This Quest is Bullshit - Chapter 150

Chapter 150 - The Crown Jewels

Eve hopped off the throne just in time for the lights to come back on, starting the whole overdramatic ceremony all over again. Not bothering to try and speak over the deafening fanfare, she simply gestured the others back into the main hall. Shutting the door behind them only managed to muffle the heraldry enough for her to explain.

“Long story short,” Eve said once she’d relayed the encounter with Carly, “unless she thought it was worth lying to someone she was about to kill anyway, we’ve got about a week.”

“A week to get as far away as we can,” Wes muttered. “Sounds good to me.”

Eve held up a hand. “Not so fast. We’re not finished here yet.”

Preston furrowed his brow. “Eve, what? It’ll take more than a week to search this place. We really should—”

She walked right past him, making her way to one of the many side doors. “Don’t worry!” she called over her shoulder, “I know where the vault is.”

That got their attention.

Wes, Preston, and Art scurried after her as she approached the seventh door on the left. It swung open for her when she got close.

Eve proceeded to lead the party through a twisting maze of passages that reminded her all too much of the bowels of Dragonwrought Hold. Gods, it’d taken her so long to finally learn her way down there. She whispered a prayer of thanks for Burendian ingenuity as she once more checked the map of the city the enchantments had added to her status screen. Preston had been right, it would’ve taken far more than a week to fully explore this place.

Good thing they didn’t have to.

No longer concerned about constructs attacking them, Eve read through her notifications while she walked. The first few were from the enchantments.

[Alert!] Claimant Found!
[Alert!] Claim Accepted!
[Alert!] Life-Mana Hybrid Recognized!
[Rejoice!] The Great Work is Complete!
[Alert!] Long Live the Queen!

Eve could only assume that fourth message had something to do with the tooltip that’d come with her race change. It’d mentioned that the entire Burendian civilization had been striving to create some kind of living Mana, and that she, as a Manaheart, was their first success. It was almost sad seeing the notification to rejoice sent out millennia after the last Burendian had died. None of them would ever see their lives’ work complete.

At least there was some solace in the fact that it had, at last, finished. The next notification reinforced that.

Secondary Quest Complete: Legacy of the Precursors
Rewards: New Ability, +1t exp

Eve only gave herself a second to drool at the concept of one trillion exp before the other piece of text fully registered. She let out a breath. She’d had an empty passive slot for months now, ever since Haste had combined with Defiant Body. She’d wondered why she’d never been able to fill it; perhaps this was why. Was it possible for the Questing Stones to hold out on you until you finished a particular quest? In the moment, Eve didn’t care.

Ability Unlocked!
Passive Ability - Queen of Lost Burendia
The queen of Burendia is the queen of magic itself, and as the culmination of the Great Work, you’re poised to be the greatest of them all. All Burendian remnants will recognize your authority. All enchantments, Burendian or otherwise, will bend to your will. Gain access to the Ley Travel feature. Wherever Mana can go, you can go. Gain access to the Commanding Presence feature. Gain access to the Overcharge feature. Gather up to five times your maximum Mana for a short period.

Rule with grace. Rule with strength. Rule with empathy.

Rule.

Eve blinked. “That’s a lot of text,” she muttered. It definitely took the cake for her longest skill description, though as she stared at it, it kind of felt like several skills in one. Ley Travel she’d already used to escape from the control room, though she did now consider just how far she could go with it. Similarly, she’d accidentally used Overcharge during the fight with Carly. She had no idea what Commanding Presence did, nor how to activate it, but Eve was certain she’d figure it out eventually.

The rest of the tooltip excited her even further. The bit about Burendian remnants she’d expected—sentries wouldn’t attack her now the enchantments recognized her as queen. As far as manipulating enchantments… Eve couldn’t suppress her grin. It just sounded ripe for abuse.

Eve forced herself to close the skill description and move on to the next notification. At this rate, she wouldn’t get through them all before they reached the vault. If there was loot to be distributed, she wanted to know her full skillset before making any decisions. She also just like getting upgrades. And levels. And stats. She liked it all, really.

Legendary Quest Milestone Reached: Confront She Beneath the Earth
+ 1.072t exp!

Her grin grew yet wider as she raked in another trillion and change exp. She wasn’t surprised to find the encounter had been worth a milestone, but Eve would always appreciate her doubling milestone rewards. Blinking the message shut, she continued to the notifications she’d been waiting for.

Level Up!
Level Up!

Two levels felt almost disappointing for two trillion exp, but Eve knew every inch she got closer to level one hundred, the slower things would get. All progress was forward progress, and if her math checked out, she only needed four more milestones to get there.  She didn’t let disgruntlement take hold, choosing instead to read the next two notifications.

Statistic Growth Upgraded!
+5 Strength/Level

The boost brought her Strength per level up to the same sixty her Dexterity and Intelligence enjoyed. She liked when numbers matched up. Next came her reward for hitting level ninety three.

Ability Upgraded!
Passive Ability - Ethereal Manifestation
When you completely reform, gain the ability to make minor changes to your corporeal form!

Eve blinked. That was the first upgrade Ethereal Manifestation had received since she’d unlocked the skill a year ago, and boy was it a doozy. Once they left the ruins, she’d have to preform all sorts of tests to determine what exactly did and didn’t qualify as a minor change, but shapeshifting—even severely limited, roundabout shapeshifting—could prove immensely useful the next time she found herself in a city.

The upgrade did leave her wondering if it’d been her ongoing secondary quest that had stopped Ethereal Manifestation and her other Manaheart-exclusive abilities from upgrading when she leveled up. Receiving such a change immediately after completing the quest felt like serendipitous timing.

Eve shut the last of the notifications as the hallway opened up to fit a broad stone door, glowing white with enchantment. She needed only step up to it and will it open for it to allow them through.

The vault sat surprisingly empty.

No heaps of gold crowded the corners, no Ar-silver coins or rare gems glimmered upon rows of shelves. Only three stone pedestals occupied the royal vault, each bearing a glass display case and a single, resplendent item.

The three treasures all shared a visual style. They were each wrought in gold that shined far brighter than metal had any right to. They each bore dozens of decorative gemstones that seemed to amplify the light of the enchantments to mirror that of a thousand distant stars. They each sat upon a velvet pillow, waiting for a soul brave enough to claim them.

And there Eve was.

Soft, reverential music hummed through the air as display cases lifted of their own accord, allowing the party access to the three items: A scepter, a necklace, and a crown.

“I was hoping for more Ar-silver,” Wes exhaled, “but I guess I’ll settle for the crown jewels.”

Preston smacked him on the arm.

Eve, not one to let ceremony stand between her and loot, made a beeline for the crown. It was a large and ostentatious affair, masterfully inscribed with depictions of historical moments she didn’t recognized. A series of spires ringed the headpiece, the one at the front in particular looked like it could be wielded as a weapon. Eve Appraised it.

Crown of Burendia
Rarity: Unique

Eve snorted. “I could’ve told you that.” In desperate need of more information, she reached out to grab the gorgeous crown. The moment her skin made contact, it vanished.

You have obtained 194 units of Ar-gold!
1.94 cubic feet of storage available!

“Bandir’s blue balls,” she swore. “It’s Ar-gold. It’s a shitload of Ar-gold.”

“Don’t kid around,” Preston said. “We all know Ar-gold isn’t rea—”

Eve turned around to show off her empty hands.

“Ayla’s tits,” Preston cursed. “You absorbed it, didn’t you?”

Eve nodded, her eyes wide. “It says it can store things.” With a thought, she rematerialized the crown atop her head.

You have lost 194 units of Ar-gold!
0 cubic feet of storage available!

“Though apparently not while I’m wearing it.”

Wes skipped right past asking the obvious question and went straight to the necklace, snatching it off the pedestal and holding it in the air. It didn’t disappear. “It’s like the opposite of Ar-silver,” he said. “It weighs almost nothing.” He sighed. “I can’t absorb it though. Must be a Manaheart thing.”

“Which would imply,” Preston said, leaning in towards the scepter, “that they have other effects.”

Knowing the skill gave more detail when used on currently-equipped gear, Eve Appraised the crown again.

Crown of Burendia
Rarity: Unique
Effect: Quadruples the effectiveness of the Commanding Presence feature. Increases Mana capacity by 30%. Serves as proof of identity and station.

Eve’s eyes bulged. With how massive her Mana pool already was, an extra thirty percent meant just short of fifteen thousand Mana. She checked her supply to see it had indeed risen to over sixty-two thousand. She grinned.

As a test, Eve absorbed the crown again to find the thirty percent disappeared with it. She sighed. It seemed she could either have the two cubic feet of storage space or the enchantments. She couldn’t tell which was better, but if the storage allowed her to dissolve two cubic feet of stuff with her when she dissociated, it might’ve been that.

Preston’s voice pulled her from her thoughts. “It’s a Mana battery!” the healer exclaimed as he looked over the scepter. “It can hold almost a million Mana, but I have to charge it myself.” He held it out towards Eve. “Sounds like something you could use.”

Eve waved him off. “You keep it. Every enchantment is a Mana battery for me, and you can always give me Mana by healing me, remember?”

“The necklace is a shield,” Wes said. “It’s got a flat thirty-percent reduction to all damage taken.”

Preston blew air through his cheeks. “That’s obscene.”

Eve nodded. “The crown gives the same percentage in maximum Mana. For me the two are practically the same.”

Wes shrugged. “I’m not exactly a frontline fighter, but I’ll take it if you’re all happy with what you’ve got.”

Before Eve or Preston had an opportunity to decline his offer, Art stepped in.

Me, me! the trellac sent, jumping up and down and waving his arm in the air.

Wes grinned. “Sounds like we have a taker.” He kneeled down and ceremoniously draped the Ar-gold necklace around Art’s neck. “Here you go, little guy.”

Yes! Art chimed. Reg is gonna be so jealous! Without waiting for any sort of reply, he darted from the vault to go show off his prize to Reginald. Wes let out a charmed laugh.

“I’d question the wisdom of giving a priceless artifact to a ten-year-old, but honestly, I think Art could use the extra protection the most,” Preston eventually said.

“You know he’s been feeling left behind since Reginald got his wings,” Wes added. “And sure, the necklace is priceless, but so was the smile on his face. He’s earned it as much as we have.”

Eve could only grin and give him an approving pat on the back. “You’re a good dad, you know.”

Wes reddened. “Anyway, that’s everything, right? All in favor of getting the hells out of here?”

“Hold on,” Eve said, “there’s one last thing.” She turned back to the center pedestal, setting her gaze on the fist-sized orb that had once sat surrounded by the crown. It was much smaller and shined pure white instead of the familiar inky black, but Eve didn’t need to Appraise it to know it for what it was.

The notification appeared the moment her skin came into contact with the dungeon core.

You have cleared dungeon: Crown of Burendia: +1t exp!

Level Up!

Statistic Growth Upgraded!
+5 Willpower/Level

“Okay,” Eve said. “Now we can leave.”

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