A sharp stare rummages through my abilities. With a blink from his eyes, a stark contrast forms all over his face. "I didn't expect them to make a mistake. We usually don't take in people too strong you know? We can financially bind lower ranked beings, but I didn't expect to see a B-Ranker here." At his suave voice spouting soul piercing truths, I flinch. Without hesitation, I check his Dragon Eyes skill.
Dragon Eyes (B)
>Use your superior vision and senses to peer through another's abilities.
>Can only gauge up to one rank above the user's MND (Mind) stat.
The skill was already good as is, but reading the description made me uncomfortable. It should not only be B-Rank. So I checked on the other side, where the answer awaited.
Dragon Eyes (Mutated) (??)
Born through flames and ritual sacrifices, the Mutated Golden Dragon later perished, leaving behind some of its legacy. Those who assimilate its artificial eyes will gain a dragon's ability to evaluate others of similar or weaker prowess. However they seem to tremble with unfortunate grief.
>Use your superior vision and senses to peer through another's abilities.
>Can only gauge up to one rank above the user's SEN (Sense) stat and two ranks above the user's SOUL stat.
Quite peculiar. Similar to the system's Tech Eye skill, but with more potential if one is lucky enough. However I needed to focus as the Baron seemed intrigued by my blank stares. "What's wrong? Is it that surprising?" I shake my head and take a seat. "No, sorry. I was lost in thoughts."
Nodding, the Baron didn't seem to mind my lack of respect. "Alright, I presume you have a document I need to look over?" I was confused for a moment before handing over the paperwork Jeremy hated so much. "Mmmh... I see. So it says you have something to sell me? Regardless, after verifying your strength, I also have something to discuss."
I watched him push his piles of own paperwork aside, making some space. "Please show me the product." Without hesitation I took out the damaged sword.
"Not bad." It only took him a glance to notice the quality. "Even though it is in such a rough shape, I'm quite interested in its background. Would you happen to know anything about it?" I could only scratch my head, unfortunately, spouting some rubbish. "I just know that it's related to dragons. I think it's supposed to be a weapon for soldiers of the dragon race." At the mention, a smile formed underneath his beard, his golden eyes lighting up. "Hohoho, well isn't that great? Truth be told, I expected such an answer. Being related to dragons myself, I could immediately tell the residual aura to be quite special. Unfortunately, despite my excitement, it won't repair itself." And due to the energy cost of using the red extended blade, it didn't increase the value. The Baron clearly wanted it for decoration, nothing else.
It was going as well as it could, the state of this weapon quite hard to miss. "So, are you willing to buy it?" He scratched his chin beneath the silver strands, smiling a little more. "I definitely want this piece. Even if I can't repair it properly, it's still a must have for my collection. As for the price..." Here it was. The most important aspect.
I didn't dare to interrupt his thoughts, afraid of bumping down the price. "Well, due to the condition, rarity and quality, I would offer you around a hundred and thirty thousand dollars. In that ballpark."
Quite pleased with the initial price, I was soon taken aback by his sudden shift to a serious expression. "However, if you are willing to let me erase your debt to me and instead work as a guard for the mines-" Raising two fingers, he kept going. "-I'll buy this off of you for two hundred thousand instead. What do you say? You could think of it as a bonus or gift for your future services."
I was shocked by the change of theme, however he was not finished, having yet to let me answer. "I treat my staff right, just so you know. You will have your own apartment as a recruit, with a modern touch and state of the art appliances. It won't be a studio either. You'll have quite a decent amount of space and rooms. Not only that, but you can later on be promoted and buy a house cheaper from me. I own quite a few real estate agencies you see. I also have chefs ready to cook for any of my staff at any time. I know that there aren't many guards, but there should be enough for social interactions. Isn't it better when you don't have that many people to form more solid or intimate bonds? You would only need to work for me for five years too! After that, you'd be free of leave at any time. I also make sure to not breach my staff's privacy opposite of the mines. To boot, the only times you would be in danger would be rare instances where a dungeon of some sort required intervention in here. But with your strength, it shouldn't be too difficult."
After a while, he didn't seem out of breath, peacefully awaiting my answer.
Couple of minutes passing, not bothering the Baron, I weighted the pros and cons, which amounted to zero cons and only pros due to my current situation. So I nodded, shook his hand, signed a bunch of papers I read carefully and made my way out of this manor, stepping outside with azure clothes in hand.
From this day forward, for the next five years at least, I would officially be a guard of the mines under the Dusk Baron!
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This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
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"Wowowowow! What the fuck are you wearing?!" Jeremy was the most shocked, wide eyes staring daggers at my guard attire. I even had the cap. "Hey Jeremy! The Baron graciously erased my debt! Which means you caused the Baron some financial burden by buying all that shit before!" I can see his face pale slightly. "So what? Not my fault. But just because you're a guard doesn't mean we're on the same level." It sounds like he wants to show hierarchy in this place. To that I only sigh. "Let's be honest Jeremy, you don't actually care, do you? You'll probably forget I'm a guard by tomorrow." Unsurprisingly, he isn't able to retort my words.
"So, what's my job realistically? I read the contract, but that's in a perfect world." Another guard pops up, it's Ted, the guy who laughed at me last time. "In short, pretend you're watching over low rank plebs and do as needed for them to pay off their debt if they slack off too much too often. Sometimes you might need to manhandle some of them, but otherwise it's pretty chill." I nod and get ready to move my stuff out of the cell.
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Thanks to a magic bag they lent me for a couple hours, I managed to install anything needed into my new place. It's an apartment complex a few minutes away from the manor, with very thick walls and resilient materials. It was also very modern as promised, pale walls with a minimalistic and squared approach. The ceiling was also quite high. In the end, this whole situation really worked out for me.
Since I didn't have to start work until next week, I was ready to check something that's been bothering me for a while. "Boss battle, huh? What could it be? A dragon? A giant?" I wasn't sure, so I pulled up the message and pressed on the big old button.
White.
The same training space, as usual, but an ominous feeling surged within me. "What will it be?" At my words, no smoke came out of the ground. Everything was calm, until I raised my head, for my eyes to meet the meteor above. "What?!" Rushing back, I sprung far away, dodging a giant object crashing down. The reflective ground finally relented for once, cracking apart. As if miniature ravines, said cracks spread dozens of meters into all directions. In the center of it all, a giant of stone stood there.
As I pulled the status out of this being, my body froze, a yellow aura soon exploding from my opponent. The holy aura, emitting dreadful sounds, let me despair as the stats increased further.
[He who overcame the curse of petrification, crawling past the stone his flesh became, arose to become King of his world. In the search for greatness, willing his soul to drive him forward, helpless, the soon to be Martial God unfortunately met his demise at the hands of greater. This fateful encounter taught him through despair that there always must be a higher mountain.]
[Defeat the Stone King, former ruler of the forgotten Yban World, who stood half a step away from becoming an elusive Martial God.]
[Stone King]
Age : 7 325
Immortal Cultivation : ???
Immortal Titles : Profundity Bearer, Mortal Legend
HP↑ | ⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿ | (10 999 / 10 999)
DT↑ | ⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿⦿ | (10 999 / 10 999)
STR : ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ E+↑
SPD : ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ E+↑
END : ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ E+↑
SEN : ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ E
SOUL : ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ E
WISD : ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ E+
LUCK : ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ E-
Skills : Greater Might - lv.1, Crimson Arts - lv.8 [+], Mortal Swordsmanship - lv.5, ... [+]
[Being a legendary opponent of the mortal level, the rewards will match the difficulty.]
Great, but that doesn't change the fact that this opponent, if put on the other status, has more than a million HP and DT each!
As I watched it brandish the all too familiar stone sword, now glowing red on the edges, I shivered. "Let's t-" In an instant, I was forced awake.
After a while, and a shower to get rid of the sweat, I pondered. This opponent was clearly beyond me now, but more importantly, it was an Immortal! I still had the status in front of me. I don't fully understand why this mortal opponent is an Immortal, but that shouldn't change much. However this time I took time to check his skills.
Greater Might (??)
>Divine epiphanies grant one greater might. Invoke your hidden potential and wreak havoc beyond the realms.
>Golden Born Might : +10% to the following stats : STR (Strength), SPD (Speed), END (Endurance)
>???
>???
>???
>???
>???
>???
>???
>???
>???
Mortal Swordsmanship (D-)
>The purified essence of mortal swordsmanship lies where the Immortal swordsmanship flourishes. The answer is straightforward, yet performs otherwise. 'Formless' is the key.
>Transcendent Mortal Presence : Formless Posture
>Shackled Mortal Mind : Formless Expectation
>Transcendent Mortal Step : Formless Movement
>Starved Mortal : Formless Offense
>Mortal Anguish : Formless Defense
>Deviant Mortal : Formless Path
>Shed Mortality : Formless Victory
The last skill sounded poor, but each part unknowingly made my blood boil in yearning. The rank was also unexpected, that's a certainty. D-, which is the same as the truly mind boggling Marital Boost Pill, did seem like a big stretch. However that isn't for me to judge, because as sad as it may be, I'm not even past the first realm of cultivation.