Sonya kicked Thane out of her room, "You have two hours before sunset. Make sure you're ready by then." He couldn't respond as Sonya slammed the door in his face.
Her petty attitude only made Thane smile as he walked back to his room. Sitting down on the bed, Thane took a moment to revel in his victory before he turned his attention to the rest of the poisons.
When he inspected the bunch, each vial came up as unknown. With only two hours left before he had to head out again, Thane was hesitant to ingest the poisons to try and advance his title.
'Why do I even want to use poisons?' The sudden thought caught Thane by surprise, "It's only useful in combat when I have the drop on my opponent. Applying poison in the middle of a fight is impractical as it takes too much time and tips off the opponent."
Thane no longer had confidence in his ability to defend himself. Lilith was able to restrain him in a matter of seconds. 'Is that why Body Cultivators are so rare because the risk is too high and the payoff is too little?'
Shaking his head, Thane didn't believe he was right, 'No, that's not it, mana alone didn't allow Sonya and Lilith to compete with me. It was the techniques they used.'
Thane's eyes regained their look of clarity as everything snapped into place, 'I need to get my hands on some techniques. While I was able to create a breathing technique, it doesn't have any combat potential.'
The auction would be his best chance of coming across a technique, 'I just need one to see how they work. I should also buy a mana crystal for Annabelle so she can use her technique.'
With some free time on his hands, Thane pulled out his gun and took it apart using a fine cloth to wipe down all the individual parts to ensure there weren't any flaws.
By the time he was done with the familiar ritual, the door opened, and Annabelle walked in, her hair was messy, and dirt stained her face.
"How was training?" Thane asked as Annabelle collapsed into her bed in response. She just groaned, making Thane smile, "Well, I hope it was worth it."
Annabelle glared at Thane through lidded eyes before looking at the notifications she had gained throughout the day.
[Notice: Start]
You have gained the skill: One-handed Weapons Level 1-(+1% damage dealt by one-handed weapons, +1% to land a critical strike.)
The Skill: One-handed Weapons has gained 2 levels, the following changes have taken place-(+3% damage dealt by one-handed weapons, +3% to land a critical strike.)
You have been rewarded for your effort: Your strength has increased by one point due to your training.
[Notice: End]
Annabelle wanted to tell Thane about her hypothesis for how leveling worked in the Realms, but her eyelids grew heavy, and her breath evened out as she fell asleep.
Thane looked at her, and he sighed. Standing up, he pulled the covers over Annabelle before leaving the room and closing the door quietly behind him. Sighing, Thane turned right and found his way back to the main room, the bar mostly empty as night descended on Heartwood.
Taking one of the many free seats, Thane was quick to order some sake, hoping to wait out the remaining time. A few minutes later, someone tapped on Thane's shoulder, making him turn around.
Sonya was glaring at him. She was wearing her Shadow garb, and Thane raised an eyebrow, "Don't tell me you're still mad about earlier?"
Ignoring the question, Sonya looked at the three empty bottles on the table in front of Thane, "Drinking before a job, never a good idea." Rolling his eyes, Thane stood up from his chair, "Relax. My poison resistance is even stronger. I can't even get a buzz anymore."
Thane said the last few words with a hint of sadness, and he looked away as Sonya's eyes narrowed, "What do you mean, Poison Resistance?"
Scratching his cheek, Thane smiled coyly, "Oh, I got bit by a Bush Viper when it played dead. I was able to survive, and the poison ended up refining my body and granting me the Poison Body title."
Sonya was a little shocked, "Really, can I see?" Thane's brow furrowed, "What do you mean, 'can I see.'" She suddenly remembered that Thane hadn't been in the Realms for more than a month, "Just think about sharing your stat page with me."
Thane did so, and his mark glowed simultaneously as Sonya's, and her eyes lost focus as she pulled up his stat sheet. A minute later, she dismissed the screen and looked at Thane in a new light.
"You killed two Ascenders on your planet?" Thane nodded like it wasn't a big deal, "They were robbing a store, and I was in a bad place mentally. I just hope I don't get any use out of that perk."
For the first time, Sonya saw a hint of fear in Thane's eyes, "Do you have a problem killing people?"
"No, in fact, I enjoy it." The words barely came as a whisper, but Sonya was able to hear them nonetheless, and she flinched as a manic smile appeared on Thane's face, but it disappeared so fast she thought she imagined it.
"I became addicted to the adrenaline rush, and those who trained me started to fear what they created." Thane sighed, and the cloud that hung over him disappeared suddenly, "Well, that's all in the past. The final test is tonight, correct?"
Sonya nodded dumbly, "Yeah, we just need to get to the roof."
---
Thane took a deep breath of the fresh cool air, and looked up at the clear sky above, "I traveled all over my world, and never once did I see a sky so unpolluted."
"I didn't bring you up here to go stargazing, now stay focused. If you really are what you say, this should be a piece of cake."
Thane turned to look at the sparse crowd walking the streets at night, "Do I have to steal another coin purse?" Sonya shook her head, "Not steal kill." Falling silent for a second, Thane looked at the crowd one more time and noted a few individuals he wouldn't mind seeing die.
"Okay, I'm off. This shouldn't take long." Walking over to the side of the building, Thane vaulted over the side, falling to the ground below silently. Looking up at the fifteen-foot drop, he grinned, 'I need to test the limits of my abilities.'
Checking himself over, Thane ruffled his clothing and messed up his hair before crouching down and rubbing a bit of dirt onto his cheek. 'Now for the final touch,' punching himself in the face, Thane continued to do so until a bit of blood trickled down his nose.
Reaching into his coin pouch Thane grabbed a handful of silver coins, 'After this, I have to stop splurging. I only have 50 silver and 20 gold left.'
Cocking back his arm Thane waited for just the right moment before he let the coins fly. The coins flew into the hair in a shower of silver that reflected the golden light from the paper lamps overhead.
As the silvers hit the ground, everyone's heads whipped around to look at the wealth lying on the ground. There wasn't even a moment between the footsteps and a crowd of people forming around the area where Thane threw the coins.
Watching the crowd, Thane slowly reached the crowd of people, locking his sights on a small thin man who was pushing people out of his way.
Pulling Nibble from his storage ring, Thane quickly walked over to the man and stabbed him three times in the kidney. Knowing exactly where to strike, his attack was so precise that his target didn't even notice.
Thane was able to take ten steps before a shrill scream broke the air no doubt from the man currently laying on the ground with a pool of blood forming around him. Returning Nibble to his storage ring, Thane stumbled and held his nose as if nursing a new wound.
[Combat Log: Start]
You have earned: 5 XP from Human Lvl. 1
You have learned the skill: Sneak Level 1-(+25% damage to sneak attacks, +25% for sneak attacks to be critical hits.)
[Combat Log: End]
Walking back to the Sphinx's Hoard, Thane was greeted by the Librarian, who bowed, "Lady Sonya is waiting for you in the cavern below." Nodding, he was quick to find the staircase again.
True to her word Sonya was waiting for him, "You got back fast. After I saw you stab that guy, I was sure you would draw some attention." Thane shrugged, "Like you said, piece of cake for me."
"That it is," Sonya smiled, "Welcome to the Shadows, Thane. All your gear will be ready in a week. There are a few rules. However, you are never to steal someone's mark. You need to complete at least one mission every month. All disputes within the Shadow must be brought to Liliths attention. And if you betray the Collection, you will be hunted down. Any questions?"
Thane sat down at his bar, "That's a lot to take in, but if I have to ask, are there any ranks I need to know about."
"Ambitious, are we?" Sonya sat down next to Thane, "But yes, there are, to start, we are actually a part of a larger organization called the Yami, which is made up of chapters in all prominent cities up to the Sky Realm. Each chapter has a leader, usually called a Lord or Lady. In our case, that would be Lilith."
Thane nodded along while ordering a bottle and two cups for Sonya and him, "After the Lord comes the Knight, who is the most skilled Shadow in the Chapter." Thane's eyebrows rose in interest, "And who would that title belong to currently?"
"That would be yours truly. Moving on below the Knight, there are the Shadows which make up the majority. They aren't ranked individually, but below the Shadows are Informants who can be anything from civilians who are paid to those looking to climb the ranks."
While Thane kept his expression neutral inside, he was growing, 'All the way to the Sky Realm, escaping is going to be much harder than I thought.'
Shaking his head, Thane decided not to dwell on it too much, 'For now, there isn't any immediate threat to Annabelle or me, so I'll play the role.'
Smiling when the bottle of sake arrived, Thane was quick to pour some into both cups, "To me, for being so awe-inspiring and powerful!" Sonya didn't return his toast, only draining the saucer of its contents.
Doing the same, Thane poured some more into his cup, "Now back to the real matter at hand."
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