Whiteclaw of the Fox Clan
"Did you pick up anything?" I asked Elder Keeneyes.
"A couple of things. I suspect he has some kind of status alternation skill on top of a concealment skill."
My eyes went slightly wide. "Oh, what makes you think so?"
"The number of skills he has compared to his level. I am getting level 20 from him. But he has multiple Tier 4 skills. And hundreds of other skills."
"Any idea of what they are?"
"No. But with spatial storage and going into the dungeon on his own, I would expect he is at least level 80. There is also the matter of his pet. Oh, you didn't notice? You are slipping Whiteclaw."
"Age. Exhaustion. The cold. Take your pick. What pet?"
"Some kind of serpent hidden under his clothes. I couldn't get a good read on it, but it is dangerous. A hidden weapon."
"That is concerning. I guess the transaction will go through, and those who feel lucky can take their chances against him outside the settlement."
I felt I could win in a fight, but winning without injury and winning with an injury were different things. My missing eye ached slightly in the cold. A potent reminder of how I had overstepped long ago.
"That's a lot of fists you are giving away. But you are taking quite a bit," she replied, and I nodded, paying a large fee to Elder Keeneyes for her services.
"It is. But you know my reasoning. Better to spread things out among us instead of the elite."
"They haven't found them?"
"No. Even with a human here, that is the only thing we agree on."
"Hmmm. You think he will be back?"
"I dangled my prized skill and legacy. It will be too tempting to resist."
"A dangerous ploy. He could come back stronger. Strong enough to pose a threat."
"Then I will trade fairly. Half a million orange cores for a tier 2 skill is a price I will take any day. Enough to retire for the rest of my life."
"I am surprised you didn't offer to teach him the true legacy skills of your Clan. At least then, they would be preserved."
"A human will never get White Fox Ethereal Form even if they could use it. It is a sad thing to be the last of one's clan."
My children had died long ago.
"Hmmm. You will endure. We all endure. So, who is the foolish beastkin going to confront him?"
"Firefox most likely. He has a rash streak. Don't let it spread it is a human, but beyond that, share everything else."
"They will know that I held something back when they return."
I set another pouch on the table between us. "For your orphans."
"I am old and forgetful with so many young ones to look after," Elder Keeneyes said.
I got up and left, pondering over what she had told me.
A shame I wouldn't be able to kill the human and take everything he had. But the greedy beastkin was the beastkin that froze to death from staying out too long in the cold. Better to take the massive amount I was taking off him and avoid further trouble.
Firefox could take the risk of fighting him if he wanted to grab more benefits. I would not get involved in that if I could help it. I had given the human more than enough warnings; he would be on guard when he left. The chance of a monster attack at the End of the World was quite low.
The best outcome would be if something killed the human and heavily wounded Firefox. Making it back, and then dying, so I would take everything he owned. I would have to make some plans if he didn't return. Nothing hasty, but it would do to hedge all my bets.
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I didn't make this long by letting opportunities slip through my claws.
Harren Axefall
"Stormy," I spat as I greeted the team killing elf. She looked rough, but she was alive and still quite dangerous.
"Harren. Surprising to run into you here," she replied.
We were both on the 1st layer. I found her hiding near the exit passage to the surface.
"No core?"
"I blew it up along with the war mech. An idea before its time. I can't risk letting it fall into enemy hands. Split the resources of anyone we kill?"
"How could I trust you with something that simple?"
"I notice Justin isn't with you."
"He wanted to try other things than the most obvious. Killing beastkin descending until we get enough supplies and keep leveling. Hoping we don't get wiped out."
"A soft heart. But he is resourceful. An even split and you get first pick," Stormy said.
"Just stay where I can see you, and we won't have a problem."
"Of course. It's been quiet for half a day."
"That long, surprising. The beastkin must not have as many people or it might be an unpopular entrance."
"You are welcome to go up and look."
"After you," I replied, not willing to take that chance.
"Well, come behind the Stone Wall I set up. Standing out there will make it obvious and give them a chance to run away."
I walked behind her stone wall, with my axe at the ready.
"Relax. If I had wanted to fight, I would have already done so."
"I don't trust you, no matter what you might say,"
She really was completely untrustworthy.
"You know as well as I do that Sam and April would have been deadweight."
"Perhaps, but you don't kill your team members."
"Well, you can lecture me about that if we ever make it back."
We stood there together for a minute in silence before I spoke up again.
"You could have left them alone."
"No. We could not allow the war mech to fall into enemy hands."
"Hands that aren't yours. Did you extract all its secrets first?"
"I have key samples of the frame's alloys and runic structure. In time we will produce new warmechs once I return."
"Do you have a plan there?"
"Are you interested?"
"Yes. I would prefer not to die. Can you do it?"
"Not easily. I must craft a skill using Mana Manipulation. A complicated skill. It will take time to prepare."
"How long?"
"Years at best, decades at worst."
"That is too long."
"I know. We can do this once or twice, but eventually, they will catch and kill us."
"What would you need from me?"
"The deeper we go, the easier it will be to craft such a skill because of Mana density. Getting to a passage from the 10th to the 11th layer would be useful. We don't need to fight on the 11th layer, but crafting a skill there would be ideal and make things go faster."
"How much faster?"
"It is impossible to say. Skill crafting is more of an art than a science. Also, my experience in such things is very limited. I know only some theories and have only the most basic skills. Tracking skills won't be easy. Then the skill will need to be leveled. Finally, we will have to make our way through the dungeon long enough to get out of this part."
"A long shot."
"Impossible by most accounts."
"You had not brought this up before."
"Because the most pressing issue is food, and we are likely to die long before I succeed. It will be incredibly boring for you to wait for me. I need to work with as little disturbance on the 11th layer as possible, and we aren't likely to meet again if we split up."
Stormy was a horrible Elf. I couldn't and wouldn't trust her, but she needed me to get that deep in the dungeon and then needed me as we moved through the dungeon to get out of this section. The trick was realizing when we had left this section and leaving her behind to fend for herself before she killed me.
She wouldn't want me telling other adventurers and April's family what happened. The Wither Corporation, which had invested in the war mech, would be furious. They would make things as difficult as possible for the Elves, Stormy's family in particular. Sam had no background to worry about, but a Dwarven corporation could make a lot of trouble for her.
I would wait and observe. "I want to learn the skill after you figure it out."
She looked at me. "Or else?"
"Or else we will have a problem. I don't trust you. And if I am going to get you to the 11th layer, after that you teach me. Then we can split up if we need to. No dependence on each other."
Her eyes glanced at my hands and the axe I was carrying.
"Very well. Surviving takes priority. Just to confirm, Justin just left?"
"Yes. He mentioned using a ritual to create another exit. When he did that, I knew he had lost all sense. While he might be capable, this is far too dangerous."
"A ritual. Most people don't have such knowledge, and he lacks skills in that area. He might know of them and think he can use his runic knowledge. Foolish and risky. He is probably dead or wishing he were dead. Smart to leave him," Stormy said.
Just walking away had been difficult, but I didn't want to get caught up in that madness. I had heard too many stories of rituals going wrong. That was what the desperate and the foolish did. One mistake and a rebound would happen, and the effects of a ritual rebounding were never good. It was just a matter of how bad the outcome was.
My grandfather and father had warned me about many skills and other things to watch out for. Rituals were one of them. The inherent danger and the risk of something going wrong were just too high. Also, they were all dark. While people could use monsters as ingredients, rituals required sacrifice.
They were better left in the past and forgotten. Stable skills instead of esoteric uses of Mana was the far better path for advancement and strength rather than mad gambles where your life was on the line.
The people who thought they could do rituals safely were the most foolish. There was no such thing as a safe ritual. Only a ritual that ended the way one expected. But even if they performed things perfectly, failure was always possible.
While Stormy was distasteful, she wasn't insane. Justin clearly believed in his own invincibility. I would not and could not gamble like that. I would rather die axe in hand than be twisted by some unfathomable process of a ritual.