Chapter 168

Elemental Sundering (I)

Cain took a deep breath, looking up at the towering halls and buildings of the city that lived on as though nothing had happened. Though the rumors of some angry being tearing open space next to the city still circulated, they were tame and infrequent. The world lived on its life, irreverent to the suffering of silence.

He glanced down, at his closed hand, slowly opening it; there, a familiar item radiated a faint, golden sheen. A simple-looking key had transformed, looking like an actual treasure.

//Infernal Key(SSS+) Type: Miscellaneous

Note: Head to the Baddel’s Cathedral and enter the basement; insert the key into the fourth crypt on the right and proceed downstairs. There, you shall be welcomed by a guide.//

Even if the Shopkeeper wasn’t Cain’s biggest fan at the moment, he had issued a quest -- and already pledged a reward. The system behind this reigned over everything else; as such, because Cain completed the quest, the Shopkeeper had to hand over both the item as well where to use it. Wanting to take his minds off of reality at least for a little while, he decided to swiftly check it out and return before others woke up.

Baddel’s Cathedral, after a bit of asking around, turned out to be one of the many, seemingly nameless ruins along the edges of the Initiate Strata. Rather, when Cain landed his eyes on it, there really was nothing about it to suggest it was a cathedral. It looked exactly like the ruins next to it, roofless, partly wall-less, and certainly old and desolate, beyond repair.

Nonetheless, he headed inside; rubble and pieces of old furniture were scattered everywhere, and it was only through using Mana after minutes of pointless search that Cain pinpointed the entrance to the basement. It was under a small pile of rocks and cracked stone which he swiftly shoved aside, revealing the seemingly-ancient floor doors.

As the item’s description said, he was led down a set of winding, wooden stairs, ones that creaked louder and louder with each step took; at one point, he was certain the whole thing would just give under him, but, luckily, he managed to reach the under-the-world solid ground before that happened.

He frowned as he took in the ‘basement’; it was relatively narrow and wholly dark, though vision was hardly what impeded him -- there were no ‘crypts’ of any kind, at least as far as he could tell. Rather, there were just six holes on each side of the hall, each hole the size of a plumbing pipe at best and a wrench at worst.

Walking up to the fourth at right, he paused; peering inside, all he saw was a sharp-dropping curve about ten or so feet in. And, to his surprise and shock, his Mana got trapped barely a couple of feet beneath him, unable to proceed any further.

The ‘tunnel’ shuddered abruptly as Cain pulled back, startled, arming himself swiftly with motes of cyan-shaded Mana that floated around him. A moment later, something crawled out of the tunnel and stumbled onto the ground, rolling forward for a moment. Taking a closer look, Cain nearly keeled over -- it was a Pelk. A tiny, doll-sized race of fae-like creatures with long, curving noses and ears, a pair of sharp and wide eyes, and voices that never suited their appearance -- deep and boisterous.

The tiny Pelk swatted off the dust from his clothes before looking up at Cain, its expression serious and inquisitive. It looked up and down, three-four times, before coughing as though to bring attention to itself.

“Mr. Conqueror,” Cain still cringed at that deep, booming voice; it was quite akin to those voices used in movie trailers, if not even deeper. “I am B’el. I shall be your Guide and Guardian for your First Awakening.”

“Uhm, uh--what... what did you say?”

“Please, present your Key for the inspection.” Cain, virtually by instinct, took out the key and pushed it forward. B’el, though, didn’t take it, merely inspecting it while it remained in Cain’s hand. “Indeed, it is the Key. I shall now transport us to the Hall of Choosing. Hold tight. Bel-greva mel’duras.”

Pelks’ most distinctive feature, outside their appearances, of course, was their uncanny and somewhat terrifying affinity with Spatial Magic. From what Cain knew, even the newborn had the ability to easily transport thousands of miles in a blink of an eye. However, as a short of compromise, their affinity with every other element bordered garbage-like.

Cain had no means of knowing just how far away B’el took the two of them; unlike with the arrays, where distance affects both the time as well as the comfort of the journey, B’el’s transport was nigh-instant and harmless. For all Cain knew, little Pelk could have taken them just into the room under, or onto a completely different floor in a completely different dimension.

Looking around, Cain’s eyes alighted; it was a familiar place, one he’d been to twice before. A Hall of Choosing was, as its name suggested, a shrine of sorts where Conquerors chose advancements for their Classes. From what Cain understood, it was relatively similar across all the classes, with just a few distinctions.

Elementalists’ hall sported a wide array of elemental decorations, an artificial storm embodying a specific element usually leading to one of the altars that offered the advancement. Cain paused for a moment, reeling back; First Advancements were only available on the Fifth Floor. This wasn’t some noob trap -- nobody, nobody ever advanced before the Fifth Floor. It was actually a matter of public record as there was a very important reason why people announced it -- the person who advanced the fastest would get a permanent, 8% buff to all their stats while fighting non-Conquerors. The buff would remain until their record was broken. As such, if somebody broke the record on the second floor, it would have shattered the world.

Yet... it did exist. He was here, in the Hall of Choosing. It was somewhat larger and more colorful than the other one he’d been in during his previous First Awakening; several platforms gleamed in the mist in the distance, surrounded by pillars upholding paths to the numerous altars brimming with elements. Fire, water, nature, blood, lightning, light... all manner of fantastical phenomena unfolded before his eyes, drawing out a sigh from his lips.

“Welcome to the Hall of Choosing, Mr. Conqueror,” B’el drew Cain back to reality as he spoke, walking forward in short and swift steps, prompting Cain to follow silently behind the Pelk. “Here, your Class shall ascend beyond its bounds and limits. According to your Record, you shall have thirteen options to choose from.”

“--t-thirteen?!” Cain shrieked in shock, prompting B’el to glance at him strangely for a moment.

“Your Feats have inspired the Spirits who have molded the countless paths,” B’el explained. “And many have expressed their desire to mentor you. By approaching any of the altars here, you shall enter a trance through which you will see that specific path at its best. Furthermore, next to each altar is a stele that has a rundown of the path’s basics.

“As for the Paths -- eight are Common, three are Rare, one is Epic, and one is Heroic. Of the Eight Common, your stats and skills are compatible with three -- Spatial, Reaper, and Charged. Of course, you may choose any of the eight if you prefer. As for the Rare, you seem to be compatible with one -- Devout. Epic-classified Path, Spellmaker, does seem to have the highest compatibility with you and, as your Guide, I recommend you choose this one. Do not let the rankings themselves fool you; they do not denote the strength of any of the Paths, but rather the egos of their creators. The only exception is the last one -- Heroic Paths. Paths are referred to as ‘Heroic’ if they were made by Conquerors such as yourself -- Heroes. The one in question for you is ‘Herald’.

“I may as well offer you a free piece of advice --- chose Spellmaker, as you will automatically also obtain ‘Herald’; it is not a Path that comes with Skills and instructions, but with a blank slate. As per its name, you Herald your own fate. And you can do just that even if you begin on another Path. Rather, that’s how every Path save for the one the Ever-beautiful Qod gave us was created. I shan’t pressure you in your choices, though; whatever you will, so it shall be. I will leave for twenty-four hours, during which you are allowed to examine every Path and make an informed decision of about your future.”

“...”

“Do choose carefully, though, as the choice is irreversible and as it will impact the choices of future Awakenings that you will have access to. When I return, you may ask me two questions in regards to the Paths, and I shall answer them in honesty. Until then, Mr. Conqueror, I bid you a farewell.”

Cain barely registered what the little Plek was saying. Thirteen... thirteen choices. That was actually seven more than he had the last time. Though eight were considered ‘Common’ even they weren’t offered to just anybody. Furthermore, though Cain knew there were pseudo-rankings to the Paths, this was the first time he knew the actual denominations of those ranks, as nobody ever shared past ‘Common’ and ‘Uncommon’ publicly.

He swiftly rushed toward the nearest Altar, ready to examine it; even if he was certain that he would end up choosing B’el’s recommendation, he still wanted to see everything and at least learn the capacities of other Paths in case he needs to fight them in the future.

If nothing else, his mind was distracted and pulled back from the bitter reality into a fantasy of choice, an exhilarating place where his sacrifices were about to be rewarded... much, much earlier than he had expected.