Weapons weren’t allowed in the magic tower, and killing Tusk would have severe consequences. As hard as it was for Wezar to admit, Tusk was well-connected. Crippling him, however… that might work. Wezar was the first to act.
Tusk, on the other hand, exhaled and mentally braced himself for the imminent hit. He had calculated beforehand that Wezar, though formidable, wouldn’t cross certain lines. He anticipated a fist attack, likely aimed at his chest with enough force to cripple him.
Wezar moved with such speed that Tusk could barely track him, but as expected, the ascendant delivered a simple, direct punch to his chest. Tusk pushed the pain from his broken ribs to the back of his mind, stepped forward, and met the incoming fist with one of his own. Just before the fists collided, the crystal bracelets on Tusk’s mithril gauntlets began to glow.
When their fists clashed, a shockwave erupted, raising dust and toppling nearby chairs. Tusk’s arm shattered from the impact, and Wezar watched, wide-eyed, as his entire body was briefly engulfed by a highly concentrated beam of raw mana. The beam faded a moment later, leaving both figures immobilized.
"While I'm sure everyone here appreciates a good brawl, this is neither the time nor the place," Cornelius said, and with a wave of his hand, he dismissed the restraining field. Tusk breathed heavily, clutching his side, while Wezar rubbed his injured knuckles. His outfit had suffered damage but quickly repaired itself to pristine condition. Despite this, the shock of the near-equal exchange was evident in his eyes.
"I take it no one else has issues with me taking over the Aphiton Kingdom?" Wezar addressed the onlookers. His gaze swept across the crowd, and after receiving no objections, he exchanged a nod with Domino. Together, they left the meeting hall. Tusk watched them go, a self-satisfied smirk on his face as he saw Domino rubbing his black eye. The meeting continued as expected, dull and uneventful.
Tusk stayed until the very end. Once everyone had left, he returned to the table and took a seat directly across from Cornelius.
grunts
"So, what’s up?" Tusk initiated the conversation.
"What is up indeed. You've grown stronger since I last saw you. Mithril gauntlets?" Cornelius asked with a rather impassive tone. Tusk nodded, mentioning that it was a new project he was working on.
"Needs more testing, though."
"Oh? Wasn’t the clash with Wezar sufficient testing?" Cornelius replied with a hint of irony, leaning back in his chair. "I thought our deal was quite clear, yet here you are, drawing unwanted attention to yourself."
Tusk stayed silent, and Cornelius briefly glanced at the Siren standing behind him. "I don't particularly care about your dealings in minor kingdoms, Peon, but it will become a problem if it affects what’s to come. And I can’t have that, understood? I’ve waited too long to enact our plans, so I hope you bring good news."
"Depends on your definition of good," Tusk replied, causing Cornelius' eye to twitch.
"I would consider it good news if the Chaos Dispenser I gave you is operational and ready for testing."
Tusk nodded. "Then I bring good news. The Chaos Dispenser is operational but not yet ready for field testing. We need more time."
"How long?"
"Two years at most."
Cornelius frowned slightly and, after some thought, declared that two years was too long. "I want the test concluded within a year."
Seeing Tusk remain silent, Cornelius exhaled in annoyance and reminded him that it was because of him that Tusk was where he was now.
"Don’t forget who helped you start your empire…"
"How could I forget? You bring it up every time we meet," Tusk said as he stood up, adjusting the collar of his suit before turning to leave. "The Chaos Dispenser will be ready for testing within a year. I’ll send you the details."
"You do that," Cornelius replied, watching as Tusk and Nerissa walked away. Once they had left, Cornelius approached the damaged wall and cracked floor from the previous clash. He raised a hand weakly, and two rune circles appeared—one for each damaged area. Slowly, time began to rewind: the cracks on the floor receded, and the wall repaired itself, returning everything to its original condition. After finishing, Cornelius surveyed the hall one last time. "The defensive formation held up pretty well," he noted, before vanishing in a teleportation spell.
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Outside the meeting hall, Tusk and Nerissa headed toward the teleporter, preparing to return to the Yelsa Co. headquarters.
"What got up his ass?" Nerissa asked, sensing that the Rune Elf was stressed and agitated.
Tusk smirked at Nerissa’s question before donning a stern expression. "Like us, Cornelius has no love for humans, but he despises the undead even more. I don’t know what happened to him in the past, but the undead terrify him."
"Who could he possibly be afraid of?" Nerissa asked, bewildered.
Tusk glanced her way but didn’t have an answer. Instead, he asked, "Nerissa, do you think you could handle Cornelius in a fight?"
Nerissa stopped walking, surprised by the sudden question. After a moment’s thought, she replied, "In the sea, probably. But on land…" She shook her head. Tusk nodded, expecting as much.
Cornelius was a renowned Runecaster, known especially for his signature spell, Teleport. He relished the fame and attention, which led him into a fateful encounter with a ghastly presence seventy-four years ago. While strolling through his garden one day, a figure appeared before him. If it had been a simple intruder or challenger, Cornelius would have found it amusing, but this presence left him speechless.
Before him stood one of the undead creatures known as The Reaper, a herald of master entities ruling the Nether Realm. This herald was unlike any Cornelius had encountered before. It simply stood there, silently, observing him with its lifeless eyes. Confused, Cornelius asked if it was lost. Receiving no reply, he decided to take action. But before he could move, the ghoul emitted a bizarre sound—a mix of a screech and a bellow—that sent chills down his spine. The sound was followed by a voice as eerie as the noise itself: "Fouuund youuu."
Immediately after speaking, the ghoul began to bloat, its skin cracking and making snapping noises until its body exploded in a shower of blood and gore. Cornelius watched, stupefied. He raised a Mana Shield to block the wave of energy that swept through the area and saw another entity take the herald’s place.
The newcomer had a tall, dark, and shadowy form. It knelt briefly before slowly unraveling into a slim figure over three meters high. Cornelius’s sensitivity to mana allowed him to recognize the immediate danger this creature posed. His instincts, honed over time, screamed at him to run—and run he did. The event was etched deeply in his mind and haunted him for years. He managed to push it aside until twenty years later, when Vyrus the Plaguemaster, the tall and slim figure, reappeared.
Cornelius ignored the call for help that time, leaving the threat to the other ascendants. The only casualty from that encounter was Fluvis Frose, who is still dealing with the aftermath. That same year, Cornelius urged the council of elders to implement a new system using dungeon breaks to strengthen the empire in the long term. He strongly believed an undead invasion was imminent and that the empire needed to prepare. With Tusk’s arrival, Cornelius saw an opportunity. He extended financial support to Tusk in exchange for help in realizing his goals.
Tusk stopped reminiscing about the past and focused on the two figures waiting further down the corridor by the teleporter.
"Are they waiting for us? Do you know them?" Nerissa asked, noticing the figures were clearly focused on them.
grunts
"A business opportunity," Tusk replied with a smile, his mood noticeably improving. As they approached, one of the men stepped forward to meet them.
"Greetings, Mr. Tusk."
"King Gladys, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Tusk asked, adopting a businesslike demeanor.
King Gladys was not an ascendant but the ruler of one of the minor kingdoms Tusk had previously dealt with. Dressed in his kingdom's ceremonial attire, the king appeared mild-mannered but had a reputation for a shrewd mind.
"Come now, you know me better than that," the king said, mildly amused. "Do you remember my advisor, Sasha?" Tusk nodded and greeted Sasha, who offered a slight bow. With the pleasantries out of the way, King Gladys got straight to business.
"That was a magnificent display of power, Tusk. No doubt it was meant to attract attention. Well, you have mine! Shall we move to a more private place to discuss business?"
Tusk glanced at Nerissa, who was watching with interest, then nodded at King Gladys and gestured for him to lead the way. The party of four bypassed the teleporter and instead took the stairways to the side, leaving the magic tower to discuss future business opportunities.
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In the Quntis Kingdom, a few kingdoms away, Bones passed numerous crop fields and saw many hunters keeping watch, ensuring both the fields and the farmers were safe from any dangers lurking in the nearby woods. The Quntis Kingdom was blessed with rich soil and flat terrain, so most of its denizens focused on agriculture.
Bones followed the road north, making frequent stops at every village and town along the way, searching for a person qualified to harvest the body parts of an Elite Lizardman he had stashed in his inventory.
His search seemed fruitless at first. The only silver lining was that he wasn’t shooed away from entering the villages and small towns despite his dubious appearance. Most of the townsfolk kept their distance, but his inquiry wasn’t entirely in vain. In one of the towns he had visited earlier, a local leathersmith directed him to try his luck in a larger town a few days' walk away. After a two-day hike, Bones stood before a signpost reading: Melville, five kilometers northeast.
"The town is a bit out of my way, but I’m finally here! I really hope someone can provide the services I need. I’m itching to start working on Skully again after so long."
After a brief pause, Bones quickened his pace. His destination, The Remore Kingdom, was still at least two months of travel away, and his journey had only just begun. Bones hadn’t made plans for where he would go after acquiring a new adventurer ID. He figured he had time to decide and, having finally moved out of Wezar Kingdom, wanted to take his time and enjoy the journey. He had officially traveled further than ever before in both of his lives.
There was much to explore and room to grow. With great anticipation, Bones made significant strides toward the town of Melville, faintly visible in the distance.
End of Book One!