World: MSS - Loading...
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I shared everything.
From the beginning.
The only part I left out were the parts about the Players.
I began with my time as a slave with Clover and Lety. How I met Arrosh and he introduced himself to me, asking me to carry on the Sword Saint’s Name. The way Clover, Lety and I stumbled into Oung’s Dungeon due to Kyrian hunting us, and how Lety and Clover were gravely injured. I shared about descending into Oung’s Shrine, where I had to duel the Lucky Beckoning Cat with nothing but a rusty iron sword. I also shared about the way Oung chose Clover as one of the Kagura, though back then I did not know it.
I shared some personal parts too. I shared about my relationship with Clover and L’teya, the betrayal that I felt. Kyrian and Skaris knew this part of the story, but I explained mostly for Aurora and Stole’s benefit. Arione’s massacre of the orc civilians followed by taking the orc civilians and what was left of their Berserkers out of the city, striking a deal with Yousef to get to the Free States of Jayu and settling down in Miltus. Then I moved onto topics that were less believable.
I glossed over the parts about the Fracture in Miltus and our travels together. Again, they were there for most of it. But I did tell the story about the gods and how they began to creep into my life. My dream with Khan who gave me advice. My torture sessions with Coum. Meeting Clover and L’teya again, with Arione in tow. I shared everything.
And it felt good to get it off my chest, finally telling the comrades closest to me what we were involved in. What we were up against.
“...And that’s about it.” I finished lamely. I’m not a great storyteller and the way I said things left much to be desired. But at the end of the day, I think that’s me. Not perfect and not great, but everything that needed to be said had been in there.
“Ok, first things first.” Stole broke the silence. “Where is this fucking Arione guy, so I can stick an arbalest bolt through his head?”
I smiled at that.
“What an asshole!” Stole cried out. “Agggh! Fuck! I hate him! Gaaah!” She expressed her hatred by trying to tear out her own hair in a comical way.
She was trying to get me to laugh.
“It seems that for now, we are allied with Arione’s party. Or Clover’s party, whether we like it or not. As long as Lock’s Master is with them, we also have a measure of defense against anything they might try.” Kyrian fixed me with a look. “You’re lucky to have a master such as Arrosh, not many would undertake that much risk for someone else.”
“I’m starting to realize that.” As I shared the story, I was just starting to realize what kind of danger Arrosh was putting himself in.
“And you should have told us many of these things earlier. Much earlier.” Kyrian crossed his arms. “For one thing, while you were dueling Arione, Skaris and I could have rescued your friends. Clover and L’teya.”
“The elf barbarian doessss not need ressscuing.” Skaris said crossly. “But Tricsssssilan sssspeaks truth. You sssshould have confided in ussss about the goddesssss.”
“You believe me about that? That… that I saw Oung? And Khan?” I searched for everyone’s eyes. “That I believe the gods are working together?”
Too many different forces were at work here. Oung and Khan were just the first to reveal themselves to us, since they were working together.
The other gods were in this too.
I had a few pieces of evidence to back up this theory. The first one was my meeting with Khan, who mentioned Oung multiple times. He hadn’t needed to mention her name, he could have made it sound like I owed him. Instead, he continued to mention her, like he was trying to drop a hint. Well, hint received: news flash, Oung and Khan were working together.
Naturally, that meant the other gods had factions too.
That meant that the gods were up to something. They weren’t just slumbering beings of power anymore, they were active and they had purpose. If Oung and Khan wanted to get this relic, I could assume that other gods were out to get it to. That brought me to the second piece of evidence, the Church. The Church served the Light, Fire and Shield so they fulfilled the role of the opposition.
“It is… hard to believe.” Aurora chimed in, the most cynical of our party when it came to belief in the gods. “I cannot speak to the truth of how involved the gods are in our daily lives, but I do believe that there is a powerful relic out there which may hold some fragment of divinity. It explains why the Church may send Zenom Saintred as well as a Bishop.”
“More than that, I cannot wrap my head around the fact that the gods are moving. They exist, yes. But the way you describe them… they almost sound like they’re…” She shook her head without finishing the thought. Then Aurora flashed one of those rare smiles at me. “But I believe you, Mr. Lock. You would not lie to us.”
They all nodded.
“I trust you too, Mister.”
Oh. Wow. Ouch.
That… stabbed me right in the conscience, for obvious reasons.
“Well to summarize it all, we’re on a mission for the goddess, Oung, who’s known to be a double-stabbing, lying bitch,” Skaris winced when Stole cursed about Oung, but Stole continued, unperturbed. “But we’re not the only ones running her errands like little cronies. So is that A-hole-rione.” She must’ve been referring to Arione. “Plus, we have to try and help Clover take the relic before the Church can or another party can?”
“Does that cover everything?”
“Don’t forget whom Lock met in the Scavenger’s base.” Kyrian chimed in. “He said most likely, that mysterious organization could have sent in their own party, that they could be after the Sword Saint’s Secrets. And if they’re after the Sword Saint’s Secrets, it’s possible that they could want this relic for themselves.”
“And if they can defeat sssslaveborn,” Skaris trailed, “They are ssssstrong.”
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Was it just me or did he sound excited?
“Now, does that cover everything?” Stole tried again.
“One more thing,” I said. “If we lose the relic, Turina will start the war. And it will start in the Samak Desert, which is right next to Jayu States and the Babel Towers. Then Zimmskar will get involved and then the minor powers.”
“Pfff.” Stole answered. “Doesn’t sound that big deal compared to the part about the gods.”
“Is it not?” Aurora muttered.
“We cannot just think short-term.” Kyrian theorized, “If we take the Relic, we will have no way home. We will need to fight our way through, against Zenom Saintred along with this Mysterious Organization. Not to mention the Turina Scions might have their own agenda, if this quest is truly nothing but a cover for the inner workings of the gods.”
“The Church and the Scions are not on good terms?” I asked. “But why would they recruit Scions that might turn against them?”
“They might have had no choice, Mr. Lock. The Great Houses have far reaches and the Church is no exception.” Aurora said.
Kyrian shot her a look. “Yes. I agree.”
Aurora nodded grimly.
“So there are three things we need to consider. One, Clover’s party and how much we can trust them. Two, how to get the relic in our hands. Three, getting home afterwards.” Kyrian organized.
Man, he made it sound so easy. Just laying it out like that, it was like someone put bullet points on all the different things that had been going on in my head. Already, I was starting to feel better about my decision to share everything with them.
“So what’re we going to do then?” Stole asked the obvious that everyone had been avoiding.
Everyone looked to me, like they expected me to have a plan.
I shrugged. “I spoke enough. Speak freely. I want to hear everyone’s opinions..”
“Even me?” Aurora whispered while looking down.
It didn’t sound like the question had been directed at me. But who else could it have been directed to? “Yes, you to Aurora.”
“This Bishop is a problem.” Kyrian interjected.
“He’s bad news, isn’t he?” I asked.
Kyrian nodded. “It means there’s politics at work here, Lock. Church politics. And that the Church might have experienced a Divine Revelation. They would not send someone of Bishop rank otherwise.” His eyes were looking out the window. “It’s entirely possible that to undermine Zenom, he would try and use us.”
“Get us to betray him?” Stole asked innocently.
“Yes.” Kyrian answered. “Or get us killed.”
No one said anything to that.
Of course. The things I said, the weight they held, it wasn’t anything light. I basically told them that depending on our success, the world could be at war. Plus, the danger was a lot real now. Yes, adventurers might die but the chances of you dying was limited to monsters. I just exposed them to a whole new possibility –organizations with drama so heavy it made a highschool reunion look like a picnic.
“It issss not new.” Skaris muttered. “Do not cower now. Sssslaveborn has been dealing with thissss on our behalf ssssince the beginning.”
…Did Skaris just encourage them?
Just what the hell happened while I was gone?
“For now, there is no much we can do.” Kyrian spoke again, “However, it woul be good to find out more about the other parties. Even Zenom Saintred if we could. That should be our priority, learning more about them.”
“Then we shouldn’t have to worry about A-hole-rione’s party right? Since Mister’s awesome Master is already spying on them for us?” Stole asked.
“That leaves the Turina Party, Zenom Saintred and the party that could belong to this Mysterious Organization.” Kyrian finished. “I believe Ms. Aurora and I should work on getting close to the Turina party.”
Kyrian wanted to work together with Aurora? Was there romance blooming in the air?
One part of me was proud. Was this what people meant when they said things like ‘My boy’s got game’? But another part of me, the rational part, was worried. Romance in a party never really ended well. Still, Kyrian and Aurora both should know. They’d be careful. Atleast, I hoped.
“That’s fine with me.”
“Can I get close to the priests?!” Stole volunteered.
I raised an eyebrow. “You?”
“Yeah, I saw some priestesses that looked like they were around my age.” Stole replied. Strangely, she sounded excited.
“Ok.” I said.
“No.” Kyrian said immediately. “It won’t work.”
“Why not?” Stole replied.
“...Because you are a beastman.” Kyrian answered.
“Oh.” Her answer was much quieter.
“Then I’ll do it.” I said, before Stole could start thinking too deeply about it. She was a kid. I didn’t want her to learn how deep the roots of racism ran in this world just yet. Adventurers as a rule weren’t too racist –though priests could be different. I nodded at Skaris. “Skaris, can you and Stole keep an eye on Clover’s party?”
If anyone could do reconnaissance on Clover’s party, it was Stole. Skaris could keep her safe if anything happened.
“Mr. Lock, that leaves one party unattended.”
I pursed my lips. “It’s just a suspicion. There’s no concrete proof. If they do anything suspicious, we can start looking at them then.”
It was true. Now that I was away from the Scavenger’s Base and had told my teammates about this ‘mysterious’ organization, I was doubtful if the Players were truly here. Sure, a part of mind told me that they were and that Party ‘A’ was it. But another part doubted it. Did I want them to be here? To exact some kind of justifiable revenge on them? Maybe it was just wishful thinking.
That’s the thing about us people. We’re never really sure about anything until its screaming at us right in the face.
“This is so exciting.” Apparently, it didn’t take much to distract Stole.
We spoke for a few moments longer, working out the details. Finally, as Skaris, Kyrian and I were about to leave, I remembered something else.
“Aurora, I have a favor to ask of you.” I grabbed the little pouch around my waist and passed it to her. “Once you have time, would you mind sorting through these? And try to get an idea of what’s valuable or not?”
“Mr. Lock… there’s at least a hundred rings in here.”
“I know.”
“The Dimension Rings alone must be worth a fortune.” Kyrian muttered.
“Sssslaveborn… I’ve been wanting a new sssssspear.”
Skaris’ comment made me grin. “And if there’s anything in there that you think our party might need, please set them aside. Remember, the money is only there to get us stronger. So if there’s something in there that could do that, it doesn't matter how much it is. Just set it aside.”
“Understood, Mr. Lock.”
“Can I help?” Stole asked.
“Of course, Ms. Stole.”
Last time, I had asked Aurora how to determine the value of things. Since this MSS wasn’t the same as the game, there was a bit of a discrepancy in how I calculated the worth of items and Cores. But Aurora was up to date and I wanted her to teach me here and there. We sat down together for hours, discussing how to evaluate the item based on quality, rarity and actual practical usage. Also there was collectibility too.
My grin stretched wider, imagining Stole sitting through all that.
“Take your time.” With that, the three of us left the girls’ room.
The discussion had taken so long that the sun was setting now. It shone through the evenly spaced windows of the ship, casting long stretches of light heating up the floorboards. I stood by one of the windows and looked out at the oceanscape. In the distance, I saw something flapping its wings and flying –diving underneath the water and coming up with something squirming in between its beaks. It was too far for me to make out what it was.
I watched transfixed as other flying creatures soon joined in, trying to steal the prize of its hunt. It struggled but there were too many of the others. Still, the first bird didn’t give it. It started to fight back, darting through the air.
The other monsters finally gave up on stealing from it, instead tearing the first bird-monster to pieces.
I shuddered.
Was that what was going to happen to us? We’d get the relic just to be torn apart by the others?
“Lock.”
Kyrian and Skaris were waiting for me.
“Down below the hulls, the Church set up some kind of market near their storage room. If you want, we can go look for a sword.”
“We’ll take your there, Sssslaveborn.”
I followed the two, descending deeper into the ship. This ship was huge, I hadn’t really fully grasped just how big it was. It was a veritable warship. I saw on television sometimes about the Navy Marines living on ships and those ships were basically a village. This ship had a similar air and passing through things like the mess hall and recreation center –or whatever passed as such in MSS– reminded me of that. There was even a training room.
“Of course, no magic is allowed in here.” Kyrian told me with a sideways glance at Skaris. “Or we’d burn the ship down, most of the ship's enchantments are concentrated on the outside hulls afterall.”
Eventually we reached a storage room. Walking in, I saw a a priest and a priestess attending the place. It was set up just like a merchant’s showcase. Glass cases for the accessories and wooden mannequins for weaponry. They saw us come in and gave us a bow, their faces hidden behind white cloth. I looked over the prices and whistled.
“Expensive.” I muttered, looking to the priest for his reaction.
“You will still need a sword.” Kyrian urged. “I’m assuming you went through the Dimension Rings already.”
Skaris nodded. “Until better timesssss.”
Curious, I asked the priest-shopkeep. “Do you guys buy as well? If we happen to buy loot?”
“Yes. If you can bring us something, as long as it meets the Church’s standards, we are willing to purchase whatever you brings us.” I thought he was smiling underneath the veil. “Of course, the Light bless your heart that you may find generosity.”
I ignored the obvious jab, telling me to donate instead. I might be human but I wasn’t a believer of this Light, Flame and Shield. Hell, right now the only god I felt favorable about was Khan.
“Let me see that.” I pointed to a sword and the priest handed it to me. Double-edged and straight with minimal design. Performing a few maneuvers with it, I found that it was nicely balanced. “What’s this called?”
“A gladius.”
“Grade?”
“Rare.”
Hmm. It was nice but it didn’t quite feel right. “Do you have anything curved?”
“Would you like to try this one?” He brought out another sword.
“A falchion.” I muttered. Same as the sword I’d wielded in the Scavenger’s Base. But this one was infinitely better cared for. Well oiled and shiny, it caught my eye immediately. Maybe it was because I was used to holding a katana for so long.
“I’ll take it.”
Kyrian paid the man on my behalf and we went back upstairs. By now, it was nightfall and the ship was lit by candles. Even the sailors were few in number, only those poor souls stuck on the nightshift walking around. Looking out the window, I saw nothing but pitch black, the darkness broken up by signal fire from the other ships.
And when I went into my room, Kyrian and Skaris followed me in.
“...Did you guys have something you wanted to talk about?”
Skaris leaned against the door and cast a look at Kyrian. “Wassssn’t my idea, Sssslaveborn.”
“What is it?” I asked, growing worried. A million thoughts began to crowd in.
"Lock," Kyrian hesitated then forged ahead. "We know you're a [Player]."
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