NOVEL NEXT Adventure 216 – The Greedy Coin
Liam laid back against the wall the bed was against. His mouth was still hanging open as he stared at all the notifications before him. He knew he was going to have a couple of level ups in his sub-stats, but he didn’t expect it to be so much.
How? How did I accumulate so much experience to get this many levels in mu sub-stats? Liam thought. His eyes were on the notifications before him, but his focus was off in the distance. His attention was brought back as a text notification from Eri arrived.
“Majority came from your fight back on the sixth floor of the Tutorial Dungeon. Between the Hubristic Arisen Lich, and the fight with the creatures and the shadow giant, you received a lot of experience. However, due to the Debuff Stat Shatter you received after fighting the shadow giant triggered from both the Chaotic Meltdown and your Zodiac ability, the experience you would have received after the fight was stored. You can think of it like when you reached level twenty in the few sub-stats you did before leaving that place. Instead of getting all that experience at once, it held it until the Debuff was lifted. Now that it is gone, you received it all at once. Not to mention all the things you have done after leaving that place, it also added to the mix. – Eri”
The explanation made sense to Liam. Still though, he had heard that the levels under twenty were a bit easy to go through and the ones afterwards were harder to reach. While some showed that, there were a few that had either reached mid twenty or past the mid twenty range.
Liam looked at his right hand before lifting it up slightly and gripping it enough to flex. He didn’t feel any different than he did yesterday or rather the day before. He had felt a slight change when his sealed sub-stats changed from fifty percent to only twenty five percent sealed. However, he felt it when he moved around.
Is there a difference between sitting around and moving? Liam thought as he tried with his left arm. If so that is strange.
He stopped what he was doing and remembered there were other changes he had received. He had gained a couple of personal levels. Those were the hardest for him to gain since he had a different kind of seal on him. That one held his personal growth back. While he was okay with it since it allowed him to focus more on his sub-stats, he was still happy to hear he gained a couple of levels there. He brought up his personal information and looked at it.
“Personal Character Sheet. General Information. Name: Liam. Race: Cait Sith/Sealed. Bloodline: ?????. Zodiac: Gemini. Main Class: Spirit Weaver. Secondary Class: Shadow of the Devourer (Sealed). Health Pool: 813/813. Mana Pool: 750/750. Stamina Bar: 805/805. Spirit Pool: 350/350. Level: 9.”
Liam was surprised by what he saw. While seeing his sub-stats level up was surprising enough, his Health, Mana, and Stamina had increased by a lot. To add more to the shock he was receiving it looked like his Spirit Pool raised a long with his other pools and bar.
His brows scrunched as he realized his Spirit Pool was also full. He wasn’t sure if him getting a personal level refilled it or if he had refilled it before. He couldn’t remember due to everything that had happened a couple of days ago. He would need to see if it did the next time he was able to get another personal level up.
The thought brought another thing to mind. His Health, Mana, and Stamina had shot up as well. He couldn’t remember how much he received when certain sub-stats leveled or when he leveled up personally. He would also need to keep an eye on that to see how much he received each level up.
Liam felt his mind swim for a moment as everything started to hit him. This was real. His Stat Shatter Debuff was gone. He received the belated level ups from his fights not only from his last couple of days in the Tutorial Area, but also the last few days here. He was now able to level up his sub-stats again.
A grin slowly formed on his face as that last part sunk in. He didn’t have to worry about falling behind anymore. These last few days really hit home how far behind he was. While he was able to get out of certain situations, it was still at the skin of his teeth. However, now is different. He had received a massive amount of level ups. His abilities and skills can now match his actual sub-stats instead of reflecting a partial amount. He was no longer weak.
Liam shook his head, clearing his mind from those thoughts. No matter how many level ups he just received or having that Debuff release its hold on him, he was still weak. That hit from the other night, his tests at the Fiddler’s Spider Web, that Demon-kin disguised as a Beast-kin, and even the Hobgoblins. Even if he didn’t have the Stat Shatter Debuff, they were still strong and higher leveled than him in certain areas.
Liam let out a sigh. He knew what he needed to do. He needed to go back to the basics and hone himself that way. Just like how Nabal wanted him to. Thinking about basics, he thought about Uncle Naro. The man was powerful, but he didn’t need to show off his skills or abilities to take on all those Beast-kins. Liam wondered if Uncle Naro would help him go over the basics and correct any mistakes he made. Now that he didn’t have the Debuff to hold him back, he could practice those with earnest.
Liam nodded at that. That’s what he was going to do. While looking for his old teammates, he would ask the man to guide him so that way the next time he saw his mentor he wouldn’t be ashamed of him.
Before he could do that though…Liam looked at the food. He needed to eat, rest up, and take care of what he need to. He still had some unfinished business to take care of with the Fiddler’s Spider Web Branch in this city.
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Liam walked through the city. He had his Veil of Shadows activated as he slowly moved about. He wanted to walk around like normal, but after the other night with Lucy finding the inn he used to take showers with and the group of Beast-kins that had ambushed and attacked both he and Uncle Naro, he wasn’t going to take any chance.
He had finished eating his breakfast Milly provided him earlier. While eating it, he found out that it had healing effects added to the mix that helped his soreness and all the achiness slowly dissipate. It felt like he had relaxed inside a hot tub or a hot spring as the food sent a wave of warmth and relaxation feeling throughout his entire body as it made its way through his system.
He didn’t realize that after he had finished the food it had relaxed him enough to make him fall asleep once more. After he had reawakened an hour and a half later, he felt completely renewed. Milly had checked up on him a couple of times during his time asleep and after he had woken back up he had told her he needed to take care of some things.
She had protested when Liam informed her of this. She said something about Uncle Naro saying he needed to stay with her until he got back, and she had agreed with him. She had felt something weird happening in the city after the incident she had told Liam about, but Liam told her he would be alright. She didn’t let it go until he agreed to come right back after he finished with whatever he needed to do. He knew she wasn’t okay with it, but she also knew he was going to go out regardless of what she thought.
After familiarizing himself with the area she lived at, he set off. She lived on the outskirts of the city. Not too far away since it they were on an island, but it was still enough that she had no one close by. It was perfect for him to step out without any eyes on him. He was able to walk behind a tree and cloak himself before heading out.
After some time after that he now stood in front of the entrance of the Fiddler’s Spider Web. He activated the spatial entrance, stepped through, activated his Spirit Weaver ability as he stepped down the weird steps, and walked through the door.
To Liam’s surprise, Lady Arachne was standing there staring at him as he walked in. He noticed the look of relief as she stared at him. He wasn’t entirely sure why she looked like that since he had Silky inform her he was fine, but he decided not to pry too much into it.
“Good afternoon Lady Arachne,” Liam greeted as he approached her.
The shorter woman didn’t say anything at first. She looked like she was taking him in. The mask on her head slightly tilted down before returning back to where it was before. “It is indeed a much better afternoon than it was yesterday,” she finally stated as a warm smile slowly appeared. “I know you have recovered recently, but there is much we have to go over.”
Liam nodded. A bemused expression tried to form as he found it funny that she went from looking concerned to straight to business.
“Before any of that though,” Lady Arachne added. “I would like to hear what happened to you the other night. Would you please follow me and update me on the event that caused you to be out for a full day?”
“Yes ma’am,” Liam replied as he followed her through a door and into the meeting room they had used the other day. Liam stopped in his tracks after walking into the room as he saw Noxi, Orchid, Silent Saboteur, Midnight Claw, and a new person already sitting in the room.
This new person had darker skin than he and looked to be very slim. He had short silver hair, a thin black and silver colored cloth with no eye holes that wrapped around his eyes and the back of his head and a skin tight sleeveless grey shirt. Liam could see the rest of the man’s outfit, but he did notice that he had a weird type of cloth that hugged the middle of his bicep and ran down his arms loosely, even past his hands.
Liam found the man’s attire to be strangely unique, but the other thing that surprised him were the grey leathery wings the flexed for a moment before pressing against his back. They kind of looked like bat wings.
Lady Arachne noticed Liam and the other man stare at each other. Before anyone could say anything she stated as she walked towards her spot at the head of the table, “You both haven’t met yet.” After she arrived, Lady Arachne pointed to the man who was still sitting, “This is the Eighth Leg, Cryptic Wing. Specializes in Communications Interception, Information Gathering, Magical Security breakdowns, and more.” Lady Arachne turned her head towards Cryptic Wing and added, “This is our newest member and the Wild Card’s Apprentice, Phantom Cat.”
Liam noticed a slight look of shock at the mention of Nabal’s Web Name before he recomposed himself and gave a nod of greeting. Liam returned the nod.
Lady Arachne turned her attention back to Liam and instructed, “Please take a seat at the other end of the table and update us on what happened after you left the other night.”
Liam noticed the others in the room look tense. He took in a deep breath and slowly let it out before making his way to where Lady Arachne instructed him to sit. After sitting down he told them everything that had happened at his and Uncle Naro’s camp site. He also told them about what Milly had told him after he awoke. He left out their names, just calling them people he trusted.
After he finished he waited for their responses. They each looked shocked, confused, and even pissed. No one said anything as they took it all in. A few looked at each other, almost like they were talking to one another through some means.
After a couple of minutes of silence, Silent Saboteur asked, “I heard reports that Demon-kins were in the mix of the pile of the dead that appeared this morning. Were they not present when the ambush happened?”
Liam shook his head. “I personally did not see any when the ambush happened…”
Silent Saboteur was about to ask another question, but stopped as Liam added, “However, I would not discount that they were amongst the people who attacked me and my trusted ally.”
“What proof do you have to back up such a claim?” Orchid questioned.
Liam took in a deep breath. He slowly let it out as he decided to mention something he hadn’t told them before. he didn’t want them to question more about the event due to it being able to link his real identity. Instead he opted out some of the information and gave a half truth. “I had a run in with a group of Beast-kins not too long ago. After fighting them one of them had died. The others fled leaving behind the dead body of their companion.” He looked each of them in the eye as he finished, “Shortly after the man’s death his body had changed into a Demon-kin.”
Everyone in the room started whispering to each other. He heard one ask why a Demon-kin would use Illusion Magic to disguise themselves. A few other questions bounced around as they grew even more confused. As they did this, Eri suddenly sent him a message.
“Look into the space pouch you looted off his body. There might be something in there that could help everyone understand. – Eri.”
Liam’s brows scrunched as he read the message. Space Pouch? What are yo… Liam started to question until he remembered the item he looted from the Demon-kin’s dead body. He had forgotten to look into it with everything that had happened over the past couple of days.
He searched his inventory for the pouch. It had taken him a good minute, but after he found it he pulled it out. Everyone stopped talking and looked over at him. They were curious as to why he pulled out such an item but waited as Liam looked inside of it.
A menu of sorts appeared before him showing him the contents within. The menu looked just like his inventory menu which made things easy for him to see. Inside there were a lot of silver and bronze coins, a metal chest armor, leather leg armor, an interesting looking sword, some interesting looking plants he had never seen before, and a single silver coin.
Liam stared at the last item. This one gave him pause because it was separated from the other coins. He didn’t know why it was separated from the other silver coins until he noticed something. It had a strange symbol in the middle of it. Liam pulled it out and stared at it.
The symbol was a black crown sitting on top a pile of coins. The outline of the entire symbol had a golden hue. In the middle of the crown was an eye with several circles around the iris. As he stared at the symbol he felt there was something familiar about it. He couldn’t figure out why it looked familiar until something clicked.
That eye. That eye was similar to the one he had seen before he fought the Hubristic Arisen Lich. The only difference about this eye was it was golden instead of violet. He assessed it.
“Greed’s Coin of Possession. Item Type – Coin. Item Rarity – Rare. Item Quality – Well Crafted. Description – This coin is given to those who are considered the Immoral Vice of Greed’s property.”
This item. This was an item that could explain why he was disguising himself. If the Oni, he looted this from, was a normal Demon-kin then there wouldn’t have been any reason as to why he needed to use an Illusion spell to disguise himself. Not unless he was a Seven Immoral Vice follower. This coin proved it.
Liam looked at the others who were still staring at him. They had waited and Liam could see their curiosity starting to get the better of them. Without wasting any more of their time he stated as he lifted the pouch, “This Space Pouch dropped off the Demon-kin after he died. I had completely forgotten to check it until just now. After searching it. I have found an item that can answer some of the questions you just had.”
Liam threw the coin down and let it bounce a couple of times to land closer to the group of Fiddler’s Spider Web Head Members. After it stopped bouncing, they each looked at it and saw the symbol in the middle of the coin.
Liam felt a powerful pressure suddenly fill the room the moment they saw the symbol. He then heard growls, hisses, and even pissed off bird noises escape their lips.
Silent Saboteur, who had always portrayed a calm demeanor, slammed a fist down as he yelled out, “How did a member of that cult make their way onto this island? What the hell are those idiots doing in the Teleportation Tree!?”
“If this was the case for this Demon-kin then could those other Demon-kins also be members?” Noxi hissed angerly.
“If that is the case then is this island infested with them?” Orchid seethed.
Liam watched the members throw out even more questions amongst each other with anger and rage. He had heard that the Beast-kins loathed anyone from the Seven Immoral Vices, but what he was seeing right now just showed exactly how much they hated them. He could feel their hatred, their anger, their want to hunt down each and every one of the members that could be hiding on the island.
As he watched this he noticed something else. Two people had remained quiet. He could feel anger roiling from them, but instead of joining the others in their questioning, they just looked at each other.
“I thank you for letting us know about this, Phantom Cat,” Lady Arachne stated with as much calm as she could muster.
The other members noticed how calm and collected she tried to compose herself. They also saw that Cryptic Wing was sitting there not saying anything at all. With some annoyance, Midnight Claw inquired, “Why are you two so calm? Do you not feel enraged that these scumbags have somehow infiltrated our island?”
Lady Arachne shot Midnight Claw a glare as her mouth turned into a snarl, “Do not mistaken our professionalism for acceptance. We are just as angry as any of you are in here.”
Midnight Claw, Orchid, Silent Saboteur, and Noxi recoiled at the pressure Lady Arachne suddenly pushed out from herself. Liam could feel the bloodlust leak from the other side of the table. Even though he had finally relieved himself of that dreaded Debuff, he was humbly reminded exactly how weak he still was as he fought to the best of his ability to not fall face first onto the table.
As quickly as the pressure came, it disappeared. Liam let out a breath of air before taking in one. He could feel his heart beating hard against his chest from the experience. As he calmed it down when he heard Lady Arachne apologize, “I am sorry Phantom Cat. You should not have had to experience that.”
Liam nodded, not saying anything.
“The evidence of what Phantom Cat has provided to us just now helps bright to light to something else he had brought to us,” Lady Arachne started back up.
Everyone stared at her. They waited for her to further explain what she was talking about.
“Yesterday, Cryptic Wing was able to take down the Protection Magic on the folder Phantom Cat was able to swipe during his Field Mission Test,” the shorter woman continued. “While he was successful in breaking down that security a mishap happened when trying to use Copy Magic.”
Liam was confused by what she meant. He had recently learned about Copy Magic and how it was used to copy paperwork. What he was confused about was what she meant about a mishap happening while using that magic.
Before anyone could ask what had happened, Cryptic Wing finally said something, “There was a hidden protection Magic I didn’t think was possible. One that activates when using Copy Magic on the protected objects.”
“Are you saying that all the paperwork that was procured during Phantom Cat’s mission was destroyed?” Noxi questioned.
“Not all. No,” Cryptic Wing replied. “I was able to copy a quarter of the contents before the rest was destroyed.”
A look of relief mixed with slight winces were on the other member’s faces. They waited for the man to continue. When he didn’t, Silent Saboteur asked, “And? Was there anything worth finding?”
Cryptic Wing looked at the man before looking at the others. With a nod he said, “Yes. Even though there was a lot of important information that could help explain some things that was destroyed, the information that was salvaged brought forth a particularly important and urgent matter.”
Feeling the need to want to know what the man was building up to, Liam wanted to shout out Well? What is it? However, he didn’t needed to as Orchid asked, “Well? Out with it? What information were you able to get that is so important?”
Cryptic Wing took in a deep breath before letting it out. He then said, “A group of Immoral Vice Cult followers are trying to kill everyone on this island with a deadly dungeon break.”