Title hidden
{Advanced dead language: Increases your dead language skill to lvl 7}
{Record of purple portals: Year 1099-1109}
{Record of purple portals: Year 1109-1119}
{100 different ways to use alchemy: Able to learn how to craft health potion lvl 1, greater health potion lvl 1, stamina potion lvl 1, greater stamina potion level 1, strength potion level 1, greater strength potion level 1, mana potion level 1, greater mana potion level 1, speed potion level 1, greater speed potion level 1, dexterity potion level 1, greater dexterity potion level 1, vigor potion level 1, greater vigor potion level 1, antidote level 1, greater antidote level 1, breathing potion level 1, greater breathing potion level 1, resistance potion level 1, greater resistance potion level 1}
The book also detailed ways to find and grow the required ingredients to make the potions. Sky could learn the book on the spot but he planned to give it to Jules so she can read over it.
The record of purple portals are records of the types of portals exterminators have found inside, containing details from the environment, the monsters, the boss, and finally the rewards at the end.
As Sky continued browning through the books two notifications popped up in front of him.
{Able to learn: Ritual sacrifice: lvl 1}
{Unable to learn: Slave contract: lvl 1: Requires lvl 9 dead language}
{Ritual sacrifice lvl 1: Steal 10% of a random stat from the sacrifice}
{Description: By sacrificing the life of another you are able to steal one of six random stats and claim it as your own. The sacrifice will die after the ritual is performed}
{Note: The sacrifice WILL NOT YIELD any experience or items}
{Requirements: Player needs to touch the sacrifice to activate the skill. It takes one full minute for the skill to be complete. Sacrifice must be in a weakened state as any type of resistance from the sacrifice will cancel the skill}
{Slave contract: With your high understanding of the dead language you are able to write and create a slave contract that will bound anyone to you}
Sky immediately took the two books with him. Just by reading their description it was obvious that they were amazing.
He continued to browse through the library in search of more books.
Meanwhile…
Jericho and Jay were listening attentively to the lecture that turned out to be better than they expected.
The lecturer had just returned from a short bathroom break.
"Sorry about that, the milk did not sit well right. Now, to end the lecture I will be talking about the dead language. The dead language is more than just a language, it's power. Who here owns a slave or more or has family members that own slaves? Raise your hand."
More than eighty percent of the entire classroom had their hands up.
"That's less than I expected. But there are two types of slaves, those who are not bound by a slave contract, and those who are bound by a slave contract. I'm sure you all remember the piece of paper that has the slave bound to his/her owner, correct?"
Many of them nodded, including non-slave owners.
"But I am sure many of you realized that the piece of paper is written in the dead language, that's because someone wrote that, someone who is very adept in the language and has at least studied the language for thirty years. It doesn't come out of a portal as some believe."
Someone raised their hand.
"Yes?"
"Why is it that not all slaves are bound by the contract?"
"Because the dead language is not only powerful and hard to master, but it is very risky. One can easily die if they make a mistake in writing it. I've seen a couple of them write a wrong symbol or letter and they either die or become a vegetable. It is why only high quality slaves are under a slave contract."
Jericho, unable to contain her curiosity, raised her hand.
"Yes, you in the back?"
"Can a slave under a contract break free somehow?"
"If they're in a contract their freedom is as good as gone, but it is possible, in fact there are a number of ways: the master can free the slave from its contract, or the master dies, or someone breaks the contract. The most common method I've seen is a slave will attempt to trick its master and make them fall in love with them. The master will then free the slave which will then flee or kill its master, usually both."
"How can someone break a contract?"
"Well… contracts cannot be physically damaged. If someone rips the contract it fixes itself, throws it in a volcano and it is unaffected. So the only way for someone to break it is if someone is very skilled at the dead language, they can rewrite the contract and free the slave or even reverse the roles of master and slave."
"Is there a way to avoid that from happening?" Jericho asked.
"Actually, yes. Keep the contract hidden, no matter how far the contract is from the master and slave, they're still bound together. In fact the most common method to make sure a slave never breaks free from its contract is to go into a collapsing portal, and leave the contract behind in the collapsing portal, and the contract will never be seen again, but the master and slave will still be bound to one another."
Everyone silently talked to each other. Both Jericho and Jay saw each other and nodded to one another.
"As I was saying before we got off topic, you would be surprised what one can do with the dead language, it isn't just limited to slave contracts but can also-"
*Riiiiinnng* *Riiiiinggg* *Riiiiiiinnng*
The sound of the alarm could be heard everywhere in the school. Everyone in the class immediately got up to leave. The lecturer took out some cards that transformed into books.
"Guess that's the end of class. I won't be back until next month but check out my book that's on sale and autographed by yours truly! My books go into more precise details about portals, stats, and the dead language."
There was a small line that was being formed in front of the lecturer but not as many as he had expected. He was kind of expecting his books to sell a lot for all the time and work he has put in it, but nothing ever goes as planned.
Jay and Jericho also stood in line wanting to buy a book for themselves. They felt that they could benefit a lot from this book of his.
Meanwhile…
Sky heard the bell. The library would still be open a few hours after school is done.
'There are so many books here but rarely do I see anything that interests me. I know if I were to read all these books my intelligence stat and probably mind stat would increase, but it's nothing compared to using scrolls.'
After looking for a long time Sky left with the few books he 'took' that are safely stored in his inventory.
As Sky was leaving someone used a skill on him.
{Search: is being used on the player}
People have stolen books from the library in the past, which is why there is always someone stationed behind the desk that has a search skill to find those people who steal. It is a common practice in most stores.
Seeing that Sky carried no books or cards on him, the girl sitting behind the desk went back to reading her book.
Sky walked back to his apartment. To his surprise both Jericho and Jay were already there reading a book and eating snacks.
"Oh, Captain!"
"Hey, Sky."
"Hey guys." Sky sat down on the ground to rest and let out a relaxing moan. He just walked for eight hours straight browsing through books, and he did not even browse through all the books in the library.
"Rough day?"
"Kinda. I just wanna do nothing for the whole day."
"Same."
"What are you guys reading?"
*Knock* *Knock*
Sky could sense one person behind the door.
"Who is it?"
"The Caribbean. Open up!"
'Hm, that voice sounds familiar.' Sky stood up, and to his surprise he saw Luciel.
"Oh, it's you." Luciel said.
"Hey… did we do something wrong?" Sky asked.
"We're about to find out." Luciel walked in, took off her shoes, and sat down on the couch.
"I'm here to ask a few questions to all of you, especially you, Jericho Haydie."
Jericho pointed to herself out of reflex.
Luciel took out a piece of paper and rad from it. "I know your story from this report: six months ago your father left your family with a massive debt, ran away, was found dead, and your family was given one year to pay back that debt. But this man, Sky… how do you pronounce your last name? Rogue?"
"Rouge."
"Rouge… Sky Rouge was able to pay off this debt out of nowhere. He's not from a rich family, his family owns a small store and an island that was… it says here got destroyed by a meteor? Anyways, Sky is not rich, is weak, barely started clearing dungeons, and there is no record of him attaining the money from anywhere. That's the weird part for all of us, where did the money come from?" Luciel looked at Sky with a serious look.
{Eye of truth is being used on the player}
"I didn't do anything illegal to obtain the money if that's what you're saying. I sold the stuff we got from clearing portals and that's how we got most of the money."
"Most? Where did the rest come from?"
"Some came from the tournament I won a few days ago, I got ten million from that, even got a mermaid out of it, and their eyes sell for a lot."
"I see. It does correspond with the report here. But who did you sell all these items to? How many people did you sell them to?"
"I don't know his name. All he goes is by "the Merchant" he appears time from time, we sell him our stuff for a fair price."
"You sold all your stuff to a single man?" Luciel looked at him with doubt.
"Basically… yes."
"I know you're telling the truth but I find that hard to believe."
"I also did some odd jobs for him. He gave us money for it, and he was extra generous because he was sympathetic with Jericho and wanted to help her. We all wanted to help her."
Luciel thought long and har. No matter what she knew Sky was telling the truth.
Sky told her the truth but did not want to expose everything and left out a lot of important stuff. If they knew how he got the money there was no telling what they would do to him.
After two hours Luciel stepped out of the apartment room.
"Your stories are all true and practically the same. But we still need you three to stay here tonight and you can leave tomorrow morning."
"Thanks, officer."
"There is one more question I have for you, Jericho." Luciel crouched to meet Jericho's line of sight. "How did you and Sky meet?"
"He… saved me, saved my life. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for him. He not only saved my life but also helped my family." Jericho stepped beside Sky and held his shirt.
Luciel let out a small chuckle to see someone act so innocent.
"I'll be leaving now. Good day."
Everyone waved goodbye at her and when she was gone they all sighed in relief.
"I don't even know why I'm glad she's gone. We didn't do anything bad… did we?" Jay looked at Sky.
"Not to your knowledge." Sky smiled coyly.
"..." Jay.
"Oh, Sky, we brought you this." Jericho ran to the other side of the room to bring Sky a book. The book had over 400 pages in total.
"Oh, thanks. Oh wow it's even signed! What is it about?"
"Read it and you'll find out." With a coy smile Jericho sat down knowing Sky would like it.
Flipping through the first couple of pages Sky realized this book contained valuable information about portals, stats, and the dead language.
Before he realized it he had already read through half of the entire book.
"Thank you, guys. This is really helpful."
Both Jericho and Jay smiled feeling smug.
Sky took out a few books from his inventory. The ones he could learn he instantly learned and the books disappeared.
{Dead language: lvl 5 → lvl 7: Able to fully understand purple scrolls and a bit of black scrolls}
{Learned: Ritual sacrifice: lvl 1}
{Description: In their search to become the strongest as fast as possible, the ones who created the ritual sacrifice lost their lives as they attempted to hasten their progress. It is said those who look to steal the power of others will realize there is always a price to pay}
'System, should I be worried about using the ritual sacrifice?'
{Use it and find out}
Sky closed his eyes and lied down.
'If I think about it I am also cheating my way through this. I have this weird system that helps me become stronger and rich than most people could dream of, yet I have never paid a price for it. Is there a price for all this? Right, system?'
{There is always a price for everything and there are many ways to pay it: money, life, time, and effort. Everything you have achieved till now is because of your sacrifice, effort, luck, and choices. It's just that the system gives more than it takes. If you had just stayed with your parents you wouldn't be as strong as you are now, then again there is nothing wrong with wanting to live a simple life}
'Oh, I get it now.'
Meanwhile…
Boris was eating in his ship comfortably with a beautiful violinist playing beside him.
'I know I complain about this job but it's times like these I am grateful for it.' Boris smiled as he dipped a piece of steak in sauce.
"We brought him here, Captain."
Two of his men brought the merman, Free'd, to him in chains.
"Hm… leave us alone." Boris looked at his men and the violinist.
Once everybody left it was just Boris and Free'd alone.
Free'd looked down not wanting to move or look at Boris.
"You know… Free'd, times like this I would usually cut a deal with your kind, but it saves me so much trouble since you're under a slave contract, and now you're mine. Pick this up." Boris placed down a piece of paper, the same piece of paper used to turn Free'd into a slave.
Seeing this it was clear Boris was now his master. His own body moved and picked up the piece of paper and handed it to Boris.
"I already know what Edgar told me about you and your sister, about the location of the Nightmare sword."
Free'd clenched his fists.
"But… I just don't believe that yet. I mean I have heard hundreds of similar stories, like yours, and every single time I delve deeper into these stories the more plot holes I find, and by the end they were just making it up. So tell me why are you different? What makes you so sure you know the location of the Nightmare sword?"
"My… great-great-great… something grandfather and my uncle were there when they killed Nightmare."
"Wait, is your last name Ikin?"
"No, it's Mayfeather. Ikin was my ancestor's last name before their descendants changed it."
"Oh, now that's interesting, and you're telling the truth. I thought that the Nightmare sword was thrown in a portal and was lost for good?"
"No, it's still here…. Somewhere."
"Somewhere? So you don't know the actual location?"
"No, my sister does… did. My ancestor was the one who told her before he passed away."
"Shit… only your sister knows?"
Free'd nodded.
"And she's already fucking dead. Great, just great."
Free'd clenched his fists out of anger. To think his sister was dead.
"What about your parents? Or other siblings?"
"I don't have other siblings. And my parents also don't have a clue."
"Tell me everything you know. But first." Boris stood up and exited the room, he walked up to his men.
"Everyone! We are going to God's Paradise right this instant!"
"Yes, sir!" Without hesitation or question everyone quickly and hastily prepared the ship for departure.
Boris walked inside his room and sat in front of Free'd.
"Free'd, I heard from some people that your sister is dead. This kid who won her in the tournament, Sky, needed a lot of money and took out her eyeballs to sell it. I am sure she's dead already but I want to be sure. Will you be able to recognize her if you see her in her human state?"
Free'd nodded. He didn't know if he should be happy that his sister is alive. If she were alive what fate would befall her?
"We have about two days before we reach God's Paradise. So tell me everything you know
Meanwhile…
Sky, Jay, and Jericho were all sitting in the living room reading books.
"This is relaxing compared to clearing portals… I mean dungeons." Jay said with his feet dangling in the air.
"Mhm." Jericho agreed.
*Knock* *Knock*
Sky stood up and opened the door. To his surprise he saw one of the most powerful men on the island standing in front of him.
{Lucious Vanstrung}
{HP: 4.1m/4.1m}
{Mana: 2.5m/2.5m}
"Hello, there." Lucious kneeled down to see Sky at eye level.
Sky was average for his height. But Lucious was very tall, standing proudly at seven feet tall and nearing eight.
"Your name is… Sky, right?" Lucious asked with a creepy smile.
"Yes, I am. Is everything okay?"
All of Lucious' stats are between 400k-700k, not as high as Xero's but still ridiculously high.
"Relax, I'm here to bring you to the tower. I'm under direct orders by Xero to bring you with me." Lucious grabbed Sky's arm and both teleported away.
Jericho and Jay stood up and were left stunned, unsure of what to do.
"He just took Sky!"
"Can we even do anything about that?" Jay said.
Both of them knew they were far outmatched. All they could do was hope and wait.
Sky found himself inside the tower. They were in a room with just the both of them.
"So… we found nothing that proves you did anything bad to find the money, which is sad since I really wanted the money. So that leaves the question, how exactly did you get it?" Lucious asked him, serious.
Sky was about to say something but he felt a suffocating presence, and he felt heavy. Just now the entire room is trembling.
{Player is being pressured by mana}
Lucious was releasing his mana at the room to show Sky just how much stronger he is in comparison.
"The only reason I am not using a slave contract on you is because I am afraid of Xero. So tell me how did you get it? And don't play games with me or else I'll be breaking bones. You can scream as much as you want but no one will hear you. You are on the 500th floor, no one comes here."
Sky realized that Lucious was here not as a Caribbean officer but as a greedy bastard.
"Like I said, I got it by clearing portals."
Lucious flicked his finger and broke Sky's shoulder and sent him flying back..
{Received 1,000 damage: 30% nullified → 700 damage received}
{Right arm is unusable}
It was so sudden Sky could not process the pain fast enough to react.
"Yeah, I already saw the reports, but I don't believe that at all even though I know you're telling the truth. So tell me exactly how you got it? It's not possible for such a weak crew to find it."
Sky could not tell him about Jericho or the system, both are secrets no one should know.
Sky stood up with his arm dangling. He was setting with rage but there was nothing he could do.
Just then, he got an idea.
"Okay, okay, I'll tell you but… you will not believe me even if I told you." Sky said weakly, and submitted to him.
"Try me."
"Truth is, there is a man who gives me quests and he has a lot of money on him. It's because of him I got the money. And he has a lot of valuable items on him, you can take them if you like."
"Yeah, I read that report from Luciel, but you said he doesn't always appear?"
"Yes, he appears at random times, but I have a method to call him. Want to meet him?"
"Right now? Heh, I'd like to see that?" Lucious folded his arms.
"But, if I show you can you promise not to hurt me or my crew members?"
"Call out your friend and I'll think about it."
Sky took out a blue scroll.
Lucious's eyes were wide open as he was beyond shocked. Sky pulled out an item from thin air, and it's a never seen before blue scroll. He ripped it and threw the scroll on the ground.
A tiny shop appeared in the apartment along with the Merchant.
"SKY!" The Merchant waved his arms at him.
Lucious was stunned. Sky pointed at an item in the store.
"See that item? You can take it if you promise to leave me alone."
Looking at the item Sky was pointing at, Lucious was even more stunned than before. Before his eyes he saw the legendary black scroll.
Even as a kid he had long heard of the black scrolls, said to contain infinite power, power from the Gods themselves.
His mind went blank, only thinking about the scroll and reaching out to it.
'Dash. Rejuvenation.' Sky thought.
{Speed is increased by 65% for ten minutes}
{100 HP recovered. RIght arm is completely healed}
There is a tiny wind forming behind Sky.
{Wind runner is activated: Increases speed by 50% while active}
Lucious could sense Sky was preparing for something but he wasn't worried. Sky could not even touch him, much less hurt him.
"Hohohoho! No wonder you got so rich! With this Xero will step down and I'll be the strongest one here." He grabbed the black scroll and took it off the wall.
{THIEF DETECTED!}
Just then a lightning bolt appeared out of nowhere and struck Lucious. Lucious didn't even see it coming.
If one were to tell Lucious he would be struck by lightning he would laugh at their faces. At his strength, natural lightning was slower than he was and it could not even hurt him.
But the lightning bolt was special, it was the system's lightning bolt. It depleted the thief's mana and 99% of their total HP.
{HP: 41,000/4.1m}
Lucious was sent far back and crashed through many layers of walls.
'Lightning aura!' Sky quickly ran towards Lucious.
{Lightning aura: Increases speed by 100% and deals damage to anyone around you depending on your mind stat}
'Curse of death!'
{Target cannot be affected by curse of death}
'What? Dammit! Sloth.'
{Target has been slowed down by 70%}
'So curses do work! Poison eye.'
{Dealing 180 damage to target per second}
'Curse of weakness.'
{Target cannot be affected by curse of weakness}
'What? Oh, I get it now.'
Sky deduced that Lucious must be wearing something that protects him from any non-evolved curses, which is why his sloth curse worked but the other two didn't.
Still this is exactly what Sky had in mind. He knew he could never beat him, which is why he is using this trick to help him. Even if his HP is at 1% and his mana is completely depleted he is still a major threat.
Right now there are three options, kill Lucious, transform him into a card, or use the sacrificial lamb skill on him.
Using the sacrificial lamb would increase on his stats dramatically, but he would need to wait an entire minute for it to activate. If Lucious were to resist, the skill would be canceled and Sky would be in trouble.
Sky thought about killing him, but one time he tried to kill this person with almost almost seven thousand vigor, and his naginata blade could barely cut through his neck because of their difference in stats, he could only imagine Lucious, with a vigor stat of 410k wouldn't even feel his attacks, not to mention he still had 41k HP left.
Sky rushed to Lucious and even began teleporting which only made him faster.
Lucious's body landed on the floor, unable to process what just happened. He grabbed Sky, threatened him, saw a black scroll, got struck by lightning, and now he was looking at a ceiling.
"What just happened?" Lucious was trying to understand it all. He also felt incredibly heavy, he recognized this feeling from being cursed by it thousands of times, but this curse was stronger than he ever felt.
Not only that but he felt he was poisoned.
Then he saw Sky appear in front of him. He recognized that technique Sky used, teleportation, something that can only be found inside a purple scroll.
He was also taking damage from the lightning aura.
'Mana grace!'
{Mana is increased and recovered by 60% for ten minutes}
{Mana: 11,330/11,568}
'Health boost!'
{Shield of vigorous talent {10,000+ HP when held} {Ability: Health boost: Increase max HP by 100% for ten minutes: 1 day cooldown}
{HP: 45,100/45,700}
Sky touched Lucious' forehead with the tip of his finger.
'Card sealing technique!'
{Insufficient mana! Target is too powerful to seal}
'YOU'VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!'
Sky ran so fast expecting it to work but he flew away. Not wanting to fight him, Sky quickly jumped to higher floors to escape by making holes on the roof.
"Placing all stat points on speed!}
{Stat points: 37 → 0}
{Spd: 300 → 337}
Lucious stood up and wiped the rubble from his body. He sat down on the floor and began thinking about his next move.
"Interesting. He has some things I have never seen or heard and he managed to hurt me this much and deplete my mana."
He wasn't worried about his mana. With his high mind stat he could recover his entire mana in eight minutes.
"And I can't let him go or else there's no telling what Xero might do to me. And this slowness curse is more powerful than I have ever experienced. This is both interesting and annoying."
Sky quickly jumped to the next floor. Floor 510, 520, 530, 540...
Title: RUN!