[CURSE INFLICTED: Dark shackle – As long this curse remains, your attributes are locked.]

‘What!’ Lan shouted as he opened his tome to the page about himself and as the voice had said, not only was there a red circle in the corner of his portrait, his attributes were greyed out.

‘What’s wrong.’ Cali and Cawl both asked as Cali moved closer.

‘He just put a Curse on me!’ Lan said, almost as taken aback that he had ever had to say it as the curse itself, as he tried to take the ring off. It wouldn’t even budge. Lan didn’t even feel like he was pulling on the ring. ‘Who the hell walks around with a cursed item?’

‘Technically, you put the curse on yourself.’ Art shrugged so nonchalantly that it made Lan almost feel like he was over-exaggerating.

‘What the hell? I don’t care what you do, you crazy fossil but don’t do it to one of my customers and not in my shop.’

‘Oh, will you stop, you silly man? It’s barely a curse. Plus, it raises his stats in return. The point of the Dark Shackle is to put you in a position to find a path by drawing out the attributes you favour. Once you know that, the potential combat classes become more clear. The name is a bit dramatic, I will admit. But as you use it, it will adjust your attributes to fit the situation.’ As Art spoke, Lan rechecked his stats and found they had been raised by six points each, and now that most of the shock had worn off…

[Attributes:] [Pending points: 40{Locked}]

[Strength: 5 => 11]

Body: 5 => 11

Will: 5 => 11

Dexterity: 5 => 11

Mind: 5 => 11

[Charisma: 5 => 11]

‘They are all eleven now.’ Lan said as he realised he was feeling good… stronger than ever before. His eyes and ears seemed sharper, his mind felt like a fog had been lifted, and looking back at the mirror, even his skin looked healthier.

It was a little overwhelming, and this was just six more points from what he had lived with for all his life. As he was looking at himself, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Cali perk up and rush down the stairs.

‘Just finish your next few jobs in whatever way you like, and this will help me find a Class for you.’ With that, Art walked out of the shop.

‘Wait! You can’t just…’ Lan stopped, he would have gone after the odd man, but he wasn’t done with Cawl. Sighing, Lan turned to the blacksmith. ‘That’s it?’

‘Well, he’s weird, like an adventurer, I’ll give him that.’ Cawl shrugged.

‘Weird… yeah,’ Lan repeated, looking at the ring.

Cawl waved Lan over. ‘Curse or no, at least now you can use this.’ The smith said as he placed something wrapped in cloth on the counter.

Picking it up and unwrapping it. Lan found a simple sword with a lacquered black scabbard and a thin black cross guard shorter than the swords hanging around the shop. Taking a moment to process that, he was looking at what might be his new sword. Lan drew the blade.

The silver of the steel broke through the black of the scabbard and handle like a shooting star through the night sky. Although it was a straight sword, it was a little shorter than a long sword and near the top of the blade, one edge curved up as the other flattened to a point. Giving the look of a single-edged blade even though both carried a razor's edge.

To the son of a crafter, it might as well have been a work of Art. Lan thought as he took a closer look at the wrapping on the hilt. From afar, it looked identical to the scabbard, but up close, it was clear that it was a type of leather Lan had never seen before. Hugging both sides of the blade and joining to the base of the guard was an inverted darker silver arch that reached halfway up the blade. Which stood out more against the otherwise simple design.

‘This is amazing.’ Lan said, sheathing the sword.

‘Ah, don’t make too much about it.’ Cawl waved. ‘it will get the job done, don’t get me wrong. The blade was a piece that I was working on, but it didn’t turn out the way I wanted it. However, it seemed to be perfect for you, so I cleaned it up and fitted it. Oh yeah, and this too.’ Cawl said, slamming a short mace on the counter.

‘Uhh...’ Lan looked from the much cruder weapon to its maker.

‘I’m not trying to fleece you or something. It’s goblin season, so it’s better to have another weapon on you.

‘What about my spear?’ Lan asked as he saw Cali coming back up the stair with something new.

‘Too long, and one spear does little against a group of goblins, Not to mention that they’re harder to kill than they look. Even if you hit something important, it will probably just run up the shaft, barely paying any mind to the spear. The best way to convince them they're dead is to knock the sense out of them or take the head off. Other than that, they will keep coming until their bodies shut down.’ Lan tried not to picture the image, leaving him thinking of a goblin charging with his spear slowly disappearing into its body as it closed in.

Lan jumped as Cali dropped the new armour on the counter and grinned at him.

‘Uh, everything alright?’ Lan asked.

‘Don’t worry. You will be…’ she said with a dangerous grin as she left the armour.

Once she had calmed down. Lan found the new arm armour was much like the first, only much less… finished. Although the forearm part was finished, it wasn’t in the matte white metal, just dull steel. The rest looked like the frame without the armour installed, and the fingers were open and not covered like the first. With a little more encouragement, Lan worked his arm into the armour. Although not as pretty as the first and still heavier than the one Cawl had made.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

‘Okay, looks good. Does it fit alright?’ Cali asked, and Lan nodded. Like everything else, it fit like it had been made for him. ‘Good, now try raising your forearm in front of you and tensing it.’ As Lan did so, he was rewarded with the sound of sliding metal and a sharp clunk as two hidden plates shot from under the main plate, doubling the size. Making it live up to the name of a shield arm.

‘It’s not much, but like this, it should make blocking and deflecting attacks easier.’ She said, looking triumphantly at Cawl. ‘There is also the blade on the hand guard. And if you ever find yourself in a situation you can’t get out of. Hold the rune on the side of your first finger; in three seconds, the shield arm will release all the power used to activate it in one mighty punch. It will most likely break your arm, but things could be much worse if you need it. Cali shrugged as Lan's head whipped around to her. ‘and… make sure you actually hit something.’ She added pointedly, not looking at Lan, making him decide he wasn’t going to be using it at all.

‘Thanks, this is still incredible.’ Lan smiled, surreptitiously finding the Runica mark and making sure his thumb wasn’t near it. Lan looked at himself in the mirror once again.

‘Why don’t you go ahead and try linking them.’ Cawl said, and Lan did so.

[Unusual straight sword. A blade forged by the smith Cawl. Using uncommon materials for a sword of this type.]

[Damage Score: 15]

Durability A,

Rarity: unclassed

Quality: Skilful.

Construction: Odd steel – D, Edge – B, Point – D

Traits: Fused Tuning Core

[Link Level: 5]

Undoubtedly, it was better than his spear, even if the thought left him feeling odd. This brought Lan to the part about odd steel. That was strange.

When linked, a weapon should have given all the information on the weapon at the record of its making. If it didn’t know what this sword was made from, then it really hadn’t turned out how Cawl wanted it to, then who knew what would happen in a fight. Even still, Lan trusted Cawl, which was enough for him.’

‘What’s a tuning core?’ Lan asked.

‘Oh right, not to get into it too much. But it allows me to raise the level of the weapon to an extent. So you shouldn’t need a new one for a good few levels,’ Lan had never heard of a tuning core but now couldn’t help but wonder how it worked. But if there was time for that, it would be later. With that thought, Lan linked the armour.

[Reinforced Leather armour: Well-made leather armour reinforced with steel plates, sacrificing some of the speed and mobility of standard leather armour for greater defence.]

[Defence Score: 10]

Durability A,

Rarity: abnormal.

Quality: Skilful.

Construction: Black Bear leather and Steel – D, Impact Damage Resistance - D, Piercing Damage Resistance – C

Traits: Fused Tuning Core

[Link Level: 5]

It was better than his old armour, making Lan feel much better. Next, Lan tried to Link the shield arm. When it didn’t work, he looked to Cali.

‘Oh, yeah, that one can’t be linked, don’t worry. It should work just fine. And I’ll make sure that the next one can be linked.’ She grinned, giving him two thumbs up.

‘R-right…’ Lan reaffirmed his decision to not use the Runeica mark as he picked up the mace.

[Well-made Iron Mace forged by the smith Cawl.]

[Damage Score: 12]

Durability A,

Rarity: Common.

Quality: Skillful.

Construction: Iron and wood – D, impact damage – C, edge F.

Traits: none

[Link Level: 5]

‘Everything alright then?’ Cawl asked clearly, already knowing the answer.

‘Everything is great,’ Lan smiled gratefully. ‘Okay, what do I owe you.

That was a question that Lan immediately wished he hadn’t asked. Thirty gold… fifteen for the sword, five for the mace and ten for the armour. When Lan asked how much for the shield arm, Cali just grinned and told him he could pay by telling her how things went.

All in all, for armour and a sword with tuning stones. If they were as Cawl described and Lan didn’t see a reason to doubt him, then he had gotten another deal. As long as he only had to pay for upgrades, Lan would say it was worth it, even if the lighter pockets stung a little.

‘Oh, and one more thing.’ Cali said, pulling out a bundle of blood-red fabric that had a metallic finish. ‘This is called fire silk.’ She started as she wrapped it around his other bracer. ‘Despite the name, it’s pretty safe. But if you feed a little mana into it, it goes up like a bonfire that will burn through most things the flames touch. Luckily, it’s designed to work with your armour, so you shouldn’t burn yourself.’ She said as she shoved the rest into Lan’s hand with a shard of a mana stone.

‘Uh, right…’ Lan nodded, not really liking the idea of walking around with fire wrapped around his arm.

‘Well, come back when you need them repaired.’ Cawl said, and Lan blinked. It almost sounded like he was saying, “Come back safe.”

‘Right.’ Lan nodded.

Pulling at the armour's collar again, Lan found a shop to buy a cloak and a bag to carry the flowers. However, when the shop owner saw Lan’s Adventurers tag, they nearly doubled the price. Although he understood the adventurer's tax, being on the receiving end wasn't fun. He didn’t even try to hide it from the potion seller and decided to take the gold for three health potions as a discount for being honest. Two more gold down, Lan started for the western gate.

Despite having much less gold now to worry about, Lan still found himself watching the crowd of people streaming around him. At one point, Lan thought he saw a blaze of red hair dash into an alley. But as no one seemed to franticly look for their money, Lan left it alone.

As the large stone walled gates came into view. Lan felt an ember of excitement glowing in him. It was a little silly. All he was going to do was gather plants, but it was still his first real job as an Adventurer. An Adventurer, Lan found himself smiling as he heard a commotion coming from up ahead.

A moment later, the people in front of him became a wave of surprised cries and protests. Those that could see what was happening pushed those that couldn’t. After a moment, the wave broke down the middle, and people tried to find sanctuary at the sides of the street.

Lan found himself being dragged to the right side of the street.

‘What the hell is going on!’ Someone behind him shouted as Lan tried to push his way out of the crush. When he finally managed to, Lan found the middle of the streets had been completely cleared.

Looking towards the gate, Lan could now see what had started all this. It was a procession.

Two lines of black armoured Knights formed a battering ram and moved through the now-cleared street.

As one, the larger-than-human knights marched, their steel footfalls ringing on the stone like cursed war drums as they cleared the way. For that is what it felt like moreso than a parade. Those men were heading to war, only they were marching into the city. On the inside of the two lines of Knights were men and women dressed in different styles of armour and clothes, all made uniform by the flourishes of their clothes and the stylised wolf half-masks that were based on the same crest on the banners and shields of the large knights.

The reason for the wall of knights became clear a moment later when Lan saw four somehow even bigger armoured people carrying a large platform on which sat a young man with an odd mix of gold armour and silks that left his chest bare as if the man wasn’t sure if he wanted to look dangerous or be comfortable so had chosen both.

Over one arm and shoulder of the man was a wolf’s head carved out of gold that flowed into the rest of the armour ending in pointed fingertips, which the man used to stab a piece of fruit that one of the ten barely dressed women around the throne held up to him.

‘No Marthis!’ A woman’s voice rang through the street, now filled with nothing but the sound of metal on stone. Managing to push himself to the front, Lan watched as just another part of the crowd as a woman, tried to claw her way out like he had.

Frantically, the woman reached out, and as Lan followed her hand, he saw a little boy, no older than three running across the street. A moment before, he tripped.