After resting for a few moments, Jazmel opened the system screen and began to read all the notifications that were pinging around his screen, connected to the faction additional screen too.
DING!
YOU HAVE LEARNED A NEW SKILL!
LACERATE (TIER I)
DING!
YOU HAVE SLAIN UTER THE KNIGHT OF THE REVENANT DRAGON!
+5 STR
+5 VIT
+5 END
CONGRATULATIONS ON DEFEATING THE KNIGHT OF THE REVENANT DRAGON!
…
YOU SURVIVED THE MIGHT OF A DRAGON KNIGHT!
…
BEWARE THE REVENANT DRAGON HAS BECOME AWARE OF YOU
…
DRAGONS ARE CREATURES OF FAMOUS EGO!
…
BEWARE THE GRUDGE OF A DRAGON!
…
THERE IS SIGNIFICANT HARMONY BETWEEN YOUR HEART AND YOUR BODY.
…
YOUR RACE HAS CHANGED!
TYRANT! The tyrant is domineering, bowing to nobody you understand power and authority is yours!
YOU LEAD THE REPELLING OF THE ATTACK FORCE!
+4 PER
+4 INT
+4 AGL
…
CONGRATULATIONS!
YOUR REWARDS ARE BEING ADJUSTED!
…
YOUR REWARDS ARE BEING ADJUSTED!
EXP GREATLY ACCRUED!
LEVEL UP!
REWARDS!
…
* TIER III MOON DRAGON SCALE
* PRIMORDIAL CORE SHARD
* SKILL RUNE
Jazmel hummed as the system fed this information to him and then looking to the side at the faction notifications he looked over them.
DING!
YOUR OUTPOST HAS BEEN GREATLY DAMAGED, WILL YOU REPAIR?
Y/N?
He accepted and the walls rumbled as they began to reform and the blocks that had not been obliterated, where pulled back into place. But large gaps littered the area, the same could be said about the courtyard as it tried to right the ruin, but the ground had literally erupted from beneath, they would need to hire repairers for this job.
He felt the Mana essence disappear into the activation of fixing his outpost.
DING!
MANY OF YOUR RETAINERS SURVIVED AN ATTACK, REWARDS WILL BE PROVIDED
He looked around to see multiple of his retainers looking at where he imagined their screens were showing them their own rewards and updates.
“Gather the wounded!” he heard Wendy and Melle shout, he rose up. There was much to do.
***
After clearing the courtyard of the wounded and the lower levelled retainers, Jazmel went over the information he knew.
20 of his retainers had died, from wounds and the overall attack, the taste in his mouth grew bitter quickly. Mary consoled him, but he still couldn’t get used to death. He sent the others off to bed; to rest and they entered the tower of living quarters.
He entered the chamber hall and immediately it grew lit with ambient lights. Mary, Sadé and Patton had followed him in and when he entered the system screen pinged alive.
DING!
FACTION LEADER FOR SURVIVING AN ATTACK ON YOUR FACTION!
…
HERE ARE YOUR REWARDS!
In front of him a massive crystal chest appeared and banged onto the ground where it landed. He opened it and within the system sung!
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DING!
…
TIER II WALLS! Reinforce your walls with Mana and enhance them with defensive and repairing Mana wards!
This was a small figurine of wall blocks, he accepted this, and the figurine disappeared into the ground and through his faction leader mind’s eye he saw the walls of his outpost repair and be reinforced. That was one problem he wasn’t going to have to worry about dealing with paying for repairs, he looked over the other rewards.
YOU HAVE EARNED AN EXPANSION TO YOUR OUTPOST DOMAIN!
ACROSS THE LAKE NEW LAND TO BE DISCOVERED HAS BEEN FOUND!
…
ADDED TO YOUR MAPS!
Jazmel was surprised by that and then he heard Patton yelp who obviously received the notifications of the maps being updated, he ran from the room to head to the map rooms.
Gelth and Katie had stayed in the courtyard to support Melle collect the different corpses and cores they could find in the aftermath of the battle. Bannerman had slipped out to run a quick patrol to make sure no creatures had escaped. Wendy and Elai had taken over the healing and were doing their best to support the wounded. Gilmore had left to go and rest.
Now it was just Mary and Sadé, the people Jazmel had known the longest since Tango.
The dwarves that made up the forge had come above ground just to pick through the weapons and armour of the defeated, taking the barrow knights armour and looting the armour of Uter, Gelth had already made claim of the great blade, and none questioned him.
He picked up the last reward from within the crystal chest as it vanished in a spray of glitter.
DING!
TIER II FLAG OF THE RALLYING CAPTAIN!
Rallying buffs can be reinforced by the flag, used in battle for support.
That sounded like a good reward, but not for him. he handed it off to Mary, she took it with reverence and nodded her quiet thanks. She was about to leave when he took out the shard he had gained and looked at them both, questioningly.
“Is that?” Mary said but bit back her words.
“Did you get that as a reward for killing that knight?” Sadé asked and he nodded.
“He didn’t have a tier.” He said and they both agreed, the system must have shared that with them too.
“There is a thing, a rumour in the labyrinth that there were a race of beings that existed before we ever gained access to the labyrinth.” Mary started and Sadé perked up as if she realised what she was discussing.
“Yes, the elven elders speak of them. As one of the oldest race in the labyrinth, we know a lot more than many humans do. The Primordial were what we might think gods are. The very first of their beings. None have met any before and yet here we are, in the presence of a shard.” Sadé said and Mary agreed.
“Well, the thing is. This shard is giving off subtle Mana, I can see it.” – he tapped the side of his head near his eyes.
“But the feeling is quite similar to the feeling I get when I complete one of the fountain trials.” He explained and the room grew deathly silent.
“What is this now?” Mary said and quickly, not leaving anything out he explained the fountains and what he had witnessed. She listened but he could see the worry in her eyes.
“Alright then, that isn’t not worrying at all.” She said and he could tell she was worried.
“I promise you; it isn’t as dangerous as you think. Last time Sadé had been pulled in with me, which means others might be able to do so with me too.” He explained and she grunted her agreeing.
“What other rewards did you get?” Mary asked and he pulled the scale from his ring and the skill rune. Paldane appeared, he peered down at the scale and the skill rune. He chose and snapped down and bit the scale up and then hawked it down.
COMPANION HAS CONSUMED THE TIER III MOON SCALE!
…
THE MOON SCALE HAS HARDENED THE SCALES OF THE NIGHT DRAGON!
…
HE WILL HIBERNATE WHILE HIS BODY ADJUSTS
“Well there goes that.” He huffed and Mary smiled a little but shrugged as Paldane disappeared back into his ring.
“What is the skill rune?” he looked at it and immediately the information hit him.
“It’s the revenant roar skill.” He uttered and they all shuddered remembering what it had done.
“I might sell it.” he said, Sadé and Mary both shrugged, leaving the decision with him.
“What about you both what rewards did you get?” he asked, and Mary showed hers immediately, they were gauntlets, thickened gloves made of fine felt and leather but wards of sturdy Mana and sigaldry had been sewn into them.
TIER III GAUNTLETS OF THE GIANT! Gauntlets built with the strength of giants, +5 STR and +5 END
The system told him, and he nodded, impressed. She put the gauntlets away and pulled a big vial, about the size of a palm of his hand. Thick liquid sloshed inside, and he could feel the warmth emanating from the bottle even though he stood some space from her.
“What is that?” he asked, and she smirked and then a grin peeled across her face.
TIER III BLOOD OF THE ARCTIC IRON MAMMOTH! A tier tribulation item
She had gained a tier tribulation item, and it was something with great affinity for her mastodon skill.
“Congratulations! Are you due to tier up?” he asked, and she smiled but shook her head.
“Not yet, but I am near.” She smiled and put it away, she was smeared with ash and bruises. But her eyes were bright.
“Get some rest war commander, tomorrow we begin recovering and burials.” He said and she mockingly saluted him, before offering goodbyes and a small wave to Sadé, she turned and left them two together.
“What about you? Also who was that big beast with you.” She smiled and through the opened doors of the chamber hall the giant fox crept in.
“Kazumi evolved.” She explained and as she neared he could feel so many mixed energies from the fire fox. Bestial Mana was ripe and coiled throughout her entire body, but also fire. The fire that was brimming inside her core was so great it felt like he was standing next to a bonfire, a sheen of sweat wet his brow and he had to take a few steps back.
Words were said between her and Kazumi as she left through the doors and took the heat with her. Jazmel silently thanked Sadé.
“That couldn’t be one of your rewards though.” He said and she smiled before pulling from her ring. She pulled a writhing ring of thunder and the system chimed for him.
DING!
TIER II STORM DRAGON WISP! Will improve thunder ability qualities.
Her thunder and fire attributes were powerful, he had not forgotten that she was the first one to land her attacks on Uter and her agility had grown that she almost danced across the ground as she moved.
“I gained a passive title too; it helps with dexterity. It’s called feathered grace, and it allows me to gain more in dexterity and agility.” She told him and he smiled, that seemed fitting for her.
“I am close to 100 stats in some of my stats too, I am catching up to you.” She told him and he grinned, he couldn’t help it. but that also reminded him, his race changed.
“I have a question actually. Can your race change?” he asked, and she looked at him shrugging.
“I am not sure what the system can and cannot do. Did your race change? You still look human to me.” She said and he pulled up his stats and showed her.
Name: Jazmel
Level: 67
Species: Tyrant*
Rank: Ranker Tier I
Class: Sword Scion
Health: 1900/2800
Stamina: 1630/2080
Mana: 1120/1705
STR:111(+5) PER:106
VIT:108 END:110(+3)
INT:107 WIL:106
AGL:100 DEX:104
She looked at his stats and gaped, her jaw literally hung open and feeling a little shy. After a few more moments he put them away.
“Jazmel you don’t understand, I don’t think you realise just how strong you are. It’s like you are a legacy child and were trained secretly as a child. You’ve been in the labyrinth six months, and you are a ranker with 100+ stat points in each stat.” she said and then she laughed to herself for a moment.
“I don’t even know what a tyrant is.” He explained to her about the tyrant heart and then the tyrant body tempering and one of his rewards had been them finding harmony between them.
“I cannot tell you anything about it, I don’t know what it means. I can’t see any changes though; you do feel different though.” She said and he quizzed her.
“How?”
“You feel different, I can feel more of your presence now. Its fuller, I can feel you holding back your Mana and it’s a lot.” She uttered her eyes searching his own.
“I don’t know, we can look in the library about it.” she said and then turning on her heel, she hurried from the chamber. He watched her leave for a moment and then made his way to his own rooms. He had questions, but they could wait till tomorrow. They had fought well into the night, and he knew it was nearly dawn, but he was going to sleep like the dead and he knew it.