The [Darkstone Gargoyle] floated in the air with his head hung low, his wings not even bothering to beat in his present state. “My kind were in charge of defending the Tower from exterior influence and we took those duties very seriously.”

“Why past tense? What changed?” I glared at him, he was taking a long time to explain and I had people to save damnit!

“Four months ago, I felt something… wrong appear within the Tower that didn’t belong, however, as I was merely in charge of the east approach, I didn’t do anything about it.” Edifice’s horns drooped. “Over the next two months, the Tower started to feel more alien, despite nothing entering it that my contemporaries or I could detect.

“In a bit of desperation a week ago, the other guardians and I had a meeting to see if we could send someone inside to check out the Tower, but to do so one of us would have to evolve. My contemporaries were all chipped and damaged over the years, so I was selected.” He flexed a clawed granite hand. “When I went inside through my maintenance hatch I found the floor of the Tower coated in a black membrane. Before I could do any real exploring, I found myself outside the Tower with a strange phrase in my head and a claw full of black crystals I felt compelled to give to each of my kind surrounding the Tower.”

“Don’t waste my time.” I seethed. “What was the phrase and what kind of black crystals?” I’m going to stick a [Psyknife] in this asshole if he doesn’t speed it up.

“Apologies, Pactlord.” Edifice kowtowed in mid-air. “The phrase was ‘Await the flames.’ As for the crystals,” he beckoned a smaller [Gargoyle] closer and spun them around to expose their neck. “This kind of crystal. I don’t exactly know what they do, but ever since I finished handing them out, I have no memory. That is until you summoned us, for which I thank you on the behalf of my host and myself.”

I need to know if he’s lying, how can I do that? I pondered it for a moment before snapping my fingers. I can try that out!

With a thought, I triggered [Dominus’ Insight] and was surprised to see a screen pop up in the corner of my vision even as the bit of Mana I’d regenerated was sucked away, leaving me with the same dregs I’d had post [Pactlord’s Call] as I thought of it.

[Edifice is a lying sack of garbage most of the time. He is the reason the rest of the guardians of the Tower were damaged badly enough to force them to send him in to check out the status of their charge. However, he isn’t lying about his current state. Those crystals have suppressed his memories. Before leaving town, you will need to have him and his fellow Gargoyles remove their crystals, even if it risks their corporeal forms, or they will remain a threat to Chalcedony in perpetuity.]

“Works for me.” I murmured under my breath before snapping up to look at Edifice. “You and your kind are basically immune to fire, correct?”

“Highly resistant, yes. Though a powerful enough–”

“Got it.” I cut his rant off before it could really get started. “I need you to swarm the [Flame Golems] and take them down, hard. When you get done with that, each of you is to fly outside the wall and remove your embedded black crystal. If you’re still aware after that, return and help rescue civilians.”

I leaned down and whispered in Raiju’s ear despite the party interface, as I knew she liked me close. “You’re free to go and save some people or kill monsters. I can get where I’m going from here.” Without missing a beat, I triggered [Air Step] and flipped off her back. “Have fun!”

Letting myself freefall, I looked out over the city as Raiju streaked off to the north, howling all the way. With sixty percent of the city engulfed in flames, I didn’t exactly have many safe places to land, but a few seconds into my fall I spotted something interesting.

The sign outside called it the Arcane Nook and it was a modest storefront nestled amidst the chaos of the burning city. Its facade, once adorned with arcane symbols, was now blackened and soot-stained, yet the cerulean barrier surrounding it remained unbroken. The shop’s entrance, a simple wooden door with a brass knocker, seemed to defy the inferno that raged around it.

While the shop’s barrier appeared to be doing a great job against the [Flame Golems] and the [Inferno Drones], it was the [Ashen Tunnelers] that seemed to be the biggest threat. Five of the six-foot long grey snakes with black diamond patterns along their backs were spraying light green acid at the shop in volleys and I watched as a single hexagonal portion of the barrier shattered, letting the acid globule strike one of the windows on the second floor, where it ate through in less than a tenth of a second. Through the window, I could see movement and that was all I needed to pick it as my target.

Seems like someone needs some help there, let’s see how I stack up against these [Ashen Tunnelers].

Like a bird of prey, I dive bombed toward the snake-like monsters, checking the Status of them as I fell.

[Ashen Tunnelers - Rank D Monsters

Levels: 25-29

Vulnerabilities: Water, Ice

Immunities: Acid, Poison]

Nothing I can’t handle… probably. I grinned despite the situation, I’d always loved flying and this was as close as I’d come so far to doing so under my own power. Seventy feet above the shop, I triggered [Air Step] a few times to slow myself down safely before drawing a bow of golden light to my ear and sending a [Light Arrow] straight through the head of the biggest snake monster.

It fell down, slain by the combination of the damage multiplication of [Backstab] and the radiant damage from [Light Arrow], before dissolving into smoke as I felt the loot enter my ring through the Party System. I’d felt the same thing happening as I flew with Raiju, but now I knew for sure what it was. I knocked another [Light Arrow] and soon began a dance through the air as the [Ashen Tunnelers] decided I was more important to destroy than some random shop with a barrier they had trouble eating through despite their acidic spit.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

I was truly in my element as I danced through the sky, relying on [Photosynthesis] and my natural Mana regeneration to keep me from bottoming out my Mana completely. Though with so many summons out, I couldn’t go over twenty percent of my total at any given point, I still had more than enough to rain [Light Arrows] down on the slithering bags of scales.

As I whirled above the battlefield, more of the boots to be showed up despite me killing four of them already, and a couple of them figured out how to slither up the side of one of the other buildings. I only know that because as I poured attacks down at the growing group of [Ashen Tunnelers] on the ground I suddenly felt something wet hit the side of my face before it began to burn like nothing I’d ever experienced. Before I could do anything about the acid eating away at the side of my face, the back of my head suddenly burst into flames, sending me tumbling down toward the monsters below.

“Hey, grab onto the pole!” A high pitched female voice broke the [Shocked] status I’d picked up after getting blindsided twice. “I’ll pull you in!”

Twisting my body in the air, I saw I was just about to fall past the pole that was now sticking out of the barrier around the shop. “I refuse to become snake food!” I savagely kicked off the air with [Air Step], launching myself at the pole, where I wrapped my arms and legs around it.

The slick brass pole moved a bit before stopping. “Fucking heavy for a little guy, damn.” I heard her curse under her breath. “Hold on!” She yelled and I only had half a second before the pole practically flew back in through the gap in the barrier.

I nearly lost my grip on the pole when it shimmied to the left and my shoulder slammed into the corner of the window, shattering it and covering my already acid coated face in shards of glass. Somehow, I managed to hold on just a moment longer and was unceremoniously dumped ten feet onto the well-worn floor of the shop.

“Ugh,” I grunted as I produced a waterskin from my spatial ring and dumped it over the acid still eating away at my face, ignoring the bit of burning still happening on the back of my head besides whatever splashed over.

Suddenly, I felt the water I was pouring from my waterskin form up around my head with only a small gap for my nose and mouth. My eyes widened as a thread of ruby liquid entered the globe of water before flowing over to coat my cheek and the space around my right eye.

I looked around in a panic until my eyes locked onto a pair of young women, one raven-haired and the other a deep chestnut. Closest to me was the raven-haired woman, her skin the color of sun-kissed ivory, as she knelt beside me with her hands glowing with an ethereal light. She was obviously controlling the water around my head, but for some reason I couldn’t take my eyes off either of the women.

At the heart of the shop was a workbench where a sprightly young brunette woman labored over her craft, her hands glowing with arcane energy as she etched intricate runes onto a piece of enchanted metal.

“Don’t worry about your face, Mindy’ll get you right as rain in just a bit.” The craftswoman’s voice was like music before she chuckled. “Never thought I’d use that fishing rod inside, but I’m glad it worked out.”

“How does your face feel? Do you still have any debuffs?” Mindy had gorgeous garnet eyes, betraying her heritage as a Tiefling despite her ivory skin. Her voice was like the spring sun after a long hard winter in the mountains.

Checking my Status, I found it totally normal, minus the eighty percent of my Mana tied up in all the elementals currently tied to me. I suppressed the [Skill Dominance] notifications, knowing there were likely more to come.

“Everything seems to be in order.” I bowed to the healer. “Thank you, Mindy. Your efforts are greatly appreciated.”

The young Tiefling woman gasped, covering her face with her hands. “Oh, it was nothing. Marie was the one who fished you out of the air, I just used [Healing Waters] and a Common [Regeneration Potion].” She sucked the water from around my head into an open waterskin at her waist. “Sorry, but I was all out after putting out a small fire in here. I hope you don’t mind.”

I waved her concern off as I looked around at my surroundings. The air inside the shop was cool and still, a stark contrast to the heat and chaos outside. Shelves lined the walls, filled with an eclectic assortment of magical artifacts and enchanted items. In the center of the chamber was the real focal point, the Runesmith’s workstation, where Marie seemed to be diligently at work on some sort of bracer.

Despite my best efforts, I wasn’t able to stop staring at either of them without a distraction, so I let my eyes focus on the women’s Statuses to avoid any awkwardness.

[Name: Melinda “Mindy” Emberstone

Race: Tiefling

Class: Hydromancer - Uncommon - Rank C

Level: 15

Emotional Status: Scared/Nervous]

[Name: Marie Emberstone

Race: Human

Class: Whisperknife - Rare - Rank B

Level: 21

Emotional Status: Amused/Focused]

“Yes, we’re blood related sisters.” Marie chuckled as she set down an engraving tool on the desk before banishing the bracer to some storage device. “Mom had a fling with a demon after Dad fucked off, but before she knew she was pregnant with Mindy.”

“I’m glad to hear you claim her then, I’ve been told it’s not something most people would do.” I looked outside at the [Ashen Tunnelers] behind the barrier before turning back to Marie while Mindy hid behind her.

“Mom put her up for adoption and no one would take her, so the Architect's church forced her to take her back in.” Marie huffed. “Bitch tried to kill my little sister and she would have pulled it off if I hadn’t caught her in the act too.”

I blinked a few times. “How old were you?”

“Six, but Dad had been teaching me to use a blade so she never saw me coming.” She shrugged to reveal a brace of throwing knives along her left deltoid. “The church took care of us after that, that is until my System Day. From then on, I’ve taken care of Mindy all on my own.” She waved a hand all around her. “This place is the culmination of all our hard work the past ten years.”

She’s human, so that’d make Marie around twenty-eight years old and Mindy about twenty-two give or take six months. To have been on their own for so long, they must have suffered so much. I can’t let some damn snakes take this place from them.

“How long can your barrier hold out under an assault like this and can we open up a hole in it so I can shoot out?” I stretched a bit, squatting with one leg extended and bouncing a few times before switching to the other side. “I’ve got a few friends I can call in for help if it’s desperate, but I’d rather leave them to their present tasks.”

Surprisingly, it was Mindy who replied to my questions. “The barrier is water Mana based, so it’d take a lot for any acid to get through without some sort of specialized evolution, like the bigger [Ashen Tunneler] you killed first.” She pointed up at the ceiling toward a huge clear bowl suspended above the center of the room. It was at least ten feet across and I almost couldn’t believe I hadn’t spotted it before. “As long as there’s water in that bowl the barrier will hold, though broken panels might take a bit of time to fix themselves if I don’t help them along.”

Her sister pulled her around and rested her hands on the [Hydromancer]’s shoulders. “Mindy here is a damn barrier genius and don’t let her tell you anything less. Selling smaller versions of that big bastard paid for this shop, no doubt. My pitiful [Runesmithing] has nothing on her talent.”

Nodding along, I grinned. “It’s brilliant. Remind me to give you my great-aunt’s office address, she might be interested in something like that. However,” I hooked a thumb toward the monsters outside, “for now, we need to deal with those scaly shits. Can we pop a hole to shoot out of, or am I going to need to walk out and get to dancing again?” I smirked. “Hopefully with a lot less acid and fire hitting me.”

“I… think I have an idea for that.” Mindy’s voice shook. “Follow me.”