The Dissonant

Owen, along with Shelldon and Draed, left the safety of the dome Lord's shield, and the sun intensified. Owen swore at not having been given sun lotion, but he took a sip of water to wet his tongue at least.

The scorching sun beat down mercilessly on the vast expanse of desert. Sand dunes stretched as far as the eye could see, shimmering under the relentless heat. Cacti poked out of the sand and he swore some of them vanished from sight as he laid eyes on them.

Where he was situated was right by a mountain. The sun was slowly inching toward the horizon, and it wouldn't be long before the mountain blocked the vicious sun rays from assaulting his flesh. Thank god.

He headed for a bunch of cacti. He needed water and although he had some already, it wouldn't last very long. Besides, he had builders back in the dome and they needed to be looked after. With Unlimited Plunder, he stored all of them without the need of a bag. The freedom felt exhilarating. Then he moved on.

Owen sat atop his tortoise mount, who trudged steadily across the shifting sands. Meanwhile Draed nimbly stood, bow pointed forwards. His eyes scanned the horizon, alert for any sign of danger, before focusing on the land beneath them.

It wouldn't be long before—

Suddenly, as if on cue, the ground trembled beneath them. Owen's heart pounded as a colossal sand creature burst from the dune ahead. Its body, a swirling mass of sand, grit, and coarse fur, rose up like a towering troll. Glowing red eyes pierced through the storm of debris, casting a menacing glare over the group.

"Steady, Shelldon," Owen shouted, fear gripping hold of him.

The sand monster let out a deafening roar, its mouth lined with sharp, crystalline teeth. It lunged at them with surprising speed for a creature of its size. Owen barely had time to react. Shelldon retracted into his shell. Draed fired a powered arrow, thudding against the monster's hairy body.

The monster's claws scraped against the tortoise's hard shell, sending sparks flying.

Owen seized the moment to strike. He summoned his kukri, the blade gleaming in the sunlight, and swung it with all his might in an uncontrolled, wide arc. The sword sliced through the sand, but the monster's body simply reformed around the wound. It was like trying to cut through water. Not that he would have dealt any damage anyway, considering his pitiful Attributes.

Draed fired three arrows in quick succession, one of them boring into the creature's eyeball. It squealed and thrashed.

Not good, Owen thought. He had to think of something fast.

The monster's next attack came swiftly. It raised a massive arm of sand and brought it crashing down towards them. Shelldon moved quickly, but not quickly enough. The blow sent them sprawling, and Owen was thrown from his mount, landing hard on the sand.

Draed had already leapt from Shelldon before the strike hit, and continued his volley of arrows, whittling down the beast with precise aim.

Gasping for breath, sand entering his mouth, Owen scrambled to his feet spitting out the grains. His mind was a blazing storm, battered by the sun above. He needed to end this quickly. Previous plans deemed insane appeared at the forefront of his thoughts.

Dune Ravager, Owen thought in pain. Heart is its weakness.

He focused, drawing on the power of Unlimited Plunder, unable to think of the consequences of doing so.

"Heart, just beneath its naval!" Owen shouted over to Draed.

Draed listened. The air swirled around him and he fired a mighty arrow the next second. It slammed into the Dune Ravager's chest, halfway disappearing. It roared out in pain and thrashed the sand around. But it was still alive. It rampaged toward Owen.

The sand monster loomed over him, ready to deliver a finishing blow. Owen reached out with his power, his hand glowing with a dark, eerie light. He aimed for the monster's core, where its heart would be based on what he knew from the novel. Where he hoped it would be.

As he touched the coarse fur of the monster, a surge of energy burst from his hand followed by an immediate bout of weakness.

The sand monster froze in place, its eyes widening in shock. Owen ripped out a pulsating heart from its chest. The monster instantly dropped dead, not another sound coming from its throat.

You and your subordinate has defeated a Dune Ravager (Level 13)

| Hunter: Draed Level 3 -> Level 5

| Owen Taylor Level 8 -> Level 10

Placing all the points into Vitality, Owen's victory was short-lived. The strain of using Unlimited Plunder on a living target hit him like a freight train. Pain wracked his body, and he fell to his knees, clutching his chest. Blood seeped from his nose and mouth, and his vision blurred.

Shelldon emerged from his shell and hurried over to Owen, nudging him gently. Owen smiled weakly, patting his loyal mount's head. Draed arrived like the wind, standing over him with his bow ready for any other attackers.

"Good boy, Shelldon. Good work, Draed," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "Now let's get back"

Fighting against the exhaustion consuming him, Owen stored the corpse for future use, battling through the pain, and then returned back to the safezone.

He checked up on Pyris once he returned, then sat under the tarp with her to recover his wounds. A few hours had passed when Owen finally felt ready to use Plunder once more. He brought out the Dune Ravager and placed it in front of him, and used his Skill.

You have plundered a Dune Ravager.

| Claimed materials: Summoning Ticket 1x Hunter, Summoning Ticket 1x Builder, Dune Ravager Pelt x2 (Normal), Dune Ravager Organs (Normal) Dune Ravager Bones (Normal).

| Stats gained: 6 Strength, 4 Vitality, 3 Dexterity.

First, he inspected the pelts. Normal quality, he thought. He effectively had the job of a Skinner all in one ability.

Unlimited Plunder

| Mastery: (None)

After looking at his ability once again, Owen had a guess as to how it worked. His current Mastery allowed him to skin the monster at Normal quality. Which was already a great bonus. If he started out as a Skinner, the quality would only be Low, if not a high chance of being Ruined. To already plunder something at Normal quality was a great boon to have as it would provide him with a higher income.

Then, finally, it was time to add to his civilization. He gazed at the golden tickets in his hand, hope brimming within him. He hoped it was a high-Star hunter. With them, he'd be able to let them go out and hunt, Levelling him up, gaining more tickets passively, without him doing anything. The more Stars they had, the quicker they'd become powerhouses for his kingdom. And thanks to his Rogue Class, all basic Hunters would have their perception greatly increased--along with all their Attributes.

Without further ado, he ripped the Hunter ticket he had gained.

***

Pyris was under far too much pain and suffering to move. She tried moving her fingers, toes, anything, but it was helpless. Whatever wounds had been scored into her flesh, were serious. Not only that, she detected a vicious poison that she had never experienced before. It was so potent, that not even her natural healing factor could combat it.

Where am I?

One moment she was… well, she couldn't remember. Her memories were a haze, like a puzzle missing its pieces. The next moment, she was here, laying under the beating sun, a young man crouched over her, feeding her a healing tincture to no avail.

She first had the thought of killing him, but what good would that do her? The young boy had tried to help her, sheltering her from the sun—not that the sun could do anything to her. But it was the thought that mattered. Then he held his blade against her throat. Desire to end her life flashed for a single second, if that, only for him to decide against it.

I don't blame you, Pyris thought weakly. In his place, she'd have done the same. No, she'd have gone through with it.

Pyris watched him laugh and smile and clumsily climb onto his mount, and fight in the distance. If she had the strength, maybe she'd have even laughed at his silly nature.

There was also something else that held back her desire to lash out; there was a strange connection between them. It was telling her that he wasn't a threat—even when he held his blade against her throat. It was telling her that he was her partner. Her master. It should have made her uncomfortable, angry, but she felt a strange honour taking hold of her instead.

She wanted to fight for this young man. Prop him up and let him show his grandeur to the universe.

And then, her tired eyes watched as the man—his name Owen as she subconsciously realised—summoned a clean looking man wearing brown leather armour, holding a curved sword appeared before him.

The swordsman, the moment he appeared, got to one knee and lowered his head. He spoke in a language she knew, but didn't at the same time. It was strange.

"My Lord," he said, his voice rough, but noble. "It is my honour to be summoned to your land. Please, give me your orders."

"Cedric, it's nice to have you here," Owen said, pinching his chin in thought. "I would have preferred to wait until I had more of you, but I'm in dire straits, as you can see."

The hunter looked around and nodded in agreement. "Your wish is my command, no matter the dangers, my Lord."

"Please, stand. I don't think I'm used to the whole kneeling thing yet."

The swordsman stood. "Understood."

"Draed, Cedric, I wish for you to scout the land," her master continued. "I need to know where my enemies are, and how many they lurk. Especially if any Lords are nearby. But be careful, the desert monsters are known to prefer ambush. If you can take a shot, take it, but only if you are confident in taking down the opponent. It's important, if possible, to bring their bodies back here. I have use of them. But above all else, you must return safe, no matter what. You are important."

The hunters bowed deeply. "I understand, my Lord."

"Good, thank you." Owen moved his hand over to his tortoise. "Take my Spectre with you. His name is Shelldon. He can take a hit. You can even hide in his shell if you can deal with tight spaces."

The hunters bowed, mounted the tortoise and left the safety of the dome. His eyes followed them as they vanished into the horizon. He sighed, then addressed the other people around. They were Builders. Owen deposited huge chunks of stone and told them to start building a house for shelter during the day. They listened, and quickly got to work.

Then, her Lord approached her, kneeling down. Her eyes were only open by a slit.

A Lord is kneeling in front of me? She thought incredulously.

"Damn," he cursed, talking to himself. "Your wounds aren't healing, are they? I wonder if you're poisoned or something? Not only that, your wounds are still bleeding. It seems the health potions only worked for a while. I need more, but they're expensive."

So he said, but he took out the other health potion despite being wounded himself, and fed her it again. She felt the warmth invade her body, wrapping it in a pleasing cocoon away from the pain assaulting her. But she knew it would only last a few minutes at best.

"That was my second last one. I need more. I need anti-poison. A good one, I'd wager. 7-Star Spectres sure are tough. Don't worry. I won't let you die. Just please don't kill me when you wake up, promise?"

Owen stood up. "Well, let's get this other Builder summoned. We need a house, don't you think?"

And so, with the last golden ticket, he ripped it down the middle--and smiled.

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As he summoned the Builder, unlike Cedric, he was a sparkling 3-star. He was a short man, not quite a dwarf, just short. Shorter than Owen, standing at around 5 foot 3 inches. He had huge forearms and a large, curling moustache. He was named Brook. They both bowed.

With Cedric and Draed out hunting, Owen gathered more stone and bricks to help the Builders. Cutting them into perfect rectangles thanks to his ability, then placed them down in front of the still working Builders. As he worked, he figured now was a good time to check the Building Interface. Many structures and rooms made themselves known. He looked at the most vital of them all. The food category.

Food Bunker: Used to chill and keep food as fresh as possible, for as long as possible.

| Bonus: Increases food shelf life by 2x

| Material: Stone x25

| Upgrade (Tier 2): Stone x100, any Tier 2 metal x5

Food Smoking Room: Used to smoke and preserve food, enhancing flavor and extending its shelf life.

| Bonus: Increases food preservation time by 1.5x

| Material: Stone x20, Wood x10

| Upgrade (Tier 2): Stone x80, Tier 2 wood x5

Along with that, were countless other buildings. Like forges, tanneries, woodworking shops, and the list went on. But, where was he going to find wood? Would Tier 2 cacti count? He'd have to test it. He couldn't remember. It had been a long time since Ansel had built anything.

Moving on from that for now, the new builder was startled at his Skill. He praised a god Owen didn't know while trying to kneel down in front of Owen. Owen stopped him, of course.

"Okay, Brook," Owen said to the Builder, who already had a hammer and chisel in hand, he stared at the bricks with feverish motivation. "Make, let's say, 3 buildings. One story. One room. Once you're finished, start on fortifications. I want a wall around 10 feet tall all around the protection dome until you meet the mountain. That should keep you busy for the foreseeable future. You're in command of the Builders."

"Aye, I can do that my lord!"

"Hopefully I'll have more builders soon enough once the Hunter's start taking down some prey to help you out."

"Bah, even with no help, I'll get it done. Praise the Creator!"

Owen scratched his head as Brook left, taking hold of a brick and moving it into a suitable location.

"This whole Lord thing is so confusing," Owen mumbled. "Being in charge of lives… will I ever get used to it? I really hope the Hunters are okay. How are the others doing? Lai, Casp, Louis…"

Feeling his mind begin to jumble, he shook his head. He had to focus. Now, he was responsible for other lives, and soon, there would be a lot more of them. He looked at Pyris and said, "I'll get you better. Hang on until then."

Owen closed his eyes and opened up the Lord's Market. It was a sprawling interface that was the backbone of the Lord's force. The only downside, which was a big one, was that massive tax put in place. That's why many Lord's relied on their own trading caravans in the future to do business. But Owen didn't have that luxury. Not yet, at least.

First off, he had to set a username. Already knowing what he had in mind, he placed it as Lord Talentless, so that the others would know he was alive. He placed an exorbitant offer for one unit of sand, so that it would stay there as a reminder. Owen thought with a grin. It had a nice ring to it. After that, the first thing he did was search for his friends, but didn't see anyone yet. Come on, guys.

After that was done, he put up everything he had for sale. Hide, meat, bones, and organs. The meat sold instantly. Owen wasn't surprised. New lords, depending on where they were placed, had to have food. In a desert, tundra, or jungle, it was difficult to come by food. Food that didn't poison them, anyway.

The hide sold moments after. It was used for carpets, armour, and warmth. The bones were the next to go. And the organs a little while after that. Both of them were used in potions, and bones could also be used for food by extracting the marrow and tools, if need be. But that was for later. Now, they just used them as very cheap food.

He received some credits, but it wasn't nearly enough to purchase all he wanted. He had enough for a basic low-tier health potion, which he quickly bought in case Pyris's condition worsened.

Then, all he had to do was wait until his Hunters returned. Before that, however, Owen started carving into the mountain with Unlimited Plunder. He mined out a section inside, sectioning off areas to be used as bedrooms just in case. It was cooler inside.

With that done, he returned to Pyris's side and sat down as he watched the builders work under the beating sun. He had water ready for them.

"It's a bit cooler over there," Owen said, glancing over at the mountain. "With my Skill, I could create a tunnel system here. If we didn't have to cross the sands all the time, that would be great. I don't want to risk moving you though, in case your wounds worsen." Owen talked to her for a while, telling her this and that about his life back on Earth. Well, his Earth, that was.

About how he'd always procrastinate in his job, always giving minimum effort for minimum wage. He had a boss that looked down on him, coworkers that he didn't know the first thing about, and lived alone in a boring 1 bed apartment. He'd work all day, come home, play some games, have dinner, then go to bed. Only to repeat that same routine every single day.

On the weekend, he'd spend it mostly inside, reading, playing games, or watching countless tv shows. Day by day, his mind would rot, and his motivation to accomplish anything was grinded away into nothing.

"Well," Owen said, chuckling to himself. "I may die here, but at least I'm away from that life, I suppose. Here, I'm responsible for the lives of these people. You. I'll do my best, Pyris."

With a heavy heart, he sighed. He was about to say something else, but the hunters had finally returned. The moment they entered the dome, all the experience of their accomplishments entered his mind. But he wasn't worried about that for now. Cedric was injured.

Owen rushed over, taking out his backpack from his storage, and taking out a first-aid kit. He handed it to Draed. No doubt he had more experience in dressing wounds than he did.

"What happened?" Owen asked, gazing at the gaping would gashed into Cedric's forearm.

"We met with two ravagers at once," Draed said, gathering his breath. "One of them ambushed us."

"Be extra careful next time," Owen reminded them and placed a hand on Cedric's shoulder. "But good job. You killed 2 of them, huh?" he smiled in praise.

Draed nodded. "Next time, we're going to lure them towards the shield. Once they're here, killing them will be a breeze."

"If you can do that, that would be great."

Watching as the wound stopped bleeding on Cedric's arm, Owen turned to the rewards. Both physical, as Shelldon dragged across the sands, and mental, from the System.

Your subordinates have defeated a Dune Ravager x2 (Level 13, 14,)

| Hunter: Draed Level 5 -> Level 8

| Hunter: Cedric Level 1 -> 4

| Owen Taylor Level 10 -> Level 13

Summoning ticket obtained: Warrior (★★★)

A 3-Star warrior, nice! Owen thought, his lips curling. Anything to increase his hunting party's effectiveness was desperately needed.

First, he placed 3 points into Dexterity. The quicker he could move, the safer he'd be. That was the theory, anyway.

Then, focusing on his Hunters, all of them seemed to have a strong distribution to Dexterity. Cedric, however, had a one-to-one split to Strength. For Draed, all points had been placed straight into Dexterity, putting him now at 31 in total. It was quite high.

Not able to wait any longer, Owen ripped the summoning ticket, and the moment the Warrior spawned, Owen took an instinctive step back. Popping out from the void was a tall skeleton around 6 foot 6 inches tall. Judging by the skeleton structure, it was a he, but it felt like an it. Dark green fire spat from within its eye sockets. It knelt down. "This one meets its Lord," it said, its voice hollow and deep. Voice projected like magic.

"Lome," Owen said, hardly able to maintain his excitement. "Please stand."

The skeleton warrior named Lome stood, grabbing hold of its enormous two-handed axe.

Owen focused on its Status and noticed an unusually high Strength stat sitting grandly on 32 even at Level 1. Most likely it was the benefit of its race. Then, Owen looked at Lome's Skills.

Overpower — Mastery: Low

| Description: Utilise stamina to produce an overwhelming attack.

Stalwart Skeleton — Mastery: Low

| Description: As a member of the Giant Undead race, increase Strength and Vitality considerably. Every Level, increase Strength by an extra point.

Owen clicked his tongue in appreciation. Lome would prove to be a beast on the battlefield. And as a skeleton, he had no use for food, no reliance on water, and the heat had no effect on him. He was an unstoppable killing machine. Owen couldn't wait to see him in combat.

"My Lord!" Draed shouted, while sprinting over to Pyris.

Owen's heart dropped as he chased. Owen sprinted over, his heart pounding with fear. He dropped to his knees in the sand, his breath catching as he watched Pyris convulsing violently. Cedric and Draed, the two hunters, were struggling to hold her down, their combined strength insufficient against her thrashing.

Panic surged through Owen as he fumbled for his last remaining health potion–

"My lord," Cedric said, wincing from his own wounded arm. "We need to wait for the seizure to pass."

"But she might die," Owen replied through gritted teeth, desperation in his voice. Was his first domain member going to die just like this? The first thought that hit him was to use Unlimited Plunder on her. But that was madness. He didn't have that kind of control. He had pulled it off against the Dune Ravager, but that was driven by sheer desperation and a burning need to kill the beast. To try it on someone he wanted to keep alive? No way. He couldn't take that risk. Not until he understood his ability more.

"Have some faith, Lord," Brook, the builder, said from the side. "She's a strong one. She'll make it."

"She'll make it," Owen repeated, more to himself than anyone else.

"She will live. And if she doesn't, she will become a powerful undead General. Do not worry, my Lord," Lome also added in an attempt to comfort his Lord. it made him feel worse, if anything.

Finally, Pyris's seizure subsided. Owen carefully fed her the health potion, drop by drop. Her condition improved slightly, the high-quality potion starting to work on her wounds, but it was clear it wouldn't be enough.

If he didn't act quick enough, she was going to die if he didn't act.

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