After the dragon summoning fiasco, I took a week-long vacation, working on so light vanity projects. I sent Raleigh south, to Sadian and beyond, purchasing rare monster Cores.
I had no idea when the dragons would co, or even if. I had to decide what I should do. On one extre I could actively hunt them. Go into the mountains, the deep forests, the dark caves, and hunt dragons. I couldn't for the sa reasons that kept from claiming Windere's throne.
With the biggest mirror I had in storage in front of , I looked at myself. I liked being Haru. Despite Nozmizla's tragic fate and the sadness of never even holding in her arms, everything else in Haru's life was good. I was in Windere, a place dear to . I had a loving father, a rarity in my many lives. I had friends, a reason to be, a reason to live as just Haru, with no titles.
More importantly, I had the power to resist being pushed around by fate and other entities. The life Rose wanted but the Demon cultists and the Butt God didn't let her. I rembered Lorna. The fondness of the few monts we had together surpassed the sadness. Even the ti we spent, with , cursed to beco stone caring for her during her twilight years, was precious now.
On the other, I could be careless and irresponsible and wait until they were upon us to act. That wouldn't work. I knew it would take months or even years to gather enough dragons to attack. The Broodmother knew what I could do and she cared about her children. She wouldn't make the mistake of sending only one or two dragons. I would laugh in her face if she did.
Prepare for the invasion, but don't let it consu my life. That was Haru's, my choice. Let's go one step further. I would only worry and work on the dragon invasion readiness only during the seven hours of extra ti I have every night because I didn't need to sleep that much.
I woke up earlier than usual one day with a long notification from the System.
WARNING: You have the sa Species perks from two different versions. The older one will be replaced by a random Perk of the sa rarity in the sa category.
The Perk, Elongate Tail (uncommon) was replaced by the perk, Combat Tail (Uncommon): Your tail attacks deal 2d10 extra base damage and gain 40% accuracy.
The Perks, Combat Tail (Uncommon), Prehensile Tail (uncommon), Dexterous Tail (uncommon), Multi-Tail Control (very rare), Multi-Tail Dexterity (very rare), Elongate Tail (rare), Tail Evasion (rare), Tail Deflection (very rare), Sacrificial Tail (very rare), Tail Bodyguard (rare), Improved Snake Fortress (rare), Regrow Tail (very rare), Hidden Tails (rare), and Elental Tai (very rare) were fused into:
Shrine Guardian's Tail (combined): Display, hide, or show a mundane version of your tails. Each can attack, manipulate objects, or defend independently, dealing 6d10 blunt and 6d10 affinity-based damage and 7550% accuracy, dodge, parry, and damage reduction. Reach up to 4 tis your body length. They never get in the way of your or your allies' movents. Each can protect one creature (including you) in range from attacks or spells. Severed tails require healing equal to 3% of your maximum HP to regrow. If sothing would cause your death, one random tail is sacrificed to negate that effect entirely and bring you to 25% of your maximum HP, if your current HP is lower. Tails sacrificed this way take 1 year to regrow.
Damn. That was what I called a big-ass update. The iconic Snake Fortress was gone but the effect beca permanent and automatic with no movent penalty. The life-saving effect also got a huge upgrade. Not only was the healing gained from sacrificing one tail greater, it now protected against all kinds of death effects, not only death by damage.
With my self-imposed vacation over, I had tons of errands to do everywhere but that could wait until after class. I've been absent for a few days to deal with hostile nations but I was eager for so normalcy in my life. The classroom seed normal at a first glance. Marlowe was on his way but would take a good ten minutes to arrive. People often stopped him in the corridors to ask things. The reason why the cantankerous [Archmage] didn't use the teacher corridors baffled and eluded .
Isengar was sulking, Euric looked at hopeful for so of my ti, Mirina wanted to catch up with the latest news, the girls likewise wanted to spread the latest gossip. But four sharp gazes bore holes in my skin. The reason was obvious. All the girls suddenly jumped in level and beca elite third-rankers while they were nothing but forgotten.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
Should I help them as well? Maybe Euric too. But the decision was out of my hands as they took a leap of faith.
"Matriarch!" Steven Ashcleaner, the black-and-white striped badger-kin called with hopeful eyes. Soone ratted out. Let use the {Scan Guilt} Perk I don't have. I found the culprit sitting in the geminated desk next to mine. Marisol avoided my gaze and stared at so stain on the far wall.
The other two silk-folk boys, Darriston and Remus, stood up. Only Nicollo, a half-dwarf-Eleon, stood in his spot, quietly staring at with awe.
"What can I do for you guys?"
"Help us grow like you've been helping the girls!" Remus quickly grasped my hand and stared at with puppy eyes. It was odd to see his patchwork and contrasting face but it had so uncanny beauty like modern art.
I sent it to all the girls.
A quick psychic interrogation revealed that the girls (mostly Marisol, but Camilla and lania also had loose tongues) just told them that I helped them get to level 120. I wouldn't help these leeches get a five-path fusion. It was too much of a bother. I also found it funny that they only approached now, when the benefits of doing so are clear.
Everyone in this classroom was an adult by society's standards. However, they were all still kids. The phenonon known as adolescence was very short-lived in Yznarian but still existed. Girls still matured ntally faster than boys but like so indigenous societies back on Earth, the rite of passage known as System Activation separated children from adults in a flash.
But girls still matured one to one-and-a-half years faster than boys. For our little classroom, it ant the males were still too hormone-addled, too immature to be interesting. No longer boys, not yet n. ntal and Spiritual Attributes accelerated this process by a lot. Willpower gave self-control, Mind, reasoning, Charisma allowed a better read of social cues, Ego stabilized the personality, Soul inured against the hard blows of life, and finally, Luck helped avoid these very blows. Since all of our classmates were spellcasters, they benefited from at least the forr two.
"Okay. I'll help you five reach the third-tier," I glanced at Euric and he almost choked.
Isengar grunted. Sohow getting excluded from the "twink train" was the straw that broke the cal's back. He slamd his desk and ca at , fuming.
"You!" He was overbearing as ever. "You cursed ! Damned bitch!"
I used {Eldritch Aura} with a ter radius once he was spitting on top of and nobody else was in range. Let tell you, Isengar was more than seventy centiters taller than . I'd be hit in the face with his crotch if he got any closer. As expected, the guy had nothing in his Spiritual Attributes and beca a vegetable inside my aura. Before he could fall down, I turned it off.
"We can do this all day, big boy. I suggest you be polite with your request. One, this [Queen], deposed or not, outranks you, little [Prince]. Two, I'm stronger than you in any capacity. Three, you'll be polite or you'll be without a tongue. Four, you owe six hundred kingtal coins. I have half the mind of getting you by the scruff of your neck and dragging you all the way to your daddy's throne room to collect. I hope I'm very clear as to where you stand."
Contested Charisma test won.
"You turned into a werebear!" He whined.
I almost choked and sputtered, "Are you an idiot? Don't you think I pierced your {Status Forgery} on day one? You were born one-eight werebear. C'mon, tell I'm lying to my face."
He didn't speak a word. I felt the need to give him a tongue-lashing, to vent my budding anger and keep from doing sothing more drastic.
"It is rare to keep were-kin blood this diluted but not unheard of. You should have beco one-quarter bear-kin but that might be because you are also a one-eight elf. Since your father is just human, it must be from your mother's side," I continued. At the sight of his pitiful face, I asked, "Do you want to continue?"
"No," he answered, completely deflated.
And here we had a textbook display of the issues with hybrid Classes. Their Attribute point allotnt wasn't any bigger than the others, but they had to put points everywhere. Isengar could use so more ntal and Spiritual Attribute points, for sure.
I heard a squeal quickly suppressed by a slap and a grunt. Soone was fangirling too much and clamped her mouth with both hands, although her tail still swished as if it was trying to dust the classroom.
But this arrogant fool was way over his head. I wouldn't let him leave here without a good warning. "You should already know who I am, Isengar. I'll let it slide this ti. Cross again, irritate the slightest, and it is not only your ass on the line. You represent Leondirac. When you ca here, you crossed the ruins of Saegalla. Make sure your kingdom doesn't end the sa way."
He turned around and mumbled under his breath, "So brave when an army is marching past your west gates as we speak."
That level of stupidity was beyond anything I could believe. He was Kin too, how can he think I wouldn't hear that? Was it so big brain move? Paranoia compounded on irritation and I kicked him in the back, sending him crashing into the far wall. I didn't use any damage boost Perks. Summoning {Force Tongs}, I lifted him and turned him around.
"You fucking idiot!" I crossed the classroom and took one corpse from my storage. "Do you recognize this man?"
He did. Isengar quickly understood what it ant. "It's To-Torgo!"
Back to the item box with him. I took deep breaths. Sothing inside scread to just rip off his head. I took a step back and felt soone hug from behind.
"He's not worth it," Mirina said.
The words I wanted to say were, "Get the fuck off of my country." Instead, I remained still, my whole body tense. I didn't own Windere. That was a decision I made and I still stood by it. Yet I couldn't take my eyes off of Isengar.
"You have a month to pay what you owe ," I declared. Yes, I already stole the money from his father's treasury, but a petty side of wanted to see him squirm now that he knew that Mr. Dragon Hoard was no longer among the living.
Reviews
All reviews (0)