CH10: Karma

We opened a set of black doors covered in crimson veins to see a hill bathed in sunlight. The cabin walls had been painted with such detail that they created an optical illusion. It appeared that we were at the edge of a pond covered in glowing golden Sol lotuses surrounding a green hill. Obelisk sat in his armor before a woman in identical armor. Our party member's hands were on the ground, and the water shimmered from an unseen force.

Swarm grabbed my shoulder before I could move closer. "If we get close, we'll die."

Obelisk gripped a helmet shaped like a dragon's head in his hands. "It has already happened. We were here watching just like this before. But, like then, we couldn't interfere. To do so would betray his pride." The water began to churn, and bubble as waterspouts slowly rose from the water.

"You said we'll die. Is Obelisk that strong?" I asked.

"Normally, I'm stronger, but at this moment, no one is stronger than Obelisk."

"Who is she?"

"Obelisk's own tragedy. She was the woman he loved and destined to die at his hands. Her clan ordered her to kill him, and her armor forced her to do it. Cursed armor, once bonded with someone, can become attached to its host. It devoured her body and pushed her to kill him so she might survive."

An aura of crimson covered them both. Obelisk put the helmet on and waved his hand. A stream of water sliced up through the hill and took one of the woman's arms. Metal needles shot out from the lost limb and her stump to reattach the limb, only for Obelisk to ignite his saber. The red blade burned the air as the water around the dragon-helmed warrior evaporated.

"You look just like her." Even after decades, I haven't forgotten her face. My angel was perfect, but you aren't her. Of course, she would not have fallen for such a weak attack, but that isn't the point of this nightmare. My trauma wasn't from her power. Instead, she made me work for it." He slashed his blade, and the nightmare's head rolled down the hill. The man raised his hand and her body crumpled in on itself. Blood and guts exploded from the stump of her neck as her body was crushed by an unseen force.

Obelisk turned his attention to us. "Did you have fun fucking your sister Samson?" The man turned his gaze to me. "You've proven more resilient than I thought. Good, I want to see what fate plans for you. If it's anything like I experienced, this party is the right place for you."

"If you want my advice. Never learn prophetic skills or listen to prophets. They are nothing but trouble." After seeing numerous examples of that, I couldn't help but agree with Samson.

Obelisk leaped off the hill and landed on top of the water. "You two have been hogging our new member's mentorship. Let me teach him something neat. I've seen you anchor yourself to the ground, but you can also spread your surface area to stand on water. Of course, some people harden the water under their feet or made stilts."

I took a step forward, and Ariel grabbed my shoulder. "Master, this is the water of the Blood River. Touching it will mutate your body until you're just another dungeon monster."

"If you can't master this simple application of aura, then you have no business going deeper into the dungeon with us. Show me your potential, or leave while you're ahead." Obelisk said.

I looked over to see Swarm about to protest before Samson stopped her. "He's right; this is something he must learn to move forward."

My aura erupted around me as I gathered its full power. Then a blue wave snuffed out my aura. "No, you can't call upon your full aura all the time. Do this without a full manifestation?"

Slowly, I concentrated on my qi without gathering my aura. My power had increased significantly since coming here, and with every new level, my potential grew. If I went back to hard training now, I would gain far more stats and skill levels. The Hyper Mystic Ground Dragon sect would help me do just that.

I lowered my foot and touched the clear water with my boot. The water looked innocent; my eyes couldn't perceive anything wrong with it. However, it was like placing my foot in a raging inferno to my qi sense. When I looked at the water, I could perceive numerous possible mutations, leading my body to become more suited to life in the river.

When my qi touched the water, I felt dirty. So, I pushed against it, rejecting the water in its entirety. Then, my qi extended around my body and instinctively formed a seal. That hadn't happened before.

New Skill

Rejection lvl1 – An automatic reaction that pushes disgusting or unclean objects away from the users.

Buoyancy lvl1 – By pushing down with extreme force, water will naturally push back, allowing the user to float.

I could feel the water push back against my body as I put more weight on my foot. To my astonishment, the water felt like a solid surface. With the dexterity of a newborn fawn, I took another step and balanced myself. The water wasn't even getting my boots wet. Nothing was mutating me today.

Obelisk walked over to my side, placed a hand on my shoulder then pushed me over. I stumbled, trying to find my footing and crashed into the water.

Rejection lvl2 – An automatic reaction that pushes disgusting or unclean objects away from the users.

Buoyancy lvl2 – By pushing down with extreme force, water will naturally push back, allowing the user to float.

Even as my face pressed against the water's surface, I wasn't wet. Not a drop of water touched me. "That is an interesting approach. It's more like a psychic warrior than a vampire slayer. So what job did you end up with?"

"Monk of Destruction," I said.

Obelisk let out a low whistle. "That's the worst lie I've ever heard, but it sounded very believable. No one gets the monk of destruction job from their first rank up. Nobles try, but there is always a prerequisite that illudes them. Trust me when killing vampires isn't one of them. You need a divine weapon to qualify, and those don't just drop in dungeons." I stared down at Nirvana. "I'm more inclined to believe your pants are divine than the gun. Divine weapons are rarely in the shape of weapons at all." Obelisk tapped his helmet. "This armor is a divine weapon; it has a mind of its own and is choosy about its wielder. Your gun isn't like that, from what I've seen."

I blinked, remembering what had happened hours ago. Nirvana filled me with a sense of peace, and I didn't want to listen to it. But, peace or not, I wasn't a liar. My weapon grew a little heavier and sent over a feeling of exasperation.

Samson saved the day. "Maybe the nobles are wrong about needing a divine weapon. It might be a prerequisite for later ranks but not early ones. He also killed some mobs 300lvls above him and survived their attacks. Any of that could have contributed; it's not like jobs prerequisites are listed."

I sent a feeling of my own to Nirvana. This isn't about the world. I wouldn't care if strangers called me a liar. These were members of my party. What they thought mattered to me because I considered them my seniors. Nirvana blasted me with a feeling of understanding and became lighter than before.

The gun was much more responsive now, and I was getting a handle on its personality and ideals. I didn't know why the dungeon dropped a divine weapon of all things or how it had it. Maybe the gun was too difficult to deal with normally. It nearly killed me earlier. More peaceful feelings flowed into me, almost reducing my thoughts to nothingness.

"Shouldn't we go save Majorian from his nightmare?" I said.

The doors to Majorian's nightmare were blown off their hinges as the man himself stepped through. In the room behind him, I saw countless metallic creatures with wings the color of dawn. Their bodies were cut into numerous pieces, and circlets of gold-lined Majorian's right gauntlet like fancy bracelets. The man himself looked a little worse for wear.

"It took longer than I thought to put the nightmares down. Their regeneration was a problem." Majorian said.

"Are those the thieving fallen deities of the Metanites and their creator god?"

"They are called messengers, and it appears that in my nightmare, they achieved their designs. Both the crown of the sun and wings of the sky were stolen from Sol Invictus." I clutched at the jade pendant under my armor. It had been cut into a circle to symbolize my devotion to Sol Invictus, brother of Loon's patron deity Luna and Aurora, goddess of dawn. Without Sol Invictus, the world as we know it would come to an end.

"Is that why you came to this dungeon?" I asked.

"We're here for the godly fruit guarded by Dagon. By consuming it, our Karma will change." Majorian said.