Nilsimus

Chapter 134: Inspired Changes

Chapter Prescript:

Patreon pulled down it's pants and took a spooky dooky all over the formatting for this chapter. I have no idea why the spacing between lines is so messed up now, the google doc I write in literally hasn't changed.

Anyway, enjoy!

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Leif sat alone, cross legged in his undecorated room, one of many identical lodgings available to guild members. He wasn’t technically a member, he hadn’t passed any initiation tests, nor was he completely famili...

Chapter 133: Dock Dangers

Chapter Prescript:

Sorry about the chapter being a day late, It was 99% done yesterday but my brain was jelly and couldn't edit.

Another chapter tomorrow, same time as usual.

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Aaron pulled against the ageing rope, rending it taut with a sharp tug and tying it against one of several cleats lining the fishing vessel's upper hull. Men, sweaty and rough looking, much like himself, sprung into action as the lower docks of Ahle-ho approached. Before him was ...

Chapter 132: Shitshow 

Chapter prescript:

Patreon really messed up the formatting for this one, not sure why. Wonderful website with absolutely no issues at all.

Anyway, this chapter is a bit of a chonker. Enjoy!

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The number of spectators swelled to outnumber, then eclipse the number of applicants. The young men and women trying out to join the Twin Heart guild broke up into groups of around twenty. Each group was captained by one of the above t...

Chapter 131: Usage

Flowers, ethereal and glowing bloomed from the dusty floor of the training field, conjured into existence by a back-pedalling teen as their opponent closed the distance with flames wreathing their clenched fists. His name, as Leif had overheard when the boy introduced himself to his opponent, was Jason.

Jason’s [Attuned: Spring] class made him the centre of much attention, both from his fellow guild applicants, but also the full guild members who were spectating or organi...

Chapter 130: Trying Out

Leif trailed Lars as the two marched through the Twin Heart guild compound. They passed by several dorms, each with a continuous stream of adventurers coming and going. There was an interesting dichotomy to the place, younger adventurers, those of lower rank would give way for their more powerful seniors. Few of the less experienced adventurers openly displayed their rank, though from bronze rank and higher the practice became more common, usually with a small pin crafted into th...

Chapter 129: Auras for Dummies

Leif and Lars sat in the guild-master’s office, though the room was absent the owner in question, Nikolas having excused himself several minutes prior. Lars was fully perceivable to Leif’s senses, though reading the man’s emotions or intent was like trying to see the sky while indoors.

The man sat, lunging back in his seat, grey eyes partially vacant in the familiar expression of ‘I’m looking through my system windows.’ He was a severe looking man, his tanned co...

Chapter 128: Unprepared

Chapter Prescript: 

I am dying of heatstroke while within my air conditioned house. This summer has been surprisingly cold so far here in Victoria, but mother nature just took off the gloves and spanked us with three forty degree (c) days in a row. That's 104f in freedom units. 

Anyway, if I stayed in the place I normally write for more than twenty minutes I would have literally died, so I've been awkwardly perched on the couch with a cushio...

Chapter 127: I do, but he’s dead

Chapter Prescript: 

Ended up rewriting this chapter a few times over the past several days. 

I think I cooked though.

Enjoy!

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Leif held the letter between two ivory fingers, the plain envelope standing in contrast to the intricate red wax seal, the stylish flourish of a serpentine dragon eating its own tail crafted with such fine details he could make out the individual scales and the pupil of its eye. The envelope was surprisingly h...

Chapter 126: Those With Power

Leif and the Twin Heart guild leader sat alone within a large ornate office, light filtering in from a window that covered much of the right hand wall, refracting slightly as it passed through the glass and bounced around the room, illuminating its contents. A shelf with what looked like brass medals, a counter fronting some sort of bar. A couch draped with the fur of some exotic beast.

“Worried? Hardly, this will be educational if anything.” Nikolas said, taking a sip ...

Chapter 125: Reunion

Chapter Prescript: 

Ding ding ding! The Patreon is now five chapters ahead!

I may repurpose the vanity support tier as a 'ten chapters ahead' tier, but I'm not certain yet. Feel free to leave a comment or drop into the discord if you have any questions or suggestions. This is my first time running anything like a Patreon and I'd appreciate the feedback. 

Enjoy the chapter!

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“Enter.” Came the rumbling voice of a man within the mee...

Chapter 124: Twin Heart

The Twin Heart compound stood alone, a single building and its surrounding courtyards and facilities taking up an entire city block. A low wall with a peaked roof outlined the compound's exterior, many passersby resting under the shade it provides. Groups and armed and armoured men and women came and went, their destination a monster hunt or some other guild activity.

Banners flew proudly on the sea breeze, twin circles of dark crimson separated by a swirling pattern of bla...

Chapter 123: Guilds, Tiers and Levels

“I have to ask.” Leif sent telepathically to his two guides who were striding ahead of him at a brisk, but measured pace. “Who are the people running around on the rooftops?”

“Who are the people running around on the rooftops?”

“Iron rank adventurers, at the minimum.” Tollumi said, side stepping around an elderly woman pushing a small trolley, its wooden wheels clacking against the slightly uneven ground.

“How ignorant would it make me if I did...

Chapter 122: Ahle-ho at Last

Patreon update! (Only good news I promise)

Heyo, sneaky Patreon chapter! This isn't Sunday, what's going on?

Well I'll tell you! I'm going to start releasing more Patreon chapters until we're at least 5 ahead of the Royal Road release. 

Is the price changing? Nope. Is the release schedule changing? Nope but expect a few more chapters than usual this week. 

I may increase the number of chapters more at some point but it depends out quickly I c...

Chapter 121: An Adept of Vital Wood

Chapter prescript: 

Changed the name of [Adept of Restoration] to [Adept of Self-Restoration].

This massive retcon will shake the very foundations of the story, and directly contradicts all existing lore. 

Hope you enjoy the numbers going up chapter!

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Leif found himself sitting in the empty world unable to choose what his new class should be. Both [Adept of Self-Restoration] and [Healer of the Forest] appealed greatly to him, in an i...

Chapter 120: Class Promotion

On his way back to the quarry town Leif ran into Nayet, Tollumi and a very flustered looking Manny. The foreman ushered the horse he was riding to move to the side of the road, while the two adventurers rode closer on the mount they shared. Nayet held the reins in one hand as she waved towards him with the other, her husband winced as he dismounted, one of his arms wrapped in bandages.

“This is great! Wonderful news!” Manny said, running a hand through his greying hair....

Chapter 119: The Climb

The hundreds of seabirds that called the sheer cliff were less than pleased at his presence. Leif couldn’t really blame them, especially considering the damage he had done during his fall. But that didn’t stop being constantly swooped by dozens of the angry creatures at a time from being quite annoying.

His aura, or perhaps nature, seemed to mollify the majority of the birds, his presence pacifying them. Unfortunately a majority of the winged beasts being mostly imparti...

Chapter 118: Evolved

Water churned around Leif as he looked around him, searching for the serpent that had vanished from sight. He kept his footing easily enough, several skills working in tandem to maintain his balance. He pushed cultivated vitality into [Amber Aegis], unable to see or predict when the merfey would strike next he decided that shoring up his defences was a wise choice.

A moment later that was proven to be correct as a wall of scales and fangs shimmered back into visibility and ...

Chapter 117: Flood

The quarry was a set of giant steps carved into an artificial valley, the limestone had been dug away in layers that resulted in the quarry being like a funnel. Water had fallen from layer to layer, finally accumulating in the innermost point where it pooled into a small, roughly rectangular lake.

Foremen gathered around the uppermost lip of the quarry, looking down at the lake with troubled expressions. Former members of the enslaved legion likewise stood around, tools in ...

Chapter 116: Vacant

The roads leading into Ahle-ho were mostly absent of travellers during the worst of turbulence, however whenever there was a gap in the chaos they would emerge from small roadside shelters to continue on their way. Farmers rode carts pulled by beasts of burden, their harvests having been completed in the leadup to the wild and largely unpredictable weather.

Needing neither sleep nor food, he made good time, but that was relative to the average human traveller. A hailstorm t...

Chapter 115: Departure

Leif ended up staying in Klos for over a week, there was far more to do than healing those who had been severely injured in the fire that had claimed over a quarter of the town. There was an interesting, if morbid phenomenon he observed while treating the victims. The survivors were moderately levelled, their increased attributes having granted them enough resilience to stave off death until they could receive healing.

The death toll was high, the demographics that had died p...

Chapter 114: Ashes

Leif wished his spatial ring was larger, that way he could actually store clothing in case he ever got into a situation like this again. Unfortunately it wasn’t, and the likelihood of him being able to afford something better was practically none. Though maybe my current bottleneck is my location. He thought, stabbing an amber limb into the steep incline of stone, slowly inching his way up higher.

The two packs from the terrorists were slung over his back, with e...

Chapter 113: Showdown

Townsfolk ran as their homes burnt around them. Dancing embers eagerly seeking out victims as if possessed by an unnatural malevolence. Olav raced around the corner of an intersection only to collide with an adventurer as they backpedalled, wreathed in flames they were unable to put out.

Olav cursed, ducking to the side as he hastily patted out the fire that had jumped hosts, the adventurer letting out a horse, hollow scream as they slumped against a nearby building. The demi...

Chapter 112: Excavation

The fire user spontaneously combusted as maddened laughter clawed out of his mouth. Leif sighed, raising an arm to shield his face from the following detonation of power. The battle had wounded him, though his cultivated base of life-force hadn’t been overly tapped into. The two injured humans however, were in far worse conditions. They fled, vanishing over a ledge as the cavern began to collapse. He turned, and dashed for their packs, all the while cursing the fact he was abou...

Chapter 111: Overwhelming

Roots ripped free from the slanted ceiling, twisting and writhing as they responded to Leif’s command. Chunks of stone, pulled free by the violent exit of the roots, fell in crashing heaps to the floor. The cavern shook, the sound of running water replaced with rock impacting rock. Leif stepped forward, the motion turning him into a blur of golden light as [The Amber Path] pulled him away from danger.

A pillar of flames shot up from behind the wall of fire, the elementali...

Chapter 110: Confrontation

Leif stalked a trio of ghosts through the damp tunnels, trying his best to ignore the rank odour wafting around him with every step he took. His clothes were torn and scorched, little better than tatters, the ivory white of his body exposed in several key locations. Echoes of voices and footsteps echoed down from above as the people of Klos went about their day, a day likely inundated with chaos and uncertainty.

The guild office was destroyed, the man in charge was dead. An...

Chapter 109: Collapse

Heat buffeted Leif as a column of fire ignited the common area of the guild building. [Amber Aegis] flickered around him, the golden barrier deflecting most of the splinters and flames as the shockwave rolled over him. He whirled, cloak burning around the edges only to see a wall of smoke and dancing flames.

Someone stumbled towards the door, their body almost entirely engulfed as they blindly scrambled to escape. A second blast of fire rocked the building, chunks of the ce...

Chapter 108: Distance

Leif observed the growing tension between two armed forces as they squared off in the market of Klos. Words like ‘jurisdiction’,‘treaties’ and ‘overstepping’ were thrown around with reckless abandon, and anger flared from both parties. Adventurers and civilians formed a rough semicircle around both the Ahle-ho and Empire soldiers, as if to spectate an upcoming fight.

He watched the shouting match for several minutes before coming to a definitive conclusion. ...