Excerpt from 'A Treatise on Modern Divination'
'… another example of the crucial role that Diviners and Oracles play in modern geopolitics was the 3rd war between the Kingdom of Fayth and the Afrye Tribal Federation. Many overlook this conflict because of its short nature and negligible shift in borders.
What many don't understand was that behind the scenes, powerful actors, both at home and abroad were desperately suing for peace. Powerful Oracles, and many of their lesser professions1 felt a severe disturbance in the World's Will shortly after engagement of hostilities. This in itself was not unusual, but what set it apart was a progressive scaling of tremors that could be sensed heading directly to Ark, home of the world's most extensive labyrinth.
Faced with this growing evidence and uncertainty of the threat, the international community forced the warring nations into a hasty armistice.'
1 e.g. Diviners such as Madame Tussay,
***
Six months into the war, rumours abounded that peace was just around the corner. The southern port city of Osvig had been recaptured by the Kingdom of Fayth. The war had been reduced to two fronts and there was talk of a ceasefire in place. Rumours abounded that the Kingdom would cede the small port town of Seaford in the southeast in exchange for an armistice.
'This was big if true!'
The only person that looked glum was Ham. He had spent his life savings and obtained outside financing to set up and equip the camp workshop. It was a good investment at the time, after all, financiers had predicted the war would rage on for many years. Ham's heart ached at the thought of the war ending so soon, he had only recently begun to break even. His lucrative contracts!
Exill ignored the sulking dwarf and continued hammering at the iron ingot. 'I have my scrap leather armour and saved up 200 Denars. I am ready to leave anytime!' He was similarly pleased with the progress of his jobs. 'I'm now an [Expert Blacksmith]!'
[Expert Blacksmith]: level 1, Active Skill: [Enchantment 1-slot] the equipment you craft can now hold a single enchantment.
Last night, he had hit lvl 20 in [Blacksmith] and obtained a minor strength bonus, accompanied by the following message:
[Would you like to upgrade Blacksmith?] Yes/No
He had hit [Yes]' to find that his primary job had been upgraded to [Expert Blacksmith]. Curious, he had examined his job list to find its' precursor, [Blacksmith lvl 20] was still there, passively providing perk benefits, and available to be assigned. Theoretically, he could now craft items that could hold a single enchantment.
Exill had quizzed Ham and many others in the camp, but nobody could definitively explain how an enchantment was placed. Ham had waved away his ignorance mumbling something about 'soul shards' and 'soul stones.'
Progress had been made on other fronts as well. [Peddler] had been successfully upgraded to the Tier 2 [Vendor] as he 'sold' arrowheads to Ham each night. This new job allowed him to fetch the price range of items intuitively.
[Vendor]: level 1, Active Skill: [Price-Range] determine the lowest and maximum price of a given item within a certain range (range increases with level).
Actually… that last point gave him considerable mental damage. The [Price-Range] skill was telling him that an unfletched arrowhead was worth around 0.8-1.2 Denar in the current war economy. He was being paid a miniscule fraction for his labour even if you subtracted the cost of ingredients!
Exill swallowed his frustration. He hated being taken advantage of, especially when that money was hard earned. Now all that was soon to be left behind. If the rumours were to believed, he would escape Ham's exploitative grasp and be free to leave the refugee camp soon.
There was just one thing left to do. He took a break and summoned his Card. Unassigning [Blacksmith] he put [Planeswalker] in its place. A new option appeared,
[Increase available job slots? Rejection +2] Yes/No
Exill frowned as he looked at his Card. He was facing a dilemma he had no clear answers to. The last time Rejection had been increased; he had suffered no consequences. What this 'tribulation' meant; he had no idea. If the best the World could do was an ominous rumble of thunder, wouldn't it be alright to raise it just a little?
'If it reaches a hundred would I be ejected from this world? Would I just die?'
Exill was on the cusp of raising multiple jobs simultaneously and his plan required more active job slots. He was semi-determined to add five additional slots for a total 20/100 rejection.
'Surely, it would be alright if I keep it under 25%?'
Yet he couldn't bring himself to commit to his decision. The problem lay with the personality that served him so well as an engineer in the previous world, and it boiled down to cautious cowardice. Decisions would be postponed until unknown parameters were better defined, an admirable trait for someone of his profession.
However, the depths he was treading were uncharted, and he had sinking feeling they would remain that way until he stepped forward, risking life and limb. Perhaps it was Verill's calming encouragement, or the horrors he had encountered in this world. Exill was unhappy with who he was and who he used to be. In some respects, this second chance at life presented a new leaf, an opportunity to reinvent himself. Firming his resolve, he tapped the Card five times in quick succession before he could change his mind.
[The World has noticed your transgression. Rejection: 20/100]
Goosebumps rippled across his flesh as he felt an impending sense of doom. Then the vault of heaven tore itself open to unleash a mighty fury on the lone transgressor.