38 {Skills}

A.N. Shoutout to my new patrons:

nicko martin

Vonhjin

Mason Pedersen

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~The world's smallest violin, really needs an audience~

~So if I do not find somebody soon~

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"Here we are." Steve said as he pulled Bathsheba to a halt some ways off from the gates of the Twilight Manor. "This is where we part."

"Why don't you come inside?" Tiona asked.

"It's late. And besides, I don't want to be facing Loki after she realizes we've established a relationship with one another."

"You're going to anyway." Ais said.

"What do you mean?" Steve asked, confused on why she would say such a thing.

"There is a party at Lord Ganesha's place." Tiona explained. "He's always throwing around parties like this, almost every other week. And the gods always attend. It's possible that your god will also attend. And it's one of the requirements of attending that a god brings a member of their Familia if they have one. So you'll be forced to attend no doubt. Loki is going to be there and she's taking Ais with her."

"Great. And that means I'm going to have to face all of those upstart gods and their politics. Especially now that my status is public." Steve groaned before shaking off the annoyance. "Oh well, better now than never. Sooner it's over with, the sooner it's done."

"Good luck!" Tiona grinned mischievously as she leaned over his shoulder and pecked him on the cheek and slid off Bathsheba's back. "I had a great day today."

"As did I." Steve said as he unwrapped his arms from Ais's waist and allowed her to slip off as well. "I guess I'll be seeing you later then Ais?"

"Yes." The blonde nodded. "Make sure you attend...please."

"I guess you don't like those parties either." Steve smiled dryly.

"It will be better with you there." The girl said. "Will you come?"

"I don't think I'm going to get much of a choice. But with you there Ais, I think it will be a whole lot more enjoyable." Steve then handed Albie down to her from Bathsheba's mane. "Take care of him. He really likes you."

"Hm." Ais smiled as she took the bunny into her own palms and immediately began stroking him.

"And here's the books, Tiona." Steve took the trilogy out of his inventory and handed it over to the girl. "Tell me if you enjoy them."

"I will." Tiona said enthusiastically. "I can't wait to get started. I just have this feeling that I'll love it."

"Well don't try and read it all in one go." Steve shook his head with a chuckle. "Tione already complains about you not sleeping enough. I don't want to be the cause of my girlfriend developing a nocturnal aptitude or insomnia."

"I'll be fine." Tiona waved him off. "Go on you big goof. Go prepare for the party. I'll see you soon."

"Sure." Steve waved at them both as he dug his heels into the Warg's side and she began cantering away. "See ya."

"Bye!" Tiona waved back with her full arm while Ais just gave him a little wave. The kuudere had a beautiful smile plastered across her mouth as she watched him ride away. Steve found himself wanting to see that mile more often. It made him feel special.

...

When he was some distance away, he looked up to the roofs of some nearby buildings and watched a group of cloaked figures duck down out of sight.

"Delinquents." Steve sighed as he ignored them and moved on. "Useful delinquents though. I'll give them that much."

Onwards he rode, until it became obvious that riding a giant wolf was putting a lot of people on the streets on edge. So they took a detour and jumped onto the city wall, deciding to go around the whole city to get home. When they were near enough, and they were passing over the South Gate, Steve all of a sudden had a very tingly feeling in the back of his head.

He pulled Bathsheba to a halt again, right above the gates where people were entering from outside the city, trying to source wherever and whatever was pulling on his intuition. Deciding to look down in at the line of immigrants coming in, he scanned from the end of the long line of carts and people right down to the immediate people pushing up against the security point.

And there he saw it, the source of that strange feeling.

A white haired, red-eyed boy eagerly took a pass from the Ganesha Familia security guard and slipped it into a strap-on travelling pack that he wore on his back. Steve liked to call it a backpack.

The boy with his eyes shining, and with obvious giddiness then speed-walked past the gates and stepped onto the soil of the Labyrinth city. As he did so, he passed underneath the point where Steve was situated with his Warg, prompting the gamer to direct her to the other side of the wall so he could keep seeing the boy.

The albino paused for a moment as he looked around in wonder at the several structures in the city, as well as the numerous kinds of people and different races living there. It was the uniform reaction of a country person who had never lived in a city and more than that, a city of great diversity.

The boy then pulled out a map from his pack and unfolded it, dragging a finger along the picture trying to find something. From this viewpoint and with his excellent vision, he saw the boy's finger pause on what was definitely the location of the Pantheon, the Guild headquarters. After figuring out where he needed to go, the kid took off. Leaving Steve to smile after him.

"So it begins." The gamer murmured. "My estimations were a little off but it's all the same. Welcome to Orario, Bell Cranel."

Bathsheba sniffed inquisitively after the true MC.

"That is yet to be found out." Steve said. "My presence here has changed quite a lot of things already. I am eager to see what will happen from this point on."

---

(Ptah's Grotto)

"Now then, you gonna explain yourself or what?" Steve said to Ptah, who was sat on his bed looking elsewhere.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Ptah said, refusing to make eye contact.

"EVERYONE saw that beam of light. Stop trying to insult my intelligence. You think I wouldn't be suspicious that on the same day I told you about Priapus's story and you stormed off in a murderous rage, that that very god would die a few hours later?"

"Well he deserved it!" Ptah grumbled as he crossed his arms. "I confronted him about what happened with between him and Hestia on Olympus and the dirty little rat confessed to it all. What purpose did he serve anyway? His Familia was just a harem of street whores. So I snuffed him out."

"Idiot." Steve hissed as he face-palmed. "How are we going to explain this? Were you seen by anyone? How did you even kill him by the way?"

"Simple. I just told him to die."

"...with that special power of yours?"

"Yep." Ptah nodded. "And nobody saw me because I told them that they didn't see me. I just walked right up to the witnesses and said, 'You didn't see anything'. And it was sorted. Nobody is going to come knocking at our door anytime soon."

"You just committed 'murder' and you're making a light joke of it. You could be expelled, WE could be expelled because of what you did."

"What they don't know doesn't hurt us. Just keep your mouth shut as well and all will be good." Ptah leaned forward and smiled mischievously. "Onto more juicy things...how did it go?"

"...Quite fine all things considered." Steve conceded. "I'm now in a polygamous relationship. Not like you didn't know that already. And before you deny it, I saw you peeking round the door, so don't even try."

"I wasn't going to." Ptah said. "I'm just happy you pulled your head out and grew a pair. Now how does it feel?"

"Quite good if I'm being honest." Steve's cheeks reddened a little. "We're still a bit awkward. It's the first day and all, but it looks like we getting used to it. Slowly but surely."

"Those girls adore you." Ptah grinned. "Honestly, I can't see what is so great about you but I'll always be there to support a man's romance."

"A certain Olympian uses that term to refer to lecherous peeking at bathing women."

"Hermes is known to be a scoundrel. You should've seen what happened when he and a few others peeked on Artemis once."

"I think I would rather not have. Anyway, no more killing people, you hear?!"

"Alright, alright. I won't. You can't say he didn't deserve it though right?"

"...I suppose so." Steve admitted. "Did you do the thing I asked of you?"

"Yes, yes. Here it is." Ptah rolled his eyes and pulled out a couple of parchments from somewhere in his shirt. "All your skills and what they do as best as I can understand them."

Steve took the papers and began studying them, going through his skills one by one as his eyes continued to widen.

"{Cataclysm} allows me to use magic? Isn't that supposed to be in a magic slot?"

"It's more on the type of magic that can be used. 'Cataclysm' will allow you to use practically any sort of magic provided it is of an offensive or destructive nature. The only limit is your imagination."

"So say I imagined a star exploding and creating a supernova, could that happen with this skill?"

"...Maybe. I wouldn't recommend trying it."

"You weren't at all alarmed of me saying that?"

"You're too much of a p*ssy to actually do it." Ptah sniffed causing Steve to grind his teeth. The gamer shook his head before going back to the list. 

"{Lord of Gifts} gives me Excelia...how?"

"Whoever uses the weapons you craft to kill monsters, a portion of the Excelia they gain from that will be siphoned off to you."

"Then Fleinn'leptr-"

"Will be passively giving you Excelia as Finn keeps on killing monsters and enemies with it."

"...I had no idea. Wait, if they found out...Would they be mad?"

"You don't need to to worry. Because {Benevolence} bolstered Finn's Excelia gain. Your pure intention equals it all out, as Finn will be reimbursed from the Excelia he loses to you by the extra Excelia he gains from using that weapon in the first place. So all's well that ends well."

"How perfectly balanced." Steve said dryly. "I don't suppose Benevolence is going to be reimbursing everyone. That spear was a gift, commissions from customers won't be getting the same compensation."

"F*ck 'em"

"Agreed." Steve said without hesitation as both he and his patron chuckled a little evilly. "And {Herald of Chaos}?"

"It's that battle aura you've subconsciously been releasing all the time when you fight. But if you can consciously harness it, you can broadcast your intent onto your opponents senses as well over a great distance and make adventurers actually FEEl that power in you. It's purely intimidation based."

"I can do a Jiren impression then!"

"Who?"

"Nevermind. And {Lone Wolf} increases my Excelia gain when I fight alone." 

"While {Fortune's Bastard} makes sure that in the end, you are the ultimate winner in a conflict. Not necessarily every battle but certainly any war."

'Plot Armour, basically.'

"So {Hero} amplifies my strength when performing heroic deeds, {Cheater} amplifies my strength when using underhanded or dishonourable means, and {Deceiver} makes me appear more of a truthful person even when telling lie."

"To the point where you could negate a god's ability to detect lies." Ptah answered. "With the exception of mine of course. I have to say, judging by the content of those skills, you sound like a massive hypocrite."

'And the rest of my skills either increase my performance against major monsters I've fought before, or they just replace the commands I type out. Which means I don't need to consciously type it out in my GUI at all. I could just want them to happen!' Steve thought excitedly.

"And then of course, there is {Leader}." Ptah said. "Quite befitting of a captain. It enhances the Excelia gain of any group you command in battle while also making them serve your will more easily. The gain of profit with the caviar of submission so to speak. You really are a tyrant."

"Says the guy who punished nine different realms for the actions of one goddess." Steve snorted. Ptah suddenly seemed a little guilty and...sad for some reason. 

"Touche." Ptah muttered. "And lastly {Booster} allows you to buff the attributes or the magic of any person of your choosing. You just have to imagine the buff and it will come into being."

"Not quite the last. {Tongue of the Laws}. You still haven't completely explained what it does."

"For good reason." Ptah explained. "Let's just say that is is similar to my ability, Lawful Tongue. But it is limited in some ways. It is the most dangerous one you have...so don't use it too much Steve. Please?"

"...Considering you were polite in asking this time around, I'll comply." Steve grunted. He then lifted his hand. 

A liquid began bubbling on the surface of his palms and spilling over the edge of his hand onto the floor where it began to burn through the wood.

"What are you doing?!" Ptah shouted.

"Apparently, I'm creating acid with {Cataclysm}." Steve said simply.

"Then do it elsewhere! Not in my room." Ptah shoved him out. "Now clear off. I want to continue reading that book you gave me."

"What time are we heading over to that party?" Steve asked. 

"When it is time to head to the party." Ptah answered and slammed the door.

"What a twerp." Steve commented as he looked at his undamaged hand. "{Cataclysm} huh? I think it might be my most favourite skill yet."

Chuckling over his new discoveries and already envisioning the multiple ways he could put them to use, he began walking back to his room. Entering it, he found the closet door still open, reminding him of Tiona's foolery in there. Thinking of her made his cheeks warm as he found he started missing her presence already. It was always fun having her around.

Oh well, he'd see her soon enough.

Checking to make sure Ptah was still in his room, Steve entered his closet and closed the door behind him. Lifting the hidden trapdoor, he entered the hidden room and used the light provided by the nether portal to fumble around. Once he'd managed to get the lanterns lit, he looked around the room.

He'd come down here to dismantle the portal and build his modded one in its place for later use tonight...but something about the room felt off. Like something was missing.

Steve went through all his belongings, trying to see if anything was out of place or unaccounted for. His armour was still where it always was. His Ender-Chest was not worth pillaging since only he had access to its hidden inventory. He sorted through the pile of treasure but didn't really see anything that could have been taken. He hadn't really kept count.

...

Then it hit him.

The bag. The bag he had brought with him from his Nether trip earlier this morning. It was open and some of its content shad spilled out onto the table. He quickly inspected it, knowing for a fact exactly what he had plundered from the Nether. His nether warts and his gold was there, along with the potions and the skulls he had collected.

The one missing thing was a diamond sword. He'd found it in a bastion and had just brought it along for the sake of it even though he didn't need it. But still, it wasn't so easy to forget these things anymore considering that he physically handled them all the time. He'd actually been planning to use it as a decoration. Perhaps hang it on the wall.

But now it was gone.

If somebody from outside had come for it, they'd be a mad bastard not to take all the other wealth in here. Why take a diamond sword and not all the other riches? And besides, not even Ptah knew this room was here. Which meant the thief could only have come from...

Steve looked at the Nether portal. Slowly that familiar sickly feeling started to invade his stomach, as cold sweat ran down his back and his hairs stood on end. For a moment he contemplated going in and seeking out the perpetrator, but his very bones screamed at him not to. And without a moment's hesitation, he broke the portal down.

As soon as that horrendous feeling subsided and he'd stopped breathing heavily, he began building in its place a new kind of portal for his mod which he would use to go to a place elsewhere other than the Nether. 

---

On the other side, in the dimension of fire and shadows, a figure with glowing eyes watched in disappointment as the portal broke from his side. Cut off from the connection between him and his counterpart, he lowered the diamond sword and grunted. He'd been hoping that Steve would enter but the coward did not have the guts to take the necessary steps.

Well it didn't matter. That new world was so much more interesting than their realms, he'd find his way back soon enough. A loud screech to his right made him look up to see a Ghast blowing a fireball at him. The Hidden One narrowed his eyes and merely swung his sword upwards. 

A shockwave shredded both the fireball and the Ghast apart as well as destroying miles upon miles of Nether terrain. A segment of a fortress which had the misfortune of being in the way of the shockwave crumbled as its pillars were slashed through, tumbling down and brining its inhabitants within to boil in the lava below.

The Hidden One smiled grotesquely as he drew his fingers over the blade. Ever since the coward had brought them both to the new world, the coward had gotten stronger and by extension made him stronger too. It didn't matter how long his counterpart stalled their inevitable clash, he'd be ready for anything when they finally did.

...

Perhaps it was time he also brought his friends into the mix as well. It would be one great reunion between both his and Steve's friend. And then they could all play just like they used to. But first, he'd have to get out of the Nether. 

Perhaps he was immune to the coward's commands but it was complete injustice that he did not have them. Oh well, gathering the necessary resources would not take too long. Once he was out of this realm, he could find his friends' hiding places and coerce them into joining just one more game.

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