Chương 11: Advising Administrator.

The door slammed shut.

"You should consider spreading your stats more evenly, dumping everything in resonance is not safe or smart." Talvik lectured her.

"Stupid bipedals, you just don't get it."

"How can you even see my status screen?" Nythera mumbled.

"Look, Aether Bombard and synchronized thunder are both extremely flux intensive spells and they haven't even ascended once yet!" Nythera said.

"There is a rarely used pure-flux path that was used in the past more, but it requires you to accumulate as much attunement as possible, which means you need titles, which means you need to beat this dungeon, alone. You will need to take on far more dangerous challenges at a consistent rate to get enough attunement, 30 or 40 should be enough" Talvik said. 40 attunement? This bird is crazy.

"Alright I get it Talvik" Nythera grumbled. She proceeded back through the first caverns, finding them in the same state they left it, but oddly all the corpses were gone. Guess the dungeon has to clean up somehow. The next room's layout was completely different, much like last time, there were pillars going from floor to ceiling, but unlike last time huge pools of water lay around each pillar. She crouched down near the entrance and carefully inched forwards, searching for any sign of movement.

Talvik flew off her shoulder and circled around the room, deftly weaving between the pillars before landing back on her shoulder.

"I can't see any enemies behind the pillars or rocks." Talvik reported. Nythera stood up fully and walked around "How strange, maybe this room hasn't recovered yet? But the layout is entirely different from the last time" Nythera said to herself. As she investigated the chamber, the water in several spots by the pillars began to ripple.

"Ah fuck it, no way, what's it gonna be aquatic rats this time?" she groaned. Nythera backed away from the rippling pillars with haste and watched as a monstrosity emerged. It had huge buck teeth and whiskers and strange fin appendages on the side.

"SQUEEE" it roared and began flopping towards her, stumbling on its two tiny legs.

"Hahahaha is this supposed to be a threat, don't tell me this is the guardian?" Nythera bowled over with laughter.

"Child, pay attention to your surroundings". Talvik scolded. She looked up to see a giant two headed lobster crawl out of the central pool. Its claws were warped and mutated. Instead of two pincers, they had four on each claw and each big enough to crush her. Nythera ran backwards as it lunged, dodging behind a pillar. Lobster claws encircled the pillar and snapped shut, crushing stone and ripping it completely out of the floor and ceiling.

If I get caught by that I am dead, no amount of constitution will protect me. She ran back towards the entrance and manifested her bombard. Flux: 1, 677/2, 054 Ok, this is workable, just like before, hit it from a distance until it doesn't move.

"Fire!" A shell rocketed forwards, straight into the lobster, pieces of chipped chitin flying off. As the dust cleared, Nythera took stock of the decimation she had caused, gleefully anticipating the carnage. The lobster was completely unharmed and still rampaging forward, the few pillars in its way didn't seem to slow it down much. This damn reload time! Nythera scrambled up the passage leading to the upper caverns.

"Fire!"

"Fire!". The bombard shell screamed as she fled, but the thundering steps of the lobster never relented. She turned back to see it, forcing its way into the passage, her bombard jammed up against its underside, cannon facing up into its shell.

"Fire, Fire, Fire, Fire!" She kept screaming hysterically as if saying it more would negate the reload time. Talvik had long since flown off, to where, she didn't know. The ringing of cannon against chitin deafened her, the first shot recoiling off the shell, but the next shot, nearly a minute later, went straight through the weakened area, bursting out of the top side in an explosion of flesh and guts. A pained alien chittering called out.

Nythera pushed her way up the tunnel and came face to face with James, axe in hand.

"Thank Kronan, help! There's a giant lobster monster down there." she cried.

"Yeah I can hear the beastie, get your ass back down there and kill it… or die trying" James said, brandishing his axe.

"What, what are you talking about James, it'll kill me, it's right at the entrance" Nythera pleaded.

"Get your ass down there, candidate, prove your legend or die in failure" James spat, pulling the axe up as if to strike. Talvik swooped in from behind, clawing James' neck and pecking his head. His axe came down haphazardly, but fast. She blocked it. With her arm. OWWWWWWWWWWWWWW She screamed, clutching at her bloody arm.

"AHHH! Get this fucking thing off me" James said, falling backwards.

"Fire Fire!" She shouted on impulse, just to remember that the cannon was still jammed under a lobster. She grabbed Jame's legs with her good arm pulled as hard as she could. He slammed hard into the ground.

"You fucking bitch, I'll throw your body in the sea" James swore, his axe swinging wildly into the walls, searching for a fleshy purchase. She reached for the dagger on her belt, yanked it out of its sheath and stabbed down randomly. It sank into something soft several times. Giant-slayer roared within her, giving her limbs and mind strength. James screamed. All before her was blood and dirt and a writhing mass of screaming clothing.

"Fire Fire Fire" She kept screaming as she stabbed and stabbed hysterically. Cannon fire echoed off the walls occasionally, blurring together in her mind. Something came down hard on her shoulder. Pain lanced through her body. Turning her head, she came face to face with an axe lodged in her shoulder. The writhing mass of cloth and flesh slowed to a stop, system notifications pinged her constantly. She checked her Flux pool as her vision dimmed. Health: 134/310 Flux: 0/1748 Fuck, what in the… She faded to darkness.

… She awoke with a pounding headache, lying on the tunnel floor. Above her a familiar metallic bird perched.

"You should pay more attention to your usage of flux, you kept launching projectiles under the dead guardian while you were fighting James. You must stay calm" Talvik said. James is dead and I killed him. I … He won't be the last, not if I am to take revenge. A figure was leaning against the wall "I can't say I'm surprised, James never seemed particularly stable" Edwin said, pulling out a vial and tossing it on top of her.

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"Drink this, it's a basic restorative tonic" he said. Wow thanks for throwing it at me. Not exactly a patient care kinda guy is he. Nythera picked up the tonic and eyed the swirling amber liquid. Oh well, he could have killed me while I slept. She tilted the bottle up and drank it all in one gulp. She gagged, but forced all of the contents down. Like drinking liquefied rotten fish.

"Did you know James would try to kill me here?" Nythera asked, throwing the disgusting vial away. Edwin watched it sail through the air with a look of sadness on his face and a grimace when it shattered on the cavern floor.

"No, I had no idea what he was plotting, and I'm still not sure why, but it might have to do with that ring he has. There's something strange with some of the people here. I'd be careful Nythera, you're treading in deep water with no allies… yet." Edwin said.

"I get that, I literally arrived here days ago, since then I've claimed a domain core, run from a giant fluxspawn bear, fought in two dungeons, and been interrogated by a council of mayors. I am tired of being pulled around by other people's agenda and I'm already sick of this shitty politiking." Nythera let loose a torrent as she stood up.

"The mayors… Ollie and Noah, they have a good head on their shoulders. Felix can be a bit tricky and Reachman is a pig or so I hear." Edwin nodded.

"Look Nythera, you've had a tough time here on Myrraval, but not everyone is out to get you, if you ever need a precision controlled instrument of destruction, feel free to visit me." he held out his hand. Nythera took it, looking into Edwin's eyes.

"I am counting on it, let's work together Edwin, you're the only one who hasn't tried pulling stupid games or using me as a tool … yet" She grinned. Edwin and Nythera walked out of the dungeon together. Nythera checked her notifications on the way out. 9 Levels Acquired! Class Level Threshold Reached: Acquired: Upgrade Token She threw 6 points into Flux Control to raise it to 60 and the remaining 30 points into resonance. More flux is always good. She hummed a tune to herself. Wow, an upgrade token already!

On top of what I nabbed at the depot I got 4 now… I could do some serious upgrades. When they emerged, they found Lance pacing by the entrance with a worried look on his face.

"You're alive! Thank Kronan, I was worried about what that idiot would do. Where is James?" Lance asked.

"James is…" Nythera hesitated.

"James tried helping us, but he got caught by some giant lobster guardian, it instantly killed him." Edwin replied. For someone with a comrade who had just died, he sounded eerily calm.

"I see… he will be dearly missed", Lance said with no hint of sadness in his voice. He almost seems happy? Yet he has the same ring as James and that secretary lady… are they not working together?

"I am taking you back to Grandport, we can have you come up to Halsbury to run the dungeon as it refreshes, but we'll need to let some of the locals run the dungeon or people will riot. Given your undeniable success in the dungeon, the council has decided, grudgingly, to allow you to place authority contracts on all of the mayors. And there's also another… situation that we need to discuss after" Lance said. The sun rose over the mountains as they made their way back to Grandport through the winding dirt roads.

No words were spoken. Kinda miss Leo, that annoying kid would be nice to have right about now. They made their way straight to the center of town.

"Nythera, take this, you can come find me here when you're done with these politicking nutheads" Edwin passed her a slip of paper.

"Good luck" and with that he departed down an alley. After this shit storm is over I am going straight to Edwin's place. She sighed. They arrived at the town square, once again to find it mostly empty, too early in the day for much activity. They went straight into the meeting room, this time only Noah, the Grandport mayor, waited.

"Welcome Miss Nythera, I heard you had a chaotic dungeon delve, nevertheless, you've proven you can handle yourself enough to level and that's enough for most of the mayors to allow you to take some basic steps into stewardship." Noah explained.

"For now, you will be enforcing authority contracts on all the mayors, with these contracts, we will find it much harder to work against you or the people of Myrraval, please take a seat and look over the contract we wish you to enforce". He gestured for her to sit. Nythera looked through the contract speech, it was fairly straightforward, outlining that the Mayors would never work against the people of Myrraval, of any town, or against Nythera herself unless she threatened the people of Myrraval.

How in Hel am I supposed to enforce this?

"Weave your authority into your voice, pull on the stat itself, this is its main purpose and one you must never exploit. Authority can be used to command any subject of your domain." Noah answered as if he already knew her question. Nythera pulled deep within herself, she could feel the stat, the Authority, deep in her mind. Like an anchored ship in a storm, it resisted her pull. With two hard tugs she was able to send it flowing from her mind to her body.

A strange weight settled in her, a feeling, like it was meant for something greater. She pulled the Authority up and wove it with her voice as she spoke.

"Noah, you will serve the people of Myrraval in your capacity as the Governor of Grandport with integrity, truth, and competence, until your role comes to an end. You will never betray Grandport, the people of Myrraval or Nythera vel Aurendor. Serve and serve well so that you can do your station proud." Nythera commanded. Her authority settled in the room, the flux itself settling in its presence. A look of shock appeared on Noah's face.

Her authority had taken root, the sensation lay in her mind, of chains wrapped around his soul.

"Very good, you read and applied it with nary a change, I'm impressed you got ahold of your Authority so fast, and it was much stronger than I expected it to be." Noah said as he stood up and headed out of the room "Please wait here a moment".

"Good job, for a human at least. Authority is difficult to use the first time." Talvik's praises rang through her mind. The mayor of Halsbury walked in next, with the same country bumpkin clothing he always wore.

"Howdy, I heard you had a fun tussle in the dungeon" Ollie said, sitting down on the other side of the table. If fun is being nearly murdered by a lunatic from a possible cult, he would be correct.

"Yes it was lovely, I gained so many levels in such a short time. The rats…. I am not so fond of…" Nythera said, laughing awkwardly.

"Hahahaha, its alright miss, I know that dungeons are a mess sometimes, I heard you fought one of the second guardian variants, one of the more dangerous ones. You should be careful in there" Ollie said with a chuckle.

"Thanks Ollie, I will" Nythera said. Why can't all the mayors just be like Ollie.

"Alright I am going to enforce the contract now, are you ready?" Nythera asked. Ollie nodded. Nythera enforced the contract the same way as she did with Noah just minutes before, the authority answering her call smoothly. Much like before, Ollie's face turned to shock when she started, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Thank you ma'am, I'm sure you'll achieve great things, I look forward to watching" Ollie said as he left the room, another piece of grain twirling between his fingers. Felix walked in next with a huge smile on his face.

"I look forward to seeing all you'll do around here. We need to get you some leadership roles so you can start leveling those more useful skills." Felix said.

"I'm not sure, I don't think I'm really suitable for leading people and they wouldn't trust me anyways, I'm not from here." Nythera said, remembering what had occurred at Greypoint with the locals of Greymere. That was not pleasant, not at all, I think maintaining distance would be wise.

"It'll be fine, you got my support, and Ollie, and Noah, people will listen. We'll have some opportunities for you coming up shortly, those skills are too important to let rot" Felix said, clearly far more concerned with her skills than with her wellbeing. At least he doesn't want to kill me, well, and he's honest. The last to come in was Reachman, as always with a scowl on his face.

"I can't believe I let them talk me into this" He mumbled while taking his seat.

"Look girl, I don't trust you, but if we ripped the core out of you, there's no guarantee we would get such a useful domain skill, and anyone who absorbed would need to ascend strata before they could start getting authority, so until we have a better candidate, you're it. Do your job right and don't try getting into politics" Reachman scolded her.

"Just get on with it already" He said, looking away. Nythera pulled on her authority far harder than she had with the last three and tried to levy the contract as tight as possible. Reachman's look of surprise when she started made it worth the effort.. Serves you right, you fucking snake. She smirked After Reachman left the council room, Lance entered.

"You did well kiddo, much better and faster than anyone expected. There seems to be a consensus that you're actually competent and have potential. Noah and Ollie want to see how you'll turn out, Felix and Reachman want higher crop and mine yields. So, it's time you took some true authority. They are collectively announcing you as the Advising Administrator of the Island of Myrraval, you have no concrete powers, but will take a role that encompasses all towns instead of one" Lance informed her.

A huge smile reached his face.

"Namely, Ollie and Noah have put forth their towns as willing to accept some… guidance from you. If you can put together a competent proposal they will allow you to try implementing it yourself. Lastly, we are starting a ballista workshop, since we don't have any gunpowder, but it would be a shame to leave your domain defense skill to waste." Lance said.

"Thanks for the information Lance, but what in Kronan happened with James" Nythera murmured, glaring at Lance. He sighed, "I can't tell you, not that I don't want to, but I can't. You need to be very careful Nythera, people are watching you." Lance said quietly.

"Who, Lance, Who is watching me?" Nythera demanded. Lance just shook his head.

"We prepared the upstairs room for you" Lance changed the topic.

"No thanks, I've got my own place to stay" Nythera said, walking out the front door and heading straight for Edwin's place.