So what do you say to tens of thousands of attendees watching you as you stand alone in the ruined area of the last event? You only have a few seconds before the system teleports you back into the common area after your sister forfeited.
Well, obviously, in a burst of pride and with adrenaline still rushing through your body, you shout your real na out loud and follow it with a threat. You tell them how terribly you will fuck them up if anyone ever tries to touch soone belonging to you, whether it is your family, the other mbers of your group, or anyone who might be working with you. You tell them that what they just witnessed was nothing, and that it'll be child's play compared to what you will be capable of in the next three years.
So go on. Try to act smart, have fun playing around on Earth, and hope I die before I can make my return. Maybe I really will die, maybe you have nothing to worry about, and soone as maniacal as I am will crash against the wall that kills .
But what if that’s not the case?
Say you get the clever idea and try to find out more about my background. You already know what I look like; you might even have photos and videos. So of you could probably figure out who I am even before I gave you my full na. But now that you have both my na and my sister’s, there can’t be many siblings nad Nathaniel and Victoria Gwyn. It should be easy.
So, maybe you think it’ll be a good idea to locate mbers of my family, hide them sowhere, and blackmail once I get out.
To that, I say: I have Earth’s most powerful healer, and I promise I can keep healing and killing you for years. I can co up with ways to cause you as much pain as possible. I’m petty enough to spend months, even years, making it happen. So I ask you again.
Would it be worth it?
And I say this: try . Go ahead, if you're really that confident.
"I will fuc—"
Before I can finish that sentence, I find myself outside. Unlike last ti, my mana locks itself back under my control imdiately, and not a whiff seeps into the area around .
It might be because my broken body is healed, but it feels lighter as if so sort of weight has fallen away. Even now, I am still strongly convinced I am the most normal one in Group 4; I an, we’ve all seen Lily elongate her arms and grow new ones from her back, so there is no debate about that.
Maybe I’ve always been ant to be a little bit of an asshole. Fitting into that place where I "respect" others and "their opinions" just seems silly at tis.
Once I locate the presence I’ve been searching for, I teleport there and place my hand on Channeler’s shoulder. For a mont, I consider using his na, but it doesn’t quite co to . Was it Rafael, Raphael, or Ralph? Saying the wrong thing would be awkward.
"My man," I say.
He shudders with surprise at the unexpected touch but regains control and looks back at .
"Yes?"
"I have your arcane item."
We gather under the tree in our area, everyone in Group 4, along with Myrra, and Channeler’s harem, who watch as he puts on the armor I’ve made for him. I’m much better with swords and weapons, so this one was very difficult. Unsurprisingly, Miwa’s advice helped a lot, as did so of the things I learned as a lumoran technician, well, assistant technician.
The armor covers his entire body, and it isn’t even that bulky. Looking at it, you might even expect it to be kind of flimsy. Wrong. The materials I used are top-notch. I used an assortnt of tals, alloys, mana stones for the plating, and lined the inside with leather so the raw tal wouldn’t chafe and more besides.
The chest plate is a deep matte grey, layered with faint lines that pulse dimly when he moves. Those are the mana inscriptions, woven through the armor like veins. It reacts to his movent, strengthens under pressure, and even has the ability to deflect weaker skills without him so much as having to lift a finger.
And then there are the mana stones. They’re embedded deep, locked into the frawork of the armor to act like batteries. Each one is charged and connected through its own series of insulated channels. The armor draws power from them constantly; it uses that mana to strengthen the joints, support his muscles, and prevent the weight from slowing him down. It not only makes him faster and stronger, but it also helps him maintain his speed and protects him from exhaustion.
In theory.
The chestplate is layered with inner supports. Beneath that is a thin core linked to the stones that serves to distribute mana across the suit. It’s not really smart tech or anything fancy, it is just built to last and work. The gauntlets and boots are reinforced. He can block with his arms without feeling the shock, and he can land hard without twisting anything. There are no energy channels, nor is there an accompanying glow, just pressure resistance and weight support.
The only problem is getting in and out of the armor. It takes a few minutes, and he needs several people to help him, so that might be a slight issue. The armor is also quite heavy, and another big problem is going to be charging it. With his reserves, it would take weeks to charge the armor enough to use 100% of its capabilities even for a few minutes at a ti.
But I’ve already thought of that. I may be an asshole, but at least I’m a rich and smart asshole. I went out and bought several extrely high-quality mana stones. Ten of them. And I’ve been filling each one with as much mana as possible over the course of the tournant, inscribing them so they can be slotted into the armor and exchanged for a filled one.
Each of these mana stones should be able to power the armor for hours. At maximum output, probably for two or three hours, during which ti he should be able to wipe the floor with the average Hard difficulty attendee.
In theory.
With rumors that Hard difficulty will probably reach the 13th floor so ti in the next year or two, Channeler should have plenty of ti to beco Earth’s apex predator, assuming soone doesn’t kill him when he’s not wearing the armor, though he seems pretty smart.
In theory.
As for the description:
Manabound Fra (Low Arcane) -Forged from reinforced arcane alloys and lined with mana-reactive channels, this armor consus vast amounts of energy just to remain active. In return, it grants the wearer unstoppable montum and an imnse resistance to both physical and magical assault. Built to function under extre strain, it demands constant mana input to maintain full capacity. Without it, the armor becos dead weight; however, when fully powered, it turns the wearer into an unstoppable frontline force.
After putting on the helt, Channeler takes a few steps toward and cos to a stop. For a mont, he loses his balance, but the output is currently set below 5 percent, just enough to allow him to move as he normally would without feeling heavy while keeping so of the defenses active.
"Nathaniel," he says, his muffled voice drifting out from under the helt.
"Yes?"
"How much would sothing like this go for in the system shop?"
"That? Hmm, probably around 200,000 to buy and around 100,000 to sell."
"Shards?"
"No, pieces of deer jerky. Of course, shards."
"You're giving sothing worth 100,000 shards?"
"It’s probably worth a bit more. It has a nice base, and if I could make it so that it didn’t rely on mana batteries and change so things that I had to tweak for soone of your power level, I could probably turn it into a mid-arcane item with a bit of help."
"You're giving sothing worth more than 100,000 shards?"
"I would like to say I'm lending it to you so that I could take it back once the tutorial ends, but by then, sothing like this won't be valuable enough for to bother with. So yeah, you could say it is a gift. Not for free, of course, you still have to do all the things we talked about and find all the people we ntioned."
"Of course, I’ll keep my word, Nathaniel. I promise."
"There’s no need to be so serious. Also, sorry about the design; I know it’s a bit rough."
"It's ugly as fuck," Myrra shares her unprofessional opinion from the side.
No one from Group 4 raises their voice to defend , and I make sure to rember that.
Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
I continue, "But the performance is good. I have prepared a manual as well, so you can get so training in for the few weeks before you return to Earth. I’ll even try to charge so training mana stones so you can train and save the ten I gave you. Do you still plan to clear the 13th floor and head back to Earth in the next few weeks?"
"Yes, I’ve already made deals with a few of the smaller groups, and we’ll be coordinating our returns and make an attempt to organize back on Earth. Samuel was pretty helpful too; he told us a lot about how the army functions and gave us so contacts, so we’ll make an attempt to discuss things with them."
He removes the helt, revealing his uselessly handso face, though determination is etched on it.
"I have a lot of data I can share with them. There are too many people with videos and information on you, so I won't try to hide your capabilities. I think it would be counterproductive. Not to ntion that I’m expecting you to grow a lot in the few years we’ll have before you return. In the anti, I’ll be using your na a lot, and people from Easy difficulty are very eager to communicate."
"Don't take in everyone you et," I reply.
"Of course, there will be standards and requirents. By the way, NotAaron said that when we started building our organization back on Earth, we should give it a cool na and ntioned that you would want it to be Angry Kittens."
Multiple heads slowly turn to look at the twins. It’s likely that only Izzy truly knows which one is Dennis and which one is Aaron, but they show no sha and continue to smile in mirrored fashion.
Channeler nods, guessing my answer from the looks we give the twins, "I thought as much; I’ve collected a few ideas, and if you—"
"Angry Kittens will be fine," I say.
Just as before, heads turn toward , one of them with cat ears and a tail swaying from side to side.
"Okay," Channeler agrees imdiately without further questions.
After that, I give him so weapons I made from my mana using Mana Weaving and [Knitting]. Each one should match the level of epic items in terms of sharpness and durability. They don’t have any special effects. They’re just my mana, compressed, woven, and knitted together, and all around made to last as long as possible. It’s similar to my manabloc material and the manabloc chairs. I’m confident most of them will hold their shape for years before the mana inside starts to unravel. I’m also sure they’re tough and sharp enough to handle real combat.
There are enough for Channeler and his harem to use, with a few extras left over for trading. And Tess also made so plans for Easy difficulty to get in touch with so scientists once they returned to Earth. They’d be given items, mana, and other materials to examine and otherwise experint with.
That should bring in a lot of money, either through selling the items or attracting investnts. It could help build the foundation of our so-called “organization” or whatever we decide to call it. I’ve never cared much about that sort of thing, but I’m sure Sophie and Maya have done their best to make sure it’s all being handled.
As for , I start explaining the armor’s hidden chanics to Channeler. It puts pressure on his body, similar to a restrictive training emblem or burden enhancent inscriptions. The idea is to let him train while wearing the armor, without using up too much mana from the batteries.
It might cause a bit of pain, but I’ve tuned it properly. Still, I don’t like the expression he makes. I was expecting more excitent for such a useful training thod, especially one I put so much effort into modifying for him.
I point that out, and he quickly shakes his head, telling I’ve misunderstood. So I ask if he’s okay with improving the inscriptions and making a few last-minute changes to increase the training effect.
He gives one of those brilliant smiles, the kind that looks like it belongs in a photoshoot, and nods in a way that almost seems like he’d rather be shaking his head.
Even though only 24 hours remain, a lot happens in the anti.
My sister is declared the Absolute candidate by Lissandra, who seems to respect her more than . Unsurprisingly, there is no big fanfare about it since not even Vic wants to make a big issue out of it; she just accepts it in her pragmatic way.
Rumor has it that Lucien, also known as Spacepup, even got kidnapped for a few hours by a silver-haired woman who wanted to study a skill he possesses. This incident may have worsened the PTSD the little jerk already had.
So sad. Poor guy. I just hope that the woman didn’t find him only because soone talked to Myrra and told her to ask the silver-haired woman to check on him. He seed to be trying pretty hard to stay under the radar.
So people co to visit , but I don’t accept any of them. Derick is one of the more notable ones, along with Yama, who, despite being one of the “kings,” follows that young Chinese girl, almost like she’s her personal guard or servant.
Sophie and Maya speak to them briefly before they leave.
The deal with Savant is wrapped up as well. The most cowardly, or perhaps the most patient, man in the world leaves, seemingly satisfied with our agreent. This ti, I am too. Examining the Sword of Aeons gave a lot of ideas for improving my future items.
After he leaves, Tacita stops by, but only to stand next to Lily and observe her. When Lily shows no signs of resentnt or harm from being attacked by Tacita during the last event, the mute woman looks pleased, if only for a mont.
Out of everyone here, she seems to like Lily the most. It's the kind of gratitude an injured animal might show to the human who treated its wounds and fed it while it was weak. That sort of thing. Even though she attacked Lily during the last event, I’m fairly sure that if Lily had been in any real danger of dying, Tacita wouldn’t have gone through with it. And I’m just as sure her rcy would only apply to Lily.
After confirming whatever she needed, Tacita vanishes again, but not before drawing an emoji into the air with the tip of a finger glowing with mana.
(´• ω •`)ﾉ
As ti runs out, people spend more of it finishing up so last-minute trades and saying their goodbyes. I spend so of that ti with Victoria, and we say our farewells away from everyone else. We share a few more pieces of information, advice, and so plans, hoping that we get the chance to et again in Beyond. I also visit a few other people to make plans for an expedition to Beyond.
Neither of us is good at this kind of thing, so we keep it brief and part ways with a promise to see each other in the next tournant, which will probably happen in a year.
All that needed to be addressed is taken care of just like that, and the tournant finally ends, and we get our final notifications.
Congratulations on completing your 2nd tournant!
The third tournant will occur three years from the start of your tutorial. All rounds from Earth’s tutorial will compete together against another planet undergoing its own tutorial.
Congratulations, you have placed first overall in the 2nd tournant of Earth's tutorial. Your rewards have been improved.
Congratulations, you have placed first in the overall crafter rankings of Earth's tutorial. Your rewards have been improved.
You have rejected all event rewards in order to increase your final rewards. Your rewards have been greatly improved.
Please choose 2 out of 5 possible rewards:
Three active skills combination token
Passive skill combination tokens (up to mid-arcane rarity) x2
Passive skill (mid arcane)
500,000 shards
30-day beyond-stay tokens x2
Flashback Tess Hansen
Everyone except the little puppy in my arms is gone. And a single sentence hangs in the air before :
Participation in the tournant is not possible in your current state.
With a sigh, I sit down on the ground and look at Biscuit. "There can only be one reason I was forced to stay behind, right? Did you know?"
The speed of his wagging tail increases, and he licks my face before squirming out of my hands. After that, his size increases until he grows into his "adult" form... obviously, he can do that now. In fact, he probably could have done it before, too, he probably decided to remain a little pup because he enjoyed the attention and had an easier ti begging for food.
As he settles into his adult form, his fur ripples along the sides of his head, and a tiny set of budding, baby deer antlers begin to grow.
(Knew. One of us. Help.) He says.
"Aren't you the cutest little thing?"
He wags his tail even faster and moves closer, nuzzling my hand until I pet him.
"I’m probably not a mimic, or it's so fucked up that I am one without even realizing it. I think I could probably use [Declaration] to ensure I die the mont the mimic takes over, but if I do that and I'm not a mimic, it might decide to kill , knowing I have no way to win."
(Friend. Still.)
"Oh? So you’re saying I'm not a mimic yet?"
(One of us!)
"Your speech is better now. Is it because of these things?" I ask, reaching out to tap his antlers. In response, he woofs at .
"I see. I'm glad to hear that. I promise I’ll tell Nat to feed you a lot and pet you a bit more frequently."
He barks twice.
"Can you promise sothing? I don't want to use [Declaration] because I’m afraid it’ll provoke the mimic, but if it does take over, can you kill ?"
(Not one of us. Food.)
For that brief mont, Biscuit seems terrifying.
"Thank you. Lissandra must have known, and knowing her, she’ll use it to bully Nathaniel. But Biscuit, who does that woman think I am? So damsel who’ll just sit here and wait for her ex to save her?"
(Damsel? Food?)
"No, a 'damsel' isn't food. It's the word you use to describe a weak woman who would rather rely on others than focus on saving herself."
I lift him up from the ground. He’s a bit heavier now, but he quickly shrinks back to his puppy form, and the antlers shrink dramatically, further adding to the remarkable cuteness of the little corgi.
"I think I have a plan, but I might have to do so bad things. I don't mind, though, and I’ll gladly pay the price with my conscience if it ans I can see our friends again. And if I fail and die, so be it, as long as it’s just , and only . Will you help ?"
(One of us.) He says, as a cheeky smile spreads across his puppy face. (Help. Friend.)
"Thank you. Now, let's head to the second front and find so mimics to talk with."
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