[Level up: You have achieved level 95. Prophecy Bonus: +2 WIS +2 VIG]
[Level up: You hav…
[Level up: You have a…
[Level up: You have achieved level 106. Prophecy Bonus: +2 WIS +2 VIG]
[New Great Milestone reached — Skills & Feats Available]
I frowned. It felt good to be rewarded for my troubles, however it didn’t feel that good to simply get a shit ton of levels for surviving some guy. It was ridiculous and a bit cheesy. Seriously, whatever happened to struggling for my life for levels? All I had been doing as of recently is throw stronger things than me into something even stronger and having them die that way. I hadn't even injured him, I was pretty sure it was all just related to the Grand Feat I had gotten.
I scoffed as I looked over a different notification, I had even gotten a new Feat on top of the last one.
[Feat Achieved — Apprentice of the Dark Calamity — You are the unique apprentice of the legendary Dark Calamity, this Feats validates the claim. Dark Plants in your presence gain vastly increased reflexes.
“Cockroach, you don’t get to live after the damages you’ve caused.” — Lumina, the Dark Calamity, to the Blood Drinker.]
I mean, it was nice and all, I just… I kind of disliked the feeling of not struggling for things. I heavily disliked it. A long breath left me, Elasia looked at me weakly.
“You leveled up more than I expected.” She commented after a second.
I simply sighed as Elasia continued speaking.
“It seems you heavily dislike not struggling for your life.” I nodded. “Well, that might be fine. Don’t worry there is a chance life won’t be boring anymore. What’s the next trial objective, Blair?”
Lumina asked me and I blinked, I had sort of forgotten about it. I turned to my trial objectives, and the quest too.
[You have completed a quest — Lumina’s Will (Mythical) Reward: Unknown.]
Huh, well… Maybe Lumina was going to give me the reward herself? I turned to the other notification, the one regarding the trial.
[Ỳ̷̮o̸̹͛ư̵̟ ̴̭̈́h̷̒ͅâ̴̖v̵̯́ë̵͎ R̷̦̃é̴͖v̸̤̀i̸̠͘v̵̢̓ë̴̢́d ̷͔͌t̶̘̿h̸̨͒e̶̫̽ ̵̡͠O̸͓͝l̶͙̚d̴̛͚ ̸̬̏T̶̖̓e̷͉͝r̴̢̔r̶̖͝o̸̦͗r̸̻̓ — Next step: Kill a Blight Corrupted Wolfe.]
I paused. What the fuck— I swore. I had already killed so many of the stupid things! Elasia raised her brow.
“Something happen?”
“The quest objective went from a jumbled text to just kill one of the stupid Blight monsters.”
Elasia gasped and closed her eyes. “Yeah, those are kind of… extinguished from this planet at the moment.”
“You mean?” I asked with a frown.
“The trial cannot be completed.” She said with a sigh.
“Can’t you change it? You made the trial, no?” I asked with confusion.
“No, and yes. Sorry Blair.” Elasia did a small shrug. “I cannot exactly use mana right now either, since it’s what is keeping me alive. Just focus on making the Artificial Heart and we will figure out what to do later.”
I nodded with some defeat, focusing on finishing the Artificial Heart. It took a few minutes but eventually I got back on track where I left off, some more time passed as Elasia watched with some lost curiosity, occasionally closing her eyes. Eventually, I passed the last of the wood— threaded it and melded it.
Footsteps echoed off in the distance through the grass. Elasia snapped her head in the direction, as I simply slowly looked. It was Lumina, she was walking casually with her hands on the back of her neck, and now she wore some kind of black rag over her body. Soon, she saw Elasia and her demeanor changed and she rushed—sprinted towards us. In an instant she stood before the room.
“Give me that—” She yanked the finished heart from my hand with an annoyed voice. “You’re doing it— oh, it’s actually correct. I guess I doubted you a bit too much…” Lumina said with some embarrassment. “Blair, do you think you can give me some more of the Blight material you have?”
I nodded and extended my hand. Generating it within my fist as I handed it to Lumina. She stuffed it the same way I did as I kept giving her the sloppy weird fibers. It took a few moments, but another heart was completed and Lumina shocked it with her mana. It began beating and then she turned to Elasia.
“It’s gonna hurt a bit, okay?”
Elasia lifted her brow. “Lumina, are you sure, it’s a better heart? Is it not better to wait it out for me to recover?”
“Yes, it’s Mythical Grade, it should be the same—” she inspected it to make sure. “Yeah, it is Mythical Grade, are you willing to upgrade your heart El?”
Elasia looked uncertain and then nodded.
“Good!” Blood splattered in an instant. My eyes widened in shock as Lumina’s hand had been shoved through Elasia’s chest. “There, instantly.”
Elasia blinked and looked down, her clothes were now bloodied. There was only shock in her face as the heart began to beat, and her complexion quickly recovered. In just a few seconds her appearance shifted to the Elasia I was used to, all the blood went away, but I just assumed it was an illusion of sorts.
“You didn’t have to do it like that.” Elasia spoke with a deep breath.
“Well, it’s good like that, no?” Lumina snorted. “Otherwise you would’ve winced and maybe pleaded that I do it gently.”
Elasia sighed. “Lumina, do you have a fucking clue on how long you’ve been dead?”
“A hundred years?” She asked with confusion.
“About five-hundred, you stupid moron.” Elasia spoke softly as she closed in on Lumina.
“What’s with that expression?” Lumina took a step back with some horror, Elasia looked on the verge of crying. “Since when do you look at me like that—”
Lumina was hugged as Elasia began to softly sob on her shoulder. She was frozen in place as I simply stared. However, before I could ask what was going on, Elasia clicked their fingers and they vanished.
* * * * *
Lumina stared around them, as the illusion space was formed she felt uncomfortable as Elasia kept crying on her shoulder. She understood that El didn’t want to look vulnerable before her Champion, but it was strange to her. Lumina hesitated before she began to pat onto Elasia’s shoulder. She could remember brief memories from the will within the Prophecy that Blair had acquired. She thought her companion had been doing fine, but that wasn’t the case.
Her gaze softened, and she began to pat Elasia.
“There, there, you were lonely without me, weren’t you?” But then, she just couldn’t stop, as she too cried. “I miss you too… I ran away didn’t I?”
Elasia just nodded and stepped back, but before she could say anything else, Lumina saw the book within Elasia’s hand.
“You read that?” Lumina froze. “Look, I know you are angry, but—”
And she was just interrupted with a warm silence before she could make any more excuses.
* * * * *
I waited for what felt like an hour sitting on the chair. Waiting for Lumina and Elasia to reappear but to no avail. It was weird to me, the ground was bloody, the entire place reeked of destruction and yet it was all so peaceful. Only the wind was there, the rustling of the trees and finally, the rising sun. I looked over to the broken rubble of the room, as I gazed upon the horizon. The forest seemed to twitch as the bright orange light peeked over, illuminating everything with its warmth light.
I sighed as I finally decided to stand up. I wasn’t going to wait a long time just for Elasia and Lumina to reappear, I at least understood they would come find me whenever they were done with their reunion probably. That or we would probably meet back at my Settlement slash town. With that in mind I stepped forward out of the broken ruins and basked in the sunlight for a moment before realizing.
Ah, I am still atop the treant, am I not?
I thought about jumping down and cushioning my fall, but decided against it. A single mistake and I’d probably break my legs and suffer tremendous pain for no reason. With a small sigh, I slid over the edge as I began my arduous descent.
◇ ◇ ◇
It took a few hours but eventually I finished the descent from the World Tree, and finally, I questioned myself.
What now?
I pondered for a few moments before remembering something— The Light Maker. He had been left there. I wondered for a moment if he was alright, before deciding to head in the direction of the base. However, just as I turned I saw a figure walking towards me under the sunlight. His armor sparkled, and even though there were deep gashes, he strode with confidence.
Before I could call, the figure vanished with a flashing light and stood next to me.
“I am relieved to see you alive, Realm Breaker.”
I took a breath with some embarrassment. “I was about to go check on you, Light Maker.”
He shook his head. “It’s The Light Maker.” He corrected me. “I am here now, let us go to a different base and then finish your trial? It seems that…” Then, he looked at the destruction around us. “A lot happened while I wasn’t here, but judging by the calm on your face it looks like everything got sorted. Some powerful figure resurrected, so it's probably best to stay low.”
“Ah, there was a notification, wasn't there?”
The Light Maker nodded. “Now, let us go.”
Before I could make further conversation, The Light Maker grabbed onto my hand, and with a flashing light we teleported. I saw trees, forest— I didn’t know how many times I blinked, but eventually we were inside another similar base. Except it was a bit flatter, perhaps more dull was the word.
It was also much smaller, but I still found myself on a couch facing The Light Maker. As soon as we reached he collapsed on the couch with a deep sigh.
“So, what is your next objective, Realm Breaker? It seems like your trial is still ongoing.”
I nodded. “It seems I need to kill a Blight Corrupted Wolfe.”
The Light Maker shook his head. “Impossible, I looked around and saw no sign of the monsters, not a single one. I even revisited the sapling, but there was nothing. There is a good chance the Blight Corruption is completely gone.”
“Right.” I sighed. “The Blood Drinker caused it, and now that he is gone—”
“Gone?” The Light Maker asked quizzingly. “What do you mean by, gone?”
I shifted awkwardly. “Well, he is kind of dead…”
“By whom?” The Light Maker asked in a craze.
“By me!” A powerful voice echoed throughout the room as Lumina stumbled from the air itself, as if she had just crossed from a doorway forcefully. She was quivering a bit, even though her face was full of pride. “I killed that annoying cockroach. Though it wouldn’t surprise me if he is still alive, he did use a Mythical Skill at the end that did jackshit.”
Elasia walked out of the space in silence, she seemed a bit flushed and sweaty, but there was not much change in her countenance.
The Light Maker refuted. “You people are—” And then he froze mid sentence staring at the both in silence. “Two… Monarchs… And, one is… the Dark Calamity…”
I sighed. “There you have it…” I plopped back on the couch.
The Light Maker stared. “Realm Breaker, you, you know these people?”
I gestured towards Lumina. “She is my mentor…” And then I gestured towards Elasia. “I am her Champion, the Champion of Illusion.”
There was only silence from The Light Maker as Lumina grumbled and sat next to him, plopping onto the couch without saying much. Elasia walked around and sat next to me looking at The Light Maker.
“I saw that you saved my Champion.”
The Light Maker went stiff. “Y-Yes, I did.”
Elasia took a breath of relief. “Thank you, Light Maker.”
The Light Maker did not bother correcting as he simply gazed at Elasia, then he slowly craned his head towards Lumina who seemed to be biting her nail and thinking things to herself. In an instant, he pleaded.
“Please, don’t kill me. I haven’t brought any harm to Realm Breaker, I even made an oath to protect her for a month.”
“Extend it.” Lumina said out of nowhere.
“Pardon?” The Light Maker met Lumina’s gaze. His visor did not let me read his expression, but knowing him, there was only horror.
“Extend your oath, become Blair’s servant.”
“That isn’t—”
“Extend it.” Lumina demanded once more.
I looked at Elasia in shock but she simply averted her gaze. Were they being serious right now? The Light Maker was looking at me as I shifted, Lumina was still looking at the Light Maker with a frown.
“Lumina that isn’t necessary—”
“This bastard knows everything, you think we can just let him go? We are just offering him an opportunity to survive by joining your faction.” Lumina explained. “So what do you say, Light Maker?”
He took a deep breath. “I will do it. I will become a slave…” He clenched his fist.
“Not a slave.” Lumina corrected. “You will just be a protector, you will be her guardian, you will be her assistant. Like a butler. Though I doubt she will order you around much.” She said as she gave me a quick look.
The Light Maker took a deep breath. “I will join her faction.”
Lumina laughed and patted him in the back, making him visibly flinch from the strength.
“Good, good, you are a smart one. I like you.”
For the first time, I actually felt bad for The Light Maker, he deserved a bit better. But, it also gave me ease.
I had to apologize to him later.
After a few moments of awkward silence and The Light Maker forming contracts with both Lumina and Elasia, I couldn’t help but ask.
“What happens now?”
“Now we wait.” The Light Maker answered with a deep sigh. He was visibly relaxed.
The contract guaranteed his life would be spared and never touched or attempted by either of the two so long as he was actively following through with it. His change in demeanor was almost instant.
“We wait for the trial to end, Blair.” Elasia said.
I took a breath as I stared at the timer.
[Trial Period: 25 days 2 hours 58 minutes]
“We have to wait twenty-five days?” I finally asked with shock.
“Yes, we will all go back together by holding you.” The Light Maker explained as I let go of a long sigh.
◇ ◇ ◇
Weeks passed uneventfully, all that happened was information exchange. Mostly me asking things and most of the time getting denied or refusal to explain things. The only things that I gathered were:
Elasia was actually not Corrupted, and to never touch upon System Corruption. That it would inevitably ruin my very being and kill me. Though Lumina didn’t seem to care about it too much, then again her quest had corrupted the trial, so maybe she had messed with it.
The Light Maker listened intently, and seemed to nod fervently whenever something semi-important was mentioned. However, there was something that bothered me as I took a pick between all my skills and feat options.
[Skill — Deathly Bloom (Legendary) — Unstable. Desecration. Upon exploding a dark plant its explosion will double and bloom. Anything caught within the explosion will instantly lose half of their total Vigor and be poisoned: can be resisted.]
[Feat — Attuned to the Dark Terror — You have seen the depths and despair of the darkness, you have experienced and lived with it first hand, you are attuned to the dark, partake and breathe in it. Any dark affinity is twice less effective against you, your dark plants deal twice the damage to any non dark affinity targets.
“I don’t wish to go to that place ever again…” Mare, the Executor of Executors.]
[Skill — Dark Plant Behest (Legendary Passive) — Any dark plant in your vicinity will bow to your will. They will do anything to protect you and listen to your orders. Any plant will be tainted by darkness and become a dark plant of the corresponding grade after half a minute. All dark plants are at your behest.]
[Feat — The Unwhittled — You have survived precarious and dangerous situations over and over again. You have evaded fate itself to survive anything and everything. Not even the strongest forces can kill you. Survive true death once a decade. Even if your body and soul are incinerated you shall be reset to 24 hours prior.
“Run and hide from me, no matter how many times you try, I will show up. — Larry, the Undying Human.]
[Skill — Darkest Instability (Legendary) — Anything you touch, your mana or your plant extensions touch, will instantly gain a piece of Instability that can be Destabilized at any moment. Destabilization will cause an explosive mana reaction, if the object in question carries your mana the reaction will be chained and multiplied. One minute cooldown.]
There were no Essence Skills.
I was met with scoff from Lumina. “First find your essence, find what your very being is and encapsulate it in a concept. And maybe then, you will gain the revelation for an Essence Skill. They start at C Grade, so it shouldn’t be too hard.
I’ll give you some examples. Elasia’s is Lies and Delusion, the concept of that. Mine is closer to the terror that Dark Plants exude on people, and The Light Maker’s is the instancy of light, the brief infinite window that makes light appear.
Also, Legendary Skills at your level are a boon, albeit one of them is a bait.”
That’s what she had said. With a sigh, after saving for so long I had chosen a skill instead of a Feat. At least, according to Lumina and Elasia it was the best option, Deathly Bloom wasn’t as good as it sounded since if the target was a higher level than me they would just resist it. They had told me that the Unwhittled Feat was good, but a decade of wait was— well I wasn’t a fan of it, and also based on their explanation, if I died even if I revived it would be closer to a clone. Which, well I disliked a lot.
Dark Plant Behest was the other good option, along with the Dark Terror Feat, but in the end. With some guidance and discussion I finally made my choice.
A Legendary Skill.
[Skill Learned — Darkest Instability (Legendary) — Anything you touch, your mana or your plant extensions touch, will instantly gain a piece of Instability that can be Destabilized at any moment. Destabilization will cause an explosive mana reaction, if the object in question carries your mana the reaction will be chained and multiplied. One minute cooldown.]
It was a good skill and I theorized — Lumina and Elasia also did — that they would take my arrows and combat to the next level. I would actually be able to hurt things. Truly hurt them.
I was very happy with the choice, if disappointed about the lack of an Essence Skill.
◇ ◇ ◇
A few days later, we all gathered together in the center of the bunker. Apparently it was deep underground and there was also very little reason to leave either. There had been explosions outside, apparently the Empire of the Legacy of Brilliance had probably sent powerful figures to try to kill Lumina before she left the planet.
“We really are fugitives…” The Light Maker sighed.
“Calm yourself princess.” Lumina snorted. “They are just angry that my level is higher.”
“They are definitely jealous of your level. But they must also be even more jealous of the fact that you sent a notification notifying everyone about your revival, why would you do something so stupid?” The Light Maker asked, clearly running out of patience.
“Why wouldn’t I? The System asked and I agreed. Of course I would agree.” Lumina smiled. “Wouldn’t you, Mr. The Light Maker?”
He snorted and grumbled under his breath. “I would.”
Elasia laughed.
I felt a bit warm looking at the scene. Technically everyone around me was part of the same pack. Of my pack. I was no longer alone, even if I had two extremely strong beings by my side, they felt familiar rather than figures to be feared.
I looked at Elasia’s small smile, at The Light Maker bickering with Lumina and I just felt warm.
The timer reached 1 minute and we all gathered together. Bundled and hugging each other even though it was uncomfortable.
“Do we really have to hug?” The Light Maker protested.
“Then you can just stay here and die.” Lumina said.
“Just saying…”
The timer reached zero.
[You have completed the trial: Trial Of Will: The Illusionist’s Resolve. Time left: None.]
* * * * *
He gasped as blood pooled in a dark room. He didn’t know where he was, his body felt soft and rejuvenated, but he felt weaker than ever. He could feel the cold hard ground under his naked feet, his chest heaved up and down as he looked down. There was uneven stone, his hand wandered to the side of the rocky wall, where he felt the raspy texture.
Wind drifted up and down, and he had no idea where he was or what he was doing, but there was only one thing in his mind.
He was going to get his revenge on them. On the two dryads. And he could think of the perfect target.
Just they wait.
The Blood Drinker will return.
[Level up: You have achieved level 95. Prophecy Bonus: +2 WIS +2 VIG]
[Level up: You hav…
[Level up: You have a…
[Level up: You have achieved level 106. Prophecy Bonus: +2 WIS +2 VIG]
[New Great Milestone reached — Skills & Feats Available]
I frowned. It felt good to be rewarded for my troubles, however it didn’t feel that good to simply get a shit ton of levels for surviving some guy. It was ridiculous and a bit cheesy. Seriously, whatever happened to struggling for my life for levels? All I had been doing as of recently is throw stronger things than me into something even stronger and having them die that way. I hadn't even injured him, I was pretty sure it was all just related to the Grand Feat I had gotten.
I scoffed as I looked over a different notification, I had even gotten a new Feat on top of the last one.
[Feat Achieved — Apprentice of the Dark Calamity — You are the unique apprentice of the legendary Dark Calamity, this Feats validates the claim. Dark Plants in your presence gain vastly increased reflexes.
“Cockroach, you don’t get to live after the damages you’ve caused.” — Lumina, the Dark Calamity, to the Blood Drinker.]
I mean, it was nice and all, I just… I kind of disliked the feeling of not struggling for things. I heavily disliked it. A long breath left me, Elasia looked at me weakly.
“You leveled up more than I expected.” She commented after a second.
I simply sighed as Elasia continued speaking.
“It seems you heavily dislike not struggling for your life.” I nodded. “Well, that might be fine. Don’t worry there is a chance life won’t be boring anymore. What’s the next trial objective, Blair?”
Lumina asked me and I blinked, I had sort of forgotten about it. I turned to my trial objectives, and the quest too.
[You have completed a quest — Lumina’s Will (Mythical) Reward: Unknown.]
Huh, well… Maybe Lumina was going to give me the reward herself? I turned to the other notification, the one regarding the trial.
[Ỳ̷̮o̸̹͛ư̵̟ ̴̭̈́h̷̒ͅâ̴̖v̵̯́ë̵͎ R̷̦̃é̴͖v̸̤̀i̸̠͘v̵̢̓ë̴̢́d ̷͔͌t̶̘̿h̸̨͒e̶̫̽ ̵̡͠O̸͓͝l̶͙̚d̴̛͚ ̸̬̏T̶̖̓e̷͉͝r̴̢̔r̶̖͝o̸̦͗r̸̻̓ — Next step: Kill a Blight Corrupted Wolfe.]
I paused. What the fuck— I swore. I had already killed so many of the stupid things! Elasia raised her brow.
“Something happen?”
“The quest objective went from a jumbled text to just kill one of the stupid Blight monsters.”
Elasia gasped and closed her eyes. “Yeah, those are kind of… extinguished from this planet at the moment.”
“You mean?” I asked with a frown.
“The trial cannot be completed.” She said with a sigh.
“Can’t you change it? You made the trial, no?” I asked with confusion.
“No, and yes. Sorry Blair.” Elasia did a small shrug. “I cannot exactly use mana right now either, since it’s what is keeping me alive. Just focus on making the Artificial Heart and we will figure out what to do later.”
I nodded with some defeat, focusing on finishing the Artificial Heart. It took a few minutes but eventually I got back on track where I left off, some more time passed as Elasia watched with some lost curiosity, occasionally closing her eyes. Eventually, I passed the last of the wood— threaded it and melded it.
Footsteps echoed off in the distance through the grass. Elasia snapped her head in the direction, as I simply slowly looked. It was Lumina, she was walking casually with her hands on the back of her neck, and now she wore some kind of black rag over her body. Soon, she saw Elasia and her demeanor changed and she rushed—sprinted towards us. In an instant she stood before the room.
“Give me that—” She yanked the finished heart from my hand with an annoyed voice. “You’re doing it— oh, it’s actually correct. I guess I doubted you a bit too much…” Lumina said with some embarrassment. “Blair, do you think you can give me some more of the Blight material you have?”
I nodded and extended my hand. Generating it within my fist as I handed it to Lumina. She stuffed it the same way I did as I kept giving her the sloppy weird fibers. It took a few moments, but another heart was completed and Lumina shocked it with her mana. It began beating and then she turned to Elasia.
“It’s gonna hurt a bit, okay?”
Elasia lifted her brow. “Lumina, are you sure, it’s a better heart? Is it not better to wait it out for me to recover?”
“Yes, it’s Mythical Grade, it should be the same—” she inspected it to make sure. “Yeah, it is Mythical Grade, are you willing to upgrade your heart El?”
Elasia looked uncertain and then nodded.
“Good!” Blood splattered in an instant. My eyes widened in shock as Lumina’s hand had been shoved through Elasia’s chest. “There, instantly.”
Elasia blinked and looked down, her clothes were now bloodied. There was only shock in her face as the heart began to beat, and her complexion quickly recovered. In just a few seconds her appearance shifted to the Elasia I was used to, all the blood went away, but I just assumed it was an illusion of sorts.
“You didn’t have to do it like that.” Elasia spoke with a deep breath.
“Well, it’s good like that, no?” Lumina snorted. “Otherwise you would’ve winced and maybe pleaded that I do it gently.”
Elasia sighed. “Lumina, do you have a fucking clue on how long you’ve been dead?”
“A hundred years?” She asked with confusion.
“About five-hundred, you stupid moron.” Elasia spoke softly as she closed in on Lumina.
“What’s with that expression?” Lumina took a step back with some horror, Elasia looked on the verge of crying. “Since when do you look at me like that—”
Lumina was hugged as Elasia began to softly sob on her shoulder. She was frozen in place as I simply stared. However, before I could ask what was going on, Elasia clicked their fingers and they vanished.
* * * * *
Lumina stared around them, as the illusion space was formed she felt uncomfortable as Elasia kept crying on her shoulder. She understood that El didn’t want to look vulnerable before her Champion, but it was strange to her. Lumina hesitated before she began to pat onto Elasia’s shoulder. She could remember brief memories from the will within the Prophecy that Blair had acquired. She thought her companion had been doing fine, but that wasn’t the case.
Her gaze softened, and she began to pat Elasia.
“There, there, you were lonely without me, weren’t you?” But then, she just couldn’t stop, as she too cried. “I miss you too… I ran away didn’t I?”
Elasia just nodded and stepped back, but before she could say anything else, Lumina saw the book within Elasia’s hand.
“You read that?” Lumina froze. “Look, I know you are angry, but—”
And she was just interrupted with a warm silence before she could make any more excuses.
* * * * *
I waited for what felt like an hour sitting on the chair. Waiting for Lumina and Elasia to reappear but to no avail. It was weird to me, the ground was bloody, the entire place reeked of destruction and yet it was all so peaceful. Only the wind was there, the rustling of the trees and finally, the rising sun. I looked over to the broken rubble of the room, as I gazed upon the horizon. The forest seemed to twitch as the bright orange light peeked over, illuminating everything with its warmth light.
I sighed as I finally decided to stand up. I wasn’t going to wait a long time just for Elasia and Lumina to reappear, I at least understood they would come find me whenever they were done with their reunion probably. That or we would probably meet back at my Settlement slash town. With that in mind I stepped forward out of the broken ruins and basked in the sunlight for a moment before realizing.
Ah, I am still atop the treant, am I not?
I thought about jumping down and cushioning my fall, but decided against it. A single mistake and I’d probably break my legs and suffer tremendous pain for no reason. With a small sigh, I slid over the edge as I began my arduous descent.
◇ ◇ ◇
It took a few hours but eventually I finished the descent from the World Tree, and finally, I questioned myself.
What now?
I pondered for a few moments before remembering something— The Light Maker. He had been left there. I wondered for a moment if he was alright, before deciding to head in the direction of the base. However, just as I turned I saw a figure walking towards me under the sunlight. His armor sparkled, and even though there were deep gashes, he strode with confidence.
Before I could call, the figure vanished with a flashing light and stood next to me.
“I am relieved to see you alive, Realm Breaker.”
I took a breath with some embarrassment. “I was about to go check on you, Light Maker.”
He shook his head. “It’s The Light Maker.” He corrected me. “I am here now, let us go to a different base and then finish your trial? It seems that…” Then, he looked at the destruction around us. “A lot happened while I wasn’t here, but judging by the calm on your face it looks like everything got sorted. Some powerful figure resurrected, so it's probably best to stay low.”
“Ah, there was a notification, wasn't there?”
The Light Maker nodded. “Now, let us go.”
Before I could make further conversation, The Light Maker grabbed onto my hand, and with a flashing light we teleported. I saw trees, forest— I didn’t know how many times I blinked, but eventually we were inside another similar base. Except it was a bit flatter, perhaps more dull was the word.
It was also much smaller, but I still found myself on a couch facing The Light Maker. As soon as we reached he collapsed on the couch with a deep sigh.
“So, what is your next objective, Realm Breaker? It seems like your trial is still ongoing.”
I nodded. “It seems I need to kill a Blight Corrupted Wolfe.”
The Light Maker shook his head. “Impossible, I looked around and saw no sign of the monsters, not a single one. I even revisited the sapling, but there was nothing. There is a good chance the Blight Corruption is completely gone.”
“Right.” I sighed. “The Blood Drinker caused it, and now that he is gone—”
“Gone?” The Light Maker asked quizzingly. “What do you mean by, gone?”
I shifted awkwardly. “Well, he is kind of dead…”
“By whom?” The Light Maker asked in a craze.
“By me!” A powerful voice echoed throughout the room as Lumina stumbled from the air itself, as if she had just crossed from a doorway forcefully. She was quivering a bit, even though her face was full of pride. “I killed that annoying cockroach. Though it wouldn’t surprise me if he is still alive, he did use a Mythical Skill at the end that did jackshit.”
Elasia walked out of the space in silence, she seemed a bit flushed and sweaty, but there was not much change in her countenance.
The Light Maker refuted. “You people are—” And then he froze mid sentence staring at the both in silence. “Two… Monarchs… And, one is… the Dark Calamity…”
I sighed. “There you have it…” I plopped back on the couch.
The Light Maker stared. “Realm Breaker, you, you know these people?”
I gestured towards Lumina. “She is my mentor…” And then I gestured towards Elasia. “I am her Champion, the Champion of Illusion.”
There was only silence from The Light Maker as Lumina grumbled and sat next to him, plopping onto the couch without saying much. Elasia walked around and sat next to me looking at The Light Maker.
“I saw that you saved my Champion.”
The Light Maker went stiff. “Y-Yes, I did.”
Elasia took a breath of relief. “Thank you, Light Maker.”
The Light Maker did not bother correcting as he simply gazed at Elasia, then he slowly craned his head towards Lumina who seemed to be biting her nail and thinking things to herself. In an instant, he pleaded.
“Please, don’t kill me. I haven’t brought any harm to Realm Breaker, I even made an oath to protect her for a month.”
“Extend it.” Lumina said out of nowhere.
“Pardon?” The Light Maker met Lumina’s gaze. His visor did not let me read his expression, but knowing him, there was only horror.
“Extend your oath, become Blair’s servant.”
“That isn’t—”
“Extend it.” Lumina demanded once more.
I looked at Elasia in shock but she simply averted her gaze. Were they being serious right now? The Light Maker was looking at me as I shifted, Lumina was still looking at the Light Maker with a frown.
“Lumina that isn’t necessary—”
“This bastard knows everything, you think we can just let him go? We are just offering him an opportunity to survive by joining your faction.” Lumina explained. “So what do you say, Light Maker?”
He took a deep breath. “I will do it. I will become a slave…” He clenched his fist.
“Not a slave.” Lumina corrected. “You will just be a protector, you will be her guardian, you will be her assistant. Like a butler. Though I doubt she will order you around much.” She said as she gave me a quick look.
The Light Maker took a deep breath. “I will join her faction.”
Lumina laughed and patted him in the back, making him visibly flinch from the strength.
“Good, good, you are a smart one. I like you.”
For the first time, I actually felt bad for The Light Maker, he deserved a bit better. But, it also gave me ease.
I had to apologize to him later.
After a few moments of awkward silence and The Light Maker forming contracts with both Lumina and Elasia, I couldn’t help but ask.
“What happens now?”
“Now we wait.” The Light Maker answered with a deep sigh. He was visibly relaxed.
The contract guaranteed his life would be spared and never touched or attempted by either of the two so long as he was actively following through with it. His change in demeanor was almost instant.
“We wait for the trial to end, Blair.” Elasia said.
I took a breath as I stared at the timer.
[Trial Period: 25 days 2 hours 58 minutes]
“We have to wait twenty-five days?” I finally asked with shock.
“Yes, we will all go back together by holding you.” The Light Maker explained as I let go of a long sigh.
◇ ◇ ◇
Weeks passed uneventfully, all that happened was information exchange. Mostly me asking things and most of the time getting denied or refusal to explain things. The only things that I gathered were:
Elasia was actually not Corrupted, and to never touch upon System Corruption. That it would inevitably ruin my very being and kill me. Though Lumina didn’t seem to care about it too much, then again her quest had corrupted the trial, so maybe she had messed with it.
The Light Maker listened intently, and seemed to nod fervently whenever something semi-important was mentioned. However, there was something that bothered me as I took a pick between all my skills and feat options.
[Skill — Deathly Bloom (Legendary) — Unstable. Desecration. Upon exploding a dark plant its explosion will double and bloom. Anything caught within the explosion will instantly lose half of their total Vigor and be poisoned: can be resisted.]
[Feat — Attuned to the Dark Terror — You have seen the depths and despair of the darkness, you have experienced and lived with it first hand, you are attuned to the dark, partake and breathe in it. Any dark affinity is twice less effective against you, your dark plants deal twice the damage to any non dark affinity targets.
“I don’t wish to go to that place ever again…” Mare, the Executor of Executors.]
[Skill — Dark Plant Behest (Legendary Passive) — Any dark plant in your vicinity will bow to your will. They will do anything to protect you and listen to your orders. Any plant will be tainted by darkness and become a dark plant of the corresponding grade after half a minute. All dark plants are at your behest.]
[Feat — The Unwhittled — You have survived precarious and dangerous situations over and over again. You have evaded fate itself to survive anything and everything. Not even the strongest forces can kill you. Survive true death once a decade. Even if your body and soul are incinerated you shall be reset to 24 hours prior.
“Run and hide from me, no matter how many times you try, I will show up. — Larry, the Undying Human.]
[Skill — Darkest Instability (Legendary) — Anything you touch, your mana or your plant extensions touch, will instantly gain a piece of Instability that can be Destabilized at any moment. Destabilization will cause an explosive mana reaction, if the object in question carries your mana the reaction will be chained and multiplied. One minute cooldown.]
There were no Essence Skills.
I was met with scoff from Lumina. “First find your essence, find what your very being is and encapsulate it in a concept. And maybe then, you will gain the revelation for an Essence Skill. They start at C Grade, so it shouldn’t be too hard.
I’ll give you some examples. Elasia’s is Lies and Delusion, the concept of that. Mine is closer to the terror that Dark Plants exude on people, and The Light Maker’s is the instancy of light, the brief infinite window that makes light appear.
Also, Legendary Skills at your level are a boon, albeit one of them is a bait.”
That’s what she had said. With a sigh, after saving for so long I had chosen a skill instead of a Feat. At least, according to Lumina and Elasia it was the best option, Deathly Bloom wasn’t as good as it sounded since if the target was a higher level than me they would just resist it. They had told me that the Unwhittled Feat was good, but a decade of wait was— well I wasn’t a fan of it, and also based on their explanation, if I died even if I revived it would be closer to a clone. Which, well I disliked a lot.
Dark Plant Behest was the other good option, along with the Dark Terror Feat, but in the end. With some guidance and discussion I finally made my choice.
A Legendary Skill.
[Skill Learned — Darkest Instability (Legendary) — Anything you touch, your mana or your plant extensions touch, will instantly gain a piece of Instability that can be Destabilized at any moment. Destabilization will cause an explosive mana reaction, if the object in question carries your mana the reaction will be chained and multiplied. One minute cooldown.]
It was a good skill and I theorized — Lumina and Elasia also did — that they would take my arrows and combat to the next level. I would actually be able to hurt things. Truly hurt them.
I was very happy with the choice, if disappointed about the lack of an Essence Skill.
◇ ◇ ◇
A few days later, we all gathered together in the center of the bunker. Apparently it was deep underground and there was also very little reason to leave either. There had been explosions outside, apparently the Empire of the Legacy of Brilliance had probably sent powerful figures to try to kill Lumina before she left the planet.
“We really are fugitives…” The Light Maker sighed.
“Calm yourself princess.” Lumina snorted. “They are just angry that my level is higher.”
“They are definitely jealous of your level. But they must also be even more jealous of the fact that you sent a notification notifying everyone about your revival, why would you do something so stupid?” The Light Maker asked, clearly running out of patience.
“Why wouldn’t I? The System asked and I agreed. Of course I would agree.” Lumina smiled. “Wouldn’t you, Mr. The Light Maker?”
He snorted and grumbled under his breath. “I would.”
Elasia laughed.
I felt a bit warm looking at the scene. Technically everyone around me was part of the same pack. Of my pack. I was no longer alone, even if I had two extremely strong beings by my side, they felt familiar rather than figures to be feared.
I looked at Elasia’s small smile, at The Light Maker bickering with Lumina and I just felt warm.
The timer reached 1 minute and we all gathered together. Bundled and hugging each other even though it was uncomfortable.
“Do we really have to hug?” The Light Maker protested.
“Then you can just stay here and die.” Lumina said.
“Just saying…”
The timer reached zero.
[You have completed the trial: Trial Of Will: The Illusionist’s Resolve. Time left: None.]
* * * * *
He gasped as blood pooled in a dark room. He didn’t know where he was, his body felt soft and rejuvenated, but he felt weaker than ever. He could feel the cold hard ground under his naked feet, his chest heaved up and down as he looked down. There was uneven stone, his hand wandered to the side of the rocky wall, where he felt the raspy texture.
Wind drifted up and down, and he had no idea where he was or what he was doing, but there was only one thing in his mind.
He was going to get his revenge on them. On the two dryads. And he could think of the perfect target.
Just they wait.
The Blood Drinker will return.
