Chapter 37
A Beautiful Opportunity
The Second Threshold Treaty stated that the first king to pass through their second threshold could not use their own royal experience to reach level 74. Instead, 30 days after their ascension, the foreign kings would arrive in their Capitol and gift them the experience they needed to reach their next threshold. In return for their generosity, the foreign kings would receive the method they had used to pass through their threshold, strengthening their kingdoms and earning back a portion of the experience they had used to do so.
The treaty was an act of solidarity, a conscious decision to put the good of humanity above the needs of any kingdom. It was very civilised and well organised, so everyone knew what was coming. However, having so many kings together was a security risk, especially on a continent with both the orcs and dwarves. So, 10 days before the foreign kings arrived, they began sending their high-level warriors to conduct security checks.
This locked down the Capitol.
There were so many checkpoints between where I was working and where I was staying that I decided to take a vacation. Mara didn't want to spend half her days waiting to move from one district to another, so she had given up on seeing the sights. Quilly was exhausted from explaining her involvement in the Experience Reactor to the scholar at the academy, so she used the excuse not to travel.
We all stayed and played board games.
Today it was Risk.
I'd already lost.
Quilly rolled three dice across the dining room table, trying to conquer Australia from Mara and win the game. As the dice bounced and came to rest, a pair of 6s and a 5 came up.
Mara groaned as she saw the numbers that spelt her doom, but rolled anyway to let the game end. A pair of 6s came up, and she grinned in response.
"This is bullshit," Quilly spat. "Why do I have to conquer a fucking place that doesn't exist?"
I rolled my eyes. "For the last time, Australia is a real continent."
"Bullshit. Ranic doesn't even know about it. You just added it to the game to piss people off."
There was a knock at the door.
I rose from my seat and headed for the door. "I'm not having this argument again."
"Fucking farmer bullshit," Quilly replied behind me.
Quilly had left her trapsmith experience in Blackwood, so she couldn't level her class, which meant her mood had grown steadily worse. She wanted to see if helping with the Experience Reactor had given her a new method for passing through her fourth threshold, like it had for me, which would allow her to help one of the trapsmith scholars pass through their fourth threshold.
She made a decent living as my retainer, but she hadn't accumulated a fraction of the wealth that my other retainers had while working for me and selling the threshold would let her live comfortably for the rest of her life. The Blueprint and Patent Office would do the same thing, but she didn't want to trust her future to a building with no track record.
I opened the front door as Eric raised his hand to knock again. He was dressed in his palace uniform, carrying a leather document case in his other hand, which said he was here on business.
I grinned and waved him in. "Come in. I need you to settle a bet for me."
Eric frowned as I turned around and headed for the dining room. "I have important matters to discuss with you."
"This will only take a moment."
Quilly and Mara looked over as I walked back into the dining room and pointed to Australia. "This is Australia. Quilly doesn't believe it's a real place."
Quilly scowled as she recognised Eric's attire, but did a double-take when she recognised his face. "Did you bring a fucking royal scholar here just to prove I'm wrong?"
"No. But now that he's here, I'm going to take the opportunity to." I turned to Eric. "So, is Australia a real place?"
Eric stared at the board and groaned. "Where did you get this map?"
"I recreated it from my memory. Now tell her it's a real place."
"Bullshit. It's not on any of our maps."
Eric stepped forward to study the board. "You're right. It isn't. But it's real."
"Fuck."
I chuckled.
Eric turned to me and sighed. "How many of these board games have you created?"
"Less than one hundred. Why?"
"I need you to gather them up and destroy them. New additions can't contain that continent."
That sounded like a pain. "Am I legally obligated to do so?"
"Yes. That continent is a champion training ground, and we don't want the dwarves to learn about it. It has the highest concentration of high-level monsters anywhere in the world apart from the oceans, and we can't access those."
"Oh."
Quilly snickered as her dice tumbled across the table. "Don't worry, I'll burn the fucker the moment I've won."
I rolled my eyes and waved for Eric to follow me into the sitting room. "So, what brings you here?"
Eric didn't reply until we had taken a seat, and his reply was to place a contract in front of me.
I didn't bother looking at it. "What's this?"
"It's a contract," Eric stated.
"Obviously, why are you giving it to me?"
"The king would like you to make the gemstone from the giant, which is sitting in your quarry, available to every kingdom."
"What do I get in return?"
"Nothing, but the knowledge that you have helped their kingdoms."
I stared at Eric, because I couldn't be hearing him right. The raw gemstone was its cheapest form, which made it the cheapest way to buy it from the system. If the finished version were valuable enough, you could even buy it from the system, cut it, and sell it back to the system for a profit.
However, that was rarely possible.
The cost of buying gemstones from the system usually resulted in the base price of the finished product being sold at a loss. You had to charge well above base to make a profit, and when you did, you were competing with everyone else to see who could cut a stone most cost-effectively.
Unless you controlled the source, which I did.
He was asking me to hand over a fortune.
There had to be a reason for it.
I leaned forward and picked up the contract. I read cover to cover, but couldn't find a reason to hand it over. The contract clearly stated that I agreed to hand over the raw gemstone once it was extracted so the foreign kings could make a blueprint for their kingdoms. Its vagueness and lack of answers made me decide to trust the king.
The king was the sort of man who would go to war for an innocent man, so he was also the sort of man who wouldn't screw someone over financially without explaining why. The lack of an explanation told me I wasn't being screwed over and that he couldn't explain his actions.
I held out my hand, and Jeric passed me a pen.
I signed the contract.
I handed it back. "Now, what do I really get in return?"
Eric smiled. "The kings have agreed that the potential value of this gemstone requires a unique investment from all kingdoms. By signing this contract without forewarning, you have made it possible to receive a Crown's mark from each of the foreign kings, which will enhance the gemstone your quarry produces."
I frowned because I wasn't aware this was a possibility. "What will gaining more crown's marks do?"
"You can't hold Crown's marks from multiple kingdoms simultaneously, so the additional crowns marks will be absorbed by your Crown's Champion mark. This usually provides you with an additional level, but your mark is currently max level, so instead, your mark will grow stronger."
"My mark can go over level 10?"
Eric hesitated. "The technical answer is no. The mark's level will remain the same, but the underlying benefits from the mark will increase like it has leveled. You will have the benefits of level 20 Crown's Champion Mark, but the system will only recognise it as level 10."
That would have been fantastic news if having a Crown's mark didn't come with major drawbacks. It influenced your thoughts and actions, making you want to help your kingdom more than you otherwise would. I couldn't deny that I was far more willing to help Radian now than I had been a few years ago, and that feeling had grown stronger with each additional level my mark gained.
It had mostly worked out in my favour, but it was still annoying.
"Will I be more inclined to help their kingdoms?"
Eric leaned back and smiled. "No. You can't hold two Crown's marks simultaneously. There will be no additional behavioural influences, only benefits."
"Is it worth losing a monopoly?"
Eric scoffed but didn't lose his smile. "Arnold, your quarry is your most valuable asset. An additional 5% to the quality of the gemstones it produces and a 50% increase in their size eclipses anything you would have earned through this gemstone. It will also make your farm and everything else you invest in significantly more profitable."
"Oh…Ohhh."
I realised why he was so happy.
Jeric and Isabelle owned a 20% stake in the quarry. Eric had just made his son and daughter-in-law much wealthier.
"When do I receive the marks?"
"The morning the foreign kings arrive. You'll be waiting in one of the auxiliary throne rooms. They will enter, bestow the crown's mark on you, and then leave. There will be a lot going on that day, so you won't have a chance to address them. The gemstone will then be extracted by the world's most talented miner, who is en route to Blackwood and then transported to the Capitol by a champion before they leave."
"Has the king made any headway in keeping me out of their clutches? I'd rather not be within arm's length of them until he does."
Eric hesitated before losing his cheerful mood. He shook his head and sighed. "Your treaty suggestion isn't possible without exposing your involvement. This is an extremely risky avenue to take, which is why we decided it would be better to help you gain the Crown's marks instead."
I frowned. "What do you mean?"
"You won't be influenced by their Crown's marks, but the foreign kings will be influenced by giving it to you. It will temper their actions, because harming you will be the same as harming their kingdom. It's not as effective as a system-backed treaty, but it's more likely to work."
"So remaining anonymous is still my best option."
"Yes."
"Even though literally tens of thousands of people saw me make hundreds of discoveries in Lunar."
Eric winced. "Yes."
"I don't think this is going to work."
"Neither do we, so it's the first step."
"What are the other steps?"
"I can't go into that with you, but one of the next steps involves using your champion status and the upcoming champion blessing event."
"What champion blessing event?"
***
Champion scholars were always in high demand, so Farentine had drawn a crowd the moment she entered the palace temple. In contrast, I was sitting alone at the back of the room, trying not to bring attention to myself from the roomful of foreign champions.
I didn't dare complain, though.
The king had convinced the foreign kings that this was the time for improvement, that having so many champions sitting around doing nothing for the six days before they arrived was a waste. The foreign kings had agreed with his arguments and emptied their treasuries of tier four cores, like the one the giant had given.
By the time Eric informed me of what was going on, the kings had already traded their excess blessing slots to each other, and I had a slot for every ritual.
Eric had made it abundantly clear that the king had done this as a favour to me, freeing me from having to leave Radian to receive these blessings in foreign kingdoms, putting myself at risk. There were also other blessings waiting for me once the foreign kings left, which would fill out every blessing I could receive from the human kingdoms that were rare or below.
I was getting the full champion treatment.
A treatment I shouldn't be receiving, hence me sitting quietly at the back of the room, so no one asked questions.
However, my hopes of remaining in conspicuous went out the window when Cassandra, Regent Katella's granddaughter, walked through the doors, scanned the temple, and gave me a cheerful wave and excited smile.
Cassandra was a blessed child, which meant she'd inherited the combined total from one of her parents' attributes. In her case, charisma. This came with a lot of drawbacks, but making an entrance wasn't one of them.
Conversations hushed the moment she appeared as everyone turned to stare. She was living art. You couldn't help but stop and witness her grandeur. No one in this temple could be charmed by her beauty, but that didn't mean we couldn't enjoy it objectively. There was something inspiring about looking at her. She was a beacon of health and beauty. If the Ancient Greeks had seen her, they would have dropped to their knees in worship, thinking Aphrodite walked among them.
My mind took note of the changes since we'd last met. Much of the child I'd met was gone, replaced by a young woman of impossible beauty.
She stood around five feet ten, and the vibrance of her skin explained why. She must have turned thirteen, gained her noble class, and received an enormous amount of blessings, pushing her to grow up faster and taller than she otherwise would have.
Her dark blonde hair no longer tumbled past her waist in tight little ringlets, unable to keep up with her growth spurt. However, her white, angelic face and eyes that held the green of an entire meadow in summer still pierce my soul with a colour so intense that it made the distance between us irrelevant.
I smiled back because doing anything else was impossible. I even waved, hoping she would go talk to someone else, because every gaze in the room was following her.
I wasn't so lucky.
Cassandra walked over with unnatural grace and poise and a devilish smile on her face, like she was going to cause trouble. The last time we had been in the same room, she'd sought me out to teach her how to play a Boy Named Sue so she could annoy her grandmother.
That smile told me today would be the same.
Cassandra stopped before me, smiling like I was her favourite person in the world, instead of someone she had met twice. "Hello again, Incarnate Arnold."
She had an almost musical voice when she spoke, soft and rich without any hint of struggle that a natural voice would carry. If I didn't have my mental resistance mark, I would be afraid to hear her sing.
I didn't rise from my seat or invite her to sit, hoping she would move on. "Hello, Cassandra. How are your guitar lessons coming along?"
Farentine had begun running interference to draw attention back to her, so hopefully mentioning something as mundane as music lessons would help.
Cassandra gave a tuneful laugh and flopped onto the pew beside me in the most unnoble like manor. "Very well to my grandmother's constant frustration. May I enquire as to what you are doing here?"
I motioned to the others in the room, annoyed to see that most were still looking our way. "I'm here for the same reason as everyone else, I imagine."
"I didn't know you had such means."
I chuckled at Cassandra's comment, trying not to take offence. "You'll never find me paying such exorbitant prices for a few extra points in an attribute."
Her gaze narrowed, and she leaned closer, like she was studying something interesting. I could see her mind moving a mile a minute behind those beautiful green eyes. There was an intensity to her gaze that hadn't been there before.
"Interesting," she said.
"How's that interesting?"
"If you're not willing to pay to be here, then that must mean you are here as a champion. It's unlikely that you fit the requirements of being a champion, so that must mean your champion ability, which killed the king toad, benefits from additional endurance or intelligence."
Every champion in the room suddenly glared at her, plunging the atmosphere into open hostility. Some even placed their hands on the hilts of their weapons. Investigating a champion's unique abilities was a crime in all kingdoms, and Cassandra was skirting very close to what the law or the champions would tolerate.
Cassandra saw their reaction out of the corner of her eye and turned deathly pale. She understood the message.
"Perhaps we should change the topic," I suggest, grateful she had pulled their attention away from me.
Cassandra nodded too fast and too smoothly, looking a little like a kid who was pushing the boundaries of their comfort zone only to discover themselves much farther outside their depth than they had thought.
I wanted to frown at her reaction, but controlled my expression. "I know your father's wealthy, but isn't purchasing you a spot for you excessive?"
Her father, Androus, was the wealthiest man in Radian, but this felt excessive even for him.
Cassadra shook her head, eyes bouncing from my face to the other champions around us. "Endurance, constitution, and intelligence all sharpen the mind. When you're financially competing with the greatest minds in the world, even a small advantage is worth any price."
Cassandra was apparently being groomed to take over her father's empire someday, which explained many of the odd things I was seeing. "You're different to how I remember you."
She was much more intense and surer of herself, less carefree and fun. I'd seen something similar when Emily raised her attributes through blessings, but not to this degree.
Cassandra smiled like I had given her a compliment. "Thank you, Incarnate Arnold. My father recently took over from my instructors and began teaching me about business. He'll be happy to know his efforts are paying off."
"He never did that before?"
She shook her head. "We played games in the evenings and went on outings during the day, but I lacked the attributes to accurately remember what he wanted to teach me, so he waited until I gained my class and increased my attributes before beginning my formal education."
Rina had once mentioned that Cassandra's father had a weakness for beautiful women. This weakness had allowed Regent Katella to use her daughter to entrap him. This worked well for Katella until Cassandra was born, and she discovered he had a second weakness.
He was a devoted father.
Having a bless child had changed him. He knew his daughter couldn't live a normal life, so he had changed his life to give her one. The past thirteen years had been the least ruthless of his career, and one of the main reasons Rina hadn't seen her business interests deteriorate.
When they realised this, Rina and Katella had done everything they could to involve themselves in Cassandra's life, hoping to use her as a weapon against him.
I wanted nothing to do with their actions. So instead of offering her a compliment or praise, I offered her advice.
"If you're trying to increase your attributes, I have a way for improving your wisdom which hasn't existed for very long?"
Cassandra press to lips together, clearly holding back laughter.
"You know what I'm going to suggest, I take it."
She nodded. "I'm already aware of the Blueprint and Patent Office in Blackwood, the Inventor title, and how difficult it is to acquire."
The ears of every foreign champion in the room perked up at her announcement.
"How? It's not public knowledge."
"My father has his ways."
Rina had warned me Androus would spy on me and not to take it personally, because he was spying on everyone.
"But does he know everything?" I asked.
"He knows enough to tell me I can't acquire the title or level it. Besides, it's much simpler to purchase lesser titles and let their effects accumulate."
It took me a few seconds to figure out what she meant by 'effects accumulate'. And when I did, I felt like a millionaire talking to a billionaire, who was hearing about a vacation which had cost more than their net worth.
My Wood's Master and Stone Master titles would both eventually boost all my attributes by ten, which was a nice little bonus. However, there were a lot of different resources out there with similar titles, so if you were willing to purchase them all, you could boost your attributes even more than you could through your class.
However, the cost of doing this was insane.
Cassandra's father hadn't got the memo.
Or he had and hadn't cared, preferring to make his daughter happy over keeping his wealth intact.
I scanned the temple and then smiled at Cassandra. "Is that why you aren't walking around with bodyguards anymore?"
Cassandra beamed, nodding her head with confidence. She seemed excited that I'd acknowledged her freedom.
"Shouldn't you have become prettier?"
Cassandra had always been blunt. It might have been a byproduct of her natural charisma or her personality, so I doubted she would take offence.
She shook her head without losing her smile. "My charisma hasn't surpassed my natural charisma."
I did the math in my head. Something wasn't adding up. "Are you missing resource titles?"
"No."
"I know this is rude, but I heard your natural charisma was in the high 300s."
"Do I look like someone with charisma in the high 300s?"
I leaned back and stared at her.
She had grown more beautiful since we had last spoken, which was extremely odd. Unless. "Oh, your natural attributes couldn't support your natural charisma."
Cassandra nodded.
"Have you considered taking the bard class as a subclass?"
If it could fix my problem, it would likely fix hers.
"I know the promotion you're thinking of, and it won't affect my natural charisma until my charisma goes above it. It's been tried before."
This was one of the obscure things that didn't make it into books, so I hadn't heard about it. And didn't feel ignorant for not knowing.
"You really are learning from the best. You're already aware of everything I bring up."
Cassandra's face fell. "I'm being annoying, aren't I?"
Cassandra had lived a very sheltered life. Ilia had told me she wasn't allowed to play with other children her age because of the effects of her charisma. Their young minds couldn't handle her beauty, so being near her would twist their personalities. She'd had a lonely childhood and was starved for attention, and, by the looks of it, a chance to fit in.
"Not at all," I said. "I prefer not being the smartest person in the room."
"Most people hate how much I know, because I make them feel ignorant. People don't talk to me anymore."
"Their reaction likely has more to do with how cold they are while standing in your shadow than feeling ignorant."
Cassandra giggled uncontrollably, enjoying the double-meaning word play, and finally sounding like someone her age. Clearly, no one was willing to mess with her, which was just sad.
The girl was desperate for a friend to hang out with.
"Did you bring your guitar?" She asked. "I bet you're better at singing now. Maybe you could teach me another funny song."
"I don't know any other funny songs that translate as well as a Boy Named Sue. I could teach you others that would upset your grandmother, but I left my guitar back in the city."
"That's not a problem." Cassandra held out her hand, and a guitar appeared in a familiar flash of light. She'd purchased it from the system, which told me she had the merchant subclass, which made fixing her appearance much more difficult. "Will this one do. I can buy six others if it doesn't work."
Cassandra was no more effected my charisma than I was by hers, which made her overeagerness heartbreaking. When I was her age, I'd met people who didn't have any friends, and they all acted like her, trying to fill the gap anyway they could. If you offered them an inch, they desperately tried to claw away a mile, hoping to make up for the friendship they hadn't received in the past.
I took the guitar from her, knowing I wasn't helping and that she needed to be around people her age, but I was also unwilling to kick a puppy while it was down.
I checked the guitar over, testing the strings. It was in tune and close enough to the right size not to cause me any issues. "No. This one should be fine."
"What are you going to teach me?
I grinned because there was nothing I loved more than sharing music from my world. "This is called Bad to the Bone. And it's guaranteed to upset your grandmother."
Cassandra turned her body to face me, crossing her legs on the pew, forgetting the important people surrounding her, and how a noble was supposed to act.
The clerics chose that moment to walk in with the core for the blessing and everything they needed to perform the ritual.
Cassandra noticed their arrival and whined like a kid who didn't want to leave a party early. "Nooo."
+172 Endurance
+232 Constitution
+124 Intelligence