[Corven Umbrovante]:
Upon returning to the real world, Corven found it shocking that his clothes were perfect and untorn, not a spec of blood to be found on them, and his injuries were completely gone, showing no sign of actually being there somehow.
"Was it all just in my head?" Corven asked aloud, confused before shaking his head. "That strange object is gone; I absorbed it, I can feel the energy inside me. Plus I do have the new sword right here with me, so that can't be it. Well, whatever."
Corven separated a bit of his shadow before turning it into a sheath that he strapped to his back. He then grabbed a handful of coins and put them into his pocket before taking half of the towering mounds of coins into his shadow space, along with some weapons and shields before exiting the vault.
"Did you get everything?" Cimon asked, curiously eyeing Corven, then looking behind him into the vault, before returning his questioning gaze back to Corven. Corven only nodded. "Good. Nice sword, by the way. I can sense its power all the way out here. I take it you are soul-bonded with it, yeah?"
Corven merely gave a nod to his cousin in answer.
"Good," Cimon grinned. "Soul-bound weapons and artifacts makes for a much more useful accessory, especially when in combat."
"I need you to explain the currency to me," Corven voiced silently to Cimon, who nodded in answer.
"Right, so, Mythos currency is the currency that is used in our worlds," Cimon began. "The copper ones are called 'chips' while the bronze ones are called 'bits'. It takes 15 chips to make a bit, and it takes 10 bits to make a 'flat' or the silver coins. The quarts are the gold coins and the crescents are the platinum coins. It takes 5 flats to make a quart and 4 quarts to make a crescent. The diamond coins are called "crowns" and it takes 1,500 crescents to make a crown. Got it?"
[A/N: Here's a graph to help summarize it, Hope it helps! XD]
Chips
Copper Coins
15 Chips = 1 Bit
Bits
Bronze Coins
10 Bits = 1 Flat
Flats
Silver Coins
5 Flats = 1 Quart
Quarts
Gold Coins
4 Quarts = 1 Crescent
Crescents
Platinum Coins
1,500 Crescents = 1 Crown
Crowns
Diamond Coins
1 Crown = 300,000 Bits
"Yeah," Corven nodded his head in acknowledgement. "Good," Cimon nodded.
Tar'lakus, who'd been listening passively to their whole brief exchange, was perplexed. He'd realized that Corven must've been a demigod recently introduced to the world of Mythos and gods, probably a bastardborn of some medium or large forgotten noble family — That's the only explanation for his lack of knowledge to the world he's evidently already quite wealthy in. It was like he did not even know the basics of their world.
That said, it wasn't like this was something new — Many noble families have bastards and many gods have children outside of the cultivation worlds. Hells, gods have children every other Tuesday in the human world — These children are typically found by some noble houses — big and small — and are added to their ranks sometimes. Other times, an illegitimate noble is born from a noble family, exiled upon their birth to the human world, before being reintroduced to the world of Mythos at a later age.
This is typically done to test the child's meddle. Most bastards are viewed as less than dirt in the eyes of nobles, even more so the lowborn legacies and regular mortals are. This trial that bastardborns are put through aims to test their metal and worth. If they survive until reaching a certain age, then they often are taken in and given semi-noble status; some may even jump through the family's ranks with great haste.
Tar'lakus just assumed that this was Corven's situation, and he's not entirely wrong, but he's also so completely wrong. He still didn't understand how Corven had so much wealth, though. He knocked it down to whatever house he was born into as a bastardborn was quite wealthy, afterall, it was no new information that some low to mid level houses are much more wealthy than their brethren but keeps their wealth to themselves for fear of being plunged by more powerful noble houses. He just assumed that whatever house Corven was from was quite the underdog and discreetly wealthy.
'Or, perhaps,' Tar'lakus realized, 'maybe he's the heir to said house.'
Being the heir to a house Corven knew nothing about would explain just as much. Yet, for such a house to have such wealth to rival the wealth of a great house in that vault alone would make such a house remarkably influential.
Tar'lakus saw the piles of coins in Corven's vault. He knew wealth when he saw it.
Then there was the sword.
Corven went in without a weapon — Tar'lakus knew this. Yet the weapon he had come out with was definitely at least at the Legendary tier – He could sense the power even through the strange black sheath that seemed to be made of shadows and darkness, both swirling into one another.
'What kind of noble house is this House Umbrovante?' Tar'lakus found himself thinking to himself, as the elevator doors opened unto the lobby floor. Not just any noble house could acquire a legendary rank weapon.
Tar'lakus watched as the two boys left the bank, deciding to remember their faces and find out what he could on that one boy in particular. "Corven Umbrovante, huh?"
Once outside, Corven was about to summon Eclipse, but Cimon pointed ahead of them, where a group of six armored men stood behind a wealthy looking rich guy in an expensive suit and leopard-skinned jacket. He had a strange mustache, and his leopard skin jacket in this heat made Corven not trust the snob even more.
'This guy again?' Corven groaned internally, as the group of armored individuals made their way towards Corven and Cimon, walking behind Quiylan like bodyguards, all the while Quiylan, who was maliciously grinning with smugness, had his hands outstretched.
"I was wondering when you'd come out," Quiylan smirked, his smug, rich man asshole syndrome palpable, it could have been cut with a knife. "Now, you can hand over the rare mount you stole from me, and no one has to get hurt."
Corven raised his eyebrows, his mouth hanging open slightly at the audacity of this bitch. He could not believe his own ears. Was he really being robbed? For reals? By a noble, no less? That's crazy.
Quiylan was, of course, talking about Corven's shadow sphinx. And, as he watched Corven eye the six guards of his envoy, he smiled, fighting back to laughter he was sharing within himself from showing on his face. 'He must be shell-shocked by my gloriance. Shocked and frightened by my squad of highly adept noble cultivators of the House of Caelus. This is just too easy. I am goin' be rich… Well, richer!'
Corven eyed the menacing guards, dressed in sky blue body armor, each with a badge of their left pectoral over their hearts, of an eagle made of silver, mid-flight — The crest of the noble house of House Caelus, Corven figured, from what he's been told.
Then, simply, clearly, Corven spoke. "No," Corven said simply.
"Very well, just bring it- Wait what?" Quiylan blanched for a moment, certain somehow that he had misheard the boy. "Repeat it again."
"No," Corven supplied, face indifferent, unemotional.
Thinking the boy to be beside himself with fear and was pushed into a fear-induced mania, Quiylan spoke clearly and plainly. "I am sure you are the one who stole my mount. If you return it safely to me, I will promise to let you leave here with your life. You have my word. I am that righteous, after all. I am a member of the righteous house of House Caelus."
There was a moment of silence before Corven turned to Cimon, then back to Quiylan, before his gaze returned to Cimon. "Did I stutter?"
Cimon just shrugged, slightly amused by Corven's antics.
"Righteous, my ass. You're delusional, old man," Corven said, turning to Quiylan. "Now get the hell out of my way, old man, before the nursing home arrives to take you away."
'I'm barely 27!' screamed Quiylan internally in his head. He couldn't believe how shameless and crude this boy was. He then looked to one of his guards and snapped his fingers.
Instantly, he stepped forward, silver lance in hand, intimidatingly glaring at Corven. "Hand back over what you stole from Lord Quiylan Caelus, or else you will regret it, boy."
Corven looked at his cousin, who pulled out his demigod ranked spear, Dreamspire, attracting all the guards' attention. Not just anyone could possess a demigod ranked weapon.
"Is that a threat?" Cimon asked, his voice deep, spear in hand, as he raised an eyebrow at the slightly shuddering guards with a sleepy smirk on his face.
'Don't tell me,' Quiylan thought, horrified for a moment, as he took a good look at Cimon. 'this is the wielder of House Morpheus's Demigod tier, black-bladed spear, and heir to House Morpheus itself, the Sleeping Prince, Cimon Morpheus!'
Taking a good look at the boy he'd dismissed earlier for just a lesser member if House Morpheus, Quiylan nearly choked on his own gulp, as the identity of one of the boys before him came to be known.
"You know who I am now, don't you?" Cimon asked, his voice deadly calm, his chin tipped skyward, head held high. "You do not want these hands."
Of course, Quiylan knew who he was. Anyone who was anyone in the cultivating world knew who the Sleeping Prince of House Morpheus, Cimon Morpheus, was. A talented up and coming youth coined as 'the champion of House Morpheus,' Cimon Morpheus may seem like a lazy bum upon first impression, which was why so many people confuse him for his lesser talented kin, but he was a highly gifted combatant and cultivator, and, according to some rumours, his father is the god Hypnos, the primordial god of slumber, though Quiylan wasn't too certain how true those rumours were. It was rumored that he was only 15 years old, but was already at Demigod rank — something that would take others tens of years to achieve on their own — but that could be attributed to the possibility of the brat being a son of a god, making him a demigod cultivator. He apparently skipped the first three stages of cultivation, broke through to Legacy rank at age 8, and then directly into Demigod age 14 after awakening his bloodline ability, if the sources are to be believed. Quiylan wasn't too sure how accurate all this was, but, even he had to admit that, even amongst his more gifted peers, the boy was considered a genius.
But that didn't seem to completely dissuade Quiylan's guards, who all decided to draw their own weapons, and release their auras and pressures. Two special tiers, 3 legacies and 2 demigod ranked cultivators had released their auras. Quiylan himself released his own demigod rank aura, adding to the formidable line up of cultivators before Corven and Cimon. 2 Special ranks, 3 Legacy ranks, and 2 demigod rank opponents had officially released their aura on the plaza, causing many pedestrians to look at Corven and Cimon in sympathy but continue on their way, not daring to get involved. In the cultivation world, minding one's own business was key to survival.
'It won't matter that this brat is a genius of House Morpheus,' Quiylan thought to himself, eyeing Cimon with a ruthless killing intent. 'It won't even matter that his father is apart of that accursed family. At the end of the day, we have three demigod ranks to their one — along with three legacy ranked and two special ranked cultivators. I will have their heads, weapons and treasures in thirty minutes tops.'
But, to their surprise, Cimon wasn't afraid. In fact, he stepped forward, head raise in challenge, as if to prove himself no coward. "You think you scare me?" he glared at the gang of guards, his spear in hand, at the ready.
Just then, something incredible happened right before everyone's eyes — Corven's shadow expanded, and, from its depths, came Eclipse, growling and hissing at his would be nappers, as it curled its body around Corven defensively, as if to protect its master.
'Did it get bigger?' was the first thing that Quiylan thought, before shaking his head, as he reached into his space bracelet and pulled out a piece of well-done, special grade steak from a special-ranked creature he had on him for such occasions.
'No way this'll fail,' he thought as he waved this meat before the creature, trying to tempt it. "Come get it, and it's all yours. You want the steak? Come here and get it."
'No way, is this motherfucker serious?',Corven couldn't believe his eyes. Was this dude seriously trying to domesticate Eclipse with food? He'd laugh in his face if the sight wasn't so strange. 'You can't make this shit up.'
As if to prove these thoughts, Eclipse only growled and hissed more at Quiylan. Its hackles rising, as it took a few threatening steps towards Quiylan.
Quiylan himself was confused. Any other creature, magical or normal would jump at the opportunity to have a special grade piece of meat. It should have been easy and simple to bait the boy's mount to come over.
'I don't understand,' Quiylan thought, puzzled. 'Did I get the wrong meat? This is meat from an enchanted magic water buffalo — the best kind of steak from a beast you can find anywhere, at Tier C, no less — And it's not the least bit interested in it? Such discipline. I must have this creature as my own!'
"Down girl," Corven commanded, and Eclipse obeyed, trotting back over to Corven's side, to which Corven was beyond pleased, as she curled defensively around Corven, eyes still on Quiylan, assessing the man before her. She was sure she could eat this man whole should her master commands it, but only should he command it would she ever do it, or if Quiylan decided to attack her master.
Corven was surprised at just how big Eclipse had gotten in such little time — She was easily the size of a tiger, her wingspan twice what it was before. Yet it obeyed Corven's command without any fuss whatsoever.
'It must have absorbed some of that shadow energy from the Trials,' Corven realized. 'It seems much more powerful now, too, than it was before. It's aura is denser.'
What Corven did not know was that mounts, familiars and beast companions as well as magical beasts and monsters found in the wild all follow a ranking system[2], and that Eclipse's rank had went up by a whole tier thanks to that shadow energy she had partially absorbed in the Trials.[A/N: The Beasts/Monster ranking system goes as follows: Tier D, Tier C, Tier B, Tier A, Tier S, Tier SS, Tier SSS+, Tier Z, Tier Alpha, Tier Omega, Tier King, Tier Emperor and Tier Primordial, with Tier D being the weakest and Tier Primordial being the most powerful]
Quiylan, who realized that Eclipse had went up a tier, could sense the Tier B threat that she really was, which made her as dangerous a Legacy level threat, silently shuddered. He wanted this beast for himself — He'd have it at all costs.
Suddenly, Corven unsheath his weapon and Quiylan and his guards each took a step back, warily. They had been so focused on acquiring Corven's mount that they had not noticed an even greater threat looming before them in plain sight. A legendary grade weapon!
Instead of fear, though, Quiylan felt greed. He wanted this legendary weapon. He wanted that creature. And he wanted Cimon's demigod rank spear. By the old gods, he'd have it, too, even if he had to take it by force and through murder to do it. He just had to be wary of his actions in the process. The power gained by a demigod or legendary tier weapon was unlike any given by special or even legacy tier weapons. If he takes it, and kills their previous owners, he make millions of Crowns off selling the demigod tier weapon and he could become a very powerful individual by training with the legendary tier sword. The other Great Houses would pay quite a bit of coin for a demigod tier weapon, let alone a legendary tier weapon, should he decide to sell it, of course.
"I'm getting tired of repeating myself," Corven said, darkly, getting in stance. He had been wanting to practice his legendary rank swordsman art technique. The chance just happened to come by sooner rather than later. "Get out of my way, or I'll force you."
Quiylan, who sensed no cultivation from this youth, chuckled. He wasn't sure how he was able to use the sword's aura without any cultivation, but Quiylan won't worry about it too much.
"You've brought me such prizes," Quiylan giggled like a mad man. "I'm going to enjoy the wealth you have given me today. And, to show my sincerest gratitude, I'll let my boys show you how thankful I truly am, let them show you the light at the end of the tunnel to my own amusement. Get 'em, boys."
Immediately, the guards began their charge and assault.