Chapter 184. Crafty Friends.
Returning to my personal space, I headed right over to the reward chest to see how profitable the last summoning session had been. I was still a little freaked out of the creepy tentacle hand thing inside the carriage, and I wasn’t confident that I had been working for the good guys.
The only consolation was that the people I had fought and killed under the inn were torturing a young woman. There was no way that people resorting to that kind of torture were innocent victims, especially when they seemed to be enjoying themselves. At worst, I figured I was helping the bad guy against other bad guys. Putting aside thoughts of my last summoning, I opened the reward chest, sorting it to show only new rewards. It was time to see what I’d gained from my morally ambiguous work.
Reward Chest.
New Inventory.
1. Copper coins, 1122.
2. Silver coins, 201.
3. Gold coins, 5.
4. Armor Marker.
5. Figurine (2).
The coin rewards were in line with what I expected, but the armor marker was new. It was also good to see some new consumable figurines. I’d burned through my existing stock and would have to work with just the ones I received as rewards until I could visit Somhagen again. Frist off, I pulled up the armor marker, which was a parchment scroll, and the system gave me an idea of what the item was.
Armor Marker. This marker entitles you to an armor piece of your choice from the Summoned Market on the second tier of Somhagen. Just hand this marker over to any clerk and they can advise you on the current offerings that are available to you. If you wish, this marker can also be redeemed for additional Summoning Points. The number of summoning points this marker is worth varies, and you will be offered its current value at the time you present it.
So, I’d get a free piece of armor when I hit tier two, and if there wasn’t anything I wanted, I could exchange it for summoning points. With the class scroll I received from my last summoning; it appeared that the system was trying to stock me up for the next tier. While I hated having to wait to find out the details, it was nice to have a few things in the bag for when I visited Somhagen again.
Next up were the two new figurines. The first one appeared to be another figurine with several creatures on a single base. More system information populated as I held it.
Tier 1, Rank 5. Angry Mob. Gear cost 4.
This figurine summons an angry mob of armed belligerents that seek out the nearest foe. Unlike many of your summoned minions, the mob will not listen to your orders and will simply swarm over the closest threat. Each member of the mob is unarmored, but some do wield simple weapons and occasionally a shield. The number of minions that this figurine will summon is random.
The mob was a bit odd. I’d have to be careful where I summoned them since I couldn’t give them any commands. There was also a random element to the summoning, and I had no idea how many of them would appear when I used the figurine. The base held four figures, so maybe that was the average number I’d see when I used it. My theory seemed logical, and something the system might do, but I had no way to know for sure.
My second figurine was a jackpot elite minion. It appeared to be a simple human warrior armed with a mace in one hand, and a round shield in the other. It looked like it was wearing a metal or hard leather chest piece, and I could see armored gloves and boots on its feet. The system description told me that this figurine was going to surprise whoever I used it against.
If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
Tier 1, Rank 5 (elite). The Undying Minion. Gear cost 4.
This figurine summons a standard human warrior of the indicated tier and rank. The warrior will follow your commands and has modest skill with its weapons and armor. When the warrior is destroyed, his undying nature comes to bear.
Within five seconds of being destroyed, the warrior will transform into a series of undead creatures, each more powerful than the last. Each iteration of the warrior will benefit from any class bonuses that affect summoned creatures. A total of 5 iterations of the warrior will appear, they are depicted as follows.
1. Human Warrior. Tier 1, Rank 5.
2. Zombie Revenant. Tier 1, Rank 6.
3. Advanced Ghoul. Tier 1, Rank 7.
4. Skeletal Berserker. Tier 1, Rank 8.
5. Wraith. Tier 2, Rank 0.
I couldn’t wait to put the new Undying Minion into action. It was definitely going to come home with me. I didn’t think that the mana drain from Earth would affect it much, and the creature would be a big shock to anyone who thought they had dealt with it, only to have it rise again and again. Not to mention, each new iteration was more powerful than the last.
While I was at the reward chest, I checked on the return gauge. So far, I’d completed two summonings and it was about 40% complete. At this pace, I’d need three more summonings with the same results before I was sent home. I was also really close to my next rank and the summoning points were starting to build up to a nice balance again.
Rico Kline, Foe Summoner.
Tier 1, Rank 7.
Experience/experience needed for next rank: 26/30.
Summoning points: 99.
With all my housekeeping taken care of, I checked in on Melvin in the training center. To my surprise, he wasn’t inside and the mana level in there was nearly full. Tracking down my buddy, I found him sliding around inside the armory. He was crawling over the armor displays, and seemed totally preoccupied with whatever it was he was doing.
“Melvin, are you okay buddy?” I asked. He sent me feelings of concentration and frustration.
“Anything I can do to help?” I asked, a bit concerned for him. He replied no, and it was something he needed to figure out on his own. I also received a brief glimpse of something that he had left for me on the figurine shelf inside the training center.
Heading back into the armor, I scanned the racks of figurines. One caught my attention that seemed out of place. The system typically ordered them from the weakest tier 0, rank 0 figurines at the top, and the bottom shelf was for the more powerful minions I could practice against. There, on the bottom right of the shelf, right next to the powerful dragon, was a new figurine. When I picked it up, the system granted me more information.
Your companion, the entity known as Melvin, has crafted a consumable figurine for your use. This figurine has no gear cost, though it still requires mana to activate.
Tier 1, Rank 5. Gelatinous Launcher.
This figurine will summon a small gelatinous cube that will appear over the shoulders of your armor. Every 10 seconds, the cube will launch a small blob of acidic slime at the nearest enemy in sight. The range of his attack is 100 feet, though accuracy diminishes with distance. This figurine is able to hold enough slime to launch 5 attacks. Once the current supply of slime is expended, the launcher will require 1 minute before another shot can be generated.
“Nice one Melvin, thanks!” I shouted back to my friend. He sent me a feeling of pride at his work, and happiness that I’d praised his efforts. With no gear cost, I went ahead and equipped it. The two figurines that I’d received from my most recent summoning rewards were going to go home with me, but I didn’t mind adding Melvin’s creation to my loadout. Maybe it would help me get a higher ranking and better rewards on my next summoning.
Just thinking about the summoning seemed to have activated it.
You are Summoned!
The familiar blue portal opened next to my reward chest and with nothing else that needed my immediate attention, I stepped inside to see what my next adventure would be. After a moment, the system gave me a rundown of what I could expect this time.
Your summoning parameters are as follows:
1. You are being summoned using an artifact.
2. Summoning tier, 1.
3. Summoning rank, 7.
4. Rewards level, moderate.
5. This summons is for combat related purposes. Prepare accordingly.
6. Forced compliance is active.
7. Your armory loadout has been equipped.