《An Unwavering Craftsman》Chapter 32: In which the sun sets
Advertisement
Damien ducked the fangs of a large spider monster, taking the opportunity to stab a few of the little ones crawling around its legs. His body was burning from the effort of fighting for so many hours, and he was bruised, but nothing was broken, and no fangs had pierced his armour to deliver their cursed venom.
The larger spider hissed, raising a pair of legs in preparation to skewer the interloper, but then paused, wobbling precariously. Damien took the opportunity to take some distance, the larger spider vanishing back into the mist as he retreated, then taking the chance to rest, even if it was only for a few seconds.
The spider re-emerged from the mist, but not because it had moved. Rather, the fog was clearing. No, when Damien looked around, he realised it was flowing away. Thanking whichever of Shigeo or Fleta managed to reach and slay the responsible monster, he kept his eyes on the giant spider, stabbing it through the head when it charged towards him.
Over the next few minutes, the mist cleared completely, revealing a wide, flat area of barren rock, littered with corpses of the monsters Damien had slain. Any monsters that were still alive were tearing into the corpses, feasting on their flesh. Some were even fighting each other over the food.
He hadn't seen or heard the monsters behaving like that before. Previously, they were obsessed with attacking Damien, and while their teamwork was minimal, they'd never attacked each other or shown interest in the corpses. It was as if a single driving force had gone. Whatever was responsible for the fog must also have been controlling the monsters.
Damien climbed to the top of one of the large monsters' corpses, using it as a vantage point to look around for the others. In the distance, he spotted what appeared to be a cubic spider. Knowing it wasn't something he did, and thus was likely the work of one of the others, he made his way there.
It turned out to be a shelter. It had no door or windows, but someone had obviously slotted chunks of monster exoskeleton together to make it. Damien knocked, to no response. Of course, the monsters had been knocking the entire fight, so obviously any occupant wouldn't respond. He shouted instead.
"Lana? Is that you in there?"
The shelter went, "Mmmrrrrr," giving Damien flashbacks of the time he'd tripped over her asleep on their doorstep, coupled with relief that she'd survived.
"Seriously? You're asleep?!"
"What's all the shouting? Is it over?"
"Mostly. The fog's gone, and the spiders are attacking each other instead of us, but we all got separated. You're the first one I've found."
A few high-pitched plinks came from inside the makeshift hut, before all four walls fell outwards.
"Ouch," said Lana, as the roof hit her on the head. "Any idea how to find the others?"
"I found you by climbing high and looking for anything unnatural. I suppose we can repeat that? Or make a signal of some sort? Maybe set some of these corpses on fire?"
There were plentiful corpses nearby, despite Lana doing her best to avoid combat, simply because all the monsters trying to breach her shelter had turned on each other when the mist cleared. Lana looked at them dubiously. They seemed to mostly be chitin and black ooze.
Advertisement
"I'm not sure how well they'll burn, but I suppose we could try."
"Wait... Get ready! We have incoming."
Damien spun around to where he could hear thudding in the distance, surprised to see a dozen of the large spiders walking in lock-step.
"Looks like they haven't all turned against each other," said Lana, readying her hammer.
"Umm..." said Damien, eyeing the head of the leading spider. "Actually, I think these spiders have another master."
Lana squinted into the distance. "Is that... Grace? She's riding the spider? I thought she couldn't control the big ones?"
"Apparently she found a way," said Damien, seeing no reason to disbelieve the empirical evidence in front of his face.
The pair waited for the squad of monsters to arrive. "Grace! Glad you're okay!" called Damien.
"And you likewise. Not that I had any doubt. You have the blood of an adventurer, whatever your class says. Now, would you two care for a lift?"
"Yes please," answered Damien instantly, glad to give his aching muscles a rest. "Although, do you happen to have any idea where we're getting a lift to?"
"Tell me, how many birds are there in the sky?"
Damien looked around, examining the bright blue sky. "One?" he answered, focusing on a distant speck. No, that would be silly. How could birds survive here? There was nothing but barren rock and monsters. There would be nothing for them to eat. It could be another monster, but thus far they'd only seen the two species of spider, and they certainly couldn't fly. Since there was only one, it was more likely to be something else. Or rather, someone else.
"Onwards to Greenhair then!"
By the time they reached him, Fleta and Shigeo had turned up there too, Fleta having no issue identifying the flying Greenhair, who had since descended to join everyone. Lana jumped off her spider to give him a hug.
"Anyone hurt?" asked Fleta, to a chorus of denials.
"It was close though," said Damien. "I'm not sure I could have held on for much longer, so thanks for ending it."
The others looked at him in surprise, and he recalled that Lana had been asleep. Greenhair had just flown out of range of everything. Grace had seized control of a spider army. Fleta and Shigeo were, well, Fleta and Shigeo. "Wait, was I the only one who had any difficulty?"
The group nodded.
"Well, now I feel inadequate," he muttered, before noticing the way Shigeo was scratching the back of his neck. It was a tell he hadn't seen since he'd slain the dragon. "What are you so embarrassed about?"
"We didn't end it," said Fleta. "I have no more idea what happened than you do."
"I believe I can solve that mystery," said Greenhair. "I located the monster that was the source of the fog and dropped a potion of inferno on it. It did not survive."
Damien stared at the elf. "Wow. That's a complete failure for our family, then."
"I do not see it that way. Your family are responsible for my abilities and my presence here. If Sir Shigeo were to slay a monster with his blade instead of his fists, would you call that a failure too?"
Advertisement
Damien found himself faced once more with Greenhair's rather different take on life. He was more than a sword, obviously, yet it was true he wouldn't be here without them. But by his own logic, if Shigeo killed a monster with his sword, shouldn't the credit go to the blacksmith? Or maybe it was just some of it?
"Putting all that aside, shall we get out of here? We even have transport."
Fleta frowned. "There are still so many monsters here. Chances are good another one will evolve if we leave them."
"We can't kill all of them," pointed out Damien. "We'd be here for years."
"No... I suppose not, as much as it rankles to see monsters and have to leave them alone."
Most of the group mounted Grace's spiders and set off towards Jurelli once more, but the black mists leaking from their mounts raised another problem. "No way can we bring these into civilization," pointed out Shigeo. "They'll need slaughtering the moment we reach anything that isn't bare rock."
"A pity," said Grace, petting the head of the spider she was riding. "I had an option to take a feat that would prevent any bound monsters from causing harm to their surroundings. Then again, if I'd taken it, I never could have kept these under control in the first place."
Despite Shigeo's comments about leaving monsters alive, none that drew anywhere near the group survived. Fleta was out, scouting around the group and bringing down anything that came near. Damien wondered if she was trying to make up for needing to rely on Greenhair to take out the leader, or if she was just committed to her job. Either way, they weren't bothered again until they reached the edge of what had formerly been the Isle of Mist.
The barren rock gave way to barren soil, and Shigeo declared it time to slaughter the spiders. While they'd set foot onto another island, the state of the ground implied the monsters had done the same. They continued to encounter monsters, although it thankfully looked like they'd turned on each other out here, too, and they only came across individuals and corpses.
Alas, not all the corpses were of monsters.
"A melltirryn didn't do this," said Fleta, looking at the mummified remains of a hunter, found among a copse of withered trees. Both the human and the trees looked like they'd been dried, with all moisture sucked from them. "It could be one of the bigger ones, since I didn't recognise them and don't know what they can do, but they haven't showed this sort of ability so far."
"The ones I was controlling couldn't do that," said Grace.
"I think it was the fog," said Shigeo. "Remember that disturbing, oppressive feeling it gave?"
"Then without our protective equipment..." started Lana, not needing to finish the sentence.
"Yup. That would have been us."
"Don't make it sound that bad. We were only at the edge of it. If it had been dangerous, I'm sure we could have reacted," said Damien.
Shigeo frowned and didn't answer. At the rate the fog had been expanding, he wasn't completely sure they could have done anything. In retrospect, flying over it would have been the best option. An analysis that Greenhair would have been most pleased with, if Shigeo and Fleta ever spoke it aloud.
It wasn't just the lone hunter, either, but they passed entire consumed villages before getting out of range of the corruption.
"Any idea what island this was?" asked Damien as they finally stepped onto green grass.
"The little one south-west of the Isle of Mist," answered Fleta. "Sorry, but I don't remember what it's called. It's mostly farmland, with no big cities. No large forests, or other unoccupied areas, either, so they never had much of a monster problem."
"No, or they'd have reacted better to the fog," said Shigeo. "Those villages should have been evacuated the moment the world changed."
"That's unfair," said Damien. "It's not like anyone had training for what to do if the Other invades."
"Monsters don't care about fairness. If you remember anything, my boy, remember that."
"Speaking of the Other, it appears to be almost night time, if I am reading the movements of that... large source-light correctly."
"I'm pretty sure that's the sun," supplied Damien.
Greenhair peered at it, his protections working hard to protect his eyes. "I see. The sun was never taken away from the world. Rather, the world was taken away from the sun. Either way, once it moves further down, it will be unable to supply light, and we will once again see that."
"Just because we can't see it doesn't mean it's not there," said Damien. He was sure he could see movement beyond the sky, even if no-one else seemed to, and he was sure he could feel the thing watching.
The next few villages they stumbled upon as they sprinted across the land had indeed been evacuated, with no signs of any dead. They settled down in one for the night as the sun dipped below the new horizon, and Arach-achanol once again appeared in the night sky.
Damien found it hard to look away as one eye after another glanced down at him, each one pressuring him with the weight of inevitability. The rolling tubes of flesh flexed in the sky, appendages that Damien had seen tear islands from the seas, and yet it didn't spare so much as a thought for the humans killed by the Isle of Mist's monsters, even though it could have wiped out the entire island with an equivalent of a finger flick.
How had the Five ever convinced such a detached, dispassionate being to grant them power?
Advertisement
The Anime Trope System : Stone vs. the Viper, a LitRPG. [WEB NOVEL SUSPENDED.]
By the will of unknown deities, Clyde is swiped from Earth and tossed into an anime world. He’s the declared the Stone aka main character. One day, he must kill the Viper, the antagonist. Too bad things aren’t exactly as black and white as that. The Stone is something much more… This world and its inhabitants are real. It’s another dimension with a lot to explore. This is the story of a young man’s evolution from college boy of Earth to godhood and beyond. The challenges stand ahead of him: demons, monster girls, crazy yanderes, even a girl with maxed charisma. He never thought he’d ever see a magical girl… A story of comedy, action, and going from weak to completely unstoppable. He is the system disruptor… In a world where tropes are present, anime girls falling in love so easily, and city-wide issues intertwining with the main mission, Clyde must level up power and his mentality, RPG-style. He can no longer be that earthling. He will learn… whether he likes it or not. Someone who breaks systems…Feared by the gods… ~A lover of character development... -----WARNING: Episode 7 and beyond will intensify in sexual content, sexual humor, sexual/sex scenes, + references may ramp up a lot. You have been warned. (This is humor and mature content. FICTION. Anything that an adventurer-type do is risky. This is not for the faintest of hearts.) (There are also Monster Girl Quest/Encyclopedia references and sex scenes in here. Once again, fair warning.) Additional tags: [ Satire, Adult, Mature audiences only, Monster girls from the monster girl encyclopedia enemy types mostly in volume 1.] NOTICE AS OF FEB 2019: Web novel hiatus indefinitely due to Amazon policy, people translating my shit and charging money for it, posting this on other sites without my permission. Please join discord and/or Facebook page for updates. Patreon will continue to get chapters as normal. Thank you truly for understanding! This is my livelihood and I don't want to lose it. ----- This series will cotninue on--a fun tribute to anime of all forms and satire--so much fun to write. Feel free to let it be that safety net in your library. Author note: get in now before you're left behind. I'm planning to be around for years xD. [See Amazon for edited versions + further continuations. See Facebook page or patreon for updates. And welcome to Team Stone.] Inspiration: PERSONA. Mob Psycho 100., Dragon Ball Z, Anime in general, anime waifus, anime waifu monster girls and MGE, The Land LitRPG audiobook. ---------- Advanced chapters and special bonuses now on: Patreon.com/syr456 Discord channel: https://discord.gg/t2qVaAR or cQMPSJG ^if you have any questions, concerns or vents, this would be the best place to reach me. Or if you're bored, want to increase the numbers, etc xD. MANGA can be found here: (https://Animetropesystem.net) Anime 3-minute OP and series are still TBA. There is a studio that will be contacted. Artwork can be found on Discord: Official Artwork channel. Facebook page: Syr456. Patreon. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Series timeline: -Professionally edited version of the works can be found on Amazon. Audiobooks can be found on Audible, released as the narrator in line with the narrator's schedule and Audible's.Reborn editions = old versions edited by the editor and converted to the new format. Volumes 12 and beyond began in the new format. It's a free update if you already own it. Volume 1-20 = season 1 on amazon. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bonus: Volume 2's description: The story continues, following the events of its predecessor. In the anime world, Satovia, Clyde still battles the anime tropes, but no longer dances at the fingertips of the watchers. However, his friends have real issues, problems that intertwine with his own mission. Casting away selfishness, he finds himself awakening his real power. The Anime Trope System volume 2 brings with it, humor, anime tropes and… yanderes, references, perverseness, and a lot of character development. So, let’s level up and accidentally capture the hearts of anime girls while at it… ----------- Volume 3's description. The Anime Trope System is back in a 3rd action-packed, humor-packed, adventure in Satovia. Clyde’s next threat comes in the form of a classmate. While her descent occurs, the young man must deal with hornets (the monster girl kind), prepare to meet up with vampires, and even depose Alice’s father, the demon lord, once and for all.December’s volume will make you wish to be a part of Clyde’s party. His evolution from college boy to leader still has a way to go. But…how long will the gods stand by while a new rival rapidly grows.?----------- Volume 4's description. It's festival time! All would be perfect, fun, competitive. Well, try telling the vampires not to crash the damn party.January's volume arrives, a fourth book containing Clyde and his amazing party, humor and ass-kicking, happy and sad moments.While Clyde continues to strengthen himself so that he wouldn't die to the Viper, figures and organizations begin to move in the background. Join again to accidentally capture more anime girl hearts and combat those tropes... ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Volume 5's description: Ah, peace! Exams, a tiny break from the fighting, relaxation. Yeah, right. First of all, who left a certain potion in the fridge! Second, what will it take to get some common sense into the team ninja’s head. Clyde would like to know. Third, it is time to face a threat that has lurked in the city since volume 1…Clyde and his party is back in February’s issue, ready to dish out some fun in Satovia. Welcome to the fifth volume—and more anime shenanigans… --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Volume 6: A questline mentioned in the very early volumes has finally pulled Clyde's interest. Niyoto. However, it isn't some side quest or filler. In this city, things will get very interesting. From being introduced to a quite frightening faction that claim to fight for the good of humanity, crazy cultists, a demon lord with a rather...different personality, the sixth volume comes in strong.Clyde and his party is back in March's issue to take a step toward the ultimate goal of being strong enough to defeat the Viper.And the anime tropes continue to show themselves. Do you believe in the heart of the cards? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Volume 9: stakes incredibly high, very intense! A dark volume. Can the team bounce through this?
8 300Flight of The Draykes
You can join my discord community where we meme and derp around here: DISCORD LINK Welcome to the Flight of the Draykes. This novel is a System-based sword and magic Western Fantasy with elements of gamelit (Dungeons) and eastern cultivation (The system). Genre: Fantasy, Historical, Action, Adventure, and a sprinkle of Romance with Comedy. Pacing: Slow at first till chapter 30 before becoming a rollercoaster. Known Issues: Ages of the Protagonist and allies at the start. NOTE: THE AGES IN THIS NOVEL ARE NOT REPRESENTATIVE OF THEIR ACTUAL MATURITY. THEY ARE PROTEANS FIRST. AND HUMANS SECOND. Also, if you're looking for smut, this novel isn't for you. Not in the slightest. On a fewer caps note: The age maturity thing is integral to the plot and it will be explained rationally as the books go along. You are free to guess why that is. Synopsis: Book 1 presents to you the world of Protos. Protos is the land of the blessed. Its inhabitants are of many races, but most of them have diminished in the long wars against the beasts that also inhabit Protos. This has led to humanity becoming the dominant species and eventually, all other races, including the beasts, have been banished to pockets of land where they survive on meager existences. However, Protos was destined not to be peaceful as the inhabitants could only fight off the beasts with the help of warforce. A bloodline system that allows them to activate their war potential and battle fiercely. Now, with the beasts defeated and the other races diminished, humanity - having no common foe to fight turned upon itself, for war was in their blood and they again shed their blood in rivers. As the years passed, kingdoms and empires rose and fell and eventually stabilized into an uneasy peace until - 300 years ago, the world went through yet another change. A change where the wielders of warforce now possessed additional powers that had been lost for millennia. These powers changed the face of war again and conflict, which was dying down, reignited madly. In this world was born Faustus Drayke, Scion of House Drayke - which, in turn, was the frontier protector of The Kingdom of Leon. Fate decreed him to be unimportant. His Destiny and the desperate prophecy of a powerless girl decreed that he will be an immortal. Set in the backdrop of betrayal, honor, and loyalty - Follow the tale of Faustus Drayke as he forges his destiny and becomes an immortal. For himself, he has to fulfill the prophecy. For the world, he better fulfill the prophecy. ``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` The inspiration for this book came from Smoke is a Path's TotRL - which has unfortunately been discontinued. I have no interest in finishing others' stories, but I love creating my own. So I took inspiration from TotRL and I created this vast original overreaching world of over 30 books, with each book being around 100 chapters. Expect the full story to be close to 3000 chapters. Release Schedule: 3 chapters a day. 11:30 am - Eastern Standard Time - 1st Chapter 01:00 pm - Eastern Standard Time - 2nd Chapter 02:30 pm - Eastern Standard Time - 3rd Chapter All timings are subject to + or - 30 minutes. If you like this series, please do support me by leaving reviews that help me improve my writing, comments that inspire me to keep writing harder, and ratings that allow this series to be seen by more people. Thank you very much and cheers all! Horizon out. Current Arc: Arc 4 Current Volume: Volume 2 You can join my discord community where we meme and derp around here: DISCORD LINK
8 173Author Vs Protagonist
Zhang Wei has always been average. His life was so average that he could well have been said to be the epitome of averageness. That all changed when he was caught one day in an accident. "From now on I will dictate your life and forge an epic saga." See the story of the shameless Protagonist and the abusive Author. Edit: The schedule currently is 2-3 chapters a day, each chapter being approx. 1000 words. Hope you guys enjoy. Special note: Guys forgive me, but there was a problem with my laptop that I used to write the chapters. I sent it in to repair and hopefully, by tomorrow or the day after it finishes. Very sorry. (15/4/2018) Note: Well, I still do not have my laptop yet. It seems that They haven't finished yet. Sorry guys but it will take a couple more days.
8 213The Vasilias:A LITRPG
Zack was just a normal orphan but then he got teleported into a high mountain or so he thought he, has to get stronger and he will do whatever it takes even taking out an eye, will he die or grow stronger
8 175Broken Pieces II
A sequel to Broken Pieces. It takes place three years after the events of the first one.
8 68Spark of Hope
The Resistance has been devastated. Only a few escaped the Battle of Crait, but General Leia Organa believes there are still supporters that will help renew their will to fight.As the last Jedi, Rey is looked up to as the Galaxy's final hope of being free of the First Order. She's the only one who can match Kylo Ren's power, and possibly defeat 'the Jedikiller'.Far in the Outer Rim Territories, Rey begins to train for the upcoming final battle, but as her power grows, so does the pull to the Dark Side. Another temptation grows as well-one she hadn't expected and couldn't have prepared for: love.The Fangirl Awards 3rd place [Star Wars fandom]The Chaos Awards 5 3rd place [Fanfiction]Star Wars Episode IX 2nd place
8 141