“One truckload of tasty mushrooms incoming,” Shai hollered as they reached the inner empathic spider territory, unaware of who was listening to her. After all, she had decided to keep the mask for the time being. The least she could do was use the artifact and enjoy expressing herself freely.

Immediately, hundreds of spider eyes shifted in their direction, all flashing red. Thankfully, very few of them were from spiders higher level than hers. Mostly baby spiders clung to the wall, probably gossiping among themselves about the devilishly cute snake. Not today, kids. The little me has a lot of work left to do...

“Where should I drop the load?” she asked.

Marvel carried her silently to one corner, before a huge-ass, weird-looking broken gate with light constructed all around them.

“Elegy?” the young spider called.

“In a minute,” a voice rang in their minds curtly. Soon, the unique grey spider came out from the deeper part of the tunnel to land before them, as a thick layer of spider net materialised above them. “Drop them there, so it will be easier to collect.”

Marvel scaled the wall to bring them above the net. She only faltered when they were completely upside down above it and urged her to deposit the load.

Shai concentrated on opening Inventory, positioning the output point just in the middle of the net. A hole appeared shortly, and out came delicious mushrooms in a flurry.

“Alright, kids, remember your Aunt Shai whenever you eat these,” Shai expressed, though unsure if the infant spiders were even capable of hearing her.

Well, depending on the zealous looks she was receiving, along with the showering of their favourite food, Shai might have become a unique oddity among the younger generation of the empathic spider clan.

“Hey, look, I’m more popular than you,” she expressed privately to Marvel, who only waited a second after the mushrooms stopped dropping to shoot the way back. “Well, you certainly are in a workaholic spirit today.”

“And you’re obnoxiously high spirited,” Marvel returned after a moment of silence.

Shai tilted her head, mulled over her emotions, and hissed in agreement. “I’m happy. Finally, I’m back on the steady route to supremacy.”

“You barely started on the path and are already dreaming of supremacy?”

“You’ll share my sentiment if you know which path I’m aiming for...”

“Then tell me, what path you’re aiming for?” Marvel sounded a little intrigued. “I know something is different about you, with how Solace and others reacted to you, and what I experienced, but you’ll still be advancing to copper rank. It’s far from the word ‘supremacy’ you so like to use.”

“Well, I’m glad that you asked.” Shai scrolled into [Active Quests] to see the tasks remained unattended before finally moving into the Path section. Thankfully, she had access to all the information on the paths she managed to glimpse upon.

[Special Quest: Defier:

By defeating the cursewalker, you have proved your alignment and determination. Hunt more of the corrupted creatures and make it your calling.

Requirement for Clearance: Hunt 1000 corrupted creatures the same level or above your station. Progress: 149/1000.

Reward: Mark of the Defier.

Penalty: None.]

[Quest: Advancement III:

Unwittingly, you have touched upon something greater than you realise. After a perfect foundation, it is time to create your perfect core to advance into Copper rank.

Requirements for Clearance: Form a core that perfectly aligns with your path and laws.

Rewards: Evolution of the mark, Wayseeker.

Penalty: Unable to form the perfect core may limit your potential.]

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

Shai hissed. Then there were the requirements for her path.

[Eye of the Crusader (Apprentice*): Sacred

Crusaders are an ancient order, having a similar origin as Preserver. Unlike their more peaceful and virtuous equals, Crusaders are rowdy fighters who listen to none but themselves. The Eye of the Crusader is a special position in the order, whose primary duty revolves around keeping the order aligned with their duty, working as the guiding light that enlightens their path.

Requirements: Perfect Foundation and Core. Eye of the Ancients (Light Affinity Based). An Above D-grade Anti-Mental Corrosion Aspect.

Specialty:

+4 to all Primary attributes, +5 Free Attribute Points per Level.

+24 Will, +24 Insight, +24 Fortune on Advancement.

+10% Effectivity in All Attributes.

+10% Effectivity in All Skills and Abilities.

Evolution of Existing Skills and Aspects.

Insights into spirit imprints, records, and other concepts.

A tiny sliver of divinity.]

[PS: This is only the apprentice-level path, which may evolve into a higher station, eventually. The area of specialty and benefits may change according to evolution.]

“Wait, wait, wait!” Marvel clutched to a stop the moment Shai announced the name of the path she was attempting. “It’s Eye of the Crusader? Are you absolutely sure about that? Like The Crusader, the same bunch as the Preserver?”

“Hundred percent,” Shai replied, even though she wasn’t certain about the terms any more than what she read on the system tab. “But it’s tagged as an Apprentice path, even though it’s ranked as Sacred.”

“Obviously... I’d be damned if you got to become a full-fledged crusader advancing to just copper rank.” Marvel paused to collect her thoughts. “Even still... Even so, this is beyond shocking. What the hell did you do to receive such a path?”

“Only now you’re shocked at how brilliant I am?” she gloated for a moment, causing the young spider to transfer a dismissive snort into her mind. “Well, you know I have a unique eye aspect? That seemed to be the main reason that qualified me to have a chance at this. On top of that, I play a significant part in slaying the cursewalker, which just pushed my name higher in the good book.”

Ignoring that, she also played a significant role in the evolution of the corrupt skink to cursewalker. But that was irrelevant. the cursewalker was dead, and they were stronger than ever.

“I guess that explains why Solace is paying so much attention to you,” Marvel began moving again, though far slower than before. “But are you sure about taking this path? You may or may not know what the role of Crusader entails, but you should be aware there’s no return if you advance with this.”

“Isn’t it the same for all paths?”

“I guess, but for some paths, it’s a more brutal truth than others. Especially for a Crusader. Are you fine with the duties you’ll be entitled to?”

“What duties? Ain’t nobody told me about any duties,” Shai perked up.

“Well, I do not know the details, but if the stories are to be believed, Crusaders’ primary duty revolves around cleansing evils.”

“Great,” Shai cheered. “If you know anything about me, Marvel, you should be aware I’m all about destroying evils.”

“I hope you do not come to regret your decision later.”

Shai hissed. She was all about regretting her decisions as well. However, she did believe if she didn’t take this route, it would be the biggest regret of her new life. She was already a snake; this path would merely turn her into a super snake. It couldn’t be downhill from being a tiny snake.

I mean, look at the numbers, she told herself. I cannot deny the numbers this path will get me... and they will only rise from here.

“Hey, Marv, I have a few questions,” Shai collected herself from the excitement and asked the important questions. “How do I form a perfect core?”

A couple of Marvel’s eyes turned to her. “You have fifty points in all primary attributes?”

“I do.”

“A fine grasp over your Aspect and Concept?”

“Hmm...” she paused. “Well, calling it fine might be stretching it a little.” Or a lot.

She did believe her grasp over the concept of Hunger was pretty great, and it was only improving with time. However, the equation became a lot more difficult with Golden Eyes. The Grade-A aspect remained mostly eluded her. It was really weird, considering how brilliant the eye ability was. It made her insightful about so many aspects of her skills and abilities, reflecting a light over them.

Unfortunately, the aspect remained the darkness under the lamp for a large part. Shai only hoped her mastery of it would rise after she comprehended the Concept of Light.

“Forming a perfect core is not as ambitious as it sounds, but it is the first step,” Marvel said. “You need to consider what is considered perfect for copper rank is way lower compared to any higher ranks. Keeping it simple is the way to it.”

Shai was glad to hear that. “How do I go about it?”

“It’s a time-consuming process, may take a couple of days to weeks depending on your mileage,” Marvel considered. “The aim is to condense all the elements of your skills, aspects, and concepts into the core, while leaving room open for the future aspects and skills. The latter is more difficult than the former.”

She thought deeply about that, but Marvel wasn’t finished.

“Solace taught us to make one core concept about ourselves to be the fundamental aspect of the nuclei while condensing the rest around it. It was far simpler for me because I only had one core aspect. As you can already imagine, our clan is thoroughly disciplined over the concept of Empathy. With a little supervision and teaching, it was easy for me to form my perfect core.”

But Shai had two core aspects to think about. “Thank you for the answer. As for my next inquiry, I want to know more about Aspects. How can they develop from a simple skill? What kind of changes--”

She paused, hearing the cacophony of corrupted creatures once more.

“Looks like you’ll have to wait a little longer for the explanation,” Marvel expressed as she jumped into the middle of the mushroom pit. “We have more evil to slaughter.”

____________