Liam recalled Beta back into his soul palace, and the party of new Adonis Guild members exited the fifth floor. Returning to the fourth floor, they were met with an unexpected snowfall.
Liam pulled out a blanket from his inventory, wrapping himself in it. Looking at the others, he pulled out more and offered them to his party members. Luke skipped with a grin on his face, grabbing one.
“Good thing you have some extra space for some blankets! This definitely helps out.” Throwing on the blanket, he took a whiff of it. “You didn’t wash these, did you?”
Liam’s cheeks glowed pink. “I didn’t have the time. If it smells, you can give it back.”
Luke smirked back, “I didn’t say it smelled bad. It smells like you, which isn’t bad. As long as it doesn’t smell like Darrel.”
“Hey!” Darrel complained.
Liam sniffed himself but didn’t find anything strange coming off him. He continued to offer the other blankets to Hansel and Darrel. Hansel took one and draped it over his shoulders.
Darrel hesitated. Looking at the old and patched-up sheet of furry fabric, his eyebrows automatically arched into a frown. He forcefully relaxed them not to offend Liam’s thoughtful gesture. Faking a smile with a flat grin, he wanted to refuse, but the expectant look on Liam’s face made him give in.
He took the last blanket and covered himself. “Thanks, Liam.”
“Wow!” Luke exclaimed at Darrel’s struggle to accept the blanket. “No way? I’m shocked you took it. And you thanked Liam too? You’re shedding that old rotten personality and really turning over a new leaf, huh?”
Darrel pouted at Luke, “I always had a good personality!”
Luke’s comments wounded his old pride. He turned away from the group and looked at the blanket. His face morphed back and forth between disgust and gratefulness. He was torn between his old harassing ways and his new friendly relations with his new teammates. He felt embarrassed for taking the dilapidated blanket of a peasant, yet he was also ashamed for thinking so as it came from his new friend.
Luke snickered and continued stabbing at Darrel’s wavering ego. “Look at you! Who knew you’d look good in patched clothing? You fit well with our slum street-style clothes.”
Darrel turned around and rolled his eyes, walking off first. Liam smiled, looking at Luke following after Darrel, pestering him with jokes. Hansel pulled Liam, and they both trailed after the two.
Hansel hesitantly looked at Liam, wanting to ask many questions. But he sighed, seeing Liam’s innocent face. Liam turned and glanced at Hansel with a questioning look. He was about to ask Hansel about what made him sigh, but Ordinance cut him off.
“Master! Alert! Mountain Boar, straight ahead!”
Ding!
System Function: Analyze
Name: none
Stage: 1
Species: Mammal - Boar
Subspecies: Sepharath (modified)
Stats:
Strength: 8
Agility: 8
Dexterity: 4
Intelligence: 5
Willpower: 6
Aligned Elements:
Earth: 7
Wood: 6
Skills:
Entangle stage 1
Headbutt stage 1
Ramming Blow stage 1
Plant Growth (locked)
Evolution Paths / Rating
Stone Boar / 4 stars
Keep of the Forest / 6 stars
Liam was momentarily stunned but quickly shouted and warned the others.
“Incoming boar ahead!”
Hansel stepped ahead of the group and turned around, reminding the team. “The goal is to get you all familiar with your second summons. I’ll help out this time if needed. Make sure not to get your summons or yourselves injured.”
Hansel didn’t question Liam earlier, but now he could probe him out. The chance allowed Hansel to see what Liam’s summon could do. “Liam, you can start us off this time. Call out your new summon.”
Liam stopped dead in his tracks. “…Um. Vice Guild Master, my second summon can’t fight yet. It needs to meet a couple more criteria first before it’s combat-ready.”
Hansel was surprised, but he nodded as action was currently more important than questions. “Darrel, show us what yours can do.”
“Yes, sir!” Darrel replied. “Come forth, Hartford of the Reincarnating Sun!”
A large bird, the size of a man, flew through the cracks of space and into the sky. The light radiating off the bird’s gradient of ruby red feathers flickered like fire.
Ding!
System Function: Analyze
Name: Hartford
Stage: 1
Species: Bird - Firebird
Subspecies: Bird - Pheonix
Stats:
Strength: 7
Agility: 9
Dexterity: 4
Intelligence: 6
Willpower: 9
Aligned Elements:
Fire: 9
Wind: 7
Light: 5
Time: 3
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Skills:
Aerial Slash stage 1
Fire Bomb stage 1
Light Barrier (hidden)
Meteor (locked stage 3)
?
Evolution Paths / Ratings
Aeriform Firebird - 5 stars
Reincarnated Pheonix - 7 stars
?
Darrel commanded Hartford to attack. “Aerial slash! Let’s go!”
It screeched and furiously flapped its wings, sending a torrent of origin energy-infused wind blades flying at the boar. It quickly reacted and tried to dash out of the way, but its back leg was slashed, leaving deep lacerations. Blood splattered, and the boar stumbled, squealing in pain. Darrel took advantage of the situation and used his unique soul skill, increasing his strength and agility stats.
“Blessings of Abyssal Fire!”
The thin outline of Darrel’s figure brightly burned a fiery purple. He dashed, running faster than usual, around to the boar's side. With the tip of the sword pointed down, he raised the hilt high above his head with both hands and drove his sword down at the boar’s neck. But it was not going to be killed so easily.
It resisted and attempted to impale Darrel with a swipe of its tusks, but instead, it deflected the sword from slashing at its vital point. The sword verged off course. However, it slammed down and cut open part of the side of the boar’s body. It squealed in pain and attempted to get up to run away.
Taking advantage of the boar's momentarily distracted state, Darrel lifted the sword and jabbed it straight through the neck. His increased strength from his soul skill allowed him to pierce through the boar's thick skin easily.
Using the weight of his body, he rammed the sword further and through to the other side. With the hilt pressed up against the skin of the neck, he quickly jumped back, pulling out the sword along with him. The boar let out an agonizing screech, before falling onto the pool, oozing out blood. It died, and the rest of the team came over.
Curious about Darrel’s unique soul skill, Luke asked Ordinance to display his status window.
Ding!
System Function: Analyze
Name: Darrel Summers
Species: Mammal - Human
Subspecies: None
Unique Talents/Constitutions:
None
Stats:
Strength: 3
Agility: 5
Dexerity: 3
Intelligence: 8
Willpower: 7
Aligned Elements:
Fire: 15 Dark: 18 Time: 2
Unique Soul Skill
1. Blessings of Abyssal Fire (stage 1): Increases strength and agility by 1.2x for 3 minutes
2. Blessings of the Undying Flame (stage 1): Increases Dexerity and Willpower by 1.2x for 3 minutes
Skills: (Entry, Basic, Apprentice, Advance, Master)
Basic Swordsmanship - 97.49%
Basic recovery - 79.32%
Apprentice Fighting Tactics - 33.46%
Apprentice Breathing technique - Breath of the summer sun - 68.90%
Liam read Darrel’s stat window, intrigued by the buffs of Darrel’s unique soul skill. Hansel curiously gazed at Liam, who stared intently at nothing on the ground. He knew Liam looked at something and itched to pry open his secret. He restrained himself by focusing on the others.
Luke whistled at Darrel’s show. “You suddenly got a teeny bit buff, skinny man. Was that your soul skill? Blessings of Abyssal Fire?” Luke then smirked. “You need to work out some more. The blessing’s a bit abysmal. Get it? Abyssal. Abysmal. Hahaha!”
Only Luke laughed at his joke. The others shrugged and left him alone.
Darrel dug out the origin core from the boar and kept it in his bag. He continued to clean the carcass of the boar according to Hansel's teachings. Liam paced round and round the boar as Darrel cleaned out the unwanted organs. Luke’s earlier jokes irked Darrel, and now Liam’s odd circling ticked him off.
He exploded, shouting at Liam, “what’s wrong?! You got something to say about my skills too, Liam! Is my butchering not to your liking?! Did I cut the incision too deeply?! I know I’m still new at this, unlike you two ‘gurus’. But I’m trying ok?!”
Liam froze paralyzed by Darrel’s outburst. Bewildered, he quickly shook his head, refuting the allegation. “Oh no! No. Don’t misunderstand, Darrel. I wasn’t judging anything of the sort. I, uh… Could you give me the unwanted insides of the boar?”
Darrel was confused by Liam’s request and a bit embarrassed by his assumption. “Uh, yeah. Of course, you can have it. We’d just throw it away in a pit anyway. But you aren’t going to eat that are you? I’m not judging, but I don’t think you should be eating the dirty insides. Don’t we have enough meat? Look at the size of this thing.”
Liam shook his head. “Oh. No, nothing of the sort. I know some people like it once cleaned, but I never could get used to it. I wanted to try something else with the innards.”
Darrel still gave Liam an odd look, but he complied with Liam’s request. Liam jumped excitedly freaking out Darrel. Liam called out Beta, and the metal sphere dropped to the ground with a thud. Upon summoning, it came at Liam with the fury of an angry woman.
“You! Don’t you dare have that thing do that again! I hate that! It’s my body, not his!”
Liam awkwardly laughed, playing off Beta’s statement. “Ha. Ha. Seems like Beta001 is back.” He looked at Beta and reprimanded him. “If you listen then I wouldn’t have to do that! So you better listen to me, or you’ll be on time out again!”
“I’m eons older than you, bratty master!” However, Beta huffed and conceded. “Fine. Just don't order me to do something unreasonable.”
“Great!” Liam grinned at his obedient new summon. For now, that is. “Here, Beta. You see this pile of organs. Can you consume it using your skill, Devour?”
Beta’s ball-like body turned, seemingly looking at the pile of discarded organs.
“...”
It was the silence before the storm.
“WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!? YOU WANT ME TO EAT SHIT?! ARE YOU GOING TO EAT SHIT TOO?! LOOK AT THAT! IT'S DISGUSTING! HOW COULD YOU TREAT ME THIS WAY!?” Beta began to fake a cry, and Luke came over to look at the commotion.
“Liam! I thought you were better than this?! I feed Sardonia the best stuff! She eats what I eat!”
Liam grumbled back, “you don’t even need to feed her as long as you supply soul energy. Besides! I didn’t know Beta had food preferences… I thought Lady Gwendell said the Corruption agents eat anything."
Beta screamed at Liam, offended by his misunderstanding. “DON’T LOOP ME AS ONE OF THOSE GLUTTONOUS BASTARDS! THOSE GUYS EAT EVERYTHING! INCLUDING SHIT! I DON’T. I DON’T EAT SHIT! YOU BAD MASTER!”
Seeing Liam not knowing what to do, Darrel joined in and asked, “You can take the boar carcass. We have plenty more we can hunt.”
“Thank you, Darrel!”
Ordinance interrupted and conveyed his thoughts to Liam and Beta. “You’re being dramatic, Beta. Stop it, or be forced away into isolation again.' Ordinance then addressed Liam. "Master, Beta is an Anti-Corruption agent. They are different from the Corruption Agents. Though the two look similar, they are mortal enemies.”
Liam sighed internally, noting his picky new summon’s tastes. He commanded Beta to use his Devour skill on the carcass.
“You didn’t even cook it!”
“...” Liam was speechless. But he quipped back. “Can you even taste anything?”
“Not now, but once I eat something I will be able to! Make sure to cook me something yummy. Oh. And make sure my meat is well done. I hate chewy food.” Finished placing his future order, Beta furled to the boar carcass. The other group members pitied Liam for contracting a picky new summon.
Beta rolled slowly along and tapped against the furry leg of the boar’s remains. It stopped with the parallel grooves etched around its spherical body laying horizontally. Mechanical whirring and drilling sounded from within Beta’s external plating. The drilling sound loosened the top cap, and it pushed off, rolling away. Beta was half-naked.
A mesh of wires and cables coiled tightly into an icosahedral shape. Spikes coming off the geometric structure imitated a virus. The spikes moved and swayed rhythmically, pulsing with yellow light, imitating a heartbeat. Suddenly, Beta rattled against the remaining half of its external plating.
The ball of spikey coils sprung out and landed on the carcass. The spikes morphed into sharp blades, latching onto the body of the dead boar. Beta drilled itself quickly into the inner cavities of the remains. Once inside, the countless number of spikes speared through the carcass, holding it in place. A black pit opened from within the geometric structure like a mouth, ripping the raw flesh off the insides and swallowing it. Beta consumed the body from the inside out.
Ding!
Ordinance notified Liam the Beta’s Devour skill was activated.
The black pit grew and burst out the rest of the boar’s body, enveloping and swallowing it whole. A black blob bobbed in from of Liam. He watched as the faces of the geometric structure slowly re-covered the black pit. Too enveloped concentrating on Beta devouring the remains of the boar, he suddenly jumped at the appearance of an odd red notification window.
Peripheral Component Version Update
Anti-Corruption Agent Beta002 hardware in the process of upgrading…
Activating Extraction skill…
Extracting components…
Reviewing previously extracted components for merging…
Results: None
Displaying upgradable options:
Boar
Sepharath
Merge Options:
None
Upgrade hardware options available:
Boar
Sepharath
Select Upgrade to continue.