Hm… It's been a while since Micolash left. Could something have happened?
Looking around, Moonless, the undead knight, and the skeleton showed no concern, unlike Madeleine who hugged her doll tightly and anxiously watched the passage to the backyard.
I knew she needed and wanted to be strong, but she was still a child. And that sight made my heart ache.
"Do you want me to go after him?"
The girl nodded quickly and I sighed, feeling tired of everything. After all, what had Micolash done that needed to be kept secret?
"Wait here and shout if anything happens. I'll return immediately."
I received a murmur of confirmation and entered the backyard, looking around for dangers. Insects sang and the grass and twigs crackled beneath my boots.
The creature near the Alll-mer statue screamed upon seeing me, cowering in a ball. I felt a pang of shame watching it plead for me not to hurt it, so I made the best choice and left it alone.
If I remember correctly, there were no dangers here, but I hesitated to enter the tunnel at the base of the tree and stray too far from the child.
So I turned back and crossed the remaining path, my vision partially obscured by mist. My heart raced; a monster could attack me from anywhere now.
The grip on my spear intensified as voices and noises assaulted my ears.
Initially I thought they were cries of pain amidst a general brawl, but when I finally reached my destination, I couldn't have been more wrong.
My mouth dropped open and my eyes widened in disbelief. My face immediately flushed at the level of depravity and immorality before me.
Countless masked men and women, all naked and in groups, fornicating without regard for the type of partner. And at the center of it all, there was Micolash, participating in the debauchery.
With a scream impossible to boast about, I covered the eye opening of my helmet with my hand, but no matter how hard I tried, curiosity proved stronger and I slowly separated my fingers.
D'arce, you're not that kind of person! D'arce, he's your partner, show some respect! A devotee of Alll-mer shouldn't care about this sort of thing! You're a pure maiden! A veteran knight! You're better than this!
No matter how much I screamed in my mind, I couldn't stop looking. My body began to tremble, worsening when two masked figures approached me, breathing heavily, with sweaty, perfect bodies and eyes full of lust.
At that moment, I felt like a chaste young woman, because instead of confronting the problem like an adult, I covered my face and turned my back, returning to the library at full speed.
"I'M SORRY!"
-XXXXXX-
When I realized it, I was standing outside the orgy, dressed and feeling great. I knew what had happened, but I couldn't remember anything.
Looking back, I saw the couple who had greeted me, laughing and waving. I returned the gesture, reluctantly refusing the offer to continue, and went towards the library.
"So, did you have fun?" The book asked.
"Prrrobably, but the detailsss are vague."
The bite and scratch marks on my body indicated it had been a wild experience, as did my aching hip and member.
"Before you go back, you'd better wipe the lipstick marks off your face, otherwise the girls will be jealous, although you don't need to worry about the marks down there."
I felt my face heat up, I clenched my teeth before I was dragged down any further, and I closed the book, returning to the library. Madeleine sighed, smiling broadly and came running towards me, hugging my leg.
"I took tooo looong, didn't I? Sssorry for worrying you."
I stroked her head, doing the same with Moonless who came next, wagging her tail excitedly. The undead hadn't moved from where I left them, while D'arce was sitting in a corner, hugging her knees while murmuring incoherently.
"D'arce, arrre you alright? Do you need wine orrr tobacco?"
She froze at the sound of my voice, her armored head moving mechanically toward me, staring silently.
"O-of course I-I am! W-why wouldn't I be?!"
"Sssomething is clearly disturbing you. Isss your mind low? Are you hallucinating and hearing voicesss from beyond? If so, drink or smoke something before it gets worssse."
"N-no, I'm perfectly f-fine!"
"Hm… Your acting isss terrible, but so be it. I won't insssist on the matter, but let me know if anything happensss."
"T-thank you!"
Despite her obvious nervousness, D'arce accepted my hand to stand up, however, I couldn't help but notice how she trembled at my touch despite being in armor.
"V-very well! What's our next objective?"
She slammed the butt of her spear on the ground, puffing out her chest, her other hand resting on her hip. The pose was a feast for the eyes, but I couldn't help but squint in suspicion.
"Verrry well, firstly, forgive me for the detour we're taking. I should have planned ourrr route better, but to be dirrrect, we're going in sssearch of one of the best and most lethal armorrr in this place."
-XXXXXX-
Clearly something had happened, because throughout the journey, I felt D'arce's eyes almost piercing my head, and every time I looked back, she would look away in a different direction.
I'll leave that aside, as long as it doesn't affect your fighting ability, and focusing on the most important matter at the moment, we meet in the secret chamber of the Penitent Armor.
D'arce made a straight line towards the chest, shouting "Tails!" and throwing a pair of lucky coins.
The first one showed heads, but the second one had the desired result, and upon opening the chest, the woman rejoiced, for she had found an Iron Cuirass, a more resistant and heavier version of her armor.
"Hm… Do you mind?"
She spoke in a timid tone, and I understood the message. I turned my back and used Trortur's key to unlock the armor's cell, seeing the humanoid iron maiden hanging from a set of chains.
Ignoring the sounds of metal and grumbles behind me, I ordered the skeleton to drop Miasma and don the armor. The undead did as commanded, walking backward toward the armor, allowing it to close around it with several clicks of locks and mechanisms.
The Penitent Armor, the set with one of the highest defenses and immunity to limb loss, had as its disadvantages the spikes that pierce the wearer's flesh and cause constant bleeding and loss of life—negative effects that a skeleton didn't need to worry about.
I sent two commands, the first for the skeleton to retrieve Miasma and the second for the rats to bring a wooden buckler, the most common type of shield in the dungeon and better than nothing.
When I finished, I saw D'arce observing her appearance with the new armor.
"It suitsss you."
"T-thank you!"
I ordered the rats to take the old armor to the hideout and explained to my group what I had done.
Needless to say, the news pleased everyone. With that done, we returned to the backyard, kneeling before the statue of Alll-mer where D'arce repeated the prayer from before.
As soon as she finished, we felt as if the God loved us unconditionally, as if we were his children and no matter what we did, we would still have salvation if we repented of our sins and did not stray from his path.
The man on the cross became visible to me, with brown skin, bald, a body and face sculpted like a statue, and features of someone from the Middle East. Alll-mer, the perfect human, observed me with love and curiosity before returning to being a statue.
"Frrrom now on, we have maxxximum affinity with Alll-mer."
I was about to leave, but I noticed that D'arce was intently observing the statue.
"Do you ssstill believe in Alll-mer?"
"Yes, the more I see, the less I deny his existence, but… He doesn't look anything like what was said in the scriptures."
"Religion wasss created by men in a futile attempt to understand the godsss, but what they think the godsss are and what they truly are couldn't be more differrrent. I'm not saying Alll-mer doesn't possess the aspectsss spread throughout his religion, however, there's much more behind hisss common representation."
Despite my explanation, she didn't look away from the statue, nodding slowly before walking away with her head down.
-XXXXXX-
50/100
The Greater Mumbler fell, as did all the others around it, its chest cut open by Miasma and its armored owner. Madeleine cut the legs of one of its inferior versions, bringing it to the ground, before piercing its heart.
The same was true for another of the weaker creatures, falling with a spear piercing its stomach. When it was all over, we reached the depths of the thicket, and with a wide blow, I ripped open another of the hungry god's hearts.
The underground trembled, but nothing came, however, we didn't wait and jumped through the last hole, returning to the catacombs. And from there, we went to the blood pit and descended to the caves by elevator, dividing ourselves into groups so that the mechanism wouldn't collapse under our weight.
"PANT! Micolash, how much further do we have to walk? I'm getting exhausted!"
"Jussst, GASP! Jussst a little more, we're almossst done!"
65/100
The Cave Gnomes were no challenge, and Moonless with Madeleine riding on her back proved an effective combination.
We stopped before Sylvian's phallic statue and, kneeling around it, I removed the book about the specific God from my backpack and began the prayer.
"Aspect of life, mistress of creation, queen of love and mother of humanity, hear the cry of this little being."
"Grant me the power to heal and love, to protect and bring life to the world. Just as you have done since time immemorial."
"The strength to plant and create, to raise forests and carve rivers in the earth, to fill the seas and multiply the animals."
"In your name, I have tended creation for this eternal cycle, in your name, I will cause my race to multiply and walk the world, in your name, I will show the same love that you have shown us."
"When destruction comes and new space is created, I will continue my service in your name, so that in the end, I may find myself in your loving embrace again."
Unlike Alll-mer's love, what we felt bordered on obsession, as if something crawled into our being and enveloped our souls. I found myself in a green ocean from which tentacles of the same color rose, revealing a massive form that disappeared moments later.
I couldn't help but shudder when I stood up, a mixture of revulsion and desire. I wanted more, simultaneously, I longed for distance from it. D'arc hugged her own body and Madeleine trembled like a leaf. I pulled her close to me, offering some comfort.
"Disgusting! Disgusting! Disgusting!"
The knight murmured, and I nodded at each repetition, agreeing with all my might.
-XXXXXX-
The mines were one of the last places to visit, avoiding the ghosts, as we had no methods to harm them.
Unlike before, I made a point of waiting at the tunnel entrance, allowing the rats to go ahead and find the ritual circle while we rested on the ground.
Fortunately, the ritual room was closer than expected, and we soon found ourselves in its center, praying to Sylvian again, and once more feeling corrupted.
"With thisss, we have reached the maximum possible affinity outside of Ma'habre. The remaining circlesss are located within the city of the godsss. How do you feel now?"
There was a moment of silence, broken when the knight answered.
"It's as if a door has been opened to something that was always there, but beyond our reach. I'm not a sorceress, but after all this, I feel I understand the workings of the world better. I know things I didn't know before, I see and hear things my senses didn't perceive, and now… I don't know what to think, everything is so much bigger than I imagined."
Madelei nodded, though I supposed it was instinct, as I doubted she knew the meaning of all those words.
"They sssay ignorance is bliss, but I think the opposite. Humansss should seek knowledge to stop being foolsss and transform the blind worship of godsss into a fair exchange. May what we achieve today ssserve so that we are never deceived by those above usss again."
"I couldn't agree more."
I didn't see her eyes, but the steel in D'arce's voice was what I longed to hear.
-XXXXXX-
We returned to the library, drawing ever closer to the final preparations.
"Very well, I believe everyone here possessesss some coins. This is the time to use them in the sssearch for spell and skill scrollsss, whose reading places the information in our mindsss. The more we learn here, the more soul stones we will have left to curse our weaponsss. Think about what you want, choose a side of the coin and tosss it up; if the result is what you desire, you will obtain the ssscroll."
D'arce had her lucky coins, and Madeleine had even found some along the way, but I made sure to share the coins from my world with both of them, increasing their chances of success, so the search began.
-XXXXXX-
Words cannot describe the time we spent here, celebrating when we achieved our desired result and screaming in frustration when we failed and watched our coins turn to dust.
We didn't spend it all, but we came close, now having a mountain of scrolls, books, and papers on the library table.
Slowly, we read them one by one, as there was nothing to indicate their contents. At least when the skill was repeated, the scroll didn't fall apart, allowing it to be passed to another member of the group.
Needle Worm was the most common scroll, to the point that everyone learned it and there were still more left.
The Pyromancy Trick was the second most common spell, learned by everyone. However, Madeleine managed something even better, Combustion, a powerful spell without a mind cost.
Black Orb came next, and finally we had a way to face ghosts. What brought us the most joy was acquiring Healing Whispers and Loving Whispers, allowing us to heal each other on a small and large scale.
At one point, D'arce and I found ourselves in a peculiar situation, as I had found the scroll that taught me Greater Blood Magic, evolving all of Gro-goroth's spells.
She, on the other hand, found the scroll that teaches Blood Sacrifice, allowing her to learn all of Gro-goroth's spells by sacrificing her blood in ritual circles, with the drawback of rendering them useless; therefore, a Blood Portal would need to be opened beforehand.
The skill scrolls were the rarest and most varied. However, there was the question of whether what we learned would be useful or not. For example, Madeleine learned Steal, Devour, and Counter, skills that wouldn't be very useful for her position as a sorceress.
I learned Dash, Lockpicking, and Leg Sweep. The first increased my running speed, and the last gave me the option to destroy legs, even though I preferred to keep my distance from enemies. The second didn't seem so useful, considering I can destroy doors.
D'arc learned Fast Attack, her secret skill, Marksmanship, but we didn't have a bow or arrows, and Bloodlust, a Berserk state familiar to me.
The books and papers were the disappointing part, as we got every piece of lore that could be acquired with coins, and most of it was repeated, since I already had the books I got from Nosramus.
I burned Pocketcat's books, kept the Pinecone Pig Recipe, Passages of Ma'habre, and the Ancient Book, although I didn't dare read it. We didn't get Books of Enlightenment or Lost Memories, nor Empty Scrolls, so we headed towards the Hexen Table.
For a long time I had wondered how this would work, since only the character you chose could unlock the spells and abilities on the table.
As we approached, we saw a set of multicolored lines and circles in place of what should have been only the bluish light. After some testing, we discovered that each color represents our affinity as we approach the table.
Madeleine is orange, D'arce is yellow, and I am gray. Fortunately, the slots for soul stones, whose spells and abilities we had learned previously, were already filled.
Our affinity with Alll-mer and the God of the Depths was at maximum. I had two points with Gro-goroth and one with Sylvian, while Madeleine and D'arce had one and zero respectively with each god.
We didn't have many soul stones; our silver would be used to buy more from the Ma'habre merchant, as well as the sorcerer's stone if we didn't find the magic ring beforehand, so I decided to test one of the charged stones, placing it in the only slot in Alll-mer's skill tree.
There was a blinding flash, and when it ended, the knowledge of the Blood Portal was in my mind.
"Did you learrrn the spell too?"
I asked through the absurd headache I was experiencing. I received a couple of hesitant nods, making my chest burn with joy. After this wonderful discovery, we decided to complete the God of the Depths kill tree, learning Mastery Over Insects, Flock of Crows, and Locust Swarm.
In Sylvian and Gro-goroth's skill trees, I was the only one to learn Pheromones and Hurting due to my affinity, but D'arce and Madeleine learned Blood Golem from the second God.
Without empty or skill scrolls or the souls of the New Gods, there was nothing more to learn here, so we focused on cursing our weapons.
Madeleine's dagger was the first, now surrounded by a heavy blue aura, making it the best weapon for the child. My Shark Teeth and D'arce's Ritual Spear were next, with the last stones being used for my Meat Cleaver and her Morning Star.
With that done, we spent all our soul stones, leaving only one thing: to return to all the ritual circles and open the Blood Portals.
By the Gods, I just want to rest!
-XXXXXX-
We returned to the hideout at the same time as the rats brought the scrolls, papers, and books from the library.
I didn't even care, I sat in a corner with an exhausted groan, allowing D'arce to use the comfortable armchair this time. Madeleine sat beside me, resting her head on my arm, closing her eyes as her breathing slowed.
Opening the pages of Kitab, I read what he had to say.
"Congratulations! Due to learning Greater Blood Magic, your Gro-goroth spells have evolved and had their cost reduced.
Black Orb -> Greater Black Orb
Hurting -> Greater Hurting
Blood Golem -> Greater Blood Golem
Necromancy -> Greater Necromancy
Besides that, there was the growing list of spells and abilities, with Carve unused until now.
Well, we had good equipment, although it might have been better to spend the remaining coins on the basement armory, but without Jeanne, we risked condemning Seymour and Buckman.
Abilities and Spells were perfect, but perhaps we could get what was missing from Ma'habre's library. Our item stock was the best possible from the upper levels of the dungeon.
We could handle almost all status effects and restore our health, hunger, and mind, but despite so much preparation, I didn't feel confident.
Before resting my eyes, I made a small list of what was missing before we finally went to the City of the Gods.
1 - Discover what the words of Carve do;
2 - Use the recipes to create better items;
3 - Teach D'arce and Madeleine how to use magic;
4 - Recruit the floating head.
Then, I closed Kitab, and after so long, I allowed sleep to take me.
END OF CHAPTER