Chapter 200

Empire Engulfed (I)

The group set off from the City less than a week after their arrival in the same, having grown larger by two members -- Lek and Taima. Though both were a bit underleveled, especially Lek, their basic stats more than made up for it considering that they were beyond simply ‘talented’. Even still, Cain brought them along less so as a major force, and more so for their knowledge; while Taima would be able to absorb some of the healing Yuki would be forced to do as the solitary support, Cain’s main intention with Taima was for the boy to rob the Kingdom of whatever ore he encountered.

Lek, on the other hand, could summon the undead -- even if the summoned creatures were incredibly weak, they could still be used as meat shields for some big attacks and such, not to mention that the usage of disposable bodies would only grow the harder the bosses became. Whereas in his past life Cain ‘had to’ recruit others to swarm the bosses and take the brunt of lethal mechanics, he now had an infinite supply of the ‘sacrifices’ through Lek.

This time around, Cain didn’t plan on having any detours as he wanted to arrive a bit earlier rather than right at the deadline’s end; as such, they traveled for most of the day and rested only at night, having gone through the settlement and rented mounts once again.

Everyone was, for the most part, still gushing over Taima’s masterpieces and reddening the already-crimson cheek of the boy who mostly expressed his agony over not having crafted anything for Yuki. Cain, on the other hand, was still going over his Skills, having made a wealth of them by now, trying to predict even more. However, he had a limit; after all, no matter how quickly he worked, he was still a human in the end and not a supercomputer. Even with incredibly increased stats, that hardly changed the ‘computing’ aspect of cognition; people will still continue to be limited by their biology in certain aspects, and running endless simulations is one of them.

Whenever he got stuck in a rut, though, he’d look at his status window and recover the mental stamina that escaped him. It had undergone a complete change, an evolution even, and even unlocked his ability to actually fight rather than just toss a few abilities and become a spectator right after.

//Name: Cain Gregory Age: 32 Race: Human

Class: Spellweaving Elementalist

Level: 41

Strength: 49 Vitality: 113 Agility: 56 Stamina: 45

Intelligence: 899 Wisdom: 417 Health: 658 Mana: 11704

Traits: Labourer(C), Quick-witted(A+), Tenacious(B+), Leadership(SSS-), Analysis(A), Awareness(B), Keen(B-), Charismatic(S+), Decisive(B+)

Skills: Spell Creation(?)

Passive: Creation(SSS), Fire(B), Body(B), Mind(B), Space(B), Starlight(B), Ruin--Desolation(B+)

Created Skills: Coiling Storm(B), Infernal Starlight(B+), Void Annihilation(C), Searing Mind(D+), Ascendance(C-), Mindbend(C+), Flamewoven(B)

Talents: Perception(Mythic), Hero(quasi-Divine)

Items: Feathered Belt(C-), Everluminiscent Pearl(S-)

Titles: The First Elementalist, Bandit Slayer, Direwolf Slayer, Monster Slayer, Maverick, Spell Creator, The Herald, The One Who Survived Death, Reborn Elementalist, Void Slayer, Slayer of the Nightmares, Blade Mountain Conqueror, The One Who Impressed Spirits, The Master, Usher of the Kingdom, Grandmaster Elementalist, Throne Chaser, Herald of Divinity, Will Divine, Elemental Child, Mankind’s Beacon, The One, Slayer of the Kings, Spellweaver, Beset for Ascension, Master of Elemental Sundering, The One Who Forged a Path, Ahead of the Pack

Achievements: 29 (+1 to Main Stats for each achievement)//

Sighing, he closed the window, admiring the insane changes; soon enough, he would cross the ‘1000’ threshold, a major breakthrough for the main stats of the Classes where one aspect of the class would undergo what was essentially an evolution. He, however, didn’t know whether the bonus would be different for the ‘Spellweaving Elementalist’ over an ordinary one.

Days passed swiftly and in comfort. The party rarely ran into the desert-dwelling creatures as Cain had asked for the least-infested route beforehand, leading to the rather speedy progress. Within less than ten days, Cain reached the ‘official’ entrance to the underworld Kingdom -- a massive steep leading into a cascading ravine that spiraled further underground. The entrance was guarded, though not heavily, having a decent stream of people going in and out.

Those going out appeared winded after having traveled upward for so long, and those going in seemed either indifferent or enthused at the prospect. The descent through the steep into the ravine was fairly long as the ‘stairs’ had to flatten out frequently and extrude into platforms, likely as ‘pit-stops’ for the tired and exhausted to rest at.

Rather than growing dark the deeper they went, it was quite the opposite actually; gems soon began to decorate walls and illuminate them, and by the time the party stepped directly into the ravine, it was as though it was full daylight out in the open rather than being good mile or so ‘beneath’.

Here, the security tightened somewhat; though there were some buildings and stalls around, hardly anyone stuck here and instead did a beeline toward the true entrance to the underground Kingdom resting on the side of the ravine.

A set of spiraling holes welcomed the party, guarded by well-armored knights who inspected them keenly as they made their way forward. However, rather than walking downwards, the group boarded... mine carts. At least, that was the closest comparison Cain could make to what he knew -- made of thick steel and iron, and pulled by tightly-wound contractions, the carts went around a thick pillar in a spiral, trailing downward. Though they weren’t terribly quick, the unprepared quickly experienced vertigo as the world began to spin around them.

Cain quickly shielded himself with Mana and enjoyed the journey. Within a minute, they broke through the ‘roof’ of the Kingdom whereupon a majestic sight broke down yet another layer of reality they held dear, just like jumping off the high places did before.

A whole new world sprawled open beneath their eyes, one without a seeming end, lit up with lanterns like stars to the point it was as though it was day all the time. They were good five-six miles up, capable of seeing several towns birthed from the ground itself, each building uniquely fashioned out of the stones found there, as though quarries, rather than mined, were simply turned into towns on the spot.

The centerpiece, however, was undoubtedly the city that looked to be the heart of the whole enterprise -- it was built in concentric circles, each inner one walled off by higher and higher walls made out of stone, with taller and taller buildings, not to mention far more lavish, propping up -- all the way to the center where a massive palace complex became a tiny town unto itself, with several dozen buildings spread about a complex roadway decorated with lamp-posts -- or at least their equivalent here, likely powered by Mana Stones -- and even occasional stall or two.

The whole sight was beyond breathtaking, especially for the few that were yet to experience something like this -- Kramer, Sigmund, Yuki, and even Taima and Lek. The five had their jaws hitting the metaphorical floor, and even Emma, Senna, Daniel, and Jamal could hardly maintain their ‘decorum’ despite having witnessed similar sights before.

Even Cain, in the end, couldn’t remain entirely indifferent; he’d actually never been here in his life, previous or current. For all intents and purposes, this was the first true ‘new’ experience he had ever since his return, if the forced ‘Time Thief’ events were excluded. However, rather than admiring the sight, Cain quickly snapped out if and mentally ‘photographed’ as much of the topography as he could, especially of the capital city and its surrounding area.

Their quest likely won’t be just to defeat one ‘baddie’ and be done with it, but rather a string of tasks that will likely have them begging to exit the Tower by the end. As such, he had to have the complete layout of the city mapped out, and this was just the first step to it. The journey down, despite being graced by a beautiful vista, was... too long. As in, more than ten hours long.

By the end, everyone was tired of the sights and was whining that their backs were hurting with how uncomfortable the carts got after the first couple of hours or so. It wasn’t strange, however, as they were made of stone and metal and it wasn’t as though any of them had cushions in their inventories to cushion the hard surface. And none of them were as skilled at manipulating Mana as Cain was to do the same job.

As such, everyone except for him came limping out of the carts, half-bent, staring at him strangely for a moment as he walked out nonchalantly and stretched.

“Man, that was like some round-the-planet flight or some shit,” he said. “Anyway, looks like they dropped us in a town next to the capital. Let’s look for the inn and settle for a day or two while we gather some information. Hm? What’s everyone looking at me for?”

“... how’s your back, C’?” Emma asked through gritted teeth.

“Better than yours, it looks like,” Cain fired back with a grin. “Y’all look like you’ve aged good sixty years in those ten hours. Even you Senna, sheesh. Aren’t teen’s spines and bones and whatnot supposed to be flexible? Why are you lookin’ like some old grandma over there? Ha ha ha...”

“Shit, just wait till I get better--”

“And what? You’re gonna teach me how to do some yoga stretches so my body stays flexible even when I hit the 80s? Ha ha ha...”

“...” Oh boy, there will be a hell to pay after, he chuckled one last time before turning his gaze toward the distant walls of the Capital, squinting his eyes. Shit, the air itself stinks of the tension. One match... and this whole place is blowing up faster than a hot celeb’s first nude scene...