[Voidknight Ascension] Chapter 59: Loot from the Gods

“I haven’t gotten any of the stat enhancing trinkets from the glorious loot pile,” Raiko pointed out. “Therefore, I absolutely should have the bangle.”

“You can’t equip it,” Sam countered.

“Just shove the bangle on my body when we get there.”

“Even if you were going to get it, somebody else could use it in the meantime.”

“Like me!” Komachi said eagerly. “Komachi get more mana, Komachi jingle her bell more.”

“Pick a lane Komachi!” Raiko quipped. “Either refer to yourself as ‘I’ or your name, not both.”

“Komachi will do what I want!”

Raiko rolled her eyes at the defiance. Sam and Matt chuckled in amusement.

The Cleric glared, tail raised, then the Nomad stiffened and glared back.

“It would present a sizeable boost to my mana,” Matt added, looking between the ghost-lady and cat apprehensively. “But the choice is up to you, Sam. I gave them to you to decide who gets them.”

All the aggressive spiciness deflated out of Raiko. “Yes, yes, that sounds agreeable.”

Komachi threw her head back and yowled at the night sky. Whether that meant anything, was anybody’s guess. Hopefully she wasn’t going to turn into a werecat.

I could desperately use the additional MP, he thought to himself. But I’ve already gotten so much. Even one extra heal from Komachi could be the difference between life or death.

Sam pointed at Raiko. “You can’t wear it now, anyway.”

“Dammit!”

He turned to Matt. “And while it would probably add a decent chunk to your MP, you can’t heal me and I’ll be on the front lines doing all the fighting, unless Kai wakes up and has been replaced by somebody who doesn’t hate me.”

Komachi stared at Sam, her two brain cells working overtime to put the pieces together.

Everybody watched her. A couple people sighed.

“Yes,” Sam said to Komachi’s kittenish expression. “You get the bangle. For now. We’ll decide who gets it when Raiko has a body to equip the thing on. And with that settled—”

Komachi pounced on the bangle and meowed triumphantly.

“When did you get your Second Order?” Matt asked. Sam could see the hunger in his eyes and hoped it was just for progression and advancement, not human flesh.

“When my Job level hit 10,” Sam said, putting the rest of the loot away into his Inventory. He left out the rest of the equipment in case Kai might want it. Nobody else could use it.

Matt stared. “You’re already level 10? We’ve hardly been here any time at all!”

Sam shrugged while Komachi preened.

“Maybe I won’t be behind forever then,” Matt reasoned. “You leveled fast, and now you’re fairly strong, right? That means whatever you fight must give loads more EXP than anything a person around my level could take.”

“That’s the hope,” Sam agreed. He had high hopes of getting Matt up to an equitable level quickly. Even if they didn’t find anything to kill between here and Raiko’s Skyshard, that fight should prove to be fruitful for all involved.

Before he went to check on Kai, Sam figured it would be best to get all the treasure out of the way first. To that end, he still had the loot selection from the Dark Vault to choose.

For clearing the Dark Vault, you gain the following loot:

Choose one of the following rewards:

1 [Ascension Gem Treasure Box]

1 [Hidden God’s Treasure Box]

1 [Skyshard Tile’s Treasure Box]

1 [Mystery Mimic]

He was pleased with his Job’s advancement so far, and wasn’t sure what the Ascension Gems might be.

Besides, the possibility of there being a Profession in the [Ascension Gem Treasure Box] was slim for sure, and too much of a risk to take when he needed something that guaranteed gains.

There was no telling how difficult the battle would be at Raiko’s Skyshard.

The Hidden God’s loot was tempting. The blessing Sam received from Volquist was rather incredible. If he could get something of that caliber again, he’d be amazed, but he wasn’t holding out much hope.

It was through the Hidden God’s Greater Blessing that he gained access to Assassin after all, and that wasn’t a Job he wanted.

And while the [Skyshard Tile’s Treasure Box] was appealing now that he knew they would have not one, but two Settlement Cores, unless they found another Skyshard for Sam, this current one had no slots for Tiles.

That was assuming socketing the [Sourcestone] didn’t somehow add a Tile capacity.

There’s no way I’m picking a mimic. I’ve played too much Dark Souls to fall for that. He shivered at the memory of the lanky, pale limbs and their unsettlingly bubbly laugh. Raiko’s warning further reinforced that decision.

That left the [Hidden God’s Treasure Box].

It may not be the best, but it was the best of the choices available to him, and with any luck, he would gain another chance to choose more loot after he found the next Dark Vault.

Wherever that might be.

One thing at a time, he reminded himself.

For now, his focus was entirely on getting Raiko back and securing her Skyshard. They could figure out how to find the other Dark Vaults afterward.

Assuming somebody hasn’t already unlocked a Pirate Job and formed a crew that goes from Skyshard to Skyshard, raiding everything in sight.

As soon Sam made his selection, a red chest banded in gold appeared in his lap to the surprise of everyone around the campfire.

“Woah, where did that come from?” Matt’s eyes went wide in surprise.

“This is a reward for a… Dungeon we cleared,” Sam explained to Matt. “I’d been waiting to choose until we were safe, kinda odd to think that floating amid a dark sea of clouds is as safe as I think I’ll be in a long, long while.”

“I don’t think there’ll be anything like the safety we were used to,” Matt agreed. “I think we all took it for granted that we could go to the grocery store and pick up food for a week without hassle or danger. Sooner or later, people will realize the truth, and that’s when things will get very bad. Times like that are when you want to be surrounded by those you trust.”

Sam nodded, opening up the treasure box and staring at the item within.

It was a faint gossamer-like cloth with two metallic disks, one black as night, the other silver.

[Hidden God’s Manatuned Cloak]

(Enchanted Cloak) (F-Class)

(★★☆Limited IV)

Enhancements

Magical Defense IV | Weather Resistance IV

+12 Awareness | +12 Insight

+10% MP

[Manatuned IV] (Enchantment): ???

At first glance, this cloak appears to be made of a lustrous cloth. However, its material is woven from a unique metallic ore dug up from Islegard’s Shimmer Mountains. Soaked in mana from the Shimmer Mountain’s magma, this coat has naturally taken on the manatuned enchantment. Despite the original crafter’s lackluster skill, its potent enhancements have been taken to the brink of F-Class by the Hidden God himself.

Requires: Samuel Hunter

Requires me, huh? Guess that means only I can wear it, which rather curbs the idea that we could pool our treasure.

That was also the highest rarity equipment he had ever seen. Limited IV, given the star rating attached, was yet another two rarity level boost from his Uncommon Thanas set, putting the cloak on a level all its own.

The cloak was so exceptionally good, Komachi started sprinting around the Isle. Probably because she knew Sam would give her the [Flamewool Cloak].

Which he did.

“Who would’ve thought that the Dark Vault would drop the greatest loot of the starting island. One that’s manatuned too!” Raiko said in astonishment. “And it’s not fabricated either. It channels energy just like my katana.”

He turned to her. “Your weapon is enchanted?”

Sam wondered if all enchantments had steep requirements to be able to discern information about them. Likely, he needed some kind of skill, or maybe an item of some sort, to receive further information about enchantments.

Perhaps even a Profession.

She nodded. “It needs to be for me to truly wield a magic weapon, or so I understand thus far. As horrible as the oni are, they can drop excellent loot. Can being the operative word. Most of it is trash.”

Sam looked forward to fighting one for just that reason. “Sounds a bit like mana crystals.”

“Similar, but this cloak’s metal is enchanted to become an empowering vessel of mana.” Raiko continued. “One, presumably, that doesn’t easily shatter. Of whatever type of mana too, I think. Yours might be able to handle Void. But considering its metal…”

“Woah, I might be able to manipulate my coat with my Metal Affinity. How is this thing metal? It feels like cloth.”

Matt felt at the edges. “Must depend on the weave. Or y’know, magic. It does say enchanted.”

Sam immediately put the cloak on. It attached easily to the pauldrons of his armor, the two disks practically magnetizing to the dark metal.

As soon as he bonded with it, he could feel the large boost to his stats. And while 10% MP might not be much at his current amount, it was a welcoming jump all the same. And likely larger than the bangle Komachi now wore.

Sending a thought of thanks toward the Hidden One, Sam opened up his Status to see where he stood now that he was decked out with new armor. The cloak by itself was practically worth 2 Swordsman levels based on the added stats alone.

He wondered if it was possible to get so many extra stats from armor that they eclipsed the person’s base stats. It would be hard to do that on your own, but with a sponsor, maybe it was possible.

[Status]

Name: Samuel Hunter

Race: Human

Legend: [Adventurer (Lv.5 - Unranked)]

Job: [Swordsman (Lv.11 - Unranked)]

Path: [Void (Lv.5 - Unranked)]

Profession: [N/A (Lv.0 - Unranked)]

Health(HP): [310/336]

Mana(MP): [58/93]

Attunements

[Void Mana] (F-Class Apocalypse Gate) (★★★★Legendary IV)

Affinities

[Fire Mana] (F-Class) (★ Common I)

[Metal Mana] (F-Class) (★ Common)

Physical Stats

Strength(STR): 41 (+22)

Dexterity(DEX): 24 (+8)

Agility(AGI): 23 (+3)

Vigor(VIG): 44 (+18)

Awareness(AWR): 16 (+18)

Magical Stats

Arcane(ARC): 13

Control(CTL): 8

Resonance(RSN): 13

Mind(MND): 14

Insight(INS): 17 (+17)

Impressive. From 273 HP and 84 MP to 336 and 93, respectively. And all I did was put on some equipment. I haven’t gotten a single level for all that extra HP and MP.

Which said nothing about his over 50% increase to Strength, his doubling of Insight, or any of the other massive stat boosts he gained from finally having a piece of equipment covering each part of his body.

Along with the overpowering sensation of strength that now flowed through his body, Sam could feel something else. Mentally inspecting it, he felt the world around him lighten considerably.

It took him a moment to realize his [Thanas Helm] had disappeared. Reaching his hands up, he felt his face with gauntleted gloves, but they met no barrier as they touched his cheek.

And yet he was sure the helm was still there somehow.

“Komachi, jump on my face.”

The British Shorthair looked up at him, seemed to think about it for all of two seconds, then leapt at him with enthusiasm. And, because she was a cat with a penchant for exuberance, Komachi’s tiny claws were out in full force.

Instead of clawing up his face as she had done during one or two loud thunderstorms, she landed a few inches from his face. The claws screeched against metal and for a brief moment Sam could see a glassy translucent interior image of his [Thanas Helm].

That’s handy.

Not only would it allow him to choose whether or not to hide his face, but he could trick people into thinking he was vulnerable when he wasn’t.

And it meant he didn’t need to take off his helmet to eat.

I wonder if all helmets do that?

Komachi, meanwhile, was clawing up a storm once she realized Sam wasn’t actually getting hurt. She yowled with glee, and only stopped when a familiar voice said, “Why is that cat of yours making so much noise?”

Sam turned to see Kai coming out of his tent, glaring from one person to the next.