Novel East
Chapter 99: Ghostly Hospitality
Lvl Up: [Art of Movement] lvl 21,5,26,27
AGI +3
PERC +3
DEXT +3
Lvl Up: [Iron Marathon] lvl 6,7,8
AGI +9
Lvl Up: [Kinetic Control] lvl 34
VIVA +2
DEXT +3
META (Focus) +4
Lvl Up: [Broad-spectrum vision] lvl 3,4,5
PERC +3
Lvl Up: [Moon Mist] lvl 41,42,43,44
PERC +16
CHAR +8
META (AFFI) +12
Lvl Up: [Aether Manipulation] lvl 4,5,6,7,8
META (PERC) +5
META (AFFI) +5
META (FOCUS) +5
Congratulations on creating a new skill: [Mask - Epic].
[Mask - Epic] - To wear a mask is to disguise your identity. Conceal your face to change roles and transgress the forbidden. Each user has a different intention when donning a mask. What's yours? Do you really know?
Remember, a mask is a mask, so don't be fooled.
WILL + 3
CHAR +3
META(CHAR) + 3
Congratulations, you've unlocked a new META characteristic: Authority.
Lvl Up: [Mask] lvl 2,3,4
WILL + 9
CHAR +9
META(CHAR) + 9
Three days later
Priam glared at Diamond. The latter had the good sense to look embarrassed.
"Am I really going to have to wade through this?" asked Priam.
"You know, maybe it's good for your immune system..."
"Shut up."
According to Diamond, the last room was behind the grate on their right. It was recessed about two meters from the entrance to a tube. The cylinder itself was two meters in diameter. The grate was standard in appearance, made of silvery metal with bars about eight centimeters apart.
The trouble was, its metal was indestructible. At least, [Tribulation Piercing Spear] hadn't left a single mark on it. This one must have been special because even his Domain couldn't penetrate it. The concrete of the tube was less solid, but Priam had calculated that it would take him several hours, spamming skills, to create a passageway.
Rather than waste their time, the two thieves decided to slip between the bars. Diamond's Talent allowed him to transform his body into a kind of rubber. He looked like Luffy. If he'd never become king of the pirates...
"Do I have something on my face?" asked Diamond.
"... Not yet. Well, let's go," decided Priam.
If the Earl was reluctant to teleport through the grate, it was for a good reason. The Dome's sewage system congregated in this room. The brown pool in front of them then flowed into the tube they had to cross. It was almost a fantasy theorem: sewers always harbored treasures. And mostly shit.
Swimming in human excrement was not one of Priam's priorities. Especially as Alberto Boss was putting the finishing touches to his next costume. The craftsman had grumbled as he had taken Priam's new measurements.
Anyway, Priam was naked under his coat of mist. As usual.
After another second's thought, Priam decided not to turn his fog into ice. Spending Potential for nothing displeased him greatly. Am I really saving a few points of Potential, risking being covered in shit?
The answer was yes. Every point of Potential was precious, especially in Elysium, where skill creation was almost free. Ill craft a flying skill to reward me
If Priam was less than a day away from the end of the Reunion, wondering whether he would dive into poo, it was because he'd finished most of his other obligations. The last Abomination had died by his hand, and Seraphine had fled to the other side of the Moon. Priam had hesitated to hunt her down with Sphinx's help, but had preferred to spend time with his father. If the apocalypse had taught him anything, it was that life was fragile. Not everyone could be resurrected.
A good example was Claire. The young woman's public execution was scheduled for the last hour of the Reunion. The aim was twofold: to attract certain Revenants and set a precedent to encourage the rest of humanity to fight this menace.
Of course, he hadn't forgotten to practice, or to use Anne's blueprint. [Mask] was an extremely interesting skill...
Priam refocused on the present moment. There was no point in waiting any longer. Sighing, he straddled the mist. Appearing as far down the tunnel as possible, he found himself suspended above the torrent. With one hand on the side of the tube and the tip of Promesse on the other, his balance was somewhat precarious. A few tiny drops leaped in his direction from time to time due to the speed of the flow. [Moon Mist] then manipulated a mist net to keep them away from Priams body.
Without wasting any time, Priam concentrated on his mist perception. Two more teleports brought him to the end of the tunnel. A waterfall was waiting for him.
The tube opened onto a vast well. Rotting water poured into the darkness, and even Priam's perception couldn't feel the bottom of the abyss.
When playing video games, Priam was the kind of person who explored every square centimeter of the map. In real life, the stench of shit told him he didn't want to know what was down there. His draconic instincts remained silent, and that sealed the deal.
"It's up there," said Diamond cheerfully. The thief gamboled in the fetid torrent, smiling, and Priam chose not to comment. He looked up and saw a ladder hanging from the wall of the well.
One teleport later, Priam found himself on the ladder. Climbing nimbly, he quickly reached the top of the shaft. A closed trapdoor barred his way, and Priam chose to wait for his companion.
Lowering his eyes, he watched Diamond ascend. The old thief was impressive. The tube protruded from the wall and advanced a few meters into the void. Diamond grabbed the top of the cylinder and hoisted himself up. Walking quickly up the tube, he began to climb the flat surface of the shaft. Yet Priam's eyes found no imperfections. His hands stuck to the surface...
Seconds later, Diamond reached the bottom of the ladder and began to climb rapidly. Arriving just below Priam, he looked up at the trapdoor.
"It's trapped. That's what my instinct tells me. We'll have to pick it rather than destroy it."
"Do you know how?" asked Priam, avoiding a breath. He hoped he hadn't come for nothing.
"Of course. I was just pointing out how useful I am, that's all," smiled the veteran.
Priam stepped aside to make way for the thief. Pulling out his paraphernalia, he fiddled with the trapdoor for a few seconds before grinning. "Sesame, open up!"
With a push, the hatch opened upwards, and Diamond climbed in. Priam quickly followed.
The trapdoor opened onto a small, closed room. A sort of storeroom where mops and brooms sat side by side.
"... We've come to steal an iron?" ironized Priam in a low voice.
"Have some respect for the mythical iron.
A door led to the outside, but the two companions decided to search the room first. Unsurprisingly, apart from some white vinegar and cleaning materials, the space was relatively empty.
"Do you think there's a trick?" asked Priam.
Diamond looked at him momentarily as if he were an idiot, before shaking his head.
"Sorry, I forgot you weren't a thief. No, no tricks, this isn't an escape game. According to the mission information, this is where the Moon Key is. That's all I know. Well, given that it was an arduous quest, I'd be surprised if it was hidden behind a bucket."
Diamond pointed to the door. "Imagine we've landed at the home of a wealthy merchant who's decided to hide his treasures. The key is probably behind a glass case or in a safe. There must be an alarm and guards. I don't have any more info, so we might as well hurry. From now on, silence."
Priam nodded and let the thief open the door. Wrapping his fingers in a rag, he slowly turned the handle before observing the exterior. Quickly, he waved to Priam and entered the corridor.
The place appeared to be a mansion. A thick crimson carpet silenced their movements. On the walls, torches gave off a flickering glow. The only decorations were empty paintings and suits of armor arranged at regular intervals. On the other side of the corridor, windows exposed the Dome. Priam recognized Sphinxs Palace.
As Diamond began to walk up the corridor, Priam turned quickly and patted the thief on the shoulder. The latter turned and raised an eyebrow.
What's going on? he indicated with small gestures.
Priam pointed to the windows. After a few seconds, Diamond's puzzled face hardened. The windows showed the Dome by night. That was suspicious enough. The Dome was illuminated at all hours by the light from the barrier.
On closer inspection, the people strolling through the streets were abnormally pale. Occasionally, two residents would bump into each other as they strolled along. When this happened, rather than repelling each other, their bodies would interpenetrate before continuing as if nothing had happened.
Their bodies had no corporeality. Priam wasn't convinced he could touch ghosts, ectoplasms or spirits with Promesse.
Diamond looked at him momentarily and touched his heart with his left hand. It was their sign to ask if they were abandoning the mission. Priam shook his head. To get here, he'd almost waded through shit. Going home empty-handed is out of the question.
Diamond smiled and turned around. The thief had the skills and experience to find the treasures. Priam, on the other hand, was there to protect them.
Moving slowly up the corridor, Diamond turned left, away from the windows. They continued walking, penetrating deeper and deeper into the building. The galleries seemed endless, and Diamond periodically marked the walls with chalk. A white line at man-height and a thin, wood-colored line at floor level. Priam's paranoid side was approving.
Finally, after several minutes in the maze, Diamond spotted a staircase. Slowly climbing the stairs, they reached the top floor and stopped. They were no longer alone.
Empty suits of armor patrolled the floor. Priam deployed his mist at ground level. [Moon Mist] was now high-level, and his concept further improved his control.
With his eyes closed, Priam began to map the floor. The almost invisible mist enabled him to sense the movement of the armors. Honestly, after surviving a battle with a Heaven Wyvern, Priam felt capable of taking on several living suits of armor. The problem lay elsewhere. The armors were sentinels, and their destruction could sound the alarm.
For thieves, it was like triggering the second phase of a boss. Possibly a Game Over.
Discovering a new staircase nearby, Priam waited for a weak point in the guard's round and took off running, Diamond hot on his heels.
Seconds later, the third floor greeted them. This one looked different. The armor was more beautiful, and oil lamps had replaced the torches. The atmosphere had also become unearthly cold. Diamond, shivering, leaned towards Priam and whispered.
"Don't identify them. I have [Calculator Observation - Epic], and these shady characters all have Viscount rank. They'll feel a simple [Identification]."
Priam nodded and used his mist again. The guards' rounds were now flawless, but his steam tipped him off to two possibilities. Firstly, there was a staircase nearby. Secondly, his mist sensed a tiny ground-level draft, thirty meters to their right. They had to turn right twice to get there.
Priam controlled his mist to enter the secret room. Motioning Diamond to stand still, he rode the fog.
He appeared in some kind of medical practice. Possibly a laboratory. Some thirty square meters, the room was lit only by a big fireplace. Dried herbs hung from the ceiling. Numerous jars were piled on the shelves, and a work table sat in the center.
A body lay on the table. Its size and condition betrayed its alien origin. Almost three meters tall, bone plates covered its body. Priam approached and analyzed the monster. His instincts told him that the plates were extremely solid. They were bound together by a kind of leather that seemed very strong. Fingernails had turned into claws, and a snail-shaped bone hid its ears. The monster's only weakness seemed to be its eyes. Long teeth and a lack of hair completed the macabre picture.
The stench was abominable, and the corpse must have been there for weeks. Suddenly, one of the fingers moved. The next instant, powerful spasms agitated the body, and Priam instinctively stepped back. The metal shackles shackling the monster were under severe strain.
"He must have smelled you." whispered a voice behind Priam.
His mist had sensed nothing. Surprised, Priam instantly turned and attacked. Promesse only split the air. Behind him stood an impossibly thin man. Alien. Dressed in Victorian fashion, the stranger had the distinction of having no tangible body. Promesse had struck somewhere in his chest and passed through the entity.
"Who are you?" asked Priam.
"Malbius. The doctor who looked after the master. It doesn't matter now," sighed Malbius.
Priam thought quickly. "You... Are you real?"
"You meant, am I a real person or a creation of the System?" smiled Malbius. "The System avoids creating living things. In my experience, it refuses to get too involved so as not to pollute new concepts."
Priam took a moment to reflect before nodding. The only creatures created by the System were the monsters of the Colosseum and... Sphinx. He refocused.
"You work for the System, then?"
Malbius chuckled. "No, no. The simplest explanation is often the best. I'm the ghost of Malbius, who died almost two weeks ago. I come from a civilization invited by the System a year ago. We survived the first two Reunions but... The System's threat finally destroyed us," he said, indicating the corpse.
"... Is that you?" asked Priam, pointing to the body. "Corrupted by some kind of virus, I suppose? Was that your threat?"
"Yes, yes and no. The second threat was a rift leading to the Depths. Oh, you know the word? remarked the ghost. Strange..."
A chilling sound was heard. One of the corrupt colossus's four handcuffs had snapped. It struggled all the harder.
Priam turned back to Malbius. "I've dealt with the Depths, but not in this form."
The ghost looked disdainful. "And what do you know about the Depths? This plane of reality is infinite. No one knows it completely, not even the Depths Nobles."
"Excuse me," Priam apologized. He needed information, and it seemed the ghost was in a bad mood. Which was natural for someone who'd just died and seen his body transformed into a monster. "Could you tell me exactly what happened?"
Every piece of knowledge about future Reunions or the Depths interested him.
The ghost smiled. "I'm willing in exchange... For a favor. Are you in?"
Priam smiled. "We have a deal."
"Perfect!" cried the ghost, clapping his hands. "What do you want to know?"
"How... how did you lose to a single rift?"
"... The Depths rarely attack head-on; they prefer corruption. Our fighters repelled armies of corrupted animals and monsters on our planet. After a week, they reached the rift and closed it. We thought we'd won, but... People began to get sick. Our best warriors and mages had brought back a deadly virus. In a few days, most people were dead. The problem was, they werent dead enough."
Looking up at the ceiling, Malbius shuddered: "The more powerful the body, the more resistant it is to poison. Some were practically immune. Fortunately, even they were eventually defeated, wounded by weaker but more numerous fighters."
Fortunately
"... I see. And the ghosts?"
"The virus corrupts minds and bodies," Malbius explained. For those who have unlocked their minds, the virus allows them to survive. To hunt.
"Is there anything left of the original host?" π£πππππππ¨π©.πππ’
"Hardly anything. Memories and instinct. Barely an echo," the monster lamented.
A second handcuff gave way. Time was running out. Priam tried another question.
"So the System didn't give you a chance? A doctor as brilliant as you must have had a clue about a treatment, right?"
Malbius swaggered. "Of course! I'm the only one who managed to retain some intelligence."
"Impressive! How did you do it?"
"I poisoned my master, revealed Malbius. He was our most powerful warrior, and the System rewarded me with Legendary Completion! My reward was an affinity with the Depths."
"That's... brilliant," said Priam, returning the smile. "By the way, didn't you take the opportunity to secure one of your master's treasures? A Moon Key."
The penultimate handcuff dropped, and the monster screamed, shaking the walls. "That's a lot of questions," Malbius remarked, frowning.
"This is the last one," Priam winked.
Malbius chuckled. "The last one, yes... I think you mean his Hearthstone. My master still has it. He wears it like an amulet," Malbius shrugged.
The last handcuff gave way, and the monster smashed the table, throwing itself in the air. Splinters of wood flew across the room. Priam's cloak of mist contracted, and several tentacles intercepted the projectiles.
"It's time to..." Promesse didn't wait for Malbius to finish his sentence before piercing his head, covered in the aether threads Priam had just woven.
The ghost blinked, before laughing. "That was rather rude. Now, die!"
With a swift hand movement, the ghost scratched Priam's arm. [Kinetic Control] felt no mass and let the attack pass. The wound burned Priam. Behind him, the bony monster pounced. Priam tried to teleport, but a Domain prevented him. The teleportation failed, and he turned, attacking the physical monster. The tip of Promesse ricocheted off the bone plates. Barely slowing down, the abomination raised its arm and brought it down on Priam. Simultaneously, Malbius attacked again.
[Kinetic Control]. The skill worked this time. Catapulted backward, the monster smashed through a wall before ending up in the corridor. Priam's back was burning. Swearing, he threw himself far from his opponent, glaring hatefully at Malbius.
According to his Domain and [Eidetic Memory], the phantom's fingers had become coated with a layer of aether at the moment of the attack. The aether had dispersed after the nails had penetrated several centimeters into his body. At no point had the ghost regained corporeality.
Malbius transformed. His features lost all benevolence, veins shot through his skin and his color changed to red and black. Skeletal fingers twisted towards Priam. The next moment, with a grimace of hatred on his face, it attacked again. Priam tried to parry, without success. His main attacks were physical, and his Domain only served to cancel out the ghost's own Domain.
"Priam, we've got a problem," says Diamond from outside.
"I know. There's a fucking untouchable ghost here," Priam replied, dancing to dodge the attacks. "Do you have a Mastery?"
"... No, I just have Micro. But I think my problem is bigger than yours..."
Malbius screamed as he threw himself at Priam, who barely dodged. The ghost was highly agile and fast. So fast, that he went right through the wall. The next instant, he reappeared, his eyes consumed with rage.
Priam's back and arm were beginning to itch furiously. A smile split his face. I'm about to add a new resistance to my Pokdex!
"Don't get touched, Diamond! And what's the big deal?"
The thief appeared in Priam's field of vision, behind the ghost. Pointing to the hole caused by the catapulted monster, he sighed, "We've got a monster, eight haunted suits of armor and quite a few ghosts on our ass."
Priam turned around briefly, almost getting hit in the jugular by Malbius. Behind him was a veritable army.
"Time to farm [Depths Resistance]..."
PHYSICAL:
Strength 236
Constitution 373
Agility 294 (+16)
Vitality 370
Perception 485 (+17)
MENTAL:
Vivacity 280 (+2)
Dexterity 331 (+6)
Memory 70
Willpower 421 (+15)
Charisma 366 (+30)
META:
Meta-affinity 234 (+17)
Meta-focus 178 (+9)
Meta-endurance 119
Meta-perception 76 (+5)
Meta-chance 198
Meta-charisma 12 (+12)
Potential: 5865 (+52)
Tier 0
[He Who Eludes Death] charge: PRIMED
[Tribulation]: No Tribulation pending.
Future Tribulations delayed until:
Time: 180 days 21 hours 47 minutes 43 seconds.
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