In Loki's Honor

I was with Sarandil after my self-imposed vacation. I had to make amends with Ikeshia and Lixiss for kicking them out of the palace so I gifted the girls fey silk underwear. They just loved it. I was still on the fence if I should make one for the archmagister or not. It all depended on this conversation.

That was before I found out that my fey silk articles were considered valuable relics people would go to war for. Silkies were ultra-rare for a reason and not many of them spent that many perks on weaving.

Back to the situation at hand. Sarandil was asking me about my highest-rarity Class available. Guess it was time to play Princess Maker.

"Best offer so far is the ultra-rare [Royal] Class. I have the very rare [Elven Elementalist] as my topmost spellcasting Class."

I kept the two uniques, [True Hero] and [Null & Void] a secret. I had no fucking idea of how she'd react. But the fact that [True Hero] was back meant an undead creature couldn't pick it. The ominous vague threat that it would vanish if I didn't pick it soon still lingered around.

"Only one ultra-rare?" She asked, suspicious. But with Sarandil, that woman had cards on her sleeves that were palming loaded dice. "I was hoping for more. And don't pick [Royal] It's too generic and most of the perks are for running a nation. I think you don't want to rule a nation."

"Why not?" I asked nonchalantly. "Maybe I should try for world domination. It's not like people can stop me from coming back."

She got serious. "I'll tell this to you only once. A sufficiently driven group of powerful spellcasters could trap your soul for all eternity or even destroy it."

I straightened up my back and wiped all goofiness from my face. Staring at the archmagister and remembering what they did to me as Lily, I asked straight.

"Like the elven council?"

"We would never--"

"Bullshit!"

I shouted and put a finger on her face. I was pissed with their manipulations. And if that title of {Princess} was worth anything, I would cross the T's and dot the J's. My J's have dots. Deal with it.

"I bet you have a plan already drafted to screw me if I don't become... compliant," I accused. "Come on, lie to me Sarandil."

She stared at me, silent. When she finally spoke, it was a wild pitch. Baserunners can advance.

"Is this the part where you order me to go have intercourse with myself?" She asked, offended.

"Hey, it is not that bad," I let out to go on a tangent and regretted.

She shifted gears and went on the attack, "So, my gifts were well-received."

"No. I looked inside. Tell me, do any of them shake or vibrate?"

She covered her ears and made a face like she was in pain, "What did you say?"

Oh, c'mon. Are vibrators now a technological advance? Freaking curses.

"Sorry, nevermind. I hate it when this happens."

She took a deep breath and composed herself. "The curses."

I didn't answer that. "I'm sorry. I won't command anyone to have intercourse with anyone else. So long people also extend the same kindness to me. Otherwise, I will see if the council's contingency plan can really nail me before I can escape."

We stared at each other for a while. "Can we go back to the subject of your planned advancement, Your Highness?"

"Sure. Okay. Look, I have one unique Class here but I am not picking it until I know it is not a trap."

"What's the Class name?"

I looked up, shook my head. I didn't want to answer that but I did anyway, "[True Hero]. True fucking Hero."

"I thought we were past the intercourse curses."

"Never."

"That's--"

"Unbefitting for a {Princess}. I get it. Hey, check this out. {Appraise me}."

She did and laughed. "{Heroine Princess}?" She caught her breath. "Really?"

"Yes. It seems I can combine these titles."

"Don't show that to anyone."

"You're special," I cooed-mocked. "Classes. Classes, okay. You should seek wisdom elsewhere about this Class. If I find its statistics satisfactory, I'll pick it."

A unique-unique combination on Race and Class. I wonder what would happen."

"World Domination!" I gloat in mockery.

"Please. It is not funny," She shudders slightly. "I'll ask the priests what the Mother can tell us about that Class and come back."

"That would be lovely."

Back in my room, I hide my face in the pillows and scream. I should change my name to Deedlit. Then I could sing Adesso & Fortuna's "Io sono prigioniera". Forget for a moment it is a love song.

The answer came a month later. I kept doing my daily practice, six days out of seven. The seventh day was my "me" day. When I did nothing. My Skills stopped growing but Sarandil told me the same thing Taeral did. I should keep training, one day the System would reward my effort with a huge Skill level up.

She brought me a scroll with the church of Yznera's seal. Reminded me of the note Lily got with the same seal.

[True Hero] - Unique Class.

Requirement: Be chosen by the Gods.

1 Attribute point per level.

1 Endurance every odd level

1 Willpower every even level

1 Strength, Dexterity, Mind, Charisma, Magic every level, alternating (4 to each Attribute by level 20).

1 Attribute point every four levels.

8 HP per level

5 MP per level

1 SP per level

6 Skill Points per level

1 perk every two levels.

You gain the title [Hero]. Your other titles are unchanged.

Upon accepting this Class, you gain specifically tailored perks offered by the Gods. You have the option to refuse each perk.

Yznera's offering: Living Threads (unique). The threads you create are living. They can receive small amounts of MP or SP from the user to repair and clean themselves. They also earn 0.1% of the earned Exp and level up, increasing their strength and durability.

After I read the paper, Sariandi spoke, "We only got Mother Yznera's answer. We sent inquiries to the other Gods, but we don't have any priests here. It will take a while."

"I think I should take it. Then I can start earning a few levels. I have about thirty thousand Exp accumulated from the training."

Surprise, learning magic, {Woodlore}, and {Archery} gave elves some Exp. So freaking cliche.

"I was hoping the Mother could fix your fertility problem."

And I wouldn't accept the perk. Yznera knows that.

"I'm taking it. Right now. We'll know what the gods offer this way."

Sariandi raised a hand, "I think you should wait--"

You became a [True Hero].

"Too late," I said cheekily.

A series of prompts competed for my attention. I had five offerings. I accepted Yznera's and looked at the others, from Wyxnos, Galbarar, Rabhorktaar, and Queltphion. Bundeus did not give me more perks, but he could... go have intercourse with himself.

Galbarar, god of Truth and Justice offers you the Bear Burden (rare) perk.

You can designate one person as your protected ward. While that person is within Soul meters from you, any damage or debuff applied to that creature is transferred to you.

Do you accept? [YES] - [NO]

Rabhorktaar, god of Thieves and Assassins offers you the Status Forgery (very rare) perk.

You can display any Class and Level you desire, up to Charisma levels above yours. This perk can be toggled on and off at will.

Do you accept? [YES] - [NO]

Wyxnos, God of Logic offers you the Combine Skills (unique) perk.

You gained the ability to group your Skills and Perks by category. You can sacrifice 10 Skills to gain one Skill of a greater rarity that will overlap the majority of the sacrificed Skills as possible. The level of the new Skill is determined by an amount of Skill Points equal to half the Skill points of the ten Skills combined plus half of whatever unspent Skill Points you have. Sometimes, a perk can be offered instead.

Do you accept? [YES] - [NO]

Queltphion, God of Soldiers, Death, and Balance offers you the Self-Sacrifice (ultra-rare) perk.

You can, at any time, sacrifice your life. Your accumulated Exp can be used to empower one final act, be it an attack, Skill use, Perk use, or spell. You know before you do the sacrifice if your power is enough. Otherwise, you can opt to sacrifice non-curse traits to even the balance.

Do you accept? [YES] - [NO]

Hell yeah, baby, give me that phat loot.

I understood what the Gods were trying to do. Wyxnos mentioned a few lives ago that my absurdly big status page burdens the System, especially when I die and get reborn. This is a way for him to shrink my List. And a way for me to go around the limitations on rank.

I dumped all my Exp using the common fourteen-ways split.

You reached a True Hero level 9

You gained four True Hero perks.

You reached Royal Moon-Blessed Elf [star] level 8

You gained four Royal Moon-Blessed Elf [star] perks.

You reached Spirit Surgeon level 6

You reached Alchemist level 6

You gained 19 Attribute Points.

Attribute points over the cap redistributed.

All of your Attributes are at their caps. Withholding excess points. 30 / 100 Attribute points withheld.

You gained the Pinnacle of Ego (unique) perk. Your sense of self is absolute. You are immune to any effect that manipulates your memory or takes over your control over your own mind, body, and soul. As the first to earn this achievement, you gain a 50% bonus to your HP, MP, and SP.

For reaching the pinnacle of Ego, you gained the Unlock Ego (very rare) perk. Your Ego Attribute is unlocked.

You gained the Pinnacle of Magic (very rare) perk. Your magical power is at the limit for a mortal. All MP costs are halved. No external effects can damage or drain your MP. When your HP reached zero, all damage you receive comes from your MP pool.

I ignored what Sariandi was saying to me and spent my Perks.

You gained the Extra MP I (rare) perk. You gain 1 MP per level.

You gained the Extra MP II (rare) perk. You gain 2 MP per level.

You gained the Elven Senses (uncommon) perk. Your sense of sight is 10 times more accurate. Your sense of hearing is 5 times more accurate.

You gained the Nature Magic Affinity (rare) perk. Your spells that affect plants and animals at a reduced cost and with more efficiency.

Nothing extravagant here. Basic Elven stuff.

You gained the Critical Resistance (very rare) perk. When you suffer a critical strike, you have a 25% chance to avoid it. Modified by Luck.

You gained the Last Stand (ultra-rare) perk. When you use this perk, select a number of opponents you can see. Increase all your Skills by one category against those enemies. You die when all those enemies are defeated or have fled the battlefield beyond your ability to chase. You also die if you willingly abandon the combat.

You gained the Head Start I (very rare) perk. You gain 18 points of HP, MP, and SP.

You gained the Head Start II (very rare) perk. You gain 36 points of HP, MP, and SP.

Some heroic perks. The last one was to ease my start in the next lives. At level fifty-four, the other perks that grant HP, MP, or SP per level were better, but this erases my low-level frailty.

I still had skill points left to assign. I purchased the one Surgeon Skill I wanted.

You gained the Tissue Regeneration (ultra-rare) Skill. You can spend SP to force tissue to regrow at a fast rate.

You gained the Soul Template Restoration (ultra-rare) Skill. You can spend SP to restore a body back to its soul template, regrowing lost parts.

You gained the Spiritual Scalpel (ultra-rare) Skill. You can conjure surgical tools out of your soul. Costs SP to maintain.

You gained the Glassify (very rare) Skill. You can spend MP to shape and purify glass, as well to convert sand to glass. Improved levels increase quality and shaping ability.

I immediately tried the perk Wyxnos gave me.

{Combine Skills} activated. You are sacrificing the following Skills:

Blood Magic 9, House Magic 9, Fire Magic 9, Water Magic 9, Ice Magic 9, Wind Magic 9, Earth Magic 9, Lightning Magic 9, Light Magic 9, Darkness Magic 9.

Plus 160 Skill Points.

Confirm?  [YES] - [NO]

I hit Yes.

You gained the Elementalist (very rare) Skill. You can cast spells of all the eight basic elements with greater accuracy, power, damage, and effect. Reduce MP cost of the elemental spells.

Your Elementalist (very rare) level is Master 51.

You gained the Elementalism Mastery (ultra-rare) perk. Your elemental spells cause extra effects based on their elements. You resist 25% of all elemental damage.

All the points of these Skills would be enough to reach the Grandmaster levels. I lost Blood and House magic but I still knew the spells. Maybe I could retrain the lost skills. Next, I did the same for my language Skills and got a surprise.

You gained the Gift of Tongues (ultra-rare) perk. You can talk, listen, read, and write all languages with perfect fluency after hearing or reading five words. You cannot gain language Skills.

Your Polyglot perk was removed.

All spoken language Skills were removed.

I stopped fiddling with my System. I'll trim the Skill list later. I set my Exp allocation to manual. Now that I know what this perk Wyxnos granted me does, I need to work with windfalls of Skill Points. One last check at my general Attributes and I'll see what Sariandi is shouting about.

Strength 11 - Dexterity 14 - Endurance 11

Mind 12 - Willpower 12 - Charisma 14

Magic 100

Ego 100 - Luck 100 - Soul 100

HP: 40,930

MP: 59,100

SP: 78,375

I gasped, "Bloody hell. Forty thousand HP?"

Sariandi looks at me. Thirty thousand Exp, you must be level sixteen or seventeen. That's a good HP progression, but that's a number you should keep to yourself. People can adjust their fighting styles if they know the other's HP total. Especially [Assassins]."

"I'm not concerned about [Assassins]," I replied. "The greedy bastards get the shaft when dealing with me."

"Right. Death Princess."

"And now I won't be an anomaly without a status. Say, what level and Class should I be?"

I fiddled with my display. I noticed I had both {Hero} and {Heroine} as titles. I could pretend to be male now. Except, you know, body shape.

"That's a tough question. Level thirty-five [Royal], I guess. Not too high but also not too low."

I set it. "I can only go up to thirty-one. Check?"

"It matches. Let the {Princess} title show."

"Done. On what did you use your perks? What gifts did the gods grant you?"

"Oh. About the bids to sell my house, I got five offers. I accepted all of them."

Sariandi paused then nodded, "Oh, curses. But five Gods. That's a lot."

"Yes, but there was one guest I was expecting that didn't come. I think he felt he was too human to come to an elf party. But tell me, what should I do now that I have a Class and won't die if a strong breeze blows my way?"

Sariandi smiled. "Now, I think we're going to send you to hunt for levels."