The Tabard leveled up during the fight with the Adventurers, and so did I. Four levels, two Perks, and a few Attribute points.
> You reached Half-Dvergar Half-Zenko-Kitsune level 14
>
> You gained 2 Attribute points.
>
> You gained 1 Strength, 1 Dexterity, 1 Endurance, 1 Mind, 1 Charisma, and 1 Luck.
>
> You gained 1 rank 3 species Perks.
>
> Ultimate Surpasser granted you 3 Attribute Points
>
> You reached Grandmaster Crafter level 14
>
> You gained 1 Strength, 1 Dexterity, 1 Endurance, 2 Willpower, and 1 Magic.
>
> You gained 1 rank 3 class Perks.
>
> Ultimate Surpasser granted you 3 Attribute Points
> You gained the Perks:
>
> * Pinnacle Of Dexterity: You never miss a step or fumble with your hands. Add half your dexterity to the Attribute damage bonus for your weapon attacks.
> * Pinnacle of Endurance: Your HP recovery is doubled. Your exhaustion wears off at four times the normal speed.
> * Pinnacle of Charisma (very rare): Modify all reactions two steps in your favor. Increase all positive social bonuses by two. Decrease all negative social penalties by two. You cannot have your communication impaired.
The text about poisons was suppressed because of my immunity to it. I spent my Perks before I forgot about them.
> You gained the Perks:
>
> * Sacrificial Tail (very rare): If you are dealt a killing blow, you sacrifice one tail to negate all damage and heal 20% of your maximum HP. This tail does not regrow for 1 year afterward.
> * Shadow Tools (ultra-rare): You can summon tools with shadow magic. They act as personalized tools and cost 100,000 MP per hour.
>
> The perks Conjure Tools (very rare), Shadow Tools (ultra-rare), Quality Tools (uncommon), Customized Tools (very rare), Tool Maintenance (uncommon), Shadow Anvil (ultra-rare), and Shadow Furnace (ultra-rare) combined into:
>
> * Shadow Workshop (combined): You can summon a full workshop with shadow magic, occupying a 10 square meters area. It contains any and all tools and fully operational fixtures you may need (but not raw materials) and gives a 20% bonus to your proficiency. The workshop costs 4,000,000 MP per hour to maintain.
Grinding Enchanter finally paid off. I reached my target value.
Enchanter[ 487 / 498 ]. Select one Ability.
* Disenchant: You can remove all enchantments on an item, recovering (Proficiency/10)% of the materials and Exp used to enchant.
This ability was critical to my plans for the Tabard. With my improved Proficiency, I could re-enchant it with better Statistics. Although it gained only one level from the Adventurers, it was divisible by three and allowed it to pick another Perk. With my guidance, it selected exactly what I wanted.
> The Tabard of Windemere - Level 159
>
> Perks Gained:
>
> * Inheritance (ultra-rare): Upon destruction, one of its copies becomes the true Tabard. All traits transfer over.
>
> Enchantments:
>
> * Generates an extra 97 MP/hour.
> * Gains 5% of all MP spent in a radius of 500m. (Limited version of the {Mana Wellspring}).
> * Can store 20 cubic feet of clothing. The user cannot access this storage space. The Tabard can be requested to hand over a copy by a user but may refuse.
> * Weaves one extra free copy of itself in storage per week.
> * Absorbs 1% of all elemental damage (after multipliers but before reduction) as MP.
I gave up on granting the wearer paltry Attribute bonuses. The MP regeneration might seem low but the Tabard had Perks to multiply its MP gains.
This combination of abilities would solve the problem of someone else attempting to destroy it again. The Tabard could create more copies and keep them in storage. I reckoned that twenty cubic feet of neatly-folded Tabards were a lot of copies. If destroyed, those copies would spill out of storage and one of them would become the new tabard, storing the remaining copies and rising like a phoenix.
Of course, I had two new copies in my item box too. Even if all other copies were destroyed, the Tabard would survive as long as these two remained with me. The ultimate cockroach ability.
I spent all my Proficiency picks. I had 4 free picks that could go into any category, two technical, and one mystical.
Finally, I could allocate my proficiencies. Each new Technical pick gained 22 fast-growth points. It would be new if I was born with zero in that proficiency. I had two that qualified, but I didn't pick the abilities at this time. I wanted to ask for my father's input.
* Miner (*) [125 / 241]. Select 8 Abilities.
* Metalsmith (*) [120 / 236]. Select 8 Abilities.
The Mystical proficiency went into [Assassination].
Assassination [165 / 239]. Select 5 Abilities.
* Sap Vitality: Your successful ambushes reduce the target's Endurance by (Proficiency/10) points.
* Invisible Killer I: You remain stealthed for (Proficiency/50) seconds after ambushing a contract.
* Swift Death: Your ambushes gain (proficiency/5)% more Stealth.
* Vital Strike: Add (proficiency/10) base damage to your ambushes.
* Shadow of Death: If you kill your target, you gain (Proficiency)% Stealth.
I still had four free proficiencies that could go into any category. These were the old Professions. I had one Technical proficiency to gain on my next Class rank up if the pattern remained true. I couldn't think of anything worth saving these picks for and I could always start new Technical ones next life. I spent these picks on those I needed the most.
Combat Technique [186 / 260]. Select 5 Abilities.
* Multiattack I: You can execute up to (Proficiency/100) extra attacks at the same time. Add up the base damage.
* Multiattack II: You can execute up to (Proficiency/90) [...]
* Exploit Weakness: If you attack with the target's weakness, you deal (Proficiency)% more damage.
* Chasing Footwork: If you have more movement than your opponent, you gain (Proficiency/10)% more accuracy and evasion.
* Unbalancing Parry: When you parry an attack, the opponent's next attack loses (Proficiency/5)% accuracy and attack speed.
Mobility [ 274 / 348 ]. Select 5 Abilities.
* Air skip: You can jump (Proficiency/100) times on thin air by paying (3,000 - 2*Proficiency) MP each time.
* Charge Bender: You can angle your charge path by up to (Proficiency/5) degrees.
* Long Charge: Increase the distance of your charge attacks by (Proficiency/3)%.
* Momentum Impact: Add (Proficiency/20) base damage to your charge attacks.
* Light Footing: You weigh (Proficiency/5)% less to trigger terrain hazards.
Leadership [ 255 / 329 ]. Select 5 Abilities.
This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.
* Inevitable Geas: Add (Proficiency/10) to your Royal Geas tests.
* Punishing Geas: Your Royal Geas deals (Proficiency/5)% more damage.
* Teamwork: You can collaborate with up to (Proficiency/20) people that have the same Proficiency as you in a project.
* Project Leader: When leading collaborative work, Add (Proficiency/10) to all team members' respective Proficiencies, up to your own score.
* Inspiring Leader: Add (Proficiency/5) to all Charisma tests made to amicably solve disputes within project members.
Jeweler (*) [209 / 283]: Select 4 Abilities.
* Tarnish Resistance: Your works resist (Proficiency/4)% of corrosive damage.
* Gemstone Setting: The difficulty to remove decorative items in your jewelry is (Proficiency/4) higher.
* Sturdy Built: Jewelry you craft resist (Proficiency/5)% of all damage.
* Personalized Order: If you craft jewelry for a specific person, lower the resonance by (Proficiency/20)% and increase it by the same amount for everyone else.
And that left me with only the four remaining Perk vouchers from the Exp nerf.
----------------------------------------
Traveling by carriage. It felt so boring, so… primitive. But necessary if I wanted to go with Mirina on this trip. I did. I wanted to see Lonid from the perspective of a guest instead of a conqueror. I still held some affection toward that city for what we went through together. It would also let me know Mirina's family so I could avoid accidentally murdering them.
But the main reason was to shelter Mirina from any shit her bellicose family might throw her way. If push came to shove, I would swoop in as a flying white steed in shining armor to rescue the [Princess]. To gauge how hostile Lonid was, Mirina's knights raised an issue about bringing me, as I was, in no small words, an "enemy".
Yes, Lonid's animosity against Windemere was so deeply buried in their minds that a mere young adult was already an enemy.
But until they returned to the Royal palace, Mirina was the boss. She set her foot down and the three of us sat on the carriage comfortable seats. Mirina on one side, me and Julia the silk-folk, formerly known as Rerin's Auctioneer, on the other. That was the name she picked for herself.
We talked about Perenneth's modern attractions, the move of the Royal palace closer to the lake and the three sets of walls built around the Dungeon in the aftermath of the breakout and summons that almost decimated the whole city. So long they weren't attacked by giant deformed naked people with big mouths, they'd be alright.
Two days after departure, we crossed the gates of Windemere north of the Eleon forest and the road became rougher. The carriage shook and rattled. Although the distance was only one and a half of what we already traveled, it would take another week before we reached the capital.
We needed to go slower and make more frequent breaks to rest. The axles rested on a curved steel bar that absorbed some shock but not enough. It was something that could definitely be improved with either magic or technology. We were on one such break on the first day after we left Windemere when we had our first encounter.
A group of riders came to meet us. With the current Lonid coat of arms hoisted on a spear, they certainly were knights sent to escort the princess. The shield was golden on the right with a horn bugle charge, representing Lonid willingness to go to battle and stand united. The left side was black with a golden manticore charge, representing Lonid's main source of wealth, their well-explored and well-farmed Dungeon.
[https://i.imgur.com/xOqYkuA.png]
Lonid's Coat of Arms.(Circa late Age of Eclipse)
Funny how they decided she needed extra protection inside their own territory and not in a foreign nation they are supposedly going to war with. They were not happy to see me and Julia with Mirina.
"Your Highness," an older knight, a captain if I read their symbols right, interjected. "Who are your guests?"
"This is Haru Stouthammer, a classmate and friend of mine, and Julia Silkworth, my lady-in-waiting from Windemere."
"With all due respect, Your Highness, I don't think advisable to--"
"Captain, are you trying to tell me to select my guests better? Are you questioning my tastes in people? Or are you stating you are too incompetent to keep my guests safe from the warmongering bigots? Perhaps are you telling me that Lonid no longer knows the concept of hospitality?"
I could almost hear the guy sizzling from the burn.
"Not at all, Your Highness. You can rest assured, your guests will be safe under our escort," He saluted formally and the knights behind him copied the gesture.
Mirina scoffed haughtily, "Good. Get your parade going, captain. I don't think I need more security inside my own country than on foreign lands some of our own claims are the enemy but I won't stop you. Just don't delay me any further."
He mounted again and we boarded our carriage. Mirina sighed heavily after we were safe from prying ears.
"I think you should go back," she painfully admitted. "They will try to harass you at every turn."
I yawned, "I fail to see why it is my or your problem. Yours anymore, I mean. I'm here to keep you two safe."
With a nervous sigh, Mirina looked through the window for a while to digest what I meant. Her homeland wasn't safe for her anymore. I could read the emotions on the young lady's face. Did she betray her home? No, she knew who I was and how easily I could wipe Lonid from the map. In siding with me, she was guaranteeing their safety, at least the Royal Family.
What she failed to realize was that everyone else was fair game. And that our bargain was just to keep the Royal family alive, not their status or even their own position. I would do anything cruel to them but I doubted they would remain the Royal Family after all was said and done.
Finally, she made eye contact again, "I hope you don't have to do anything."
"I doubt it," I replied candidly. "Everyone that opposes you or thinks they can get an advantage striking at you will think I'm a weakness. More so because I don't show a Status."
"Can you?"
I smiled to placate her, "Don't worry too much. Everything will be fine. But yes, I can display any Status information I want except titles. I can't fake those. Nobody can, that's one of the few absolute truths of the System."
Some hope lit up in her face, "Will you?"
"No. It would be weird to show any Status information now. And if I do, it will be everything. I doubt they're prepared to see a tag like [Truesilver Hero Grand Duchess, Master of Magic] floating over my head. Or my appendages I keep hidden."
Mirina let out a nervous whimper, "no compromises? No middle term?"
I shrugged, "Why bother? They are trying to invade my homeland and retake land their ancestors freely traded me. Mind that, I didn't steal, demand, or anything. I traded my services for that land."
I raised both hands in front of me to stop her. "I won't look for trouble. I won't even retaliate or fight back. Do what you have to do, ease your family's worries, and we go home with wonderful memories. Give them the news from Windemere. Torgo destroyed the Tabard but lost most of his Adventurers. The dwarves declared independence but lost their Dungeon. Isengar is a werebear. There are tons of tasty morsels to keep them busy enough to forget about us."
"It won't be that easy," she confessed. "Do you know the true reason they called me back?"
The level of distress in Mirina's voice reached an all-time maximum. I had to confess, I didn't pry and had no clue as to why. She volunteered next, anyway.
"They want to marry me to my fiancée to secure his family's military support for the war."
"And will you marry?" I asked with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle. I couldn't help but tease her. "Do you want to be married off as a political pawn?"
"Do I have a choice?" Her upturned eyes were moistening with despair.
"Plenty. You can run away. You can say no. You can challenge him to the rite of Argantmoet Trevillian. I don't know if you have this here in this continent."
"I know of it. It's an ancient custom in the Scorched Continent. I can't do either of these things."
"You can kill your husband during your wedding night before he consummates the marriage. You could even hire the [Death Princess] to get rid of him."
"That would solve nothing. I would be married off to another son of their House."
I rolled my eyes.
"And exterminating their whole House would only plunge our countries into war sooner."
I smiled, unconcerned. "You could ask me to forbid you from marrying him. I'm the one that holds your oaths, not your family or country. But the choice is yours, Mirina. I won't interfere."
Queasy, she held her stomach and let out the faintest burp. I leaned forward and grasped her wrist, letting my {Spiritual Healing} Perk calm her nerves and stomach.
"I feel better, thank you," she whispered with a smirk.
"Mirina. I forbid you to worry about the petty issues of your homeland. You'll marry if, when, and whom you want to. I don't think I'll allow this political marriage. It brings me no benefit if you are like that just remembering it. There are two things I want to tell you. Would you listen to me?"
Calm and reassured, she nodded. "Please. Speak your mind."
"First, I'm sorry for killing you. Most of the times I met Royalty, they were in conflict with me and I ended up purging whole kingdoms of their Royalty and sometimes nobility too. I overreacted because I knew I could fix death if I made a blunder. That was a terrible thing."
"If you spare Lonid, it was worth it. Dying was rather painless except for a momentary spike of pain."
Julia nodded sympathetically.
"That's a given. I won't kill the Royal family, I assure you."
She bit her lower lip and stared into my eyes. "I would like it if you spared the nobility too."
"No promises. I might turn your fiancée into a girl instead of killing him, though."
She snorted and laughed. "It would be hilarious but don't. What's the second thing?"
"You are mine, Mirina. I forbid you to marry for political reasons." I quickly held her chin and touched my lips to hers for a brief moment.
She froze, then trembled, blushed, touched her lips with her gloved hand, and finally glared at me. "You mischievous fox! That was my first kiss!"
Holding a fist over my mouth, I hissed and laughed.