Secret Quest 'Back Door' Complete!
Description - Discover a hidden passageway leading into Tonberg's royal castle.
Reward - 2,500xp
Lieze took in a breath as she surfaced. Water dripped from her chin and bangs. Her cloak became heavy, clinging to her body and making it difficult to move around. She couldn't see a thing in the darkness of the cave, but had more important things to be worrying about.
Seconds later, Marché emerged with Ricta in tow, holding the young noble by his collar. Lieze already had her dagger drawn in preparation for his execution. She wasn't going to waste a moment between the satisfaction of his terms and the end of his life.
-Or, so she thought.
Ricta moved his jaw as if chewing something before spitting towards the ground. As if by magic, the cave was suddenly filled with smoke. Marché recoiled as the back of Ricta's head rose to slam into his face, loosening his grip enough to free his captive. Lieze understood the situation immediately and lunged forward to thrust her dagger into the smoke, disappointed to feel her strike meeting nothing but thin air as a set of footsteps escaped further into the cave.
"Damn it!" She coughed, "He had one of those smoke bombs in his mouth the whole time!"
"Hah!" Someone else breached the waterline, obscured by the smoke, "...What the- why's it so foggy in here?"
Seconds later, a violet light crossed through the smoke, gathering it as if magnetised. Drayya waved her hand to and fro, bringing another up to cough into as the smoke began to disperse - or, more correctly, began to shrink. Once she was finished, Drayya had a roiling bundle of smog dancing around her fist.
"Is there a fire?" She asked.
"Ricta escaped." Lieze replied, "He still had a smoke bomb to spare, it seems."
"That worm…" She muttered, "Well, it's not as if he has anywhere to run, is it? If this cave is truly a linear passageway to the castle, then we'll run into him soon enough."
"I should have killed him as soon as we confirmed the location of the cave…" Lieze said, "But it's as you say. He's quite harmless, and if we get moving, we'll inevitably run into him. Nothing of value has been lost."
New Quest Received!
'Regicide' - Kill Alexander Wyrmblood Ricta III
Reward - 2,800xp
As the seconds ticked by, Lieze's cultists - as well as their thralls - bundled into the cave. The rot-stink was almost unbearable in that confined space. Even Lieze, who had spent the better part of her entire life meddling with corpses, struggled to suppress a gag reflex as the entire army struggled to fit through the entrance.
"I suppose we'll have to leave the Rot Behemoths behind… that hole is simply too small." Lieze muttered.
But it was not so. Rot Behemoths, as it turned out, cared very little for whether passageways were large enough for them to fit through. A chorus of shunting granite and animalistic roars portended the thralls' violent arrival into the cave. Lieze, Drayya, and Marché moved up to give the army some space, but when every single thrall had been accounted for, it became obvious that their movements through the cave would be slow and methodical.
"The three of us will depart with the Briarknights to scout out the path ahead." Lieze said, "Meanwhile, this lot will bring the army up from the back. I don't expect to meet any enemies down here - apart from Ricta, of course - but stay on your toes regardless."
The cavern was natural and continued to run deeper into the earth as Lieze began her investigation. A few hundred metres from the entrance, the thin passageway opened up into a larger chamber. Arrays of stalagmites created a kind of natural maze, forcing Lieze and her allies to exercise caution on the way through. The chamber was so massive that it was a wonder how the entire district hadn't collapsed into it.
"Briar's Thorns - if only we'd known of this place before the war kicked off!" Drayya exclaimed, her voice bouncing from the walls, "To think we were squatting in a cave miles from the city when we could have been hiding here the whole time!"
"It is a concealed location, but I think the guards would have noticed us diving in and out of the canal…" Lieze replied, "Plus, we couldn't have grown our army within the city walls."
"Perhaps this is where Ricta's family grave is located?" Marché was consumed by wonder, allowing his gaze to explore every inch of the cavern, "It's a known fact that past members of the royal family were never buried in any public or private cemetery."
"Hopefully Ricta's forebears were accomplished warriors. We're in dire need of fresh corpses at the moment." Lieze said, "Keep an eye out for anything suspicious."
As it turned out, sight was not the sense necessary to perceive any abnormalities. As soon as Lieze finished that sentence, there was a terrible clatter from the far side of the chamber, followed by unintelligible cursing.
"That'll be our boy king." Drayya took off in the direction of the sound, "Come on! We'll have him yet!"
The three of them broke into a sprint, daggers drawn with intent to kill. Drayya was the most eager among them, leaping through the gaps in stalagmites to rush towards her quarry. When Lieze and Marché caught up to her, the girl had found herself amidst a collection of strange rock formations, once more wrestling Ricta to the floor. He had dropped something in the chaos - a circlet composed of two golden, wire-thin strips.
"You ceaseless harlot! Get your hands off me!" With a firm kick of his boot, Drayya was sent reeling from a blow to her chin. Lieze sprinted forward to cut him off as he lunged for the circlet, kicking the headwear out of his reach.
"No!" He screamed, "Don't even think about touching that! You'll all end up dead if you do!"
Lieze didn't listen to his threats. She leaned over to pick up the circlet with an intrigued glance, using her [Identify] ability to decipher its secrets.
Circlet of Master Teleportation (Headwear)
Description - When worn, this circlet can be used to cast the [Master Teleportation] spell once per day.
"Interesting…" She muttered, "So you were planning on using this to escape? I should have known your reasons were more complicated than that."
"What is it?" Drayya asked.
"A magical item that allows the wearer to teleport…" She replied, "With this, Ricta could have escaped the city and fled to the north."
Likely some hidden treasure of the royal family that only he was aware of. Based on Lieze's understanding of levels, a [Master] spell was the most powerful sort in existence - beyond even the [Supreme] level of her necromancy. She placed the golden circlet atop her head to see if she could glimpse the spell's description.
Technique Learned! (Temporary)
Type: [Spell] Name: [Master Teleportation]
Description - Spend 2,000MP, teleporting to any location you are aware of within 5km of your current location. If the location you imagine is not currently accessible (i.e. blocked by debris, etc.) then you will instead be placed in the closest available space next to your intended destination.
"You have no right to wear that…" Ricta glared at her, "That circlet was gifted to Ricta I from a legendary Shaman in the Black City… it's an emblem of sovereignty more meaningful than the crown itself…"
"I appreciate the history lesson, but it's only useful to me for more practical reasons." Lieze said, "I really have to thank you, Ricta. This cavern, plus this circlet, is exactly the sort of advantage against Alistair we were searching for. A shame your gambit didn't work out in the end."
She nodded to Drayya. The young king wasn't given a second to formulate a response before his throat was slit in one graceful movement. Lieze watched the life fade from his eyes as the granite floor became soaked with blood. With a last pitiful squeal, Tonberg's former king went motionless, and Lieze had removed one more problem from the equation of her victory.
[Alexander Wyrmblood Ricta III] Defeated
32xp Rewarded!
Quest 'Regicide' Complete!
Reward - 2,800xp
Level Up!
You are now level [35]
HP+ 15 MP+ 40
MIND + 1
Milestone Reached!
Supreme Necromancy (lvl. 1)
has been upgraded to
Supreme Necromancy (lvl. 2)
Description - Use 20MP to reanimate a creature of level 60 or below. The creature's level as an undead thrall equals 2.2x its original level, rounded down. You can maintain a number of thralls equal to 8x your level, rounded down.
Necromantic Alchemy (lvl. 6)
has been upgraded to
Necromantic Alchemy (lvl. 7)
Enhancements Learned - [Necrotic Touch]
Unique Undead Learned - [N/A]
Another surge of power flowed through Lieze. Her milestones were becoming less frequent, but more coveted. 5 more levels, and she'd receive the most powerful form of her necromancy. The matter of the [Gain Forbidden Knowledge] ritual continued to linger at the back of her mind. Once Alistair and Sokalar had been dealt with, it would become her next goal.
"Gods, that felt good." Drayya allowed Ricta's lifeless body to slump to the floor, "But if I must be honest, he wasn't much of a threat in his final moments. To think he survived his own abdication only to perish in even more pitiful circumstances…"
The death of his own king didn't seem to disturb Marché in the least. In fact, from the moment of Ricta's capture, his attention had been focused solely on the stone monoliths rising from the surrounding rock. His fingers brushed against the aged carvings chiselled onto the flat surfaces.
"What language is this…?" He spoke to himself, "It's certainly not Dwarvish… it doesn't seem Elvish, either…"
"What's gotten you so interested, Marché?" Drayya asked.
"These standing stones are quite interesting." He replied, "They don't appear to be graves, as Ricta mentioned. The writing must be ancient if it's been chiselled straight into the stone…"
"Hm?" Lieze tilted her head as her eyes glazed over the writing, "What are you on about? This is perfectly readable."
"Eh?" Drayya paused, "You're joking. I can't make heads nor tails of it."
She wasn't. From Lieze's perspective, the letters were legible, and written in the common tongue, to boot. As she wandered closer, they began to glimmer - shafts of light extending from their edges as if enchanted by magic.
"What in the…" Marché took a step back, "Is it… reacting to your presence?"
She didn't answer. Her attention was focused on reading.
To those who have been touched by the divine…
Turn back…
Here, a great and terrible beast slumbers…
Rouse it, and risk the jaws of oblivion…
A tingling sensation assaulted her palm, where the scale seemed to be pulsing with recognition.
"What is this…?" She muttered, "There's something down here… something connected to the Scions…"
"Hm. Don't we have some important business to be dealing with at the moment?" Drayya crossed her arms, "We can explore this cavern all we like after Alistair is dead."
"No… this is too important of an opportunity to pass up." Lieze replied, "Our knowledge of the Scions is uncomfortably incomplete. If Alistair served the previous kings, he may also be aware of this place. Perhaps there's something we can use to our advantage."
"I also think it warrants further investigation." Marché agreed, "If it wasn't already clear that you serve some greater purpose, the Blackbriar itself brought you back from death so it could be realised."
"Yes… and I'm not interested in being the pawn of a God." She said, "We have enough time for a quick detour. If nothing of value turns up, we'll return and find a way into the castle instead."
"Oh… it's never simple with you two, is it?" Drayya sighed, "Well - nothing I say can possibly convince you otherwise, so… lead the way."