It was hard to discuss the issue of Ray’s reward for his services. The lord didn’t want to talk to him and instead wanted to fuss around his son because of the lordling’s impending departure.
That gave Ray time to talk to Kredevel and Gritty, of course, though there wasn’t a lot to discuss.
They theorized a bit on where the lordling was most likely going to go and how they could counter him. Gritty, who had agreed to be the secret hammer of their operation to take out the healed-up Everstead people, suggested attacking James head-on. Ray and Kredevel quickly came up with better suggestions.
But even that discussion was mostly short. It ended with them asking Ray what he was going to do next, and since he had no good answer, it got him thinking afterwards.
What he wanted to do was get out of this castle and start seeing what Cliff One had to offer him. For some reason, he doubted it had a lot of monsters to spare. It just… looked so serene and peaceful. So idyllic. Too perfect. Not a place that one associated with monsters.
Still. He wasn’t going to be sure until he explored for himself, until he actually asked around.
Honestly, Ray would be happy if he could just find a couple of strong dungeons.
But the problem was that he couldn’t just go out. Well, he could. There wasn’t even anyone guarding him like there had been on the last two Cliffs. He had a lot more freedom here than he had expected. It would just be a very irresponsible act, and he didn’t want to worsen the already strained relationship he had with the lord.
About an hour later, near the end of the day, he finally got his summons to speak with the man directly. Ray wasn’t interested in niceties and formality. Thankfully, neither was the man himself.
They discussed matters shortly.
“I just want some information about what kind of monsters there are on Cliff One and where they are,” Ray said. “Plus the location and any other information about all the dungeons on Cliff One.”
“Well, now hold on, you simply can’t—”
Ray wasn’t interested in any negotiations. He’d had enough of those on Cliff Three. “Those are my ironclad terms of negotiation. You either make arrangements to immediately grant me what I’ve asked for, or you can start thinking about explaining to your superiors why your son is the only person who got healed on Cliff One. Ever.”
The threat was very clear. Clear enough to make the lord glare at him. Despite Ray’s obvious unnegotiable stance on what he had demanded, the man still tried to reason and bargain with him.
Ray just stared impassively and didn’t reply. He’d had great lessons on the impassivity from the guard on Cliff Three.
Eventually, the lord sighed. “I will begin making arrangements to give you all the information you seek. But you must remain at our beck and call. There can be no delays when we need someone healed.”
“Sure, sure. Just make sure to get what I want.”
For all that he was a bastard, the lord turned out to possess a good source for the kinds of information Ray had requested. That was why he had gone out in the evening on a monster hunt.
There were more Wood Elementals on Cliff One, with their locations having been documented by both the locals and special professionals who catalogued the presence of monsters in the area.
As those Elementals weren’t going to pose much of a threat to Ray, he headed out before night fully fell.
It went just as he expected. The Wood Elementals were basically the same as the ones he had faced on Cliffs Four and Three. Creatures of various shapes made of wood, leaves, and roots.
The only difference was that the wooded bits of these Elementals were black instead of normal brown. The leaves they sported were varying shades of bright yellow and vivid orange. Basically, they were emulating the kinds of trees Ray had seen all over Cliff One.
That didn’t make them much stronger, however. He dealt with them in short order, especially since he now had access to Molten Mana to burn them directly.
They did provide him an opportunity to test his latest spell. Spirit Mirrorlink threw out a spike of black-red energy aimed at a specific target. The Wood Elementals were fast, but Ray’s spell shot faster, stabbing into a monkey-like monster. Then the spike exploded into a black-ed aura.
Ray understood what was happening. Just as the description had indicated, the aura caught several other monsters nearby, all of them now linked together via their souls.
When Ray blasted his primary target with a Spiritsorb to the face, every single other monster that had been caught in the aura all screeched out in pain. Their bodies burned with black-red energy. It didn’t kill them, as it had killed the actual target, but it clearly hurt.
He grinned. Alright, this spell was going to be quite effective.
[Enemy Defeated—Wood Elemental]
Tier 9 Monster: Wood Elemental [Level 24] x14
Tier 9 Monster: Wood Elemental [Level 23] x7
Essence: +44,730
Knowledge: +63
True Mana Restored: +4,970
Essence to Level 37: 62,070/105,400
Knowledge to next Threshold: 1,803/2,000
A good chunk of Essence for the work of one night. It was a little sad the Essence requirement per level had risen so high, but there wasn’t much he could do. At least Ray had a peaceful sleep.
The next day, he was tasked with healing up another soldier. A woman. By the looks of her armour and the way she held herself, she was definitely some kind of commanding officer. He peeked at her status with Primordial Gauge. While the skills were blocked off because of her infection, it showed that she was level 42. Definitely worth peeking at again after the healing.
Ray followed the same process as he had done with the lordling. A careful healing, a peek at her status with Primordial Gauge, then informing Kredevel and Gritty about the latest powerful addition to their enemies.
It was interesting to note that the Everstead were prioritizing people with strong buffing and healing abilities. Both of Ray’s latest patients had skills that would bolster others against debuffs and status afflictions.
Against the Flesh Plague itself too, most likely.
Afterwards, Ray went hunting for some more monsters. The guard took him along very specific routes and to very specific locations. He was never taken close to the centre of Cliff One, where he supposed the most important nobles and the ruler of the Everstead kingdom resided. They clearly didn’t trust him enough for that.
Ray didn’t mind. As long as he was being given the right opportunity to face down more monsters, he’d be happy.
That day, he took out more Stone Elementals. The monsters were no challenge to him. It was almost boring. What kept Ray going and using his full power was the fact that he was earning a good deal of Essence to get closer to his level up.
[Enemy Defeated—Stone Elemental]
Tier 10 Monster: Stone Elemental [Level 28] x17
Essence: +47,600
Knowledge: +51
True Mana Restored: +4,760
[Level Up!]
Reward
* +5 Intellect, +5 Spirit, +2 Vitality +2 Agility, +10 allocatable free stats.
* 5 True Mana Shards
* 5 Origin Mana Shards
Essence to Level 38: 4,270/113,600
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
Knowledge to next Threshold: 1,854/2,000
What was interesting about the encounter, besides the fact that he had earned another level up, was that Ray had discovered the method the Elementals formed. Apparently, it was a variant of Mana being imbued into their surroundings that gave them life.
Life Mana.
A simple experiment with Primordial Gauge allowing his eyes to check the Mana in the area and then using Abstract Conversion to see the local Mana’s effects. He had aimed at nothing in particular. What happened was that the air in front of him twisted and turned, this way and that, like it had come alive. It had come alive. Because of Life Mana.
Ray had wondered if there was a Tower Node that was causing this in the area, but there was no way to find it. He had tried to use his Primordial Gauge-blessed eyes to check out if there were any Mana concentrations that suggested the presence of a Tower Node, but it didn’t work.
Ah, well. He had other System stuff to check.
Ray plugged in the extra stats to Spirit, determined to take it to Tier 4, just like his Intellect. Plus. It was boosting his total Mana capacity a lot, so now he’d have a ton of True Mana and Origin Mana to work with.
The Spell Synthesis point was what truly got his attention, though. He had been planning for it for a while now. With no hesitation, Ray used it to combine Spirit Mirrorlink and Spiritblood Stake. Checking out the new spell proved that he had made the right decision.
[Information Request—Spells]
Spiritscourge Chain [Passive] [Tier 6]
A passive primal Spirit spell that imbues all of the caster’s direct offensive spells with the ability to damage multiple targets at once. Every blow inflicted by the caster unleashes an aura of spiritual linking. Any enemies caught within the aura takes a fraction of the damage from the caster’s attacks, even if not targeted directly. Linking aura and damage deal indirectly stacks with every blow. At Tier 6, this spell unleashes an aura from every spell up to a radius of 12 meters and transfers 18% of damage dealt from the main target.
Ray read through the description but found himself focusing on one phrase. Stacking. So every single cast he would perform would send out this spirit-linking aura, which would cause anyone caught in the aura to take partial damage. And if they got caught multiple times, they’d take even more damage?
18 would turn to 36 would turn to 54 and so on. Ray almost laughed maniacally. That was a bit insane.
Oh yes, he was going to have to test it out soon.
The days proceeded in that manner. Ray healed up one or two powerful members of the Everstead military while spending the rest of the day trying to find more monsters to kill. There weren’t a ton of variants in the monsters he was facing. Nothing really new.
He killed more Winged Wolves that was plaguing the forests on the eastern side of Cliff One. A large lake infested with Glidescales was his next destination. More Wood Elementals and a few Forest Amalgams fell prey to him the following day. It was much easier to kill the monsters now that all his spells affected them so tremendously with Spiritscourge Chain.
By the end of his sixth, rather routine day, Ray had earned enough Essence to hit level 39. His stats had risen quite high and his Spirit was very close to hitting the 250-mark Tier break point. Two straight True Mana Tier points—one for his spells and one for his skills—went straight to Lifeblood Graveyard and Vengeful Plunder.
The first granted him another slot in Lifeblood Graveyard in case he came across another ability to add to his collection. Meanwhile, the second boosted his ability to grow even more powerful in extended battles. Just what he needed.
While the days wore on in an increasingly familiar pattern, things weren’t so swell everywhere else.
Kredevel: We took some heavy losses today. And we were so close to securing a path to the Spire. It is honestly rather frustrating.
Ray’s Sylvan friend had gone on to explain how they had encountered a powerful member of the Everstead military who had given them a run for their money. Gritty should have taken care of the fellow, but she had been foiled.
Ray: They’re getting wise to our trick.
Kredevel: I believe so, yes. Gritty mentioned that there had been a reverse trap awaiting her when she had gone to assassinate the fellow.
Ray: Yeah. She’s lucky she came out of it alive.
Alive, but still injured and reeling. While she’d heal up, which had allayed Ray’s worries, she wouldn’t be able to perform her strategic killing for a while. It wasn’t just because she would need some time to recover. If the Everstead kingdom was now aware of their strategy, then there was no point in attempting the same thing again.
Kredevel: We will need a new tactic.
Ray: Right. I’m still sad your Floor Lord still hasn’t showed up to help you, although we figured this would be the case.
Ray had gone on to reveal everything Ram, Bam, and Lam had mentioned about the Floor Lord to Kredevel. The Sylvan himself had his own background knowledge about the Floor Lord, and he knew that their collective endeavour wasn’t necessarily going to draw out their leader to him and the rest of the Sylvans.
They had both hoped they would be proven wrong. With Ray healing up the plague victims, it should have flushed out the Floor Lord. Not yet, it seemed.
Ray: Have you figured out a new plan of operations, then? I don’t want to see you get hurt.
Kredevel: It is unfortunately too late for us to try and negotiate. At this rate, I would not be surprised if they blame us for this plague too.
Ray was starting to feel worried not just because of the fact that Kredevel had lost that last contest, but also because he, Ray, was the catalyst for the change in fortunes. It had been a gamble to heal up the infected Everstead members. Sure, it had just been one battle. But if this was a sign of things to come, they needed a new strategy. Fast.
Kredevel: I will think some more. For now, we are staying cautious and avoiding any further engagements, especially ones where we know their more powerful warriors are present.
Ray: I’ll see if I can come up with anything too. Stay safe, Kredevel.
Kredevel: You as well. I hope you know that since they have discovered that the deaths of their last few healed-up warriors have all been orchestrated, their suspicions will go straight to you.
Ray: Oh, don’t worry. They’ve been suspecting something foul from me since the moment I suggested the idea of healing up their plague.
Kredevel: Regardless. You are not the only one who bemoans that you cannot help your friend in his time of need.
That made Ray smile.
Ray: Thanks, buddy. We’ll all get through this, I’m sure of it. Good luck.
After his conversation with Kredevel was done, he tried to talk with Gritty. The chat with her was short and unwelcoming. She was fuming that she had been beaten and had been forced to retreat. Her mind was focused entirely on how to get back at her foe, who it turned out had been the very lordling Ray had healed up the first time he had reached Cliff One.
Of course, that wasn’t exactly a healthy state of mind to be in, but he didn’t contradict her. She had her own way of doing things.
Keeping his promise to Kredevel, Ray did try to think of some kind of plan for the Sylvans to tackle their more powerful foes. The Everstead were now superior numerically and possessed soldiers and combatants who were much stronger in levels too.
Nothing came to his mind yet. Ray liked to think of himself as intelligent enough, but he lacked the kind of tactical cunning that could come up with insane strategies swiftly. He wasn’t some sort of war leader.
He still held the hope that something would come to him as time went on. So for now, he focused on doing what he did best and earning more Essence to level up.
Ray was hoping the seventh day would get him close to hitting level 40, but he never got the chance. Instead, he got an invitation.
“A dignitary from Cliff Three has come to meet you, sir,” said the guard who had been accompanying him over the last week on all his monster hunts. “It is important, so we must head there right away.”
“Important, huh?” Ray asked with a raised eyebrow. “Don’t tell me Lord Caleb himself came to see me.”
“I am unfortunately not aware of the details. The command came straight from my lord, and I cannot disobey.”
“Well, I’d still like to get some growth done once this is over, so let’s hurry.”
Ray was curious why Caleb himself would personally come to meet him. Didn’t he have a war to conduct on Cliff Three?
A part of him suspected that this might be the beginning of some sort of retaliation for their suspicion that he was helping their enemies, but they couldn’t do anything to him just yet. There were still a lot of them that needed healing. They had one battle courtesy of one combatant whose assassination attempt had been foiled. Victory for the Everstead wasn’t set in stone. Yet.
They travelled back towards the edge of Cliff One. The guard confirmed that they were heading to the spire that Ray had used to climb up here. Looked like Caleb wasn’t so desperate to meet Ray that he would come barrelling straight to the castle he was staying at.
Except, they never got to meet Caleb. Mostly because the person Ray was supposed to meet was coming to him.
About two-thirds of the way to the spire, where the edge of the Cliff was now visible, a rider on a Raptor neared them. The guard pulled to a stop as the rider came close enough to be recognized. Ray frowned as he followed his guide’s motion. The man approaching them looked familiar, but not one he was expecting. That was—
“What are you doing here?” Ray asked. “Did Caleb get impatient and send you out to meet me?”
Ignoring the question, the approaching guard made a strange gesture. The man beside Ray started to argue something but quickly stopped at another gesture. Ray looked between the two of them. What in the world was going on?
With obvious reluctance, the guard who had brought Ray this far turned his Raptor around and began riding away.
“Hey, where are you going?” Ray asked.
“My duty is done,” he said without even looking back. “He will perform the rest.”
Ray turned to face the impassive man who had accompanied him all over Cliff Three. He had come to a stop about ten feet from Ray, his face as unreadable as ever.
“Uh, what—”
The guard cut Ray off. “I will warn you this once. Cease assisting the Everstead. Cease your attempt at stymying the flow of the plague. Cease trying to use the Tower Nodes of the Fleshcrafter for your silly plans. Cease all that, and you may come out of this meeting alive.”
Ray’s heart spasmed in his chest. His mind whirled with too many thoughts all crashing together at once. He knew. This guy of all people knew. But that didn’t mean the rest of the Everstead knew, because he was asking Ray to stop helping the Everstead? Why? Wasn’t he one of them?
“I don’t understand,” Ray said. His skin itched, his muscles tensed, his body almost throwing himself off his Raptor. Even his mount was starting to move a little agitatedly. “How do you know all this? Who are you?”
“Your answer, Raymond Dominick. What is your answer? Will you cease?”
Ray scowled. “You didn’t answer me and yet you expect me to answer you?”
The guard got off his Raptor. His mount immediately bolted. The guard didn’t pay it one lick of attention, those impassive, depthless dark eyes still fixed squarely on Ray.
It was that sudden departure of the Raptor, more than anything else, that told Ray that this meeting was not at all what it seemed. He quickly got off his mount too, which also proceeded to run away in the direction he had come from, though he didn’t dare take his eyes off the guard.
Every instinct in his body was screaming at him to run too. To copy the Raptors and get the fuck out of there.
Holy shit, no one and nothing on the entire Floor had made him feel this way. Who in the—
The guard’s form began changing. A shimmering cover overtook the black-gold armour and the rest of his form. Ray blinked. That reflective, mercury-like second skin… that was exactly what he could do with Mimic Mana.
What—
The reflective cover disappeared all at once, dissipating into a hundred little motes of sparkling white light. Revealing the guard’s true form.
In place of armour, he now wore a flowing, ankle-length robe with an artfully carved silver breastplate. His form had lengthened so that he was taller, his figure turning thin and narrow. Even his skin had changed from a pale brown to dusky purple.
But the most telling change were the horns. Dark curling protrusions of Growth Mana emerged from the elbows, the knees, spiking out with such thickness on the head that it looked the horns had replaced all the hair. This… was no guard. This was no Everstead pretend-human at all.
Ray was standing before a full-fledge Sylvan. A powerful Sylvan.
“Now,” she said. Her voice resounded over and over like they were in an empty room throwing overlapping echoes over them. “Make your decision, Raymond Dominick. Cease, or perish at the hands of the Lord of the Second Floor.”