Chương 149: Chapter 146

They trudged down the mountainside, heading for the nearest town they saw from high up. It was a small town, almost a village, but it had a wall. Granted, even from afar, it could be seen that it was rather rudimentary, but having it entitled the population to call it a town. The team just needed a place where they could rest momentarily and then head off toward the city that the Abyss Vipers called home.

Walking into the town, curious and suspicious looks met them in equal amounts, which made sense, as they couldn't see any players.

'There is a chance we are the first players that ever came to this little town…' Sam mused. Thankfully, the town only had one inn, so their destination was quite clear. They barely took a seat and ordered a meal when the first rube approached them. It was an older man, wearing worn clothing and stereotypically wringing an old hat in his hands while his face was etched with worry.

"E-excuse me? A-are you a-adventurers?" he asked, stuttering a little. Whether from fear or anxiety, was not clear. Dan was the one who answered. He straightened out in his seat, turned to fully face the worried man, and grinned at him.

"Sure we are! Do you need help, sir?" The man rapidly nodded, and the words began to stream from his mouth.

"Yes! Yes! We have these monsters! Goats that can do wicked magic! Can you take care of them?" Dan glanced at them, silently asking if they wanted to join him, but Clarissa just grimaced and even Katie sniffed.

"Goats are boring!" Dan shrugged and turned back to the anxiously waiting man.

"Well, my good sir. It seems you've found your man." He stood up, waved to the team, and began to herd the man away.

"Now, tell me. Do these goats bleat?" The answer was swallowed by the small rush of locals as they besieged their table and soon Sam found himself alone after Katie was dragged away by a forceful grandma who wanted her to take a look at her cats after seeing Puffball and Clarissa was asked to check up on a few people who came down with something.

He quickly inhaled his food and after a minute of rest and a glass of juice made from a local fruit that tasted halfway between pear and apple, he finally opened his status screen and looked over his gains. [You are now Level 55!] [Thanks to your effort, you gained +1 PER, +2 WIS!] [You gained 6 Unassigned status points!] As always, the first task was to assign his points. After a brief thought, he continued with his balanced build. Three went to VIT, two to DEX, and one more to PER.

He was once again getting closer to having fifty in every row aside from Luck. Confirming his choices, Sam then turned toward the skill notifications. [Mana Manipulation is now Level 45!] [Mana Shield is now Level 89!] [Second Skin is now Level 3!] [Mana Tempered Body is now Level 54!] [Synchronization is now Level 5!] [Ethereal Channels is now Level 1!] [Perception Filter is now Level 14!] [Mana Gaze is now Level 19!] [Triple Mana Slash is now Level 9!] [Mana Body Enhancement is now Level 85!] [Mana Attuned Body is now Level 3!] [Mana Disruption is now Level 19!] [Spell Layering is now Level 24!] [Mana Construct is now Level 35!] [Simplicity is now Level 1!] Looking at the great number of skills near a breakthrough, Sam couldn't help but smile a little. A big fight, or maybe a sudden bout of Enlightenment, would increase his power by a large margin. Of course, that made him think of death. Specifically, about how he still hadn't died in the game.

Sam knew that there was some kind of achievement for not dying until level hundred, but the guild who achieved it never released the details. Even so, they only managed it by basically surrounding a guy with a dozen healers and at least two tanks at all times while an elite assassin squad dogged their shadows to make sure nobody got close to the player. He hoped he could achieve it but realistically there was only a very very small chance of that ever happening.

Still, it was a little exciting to think about where and how his first death would happen. [Light Ball III is now Level 9!] [Clean IV is now Level 10!] [You gained the skill Clean V!] [Clean V: Level 0/10 (0%) (Active) Your dedication to cleanliness is very impressive. This spell allows you to clean a greater area than previously. Physical and magical contaminants are easier to clean. Grants further 1, 5% immunity to diseases per skill level. Above a certain level, the spell only weakens contaminants.] [Earth Wall III is now Level 10!] [You gained Earth Wall IV!] [Earth Wall IV: Level 0/10 (0%) (Active) A spell that allows you to create an earth and stone construct in the shape of a wall. You have control over the strength, shape, density, and measurements of the wall. Allows you to strengthen the created wall with extra mana. Allows you to change the wall's shape using mana.] [Ground Shake is now Level 9!] [Electric Spark is now Level 6!] [Water Bullet II is now Level 10!] His elemental skills were also growing nicely. It was a pity that the Water Bullet spell stopped growing, but he barely used it. Mostly to put out a fire or to help Dan set up some ice attack. He expected that his Electric Spark spell would 'suffer' the same fate. However, Clean looked rather promising. The other Sam only managed to get the skill up to Clean III and barely thought about the skill at all. Sam was rather excited to see what happened when he reached Clean X with it.

[Wind Mana Manipulation is now Level 39!] The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. [Aura of Air is now Level 2!] [Greater Wind Affinity is now Level 35!] [Battle Meditation is now Level 9!] [Discernment is now Level 10!] [You gain Improved Discernment!] [Improved Discernment: Level 0/10 (Active) Your eyes are experienced enough that you can gauge the strength of those whom you lay your eyes on. Aside from knowing their mana level, you also get an idea of their affinities.] [Silent Casting is now Level 15!] It was going well. With Improved Discernment, he would get a much clearer image of his enemies. Now if only he could get some kind of danger sense skill… [Spirit Link is now Level 50!] [Thanks to fighting alongside your chosen companion, you gained the subskill, Spirit Defense!] [Spirit Defense: Level 0/5 (0%) (Passive) Your connection with your companion allows the connection to shield your very soul as long as your companion is near you. Increases the defenses of your soul by 5% per skill level.] [Spirit Protection is now Level 3!] Sam stared for a while at the newest subskill he gained.

"Soul protection…" he murmured almost silently as he re-read the text of the skill. There weren't many skills that directly attacked the players' 'souls' as that was mostly the territory of necromancers and most of those people were still playing with zombies, skeletons, and simple abominations. But later… [Advanced Shadow Footwork is now Level 25!] [Silent Shadow (Sword Mastery) is now Level 13!] [Shadow Grace II is now Level 4!] [Shadow Burst II is now Level 10!] [You gained Shadow Burst III!] [Shadow Burst III: Level 0/10 (0%) (Active) Activating the skill increases the speed by 250% plus 25% for each skill level for 10 seconds. Cooldown: 60 seconds.] [Shadow Mirage is now Level 29!] [Shadow Shield II is now Level 13!] [Shadow Cloud is now Level 14!] [Greater Shadow Affinity is now Level 29!] [Shadowstride is now Level 5!] [Solid Shadow is now Level 1!] It would have been nice to get a level-up for Shadow Transformation, but he probably hadn't reached the threshold yet.

It was a pity because Sam was very clear about what came after. [Basic Armor Mastery is now Level 69!] [Resistant Armor is now Level 5!] [Epic Breathing Technique is now Level 4!] [Flow is now Level 64!] [Controlled Flow is now Level 5!] [Surprise Strike is now Level 19!] [Corruption Resistance is now Level 15!] [Elven Language is now Level 7!] [Basic Cryptography is now Level 4!] [Journeyman Runecarver is now Level 18!] [Illusionary Runes are now Level 9!] [Corporeal Illusions is now Level 2!] Finished with his own skills, he turned to Lucky's, who in the intervening time managed to find a gaggle of children and was playing a rather spirited tag with them while one of the younger girls was sitting on his back and gleefully waved a stick around while 'bellowing' her battle cry. [Lucky is now Level 36!] [Shadow Dash is now Level 10!] [Fear Aura is now Level 16!] [Shadow Bite is now Level 5!] Not much, but enough to see that Lucky was also growing both in power and experience.

Sam closed the status screen, finished his drink, and stood up from the table while waving goodbye to the gentleman behind the counter who was, unsurprisingly, cleaning a glass. They spent a little time in the town, named Stonedrop, on the account that when the town was founded a giant stone dropped in the middle of the town. Nowadays, it was used as a memorial for those who were lost to time or war.

The team quickly cleaned up the few quests in the area, to the delight of the locals, but it didn't net them much more than some experience points and increased reputation with the same locals. Though the newly 'born' familiars benefited from the experience gained and managed to gain a few levels. Not enough to be anything more than target practice for anyone competent, but they wouldn't need to be coddled so much.

Dan's Searing Hawk preferred to stay up in the air, only occasionally landing on Dan's head to rest a little. However, the Arcane Swan was a right menace. It followed Clarissa everywhere, and whenever it didn't like somebody (based on something that none of them could pinpoint) the swan would change from being graceful to a honking murder machine. Sam suspected that if the swan could have figured out how to hold a knife, a lot of people would have been bleeding out.

Still, he made a note to keep an eye out for a swan with a knife. They left the town of Stonedrop in high spirits, laden with gifts of fruits, vegetables, mince pies, and a few bottles of locally brewed hooch. Storing them away, they began their surprisingly short journey toward the marshes within the border of the Emerald Kingdom. It was as if the game was listening to them… The closer they got to the marshes, the murkier everything got.

An ever-present fog hung in the area, and Sam could tell there was some kind of natural mana that mixed in with the fog that probably prevented it from vanishing. Their target was the aptly named Marshgate, a town at the edge of the marsh, protecting the kingdom from those that lurked in the swamps. It was also home to the Abyss Vipers, who according to the forums were the undisputed rulers of the area after they managed to backstab, blackmail and just straight up stab everyone.

As they entered the city, paying a few coppers as entry tax, they could see the green viper symbol everywhere. The people weren't unhappy, but just like the murkiness of the area, the people also radiated a kind of swampy aura. Players they could see could be generally sorted into three groups. First, the players belonging to the Vipers, proudly wearing the symbol on their armor or clothing, practically lording it over everybody. The second group were the transient players who were in the town just to restock.

They didn't much care for the state of things and simply hurried from one shop to the next. The third group of players were those who wanted to play in the area but didn't join the guild, or belonged to another guild. They always looked a little paranoid, as if any time somebody could show up and sink a dagger between their ribs. Which, when speaking about the Abyss Vipers, who were all-around bastards, was a real possibility.

"Remember. In and out. We don't want any trouble!" he told the others. Dan nodded a little nervously, Clarissa was stone-faced and Katie looked really excited. Finding the fracture wasn't hard, as the guild was advertising it everywhere. No doubt because it was a major moneymaker for the Vipers. And as they got closer, they could see why. There were signs everywhere proclaiming the rules.

"Sixty percent of the materials?" Clarissa asked, outraged.

"Are they crazy?" Sam just shrugged.

"For now, they can get away with it. Marshgate is a nothing town next to a marsh nobody likes. But as soon as the government back in the capital gets wind of it…" he answered leadingly. Clarissa nodded thoughtfully and continued looking around.

"Still a lot of people around…"

"They are probably hiding the materials…"

"Heh…" They stepped in the line waiting to enter the fracture. The portal itself was half submerged in swampy water and surrounded by the rotted remains of what had once been a giant tree. As soon as it was their turn, the guard at the fracture – a player – took a simple look at them, taking in the two visible familiars and the quality of their items, and spoke up.

"Fiv…ty gold coins to enter!" he declared with a victorious smirk. Sam just quirked an eyebrow and paid the amount without batting an eye. The goon may have thought that he was clever, but the demons inside were worth much more to Sam than some coins.

"Here is your bag!" the goon quickly vanished the gold coins into his inventory as if afraid Sam would ask for it and threw a rather shabby-looking holding bag at them.

"And don't forget! The tax is sixty percent! Sixty and not six!"

"Got it," Sam replied calmly with a placid smile.

"Can we go in?"

"Er, yeah, sure!" the goon said while moving aside. Sam reached out and made contact with the fracture [You are entering a new fracture!] [Fracture: The stump that stumped the swamp] [A Fracture at the edge of a marsh. It hides many things, mostly mud and dirty water. It is regularly being delved so there is no chance for a monster break.] [Time Limit: ---] [Charges: Unlimited] Sam chose to enter and in the next blink, they were awash in rainbow colors as the team was transported inside the fracture.

Unsurprisingly, they found themselves in a swamp. A rather dark swamp, where the trees were tall, and their crowns covered most of the sky, only occasionally letting through a stray light beam. The ever-present fog was also there, swirling around them, but leaving a rather sizeable area visible to them. The ground was muddy, but there was an actually visible path through the swamp where the ground looked much more solid.

"Keep an eye out for ambushes and have fun!" Sam declared as he brandished his sword. Clarissa stayed put, but instantly different types of buffs began to envelop them. Meanwhile, fire began to hover around Dan and Katie was warming up with a few swings of her giant sword.

To their luck, they didn't even have to take more than a few steps forward on the narrow but thankfully solid path before the surface of the swamp water broke, and a humanoid being, covered in mud and all sorts of watery plants, roared at them as it jumped out of the water with a spear made of bone in its hand. The poor guy was bisected and then burned to ashes a second later.

"Cool, they count as demons…" Sam said as he kept an eye on his quest screen. He closed the screen and gave the others a nod.

"Let's destroy this swamp!"