Chương 77: Book 2, Chapter 2

Cuilcis didn't waste his time.

"Suspicion. There is something you aren't telling us." We'd prepared for this. The little fucker might be as slippery as a politician with a deficit, but he was oddly straightforward in some ways. I nodded.

"Yes. Many things. Remember when we offered you a real partnership, and you turned us down, because you don't believe in credit? Easy access to answers is one of the advantages you turned down there as well." He paused, then nodded.

"Regret." Holding up a hand, he looked me straight in the eye.

"I mean, I regret my choice. I now see that the cost back then would have been worth it." Miraculously, what somebody like me would probably begrudge for ages, the tiny ethereal wisp of a creature just accepted and moved right on.

"In that case, I believe we need to trade information, for the betterment of both our sides." Nix rubbed her hands together, smiling.

"Well, we're all ears. What've you got?"

"You only told half a truth, moments ago. Your kind are like ours, those of the Last Chance. Eager for power, for Levels and opportunity." She bowed her head slightly, conceding the point.

"Yet, you would make friends with Last Chance."

"We would."

"In that case, you are going to seek your opportunities elsewhere. Because you will soon find your territory stifling, your expansion cut-off and opportunities halted."

"Well, that's a bit early-""Denial. It is not too early." Cuilcis cut her off.

"We have glimpsed your numbers. While you are not a powerful faction, you still rival Last Chance in numbers. As such, you will need more space to properly grow. It is proven. I stayed behind to ensure that you move in the right direction, and do not inadvertently ruin any of my own plans. That would diminish the odds of our being… friends." Somehow, he made the word sound dirty. I scratched my neck. It felt lovely.

Ever since Nix had burned half my hair off – mostly because I asked her to, strange as that may sound – my head had felt weird. Now, it'd grown back to that length where it was still a short buzz, but felt soft.

"You're gonna want to put a few extra words to that, Cuilc. Because that almost sounded like a threat."

"No threat. Simple fact." He expanded with both his tiny arms in a gesture that encompassed our surroundings.

"The Torn Divide. Land of dangers, but also of opportunities. Ripe with low-leveled opposition emerging throughout the place. Several factions have made their way through hostile lands to make their fortune here." He paused, as if the conclusion was self-evident. When nobody reacted, he pressed on.

"Travel north, and you will find Last Chance beyond the ridge. We are loners, outcasts and fortune seekers, coming from a plethora of different factions. We might hold the smallest portion of the Torn Divide, but that does not make it more likely that we will freely cede any of it. From the south and west, you have the Ceaseless Horde, advancing, always advancing. South and east, the Hiscariat, the stoic, unflinching Mages may be cautious. Yet, they will expand, slowly but certainly."

"Oh." I frowned.

"You're telling us that we're running out of space here in the Torn Divide?"

"Satisfaction. You are capable of understanding basic geography."

"No need to be snippy there." I frowned, squinting at the tiny, opinionated crafter.

"I'm guessing you are trying to point us in one particular direction?"

"Agreement.

'Away,' is where I am trying to point you." Haddock chuckled. Cuilcis ignored him.

"I will not try to aim you at either of the two factions. I will merely point out the inevitable. We will settle for, and safeguard, what land we already have. The Hiscariat and the Ceaseless will not. And neither, it seems, will you humans. This means conflict is inevitable. I have seen you in battle, and would rather that you decide to engage with other powers." I smirked.

"Enough so that you're willing to use your favour for it?" We'd made a deal with the knowledgeable Tibidi. Knowledge for work, plus an un-named, near-unlimited future favour. I was absolutely regretting the latter part by now. He hesitated, but shook his head.

"No. I wager you are not interested in going to war with Last Chance." That was another thing about the Tibidi. Or, perhaps just this particular Tibidi. He had a thing about wagers. A fixation that almost seemed religious. I'd asked, but hadn't gotten him to spill what it was all about. I looked at the others in succession before shrugging.

"Worth a try. And you're absolutely right, Cuilc. We haven't been lying. We want to be friends with Last Chance, establish some proper trading routes, all that. Humanity wants to expand, yes, but we also need friends. Allies." The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"In that case, I urge you to guide any expansions south." I shared a look with the others. We'd, of course, discussed what we were expecting from the sit-down. We'd pretty much obtained everything we could hope for for the initial meeting. Now, there was one thing remaining. One precarious detail we'd already debated, unsure if it was worth the risk. Eventually, I nodded to Nix and her earthen hand floated her closer to Cuilcis.

"We hear what you're asking. And we might be willing to listen. But… we have questions."

"Questions." There was no need for emotions to hear his hesitance.

"Yes. As you will have guessed by now, this is the first time humanity has made it into a zone like the Torn Divide. We are very much abusing the potential for growth with the lower-leveled beasts around here. And we are good at making the most out of these kinds of opportunities. Yet, if we are to listen to your advice, why would we not just settle down and optimize growth in our own area? Corrall lower-leveled monsters, keep 'em breeding, make sure we get the most out of it?"

"Realization. You are not lying." Nix huffed.

"Why are you constantly surprised about that? I've spent ages not lying! Not lying is my baseline!"

"Do you enjoy running?" Cuilcis asked. When Nix started sputtering instead of actually answering, he spoke on.

"Tibidi are experts on lying. When you are incapable of doing so yourself, you learn how to skirt the truth, how to trick others into lying for you. Most of all, however, we know just how often others lie, to each other, to themselves." He paused for a while, tapping his weak chin.

"Yes. I will grant you a bit of my knowledge, for free, because it feeds into my own wants for the humans." For a moment he was silent, eyes flickering as if searching for something.

"It is very obvious that you humans have not accessed the grounds of a former Calamity before. You do not understand exactly what you hold. Understandable, as well. They are heavily coveted and contented. In fact, other smaller powers might join the battle for them eventually. I will not go into the details as to why none of the powerful factions are fighting over the Torn Divide – unless you want to barter for the knowledge? No? Okay.

Let me say only, that the resting grounds of deceased Calamities are much vaunted because of the Calamities. In part because any body parts of the former Calamities that can be harvested will have unlimited potential for high-Tier crafting. And, in part because the corpse releases energy into the ground, fertilizing the soil, drastically increasing the speed at which newborn beasts are born and level." He held up a finger, forestalling the inevitable question.

"That explains what is available to you here. Increased, but not limitless opportunity. In time, the remnants of the Eternal Shard will be absorbed, the essence dissipate, and everything will return to normal. As to why you should not try to turn wild beasts into harvests? You should look to the Kadren." I blinked and looked to the others. Unfortunately, they looked just as confused as I did.

"What? Why? Humans aren't slavers!" I grimaced, and tried to ignore all of Earth's history glaring at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Because, while the Kadren are nearly unmatched in ferocity and bloodlust among the thinking races, there is one thing they understand above all: Adversity breeds growth."

"Oh." I slapped my forehead.

"You've said that before. That we're more likely to earn skills if we're fighting for our lives, about to die, that sort of thing. You're telling me that Kismet grants less rewards for defeating enemies, if there is no real danger." He bowed slightly.

"Just so." I pursed my lips and thought about it. My conclusion, giving it the proper thought and care boiled down to: "Fuck!" Cuilcis was absolutely right, then. Humanity, after the unfortunate Kadren-fronted setback, was already back to unleashing our collective selves upon this world like a locust swarm, eager to absorb all the power the world had to give. If we were not able to automate the process, like some entrepreneurs would undoubtedly attempt, we would run out of space. Soon.

And, unless we wanted to treat Last Chance as the proverbial Native Americans of Ademia, we'd have to turn our sights elsewhere.

"All right. Point well and truly taken, mate. Now, given that you're telling us this out of self-interest, I bet you're ready with a suggestion for which of the two remaining powers in the Torn Divide we should attempt first?" He nodded.

"Yes. I wager that, with what you have overcome, being on your good side will earn me more in the long run. As such, I do not recommend that humans take on the Ceaseless Horde immediately."

"Do elaborate. We've tangled with them already and come out ahead." Nix raised an eyebrow, folding her arms across her chest. Cuilcis said, simply, "No. You may have tangled with the outermost edges of their forces. A scouting party, with a few warriors, mayhaps. The Ceaseless are not a joke. They are mindless, unceasing brutes that, once awakened, will stop at nothing to take you out." My mind went to the image of a single Ceaseless Scout screeching at us, before running away into the unknown.

Well, wasn't that a lovely moment of foreshadowing?

"We have seen the best you have to offer. Our unreserved opinion is that, should humanity engage with the Ceaseless Horde at this point, you will all perish." I wasn't going to say anything, but I did agree. We were absolutely suffering from our Fighters, Scouts and Mages mostly not leveling for the entire duration of their enslavement. When it came to sheer staying power, we were shit out of luck.

There had been one unexpected windfall, where splattering the Kadren cocoons left inside the Ever Steady had actually granted decent experience. In an impressive display of fairness, we'd shared those amongst all those who were falling behind – but even so, it was but a single level or two for every person. Cuilcis kept speaking.

"The Hiscariat, meanwhile, are more of an unknown. They rest closer to where we estimate the Ceaseless dwell than either of our forces. They are also known for being insular, supremely capable at entrenching themselves and using magical talents for defensive purposes." He shrugged.

"I wager you will be able to use them. Ally with them, ensure they take the brunt of the attention from the Ceaseless, outmaneuver and slaughter them for levels. Either way, approaching the Hiscariat first should be the safest choice for you humans." I gawked at Cuilcis. If I ever wanted proof that we were in another, more brutal, world, I just had to listen to the vicious little fucker speak.