[Absolute Zero]
Type: Water
Count: 10 Water
HP +30%
ATS +30%
ADF +30%
Effect:
100% chance to inflict Freeze when using Crafts or Arts.
Generates a Shield equal to 30% of Max HP upon taking damage.
[Cast IX]
Type: Time
Count: 9 Time 6 Space 6 Mirage
+30% SPD
+30% DEX
Effect:
Low and Mid-Rank Arts are cast instantly.
Reduces High-Rank Arts Cooldown by 50%.
Reduces Lost Arts Cooldown by 25%.
[Seraphim]
Type: Space
Count: 10 Space 5 Time 5 Mirage
+30 STR
+30% ATS
+50% EP
Effect:
Restores 5% HP and EP after defeating an enemy.
Upon HP reaching 0, fully restores HP and EP. This effect activates before Cry of the Phoenix Support Craft.
!?
What in Aidios's name are the effects of these three custom Quartz!? The other Quartz I've received until now pale in comparison! Holy sh*t!
Absolute Zero will generate Shields for me whenever I take damage. Thanks to the current Equipment I have on, I can block one attack right away, and two more if my HP somehow falls below 50%. Now, it will be much harder for me to get knocked out in battle. And even if my enemies manage to wear down these Shields and my HP reaches 0, I'll get fully revived not only once, but twice, and when the second time happens from Cry of the Phoenix, it will give me a massive buff to my Stats. Add Limit Break on top of all of that, and I will quite literally, break the game. Even though this is no game, haha!
Reaching into my Inventory, I immediately brought out the Enigma II. Its violet and white vibrant patterns are really a sight to behold. It has the insignia of white falcon etched on its cover with my full name printed underneath, signaling that it belonged to me, and no one else. There's only one of these babies in the entire world of Zemuria right now, and it's mine~
The moment I brought the Enigma II out, the space before me began to distort. A small pixie creature whose figure was distorted into pixels suddenly appeared before me. She let out a big yawn, acting as if she had woken up from a deep slumber.
"Did you call for me, Master?", AI KeA asked, greeting me.
"Oh, I didn't think you would return to the Enigma II, KeA. Are Celine and Tama still having fun exploring the capital?", I asked, deciding to ask how those two were doing.
"Uh-huh. Something about exploring the nightlife. They said I could do whatever I want, so I decided to return to your Enigma II and call it a night. Good morning, Master.", AI KeA said, greeting me with a little smile.
"Good morning to you too, KeA.", I happily replied. At the same time AI KeA's eyes wandered toward the couple of custom Quartz I now had in my hands, and chuckled. "Heh, you must have felt the orbal energy from these guys. Interested, KeA?"
"Yeah! The orbal energy I can feel from these Quartz is quite dense. How did you get them?", AI KeA asked, only to fly around the three Quartz excitedly.
"Oh, you'll learn about it one day. It's the very same reason why I document all those numbers onto my orbal laptop.", I said, keeping my explanation vague. Until I learn everything about this Second Genesis business, I won't bring up everything about the Gamer System to AI KeA. Not until the time is right. "For now, can you slot in the blue one, and the gold one? I know seven Slots are still locked, but you can at least do that, right?"
"Okie-dokie!", AI KeA said, and struggled a bit before she helped placing Absolute Zero and Seraphim into the first and second Slots respectively. Gamer Notifications followed after.
[Ding! You have equipped Quartz Absolute Zero!]
[Ding! You have equipped Quartz Seraphim!]
[Ding! Your Stats have increased!]
[Ding! Information regarding the Enigma II is now available. Would you like to view it?]
Unexpectedly, I was greeted with an extra Gamer Notification, requesting additional information be presented. I haven't seen it do this before, but perhaps using it triggered this? Nonetheless I chose yes, and was greeted with more Gamer Notifications.
[Ding! Combat Orbments are now considered external devices. This means that unlike Equipment and Items, which are an extension of the Gamer System, Combat Orbments are not directly tied to Gamer Naoto's soul. They are handcrafted by the people of Zemuria. Gamer Naoto has the ability to equip Combat Orbments at will, regardless of the Gamer System being present.]
[Ding! Factoring this in, all Stats related to the Combat Orbment will be applied after the application of Gamer Naoto's Gamer System.]
[Ding! Your Stats have been updated and are ready to view.]
That...makes sense, actually. While Combat Orbments may be tailor-made to whoever uses them, at the end of the day, they are orbal devices made by the people. Professor Schmidt and Erika Russell collaborated to make the Enigma II to me. It did not come from the Gamer System, even though I have Water, Fire, and Space Slots. That was the automatic adjustment once it was given to me, and because of that, no one else can use it. That's my take on Combat Orbments, anyway. And likewise, when I received the Generation III Combat Orbment from Mother, that came from House Phoenix. Not me. So yeah, I can see that.
Glad to see the Gamer System is registering it as such too. The Stats that I saw included my Levels, Occupation, Title, Blessing, and Equipment. It did not factor in the Enigma II at all. And now that I'm basically starting over with Quartz Reforge and the couple of Quartz given to me by those Blessings, I didn't hesitate to Slot two of them in. And once that happened, I felt even stronger!
"Thank you, KeA. We are going to have a lazy day today and focus on resting, so why don't you continue absorbing more data around the capital? It's a very big place so even if you spend all day in one area, there's still plenty to do.", I said.
"Alright! Take care, Master. You also said you will be around for a couple months, so until we head to another area, I will continue learning my surroundings.", AI KeA said, before doing a twirl of her body, and distorting space again. She vanished from sight as easily as it was breathing air. I do have a similar way to move about, Teleportation. I haven't used it much and it's quite tolling on my EP. With the Enigma II now being used, I am quite curious how my Stats are. Let's have a look.
'Show Stat Preview', I thought.
[Stat Preview]
Name: Naoto von Auslese
Level: 92 (0/855,400)
Total EXP: 26,790,400
Occupation: Crown Prince
Title: A Witch's True Friend
Final Stats (Boosted):
HP: 86,444/86,444
EP: 120,256
STR: 8,437
DEF: 2,499
ATS: 9,999 (35,070)
ADF: 2,320
DEX: 475
SPD: 755
Attack Damage: 42,185
Arts Damage: 105,210
Resistance: 2,499
Arts Resistance: 2,320
[Naoto's Equipment]
Weapon: Glistening Moonlight
Armor: Phoenix Robe
Boots: Vermillion-Clad Boots
Accessory: Tears of the Vermillion
Accessory: Adamantine Guard
Combat Orbment]
Type: Enigma II
Lines: 9 (Water - Fire - Space)
Master Quartz: Second Genesis)
Slot 1 (Water) : Absolute Zero
Slot 2: Seraphim
Slot 3-9: Locked
...W-W-What **** is this!? Over 100k Arts Damage? Really!?
Is this the real life, or is this just fantasy?
Joking aside with those particular lyrics, I was left flabbergasted. These...are well beyond the Stats of Level 250, let alone me being Level 92. If I fought Ace again, I would likely leave him in the dust...
I couldn't help but suck in a cold breath of air.
As I was left stunned, wondering how future battles would go from here on, a different scene could be seen taking place in the room that was connected to this one.
Deep within the bathroom was a wide, carved out bath that could allow several people to bathe at once, Princess Alfin decided to have her friends over. Further inside was a partition, which hid away a sole, fancy, pearly-white marble bath that one would see rich people use, or those who belong to high-class society. This area wasn't in use. The much larger bath currently had a constant stream of hot, steamy water pouring down with what appeared to be a marbled lion. Majestic, yet domineering. As expected of the Imperial Family.
Toward the changing area were some large mirrors. Princess Alfin and Sherryl were currently getting ready, and Princess Alfin was humming a happy tune. Sherryl just took in the sights. This bathroom was even larger than what was seen last back at the Arseid Mansion.
"I had a feeling you wouldn't lack proper décor, Alfin. You are Erebonia's Treasure. It is only right you have the space to back it up. Still, this is just a little too fancy for my liking. How can such a wide bath be used by just the two of us?", Sherryl asked, scratching her cheek. Hearing that just made Princess Alfin smile. "Besides, I'm just your guest. Is it really alright for me to use this?"
"Enough with that nonsense, Sherryl. So what if I have an extra large bathroom?", Princess Alfin responded, smiling at Sherryl. "And I know you were trying to keep your distance at the dance from last night, but I saw you take glances at Naoto. By extension, we are family now. You can treat this place like your second home away from home. After all, you'll be seeing Grancel Castle as your home in due time, heehee.", Princess Alfin continued with a giggle.
"Alfin...", Sherryl uttered. After that hint of embarrassment faded, she smiled, and nodded. "Yeah, I'd like that. And who knows, Naoto left me in charge of the matters of the reunion we will be having in the coming future. I'm sure he'll let you be there for the event too. That way everyone else can meet you."
"I wouldn't like anything more~", Princess Alfin happily said. "I know what happened to you and Renne, so I won't speak of the topic itself, but I'm glad you were able to walk away with those friends of yours. I can't wait to meet them. It is all thanks to those Vermillion Eyes. It must be quite a burden for Naoto to have them. To be able to peer into the future...I can't fathom what that is like."
"Neither can I. Naoto did say he plans to use those eyes again soon, so until then, let's not ask about it until he is ready to do so, alright?", Sherryl asked. "We need to be mindful of his personal space."
"Of course! For now, we should freshen up. I know we brought in a couple of maids, but knowing that you intend to serve Naoto starting in the next year or two and that your family once served House Bartholomeus, why don't you help wash me, Sherryl? In place of the maids."
Hearing that, Sherryl's eyes lit up.
"I wouldn't mind doing that, Alfin. You have very beautiful skin. As expected of being called Erebonia's Treasure, heehee.", Sherryl giggled.
"I could say the same thing to you, Sherryl~", Princess Alfin said, also giggling again. "Your skin is not like a normal girl's. It's very healthy and peachy, seemingly without a single blemish. It's because of your unique constitution, right? A side effect?"
"More or less. Let's just say my Vitality is much stronger than most people. Its side effects have been mostly in my favor, and well, if you want to see the rest, make your way down to the Vander Dojo during the week to see me spar against Naoto. It is hard to put into words.", Sherryl said, remaining aloof.
"Then that is what I will do. You've learned under Zin the Immovable, so I am quite interested to see how far your martial arts has come. But call me being overly worried, are you sure those scars don't hurt?", Princess Alfin asked with a hint of worry in her eyes.
"They don't, but I appreciate your worry.", Sherryl said, shaking her head. "Regardless of whether it was planned or not, I would have ended up in a much worse state if it wasn't for Naoto. Besides, my body is quite sturdy thanks to all the training I received from Teacher. Maybe it might be better to hold the spar today, instead of during the week. It's not like we're doing much today, right?"
"Nope! So that's why I said I'm interested to see how far you've come. You may not know, but I saw your finals back at Grancel City. I was there with Naoto. That is why Musse and the rest acted surprised to hear such a thing happen.", Princess Alfin said, smiling. "To be honest, I am a little jealous. I, for one, do not have a knack for martial arts."
"You really were there? Now I know why I felt those familiar gazes...", Sherryl murmured, recalling the moment she fought against Rixia Mao during the finals back at Grancel City. Naoto had quite the group then, but he had left before she could pick up any traces of him. And now, Sherryl's improved leaps and bounds. Unbeknownst to many, Sherryl has already tapped into her Battle Aura!
It isn't a widely touched upon topic. When training in martial arts here in Zemuria, one can unlock what is called Battle Aura. In other stories, it's similar to Qi. Only the most prominent of martial artists can tap into this, and if one can, it heightens one's battle prowess to the extreme. One gets to see this when Zin clashes against Walter atop the Tetracyclic Towers.
Sherryl can already tap into Battle Aura thanks to her training, making even the likes of Zin stunned to learn about that. Adding to what Sherryl can do with Gnosis and freely manipulating the flow of her blood, Sherryl has already developed a unique Skill only she has access to. She was looking to show it off in a spar at the Vander Dojo, which might take place later today!
For now, all Princess Alfin and Sherryl did was glance at each other again and smile. They rummaged through their clothes, and before long, took a dip in the large bath that was releasing a constant stream of steam. As that happened, I recovered from my earlier stupor, and let my gaze wander back down onto Dreichel's Plaza.
My Stats have come a long way, and I am both fearful, and hopeful as to what will happen next. Monsters may scale drastically from it, but I'll be ready. It also makes me curious as to how others will become adjusted once they're influenced by the Gamer System. I can only wait and see. Because of that, I calmed down, and was now taking in the sights of Heimdallr.
It really is such a gorgeous place, isn't it? A place pure of fantasy, but here I am, almost fourteen years now, living in Zemuria. I can't help but feel amazed as to how far I've come. As if sensing my gaze, I was soon drawn toward a particular direction in Dreichel's Plaza.
It didn't take long for me to spot a violet-haired girl, a white-haired girl, a plum-haired girl, an olive green-haired girl, and a black and indigo-haired girl, standing near the bridge that connected to Valflame Palace. Of course, they were Renne, Musse, Elise, Fie, and Emma. It's still quite awkward to see Renne dressed in the St. Astraia fashion of all clothes, but I think I'm getting used to it. This is something she chose to do on her own, I had no say in the matter. I'm all for it, so props to Renne for deciding to study here in Heimdallr, even if it is just for a little while.
I don't think it will interrupt what Renne has to do in the Gospel Plan, she is likely just biding time away before The Faceless begins to make his moves. In two years or so. There is plenty of time to burn until then, me included. That's why it's a perfect time to do the Vermillion Trials!
It looks like the girls had some destination in mind, seeing them already out and about at 7AM in the morning. It wasn't just them either. Prince Cedric was there, who had a bored look in his eyes. And yet amongst those people, Emma's eyes soon wandered upward.
I saw Emma staring right at me, even though the distance was far apart. It was as if she saw me, clear as day. I was left surprised. Was this the result of her own training? All I saw Emma do was smile at me for a brief moment, before Emma turned her head away, and began to speak to the girls beside her.
As for me, I simply wandered back inside the private quarters, and began to sit cross-legged. Something I haven't done in quite a while. Meditation. Not since I had my fight with the One of Swords. I was told breakfast would be ready at 8AM, so we had a full hour to spare. Knowing that, I decided to rest up, and do a little bit of meditating!