What to do? Stay or go. The Empire has more towers I could clear but I need to stay hidden until I understand my void abilities more. I wish there was a guide for life and decisions. Damn.
“I’ll agree on one condition, I don’t want to go to the academy and I want access to The Glade,” I say.
I can’t go to the Empire. Not yet anyway. Raven, seems you’re on your own for this one. Have fun. Hopefully, they’ll let me see you before you go.
“Everyone goes to the academy, but I’m sure we can find a way to shorten your stay there. It’ll be at your own risk though. We can also take you to The Glade, but you’ll have to float or sink there alone,” says Edgar as he leans back into his seat in relief after hearing that I won’t go to the Empire.
I get up as my gut twists causing me to grimace. They’re hiding something.
“Something sounds off about all this. I don’t know what, but… I don’t know,” I shake my head to clear it, “I agree for now. When will we leave for Redford?”
“Around 4 hours from now. You’re exempt from helping us today so you can explore the surrounding town or just think about what we talked about,” Esmar replies.
He grabs my duffel bag from under the seat and throws it at me, “You should also check what Devonte gave you as well.”
Is he talking about the Caravan Master? Probably. It’s good that I know his name, now.
I nod and leave the cart to see everyone packing up and getting ready to leave. I walk past all of them and leave the encampment. I continue to walk until I reach the town proper and look for their Artifact store.
Not finding one, I walk into the nearest shop to get directions. The clanging of metal and a heat wave greet me as I walk in. Plain weapons and armour decorate the wall of the store. I wonder what’s the point of this if artifacts exist. I walk up to the counter and call out. Not hearing a response, I window-shop to pass the time till someone comes out.
All the weapons are nicely balanced. Not perfect like artifacts are, but they are good. High in a display board, I find a thin long curved blade with no hilt along with a sign that says ‘Do Not Touch’. A Shirasaya and a beautiful one at that. I pick it up and unsheath the wooden hilt.
“I’d be careful with that,”
I turn around to see a Woman in a jumpsuit holding a hammer with sweat trailing down her face with her tied back into a ponytail.
“How much for it?” I ask immediately.
She taps her finger thoughtfully against her cheek as her eyes glow blue for a second, and eventually replies “Typically I would say that piece isn’t for sale, but for you, 1.5 bronze.”
What was with her eyes? The hell. I sheath the sword and take a look in a duffel bag to find my old money pouch that got lost when I released my water mana. I fish out 2 bronze pieces and place them on a table. She gives me a look but doesn’t say anything.
“Here’s your change. Pleasure doing business with you,” she turns around walking back into her workshop.
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Wait, I need directions to an Artifact shop or just someplace private,” I call out.
“The Association building is two blocks north from here and has rental practice rooms. It’s impossible to miss it because of how obnoxious their sign is,” She yells without turning around.
She’s the weirdo. Not me. Definitely. Like glowing blue eyes. Creepy stuff right there. I roam around until I find the building and the sign above it is obnoxious. She wasn’t lying when she said it’s obnoxious, I think with a chuckle. I think of her blue glowing eyes and immediately my laugh cuts off. What a fricking creepy girl. I walk into the place and head to the receptionist.
“Hello, I don’t suppose you guys have any practice rooms available for rent for the next hour?” I ask.
“We have a basic one available for 5 copper. Follow the stairs and it’ll be room 127,” She replies.
I place the fee and grab the card for the room from her. I jog up the stairs and enter the room scanning
the card. A timer shows up at the door and I enter. The room is a 30-meter by 30-meter room with a single mannequin in the middle of the room. I store my new sword and throw the duffel bag in a corner.
I summon my metal box removing Cosmic Sense and binding to it. I place the metal box to the side not bothering to store it and scan the ring.
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Cosmic Sense - No Rank - No Affinity
Skill:
- Cosmic Ripple: Grants the user the ability to sense the ripples in reality in a 5-meter bubble around them. Grants information of all that enter your domain.
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The binding completes and my awareness expands causing me to breathe sharply. I try to get used to the new feeling. Everything feels like a part of me in this bubble. I sense the floor of the room and the minuscule scratches on it. I slowly approach the dummy in the middle of the room and when I get within range I can’t help but marvel at my new ability. This is freaking amazing. Every groove, indent, and piece of the dummy flashes through my awareness. I notice certain parts are less reinforced than others. I hear a ding in my head and maximize the notification.
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Synergy detected between cosmic sense and Void’s Pact…
Calculating…
Overriding the user and initiating the bonding process…
The time needed to be calculated!!! The process has started. Please Stand By.
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I feel my consciousness start to slip. Why? Why does this stuff keep on happening? My new senses from my ring disappear causing me to stumble. Suddenly, the world flips and I feel my head come in contact with the floor and lose consciousness.
Groaning, I pick myself up. I see blood on the floor but don’t pay it any mind as a screen pops up in front of me.
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Time has been calculated…
Timer: 2 Years; 264 Days; 23 Hours; 38 Min.
Until bonding between Void’s Pact and Comic Sense has been completed, all abilities on both artifacts have been shut off unless they are currently active.
Void’s Concealment is active. Void’s concealment will remain active for the duration of the bonding time. Status altering has been shut off. Fake status is currently active. All future points will be divided according to the previous Distribution.
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Come on please, no. Well, that’s going to suck. I try to sense my real Aether core or pathways but don’t feel anything. I summon my status.
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Status(Fake)
Age: 16
Name: Elijah Ashborne
Level: 39
Affinity: Water
Strength: 10
Agility: 15
Constitutin: 20
Mind: 15
Mana: 19
Primary Artifact: Mana Amplifier
Secondary Artifact/s(⅓): Glacial Torrent
[Stat Points: 0]
Quests: None
Shop;
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This is going to suck. I don’t think I can ‘It is what it is’ out of this. I look at the timer left on the rented room and notice it’s at 34 minutes. Let’s take stock of what I have for now before I move on. I open my duffel bag and take out all the money and E-grade stones laying them out in a corner in front of me. I then open the metal box, removing the 3 silver coins along with the jewelry and the D-grade Essence stones. I place them in another corner.
I also take out the ring of deception and place it on the floor. I look through my pockets and find the artifact Devonte gave to me in return for looking at my status. It’s a glass square with inscriptions on it in white ink.
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Water Construct - E Rank - Water Affinity
Skill:
- Construct: The ability to solidify water into various forms, such as temporary shields, weapons, or barriers.
Do you want to bond to the Water Construct as one of your secondary artifacts?
Yes/No
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I mentally click yes and bond to the artifact. I do the same to the Ring of Deception. Now for the big question, do I rank Water Construct to D-grade or not?