So, the little schemer desires power, does he?

Devon froze. He tensed up for an instant, expecting the overwhelming pressure he'd felt before to return. When it didn't he allowed himself to relay, if only a little bit.

Now that he'd grown more experienced he realized this was an application of spirit, one he hadn't imagined was possible. Whatever was telepathically communicating with him was doing so by connecting their spirits from an unfathomable distance away.

With a jolt, Devon realized he could block out this presence if he wanted to. His control of spiritual energy had grown by leaps and bounds from his experience with the apes and experimenting with Harvest. He quickly started putting together a mental barricade.

Yes, please do that promptly. It would get rather tiring having to filter out every errant thought that enters your head. Take care not to be foolish and attempt to block me out completely. I don't appreciate being ignored, and you wouldn't enjoy a token of my dissatisfaction.

Devon distinctly remembered the pressure he'd felt the last time. He was certain no matter how strong a barrier he raised, this presence would be about to shatter it with ease.

What are you? He probed.

An interested party. You should be thankful I was the closest when you triggered that event. That little stunt lit up this region of infinity like a beacon. I admit, I'm very curious how an initiate triggered a fate-altering event. I also can't believe you didn't draw an administrator.

I have no idea what any of that means. Devon remembered the system mentioning the fate-altering event and whatever an administrator was, but he tried to pretend he was wholly ignorant in the hopes that this being would give him additional information.

No matter. It's better that such topics remain outside the bounds of a tutorial. The system is known to get… agitated when outsiders give more information than it believes initiates should possess.

You called yourself an interested party. What do you want with an initiate?

You wouldn't know this, but fate-altering events aren't very common. I'm not the only one who noticed that little hat trick, and I'm hardly the only interested party. Believe me, when that tutorial ends you can expect to be headhunted by all different types. Of course, I say headhunted with both meanings.

Is that what you're doing here? Trying to recruit me into something?

In the most basic of terms, yes.

And how am I supposed to know you won't just kill me for my marks? Eve's discovery that killing a cursed being gave out marks of karmic affection was extremely disconcerting. It meant that no matter where Devon went or what he did from the end of the tutorial, he'd have to keep on his toes to avoid people looking to reap that particular reward.

I have no need for additional marks of affection at this time, though you're free to trust or distrust that statement all you like. Frankly, it'd be a bit of a letdown if you were that trusting.

What exactly would you be recruiting me for?

Unfortunately, I cannot divulge the details. Outside offers are another thing the tutorial process hates. Instead, I'd like to ask something of you. What do you intend on doing beyond this tutorial?

I'll be returning… Devon stopped that thought before it finished. It was a lie, he had no desire whatsoever to return to earth. This being was far too suspicious, there were far too many unknowns associated with it. If possible, he'd rather have nothing to do with it at all.

At least, that's what he'd initially thought. Then an idea had occurred to him. The only objective he'd have left once the tutorial ended was to see if he could find his sister, but searching the entirety of infinity without so much as a single clue where to start was akin to a fool's errand.

On the other hand, if he could secure the assistance of someone powerful with potential connections the search would be considerably easier. Of course, he didn't trust this presence at all. But so long as he didn't agree to commit to anything before getting a better understanding of this being there didn't seem to be much harm in entertaining the idea.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

There's someone I'd like to search for. They were amid the first phase of my planet's initiation.

Looking for some kind of lost loved one, eh? Well, that's common enough. If you're certain they won't return to your world at the end of their initiation then it shouldn't be too much trouble to locate them.

I wouldn't have imagined it would be that simple to search the entirety of infinity.

Ah. You see, while infinity is as vast as it sounds and the system that governs it is all-powerful, it still takes care to keep things confined to relative proximity. Besides that, only the elite can ordinarily host a first phase initiation, which drastically limits the places to look. In this region of infinity there are three dominant forces. I can almost guarantee the person you're searching for is among one of them.

I still won't make any promises.

Of course. Though you should understand what I seek from a potential partnership is nothing less that extraordinary competence. I so tire of dealing with the mundane. So I offer a test, to prove that you're worth my interest.

Then you can forget it. I'm not going to bother going out of my way proving myself to someone with such a vague proposition.

Now now, I think you'll be interested in this. Before we started speaking you were in the midst of wishing for a way to obtain more strength, correct?

Devon didn't respond to that. He hated thinking about how long this presence could have potentially been spying on him without him knowing. As the presence continued Devon memorized how it felt to have another soul looking upon his own so he could hopefully detect such an intrusion in the future.

As I said before, I have ample marks of affection. As a cursed being yourself I'm sure you'd have no way to know this, but marks of affection can be used to prompt the system to trigger certain events ahead of schedule.

Devon's eyes widened, You don't mean…

Indeed. Since the tutorial offers no way for you to rise beyond the status of a lowly level 38, how would you feel if I offered to let you skip the two levels you need to progress and instead trigger your ascension quest right now?

Shock rippled through Devon's system. He'd assumed marks of affection acted as something of an inverse to marks of disdain. Instead of burying the user under heaps of shit, he assumed marks of affection would give a user increased odds of positive system-based events or rewards, such as triggering quests more often or increasing the rarity of dungeon rewards.

Even a month after the start of the tutorial Devon hadn't received any new quests aside from the ascension variety. According to others, there were usually quests associated with clearing specific dungeons or such, but Devon hadn't received anything like that. He didn't mind much because his ability to gain stats off plots and schemes outweighed normal quest rewards anyway.

But if marks of affection could be used to trigger something like an ascension quest… the ramifications were immense.

Why would you be willing to do something like that?

Good relationships are built upon a foundation of good faith. In a sense, you could call this a gamble. If you manage to succeed then I would very much like to establish a working relationship. Of course, you'd be under no obligation. So if you reaped the rewards of that trial and chose to embark upon infinity by yourself that would be fine. I make no demands, such hard-handed methods would not be conducive to the relationship I desire.

Something about the presence's phrasing made Devon frown, You make it sound like you don't have complete faith in my ability to overcome the ascension quest.

Even when using marks of affection, the system does not appreciate being tampered with. This usually results in decreased rewards from whatever event was triggered, or more commonly, a sharp increase in the event's difficulty.

Devon felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. The system liked to mess with him as much as it could already, he didn't care for having it levy double negatives against him.

But even so, he couldn't deny that he needed an extra boost in power before the end of the tutorial. Before that, he needed some assurances though.

How can I be certain you can find the whereabouts of the first phase initiates?

I belong to one of the three factions that dominate this region of space, the empire of the Amber Dragon. I believe we're also the faction that invested the most into acquiring first phase initiates, but I'm not certain of that. Initiations aren't something I usually pay attention to. Regardless, it would be easy to acquire the information within my own empire, and I have back channels that I could look through as to the other two's initiates.

I believe details of initiate population is usually displayed when you're given the option to leave the tutorial, so you're free to cross-reference that statistic to what I've just said when the time comes. A function designed to facilitate more concrete faction building, no doubt.

Alright, I'll go along with your plan for now. I make no promises as to my decision in the future, but I'll take your ascension quest.

Excellent. I shall wait on the world Valterium. I wish you the best of luck, little schemer.

[Notice]

A benevolent being has shown you grace and given the opportunity for rapid advancement.

[Ascension Quest]

Kill Voltar Pura, Lord of the Mountain.

Fuck.