Chapter 321

Al-Safa, Syria, 2:27 AM

Harvesting parts from the Seismic Plesiosaur was normally a huge ordeal. It took a while for the lava that made up its blood to cool, and then you had to cut through rock in order to get to some of the parts that were worth grabbing. The monster’s teeth and the claws on its fins were easy enough to deal with. Cut them out, toss them in your inventory, and call it a day.

Getting its heart was the hard part. It wasn’t enough that the boss monster’s hide was covered with rocks and its muscles were thick and tough, you would normally also have to wait for the lava to cool down enough that you could dig it out of the body. By then, the organ would have lost some of its luster and potency.

While I removed the Seismic Plesiosaur’s teeth myself, my Constructs were drilling, scrapping, and cutting their way through to the heart. I had to continuously renew each one before the lava could break them. So long as I was the one dismissing them, I wasn’t going to get hit with the mental feedback that caused me headaches.

The process didn’t take long when done in this way, and I carefully extracted the boss’ heart. It was taller than I was and still incredibly hot, but was cooling to become clear like glass. Ash would be able to melt it down and coat weapons and armor to add some additional effects if that was the path she wanted to take.

Honestly, the Monstersmith had a lot of cool toys to play around with already. I knew she didn’t have time to make everything she had set her heart on. It was simultaneously refreshing and disappointing. The former because it meant this game was ending soon, and the latter because I really would have loved to see all the new things she’d come up with.

I sent the monster’s heart away and noted that my inventory was almost completely full from that and the few teeth I had cut through. The weight-based system scaled with my Strength, which was higher than it ever had been in this run before thanks to Empowered Body, and was multiplied by the Bigger Second Inventory, but the materials from the Seismic Plesiosaur were hefty.

<<<>>>

[[Item]]

Bigger Second Inventory

(This backpack provides you with a secondary inventory that can hold just as much weight as your primary inventory.)

<<<>>>

Very hefty. The backpack was thin enough to wear under my coat, and had been upgraded since I had first received it from the Dealer back during the tutorial. That had been so long ago, but it never stopped being a good purchase. With my relatively low Strength in the beginning stages of the system, it had been a necessity so that I could carry and store as much as I needed.

Wiping the sweat of effort from my brow, I dismissed my Constructs and began flying. My work here was done. As I left for the entrance to the dungeon Mercury was in, I Pulled the remaining parts after me. He would have to fit them in his inventory so it could all be transferred into the Angel Express’ vault. Leaving them behind was a bad idea even if it wasn’t likely that Ash would get to them.

As I flew through the sky over the volcanic field, avoiding the monsters living in the area, I snapped open my menu. It felt like it had been forever since I had killed enough bosses to enhance my own gear, and I knew I was on the precipice of a few. I glanced through the list.

My Gloves and Cowl of the Warmongering Mystic were ready for an upgrade, as were the Heelies of the Twice Blessed. The Staff of Raphael and my boots were still two boss kills away, while my belt was three. Nothing else was close, but that didn’t matter.

Once I was done with Washington D.C., everything was going to get upgraded.

I slipped through my menus with practiced ease, upgrading my class set items first.

<<<>>>

[[Equipped]]

Gloves of the Warmongering Mystic +4

(Set Item 3/6; Growth Item, kill 20 bosses to upgrade; +170 Mental Points, +24 Wisdom, +24 Willpower, Weight Increase ability augment, Distance Increase ability augment)

[[Ability Augment]]

Weight Increase

When using Push, Pull, Lift, or Drop, increase the weight of objects you can affect by 30%.

[[Ability Augment]]

Distance Increase

When using Push, Pull, Lift, or Drop, increase the distance at which you can affect objects by 30%.

[[Equipped]]

Cowl of the Warmongering Mystic +2

(Set Item 3/6; Growth Item, kill 15 bosses to upgrade; +120 Mental Points, +20 Wisdom, +20 Willpower, Extra Focus ability augment acquired, Strengthened Mental Link ability augment acquired)

[[Ability Augment]]

Extra Focus

Treat Split as two levels higher, allowing you more focus.

[[Ability Augment]]

Strengthened Mental Link

When using Mental Link, you may connect with two additional allies. In addition, treat your Willpower as 40% higher when determining the distance this ability can be sustained.

<<<>>>

My body tingled as a small wave of power flowed through me. It wasn’t just mental this time now that my Strength and Dexterity were increased by Willpower and Wisdom. My two class stats increased by 9 each while my Mental Points increased by 70. Not a substantial boost while my maximum was in the thousands, but every bit helped.

The biggest bonus came from the Cowl’s Extra Focus. Split was at level 5 natively, which allowed me to affect that many different things with my Warmind abilities. This let me act as though it were level 7. The only downside was that the Ability Augment upgraded every even number instead of every time, but it was a small price to pay.

Especially now that I had the Celestial Crown of the Rising Star. The already crazy item was made even better by the fact that it was slightly bugged. Ability Plus raised everything I got from my class by one, but Split was upgraded when Push, Pull, Lift, and Drop were raised to the next level. The crown did this, making it go up by one, and then did as it was supposed to.

Now I could use my Warmind abilities on nine different objects. Considering there was no drop off in power when using Split, I was ecstatic.

I landed near a well-hidden hole in the ground and took a seat on one of the rocks. None of the monsters came near. They knew instinctively not to disturb what lay deep beneath the earth. That had actually been the way I had found the dungeon in the first place, by stumbling upon it accidentally while being chased.

Good times, those. Now that I was settled, I returned my attention to my menu and upgraded my footwear.

<<<>>>

[[Equipped]]

Heelies of the Twice Blessed +2

(Growth Item, kill 20 bosses to upgrade; +30 Dexterity, +24 Constitution, Winged Messenger+ skill acquired, Celestial Wormhole skill acquired, Hallowed Steps passive acquired)

[[Skill]]

Winged Messenger+

When flying or traveling on the Heelies of the Twice Blessed’s wheels, gain a boost up to four times your speed in accordance with how full your inventory is. You may also use the wheels indefinitely as long as you are on level ground or a downwards slope.

[[Skill]]

Celestial Wormhole

Mark a door by touching it and activating this skill; this mark does not go away until it is used or you mark another door. You always know what direction the mark is in and how far away it is. At another doorway within range, you may activate the skill and open the door to find that it leads to the door you marked prior. The range of this ability is equal to one mile per point in Dexterity added by the Heelies of the Twice Blessed. You may allow others to travel with you in this manner at the cost of one feather per creature. Each shoe has five feathers, for a total of ten. The portal will remain active for up to one minute or until the wearer enters, whichever comes first.

In addition, you may touch a door and leave a permanent mark. When using Celestial Wormhole in this way, double the range and increase the number of people who may travel to two per feather. This permanent mark may only be changed once every time the Heelies of the Twice Blessed is upgraded.

Current permanent marks: 1

[[Passive]]

Hallowed Steps

Anywhere you walk becomes consecrated land for a short time. All players who are not hostile to you or your allies gain a 10% bonus to Constitution when within 100 yards of any place where your feet have touched the ground in the past hour. This effect lasts 10 minutes in places of intense Demonic energy. Hit points gained by this increase are placed in a temporary, static pool that is calculated the first time a viable target steps inside the area. Any lost hit points from this pool cannot be regained until the next day. Players or creatures weak to holy energy receive a 10% penalty instead.

<<<>>>

Even though this particular item was new to me, the base that was used to make it was not. The Heelies of Hermes had been my first growth item. After it had been maxed out, Ash had merged it with Sara’s feathers to make this new conglomeration while keeping my most used skills.

Winged Messenger worked when I was flying now, which was always great, and Celestial Wormhole did wonders for long-distance travel so long as I had things set up beforehand. Given that I usually used it to return to the Angel Express, where its permanent mark was set up on the Subspace Depot, it worked very well.

And, now that it was upgraded, we could skip the fifty-something mile trek back completely since the longest distance we could go was sixty. It had been forty-eight before, so the extra Dexterity was making itself handy pretty much immediately.

Hallowed Steps was an interesting one. I had figured out most, if not all, of the Heelies of Hermes’ skills and passives but this upgraded equipment was shiny and new. This provided a nice buff throughout a large area. The extra hit points were nice, as was the boost to Constitution. 

Given that it worked towards my goal of saving as many lives as possible, I didn’t mind at all how indiscriminate it was. That was the same reason why I didn’t mind my crown’s Icon of the Rising Star. Any little bit I could provide, even if just in passing, was going to help someone survive something they might not have otherwise.

Of course, I was also looking forward to negatively impacting Demons near me, too.

In the same vein, I would need to avoid touching the ground when facing any more of Aaron’s corrupted Half-Angels. There was no reason to believe they wouldn’t be able to suck the holy energy from my footsteps somehow, negating the buff while enriching themselves. That would be annoying, but I thought the risk was worth it.

I checked my status screen to see where I was at. Not just for player kills, but everything else. It had been a while.

<<<>>>

[[Status]]

Guildmaster Anthony Franklin

Class: Warmind

Race: Half-Angel (Dormant)

Patron: (Hidden)

Guild: Sol Ligatus

Patron Kills: 1

Player Kills: 35

Points: 437,999

Stats: 

Hit Points: 5,825/5,825 (532/532)

Mental Points: 1,849/4,473 (300/300)

Strength: 157; Dexterity: 204; Constitution: 355; Wisdom: 253; Willpower: 243

<<<>>>

“That is an incredible spread for this early on,” I said with a low whistle, noting the temporary hit points and the extra Mental Points from my Medallion of the Warmind Uuska.

<<<>>>

[[Patron Message]]

I know you’re very easily impressed by yourself, Ant, but now’s not the time. Mercury is making his escape.

<<<>>>

“Maybe I wouldn’t be so easily impressed if I weren’t so impressive,” I replied easily as the ground began to shake. With a snap of my fingers, I closed out my menu. “You’re right, though. It sounds like he’s coming in hot.”

Volcanic vents in the area started opening as the earthquake became more intense. I flew upwards, getting some distance as the heat started to rise again. With a thought, I Constructed a disc wide enough for Mercury to stand on near the entrance to the dungeon just in case he was going to need it.

The ninja entered my aura at reckless speeds. He was, by far, the fastest member of Sol Ligatus even if you removed his teleportation by substitution ability. Mercury bounced off the walls, barely touching them before bounding to the next foothold on his ascent. His position was especially precarious as the rocks around him were tumbling down, giving him another obstacle to deal with.

I watched as my friend scrambled for his life, but didn’t do anything yet. This was his adventure, and he’d come out much stronger for it. That wasn’t to say that I wouldn’t help him if I thought he wouldn’t make it, though.

A grin spread across my face as Mercury reached behind him and pulled the Princess, his sentient wakizashi, free from her scabbard. Unlike the steel blade she had been made up of before, she now shined with translucent, multicolored light. The ninja struck at the rocks that threatened to undo all of his progress so far.

He kicked one of them upwards. The opposing force sent him back down, and the Princess cleanly bit into the rock wall without resistance. He slid downwards, deflecting the smaller projectiles with his free hand, before twisting the sword and coming to a stop. I could feel the anticipation in his aura as he watched that one large stone reach its apex. The ninja twisted.

Mercury was gone in a blink, replaced with that same stone. He kicked off of the wall and grabbed my Construct so he could scurry out of the hole. It closed seconds later now that no one was inside, and I watched as my friend collapsed into a sitting position with the Princess across his lap.

“Good to have you back, lady,” he told his blade happily as he returned her to the scabbard in a gentle motion.

After Mercury’s solo fight with Magical Girl Star, the Princess had absorbed enough energy to go into a hibernation while she upgraded herself. He had been alone during that time, cut off from his sentient sword spirit companion. The results, however, would speak for themselves. This change from a steel blade to one made of physical light was just the tip of the iceberg.

The ground was starting to become unstable and, even though I was willing to let him have his reunion, this wasn’t the right place for it. I Lifted the Construct he was sitting on. He shifted, startled, before looking up at me.

“First, good to see you’ve woken up, Princess,” I said with a smile.

“She says thank you,” the ninja replied a moment later.

“Second, just couldn’t help yourself, huh?” I asked, gesturing towards the ground.

Mercury gave me the biggest shit eating grin he could. “You said do what feels right, so I did what felt right,” he admitted. “Wouldn’t be a very good gentleman thief if I left all that loot unlooted.”

I shook my head, but matched his smile. “It was the magic ring that tempted you, wasn’t it?”

“You know me so well,” he returned as he stood up. “I grabbed the magic ring because I thought two Genies would be better than one.”

“You’re right. He’s weak and can only be used once a month, but he’s still a good grab. What else did you get?”

“A few trinkets here and there, and…” Swiping open his menu, Mercury retrieved a small tree no taller than his leg from his inventory. Its trunk was made of stone, its leaves were made of emerald, and there was a strange, spiky fruit made of amethyst dragging the whole thing down. The roots were still covered in earth.

“Marishiten said that, if I was going to grab anything else other than the magic ring, then it needed to be this,” he quickly explained. “For Bethany, you see. I don’t know the exact details other than to take the whole thing, roots and all, and not leave it out for too long. Didn’t really have the time.”

“Speaking of,” I said, pointing towards one of the emerald leaves that were about to fall off.

He very quickly shoved it back into his inventory. “Good looking out,” Mercury sighed. “Know what it is?”

“I do, and Marishiten didn’t steer you wrong other than to get you in trouble.”

“What’s a little trouble these days?” the ninja laughed. Since it was safe in his inventory, he took the time to observe it. “It doesn’t have a description, but, what’s a Langgan?”

“Something the administrators carried over from Chinese mythology, because this whole dungeon is a cultural grab bag of whatever makes them happy,” I answered. “Bethany will make something potent out of it, don’t worry.”

Mercury considered this answer for a moment. “If it makes us stronger, then I guess it can only be a good thing.”

“That’s pretty much the right of it,” I chuckled before holding my hand out. “And you have the Genie in the lamp?”

“Yup. Easy, too,” he said smugly before scrolling through his inventory. “You were right about how she wouldn’t be able to resist. I mean, I did have to hide, but she didn’t even question why there was suddenly a brand new lamp in her lair. Set it down like some kind of trap, got out of there, and heard her move in.”

“They can’t help themselves,” I told him with a nod. “Genies yearn for a home. They require narratively proper vessels. The one in your ring is weak enough for that to contain him, but she needed something a little more.”

“Sounds rough. For them, I mean.”

“I guess,” I replied as he finally retrieved the lamp and handed it to me. The outside hadn’t changed, but it was much heavier than it had been before. Almost as if a whole person had been shoved inside. “And you didn’t make any wishes?”

“Didn’t even rub it once,” he answered. “I might have retrieved it, but this part is your show.”

“Good. Not because I expected you to take a wish, but because she’ll monkey’s paw you if you don’t go through the right hoops,” I said. “Twist your words, and all that.”

“You know, I had a feeling that was going to be the case,” Mercury sighed. “So, then, what’s the plan?”

“It’s a pretty simple one, if a bit rude,” I said with a thin smile. “Basically, I’m about to ask her for increasingly insane wishes that she has absolutely no power to grant and then bully the hell out of her so that she’ll grant my requests without any downsides.”

There was a pause. “Yeah. I agree, Princess; that doesn’t sound like any way to treat a lady.”

“Lady, guy, doesn’t matter. It would need to be done regardless,” I said as I sent my glove into my inventory and put my palm against the side of the lamp. “Alright, let’s fix up this body of mine.”

Right there, still flying in the sky, I began rubbing.Strength: 157; Dexterity: 204Strength: 157; Dexterity: 204