Grand Game 282: An Uncertain End to the Troubles (Patreon)

You have reached level 152!

Your deception has increased to level 111 and reached rank 11.

I sighed as I closed the Game messages.

Despite killing fifty players, I’d gained only two levels—not unexpected given the new disparity in rank and tiers between the Marauders and me—but it was disheartening, nonetheless.

Even more disappointing, deception was the only skill to go up during the encounter. My reaction to the Game alerts, however, was nothing compared to my response to the teams’ loot—or the near lack thereof.

A depressing side-effect of the cataclysmic explosion was that it destroyed all but the hardiest of equipment. As a result, picking through the remains did not yield as many choice items as I had hoped.

Still, I reminded myself, it isn’t as if you haven’t gathered an impressive haul already.

Restoring the mustering ground to its original state as best I could—I still had two more teams to greet—I hurried into the tent where my loot awaited.

Right, time to examine my new gear. Picking up each piece, I inspected it minutely.

You have acquired 73 gold coins.

You have acquired a large bag of holding. This item contains an enchantment to store any object you can lift with two hands. Courtesy of the enchantment, the bag, and its contents are weightless. Only inanimate materials may be kept in the bag. Currently stored items: 0 / 200.

You have acquired a goliath’s ring, +8 Strength.

You have acquired an acrobat’s ring, +8 Dexterity.

You have acquired an adept’s ring, +6 Magic.

You have acquired the sharpshooter’s band, +4 Perception.

You have acquired the hale stone, +8 Constitution.

You have acquired a savant’s ring, +4 Mind.

You have acquired the rank 4 shortsword: the faithful blade. This item increases the damage you deal by 40% and bears the enchantment: recall. Recall is an activated ability that causes the sword to return to the caster’s hand if he is within 10 yards. This item requires a minimum Dexterity of 16 to wield.

You have acquired the rank 4 set of light armor: ranger’s kit.

This item decreases the damage you sustain by 40% and has been enchanted to increase the wearer’s stealth skill by +4 ranks. This item requires a minimum Constitution of 16 to equip.

You have acquired 2 x rank 4 strength enhancement crystals, 2 x rank 4 dexterity enhancement crystals, and 3 x rank 4 magic enhancement crystals.

You have acquired 20 x acid bombs, 15 x smoke bombs, 15 x ice bombs, and 20 x fire bombs.

You have acquired the bomber’s belt. This item can hold up to 20 bombs and has been enchanted to prevent the accidental detonation of your stored devices.

You have acquired the Magister’s Cloak. This item is indestructible and part of a legendary set. Find more pieces in the set to increase the benefits received. The Magister’s Cloak increases your Magic by +4 ranks and repels physical attacks in the same manner as armor, providing +8% physical damage reduction.

You have acquired an aetherstone bracelet. This is a rank 5 artifact that allows you to traverse the aether and teleport from one sector to another using the coordinates stored in one of its five aetherstones. Before the bracelet can be employed, the relevant coordinates must first be etched. This item requires a minimum Magic or Faith of 20 to use.

Currently stored locations: 3 / 5. Available locations: sector 24,401 safe zone, sector 12,560 safe zone, and sector 1 safe zone.

Aetherstones are rare gems that can forge transitory connections to the Forever Kingdom’s ley line network through the expenditure of mana. The stones are limited in how they can interface with the network and only allow teleportation to and from known key points. Note: the aetherstones cannot be used to teleport into a dungeon or elsewhere in the Nethersphere.

I sighed happily; the new gear was an upgrade over my old equipment in nearly every aspect. Pleased anew by my haul, I began equipping the items.

You have equipped 6 rings. Net effect: +8 Strength, + 8 Dexterity, +6 Magic, +4 Perception, +8 Constitution, and +4 Mind.

There had been a plethora of rings and other trinkets to choose from on the dead Marauders, but sadly, the stat-increasing items did not stack—only legendary gear could, of course. Still, I was able to replace all my old rings and add new ones for attributes I’d not boosted yet.

The bombs and crystals were another welcome surprise and provided me with a host of new buffs and area-of-effect devices. After the encounter with the blood flies, I’d been meaning to do something about my lack of area damage but hadn’t gotten around to it yet. So, it was without hesitation that I replaced my slotted-potion belt with the bomber’s variant.

You have unequipped a slotted-potion belt.

You have equipped the bomber’s belt. Stored devices: 20 / 20.

The shortsword, faithful, was… nice. It was a step up from my rank three stygian blade, and the recall ability would definitely prove useful in battle, but it was not the super weapon I’d been hoping for.

You have equipped the sword faithful blade, gaining the recall ability and increasing the damage you deal by +40%.

The same applied to the ranger’s kit. It, too, was an upgrade over my existing armor—something that was long overdue—but that was about all it was.

You have equipped the ranger’s kit, gaining +40% physical damage reduction and +4 ranks in stealth.

The magister’s cloak was intriguing.

It had belonged to Yzark and was formed from a single piece of supple black cloth.  Like the wayfarer’s boots, the cloak was a legendary item and worth its weight in gold just for the additional Magic boost it provided.

Surprisingly, the cloak also protected its user against physical attacks—not something that garments usually did—and was obviously designed with mages in mind. But given that the item’s damage reduction stacked with armor, it was of use to fighters like me, too.

Sadly, though, because both the wayfarer and magister sets were clothing collections, I suspected I would have to choose between them in the long run. But for now, there was no reason not to use the cloak.

You have equipped the Magister’s Cloak, gaining +8% physical damage reduction and +4 Magic.

The most fascinating item, by far, was the aetherstone bracelet. It was made from a thin band of metal—copper, I thought—and studded with five colorless gems. The bracelet, too, had belonged to Yzark and was likely as valuable as the two legendary items I possessed—if not more so.

The item was rank five, and from my prior conversations with Kesh, I already knew how expensive those were. But more importantly, the bracelet granted me mobility. With it, I could teleport from sector to sector on my own.

Sure, I could only do so from known key points—and now I knew why my player profile kept track of those—but that was a limitation I could live with. I also needed to figure out how to etch coordinates into the aetherstones. I knew who to ask about that, though.

Nearly as interesting as the bracelet itself were the coordinates already etched in it. I recognized two of them as the safe zones of Nexus and the valley. The third, though…

“Sector 24,401,” I murmured. “Now, what could be there?”

The Marauders’ home sector was my guess. It bore investigating, but not today or even this month. I snorted. I had far too much to do already. Equipping the aetherstone bracelet, I turned to the next pile: the gear I’d earmarked for selling.

It consisted of a mix of crafting gear, player kits, and alchemy reagents. Altogether, they made for a nice-sized heap and would earn me a tidy sum. Opening my bags of holding, I dumped the equipment inside, set by set.

You have acquired 170 x caches of miscellaneous items.

You have acquired 500 x alchemy ingredients.

You have acquired 32 x sets of crafting gear.

My looting completed, I rose to my feet.

My bags were stuffed to the bursting, but thankfully due to their enchantments, they were weightless. Forlornly, I eyed the last pile—the monstrous mountain of gear I couldn’t take.

All that is probably worth another few thousand golds.

I sighed. As tempting as it was to take more, I couldn’t afford to weigh myself down. Although… I paused as something occurred to me.

After considering the notion a bit further, I scrounged through the discard pile and dug up two additional sets of equipment. They would do nicely for a pair of twins I knew.

You have acquired 2 x caches of basic items.

Storing away the gear, I straightened. That’s it. I’m done—no more. Striding back to the gate, I set myself to await the arrival of the last of the Marauders.

✵ ✵ ✵

Dawn came and went, and the sun edged towards noon, and still, the remaining two teams did not return.

Beginning to question the wisdom of waiting, I reflected on the already-dead Marauders. It had not escaped my notice that none of the revived players had returned to their base. More than twelve hours had passed since I’d slain my initial victims—ample time to resurrect and rush back to camp—yet none had shown up.

Either they were too afraid to do so—I snorted, not thinking that likely—or Beorin had actually done as I asked.

I’d not expected the degree of success I’d had when I made the request of the dwarf, and I couldn’t imagine how the bounty hunters were keeping over a hundred Marauders under wraps, but what other explanation was there?

I’ll find out soon enough, I imagine. Things in the village should be—

Someone banged on the gate.

I stepped closer. “Who’s there?” I asked in the dead guard’s voice through the closed gate.

“Justin, thank the Powers, you’re alive!” came the response. “We’ve heard all sorts of rumors. I knew they couldn’t be true, though. But then… our replacements didn’t show up. Is everything alright?”

“Of course, it is,” I said jovially and drew back the gate. “Come on in.”

It was time to kill again.

✵ ✵ ✵

You have reached level 154!

Your Dexterity has increased to rank 55. Other modifiers: +12 from items.

I dispatched the Marauder team cleanly—and the one after that. Both groups had come in separately, and while they’d known something was wrong, their commanders had found the rumors too outrageous to believe.

In the end, neither team managed to put up much of a fight, and after tallying my gains and investing my new attribute points, I set about my last chore: burning the camp.

With my new fire and acid bombs, it was simplicity itself. After drenching the tents, stores, and abandoned equipment in acid, I set them alight with the firebombs.

You have ignited 5 acid bombs and 5 firebombs!

It’s been a productive night’s work, I reflected as I swept my gaze over the burning camp. The fire would burn out soon enough, but by the time it was done, I expected nothing would remain of the Marauders’ base but ash and debris.

I’d played my hand, and perhaps I’d gone overboard—just a little—but I’d made sure there was no doubt in the Marauders’ mind that their presence in the sector was unwanted and would be contested, even if I hadn’t spelled-out by whom or why.

Now it was Kalin’s turn to act.

How will he react? I wondered. Would he cut his losses and retreat, or double down on his bid for the sector? Whatever response the Marauders chose, though, I was prepared.

Whistling tunelessly, I strolled out the open gate and headed back to the safe zone.