You have defeated a Level 280 Stone Bear!
You have gained 2,000 Mastery Points (E Grade).
Congratulations!
You have completed your second Hunt Quest on the hundredth floor of the Tower of Champions. Return to Hunter’s Home to claim your reward and start on your next Hunt Quest!
Hunt Quests completed: 2
Hunt Quests needed to pass to the next floor: 10
Xavier smiled as he finished reading the notification and looked around the cave. It was no longer so dark. The last enchanted torches that he’d lit still burned, and his vision was now able to penetrate even the farthest corners of the cavern.
When the Stone Bear had died, the stalactites and stalagmites in the cave had all crumbled into dust, and it looked as though they had never been there in the first place.
The Spirit of Protection was still there—the five minute timer was nowhere near up. In fact, only thirty seconds of it had passed when the Stone Bear had died, and that time had passed outside the time barrier when Xavier had slowed down time within it.
The full-plate armoured, massive hulk of a man looked down at Xavier with naked awe. Though that expression was quickly restrained. The Spirit of Vengeance was right about you.
Xavier wiped the sweat off his brow with the sleeve of his dark robes. The time dilation field had fallen the instant after he’d killed the Stone Bear. He’d been pushing himself hard to keep that thing going, and the moment he didn’t need it anymore it had seemingly dropped away of its own accord.
There is still over four minutes left on the timer. Are you going to disappear, now the battle is done?
The Spirit of Vengeance had always disappeared after a fight.
No. I will not disappear until the timer is through. You may still use the spells until then.
Xavier nodded, then he contemplated what would greet him outside the cave—the infected beasts controlled by The Nightmare. That wasn’t something he wished to deal with right now. He would simply let the timer run out.
Besides, he hadn’t really needed the spells in the end.
Xavier had thought that if the System had sent him to this floor to learn something of humility, it had only been partially successful. After that fight... well, he was only feeling more and more overpowered than he had before.
He stepped over to the Stone Bear and placed a hand over it, then brought it into his Storage Ring.
It would be difficult, using his Dismantle skill on beasts that were a whole grade above him when the skill was only at Rank 1. It wasn’t something he’d yet tried, despite his desire. Though it was something that he would be able to do while he was in the time bubble, so that, he was glad for. He could easily expedite the process.
It was a shame he didn’t have access to E Grade beast properties anymore.
The Spirit of Protection was still staring at him. Xavier turned and faced the man.
What is it?
There is something different about you, Denizen. I feel... a pull. A desire to help you. The Spirit of Protection shut his eyes. Shook his head. It is a strange feeling. Were I corporeal, I might have thought you had some skill that was influencing me. But that… should not be possible.
A desire to help me?
Xavier felt that to be very strange. He approached the Spirit of Protection, standing a few feet away from him.
Is that not why you have been summoned? Could it simply be the spell at work?
I have been summoned by those far more powerful than you, young Denizen.
The spirit raised its chin proudly.
Though even so, none of them have risen to power as swiftly as you have. And you hold a power far beyond your level... it is terrifying to behold, yet tantalizing at the same time.
Xavier tried to take in what the spirit was telling him. He didn’t understand it. What kind of pull could he have that wasn’t accounted for by the spell he’d cast?
Perhaps it has something to do with the System... Xavier trailed off.
This got the Spirit of Protection’s attention.
The System? To what are you referring?
Xavier bit his lip. He had told more than one person about what the System intended for him—or at least, what it hoped he would become—and what it had done to him to try to help get him there. But part of him still felt as though it wasn’t information that he should be sharing around.
Can spirits create contracts?
The Spirit of Protection’s serious mood cracked. The hulk of a man chuckled.
Of course spirits can create contracts. We make contracts with mortals all the time, though the sacrifice...
There was an odd gleam in the spirit’s eye, a hunger that Xavier hadn’t seen there before.
Well, let’s just say that it can be... soul-destroying.
Xavier knew that summoning spirits from the Otherworld had an effect on his soul, though he didn’t know how significant that effect was. Seeing the hunger in the spirit’s eyes... now he wondered if the damage to his soul had something to do with the spirits feeding off it.
How about a simple privacy contract? What will that cost me?
The Spirit of Protection inclined his head. Nothing, for my curiosity is piqued.
The contract was made and signed by the Otherworldly Reaper and the entity that had been summoned from the Otherworld.
Xavier spoke of what had happened to him—not all of it, but the general gist. He only had a few minutes left with the spirit, after all.
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The Spirit of Protection did not interrupt Xavier’s telling, but the man’s expression shifted. Xavier couldn’t see the man’s entire face with his helm obscuring it, but what he could see showed him a worried expression.
Could that explain what you are feeling?
The Spirit of Protection turned his head to look at the cave’s ceiling, though it seemed to be looking beyond that. Xavier recognised the gesture. It seemed to be universal, as if the person or entity was checking if the System was watching, or worried about what they were about to say—or wanted to say.
Sam, back in the tavern at the bottom of the Tower of Champions, had used that gesture a lot.
You have not summoned me for insight, but that does not mean I can’t converse with you. There are things that spirits from the Otherworld are aware of that most from the Greater Universe are not. The Otherworld, as I’m sure you’re aware, is a place that stands between universes. The flow of time moves differently there. Everything is different there...
The Spirit of Protection dropped his head in thought.
There are things I cannot say, not to you. But I will say that... I know something of the ending of universes. I know something of the threat you may one day face, that is, if you become successful in your journey toward becoming the Weapon of the System.
Xavier frowned. He had known something of the Otherworld being between universes, though it wasn’t something he understood.
The Spirit of Vengeance. It spoke of revenge it one day wished to seek... revenge in my universe. How could that be possible if you are from another?
Some spirits from the Otherworld choose only to operate in universes they are familiar with. Others operate wherever they wish. And still others... we do not have the option to operate in our own universe, for our universes no longer exist.
Xavier blinked. You... you were there? At the end? He took a step forward. The end of your universe? A pleading note crept into his voice. This was his future—it may be far into the future, but it was something he needed to know. Please, tell me something of what I will face.
The Spirit of Protection shook his head. I cannot. Though, perhaps, one day that will change…
The timer was running out. Only a few seconds remained.
Call upon me again, Denizen. I will always willingly aid you however I can.
The Spirit of Protection disappeared, and Xavier stood alone inside the cave that had once belonged to the Stone Bear.
He sighed. He looked up, as though looking at the System itself. It was no coincidence that one of the spirits he’d summoned from the Otherworld happened to have experienced the end of a universe. At least, he didn’t see how it could be.
“You set this up, didn’t you?” Xavier said. “You set all of this up.”
He sighed once more, and remembered what he had been learning from Liana—patience.
It would be a great many years before he understood what this threat was, and a great many more before he finally faced it. And he had a very, very long way to go in that time.
Xavier shut his eyes and took a deep breath. He ordered his mind, placing the information he had just gained from the Spirit of Protection where it needed to go—not that there was much information there to begin with. But he did know that in the future, he would most definitely be resummoning that spirit.
There was more he could learn from it in the future.
Xavier moved through the Dark Mountains at speed, avoiding the infected beasts that called this cursed place home. It wouldn’t be long before he made it back to Hunter’s Home.
He had gained a few ranks from the fight, but not as many as he’d hoped—fighting so many beasts while he waited for his Time Alteration spell to reach the end of its cooldown during his training with Liana had meant he’d brought forward the majority of his spells and skills already.
But he did happen to gain several ranks in Soul Stike.
Now I just need to gather another five hundred souls... not as easy here as it was back on Earth.
Liana said she would meet him back at the tavern after he completed his Hunt Quest. While he was there, he could claim the reward for killing the Stone Bear, and perhaps figure out where he might acquire access to E Grade beast parts...
It would be easy enough for him to return to the Staging Room and use the System Shop for something like that, but then he couldn’t guarantee that Liana would still be there when he returned.
Maybe she’ll want to take a break from this floor as well. There might be things she wants to get done back in our universe. If we both agree to return after the same amount of time has passed, and we leave here at the same time, then we should get back at the same time, too. We wouldn’t have to wait long to see the other on the floor...
He had made some contacts here—Gimble, and the dwarf’s party members—they certainly wouldn’t stick around. But did he really need them to? The dwarves weren’t even from his sector.
He contemplated all of this on his run back through the larger forest on his way to the tavern, and stopped short, standing outside of it as he realised something. He chuckled to himself and shook his head, realising that time, indeed, did wait for some men.
Him being one of them.
Xavier could very easily return to the Staging Room. And, the instant that he materialised there, he could cast Time Alteration. He could push the bubble of time forward to expand it to reach the System Shop’s pedestal, then he wouldn’t have to worry about how much time passed while he was gone, as barely any would...
He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t thought of that earlier.
I’m still new to being able to control time, even in the limited capacity that I’m able to. Of course something like that wouldn’t occur to me right away...
That meant that once he attained his reward for killing the Stone Bear, it would be time for him to return to the Staging Room, and finally purchase the things he wanted from the System Shop.
He stepped into the Hunter’s Home tavern with a great big grin on his face. Liana was leaning against the bar, glaring at Felicia, the barkeep who seemed to free with other people’s secrets.
I’ll definitely be having a word with her myself soon.
Liana turned. When she noticed Xavier come in, she frowned. “Xavier?” she said, sounding oddly surprised to see him. “Aren’t you supposed to be facing the Stone Bear? Didn’t think you’d be one for taking a drinking break before doing such a thing—you know you only have so much time before you need to complete another Hunt Quest on this floor, don’t you?”
Xavier scratched his head, feeling a little confused himself. Did she really think he’d come here first?
I suppose it only took me roughly thirty seconds in real time to defeat the beast. Then I spoke to the Spirit of Protection for a few minutes before coming here at speed…
“I already defeated the Stone Bear. Thanks for not warning me about that darkness ability, by the way.”
Liana blinked, then smiled. “You’ll have to tell me exactly how you defeated it. I expected the encounter to take you... well, a lot longer. I’ll order us some drinks.”
Xavier nodded. He spotted Gimble standing by the notice board. His body and mind felt more relaxed than ever, and after how easily he’d dealt with the Stone Bear... he figured it would be nice to have a bit of a break in this place. “I’ll join you in a moment,” he told Liana. Then he looked at Felicia, behind the bar. He pointed at her. “And I wouldn’t mind a word with you later. I’ll also be back for my quest reward.”
Liana looked a little taken aback by how he pointed at her, but then she smirked. “You know where to find me.”
He walked over to the dwarf. Gimble glanced up at him and smiled through his bushy beard. “Still around, aye? That’s good ta see. When I didn’t spot ya the past few days, I thought ya might’ve taken a break. Or...” Gimble scratched the back of his neck. “Somethin’ worse.”
“I’ve been training.”
The dwarf gave him a once over, taking in his robes. “Gotta wonder what sorta training someone of your, ah, class, does.” The dwarf sniffed. Xavier wondered what class he thought he was—they’d never discussed that, and like most Denizens, Xavier had something that stopped his class—and other information—from being visible to others.
But he supposed the scythe and the dark robes were a dead giveaway. He returned his Midnight Scythe to his Storage Ring. “Looking for another Hunt Quest?”
“Aye. Starting to get restless. Can’t drink all the time. Been itchin’ for a fight.”
Xavier spotted something on the board. His eyes widened briefly.
It was a C Grade beast called an Elemental Dragon.
“Gimble,” he said, motioning toward the notice with the beast. “Do you know anything about that beast?”
The dwarf chuckled. “Aye. Some. Dwarfs and dragons, we tend to occupy the same spaces more often than not. We’re both fans o’ mountains, for one. But why anyone would ever want to go up against that thing, I don’t know. It’s the most powerful beastie on the board—I heard tell of a raid, before my time here, of hundreds of Champions who went after it.” He shook his head. “Only one of ‘em survived. That thing… it’s more dangerous than most dragons.”
Xavier blinked. “Why is that. Because it’s C Grade?”
The dwarf shook his head. “Not only that, lad. It’s more dangerous because it’s been protecting its egg. Dragons are long-lived—even by Greater Universe standards—and they’d incredibly intelligent beasts. They rarely mate, and well, that egg? It’ll probably take a total of a hundred years for it to hatch, and until it does, that beastie will guard its mountain with acute ferocity.”
Xavier raised his chin. A smile slipped onto his lips.
He remembered what the hamster spirit had told him when he’d used Otherworldly Communion, asking about bringing the Spirit of Vengeance into this world:
A vessel for such a powerful spirit must be three things—young, soulless, and a match.
A dragon egg sounded as though it would fit that description perfectly.