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MAZE - Chapter 1032 - Winning Prize
🕑 Added 2025-03-21 21:07:26 +0000 UTCThe empress looked around while the arena was still being showered by cheer and applause. It sounded very weird, but at the same time it was a nice feeling. It was the first time that she was praised like that and it wasn't because she saved people from a horrible situation. She could get used to that kind of thing.
"That is the match, ladies and gentlemen. Now I would like for all of you to wait a moment until we tabulate the points. A lot of things happened in these last couple of moments and we need to make sure we're not missing anything," the announcer said, leaving Hera to just keep standing there in the middle of the arena.
It was part of the rules that she shouldn't leave until the points were announced. If she did so, then she would effectively forfeit the match. Unlike other dungeons, the creatures here didn't just dissolve into nothing and leave a drop behind. Instead, they just stayed there. A group of Scale Hearts stepped forward to start organizing everything. The Empress watched as a couple of the crew who came down even stepped into the Shardless's mouth to possibly check something inside it. And then they left, nodding and looking at the Ophidianite with some admiration.
The announcer started speaking again. "We have a total tally, everyone. Hera, the Noble Blood, earned a grand total of 1 107 points. The team with no name led by Noble Blood has won the tournament."
There were more cheers and claps as a door in front of Hera's friends opened, letting them all join the Empress in the center of the arena. They all gathered, waiting for the crowd showing that they appreciated the love that they were receiving. Then the announcer just continued saying whatever they needed to prepare everybody for the next part of the show, which was only going to be relevant for the people who participated in the tournament.
After a few minutes, a few of the staff members approached the group and guided them outside. They were all heading towards the Hunters' Guild, but a detached part of it where parties could happen. And that's where the prize ceremony would actually take place. And just like everything in this room, even a ceremony that was not transmitted to anyone else had its own flair.
They started from the last place, showing the reward they would get, and slowly climbed up the ranks. Always building up the tension and talking about the great rewards at the end. The team that came in second got 700 points in the last match, and a couple of pieces of equipment that were prepared by the Hunter's Guild. But the items prepared by the Crafters were exclusive rewards to the first prize winners.
Yerel got a set of gloves that increased the power of barriers. He was someone who focused more on healing, but having that option felt great for the dwarf. Callena and Farica got a couple of Elemental Crystals that could be used to empower their magic attacks. The elements themselves weren't a perfect match, but they were common enough that even if they were not as well versed in those types of spells they could use to their advantage. While Pandora got an old piece of dragon bark. An heirloom from one of the crafters who never managed to work on wood. According to the Scale Heart, it was once part of the skin covering the Feywyrm skull, specifically the bags under the eyes.
Next came Alex and Shane. The assassin got a large lump of metal so she could 'Make a real weapon to fight since she only knew how to attack with some random spells that didn't do anything.' The crafter who gave the reward, a dwarf, had a very bad perception of her fight, but he did hit the mark on one point. It had been a long time since she upgraded her daggers.
Shane, on the other hand, got a necklace made out of scales. But more important than that, it passively created a barrier over the enchanter. That barrier could defend against attacks and would benefit from any scale based defensive skills she had. The crafter who gave it to her, a Scale Heart, admitted he was hoping to gift it to Hera, as she was Noble Blood and could benefit from that kind of thing more, but she lost the draw and didn't really bring anything else to give. But instead of the complaint she was expecting to receive, she got a huge hug from Shane. The enchanter had constantly looked for something that could make her [Ophidianite Scales] skill rank up faster, and this seemed to be just the thing for it.
Bonnie was the second to last to receive the reward. The vice leader of the Hunters Guild walked forward with a small box. He slowly opened it and showed the researcher what was inside. There were two items. The first was a piece of parchment with a copy of some notes left behind by the Feywyrm. Notes related to her research and how to help creatures evolve faster. Underneath that was a single dragon scale. Just big enough to fit Bonnie's palm. But the moment the notification appeared, her eyes went wide as the Astral Witch opened a smile so big that was borderline unnatural. She thanked the vice leader without looking away from her reward. And the Hunters Guild finally moved on to Hera.
Walking in her direction was a harpy crafter. A grizzled old man with gray feathers and wings that couldn't keep him afloat. He didn't say anything, just smiled and retrieved something from his pouch. A small ball of string that he placed on Hera's hand.
"To fix what's broken," were his words before he turned away, not even letting her say thanks.
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You have completed a dungeon quest.
While participating in the tournament, your team has reached first place.
Rewards:
Shapeless Bladed String - Cosmic Artifact
3 000 000 gold
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The string itself wasn't a piece of equipment but something she could use to fix the gloves, after all, the only thing that was destroyed in the battle was the bladed string. The gloves and the places where the blades were connected were still very much there. She used Inspect to check the description and see all the details of this part of the equipment.
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Shapeless Bladed String - Cosmic Artifact
A piece of metal woven into a string created by a Craftsman who perfected his connection to nature and the stars. The metal has the properties of sharpness, malleability, recovery, and a high affinity with fundamental cosmic forces.
The string is not a complete weapon and waits to find its rightful home.
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By the description, the material was looking for exactly what she had. A glove to attach to it. Which might either be just a random coincidence or a way for the system to apologize for not giving her gloves that fit her claws. Either way, there were few things she could ask for that could be better for her situation right now. The one issue was that since the gloves were destroyed, she would likely need to restart the process of getting a high familiarity with it.
Everybody was more or less happy with the rewards they got, even if some were clearly better than others or more ready to use than others, but the one who seemed to be the most excited was Bonnie. Yet, she didn't say anything until they left the dungeon. As a matter of fact, she continued to stay quiet about her reward until they were all back in the hotel room so they could rest before going after the poison resistance items again.
"Okay, I think we've been patient enough. Why are you so excited about what you got?" Shane turned to the Astral Witch.
Bonnie opened a smile from ear to ear. "Because it's something absolutely amazing. Not just for me, but for Ruby."
No one really understood what she was talking about. And it didn't change once the Astral Witch shared the item description with everyone.
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Feywyrm Heart Scale - Imitation.
A replica of the ancient Feywyrm's heart scale. It was with the original version of this scale that the Feywyrm initiated the creation of its biggest masterpiece. Unfortunately, the experiment was never completed. By breaking the scale, you are protected by the draconic resistance and your abilities gain draconic enhancements for 2 hours.
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"I mean, this is cool and all, but I don't get it," Shane frowned. She was even more confused since she was the one who got the most exciting item of all. A way to speed up the process to become an Ophidianite.
"Because when combining with this," Bonnie gestured to the research of the Feywyrm, "I might be able to complete its work. Sure, it's not going to be a full powered version of the creature as if it was with the real scale, but I think. One moment…" She double checked the notes, "Yeah, I think I can make Ruby grow into a half slime, half dragon or at least a quarter dragon. Maybe an eighth."
Everybody just stared at the researcher for a moment. "Are you trying to tell us that you are about to go full mad scientist on Ruby? You're going to put her through what the Feywyrm put all its experiments through?"
"What? No. Look at this. Really look at this." Bonnie showed the paper again. "This is not talking about the same process that we saw in the vision. This is not about forcing evolution in a specific direction. But about guiding evolution. Talking about how if you expose monsters to the right kind of stimulant, they will eventually grow into something that can adapt to it. And how to speed up that process with magic. In this scenario, you're not forcing anything. You're just guiding the evolution to the path that you want. It has the same idea as what the dragon was doing, but it's not as forceful."
"But wouldn't that harm the monster since it's something unnatural? You're talking about making a slime become a dragon," Yerel frowned. "I don't see anything natural about that."
"I mean, fair, but it's not what we saw. It's very obvious if you stop to check this properly. Instead of trying to make the monster follow a specific blueprint and end up exactly like I wanted to, I'm just going to give Ruby everything she needs to grow and let her handle the rest. In theory, it is possible that it doesn't even work. I just end up spending a lot of time and resources and Ruby stays the same. But I doubt that would happen. Slimes are very malleable creatures and prone to change if the conditions are favorable."
"But still, can you imagine? If my pet slime is also part dragon," Bonnie continued to grin from ear to ear.
"That would be pretty cool," Hera nodded. She wasn't as worried about Ruby changing as the others. She had seen Leo help Tiger grow from a small rainfall to a gigantic creature that could hold its own during a war. "And how long do you think it's going to take for Ruby to start to become a dragon?"
Bonnie frowned while looking at the paper. "Well, I'm not sure. According to this, it could take just a few days or it could take a few decades. It's not very specific on that part. And it's very dependent on the subject. But the Feywyrm never did that to slimes."
"Then just keep us posted and be sure to warn us if there are any giant fire breathing creatures that you create," Hera smiled at her friend.
Bonnie rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to let Ruby become a monster that just starts attacking everybody. Besides, if we're going by what should happen, it's more likely that she gets some acid breath than a fire one. Slimes don't handle fire very well."
Everybody glanced at Bonnie with a weird expression, but she just laughed as if it was a joke. Even if no one could be sure of that aside from the researcher herself. Hera chuckled, deciding to trust in her friend while calling room service so they could eat something. They did have a long day, but she was still feeling energized enough for at least one more dungeon run. And with any luck, she would be able to figure out what they had to do with the Jarnak in order to improve the type of gear it could drop and more importantly, make sure that they wouldn't spend another month here without getting a single item they wanted.
