Soul of Blades - Chapter 44: Weighted Rewards (Patreon)

Authors note: This ones pretty chunky too, at 5.3k words, (most chapters are usually 1.5-2k!!) 

Enjoy.

Chapter 44: Weighted Rewards

Silence reigned in the chamber as the oppressive atmosphere began to dissipate, replaced by a tentative sense of peace.

Alex stood amidst the devastation that had only moments before been an opulent display of hidden sovereignty.

His eyes scanned the remnants around him: the shattered stone beneath his feet, the walls scarred from spells cast and received, and the stillness that now hung where chaos had reigned. Dust motes hung lazily in the weak light filtering through cracks above, finding new places to peacefully settle after the tumult each mote had experienced. Alex exhaled slowly and felt an ache in his lungs, a remnant of victory and exhaustion that weighed down his limbs.

Stood beside him was the girl who had become his unlikely ally, her eyes scanning the many paths that led to the cavernous space, searching for signs of further danger. But there was none, for now; the queen's demise had sent a clear shockwave throughout the hive, and what remained of her swarm had now reeled in confusion. But it wouldn’t last long.

The silence that followed was profound, neither quite finding the words to express their desires or plans, yet both bathing in the peace they had struggled for.

Alex turned to the girl, finally asking, "What's your name?"

“Um-“ She looked surprised, then a small, genuine smile crossed her face. "I like…Mira," she replied, the word rolling out of her mouth uncomfortably as she spoke it for the first time.

“Mira,” she confirmed with confidence.

"Mira," Alex repeated, nodding. “Good choice-” He paused as a vivid sight caught his eye and pulled his gaze.

John's prone form lay at the edge of the chamber, split in two—a torso cut at the waist and legs. His deathly still form was surrounded by a congregation of black and red, in what was almost a lake of life fluids; how much of it was his, Alex could only wonder. It pained Alex to look but he ran to check on John’s condition despite himself, and the girl followed. He moved with swift precision, a few steps bringing him near, the girl landing softly behind him to send soft ripples through the ground and air. Both sucked in a breath as they reached the fallen guard.

John’s head raised feebly from the ground to greet them, pale as day. Blood flowed into his wound as quickly as it left him to leave him stuck in a strange class-induced limbo- if he stopped using his skill, he would die. Alex presumed it was a passive of some sort, one that worked alongside his strengthening skill to have been working for so long, that was the only thing that could explain the mana cost for such a feat. John’s head fell to the ground, his neck devoid of strength as his hands slowed and weakened further. "The Queen... you have to kill her," he murmured.

His words slurred as he spoke, a clear sign that he had accepted his fate and that it had embraced him in turn. He couldn’t keep this up forever. He would be dead soon.

Alex willed a potion to appear and immediately popped its cap and fed it to John, who consumed it in a daze. His wounds began to mend but too slowly and too weakly- the damage was too extensive and the blood loss even more so. The potion's regenerative qualities would at best seal the wound and potentially save his life. But much like it had healed the wound but failed to completely regenerate his lost right eye, it would fail to completely regenerate John’s lost limbs. Alex supposed that was a better fate than death. This is a world of magic, there's no way they wouldn't be able to regenerate his legs, even on Earth they would have decent alternatives. It had to be better here.

“I can buy us some time,” Mira offered tentatively. She reached out, and a sharp dagger erupted from her palm, its point stabbing slowly into the edge of John’s rapidly sealing wounds, feeling at the fluid flowing into him. John's blood immediately slowed to a crawl, though it didn't cease its life-sustaining movements. John’s life had been saved, for now. To Alex it felt as though John had been placed in stasis. All of his movements had slowed to a frozen crawl, and yet he was still in a conscious daze- his breathing was drawn and long, but not deep. His eyes moved slowly as if trailing a cloud, and his body moved as though it was submerged in liquid. Even the most minute of his hairs moved slowly.

“My venom is a little… different.” Mira offered sheepishly.

***

When she had awoken, newly born to this world, the girl had cared for nothing. She hadn't even had a name, then. She had been incapable of thought and moved only through a combination of instinct and command, both of which told her to consume whatever she encountered.

Then she had found a human and partook of his soul, back when she still had a newborn’s ability to sense such things. It had been the strongest soul present, a soul that at the time had dwarfed all present by leagues. She had promptly confiscated small sections of its parts to add to her own incomplete facsimile until she had taken enough of it to become whole and real. It had triggered an evolution, several of them.

The first evolution gave her thought and consciousness, and the world became wondrous and full of mystery.

Why was it that when she munched on a soul so big, suddenly everyone wanted to be her friend? Was that how popularity worked? Why did the wrapped soul-snack not fight back? Was it just really lazy? And why did the cave floor feel like it was judging her when she dragged her snack away? Did it have a problem with her choice? How dare it! … Why did her stabbing not stop the floor's judgment? And her siblings… Did they think they could take her snack? Didn’t they see the best snack was secured and claimed under her legs? Surely they could find their own. they acted as though there was a 'share everything' rule she missed at birth. She did not like that rule. Hah, her siblings flopped so dramatically when they played, that was fun and protected her snack. She felt stronger. some stopped moving after a lot of pouncing. Why was that? Was there a limit to playing? The loud ones had suddenly become silent as though they had run out of things to say. This was fun, should she play more?

“NO.”

Every facet of her being told her to only consume. She could not disobey- even the very thought caused her core to shudder… After she had completed her soul she would be allowed to play, she realised.

The second evolution gave her a system.

It was not the limited kind she had before. No longer did she experience the invisible system that beasts used, where choice was stripped completely. Her system opened to her freely, allowing her to see and allocate every stat as she wished. But the most important change her new system brought was Information. Context surged through her mind with each glance until she could not tell the difference between her own knowledge and that implanted by the system. She knew what things were called and had an inkling of their meaning; that was a rock, that moss was ‘glowing’, that rock was cracked- not alive- and her siblings weren’t resting… they were dead. It saddened her, slightly, but thoughts of her orders and purpose clouded her judgment and guided her steps. She had to protect her prize and continue to consume. It was her purpose.

The third evolution gave her immense strength, speed, and durability.

It caused the energy of the world to surge throughout her being and alter her further. She saw her new capabilities and the wider way she viewed the world as tools and weapons, using her sharp reasoning to monopolize the bountiful soul she had found. The soul of her snack was so much better than the others in the cave. It shone, bright and swirling. It was multifaceted and brilliant, soothingly shallow and yet as vast as a nebula- Wait, what was a nebula? she wondered. Something very big, the system's context seeped into her adolescent mind in response, indistinguishable from her own thoughts. Yes, a breathtaking and incomprehensible nebula… that's what the soul of her snack felt like.

It was sort of beautiful.

But she had to consume it, as that was her purpose. So she continued to consume the soul, a laborious task of co-opting its parts and slaying any that drew closer to her prize through cunning, deception and strength.

The fourth evolution gave her legs, hands, and human features.

And she used them to eviscerate all within the cave- every one of her siblings that sought to claim her prize.

The fifth evolution gave her freedom.

And with freedom both the weight of her actions and the nature of her hive came crashing down on her shoulders. She had slaughtered her kin against her will and sat in the damp cave with darkness as her only companion. She was alone, with no one to share her existence with- she had been forced to destroy them all.

“CONSUME.”

A voice shook the core of her mind and the centre of her being, though none else was present. It was a voice seeped in absolute authority and control. It sought to twist her.

“CONSUME.” It repeated.

“N-no.” She said, to the lonely and empty vacuum of the cave. She would no longer consume the living. Why should she? It left nothing but emptiness in its wake. Now that she could choose, she chose to be tired of destruction.

She had to leave this place.

***

The girl, Mira, liked the name she had chosen for herself.

Since her birth in that dark cave, there were only three things in this world that Mira had grown to truly care for. The first was finding a way to share the freedom she experienced with each breath with the rest of her kin. The second was the survival and safety of her species, which came to her after discovering they were all hunted and at war. But most recently, the third thing she had grown to care for had become the human named Alex.

He stood with her in the aftermath of the battle, both of them bathed in exhaustion and injury. She sensed him mirroring her actions on a chemical level, their breathing almost in sync and their subconscious movements near identical. She was just like him, and the two mirrored each other’s emotions and thoughts unawares quite often.

He was her ‘Source’.

It was a strange thing, to have someone share a part of your soul. She knew that she was made of the same things as him - flesh, blood, bones, and a little more. But she wasn't alive in the same way he was. Not by a long shot. He was complex, intricate. She saw him as poetry.

They shared a glance and she held his gaze, expressions mirrored. Each saw Concern, apprehension, wariness, determination, and a little bit of courage reflected in the other's gaze. Emotion transferred between them without words or thought. They were two of a kind, separated only by species and gender.

They would continue to fight, together. She knew this deeply.

But the knowledge was marred by his final actions. He hadn’t needed to kill the queen. She had been defenceless and barren. Defeated. So why had he done that? Mira would never have done something so cruel. The queen claimed that he was inherently evil due to his human nature and that to align with him was to doom her species, but the queen hadn’t the same insight into Alex as Mira did. The fallen monarch had not been right about him, or humans for that matter. There had to be a reason he ended her that didn't border on cruelty or evil, Mira was sure of it. Alex was kind, thoughtful, resourceful and strong, she knew this.

There had to be a good reason why he did that, she just had to ask.

***

Alex observed Mira's venom at work.

There's obviously magic at play, Alex thought, watching the dust and air around John's skin moving slower than the air more than a millimetre away from it. I'm guessing it's because judging by the queen's words she was born after the system’s arrival. It augmented her natural capabilities with skills.

“You said your venom is different. How is it different? Tell me. ” Alex’s interest was piqued, what he was seeing was clearly much more than just natural venom.

Before either could respond, notifications filled each’s vision, the blue light of reward shining a soothing light only they could see.

[Quest: ‘Sapient Saviour’ Completed! - You have been graded as the highest contributor!]

Alex felt the silence engulf them while Mira seemed to puzzle over the messages floating before both of their eyes, their heavy breaths the only sound to break the stillness. He saw her blinking at the floating messages only they could see, her brow furrowing as she scanned the text with mounting confusion. It stated his position as the highest contributor to their victory which made sense, of course he was the highest, he had delivered the final blow, suggesting someone else had contributed more.

"I'm second? What?… how?" she murmured to herself, the question hanging in the air.

What's her deal? Alex wondered. I dealt the killing blow and the most damage in general, besides John’s spike attacks and the g- Mira’- he reminded himself. I definitely dealt more damage than Mira. Why does she look so unhappy with the result?

Mira noticed his bewilderment and moved closer. Her approach was hesitant, each step careful as she navigated through the debris. “Is something wrong? You look like you were expecting first place.” Alex asked curiosly. She looked up at him guiltily and wore a grin that seemed to wrestle with fatigue, a smile that didn't quite know if it belonged on her face given the surrounding devastation. “I kind of did. I thought I had made the biggest difference, but I guess I was wrong.” Alex looked on in confusion at her statement. That made no sense whatsoever.

Sensing his growing confusion, Mira responded. “Like I said… my venom acts differently from everyone else's," she said.

Her voice was filled with uncertainty, pride, and guilt. “I didn't notice until we fought the green one and when I used the technique you taught me, the Tsuki.”

“Yeah, I noticed. You used a lot more than that, though.” Alex commented with a subtle nod. At first, she'd been clumsily swinging her sword as one would a bat, then after some time she began to hack with any blade she held in fits of wild destruction, always displaying amateur attempts at copying his form. But during the last few fights, he'd seen her perform several of his techniques almost perfectly despite the fact that he had only taught her just one. It was as though she was some sort of martial genius able to gain a journeyman's proficiency in a single day.“I know I'm a great teacher but how'd you get so good?” he asked with intrigue lacing his words.

“When we fought I watched your moves and techniques… a lot,” she spoke softly, her voice tinged with guilt. "I wanted to understand it.”

The queen had alluded to the possibility of Alex being her ‘source’. If that was true, it could mean she had gained some of his martial prowess. It could explain her growth. He wondered how much she had gained.

“And the venom?” Alex ventured, turning from surveying the chamber's passages to meet her gaze.

"Our venom never really affects others of the swarm but mine does, I think.” Her eyes didn't meet his as she muttered her next words. “It must've not have weakened the queen as much as I'd hoped. And you did everything… I guess I was being greedy… Sorry?"

Alex felt her breath quicken and a shift in the chemicals that surrounded her form, but he didn't need a sixth sense to see that she felt guilty. That queen- the ‘Death of Men’… she could probably move faster than I could wield my Dao. Her level was 56, so that's 560+50 stats or more in split between strength and dexterity with a common class. So at the very least she had over 300 strength and 300 dexterity. That's 100 more than mine, not to mention the predation skill, with all the cores she ate it would have been higher… and then her Aura attacks made everything worse. I wouldn't be surprised if she had 400 stats on me without my ‘duel of corruption’ debuff doing its job. Some of those blows were practically unblockable without my techniques, and even with them. Heck, even if Mira’s venom didn't do much to help, I'm sure slowing the queen down even a little could've made a difference somehow.

“Don't worry about it, Mira.” he offered with a subtle shake of his head. “I don't think we could've done it without you, anyway. but that's how things should be. People fill each other's gaps, make each other better. We're a team, you don't need to apologize for that.”

Jeez, ‘we’re a team?’ A bit much, Alex. He chided himself for getting carried away while speaking of their struggle, but he believed every word he'd uttered.

A pregnant pause.

At his words, Mira seemed fine on the exterior, normal even, as if she'd barely even registered what he'd said. But Alex sensed her pulse quicken and blood rush to her cheeks and fingers. Her heart rate increased subtly with each moment their eyes remained locked. Suddenly he regretted being able to intimately sense the workings of others. He wished he could turn off Bestial senses. It sort of felt like spying.

“So,” She said, standing before him with her gaze meeting his, equally contemplative. "We survived," she stated, the simplicity of her words undercut with a tension that mirrored Alex's relief and fatigue almost perfectly.

Alex nodded, his eyes leaving hers to drift over the destruction. She did the same. "At a cost," he replied, his voice low, as if speaking louder might shatter the fragile peace they had earned.

[Reward: E- grade equipment - Shell of the Guardian, Vessel of Madness, Fleetfur Boots, Spatial Satchel, have been placed in your inventory!]

[Reward: E- grade weaponry - Weightless, has been placed in your inventory!]

Alex sensed items appearing out of thin air before Mira in a flash. Blades, various armour and trinkets, and a circlet that adopted the colours of anything it touched fell to the ground at her feet. He turned to look and noted that strangely, all of her rewards were strangely gold, silver, bronze, or several of the three minerals.

Mira blinked in confusion and moved closer to the space, focusing on the air before her where the items began to materialize. Her movements were cautious, almost reverent, as she approached the pile of rewards materializing to fall at her feet. She reached out, her hand hovering over a long blade amidst the pile, a sword of constantly shifting bronze, gold, and silver that swirled within the blade like liquid mercury. Alex could see her curiosity piquing due to the strange energy it emitted.

Alex knelt and accessed his Inventory, causing his mind to connect to his personal trove through unseen spatial gateways. The floor of his small inventory space was filled with swords and a single solitary health potion. He noted other items appearing there too and watched as his quest rewards entered his dimensional space, one after the other.

He summoned each into the world as they appeared.

A sword, boots, a satchel, a strange box, and leather armour lay before him, each appearing to hold a faint glow of mana upon close inspection.

An unsheathed sword with a blade as white as starlight appeared first, its handle wrapped in dark brown leather. He immediately reached out for the weapon the system had named ‘Weightless’, his fingers brushing against the cold metal. "Not bad," he murmured, more to himself than to Mira.

His touch seemed to awaken the blade, its white surface ceasing to greedily drink the world's mana. It was as light as a feather and felt familiar and yet distinctly foreign in his grasp. He swung experimentally and felt the blade grow imperceptibly heavier with each subtle movement. The air swirled audibly in the wake of his slash and a gust of wind followed, disturbed by the blade that had momentarily become much heavier than should be possible.

It slipped from his grasp and landed on the stone floor with a crack, sinking until it reached the guard and hilt. Alex knelt and pulled at the sword's hilt and jerked back in surprise as it shot up effortlessly, once again weighing less than a feather. That’ll take some getting used to, he rubbed his chin in thought. But I can just store it in my inventory mid-swing when it gets too heavy… or just get stronger.

Yep, stronger it is, he thought, storing the blade in his Inventory with a touch.

The satchel was grey and leathery, with an opening strap and string made of a stretchy material that reminded Alex of elastic. It appeared unremarkable and bland at first glance save for one feature; he could not sense the contents inside the satchel. It’s entrance constantly sucked in air. It wasn't a vacuum or a strong force of suction. It was a subtle thing that he sensed rather than saw; dust particles drifted into the pouches opening as if attracted and the air drifted in as though pulled. Yet the pouch didn't increase in size. In his crouched position, he experimentally picked up rubble and placed it in the satchel, only to watch the rubble fall into the satchel entrance and disappear completely. Then he selected a larger piece of rubble, one several times the size of the satchel and attempted to place it inside. The satchel’s opening expanded with elasticity to consume the larger chunk of debris. Interesting, Alex thought with a raised brow. Probably a dimensional space of some kind… but I already have one of those. Perhaps he could sell it when they returned?

Next, Alex picked up the Fleetfur Boots with a sense of curiosity. He turned them over in his hands, noting the deep matte black material that somehow felt both like leather and fur at the same time. They were lighter than he expected, too, even more so than the blade, almost as if they weighed nothing at all. It hinted at speed beyond ordinary limits. The boots' held a combination of buckles and straps and laces that were sturdy yet flexible and seemed designed to stay tied without effort.

A bit old school, but it will do, Alex thought while turning them over once more. Old school was putting it lightly, they were practically medieval but clearly far beyond mundane. Slipping his feet into them, he marvelled at how they conformed to his contours perfectly, buckled clasping of their own accord and its form tightening for a perfect fit as though altered by an invisible shoemaker.

The moment the final strap clasped shut, Alex felt himself wrapped in the gossamer sensation of buoyancy. He felt that with these boots he could move just as fast as she had.

[Name: Alex Ironwood

Level: 41

Race: Human - Rank F

Primary Class: ̷̷͎̠̠̖̳̮̿́̏̄͝͠Sys̵̞̈́͆̓̓te̸̪̟͇͕͂mic SwO̷̟̮̙͚̔rd So̶̼̲͋͐͋͂ͅve̶̷̵̴̲̳̱reign

Sub-class: Locked

Strength: 193 (133)

Dexterity: 236 (163)

Endurance: 113 (78)

Intelligence: 290 (200)

Wisdom: 41 (28)

Feats: First Encounter, Pioneer, Pinnacle IV, Survivor, Warrior, Champion

Active skills: Phoenix Leap, Mana Burn, Mana Blade, Boundless Dodge, Duȅ̷̳̮̄͝͠l of C̷͎̠̠̖̿́orruption, Sovereign Executioner,

Passive skills: Inner Focus, Outer Focus, A̷̶̵̴̲̳̱l̸̢͉̗̣̑͐͛à̸̶̵̴̶̷̶̺̥̮̯͇̲̳̱̼̲͒̈́̈͛͋͐͋͂ͅͅ ̷̷̶̴̵̶̷̸̴̶̷̵̢̳̮̲̳̱͉̗̣̲̳̱̏̄̑͐͛͝͠Ω̴̵̶̷̲̳̱ ̶̶̯͇̼̲̈́̈͛͋͐͋͂ͅ ̷̷̶̴̵̶̷̴̶̷̵̳̮̲̳̱̲̳̱̏̄͝͠g̵̶̷̴̲̳̱e̸̪̟͇͕͂e̶̷̵̴̲̳̱E̵̴̶̷̶̵̴̶̷̷̸̸̢̲̳̱̼̲̲̳̱̟̮̙͚͉̗̣̺̥̮͋͐͋͂̔̑͐͛̀͒ͅͅ ̶̷̶̴̵̶̷̯͇̲̳̱̈́̈͛ ̷̸̴̶̷̵̳̮̪̟͇͕̲̳̱̏̄͂͝͠M̷̶̵̴̲̳̱m̸̵̴̶̷̸̷̸̴̶̷̵̢͉̗̣̲̳̱̪̟͇͕̟̮̙͚̺̥̮̲̳̱̑͐͛͂̔̀͒ͅ ̶̯͇̈́̈͛ ̷̸̶̢̳̮͉̗̣̼̲̏̄̑͐͛͋͐͋͂͝͠ͅO̷̟̮̙͚̔o̶̼̲͋͐͋͂ͅᾯ̴̵̶̷̵̴̶̷̷̸̸̸̢̲̳̱̲̳̱̟̮̙͚̪̟͇͕͉̗̣̺̥̮̑͐͛̀͒ ̶̯͇̈́̈͛ ̷̶͎̠̠̖̼̲̿́͋͐͋͂ͅ ̷̳̮̏̄͝͠ ̷̶̴̵̶̷̵̴̶̷̴̶̷̵̲̳̱̲̳̱̲̳̱, Inventory, Bestial Senses,

Dao: True Immortality - 0.06% Progress

Unassigned stat points: 20]

Almost halfway to my next milestone skill at level 100. That’s something to look forward to, he thought in scrutiny with his eyes scanning for changes.

And my Dao increased by 0.03%. That's ridiculously low, but then again reaching 100% feels like an impossible task and would probably give godly power to do anything I wanted… I wonder how high Phoenix’s Dao had progressed, Alex thought as he adjusted his gear, watching Mira as she continued to sift through her rewards. She wore bangles and earrings, a necklace and form-fitting leather armour embroidered with good lining and intricate runes that hummed with energy. Her fingers passed over several swords before her.

His attention returned to his status sheet, the light of its panel reflecting off the environment in ways that only his mind's eye could see. He had 20 free stats.

He placed ten in dexterity and another ten in endurance, thinking that he would never want to find himself in another situation where he would be outmatched in speed by a being who was capable of injuring him.

[Strength: 207 (143)

Dexterity: 236 (163)

Endurance: 128 (88)

Intelligence: 290 (200)

Wisdom: 41 (28)

Unassigned stat points: 0]

But wisdom kinda low, very low in fact, he thought, his eyes roaming through the floating panel. But it hasn't affected my battles so far… seems like a case of ‘If it aint broke don't fix it’? feeling that his other four stats were more important, he was tempted to completely ignore the idea of placing free stats into wisdom and supposedly ‘wasting’ them. But logic dictated that each stat should have equally impactful natures, so the wisdom stat had to be important in some way. Nah, tempting as it is to neglect it, I’ll have to be sure, he decided. Once he made it back to the town, he would have to find out exactly what the wisdom stat did before deciding its importance in any future allocations.

He moved on to the next item, one that had been hard to ignore.

The armour, 'Shell of the Guardian.’ The leather armour lay among the scattered stone and seemed to promise an exceptional defence. Its surface lay pristine and unblemished despite the settling dust that swirled in the wake of its fall. Alex could feel a layer of dust settling some space beyond its surface as if held back by an invisible force. The set of leather armour appeared to allow no elements to come closer than a few centimetres

“Whoa,” Alex leaned closer to inspect the armour and reached out, his hands gliding over the high-quality leather. The leather had been expertly tanned to a rich, deep brown, and looked as though it would feel supple under his touch. But he had no idea how it felt, as his hands met an invisible field of hard air around the armour. Pressing down, he noted it took some effort to push past the armour protective field to make contact with the leather beneath. It would naturally block weak blows and projectiles, but stronger blows might still be able to crash through its protective field to harm its wearer. Still, my own personal forcefield, without a mana cost. He held the armour up, its form suspended between his fingers by the smallest gap of air. Very cool, it’ll work even after I use Mana Drain or Duel of Corruption. Heh, maybe the system isn't so bad after all, he thought with relish. Any attack that connected with him would be decreased in its severity, to a degree. He noted the matte finish, which caught the light in a subtle way, highlighting the armour's sturdy construction. The pieces of the armour were articulated, he observed, bending and moving with a fluidity that promised a full range of motion. This design, he recognized, was meant to offer protection without hindering his movements. As he adjusted the fit, the armour moulded to his form and its segments working together to ensure his agility remained unhindered, though this time it moved through expert craftmanship rather than extranormal means.

Alex thought his rewards matched him well. Especially the sword and armour. They really suited him.

Mira was stood beside him, her own rewards forgotten. She peered over his shoulder with interest. “They suit you,” she said.

Alex wasn’t surprised by her interest. After all, his new equipment was pretty useful, although hers looked to be much more varied and bountiful. Her gaze lingered on his items, taking in their form and the subtle changes they wrought in Alex's appearance.

“They look useful," she commented again.

“They’re useful,” Alex responded to her earlier comment without thought in the same instant.

Huh… that was weird. He thought, before moving on to his next reward.

Alex looked down at his final reward, a small, intricately carved box that pulsed with the light of mana at the thin gaps between its lid and base. What the system had called a ‘Vessel of Madness’.

Mira leaned closer, her gaze fixed on the vessel. "That box is strange," she pointed, "there's something different about it. Can you feel it?" She picked up the small and intricately carved box and turned to face him. "What is it?" she questioned, her curiosity visible through her pursed features. “I'm not sure but the system called it a ‘Vessel of Madness’. it's emitting some pretty strong mana.” Alex responded as she scooped up the item. When she opened the box, the light and strong presence of mana that constantly pulsed within completely ceased.

Inside lay a single, dark gemstone, its facets cutting the light into sharp angles.

Hmm… that name doesn't seem like something to treat lightly. He immediately snatched the box from her grasp and shut its lid, storing it in his inventory as its light and mana surged. “Hey! I wasn’t done looking!” Mira protested, but Alex shook his head in disagreement. “Best to get this one appraised and find out what it does, it feels too dangerous.” He responded with a serious tone. It didn’t actually feel dangerous, but juggling a magic crystal called the ‘vessel of madness’ did not seem like the most intelligent of moves. As far as Alex was concerned, that was how you ended up getting body snatched, transported to the gullet of an evil monster, or something equally inconvenient like being transformed into a used car salesman.

With his final reward stored, Alex surveyed the chamber with a creeping feeling of disappointment he couldn't control. It came at him two-fold; he felt a surging disappointment in the fact that none of their items could completely restore John's health and guarantee his life, while secondly, he felt another surge of disappointment at the fact that he had lost the opportunity to monopolize the rewards. Part of him had been curious to know what would happen if he solo’d a dynamic quest intended for countless people. Still, at least he had gained the opportunity to gain a critical insight, one that would allow him to not just further his Dao but to glimpse at the lives of their Imperial overlords.

With a sigh, he prepared to make his next move, his eyes scanning the breadth of the chamber one final time.

Countless scars crisscrossed the walls—some deep, others shallow. Light shone faintly from a large, deep crack in the ground. It was a vast fissure that dissected the space, a cavernous line that split the chamber in two. At the sight, the memory of the queen's first strike returned unbidden. The effect of her first strike that ran so deep countless chambers, halls, and cavernous caves beneath could be seen, and if Alex had an eagle's sight he would have seen countless evolved variants staring back into the blows aftermath. But all he saw were dark figures shifting in the distant deep, a sea of ant-like movements too far away to be of any immediate concern.

Swords, trinkets, and broken armour scattered along the floor painted a chaotic path of opportunity- a result of his opening gambit. Small mounds of similar items lay by the vacant throne as remnants of the queen’s unguarded hoard, waiting for an opportunist’s touch… Some of those could be handy, Alex thought as he eyed the nearest items. He made a mental note to sift through them before they recovered John and made to leave the underground space.

Then a notification pulled all the attention he could spare.

[Reward: ‘Insight of the Imperial’ granted!]

The world's system-infused mana surged around Alex, it wove dense shapes with patterns as intricate as the universe's map, revealing constellations and cosmic paths beyond human grasp as it formed a dense sphere encasing him, infused with microscopic intricate patterns—complex beyond comprehension. A similar sphere enveloped the girl, the forces within it gently nudging them apart. Moments later, everything around them, every colour, sound, and sensation, faded into a muted abyss. Alex felt his consciousness lift, untethered from the physical realm, as if caught in a gentle stream, and whisked away to an unknown destination traversing the spaces between distance and time.

Reality slowed and a sea of inky blackness engulfed the entirety of his vision.