“We have three options if we want to reach the Dragon Puppets,” Adam began, settling into his chair. “First, I can put my trust in your vague plan. Second, I can put my trust in Tenver’s vague plan.”
Solara lifted an eyebrow. “And the third option?”
“I can refuse to go meet with the Puppets at all,” Adam said, with a noncommittal shrug. “Honestly, you and Tenver both trying to push me in that direction makes me want to take a detour towards ...
"I learned Lifesurge," Orn'tol said.
His statement came out of nowhere, upending the silence that, until then, had been filled by dimension mages whispering as they gathered mana. Rob did an actual double take, looking between the mages and Orn'tol so quickly that he nearly gave himself whiplash. "Wait, really? When did that happen?"
"When the Harpy Amalgamations attacked me." The boy shuddered, waves of revulsion flowing through him. "Lifesurge's Prerequisite, aside fr...
“I hold neither an objection nor a motive to engage with the Dragon Puppets,” Tenver said, in a surprisingly quiet voice. “Why do you ask?”
Adam didn’t immediately consider the question about the Puppets. Instead, he tried to wrack his brain to remember whether he’d told Tenver about Solara’s Talent of resurrection. He was pretty sure that her Talent was among the things he’d skipped over in his explanation – it made it easier to hide his own ability to wager Talents....
Diplomacy drummed their fingers on the conference table and sighed. "I wish someone would attempt to assassinate you."
"Tell me about it," Rob agreed. "Think we could bait someone into trying?"
He watched as Diplomacy turned to peer out of the sole window in their room. Seconds later, the former Skill let out a long-suffering sigh, as if the Harpies were at fault for acting sensibly. "Probably not. There are some holdouts who still despise you for killing Elnaril, but none who b...
“Lord Adam,” Solara said, after a pause. “You’re a little more cold-hearted than I thought you’d be.”
“And you’re a little more honest than I thought you’d be.” Adam spoke in a harsh tone, but he made sure to relax into a smile at the end so she knew it was safe to lower her guard. “You just saw me use an Imperial Hangman to murder your uncle. Shouldn’t you be flattering me and all that?”
Solara smiled back. “Somehow, you don’t strike me like the ty...
At first, Solara suggested they rest for a short while before departing from the tower, but Adam steadfastly rejected her idea. “Much as I would love to rest,” he said, “we don’t have time.”
“Why not?”
He thought of how long it would take to explain, then shook his head. “Just go along with it for now – I’m honestly low on energy, and we have to get out of here soon.”
Solara briefly held her gaze. When she finally nodded, it was with a stern...
While Solara searched for proper healing supplies, Adam sat down by the table and glanced at his tablet.
Haunting of Flames
In exchange for:
“Forgive the delay, my lord,” Solara told him as she pushed a goblet onto his hands. “It will take time for your bones to fully heal, but I believe your broken ribs shouldn’t piece your lungs, at the very least.”
“That’s good. Would hate to do all that and die from my wounds right after....
Better late than never! If you'd like to join to discuss either Outcast or Skill Thief, you can find it here. Apparently some people were automatically thrown into it when I linked the server to Patreon, so for those of you wondering why it suddenly appeared in your server list...Discord works in mysterious ways.
As a side note, 2023-08-03 18:45:36 +0000 UTC View Post
The Dungeon was angry.
Rob could feel it in the air. It was like a heavy breath circulating around him, awash with frustration and discontent. Since the moment he'd set foot inside, an omnipresent sensation of being watched – of being stalked – had overtaken him. This Dungeon yearned for blood with the unhinged fervor of a vulture that hadn't eaten in weeks. When Rob gave his reconnaissance report to the Harpies later, he would warn them that whatever Party tackled this Du...
The stage was set, and the players were ready.
It was time to give one hell of a show.
“If you don’t mind, I’m going to get started on my drawing.” Adam felt the pain mounting in his broken bones. Even just standing was taking a lot of effort. “Sit there and be quiet.”
“Am I understanding your ability correctly?” The Ghost sounded surprised, but more than that, it seemed vaguely awed at the idea. Just like Adam wanted. “When you fail, will I rec...
STAINED VINES!
Adam called upon his ink, bringing the hefty shield up just in time to block the Curse’s ghostly attack. A shrill ringing noise resounded when the claws met Dragonforged metal. He felt a brief moment of triumph. It lasted until he found himself being flung backwards at high speeds, his feet no longer touching the ground. As Adam crashed into a harsh stone wall, he realized he’d been too naive.
My...back...
Stars swam through his vision...
My co-author and got ahead on Skill Thief, so we decided to move up its Royal Road public release date to...soon™. You'll be seeing a good amount of chapters over the next few days as a result. The idea is to have the Patreon tiers 3 / 5 / 7 chapters ahead of the public. Painter chapters will be shared with the current tiers for Outcast, so obviously you won't need to pay extra. We're aiming for 2 chapters a week once the schedule normalizes.
Speaking of Outcast - internal writing for...
2023-08-01 20:40:57 +0000 UTC View Post"You...do?” Belmordo seemed utterly baffled. “Why not merely accept my proposal, Lord Adam? We both stand to gain from it.”
The man was far too naive. He thinks it’s that easy, huh? That I’ll either go along with his plan, accept the curse and render myself harmless, or walk away and let him get Vasco’s daughter killed?
Adam could see why Belmordo had assumed all that. The would-be lord was making his offer from an advantageous position. Penumbria needed Gam...
"You're certain of this?" Tenver asked later that night, arms crossed and leaning against the wall as Adam packed a few painting supplies. "Is it not dangerous?"
"I'm careful enough that you could call me a coward and I'd make it a point of pride," Adam replied as he sorted through his new clothes. For all Aspreay talked shit about Penumbria, the local tailor was incredibly fast. "I'm not going to be at risk at all. You saw what I did to Aspreay; no reason why I can't do it again."
...
Tenver was silent for a short moment. A faint smile remained on his face, and his eyes never left Adam’s. Facing someone like this was always unnerving, but Adam refused to look away. It would have felt like losing.
His eyes are blue. That’s not common here, is it? He really should look into Tenver’s background soon. It seemed like an open secret, and he did have the authority to force someone to speak up if necessary.
“I’m the same as you,” Tenver ...
Author's Note:
Quick explanation: The creative process is a funny thing. When I was writing an upcoming chapter, I decided that it was more thematically appropriate for it to be the capstone of Book 5 rather than a lingering plot thread cleared up in 6. So, after some internal rewriting and retooling, here we are. This is the actual final chapter of Book 5, for realsies this time.
This chapter takes place before Book 6 Chapter 1, which remains unchanged.....
2023-07-27 03:57:33 +0000 UTC View PostAuthor's Note:
And we're back! Thanks to everyone who waited. Took us longer than we'd thought to get things prepared, but Skill Thief will be a consistent Patreon staple going forward. Will be once a week for now, but should ramp up to twice a week soonish.
Since it's been a while since Chapters 1-5, here's a quick summary for anyone who wants a refresher:
Adam, a broke college painter who's not feeling super great after losing an important art contest, get...
2023-07-24 04:06:07 +0000 UTC View PostRob wasn't sure if he'd ever get used to being in charge.
A group of ten Harpies were sitting quietly in front of him. Most of them hadn't moved a muscle, their wings tense and their eyes wide. They stared at him as if he was a starving jackal, ready to lunge for the nearest piece of fresh meat at the drop of a hat. Rob could tell that each of them wanted nothing more than to fly away from the dreaded Human and never look back.
But they couldn't – because this Human was in cha...
Chapter 214 marks the end of Book 5. This update is getting sent to all Patreon tiers so that people can plan accordingly. For people in higher tiers, please don't post spoilers in the comments. For people in lower tiers - scroll below this posting at your own risk.
With that said, here's a general summary of the schedule to expect moving forward.
1. I'll be taking a two week break starting on Chapter 214. Updates for lower tiers will continue as normal until they reach Chapter 21...
2023-07-07 04:34:57 +0000 UTC View PostKismet watched with mixed feelings as Rob clipped the Corrupted Harpy's wings. While it was a preferable outcome to the #*@$&@#()*$ infesting the mortal realms, this victory would embolden the Human to act more insufferably than ever before. Triumph begets arrogance amongst those with small minds. Kismet wasn't looking forward to their next correspondence.
Still, irrespective of his personal misgivings, this was a momentum occasion. One saga had come to an end, and...
Rob allowed himself a bit of time to soak everything in.
There was still plenty that he needed to do. Rally the Harpies, inform the coalition, prepare for the Dragon Queen. But these scant few seconds...just to process the end of a long road...
He could spare that much.
Inhale. Exhale. Rob sat back and collected his thoughts, waiting for the adrenaline surging through his veins to die down. He felt like he'd run a marathon while being chased by knife-toting seria...
The rooftop floor was slick with blood.
Rob had lost count of how many times he'd been cut. His foe would move, the wind would gust, and a deep wound would appear somewhere on his body. Sometimes from a claw, sometimes from a spell. He tried dodging, but Elnaril was just too fucking fast – the Blighted Harpy's Dexterity, even when not using his silver aura, was far above what any Combat Class user could hope to achieve.
And with the silver aura, Rob's efforts felt lik...
Throwing Proficiency guided Rob's aim, and his stat-enhanced accuracy turned it into a pitch worthy of a pro baseball player. The longsword came within inches of skewering through Elnaril's eye.
Violent winds erupted from around the Leader's body. They caught Rob's longsword in mid-air, crumpling tempered steel with the ease of crushing a tin can. Elnaril's shock rapidly morphed into apoplectic rage as he fled towards the opposite end of the room, retreating from the fight as his Amalg...
Where have the Harpies gone?
Not that Ragnavi was complaining. She'd been able to enjoy a brisk, unimpeded flight towards the capital city. It was a much-needed respite from the rigors of leading an army and watching sniveling nobles grovel for her favor. Ideally, she would've liked to encounter some morsels of EXP along the way, yet this solitude was acceptable as well.
She wasn't annoyed, just...confused. Ragnavi had expected at least one squad of Harpies to accost he...
"Do you want to save your city?"
Rob carefully adjusted his voice as he addressed the Harpy civilians sitting in front of him. Their group was one big bundle of nerves, ready to fly away at the first sign of danger. Several of them seemed to be regretting their impulsive decision to ask the coalition for safe haven. It'd worked out well for them so far, but good fortunes could change as quickly as the wind, especially for prisoners of war.
All of those factors were taken into ac...
Kismet was so shocked that he took a minute to enjoy the sensation. Emotions this strong only came around once every century or so.
After he'd had his fill, and the novelty was past, he began the process of figuring out what the fuck just happened.
Rob escaping was not an entirely unexpected outcome. Kismet was well aware of his resilience; after all, that was the primary reason why he'd deigned to remember the human's name. Whereas most mortals would have perished long...
"Hello? Anyone there?"
Rob called out to the void. He was greeted by deafening silence, his voice disappearing into the colorless expanse like a drop of paint diluted by an ocean.
"Figures." With an exaggerated sigh, Rob sat down and crossed his legs. "Let's see. How about this: Character Sheet."
Nothing appeared. His thoughts were being blocked by an invisible wall of something – which was almost certainly Gellin mind magic.
"Trusted those assholes," he grumbled...
Author's Note:
In accordance with the Kindle Unlimited release, the previous chapters have been removed.
--
In the end, Rob killed five Amalgamations before their numbers were extinguished, with his Party members killing an additional ten. That combined EXP easily shot him over Level 88. He was already halfway to 89, creeping ever closer to becoming the second Level 90 Combat Class user in history.
That was the sole piece of good...
Author's Note: In accordance with the Kindle Unlimited release, this chapter has been removed. The post itself has been preserved for the sake of the comment section.
2023-06-05 04:11:23 +0000 UTC View PostAuthor's Note: In accordance with the Kindle Unlimited release, this chapter has been removed. The post itself has been preserved for the sake of the comment section.
2023-05-29 04:05:29 +0000 UTC View Post