptolemy and did a double take Huffing with annoyance the Ghosthound shook his head and began to carry the bowl over towards the baking containers to prep the mixture to be thrown into the ovens
Had the Ghosthound been able to read his mind
Ptolemy’s face went white Had he been imagining himself with Aratta while the Ghosthound read his mind or the Ghosthound himself
Trembling Ptolemy stared at the floor while being handed a bowl by Aratta Then the group continued to move in silence just going about the task largely ignoring each other Each time they would run out of batter Aratta seemed to produce more so they were endlessly working moving from one tray to the next filling up more and more trays Ptolemy couldn’t help but wonder how many people really lived in the village if they had this many muffin trays
The Ghosthound coughed lightly and Ptolemy froze Looking down he realized that there was nothing in his hands and he was just miming pouring batter into the trays He must have set his bowl down without noticing that was how intently he was going about the task
Or was there something sinister about this
There was a thick fog over Ptolemy’s mind he abruptly realized covering his thoughts guiding them But the more he thought about it
The air seemed to be filled with an emerald pulse at that moment a breeze of pure air that blew through that deep dungeon but instead of shivering Ptolemy clung to it his eyes narrowing What was going on Was Aratta
Aratta shrugged apologetically her robes rustling the ripped cloth over her eyes pointing towards the Ghosthound It is not even a conscious thing it is simply in my nature
And what sort of nature is that The Ghosthound hissed in response his hands tightening into fists Aratta’s smile widened
Ptolemy believed it would have come to blows there had not a notification popped up through the group chat
Rose GH we need you up here The villagers are leaving All of them
The Ghosthound stilled Then he turned and looked at Aratta his eyes once more measuring her burning into her seeking But whatever he saw there was not what he expected and not what he wanted Sighing the Ghosthound closed his eyes The room turned silent and in that silence Aratta gestured at Ptolemy and he reflexively began moving the 10 trays they had made into the ovens on the far wall
This time he had counted the tasks before he began and so when he finished the 10th tray and he saw dozens more arranged on the tables he paused some silent part of him insisting that he shouldn’t bother with them He struggled against it but the current him had the will of a wet noodle and the other part was like iron
Just that thought alone was enough to cause Ptolemy to frown When was the last time that he had thought of his will as a wet noodle Not since the System arrived that was for sure
Fine But I can find you The Ghosthound said opening his eyes his voice calm
Aratta smiled back at him That’s all part of the plan love
Still panting from the sparring session Ace watched the departing villagers with narrowed eyes There was something strange about this And it wasn’t his normal instincts screaming this but his villainous instincts This was too quick the progression erratic They should have either been lured into a false sense of security or there should have been a growing sense of dread as they stayed at the village
Aside from the always practical explosive bang those were the two slow ways that villainy revealed itself to the world And yet
Ace’s instincts insisted there was a villain here But this abrupt departure stunk of an amateur villain with no training or class His hands tightening into fists Ace swore to himself that he would find this half baked plot and crush it Perhaps from the remnants he could cobble together a scheme of his own that will let him have the cake of being here in the Dungeon and eat his Randidly too
Making no moves to hide his malevolent grin Ace turned and glanced at Rose She was distancing herself from him purposefully of course speaking with the rather intense Clarissa discussing the application of Skills to induce the creation of Resistance Skills It was heavy violent stuff and did nothing to dispel Ace’s good mood They were both more intelligent than most everyone around them knew and both almost compulsively interested in magic and Skills
From this a friendship developed Perhaps even a relationship that was so close that in the future when Ace gave a fiendish order Rose would waiver feeling conflicted based on her feelings for Clarissa Everything according to plan
Humming softly Ace waltzed over to the rest of the group as Randidly glowering and stormy arrived to witness the strange movements of the villagers
Chapter 422
Ace considered Randidly He felt stupid for not noticing the changes in him immediately when he had accosted him in that bar in the Refuge But perhaps he had locked so quickly onto the familiar things that he had overlooked the differences
Although it was impossible Randidly seemed subtlety larger like an inch or two in height and wildly more masculine and aggressive It was in the way he carried himself how open his chest was how direct his eye contact was He would make a fine villain Ace decided if the fucker would just make the extra effort to cultivate a persona
The problem with villains that Ace quickly discovered was that you could not be yourself while remaining a villain That was a shortcut to madness Rather what you needed to do was bind together several traits of yours true traits to keep the authenticity and dial them up after a certain switch’ has been flipped allowing your own personality to warp By keeping them as true portions of your personality the warping did no lasting damage For Ace the switch was putting on his helmet and it helped him keep his two modes separate from each other
Randidly’s persona Ace considered this problem Stubbornness as a trait was an obvious choice but gave no drive It would strengthen his spine however and get him into a lot of trouble when he clashed with the forces of justice when he wouldn’t admit he was wrong or back down from a challenge No the driving forces behind Randidly’s villain persona should be
Hatred born of loneliness and paranoia born of anxiety A slow building villain but one that would savor every second of slowly ripping his victim’s world apart
The real Randidly who had tragically missed his perfect moment to transform into a villain and Ace hoped was currently waiting for his next chance narrowed his eyes and leaped forward moving quickly towards the winding train of villagers Dalton the pedophile who appeared to lead the weird group of beings here noticed Randidly’s approach and split off to intercept him
Feeling frisky Ace wandered forward to join the parlay
You are leaving Randidly asked his annoyance showing through on his face Ace sighed inwardly One of the many great advantages of being a villain and basically a caricature of yourself was that things affected you much less strongly Although a villain would be suitably annoyed at this unexpected development the expression on a villains face would be more sneering disdain and less frustrated
The Death Cultist resistance in this area is becoming too much for us to reasonably handle Dalton said shortly his expression curt There are other settlements nearer to the Great Passage that we can relocate to Although there was resistance for a long time we have waited Here Dalton paused and Ace’s eyes sharpened A lie would come next
we have wanted to do this for a long time Dalton explained some of his dismissiveness falling away and revealing wariness We apologize but the journey will be difficult enough without protecting you and your people If you come with us you will die If you have it in your heart please remain here for a time and protect Aratta She doesn’t have it in her to leave the area
Randidly didn’t speak likely because a notification popped up in front of them at that moment
Protect Aratta As the rest of the village departs seeking refuge in the Great Passage the Holy Land of Zith Dalton in a rare moment of weakness requests that you stay in the area and protect Aratta She refuses to leave the area If you protect her for 10 days you can consider your debt to the small hospitality of Dalton and his village paid back Reward Further increase your relationship with Dalton’s village and receive 40% experience towards your next Level
Ace bared his teeth That was an increase of 10% which was not small The people in this party who were past Level 45 would look at this prize with red eyes Alana especially If she obtained this she might be over halfway to achieving Level 50 a boundary that everyone was eyeing with interest Based on the way the System was treating it something special happened then but
What it was remained to be seen And the cost of reaching there was to protect Aratta for 10 days Based on the difficulty of the prior mission and the reward increasing now it would not be a simple thing Plus it would mean that they were letting the villagers slip away
The sudden movement meant that something else was happening here and Ace wanted to sniff it out He cast his gaze over the departing adults more and more appearing every moment about 200 so far with their numbers dwindling as everyone who was leaving the village had already shown up
I accept On the condition that Cyndra speaks to us before she leaves Randidly said slowly
Ace’s eyebrows rose What was Randidly thinking falling for this obvious bait Sure the reward was great but the secret they were using the reward to hide was undoubtedly the sweeter prize
Perhaps we should Ace said turning his charm all the way up to 10 but Randidly gave him a look that was very familiar yet somehow strange Because it was a look that Ace recognized it was a look that meant I’ve got this’ Ace had given Randidly that look hundreds of times in the past when they were out at bars when they were caught trespassing when a cashier told them they were out of something Ace had just never been on the receiving end of that look
Dauntless stirred one eye opening to coolly examine this threat but Ace didn’t have his helmet on so he laughed goodnaturedly and didn’t continue the sentence Ace for his part was pleased with Randidly’s transformation Sure no one would ever mistake Randidly for someone with charm but he certainly had enough social skills to interact with strangers now Before he even knew it his little Ghostpuppy had grown up and become a real hound
That I can arrange Dalton said glancing between Ace and Randidly When neither seemed inclined to say anything else Dalton put his fingers to his mouth and whistled After a few seconds there was a return whistle and after another minute Cyndra appeared still armed to the teeth
Ace admired her intimidating costume But she too wasn’t a true villain she performed evil acts very clearly but her face was creased with the wrinkles of regret For all that though her gaze was firm She had chosen her path and she would not hesitate on it now
What is it She asked
The travelers wanted to speak with you Since you owed them a favor Dalton said his face going slightly red It was a peculiar exchange in Ace’s eyes and his gaze flicked back and forth between them There were advantages of being the sidekick in a discussion Your gaze is much easier for the other side to ignore It let Ace freely assess these strange creatures
Although Dalton had always taken on a dominant position in their brief previous interactions he was now much more hesitant and subservient Could perhaps the decision to move be one he opposed for a long time before now until now And that would make Cyndra head of the faction that wanted to move Or perhaps Cyndra had always been the true power in the village
Or Ace was just extrapolating from an extremely small sample which was bound to lead to inaccuracies His mouth scrunched into a thin line He certainly could identify with Randidly’s frustration here They weren’t giving the group time to figure out what was going on in this Dungeon things were just moving too peculiarly in too many half shapes
Oh for fuck’s sake don’t bother with them Cyndra said dismissively turning away preparing to trot back to the convoy
You owe us We did as you asked Randidly said quietly his serious eyes locked onto the other woman narrowed with a subtle threat Ace was honestly surprised at this From his behavior it was clear that Randidly considered this woman a threat
Ace gave her another focused glance Sure she looked tough but
Dauntless still bored cracked an eye open to examine her too And within a second both eyes were open and narrowed Something baleful billowed out of Cyndra a harrowing aura of bitterness guilt and determination that made the air taste like rust It wasn’t with any particular sense but it was through the strange image technique of Donnyton that Ace could just barely get the shape of the spirit surrounding this woman
Then he lost it and Dauntless growled inwardly annoyed that he wasn’t allowed to wake up fully to deal with this threat But Ace kept the affable smile on his face his switch hadn’t been flicked Randidly’s skill in this particular area was undoubtedly higher than Ace’s better to let him handle it
And you received your reward Cyndra said dismissively
Abruptly Randidly changed tactics We noticed you swept the battlefield clean What items dropped
His voice was casual but Randidly clearly smiled when Cyndra stopped dead
So he was bluffing Ace mused He hadn’t known whether that would be an important bit of information but had guessed it might be based on how quickly the village had acted But if whatever they found was also the impetus for moving
What sort of powerful equipment had dropped
Very slowly Cyndra turned around and glared at Randidly But at this point Randidly bless his soul knew he had the advantage and just stood still his hands at his sides the picture of cool confidence Perhaps Ace had underestimated his talent for villainy This display of calm control was exactly the sort of execution that a true villain needed
Ace nodded approvingly rubbing his chin
Are you going to make this into an issue Cyndra spat out her eyes blazing Randidly’s eyes narrowed somewhat but he did not fold
Not if we have our quest He said simply
Again Ace thought this was an odd choice But what was annoying him was that as time went on it seemed increasingly like this was the correct choice How had this fucker so quickly identified what was going on here His weakness targeting was at Rose level
Fine Cyndra hissed before spinning around and departing But another notification popped up in front of them
Decimate the Death Cultist’s Headquarters Cyndra has told you the tragic story of her brother captured and tortured by the Death Cultists and after begrudgingly acknowledging your strength she had told you his remains lay within their Northern Eyrie Plunge into the heights and slay the High Cultist and then bury Cyndra’s brother’s remains to succeed Reward The Treasure Trove of the Death Cultists and 20% towards your next Level
Chapter 423
Randidly’s eyes slowly opened His gaze narrowed as he looked out the window and towards the sky of the Raid Dungeon Something was brewing Something rather familiar although if it was occuring now
But after checking his status screen Randidly was left rather nonplussed His Path hadn’t advanced all that much so why was this happening now In addition those times that it had occurred in the past there was some warning or at least a sign Randidly had crossed a line and in exchange the System judged him to be something dirty
A Heretic
And from the sky descended Judgement
It was currently the evening of the 8th day since Cyndra and Dalton had departed with the people of the village Ultimately Randidly had decided to accept both quests to get the experience boost for Alana and the rest When they had returned from their short meeting they found Aratta gardening patting down freshly turned dirt with her shovel
She had thanked them for staying and offered to bake for them Upon seeing Ptolemy once more going gooey eyed Randidly had sighed and then told her that while that sounded nice they needed to have a meeting for their group Aratta hadn’t seemed disappointed which confused Randidly It was clear that there was some sort of trick of Aether around the woman that drew Ptolemy and others in towards her But she hardly seemed phazed when he snipped those connections with his Aether Manipulation
Perhaps she was waiting for whatever was going to bother them during these 10 days to use the distraction and make use of the connection It was hard to say And no matter how hard Randidly looked he couldn’t figure out the trick of her Aether It seemed to be something originating from under the cloth covering her eyes but in case it was a track Randidly wasn’t willing to just rip it off her
Instead he waited checking up on Neveah working on his images practicing his new Skills At night during those 5 days small waves of monsters arrived striking at night seeming to aim for Aratta But with their group they rather easily overcame the enemies Ace and Drake were finally in the low 40s in Level and finally rounding out into powerful frontline warriors that could hold their own
Meanwhile Thea was elevating herself to another level becoming a force of nature much more in line with the incredible acumen of Alana than the rest That’s not even speaking of Clarissa whose Chain Lightning had improved so much over the course of the Dungeon dive that the color of the spell was slowly changing
Perhaps other people wouldn’t notice it as the normal yellow slowly mellowed into a green/blue but Randidly’s high Perception caught it after the 4th day and immediately he wondered how he had missed it before It might just be a change in the image that she was using but it was undoubtedly a good sign that it was shifting
They were growing in here for better or for worse And at the rate they were growing especially with the flat experience rewards it was clear that very few on the outside would be a rival for this group when they returned
But perhaps the scariest of them all was
Do you feel that Annie asked her head poking up from outside and blocking his window
Randidly ignored her bid for attention and just nodded Let’s meet outside If I’m not mistaken the thing that’s going to come out of that will be tough
She nodded in response and then disappeared Randidly put a message in the Party chat and moved quickly through the building to outside Reflexively he felt out with Aether Detection and found Aratta It’s not that it was hard to find her it was just delicate In terms of Aether she was like a very distinctive but faint smell It took a while to catch her but once you did she was all you could feel The Aether around her was just strange in a way that neither Randidly nor Lucretia could figure out
To his surprise she was out in front of the church looking up at the swirling clouds
When he arrived everyone was already there and Rose was talking quietly to Annie as the group looked up at the sky The rest seemed tense but not really nervous After a while you sorta became used to the possibility of death and the reality that you would be facing a monster out of a pre System fantasy novel everyday
Annie’s sharp laugh cut through the tension as she slapped her knee in response to something that Rose said Rose smiled awkwardly back at her continuing to whisper between them
That perhaps is why Annie was so fearsome Although she was growing stronger in terms of battle potential what was most frightening about her was how powerful her psyche was becoming how sharp her mentality Life and death were just more facts of life in her eyes That unassuming acceptance made her calm but it also made her images powerful So powerful that even Randidly felt a small tingling of warning when she used her more powerful Skills
She was a powerful ally for sure And an asset to Donnyton
Randidly stopped his train of thought at that before he became too leery of her strength Rose you see anything up there
Rose glanced over her shoulder at him then shook her head It’s just nonsense I sense something but it’s like it’s in another language Like the System isn’t decrypting it like it normally would
Oh that’s for me A calm voice said
Frowning Randidly turned and looked at Aratta You is that Judgement for you You are a Heretic
Well technically Aratta admitted pushing some of her wild hair behind her ear Or I was I stopped But there is something about your group arriving here I couldn’t help myself and
Aratta gestured helplessly towards her garden Randidly took a very long breath through his nose She couldn’t help herself
Then he used his Plant Dominance to explore the area underneath the garden and Randidly’s breath hitched in his chest His eyes burned emerald as he considered whether it was worth it to forgo the quest just to kill Aratta in that moment screw the strange Aether consequences But reason quickly won out cooling that hot impulse
She was the only person that he had found with a trace of Aether so far The Creature was a live element in this Raid Dungeon unaccounted for possessing both of the Regalia of their Zone’s Champions Even if Aratta was somehow a trap left by the Creature it still meant that Randidly could get some information based on her presence Killing her hastily wasted that
But what he found in the garden was
Thunder cracked the sky and a light misting of rain began to fall There was a low rumble in the distance that was not thunder but the loud sound of an approaching horde of monsters Dozens of questions flitted across Randidly’s lips and he struggled to pick out the one that was most helpful at the moment
Is this why the other villagers left Did they know this was coming Randidly said slowly
No Well they knew this was coming and were being careful not to cause it yet but they believe in Zith very deeply I may be her priestess but Aratta flashed a helpless smile I’m not so confident that her method would work I mean you guys came and proved the concept but
You’re the priestess Annie said gaping at Aratta in faux horror And you are the one person in the village who doesn’t believe in the religion
It’s not that I don’t believe Aratta said her voice finally edging from genial to sharp But I don’t believe that survival is possible We’ve lived for generations slowly dying off Although I don’t believe the Death Cultists are going about it in the right way sometimes it’s easy to see why they
There are a lot of incoming monsters boss Clarissa reported cheerily floating down from her perch on a nearby tree Randidly grimaced and looked up at the sky It was quickly darkening but it wasn’t yet to the point that the Judgement seemed to be descending What was it waiting for
they are cowards but honest ones Aratta was saying and Randidly abruptly realized that he had tuned her out They had other priorities at the moment
Before Annie could retort Randidly quickly asked Do you know why the Judgement hasn’t descended What is it waiting for
With a shrug Aratta gestured to the surrounding area Well I don’t really know the why but it’s because they laid down the array around the settlement It’s just a small one but it would mask you from the System as long as you kept your Heretic Path below XIII But with everyone leaving I just couldn’t
Two familiar bodies lay in shallow graves in the garden Two children sucked dry all withered skin and bones their eyes gone their organs turned to dust Two familiar children that had been so calmly playing before their group arrived in the village
Stop fucking saying you couldn’t help it Randidly growled and from the way that Aratta stumbled backwards and everyone else flinched he realized that he must have released a bit of the Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil With an effort of will he reigned that in Better to act with tact here Besides hurting his teammates did no good
What Randidly couldn’t fucking figure out was why this was allowed to happen Now that Randidly was aware of it it was abundantly clear that there were no children in the group leaving the town The children’s parents must have known they were missing So why did no one raise a fuss
Everything was too fucked up to parse apart and they didn’t have time
We’ve got about a minute Rose said quickly glancing at Randidly
It only took 10 seconds but Randidly knew there was no point in throwing away the benefits now He looked at the sky where the clouds continued to swirl At the very least it seemed like this was buying them time And if it stayed up there until she left the village
Let’s finish the quest Randidly said his voice wooden But afterwards well that was for another day Prepare to cut down the monsters
Chapter 424
Drake relished the chance to fight with his Bone Armor active The preparation time was debilitative but while he was within the exoskeleton of bone he felt invincible smashing and cutting his way through the Raid Bosses with relative ease
Relative because he had seen how Alana and the Ghosthound moved through the monsters and they truly did part their enemies with ease It wasn’t even fair It seemed as though they were playing another game entirely their physicality and spear Skills rendering their opponents fatally wounded before Drake would have even recognized what monster he was supposed to fight next
Which Drake supposed was why he was merely guarding one of the larger entrances to the village standing tall in his bone armor swinging a huge sword of bone to decapitate a two headed centipede Then he decapitated the other head because the body continued to squirm in a threatening way
That bought Drake precisely enough time to reach up and do his best to rub away sweat from his brow but of course both his head and arms were covered in bone armor So it basically did nothing Then a strange cougar with violet fur attacked him trying to push past the door that Drake guarded and he was forced to get back to work
After deciding to defend the Ghosthound had surrounded the entire village in a huge Wall of Thorns Then he created a second wall immediately behind the first Then he had used roots and vines to bind those two walls together and gave them a stable core to lean against so they could withstand impacts from the monsters However it wasn’t a complete wall and there were three holes in it that monsters could use to get into the town
Really the wall behind them wasn’t so important as long as it slowed any sneaky monsters down They didn’t really have any particular point that they needed to hold just needed to protect Aratta who apparently caused storms
Drake looked up at the sky and frowned Then he finished cutting off the leg of a monster and moved to the side so Ptolemy could smash it with an Arcane Orb They were in charge of the leftmost entrance which was one of the two smaller ones But the two smaller entrances were just basically a distraction the main entrance was about 10x the size of the side ones allowing as many monsters as they wanted to charge forward
Which of course meant that the Ghosthound Alana Clarissa Ace and Lucifer were there welcoming all comers Yea it made sense why monsters would come over to Drake even if it was a bit out of the way
Inwardly Drake couldn’t help but admire how much he had grown in the two weeks they had been inside of the Raid Dungeon It had made him grow at an absolutely monstrous rate The combination of vicious monsters and spars with highly skilled individuals made it seem trivial to improve at a rapid pace He supposed he could understand why so many people chose to go to Donnyton if this level of competition was available there
A raptor made of bone screeched at him bringing Drake back to the present He saluted this fellow bone creature in a show of respect but it used that time to dash towards him Sneering he swung his huge sword activating his Dreadful Strike Shattering its body The direct confrontation monsters were the easiest If they didn’t bother to dodge Drake could crush them
It was strange to realize when considering how powerful each of them was but aside from Lucifer Drake abruptly found himself as the one with the highest striking power Thea was strong too but she relied on aggressiveness and savagery to smash an opponent not raw Strength
Well the Ghosthound finally trumped him too but he didn’t really count on the same scale
Another monster came and then another then another
After the 20th Ptolemy switched in for Drake giving him a breather
After 5 monsters Ptolemy needed to switch out looking ragged There was a moment that Drake almost was amused by how hapless the man was but then he realized that Drake himself had been like that if not even more so when they entered the Raid Dungeon And Drake had the nerve to call himself a close combat specialist
This was their healer who also just happened to have high enough physical Stats to kill 5 Raid Bosses in a row It was honestly intimidating
With repaired armor Drake stepped forward and continued to fight falling into a sort of rhythm However
The rhythm didn’t end The only difference was what monster he was fighting and what noises there was from the central area Sometimes there were screams from monsters sometimes there were bolts of lightning sometimes there was the sound of roaring flames devouring the screams
But the monsters didn’t end They continued to come So much so that by the time dawn arrived almost 10 hours later with Drake still unable to wipe the sweat from his forehead he put something in chat
Um guys Drake said Is there no end
No there isn’t But would running help Annie’s reply came
Drake grimaced feeling very much the burn of fighting at his tip top condition for 10 hours The System was amazing but even it could only do so much to cover up exhaustion Their bodies recovered quickly with their boosted Vitality but there still needed to be some downtime where they weren’t struggling so that could happen They couldn’t just recover mid fight
Well The Ghosthound might be able to but
We should disengage open up some distance They aren’t as fast as us Ace added
You don’t understand the Ghosthound said If we leave that Judgement descends They are a bitch to deal with And it scales in strength based on the strength of your Level and the Level of people helping you The only reason I defeated one before is because I was Level 0 at the time
Then we should leave now before you get to Level 10 Better intervene before you Level up anymore Ace retorted
There was a pause in which Drake got into a wrestling match with a giant ape before grabbing one of the decapitated heads of the centipede he had killed earlier in the night stabbing it into the ape’s neck The creature screamed and flailed but ultimately bled out with relieving quickness giving way to a bellowing alligator
That actually makes a lot of sense The Ghosthound admitted Alright fine Everyone we’re are gonna fall back and burn everything to the ground behind us Rose
On it Flanks pull in Randidly get up to full Mana as quickly as possible Clarissa chug Mana potions Let’s salt the fucking earth Rose’s orders came and Drake could just picture the woman’s sharp little smile
He didn’t trust her at all It didn’t help that she basically ran all of the Refuge but she was entirely too self satisfied in her position But she knew her business well enough he supposed
Drake’s expression brightened Perhaps they didn’t think of this
Has anyone talked with Aratta We will have to take her away with us right Drake said in chat
Again there were several moments of silence During that time Ptolemy had to intervene finishing off the alligator because Drake was running severely low on Stamina barely able to continue fighting Gasping but inwardly pleased for pointing something out that no one else had thought about Drake dismissed the bone exoskeleton
Most of it was almost too damaged to continue anyway which was why he was expending Stamina so fast The damage to the joints made it take extra effort to move And now that he was free Drake relished the feel of wiping away his sweat Truly there was nothing better than the simple pleasures of
Thanks for volunteering The Ghosthound said
Drake blinked Then he realized what that actually meant
Chapter 425
Randidly waved his hand burning all his Mana and all of the Mana stored in his rings sending a dozen Grasps of Lava shooting upwards igniting his Wall of Roots This wouldn’t buy them much time but it would have to be enough
Glancing upwards Randidly grimaced The sky was definitely darkening now that they left the village What pissed Randidly off most about the whole situation is that he didn’t get a chance to figure out what sort of array’ Aratta was talking about that surrounded the village Now as the monsters trampled forward burning and wrecking the houses for their mad dash for Some goal it might be obliterated
He turned and looked at Aratta who was riding on Chrysanthemum’s back Perhaps asking her would yield some answers but
Almost on cue Aratta turned around and caught Randidly’s eyes and smiled at him as if this was just a walk in the park
Annoyed Randidly turned away downing a few Mana Potions He could feel the Golden Roots of Yggdrasil working at full swing huge cords of energy flowing up through the ground and into his feet strengthening him giving him increased Mana Regeneration To buy them a little bit more time
Alana you’ve got the back I’ll catch up Randidly grunted drawing his huge spear
Alana gave him a look like she wanted to say something but she kept her mouth shut It wasn’t that she thought better of it but that she knew better to try and stop him Sometimes when an enemy was frustrating there wasn’t anything to do but physically work out that stress Alright We will take the long way around and back towards the cathedral we started at in case we get separated
Randidly just looked up at the darkening clouds and then leaped forward The raindrops hit his skin a cooling addition to the moment Plus because his Child of Rain it gave him some sort of passive bonus He could only slightly feel it but it was a source of PP so Randidly wasn’t going to complain
It wasn’t that these monsters were weak per se but they were definitely weak to him
After he had opened up a distance of about 200 meters with the rest of the group he released that tightness in his chest and let both the Indomitable Will of Yggdrasil and the Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil spread outwards like a blanket muffling everything else around him
Because that is truly what happened Randidly could feel himself becoming almost brighter more intense a burning fire so that everything else around him became dimmer The monsters shrunk back in fear and pain and the last thing they heard before they died was the tiny clinks of his Bone Cloak
It was pride that filled Randidly when he allowed himself to be like this And he could feel in it the beginnings of something There was a weaving of emotions of all the Yggdrasil Skills activated at the same time as they softly resonated with each other It was a minor thing but Randidly delighted in the strange freedom it gave him It seemed to him that his Aether was singing
And while he savored the sensation his spear moved back and forth and the monsters fell like wheat
Until a notification popped up
Snarling Randidly spun around dismissing the Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil and shooting forward following after where the rest of the party had gone
The Judgement was coming He could see over the hill falling out of the sky a strange twisting mass of green and deep purple Gritting his teeth Randidly pushed himself faster activating his Yyrwood Body of Yggdrasil pushing his physique as far as it would go Every one of his steps cracked the ground beneath him with its force
It was almost comical how powerful he had gotten How easy it was for him to destroy things at this point
There was a shout of alarm and he could hear Alana’s words but Randidly tried not to let himself be distracted Deftly he used Plant Dominance to incapacitate several monsters that they passed that were likely wounded earlier by the party but not finished off
Then he was cresting the hill looking down at the scene below Standing in the middle of the slope was a giant ogre creature wrapped in two snakes one purple one green As Randidly watched Alana dropped her shield as a green acid ate through it Meanwhile the purple snake lashed out catching Ace by surprise smashing him into a boulder
Fury bloomed like a crimson spider lily Activating his Invigorating Shout Randidly called Just fuck you
The ogre and the two snakes turned and looked up at him somewhat taken aback but the Skill spread out in a wave increasing the Stats and Regeneration of those humans who heard it Like two ghosts Lucifer and Annie moved in behind the Judgement Several arrows lodged itself in the upper body of the ogre pinning the green snake’s head down
Hissing it spat acid upwards in a fountain which fell harmlessly to the ground
The purple snake seemed to learn from its brother’s misfortune and twisted out of the way of the arrows its tail lashing out only to be slashed by Lucifer cutting a good 4 meters of its body off
But this left the ogre annoyed but free It spoke in a strange language its hands moving through dozens of gestures and the ground rumbled Only due to his connection to nearby plant roots could Randidly sense the hundreds and thousands of snakes slithering up through the ground emerging from the ground
With a manic gleam in his eye Randidly threw back a Mana Potion Want to compete in numbers Try me
His consciousness pressed to its limits Randidly started using Spearing Roots as many times as he could at once The roots shot upwards spearing the snakes from below burrowing through their softer bellies before driving up through their brains Some struggled feeling their compatriots dying but Randidly’s eyes were glowing emerald and in them was only the promise of murder
As many as the Judgement tried to summon that’s how many he would kill
Clarissa smashed the Judgement with some sort of ice spell causing the snakes to whimper the green snake especially becoming very feeble in its struggles As he noticed this the Judgement raised his arms his gestures becoming emphatic Lucifer and Thea moved in rapidly covering the distance to the Judgement
The snakes’ bodies pulsed Then they began to grow Annie’s arrows snapping off their wounds healing Randidly’s eyes narrowed Perhaps the smaller snakes wouldn’t end up being the issue here Because these two snakes were becoming big
The Spear Advances Ash Trails Randidly whispered Ignition Flame Desolation
As he activated the Skill he could feel some part of himself some part of his Skill recognizing this encouraging him strengthening him The top of the hill was annihilated as Randidly shot down as if he was launched out of a cannon arriving and driving his spear through the head of the green snake
It had a mouthful of acid so some of it splashed out onto his arm as he killed it which burned but Randidly simply hissed in annoyance Pulling his weapon out he turned and faced the purple snake which seemed infuriated that its brother had been killed It lashed out biting towards him moving so fast that even Randidly’s senses only had the faintest idea of when the attack would arrive
Ash to Ash Randidly said closing his eyes
He didn’t close his eyes so he wouldn’t see the world going grey although that was perhaps part of it No he closed his eyes because at that moment he felt supremely connected to everything There was a base of energy between all things the commonality of existence Weirdly that feeling stood out to Randidly then as the snake bit into him and his body disintegrated into ash and reformed a few meters above bringing his spear down like a guillotine on the purple snake
The purple head fell to the group dead just as Thea and Lucifer arrived reaping into the ogre’s legs It leapt to the side but couldn’t dodge Lucifer’s long weapons and it lost its right leg at the knee When it landed it stumbled and Alana was there burning as she activated her Solar Flare Skill her spear taking the Ogre in the neck It struggled opening its mouth but nothing came out
Then its expression unwilling it expired turning into energy and disintegrating
Randidly looked around Ptolemy had healed Ace who was standing and now hurried towards Alana to check her left arm which hung useless at her side Just the two injuries then That wasn’t bad for pushing back the Judgement It seemed like they struck at the right time Had the snakes been allowed to grow or the army of snakes from below to attack the group before Randidly had got there
It was cutting it close but it seemed like overwhelming the Judgments quickly was a viable strategy
Rose’s voice drew his attention back the current situation How much distance do we have
Sighing Randidly shook his head About half a kilometer And I’m almost out of everything right now
Us too Alana said stoically while Ptolemy healed her arm
Randidly grinned He could keep fighting with his spear but even he was beginning to feel a bit tired and there was no point in forcing things Then let’s look for someplace to hole up for the last two days Well one day now
Chapter 426
Even through the mass of roots and Wall of Thorns that the Ghosthound erected it was still possible to hear the constant roar of the monster horde that was hounding them relentlessly Alana grimaced honestly she would much rather be out there than stuck in here waiting for the time to pass
And just as she was going to allow herself to slip down a spiraling negative hole of missed experience a notification popped up in front of her
Congratulations You have successfully protected Aratta for 10 days Your intimacy with the villagers has increased to the maximum amount You have received 40% experience towards your next Level
Welcome you have reached Level 50 Processing
Alana’s glee at finally reaching 50 was swiftly cut by the strange end to the announcement She didn’t receive her normal Level Up gains but instead was simply told processing Before she could think about it further a tremor ran through her causing her to gasp
The group was in a small cave discovered by Annie and further hollowed out by the Ghosthound Upon entering the Ghosthound had erected a veritable fortress of living roots and vines blocking off all entry They couldn’t kill as many monsters this way but everyone would get a chance to rest Well everyone but the Ghosthound who sat with his usual stoic expression eyes closed likely focusing on repelling the monsters
So when Alana gasped and leaned forward almost everyone turned to look at her in the dimly lit cave Her face flushing Alana made to straighten but again her body seized keeping her bent over and in fact forcing her further downward until she was curled up in a ball What she experienced wasn’t exactly pain per se but just
It was an instinctual fear
You have become a Level 50 Sunspear of the Broken Ridge The Reckoning of your Class has begun Good Luck
Alana was very clear of her inner world She wasn’t sure what other people saw but in her inner zone it was a warm red desert completely barren And when she had earned a Class a spear had emerged from the ground thrusting upwards Slowly as she had gained Levels the spear had pushed itself skyward aiming to split the world
At the same time a sandstorm was slowly building around the spear The higher the spear got the stronger the winds around it became swirling and spiraling drawing more and more sand into its spin By 49 the air around the spear was thick with the sand completely destroying any chance of seeing the spear within It was wreathed in the strange radiation
And there was power in that sand Alana wasn’t sure how to describe it but she felt stronger more willful the thicker the air around the spear became It was like that strange thickness allowed her to work her will on the world In her heart she suspected that this was an addition due to her constant connection with the Ghosthound but the two didn’t seem directly connected in any way that she could see
Now as she reached Level 50 the sandstorm had ballooned outward growing higher and higher Whereas before it had been a powerful but complimentary force now it was dangerous that was what her instincts told her It lashed outward back and forth striking the spear that was the representative of her Class Those reverberations were what she was feeling causing her to double over in agony
Distantly she could sense the rest of the group coming to her side Especially she felt the Ghosthound’s concerned gaze as she couldn’t even get her mouth to open and speak Every time she did the sandstorm upped in ferocity striking her Class The strength of the strikes was so much that
A thin chip of her spear was knocked aside by the sandstorm which instantly set the sandstorm into a frenzy It swirled even faster the winds spinning down to a point which drilled towards her spear aiming for the small weakness in it With widening eyes Alana could only watch helpless as this strange strength she previously had turned against her aiming to destroy the Class
Then a voice whispered in her ear Deep and male
Girl Accept me and I will save you
Alana’s fear was instantly doused by this foreign influence and her suspicions rose
If you do not choose to follow my shape you will die Do you accept
Maybe it wasn’t smart but
Fuck you Alana hissed
CRACK
As her Class split down the middle Alana felt her consciousness rip and then darkness swirled in buoying her away
Randidly grinned as he saw his Level 10 notification but before he could even read it Lucretia’s voice distracted him
I’m sorry but I couldn’t warn you The System prevented me from speaking At Level 50
Before she even finished Randidly detected an increasingly violent Aether fluctuation and spun around Alana was doubled over in the corner of the cave wheezing Setting aside his notifications Randidly crossed the distance in a split second putting his hand on her forehead Immediately he could sense this wasn’t a physical ailment so he waved Ptolemy away who was pressing forward with a worried expression on his face
Randidly’s visage darkened as he looked inside of Alana with his Aether Detection Skill No this was
A lot of our warriors died before they realized what happens There is something that builds up around a Class the stronger it gets It makes creating images much easier so it is useful but at a certain point it becomes pressurized and like a bomb and explodes For this reason a lot of people will remain at Level 49 until they have developed their personal Skillset because after 50 it becomes much more difficult
Fuck the details Randidly said his heart rate rapidly increasing What do I do
Nothing Lucretia said softly If she rejects God’s offer
Randidly’s eyes widened
Her Class will shatter Lucretia finished
Randidly looked down at Alana laying on the floor of the cave convulsing now the blood flowing out of her face Without her typical scowl Randidly couldn’t help but notice how young she was A 20 something young woman faced with the apocalypse picking up a spear She was one of the first people that he had Blessed and now
His core began to resonate all of his Yggdrasil Skills beginning to glow in his chest Strength flowed into him making his physical body tense with the strain of containing so much force Unwillingness rose up from his chest thick and bitter
He remembered traveling with her down to Franksburg How she had fought through and gotten a golden coin for the town destroying the Ant Boss Then she had escorted him back accepting his Blessing
She had been one of the strongest in Donnyton She had protected the town in his absence She was the Captain of the First Squad of Donnyton the most prestigious martial position in Donnyton’s hierarchy When Randidly had returned she had asked no questions and simply accepted his invitation to spar
Even though he was years ahead of her at adapting to the apocalypse she had thrown herself at him time and time again She was direct and she was stubborn and
And she was a friend In small moments in shared dedication in if not shyness introversion They were both people of few words Randidly abruptly realized he had never thanked her for everything she had done for the town never told her how without her strength they would never have made it
Part of that was that Randidly had never paid attention He had just taken it for granted
His body burning his eyes glowing emerald like neon signs in the small cave Randidly looked upwards towards the sky towards the System to the fucking Creature that forced them to come in here and rejected it
Reaching into her soul space Randidly grasped her Class right as it shattered
And he bound it back together
Chapter 427
Binding her Class together Randidly quickly discovered was easier said than done Even if he held the shape of the Class together that strange thick energy around the Class still was smashing against it seeking a way in Randidly had moved before it had ground everything to pieces but he couldn’t block every flaw
As he struggled the strange energy pushed through eviscerating portions of the Class destroying 50 Levels worth of work And it made Randidly furious Partially because this had come out of nowhere and because there didn’t seem to be any point to it but mostly because Randidly felt like he couldn’t do anything
Briefly he considered using Inspiration but then rejected that idea Inspiration was good for broad powerful strokes Likely if he used Inspiration on Aether Manipulation he would just crush the already fragile Class as he tried to defend it In addition the strange thick energy around the Class wasn’t tiring if anything it was getting stronger as time passed
At that moment moving his will around fending off the sandstorm from eating into the Class and disintegrating it Randidly missed Neveah more than anything Strangely he had faith that if she was here she would be able to tell him what was going on and how to handle it Her intuition for Aether was uncanny
Lucretia remained near his consciousness shaking her head sadly believing this a lost cause
Strangely a quote Randidly remembered Mrs Hamilton saying to Donny came to mind If you cannot use power don’t just try more power win with intelligence and empathy
Intelligence and empathy was it So what was happening here exactly This strange energy that was built up the entire time she moved towards Level 50 suddenly attacked the Class But why
So Randidly looked even as he struggled to restrain that energy holding the quickly fracturing Class together Now it was in 5 pieces which made the defense a little easier but the increasingly faint whimpers from Alana revealed that there were dire consequences for allowing the damage to progress this far
The strange energy It wasn’t attacking per se but it was throwing itself at it smashing into it
which helped not at all The energy was basically battering it down grinding away at the Class slowly Once it shattered the energy preferred to aim for the vulnerable insides rather than striking the relatively structured outside Then
Then Randidly froze Because as he gazed closer he realized that some of the energy was dispersing And in the space where the cracks were something was growing
In Randidly’s view Alana’s Class was a giant construct of amber rigid and solid emulating her style and strength But throughout the amber as Randidly looked closer there were thin veins running through it Thin emerald veins glowing brightly with life wiggling through the cracks stretching outwards
And when the energy came in contact with those thin emerald vines
The energy seemed ecstatic and was siphoned into them But that suction caused more energy than the tiny emerald vine could absorb to come and the strange thick energy just smashed the Class shattering it further But in that space three more emerald vines could slither out
It was a losing battle however More vines were still hundreds of times too little And with so few vines that was just more surface area that would suck the thick energy inwards bringing a hammer blow against the Class fracturing it further
Not like this Randidly hissed closing his eyes racking his brain trying to figure out what to do And when he turned his attention inward if he didn’t find an answer to the question he was asking he found an answer to dozens of other questions and it gave him an idea
Because when he turned his attention inward he felt profoundly not himself He was Swimming in soft images of Donnyton at night of polishing a spear of the burning heat of the sun hanging over a desert images that were not his own flowing steadily through the connection that he and Alana shared through the Blessing
Instantly Randidly pressed downward with his will and a tidal wave of Aether shot forward slamming through their connection into Alana’s body Instantly those small green offshoots ballooned outwards growing more and more little tendrils absorbing the violent energies faster and faster Images flooded into Randidly
Distantly Randidly had known that the way his Aether worked was different than the System’s After all his Aether Crossroads would exchange both life and images whereas the System provided life and images but only took life in exchange
Where then would the images go
They would build up around the soul space with nowhere to go until Well it seemed like it would build up until there was enough pressure on them to explode outward Naturally however they would seek to return to joining the life energy perhaps flowing in the opposite direction but never separated Because they were not created without the context of life and craved it still to the point that they would shatter a rigid Class that wouldn’t accept them
Randidly bared his teeth Perhaps he wasn’t clear on the details but it seemed very true that the System had laid another trap for the people here one that the best and brightest would fall to if they were not forewarned From what Lucretia said there was a way to avoid this but
Undoubtedly it was another way that the System binds people to it A life devoid of your own images subsisting on half hearted regurgitated ones
Again Randidly howled mentally sending a tsunami of Aether flowing towards Alana Aether that could help absorb the images before they destroyed the carefully created Class but there was only so much that Randidly could do He realized it several precious seconds too late Already Alana’s Class was in 13 pieces and handfuls of small shards that were being slowly disintegrated
Still he would not stop now
More and more offshoots of his Aether grew up through her Class wrapping around the remaining 13 pieces guarding them shielding them from the violently exploding images And slowly the pandemonium began to clear
Tighter and tighter the vines spun twining together pressing the remaining shards of Alana Class into a semblance of what once was Annoyed at his slow progress he sent a mental prod at Lucretia even as about half of the violent energy was subdued
If you think it will help hum Let’s weave it like this Lucretia said slowly still disbelieving but her eyes flashed with curiosity She too realized that there was something peculiar here and even if it wasn’t enough to save Alana
No Randidly thought grinding his teeth It had to be enough
Now with Lucretia’s assistance his vines twined together in specific patterns fueled by his flood of Aether It was becoming difficult for Randidly to concentrate as images flooded him in exchange giving him a headache Hopefully this was a short term thing because otherwise
But Lucretia was there touching and prodding using his Skills keeping things under control while he was distracted They had built a Class before or at least tried to so Lucretia moved with a deft assurance that was absent the first time One of the key lessons that they had learned was that Aether was not nearly as fragile as they had first believed and also that it could not be kept separate from itself Strands of it would inevitably mix
So instead of aiming for accuracy what was better was to focus on the general shape and let the Aether itself and the life and images that constituted it fill in the difference
Slowly the Class came back together forming once more into a five tiered construct representing the five 10s of Levels that Alana had gathered It was a strange thing made mostly of vines and large shards of amber but as Randidly focused he could feel something else happening deep in his chest Living Aether activated
Slowly the form of the vines faded away leaving only the spiraling emerald crystal in stark contrast to the amber It shrunk back too so that it seemed that the emerald portions were just highlighting and outlining the amber like a frame for a painting And the amber seemed to even out a bit too as some of that emerald energy was absorbed by it the two varieties of Aether mixing together
By the end of it it had become a spear made of amber and emerald pointing towards the sky a large intact shard of amber at the apex pointing upwards
After coughing up what felt like a lung Alana sat up her head throbbing People were gathered around her and she pushed them away desiring space They seemed to sense this and they got up and took several steps back
One of them passed her a water
She felt a flash of irritation Did they think her incapable of getting a drink just because of a little headache Jesus fuck
Well she was thirsty
After a long drink Alana finally opened her eyes and blinked at the notification she saw
Congratulations You have passed your Reckoning Your Class has changed You have now become a Level 50 Valkyrie of the Red Dust Your Level up gains have changed +15 Health and Mana per Level +18 Stamina per Level +2 Strength per Level +5 Stats divided amongst Endurance Agility Wisdom and Focus You have gained the Skill Crimson Ire ® Lvl 1 You have gained the Skill Avatar Form Lvl 1
Chapter 428
In the aftermath of Randidly assisting Alana he had to take a pause before he dealt with his own notifications the images were flooding through his actions Every movement reminded him of something else from a life that wasn’t his Every second he was struck by a sense that he didn’t know himself and he had to close his eyes and breathe very slowly to calm down
Neveah again would have been super useful for this part Randidly reflected wincing at the headache inducing mass of images that rushed to the forefront But in a way Randidly understood that this wasn’t a permanent thing These images were just acting according to their nature They had been suppressed for so long that they were seeking a use an outlet
If they were people Randidly would have slapped them over the head but for now he could only wait
Still as his instincts indicated they slowly faded away filling him in a very unobtrusive way fading into his Grasp of Lava Circle of Flame and Incendiary Bolt Skills Some other images floated towards his spear Skills For the remainder they drifted downwards in Randidly’s chest eventually finding and settling in the Aether Crossroads in his chest forming a very light rune floating in his chest
Little motes of light continued to flow through their connection strengthening the rune but for now it was so dim that it was illegible But Randidly could already feel Lucretia’s burning desire to take it apart and figure out what was going on
Ruefully Randidly sighed Although it was nice to have some tentative measure of confidence that Lucretia wasn’t currently trying to screw him over there were some drawbacks The main one was that she had turned from a fate manipulating witch to a scientist on the autism spectrum who couldn’t help her compulsion to experiment on things that shouldn’t be messed with There were worse things however
With his headache slowly fading away as the images filtered through his body Randidly turned his attention to the notification waiting unobtrusively in the corner of his vision
Congratulations You have reached Level 10 +5 Stats distributed between Vitality Perception Resist Intelligence and Control +3 Free Stats +1 Stat to a Mental Stat +1 to a Physical Defense Stat +1 to a Mental Support Stat +1 Control +20 Health +24 Mana +23 Stamina + 5 to all Regenerations +1 to Health and Stamina Regeneration +20 Progenitor’s Influence You have gained the Skill Vengeful Bloom (Un) Lvl 1 You have gained the Skill Galant Intervention (Human) Lvl 1 You have gained the Skill Spriggit’s Tinkering ® Lvl 1
Vengeful Bloom (Un) In your body resides the baleful unwillingness of the Forest of Enmity When struck by physical attacks a very small amount of damaging energy is released proportional to the opposing strike Your resistance to cutting and bludgeoning slightly increases Effects increase with Skill Level
Galant Intervention (Human) By the grace of your power move at a speed beyond your capabilities to throw yourself in the way of an oncoming blow Only works on human victims Effect of speed boost and maximum distance from the target increase with Skill Level
Spriggit’s Tinkering ® Through your inner world you have gained a portion of the Spriggit’s knack for creating technologies and systems Your speed and success rate creating various systems and apparati has increased Your ability to understand complex processes is slightly boosted Effect increases with Skill Level
Randidly made a tsk’ing sound with his mouth A small physical damage reflect boost an increased ability to save people nearby and increased engineering proficiency Fine but definitely not quite as exciting as the previous batch of Skills that he earned
Still it was another source of PP for him And speaking of PP
During his time in the Raid Dungeon Randidly had earned 7 Levels in Wall of Thorns 3 in Aether Detection and Child of Rain 8 in Aether Manipulation and Grasp of Lava 5 in Cruel Indignation of Yggdrasil and Yyrwood Flesh of Yggdrasil 4 Levels in the Emerald Sap of Yggdrasil and the Golden Roots of Yggdrasil 2 in the Indomitable Spirit of Yggdrasil and Circle of Fire 4 in Invigorating Shout and Sharpness 1 in Incinerating Bolt and Nether Resistance and 6 in Touch from Beyond and 3 in Spearing Roots and Spear Mastery
That ended up at just over 70 PP More than enough to pour into Path of Control finishing off the Path very quickly
Congratulations You have completed the Path of Control This was perhaps not the Path that you ended up choosing and it has taken you a long time to run its gamut but it was a familiar and safe path and at the end of it you turn back and look how far you’ve come and wonder why it took you so long to embark in this direction But the Path leads ever onward don’t stop now Gain an additional +1 Control per Level +10 Wisdom You have gained the Skill Gravity Affinity Lvl 1
Gravity Affinity You have a small affinity for gravity It is possible to make minor variations to the gravitational forces on your body lessening the gravity to increase speed and increasing gravity to deal increased damage Effect is weak Effect weakens drastically outside of your body Effects increase with Skill Level
This was more of what Randidly was talking about even if the Path was getting a little sassy about him taking a while to finish it Although it wasn’t strong at all right now in the future if he could increase its effects changing gravity’s effects on himself would enable him to do a lot of cool movie style things
Well thinking in that manner would probably get himself killed But it would definitely be a Skill worth pursuing even if just for the Path that likely lay somewhere between Lvl 1 and Lvl 100 of that Skill Perhaps it would be like Grasping Roots and enable him to increase his power by evolving the Skill into something greater Hopefully something that would let him influence other things more directly
But controlling himself was his Path after all because he had just finished the path of Control
Chuckling at his own poor humor Randidly looked at the Paths available to him
Heretic XVII 0/ Nexus Traveler Cohort 5 0/50 Experimenter I 0/50 The Phantom’s Embrace 0/150 Fighting Proficiency III 0/ System Transgressor 0/1 Steps of the Godling II Path 0/200 Intermediate Soul Bond 0/125 the First Legend 0/ the Road to Mastery 0/500 Seed of Yggdrasil 0/150 Growth of Yggdrasil I 0/250 Crown of Yggdrasil 0/500 Friend to Humanity 0/100 Lavamancer 0/300
Randidly immediately felt another headache coming on as he looked at the Paths Rather than making his decisions more simple it seemed that during the time it took him to finish Path of Control all he had done was unlock more interesting Paths
Well first he should eliminate some options Nexus Traveler Experimenter System Transgressor Steps of the Godling and Intermediate Soul Bond were immediately eliminated Of all of those the only one that gave Randidly pause was the final one Intermediate Soul Bond He still worried about what was going on with Nevaeh but it was clear to him that part of the reason for the little change was that he was within the Dungeon and basically a day had passed since she had gone into this state
Randidly needed to have patience Besides rewards were something that Randidly needed to think deeply about now Especially because the limit on how many Skills he could have in addition to his Class Skills were capped at 10 He received so many Class Skills it seemed so that wasn’t a big issue but Gravity Affinity was the 3rd free Skill that he had learned since earning a Class
That was one third of his Skills he could learn gone Of course there were Skills he had that he would gladly drop but that would cost valuable PP In some cases worth it but not a solution to wanting to learn a Skill and being unable to
But at the same time he was hesitant to disqualify a Path just based on the Skill he might get from it After all he knew very little about Skills especially Skills relating to the Soulbond
For now however eliminating those was fine In addition to the pesky Heretic that eliminated a good deal but still several viable options Ultimately Randidly relied on the logic he had used previously and eliminated Fighting Proficiency III because the Phantom’s Embrace Path was probably just better Plus it was easy to cut away Friend to Humanity
Honestly he WAS likely that but to have that as a Path not only was it cheesy but Randidly had been completely unimpressed with his human centric Skills so far They were mostly support Skills in a way that was valuable but niche They all had their roles but they weren’t the sort of thing that could completely turn around a battle
And maybe Randidly was spoiled but if it wasn’t a little bit broken it felt rather dull to him
Which left a much more manageable list of Paths
The Phantom’s Embrace 0/150 the First Legend 0/ the Road to Mastery 0/500 Seed of Yggdrasil 0/150 Growth of Yggdrasil I 0/250 Crown of Yggdrasil 0/500 Lavamancer 0/300
Randidly also wanted to condense the different Yggdrasil based Paths but he couldn’t really figure out how to Not only were there 3 of them and he had never seen two similar Paths like this at the same time before but they all seemed to concern different portions or different directions he could take his Skills
Perhaps
Randidly Lucretia’s whisper came interrupting his thoughts I would like to apologize For what happened And also for how slow I was to assist you
Chapter 429
I’m from a different world Lucretia began taking a second to savor her words as she spoke them At her initial apology Randidly’s rage spiked upwards but as she spoke in such a measured tone it enabled him to suppress it and keep listening to her You of all people don’t need to be told this but it means things are different
Specifically in our world the Level 50 is a very important dividing line amongst warriors I referenced it earlier but it is rather well known that Skills can more easily be created immediately prior to Level 50 Not that there is any problem with people accidentally reaching Level 50 without the percent experience that you’ve received in the Raid Dungeon crossing that hurdle would have taken quite a bit of time As long as you don’t purposefully seek out battles with monsters or quests you can sit at Level 49 for quite a few years sharpening your images
To make things easier Randidly sunk into himself and slipped into his Soul Skill There he could face her directly She was still beautiful but now more than ever Randidly could see how she was the mother of Shal The shape of their faces was extremely similar The sharpness of their nose and the hard cast of their jaw spoke of their shared stubbornness But of course Lucretia’s soft lavender hair was all hers She had chosen the location and he had just moved through his Soul Skill to find it arriving at the top of a snow covered mountain The ice and snow swirled harmlessly around Randidly as he eyed her
Sighing she continued to speak “All of that is just a preface Now I’d like to talk about what I was always told happens at Level 50 For that is the time that a warrior condenses their Fate “
“Fate ” Randidly asked quirking up an eyebrow Lucretia shot him an annoyed glance for the interruption but it only made Randidly more pleased he had done so She likely had thought very carefully about how this would happen and arranged every line anytime Randidly spoke it completely threw her off track
Then Lucretia gestured and as Randidly watched his eyes widened Because out of nowhere Lucretia created a glass staff Created because it wasn’t as though she had produced it from an interspatial ring No Randidly had watched it grow
From her hand the crystal had rapidly spread up to a larger crystal top and straight down to become a staff of glass Bemused Lucretia did a little curtsy
“A Fate ” Lucretia said brandishing her glass staff ” to understand my confusion we need to take a couple steps back Because based on what just happened what is really occurring is very much different than what I had always been told “
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