Chapter 566: Leak—Hidden Grudge
With four ranked-up items inspected, Alex finally directs his attention towards his last item, the Light-Black Quality [Uzin's Rage R2]
[Uzin's Rage R2]
World: Mass Effect
Quality: Light Black
Type: Ring
Required Stats: STR - 24, AGI - 24, SPR - 24
Effect: Increases STR by 9 (Flat boost, not increased by skills)
Effect: Lingering Rage - Increases all damage caused by attacks or skills, not dependent on items, by up to 30%, depending on Current HP. The maximum amount is reached when HP is less than 20%.
Effect: Release Rage - Allows the user to sacrifice 120 HP to cleanse them from most negative effects and temporarily increase STR and AGI by 22 for 11 seconds, and make them immune to most negative movement-impairing effects and spells for the duration.
Effect: Avatar of Vengeance - Doubles the user's base STR and AGI, grants them the unstoppable effect, making them immune against all movement-impairing effects, and reduces incoming damage by 82%. This effect takes precedence over all lesser effects, trying to cancel this one. Lasts 32 seconds. Can be used once every 24 hours.
Warning: If base SPR is less than 50% of his combined STR and AGI, the user will control and fall into a rage state, causing him to violently attack anyone close by.
Warning: Causes the user to prefer taking vengeance.
Note: The Ultimate Vengeance is delivered up close and personal.
Note: Without a strong mind, unfiltered rage will lead to catastrophic outcomes.
"Now let's see..." Alex says, carefully inspecting it. "Damn, the Requirements went up by 20%. I can barely equip it... one more rank up and I don't have enough AGI."
"Barely is good enough, though the requirements supersede your base AGI. You are depending on items now, which is not ideal. This requirement prevents you from exchanging your equipment for now," Benezia points out. "As for the improvements: First of all, 1 Strength, which is below the desired rate of 20% improvement. Your passive went from 25% to 30%, which is also below the target 20%. The Release Rage effect increased by 10%, however, more importantly, the duration increased by a second. Together, that's a significant improvement... but it comes at the cost of even more HP."
"Lastly, the Avatar of Vengeance damage reduction ability increased by 2% and lasts two seconds longer. This is truly a divine ability. For thirty... no, thirty-two seconds, you'll turn into a godlike being. Of course, it can only be used once per day, but still, this ability is beyond belief."
"Too bad the cooldown didn't decrease... well, the improvements were okay. Not as much as I expected, but I guess there are limits, huh? 9 STR for a single ring is already beyond broken," Alex says, looking amazed. "It was worth upgrading this thing."
Princess Jewel agrees. Only the scam ring was a disappointment.
"I guess I learned something... I won't be upgrading that thing anymore," Alex admits, looking slightly annoyed. "Artificially crafted items that have been pushed beyond their natural limitations with the use of items appear to have almost no potential for further improvements left."
"That... seems... to be the case," Benezia slowly says, seemingly agreeing with him.
"But?" Alex asks, curious.
"There is no but," Benezia states, smiling softly.
"..."
Damn tease.
Benezia's butt can't be hidden. It's too much of an eyesore, especially when pressed together by that black leather dress.
"... Alex. I've learned something about human culture. Not unlike the culture and customs of most races in the galaxy, as it was common in my familiar universe, it was almost unilaterally decided to place an age limit on certain activities. Your little pet should not be granted access to the extranet."
"..."
"Internet," Alex corrects her. "But I guess I can understand what you are saying. I can't believe I am saying this, but not only is she as toxic as me, but she also always manages to find an angle that hurts."
"You mean to tell me there is truth to her slanderous accusation?" Benezia asks, her eyes not set on Alex.
Damn you, Jewel, for dragging me into it!
Soulmate knows she has a lewd butt! He should be honest and demand some modesty from his Supporters. Menchi is no better with her skimpy clothes. Only Princess Jewel is the personification of modesty and noble behavior.
Spare me...
Alex sighs, trying to recover from his blunder. "More importantly, she couldn't be more wrong. How dare you call something that beautiful an eyesore, Jewel?"
"You are not making progress, human," Benezia says in an icy, cold tone.
Princess Jewel is correct. She is merely calling out public indecency.
"Please... stop it already, or I'm really banning you from surfing," Alex says helplessly.
However, his casual words deeply shake Jewel.
No! Soulmate, that is cruel. Princess Jewel can't survive without it. That's torture! Spider abuse!
Fuck... she is as addicted as I am... no, even more!
"Let's not sour our mood, okay... despite one item failing at ranking up properly, the others were perfectly fine. I wonder if I should spend the 130 extra shards? I can still upgrade my Purple items." Alex says, sneakily trying to redirect the topic to his gear.
"Despite the cost being cheaper, I'd think about it twice," Benezia reminds him. "Remember, if you upgrade Purple items, they need to be ranked down to sell, or need to be sharded, which leads to a heavy loss of resources. You are wasting precious shards on an item that you'll most likely replace in the near future."
"Yes... I can't expect to find that much loot after every mission; I guess I'd better begin saving now," Alex decides. "Purple items are also never as effective when Ranked up. Gold items and higher display the largest improvement. Worst-case scenario, an item that I upgrade to Rank 2 or even Rank 3 might have an effect, like an increase in stats that might not improve when upgraded at all. It probably takes two, or maybe even three, rank-ups to see an actual improvement. At worst, I spend shards for absolutely nothing...."
Done with the upgrading, and frankly without many more FC to spend, Alex considers going home, just wanting a quiet end to the day.
However, just before going home, he hands his remaining FC to Benezia, and he stops and exhales. "We don't have too much time, and it isn't much... but still, you take it. Maybe you can still make some smaller deals. However, don't overexert yourself. I need you to be at your best soon."
"Indeed," Benezia says. "I'll just spend an acceptable amount of time in the markets. I am also close to striking a deal to teach a few Supporters a few of my skills. Both the Movement and the Swordsmanship skills are extremely basic, but they are universally desired—as is the trading skill. Many players want their Supporters to have it. With a little bit of luck, I'll be able to earn more FC that way."
"Nice," Alex comments. "If you need help... just tell me, okay?"
Splitting up with Benezia, he suddenly gets a message from Glimmerwhisk.
[Glimmerwhisk: Visit me right now!]
"..."
"The day gets worse and worse. I'm not mentally prepared. Perhaps I'll reply tomorrow and take it slow today." Alex loudly considers, Jewel bouncing approvingly on his head.
[Glimmerwhisk: If you ignore me, you'll wish you died during the Tutorial Mission.]
"..."
Soulmate should perhaps consider going now, after all.
"Yeah... looks like it," Alex replies, sighing loudly. "You'd better head home, Jewel... this won't end well. No need for you to witness it."
No! Princess Jewel will support Soulmate! She won't let the sneaky goblin manipulate him.
"You're the one constantly manipulated!" Alex instantly replies, remembering all the previous meetings with her.
With no real choice, he heads towards the Eternal Coffins, already feeling annoyed.
Inside, Softspark approaches him, looking neither hostile nor welcoming.
"The mistress is waiting. Please do not let her wait," she says, gesturing to the back.
What hell will I walk into now?
Walking towards her room, Alex and Jewel enter. To his surprise, Glimmerwhisk is just wearing normal clothes, looking almost too casual. They consist of a pair of soft pants and a blouse—perfectly normal, almost plain, according to Alex's standards.
Peasant clothes?
"Peasants are not wearing the finest silk, but yes, I am rather stressed and prefer comfort over appearance," Glimmerwhisk replies to Jewel. "It's not easy to take over the Union. Many disloyal goblins need to be punished or, in some cases, extinguished, but before I can do that, I need to identify them first—preferably with proof." She moves her hand, gesturing for Alex to sit down. "Anyway, Alex, stop looking tense. This is not the time for fooling around. You can serve me later if you so desperately want. We have urgent business to discuss."
"The fuck, I am not—" Alex tries to say, but she hushes him.
"Pssst. Listen to me. The worst case happened. Someone leaked your relationship and history with the Seekers. It just happened a few hours ago. Their leader, Samir, has already put a bounty on your head. A million FC."
"Motherfucker... it wasn't fucking me, I swear! I even mostly avoided other players," Alex says, now pissed off. "All for nothing, huh? Who the fuck did this?!"
"This motherfucker..." Alex continues, his voice rising. "I might as well humiliate them publicly and declare that I will fuck up anyone who is part of that guild—or even associates with them. I might be a low-level player, but anyone in my level, I will fucking destroy!" Alex angrily declares.
"Don't," Glimmerwhisk says. "While it might be tempting, and while I can understand your anger and frustration, that doesn't help. Certainly, the bounty is a rather unnerving piece of news, yet it is still considered a soft response. He isn't actively hunting you. He is just saying that he wants you dead and will pay anyone to do it. If you escalate further, things will go from bad to worse."
"What do I do then?" Alex asks.
"Let your Supporters do their job and stay home. Benezia and Menchi can continue to work in their respective businesses. The Realm workers will prevent anyone from openly interfering... within reason," Glimmerwhisk notes. "Don't worry. The seekers won't interfere, or else they wouldn't have resorted to a bounty. They want to appear calm, like you are not even worth their own time."
"I see..." Alex mutters. "Guess I'll just go home... but... do you know who leaked it? I thought the Seekers didn't want this to come out. Who else knows?"
"That is a question I want to ask you... Who knows about what happened?" she asks him, looking unsure.
"I... I'll think about it. Thank you for informing me... I'm truly grateful," Alex says, smiling weekly towards Glimmerwhisk.
"No problem... also, there is one thing... the meeting I was initially planning... it has only been delayed," she says with a smirk. "I'll expect your visit in the near future."
Gobsmacked, Alex turns around. Before he can fully close the door and leave, he hears a soft and quiet. "Be careful...."
Almost dazed, Alex heads home, walking towards the Player Tower.
On his way, multiple people stare at him, making him feel almost paranoid, as if every glance carries a dagger.
These fuckers... come for me and I'll not only kill you, but I'll fucking cut off all your limbs and then let you bleed to death...!
Princess Jewel will do even worse things to anyone trying!
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