Robin immediately used [Visual Phantasm] to re-summon his illusory hands and open the book again. Well, maybe not immediately. there might have been a few moments—minutes—of hyperventilation and panic. Curses were serious business, right? But then, he was already cursed, so he thought he might as well see if he could get past the annoying thing.

Could he get more cursed? Might as well find out.

Robin paged through the illusory book quickly, barely glancing at the pages long enough to track his progress.

He slowed when he neared the spot the cure had last manifested, but he did not stop. He was committed, and part of him was daring the god to try and curse him again.

Robin reached the penultimate page before the curse. He flipped it, squinting his eyes in case the thing flared up again.

Nothing happened.

He flipped to the next page.

Still nothing.

Robin allowed himself a small flare of triumph. Apparently Urkhan or his priest or whomever had laid that trap hadn’t counted on someone being quite this foolish.

The more fool they!

Robin resumed reading. This section of the book went even more into depth about the secrets available to truly dedicated illusionists. At this point it ceased to be the story of a single individual in Tarin-Tiran, but rather was more a collection of lore and reminisces and scraps of older holy texts.

The faith of Rhyth seemed to be rather tatterdemalion thing, even so far back as this tome seemed to date.

Small wonder, if the deity was truly as old as some of the legends suggested. And if the world was this strange assemblage of floating continent. Bards, illusionists, travelling performers, it made sense that a lot of Rhyth’s holy rites and practices grew from many sources, were a coat cut of a cloth of many colours.

Robin read and read, ignoring the clench of his hungry stomach and the increasingly parched state of his throat. He needed to absorb as much of this knowledge as he could, while he could. There was no telling when a curse might interrupt him again, or he might be shunted out of the library by an irate Vryngylla.

He flicked away the notices of a free rank in Arcane Lore and Insight, of discounts to Deception, Sleight of Hand, and Cunning. These were more than knowledge, these were stories, and many of them were utterly absorbing.

They were also full of really good bad ideas. The anecdotes alone were a master class in trickery and deceit and madcap tomfoolery.

But the illusion lore here was key. While it didn’t give him all the pieces, there was a lot here. Enough that he was convinced he could eventually fill in the gaps, either with more research or with brute forcing his experience system and the interface to get him the powers he needed. The powers he wanted.

There were hints as to how to make illusions temporarily fully real. And unless he missed his guess, there was definitely a way to finesses various powers in concert to make some illusions more than fully real.

That was the real secret behind the ability the Queen of Air and Darkness had told him of. ‘The Mirror’s Revenge’ she had called it. Illusionists of the ancient world so termed it because it—in certain select situations—allowed illusions to exceed the reality of the real world, though they were still but phantasms.

Lesser Mirror’s Revenge

Tier 3 Peculiarity

You have studied the higher mysteries of shade and shadow and you are beginning to understand that all reality itself is merely an illusion, a dream in the mind of slumbering gods. As such, you have learned to imbue some of your illusion magic with a degree of false reality that rivals the real thing.

Effect: Qualifying illusions spells enjoy 3% per caster level of effectiveness in comparison to their reality-based counterparts. For example, if a pyromancer cast a fireball that inflicted 100 points of damage (using one of your video game systems as an easy maths example), an illusionist with this peculiarity and the pyromancy specialty could, at caster level 7, cast an illusory fireball that would inflict 21 points of damage.

Additional Requirement: This effect can only be applied to illusions which mimic an effect of which you have a sufficient understanding. Sufficient understanding can be achieved temporarily with a sufficiently high check of a relevant proficiency, or permanently with the acquisition of any ability that grants mastery of a specific sub-classification of magic such as pyromancy, cryomancy, fey invocation, etc.

Robin could see why it was such a useful ability. Illusions were versatile enough as it was, and adding the chance to make them partially real? That, combined with his [Visual Phantasm] ability was essentially an at-will damage option that would only increase in effectiveness and versatility as he gained abilities and levels!

He’d almost be tempted to call the ability downright broken if he hadn’t seen that other specialist casters had similar abilities that likewise allowed them a near-constant barrage of damage or utility casting. There were wayfaring specialists that would eventually teleport and plane-shift at will. Evocation specialists who could fan their pyromantic power to the point that their flames would make dragonfire feel cool.

Robin wouldn’t be able to match quite that level with this power alone, though he suspected there were additional refinements out there that might allow even further abuses of this reality-shaping.

For now, this would do. Though there were, of course, still bits missing. Aspects of the technique he did not understand. Hidden messages to decode for full insight.

He’d need more time with this book, that was for sure.

Robin was just about to delve deeper into the book in search of further knowledge when a flash of wariness cut through his mind.

Rerebos was here! Robin glanced around but the little dragon was nowhere to be seen. He pretended to be studying the book. If Rerebos did not wish to be seen, Robin wasn’t going to give away his presence by looking for him. The dragonling would make himself known soon enough.

And as Robin expected, soon a small, reptilian head snaked its way out of the shadows.

Rerebos had wedged himself between the menacing puzzle cube near to the illusory book and a glass orb with a non-stop swirl of icy snow in it that danced like defiant music upon the winter winds.

Robin noted that the little dragon took care not to actually brush up against either item. Self preservation. Good.

‘I have news,’ Rerebos all but hissed. ‘And not good news.’

‘Oh?’ Robin kept his voice to just above a murmur. His heart sank and his mind flashed to the flaming curse that had oh so recently filled his vision.

He should have been expecting it. It was recent enough Bu the;d allowed his excitement at this discovery of new knowledge to shove the curse right form his mind.

‘The unpleasant woman returned from beneath the city,’ Rerebos said. ‘She came back alone, so Dungeon Ruprecht likely ate well, but return she did. And she is not well pleased with you. Especially after she reunited with her master.’

Dag. Dag and Clara together, both with a serious bone to pick with him. He’d be lucky to return to the Veil and Votive and only find it burned to the ground.

‘How did you manage to spot her?’

‘It was not hard. She came charging through the tavern as I was returning for a nap.’

Rerebos looked irritable. No wonder, fi he hadn’t gotten any beauty rest. The little dragon was much like a cat in that respect.

That reminded Robin, he’d also seen a peculiarity that would increase Rerebos’s power and connection to his own shadeling nature that would allow his familiar to change into several commonplace forms, and even go invisible. That was also a priority for the near future.

If he survived.

‘Did you hear anything of their reunion?’ Of their plans, really, but Rerebos would know what he meant.

‘A bit. I did not want to risk getting too close in the bright bright light of the day star.’ Rerebos hissed that last with clear distaste. ‘They are both very angry with you.’

‘Of course. Do they know where I am right now?’

‘I do not know, but it will not be a hard thing to discover. You have not taken great pains to hide your presence here.’

Robin reflexively changed his face and form. He’d have to be careful around Vryngylla. If she noticed an unfamiliar face wandering around the restricted section like this she would not let it go. But Robin felt the need for a little insurance.

‘You think they might be coming here?’

‘I do not know, but such a thing would not surprise me.’ Rerebos gave a little flick of his tail.

Dag and Clara wouldn’t just charge in, weapons drawn, and try to murder him in broad daylight in the library stacks.

Would they?