Author's Note:
The last chapter of the Book 2 intro arc that we've been preparing. It's all Book 3 from here on out.
This was one was a whopper that ended up clocking in around 8700 words.
--
My choices are to either steal the soul of a kind man adored by all – or to allow thousands of my people to die gruesome deaths, the Painter mused.
Penumbria's treasury had been a fuller vault, before. It was once filled not only wi...
"Why can't you just admit it?" Katarina grumbled. "Waiting to choose my Class was for the better."
Her voice could barely be heard above the tumult of the crowd. Caelryn City's streets were fully-packed once again. Light from the midday sun shone down, vivid and jovial, as if this was a day like any other.
As if last night's bloodshed was no more than a fading memory.
Simon took another bite of the dried fruit-thing that was unfortunately his breakfast. Hardly appetizing,...
Adam had never seen what happened to a city fully consumed by Rot.
Read about it. Heard about it. But never seen.
This could be what awaits Penumbria if I fail, he realized, with startling clarity. The worst of three possible fates. Either his people would starve, Ciro's armies would sack the city and raze it to the ground...
Or the Rot would overwhelm all.
Compared to what he'd witnessed happen to Asteria City, starvat...
It was an odd feeling to use Divine Knowledge at the same time it was being employed against you.
The sensation created a sort of overwhelming feedback loop that Adam had never quite experienced before. His brain was being...inundated with the Fallen Lord's memories. Every time he thought he'd gotten used to the constant stream of information, its immaterial wavelength grew thicker, more familiar by the second as his own memories started mixing with Gaspar's.
Like a cau...
Author's Note:
The last of the Outcast Bonus Chapters I have planned for now. Originally these were one chapter, but the final section felt too tonally different from what came before, so I split them up.
On that note, between the holidays, recently posting a couple lengthy updates that probably should have been separated but weren't, and good ole' fashioned chronic insomnia, Heroic Valor will need to take a break next week so I can replenish th...
2025-01-09 04:59:01 +0000 UTC View PostAuthor's Note:
This chapter ended up running a bit long, so it'll be split.
--
Lord Gaspar waited by the manor gate, a ragged bearskin cloak hastily tossed over a single shoulder – his only protection from the Penumbrian winter. He greeted Adam with a lazy gesture and a grin. "Wonderful to see you, my lord!"
"I am the King of the Frontier," Adam said, calmly but firmly. "To all of those not guilty of treason."
"Forgive me," Gasp...
Author's Note:
7400 words! Enjoy.
--
The first wrench in their plan came when Armand Calloway left his house several hours earlier than expected.
Simon had figured that the man was more likely to go hunting than stay home and snooze, but this was barely nighttime. A decent number of people were still walking the streets of Caelryn. Hardly optimal conditions for a serial killer on the prowl – too many witnesses that could ...
Author's Note:
The next Skill Thief Book 3 chapter is undergoing a rewrite after we decided to take it in a different direction. As such, here's a (very long) bonus chapter to tide everyone over.
This is the second-to-last chapter of Book 2's new intro arc. After the next bonus chapter is posted, we'll be back to focusing just on Book 3.
--
With a wary heart, Adam stood up to the chorus of a thousand cheers. Not for me, he remind...
2024-12-31 23:28:12 +0000 UTC View PostThe doorbell rang.
Ben felt a spike of anxiety rush through him. Until recently, the sound of ringing doorbells had always been a prelude to disappointment, aggravation, and heartbreak. He would rush over to the door, praying for a miracle, hoping against hope to find the one person he desperately wished for–
Only for it to all come crashing down when he saw who was waiting outside. Never who he wanted.
Never his son.
The heartbreak and disappointment would arriv...
It was the kind of singular moment that burnt itself into Simon's memories. Not because of any shocking revelation or upswell of emotion – although there was no shortage of anger brewing in his heart – but because of the sheer strangeness surrounding it.
The man across the street, Armand Calloway, had previously ambushed Katarina when she was alone. She hadn't wronged him. No provocation was given. Yet between his Identify Description, his unusually high Level, and th...
Author's Note:
The new Book 2 intro arc continues! We're 3/5 of the way finished with it. I really like how this chapter turned out, especially the second half. Big props to Rafael for some great prose writing.
--
The air grew colder as the walls seemed to press closer, the jagged edges of stone unyielding against Adam's hands and knees.
"I almost want to become a Puppet just so this doesn't hurt as much," he muttered under his breath. A...
Lisa must've hit her head when she woke up today.
It was the only explanation she had for what she was seeing right now. That or a cosplay convention – and since when did cons host in a middle-of-nowhere town still recovering from the Outsiders?
Stay calm. Don't freak. She nervously adjusted her Grab-And-Gulp cashier's uniform, taking a moment to try and make sense of the situation. They're just customers. Nothing strange about them whatsoever.
Or so s...
The Frontier Lords had become aware of Adam's Talent of Contracts that he'd stolen from Eric – although they didn't know it was a plagiarized ability. If anything, they likely believed it to be his original Talent, and that his Lord Talent was Aspreay's, willingly passed down from father to son.
More convenient this way, Adam thought. His legs twitched with nervous anxiety as he awaited the Frontier Lords' arrival. One of their conditions for this meeting was a...
Skill Thief's next chapter will be released either on Wednesday, or on Thursday (the same day as the Outcast Bonus Chapter). This won't affect next week - the chapter after that will still come out on Tuesday.
2024-12-10 07:19:23 +0000 UTC View Post"On the right," Katarina warned. "Pickpocket."
Simon immediately stepped leftwards, glancing discreetly at an unassuming girl trudging down the streets of Caelryn City. "You're positive?"
"Yes. Clear as day."
Not to me. He would've needed to use Identify or Sin Scry to pick thieves out of the crowd, and that wasn't feasible when the crowds were this densely-packed.
Caelryn City was much larger than Springwater Village, its sprawling pathways filled wi...
Author's Note:
A continuation of the new Book 2 intro arc. The second half is a revised version of scenes already in Skill Thief, but the first half is completely new and has probably my favorite little Ferrero moment in the series.
We really wanted to flesh out the Puppet Mines more this time around. It's a cool area that we unfortunately sped past too quickly the first time around, as that was when we'd still deluded ourselves into believing we could fit everyth...
2024-12-04 01:41:48 +0000 UTC View PostKatarina mellowed out after Simon explained how Classes and Class Advancements worked. Hearing that he'd started as a 'Fledgling' made her feel less like she was being directly insulted by his magic.
When that had been resolved, she slowly went through the first part of her Character Sheet, reading each line aloud. What she found was...interesting.
Katarina
Class: Urchin
Attributes: N/A
Level: 11
Penumbria's royal bath – if it could be called that – was a bright, steamy, high-ceiling room with a singular stone tub. A few minutes after being forcibly launched into the water, Adam resigned himself to his fate and tossed his wet clothes off.
If I have to speak with the other Frontier nobles, being clean is better than not, he groused. And if the negotiations end up being as tough as Aspreay alluded to...then I should take this chance to relax, if nothing else–
2024-11-26 22:51:32 +0000 UTC
View Post
News that Simon would be leaving Springwater swept through the villagers like wildfire.
Most of them had expected him to stay. From their perspective, slaying the Fell Beast and establishing a position of authority was merely the beginning of his grand master plan. If he'd been given longer than a year to work with, perhaps the transmigrator would have used Springwater as a launching pad to something bigger.
Yet it wasn't meant to be. He had places to go, people to...
Author's Note:
This chapter takes place right after the Ghost-on-a-boat saga, when Adam and friends first arrive at the Puppet Mines. Adam arriving at the Puppet Mines is currently set to be the new start point of Book 2, and we glossed over the Mines in the original version, so this section serves as both an introductory chapter in addition to fleshing out the setting.
--
The Kingdom of Puppets thought of Adam as a monster.
He wasn't
Author's Note:
Surprise! I still don't have any intentions of writing another full Outcast book, but a lot of people requested learning more about what happened after the end of Book 6, which gave me some ideas.
I currently have four Outcast bonus chapters planned out. I'll probably use them to fill gaps in the schedule every now and then - like for today. Can't say when Bonus Chapter 2 will come out, as I'm writing these in my free time.
Also, for the recor...
2024-11-14 05:16:42 +0000 UTC View PostWinter had blanketed Penumbria in pure white.
Thick layers of snow were settling over streets and buildings alike, mostly hiding the dark, sickly veins of Rot threading through the stone. It lent a fleeting purity to a city otherwise tainted. Not a month before, it had been a battlefield – and not a winter later, it would be once again.
For now, its citizens chose not to think of that. War would come knocking soon, they knew. But today…
Today was a day of qui...
A map of Valtia was hanging on the wall inside. It was an impressive piece of craftsmanship, illustrating the four corners of the known world.
The bulk of livable land in Valtia was comprised of a single large continent, territorially divided into northern, southern, and eastern sections. Each of those three cardinal directions was home to an independent nation; separate factions grouped together on the same landmass.
And in the west, there were the Severed Isles. Its territory ...
Author's Note:
Two entirely new sections that will be added to the final kindle version! This first new chapter takes place very early in the story, shortly after Adam steals Aspreay's Talent and renders him comatose. We wanted to add a bit more of Adam dealing with the current state of Penumbria before moving on to the arc that introduces Solara.
--
Penumbria's new lord wanted nothing more than to rest. It had been a long day–a long 92 daysâ...
2024-11-05 23:53:03 +0000 UTC View PostLucia Evergreen stared at the sheet of paper held in her hands. She placed it on the table, then frowned, rubbing her fingertips together.
"I know you asked me not to make you repeat yourself," she began. "However...is this truly what you desire?"
Simon nodded. "Those are the terms we laid out earlier. As promised, nothing's changed." He tilted his head. "Unless you want it to?"
"No. I only wish to ensure that you won't be dissatisfied with our Contract."
With Chapter 61, we've now reached the end of Book 2! Yes, Book 2. Everything posted so far was meant to be Book 1, but at roughly 400k words it...kinda needs to be split up for the eventual kindle release. Like how Outcast Book 5 became 5 and 6. Actually, Outcast Books 2 and 3 were originally envisioned as one novel too. Think I'm seeming a pattern...
We've reached Skill Thief's approximate halfway point. Me and Raf are currently in the process of preparing for the next part of the sto...
2024-10-29 22:43:48 +0000 UTC View Post"Thank you."
Those two words, emphatically spoken, had a greater effect on Simon than he'd thought they would. "You're quite welcome," he replied, a smile inching up his face. "I've–"
"I mean it." The injured woman stared down at the ground, clenching both fists – mostly. Her right arm convulsed with effort, but all that amounted to was a mild twitching of its fingers. Despite Jonathan's careful ministrations, the limb would never regain full motor control. "That wretched Be...
Author's Note:
Remember Belmordo? The asshole noble who was trying to get Solara killed waaay back when? In editing / preparing Skill Thief for its eventual kindle release, we changed the name of Belmordo's Talent from 'Curse' to 'Contract'. Letting you know as it will be relevant soon.
--
"Nice to see you in good health," Adam calmly said.
"Ha!" Aspreay gave a hollow laugh, quick and cold, highlighting an annoyed smirk. "Good health!" H...
Author's Note:
8300 words. Enjoy!
--
The Beast let go of the Water Artifact, bounding forward on all fours. Its movement wasn't graceful – it almost seemed off-balance – but the sheer strength in its legs rocketed the creature towards Simon like a heat-seeking missile. Within mere seconds, it had already crossed half the length of the cavern.
Simon reached into Inventory and swept his arm out. Ten Warding Orbs fell out in a line, cov...
Wonder why I'm nervous.
Logically speaking, there was very little reason for Adam to feel like this. He was about to see his two best friends in this world. They were finally reuniting after a long, bloody battle – one that could've easily ended with all of them dead.
Yet despite the odds, through a combination of grit and luck, they had won. A coalition of upstarts had humbled the Emperor of the World.
And the people he cared most for had survived.
Duri...