Chapter 39: A Trip Outside
After examining himself with Scan, Ain held the Puppet Command Token, prompting Stalker to silently walk over. With two hands, it held a large plate with his breakfast.
[Name: Stalker]
[Aspect: Metal]
[Rank: Rank-1]
[Grade: ???]
[Aspect Traces: Metal 70.5%, Wood 16.3%, Dark 3.2%, Soul 2.5%, …]
[Description: A puppet governed by the Puppet Command Token. It can absorb metal-aspect resources to upgrade itself.]
Scan categorized Stalker as an artifact. Its grade was unknown, similar to the Puppet Command Token. Two weeks after Ain gave it the Dark Iron Bamboo, Stalker successfully reached Rank-1, resulting in monumental changes. In terms of appearance, from the original dark brown, it now seemed to be constructed of a matte-black wood, absorbing most of the light reaching its surface. Its structure hadn’t been altered, still maintaining a highly humanoid form. The greatest change was in its intelligence. Now, it was able to execute commands with a bit of higher complexity. For example, Ain had just commanded it to serve him yesterday’s dinner. With just that, it accurately located the leftover dishes, retrieved the utensils, and served him breakfast.
“Stalker will be of greater assistance in battle now,” he believed. Moreover, once it reached Rank-1, he received feedback from the Puppet Command Token. It was possible to teach spells and martial arts to this puppet! It could even utilize equipment and artifacts! Once armed with all these, Stalker would be a force to be reckoned with.
“Nox, hand over the Ghastly Pearl! We’re heading out!” Ain finished his breakfast and called out to his spirit pet.
“Wooo…!” Nox floated over from somewhere and handed him the black pearl. This was already their fifth Ghastly Pearl as one of them only lasted for about five days under Nox’s devouring. Aside from the Ghastly Pearls, Ain also brought home a few other items, including more Aether Condensing Pills. Initially, he’d only purchased twenty pills to experiment, discovering their effects to be superb. His meditation efficiency was undoubtedly greater.
Some of the other additions to his arsenal were a couple of Rank-1 daggers. One for Stalker and the other for himself. They were each priced at 150,000 starcoins. After his first big purchase, Ain was beginning to adapt to these numbers. The trick was to convert it into aether crystals. It was only 0.15 aether crystals. This was how he deceived his conscience.
[Name: Black Golem Dagger]
[Aspect: Metal]
[Rank: Rank-1]
[Grade: Normal]
[Aspect Traces: Metal 74.5%, Earth 14.2%, Fire 6.8%, …]
[Description: An extremely sharp dagger forged from a Black Golem’s Core.]
The explanation for these daggers was straightforward. Today, he planned to explore the Spirit Master Association’s missions – he was heading out of the city. He’d been curious about the missions ever since first learning of them. Furthermore, he was itching to finally experiment with his new skillset.
Thirty minutes later, Ain finally alighted from a hoverbus, making his way towards the Spirit Master Association. This wasn’t the city headquarters but rather the branch he had spotted upon entering Heart City. The city gates weren’t far from this location. The branch was quite rowdy because of this.
This building supported the association’s common colors, pure white with blue and yellow embellishments. Inside the building, Ain weaved through a crowd of early risers to reach the Mission Hall. A row of spacious counters, with cheerful attendants, unfolded before him. Even in the morning, the hall was extremely lively as spirit masters addressed their needs. With each glance, he spotted large screens with constantly flickering missions. Every moment, numerous missions disappeared, only to be replaced by new ones within seconds.
There were large lounges along the sides with comfortable seating. There were leather sofas, cushioned chairs, and wide tables occupied by spirit masters as they laughed with their teammates, sorting through missions. Some were scrolling through their hololinks while others utilized the devices provided by the Mission Hall to browse.
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Glancing through the posted instructions, Ain soon understood a few things. “Within the Mission Hall, I can access the missions through the provided devices or through my hololink. Accepting, completing, or offering missions is only possible through the attendants. Everything is linked to my official identity. It even limits the missions I have access to.”
Ain grabbed one of the provided tablets before leaning against a wall. Inputting his information, he soon gained access to the missions. Despite lacking special memberships, and being limited by his rank, a plethora of missions still unfolded before him.
“Gather Threadleaf Grass, Gather Misty Herbs, Hunt a Razor Panther…” Sifting through the missions, Ain swiftly identified the mission classes. With ascending difficulty, the known classes were E, D, C, B, A, S, and X.
Generally, simple gathering missions were classified as either E-class or D-class missions. If spirit beasts were known to guard the harvests, they could reach as high as B-class. A-class and S-class missions definitely entailed combat. As of X-class missions… most weren’t expected to return alive. Even for a team of Rank-1 Spirit Masters, they were a challenge to prove their excellence, their rewards bountiful and rare. Missions were further segregated by ranks as well. Within Rank-1 missions, hunting a Perfected Rank-1 Spirit Beast would at least be an A-class mission whereas an Initiated Rank-1 Spirit Beast wouldn’t surpass C-class without special circumstances. Moreover, Rank-2 Spirit Masters could accept Rank-1 missions. A Rank-1 X-class mission wouldn’t be as dangerous for higher rank spirit masters.
Aware of his own strength, Ain’s bar wasn’t too high. He filtered for only C-class missions. After searching for fifteen minutes, he finally decided on a mission.
[Mission: Gather Sun Poppies]
[Description: Gather ten Sun Poppies. They are known to grow on the Seven Moons Island in Blueheart Lake. They can be found near the first moon. Beware, an Infernal Tiger was recently discovered guarding them. Reports suggest it to be at Initiated Rank-1.]
[Reward: 9,000 starcoins per flower]
This mission checked many of his boxes. Gathering missions were relatively easy. Although the Sun Poppies were guarded by a spirit beast, this Initiated Rank-1 Infernal Tiger shouldn’t be much stronger than the Earthen Boar. With his newfound strength, it was of no concern, only serving as training. Furthermore, a confrontation could be avoided using Haunt if so required. Finally, the journey wasn’t too far, yet not too close either. It was perfect for a sense of adventure.
“Nox, what do you think?” Ain asked casually, researching information relevant to the mission. He wanted to understand the geography, spirit beasts, harvests, and possible dangers in the region.
“Wooo…” Nox agreed mindlessly. It was intent on disguising itself as a scarf.
“Alright. Let’s go accept this mission,” Ain said, joining the short queue. It was his turn before long and he exited the Spirit Master Association after accepting the mission. The mission was also removed from the list for a week, a hidden duration set by the association. If he exceeded this time limit, the mission would regain its availability.
Prior to leaving the city, Ain arrived behind a large tree, hidden in the dark shadows. Attached to his belt, right of his hip, was a hidden compartment housing his storage ring. This was his precaution against robberies. He still supported some luggage, filled with supplies and folded bags, mostly for disguise and misdirection. His valuables were all stowed away within the storage ring. However, for the ease of access, the Black Golem Dagger was sheathed on his right while the Puppet Command Token, now in a scabbard, was bound to his left. The artifact resembled a short sword, not drawing any attention.
Fiddling with the holographic interface, Ain quickly retrieved a dark silver plate that resembled a thick metallic book. This dark silver plate wasn’t heavy, yet it couldn’t be carried without unpacking an empty bag, hence, it was stored away.
As some thrill manifested in his heart, the metallic plate was tossed onto the shady grass. One would expect it to impact the ground, but that did not occur. Instead, the dark silver plate actually began to float mysteriously a few centimeters above the grass! The surprise didn’t end there. In an instant, the rectangular metal plate suddenly extended on two sides, transforming into a long metallic board! The dark silver surface supported thin grooves with symmetrical patterns, glowing with a neon blue light.
The results of Scan, which he’d used before tossing the device, flashed past his mind.
[Name: ST-4 Fluxboard]
[Aspect: Aspectless]
[Rank: Rank-1]
[Grade: Excellent]
[Aspect Traces: Water 6.7%, Wind 6.4%, Fire 6.1%, Wood 6.0%, …]
[Description: A mechanical artifact used for transportation. With a compact size, stealth, and all-terrain capabilities, the ST-4 Fluxboard features strong durability, high speed, instant acceleration, and sharp maneuverability. The built-in spell arrays will assure a constant supply of aether. It is a great fluxboard for Rank-1 Spirit Masters!]
Setting aside the Rank-2 antidote, the Twilight Detoxifying Pills, this fluxboard was his most expensive purchase to date! It cost him 250,000 starcoins!
There were cheaper variations available on the market for as low as 50,000 starcoins but Ain ultimately settled on the ST-4. Most of the cheaper fluxboards weren’t actual artifacts. Their target consumers were the affluent among regular people. Instead of aether, they relied upon other forms of energy, incapable of high speeds, nor possessing strong durability.
The ST-4 Fluxboard, a Rank-1 Excellent-grade mechanical artifact, specifically targeted the needs of spirit masters. It was the perfect transportation for Ain, an immense assistance to his journey. The past week, he’d been practicing within the city, riding between the hoverbus station and The Red Baron as he visited Liberty Firm for supplies.
Eager to finally cruise under the clouds, atop an open grassy field, Ain quickly stepped on the fluxboard and headed out of the city.