First thing on Monday morning, Nil opened the quest list. His next Gauntlet of Ten match was the following Monday, and he wanted to gain a few attributes and ability ranks before it. Isabella had warned him that the arena construct would put him up against even stronger opponents since his Spark had reached Iron-Eight. Since training wasn’t getting him the desired results, Nil hoped a quest would do the job. He also wanted to visit the Nexus Market, sell the Iron Ascension Token he gained from rescuing Mila, and perhaps spend some Schema Credit.
Objective: Bandits and scourge cults crave aether gems for the machinations. A shipment has arrived at the docks of Kelpie Port and must be transported to Greybeard’s Rest. Its arcane academy is training the Beacon World’s future champions, which’re essential for its survival. Escort the mana gem carriage to its destination. Survival of the rest is secondary.
Duration: 2-3 days
Danger Level: Iron 9
Rewards: 200 Schema Credit, 2 Schema Token
Objective: The hero of a Beacon World is on the verge of transcending to the Immortal Realm. Her ascension will herald a new world for the realm, making it harder for the Scourge to steal its resources and increase shipments to Control Worlds. Song Yi’s personal guard and the Scourge Champions have all fallen while he is immobile and vulnerable. Agents of the Dark Worlds continue their machinations, attempting to halt the arrival of the golden age. Ensure Song Yi completes her ascension. Eliminate all Scourge worshippers and Cursed Ones that come for her.
Duration: 6 - 18 hours
Danger Level: Bronze 5
Rewards: 400 Schema Credit, 3 Schema Tokens, Access to exclusive stores in the Nexus Market
Objective: A Dark Cult has taken root in the coastal town of Poori. If they successfully complete their ritual and sacrifice all of the settlement’s residents, the cult will successfully summon a powerful Cursed One. There is also a small chance of them gaining the ability to control it. Either eventuality will result in a bleak future for the Beacon World. The latter has a significantly higher chance of speeding up the world’s transformation into a Dark World. Stop the ritual. Eliminate the cult’s leading trio.
Duration: 12 hours
Danger Level: Bronze 8
Rewards: 500 Schema Credit, 5 Schema Tokens, Bronze Ascension Token
The first quest looked the easiest and safest, but the rewards compared to the time investment weren’t to Nil’s liking. There was no guarantee of conflict; he needed it to push his attributes and ability ranks.
Nil hadn’t mentioned it to his family, but working for the Nexus on Earth would likely earn him enemies. If Symbiotech and its benefactors found out about his quest and plans, they’d be gunning for him as well. It was part of the reason why he was desperate to have them moved. There was a high chance of his true intentions being revealed after the sabotage, and he was sure the company wasn’t above going after his family. Emily and Sam wouldn’t be happy about it, but moving to new schools would follow the change of accommodation. He needed to get strong and rich fast for his family’s sake, which meant he needed to take more risks.
A danger level of Bronze-Eight was well outside of Nil’s comfort zone, so he settled on the second quest on the list. He was excited to learn about ascensions beyond the Platinum Realm and meet an immortal. Access to exclusive merchants in Nexus Market was fascinating.
Nil had a handful of concerns regarding the quest. Nil expected someone as important as a Platinum Realm on the verge of ascension to have friends of a similar power level. Her guards also had to be Silver and Gold. If they all fell fighting off Scourge Champions, it meant things were bleak. However, the space was likely full of powerful artifacts and magic. It didn’t make sense for them only to summon an Iron Realm for the protection detail. Something had gone wrong. Nil was sure of it. He expected combat and the opportunity to learn a fair deal about the multiverse and power structures of Beacon and Control Worlds. However, it seemed less dangerous than taking an entire Dark Cult.
“Is everything okay?” Lily asked over breakfast. “You didn't seem particularly focused during warm-up.”
“I'm considering a quest,” Nil replied. He had struggled not to open the Schema interface after every lap and check the list. It hadn't refreshed, and his eyes drifted to the second offering.
“Danger Level and duration?”
“Bronze Five. Six-to-eighteen hours.”
“The reward better be good for you even to consider that,” Lucy said, joining them. The woman had ceased wearing her armor everywhere after the qualifiers. She only wore it during combat training and during her one match during the past three months and refused to discuss its significance. Lucy was due to move to Wilson Luduses in a few weeks, and that was one of the reasons Isabella was willing to end her employment at Golden Aegis.
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“It is,” Nil replied. “And I'm very tempted by what's on offer and what the quest could entail.”
“Then what's holding you back?” Lucy popped her can of lemonade and added a pouch of strange white crystals to it. The beverage buzzed like it was full of popping candy as she drank it. Lily had asked her about it, but the knight lived her mystery. She claimed it was adjusting her body to the side effects of her ability and nothing more.
“The last time I took a Bronze Danger-Level quest, the Schema’s information was out of date. I suffered a fatal injury and should've died. Fortunately, it was a team quest, and one of my companions managed to patch me up and keep me stable until I got to the Fountain of Pyrene.” Nil’s hand drifted to where the hole was. He still remembered the pain and the helplessness. “This is a solo quest with a similar danger level. What if the Nexus fucks up again? I don't want to die because of their mistake.”
Both women sat in silence, listening and watching. Lily squeezed his hand. It felt odd to be comforted by someone about ten years younger than him.
“The helplessness in those kinds of situations messes you up,” Lucy said, breaking the silence. “Your hesitation is understandable. I understand where you're coming from, but from what I understand, those kinds of oversights are an anomaly. The Nexus isn't omnipotent or omnipresent, but they're pretty good at what they do. If you think you can manage Bronze-Five and the Nexus is offering the quest, it should be possible for you and your ability. Besides, given how amazing you were in your last couple of matches, I'm sure you can manage whatever it is.”
“Or go for something with a lower danger level,” Lily added. “It's perfectly respectable to do Iron Realm quests when you've been in Iron Realm for three months. I don't understand why you two must rush and take unnecessary risks.”
“Not all of us are nineteen with all the time in the world,” Lucy replied.
“Age has nothing to do with it,” Nil said. “I have things I need to accomplish in a limited timeline that involves getting stronger faster.” He smiled at Lily. “I really should be taking Iron Danger-Level quests, but the Nexus keeps annoyingly offering me long ones. I’ve got another match next week and would like to keep it short so I can throw myself into training once I get back.”
“That's fair enough.” Lily nodded after shooting Lucy a cold glare. Nil sensed the women didn't like each other but still hung around since they struggled to befriend the ludus’ other Iron-Realm Summoned. “Whatever you do, be careful. Take the penalty for failure if you must.”
“Which are? I thought we would get stripped of our powers and have to work off our debt to the Nexus without them.”
“That’s only on the first quest,” Lucy said. “You just incur a debt to the Nexus and the summoning world and have to make up for the magic they burned to call you. It's a few hundred Schema Credit.”
“In some cases, you might have to do a quest or two for free too,” Lily added.
When Nil accepted the quest, it didn’t take him to the Nexus, dashing his hopes of visiting the market first. The Schema directly deposited him to the quest destination. The magic circle he appeared in wasn’t like the ones he had seen before. It featured symbols that reminded Nil of Chinese characters and Japanese Kanji. He had no means of recognizing either, and the Schema didn’t translate the text.
Nil stood in the courtyard of a palatial three-story building. The architecture looked Eastern, reminiscent of what Nil had seen in videos of the Forbidden Palace in Beijing. Except it wasn't as pristine.
Multiple battles seemed to have ripped through the structure. Gore and scorch marks stained the flagstones and lacquered walls. Nil saw a charred corpse half-melted into the floor, and another would’ve passed for a crystal statue if not for the bones jutting out of shattered limbs.
Unlike with his previous quests, Nil didn’t get the chance to find out what had happened thus far or learn the current state of things. A pair of old men and a girl no older than Emily stood just beyond the summoning spell, fighting off a Cursed One with the same appearance and features as the first monster Nil had faced during his first quest. However, the specimen in front of him appeared to have had the time to develop and grow further. Bony spines grew out of its spine and jutted out of the joints, providing armor and natural weapons. It occasionally fired projectiles or grew the bones to use them as disposal weapons—just like the Scourge Champion that had taken Mila, her grandfather, and fiance.
The trio fighting the creature displayed powers of their own. One wielded a flaming sword that launched waves of flames with every swing. Another’s fists and forearms were as wide as his head, and electricity danced around the limb. Every third blow made the Cursed One spasm, creating an opening for the teenager. Then she dove in with her spear. Spectral copies of his weapon shot forth, attacking the same point as where she struck.
Bone armor shattered. Skin ripped. Flesh burned.
Unfortunately, the Cursed One rapidly regenerated from its injuries, growing smaller but more toned and muscled. The clash appeared unsustainable. The trio’s advantage wouldn’t last for long. Eventually, the Cursed One would prevail, and Nil doubted his ability to defeat it alone. So, he raced in just as the unarmed fighter was knocked off his feet, and the beast lunged at the spear-wielding teenager. Nil threw himself between her and the beast and took the blow with Absorb.
Then, he attacked.