With most of the things taken care of, and Menchi and Benezia hard at work, Alex is left with Tereza and Jewel.
"I'm leaving for a couple of weeks," Tereza declares suddenly, shocking Alex.
"What... where... why... when?" Alex asks, confused.
"Back home... I left a few things... unfinished. I might as well draw a line, a final line. Might never get the chance again, right?" Tereza asks, smiling.
"I guess... so. Do you need help? Should we come with you?" Alex asks, before contemplating. "Wouldn't mind hanging out in Prague for a week or so."
"Not this time," Tereza says, shaking her head. "I'll deal with this myself. It could also get... rough. I have a lot of scores to settle... I don't want you to see me that way."
"You could have lied..." Alex mutters.
"Would you like me to lie and say that I'll just talk with some people?" she asks, surprised, smiling meekly.
Alex thinks for a second before replying, "No, you are right. Just don't go all Kira on me, okay? One of them is enough."
"This will end in a bloody way, but I suppose I'll try to make sure that no lives will be lost... don't worry," she says, grinning. "At least not too many," she adds, barely audible.
Her choice... who am I to stop her?
"Take my car at least," Alex says, opening his wallet and throwing his car registration towards her. "Grab the keys yourself."
"Hehe, thank you," she says, kissing Alex on the lips while hugging him tightly.
Stop it. Princess Jewel does not approv—
However, before Jewel can complain, Tereza also grabs Jewel and hugs her, spinning around and giving her shiny, smooth body a kiss as well.
"I'll see you two soon," she says, waving.
Just like that, Tereza is gone, and the apartment grows eerily silent, with just a few noises coming from the kitchen.
❤️ Princess Jewel is now all alone with Soulmate. Is Soulmate excited?
"Totally..." Alex replies, contemplating facepalming.
Just hours later, Alex lies on the couch, a dancing spider before him on the table, spinning on one leg, then shooting a web string towards the ceiling, pulling herself up, spinning like a top in the air.
Meanwhile, Japanese music fills the room, coming from Jewel's smartphone, lying on the table.
Dance with me ❤️ Mikazuki Bigwave.
"You said 'me'?" Alex asks. "That sounds wrong, coming from you."
That's the song title, Soulmate! Spin Spin.
"Spin, Spin?" Alex questions, not sure whether to press the issue.
In the end, the answer will be something completely worthless... I just know it. Still, I'd better let her have some fun... for once. She's actually a little lonely without Tereza and the others, so busy.
Soulmate likes those two dogs saying Bau Bau, so Princess Jewel wanted to try out Spin Spin. What does Soulmate think? This song is also used by a clip channel that Soulmate has watched.
I think I need to get the fuck out of here, or I'll seriously become insane. However... now that she says it, it sounds familiar.
"... Needs work... You are not known for spinning, and it has nothing to do with you being a spider. You're on the right track, though," Alex lies, trying to dodge the issue.
But Spiders spin their webs? ❤️
Touché....
A few days of lazing around later, Benezia approaches Alex, looking slightly exhausted.
"You look... tired," Alex immediately points out.
"Indeed," Benezia replies. "I'll reduce my amount of work in the next few days. In any case... it is done. Are you in the mood to discuss my... results and your... plans?"
"Yes," Alex says, somewhat tense. "I got five potential items I need to upgrade."
"[Draining Meteor Sword], [Skullflame Shield], [Savant M]," Alex begins to list. "All Gold. Then there is the Deep Gold [Cataclysmic Frost-Fire Ring] and finally the Light Black [Uzin's Rage]."
Benezia hesitates before speaking, not holding back at all. "First of all, you can't keep ranking up all items forever. That's just an unrealistic goal... now and for the future. Sooner or later, you need to make decisions on what to prioritize. Ranking up all five items will cost you exactly 1,900 Shards. Even with your immense wealth—which I further increased by selling your other items we didn't sell at the auction, including the two unnecessary Supporter items—I barely managed to scrounge them together."
"Wait... what? You got them all?"
"I managed to obtain 2,000 Shards, along with a random Light Gold item, which I managed to buy for 220,000 FC. However, there is nothing left, except for the [Hades' Hammer], an item I believe can't currently be sold for its true value. I didn't want to sell it, especially not for the unreasonable offers I've received."
"Forget the hammer? What are you saying?! 220,000 FC? That's barely above the shard cost?! Just 20k more," Alex reasons, completely confused. "How?"
"Take a look," Benezia calmly says, sharing the details of the item she bought, [Templar's Might].
[Templar's Might]
World: Diablo
Quality: Light Gold
Type: Armor (Ethereal Heavy Plate armor)
Required Stats: STR - 14 (Reduced from 18), PHY - 10 (Reduced from 13)
Durability: 8/150 (Reduced from 200)
Effect: Decreases Damage and Impact from Ranged attacks by 30%
Effect: Increases STR and PHY by 2 (Flat boost, not increased by other skills)
Effect: Increases Stamina by 20% and increases the effectiveness of the currently used Active Support skill and Auras by 20%.
Special Effect: Ethereal: Reduced Requirements, Increased Armor, Decreased Durability, Can't be repaired.
Note: The Honor and Pride of the Templar. A sacred armor for any holy warrior.
Note: This item is Ethereal
"What the... I see," Alex says, staring at the item with a nostalgic smile. "An armor from Diablo 2... I loved that game... I can't remember how many days of gametime I've invested in it... I even tried out the Remake."
Princess Jewel dislikes this offensive and racist game! An Abomination created by vile Peasants.
"Certainly not, because spiders are a common enemy?" Benezia asks, taking a blind guess, suddenly looking even more tired.
How could Benezia know? Indeed, it's a demonic game that needs to be destroyed for offenses against the noble spider race. Princess Jewel hates racist games.
"The amount of stupidity in that comment is just..." Alex says, sighing. "Anyway, the Durability of the item is almost used up, and since it can't be repaired, it's pretty much... only worth its shard price. No wonder you managed to get it for cheap. Good job, Benezia!"
Princess Jewel has to admit, Benezia is almost as smart as Princess Jewel herself.
"Thank you for that compliment, little one," Benezia replies, a look of pure contempt on her face. "I still want to warn you, Alex. You may be able to Rank up all your items, however, it might be prudent to keep a few extra shards. Make a choice on what to rank up and what not."
She may be right...
"... Jewel?" Alex asks.
Yes, Soulmate?
"Any input?" Alex wonders. "Without jokes, if possible."
Princess Jewel suggests ranking up all of Soulmate's Gold Quality items. After all, Princess Jewel will soon obtain an endless amount of loot for him. What else can Soulmate spend his wealth on? It will take a while longer, so Soulmate needs to perform at his best now until Princess Jewel turns the rest of the Realm into a walk through the cave.
"You mean park..." Alex quietly corrects her.
"That is considered totally unwarranted overconfidence," Benezia replies forcefully. "Though the little one has a point. You get more strength now, and in the best case, you'll continue to grow stronger and earn more and more wealth. In the end, it's your decision. However, this seems like a dangerous gamble to me. If the next world is unsuccessful, you'll have no shards left."
"I'll slow down and stabilize eventually," Alex says, agreeing with Benezia. "I'm a rather pessimistic guy, after all... but for now," Alex continues, now looking at Jewel, staring right into her red eyes. "I need to grow. I need to keep going forward... that means I need all the strength I can get. Now! Also... Princess Jewel's..."
❤️
"I mean, Jewel's Evolution is happening soon... I indeed need the extra power."
"I see... so that's your answer?" Benezia says, a slight smile on her face.
"Yes!" Alex states, fully confident.
"Then proceed," Benezia says, handing Alex exactly 166,500 FC. All that's left.
"Thank you... Benezia," Alex says, a little touched. "Let's go then."
Entering the Realm and the Ranking up facility, Alex spends Shards, spends Shards, and also spends Shards, one upgrade after another.
Spending an additional 10,000 FC—2,000 FC per item—he spends a total of 1,900 Shards and the newly acquired [Templar's Might] to upgrade his five remaining Gold, Deep Gold, and Black Quality items, leaving him with just 155,500 FC, and exactly 130 Shards.
[Draining Meteor Sword] >>> [Draining Meteor Sword R2]
[Skullflame Shield] >>> [Skullflame Shield R2]
[Savant M] >>> [Savant M R2]
[Cataclysmic Frost-Fire Ring] >>> [Cataclysmic Frost-Fire Ring R2]
[Uzin's Rage] >>> [Uzin's Rage R2]
[Draining Meteor Sword R2]
World: One Piece
Quality: Gold
Type: Sword (1-handed Knight Sword)
Required Stats: STR - 12, PHY - 18, AGI - 12, MNA - 12
Required skills: Sword Proficiency lvl 5, Basic Close Combat Prowess lvl 5, Basic Endurance lvl 5, Basic Footwork lvl 5
Durability: 180/180
Damage: 55-75
Effect: Increases PHY, AGI, and MNA by 2 (Flat boost, not increased by other skills)
Effect: Meteor Amplification - When wielded and used as a conduit increases the damage of all active skills, including spells, by 30%
Effect: Draining Blade - Successful attacks cause the target to lose between 1% and 5% of all their resources. Shallow or partially blocked attacks only drain the lowest amount of resources possible. Draining resources increases the sword's damage and attack speed by up to 60% and restores a small amount of Durability. The effect slowly loses its effect when no additional resources are drained for a certain time. Allows the user to once every hour absorb the stolen Aura, emptying the stolen resources in the sword and restoring all of the user's resources equally. The total amount restored depends on the amount of stolen resources.
Note: Forged by a nameless blacksmith in the Southblue. This metal is unidentified and is said to hail from a meteor with the inherent property of absorbing all kinds of energy.
Note: This sword is recognized as a Great Grade sword.
Note: The metal the sword is forged out of had the potential to be used in creating a truly legendary blade. This sword, however, is regarded as a failure, merely tapping into the inherent properties of the metal used, without adding anything to it.
"Nice," Alex comments. "Exactly how I imagined it. Around a flat twenty percent improvement, perfect."
Princess Jewel is satisfied!
[Skullflame Shield R2]
World: World of Warcraft
Quality: Gold
Type: Shield (Teardrop shield—variation)
Requires Stats: STR - 18, PHY - 18
Required Skills: Shield Proficiency lvl 5, Basic Endurance lvl 5, Basic Close Combat Prowess lvl 5
Durability: 275/275
Damage: 12-18 + 6 Fire Damage
Effect: Increases Fire & Shadow (Dark) Resistance by 12%.
Effect: Life Drain - Grants a small chance (9%) to drain 40 HP from the attacker. The damage dealt is counted as Shadow (Dark) damage.
Effect: Hellfire Blast - Grants a very small chance (3%) to deal 90 to 150 Fire damage to all targets around you. This attack may ignite or burn your enemies.
Note: Enchanted with forbidden magic, this shield is fueled by both shadow and fire magic. It will harm its attacker with its spikes and flames, or if fate is not on their side, engulf them in a dark or fiery nightmare.
Note: Just one look at the shield fills most enemies with a sense of dread and hopelessness, making them realize that their attack might backfire in a cruel way.
"Not bad, it got quite a bit stronger, the percentage chance didn't increase, however," Alex notes.
"This is not unexpected," Benezia explains. "Increasing the trigger change would go beyond the average 20% improvement and would lead to exponential growth instead."
"I see..." Alex admits. "Makes sense, I guess. Still perfectly fine."
[Savant M R2]
World: Mass Effect
Quality: Gold
Type: Biotic-Amp
Durability: Can't be destroyed
Effect: Increases the Power of every Biotic ability by 45%.
Effect: Increases the Duration of every Biotic ability by 45%.
Effect: Reduces the Cooldown of every Biotic ability by 45%.
Note: The Strongest Biotic-Amp available. This version is exclusively produced for Matriarchs and is even more effective than the base model, which is the best available product on the open market.
Note: Manufactured by Serrice Council
"A little weak... just 5%... less than the expected 8%," Alex points out. "But Power, Duration, and Cooldown... It's quite strong indeed. Of course, there are diminishing returns."
"An improvement of 5% is more than adequate. Your Biotics will slowly rival my own in terms of basic potency," Benezia admits. "This item also has no requirements to consider."
Princess Jewel wants to see the ring! It's the strongest item, after all. It's suitably shiny, even worthy of Princess Jewel.
[Cataclysmic Frost-Fire Ring R2]
World: Fantasy Realm / Harry Potter / Wizarding World / Final Fantasy 9
Quality: Deep Gold
Type: Ring
Required Stats: MNA - 18, SPR - 18, PHY - 12, SNS - 12
Required Skills: Basic Meditation lvl 5, Basic Mana Control 5
Effect: Increase MNA by 2 and Max MP by 30 (Flat boost, not increased by other skills).
Effect: Moderate Frost-Fire Aptitude - Increases Fire and Frost Resistance and the Potency of all fire and frost-related abilities by 22%.
Effect: Your fire and frost abilities and spells are now azure-crimson-colored, gaining 33% Spell Piercing.
Note: Spell Piercing ignores the target's spell resistance, acquired through stats, abilities, skills, or items.
Note: Made of two rings, one crimson, one azure-colored.
Note: A false legend, powerful enough to surpass the real one. Limitations of [False Legend Merging Token].
Note: Why would you hold on to a false hope? A false legend.
"THE FUCK?" Alex yells in anger. "The first effect didn't improve! Also, just 2% more potency and 5% piercing. This is a joke!"
"A new Note has appeared," Benezia points out, not able to hide her confusion. "This is... unexpected. This happens if you mix items from three different worlds and use the Realms powers on it. The outcome is... unexpected and frankly, disappointing. Two out of three effects increased by 10% while one didn't increase at all. This is indeed a false legend.
"Fuck me, I wasted fucking 400 shards, 800,000 fucking FC on this piece of garbage improvement?"
Soulmate, now that this ring has been exposed as a trap, can Princess Jewel have it?
"... It's still a strong piece of gear... just... the improvement was not worth it," Alex states. "Finally... let's look at my truly precious ring."
-------------------------------------------------
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