Writer's Note: Last of the random four chapter release (chapters 2-5). Hope you enjoyed the read.
Chapter 5: The Red Assassin
Magnus Wang opened his eyes late night three days later, hearing a noise from his handheld. He quickly leaned over to the bedside table but was disappointed that the sender of the message was not Marlin Wang. His eyes narrowed as he saw who the sender was. It was a person with the first name Shiro.
Hello Magnus. It's been a while. I know who you are, Sword Sage. I'm coming for you.
Magnus narrowed his eyes and then realized something. It was the fat man. He must have guessed Magnus was a Beta Survivor and hired someone. He smirked and then sent a reply.
If you sent me a message, you can only be THAT Shiro. You're that PKK assassin who killed the most PK players and got the Red Assassin title. So you're still doing bounty work? Now, it's a fat ass with cash? You do realize the value of currency will become nothing but paper before spirit coins, the azure-colored coins which represented the currency of the game?
I'm not here for that fat prick. He's dead. He threatened me for taking a hotel room in the MGM Grand. I heard him mention your name and knew it was you. I'll give you that growth item you always wanted. You do now I have a prestige item that allows me to keep ten items I own in there and exempt them from the prestige penalty? Of course, there are other effects. I reckon I am the richest Beta Survivor as I still have all my money.
Of course, I only reached third prestige as I started the game late, but was the fastest to level. You want it, don't you? Meet me in the rooftop of the Mandarin Oriental. I'll be waiting. Oh, and bring the Spell Blade too. I know you travel together in the game so you must be friends in real life.
"He's always up to something. Well, I have been training for three days," Magnus said and told Jorge before they went to the rooftop.
"Shiro," Magnus said as he saw a man in scarlet leather armor smile at him, two wakizashis, Japanese swords, in his hands.
"Hello Magnus. Jorge," Shiro inclined his head to the two boys. "I assume you are both level 10?"
"He is," Jorge said. "Leveling got harder. The Hellion give less experience than before. I am level 9."
Magnus and Jorge had an easier time killing the Hellion due to their prestige weapons. Magnus had 11 power, 6 magic, 7 recovery, and 8 spirit. Jorge had 7 power, 7 magic, 4 recovery, and 5 spirit. Shiro rolled his shoulders and told them he had 10 power, 5 magic, and 4 in both recovery and spirit.
"Knowing you, you definitely decided to amp up your strength, physique, and agility only," Magnus said as he drew Dranzex.
"Yeah, but you must have had four more customization points. I really envy you. You never get the chance to do the customization again since there is no more prestige and I never got a prestige weapon. I got growth armor, and these two swords are also growth tier weapons. Still, I received two prestige skills and that prestige storage item. There is no ninja class, but I come pretty close. If you beat me, I will give you the katana growth item you want back so badly. That, and a proposition. However, I need to know how good you are now," Shiro said as he brandished his swords. "Stay back Jorge. This is just between us. You're only here to witness and hear the proposition later."
"I hate, fucking hate, assassins. Beat him half-dead," Jorge said as he backed off and walked to the side.
Shiro was the only self-proclaimed ninja with any legitimate claim. It was because of his two prestige skills: Doppelganger and Flame Shadow Strike. The first skill made a copy of Shiro with half of each of his four stats. It only took one hit to destroy them, but there was no way to tell the difference. The second skill would wrap Shiro in fire and he would slash his opponent with ten times his normal speed as he rushed past them.
"I'm guessing you learned the swordsmanship skill? Me too. The skill allows you to use two swords with ease," Shiro said. "Well, the skill has to reach level 50 to evolve and develop additional effects. Just because leveling gets harder, does not mean the skill progression does."
"I'm the veteran here," Magnus sighed. "Are you ready? I really want that sword back."
"I keep hearing about a sword. Is it a growth weapon?" Jorge asked.
"Allow me to explain as so Magnus can stretch. I already did so before I messaged him," Shiro said and turned to Jorge. "Magnus was killed after his first prestige by the top PK in the game: Victor. He got his revenge and got that Legendary Palace Dimension later, but Magnus did not find his growth weapon he dropped when he got PK'ed by Victor. He found out I had it as I killed Victor and collected the bounty on his head. PK players always drop an item with the exact likeness of their head when they die. Easier to confirm the bounty that way. Victor also hates me as the second item he dropped was his own growth tier spear."
"So Magnus found out you had it? Then what?" Jorge asked.
"He challenged me and lost. He had to give me a million spirit coins as a result," Shiro laughed.
"It's just a growth weapon. Why did he go so far?" Jorge asked.
"From what I heard, he only ever was a blacksmith before his first prestige. In fact, he made the first growth tier item in the game. The sword he wants from me is that very sword he made himself. Growth weapons are masterpieces and the pride of every blacksmith player. Magnus wants his honor back," Shiro answered. "It's an Asian thing for us. Honor and family is way up there among our priorities."
"Is its effects good?" Jorge asked.
"It's not a prestige growth weapon, so it does not have much. However, it does have two useful effects. Pity the two wakizashi I made are superior. They also look worse than his katana so he beats me there," Shiro said and turned to Magnus. "If it is just sword skills, I admit I am inferior. However, I have never lost to you."
"You always picked amped up your strength, agility, and reflexes. For a rogue class assassin, those are godsend. Power does increase physical damage and defense, but strength boosts your body and allows you to wield heavier armor and weapons. Physique is more all-around. Thus, more valued to those of the warrior and mage class," Magnus sighed. "Let's finish this."
"If I win, you owe me a gold spirit coin," Shiro grinned, Jorge nearly coughing blood. In Fallen Divine Online, the currency system had a coin system. Almost every shop accepted spirit coins, the azure-colored coins being the main currency. The game valued different coins differently. It was because it was too tedious to count more than a thousand spirit coins for transactions and some items were worth millions. They were abbreviated to spirit coins and recognized by the engravings on the sides of the coin.
Regular Spirit Coin= Azure-colored coins without any engraving. The lowest valued coin.
1 Copper Spirit Coin= 100 spirit coins. Copper engraving of a two-headed snake.
1 Silver Spirit Coin= 10,000 spirit coins. Silver engraving of a leviathan. (100 copper).
1 Gold Spirit Coin= 1,000,000 spirit coins. Gold engraving of a hydra. (100 silver).
1 Mithril Spirit Coin= 100,000,000 spirit coins. Glowing white silver engraving of a dragon. (100 gold).
"How about just 1,000,000 spirit coins. I can use the gold spirit metal to make enchanted items," Magnus said as they circled each other.
"Why do you think I want the gold spirit coin?" Shiro laughed and ran forward. Shiro was fast. Unlike the thirteen customization points Magnus got, Shiro only got nine for only completing the third prestige. Thus, his points were evenly divided between reflex, strength, and agility. With such high strength, his two wakizashi felt lighter than daggers in his hands.
Jorge had to focus his eyes as Magnus and Shiro exchanged sword strikes incredibly quick. Shiro had higher speed while Magnus had higher reflexes. The Demonic Ape King watched, a glass of milk in its hands, as its master fought Shiro. It was ordered to not interfere and could only watch in silence.
Magnus slashed at Shiro's shoulder but the strike was blocked by one sword as another was blocked as he used the butt of his sword to block it. Magnus push kicked Shiro, but Shiro anticipated it and became covered in flames. Magnus howled with pain as he blocked most of the slash but still had his left shoulder grazed. To Jorge, it was as if Shiro moved as fast as lightning as he got pushed back and appeared behind Magnus in a flash.
"You have your reflex above three? Normally, I would have cut an arm off," Shiro said, slightly shocked.
"Let's just say that there is a lesson to learn with defeat," Magnus said as he released a black aura from his body. His blue eyes glowed as Magnus used both <
"Doppelganger!" Shiro cried and two clones of his likeness appeared before him, destroyed as it allowed Shiro enough time to get out of range. He cried out as Magnus appeared from the explosion, his sword raised high. Shiro was forced to cross his swords to block it and grunted as the swords collided. Magnus's lower body was on a completely new level with the <
As Shiro's body became wrapped with flames, Magnus grinned and yelled, "Holy Lance!" As Shiro performed the Flame Shadow Strike, the weakness of the skill was that he could only run forward due to the extreme speed. The first light lance of the Holy Lance skill only moved straight as well, causing Shiro to pause in midair as his chest was impaled.
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The first light lance only weakened the body, only causing injury to the senses but not drawing blood. It was how the man at the penthouse of Circus Circus survived the first lance. Shiro was moving too fast and the four lances that appeared above where he was impaled missed as Shiro sped past Magnus and crashed onto the ground.
Shiro destroyed the lance of light in his chest with his swords and he desperately blocked slash after slash. He created two more clones, but Magnus easily destroyed them with his Inferno Strike. Magnus would dodge one sword while he deflected another. Soon, he got used to Shiro's speed and smashed the butt of his sword into Shiro as he dodged another sword stroke.
"My victory," Magnus said as he slashed down, cutting Shiro from the left collarbone to the waist. The slash was only deep enough to cause a scar, and Shiro felt his body grow cold as ice formed around the wound. He fell to his knees as the chilling energy was too much for his body to handle.
"I lost?" Shiro gasped as he felt metal against his neck as he looked up.
"I already killed Victor in the game. With this victory, I got my honor back," Magnus said as he put away his sword and helped Shiro up. Shiro's wound healed after ten minutes and he sighed with regret.
"I should have invested in physique. My real life body is on a higher weight class than a normal wood elf," Shiro groaned. He was taller than his character in the game and had more muscle as well.
"I finally beat you. I can only regret it was in real life," Magnus nodded. Shiro took out a katana from a crimson ring on his left hand and handed it to Magnus. As Jorge stared at the sheath, he noticed a serpent-bodied dragon with jade scales. The katana had a shuriken shaped silver guard and had a red leather-wrapped hilt, a pommel with an image of stone lion dog's head carved on the flat, black pommel. As Magnus pulled out the sword, Jorge saw red lightning crackle along the blade.
"Ah, Red Emperor, I really missed you," Magnus said as he admired the sword. Jorge then appraised it.
Red Emperor
A katana crafted by Magnus Chase, it is the first growth weapon ever made in the game. It is a sword for an emperor. Crafted with the scales of a steel dragon, it is a sword meant to kill and display one's prowess. The red lightning is made from the body of a half-god of lightning.
Effects
Lightning magic damage with with 10% chance of a paralysis effect.
Contains the soul of black goblin and manifest it as pet.
Pet effect is restricted to Magnus.
"What the fuck? It has a Hellion sealed inside as a pet? You even made one of its effects restricted to you. No wonder most people would not value it so much if they knew," Jorge gasped. "You never told me you made such an awesome item!"
"Now you know why I kept it. My title is the Red Assassin after all," Shiro nodded. "That sword was worth a mithril spirit coin at first but now is worth two gold spirit coins. Only a few people like pets and those people usually chose to be beast masters because of it. It only had sentimental value to Magnus that made it worth it, to him."
"It was the only growth weapon I ever made. That black goblin is also a legendary rank boss that I killed and its soul dropped as material," Magnus said, the katana disappearing. "I'll use the sword as a hidden weapon in the event we are disarmed when going to government buildings and such."
"The <
"I only used two also," Magnus said, wiping the grin off Shiro's face. Shiro knew the devastating power of the Divine Blade skill and the unique attack of the Shatter Steel Swarm skill. "So, what's this proposition you have for us?"
"You know about the Hellion Behemoth at the lake before the Bellagio, right?" Shiro asked, the two nodding. "Well, I am a assassin so I naturally got Stealth and leveled the skill as I used it frequently. The Hellion Behemoth is now level 10. I couldn't figure out how it could level while sleeping. Then I saw that it had quite a few treasures at the bottom of the lake. I want only one thing, the rest of its treasure and the final kill for the drop is yours."
"What is so valuable that you would let us profit so much?" Magnus asked.
"It is a growth item accessory, a gold bracelet on its left arm with a ruby, sapphire, and emerald arranged in a pyramid formation. I appraised it myself," Shiro answered.
"Growth item accessory!" Magnus and Jorge cried. Those were the rarest in the game and the most difficult to craft. Most people became over-powered when they got prestige growth accessories. Armor and weapons had lesser valued effects compared to growth accessories. Most of all, growth accessories were indestructible.
"No wonder you want only that. You already have your spirit coins, what's left of them, from the beta phase. I almost don't want to help you," Magnus sighed. "But we need your help to slay the Hellion Behemoth if it really did reach level 10. Melissa is only level 6 and Alex is only level 3. They'd be slaughtered on contact. It's also no wonder why you cared little for my sword. I feel insulted."
"Think of the items we'll find and the spirit coins. There are bound to be copper or even silver spirit coins," Jorge consoled.
"It's a deal then. At dawn, we strike," Shiro said and paused at the door leading to the stairs. "Oh, and be prepared to kill any Beta Survivors or Spirit Lords who will aim for the final kill for the boss reward."
"I already killed my first Spirit Lord," Magnus replied, Shiro nodding with approval before he left. "It's a good thing for me too. That Hellion is sure to have a magical core. I can use it to increase my cultivation."
"So, we're really doing this?" Jorge asked.
"No. It will be just me, my Demonic Ape King, and Shiro. I will also summon the black goblin from the sword. You will help Alex and Melissa fight off any stragglers who aim to steal my kill. They need to realize that people are willing to kill them. They need to kill once and get used to it. It may sound cold-blooded, but this is the only way to survive now. Mercy is a weakness. So is compassion," Magnus said. "Can you handle it?"
"Yeah. Leave it to me. My strength is only 7. I'd die before that thing," Jorge nodded and the two returned to their rooms to sleep, the Demonic Ape King sleeping beside Magnus in the master bedroom.
In the morning before dawn, they all woke up, bathed, and ate their breakfast. Melissa and Jorge stared at Magnus while Alex was finishing his cereal. Red Emperor was levitating before Magnus, Magnus chanting a few swords. The sword shined a black light and red lightning crackled. The black light separated from the sword and a five foot tall goblin with pure red eyes and black skin. It wore red leather armor with metal armor over its lower arms, legs, and chest.
"Master," the black goblin bowed. "I have kept the items you gave me secure since the sword left your possession."
"Ah! I forgot. It's been so long. So I gave them to you. Heh. Not a total loss after all," Magnus grinned and received a storage bag from the goblin. He got some spirit coins from the bag and put them in his belt. The storage belt quickly disappeared due to his <
"What are those?" Jorge asked as Magnus grinned as he took some items from the bag. "This, my friend, is a spirit crystal card. Within, it had my savings from my entire first one hundred levels. It cost a mithril spirit coin to make it. This whistle is one I gave the goblin. It allows him to summon a warthog to ride in battle. The goblin's name is Gorzog. It shrunk when it died but it levels as I do. It also counts as my weapon so I get experience when it kills. Gorzog uses a grenade launcher and an axe. It also knows some fire magic. The best part is that it knows how to pick locks and senses hidden treasures. If Gorzog were not a legendary tier boss (level 90-99) and were a player, it would be similar to a player of the engineer class. Gorzog makes many...interesting inventions for me."
"Gorzog likes exploding things. Gorzog also likes hacking things, but blowing things up is more exciting," Gorzog grinned, the siblings staring at him with fear and awe to have such a creature fight beside them that loved killing a bit too much.
"Sweet," Jorge nodded as Magnus put the crystal card away in his storage belt before it disappeared again, returning the bag to Gorzog.
"Master, do we kill something now?" Gorzog asked, eager to taste blood. Gorzog also had a sniper rifle, but not a magic rifle. It could not shoot cannon blasts made of magic.
"It's so cute, in an evil goblin sort of way," Melissa said as Gorzog put its shell whistle in its storage bag.
"We will be hunting a Hellion Behemoth, tiger type," Magnus said, the goblin's eyes racing.
"Gorzog can go all out with his grenade launcher?" the goblin asked, referring himself in third person.
"No, just me, my Demonic Ape King, and Shiro will fight. He is the one who used to own the sword. You will be fighting with your sniper rifle in the beginning of the battle, shooting anyone who attempts to interfere," Magnus said, the goblin nodding. "There are some treasures in the lake it sleeps in. If it moves a certain distance away, go there and put them in your storage bag. Kill any human besides the three here and Shiro who get in your way. Once you get the treasures, then you fight alongside me with the grenade launcher."
"Gorzog understands," the goblin giggled with glee, anticipating the bloodshed it would finally create. Not only could it kill a Hellion Behemoth, it could kills the humans too. Only its master deserved its respect. On its master's words, it would kill any human with an axe and a smile.