Date: 8th October 2822
Location: Outside Dawn Corps Building, Corporate Sector, Noble Realm, The Empire of Wisdom
Time: 9:05 AM
Kalkin's POV:
So, here I am, finally in the Noble Realm, though it's still the Corporate Sector Only, I mean it's an area owned by the noble families, various Corporations are actually owned by the Noble families themselves or they do own some share in it. Dawn Corps was initially established by Mr. Lucas Dawn in the year 2641, he was a Commoner who got an emblem and was given this land, that is today Dawn Corps headquarters, as a lease but the Noble who owned the land, his daughter fell in love with him and they married and he became not only the owner of that very land, he rose to become one of the most successful businessmen of his time. People still say that it was an error that the Gods didn't choose him as their Champion! I mean he was charismatic, a natural leader, as well as a kind-hearted individual but the most terrifying aspect of him, was his naturally gifted intelligence. Well, it's mysterious how the system of Choosing the Champion works. I mean do gods have some algorithm of sorts, or is it just a whim? I hope it's an algorithm and people like Mr. Lucas will be outliers, making sense that they are not chosen, so am I like Mr. Lucas? Am I that Great?
Mr. Smith's POV :
What is Kalkin doing outside the building, why isn't he moving inside, and why he has his face on his hand? I thought as I approached the front of the building. Wait, he is on time, today? Did something happen yesterday with Aadya? there is no way he will be here if anything happened to her. So why on God's green earth he is on time? Is he crying, I mean if they had a fight, it would make sense that he came to work early but to the point that he is crying! I need to console him!
Oye! Kalkin, it's alright, you just had your first ever couple's fight with your wife, don't be so sad!" I said as I reached him from behind and tapped his shoulder.
"Eh!, he is not crying, he is giggling? Oye Kalkin look at me!"
" What happened Mr. Smith" and there I saw his face filled with smug and that silly face, he makes when he thinks he has worked out something, as he removed his hand from his face and faced me.
"Oye, what stupid thing are you planning?" realizing it's better to stop him now sooner than later.
" Nothing, Mr. Smith, I have finally figured out why I haven't been chosen by Gods still! It's cause I am as great as Mr. Lucas Dawn himself, an anomaly, an outlier discarded by the God's Champion selection Algorithm."
He said it with such confidence, that I for once had to message, God of Mischief asking him if there was any selection algorithm that God use to select their Champions.
"No, we just select someone if he catches our eye, but I never heard of anything like an algorithm used for selection in the first place, even amongst the highest of gods. That child, you call as your own, does he has a screw loose or anything?, I mean he makes a fine specimen that I can use for my entertainment, but I need someone with some ounce of intelligence in him too"
"You stupid, dumb, idiot of a miner, how can you be so so...." I didn't have any words for him, he has gone past the normal barrier of reasoning, I can just pray that he may find peace, I said as I joined my hands in a Namaste pose and closed my eyes, and tilted my head upwards.
" Why are you not impressed by my deduction?"
"It's because it's stupid, not being able to become a Champion has gone in your head"
"Oh! so it's not an algorithm then why wasn't Mr. Lucas ever chosen?"
"Well, it's because as my God explains, he wanted to show his gratitude to the person who gave him the emblem and always wanted to be together with her, yes, it was his wife Mrs. Mellody Dawn, so he never accepted anyone else, that's the simple reasoning"
"Oooohhhh!, so I can request Aadya's God to make me her Champion!!!"
" There is no getting past you, forget it, let's change the topic! how was your dinner date with your wife yesterday ?"
" Ah, no! I just had some instant noodles last night, we couldn't go for dinner, Hey Mr. Smith do you anything about Aadya's head Mr. Hiten?"
"What do you think is he suspicious?"
"Ah!, no it's not that, I mean suddenly, yesterday as Aadya was leaving work, he called her and asked her to stay as they needed some immediate samples and that she will have to work the late night hospital shift. I mean it's been happening more frequently these past 2 months, and Aadya had to agree cause you know how she is always ready to help! and she called to inform me yesterday. the late night shift gets over at 6:30 AM, I was initially planning on being late today but I came as I didn't want to stress her by being late today as well, I made her some food and left a note explaining that I am leaving for expedition today!. You know that Aadya is participating in research right, cause she has a stigma on her! and Mr. Hiten is like newly appointed on the task like last month only and she says that since then her stigma has started aching more often and I mean they are researching on the very stigma itself so I get that it's possible that it's all-natural and there is nothing else but I don't know why even when I met him last time, he was all good, too good and that's why I am unable to shake it off my head, Aadya told me to not think about it and like the research itself will bear fruit and everything will be alright, but I just can't shake his smile off my head, it was nothing unusual but it's just ...."
"Don't say anymore, I will make sure everything will be okay, I am immediately setting my emblem holder on him as a priority"
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Mr. Smith pulled out a scroll from his index and wrote something on it and then it suddenly disappeared.
Location: Outskirts somewhere in a dungeon, unknown
A figure in the dark far away from the Kingdom of Wisdom checked his index, you have one new message!
As soon as he clicked on it, the scroll popped out, he read the contents and then that scroll burned itself until nothing was left of it.
"Hey X-09, we have an urgent mission, Master has ordered us to look into some guy called Hiten and he works as the head of a research group on stigma at the Saint's Hospital's Empire of Wisdom branch, he says to give this one the topmost priority"
"Damn, that old geezer, why does he always give us the urgent missions, we can't just relax and enjoy"
"It's master's orders, don't complain, it's because you possess the power of teleportation and stealth and can easily infiltrate any building irrespective of whatever spell is cast on it."
" Ya, I know I am great, but why do I have to be stuck if someone as stoic as you"
"Master's orders don't complain, it's because only I can keep you in check through my all-seeing eye"
"See, that's what I am talking about, I don't know anything about you except your code name X-05 and that you have an all-seeing eye, I don't even know what it does, except that it can see everything"
"Don't tell me you are a pervert inside and always up to something", that girl said as tried to put her hands on her chest hiding something, well you guys know what I am talking about.
" Don't worry I can't see what's not present and secondly, we need to start moving, immediately"
" Hey!, you are so mean, I told you I am developing! Ya, ya don't shake your head sideways, I am conjuring the teleportation portal"
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Time: 10:05 AM
Kalkin's POV:
"Kalkin have you packed up all the essentials," asked Mr. Carlton
"Ya, boss, everything from mining equipment, mana bottles, drill machines for mana stones, base camp stuff, everything"
"what about food and water"
"Ya, Jimmy is on it, he is currently loading them on the base delta transportation vehicle"
"Good, so I guess all things are checked on the list, it's a long mission, and we might also not be able to be in contact if we go mining deep in the dungeon so call your family and inform them, ok while I'll go an report to Mr. Smith that we are almost ready"
"Thanks, Mr. Carlton!"
"Well, I should call Aadya just to make sure she is alright", Kalkin picks up his index and calls Aadya!
"Why isn't she picking up her phone", is she sleeping but wait did she reach home today?
The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.
" Wait, let me check the video feed of the house" Thanks to me, I installed one, since the last time I had to leave before she returned back from her work.
I opened the menu on my index. the Hologram of all my apps(basically the menu screen of the index turned into a hologram), Ok, select video feed, ya I want to see it after I left the house at 6 AM today, so let's check after that"
I watched the video of the entrance since I left the house, and Aadya, returned around 7:30 AM, well she kinda looked weak in the video as she had a little difficulty walking, which makes sense since they actually give her a dose of propofol as anesthesia since unlike other patients, she is generally immune to other chants and spells that induce sleep due to her stigma. Her stigma is actually called the Healer's confederate, meaning she is actually related to either the God of Healing in some sense or she is like a direct descendent of someone chosen by the God of Healing. Stigmas are very rare, hence the research on them is top-secret or highly confidential. Since I am her husband, I do have a little knowledge but even I am not allowed by the Empire's rule to interfere with the research. That's why I need to become a Champion because then as I gain authority, I will be able to access more information about this top-secret research. You can call it sixth sense or survival instinct or maybe a little of Madam Kali's influence, I just don't feel right at times hearing about this top-secret research. Well, as the academy's pass out, I do know that Stigmas symbolize the end of a God, meaning that God kinda curses their last follower before they die because he was unable to spread their influence and I know that unlike me who came to the orphanage at the age of 5( I do not have any re-count of events before) and according to Madam Kali, Aadya was left at the orphanage while she was just a year old, so she couldn't have been chosen by the God to become a Champion by that time, it means maybe one or both of her parents might have been followers of the God of Healing but I remember that God of Healing went extinct some 200 years ago when God of Knowledge defeated her( people say God of Knowledge used some underhanded tactic to capture her and turned all of her followers into his followers via some bet or condition they agreed before the battle Royale that year). So, it doesn't make sense why Aadya has a stigma, and that is the very reason why she is the subject of research!
"Ok, so she entered the house, let me just look at the living room feed", well Aadya doesn't know about it, I secretly installed a second camera as I got an offer 2 for the price of 1, so it was a good deal. Ok, so she is entering the house", I saw it through my index hologram mode as it played a video. So, our house has two bedrooms, and 1 living room and the living room is quite big and interconnected with the dining area and the kitchen which is a little small but it's good. It's like an L-shaped situation. The dining area is nothing but the space between the kitchen and living room. So I installed the 2nd camera in the right corner of the living room so that I can see anyone entering the house through the path on the side of the small garden Aadya and I work on. As one enters the house, on turning left, one enters the kitchen/dining area. Further, the kitchen/dining space is the bedrooms and bathroom. I left her a note on the living area table and kept our small picture frame which is usually in our bedroom on that table above the note. (refer to the image in the post-chapter note.)
"She went straight to the kitchen, and saw the food I made, cool, she always insists me to be first clean myself and then eat but look at her, she is tasting it herself, something I can finally call on her, me getting that camera installed was ingenious. ya finally, it looks like she realized and is going. Ok! fast forward 30 minutes, ya she finally came out, pretty quickly today, ya she generally relaxes and takes approximately an hour in there not sure if she sleeps in there but today she is pretty fast. But, why is she only in her towel? ok, she is going into the living room, finally, she noticed the photo album, read the note( hehe! she blushed), kissed our photo! and finally takes her food into the bedroom. Ok!, ya, now I can relax, she ate and she will finally get a well-deserved sleep. Ya finally, I can focus on my mission."
"Hey! Kalkin you ready mate, Sir Jack is calling everyone, finally, we are leaving for the portal outskirt of the badlands"
"Ya, Jimmy I am coming, you go ahead, I'll join you in a sec"
"Ok, bro, don't be late"
I waved him to go ahead and I sent my wife a message that it will take me a few days and send! I need to rush to the all-team meeting point, finally, my journey is about to begin!
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Time: 10:45 AM
Kalkin's POV :
Finally, reached the team's meeting point. They are all going to announce the strategy. But I already know as Sir Jack told me beforehand.
Sir Jack, Sir Paul, Sir Gus, and Madam Madeline are all on the stand. So, Sir Jack is Miner's head i.e. team delta, Sir Paul leads team alpha, Sir Gus leads team beta, and madam Madeline team gamma. The dungeon we are exploring today, known as the Pilgrim of Lost Souls, is rather big. Team alpha will lead the charge. The dungeon we are exploring today departs in 3 ways and each of the teams will take one path while we team delta will be divided into 3 separate groups to mine the 3 paths simultaneously and search for any unique stones present there. We will only remain inside the path and won't be allowed outside of the path we take as these paths lead to a common area which first of all is pretty big, secondly ghoul type monsters are common( they are not very powerful but can easily possess people who do not have any God's blessing or an emblem.
Sir Paul's team is the main attacking unit consisting of 12 fighters, all Mana-users ( 2 Champions- Sir Paul chosen by God of Virtue, and Sir Murthy also the champion of God of Virtue, ya it is very evident by the marks that both of them get when they utilize their powers. The remaining 10 are all emblem users of the God of Virtue.)
Then is Sir Gus's mercenary team, who are a rowdy group, who do not care for rules but since Sir Paul is here even Sir Gus(who worships God of Strength, known to be quite a fighter with a fiery nature) is careful and under control due to Sir Paul's presence. His Group doesn't follows a single faith but is rather a rag-tag group that bands together for money and fame.
Madam Madeline worships Goddess of Wisdom, one of the Six major Order of the Empire, and her all-female group excluding her consists of 3 Champions( 2 worshipping Goddess of Wisdom and 1 God of Knowledge), Remaining 8 are the emblem holders and followers of the God of Wisdom and Knowledge equally.
God of Virtue is a minor God in the Empire of Wisdom but his presence and followers have increased globally due to the heroics of Sir Paul. The reason I am calling them by the title 'Sir' and 'Madam' is because of the achievements they have made as frontline fighters/soldiers that they had to be recognized by the 6 major Orders of the Empire itself. It is due to Sir Paul's achievements that his God of Virtue now holds certain power in the Empire. Sir Gus worships God of Strength, no big deal here, there are many gods that have similar titles like God of Strength, God of Muscles, God of power, etc, and the powers are also similar to a certain level but at the end whose domain and strength is more depends on the number of followers each god has. While Gods with similar titles do often hangout or let's say watch events unfold in the world together as they are part of the same inherent aspect but they also have a hierarchy and they can benefit from a God with a similar title but a lower hierarchy if this God's champion gets praise they also get like a few followers, as the far and wide one God's Champion's stories go, certain parts get lost or mixed and these higher Hierarchy gods enjoy those people with misplaced faiths as their own followers. I mean let's say one of Sir Gus's heroic stories is told in a newspaper in a different Empire or Kingdom and there the mistake occurs instead of God of Strength, they wrote God of Power or God of Might, then if someone starts worshipping God of Might, then it's a misplaced faith, however, God of Might enjoys that follower as his own. So these Gods with similar aspects band together but at the same time also try to compete with one another to determine the hierarchy as a higher hierarchy will have more followers and control.
Then it's finally us Miners, who are Commoners. We are led by Sir Jack who worships the God of Mischief. We are made up of 27 people excluding Sir Jack and so we will be divided into groups of 9 each I am in the group led by Sir Jack of course and under the protection of Sir Paul. While Mr. Carlton will be with Sir Gus and Jimmy will be with Madam Madeline's group.
You can see the happiness and excitement on Jimmy's face, he feels like his dream of getting a girlfriend has come true! what he doesn't realize is that those girls are quite pompous and don't care for anything besides themselves and their path of knowledge as they call it!
Hey, Kalkin, bro, I think I have already found my potential girl, look over there that girl with big glasses and a sexy body!"
"All of them have glasses, Jimmy"
"Na, the one with the pink glasses and engrossed in her book, carrying a pendant of sorts"
"Jimmy, she is the Champion of God of Knowledge, do you seriously think you have a chance here? She doesn't even pay attention to other champions do you think she will even look at you?"
"hey Kalkin, don't spoil his mood, I am rooting for you, Jimmy take the lead," said Mr. Carlton, as he winked at me and asked me to remain silent.
I just laughed, I knew it, it must have been Mr.Carlton who must have hyped Jimmy into this. I mean Jimmy, falls for every girl he sees, so it's no big deal that he will try to hit on every girl in his group, then feel rejected and finally we will have a fun story to listen to and laugh when we all return back. That is why, even Naveen is tagging along with Jimmy, so that we will have a good 3rd eye to watch over our fellow Miner, Jimmy.
" These guys, ..." I wanted to say something but just smiled seeing their enthusiasm. I am also feeling pretty pumped up today as it's the biggest exploration of our team till now. We have packed months of food too, as time flows differently in this dungeon, 5 days outside, might be equivalent to 3 months inside this dungeon, that's how special this dungeon is!
"So are you all ready, for today, give your best everyone, now let's go," said Sir Paul, as we all shouted unanimously, "let's go!",
Finally, we started to board the transport that will make take us to the Badlands Outskirts where the dungeon is located.
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Little did Kalkin know, that after this exploration everything around him will never be the same.
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to be continued---------