Chapter 223. A Final Gift.
I returned to my personal space a bit confused about the last summoning. It felt bad to be used as a tool to falsely accuse someone else of cheating, but I had no idea that was what Barrett had planned. For some reason, he neglected to clue me in on the night’s scheme, despite the fact that I was system bound to obey him. To make matters worse, I was only scored as average for the summoning.
While I couldn’t change the summoning, I could check out what I’d earned as my reward. Setting my rewards chest to show only new items, I was surprised to find more than I expected in there.
Reward Chest.
New Inventory.
1. Silver coins, 248.
2. Gold coins, 5.
3. Summoning figurine, elite.
4. Summoning figurine.
5. Token of Gratitude.
It seemed like far too much for an average summoning. I grabbed the token of gratitude first, having no idea what it was. Pulling a sealed scroll from the chest, a system prompt appeared as I broke the seal.
Token of Gratitude.
The kingdom of Ushadlia has granted you a title in recognition of your service to them over the course of several summonings. You have been knighted in the name of the late queen, Sharnlynn, and are now to be known throughout the realms as Sir Rico Kline. This title confers the following benefits.
1. Minor weapon skill with all common melee and ranged weapons.
2. Minor armor skill with all armor types.
3. You have been granted 2 minion equipment tokens.
Wow, that was a nice surprise. I’m now officially a knight. Too bad it’s a knighthood from a kingdom on a world I may never visit again. Despite that, the bonuses were great. Before I checked out my new figurines, I activated the two equipment tokens. Like before, the selection of whether the token became armor or weapons, and which minion they were assigned to was randomized by the system.
You have activated Minion Equipment Tokens x2. Each token will increase the either the armor or weapon equipment Rank of the selected minion by 1.
1. Blieek, goblin spearman, weapon rank upgrade. Blieek is now at weapon rank 2. His spear has been upgraded from flint to a steel tip. He also now wields a crude steel dagger as a backup weapon.
2. Glem, Glamb, and Glurk, goblin raiders, armor rank upgrade. The goblins are now armor rank 3. Their armor has been upgraded to chainmail with matching boots, gloves, and helms.
I’d have rather upgraded my highest tier minion, but I’d take anything I could get. Having the chance for equipment tokens as summoning rewards was a relief since I’d blanked on finding any in Somhagen. On my next visit, I’d check again, but I didn’t have high hopes. Tier three of the city might offer a better selection at both the summoned market and the local shops, but I had a long way to go before I reached that tier.
Heading to the training center, I had Melvin step aside for a moment so I could check out the minion’s newly upgraded equipment. First off, I summoned Blieek. His spear was night and day compared to his original equipment. His first weapon had been a crooked, sharp stick, now, he finally looked the part of a spearman. The spear was a good six feet long, and the steel point seemed well made and sharp enough to punch through most armor. The dagger belted to his waist was just icing on the cake.
Next up, I summoned my goblin trio. Their new chainmail was a bit different than I had expected. It was darkened steel, and consisted of a chain shirt, but the rest of their gear was still mostly leather with chain reinforcement where it could be easily added. The setup allowed them to move well and should offer a bit better protection than their previous armor.
I was curious how any further armor upgrades would affect the goblins. If the armor kept getting heavier, the archer may struggle a bit, so I was inclined to believe the system would start to differentiate the gear of each goblin at the next armor rank. Either that, or maybe the armor would stay the same and begin to acquire enchantments to improve its usability.
With my minions upgraded, I pulled the two figurines from the chest. I started with the regular figurine and was surprised to find that it wasn’t a summoning reward, it was instead from my class ability, Template Hunter. I’d almost forgotten that I was supposed to get a consumable figurine at each new rank, and since I hadn’t locked in a template yet, the system gave me something familiar.
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Mana Slayer Drone, Tier 2, Rank 1. This figurine has been granted by your Template Hunter ability.
The other consumable was yet another reward from Sharnlyn’s final summoning. It was also an elite, which was a welcome addition to my consumable figurine roster.
Knights Errant (elite), Tier 2, Rank 1. This figurine summons a trio of well equipped, well trained, and deadly knights to assist you. Should one of the knights fall in battle, their squires will appear to continue the fight. Once summoned, the knights will remain at your side for one hour per tier.
Who didn’t want a deadly band of knights at their beck and call? This was another figurine that was going to head home with me. I was building up quite a collection at home, and now had yet another powerful option to add to my consumable pile there. The mana slayer drone I’d probably keep in my loadout to help with summonings.
“Melvin, you can have the training center back,” I told him as I left the room to relax in my rocking chair. My newly upgraded personal space had great furniture, but there was something about that chair. It was the first thing I’d purchased to bring to the personal space, and it seemed to fit me better than any chair I’d ever owned.
The servants offered me refreshments, but I passed, not feeling hungry or thirsty here in my personal space. After rocking for a minute or two, I headed to the armory to adjust my loadout a bit. I added the figurines I hadn’t set aside for home into my inventory. I had at least one contracted summoning to deal with, and I never knew when the next arena match would start.
Last time, the arena gave me a bit of time to prepare, but I didn’t want to risk my final ranking in the event by assuming everything would remain the same. I had just finished up with the loadout when the summoning portal activated again. On my way to the portal, I checked on the progress gauge. My first summoning had only moved the needle about 15% of the way, telling me that I’d have several more summonings to deal with before I could head back home.
Stepping through the portal, I received the details of my newest task.
Your summoning parameters are as follows:
1. You are being summoned by the mage Zebkranazkil.
2. Summoning tier, 2.
3. Summoning rank, 1.
4. Rewards level, moderate.
5. This summons is support related. The chance of combat is considered high. Prepare accordingly.
6. Forced compliance is active.
7. Your loadout has been altered at the summoner’s request.
I stepped out of the portal and into a smoke-filled room, the haze making me believe that the building I found myself in was on fire. Following my summoner link, I realized that I wasn’t going to asphyxiate in a house fire, I was just in a poorly ventilated, but well decorated, small parlor with a dozen older men smoking cigars.
“This one looks a likely lad, what do you fellows think?” my summoner asked the others in the room. The men, including my summoner were all well dressed in suits and ties. Their style of dress reminded me of something you’d find in a corporate boardroom a century ago.
“Who knows? Ask him his class, we should have at least that much information if you expect us to wager more than the bare minimum on him,” another of the men said with a hint of annoyance in his tone.
“Bah, Quillen, you know the rules. We all only get the tier and rank on each of them, nothing else. Since I summoned everyone for this night’s festivities, can’t join in the wagering, but I can tell you that your fellows will be very put out if you start pinching pennies,” my summoner, who was apparently a mage named Zebkranazkil.
“Don’t give Quillen too hard a time Zeb, he’s not content unless he’s complaining, another of the men offered, chuckling at Quillen as he spoke.
“Very well, now, I should advise that tonight’s contest is set at tier two, rank one. Take from that what you will. You, my dear, see that this one gets to his spot before we begin without him,” my summoner, who I was going to call Zeb like his friend had done, motioned to a maid standing near the only door leading out of the room.
I was a bit confused, the summoner hadn’t given me any instructions directly, but it was implied that I was obligated to follow the maid to wherever she was taking me. We left the smoke-filled parlor, and much to my delight, the air was considerably cleaner here.
The walk to our destination seemed to take forever as we journeyed through the enormous mansion. Leaving through a side door, I was led across a small garden and into another wing of the building. Unlike the part the home where the old men were smoking themselves to death, this part of the mansion was run down and gloomy.
A few more minutes passed as I was led deeper into the building, soon losing my way after all the twists and turns we made. Eventually, the maid stopped and opened a creaking door that revealed a small side room. The room was run down, with worn carpets, and torn wallpaper. Housekeeping in this wing of the mansion must have been on strike.
“The master bids you read this, but do not open it until the clock strikes the hour,” the maid said before leaving me in the gloomy room all by myself. I held a small scroll with a wax seal that exuded mana.
Somewhere, deeper in the mansion, a clock tolled, signaling it was time for whatever was happening to begin.