The next day Jake logged back into Royal Road. In front of him were the clues as the fight that had taken place a few days ago. The tiles of the plaza were a deep red color. There was so much blood spilled that day that it soaked into the ground and recolored the entire plaza. From that day on it would be a place of frequent fighting.
The make-shift barricade that the conscripts had swiftly erected, was still being taken down in front of the palace gates. Also the cathedral ruins where a smoldering mess. Not that it was much to start with.
Jake crossed the open space and climbed the barricade. On the other side was Captain Isaac.
“Jake! Your alive. I thought you were finished when the church mercenaries attacked you.”
“I'm a being graced by Freya remember.”
“Oh yeah. Anyway the king wants to see you. Something about promotion or something.”
“Thanks”
Jake carefully walked down the side of the small hill. The bodies of cultists had piled up on the small wall and made it a force to be reckoned with. If he recalled correctly, it was Isaac that was standing on the peak, waving his sword around and scaring everyone with his wild battle cry. The town of Shor was definitely something to be feared.
Jake reached the palace gates and before he could open them, wolves charged at him. His Iron Bark wolves tackled him to the ground and showed him what could be considered the paper version of affection.
For normal people it would hurt and Jake was no exception. If a paper cut stung like a bitch, a pack of paper wolves was definitely worse. Words would not be found in any English vernacular to describe ridiculous amount of sheer pain that was accompanied by the wolves. Jake endured for the stat boosts.
Eventually Jake was able to push the wolves off but not before he almost lost his hand. In thorough amounts of pain Jake started counting. Unfortunately, only several of his wolves survived including Grey.
That is when Jake noticed the cranes. There were none.
“Isaac, where are my cranes?”
“There are none. They all perished in combat.”
'That's weird. I thought I told them to protect Alison.'
Shelving the problem Jake walked into the palace grounds. The refugees who had once inhabited the grounds were nowhere to be seen.
'Must have gone back to their homes.'
Jake walked up to the main building and waved to the guards who let him enter without question. Jake walked the familiar path until the found the throne room. In side was the king and his attendants as expected.
“Who are you?”, asked the confused child sitting on the throne.
“My king it is the one you assigned with the task of destroying the cult.”, said the rotund man slightly behind the king.
“Oh right. Thank you for your services. You are dismissed.”
“Your majesty we must properly address him for his services.”
“Thank you Prime Minister. Adventurer, congratulations on completing your quest. As such you will be awarded one item from the royal treasury.”
Completed Cult Retribution
Level Up
Level Up
“Thank you, your majesty.”
“Also we offer you a position on the elite royal guard.”
You have been offered the chance to serve on the elite royal guard, a group of experienced adventurers who are dedicated to protecting the king and his retainers.
“I'm sorry your majesty, however I have some urgent business that needs to be attended to.”
“That's a shame. You are dismissed.”
“Oh adventurer! One question. Do you happen to know what happened to the treasury door?”
“I'm sorry prime minister but I do not.”
“Thank you”
Jake quietly left the throne room under the watchfull eyes of the prime minister. Jake thought he saw a glint of vengeance and greed in them. Dismissing it Jake left the palace as fast as he could.
He knew the treasury had nothing for him so he decided to skip it and head straight to the forest. Staying in an unwelcome place was bad for one's health. Jake was about to leave but, on the way he ran into Captain Isaac.
“Captain, how are you?”
“Ah, Jake I was just looking for you. What did the king say?”
“He said good job and I could take an item from the treasury.”
Isaac looked at Jake with pity for a second before look behind him. Checking his surroundings he made sure no one was listening.
“Jake, my men and I really owe you. Thanks to you we all got promoted. I know one of the blacksmiths and he owes me a favor. Why don't we go replace that axe of yours.”
In his last battle, the axe he had been using was just a wood cutting axe that had a piece of gold foil covering it to make it look a little more flashy. It served as intimidation against the cowardly priests but against a skilled warrior, it was meaningless.
Jake followed Isaac to the blacksmith. There they saw an enormous human with hands like clubs. He was hammering a sword when he saw them come in.
“Isaac, how are you? Need a weapon?”
“Hello John, my friend here needs an axe”
“An axe? What kind? I've got all kinds here short axe, long axe, pole axe...”
“I need an axe with a long handle almost my height. Also I'd like the blade to be top mounted.”
“Oh, that's a unique order. You must have quite the fighting style. Come back in a few hours and I'll have it ready for you.”
Jake and Isaac walked around the palace for a few hours laying low. Whenever they were sure no one was watching, some of the gold figures lost a limb or two. Most of it went to Isaac's soldiers but Jake snuck a few into his own bag. The prime minister wouldn't miss these.
Most sculptures would provide bonuses but the ones found in the palace failed to give even the slightest boost. The works of art were made by the nations best artisans but they were excessively gaudy and it was clear, the artisans were forced to make such glamorous, superficial goods. As such the artists feelings reached Jake and almost drove him to action. Rather, he just took a piece of gold here and there where no one would miss it.
By the end of the day, Jake returned to the blacksmith, and was presented with an axe. It looked strikingly similar to his first weapon but much better quality.
Steel Pole Axe
Made by an expert blacksmith, this axe is made from well tempered steel and ancient wood of Iron Bark Trees. This weapon was made as a defensive weapon rather than an offensive one. With proper training and experience, the user can learn to take an entire army.
Damage: 40-50
Durability: 200/200
Taking a few practice swings Jake tested the axe. It was just like the first weapon he had. The long handle was made to counter and the heavy weight of the tip added more momentum to the swings.
Thanking the blacksmith again, Jake left the palace and didn't look back. Finally out of that ridiculous palace Jake felt more at ease. He had felt a pair of eyes on him the entire time. He couldn't tell because the light was reflecting off all the gold but there was definitely someone watching him.
Jake stepped out through the gates expecting to be blinded by sun light. Rather it was actually darker. The light reflected off all the gold and made the palace excessively bright. Also the sun had set but the sun never seems to set on the palace.
Jake swiftly navigated the decrepit city streets and left the city. Running full tilt on the dirt roads, Jake made it to his forest home in record time. Sitting in the middle of his campsite munching on a piece of wolf meat was Alison.
“Jake! Your alive”
“Yeah, there's no way I would be killed by a cult.”
“Thank you for saving me. The cranes brought me here and I was really worried.”
“Don't worry you'll be safe here.”
Jake and Alison spent a while in the forest together. Jake taught her how to make the paper and fold cranes, cook wolf meat, find useful herbs and other miscellaneous tasks she was capable of handling. He even folded her a armored cloak just like his. Although he did have a sister she was always nagging him and never cute like Alison.
During this time Jake also worked on new designs to fold and also worked his woodcutting skills up. He would need to improve his stamina and technique if he was going to pass the next hurdle.
-----
Two weeks went by like this and one day from the heart of the Iron Bark Forest came a sound so loud that the entire earth shook at its roots. The shock wave tore through the forest and shook the city walls all the way in the distance. The earth shook for an entire minute at the collapse but no one knew what it was.
“You must eliminate him. Also kill all of his subordinates”
The prime minister was in his room, seemingly all alone. In truth there were about half a dozen assassins hiding in the shadows. All under his payroll.
“It shall be done”
“You should have taken care of him long ago but you were dabbling in the front lines.”
As the prime minister looked back all of the ominous presences had disappeared. How they did that he did not know but they were definitely useful. Eventually they would meet the end of their usefulness but they still had a kingdom to suppress. The cult was gone but that didn't mean the people were complacent. They would rise again. Human nature was such an annoyance.
-----
Alison was walking through the forest on one of the wolves. They were only a few left from the cult battle but Jake had folded more. Currently she was on Grey the first wolf. Of all the wolves he was the biggest and strongest. On top of that he had the unique feature. Red lines wrapped around his body from head to tail like tattoos. They started from his eyes and curled around his metallic skin.
Since Jake had adopted a new method of Fusion, other wolves did not have similar tattoos. That just made the others more respectful of Grey as if he was their leader, the original paper wolf. However as time passed paper loses its quality and degrades. Jake's paper was made to last but after countless battles it was breaking down. On top of the fact there was no way to fix it. Origami had to be made from one sheet of paper. That was a rule Jake never broke.
Alison was lost in her thoughts and failed to notice the dagger in the shadows. The flying dagger was so fast it didn't even catch the light as it sped toward its target. Grey however had adopted Alison as its second master and was thoroughly loyal to her but not as much as Jake.
The dagger was fast but Grey was faster. He jumped up and took the dagger while standing on his hind legs. It harmlessly bounced off the metallic hide. However, the next attacks were already coming before he had time to react. The arrow appeared in Grey's flank and a knife slashed his other side. Grey counter attacked with his claws but they were heavily outnumbered. It was impossible to keep Alison away from harm at this rate.
The only option was to run but it was a risk. Depending on how fast the attackers were it might be possible to reach Jake before it was too late. Grey took the chance. He started to sprint in the direction in which the giant tree once stood. Alison was holding on to his back as tight as she could.
There was no blood meaning that she was unharmed but Grey could have been better. The internal structure of the paper was already falling apart. After the countless battles he had accompanied Jake in, the design that was made to hold, was falling apart. Grey could see the clearing already. He was running as hard as he could.
Snap!
A trap that one of the more foolish assassins had lain was some distance off but well calculated. The particular assassin was quite twisted and made the trap maim rather than kill.
Grey's rear leg was currently bent out of shape in a way paper was never meant to bend. Together they went tumbling to the ground. Alison made her way over to Grey.
“Grey no. You can't go not now. We're almost there.”
As Alison emitted her feelings to Grey using her special powers the assassins slowly crept up on their position. With one swift strike, the leader dismembered the wolf and returned his spirit to the forest. As he was about to attack the girl the world started to spin.
The long uniquely shaped axe sliced right though the throat of the assassin and went into the body of another. Jake continued with the onslaught. Grey had sacrificed himself and he would not let that go to waste. One by one the assassins all fell to his axe until one remained standing.
“Drop the axe or I drop her.”
The last man standing had taken Alison hostage. He held a knife up to the girls throat. Jake could clearly hear the man's fear reverberating in his voice. His hand holding Alison and the knife was shaking uncontrollably. Jake wasn't sure if the fear came from Alison or not but hostages won't work on him. From behind the man came three wolves. Their eyes were a deep shade of glowing red. They had come to seek vengeance for their fallen leader. Like actual grey wolves, the creatures were fierce and they were also loyal. Fell on comrade and the wrath of the pack will descend.
The assassin had no time to react. The wolves clawed right through him and Alison was free. Together they walked away from the screams of the killer being ripped apart by wolves. They heard him cry for help and try bargaining his information but Jake would have none of it. In the last of his dying screams Jake thought he heard the prime minister being cursed. Each scream lessened in volume until it stopped all together.
Later that day the wolves dug a small hole in the ground as Jake brought the tattered remains of a paper wolf. He slowly lowered it into the ground and they said their parting words. Alison and the rest of his creations watched silently as one of their oldest comrades left the world.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
As Jake and Alison left the area, the wolves held their vigil. They stood quietly watching over the grave to help Grey make his final journey. To Jake it looked like they were just watching the grave. He had no idea that they had come up with such a vast system bordering on religion. But still, he would have to return to the city to return the favor to the prime minister.
-----
It had been a few days since he had sent the assassins but he still did not hear back. The prime minister truly trusted his men to take care of something. They had brought him this far and he hoped to take them to the edge of their usefulness. However there had been no reports so far.
'What's taking them so long'
Suddenly their was a deafening roar coming from the direction of the forest. The only thing that could reach such a decibel would be a dragon or some equally powerful creature. The prime minister looked out his window and saw the silver army advance.
-----
In the time Jake had been in the forest, not only had he taught Alison her life skills but he also worked on a new project. Jake had moved his camp to the middle of the forest where the giant tree stood and formulated a mathematical formula for chopping this tree down. After much training and calculations, he cut the monster down. In the days that followed, with scrap paper, he perfected a design that would make full use of the enormous tree. Since only a single tree can be used in the growth property, use a giant tree to make a giant origami figure, was his logic. Simple but true none the less.
Jake had wondered what kind of monster were in Royal Road but decided not to dwell on it. He was going to make this one into a dinosaur. Not just any dinosaur but he king of them all, a Tyrannosaurus Rex.
After much practice he got the best shape and design. Truly the hardest part of origami was coming up with and practicing the design not the actual folding. Also the resources were hard to get but that was only if you started in the frontier and made your own resources. If he had started in the central continent, Jake could have access to paper immediately.
Rather than considering his misfortune, Jake took a small portion of the tree and turned it into chips. He cooked those into fiber and added extra herbs to it. If this was going to be a giant figure it would have to have a strong support.
Extra Strong Blood Paper
This scarlet tinged paper was made by an expert craftsman. It is extremely thin but at the same time it has surprising strength. It takes more than one man to rip this paper. Also this paper was dyed with blood from unknown sources. The craftsman must have a special purpose for this paper.
Durability: 1000/1000
Jake took the paper and made his design a reality. Working carefully he placed the final touches and took a step back. The giant fallen tree started to disintegrate into a stream of light that flowed into his work. He watched as the paper expanded. It passed of his wolves and kept growing. Soon it passed the tree line and let loose a roar.
You are in a confused state
Jake was thrown off his feat and temporarily deafened. Making a giant living creature and standing in front of it was probably not a good idea. Good thing he told the wolves to take Alison away.
You have discovered the Giant Property.
The figure absorbs the life force of a giant creature. As such it too becomes a giant.
Name your creation
His greatest creation, that towered over the even the Iron Bark Trees. The name for this one was simple. A name he had been saving only for the best.
“Kaiser”
Kaiser-Great Piece
A creature not from this world, slightly resembling a giant lizard. Some people think of it as a dragon without wings. Others think it was the father of all dragons. In any case the origami figure was made from the heart of Iron Bark Forest. This figure is loyal to Jake and Alison.
Properties:
Growth
Iron Bark
Blood Lust
Giant
Art Value: 300
You have created your first great piece.
Fame rises by 100 points
Art rises by 45 points
Endurance rises by 10 points
Origami skill has increased
-----
“Come on Kaiser lets take them all down!”
Jake was currently riding on Kaiser. While his wolves cleared a path. His cranes unfortunately were nowhere to be found. They were probably out patrolling. Only the gold crane remained but it was with Alison.
The city walls were soon visible. Kaiser, being the giant he was took massive steps and the wolves had a hard time catching up. The distance Jake took an hour took walk took Kaiser twenty minutes. Soon he saw the city walls.
With one word, Kaiser took two long running steps and turned on an axis. Jake had ordered him to knock the wall down and he did just that. Using the momentum of his run, Kaiser swung his tail directly at the city walls and sent it flying.
The wolves easily jumped over the wreckage and were about to maul the guards but Jake commanded otherwise. Jake ordered them against their will to ignore the soldiers and they continued their charge towards the palace. It wasn't their fault that leadership was rotten. They were just following orders.
Upon arrival at the gates, Jake saw Captain Isaac and his conscripts. They were conscripts no more but Jake always saw them that way. Luckily for Jake they pretended not to see him and stepped aside. It was good to have familiarity with NPCs.
Kaiser went past the guards and stepped on the gate. It crippled under his weight and Jake's army continued on their assault. Walking through the palace grounds it was once again barren of resistance.
Jake continued to the main building and when they reached it Jake saw the prime minister standing on one of the higher balconies that extended from the building. Kaiser turned his head in said direction and let loose a deafening roar.
The prime minister looked mostly unfazed. After cleaning out one of his ears of irritation, he looked at Jake and spoke.
“So what have we here?”
“I've come to repay the favor. Those assassins were very skilled although I defeated them all.”
“How did you like the gold that you stole?”
“You already have a lot and you sure as hell don't deserve any of it.”
“Well I hope you can enjoy this gift then.”
The giant palace doors exploded and from the golden prison arose a nightmare beyond comparison. It looked awfully similar to the golden works of art. On second thought it may have been that the paintings and sculptures were modeled after this beast. The giant reptile monster that had broken out of the palace looked like a giant snake or cobra. It had a long slender body which was rippling with muscles. Its eyes, the cold dead eyes showed fear of an almost broken creature that would lash out at anything that came near it. It had lost all hope for living but was barely hanging on by a thread. The eyes of a wounded animal. They shook Jake to his core. Even worse was the large fangs that dripped what looked like acidic liquids.
The entire beast was as tall as the main palace and lengthwise, it was twice that of Kaiser. Jake feared the worst. He was also pondering how in the world the prime minister had kept such a beast in the palace in this condition.
Kaiser's jaws quickly advanced toward the monster but it was faster than it looked. It swiftly went towards Kaiser's leg and wrapped itself along his frame. Kaiser, heavily restricted by the monster, fell to the ground, almost crushing some wolves. Jake was able to jump off the falling dinosaur but landed with a shaky roll.
“This is an Imugi. It is said to be a heavenly beast that was sent to earth to learn the ways of mortals. When it grows up it is said that it becomes a dragon. In truth, it has been trained in the palace since it was an egg. I have no idea where the former king got it but it makes a such great pet. Guards take him away!”
Jake was still in a state of shock from the monster and he barely heard the last part. Jake saw from the corner of his vision the palace guards whom had stepped aside, return to their posts. They went to the shocked wolves and raised their weapons. The wolves were still abiding Jake's last order. Also they had fought alongside these men. The were former comrades in arms. No matter how blood thirsty the wolves were they still had a concept of family. This former leader, Grey would never forgive them if they turned their back on comrades in arms.
The wolves made a protective circle around Jake. They were stuck down one by one as the guards slowly advanced to the center. Kaiser let loose roar after roar but they were getting weaker and weaker as the air was being chocked out of him.
Soon all the wolves were subdued. And Jake saw his old friend walking up to him.
“Isaac, whats going on?”
“Sorry Jake, I don't have a choice. Nothing personal, just business”
With that Jake's world went black.
-----
Jake awoke later in total darkness. Except a small window that showed the moonless sky. Then Jake finally remembered what had happened. The prime minister had summoned his Imugi and dropped Kaiser. Jake in his after fall shock had not noticed being betrayed by his former comrades.
Jake looked at his surroundings. He was chained to the wall by his ankles and wrists. His armored coat and axe were gone. All his paper making supplies had been left at camp.
An hour of the gloom passed before the door Jake had not noticed, opened. From the door poured in golden light and from it walked in the prime minister.
“Ah, Jake its good to see you are awake again.”
“What did you do to my friends?”
“You mean the paper? They are currently in the process of being turned into paper. Maybe we can write some books for the cult of Askhan.”
“So that was all your doing.”
“I had originally made it to oppress the people but it got too out of hand after the high priest died. Although even she had no idea I was using her.”
“I'll kill you.”
“Just you try.”
With that the prime minister left and the room was again thrown into dismal darkness. Jake had no way of judging time except for the window which occasionally changed color. It was quite ironic, such a gold gilded palace had such a dark place. A room in the blindingly bright palace where not a single ray of light had presence.
Then he heard the door rattle. This time it opened only a crack before a voice came through.
“Jake?”, it called.
However that voice, Jake knew it. It was Alison.
“Alison?”
“Jake, your alive. I knew it.”
The small figure rushed into the room and hugged Jake tightly.
“What are you doing here?”
“This nice person brought me here.”
Looking behind her were a people clad in a dark fabric. It was impossible to tell what they were actually wearing as the room was almost pitch black.
“My name is Jeanette. I am from the Liberation Front of Jhen-Airik. I want you to join our cause”
“That's impossible. I'm locked in here and my forces have been stopped. That Imugi is a force no man can take down.”
“With your help we can do it. Take my hand and we can free the people.”
Free the People
The Prime Minister of Jhen-Airik has been manipulating the king. He had oppressed the people and drained the countryside dry through rampant taxation. All for the greed of one man, a country is on the brink of falling. Join the Liberation Front and free the people.
Rank: C
Reward: ???
“With what, another system that seems fair but circumscribes rules so they can oppress the people without them knowing.”
“We're nothing like the prime minister.”
“Well, whats in it for me?”
“We are rescuing you and offer you to join us. What other hope do you have besides rotting here all alone?”
Free the People
She had a good point. You could just stay here and rot or do something. You should choose the lesser of the two evils and help the Liberation Front. The Prime Minister of Jhen-Airik has been manipulating the king. He had oppressed the people and drained the countryside dry through rampant taxation. All for the greed of one man, a country is on the brink of falling. Join the Liberation Front and free the people.
Rank: C
Reward: ???
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”
“Please Jake, we have to help them. Also my brother is being brain washed by the prime minister. He's evil.” said the usually soft spoken Alison.
Unable to resist the cute girl whose smile showed even in the darkest caves, Jake said, ”Alright fine, I'll help. But I sure as hell won't like it.”
-----
Authors Note
I'm still considering what the class Jake should be. Suggestions will be considered.