Chương 32: The Hero of Spirit

True enough to Claire's words, I soon come upon a main road. I slow down to a more reasonable pace, so as not to randomly jump out of the woods and scare people. Only to walk out to a stampede of people running down the street. It is pure chaos, as thousands of people try to move as fast as possible on the extraordinarily overcrowded street. What are they running away from? Some sort of monster most likely, and probably not one I can fight. As I step further out from the trees, hundreds of eyes turn towards me.

Fuck, I forgot to hide my cloak again. People stop moving, and just stare at me like I am the answer to all of their problems. A young boy stumbles forward, having been pushed out of the crowd. He kneels down before me, like I am some bloody royal.

"O great hero, please. Please save us all!" He cries out, and suddenly those behind him start to kneel and bow as well. Everyone, from the youngest child capable of walking, to even some elves with gray hair that must be older than Blackharbor itself. The air fills with pleas for help and assistance. Some mention missing family members, buildings that they own, keepsakes. I stare out at the crowd, jaw hanging open just a bit. They all want me to do something?

I guess I am a hero or whatever, but this is just all too much. I don't even have a clue what has happened. Eventually, the commotion settles down a bit and people seem like they expect me to say something. Using every shred of my public speaking skills, I manage to get two words out.

"With what?" People look at me like im stupid and start looking back the way they came. Following their gaze, I see it. About twenty kilometers away, the entire sky just turns bloodred. A few specks catch my vision, and I immediately recognize them as monsters. And behind them, more monsters, and more. As far as my perception allows, there is just a wave of monsters, stretching out and likely consuming all in their path. Alrighty then, I will just get right to dealing with that.

Hey Dovey, are you ready for a bit of combat? Master, you must be joking. He replies. Of course I am. I say, and then turn around and walk right back into the forest. See, the goddess did say that I could just ignore all of my responsibilities, right? So honestly, I will just take her up on that.

'Ding', New Quest Chain: The Hero's Purpose'Ding', New Quest: The Hero's Mandate'Ding', New Quest: Blackharbor Incursion'Ding', Corestone activation conditions met. Now awakening zero-star abilities related to: Hero of Spirit.

'Ding', New corestone ability awakened, [Spirit Hero's Divine Aura (Divine)]'Ding', New corestone ability awakened, [Spirit Hero's Divine Command (Divine)] Ah shit, is her way of telling me to pretty please do things? If so, then it is working. A bunch of cool abilities do sound nice, and if it makes the monsters easier to eradicate… fuck no im still not doing this. I continue walking into the forest, ignoring the notifications.

Though it is far harder to ignore the thundering sound of feet as a crowd follows behind me. Most did continue running away down the path, but many are following me, as if I am going to do something. Turning back, I am just about to tell everyone to fuck off when I feel a familar wet nose poke my cheek.

"Yip?" My eyes meet Luma's and I swear this fox is way too damn cute. A strange presence pushes against the edge of my mind, it feels oddly like Luma.

"Yip!" Sighing, I realize she is trying to show me something, and I let her. My world shifts as I let her into my mind. Gone is the forest, and instead is replaced by a vast grassland. A faint breeze wraps around me as I survey the area. Something tells me this is a memory, though I can tell it does not belong to Luma. A few seconds pass, and then a white furball pops into view. Bounding over the grassland, in pursuit of some four-legged animal.

The fox launches into the air, before dashing forward and tacking the beast to the ground. Just as she is about to take a bite of her new meal, the terrain shifts. All of the grass goes from lush green, to a dark red. I glance upwards and see the once lovely blue sky tinting the same color. Evil permeates the air, and I can almost feel it choking me. My body instinctively turns to look up in the sky, a crack appears. It is small at first, but quickly widens, spiderwebbing across the sky.

A thunderous boom shakes the land, and then the sky breaks. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. A red rift forms, and monsters start to pour out. They drop down by the thousands, scouring the terrain. I watch as the little fox is trampled under the heels of a boar-monster. Suddenly, my vision shifts out to a wider perspective. In the distance, I see a small village. An actually small one, home to not more than a thousand. Monsters trample it like it never even mattered.

Ah, I see now. This is what malice creates, not just monsters, but destruction incarnate. My perception is flown even further out, until I can see a land so vast that it defies all logic. I realize that I must be seeing a good portion of the Realm of Humanity. To my horror, thousands of those rifts can be seen, breaking apart the beautiful landscape like a sort of corruption. Worse still, is that they just keep expanding, and expanding. Eventually, I am not able to see a single scrap of life remaining.

Suddenly the vision disappears, and my consciousness is abruptly snapped back to reality. I double over, my vision spinning, and I just barely manage to hold in my last meal. I feel something fuzzy nuzzle my ear, as if checking to make sure I am okay.

"Yip!" I turn and look at Luma, and the fox merely stares back at me. I swear there is a slight grin on her face. If only she wasn't so damn cute. After giving her a few headscratches, I stand up and look towards the crowd that has been following me. Most of them are young, too young. Yet, each one holds a weapon. I could tell them all to fuck off, then turn around and go find some random mountain to live on for the rest of my life. I could protect it, hide away from the problems of this world.

Of that I am certain. But, then, billions would die. That vision showed me what would happen. This malice would not stop. It would just keep spreading, until nothing is left. While the goddess did say we had a choice, I bet she realized that not many would choose to turn away. Like, sure, I could turn away. But I have power, enough to save this world, I suppose. Perhaps not alone, I will need help. Not just from more spirits, but allies, the other heroes even. A few cool abilities wouldn't hurt too, I suppose.

Plus, when I think about it, such a war would require a lot of very powerful gear… gear that is going to need a smith to make. Heaving a great sigh, I open up those notifications. New Quest Chain: The Hero's Purpose Estimated Difficulty: Maximum Estimated Length: Years-Decades-Centuries Background: Malice has risen once again in the five realms. A once peaceful world will once again be torn to pieces. Shredded, until nothing remains. Billions will die. Unless, the nine heroes once again rise to stop it.

Malice takes many forms, and is found almost everywhere. From the seediest gambling den, to even the heights of the churches. In these places, it brews and festers, warping the very fabric of reality. Monsters appear, seeking to cause chaos, and thus generating more malice. Eventually, this energy builds up, and all at once is released. The skies themselves shatter, unleashing hordes of monsters. While these incursions may be held off at first, there will quickly come a time when the people are simply not enough.

Associated Quests: The Hero's Mandate, Blackharbor Incursion New Quest: The Hero's Mandate Type: Critical Estimated Difficulty: Maximum Estimated Length: Years-Decades-Centuries Background: As the threats of malice rise across the realms, it is the duty of the heroes to rise up and stop them. Only their power, wielded as conduits of the divine, is able to truly repel the malice. For every act of repelling the malice that a hero performs, rewards shall be given.

This quest shall remain active until the very end–one way or another. Rewards: Varies (Repeatable) New Quest: Blackharbor Incursion Type: Incursion Estimated difficulty: Normal Time left: 23 days, 29 minutes, 12 seconds. Background: A rift has spawned above the city Blackharbor. As one allied with its rulers, they have sent a request for your aid. Make haste, for the longer one delays, the greater the damage.

Incursion details: Tier 1 | Minimum level: 15, Maximum Level: 87 | Remaining Monsters: Heart still active | Next task: Contain the surge (7%) [Spirit Hero's Divine Aura (Divine)] The power of the divine flows through you. You now have the ability to sense various things about an incursion. From the current state, to the next objectives. You are also provided insight into the most powerful members currently acting to defend the incursion.

While you fight in an incursion, all other defenders get a twenty percent bonus to all of their base stats. The power of the goddess flows through you, do use it well, o great hero. [Spirit Hero's Divine Command (Divine)] Those around you recognize the power you possess, even if your absolute power does not reflect your station. Many will be far more hesitant to stir trouble with you, and far more amenable to adhering to your orders. However, do not mistake this for control.

If one does not prove themselves worthy, they may just find themselves at the sharp end of a stick. People tend to hate incompetent leaders, after all. To assist you in fighting the malice, you may issue commands. These commands will be broadcast to the system interfaces of all those within a configurable distance. In using this power, you may harness the most potent source of power: the masses. Do be aware, that upon issuing any command, all receivers will be informed of your location, name, status, level.

As well as any other pertinent information pertaining towards your heroness. Holy hell that was a lot of reading. Most of it was quite important to hear though. This hero thing is far more impactful than I could've ever thought. Now I see why us heroes are so important towards fighting malice. Skills that can boost the stats of millions, while also making commanding them far easier. Creating order amongst chaos alone is worth all the power in the world.

Plus, I can imagine that I will only get more and more the stronger I get. Still, why the fuck do I have to lead people? Glancing out at the people that have been staring at me looking at menus for several minutes, a wave of fear washes over me. But, I push it down. After all, I am The Hero of Spirit.