Chapter 484 - Difficult Choices (Patreon)

The mana density was still thin, making the crater slightly uncomfortable.  However, as irritating as it was, it also served as a great barrier for the local wildlife.  The combination of the lacking mana and the previous destruction added up to an area that most living things would avoid on instinct.  So, it gave Zeke and Talia a chance to rest – albeit with no small degree of unpleasantness. 

But the pair of friends were well-equipped to handle such a situation.  They’d both been through worse, after all, so they could endure all manner of discomfort.  For Zeke, it gave him an opportunity to recover from the damage that his use of the Path of Arcane Destruction had wrought on his body.  It wasn’t as debilitating as previous uses of his Will, but it still left him at less than a hundred percent effectiveness.  So, he settled in atop the slain turtle’s shell, adopting his cambion form and using the unattuned version of [Cambion’s Awakening].    

At first, the thin mana kept him from using the skill to its fullest potential, but over time, its efficacy grew more potent. 

“You’re stalling,” said Eveline.

“I know,” Zeke admitted.  His excuse was that he wanted to be at his best when he examined his level seventy-five skill choices.  But that was unnecessary, and he knew it.  Rather, he knew precisely how important the choice would be – many people considered the level seventy-five skill, be it an upgrade of an old ability or something new, to be each person’s definitive skill – and he was more than a little anxious about the choices the Framework might bestow upon him.

Still, he could only put it off for so long.  So, at last, he let himself see the notifications.  The first was a surprise:

Congratulations on reaching level seventy-five.  With this achievement, you have proven yourself worthy to embark upon the next stage of your journey.  If you wish, you may attempt to ascend to a higher plane.  Beware: climbing to the Ethereal Plane is a harrowing journey that should only be undertaken by the most powerful, but reaching the end of that journey is even more dangerous.  Only embark upon this voyage if you are certain of your own power.

“I can ascend at this level?” Zeke asked.  He’d actually gone past the level in question, reaching seventy-seven, but the question still stood. 

“Or descend, if you want to go to a lower circle of Hell,” Eveline pointed out.  “You would have to find another portal to the other realm, but I’m certain it wouldn’t be difficult for someone like you to find one.  Just follow your instincts, and you’ll stumble upon one eventually.”

“That wasn’t my question, Eveline.”

“I know.  But the Oppressor doesn’t care about levels, per se.  The thresholds only exist because that’s when it deems you capable of surviving the trip.  However, just because there’s a chance that you could live through the experience doesn’t mean it’s a good one,” she said.

“How much of a chance do you think I’d have?” Zeke asked.

“One in a million.  Maybe a bit higher.”

“That low?”

“Even at level one-hundred, only one in every ten thousand will make the journey intact,” Eveline said.  “Or that’s the general consensus.  With your gifts, it would be slightly higher.”

That was not what Zeke had expected.  The trip from the Mortal Realm to the Eternal Realm hadn’t been onerous.  Certainly, it had been complicated by the demonic presence as well as Constance’s army, but other than that, his ascension had been as easy as stepping through a gate. 

“I didn’t think it would be so difficult,” Zeke admitted.

“It is not a task to be undertaken by the faint of heart,” Eveline said.  “Most people spend decades in preparation, even after they’ve reached the pinnacle.  And it is a journey of years, often spent alone.  It is the crucible of godhood.”

“Does it have anything to do with the spark of divinity you’ve mentioned?” Zeke asked.  Often, Eveline had spoken of that, though the notion was still a bit ephemeral for him. 

“No.  Not really, though it most often manifests during the descent.  Or ascent for residents of this realm,” she said.  “That you already possess it bodes well for your chances of survival.  However, the crucible of godhood is more a colloquial term.  Anyone who makes it through to the other side is irrevocably changed.  Even if they fail to gain a single level during their ascent, they will be exponentially more powerful than those they left behind.”

“Interesting,” Zeke said.  Although, he would have preferred a few more details.

“So would I,” Eveline said.  “These are rumors and gossip.  It is impossible to know facts without experiencing it.  And as you know, I never did.”

Zeke thought about that for a moment, but once he realized that there was no more concrete information at hand, he moved on to the next notifications, which detailed the options available to him regarding his skills.

His heart beat a little more quickly as he read the first notification:

You have reached the first threshold.  As such, you have five options before you.  Three are skill upgrades.  Two represent new abilities.  Choose wisely.

Zeke said, “Five choices.  Is that normal?”

Eveline gave a mental shake of her head, answering, “No.  Most get three.  Two skill options and three upgrade options.”

“What does it mean?”

“I don’t know.  And you won’t either until you look at your options,” she said.

“Fine.”

Then, Zeke checked the first of his three upgrade options:

[Aura of the Titan] (C) – Upgraded from [Avatar of the Colossus].  The Titan is the natural evolution of the colossus.  Create a domain that will imbue your allies with indomitable strength and endurance.  Upgradeable. 

“Another domain,” Zeke muttered.  Sometimes, he forgot to use [Avatar of the Colossus], largely because it had a tendency to cancel out if he moved too far away from whomever he used it upon.

“That choice would solve that problem,” Eveline stated.

“A good option, then.”

Zeke moved on to the next skill upgrade available to him:

[Titanic Swings] (C) – Upgraded from [Unleash Momentum].  You are a creature of momentum.  Harness it to a higher degree.  Instill every strike with the momentum of your previous two attacks.  Upgradeable. 

“Hmm,” Zeke said aloud.  He liked the idea of a permanent upgrade to his attacks.  However, he wasn’t thrilled about losing what amounted to his second-most-powerful skill.  Certainly, he could only use [Unleash Momentum] seldomly, but when he did, it packed quite a punch.

“You’re looking at this wrong.”

“What?” he asked.

“You heard me.”

Zeke rolled his eyes.  “Don’t be like that.  Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“Let me ask you a question, then,” Eveline suggested.  “Does that description say anything about any restrictions on the skill?”

“No,” Zeke said after rereading it.

“There you go, then.”

“Just explain it, Eveline.  I don’t have time for this.”

“Fine.  Each swing will harness the power of the previous two,” she said.  “So, what happens when you swing four times?  One of those attacks is going to have increased power.  Which will be included in that fourth attack.  Then, the fifth and six will be even more powerful.  It’ll keep going until every attack hits a hundred times harder than your normal strength would allow.”

As Zeke listened to Eveline’s prediction, his eyes widened.  “That’s…that is incredibly powerful.”

“It is.  I’m certain there are restrictions.  Probably time-based, if I had to guess.  Like, it’ll reset every ten seconds or something like that.  But you can output a lot of damage in those ten seconds, right?  It’s momentum.  You get stronger as the fight goes on.”

“So, you think I should take that one?” he asked, already leaning in that direction.  The potential was just too high to ignore.

“I don’t know.  Keep going,” Eveline said. 

Zeke did, moving on to the third choice:

[Titan] (B) – Evolution of [Triune Colossus].  The Titan is a natural evolution of the colossus.  Take on the form of a titan, gaining the ability to temporarily grow in size and power.  Upgradeable. 

“Uh…”

Zeke had hoped for an evolution of his most-used skill, but he’d never truly expected it.  However, it seemed an obvious choice, given that it was an entire grade higher than the other two.  With that in mind, could he really choose anything else?

“That’s not the question you should be asking yourself,” Eveline said.

“Then what is?”

“You are capable of upgrading your own skills,” she stated.  “The real question you should be asking is whether or not you could do the job yourself.  Technically, anything the Framework can do – regarding skills, at least – should be possible with your skills.  The only variable is how long it would take you to mimic the same results laid out before you.”

“A long time,” Zeke said.  “Especially with the third choice.”

[Triune Colossus] was already his most complex skill.  Just looking at the runes associated with it gave him a headache, and even when he’d forced himself to study it, he’d only managed to comprehend a tiny fraction of the structure.  It was like looking at a complex mathematical proof with only basic arithmetic skills.

By comparison, [Unleash Momentum] felt like a child’s drawing.

“You’re mixing your metaphors,” Eveline stated.

“In my own head,” Zeke responded.  “Which doesn’t matter, so long as I understand it.”

“Fair enough,” Eveline agreed.  “But your logic is sound.”

However, even if he didn’t take [Titanic Swings] or [Aura of the Titan], the simple descriptions did give him some ideas on how to upgrade the skills.  He didn’t quite understand how to make those ideas a reality, but with that guidance, he felt fairly certain he could figure it out. 

It would just take time.

And quite a lot of effort.

The latter was easy enough, but the former was in short supply for now.  Yet, that was the way of the world.  Nothing worthwhile came without significant investment, be it time, hard work, or money. 

“You should at least check the two new skills,” Eveline suggested.  “There might be something worthwhile there.”

Zeke agreed with that, too.  So, he checked the penultimate notification:

[Worshipper’s Tithe] (B) – You are on the verge of godhood.  Your followers revere you.  Let them support you.  Take a portion of your followers’ power as your own, gaining a trick of energy that will, in time, push you to higher levels.  Upgradeable. 

“Ugh,” Zeke muttered.

“What?  It seems useful.”

“It’s gross.”

“Most would not agree,” Eveline said.  “Many would say that followers were there for this very purpose.”

“I’m not one of those.  I’m also not a god.”

“The Framework disagrees,” she pointed out.

“The Framework isn’t the ultimate authority,” Zeke insisted.

“It kind of is, though.”

“Whatever.  It doesn’t matter, though.  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again.  I’m not using the kobolds as batteries,” he said with finality.

“Why?  They’ll recover their power in time.  That’s how these things work,” she said.  “Of course, it would prevent them from ever truly progressing, but that’s –”

“My job is to lift them up.  Not hold them down so I can become a little stronger.”

“I think you’re looking at this the wrong way,” Eveline said.  “This is how things are done.  I don’t know the entirety of how the Ethereal Realm works, but I do know that progression on that plane requires a ridiculous amount of kill energy.  If reaching the peak of the Eternal Realm is difficult, then doing so in the Ethereal Realm is practically impossible.  It’s even worse if you don’t take advantage of every opportunity for power you can find.  Including cultivating worshippers.”

“And yet, I will do it my way.  I will stand on my own two feet, Eveline.  For better or worse.”

“For worse.  There’s no question.”

“Then so be it,” Zeke said with no small degree of finality.  For her part, Eveline went silent, clearly sulking.  So, Zeke moved on to the final notification:

[Cloak of Hellfire] (C) – You are no stranger to corruption or destruction.  Wreathe yourself in Hellfire, temporarily increasing your physical attributes by two tiers.  Upgradeable. 

As Zeke read the skill’s description, he couldn’t deny that it was an attractive option.  The idea of increasing his strength by two tiers was extremely tempting, even if he knew it would only be a temporary boost.  His strength was already ridiculous, being at the S+ tier.  So, increasing it even more represented a level of power he could scarcely fathom.

Finally, Eveline broke her silence, offering her input as she said, “It’s powerful.  Very, very powerful.  With that kind of increase, your strength would likely double.  However, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out the fact that, as a half-demon, you do not have the resistance to Hellfire that most full-demons possess.  The skill would likely damage you for its entire duration.

“Pudge uses Hellfire all the time,” Zeke pointed out.

“And I have no idea how he manages that.  Perhaps it’s due to his nature as a former monster.  They often display unique traits.  You have proven that you’re not immune to corruption, though.  This will be stronger than normal as well.  I suggest that you disregard this option, though you clearly don’t value my input.”

“I do.”

“Words and actions,” Eveline remarked.  “I know which of the two I heed more closely.”

“Oh, come on.  Just because I don’t want to prop myself up as a god doesn’t mean I don’t listen to you,” he insisted. 

“So you say.”

Then, she went silent retreating to the deepest corner of his mind.  Zeke tried not to categorize it as pouting, but he didn’t know any other way to describe it. 

Either way, he turned his attention fully to the choice before him.  After only a little though, he chose to discard the two new skill choices.  [Worshipper’s Tithe] made him extremely uncomfortable, and it went against his nature to use others to fuel his own progression.  So, removing it from contention was not a difficult decision.  And though he didn’t want to admit it, Eveline had been correct about the detrimental effects of [Cloak of Hellfire].  Perhaps if he hadn’t had other options that were at least as good, he might have considered it more closely.  However, with the other options before him, Zeke didn’t see any reason to take what he considered a flawed skill.

So, the choice came down to one of the three upgrades.  [Aura of the Titan], [Titanic Swings], or the more simply named [Titan].  They all seemed incredibly helpful, but Eveline’s advice kept springing to mind.  Of the three, only one seemed completely beyond him in terms of manifesting the upgrade on his own terms.  It also helped that it offered an immediate upgrade to his most-used skill. 

“Are you going to offer your input before I choose?” asked Zeke.

Eveline remained silent, but Zeke got the impression that she approved of his decision.  He wouldn’t follow her advice blindly, but she was a centuries-old demoness with far more experience than him.  So, it would have been idiotic not to at least consider her input. 

Regardless, Zeke focused on his choice, then chose [Titan].