Atlas had dark lines and airbags below her eyes, as the golden sun rose to the dawn of a new day. The endless orders had considerably slowed but were still coming, yet she decisively ended the session at the time she had set.
That way, she'd be seen as a woman of her word, and those who hadn't made it last night wouldn't want to miss the opportunity again for anything.
On looking at her now account balance, she weakly smiled at the nine-digit Crystal Shards sitting there.
She crawled out of her tent and lazily made a set of light stretches, purchased a set of Cleansing Potion—an alternative to a toothbrush and paste, and went down to the lake to have a cold bath.
She sported a casual oversized shirt dress which came down to her thighs, too lazy to put on anything proper, and headed right back to her tent, where she planned to go right back to sleep, after assessing both the supply crate loots and the unexpected ones from last night.
She had obtained 4 Common items, 4 Uncommon items, 4 Rare items, and 1 Mysterious item. What's with the number four? she thought amusingly.
Skipping the Common grade items as they are, as their name suggests, common, she inspected the first Uncommon item on the list, a Herb Infused Water Flask, which its description stated is infused with restorative herbs capable of quenching thirst and providing minor regeneration for a short duration. Boring.
The Supply Pack was next, where her tent had come from, along with a couple of firestarters and tents. Useful.
Elemental Rune Scroll. A spell scroll that allowed the user to add an elemental effect—fire, ice, lightning—to any weapon or spell for a limited duration of 15 minutes. Cool. But it's a one-time-use item. Boo!
Next, Crystal of the Golem Heart. Once per day, summons a stone golem to fight for the user for 10 minutes. The golem has high defense but moves slowly. Hmm. It also provides a 5% magic resistance to earth-based attacks or spells. We'll keep this one as a last-ditch effort.
That was it for the Uncommon grade items. Moving on to the Rare grade items.
Fruit of the Ancients. Sounds good. A mysterious fruit said to be enchanted by ancient forces. When eaten, it temporarily boosts physical and magical power by 20% for 5 minutes. Five minutes? Not so ancient, are you now?
Ancient Key. A key required to access a specific dungeon or hidden treasure vault in a distant, dangerous part of the realm. Okay, I'm so keeping you. Said to be a key forged by the ancient empire of Xyrax, it is one of the many keys scattered across the world that opens the path to great treasure. Bring it on!
Essence of the Night. Instantly restores all of the consumer's mana. Increases spell power and casting speed by 25% for 5 minutes. Now that's ancient-like! Good stuff.
Next, Phantom Cloak. Increases movement speed in forests or low-light areas by 10%. Allows the user to phase out of reality, becoming invisible and untargetable for 3 seconds. Once per day. Nice!
Last but not least on the Rare items obtained in the Supply Crate was the Frostglass Daggers. +25% critical hit chance. Each hit has a chance to slow the enemy's movement by 20% for 5 seconds. Damn! This should be at the peak of Rare grade. I'm so keeping it.
All in all, the loots might've made other Lords go crazy. But she, just a tiny bit. She could purchase this all in a sniff. Except maybe for the Ancient Key, which, for some reason, she felt would play a big role in the long run.
Moving on to the unexpected pleasantries from last night, we have the:
—
[Point of Creation]
Item Type: Legendary Rune Crafting Record
Rarity: Epic
Category: Crafting Knowledge (Rune Crafting)
Required Level: 50
Durability: Infinite
Weight: 5 units
Description: "An ancient tome holding the secrets of a forgotten civilization's rune crafting techniques. The record contains instructions for creating powerful and unique runes, allowing the user to craft and enhance magical objects beyond normal capacity. Its contents are sealed behind intricate puzzles of runes that can only be unlocked by those with advanced Rune Crafting skills."
—
"…"
Atlas was dumbfounded. This should be the dream of every Mage Crafter out there—but there she was, bored and hungry in her tent when the game makers, for all she knew, casually threw it her way. For what?
"When it starts to seem easy, know there is a problem." She crossed her arms across her chest, darting her eyes around in search of those pervy eyes. You never know what those at the top are up to.
She was currently at level 18 and would have to get to 50 before she could make use of the tome. It wouldn't be easy to achieve and might take a while before she got to that level. But as long as she still had the tome, there was no rush. All is well that goes well.
—
[Fragmented Map of the Realm]
Item Type: Magical Artifact
Rarity: ??
Category: Map (Exploration Tool)
Required Level: None
Durability: Infinite
Weight: 1 unit
Description: "A fragmented and mysterious map that reveals the land only as its bearer explores. Initially blank and covered in a gray fog, the map uncovers detailed terrain and landmarks in real-time as the bearer journeys through uncharted areas. The map holds the key to unlocking hidden secrets and forgotten routes across the realm."
—
Though this hadn't hyped her up as much as she thought, she noticed the rarity once Rare, now had question marks. That should be a good thing, right?
From what she understood from the map, if she were to stumble upon some kind of hidden ruin or tomb, it should be marked on the map. If she was in some kind of dungeon or exploration, she shouldn't get lost and should be shown hidden traps or passages. If she ever were to walk close to another Lord's domain, it should notify her of it, with its rank. Okay, I might've misjudged. This is great.
And lastly, she was excited about the 'Lucky Summon Ticket' she had obtained from the 'Hope Bringer' achievement, as she had never for once, considered building an empire of the undead. She wanted to stand out in this game of domains, and her plans right from the start were to build an empire surrounding all races she could get her hands upon.
She was going to build an empire welcoming to beings from all walks of life, a domain that possesses everything one could possibly ever ask for, and with an army of all races, she was going to climb the realms, dominating and expanding until she got to the top and became a Keeper… then what? she thought in uncertainty.
[The real fun begins.]