Ray quickly descended. He landed a little farther back from where the Faction members had gathered around the Duskshell’s carcass.
A couple of them had climbed onto the dead monster’s shell to pluck the Mana fruits for themselves. But while they had the fruits, they also had their weapons out, their abilities active and ready to take out the Brighthorns as soon as the monsters got close enough.
Ray frowned. Something was wrong. Something made his skin buzz, but unlike when he was facing off against a powerful foe, this was unpleasant. Harsh, grating.
There was something off about this whole business.
“Get back,” Ray said, striding forward.
The man at the peak of the Duskshell’s back spared a brief look back he thought Ray was nuts. It was Tyler, the Fist. Oh great. “You’re crazy if you think we’re giving up these Mana fruits to a bunch of hellish mutts.”
“Don’t—”
Whatever Ray might have said next was drowned out by a chorus of rippling howls from the Brighthorns.
[Presence of the Primordial]
Presence of the Primordial has blocked the effects of Wild Howl [Tier 2].
Going by the reactions, Ray suspected most of those around him didn’t have something as beneficial as Presence of the Primordial. He wondered if any of them possessed any sort of ability that negated the enemies’ mental effects and afflictions.
Not important. The Brighthorns were already here. Shit.
The monsters themselves didn’t pose an actual problem. It was their masters further behind. Why were they so far back? They ought to know that the human Denizens were more than capable of killing their oh so precious pets. Shouldn’t they be doing their level best to keep the Brighthorns safe, if they really cared about them so much?
Unless the care was nothing more than a sham. A ploy to manipulate the new Denizens and a convenient tool to enact their barbarity.
It went just as Ray had expected.
The Brighthorns reached them. Chaos ensued as the humans attacked the monsters, killing them in short order with a variety of weapons and skills Ray didn’t bother identifying. It was a nice demonstration of their greater strength and capabilities, thanks to training and dungeon-clearing.
But it wasn’t a good demonstration of their critical thinking skills.
Ray grimaced as the group of Sylvans approached. Even from the distance, they appeared angry, their rage building and building as they neared the humans.
They stopped a good distance away, but Ray got the impression they could see everything clearly enough. Or at least, they saw enough to know that their beloved Brighthorns now lay dead at the feet of the new Denizens.
“You’ve broken the last straw, humans,” the Sylvan in the lead said. His voice was tightly-bridled with suppressed anger. “You have taken the lives of those we hold dear for the last time. And for this, you shall pay.”
Tyler was the first one to step forward. “We were attacked! What were we going to do, just stand there and allow ourselves to be mauled?”
“Why don’t you keep a tighter control over your pets, Sylvans?” another woman asked. “If you had reined them in, none of this would have happened. You are the ones culpable for their deaths.”
That only incensed the Sylvans even further. A couple of them even spluttered, apparently unable to comprehend that these worthless humans would go so far as to accuse them of being responsible for the dead Brighthorns. How outrageous.
They hadn’t stopped walking. In fact, they crossed into striking distance, then into spitting distance, before coming face-to-face with the humans. Tyler and the woman fell back from the top of the Duskshell as the Sylvans neared, their hands clutching their weapons as tight as cliff edges.
Ray tensed too. No way would he be able to protect everybody around him. Though, if a fight broke out, maybe he could distract the Sylvans just long enough for the others to fall back.
But the Sylvans never attacked. Despite the obvious anger, despite clearly wanting to make them pay, they simply attended to the dead Brighthorns. They picked up the bodies with surprising gentleness, sharing the burden of carrying them equally among themselves.
“You will rue the day you decided to take up arms against us,” the lead Sylvan said. “You will pay for killing innocent creatures.”
With that dire threat, he turned and led his compatriots away.
Ray watched them go. Why were they leaving? They had the numbers. However stronger the humans had grown, they were definitely nowhere near the level of Sylvans. If they had attacked just then they could probably have taken the entire group around the dead Duskshell out. Minus Ray himself, of course.
As such, the Sylvans turning their backs to the humans and leaving did nothing to ease the tension. Something was going to happen. It would be in their best interests to find out what.
Of course, it could be they were leaving to gather a much larger contingent of their kind before attacking all together. Somehow, Ray doubted that was the case. That didn’t seem like their modus operandi.
“Showed ‘em!” Tyler said, grinning fiercely at the departing Sylvans’ backs, like he had personally scared them off. What an idiot. This was the guy Maya had set as a Fist?
By the time the Sylvans had warned them and left, the rest of the Faction had neared their position. Well, the contingent that was accompanying Maya.
Ray let her take the lead. He tried to be inconspicuous, mostly because he wanted to slink away and actually check all the notifications from killing the Duskshell and the subsequent level up again. His new skill. All the things he could absorb from the dead monster. And so on.
He also admitted, at least to himself, that the way several people looked at him made him a little uncomfortable. That was how people looked at baseball stars when they hit a home run.
A mix of envy, wonder, and whatever it was that reduced a person to their performance. Sure, there was appreciation too. Gratitude and all that. Still.
Maybe it was just the fact that Ray stood out among them all like a sore thumb. It always took him a while to get used to being the subject of attention from too many people. Whatever. It wasn’t worth spending time on. Ray knew what he needed to do.
So, waving off a few thanks and other praise, he excused himself to take care of his real business. Time to check his new skill.
Then, it would be time to test his idea with the Tower Node.
----------------------------------------
Ray had identified the best location to test out the Tower Node. A stretch of hillside past the rear of the keep. There was enough open area there where no one was doing anything for his testing.
As Ray walked towards his target location, he checked all the notification he had received for defeating the Duskshell.
His free stats had been assigned. It was nice he had levelled up both his Benevolent and Heroic reputations, even if he didn’t exactly feel either. Ray had taken out the Duskshell as much for his own reasons as to protect the Faction. But it seemed the System didn’t reward reasons, only the fallout of actions.
Next, Ray checked his new skill.
[Information Request—Skills]
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
Mana Imbuing [Passive] [Tier 3]
A passive skill that converts a percentage of recovered Mana from defeated foes into an infusion used for the wielder’s body. Imbued Mana slowly replaces the cells, allowing for greater modification and control over one’s form, while removing physiological limits. At Tier 3, this skill imbues 15% of recovered Mana to enhance the body at a rate of 20 Mana per physical body percentage.
Huh. Imbuing Mana into his physical body to get himself better control over it. Why would Ray even need something of the kind?
So far, Primal Summons called up any sort of body-modification he could hope for. Claws jutting out of any spot on his body, wings emerging from his back. But then he realized the difference.
Neither of those had modified his existing body. They had simply added attachments on top that he could control. Hmm.
He figured he was going to need more information if the conversion of his body into Mana with Mana Imbuing could synergize with Primal Summons or not. The System hadn’t indicated any spell synergies, but then, Ray had gained a skill. Not a spell. It was a strange limitation for sure.
But it wouldn’t matter if Ray never got to actually take in any recovered Mana, as the System called it. He would need to find and kill more monsters.
Next came the Tier Point. Ray added it to Lifeblood Construct.
Crucible was already at Tier 3, which was enough for his purposes at the moment. He needed Construct at a high enough Tier to successfully carry out his plan. Sure, Ray absorbed the Mana Accumulation Sprout at Tier 6, but he wasn’t sure recreating at Tier 1 would be effective. Tier 2 was probably not going to improve it a whole lot, but still better than measly Tier 1.
Lastly, he peeked through the options provided by the Soul Sorption of the Duskshell. He had already made his choice. The Mana Accumulation Sprout was what he needed now.
Ray found himself on the hillside. Nobody else was around, though he wondered if he had an audience from within the keep. Well, whatever. Time for him to focus on his real goal through the whole exercise.
Like before, all it took was a quick little focus of his will to call in the second Tower Node. Also like before, Ray could sense no presence from it at all.
It wasn’t alone. The other Tower Node, the one associated with the Marauder, had popped into being too.
“I didn’t call you too,” he said.
The Tower Node didn’t dignify his statement with a response. Ray sighed, ignoring it in favour of focusing on the other System Artifact.
[System Artifact—Tower Node]
Tower Node of the Mentor
With the Node of the Mentor, you can now create your own training zone. Call forth the ability to train yourself and your comrades in a variety of applications, ranging from combat, to hunting, to even edification and craftworking. A repeatable way of raising your strength. Possible training scenarios can be increased with True Mana. Rewards can be kept even after the simulation ends. But beware, exceeding the limits of the simulation can call in the attention of the Mentor.
Just as he remembered. A very different purpose from what the Marauder’s Tower Node provided. But that was fine. In fact, that was exactly what Ray was looking for.
There was always a stage of discovery with the Tower Nodes. They weren’t one of his spells that he could simply channel Mana to use. The Tower Nodes’ functions needed Ray to probe and discover their functionality.
Ray focused on the Tower Node and tried to activate it. No warning about True Mana this time. That’s right. His body and spirit were attuned to True Mana now.
It was an ethereal experience, just as it had been with the Marauder’s Tower Node. Ray felt detached from himself. His senses remained anchored to his current location, though he felt he could have expanded them a little further if he wished. Still. Everything seemed to turn faded and washed out, like a painting losing its vibrancy.
In their stead, the Tower Node of the mentor glowed brighter and brighter as though it had leeched away their colours.
It felt as though the surface of the Tower Node wanted to expand. Some sort of burgeoning energy pulsed within. When Ray focused, the diamond-shaped ceramic crystal glowed even more luminously.
[System Artifact—Tower Node]
Tower Node of the Mentor
Available training zones:
* Academic Dungeon [Tier 3]
* Strength Dungeon [Tier 4]
* Agility Dungeon [Tier 4]
* Intellect Dungeon [Tier 5]
* Combat Dungeon [Tier 4]
* Smithing Dungeon [Tier 5]
* Farming Dungeon [Tier 4]
* Crafting Dungeon [Tier 3]
The list went on, but Ray stopped perusing it as soon as he saw what he needed. Farming dungeon. Perfect. Hopefully, there was a way to add what exact kind of farming he wanted to simulate once the dungeon manifested.
But when Ray focused on Farming Dungeon, nothing happened.
[Warning!]
Tower Node of the Mentor requires a prebuilt structure to support its summoning. An artificial dungeon cannot form without a proper location to hold it.
Huh. Well, that made sense, at least. Ray looked back at the keep. At least there was a prebuilt structure close at hand.
Maya wasn’t opposed to the idea of testing out the Tower Node in her Faction’s Base. Of course, Ray had to explain what a Tower Node was, how he had acquired one, and what exactly he intended. In the end, she held the same concern niggling at the back of Ray’s mind.
Hopefully, the dungeon wouldn’t take over the entire keep. Useful as the Farming Dungeon sounded, most people probably wouldn’t want to live inside it.
Ray was eventually taken to a room higher up the structure. It was large and bare, reminding him of the cavernous dining halls that medieval castle lords used to hold big feasts in.
“Big enough for your needs?” Maya asked.
She looked tired. Troubled too. Ray didn’t blame her. The way those Sylvans had left disquieted him too. It was like they were all on a tightrope about to break any second.
Tyler was following close at hand, trying not to look suspiciously at Ray, like a rabid hound one glare away from biting the ankle. Dory had come along as well. Apparently, she had wheedled out of Maya what Ray was trying to accomplish and had hurried over to join them.
“Probably a bit too big,” Ray said. “But I’m not going to decline. I’m more surprised you’re not using it for anything yet.”
“The whole place is pretty big. We don’t have the numbers to fill it all up.”
“Mm. Alright, here goes nothing.”
Ray summoned up the Tower Node again. Both of them appeared. He shot a little glare at the Marauder’s Tower Node inviting itself into proceedings before focusing on second floating crystal’s Farming Dungeon options. This time, it did take root.
After blinking and pulsing for a few seconds, the Tower Node of the Mentor slowly sank into the floor. Ray had a feeling that it hadn’t reappeared in the storey just beneath theirs.
The spot where the Node had disappeared continued to pulse with white light. Ray got the same burgeoning sensation again, like something was attempting to grow out of that location but was awaiting some sort of signal or input before it could do so.
[System Artifact—Tower Node]
Tower Node of the Mentor
Please add any available edible item that you would like to farm.
Ah, there it was. Ray had to insert exactly what he wanted to grow in the Farming Dungeon. Just as he had hoped.
It took only a moment to summon up a dark, sinuous tree with Lifeblood Construct. All he did was hold out his hand and focus on his Mana while activating the spell. About three feet away, a blob of black and red energy slowly grew into being, from which emerged the twisted tree with its silky bark. Or a Mana Accumulation Sprout, as the System had termed it.
Even better, it had a Mana fruit on one of its short, leafless branches. Just what Ray needed.
“You can create your own Mana fruit?” Dory asked, a little awed.
Ray laughed a little. “Only now, after I killed that thing.”
“Yeah, I still can’t believe you killed a Duskshell all on your own…”
Tyler glared at Ray like saving them single-handedly had mortally offended the Fist of the Insurge Faction.
“I can’t believe I can just grow my own Mana Fruit,” Ray said. Then he paused as the fruit… didn’t really grow. “Or… maybe not a full Mana fruit.”
He had assumed that the fruit would grow alongside the tree, but while the tree had reached the height of Ray’s chest, the fruit continued to remain the size of a berry. Not a plum, like regular Mana fruits. Of course. He couldn’t get a whole ass Mana fruit from just a spell that cost… what, 50 Mana at Tier 2?
But it would be enough for now. Ray reached forward and plucked the little Mana fruit from the dark plant, then walked over and placed it on the ground where the Tower Node had disappeared.
[System Artifact—Tower Node]
Tower Node of the Mentor
Edible item absorbed: Mana fruit. Creating appropriate dungeon…
The entire floor began to shake. Ray’s heart began to race. The trembles were strong, and he hoped the keep’s structural integrity could take it.
More importantly, everything was being converted by the Tower Node. The floor was turning to solid earth, the walls were disappearing, A grated gate of solid metal grew out of the newborn earth, barring their way forward. Even the ceiling had disappeared.
Maya looked up at the sky as the shaking stopped. “Are we inside the dungeon now, or did it change the entire top section of the keep?”
[Presence of the Primordial—Dungeon]
Novice Farmer’s Field [Tier 4]
Everyone must start somewhere, and here, in this localized field with all natural conditions, a beginner farmer can learn to ply the trade of edible cultivation. All produce harvested from successfully grown crops can be taken as a reward outside the dungeon.
Ray reported his findings using Presence of the Primordial. “I’m no expert in farming, but it looks like we’re just in front of the dungeon.”
“But what about the big bedchamber beyond the main hall?” Dory asked. “Please tell me it’s not gone.”
“It could be like the traversal dungeon,” Maya said, though a little dubiously. “Finish farming and you could come out on the other side.”
Ray peered through the place. All he saw was open sky here, despite being outside the dungeon. When he looked back, he could make out the stairs in the distance that would lead them to the keep’s lower levels. No sign of the rest of the keep over them.
“Well, we’ll need to disc—”
The presence appeared. Right, of course. The description had said that crossing some sort of limit would trigger the attention of the Paragon associated with the Tower Node, similar to what it had done for the Marauder.
And now it was here. A heavy, foreboding pressure right atop Ray. A far stronger aura that overwhelmed all of Ray’s senses.
His sight turned dark, his hearing faded, his senses of touch and smell all disappeared. When he blinked he was gone from his original location. Instead, he now hovered over in the middle of a mountain range.
In the presence of a new Paragon—the Mentor.