Legend of the Spellthief

Discussing with the receptionist in the dungeon backrooms of the G-Hall, Logan found that he wasn’t allowed to know the names of their previous quest takers. He was, however, allowed to know their compositions. With his recruiting drive, the Spellthief already had one of the larger teams to tackle the Frost Monarch’s Cavern, and with a higher average party rank to boot.

The requirement of rank 8 adventurers was a slowly increasing number too, apparently starting at 6 and going up with the failed incursions. With Logan’s array of 3 offensive spellcasters with fire-based spells, the party was very suited to a blasting strategy. With such a long stretch of time to complete the dungeon, they could take it slow with more rest and use spells more liberally.

Gathering information between the receptionist and the pamphlets also informed Logan that the beginning chamber of the cavern used to hold within it a group of golems, but due to the several teams invading, the entrance was now a relatively safe space. It would act as a good fallback, if not leaving entirely.

As Logan conversed with Marcus he also talked about his purchasing of a few extra healing potions, prompting Marcus to ask if he should do the same. Logan’s mind fixated on a new set of armour for the occasion since he had seen robes that aided in certain resistances and spell casting. Since he wasn’t going to have to worry about being targeted as much, he could focus on light armour that heightened his fire spell damage.

Since they still had time before meeting up with their team, the pair hit the markets. Marcus split off to explore the different stalls for his own potions, while Logan examined several robes. He saw a few that gave him resistance and reduction to ice damage, and robes that treated his tiers of mastery in fire spells as higher. Sadly there were none at his level that did both.

After browsing for some time, Logan settled on his new robes. Being worn over his normal tunic and trousers, the robe was a flashy set of dark-red and black cloth with depictions of rolling flames around the bottom edging and cuffs. The buttons of the robe were small red and yellow flame clasps that snapped into the other end of the robe. The upper back of the robe had several salamander scales sewn into it in a marquise gem style, possibly to resist falling damage or attacks from the rear.

Buying the robe set him back 75 silver but Logan wasn’t going to be needing money for much longer.

The tier of mastery was only going to add 3 to 6 damage to his spell, however, it also made the saving throw harder to meet. The damage boost would also be augmented by his foes’ weaknesses. Outside of that, Logan would be able to move through his Flame Walls without issue and not have to worry about losing his spell if he was to get targeted. He knew all too well how dire losing a spell was.

On the other hand, he was giving up one spell slot and one absorption charge for this. Due to the locale being a dungeon, he thought it best to be able to handle area attacks and keep his spells through casting. Logan’s current garb wasn’t going to last too long anyway with its declining durability.

Swapping out his armour, Logan saw his status change immediately. Saying goodbye to his additional spells he looked on at the higher proficiency of his fire spells. To continue in his fire focus Logan also bought up a magical staff, which he thought he would be getting much later in his journey. Taking 1 gold from his pouch, Logan got a 5’ tall staff of interwoven dark-brown wood tipped with a ruby gem that held swirling flames within its centre.

At a quarter the price of a spell ring the staff did a hell of a lot for Logan’s spellcasting. Though this was mostly due to the fact it would only work with either Wizards or Sorcerers when spell rings could be used by anyone and allowed silentcasting. Combined with the robes, Logan could cast Flame at tier 7 instead of his normal tier 4. Checking over his status windows and asking System he confirmed it would also work with his Spell Absorption charges.

As for attunement, Logan had to spend a half-hour attuning with a staff to gain its benefits, and if he were to lose his grasp of it he would need to attune once again. This was the major drawback of Logan’s style of combat since he flowed between dagger and Grasp attacks. The beginning levels would ingrain in casters to always hold their staves before gaining access to the ones that increased their casting, something Logan hadn’t done.

If Logan was to get into melee combat the staff was also more unwieldy than his daggers, and didn’t allow for such easy deflection or repositioning attacks. For playing the role of a blaster-caster it would suffice though. Running around the battlefield with such a tall staff was going to get on his nerves, he just knew it.

Saving the rest of their money to react to their team's gear the pair returned to the G-Hall. Spending the rest of the time until evening recruiting, they were unable to gain any further members. A few brought up concerns about the size of the team, which showed the differences in attitude as Logan thought back to the party size going against the troll back in Tinte.

Logan and Marcus would have to hope that going over the minimum number of teammates and rank was going to be enough to break the death streak of this quest. Logan was putting a lot of his faith into the spell barrage they could unleash.

As the sun set through the view of the windows the G-Hall was cast in an orange glow, adventurers coming and going as they made teams or completed quests. Logan’s team eventually assembled and moved to one of the meeting rooms on the 1st floor he had made an appointment for.

Looking over his team Logan used Identification to get a good grasp of their abilities and potential contributions.

“Logan: Spellthief 12, 136/136 HP, 0/0 MP.

Tsuker: Rogue 12, 158/158 HP, 0/0 MP. Often reclusive, Tsuker has been known to mostly partake in scouting missions or weakening foes for the main team to deal with. Affiliated with the Lightbeam guild.

Cerall: Fighter 11, 186/186 HP, 0/0 MP. A boisterous man who is known around his guild as an avid sparring partner for guildies. Affiliated with the Lightbeam guild. Can be often found gambling to make ends meet rather than doing quests, backed up from match wins to make sure he doesn’t have to work too hard.

Kreya: Knight 11, 204/204 HP, 0/0 MP. Renowned ----. Signed up with the G-Hall ----.

Araxie: Sorcerer 9, 80/80 HP, 22/22 MP. This Sorceress typically draws ire for missing a spell hit or accidentally hitting her allies. She has since tried her best to avoid such situations and has become an adept shot with her spells.

Uhnarr: Devout 9, 104/104 HP, 21/21 MP. Mostly confined to his church, Uhnarr has seen quite a bit of action for a Devout. He makes regular visits to his family in the hidden gashriek villagers in the forests.

Fleur: Wizard 8, 76/76 HP, 0/0 MP. A friendly ----. Has spent a lot of time ----.

Marcus: Devout 6, 68/68 HP, 17/17 MP.”

Araxie introduced Uhnarr, a gashriek whose eyes glistened brightly with their sky-blue colour, contrasting with his pitch-black hair that was tied into a long ponytail. Cerall did the same for his friend Tsuker, a rather short man garbed in a hooded black coat, his yellow eyes gleaming through the shadow cast over his face.

Logan did notice that Kreya had levelled up from 10 to 11, but didn’t feel much need to bring it up at the time. Comparing health values among the team painted her like a wall of iron against the easily-shattered pieces of glass that were the casters.

“So, do we have further details of the quest and plans for engagement with it?” Tsuker started the discussion.

“Yes, I have done some research while the team was gathering and purchased the available pamphlets. We will be tackling the Frost Monarch’s Cavern to the east, it is a 3-day ride so I ask everyone here to bring mounts for the trip. The quest is to clear the dungeon as normal, the dungeon is inhabited by ice golems, frost snakes, snowball sprites, icebolds, and possibly blue goblins”, Logan announced as he handed out the pamphlets for the team to read over.

“The entrance was once home to golems, but reports say it should be clear. We will use that as a fallback position if needed. I aim for us to take this slow and steady, making ample use of the spellcasters in our team. Fire spells will make short work of the heavier hitters amongst the monsters, while everyone else will handle those that aren’t as physically defensive”, Logan continued.

“So, a caster barrage against golems, that’ll save on weapon swapping if they’re resistant to bludgeoning”, Kreya mentioned as she read over her pamphlet.

“That is the aim. As for exploration, I will be making use of scanning to map out and detect any creatures that are plainly detectable. The intel mentioned no stealth capabilities from the monsters so it should work, outside of that we will have Tsuker scout ahead. I take it you’re well suited to that?” Logan continued as he looked at the Rogue.

“It is my speciality.”

“Araxie, Fleur, do either of you have summoning spells?”

“Neither of us does, we’ve only recently obtained second-level spells and have been focusing elsewhere”, the blonde Araxie replied.

“That is fine, we’ll use mine as bait in that case. The frost snakes are spirit beasts, Kreya can you Chatter them to stop their blasts?”

“I can do so, Logan.”

“The dungeon should hold around one hundred monsters, so we will be gone for a while. I advise stocking up on supplies for the long trip.”

Cerall looked over the party and seemingly counted on his fingers before speaking, “So, the split is going to be-” he started but was cut off by Kreya.

“I will be taking a half-split.”

“Ah, so… 24% for Tsuker and myself, 12% for Kreya, and 8% for each of the magi?”

Logan spoke with a bit more authority in response to this, “Due to the magi taking a heavier load with their spellcasting, I propose a half split as well. 20% for Tsuker and Cerall, 10% for the rest.”

Tsuker and Cerall looked at one another, the Rogue having some second thoughts about his joining. “Think of all the loot there from past failures, it’s worth it”, Cerall said convincingly.

“For a name like that, the place is bound to hold relics regardless. Fine, I’m good with that”, Tsuker relented.

Araxi, Uhnarr, and Fleur all looked at Logan with smiles with twinkles in their eyes. It was a rare sight to see a spellcaster take charge like this, at least outside of noble affairs where the chain of command can shift drastically. It wasn’t a major jump from 8% to 10%, but with the number of items to be retrieved from the dungeon it would add up quickly.

“Anyone else here part of a guild?” Logan asked.

A silence responded, leading to Logan continuing on, “So, just Tsuker and Cerall. Do either of you have death insurance?”

“We both do, if possible, though I don’t like the idea of dying, bring our bodies back to the guild and they’ll sort us out”, Cerall replied.

“So just body revival, not part.”

“Hah, that’s way above any paygrade I’ve laid eyes on. Full body or nowt”, Cerall responded with a wide grin.

Logan had read enough, and spoken enough, about death insurance that he understood most of how it occurred. The deadline was seven days, with the price increasing with time, and if parts of the body are missing it’s even more expensive. However, it was a money sink, since it was paid out weekly from most establishments with contracts lasting up to a year with price changing based on usage.

“I take it no one else has death insurance from outside sources?”

Silence replied to Logan yet again.

“Very well, though I do hope it does not come to that.”

“Will we be making use of carts to ferry over components and items?” Kreya perked up.

“I asked ahead of time, the previous groups that attempted the dungeon weren’t able to return their carriages, so we will make use of them if they still wait at the cavern’s entrance”, Logan replied.

“Would passersby not have already taken those?” Fleur added.

“Survivors noted they had seen previous carriages, so it is a good bet there is more than one set. Outside of that, the cavern has had some of its inhabitants leave and patrol the entrance. If anything I am expecting a bit of damage to the vehicles.”

“I double that sentiment. Other dungeons I’ve visited have had similar sightings”, Tsuker assisted.

“Our mounts should be sufficient enough to lug the carriages back, if there are eight of us”, Logan continued.

“For a hundred foes, we better have a good amount of space to carry all their components back. We may take longer on the return trip”, Kreya calculated.

“More money for more time, I am sure everyone here is fine with that.”

The group laughed and nodded amongst themselves in reply.

“Good. For this mission, I will be the leader as the quest holder, though I would like to put Kreya as the second due to her work as a leader previously”, Logan continued as he pointed at the Knight.

The team looked at Kreya for a bit as if they were inspecting her.

“I’m fine with that”, Kreya responded as she crossed her arms.

“We leave tomorrow morning, make sure your prep is done tonight or early morning. We will meet at the city side of the gates. Any questions?”

“Nope”, Kreya replied.

“Good here”, Araxie and Fleur said together.

“Plan’s clear enough”, Tsuker added.

“See you bright and early”, Cerall said.

Uhnarr gave a quiet nod.

With the team all informed and ready, they left the meeting room, leaving Logan and Marcus behind. Logan let go of his stiff stance and placed his hands on the table, the tense air seeping away as the door closed a final time.

“You did well”, Marcus congratulated.

“With the easiest task? I would hope so. Now we just need to take on a proper dungeon until its end”, Logan replied with a sigh.

“We should fare well, we have four adventurers over rank 10. As you have mentioned previously we can make ample use of your Dimensional Jaunt to make a quick exit if needed.”

“It may come to that if wrench- If something goes awry.”

“Do we have much else to purchase?”

“I have 1 gold and 90 silver, can still get a few things. You can’t handle any magical staves yet can you? I got one to aid in casting Flame”, Logan asked.

“Sadly I think I am still too weak in my use of spellforce. Those other casters were rank 8 and 9? That’s typically the lowest level to start using them, so they might bring along their own.”

“That’s a shame, it would have been good to keep up the healing. I suppose I will pick up a Flame manual and some spell slot potions.”

“Then we shall meet back up at the inn?”

“See you there.”

The pair split off from the G-Hall, though Marcus’s gaze did linger on a departing Logan as his own head was wracked with thoughts of the oracle losing his powers. Even the thought of one from above not being anything but holy and divine was a hard concept to wrap his head around. But even so, if Logan would be able to speak with Vokka, Marcus believed that would be enough to change his mind.

Logan’s final shopping trip was rather quick since he already knew what he was after. The Flame Manual 1 cost 40 silver and could be completed before going to sleep. The last item on the agenda was the potions that restored spell slots. They worked differently than MP, instead, they only restored a spell you had already prepared that day. It was stated to be random, though Logan was reassured he could choose due to his System.

Buying up five, Logan spent 1 gold and 5 silver. Leaving himself with 45 silver just in case he needed to pay for anything on the way or even in the morning. Tackling dungeons looked to be a costly endeavour, though seeing the corpses in the previous ones Logan was sure he would make his money back and then some. It didn’t matter either way as he’d be leaving it for the others when he took his portal home.

Comparing his team to the ones that failed, Logan was confident he could overcome adversity and see the dungeon to its completion. The nagging stayed in the furthest reaches of his mind, buried underneath thoughts of if he was actually going to meet Vokka before the portal sent him home. Would it be a dead cutoff with no satiation to his questions? Would Vokka have gotten away with kidnapping someone from another world?

It didn’t matter. As long as Logan was free he would not have to worry about errant magi who wanted his blood. No potential invasions of monsters into his city. He would cherish the new time given to him to spend with his father, and make sure he left no words unsaid.

Replacing his thoughts with words, Logan quickly read over his new manual in about an hour. Checking his spell list for possibly a final time Logan felt a solid sense of progression.

“Alterations: Grasp, Shot, Skystrike, Wall.

1st: Aqua*⁵, Flame*⁵, Frost*³, Gaia*³, Infuse*⁴, Lightning*⁵, Necromantic*⁵, Wind*³.

2nd: Dimensional Jaunt, Earthen Eruption, Flame Cloak, Haste, Lightning Cascade, Skin of Ice, Sleep, Summon _ Elemental, Zombify.

3rd: Air Blast, Aqua 2, Flame 2, Frost 2, Gaia 2, Lightning 2, Necromantic 2, Wind 2.”

There were still so many spells he hadn’t experimented with, but his curiosity was a lesser evil compared to his imprisonment. Moving from his spells to his new magical staff, Logan pulled it from his inventory and fashioned a piece of rope at the neck and base, creating an easy-to-use sling for his shoulder.

Spending thirty minutes to attune to the staff, Logan’s status updated with the new details that came with it, alongside a tracker window if he wanted to check how many Flame spells he had cast in a row. Wanting to test the leniency, Logan held the staff horizontally and dropped it a few inches to his other hand, grabbing it before it hit the floor.

To his gratitude, it seemed a few seconds, if that, still kept his attunement. Testing different heights he continued to find that if he grabbed it before it hit the floor he’d keep his attunement. Another test was throwing it into the air and grabbing it as close as he could to the floor. Still attuned. Bringing it downstairs for a taller ceiling he did the same test, but this time he finally lost his attunement.

Five seconds, that is all it would take to lose his attunement. Reattuning, he tested placing the staff on the floor, letting go, and picking it up quickly. Five seconds again. The description of “losing grasp” wasn’t too clear, it had a bit of leeway in the timing. It wasn’t long enough to really abuse it, or swap between weapons, so Logan would still be restricted to his staff and an open hand if he wanted to use the Grasp alteration.

The last thing on his list was the skill point currently left floating on his statistics page. Since he was going to be masquerading as a Wizard once again, Logan investigated his bookmarked skills as well as the Wizard-only skills. Whilst not overly high on the list, due to his low spell level, he finally decided on Signature Spell.

Selecting Dimensional Jaunt allowed Logan to always have a spare teleport in his pocket, but it also allowed him to spend his transferred MP into casting it more times than his rings allowed. If he selected Flame he would get two extra casts, but this was a safer option in his mind as it allowed him to position on the battlefield or make a quick getaway.

This was a much better skill for a Wizard than a Sorcerer, if they also had this skill, as Sorcerers could cast any spell they knew whereas Wizards needed to have at least one prepared. Since Logan’s second-level spells were taken up by his summons this was almost a no-brainer for him.

With this new skill, like many others, several branches appeared that linked to the first. They would continue to improve how the Signature Spell would act, such as damage and effect, but Logan wasn’t going to get to experiment with those.

There was little left to be had in the way of planning and preparations. Tomorrow was the big day, the final travel for Logan in the world of Avanar. Memories of his past life flashed through his mind, filling him with determination. His final sleep in a cosy bed couldn’t arrive any sooner, though he had to fight back this energy swelling up inside of him.

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