Chapter 41: Cleanup

After taking out the trash, Derek used Rejuvenate on Rayna. It pulled her out of the unconscious state, but she still looked pitiful. He walked over to her and crouched down. He turned her unconscious body over and pulled out another health potion. With one hand, he tilted her head back, and with the other, he poured the potion into her mouth.

After checking and seeing most of the wounds on her body visibly healing, he stood. He walked to each corpse, putting them into his storage bracelet when he reached them. Finally, he got to Davis. He looked up at the quiet crowd, spotting Leon and his wife within. “Leon, take Davis away, we’ll decide what to do with him once Rayna wakes up.”

Walking back over to Rayna, he picked her up in a princess carry. He looked over to Richard. “You, follow me.” He began to walk back to where he left Thomas and the others. He paused, turning to look at the still silent crowd. “You probably know already, but it would be for the best to not talk about anything. I imagine there will be a village meeting later today, or tomorrow at the least when your chief is better. Until then, go about your day as if nothing happened.”

Derek began walking, and Richard followed.

“You killed a no…” Richard began, but Derek cut him off.

“Not here.” Derek spoke. Richard nodded his head solemnly and continued following behind Derek.

Before long, they arrived at the courtyard where he left Mal, Brandi, and Thomas. It was empty. Remembering what he told Thomas, he walked over to their residence and opened the door.

Inside the living area, Thomas was standing with his daggers drawn. Brandi was awake and holding the unconscious Malorie in her lap while looking towards the open door.

Derek smiled after seeing Thomas in his battle stance. “It’s just me. I’ve taken care of everything. I brought Rayna back here to recover.” He turned to Brandi. “How are you feeling?” He asked.

“I’m okay, but mom…” She trailed off.

“She will be fine. She’s not critical anymore, and her body is mostly healed. She’d probably wake up now if you tried, but I suggest letting her rest.” Derek explained as he walked to an open space and laid Rayna down.

Brandi let out a sigh of relief then started sobbing. “It’s my fault… I didn’t know who they were…” She began.

Derek furrowed his brow and stopped Brandi. “No sense in talking about it now. Calm down and gather yourself. We’ll all talk after everyone wakes up. For now, just tend to your mother.” Derek walked over to an empty corner and sat down with his back against the wall. He motioned to Richard. “Either sit or go home for a while. I’m sure Delilah is worried. It will be a bit before she wakes up, and Thomas is safe, as you can see.” Derek told Richard to follow him so he could show him that Thomas made it home in one piece.

Richard nodded. “Mhm. I’ll go let Delilah know that everyone here is okay, and that Thomas is safe. Please, let me know when they awaken. I would like to be here for the discussion.”

“Sure. I’ll send the boy after you and Leon.” He dismissed the older man.

After Richard left, the house went quiet. Not having anything else to do but wait, Derek checked his notifications.

You have killed a Level 87 Human Warrior…

3451 Experience Gained

Level Up

Level Up

1159/1415 Experience to Next Level

Ah fuck. I don’t like where this is going. Derek moved through to the next notification.

You have killed a Level 85 Human Warrior…

3410 Experience Gained

Level Up

Level Up

1599/1710 Experience to Next Level

Shit…

You have killed a Level 85 Human Warrior…

3780 Experience Gained

Level Up

Level Up

1789/2070 Experience to Next Level

Derek moved the notification away, looking at the next.

You have killed a Level 84 Human Archer.

4079 Experience Gained

Level Up

3798/??? Experience to Next Level. (Must Choose or Upgrade Class to Level Beyond 25)

There goes all those level 25 dungeons. Son of a bitch. Derek was angry that he would not be able to get the rewards for completing extra dungeons, but as he thought about it, the one he was looking forward to the most was the level 50 dungeon, so it was not a huge loss. Besides, even if he would have been thinking about his levels at the time, he still would have killed the group all the same.

But still, now I have to fuck with my class again. At least upgrading a class is a lot less trouble than initially choosing one. After thinking that, it was like a lightbulb turned on in his brain. Does this mean I get to upgrade my class from epic to legendary since it’s a growth class? With that thought, Derek rushed to see his options.

Champion of the Void

You have lived within the void, and the void has chosen you as its champion. Unlike others, you will no longer become trapped in the void. The void is your ally.

Champion of the Void is a growth type epic class. Preferences for this class are unknown. Two new skills will be available upon class upgrade.

You will receive 20 free stat points for allocation to your choosing.

Derek was disappointed when looking at his upgrade path. Nothing changed other than him receiving two new class skills. He also looked into the class change options, but they were all the same as before. He really did like Channel Void and he did not want to lose it, so he immediately put the thought of switching class out of his mind. Hopefully, the next two skills I unlock will be good and not like Void Call.

Derek stopped hesitating and chose to upgrade Champion of the Void.

Congratulations

You have upgraded your class.

As an epic rarity class, you have received 15 skill points.

He quickly moved to the next notification.

Level Up

1525/2500 Experience to Next Level.

Of course.

You have killed a Level 89 Human Mage.

You have killed a Level 94 Human Mage.

13231 Experience Gained

Level Up

Level Up

Level Up

Level Up

3154/3675 Experience to Next Level.

Damn, six kills to go from level 18 to level 30. It may be hard for others to level with this system, but it’s terrifyingly fast for me. Now, let’s see those two new skills. Derek pulled up the first skill.

Void Shift

Become one with the void. Using your control over the void, shift yourself from a corporeal state to a void state. Once shifted, move through the void and out of time and space.

Uses 500 mana/s

Cost: 7 Skill Points

What a high mana cost.

Would You Like to Learn Void Shift?

Yes.

Void Shift Learned Successfully

Skill Points Remaining: 13

Derek was itching to try his new skill, but he thought about what happened last time and decided to wait. Let’s see the other skill.

Void Sense

Your familiarity with the void has increased. You will feel the void wherever you are. Also allows one to sense abnormalities in the void.

Passive

Cost: 6 Skill Points

Interesting.

Would You Like to Learn Void Sense?

Yes.

Void Sense Learned Successfully

Skill Points Remaining: 7

A massive amount of information began flowing through Derek’s senses. There were ripples in the space around him. It seemed that if he wanted, he could grab a ripple and rip the space open. Some areas looked more solid than others. He felt that no matter what he did, he would not be able to make a dent in those areas.

This is crazy, it’s a complete sensory override. Derek closed his eyes to try to filter out all of the distractions, but when he did, he was able to hear the undulations of the void. One thing he did know was that if he was ever trapped in a void tunnel again, he would have no problem finding a weak point and breaking out.

As he calmed down, he realized that his new senses were not as distracting as they first seemed to be. The more he focused on other things, the less he sensed the void. And, after an hour of experimenting, he was able to turn down and tune out the void if he so desired.

I’m not entirely sure how useful this will be, but at least it’s a passive and will level up without me doing much. After everything was settled with his new class, Derek checked his updated status.

Status

Name

Derek Hunt

Age

29

Level

30

Experience

3154/3675

Class

Champion of the Void (Epic)

Race

Human (Modified)

Health

5250

Mana

2150

Stamina

5150

Defense

51 (Armor + 0)

Attack

49 (Weapon + 0)

Stats

Strength

360

Dexterity

260

Endurance

515

Vitality

525

Intelligence

220

Wisdom

215

Stat Points Remaining

398

Skills

Channel Void

Level 5

Channel the Void through your body, into attacks or defenses.

Cure Toxin

Level 1

Removes poisons and toxins.

Dismantle

Level 11

Increase ability to dismantle deceased organic life forms.

Greater Meditation

Level 2

Enter a meditative state to increase recovery.

Heavy Weapons Mastery

Level 18

Increase damage with heavy weapons.

Identify

Level 12

Appraise objects or entities.

Magic Resistance

Level 6

Increase natural magic resistance by 1.5% per level.

Rejuvenation

Level 8

Restores 40% HP over 30 seconds.

Void Call

Level 2

Call out to the Void.

Void Sense

Level 1

Sense the void.

Void Shift

Level 1

Become one with and move within the void.

Skill Points Remaining

7

Skill Upgrade Points Remaining

4

Wow. Not bad at all. Oh, I have enough stat points to bring both my Strength and Dexterity up to 500. Derek looked around and saw that Mal seemed to stir. I’ll do that soon. If it’s going to be anything like when I got Vitality and Endurance to 500, I’ll need to spend some time to pick the right skills.

“Mom!” Brandi’s elation at her mother waking brought Derek back out of his thoughts. “Are you okay? Are you hurt? Do you need more healing?” Brandi rapidly fired question after question at her recently awakened mother.

Seeing Mal looking disoriented after raising up, Derek spoke. “Give her some time to get her bearings.”

Hearing his voice, Malorie’s gaze shot over to Derek. “Derek? What are you doing here? The nobles… they… are they gone?”

“Yes, they are gone.” Derek said. At that time, the commotion seemed to rouse Rayna from her slumber. Derek looked over to her as she sat up.

“Thank you.” Rayna said as soon as their eyes met.

“No problem, they ruined my good mood.” He laughed.

“What ended up happening?” The chief asked.

“They all spontaneously died. It was weird, I mean, first they were alive, then they weren’t.” Derek joked, but Rayna did not seem to be in a humorous mood.

“He was a noble, Derek. If others find out, the whole village will be dead.” She said in all seriousness.

“Then don’t let them find out. Besides, I already have somewhat of an idea on what to do to hide it from others. You just have to get the village to keep their mouths shut. Shouldn’t be too hard seeing how if they talk, they die.”

“Thomas.” Derek called out. “Go fetch your grandpa and Leon.”

Thomas jumped up and ran out the door. A few minutes later, he returned with Richard and Leon. The small room was beginning to get cramped, but Derek did not care.

“So, what exactly happened?”