PATRIARCH FOWL
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Casual Heroing, Chapter 179
🕑 Added 2023-09-04 19:55:37 +0000 UTCI'm almost done with Volume 3 writing and I've been editing these parts to make sure they are tight and cool. Editor has been pulling great shit and helping a lot but we are going a bit slow since I need some more time to tighten up the plans for Volume 4. Trying to make it as tight as possible unlike the previous three. I think it's coming along well. I wrote the second to last chapter of the volume and the last of volume 3 should be done in a few days. Yeah, done with the update. My head is killing me. I'll see you guys on Wednesday!
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Next chapter comes out Wednesday, September 6th!
GOTTA CATCH'EM ALL!!! 👾👾👾
1/3 chapters this week!
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Chapter 179 – Corruption
The present
[Scarlet Runes, Aegis of the First Hero]*golden
The instant I invoke the skill, an unmistakable, icy sensation grips my wrists, rapidly giving birth to a double line of runes quickly spreading to my forearms, intricate and ancient in design.
“AAAH!” I scream in pain, and my muscles feel like they are being torn apart as a massive amount of power gets injected into them, my skin rupturing.
The symbols shimmer, their ethereal scarlet light almost blinding in the dim surroundings, a stark contrast to the pallor of my flesh. It's like the world around me darkens momentarily, and the runes are the only vibrant thing in existence.
With each heartbeat, raw and untamed power—a power I've never felt before— floods my system. This isn't just energy; it's a legacy.
A few droplets of blood, escaping from the sharp intensity of the runes, fall onto the stone floor with a morbid, dripping sound.
The sensation is overwhelming. The runes don't just rest upon my skin—they bore into my flesh and bones, bringing their power into my very core. Every fiber of mine is being stretched, taut, and tested beyond its limits. This is pain that goes beyond physical pain.
…
“Young Luciani,” the old man looks at me agonizing on the ground after activating the golden skill I got from my vision. “You shall be extremely wary of the gift you’ve received. Idner, the first [Hero], was a mysterious figure, and his lineage has never been traced, not even by our [Historians]. We know, however, that for some reason, his constitution was superior to any other Vanedeni to date. Even this little bit of runes you can summon might be enough to take your life. You just forcibly deactivated the skill. Until your body can be greatly tempered, you should refrain from using the skill. Every time you employ it, you are rolling a die. And your chances don’t look great.”
…
Conscious of the cost of the skill, I immediately bend over to wield the sword. This time, though, there’s no fancy way of handling it. I lift it with two arms parallel to the ground, feeling the power of the skill empowering my body beyond belief.
“You are dying today,” I tell the statue made of pure darkness as I sprint against it before it can reply. Without any other skills, I simply coat my blade in [Light] and swing at the monster with all my might. He brings his blade up to absorb the impact, but the Scarlet Runes burn bright and add a red hue to my [Light]. The strike goes through his defense, cleaving the sword made of darkness in two and landing a devastating blow on the monster’s abdomen.
Thrown against the wall, the statue looks at me with an open mouth and breathless.
“You have no fucking idea how much this hurts,” I growl, stepping forward again, this time, putting in all my strength.
“Wait! Wait!” The statue screeches. “I can offer you treasures! Wait, Godslayer! You have lost your people; I can grant you gifts beyond your comprehension! You have no idea how deep this Dungeon is!”
“Fuck you!” I swing at the statue’s raised arms, cleaving them both off the monster’s body, who’s now shrieking with all his might.
“GODSLAYER! WAIT! I AM THE GUARDIAN OF THIS DUNGEON FLOOR! WAIT, I HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO GRANT YOU A RELIC!”
“Suck it,” I say, letting the power of the Scarlet Runes course through my body once more—they wreck it, yes, but they are also a tremendous offering of power.
“I CAN GRANT YOU YOUR MOTHER’S SOUL!” The statue shouts at his lungs to full capacity right before I can land my hit.
[Null Inertia]
“What the fuck did you just say to me?” I ask as I stop my sword and rest it on my shoulder.
“Yes, yes, Godslayer! My masters are very powerful! I can feel the yearning for your mother in you! I was like you many years ago! But I’ve found peace through servitude.”
“Go back to the mother part and drop the pitch—you disgust me,” I say, still willing to listen to whatever this monster has to say. There’s no way it knows about my mother, but I’m way too tempted to hear how it’s possible.
“The divine has no limits, Godslayer,” the statue speaks hurriedly. “My masters can sense the great split in your heart, and… you would never clear all the floors and stop the calamity... but they are willing to offer you a way to see her again!”
“Be fast,” I say as I feel the power of my skill starting to erode my organs. “I don’t have time to waste.”
“Godslayer, your people have defied the divine magic, but they must have passed down how great it can be too, how its unlimited power can do anything! I sense a great, great disturbance in the world. A great deal of divine power, greater than ever before, has entered this world. That’s how my Dungeon was awakened. Only recently, we’ve absorbed enough divinity to—“
“You have ten seconds to explain yourself before I kill you,” I tell the monster, straining against the damage my skill is causing but too curious to hear whatever it has to say about my mother.
Yes, it’s bad. But this motherfucker has called me ‘Godslayer.’ [Mind Clarity] is still active, and I don’t plan on acting stupid anymore. This thing is a servant to some kind of God, or Gods. And when talking about Gods, all bets are off.
“Yes, yes, Godslayer,” the statue nods hurriedly, raising both its stumps in submission and falling to its knees. “My masters are bearers of great gifts, Godslayer! They are the kindest beings in existence; they can help you! They will help you, Godslayer! Spare me and—”
My mother’s soul?
The thought silences the statue’s pleas and any pain in my body. It puts me in a sort of trance.
My mother’s soul…
There is something more than foul about the proposal this disgusting statue is giving me, but there’s also something… so alluring.
I miss my mother.
I miss Aurora Luciani more than anything in this world. Now that I have some manner of power and I’m finally becoming a man, I would give anything to see her again.
“Yes, yes, Godslayer. You will receive gifts that not a single one of your people could have ever hoped for. You will be—”
The head of the statue rolls on the ground, following my horizontal swing.
I exhale after finally getting rid of this monster, and I take a series of deep breaths as I deactivate [Scarlet Runes, Aegis of the First Hero]*golden and my whole body starts to convulse and spasm. I have to use the massive sword as a crutch, holding its handle with both hands as I lose control of my muscles that spasm uncontrollably. With some difficulty, I manage to slip one of my hands into my bag of holding and take out a healing potion. I haven’t used one since the goddamn end of the duel—they would have impaired the training, that crazy old man said.
I chug the whole thing and wait for my entire body to stop aching before standing a little straighter and taking a long, deep breath.
“I wish this goddamn place were a video game,” I think out loud, “that would give me some sort of travel-fast out of this place without having to keep walking in this darkness.”
I took out a Mana potion as well, knowing that there would be more dark hounds ready to attack me. Judging by the statue’s words, he was supposed to be the guardian of the Dungeon.
Well, of this floor, at least.
That’s another problem that will probably require me to consult with the Watch and get a bunch of questions about how I defeated this monster that I’m in no way ready to answer. There’s no revealing Magister Mulligan. Also… now that I think about it, can’t the old man just cheat the truth-stone?
I wish he was talking to me, I say.
Having someone camping in your soul is not the greatest thing in the world for privacy, but it sure as hell is like having a family of Mexican immigrants living below you: You get a lot of company if you want to have a chat and share some good food.
I start walking down the corridor, putting away the massive sword since my body feels like it just went through a sex marathon with fifteen female bodybuilders. Not even the potions are enough to mitigate the damage from the skill—and it was active for what, a minute?
I need to find a solution to that if I want to keep using it. Next time I find myself in a pinch and the monster doesn’t go down so easily, I’m screwed.
...
It took me the better part of three hours to walk around what I think was only half the Dungeon, and finally to come to a weirdly exotic and luxurious room full of carpets, drapes, and all manners of weirdly rich decorations.
But what stands out more than anything else is the presence of three short columns in the middle of the room with three artifacts on top of them.
Oh, shit, is this an Ash Ketchum moment?
