Chapter 301. The Mystery of Jeff.
“Aw, come on System, I wanted to hear why the goblin guy was named Jeff!” I shouted in frustration as I returned to my personal space.
Now, I’d probably never find out. That was the problem with most of my summonings, I almost never got a chance to see what impact I might have had. Maybe that was for the best, because I’m sure there have been times when I thought I was doing the right thing, but unintended consequences happened.
Waving off the refreshments from my butler, I greeted Melvin who met me by the rewards chest. Lately, he’d been more interested in the rewards I received, and I kind of hoped that the system might give him something at some point for all the help he’d provided. Setting the chest to display only new items, I dug into my latest rewards.
Reward Chest.
1. Class ability upgrade scroll.
2. GEE summoning token (5).
3. Summoner Contract (1).
4. Minion ability/spell token (4).
5. Minion equipment token (4).
6. Minion experience token (3).
I had expected the various minion tokens and wasn’t disappointed in the number I’d received from this summoning. Retrieving the tokens, I put them aside and pulled out the class ability upgrade scroll. When I attempted to examine it, I received a system prompt.
Class ability upgrade scroll, Tier 3, Rank 0. This scroll will upgrade one of your abilities at random. Until you reach the required Tier and Rank, this scroll cannot be used.
It was yet another item that was locked until I reached tier three. Agent Lopez had mentioned that summoned beings were disappearing around tier three, and I had a feeling that all these items I was accruing were part of that whole process. All I could do was wait. I doubted that I’d reach tier three during this summoning session, but there was a chance on the next one that it would happen.
There was also the chance of my class evolving again after tier three, perhaps even extensively. Having a chance to immediately upgrade a class ability after it evolved was probably worth the wait. After placing the ability upgrade scroll back into the reward chest, I pulled out the next item, the odd GEE tokens, whatever they were. As soon as I held the tokens, which were carved wooden strips, I received a system prompt explaining their use.
These summoning tokens will take you, or any current holder of a token, on a VIP visit to Gorma Etvart Enterprises latest venture, the World of Amusement. By having a hand in the quality control and testing of several of this park’s attractions, you have unlocked these tokens that can be used once the park is open and fully operational. These tokens are shielded against mana drain and can be safely taken, and utilized, on your mana-starved world.
So, the goblins on the world I’d just visited were somehow attached to the others I’d worked with on the crazy train ride a while back. Just how far did these goblin corporations reach if they were present on multiple worlds? I did have a total of five tokens, so I could invite guests or just give them away.
After experiencing the rides at that amusement park, I had no desire to visit again, but with these tokens able to survive the return home, I could see a huge opportunity. I would bring them back and pass them off to Agent Lopez. Having five of Earth’s experts experience an amusement park on another world where mana and tech were blended could be the break we needed. Sadly, the goblin tech wasn’t foolproof, but maybe our scientists and engineers could come up with something better.
Last on the list of rewards except for the minion tokens was the summoner contract. The contract turned out to be a single, small scroll, sealed in wax. A system description described what they would do.
Summoner contracts. These contracts may be issued by the summoned being to anyone of their choosing. No rewards will be offered by the system for this summoning, so use care in who you distribute it to. When activated, the summoned being may review the summoning in detail, then decline or accept the call without penalty. This item is sealed and may be transported to your mana-starved world. While the item may be transported, it cannot be activated unless inside a mana-rich environment.
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That was odd, the system had granted me two items that could return home with me and allow people in our world to potentially have some interaction with the system. Lopez had mentioned that Earth’s ambient mana had been increasing at a faster rate than we had previously expected, so maybe the higher mana concentrations were allowing the system more leeway in my rewards.
It could also be the system’s way of helping to prepare our people so that when the integration occurred, it wasn’t as catastrophic. Hopefully, the other summoned beings were given similar items, and that the various governments of Earth were coordinating their efforts to maximize our results. Maybe it was a pipe dream, but I believed that this integration had as much a chance of bringing our world together as it did of tearing it apart.
I added my GEE tokens, and the summoner contract to the bring home pile before activating my minion tokens, starting with three experience tokens.
1. Mana slayer drone has received 15 experience. Current experience 25/35.
2. Glem, Glamb, and Glurk, goblin raiders, have received 15 experience. These minions have reached Tier 1, Rank 7. The Strength, Constitution, and Agility of these minions have increased. Current experience 1/30.
3. Khurr, gnoll scout has received 15 experience. Current experience 15/20.
At least the goblins had been bumped up a rank. Khurr and the drone weren’t quite there yet. I had veteran upgrades in the bank, but so far, none of my minions had been able to max out their rank. The lower tier and rank minions had lower experience requirements for them to hit the next rank, but who got the experience each time I activated a token was dependent on the system’s random distribution.
With the experience doled out, I activated the spell/ability tokens.
1. Blieek’s Charge has increased to Rank 1.
2. Glem, Glamb, and Glurk, goblin raiders have increased their Recruitment ability to Rank 2.
3. Digbaz Bazam’s Channel Mana ability has reached Rank 2.
4. Digbaz Bazam’s Channel Mana ability has reached Rank 3.
The spell and ability upgrades were incremental boosts for my minions. Going from Rank 0 to Rank 1 for Blieek’s Charge ability increased the charge distance from ten to twelve feet, and the bonus damage increased from 10% to 11%. I couldn’t expect too much for my lowest rank minion. Even maxed out, his abilities just weren’t going to be that powerful.
The goblin’s Recruit ability allowed them to recruit a second minion into their horde. The only problem was that I didn’t have any other goblinoids other than Blieek. For now, unless I got a goblinoid creature from a figurine, the upgrade wasn’t going to do much for us unless I duplicated one of the goblins.
Digbaz’s Channel Mana ability was the big winner for the upgrades with a double increase. At rank three, Digbaz could now use the ability three times a day and the channeling time went down from nine seconds to five. With abilities and experience out of the way, it was time for the equipment upgrades.
1. Elida Silverbarrow has upgraded her Weapons to Rank 4.
2. Mana slayer drone has upgraded his Shoulder Mounted Grenade Launcher to Rank 1.
3. Blieek has upgraded his Weapons to Rank 4.
4. Digbaz Bazam has upgraded his Weapons to Rank 2.
The upgrades were interesting. Both Elida and Digbaz had staves as their main melee weapon. At rank 4, Elida now carried one that the system described as being made from mana-infused wood, which added a bonus to her melee attacks. Digbaz had the same staff now as well, but his was obtained at Rank 2, which showed how equipment was also adjusted by the tier and rank of the minion.
In addition to the staff, Elida’s sling was now listed as well-crafted, which should improve her ability to hit a target. Digbaz had his ranged weapon, the magic missile wand, increase its capacity from two missiles to three. The drone’s grenade launcher hit rank one from rank zero which bumped up the range to 100-yards.
For Blieek, he graduated from a shorter spear to a long spear of the same quality. It’d give him more reach but would probably hamper him if an enemy got past the longer weapon. For his ranged weapons, the tier four upgrade added a second pair of throwing daggers for my least powerful minion.
“Sorry Melvin, nothing for you this time,” I told my friend who had stretched his gelatinous form tall enough to peek into the reward chest. He sent me feeling of contentedness for now, but excitement for what might happen in the future. Melvin consoled himself by heading into the training room to work out a bit.
Before I joined him, a quick check of the return gauge next to the chest showed that I’d completed about 21% of this summoning series. I had at least a few more to go, and it looked like the system wasn’t going to give me much time to rest and train as another portal opened almost as soon as I finished with loot.
You are Summoned!