The AI having accessed his memories left Corwin visibly shaken. Fortunately, he remembered that access was limited. The AI was unlikely to know the memory of Edward came from the future. Even if it did, it probably wouldn’t process that Corwin knew the future. After all, that couldn’t make sense, could it. Corwin tried to reassure himself. For now, he’d stay the course. If things changed too much or too quickly he’d have to cross that bridge when he came to it.

Corwin reflected on his new skills. Spatial slash was a line attack that did 120% damage, and would immobilize and prevent attacks from all enemies hit for 1 second. Corwin was ecstatic to have his first CC skill. It was unlikely to do much against high tier bosses, but even a brief instant of immobility could interrupt a skill. Disrupting blow had become a core of Corwin’s arsenal of moves and now he had something even stronger.

Haste of the warrior was a powerful haste skill. A normal haste skill would buff agility by 50%. Haste of the warrior buffed agility by 100% as well as strength and con by 25% each. For Corwin, this meant an extra 450% of base damage, roughly 4500 extra HP and an extra 1800% of base speed. The effects were even stronger when tier multipliers applied. Haste of the warrior also had a 5-minute duration, whereas normal haste skills lasted between 1 and 3 minutes. Best of all, summoner was the only class that got buff skills naturally. Having a buff skill as a swordsman at all was OP. Agility also affected manual dexterity, so Corwin could even use this skill to be very precise during some crucial crafting. Really, the only downside to the skill was that it was only self-targeting. Corwin hoped that would change with higher tiers.

Corwin walked back towards the capital as he reflected on his next moves. So far, there hadn’t been an announcement for forming a recognized guild. A recognized guild was one who’s founding member was a noble at the time they founded the guild. Being a noble required sufficient kingdom reputation, and Corwin knew of a few ways to get some. First, there were the first clears of the Verdant Forest, Verdure Kingdom’s level 10 dungeon. Secondly, there was a hidden quest that started in the capital. Corwin decided to take on the dungeon first. The quest was hard to find but had a time limit. If Corwin pursued it immediately, he might lose the first clear to some advanced players.

Getting the first clear of a dungeon on any level would result in dungeon passes to enable one to try again. So Corwin went for normal mode, clearing it effortlessly.

Congratulations to Party Righteous Destiny for the first clear of the dungeon Verdant Forest in normal mode. Party member Corwin Swordborn receives 5 Verdure Kingdom Reputation and 1 Dungeon Pass. Congratulations to Corwin Swordborn for the first solo clear of Verdant Forest Dungeon in normal mode. He receives 10 Verdure Kingdom Reputation.

He continued with the still unchallenging hard mode.

Congratulations to Party Righteous Destiny for the first clear of the dungeon Verdant Forest in hard mode. Party member Corwin Swordborn receives 10 Verdure Kingdom Reputation and 1 Dungeon Pass. Congratulations to Corwin Swordborn for the first solo clear of Verdant Forest Dungeon in hard mode. He receives 20 Verdure Kingdom Reputation.

Finally, he went for hell mode. Corwin was too powerful. Hell mode still wasn’t a challenge, and he uneventfully cleaved through the bosses.

Congratulations to Party Righteous Destiny for the first clear of the dungeon Verdant Forest in hell mode. Party member Corwin Swordborn receives 20 Verdure Kingdom Reputation and 1 Dungeon Pass. Congratulations to Corwin Swordborn for the first solo clear of Verdant Forest Dungeon in hell mode. He receives 40 Verdure Kingdom Reputation.

His 105 Kingdom reputation put him almost halfway to the 250 needed for the minor title. Fortunately, the hidden quest would reward 150 points. After clearing the dungeon. Corwin was up to 41 magic crystals. He decided that 21 was enough for his short-term needs and upgraded his plate cuisse to gold-tier. It gained the ability Heart of the Martial Artist which gave +0.02 to Cultivation Tier/level. Cultivation Tier was a multiplier on the Qi attribute. Corwin was excited to find martial arts skills now that he had such powerful Qi.

Corwin returned from the dungeon to the capital. He checked on his auctions, and was delighted to discover that much had sold. He had an additional 98 magic crystals and 12,200 gold pieces. Corwin upgraded his plate cuisse once more, leaving him with 69 magic crystals. He was excited to see it gained the ability Soul of the Martial Artist which gave +0.02 to Soul Tier/level. Soul Tier was a multiplier on the Soul attribute. Corwin was even more excited to find martial arts skills now that he had powerful Soul to go with his powerful Qi.

Corwin’s shortage of magic crystals had become less of an issue now that his equipment no longer needed them. He nonetheless wanted to collect them for upcoming crafting as well as for challenging the tower. So he auctioned the remaining 50 pieces of each level 5 iron equipment he had, 25 for gold and 25 for magic crystals. Lastly, he converted 10,000 gold pieces to credits, getting enough money to pay for his two headsets.

Finally, he approached the town librarian, an older woman named Hestia Daledon. Corwin and Hestia talked for a while and he did some insignificant quests in the library, mostly around reading for information to build his reputation with her to friendly. These quests were wildly unpopular as they provided no gear no money and no XP. Nonetheless, Corwin persisted. Finally, upon reaching friendly reputation he was able to take the quest he wanted.

In a cave, not too far from the capital was the tomb of a martial artist. In that tomb were many dangerous traps as well as many powerful opportunities. Buried with this martial artist was a book, his autobiography. This martial artist was famous throughout the kingdom and it was a great tragedy that he hadn’t published his autobiography widely. The library desperately wanted this book. If I could retrieve this book, I’d be looked on favourably by the library.

In Verdure Kingdom, one of the most noble pursuits was scholarship. Scholarship was rarely achieved by commoners for it required too many resources and too much training. In the rare cases where it did happen, that commoner usually became a noble. As such, the library and the university were entirely filled with nobles. To be looked on favourably by the library was a significant step towards nobility.

Corwin accepted the quest gladly, preparing to head to the tomb. Before heading out he bought up an assortment of crafting ingredients as well as some important supplies. Thus far, Corwin had been travelling without adventuring gear like rope, but in a tomb that would be a perhaps fatal mistake. Lastly, he repaired all his equipment. Corwin did his best to make sure he wasn’t overlooking anything.

Finally, he headed to the tomb. The cave entrance was sealed, but there were traces of an array. Corwin eventually figured out the array was a strength array, one designed to measure attack prowess. He found the critical point and attacked with his most powerful sword blow. The array glowed colors of the rainbow, progressing from red to orange, orange to yellow, yellow to green, green to blue, and blue to violet. After the progression it started to emit bright white light, and the sound of rocks grinding could be heard. The rocks blocking the entrance slowly moved out of the way and a path into the tomb appeared. Corwin entered and the entrance shut behind him.

Corwin used a lightstone to see through the tomb. The cave descended for a while before reaching what seemed to be a large flat level. The first room appeared to be a dojo of sorts, and in the dojo was a spirit. The spirit stopped practicing their martial arts and looked at Corwin as he entered.

“No one has yet entered this tomb. You are my first challenger. I shall protect my Master’s legacy and you shall only progress further if you prove worthy. If you accept the challenge we are to fight unarmed.”

Corwin sighed. Not using his swords would greatly reduce his power, nearly all of his skills required them. Nonetheless, he wasn’t about to disobey the rules of the challenge. He placed both swords in his scabbards, and turned to face the spirit.

Corwin put up a fighting stance and watched as the spirit turned corporeal. Would his great stats be enough to make up for a lack of unarmed experience and a lack of unarmed skills? Corwin greatly feared this challenge, knowing it would be quite difficult.

Corwin Swordborn

Spoiler : Level 10: 99% of level 11

Str: 1945(base:25)

Agi: 2011 (base:70)

Con:1945 (base:25)

Int: 601 (base:25)

Cha: 601 (base:25)

Lck: 217 (base:25)

Cnc: 217 (base:25)

Sta: 217 (base: 25)

Qi: 217 (base: 20)

Soul: 217 (base:20)

Air Affinity: 217 (base:20)

Fire Affinity: 217 (base:20)

Def: 6313

MDef: 4827

HP:21450/21450 (base: 1000)

MP:8110/8110 (base: 1000)

Gear:

MW: Epic Tier Level 12 Longsword, +192Str +192Agi +192Con

Base Damage: 240-288, Def 288 MDef 240 Durability 384/384, Requirements: 386 Str

OW: Epic Tier Level 12 Shortsword +192Str, +192Agi, +192 Con

Base Damage 196-240, Def 240 MDef 196, Durability 384/384, Requirements: 386 Str

MA: Epic Tier Level 12 Plate, +192 Str, +192 Agi, +192 Con

768Def,768MDef, Durability 384/384, Requirements:384 Str

LA: Epic Tier Level 12 Plate Cuisse, +192Str, +192Agi, +192Con

768Def, 768MDef Durability: 384/384 Requirements: 384 Str

G: Currently Epic, Level 12 +192Str, +192 Agi, +192 Con

768Def, 768MDef, Durability 384/384 Requirements: 384 Str

B:Epic Tier Level 12 Plate Boots +192Str +202Agi(10 Gemstone) +192Con

768 Def, 768MDef Durability 384/384 Requirements: 384Str

H: Epic Tier Level 12 Helm, +192 Str, +202(10 Gemstone) Agi, +192 Con

768 Def, 768MDef Durability 384/384, Requirements: 384Str

RR: Epic Tier, Level 12 Ring of Hidden Attributes (+192 All base attributes, +192 All Hidden Attributes)

LR: Epic Tier, Level 12 Ring of Elements (+192 All base attributes,

Ignore 2.4 Levels, Ignore 2.4 Equip Levels

AM: Epic Tier, Level 12 Amulet (+192 All base attributes)

Skills:

Spatial Slash, Legacy, Tier 0 Level 0

Haste of the Warrior, Legacy, Tier 0 Level 0

Time Manipulation, Special, Tier 0, Level 9

Space Manipulation, Special, Tier 0, Level 9

Air Manipulation, Special, Tier 0, Level 9

Earth Manipulation, Special, Tier 0 Level 9

Fire Manipulation, Special, Tier 0, Level 8

Water Manipulation, Special, Tier 0, Level 8

Thunder Slash, Rare, Tier 0, Level 1

Wave Chop, Rare, Tier 0, Level 0

Wind Charge, Rare, Tier 0, Level 1

Disrupting Blow, Rare, Tier 0, Level 1

Double Slash, Uncommon, Tier 0, Level 2

Slash, Common, Tier 0, Level 2

Pierce, Common, Tier 0, Level 2

Parry, Common, Tier 0, Level 2