MarvinKnight

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 38

Running off to join a tournament on a whim was more Myrina’s thing than Sakura’s. Since Sakura had joined this tournament, I was guessing there was a reason for it. Since I didn’t want to mess up her plans, I just bought a ticket and enjoyed the show.

Sakura was a B-Grade, and I didn’t expect anyone in the city to be a worthy opponent for her. Much to my surprise, several B-Grades appeared to challenge her, one after another.

The first was a large beefy man bearing a glaiv...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 37

We took the long way home and cleared out a lot of monsters along the way. Charlie, Abby, Meghan, and Suzie’s levels all skyrocketed.

When we returned home, Sakura, Mimiko, and I all took turns training the group. Despite dragging them through the wilderness to fight monsters way above their level, I seemed to be the most generous of their three instructors.

Sakura’s way of training was very hands-on, and they’d experienced quite a bit of her attention as of late. Mimiko use...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 36

Upon returning home, I dropped Reluna off at her cottage. She had a room in the castle too, but some of her moans were rather loud, so I figured putting her in her own space would be best.

Mimiko looked pleased to be back in my estate on Crownhill. She was on guard here in System space, but that was no different from how things had been on Prince Herius’ world. She looked at me in search of a task, and I directed her to Sakura and my D-Grade team of adventurers.

So far, Sakura h...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 35

I’d come up with several ideas for how to use the Corrupted Nascent Divinity core to improve Governess. She’d proven fairly capable and loyal up until now, though her loyalty had yet to truly be tested.

Still, I was confident enough in what she was already doing for me that giving her another little boost would be helpful, beyond just the golem factory and the extra processors I’d already given her.

There was a side-benefit to empowering Governess a little further too. The f...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 34

My heels dug into the dirt, but the strength of a peak B-Grade was more than enough to stop a crashing helicopter. Unfortunately, it was filled with ammunition and fuel, both of which were moments from exploding.

Kindling Architect gave me some mastery over temperature and heat, but it didn’t work fast enough to stop what was about to happen. I had to work fast with Mana Arsenal and Mage Armor. Between the two, I was able to make a quick shield that protected my team behind me.

...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 33

I watched over the others while they slept. I didn’t need that kind of rest too often anyway, so I would be fine even if I stayed up all night. The brief rest I’d gotten lying beside Bridget would do me for two or three days at least.

I went through the plan several times in my mind. This would be a difficult mission. Without me, it might even be impossible. Planting the explosives, sneaking past the guards, and escaping would all be exceedingly difficult at D-Grade.

Fortunate...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 32

“We’re supposed to be possessed. Don’t tell anyone we’re not,” Charlie said as soon as we reunited with Abby, Meghan, and Suzie.

“Huh?” Abby poked Charlie in the head, probably examining him with her healing magic.

Suzie pulled out a dagger that glowed with a sinister red anti-specter enchantment. “Hold still. Ghosts are scared of me.”

“Wait! Not possessed! I said we’re not possessed!” Charlie scrambled backward as Suzie approached with her weapon rea...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 31

In an instant, I took in my foes. They were hazy black shadows, but that was only to be expected from inhabitants of the shadowrealm.

They were malformed monstrosities made from human shape only in the loosest sense. The one who grabbed me looked human enough until I saw chattering, sharpened teeth where his eyes should be and one big, blistered eye in place of his mouth.

Behind him, a beast crawled on stumps replaced with rifles, with a dagger in place of a hand. His mouth was in...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 30

Charlie was excited for actual training the following morning. I had to admit, the idea of training intrigued me.

I’d done plenty of it myself at Cyra’s instruction, and I’d learned the basics of adventuring during that dungeon dive with her and Myrina.

After, I had run training programs for the Nineteenth Legion. The military training proved quite useful at turning academy students into war mages.

And yet I’d never done something similar for Crownhill. I had an old ...

Amazon Apocalpyse 6: Chapter 29

Arranging another joint training session was easy. Everyone else was surprised when we saw Sergeant Benton again, but I wasn't. I knew he was the one behind most of these expeditions on the military base's side.

“Glad to hear you want to give us a chance. With your abilities, you’ll be welcome additions to our ranks. Come on,” Sergeant Benton said as he led us away from Crownhill to a jeep.

We loaded up with him and were taken through the forest on a lengthy ride. It lasted ...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 28

Our teamwork started slipping after our little team argument. What had once felt like a smooth-running and well-coordinated group was now noticeably sloppier. Charlie’s position was off when tanking a monster, and I had to spend more time on the front lines.

I could distract our enemies as well as Charlie could, but I was less of a traditional tank and more of a dodge tank. My fighting style was not so much about shrugging off blows, but rather making sure I didn’t get hit. Slowing ...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 27

I spent the night at home, told Bridget and Sakura of my ongoing adventures, then was back in my Himmel disguise the following day. I made arrangements with Margaret for the joint training exercise quest and had everything set up by the time my team arrived for lunch.

Charlie came first, followed by Abby, Suzie, and Meghan. As we sat down, ate, and planned our mission, I realized there were a dozen other groups doing the same.

All the way up high in my farmhouse-turned castle on t...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 26

Bridget and Sakura were waiting on the other side of the portal for my return. When Myrina came with me, it was a warm reunion. The fact that Bridget was only wearing her apron and Sakura was quick to disrobe the rest of her clothing meant the reunion took a bit longer than planned. Apparently, they weren’t as sore from the previous night as I'd been led to believe.

By the time I was done, I was finally feeling better after a week pent up in my armor. It was past morning, but Bridget ...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 25

I’d gotten quite a bit of action with Reluna, but after a few short minutes, I was starting to feel that throbbing need in my loins again. I’d once read it was unhealthy to be pent up for too long, and I certainly believed it now.

Fortunately, I had a few more visits to make. I ran into Cyra first, who was in Prince Herius’ palace. I said hello to the prince, helped him with a small request for an enchanted scrying system, and then dragged Cyra off to the back room, where I had my...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 24

I reunited with Sakura and Bridget back home and had to make a quick stop to get out of my armor, clean up, and relieve some of the pent-up pressure in my lower half from a week of abstinence.

“Ah... I don’t think I’ll be able to walk straight for a few days...” Sakura sighed into my shoulder contentedly. She’d taken the bulk of my attention since I was being extra gentle with Bridget.

“Sorry,” I said in apology.

On the other side of me, Bridget squeezed my sho...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 23

The human construction workers were very nervous when we all came over in arms and armor. Most of them dropped what they were doing to look for cover.

“You wouldn’t happen to have a water spell?” I asked Liliana, who shook her head.

“I’m good at starting fires. Not so good at putting them out,” Liliana replied.

“Then we’re doing this the manual way. Everybody grab those buckets.” I led by example and snatched a dropped bucket off the ground. With it, I scoo...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 22

“That castle will be much easier to assault now when it’s half finished than when the defenses are done. Let me hear your plans.”

I turned to Katar and Liliana, who were closest to me. I had a few ideas of my own, but I wanted to hear what they thought.

“I’ll blow up the front gates with a big magical blast! After that, we’ll charge in and storm the place. They should start surrendering once we’ve taken the walls.” Liliana looked proud at what was frankly a ridicul...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 21

Getting confirmed as Knight Commander of the Black Knights turned out to be a rather simple process, despite the lofty badge I’d be getting for it.

“Having this position was something I bargained for with the other sorcerers when I was made marshal. I always planned to hand off command of the knights to someone else if I could someday find someone worthy of the title. My daughter thinks that’s you,” Sorcerer Mourningstar stroked his beard thoughtfully.

I got the distinct i...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 20

The Black Knights and I had a little staring contest. More of them accumulated, but all of them were at least a head shorter than me. They were in ordinary regular armor, whereas I was in my prototype power armor.

I felt multiple uses of examine rattle my chest plate, no doubt presenting to them the estimate of my level in armor that the System gave. From my own tests with Bridget and Sakura, it should read somewhere in the mid B-Grade, which put me on the same level as the Sorcerers an...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 19

There I was, eight feet tall, sporting a set of nigh-invincible black and gold armor and swinging a huge sword as I rushed to Liliana’s rescue. I wasn’t sure if she could see me through all the spider webbing, but I hoped I cut a dashing figure.

Doomblade’s signature massive sword had also gotten a few upgrades. Like most of the armor, it had benefited from my new magical alloy experiments. Mana flowed through this armor like steady breaths, reinforcing every joint and piston to h...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 18

I dropped Frank off back in Crownhill. Bridget and Sakura stayed up late waiting for me. Sakura was reading a travel guide on Onibushi, while Bridget was taking another look at that parenting book. She had her shirt up as she rested on the couch, and music played lightly in the background.

I sat down between the two of them, gave each a kiss and then ran a hand along Bridget’s exposed stomach.

“Is that a baby bump I see?” I teased.

Bridget pulled her shirt down. “No,...

Amazon Apocalypse 4 out on Audio (plus other updates)

Hey guys!

Here it is, available today!
https://www.audible.com/pd/B0FDBVN2B7

I know lots of you have been eager for this one! Book 4 is finally out on audio. Audio's fallen a bit behind with the delays here, but book 5 should come out a bit faster on audio to compensate. I don't have an estimate for release yet.

We're at 23 hours for this book. On audio, the series is a little over 90 hours lo...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 17

Nearby, doors opened, and a crowd shuffled in. All of them wore fine garments that matched what Frank was wearing. Most were fairly low level, but delicate features and untanned skin unused to hard outdoor labor told me this was the city’s nobility. There must have been a second way up to the palace throne room, because I doubted a single one of them could have made the climb up those steps.

We waited for the gallery around us to fill up. Frank looked increasingly awkward as he realiz...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 16

We would be making the trip to the capital by carriage. I feared it would be a multi-day ride, and I would have to excuse myself for the trip and leave Frank at the mercy of the Whores Guild again, but it turned out to be a rather short journey.

Frank was already in the wagon with our escort, the mayor of the place we’d just saved yesterday.

“I’m so glad you’re coming to the capital with me, mister hero!” the mayor said as she rubbed her chest against Frank’s side.

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 15

Taking out the Dark Sorceress quietly would be easy. Doing so without killing her was considerably more difficult. I considered the various tools in my arsenal and eventually decided to just grab her and pull her into the shadow realm. It had worked on one of Vayly Vaust’s B-Grade subordinates, so it ought to work on her.

“Damn crazy bastards... there they go, killing everyone again. Honestly, this leveling thing is nothing but a poison...” the Dark Sorceress let out an exasperate...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 14

It was a great relief to be reunited with Frank, and I was amazed that he was alright. My bloodline had been acting up, and I’d feared the worse because of it. Maybe I’d just eaten some bad street food while shopping on Glacia. It was hard to tell sometimes.

I shook hands with Frank, briefly summarized what I’d been up to, then switched to questioning him. He looked like he’d been in this city a while.

“This town belongs to some kingdom of Camlaan. Knights, castles, wiza...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 13

I returned home to find several of my quests had triggered. I looked around for Bridget or Sakura and found Bridget in the kitchen.

“There’s my favorite baby-factory!” I said, sweeping Bridget into a kiss and pulling her away from the dough she’d been kneading for a kiss. Bridget returned the gesture, though she had to hold her flour-covered hands awkwardly the entire time.

“Carter! You’re back. I thought I’d have more time to get dinner ready. I’m still working on...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 12

"Paperwork?" Reluna asked, voice full of dismay.

"Come on, you love paper. You're always making talismans with it." I ran my fingers through Reluna's hair.

"It isn't the paper I have a problem with. It's the other part..." Reluna grumbled. But then she sighed, mustered her resolve, and nodded. "Alright, I'll look over everyone from the Nineteenth Legion. Just so you know, not everyone will sign on with you. Many of them gained a lot of levels during the crusade on Ladwick and have...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 11

Sakura returned to me. The prince charming to the rescue we’d both hoped for ended up being considerably less dramatic. We just walked out of there, and nobody stopped us.

Once home, I issued a few more quests, this time directing Frank and the other major adventuring guilds when and where I needed them. I was already getting word that they’d made contact with other groups outside of New Kyoto that were part of the same shard and paid tribute to the oni who ruled the big city. Those...

Amazon Apocalypse 6: Chapter 10

Upgrading Governess reminded me a lot of working on the Planetary System Hub and meant working on a similar scale. As I started the project though, I found it a bit more enjoyable.

I wasn’t working on archaic Architect technology that stemmed from entirely different cultural traditions. I was working with human circuit boards, CPUs, and wires. It simply made more sense to me, and not just because of my years of working with this stuff before the integration.

It was tough to say ...